Being Spider-Girl wasn’t easy. In fact, nothing in Jiwoo’s life had been easy since that fateful day. She’d woken up stuck to her sheets with the biggest and weirdest spider she’d ever seen on her face, and things had mostly gone downhill from there. She’d accidentally punched through a wall, got stuck on just about everything, and webbed up the bathroom by sneezing. Sure, there were useful things about her powers. She could now see in the dark, and it just about took being hit by a truck to hurt her, but she wasn’t sure that made up for the stingers that would randomly emerge from her fingertips. At one point, she’d accidentally left a girl stunned and frozen in the bathroom with them. Also, there seemed to be more spiders around her, for some reason. She wasn’t sure it that was because of her powers, though.

Eventually, she learned to control them all. Sometimes webs still came out of her wrists when she sneezed, but for the most part, there were no more near-death accidents. And somehow, through it all, she’d managed to keep her powers and identity a secret. She hadn’t wanted to be a superhero (not really, she was kind of afraid of it all) but she’d quickly found that she couldn’t just stand by when bad things were happening and she had the power to stop it. So she became Spider-Girl. High school student by day, superhero by night. It was weird, but it was her life now.

The one thing that she did love about being Spider-Girl, though, was the freedom it gave her. Swinging through the night sky was calming, when she wasn’t fighting bad guys. So often times, when something stressful happened, she’d find herself putting on her suit and slipping out of her bedroom window, ready to swing.

Tonight was one of those nights. What was supposed to be a peaceful dinner with her family had exploded into an argument, and it had all gotten too much for her to handle. Too many harsh words had been thrown her way, and the yelling had gotten too much for her already sensitive ears. So she’d slipped away to her bedroom and locked the door, knowing that nobody would notice she was gone.

It was a clear night, the stars and moon shining bright overhead as she swung from building to building, and she took her time moving around the city, enjoying the night air. Quiet nights were rare, but even the streets seemed to be calm, not near as many cars zooming past as usual. Landing on top of one of the many business buildings, Jiwoo took a deep breath and sat down, dangling her feet over the edge. Aside from the peach accents on her suit and hood, she almost blended into the blackness of the night, a dark figure peering down at life passing by below.

Sighing, she laid back and stared up at the night sky for a moment before closing her eyes. Life had been hard recently. A little nap wouldn’t hurt anything, not up here, anyway.

-

“Hey, you okay? You’ve been tired recently.”

Jiwoo had opened her eyes to Sooyoung, which was not great for her heart. Sooyoung, the school’s most popular (and most beautiful) cheerleader, had smiled when Jiwoo blinked at her, which was also not great for her heart. Although they’d been friends since middle school (not super close friends, but friends) Jiwoo had always been a little on edge around the other girl. She’d been gorgeous since, well, forever, Jiwoo guessed. So it was hard not to develop a crush. Jiwoo had fallen hard, but even though she was tentatively sure the other girl liked girls too, she’d never had the confidence to ask her out.

“Yeah,” Jiwoo had said, finding her words as she sat up and rubbed at her eyes, giving her friend a sheepish smile. “School’s just been stressful recently.” She couldn’t tell Sooyoung the truth: that she’d been chasing around a crazy criminal for a week and got beaten up by him before managing to finally deliver him to the police the night before.

“I get that. This biology homework makes me want to die,” Sooyoung had said, flipping her beautiful hair over her shoulder and letting out a sigh that sounded musical to Jiwoo’s ears. “But you have to get some sleep, Jiwoo! Otherwise that smart brain of yours is going to deteriorate. You remember what that guy in the Ted Talk said!”

She hadn’t. She’d pretended she did. “Yeah, I know. I’ll take a nap today, I promise.”

“You’d better.”

“Sooyoung!” Jinsoul, another girl on the cheer squad, had bounded up, taking Sooyoung’s arm in her own and smiling brightly. “Come on, Heejin said she’s going to take us all to lunch in her new car!”

“Oh, fun!” Sooyoung had turned to give Jiwoo a sheepish smile. “See you later, Jiwoo? Good luck with your homework!” And with a little wave, she’d disappeared, off to her other friends, leaving Jiwoo to sigh and put her head down again behind her.

“You probably should have decided on someone else to crush on,” Jungeun, her best friend, had said as she sat down beside her, earning her a shove from Jiwoo.

“Don’t remind me.” She had enough to think about without worrying about her love life too. Jungeun was the only one who understood that, and she’d nodded, lowering her voice.

“By the way, I fixed the rip on your suit. Be more careful when you go up against guys with knives next time.” Being best friends with someone who could sew and made costumes for the theater club had its perks. Like being able to have a superhero costume that didn’t . Jiwoo had given her best friend a thankful smile before she yawned.

