After loving Finn Osborn so unreservedly like that, how could he ever love anyone else?
“I can't.. be that selfish.” Peter met Andrew's gaze, but shook his head helplessly and bitterly; he had his own stubbornness. "This is what we agreed upon from the very beginning. It was only so that Finn could date me without any psychological burden that I established such a [Peaceful] rule. I can't be the one to break it a month later."
So, you think Young Master Finn will break up with you?" Andrew frowned deeply, attempting to use rational thought to process the emotional conflict between Finn and Peter, "Why would he want to break up with you? There must be a reason for wanting to break up, right?
Andrew thought it over and over, eventually coming to an absurd conclusion—
No conflict, no arguments, they just wanted to break up, plain and simple.
This was even more devastating to him than breaking up due to conflict; Andrew didn't even know how to reconcile them.
"Finn.. he has things hidden deep inside his heart. I don't want to, I can't, go and destroy that part of him," Peter said with a deep breath.
Andrew fell silent, thinking that Peter was only talking about Finn Osborn's mental illness.
He naturally also believed that Peter could understand Finn Osborn's inner self even more deeply than they could, seeing the parts that he could not see.
If Finn chooses not to break up, then that is naturally for the best," Peter said seriously. "But if.. if Finn wants a complete and peaceful end at this moment, I will support him in making a choice according to his heart.
Andrew still couldn't understand, but he still accepted this "emotional proctoring" task with difficulty in his capacity as STEVE.
The young man rarely put away his camera, but he refused to record the scene of these two people plotting their breakup.
The bitter and resentful Andrew sat silently and as if on pins and needles in his own seat, his brow furrowed and his eyes staring gloomily at Finn and Peter, who were currently bowing their heads to earnestly fill out an emotional exam, his entire being exuding an aura of having lost all interest in life.
To be precise, Peter wasn't actually being serious.
Peter had long ago decided to give Finn a perfect score, but he was afraid of making it too obvious, so he deliberately pretended to be conflicted and thoughtful, writing slowly as he feigned seriousness while answering each question one by one.
In reality, Finn was the one being serious. The young man lowered his eyes and carefully read every question word by word, his expression focused and solemn, as if he were earnestly filling out the most sincere feedback form for this "one-month romance."
Andrew watched this scene, his mental breakdown intensified.
In his eyes, these two weren't just going through the motions for a "contract renewal"; they were clearly heading for an amicable breakup. He feared that the 80-point passing grade was in serious jeopardy, that he would soon have to brace himself to issue a "breakup ultimatum" as cold-blooded as a "love judge."
At the same time, Peter listened even more intently to Finn's inner thoughts, hearing that Finn was still discussing the questions with his System PP:
Wait a minute, PP, let's do the math.
I have to assume the scenario where Peter Parker actually gives me a perfect score on all 25 questions. If I want to reach the 'peaceful breakup line' of below 80 points, I would need to.. not give Peter Parker at least.. 11 questions? This condition is way too harsh. Why didn't I think it was this harsh before?
Peter couldn't hear what System PP said to Finn, but he desperately hoped that System PP could say something nice about him in front of Finn.
["Question Three: Has the other party been truly sincere and honest with you, without deliberately concealing anything important?"]
[Peter hid his identity as Spider-Man from me for a long time; this definitely counts as hiding something important, so I can't give points for this question.]
Peter: ".." Ah, this? Didn't you know I was Spider-Man all along!?
["Question Five: Will the partner actively maintain a proper distance from the opposite sex, avoiding ambiguity and crossing boundaries?"]
【I have a deep impression of that incident with Sheila; she was about to have children with Peter! Regarding this, yes, although it wasn't Peter's intention, he also bears responsibility, right? Besides, there's no guarantee what kind of opposite-sex villains will appear later; once a fight breaks out, there won't be any appropriate distance. Not to mention, all the citizens of New York are very dependent on Spider-Man; he really is a boyfriend with no sense of boundaries, so this question shouldn't receive any points.】
Peter: ".." Me? Lacking boundaries??
["Question Eight: When spending time with the other person, do you generally feel relaxed, secure, without pressure?"]
[Peter is Spider-Man, an Avenger at that. It's true that he feels secure, but dating a hero is naturally stressful, so that's a point deduction.]
Peter: ".." He asked himself, between the two of us, who actually feels more pressure?
["Question 11: When conflicts arise, is the other party willing to communicate, rather than resorting to cold violence or avoidance?"]
【But there is no conflict between us. Without conflict, there is no passion between a young couple. This should also count as a deduction.】
Peter: ".." Is he intentionally deducting points like that?
["Question 15: If you trust the other person, won't you frequently overthink and feel insecure?"]
[Even though I trust them, I do have a mental illness.. Overthinking is my special ability, so I should lose points on this question too.]
Peter: ".." Can mental illness cause point deductions too?
["Question 16: Is the other person real in front of you, without pretension, without acting, without a mask?"]
[Peter Parker is Spider-Man, of course he wears a mask! That's a point deducted.]
Peter: ".." A physical mask??
