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Unlike the flight to London, this time, on the way back to New York, all four of them—Hawk, Gwen, Peter, and Mary Jane—were seated together.
And just like the last two times he had flown back to New York, the journey was uneventful. From takeoff to landing at JFK, everything went smoothly.
But Hawk wasn't happy about it.
Once is an accident. Twice is a coincidence. But three times in a row? This was something else entirely.
As he and Gwen walked toward the parking garage, Hawk was already wondering what kind of disaster he would face the next time he left the city.
He'd already checked off "trouble before the flight," "trouble during the flight," and "trouble after the flight."
He was almost morbidly curious to see what would happen next.
...
Soon, Hawk had loaded their luggage into the trunk, and they were driving away from the airport.
Peter and Mary Jane had opted for the subway. As they put it, with the afternoon rush hour traffic, they'd be home before Hawk and Gwen even made it to the bridge.
And they were right.
They were stuck in a dead stop on the Brooklyn Bridge.
Looking across at Manhattan, all they could see was a sea of red taillights.
Hawk idly spun the dial on the car radio. A NASA scientist was on a talk show, excitedly describing a massive diamond meteorite that a lunar rover had just discovered in a crater on the moon. He was thrilled but lamented that they had no way to retrieve it.
The forty-five-minute drive from the airport to Gwen's apartment ended up taking an hour and a half.
When they finally walked through the door, they were greeted by a warm, enthusiastic welcome from Helen and Gwen's two younger brothers, Howard and Simon.
Helen pulled Hawk into a gentle hug.
"Did you have a good time in London?"
"It was okay. I feel like my legs are about to fall off, though."
"I can imagine. Come on in."
Helen wasn't surprised by his answer. She had seen Gwen's itinerary before they'd left. When Gwen had asked her what she thought of it, she had just shaken her head and said, "Youth is a wonderful thing."
As Hawk stepped inside, she patted his arm sympathetically.
"You should look on the bright side, Hawk."
"Which is?"
"At least now, you'll be the one she drags around, not me. And for that, you have my eternal gratitude."
"Mom!"
Gwen, who had been smiling at the exchange, shot her mother a look of mock indignation.
Helen laughed, then turned and headed for the kitchen. "Go on, you two, go rest. I'll call you when dinner's ready. Howard, Simon, back to your rooms. You've had enough fun for one day."
The two boys, who had been hoping to see what their sister had brought them from London, deflated. With a quiet "okay," they trudged back upstairs.
Gwen led Hawk to her room.
He set their suitcase on the bed and then sat down in her desk chair.
Gwen opened the suitcase and began to sort through the gifts she had brought back for her family.
"This one's for Howard."
"And this is for Simon."
"This tie…"
She pulled out a handsomely packaged tie box and, still sitting cross-legged on the bed, handed it to Hawk. "Hawk, when my dad gets home, I want you to give this to him."
He took it. "What about you?"
Gwen smiled. "Trust me. For my dad, just seeing me is the best gift he could ask for."
True.
He couldn't argue with that. Hawk nodded and set the box on her desk. As he did, his eyes fell on her calendar. A date, five days from now—August 20th—was circled in red.
A thought struck him.
"Does Berkeley start on the 20th, too? I thought the California schools started later."
"Yep."
Gwen, still sorting through her suitcase, didn't look up. Then, she glanced at him, a playful glint in her eye. "What, are you going to miss me when I'm gone?"
Hawk shrugged. "I can pick you up from school every day."
There was a three-hour time difference. He could leave New York at nine PM, get to Berkeley by four, right when her classes ended.
With his new abilities, he could make the trip every day. It wouldn't even be tiring.
Gwen's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Of course."
"Unfortunately, it's too late."
"..."
Hawk looked at her, confused.
Gwen smiled. "Berkeley is fine, but the crime rate out there is terrible. So, I chose Empire State University. They offered me their top scholarship too."
Hawk's brow furrowed. Gwen had turned down Berkeley for Empire State, the university right next door to NYU.