“Thanks, dude. I owe you one.”

“Don’t mention it.”

-

It was her spider sense that woke her from her memories. She opened her eyes to the same night sky, with every nerve in her body on edge and her muscles tensed. Something was happening.

She was on her feet in seconds, eyes scanning the city underneath her. Where....

“Stop! No! Please, stop!”

It was a familiar voice, and Jiwoo snapped into action, jumping from the building and swinging towards the voice, where her senses were telling her to go: an alley between a pizza parlor and an apartment block, two blocks away. Twisting her body, she attached herself to the side of the pizza parlor and crawled around the side, peering into the darkness.

Three men surrounded a cowering girl against the wall, their faces concealed by hoods. She was crying, clutching her bag to her chest and shying away as the men laughed and grabbed at her arms. Two of them seemed to have knives, and the other a gun. He had to be taken out first.

“Hand it over, missy, and we won’t hurt you,” one of the men said, laughing.

“Much,” his partner added, making the girl whimper.

“Please stop, I don’t have anything,” she said, voice hitching with her sobs, and Jiwoo’s blood ran cold.

That was Sooyoung’s voice. Sooyoung was being mugged.

There was no more room for hesitation. Steeling her nerves, Jiwoo released the stingers that popped from her fingers like claws and jumped, attaching her web to the wall behind Sooyoung to guide her attack.

The stingers dug into the back of the gun-wielding man’s neck before she swung her body and kicked out, sending him flying through the alleyway and out into the street beyond. He lay there, paralyzed, but Jiwoo didn’t hesitate for a moment.

“, James! Who the hell-?” As soon as her feet hit the ground, one of the men swung at her with his knife as the other man turned to look at his friend. Her hand caught his wrist, and the other curled into a fist, hitting him hard in the face and making him stumble back. Her nerves spiked and she turned just in time to see the other man lunge at her, knife raised.

As he lunged forward, she jumped and flipped over him, putting one hand on his shoulder and digging in her stingers. He let out a yell and she turned mid-air, releasing her stingers and kicking him in the small of the back, sending him to land next to his friend in the street.

The other man stumbled to his face, groaning in pain, and she turned and reached out, releasing her webs. In a moment, he was stuck to the side of the alleyway, his mouth webbed over so that he couldn’t speak. He struggled against the webs as Jiwoo ran the end of the alley, where the other two men had landed. With two deft movements, she left them webbed to the entrance, with their weapons webbed to the wall above them, wrapped up nicely for the police.

Then she turned back to Sooyoung, who was staring with wide eyes, still cowering against the wall. Her heart jumped, but she cleared , walking back to her and offering her a hand to help her up.

“You’re safe now, don’t worry.”

“Spider-Girl?” She sounded breathy, confused, and her face was still stained with tears, but she took Jiwoo’s hand and allowed her to help her up.

“That’s me. Are you okay?” Jiwoo took a moment to look over Sooyoung, using her night vision. Thankfully, it seemed like she’d gotten there just in time. She didn’t have a scratch on her.

“Yes, now. Thanks to you.” Her legs were shaking, but she gave her a smile. “I can’t thank you enough for saving me, Spider-Girl.”

Jiwoo could tell that the other girl was still scared. Of course she was, she’d just gone through a terrifying ordeal. If Jiwoo hadn’t gotten there... she didn’t even want to think about what could have happened. “You’re shivering. Would you like me to you home?”

“I-I don’t live very far. But....” She trailed off, looking down at her shaking legs before letting out a nervous laugh, still in shock. “Could you? Please? That is, if you have nothing else to do.”

“Of course I can.” Jiwoo smiled, even though she knew that the other girl couldn’t see it under her mask. “Would you like me to walk you, or would you like me to swing you home?” The words came out on their own, but Jiwoo found that she meant them.

Wiping at her eyes, Sooyoung considered. Jiwoo could see the gears working in her head. She was calming down, and if there was one thing that Jiwoo knew about Sooyoung, it was that she didn’t pass up opportunities when they were presented to her. “Um. What’s it like, to swing up there?”

“It’s freeing and calming,” she said truthfully, “at least for me. We don’t have to go too high, if you want.”

“If we can stay low, then I’d like to see what it’s like to swing.” She spoke slowly, but surely, and Jiwoo’s heartbeat sped up, butterflies jumping into her stomach. She was really going to be swinging her crush around the city. What was going on? Could she really do this?

