NINE MONTHS AGO
The sun baked down on the vibrant hillsides of Rincón, Puerto Rico, where the green kissed the sea and the breeze carried the scent of salt and ripe fruit. A sleek black SUV pulled into the winding private road leading up to a new estate perched on a lush slope. The mansion stood three stories tall, built in a Spanish-Colonial revival style; terra cotta roof, white stucco walls, dark wooden shutters. An infinity pool curved behind it. Palm trees framed the driveway. To the east, the sea stretched to the horizon.
It had everything. It was the dream.
Felix stepped out of the SUV in a black linen shirt and dark jeans, his sleeves rolled up. Sweat already glistened on his brow as he opened the trunk. This was like the fourth time. The fourth! Back and forth, back and forth.
"You know we could've just hired movers," he muttered.
"And cheat your back out of a proper workout? No way," said Gloria Morales, Rio's mother, hauling out a box labeled kitchen - breakables like it was filled with pillows.
Rio laughed from the front steps, pulling her curls into a messy bun. Her skin glowed in the sun. She wore cutoff shorts, sneakers, and a tank top.
"My mom's philosophy," she called, "is if you don't sweat on move-in day, you don't deserve the house."
"It's a six-bedroom estate on a private hill. I bought the house."
"So sweat harder," Gloria barked with a grin.
From behind them, Maria, Rio's younger sister, lugged a smaller box with a dramatic groan. A plump divorced woman, she huffed. "This mansion is ridiculous. Do I get my own floor?"
"You get a guest room and your own drawer in the fridge," Rio replied.
The group moved in and out of the main entryway, placing boxes by room as they joked and chatted. Felix helped carry bookshelves and cookware, artwork, and a few oddly sentimental items like a toy kitchen Maria refused to give away.
All of their past, present, and future could fit in this place. It was like a lottery. The lottery that was Felix.
The basement was cooler than expected, well-lit with recessed lighting and fresh paint. One side had already been converted into a media room with plush seats. The other side was empty save for boxes and ideas.
Rio sat on a bench near the wall, cracking open a bottle of water and tossing one to Felix.
"Once I start my practice, I think I'll start a little clinic," she said. "You know, low-cost health support for anyone who needs it. Especially single moms. Teenagers. Stuff like that. I need the practice and, well, you gave me the money, right? Gotta do something with it. And this place…wow. Miles will love it."
Felix took a seat across from her. "My hero."
Rio gave him a look. "Don't go charming me too hard, Faeth. My mom already asked if you're proposing."
He laughed, but not too loudly. A shared breath. The type that hung.
"You ever keep secrets, Felix?" Rio asked suddenly, spinning the bottle in her hands.
He hesitated. "Why?"
Rio looked at the ceiling. "When I was married to Jefferson, I didn't tell him I wanted to be a doctor until two years in. Just said I liked volunteering. I didn't lie, I just... didn't say it out loud. I kept it in a box somewhere in my chest."
Felix leaned forward, elbows on knees.
"Do you regret it?"
"No," she said, honest. "But it hurt worse when he found out."
He studied her. The room around them hummed with silence.
Rio nudged him with her foot. "So what about you? Mr. Good Guy. You have any ambitions? Or are you just out here buying houses and scholarships for your... undefined lover?"
Her tone was light. Teasing. Safe. She didn't mind. She was older, already married once. She liked slow. But Felix...
Felix took a deep breath. It sat like a stone in his chest.
The truth.
He could say it now. Right here. He could tell her that he was Spider-Man. That the man who bought her this mansion had also dropped a kaiju into orbit, outwitted the greatest superspy in human history, and helped Gwen Stacy gain the Sheath.
He could tell her that he had more than one life.
A long time ago, she had joked: The only way I'll accept a harem is if you gift me and my family a mansion in Puerto Rico and New York. Oh, and an MIT scholarship for Miles. Aaand ten million dollars."
He had done all that.
He was sure she wouldn't mind, even if the other women were for "superhero" reasons.
But the truth. The truth mattered.
Felix opened his mouth and…
…
…
…
PRESENT DAY.
"Rio, you're going to blind us with that bikini!" Gloria called out, arms crossed as her daughter stepped out of the pool, water cascading down her sun-kissed skin. She was an older woman with wrinkles and strands of hair over her forehead. Long since retired, her face became rounder and laugh marks marked her.
