Chapter 58: Goodbye

The streets of Wakanda were filled with Wakandans as they danced and chanted to mourn their dead. Though everyone was heartbroken to see their loved ones go, this was how things were done in Wakanda. This was all a necessary ritual to ensure that those who passed are sent to the ancestral realm.

The heroes who saved the nation were all in attendance, aside from Namor, all wearing white traditional garbs to fit in with the Wakandans performing the ritual.

Each Wakandan who'd lost their lives during the battle would be buried beneath the battlefield, which was now turned into a memorial for them. Ben Grimm, at least what was left of him, was going to be heading back to America with his family. However, a statue of the hero was being built to remember him in Wakanda for generations to come.

The Future Foundation family didn't talk to each other very much after all that had happened. Of course, Valeria blamed herself for everything that happened, realizing that Doom did everything just to get to her.

Franklin blamed himself as well, knowing that if he'd have manifested his abilities sooner, he could've stopped his uncle from dying.

Reed went back even further in time in his head, wishing he'd never allowed Sue to give birth using Doom's sorcery. Though he spent months trying to find a way for his wife to give birth safely using science, Reed felt that he could've figured it out if he tried harder.

Johnny thought back on the fight with Doom, thinking of any way he could have saved Ben, but he couldn't come up with anything. He blamed himself for being too weak.

Sue blamed herself for being lesser than a woman. This wasn't true at all, as being able to give birth to a healthy child isn't what makes a woman who she is, however, women with childbirth complications often felt this way. In her mind, if she weren't lesser, none of this would have happened.

Eren couldn't stop thinking about how if he was faster, just by the smallest fraction of a second, he could have prevented Ben's death. If he had recovered faster, he could've prevented the deaths of hundreds, but he didn't.

The Future Foundation all boarded their ship when it was time for them to leave, aside from Eren who spoke with his fellow Wakandans one last time. "You are welcome here anytime, my brother." T'Challa told him, giving a small smile to the boy. Eren nodded, bowing to both T'Challa and Shuri. "Thank you. Thank you for everything."

The three of them did the Wakandan salute before Eren turned around to board the ship. However, before Eren went all the way inside, he stopped and turned to the king. "Remember when I told you a mentor told me something? He told me that 'Everything you do is a risk. Not doing anything is also a risk. Which risk will you choose?' That's all. Goodbye, guys."

With nothing left to say, Eren boarded the ship, leaving T'Challa with something to think about regarding Wakanda's rules of not stepping in when other nations are in need.

Silently, the Future Foundation flew their ship all the way back to America, not saying a word for hours. There wasn't really much to talk about. Ben's empty seat made it all the more difficult to bring up anything to speak about.

Once back in America, they unloaded Ben and called his fiance to inform her about what happened and to schedule the funeral. She didn't take it well, rushing over to the Baxter Building and demanding to see him. They tried to warn her, telling her that it wasn't a good idea, but she insisted.

When they showed her what was left of the body, she broke down. She wept and screamed over his casket for hours, unable to let it go. Johnny told her about Ben's future proposal and gave her the ring that Ben was saving for it. Johnny was the only one who knew where it was, Ben told him just in case something like this were to ever happen.

After spending a few hours with the family, Eren was ready to go home and be alone for a while, maybe stopping by Cindy's place for a bit. However, he realized that he hadn't seen the kids for a while. It was as if the two of them were avoiding everyone else.

Spider-Man, wearing his black and gold costume, searched everywhere for them until he found the two of them holding hands on the rooftop, sitting with their legs hanging over the edge. Eren sort of watched them for a second, not really knowing what to do before knocking on the door to the roof. The two of them turned around, looking at the hero with pained eyes.

They had dark circles around their eyes and they looked as if the light within them was completely gone. Their eyebrows were slumped, as was their entire body language. Eren was glad that he got there when he did or else something bad could have happened.

"Hey, Uncle Eren." Valeria said. Franklin didn't say anything.

"Hey, Valeria. Hey Franklin... Whatcha'll doing up here?" Eren asked, approaching the two of them.

"Sitting." Franklin mumbled.

"Mind if I sit with you guys?" Eren asked them both.

"I don't mind..."

"Yeah, I don't mind either."

The kids made space for Spider-Man in between them and the young hero sat down, dangling his legs over the edge with them.

No one said a word for five minutes straight.

