[color=darkgray]Peter threw open the back door and ran towards the attic. Aunt May wasn't home, and they'd kept a sizable amount of the lump sum from Uncle Ben's insurance payout in cash for home repairs, and to parse out for day-to-day expenditures. Fortunately Aunt May was of an age where she hadn't completely bought into the idea of an electronic cashless society, despite how global trends were going. Possibly frustrating for a technologically progressive young teen, but an absolute boon for a young Spider-Man who may need to keep his resource purchases in cash. And the production of his web formula wasn't exactly free. [i]Three hundred and twelve dollars and thirty six cents. Three hundred and twelve dollars and thirty six cents. Three hundred and twelve dollars and thirty six cents...[/i] He kept repeating the total in his own head so he wouldn't forget as he flew up the steps two at a time. He opened a large lockable chest, which held a smaller lockable safe. Upon which he got to a lockable tin with compartmentalised slots for different household expenditures which the family had owned for longer than Peter could remember. [i]Three hundred and twelve dollars and thirty six cents...[/i] He pulled from the home maintenance fund three hundreds and a twenty. A thought flashed through his mind as to what Uncle Ben would think, tapping into the home funds for his own debts. [color=dodgerblue]"He'd want me to be responsible for my own actions, is what he'd want."[/color] Peter told himself, the mask now down and the vocal nodes not pressed to his skin. The grumble in his chest as he put the tin back away wasn't so sure, though. Suddenly the doorbell rang out. Peter dropped his hand to his phone and opened up the app for the security cameras he'd installed by the front door. Waiting the interminable few seconds for it to connect he saw a average sized African-American male and a slightly taller caucasian man wearing a long-coat, with a salt and pepper flat-top and a bold choice in facial hair that only Adolf Hitler, Charlie Chaplin... and for some bizarre reason Michael Jordan have ever attempted. The doorbell rang again. Peter ran from the attic to his bedroom to throw a change of clothes on. Downstairs, the sound of the teenager's echoing footsteps around the house gave the pair renewed hope that someone at least was home and would soon answer the door. [color=peru]"Now when he comes to the door, just let me do the talking Jonah. You can sometimes..."[/color] [color=white][b]"Look, Robbie... You may have found this guy, Parker. And you may even be right that we need him. But I still run this paper. And I'm still responsible for hirings and firings. I'm not going to say anything that might turn him on us. But negotiations are still with me. I'm not having you try and handle this grown man with kids gloves and let him run roughsho--"[/b][/color] [color=peru]"Jonah, he's coming. Sssh."[/color] The pair took half a step back and closer together to put on a better united front. Peter opened the door and looked at the pair of them quizzically, with an eyebrow raised. Somewhat confused by who these two men were and what they wanted. [color=white][b]"Hello young man, is your father home?"[/b][/color] The man in the longer coat asked, trying his best to take the grizzle out of his voice and failing miserably. [color=dodgerblue]"Uhh... he's dead."[/color] Peter replied. Robbie looked down at a piece of paper that gave him the lead. [color=peru]"Oh. How about a... Ben Parker?"[/color] He read off of the scrap. [color=dodgerblue]"Dead as well. Is that what this is about?"[/color] Peter asked the pair. [color=peru]"Well... not really. We were hoping to speak with a Peter Parker abou--"[/color] [color=dodgerblue]"Well that I can help you with. What do you want?"[/color] [color=peru]"Peter-- Peter Parker? The one who runs 'Tech/Sci: Amazing Fantasy or the World of Tomorrow'?"[/color] Peter's nervous eyes went between the pair before he uttered a gentle [color=dodgerblue]"Yeah?"[/color] hoping that he wasn't looking at more trouble he couldn't afford. Jonah's grin suddenly widened with crocodile teeth showing, feelingbetter about his negotiating position now that he knew he was dealing with a child. [color=white][b]"That's the name you went with?"[/b][/color] Jonah poked, hoping to already put the younger one in his place. [color=dodgerblue]"Well, for a while there I was self-conscious about my age and I called it 'Amazing Adult Fantasy', but yeah, that-- that didn't attract the right kind of click-base."