The to-be-doctor laughed, running a hand through her dark, wet hair. Usually, they weren't so smooth but with this water, swimming so often and regularly, the curly affect was beginning to reverse ever so slightly. "Oh, come on, Mamá. You're just jealous I can pull this off better than you ever could."
The plump sister was lounging on a poolside chair with a mimosa in hand. "Careful, sis. Mamá might just push you back in."
Rio rolled her eyes, grabbing a plush white towel from the poolside table. She draped it around her shoulders, but not before accidentally giving her family a full view of her figure. Her bikini was a deep emerald green, cut high on the hips, and barely covered her curves, leaving little to the imagination. The triangle top hugged her breasts perfectly, the fabric straining slightly as she moved.
"You two are just mad because you're stuck in your one-pieces," Rio teased, walking over to her chair and lying down. She stretched out her long legs, crossing them at the ankles, and leaned back, letting the sun warm her skin.
Gloria shook her head. "All you've been doing is swimming. What of your studies?"
"I told you, mama, I'll do them. I just…want to spend this time in my youth to relax."
"Where did all that ambition go?" A sigh from her mother. Then the grandmother saw her own reflection in the water. The pool was tempting her. A second sigh. "This place…it drains you."
Aaand she jumped. This old, retired woman jumped. Rio giggled and told her sister, "Told ya." That was when Rio's phone buzzed on the table and she glanced at the screen. Speak of the devil. She picked it up, answering with a playful tone. "Hey, handsome. Miss me already?"
Felix's smooth voice came through the speaker. "Always. But I'll be there soon. Just wrapping up a few things here."
Rio's heart fluttered, and she couldn't help but grin. "Good. I'm getting bored of just lazing around in the sun all day."
"Oh, I'm sure you're suffering terribly," Felix teased. "I heard you went on a shopping spree."
"You saw?"
"It is my credit card."
"I'll make it up to you."
Felix chuckled and Rio could almost picture his smile. "Keep talking like that, and I might just have to skip my meetings."
Rio bit her lip, a shiver running down her spine despite the heat. "Promises, promises."
There was a pause, filled with the kind of tension that made Rio's stomach twist in the best way. "Like I said, I'll be there in a couple of hours," Felix finally said. "Don't go anywhere."
"Wouldn't dream of it." She hung up the phone and set it back on the table, her thoughts already drifting to Felix's arrival. She could practically feel his hands on her skin, his lips on hers—
"Earth to Rio," Maria called, snapping her fingers. "You're staring off into space like some lovesick teenager."
Rio blinked, pulling herself out of her daydream. "Jealous again, Maria? Maybe you should find yourself a rich boyfriend too."
Maria rolled her eyes, but there was no malice in it. "I'm good, thanks. I'll just live vicariously through you."
Gloria swam and relaxed. She was suddenly melted in the luxury of it all. "This is the life, isn't it? No more worrying about bills or rent. Just the sun, the pool, and endless mimosas."
Rio smiled, feeling a swell of gratitude. It hadn't always been like this. Growing up, they'd struggled. Money was tight, and there were times when Rio wasn't sure if they'd even keep the roof over their heads. But now? Now they had this. A sprawling mansion in Puerto Rico, a pool that seemed to stretch on forever, and the kind of freedom they'd only ever dreamed of.
And it was all thanks to Felix.
Rio's thoughts drifted back to him, to the way he'd swept into her life like a storm, turning everything upside down in the best possible way. No red flags, no anger issues, and really good sex. Like…amazing sex.
Rio closed her eyes, letting the sun warm her skin, the sound of the pool's gentle waves lulling her into a state of pure relaxation. But even as she lay there, she couldn't ignore the anticipation building inside her, the knowledge that Felix was on his way, that soon, he'd be here, and she'd be in his arms.
***
Rincón, Puerto Rico, where the green kissed the sea and the breeze carried the scent of salt and ripe fruit and there was a mansion with a pool at the center of it all.
What a mouthful. It came with the pricetag.
A mansion with security and peace and everything in between. The three-story dream was protected by a tall wrought-iron gate and topped with secret security cameras and motion sensors. Twin stone pillars framed the entrance, carved with floral motifs and inlaid with a small embedded intercom panel. Alongside the main gate, a coded keypad stood beneath a shaded awning. The entire estate was surrounded by a seven-foot stone wall, layered with tropical climbing plants that gave the perimeter a natural, camouflaged look.
From the road, the mansion looked like a serene paradise—but to anyone trying to get in uninvited, it was a fortress.
