Spider Quinn 22 Attractions of Lawndale - Part 4

 

“Welcome to the Historia, Kevin,” his classmate, Nikki Dowling said. “How may I help you?”

 

“I’d like to get up on the roof.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because SpiderGirl might be up there,” Kevin answered.

 

“I don’t think she is up there now. Would you like something?”

 

“I’m cool for now, but I would like to see if she is.”

 

“Fine, it is the second door to the left when you come in, after the bookshop,” Nikki answered.

 

“Thanks, Nikki.”

 

“But are you sure you want to meet her on the roof? I don’t think she would want to go out with you.”

 

“I want to ask her,” Kevin said as he turned away.

 

 

Nikki sighed as she watched Kevin leave the café. “At least he’s no longer bothering Quinn,” she murmured. She supported Brittany in her decision to permanently break up with him. She still didn’t know what she had seen in him.

 

 

Kevin emerged onto the rooftop, which was empty. SpiderGirl wasn’t there. But waiting was boring, especially when it was long. ‘I can look at Lawndale, maybe I could see her in the distance.’

 

He wasn’t methodical. His gaze wandered over the sprawl of Lawndale randomly. He saw nothing but the streetlights, buildings and vegetation where they were lit up.

 

After about two minutes, he glanced at the Giant Strawberry. “Wait, I heard SpiderGirl had been seen there sometimes.” He paused, briefly. He didn’t want to miss her by going on a wild goose chase.

 

 

He looked around at Lawndale again before he heard a sound. He turned in a slight panic. The same kind of panic he had had since he had been kidnapped by Lynn Anders over a week earlier. “Who’s there?”

 

“Relax, Kevin,” Jane said as she came out from behind the roof access, carrying a sketchbook.

 

“Oh,” Kevin said. “I was just looking for SpiderGirl.”

 

“I know you told Mr. O’Neill that you’re looking for her, but I think you should have chosen something else.”

 

“I didn’t like the fourth vigilante.”

 

“That makes sense,” Jane said.

 

“Oh yeah. She helped rescue you, right?” Kevin asked, referring to the time Jane and some theater critics had been abducted by Quentin Beck.

 

“She did, but I didn’t meet her then.”

 

“So you met her another time?”

 

 

“Yes,” Jane answered. She had thought about lying about having met the Enigma (he was certain to blab about it if she did share the name, not that she considered it) but even Kevin would pick up on the lie. ‘He won’t press about it, given his focus on SpiderGirl.’

 

 

Kevin turned and looked at the Giant Strawberry again. “Maybe she’s there.”

 

“Or maybe she isn’t.”

 

“I’m going anyway.”

 

 

‘Of course he is!’ Jane thought. ‘I guess I can follow as the Shadow and make sure he doesn’t get into trouble if he does start a wild goose chase across Lawndale.

 

“But first, what did you choose to try to fail?” Kevin asked.

 

“Being conventional.”

 

Kevin laughed. “Really? I’d like to see that,” he said as he went to the door.

 

 

Jane waited until she was sure that he was well down the stairs before she changed to the Shadow and used her grapple gun to rappel down the rear of the Historia to where she had parked the Shadow Car in the alleyway behind. She then found Kevin’s jeep and placed a tracker on it so she could follow if he meandered through Lawndale instead of making a beeline for the Strawberry.

 

 

Kevin emerged from the Historia and went to his car. He was sure that going to the Giant Strawberry was a good idea. ‘She has been seen all over town, but the Strawberry is the second most common place,’ he thought as he started the engine. He was quite sure.

 

 

The Shadow listened to the police bands as she followed Kevin at a distance. Lawndale was quiet but there was still chatter. It just wasn’t something she needed to respond to.

 

 

At the same time as Kevin driving to the Giant Strawberry, Sandi finished looking through the list of extracurricular activities offered at Lawndale High for the umpteenth time. “Ugh! The only thing I’m failing tonight is, like, failing to make a choice!” she grumbled.

 

She turned to her yearbook, which lay open to where she had left it two nights earlier. She had been searching for SpiderGirl’s identity every night, but she and Daria had gone to Oakwood the previous night, which had precluded the search.

 

“Emma King,” she said as she looked at the next girl. She grabbed her energy drink.

 

“Findu mann sem heiter: Emma King!”

 

 

She was getting better at it. The search process took a second less than when she had started her search several days before Groundhog Day. She found Emma at her home not far from the Giant Strawberry.

 

“Thirty-eight down,” she said. It was still only a fraction of the girls at Lawndale High.

 

She then turned back her homework.

 

 

Kevin arrived at the Strawberry and parked. “Now, the telescopes are at the top. Maybe I can see SpiderGirl through them.”

