The late afternoon sun poured molten gold over Midtown High, casting long shadows across the rooftop. Raj stood at the edge, looking down at the city like it might answer some question he hadn't dared ask. The wind tugged at his shirt, playful but insistent, as if testing his balance. He didn't flinch.
Behind him, Peter Parker emerged from the rooftop door, lugging what looked like a duffel bag of science fair projects and chaos. "Okay, sunshine boy," Peter grinned. "Ready for another afterschool dissection of your ridiculous alien body?"
Raj raised an eyebrow. "I prefer the term genetically misunderstood demigod."
Peter dumped the bag with a thud. "Alright, misunderstood demigod. Let's see what happens when I throw things at you."
Raj rolled his eyes, but the grin tugged at his mouth. The rooftop had become their unofficial lab. No teachers, no questions. Just two teenagers with secrets and slightly terrifying futures.
Peter pulled out a sleek device that looked suspiciously Stark-inspired. "High-density pellet launcher. Fires at thirty miles per hour. We'll ramp it up."
"Will it hurt?" Raj asked, slipping off his jacket.
"Probably not," Peter said. Then after a beat, added, "Probably."
Raj braced himself. *Thud.* The first pellet hit his shoulder. Nothing.
"Huh," Peter murmured. He adjusted the launcher. "Let's go again."
*Thud. Thud. Thud.* One to the chest. One to the back. One directly at Raj's temple.
Raj blinked. "Okay, I felt that one. Like a mosquito made of plastic."
Peter nodded, scribbling into a notebook. "So we're solid on basic resistance. How about stress levels?"
From the bag, he pulled out what looked like a taser wrapped in Stark-grade tech. "Pulse dart. Simulated kinetic energy. It won't pierce, but it'll sting."
Raj frowned. "I suddenly miss the mosquito."
Peter fired.
Raj staggered back, not from injury, but shock. It didn't break the skin, but it felt like a low-voltage punch to the nerves. He hissed.
"Alright," he muttered. "I'm not completely invincible. That's a relief. Being indestructible would've made me insufferable."
Peter smirked. "More than you already are?"
They both laughed, tension breaking like ice beneath sunlight. For a moment, they weren't experiments, weren't potential threats. Just two boys trying to understand something bigger than themselves.
Peter tossed Raj a bottle of water. "Let's test the vision next."
He set up a board covered with metal boxes. Inside each was a random object: a key, a coin, a paperclip, a piece of gum.
Raj narrowed his eyes. "First box: silver key. Next, coin. Gum wrapper. Third row\... paperclip and... a dead fly. Gross, Peter."
"Accuracy check: 100%, and bonus disgust," Peter grinned.
Raj focused harder. "Fourth row—wait. It's fuzzy. I can see outlines, heat signatures maybe? Two walls deep and it starts to blur."
"So you're not seeing through everything, just... layers?"
Raj nodded. "Like vision peeling back slowly. And the more I try, the hotter my head gets."
Peter made another note. "So distance degrades clarity and increases energy draw. Still, that's insanely useful. But maybe not for cheating on exams."
Raj grinned. "Unless the answer key is written in lead ink inside a safe inside the principal's desk."
As if to test the universe, Raj looked toward the far apartment building. And immediately cursed.
Peter looked up. "What?"
Raj turned away, flushing. "Nothing. Some man was...uh... changing"
Peter groaned. "Welcome to the awkward puberty of superhero vision."
They both collapsed into laughter again, the rooftop echoing with the sounds of a friendship being forged in absurdity.
After a moment, Peter asked more softly, "Do you ever get scared?"
Raj didn't answer right away. He looked down at his hands—skin flawless, unmarred. Bulletproof. Super fast.Super jump.X-ray eyes.
"Not of the power," he said finally. "Of forgetting who I was before it."
Peter nodded. "I get that."
Then Raj added, quieter, "Would you trust me if I ever lost control?"
Peter didn't hesitate. "I'd trust you to come back."
The wind passed again. And for the first time, it felt warm.
Just as they started to pack up, Peter froze.
"Don't move," he said.
Raj stilled. "What is it?"
Peter pointed upward. A barely visible shimmer in the clouds. A drone. Not NYPD. Sleeker. Black. Silent.
"That's not local law enforcement," Peter whispered.
Raj tracked it with narrowed eyes. "They're still watching."
They both watched until the shimmer disappeared into the clouds.
Then, slowly, Raj turned back toward the city.
His hands clenched.
And this time, he didn't glow.
He controlled it.