It was just silence.

A painful stillness.

"Uncle Ben... he's really gone." Franklin said quietly.

Eren nodded his head. "He is. I'm sorry."

There was another silence.

"How are the two of you doing... with this." Eren asked, not really understanding what to say. This wasn't his first time having a heart-to-heart with someone on a rooftop, but it was just as hard as the first time.

"Not good."

"Awful."

There was another painful silence between the three of them.

"We thought about jumping." Valeria admitted.

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This sent a jolt through Eren's body. 'Jesus... ten and eleven years old... having those thoughts.'

"I understand... I've been there." Eren told them. When his mother died, he thought about taking his life a million times. He knew this feeling all too well.

"Wanna know what I do when I have bad thoughts and need to clear my head?" Spider-Man asked them both.

"Hm?"

"What?"

"I go around for a swing. You two wanna come with? It really works, I swear." Spider-Man asked the two of them. It was true, swinging was his main coping mechanism ever since he'd invented his web shooters.

The two of them didn't say anything, but Spider-Man still stood up and extended his hand down to them.

Valeria grabbed his arm first. Eren picked her up and put her on his back, making a web harness for her so she wouldn't fall. Seeing Valeria accept, Franklin did too. Spider-Man picked up the boy, placing him on his back next to his sister before making a web harness for him as well.

"Ready?" Spider-Man asked them both.

"Mhm."

"Yeah."

Spider-Man lept from the rooftop, singing from building to building with the kids on his back. Feeling the breeze blowing on their faces as their hair fluttered in the wind was calming for the two of them. Sometimes, when Spider-Man would time his swings perfectly, the kids got that same feeling they'd get on a rollercoaster.

They even smiled a few times.

After clearing their heads, Spider-Man bought the three of them ice cream before heading back up to the Baxter Building to eat them on the roof together.

As the three ate their ice creams, Eren told them about his past. "You know, I lost a family member close to me. Two of them, actually."

"You did?" Valeria asked.

"Yeah. My dad died when I was seven years old and my mom died when I was seventeen." He told them, speaking as if it wasn't devastating to have to live without his parents.

"What happened?" Franklin questioned the hero, feeling so sorry for him.

"Dad... he was sick. He was so caught up in his work, he ignored the signs. By the time he did go see the doctors... it was too late." Eren stopped talking for a bit, thinking about how he too ignored the signs when he was a kid. "You know... I used to blame myself for what happened. I used to tell myself that if I paid more attention, I could've seen that he was sick. I thought I could save him."

Eren paused briefly, thinking about his mother as well. "My mom was murdered. I found one of the guys responsible and I killed him, thinking it would make it better. It didn't. I still couldn't stop blaming myself for not being there for her."

Both kids were shocked to hear this. They had no clue that Spider-Man of all people had taken a life before. Most children saw him as a saint, not someone who was capable of murder.

"My point is... I think about them a lot. Despite that, those dark thoughts, the same ones that you guys have right now, eventually stop. Now, I just think about how much I loved them both and the memories I had with the two of them. I cry sometimes, but having those memories makes me feel happy."

"When does that happen? When do the bad feelings go away?" Franklin asked him.

"It just takes time..." Spider-Man told them. "Wanna know a secret though?"

"Hm?" Both kids mumbled at the same time.

"If you surround yourself with people that love you, it'll help the pain go away a lot faster. My best friends in the whole world, Harry and Cindy, helped me get through the pain. Without them, I was nothing but a shell, an empty husk withering away." Eren had a small smile on his face, thinking about his friends. It took him so long to realize how powerful it was to confide in people that care about you, to not cut yourself off from those who care.

Seeing the kids doing what he was doing reminded him of that.

"I'm here if you need me? Okay?" Spider-Man told them both.

Both kids hugged him from each side, prompting him to wrap an arm around each of them. "Thank you, Uncle Eren." Franklin told him.

"You're the best." Valeria added.

"Anything for you guys." Spider-Man told them softly, holding the two kids for as long as they needed.

The three of them sat together, finishing their ice creams and chatting for about an hour until the two kids were ready to go back inside.

As they said their goodbyes, Eren smiled at them from beneath his mask. Their eyes finally had that light back in them.

Once Eren was by himself, he decided to take his own advice, and swing straight to Cindy Moon for their long-awaited reunion, yearning to feel her touch once again.

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