Adventures in Babysitting ↠ Peter Parker [1] ✓

03 | Midtown Jubilee

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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
iii. MIDTOWN JUBILEE

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   RILEY STARK LOOKED NORMAL. She acted normal. She seemed completely normal for the five days that followed. Peter wasn't sure what he did wrong the other day when he brought up the Midtown Jubilee. All he knew for a fact was that he said something to have upset Riley. He couldn't quite see it in her body language, considering Riley was trained to hide her emotions. Instead, he had sensed it. Still, the past was in the past, and now, Riley seemed to be back to normal as far as he could see.

   Contrarily, what he didn't know was that Riley had been in a complete state of frenzy for five days straight.

   Pacing around the condominium she had been living in, Riley continued to fire one question after another. "Is there any way we can soundproof the place before the jubilee tonight?" questioned Riley. "Are you sure there isn't any way for me to leave the city by then? What about the jets?"

   "I'm afraid all of Mr. Stark's private jets are out. Traffic has been backed up since this morning due to a Government official being in the city for the jubilee. Apparently, Senator Collins is alumni to Midtown," explained JOCASTA. "We could try soundproofing the condominium, but it most likely will not be ready by tonight. Maybe you shouldn't have procrastinated this for so long, Miss Valor."

   "I so don't have the patience for your sass right now, JO," grumbled Riley. She ran a hand through her hair. She had been betting on being able to borrow one of her parents' jets to leave Queens for the evening, but that plan turned out to fail. "Is there really no way to get out of here?"

   "I'm afraid you're stuck."

   She groaned irritably. She had five days to prepare for the Midtown Jubilee. She had more than enough time to figure out some way to get out of town or soundproof her home. She couldn't believe she didn't think about if her plan failed. That was one of the first things she learned in her training! Riley had been hoping she could just leave the city for the night, but things didn't seem like they'd be going her way anytime soon.

   The problem wasn't going to the jubilee or avoiding people attending the celebration. As a matter of fact, Riley Stark would have loved to go. It was the first time she'd be able to experience one. The problem at hand was the fact that there were going to be fireworks.

   It was a pipe dream and a widely famous misconception that the Avengers were completely invincible. Sure, they could fight bad guys with just their fists and cool suits alone, but they weren't necessarily indestructible. They all had their share of trauma. Tony Stark dealt with plenty of PTSD and anxiety, as well as Steve Rogers. Bruce Banner struggled with self-hatred because of his creation of the Hulk, and Riley couldn't even begin to list out every trouble Natasha and Thor faced. Point being: every single hero, whether they're just a normal human or an Avenger, faced some sort of trauma.