❝Just because you hate everybody doesn't mean everybody hates you. You have people that still need you around, and I'm not afraid to admit I'm one of them.❞
. . .in which she must find a way to navigate through a changed world and a changed heart.
[...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
☼ ☼ ☼
The airport was crowded. Between being cramped inside an airplane for nine hours and shoving her way through tourists and locals alike, Andi was absolutely exhausted, not to mention ready for a much needed nap. She couldn't begin to express how relieved she was that they'd finally landed, however. While the flight wasn't too unbearable given Peter's presence at her side, she still couldn't escape Mr. Harrington, and worse, she couldn't escape the constant reminder of the life her dear uncle once lived.
There were almost too many movies and documentaries to choose from on her airplane monitor about "Earth's greatest hero", as well as several others regarding the battle that'd left her with a post traumatic stress she'd never experienced before. Her anxiety had been raging for hours now, and it didn't take long for Peter to notice that as well. She'd shut down halfway through the flight, and even he couldn't get through to her. Andi refused to let him. She knew he was the one person capable of making her talk about what she was feeling, but her issue was that she didn't want to. She was afraid if she did everything would fall apart the way it had only months ago. She was afraid if she did, she would be succumbing to the dark waves trying to pull her under, and she feared she was no longer strong enough to pull herself to the surface.
Andi walked briskly through the airport with her backpack, her carry-on, and her suitcase in tow. She was attempting to keep up with her classmates, though she didn't mind lingering behind. She was observing everything she could, between Flash's incessant live streaming, MJ and Gwen's hushed conversations, and Ned and Betty's strange interactions. Had she been in better spirits, she likely would've made an attempt to join her friends socially, but at the moment all she wanted to do was get through security, get on the boat, and get to the hotel so she could nap.
"Hey, Andi!" Ned called to Andi as she approached the group. "How was the flight? You and Peter looked pretty cozy with each other."
"It's hard to get cozy when your science teacher won't shut up about his not-so-dead wife," Andi muttered to herself.
"It's also hard to get cozy when your science teacher falls asleep on your shoulder," Peter's voice sounded.
Andi turned to see him walking up to the two of them, and she smiled softly, though the gesture didn't exactly reach her eyes. She couldn't help the quiet laugh that escaped her at the sound of his words, though. She remembered being an hour deep into a movie when she saw Mr. Harrington fall onto Peter's shoulder. She remembered the expression on his face and just how much she wanted to burst out laughing. She couldn't, however, for the sake of waking the entire plane up. At that moment, she could only be glad she was among the few that kept their original seats. She wasn't sure what she would've done had she been in Peter's position.
"That was pretty funny," Andi said to Peter.
"Almost as funny as your snoring waking up the entire plane," Peter remarked.
