Peter Parker

The faint buzz of fluorescent lights echoed through the Midtown High auditorium. Rows of foldable chairs were lined neatly in front of a makeshift stage, where two tables faced the audience with digital buzzers wired at the center. A banner above the stage read:

Midtown Interdisciplinary Quiz Competition – Senior Division

The crowd was small—just a few teachers, club members, and curious onlookers. After all, this was a nerd event, not the football finals. But Peter didn't care. He wasn't here for cheers or trophies.

He was here because he was good at this.

And because Midtown needed a win after losing three years in a row to Jackson Tech.

Peter sat on the left table with his quiz partner: Ian Patel, a fellow STEM club member with thick glasses, pencil-thin eyebrows, and a surprisingly dry sense of humor.

"Alright," Ian muttered, tapping his pen. "We've got physics, mythology, pop culture, and general science in the pool today. You're taking lead on science and pop culture?"

"Unless there's a Star Trek question," Peter said. "That's all yours."

Ian pushed his glasses up. "Don't worry. My Klingon's fluent."

Across the stage sat the Jackson Tech team: Zara Huang and Eli Mercer. Zara was a literature nerd with an aggressive competitive streak. She'd already glared at Peter twice. Eli, on the other hand, looked like he'd rather be anywhere else. But Peter had read his file—national math olympiad finalist. He was sharp.

The room gradually filled in. At the edge of the third row, Liz Allan walked in with Harry Osborn, both holding iced coffees and looking far too stylish for a quiz event.

They waved at Peter, who responded with a small, two-finger salute.

Liz sat down and leaned toward Harry. "He's in full 'quiz assassin' mode already."

Harry chuckled. "He always looks like that. Calculating something or judging the physics of your blinking."

Behind them, two freshmen were whispering excitedly.

"You think they'll ask about the Star Wars: High Republic arc?""They better not. The novels contradict the comics, it's a disaster."

A girl on the far side of the room flipped her notebook open and said to her friend:

"I swear, if Zara wins again, I'm transferring. I can't survive another semester of her smug monologues."

The teacher hosting the event, Mr. Elden, stepped up to the mic.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to this year's senior quiz face-off between Midtown High and Jackson Tech. Let's keep it clean, cerebral, and civil."

"Lame," Ian muttered. "I wanted blood."

Peter smirked. "You can always throw your calculator at them after."

The quiz began.

Round One – General Science

Question: "What gas is most responsible for the greenhouse effect?"

Peter hit the buzzer. "Carbon dioxide."

Jackson Tech counters with biology questions, getting two right in a row.

Ian picks up a physics question on velocity ratios.

Zara nails a genetics question, and shoots Peter a smirk.

Round Two – Mythology

Ian and Peter dominate this round, bouncing Norse and Greek references back and forth.

Peter answers: "Prometheus stole fire from Olympus."

Eli fumbles a question about Egyptian mythology. Ian mutters under his breath, "Amateurs."

In the audience, Liz leaned in toward Harry.

"You think he memorized half of Wikipedia or just the whole thing?"

Harry sipped his coffee. "Peter doesn't memorize. He absorbs. Like a suspiciously charming sponge."

Liz smiled. "I like that about him. He's confident, but he doesn't throw it in people's faces."

Harry didn't reply right away. He watched Peter quietly, something thoughtful behind his expression.

"You okay?" Liz asked.

"Yeah," Harry said, blinking. "Just... haven't seen him like this before. Focused, but relaxed. It's weird."

"I think it's good," Liz said softly.

Behind them, more whispering buzzed in the background.

"I still say The Lord of the Rings movies were better than the books.""Blasphemy. Tolkien didn't die for your hot takes."

"Is it true Peter's dating Liz?""Dude, they walked in together holding hands last week."

Round Three – Pop Culture

Mr. Elden's voice rang out. "What 2015 science-fiction film features a synthetic woman named Ava and explores artificial intelligence ethics?"

BZZT – Zara hits the buzzer. "Ex Machina."

Ian frowned. "We were a second late."

Peter leaned toward the mic. "Only because you were staring at Zara."

"I wasn't—shut up."

They chuckled quietly while the round continued.

Next question: "Which fantasy series features a continent called Westeros?"

Peter buzzed in. "Game of Thrones."

Zara rolled her eyes. "That one was a freebie."

"Don't be bitter," Ian said. "You'll wrinkle your forehead."

Final Round – Speed Blitz

60 seconds. Ten rapid-fire questions.

Both teams locked in.

The questions flew:

"Name the three laws of motion.""Newton's First, Second, Third." – Peter.

"Which element has the atomic number 79?""Gold." – Eli.

"Who directed the Lord of the Rings trilogy?""Peter Jackson." – Ian.

"Name the Norse god of mischief.""Loki." – Zara.

"Which operating system is open-source and penguin-themed?""Linux." – Peter.

When the timer buzzed, both teams exhaled.

Mr. Elden stepped forward, tapping his tablet.

"And with a final score of 27 to 25, Midtown High takes the win!"

Liz stood and clapped. "That's my boyfriend!"

Peter and Ian bumped fists—quiet, satisfied.

Across the table, Zara scowled. Eli shrugged and gave Peter a slight nod of acknowledgment.

As the room emptied, Harry and Liz made their way down to the stage.

"Good work, genius," Liz said, wrapping an arm around Peter's shoulder.

"Not bad for a sponge," Harry added with a smirk.

Ian looked at Peter. "Can we get milkshakes now? I feel like we earned it."

Peter nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

As they walked out together, the voices behind them faded into the distance.

"Next year I'm switching teams. Midtown actually studies.""I bet Peter's read the entire school library."

"You think they'll do a sci-fi movie trivia event next?""Only if they let lightsabers count as real science."

Peter listened to it all, half-smiling. It wasn't about the quiz. It wasn't about the win.

It was the feeling of normalcy. Of existing in a world where he could just be Peter Parker.

Even if only for a while.