Well, except Felix. When he drove up in his self-driving limo, there was a smiling security guard waiting. Felix rolled down the window.
"Well, well, well. Felix Faeth. Long time no see, boss."
Felix grinned. "Look at you, drinking coffee. You know, that's bad for you heart."
Aaron drank the cup of coffee and sighed in relief. "You got me this job, it's your fault if I get a heart attack, man."
Aaron Davis, the only guy he could trust to protect Rio here. Rather than run around as a mercenary or a thief, Felix decided to bring him into the fray. It took a lot of convincing, especially because Miles himself was off to boarding school, but Felix told him that once he was in the books, he'd stay.
Technically, he was employed under Bishop Security. Following Eleanor Bishop's death, the company was supposed to go to her daughter and the investors involved with the company. Kate herself wasn't too interested in running a company, preferring to compete for the Olympics, and asked Felix to run it for her. So he did. It took little effort with his immense wealth and even less effort to do some clerical errors and get Aaron Davis inside.
The Prowler was gone, or maybe it was more accurate to say he was repurposed. His parents and Mario—they were his strongest connections. His two weaknesses. He couldn't be Spider-Man unless he could guarantee their safety, and he could only trust someone like Aaron Davis to do it.
"How's it going? Work good?"
"Yep."
'Except for the potential threat of me going to SHIELD.'
He was still sitting on that. Told Norman he didn't time way to think. He had too many close friends and family to up and leave SHIELD, and he also wasn't entirely trusting of Oscorp given Reed's death and the fact that a literal superspy had been in their midst. Osborn understood. Ultimately, he was a logical creature.
Regarding Oscorp, Felix left Kavita Rao in charge of things, like he always did when he went away. If there was something strange with Luke, she'd like him know. If she didn't, Herbie would let him know. Win-win.
"Don't get bankrupt, you hear me? Otherwise, I'll have to start thieving. In my old age, that's getting harder and harder."
"That's why I let you bring your friends. To help pick up the slack in case you eat too many donuts."
"Security guards and cops, we're different, man. We prefer black coffee, they like frappuccinos and shit."
"Right, right. Sure."
Aaron laughed and gave a signal. The gate opened. Felix went in.
He parked and got out. In his jet, it was hardly an hour ride. He was in a full suit, slightly agitated by the tightness. Alas, this was the way of wealth. Gotta look the part sometimes. The front door opened before Felix could even knock. Gloria Morales, dressed in a breezy floral blouse and apron, greeted him with a grin so warm it could chase clouds.
"Felix, mijo! You're just in time. Come, come. I have lunch ready. You look thin."
"Hi, Gloria," he said, smiling as she ushered him in before he could object. "I was hoping to see Rio first—"
"No, no, no. You, come sit first. You've earned arroz con gandules and tostones." She tapped his chest. "You work like a man, now eat like one."
Felix gave a helpless shrug and followed her into the kitchen, which was already fragrant with spices and heat. The table was set with fresh guava juice, rice, pork, plantains, and a small dessert he didn't recognize.
"You spoil me," he said, sitting.
"You spoil us," Gloria replied, lifting a plate and setting it before him. "So. Be honest. Are you planning to marry my daughter?"
"That... escalated quickly."
"Don't play coy. I'm old, not blind. You're here. You bought her a house. And…the passion. I hear it."
Felix picked up his fork but didn't answer right away.
Gloria nodded knowingly. "Good. Think about it. That means it matters."
Felix took a bite. He liked it. Quickly, he finished his meal, impressed the old woman. Smiling and putting down the fork, he asked, "So where do I find Rio?"
"The rooftop. She's just enjoying the sun." A bigger smile was on her face. Gloria didn't say it but she truly appreciated what he had done to them. To all of them. Aaron included. "You know, Rio and Jefferson…I did not approve of them. And I especially did not approve of them leaving here to go to the US. I am glad that you are not so…passionate."
"So there's a balance I need for passion, huh?"
"Yes. Trust me."
The rooftop. His next destination.
After finishing lunch and escaping Gloria's gentle interrogation, Felix decided to head up there. The mansion's central stairwell was wide and open, framed with sleek glass railing and cast iron steps. As he ascended past the second floor, a blast of guitar riffs echoed downward. Something heavy. Loud. Australian rock? Definitely not ambient spa music.
Coming down the steps in a relaxed half-dance was Eden Fesi, his curly hair held back by an orange band, matching his tinted visor glasses. His jacket—orange and black—hung open like he didn't care if he was sweating in it. A speaker hung off one hip, pumping out riffs from Wolfmother or King Gizzard.
