HOPELESS ☾Peter Parker - 1

THIRTY ONE

This was it. The final frontier, the final fight; Aspen Blue was going to find her parents--or father at least. 

It was the night before they were about to leave and a few days after Tony Stark decided to trust the girl. Aspen was laying face up in her bed with her eyes wide open. She couldn't sleep at all, for her anxiety regarding the trip was through the roof. 

The trio was planning on leaving for Nashville extremely early in the morning, so Peter was staying the night in the tower as well. The boy had to miss school for this, but he honestly didn't care; he would do anything for Aspen. 

The girl glared at the clock next to her and let out a groan. It was 2:19 and they were planning to leave at five. She knew that she needed to get rest before the next days events, but her mind was not letting her sleep. 

Before she realized what she was doing, the girl peeled the white covers off of her body and placed her feet on the cool floor. She mindlessly walked out of her room and allowed her feet to lead the way. 

When she realized where she was, Aspen hesitated but pushed aside the bubbling feeling in her gut and slowly opened the door. 

She peeked in and saw Peter's sleeping figure and was about to retreat when the boy stirred and sat up.

"What's going on?" His voice was hoarse and laced with sleep, and he rubbed his eyes. 

Aspen grew embarrassed and looked down at the floor. "Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to wake you, I was just- I don't know..."

"Are you alright?" He asked in a concerned tone. 

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I'll just be going-" She pointed in the direction of her room and made a move to exit Peter's.

"Aspen you can talk to me about anything, you know that right?" Peter was not going to give up on trying to get her to talk to him, and Aspen knew that. 

The girl let out nervous breath and walked back into his room, closing the door behind her. She grabbed a chair and dragged it over to his bed then sat down and put her head in her hands. 

"I just can't sleep. It's nerves I guess." She started, then looked up and met the boys tired eyes. "I should really let you sleep, I'm sorry I bothered you." 

Aspen tried to stand up from the chair, but Peter grabbed her hand and stopped her for moving any further. He reached out and took her other hand in his so that they were connected fully. Without saying anything, Peter pulled her in his direction, bringing her closer to him. 

"Talk to me, Penny. Please talk to me." The boy was begging for the girl to be open with him and wanted nothing more than for her to stop bottling up her emotions. 

The girl looked down, avoiding his pleading gaze and clenched her jaw tightly. "I'm scared." She finally let out in a weak voice. 

"What if we get to the prison and my dad isn't there? What if he's dead too and all of this has just been a trap and Hydra is working to get me back? We don't know if any of this is real, and we don't even know what Hydra did to me. What if they are there waiting for us and turn me back into Hemlock?" The girl was fighting tears and she hated herself for being so weak. 

"Penny, it's okay to be afraid and it's okay to cry. Tony and I, we would never let anything happen to you, and I sure as hell know that you can handle yourself. You are the strongest person I have ever met, not physically, but mentally. If it's a trap, then we'll fight our way out of it. If your dad is dead then you have me and you have Tony. Aspen, we are here for you and we believe in you. I know you can do this."