SPIDER-MAN: MARK LEE

31

𝟯𝟭: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗚𝗜𝗥𝗟
𝙈𝘼𝙍𝙆 𝙇𝙀𝙀'𝙎 𝙋𝙊𝙑

Like every Saturday night, Venom and I found ourselves swinging through the streets to halt crimes: The simple ones such as robbery in convenience stores, banks or houses. It was a piece of cake for us, so we finished pretty quicker than expected. I thought we could go home and snuggle in bed, completely unharmed, but Venom said otherwise. Venom announced that they had one last thing to do. And so, when the clock struck 12 in the morning, Venom and I were perched on top of a building's roof to keep an eye on the alleyway below us, specifically the muddied door that seemed like it hasn't been touched for hours.

"Why are we here exactly?" I asked the suited vigilante next to me. I casually sat at the edge of the roof, my feet swinging back and forth.

Venom stood next to where I was sitting. He had his focus exactly where I had mine: The door. "There are people behind that door that I've been following around the city. I've seen them walking surreptitiously, with those high-tech weapons. I think they're buyers. This is our chance to ambush them."

My eyes flickered as I proceeded the words of Venom. "So, this is their hideaway?"

"Possibly. I'm not sure yet, we're about to find out."

"Venom, you know this is a big deal right?" I tilted my head. "You have possibly found their lair. We must get NYDP involved already. We cant be the one waltzing in there, it must be the police."

"No." Said Venom sharply. "Hell, I worked my ass off gathering informations and tracking them down. I should be the one 'waltzing' my way in there, not those lazy policemen."

More confusion started to prod my head as I heard Venom's statement. I slowly pulled my legs away from the edge of the room, and squatted instead, one of my hand on the ground. "You've been investigating alone, haven't you?" I squinted my eyes suspiciously. "You know more about what the hell is going on with these high-tech weapons, and you're not sharing any of them to the NYPD, haven't you?"

I wasn't sure how to feel about this.

Keeping secrets from the NYPD was always something risky for vigilantes like us, as that would make us appear suspicious. There were already existing controversy about Venom and I, and our true purposes and motifs of being here in Queens, so we always tried to follow what NYPD wanted us to do.

We were responsible for two things only: Stopping simple crimes, and be the one in action, not in investigations.

If there were big cases that we were involved in, police mostly wanted us to rescue, and not necessarily investigate. And it seemed like Venom was doing the opposite.

"Fuck yeah, I am." Said Venom with a seethed hiss. "I don't want to do the hard job, only for them to say that 'they will take it from here', because that's all bullshit. They're fucking lazy and don't try to narrow down the case with all the informations and hints they have, even if they're small and subtle. They don't try. They sit their asses eating donuts and drinking coffees, and I'm done of it. People are getting hurt. People are getting into dangerous position, without even knowing, so this time, I'll be recalcitrant."

"I'm disappointed bro..."

"What?"

"Dude, you couldn't have invited me to this secret mini investigation?"

At first Venom thought I was genuinely about to get upset and angry at his decision, but when noticed that I wasn't, he couldn't suppress a small laugh. "Well, I figured that you're a bit preoccupied with your other life." Venom crouched down to my level. "It's good though. Its important that we don't have to be vigilantes all the time, especially you, you're still a kid."