"Oh, boss," Eden called, bobbing his head, lowering the volume a notch with a wrist tap. "Good to see you. Apologies for this. An update, everything is good."
"Even in the past eight months?"
"Aside from one burglary, nothing." He tapped his visor, smiling. See, Eden had pretty intense ADHD. Only way for to focus according to his files were missions with SHIELD, music, or visors that showed every single camera in the mansion. A special device Felix made for him. Pool cam. Front gate. Kitchen. Even the chicken coop cam in the back, Eden saw it all in the orange visors.
According to reports, Eden Fesi was a SHIELD agent who went MIA. In reality, he met a monk in Kata Tjuta, returned to the city, and became a robinhood. Stealing from the rich, giving back to the poor. He had this uncanny ability to see the world and its weaknesses. There was no facility he couldn't break, assuming he had the blueprints for them. Aaron encountered him in his prime years as the Prowler, and, well, convinced him to go straight.
He turned his music back up. "Alright, I'm off to check the west perimeter. Try not to fall in love too hard up there."
Felix arched a brow. "That obvious?"
Eden only laughed, throwing a casual wave behind him as he disappeared down the next flight of stairs.
The rooftop terrace was drenched in warm sun and a breeze that carried just enough ocean spray to feel real. Plush lounge chairs, potted succulents, a shaded pergola with gauzy curtains billowing like sails.
And in the center of it all—
'Ooh, a new bikini.'
Rio Morales, reclining in a deep lounge chair, sunglasses on. She was a reading medical textbook and in erotic, slingshot red bikini. You know, the ones with straps that extended upwards to cover the breasts and shoulders and around the neck. Pretty much doing the bare-minimum in keeping things PG.
Surprisingly, the textbook held an equal amount of his attention. It was a big, heavy one. Obviously reading a textbook was not as attractive as a simple book but for Rio he gave a pass.
"I smell the plantains," Rio's voice rang out. "You let my mom trap you again?"
"I can't say no to her. You know that."
"She asked about marriage again?"
"...Immediately."
Rio laughed, sitting up and pulling off her sunglasses. "Good. Let her keep you on your toes."
Felix leaned against the terrace railing, looking out at the endless blue sea. For a moment, all the satellites, serums, and surveillance disappeared. Rio approached, put her arm around his waist, and leaned into him.
This was nice.
"Are you happy?"
Felix…didn't know where that came from. He just asked it like…like he himself was lost. Maybe because he was.
Rio snickered. "Are you kidding me? I'm having the time of my life! All of my family is! It's, like…it's like heaven. For a bunch of nobodies like us."
"You're not nobodies."
"So you say. It's…hard to believe, you know." Her voice lowered. "After the struggle. After so much bad luck." A smile lit up her face again. "Say, I was thinking, do you want to go a nude beach soon? Honestly, I've been finding bikinis a bit restrictive."
He peeked down. "This bikini is restrictive?"
"Isn't it?"
A beat passed until Felix threw his head back, laughing. "What about being a doctor?"
"Ooh, don't think you got me there, Mister. I'm keeping up with my studies."
"I see that. Maybe you want to open a different type of clinic? Nudity only."
"Ah! Now you're making me sound like a perv!"
"Aren't you?"
"It's about liberation, honey. Ticking off the bucket list. When you're a single mother, all you can think about is being a single mother. And now…well, now I don't. And now I want to do things."
"Perv."
Rio side-eyed him with a certain smile. "You reeeally know how to push my buttons, don't you, Felix Faeth?"
He looked at her and he kissed her. There was nothing unnatural about it, it just happened. They connected. They always did.
"So." Rio smiled, forehead touching, voice in a thrilled whisper. "What did my favorite superhero do this time?"
"Spider-Man? You know him..." He teased her by bobbing his head left and right. "...sleeping with the Wakandan princess."
A gasp. "Felix! Are you kidding me?"
"Do I ever kid?"
Her shock turned into a smile and then laughed.
"Well then, looks like I am a lot of overwriting to do~"
…
…
…
He told her. All those months ago, he told her.
"S-Spider-Man?"
At first, Rio was just plain confused. She thought he was going to follow it up with a joke. He didn't. He wasn't. He could have brushed it off and done a backflip to turn it into a joke.
He just…couldn't.
"Rash?" Felix called out. "Show her."