["Question 18: Is your acceptance of intimacy's rhythm consistent and comfortable?"]
It's not that it's uncomfortable, but.. if the hardware is too large, it can also feel difficult and exhausting, so this can also be a point deduction.
Peter: ".." I'm going crazy.
[System PP, what's going on.. why is my Misery Value increasing?]
Spider-Man's heart had gone completely numb.
He felt that he had been unfairly docked many points; forget eighty, he was afraid he might drop straight below sixty.
—[Breakup Forever] seemed like an inevitable conclusion.
Peter did his best to stop listening to Finn's inner thoughts; he had also long ago prepared himself for a peaceful breakup.
To prevent his Misery Value from continuing to rise, Spider-Man took a deep breath, frantically brainwashing himself over and over in his mind:
A peaceful breakup, a peaceful breakup, a peaceful breakup..
Right, as a superhero, your job is to maintain peace, isn't it?
Peace & Love.
Could the true meaning of [Peace & Love] be—[Peaceful Breakup] and [Continuing to Love After a Breakup]?
Andrew was equally numb, receiving the two people's answers in a low mood, his cold fingertips trembling slightly.
As the chief examiner of this "emotional trial," he didn't need to announce their individual scores; he only needed to calculate the total score fairly and impartially to declare whether this relationship was sentenced to death.
Andrew took a deep breath, feeling almost as if he were heading to an execution ground, as he slowly turned over the two exam papers.
A few short minutes, yet they felt as long as a century.
Andrew frowned, looking at Peter first with a complex expression, then at Finn.
Peter swallowed hard, looking as if he were awaiting final judgment.
The air was terrifyingly still.
It wasn't until Andrew finally spoke, his voice carrying a trace of imperceptible relief:
One hundred.
"What?" Peter froze for several seconds before asking in disbelief.
"It sounds like you both gave each other full marks." Andrew breathed a deep sigh of relief, feeling as if he could finally get some oxygen and breathe smoothly at last.
Isn't this quite good?
You two just focus on your relationship, I'll continue being a model lover, Steve.
So—
Don't you all not want to break up? Then why are you making such a scene!
You're going to scare me to death!
Steve's life matters too!!
Only at this moment did Peter look at Finn in surprise; he had thought—
“Why are you so surprised?” Finn asked with a smile, meeting Peter's incredulous gaze, his expression appearing quite certain, as if he had never doubted Peter Parker would give him a perfect score from the very beginning. "Do you think I would deduct points? Do you feel like you didn't do something well?"
At that moment, both Peter and Andrew's breath hitched.
The Finn before their eyes was smiling, his eyes curved, still that same optimistic and vibrant young man, but within those emerald eyes under the lights, tears were falling unknowingly, sliding down his cheeks, one by one, uncontrollably bursting from his eyes.
Finn acted as if he had never cried.
The young man always seemed to be so optimistic, positive, carefree, just as Noah said—a [hollow little sun].
But at this very moment, the young man's tears fell unconsciously; there was no choking back of sobs, no weeping, just silent tears falling.
——The hollow system had also learned how to cry.
"Am I crying?" Finn seemed to realize it only now, wiping the tears from his face with a bewildered expression.
"Young Master Finn.." Andrew stood up abruptly in a panic, at a complete loss.
Peter did not hesitate for a moment, reaching out with both hands to pull Finn's stiff body into a tight embrace.
Completely caught off guard by this sudden outburst, Peter's body even trembled slightly at this moment from shock and unease; he felt as if he could clearly sense the hot tears sliding down Finn's cheeks, each one striking his heart like a burning drop.
“Peter, I actually hadn't thought it through before starting this test.” Finn's cheek rested against Peter's shoulder, his tears soaking Peter's clothes, as he spoke candidly, “I always thought I had a very sufficient reason for a peaceful breakup, but—”
“I really have no way to deduct points from you.”
He was in a relationship with the best Peter Parker in the entire world, so how could Finn possibly.. at this moment..
To give his boyfriend, to this precious and beautiful relationship, a grade that wasn't a perfect score?
You just can't understand, can you?
Everything is clearly moving toward a better future, our relationship could clearly have a better continuation.
Everything is so perfect, I shouldn't hesitate anymore, I shouldn't be so conflicted, right?
But right now, I feel as if I am very sad.
Finn also felt as if he were losing his mind, both crying and laughing at the same time.
He felt happy, yet at the same time, he felt immense pain.
They were clearly two perfect answer sheets, yet they were a sorrow that Finn himself simply could not decipher.
Peter's eyes were also red at this moment, he frantically used his fingertips to wipe away the tears from Finn's face, bit by bit.
In all the world, perhaps only Peter knew that when Finn gave a perfect score to every single question, one by one, with such solemnity—
What exactly was Finn silently giving up at that moment.
It wasn't just a casual "let's keep dating," but a silent farewell to the past, one that was enough to hollow out everything.
Finn gave up his earliest wish,
He gave up the plan he had originally made to accumulate Misery Value for his mission.
He gave up the persistence of a system that had experienced a hundred worlds and the goal deep in his heart,