Better Times

001 : One Day At A Time

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—CHAPTER 1 : One Day At A Time—

"I'm telling you, Ned, Oscorp was— well, is perfect for you!" The teenager in a red sweater whispered out. He swung his locker closed and patted his shorter friend on the back. A small grin was across his face, "Ned— just congratulations. This is amazing for you, I feel so happy for you. I hope it gets you somewhere, you deserve it."

Ned Leeds blushed softly as they wove through the crowd of teens. They quickly made it into the science classroom where Michelle Jones was seated in the back, reading a book. "Thanks, Peter, it's a great opportunity. I can't wait to start later today. Which means, we won't be hanging out as much, sorry."

"It's alright, I just want you to be happy with yourself," Peter assured him just before the bell rang. He huffed out a puff of air just as their teacher Mrs. Beelin walked in. She wore her usual green cardigan with a white button up underneath and a black shirt.

"Class, today we'll be finishing up work. Any type, ranging from any subjects. So just— finish everything up and then you'll be free to roam the halls," her soft voice echoed the silent room. Soon enough a paper ball wacked Peter in the face, causing him to open it. It was blank, which led Peter to believe nothing was wrong today. Soon enough the room phone rang.

It was muffled, even if the room was silent. Soon the woman sighed, setting the black phone back into place. Her brown eyes turned towards Peter, "Peter, Principal Morita requested you to her office." Peter nodded, gulping heavily. Being called into the Principal's office was never a good sign, it made Peter nervous.

The halls were empty, well as empty as they could be with the making out couples near bathrooms. He shuffled down steps and past the secretary. He knocked on the caramel door before entering. His eyes widened quickly when he noticed Pepper Potts with principal Morita.

"Is there— is there a problem.. Principal Morita?" He squeaked out softly. The brunette lady turned her back from Pepper Potts and looked at Peter. He turned his eye to the blonde and smiled, "Hi, Mrs. Potts. It's lovely to meet you."

The principal nodded at Pepper who smiled, "Hi, Peter. It's great to meet you too. Listen, we have lots to talk about. But for now..I wanted to confirm that you will be... working with Tony Stark on hero suits." The teenager's eyes widened, causing Pepper to laugh before letting Morita explain.

"Well, that test we did before Christmas Break was actually for Stark Industries. You scored as the highest in teens, which is the division they were looking into," she sighed softly. A glint of life was cast onto her black glasses as she stood up. Her hand patted Peter's shoulder harshly causing him to trip forward in a cough.

"Which means you're the one they need. You'll be helping Tony out in projects and weapons for S.H.I.E.L.D. But we just need you to sign this document," Pepper slid over the desk a white paper. It had tinted words that Peter didn't care for so he knitted his brows in confusion. Pepper smiled, "It's just saying we pay for your education studies and have control on your public image if the world found out you helped out on the Avenger products and technologies like that. And all that stuff, this will be payed like a normal worker. I have to get going once you sign it, but your principal can explain the process."

Peter was quick to nod, and took a short second to grasp a pen and sign his initials into the dotted, well straight, line. Pepper shook his shoulder and took the paper with her and left. Then it was silent for a second before Principal Morita cleared her throat.