Chapter One: The Rich Man

When Gwen got settled in and went to bed that night, she thought of the last few months that led up to where she was now. In the end she had gotten to Oxford, but at what cost? She had lost Peter that much was for sure. He probably thought of her as nothing but a money grabbing gold digger. He had even admitted to her during their last fight how much it hurt that he could never compare to someone like Harry Osborn. More so the fact that she decided to tangle in the sheets with his best friend too.

She rolled over on to her stomach and buried her face in the pillow. It hadn't been like that at all. She had just been so stressed about everything that when a man like Harry, rich, sophisticated and full of charisma asked her out to dinner, she hadn't been able to refuse him

Gwen grimaced at that. Who was she kidding? She had been acting like nothing more than a spoilt brat. Closing her eyes, she remembered the first time, she stumbled into him.

She had been startled to say the least. Here she was in an elevator with Harry Osborn of all people. The owner of this entire cooperation. The cooperation she was previously in trouble with.

Yet at the time, it appeared he hadn't realised it yet.

"So have you known Peter a long time?" She had questioned, trying to sound as normal as possible and not as if she just had a fight with Peter Parker in a janitor's room or that she was being chased by Oscorp security.

"Since we were kids. He's an old time friend."

His face was thoughtful.

"A good friend," he added.

Gwen smiled at that. A good friend. A lousy boyfriend.

Ex-boyfriend she reminded herself.

"I'm sorry to hear that things aren't working well between you."

Gwen ran her fingers through her hair and nervously smiled at him.

"Well you know, we're still friends too. Just decided our relationship was better that way."

His lips slightly quivered up.

"Indeed."

The elevator doors opened and Gwen stepped off.

"Hopefully I will see you around Miss Gwendolyn. " The doors shut and Gwen found herself standing there quietly for several moments before she made a beeline for the doors.

She didn't know why he had always insisted on using her first name in full. It had bothered her at first, but she found something alluring about it in the end.

She was smart enough to know not to show up back to work the next day and so she had resigned without notice. She doubted Oscorp security would dare come for her out in the public given her status and so was contented to focus all of her energy on studying for that up-coming Oxford exam.

Life was quiet without Peter.

Life was hectic without Peter.

And yet she felt she was missing something entirely.

She remembered she had been heading back from Starbucks with a hot coffee to keep her focused, and she hadn't been paying attention when she accidently bumped into someone. Said coffee didn't spill thank God, but she was surprised at who she bumped into.

"Mr. Osborn," she said in surprise. At recognizing her, his eyes widened a bit before he gave her a warm smile and let out his hand for a shake.

"Just Harry. It's good to see you again Gwendolyn. Interesting how we keep bumping into each other like this, yes?"

At that she stopped short before letting out a little chuckle.

"Uh, yeah I agree. Sorry about bumping into your shoulder though."

He had asked her what she was doing out here and why she wasn't at work. She had embarrassingly fumbled over her words as she explained to him that she had resigned on short notice because she had been given an opportunity to study molecular biology at Oxford.

Harry's face had been quite neutral at it and though it wasn't necessarily a lie, she wondered ifshe suspected, if he knew she had been snooping around.

"Well congratulations. It's a shame to see you go. Perhaps when you finish you can use your new found knowledge to benefit Oscorp."

At that, she had laughed.

"Maybe," she agreed.

That had been her plan all along until she found out the truth about him and the motivations and corruption of his company. Her degree would go towards different purposes now.

The next few days passed by without much interest. It wasn't until the weekend where she caught sight of Harry again

He was standing by the lake, throwing pebbles out by himself. Gwen watched him from a respectable distance, but somehow, she didn't know how, but somehow he sensed that she was there.

He turned towards her and their eyes met.

She felt her face flush hot with shame and embarrassment at being caught staring. He waved to her and she gave him an awkward smile. But something felt different. Something was off.

He approached her and as he came closer, she noticed his appearance was quite altered. Instead of the usual combed hairdo he normally had, his hair was ruffled and almost…spiked up. His teeth seemed sharper than usual and his face looked more menacing.

Worse, his skin looked sullen and pale. He had bags under his eyes as if he hadn't slept in a decade and yet in them there was this dark morbid determination. Just what the hell had happened to him?

"Harry…uh..it's good to see you again," she had managed to say not wanting to draw attention to the way he looked. He didn't seem to care either way.

"Likewise. Going for a stroll?"

She remembered biting her lip then and feeling very uneasy.

"Yes."

Harry smiled at her, but there was something sinister about it. She felt very uneasy at how close he came to her. Something wasn't right.

"Then l shall join you. I was just taking a walk myself."

A bland smile she gave him then, but she almost gasped when he hooked his arm around hers.

Like a gentleman he had told her.

It had been awkward and strange, in the end though, she had believed he was genuinely being what he was brought up to be. A gentleman. The truth had been so much more disturbing.

"So how are the preparations for Oxford coming along?" he added by way of conversation.

Gwen saw no harm in indulging him a bit although she was a little bit worried about any unwanted paparazzi in the area snapping pictures and getting the wrong idea.

"Good. It is a competitive scholarship. I do have to take an exam and then have an interview so I am hoping it all goes well."

He nodded at that and stared on far ahead. His eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the tall buildings. It was as if he was searching for something. Gwen shifted uncomfortably beside him.

"I see. Well if it doesn't all go well I can pull a few strings for you."

That had surprised her. It was very kind of him to do that when he barely knew her.

"Um, thanks? But I don't know yet. Doesn't sound too honest. We will see how desperate and heartbroken I am if I get rejected."

That made him chuckle and he removed his arms from hers and turned to stare at her.

"Is everything okay?" She questioned.

He scrutinized her before letting that sinister smile back on his face. Despite what she thought about that smile, it only sufficed to make him look more handsome.

"Do you want to go out for dinner some time?"

That had made the world stop spinning.

Harry Osborn wanted to have dinner with her?

"Uh…" she said stupidly.

"I mean, that is…"

He touched her shoulder.

"I know a nice French restaurant near my Company. High class and very sophisticated. Don't feel obligated to pay for anything. I am a gentleman after all," he said with some hint of sarcasm.

Gwen swallowed hard, nervously smoothed out her skirt before giving him a slight nod.

"Um, sure. That would be lovely."

He grinned at her.

"Wonderful. I will pick you up tomorrow night at seven."

Gwen wrapped the covers tighter around her body. The evening with him had been wonderful. Full of good food, expensive wine and upper class conversation.

And she had been a complete and utter fool to fall into his trap.