All Tangled Up

Chapter 4

I swung through the streets, laughing to myself with joy as the air swirled around me. This was me. This was the way it was supposed to be. I was Spider-Man, no matter what.

I curled my body, lifting my feet up to avoid a truck driving by. I was swinging dangerously low, but I didn't care. Ever since I became Spider-Man, I developed new traits: I'd become a fearless daredevil.

Just because I was fearless didn't mean I was invincible. My spider senses alerted me of another car, but I was too low to the ground to avoid it in time. It slammed into me head-on, and I released my web, being pushed in another direction.

I cried out with joy again at the new adrenaline rush. Finally, I shot another web, sailing into the sky. I swung up a hundred feet, then flipped, diving straight back down. I shouted again and again, falling down to the streets below.

Seconds before I would meet my certain death, I shot yet another web, swinging myself up again with a jolt, still crowing with excitement.

I was having so much fun that I didn't hear the police shout. I didn't hear the guns fired. I didn't hear the sirens blare. All I heard were my own shouts.

I was finally brought back to reality when a bullet squealed past my ear. I gasped with shock, and my hands slipped from my web. I shot another web at a building, almost missing my target. I swung overhead, spinning myself around to avoid the bullets.

Then another bullet came my way. It was a lucky shot, a shot that no one could ever do again, no matter how hard they tried.

The bullet sliced my web in half. My hands were then grasping a web that was only two feet long. And I was falling.

I was too stunned to shoot another web. I was too shocked to realize what was going on. Until...until...

Until it was too late.

I landed perfectly on two feet, on the pavement, but I was in the exact place I didn't want to be...it was the last place I'd ever wanted to be.

I was surrounded by police officers, right in the center of the square. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. If I moved, they would shoot. I would be dead. If I didn't move, they would unmask me and take me to jail. I only stood there, spinning in circles. I could see up the barrels of each and every pistol, pointed straight at my head.

I awoke with a start. That was not just a dream; it was a memory. That was from the day I was arrested. The day everything fell apart.

I squirmed a little in the corner I was snuggled in. I was still up against the ceiling. Once I was comfortable again, I closed my eyes again, but I never fell back asleep. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, though.

Later that morning, or maybe it was in the afternoon, Captain Stacy appeared at my cell doors. I was surprised to see him alone; he had no guards accompanying him.

He looked up at me, slightly amused. I rubbed my eyes for show and dropped from the ceiling, landing on both feet expertly.

"Did you not like your bed?" He gave me a small smile.

"Not enough padding," I said. Captain Stacy chuckled.

"You are a prisoner," he reminded me. "Prisoners don't get first-class."

"Aw, man!" He looked at me for a minute, then he turned the moment more serious.

"Okay, so I came to give you this." He handed me my Spider-Man suit, which I hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Uh, thanks," I said, taking it from his hands.

"Your parole starts today. You will be leaving here just after you finish your breakfast. You will be staying here when you're not fighting crime. Your cell door will be unlocked 24/7 in case you need to leave during the night or any other time. The exit door at the end of the hallway is how you will get in and out. If you decide to use another way out or in, you will be locked inside, this time for good. You do not need to be near the other prisoners or our officers. The exit door alarm will sound anytime you use it. That's one way we will know when to monitor you.

"There is a tracking chip embedded in your suit as well. It's another way that we can monitor you. We can see what you're doing anytime, so we'll know if you're fighting crime or doing something else that you're not supposed to. We will also know if you try to escape: not returning when you should, leaving the city, etcetera.

"And...I believe that's it. Make us proud." He patted me on the shoulder, then left.

"Hey, Captain?" I called after him. He stopped, turned around, and reappeared at my cell doorway.

"Yes, Peter?"

"What about Gwen?"

He sighed. "Gwen knows. She isn't exactly happy. You won't be able to see her until this is all over...if it is all over."

I nodded, looking down at my feet as he left a second time. This time, I didn't stop him.

After Captain Stacy left, I changed into my Spider-Man suit. Just in time, too, because my spider senses were triggered. I sprinted through the exit, listening to the alarm sound to the rhythm of my feet hitting the pavement.