[/color] [color=peru]"Oh that's good because we work at the 'Daily Bugle', my name is Robbie Robertson and this is J. Jonah Jameson and we--"[/color] [i]Are charter members of the New York alliteration club and we're proud that we've finally met our new member for 'P'...[/i] Peter thought to himself, but remained silent. [color=white][b]"--are proud to present you with a rare and exciting opportunity to take up our new Unpaid Internship program!"[/b][/color] The crocodile teeth flashed, and his eyes squinted over in a gnarled version of a grin as Jonah presented his opening beyond lowball offer. Robbie turned and looked at him, barely able to take in the audacity of the offer himself. [color=dodgerblue]"Oh."[/color] Peter said. Thinking for less than a half a second before replying [color=dodgerblue]"No, thanks."[/color] And starting to close the door. [color=white][b]"Err-- it's an incredibly exciting opportunity, looks great on a college application. Foot in the door. Umm... Get the opportunity to work with professionals and build important networking relationships--"[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"--in a dying field. That's fine, sir. I'm not really interested in becoming a journalist. I'm already getting offers of internships in the scientific fields that I actually want to pursue when I go to college, sooo..."[/color] The door once again began to close. [color=peru]"Uhh-- it's not actually an internship, Mister Parker!"[/color] [i]Mister Parker..?[/i] Peter thought to himself. The door stopped. [color=white][b]"Robbie!"[/b][/color] Jonah snapped. [color=peru]"We actually came to offer you a paid position to administrate the internet presence for the Bugle. Also, to possibly integrate your blog and vlog into a weekly feature..."[/color] The door swung open. [color=dodgerblue]"A paid position?"[/color] Peter asked. He turned to flat top in the long coat. Jonah's snarl had Robbie slightly hesitant. Peter was pretty sure flat top was the one who was supposed to take the lead. [color=white][b]"Yes."[/b][/color] He said through gritted teeth. The gnarl through his voice all-encompassing. [color=white][b]"A... paid... position. Scaled by your age, of course. And limited by... your billable work hours... since you'll presumably be at school and unable to work full time..."[/b][/color] Jonah gradually looked to pull back whatever kind of control he could find in this negotiation. [color=dodgerblue]"A paid position..? Like a proper real job?"[/color] [color=white][b]"That's right."[/b][/color] Smiled Jonah, relieved that the power in the situation seemed to be shifting. Clearly thinking that 'Maybe this kid doesn't even know how much an adult would get paid to fill the role.' [color=dodgerblue]"So, how much would we be talking?"[/color] Robbie wasn't game to open his mouth. They were prepared to offer whoever opened this door $150k to potentially keep the paper from going under. Jonah was the nostalgic type who held the value of print media itself to be intrinsic and fought the medium's move to an online platform hard. As such, it had become something of a relic, one of the few major newspapers in the world which published as many print copies as it did, and still had classified ads within its pages. Part of this was because of Jonah's ownership and control of the Bugle itself. He liked to call himself Editor-In-Chief, but really he was much more. His preference coming down to the fact he found it less impressive to be able to sign a check and become the owner of a thing, than the reverence he held for the Editor-In-Chief position itself. As tight with money as he could be, and he was, there was no doubt that he was sinking his own funds into the paper at this point. And how much of a loss he was currently running to keep the Daily Bugle afloat. Hiring someone for this role was not something he took lightly. He really didn't want the role to have to exist at all. But he was only now beginning to realise that the 'online presence' was not merely a trend that he would be able to outlast. So it was bittersweet when Jonah gave his offer of... [color=white][b]"Twenty five dollars an hour..."[/b][/color] He tried to get a read of the high school kid behind the door. [color=white][b]"Plus... I guess... the scale minimum for your weekly articles. Blogs... Vlogs... Frogonalogs... Whatever you want to call them."