Chapter 3: Visit

On his birthday, Peter had an appointment to visit a university. When he arrived, he went to the reception desk and said, "Hello, I have an appointment for a tour."

"You must be Peter, the last person to arrive. Please follow me," said the receptionist. Peter followed the man, who didn't look much older than him.

The university was enormous, but that wasn't what surprised Peter. What amazed him was the high-tech technology used everywhere. The school didn't have traditional windows; instead, projectors displayed various realistic scenes, making it seem like you could walk right into them. Peter couldn't figure out where the light was coming from. While it was all impressive, he thought it was unnecessary.

"They could have just had windows," Peter muttered under his breath.

"It's for security. This place isn't just the best school in North America; it's the top research facility in the world," the guide explained.

Peter joined a group of people standing in front of an elderly man.

"Looks like everyone is here just in time," the elderly man said, smiling at Peter.

The people seemed nice, Peter thought. The elderly man began guiding the potential students around the campus. The more Peter saw, the more impressive the place looked.

As they walked past a colorful door, Peter stopped while the rest of the group continued ahead. He moved closer to the door and noticed many drawings displayed on it; some looked like they could be sold for a high price, while others seemed to have been drawn by a child.

Noticing that Peter had stopped, the elderly man spoke to the guide who had brought Peter to the group. "Continue; I will catch up," he said.

Peter read the sign on the wall next to the door: [Gift].

"That's the name of the project inside," said the elderly man, now standing beside Peter.

Peter looked at the elderly man, thinking for a moment. "Can I enter?"

The man looked excited as if he had been waiting for the question. He placed his hand on the wall, and a display popped up. Peter watched as the man interacted with it. A message appeared: [Doctor Otto Octavius: High blood pressure detected. See a medical doctor, please]. The door opened, revealing a lab that looked abandoned for a long time. The door shut behind them as they entered.

"Do you remember coming here?" Otto asked.

Peter looked at Otto, confused.

"I guess you were too young to remember. Your parents worked here," Otto continued, noting Peter's surprise but pressing on. "Well, that was after being my students," Otto said, smiling. "They worked and went to school here."

Peter's face showed his surprise as he looked around.

"Do you want to see what they worked on?" Otto asked, walking toward the end of the room to a wall. He raised his arms to the sky and shouted, "OPEN SESAME!"

The wall split in two directions: the top half went up, and the bottom half went down. Lights flickered on, illuminating thousands of spiders behind glass.