"Gwen, Berkeley was your dream. It was your future."
"No. You're my future."
Gwen slipped off the bed and settled into his lap. Her brilliant emerald eyes met his—deep blue like a starlit sky. She placed her hand on his chest, her voice soft but firm. "I chose you back in ninth grade. I chose you then, I'm choosing you now, and I'll choose you tomorrow. You're the future I want."
For him, she had run off to Maryland alone to find him.
For him, she had been ready to follow him into Hell when he sought his revenge.
And for him, she had turned down her dream school to go to one just a block away from his.
Just as she'd said: She had chosen Hawk as her future.
"I was actually going to apply to NYU," she added, a playful smile returning to her face. "But your biology department is terrible. And since Empire State had already sent me an offer… so, are you surprised?"
Hawk's heart hammered in his chest. He looked into her eyes, opened his mouth to speak then closed it again.
Gently, he lifted her from his lap, set her on the bed and stood up.
Gwen, startled by the sudden movement, was about to remind him that her father would be home any minute.
But Hawk looked at her and said, "Wait here."
With that, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving a completely bewildered Gwen in his wake.
Helen, who was in the kitchen, saw him coming down the stairs.
"Hawk, are you—"
"I need to grab something. I'll be right back."
"Alright."
Helen smiled. "Well, hurry back. The lemon sea bass won't taste as good if it gets cold."
Hawk nodded and walked out the front door.
The moment it closed behind him, his form blurred and vanished.
He reappeared thousands of feet above New York City.
Sixth Sense—Teleportation.
It was one of the many abilities of a Silver Saint. The power to instantly travel to any desired location.
A powerful Gold Saint could even teleport across light-years.
Hawk wasn't there yet.
But this was more than enough.
Without hesitation, he looked up at the vast star-filled expanse and launched himself skyward. A sonic boom tore through the air as he accelerated—a streak of pure light rocketing toward space.
Mach 50… Mach 70…
BOOM!
The moment he broke through the atmosphere, a spectral phoenix materialized behind him. He ignited his Cosmo, and his speed doubled instantly—a human meteor streaking through the void at nearly Mach 500.
This was his limit without his Armor.
As for with his Armor?
His Armor had been shattered in London. He was still deciding whether to forge a new temporary one, or to try and create the true Phoenix Gold Cloth ahead of schedule.
But even without it, Mach 500 was more than enough.
A question:
At Mach 500, how long does it take to get to the moon and back?
Answer: Thirty-eight minutes each way. A total of one hour and sixteen minutes.
It took Hawk an hour and a half.
He'd spent fourteen minutes searching for what he came for. The NASA scientist on the radio had been frustratingly vague—mentioning a diamond meteorite on the moon but not its location.
Fortunately, he'd gotten lucky. Following the rover tracks did the trick.
...
Back at the Stacy household, dinner had already started.
"Gwen, where's Hawk? He said he was grabbing something. What could be taking so long?"
"I don't know."
Gwen was starting to get worried.
Was her surprise too much for him? Did he just… run away? That couldn't be right. She'd heard of runaway brides, but never a runaway groom.
Just as her thoughts began to spiral, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Howard jumped up from his chair.
He ran to the door and pulled it open.
Hawk ruffled his hair as he walked in, then pulled a rough, uncut diamond from his pocket and tossed it to him. He then walked over to Gwen, who was now staring at him, her brow furrowed in a mixture of relief and confusion.
He stopped in front of her.
Then, under the watchful eyes of George, who was holding a glass of whiskey, a curious Helen. Hawk dropped to one knee.
Taking a deep breath, he pulled a small velvet box from his pocket and opened it, revealing a fifty-carat purplish-red diamond ring. He looked up at her, expression deadly serious.
"Gwen Stacy, will you marry me?"
"PFFT!"
George, who had just taken a sip of his whiskey, sprayed it all over the table.
...
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If you're interested, you can read advanced chapters:
https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx
~# Bonus Chapter every 300PS