[/b][/color] He tossed in an extra crumb that he was legally obliged to give anyway. Peter scratched the back of his neck whilst holding onto the door. [color=dodgerblue]"Well, Flash was making eighteen bucks an hour for those few months when he was just working at Big Belly Burger..."[/color] [color=white][b]"Err-- well..."[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"...That's FANTASTIC!"[/color] He exclaimed. A sigh of relief passed over the two men. [color=dodgerblue]"He even had cash enough to take Liz Allen to the movies like every week... I mean, his parents usually pay for everything, so I s'pose it wasn't so big a thing... but..."[/color] It finally occurred to him that the two adults were waiting on his response. [color=dodgerblue]"I mean... I should probably ask around. Check with the family about how good that really is, but... I mean, you said it's all usual and to scale, so..."[/color] Jonah turned sheepish, as he considered how the offer would hold up to the informed scrutiny of an adult's eye. [color=white][b]"Well, uhh... I mean, that would be great, except that it would mean you'd miss out on the, err... signing bonus..."[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"Signing bonus?"[/color] Robbie watched as the deal was close to fruition. J. Jonah Jameson was racking his brain trying to think of how small a figure would sound large enough to get this deal done with a child with no experience of the workforce. It was amazing. He was going to gouge this kid for a fraction of the value he'd bring to possibly hold back the tides of progress which had so threatened to flood the paper. [color=peru]"That's right. In return for signing today, here and now, there's a one time payment signing bonus of three hundred dollars."[/color] [color=white][b]"Three hund--?!"[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"--red dollars!?"[/color] The pair exclaimed with vastly contrasting expressions on their face. The grizzle had well and truly returned to Jonah's voice, along with a snarl which Robbie was well more than acquainted with, and Peter would come to find familiar in the following days. [i]Woooooooow...[/i] Peter thought to himself. Jonah reached for his checkbook. [color=dodgerblue]"Waitaminute."[/color] He said, a smile stretching across his face. [i]Well, if they've come this far...[/i] [color=dodgerblue]"Draw it up to three hundred and twelve dollars and thirty six cents and you've got yourself a deal."[/color] The pallor dropped from Jonah's face, and the aggression replaced with bewilderment at the audacity of the youth. A warm grin spread across 'Robbie' Robertson's countenance. [color=peru]"Deal."[/color] The flush rushed back into Jonah's face as he scrawled out the check to the exact figure. The snarl coupled with growled mutterings which Peter couldn't quite make out, as he wrote the check out on 'Robbie's back, complete with a particularly hard and emphatic period separating the dollars and cents, which brought a chuckle to the man as he smiled up at the young boy, a rare sparkle seemingly in his eye. They handed over paperwork, which Peter filled out basics and signed against the doorframe of the house. [color=white][b]"Rrr... this part you give to the girl in admin."[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"You can't run it to her for me?"[/color] Robbie clenched his teeth and winced, knowing what was coming. [color=white][b]"WHAT?! YOU WANT ME TO GET YOU COFFEE TOO?!? THE YOUTH OF TODAY, ROBBIE! THIS IS WHAT I KEEP TALKING ABOUT! WORK ETHIC! LAZY, SHIFTLES--!"[/b][/color] [color=dodgerblue]"Or not... that's fine Mr Jameson. I should probably come by the office sometime anyway, just to see who I'll be working with, even if most of it will just be by remote online..."[/color] Robbie handed over the check and the pair walked away, as he looked to extinguish the fire Peter had accidentally set off between Jonah's ears. He slapped the check in his own hand with a smile, and gave the pair a wave as they returned to their car. [color=dodgerblue]"Well, howd'ya like that, maybe the ol' Parker luck has turned around, huh?"