Felix was standing there in black linen shirt and dark jeans. The bottle slipped from Rio's grasp. The next moment, his clothes became black liquid, changed, and he was Spider-Man. Red on the upper half, black everywhere else.
The poor woman jumped to her feet, hands on her mouth. "Oh my…oh my…oh my god…! Y-you're…"
"I know. I know it's crazy and wild and…"
"Y-you…you saved New York."
"I did."
"A-a-and you…you even saved t-the princess of Kenya a-and…"
What else? What else did he do? There was so much. Too much.
His fists clenched. "Do you remember when your ex-husband Jefferson was arrested? When he said he was the Scorpion? That was…me."
Rio sat back down, hand on her chest, close to hyperventilating. Felix was scanning her to make sure that wouldn't happen.
"S-so Jefferson…d-did you do it for me or for…"
"Sort-of." He let out a heavy breath. It was like confessing all his sins. "Do you remember the attack on Oscorp Tower? My friend Reed Richards died and…" His voice cracked. This was the first time he had ever told someone out loud. It felt wrong. He pushed on. "Somebody was behind it and I've been investigating. The Maggia, the Maffia, Martin Li—"
"All those reports of crimes being stopped all over the world…t-that was you?" Rio seemed to look at him in a whole new light. "Amazing…"
Behind his mask, he flushed. This…this was really different.
"Yeah. And Jefferson, he ran this operation called—"
She hugged him.
"I'm sorry."
Felix stiffened and put his arms around her. "What for? I should be apologizing for—"
"If it wasn't for me, I bet you would have been saving more lives. And I bet…I bet you were struggling to do anything to Jefferson because of me and Miles. Or to tell us because of that. But look." Rio and him were suddenly looking into each other, maybe for the first time ever. "I've made my peace. I'm okay with whatever Jefferson did. I'm okay."
Spider-Man relaxed. Had he ever relaxed when he donned this costume? No, definitely not. This was the first time he had ever relaxed.
"And you?"
"Well…" Rio stepped back, hands still on his waist. Her eyes wandered and squinted. "It's…kinda tight, isn't it? Don't your balls get a little—"
Spider-Man let out a laugh. "Damn perv."
"S-sorry, I just know men struggle with that! It's not—oh gosh, that's not what I meant! Believe me!"
He laughed some more and Rio pouted and argued that she wasn't a perv.
"S-s-so, wait, about all the money you have…?"
"All legit. Separate from my activities as Spider-Man. Although…" He tilted his head. "I do take advantage of what the bad guys do. Beat them up, buy their companies, and change it for the better. That sort of thing."
"Like what you did with Martin Li and FEAST then…" Rio, again, seemed to have nothing but awe. "That's smart! W-wait, what about the government? Do they know?"
Behind the mask, his lips flattened. "Don't know and won't ever know."
"How can you say that? There's like the CIA and the FBI and the…the NYPD. Okay, well, maybe the NYPD isn't a worry but the others are! R-right?"
"Remember," he tapped at his temple, "big brain. Like, really big brain. If Gwen Stacy, a high school girl could get away with it, so could I."
"B-but even she got caught—"
"I won't. I learned from her mistakes. And, I'll probably show you later, but I have this awesome supercomputer. Beyond military grade. They won't find me."
"A-a supercomputer!? L-like..." She went into a hush. "Deep Blue?"
"...yeah, let's go with that."
Sometimes, he forgot about her age.
"That's...incredible. A supercomputer...and Spider-Man...." She slowly her breathing. She had to, or else it might have become a health concern. "Felix, this…this is a big secret you're sharing with me."
"I know. It's because I trust you—and because it'd be unfair if I wasn't honest at this point. I'm Spider-Man, I go around the world, I do spywork, I try to help the world, and sometimes…"
"You'll be gone."
"And I don't want to lie about it. Not to you."
Rio cupped his cheek. "Felix. Thank you. Thank you so much. For trusting me. For believing in me. F-for everything, really. I-I can't…all I can do is repay you with my life. With my love and everything I am." Her fingers went down. The Symbiote blocked any and all people from lifting his mask but for her…
He let her lift it up.
"Hah…wow. It really is you. I just…a superhero. You of all people. S-so what can you do?"
He smiled. "You've seen what I can do."
Rio flushed and exhaled loudly. "R-right, stupid question."
There was silence. She stared at his lips and then down at the spider-emblem.
"Wow…you're Spider-Man. You're the Amazing Spider-Man."