 

He ran from his car to the landmark and started climbing the stairs inside.

 

 

The Shadow parked a short distance away before approaching the Strawberry and scaling the western side, so as not to be seen most of the town, if they had happened to be looking in the direction, as even without the direct moonlight, the lower half of the landmark was well lit.

 

 

While he was looking through a telescope at the downtown, Kevin heard something. He jumped, hitting his cheek against the scope. “Ow!” he said as he rubbed it. He didn’t see anyone at first. “SpiderGirl?”

 

A cloud appeared and a figure walked out of it. “No, I’m the Shadow,” she said.

 

Kevin calmed down. “Oh. Why are you here?”

 

“Oh, making sure that nothing untoward is happening at the Strawberry. There are also rumors at school that the quarterback wants to meet SpiderGirl to ask her out.”

 

“That’s true. I do want to ask SpiderGirl out, as I’m the QB!”

 

“Is that because you were rescued by her over a week ago?” the Shadow asked.

 

“That’s right.”

 

“But I don’t think SpiderGirl wants to go out with you. I’m certain that she has heard about it as her secret identity by now.”

 

“Oh, yeah,” Kevin said. “All of you go to Lawndale High.”

 

“That hasn’t been in doubt, but I don’t know any of the others’ secret identities.”

 

 

The Shadow thought about that as Kevin took in what she said. She still suspected that Tania Ashworth was the fourth vigilante, but she wasn’t going to tell Kevin that.

 

“I wasn’t going to ask you that. I know that Ratboy never answers when he’s asked.”

 

“This isn’t a comic book. But does anyone try to ask Ratboy out?”

 

“Not in any issue I’ve read,” Kevin admitted.

 

“So, asking SpiderGirl out is wrong.”

 

“Exactly.”

 

 

Kevin wrestled with his thoughts with his thoughts for a while. His crush on SpiderGirl was intense, and he was sure Mr. O’Neill would ask him to find something else to try or fail at if he changed his mind.

 

 

The Shadow waited as she looked over Lawndale. She itched to sketch the scene, and the conflicted quarterback, but she decided to wait until Kevin had gone, as there weren’t all that many Lawndale High students who identified themselves as artists.

 

 

Kevin looked at his watch. “I better get going, Mom’s going to wonder where I am.”

 

“But what’s your answer?” the Shadow asked.

 

“I haven’t changed my mind. I still like SpiderGirl, and I don’t want to come up with something else for O’Neill.”

 

“You can’t just blame O’Niell.”

 

Kevin just left.

 

 

The Shadow waited until she saw Kevin drive away before taking out her sketchbook, and sketching his conflicted look from the surreptitious photo she took with the camera in her mask.

 

 

After dinner, Quinn told Daria what she had decided about Mr. O’Neill’s assignment.

 

“So, you want me to recommend a book for you?” Daria asked, as she opened her bedroom door.

 

“Yes,” Quinn answered. “Even if I fail to get through it, I will be exposed to more literature.”

 

“That’s a good point. You know that I have a great many here.”

 

“Let’s look at your shelf.”

 

 

Daria’s shelf was bursting at the seems as it were. Quinn was sure Daria also stored books elsewhere in the room.

 

“What genre would you like. I have a variety.”

 

“I was thinking something classic,” Quinn answered. “Maybe something about change.”

 

“Many of these books have change at the core. You just want me to recommend something, don’t you?”

 

“Consider that part of the assignment,” Quinn answered with a slight giggle.

 

Daria took out a large book. “You can’t go wrong with Charles Dickens.”

 

“Little Dorrit.” Quinn considered. “I suppose a large book would have a lot of change in it.”

 

“Yes,” Daria said as she took out another book. “David Copperfield, there’s less change, but more villainy, but different to what’s going on in Lawndale. But inspired by what Dickens saw around him.”

 

“If I can get through this… I might try that other one. Thanks, Daria.”

 

 

Daria put the volume of David Copperfield back after Quinn had left. ‘I don’t think Osborn is like the Murdstones, Steerforth or Uriah Heep, but there might be those like them here.’ She shook her head. She wasn’t sure how she would be able to deal with such villains as Dafoanairi, especially any Murdstone-like ones. ‘If there is anyone like Uriah Heep here, Upchuck would seem likely.’

 

 

Around 9:30, Andrea received a tip in her email inbox.

 

Tip – Possible break in at Landon Engineering warehouse

 

Andrea clicked on it. She saw that there was a possibility of Oscorp involvement. ‘I’ll forward this to Brittany,’ she decided. ‘I hope she and SpiderGirl can do something.’