“Okay.” She held out an arm. “Hold on tight, then.” It was weird, holding Sooyoung in her arms (or really, arm). She wasn’t afraid that Sooyoung would fall. She had a solid grip on her, and even if Sooyoung let go, Jiwoo’s arm would stay stuck to her until she decided it was best to let go. They were basically stuck together. Still, Sooyoung was gripping her with her arms around her shoulders and her legs around her waist, and Jiwoo had a hard time concentrating on her surroundings. Especially when she was laughing against Jiwoo’s neck, enjoying the ride. It felt... romantic. And kind of gross, considering it was spider powers that were sticking Sooyoung to her side. But Jiwoo tried not to think about that.

Thankfully, Sooyoung’s house wasn’t far away, although it was hard to pretend like she didn’t know which place was Sooyoung’s. Still, when she placed Sooyoung on the ground, she felt a sense of relief that it was over and she was the only one on the web, now hanging upside down, ready to go. Being that close to the most beautiful girl she knew hadn’t been easy.

“Thank you again,” Sooyoung said with a smile as she fixed her hair, tucking it behind her ears in a way that made Jiwoo’s stomach flip. “Can I... give you something? As thanks? Only if it’s okay, of course.”

There was a tension in the air, hanging heavy as Jiwoo slowly nodded her head. Time seemed to move in slow motion. Sooyoung reached her slender hands up to the bottom of her mask, and her breath caught in , but she couldn’t do anything, powerless as the other girl slowly rolled up her mask.

But she didn’t take it off. She stopped halfway, placing her hands on the sides of Jiwoo’s face instead. Briefly, she paused, looking down at Jiwoo’s hidden eyes, as if asking permission. So Jiwoo nodded her head, and Sooyoung leaned in.

Kissing someone upside down was a new experience for Jiwoo. At first, it was a little awkward, the angle weird. But Sooyoung’s soft lips moved against hers as she tilted her head ever so slightly, and Jiwoo felt her eyes flutter closed, her heart pounding in her chest as she let the other girl kiss her gently.

It was when she felt the mask slipping that she opened her eyes, but her movement was slow, her body still stunned from what was happening. She didn’t catch it in time.

Sooyoung blinked at her as she moved away, and Jiwoo felt her face heating up as she grabbed the mask to keep it from falling off completely. Had it been anyone else, they might not have recognized her. But she couldn’t fool someone who had known her for years.

“Jiwoo?” Sooyoung’s voice was soft, and then her lips curved up into a smile. “I knew the voice of Spider-Girl sounded familiar.”

Still blushing deeply, Jiwoo swallowed. “P-please don’t tell anyone else?”

“I won’t, don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.” She grinned. “So you’re a good kisser. I’ve always wondered.”

“Really? You think so?” Jiwoo glanced around, feeling flustered. “Um, sorry for not telling you who I was before you-.”

“It was my choice. I wanted to kiss you. Because Spider-Girl reminded me of Jiwoo.” Her words made Jiwoo stutter, eyes wide, not knowing how to react. Giggling, she leaned in to kiss Jiwoo’s cheek. “I’ve liked you for a long time, Jiwoo. This only makes me like you even more.”

“O-oh. You don’t think this is weird? Me having these powers?”

“Not at all. You’re my hero, how could I think you were weird?”

The night wind blew at her skin, cooling her down as she smiled, unable to contain her happiness. “I’ve liked you for a long time too, Sooyoung. I never thought you’d like me back.”

“Well, I do.”

“Yeah. Yeah, and that’s awesome.”

She laughed, tucking her hair behind her ears again. “You’re so awkward. It’s cute. Want to be my girlfriend?”

“I was just about to ask you the same thing!”

The sound of a car approaching startled them, and Jiwoo quickly pulled down her mask, hiding her face away from the world. After she watched it pass, she turned back to Sooyoung, whose cheeks were flushed, either from their conversation or from the cold. She had a large smile on her face, the one Jiwoo had only seen her have after winning games, or when she got a perfect score on a test. It made her heart flutter to see it.

“I’ve got to go inside. My parents are probably worried.”

“Oh, right. That’s true. You shouldn’t worry them anymore.” Jiwoo moved to go, still flustered by the whole thing.

“But Jiwoo?”

She stopped, looking back at Sooyoung. “Yes?”

“Come to my room later? You know which window is mine, right?” Of course she did. “I’d like to thank you some more.”

Jiwoo was so glad that her mask was back on her face, because her face immediately began to burn. She wanted to squeal, but she held it in. “What time?”

“Give me thirty minutes.” Sooyoung winked and walked past her to the door, only to look back and smile. “Stay safe, Babe.”

Jiwoo grinned like an idiot as she attached a web to the top of the building. That mask was really coming in handy. “See you soon. Babe.”

The night air was cool atop the building, and she fell back against the building, finally letting out a squeal now that no one was around to hear her. Pressing her hands to her chest, she smiled up at the stars, lips still tingling from the kiss.

She was so glad she was Spider-Girl.