diff --git a/benchmark/abort_controller/abort-controller-creation.js b/benchmark/abort_controller/abort-controller-creation.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000000..cf21e2aac86585
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmark/abort_controller/abort-controller-creation.js
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+'use strict';
+
+const common = require('../common.js');
+const assert = require('node:assert');
+
+const bench = common.createBenchmark(main, {
+  n: [1e6],
+  kind: ['AbortController', 'AbortSignal.timeout'],
+});
+
+function main({ n, kind }) {
+  let result;
+
+  switch (kind) {
+    case 'AbortController':
+      bench.start();
+      for (let i = 0; i < n; i++)
+        result = new AbortController().signal; // AbortSignal is created lazily on first .signal access
+      bench.end(n);
+      break;
+    case 'AbortSignal.timeout':
+      bench.start();
+      for (let i = 0; i < n; i++)
+        result = AbortSignal.timeout(1);
+      bench.end(n);
+      break;
+    default:
+      throw new Error('Invalid kind');
+  }
+
+  // Avoid V8 dead code elimination
+  assert.ok(result);
+}
diff --git a/lib/events.js b/lib/events.js
index 7044423692e1bf..e385e8dddc4274 100644
--- a/lib/events.js
+++ b/lib/events.js
@@ -927,7 +927,7 @@ function getEventListeners(emitterOrTarget, type) {
   // Require event target lazily to avoid always loading it
   const { isEventTarget, kEvents } = require('internal/event_target');
   if (isEventTarget(emitterOrTarget)) {
-    const root = emitterOrTarget[kEvents].get(type);
+    const root = emitterOrTarget[kEvents]?.get(type);
     const listeners = [];
     let handler = root?.next;
     while (handler?.listener !== undefined) {
@@ -972,7 +972,7 @@ function listenerCount(emitterOrTarget, type) {
   }
   const { isEventTarget, kEvents } = require('internal/event_target');
   if (isEventTarget(emitterOrTarget)) {
-    return emitterOrTarget[kEvents].get(type)?.size ?? 0;
+    return emitterOrTarget[kEvents]?.get(type)?.size ?? 0;
   }
   throw new ERR_INVALID_ARG_TYPE('emitter',
                                  ['EventEmitter', 'EventTarget'],
diff --git a/lib/internal/event_target.js b/lib/internal/event_target.js
index 9948d3f1868e32..5a4f7c02909464 100644
--- a/lib/internal/event_target.js
+++ b/lib/internal/event_target.js
@@ -551,10 +551,16 @@ class Listener {
 }
 
 function initEventTarget(self) {
-  self[kEvents] = new SafeMap();
+  self[kEvents] = undefined;
   self[kMaxEventTargetListeners] = EventEmitter.defaultMaxListeners;
   self[kMaxEventTargetListenersWarned] = false;
-  self[kHandlers] = new SafeMap();
+  self[kHandlers] = undefined;
+}
+
+function getEventsMap(self) {
+  if (self[kEvents] === undefined)
+    self[kEvents] = new SafeMap();
+  return self[kEvents];
 }
 
 class EventTarget {
@@ -660,7 +666,8 @@ class EventTarget {
 
     type = webidl.converters.DOMString(type);
 
-    let root = this[kEvents].get(type);
+    const eventsMap = getEventsMap(this);
+    let root = eventsMap.get(type);
 
     if (root === undefined) {
       root = { size: 1, next: undefined, resistStopPropagation: Boolean(resistStopPropagation) };
@@ -675,7 +682,7 @@ class EventTarget {
         capture,
         passive,
         weak);
-      this[kEvents].set(type, root);
+      eventsMap.set(type, root);
       return;
     }
 
@@ -717,6 +724,9 @@ class EventTarget {
     type = webidl.converters.DOMString(type);
     const capture = options?.capture === true;
 
+    if (this[kEvents] === undefined)
+      return;
+
     const root = this[kEvents].get(type);
     if (root === undefined || root.next === undefined)
       return;
@@ -736,6 +746,9 @@ class EventTarget {
   }
 
   [kRemoveWeakListenerHelper](type, listener) {
+    if (this[kEvents] === undefined)
+      return;
+
     const root = this[kEvents].get(type);
     if (root === undefined || root.next === undefined)
       return;
@@ -791,7 +804,7 @@ class EventTarget {
       event[kIsBeingDispatched] = true;
     }
 
-    const root = this[kEvents].get(type);
+    const root = this[kEvents]?.get(type);
     if (root === undefined || root.next === undefined) {
       if (event !== undefined)
         event[kIsBeingDispatched] = false;
@@ -927,6 +940,8 @@ class NodeEventTarget extends EventTarget {
   eventNames() {
     if (!isNodeEventTarget(this))
       throw new ERR_INVALID_THIS('NodeEventTarget');
+    if (this[kEvents] === undefined)
+      return [];
     return ArrayFrom(this[kEvents].keys());
   }
 
@@ -937,6 +952,8 @@ class NodeEventTarget extends EventTarget {
   listenerCount(type) {
     if (!isNodeEventTarget(this))
       throw new ERR_INVALID_THIS('NodeEventTarget');
+    if (this[kEvents] === undefined)
+      return 0;
     const root = this[kEvents].get(String(type));
     return root !== undefined ? root.size : 0;
   }
@@ -1029,11 +1046,12 @@ class NodeEventTarget extends EventTarget {
   removeAllListeners(type) {
     if (!isNodeEventTarget(this))
       throw new ERR_INVALID_THIS('NodeEventTarget');
-    if (type !== undefined) {
+    if (this[kEvents] === undefined)
+      return this;
+    if (type !== undefined)
       this[kEvents].delete(String(type));
-    } else {
+    else
       this[kEvents].clear();
-    }
 
     return this;
   }
@@ -1145,18 +1163,29 @@ function defineEventHandler(emitter, name, event = name) {
 
   function set(value) {
     validateThisInternalField(this, kHandlers, 'EventTarget');
-    let wrappedHandler = this[kHandlers]?.get(event);
+    if (this[kHandlers] === undefined)
+      this[kHandlers] = new SafeMap();
+    let wrappedHandler = this[kHandlers].get(event);
     if (wrappedHandler) {
+      const eventsMap = getEventsMap(this);
       if (typeof wrappedHandler.handler === 'function') {
-        this[kEvents].get(event).size--;
-        const size = this[kEvents].get(event).size;
-        this[kRemoveListener](size, event, wrappedHandler.handler, false);
+        const root = eventsMap.get(event);
+        if (root !== undefined) {
+          root.size--;
+          this[kRemoveListener](root.size, event, wrappedHandler.handler, false);
+        }
       }
       wrappedHandler.handler = value;
       if (typeof wrappedHandler.handler === 'function') {
-        this[kEvents].get(event).size++;
-        const size = this[kEvents].get(event).size;
-        this[kNewListener](size, event, value, false, false, false, false);
+        const root = eventsMap.get(event);
+        if (root !== undefined) {
+          root.size++;
+          this[kNewListener](root.size, event, value, false, false, false, false);
+        } else {
+          // The wrapper was externally removed from kEvents (e.g. via
+          // removeEventListener); re-register it so the handler fires.
+          this.addEventListener(event, wrappedHandler);
+        }
       }
     } else {
       wrappedHandler = makeEventHandler(value);