[/color] He went inside to update his site and inform his followers of the changes that would be taking place. [/color] [hr] [center][img]https://www.thebanner.org/sites/default/files/styles/article_detail_header/public/TIN-602%20Spiderman_Homecoming_large_all.jpg?itok=28Cw_kpr[/img][/center] [sup][h1][b][center][color=darkblue] S P I D E R - M A N[/color] [color=crimson]S P I D E R - M A N[/color][/center][/b][/h1][/sup][hr] [color=darkgray]Peter's face grew more animated, the further he delved into the topic of discussion on his last Vlog to be hosted by his own site for a while. [color=dodgerblue]"...and the fast paced world of Artificial Intelligence and self-learning logorithms and robotics, with the likes of ICM Corporation's Doctor Petty, Professors Ivo and Thomas Morrow, Doctor William Magnus working from his own laboratories in Hoboken, the question is less 'will the supercomputer of tomorrow utilise Artificial Intelligence' and more 'when will it be upon us?' And that's the Amazing Fantasy for this week's look in Science and Technology. Oh! And exciting news! This will be the last update hosted from here in a while! Look out for the newest blogs and vlogs to be coming at you from me, Peter Parker, courtesy of the website for the 'Daily Bugle'! Oh... and look for the site itself to get a bit of an overhaul in the coming weeks, as they've brought yours truly on board to straighten out the online presence! Tuck in the corners, new coat of paint... we'll see what we can do. Until then, though! Excelsior!"[/color] He concluded the recording session and wondered if they'd let him continue to use his regular send off line. It did seem a bit hokey for a major newspaper publication, but they also wanted his impact on their presence. Their words. Everything was working out! He'd be able to take on an internship after all, and was once again beginning to get excited at his choices, now that he was going to be getting paid to do something he was basically doing in his own time for free, just on a slightly different scale. Afterall, how much could the Bugle's online site and coding infrastructure really need an overhaul? He'd been solo running his own site for a while now, he had a good handle on things. How much change could a major publication really need? He was familiar with the Bugle's building, he'd pop in tomorrow, do the basic introductions, hand in his paperwork and run an eye over the code. Afterall, it was going to be his responsibility now. And they were paying for his services. Wait-- responsibility. Pay. [i]Oh no![/i] Peter ran a first sweep on the vlog recording, and pulled off the outer layer of clothing and pocketed the money he'd taken from upstairs, and threw his mask on before running out the back door and swinging away. [hr] Peter touched down just outside the bodega, shattered chunks of broken glass cracking beneath his feet, and went inside. [color=dodgerblue][b]"Uhh... Hi."[/b][/color] He offered sheepishly to the man behind the counter. [color=dodgerblue][b]"I've got your money. Right back, as I said."[/b][/color] [color=chartreuse]"You call this 'right back'?!"[/color] The man behind the counter yelled. Peter dug into his pocket and pulled out the four wrinkled notes. [color=dodgerblue][b]"There ya go."[/b][/color] [color=chartreuse]"Okay. You stay on board though. No checks!"[/color] [color=dodgerblue][b]"Wait, I thought we agreed, this was all just a misunderstanding!"[/b][/color] Peter's eye strayed to the board which had been through some changes since he was last here a few hours earlier. There was now a large circle on the board saying 'Circle of Trust' with a scrawl which appeared to be the signature of Robert DeNiro, where all of the photographs on the board appeared well outside of the circle. Including one incredibly distinctively dressed blue and red superhero. [color=chartreuse]"No asshole. But stay on board. No checks. That's fair! Spoke with Mister DeNiro, he agree. That's fair!"[/color] [color=dodgerblue][b]"Wait... you spoke to him in the few hours since? What, is he running this place with you? How often is he here?"[/b][/color] [color=chartreuse]"No. Concerned citizen. Good neighbour. Spoke with him, told him what I think. He agrees."[/color] [color=dodgerblue][b]"I'm... so confused..."[/b][/color] Peter replied, palms outstretched. [color=dodgerblue][b]"Well, whatever... I guess we're all square now at least. From here, I guess all I can do is try and win back your trust."[/b][/color] The automatic doors opened and he stepped out into the early night, before realising with a moderate panic that Aunt May would be expecting him home for dinner. He hoped that the good news with the job would be enough to keep him out of the doghouse. ...and that he'd have time to cash the signing bonus check before she'd next look at the Housekeeping funds. 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