Rise || Marvel

《26》Even Superheroes Pull All-Nighters

(Song: Stars - Arrows To Athens)

《 Tia's POV 》

The following week consisted of me trying to read up all about IDT. The main theme of the event (according to the information sheet) was Engineering and Motors. I'd already pulled a couple of all-nighters. I think I would be alright.

Val' had decided that she was not going to attend the Seminar. She claimed (very firmly) that the last time she took an IDT class, she nearly toppled a buffing machine onto a row of saws (on accident).

"I am not eager to repeat that experience," she told me over the phone the night before the event, "I know we get a day off normal classes if we go, but I'd probably set the place on fire or something."

"Oh please!" I snorted, rolling over and nearly falling off the edge of my bed as a result, "I'm more likely to set the room on fire than you are."

"...Huh?" Valerie's voice sounded totally confused.

I realised my mistake, "Um... Anyway! I think the thing's mostly talks from professional engineers, so there'll be hardly any prac' work anyway!"

"Even so..." Valerie sighed wistfully, "Doesn't matter. I'm gonna head off to sleep. Don't stay up all night studying again, Tia! G'night."

"'Night, and I won't!" I chucked. The line went dead. I slid the device into the small table next to the bed and flopped back so I was staring at the ceiling.

Pepper had been miffed that I would be working around heavy duty equipment with my still healing shoulder, but grudgingly agreed that it would be okay as long as I didn't do anything overly ridiculous... Like doing a backflip off a 3D Printing Machine into a box of screws.
(Believe it or not, I'm not that stupid.)
Tony, on the other hand, had been delighted that I was 'finally showing an interest in IDT'. The whole reason for the first all-nighter I had pulled was because Tony had insisted on showing me just about every bit of equipment in his lab and explaining all the functions of each of them. Pepper had walked in on us at 2am to find Tony on his seventh cup of coffee, eagerly explaining one of his gadgets, and me slumped on one of the few uncluttered workbenches, half-asleep and craving an early death.

Moral of the story? Don't ever let Tony Stark help you study for IDT and Engineering related subjects if you don't know a thing about it. Just trust me on that.

~

"Wasn't that bit about the hydro-mechanic functions insightful? I'd never even heard of it being used like that!" Beamed Sonia, a girl from my Homeroom class.

"Uhhhhh, sure?" I replied, having absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

"And that part about how Neuton's Laws interconnected with it all!" She continued excitedly.

"Yeah, fascinating...!" I agreed feebly as we pushed out of the hall that was currently being used for the inter-school IDT seminar. I vaguely remembered learning about Newton's Laws back in Grade 9... Though you can bet your life that I hardly remember any of it.

Sonia was one of the smartest kids in my grade. She was taller than I, had soft brown eyes and long, dark-strawberry-pink dyed hair. I admired how passionate she was about learning, and how she could memorise seemingly endless amounts of information. She was nice to everyone, too, and was the grade representative.