Adventures in Babysitting ↠ Peter Parker [1] ✓

04 | Adventures With Peter

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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
iv. ADVENTURES WITH PETER

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   WAKING UP THE NEXT morning was a puzzle to Riley. With a thin blanket draped over her cold body and her arm losing feeling after her head being pressed against it all night, she felt like she'd just woken up from a coma. When she peeled open her eyes, the sun's morning rays beamed directly into them, burning her pupils on the spot. Quietly groaning, she flipped over on her side, only now realizing that she was laying on the floor in the living area.

   Her face contorted with discomfort and confusion. "What the hell...?" She propped herself up on her elbow and rubbed her eyes with her free hand. "JO... Did I fall asleep on the floor...?"

   "Good morning, Miss Stark," greeted JOCASTA. "Today is Wednesday. It's 8:09 AM. You've missed first period completely." Riley groaned at this. "Mr. Parker left you a message before he left."

   There was a pause before Peter Parker's voice went booming throughout the condo. "Hiya, Riley!" the boy greeted. Riley winced at the volume of his voice. "Oh, you're probably just waking up when you hear this."

   He paused before continuing with a quieter voice. "Hey, Riley," Peter started again. "I hope you slept alright. I was gonna sleep on the couch and put you in your room, but you were really persistent on sleeping on the floor. And you were so comfortable laying on me that I felt bad trying to move you." Riley's eyes widened, blushing without realizing. She must've been ridiculously delirious and exhausted by that point in the evening. "Anyways, I just left to go home and brush my teeth and let May know I didn't die since I didn't go home last night... obviously. But when I get back, we're gonna go on an adventure, alright? Who needs school? I mean, we do—Actually, you don't. You're really smart. If anything, I do."

  Riley lightly laughed at his rambling, standing up and continuing to listen to the message. She draped the blanket over the couch once more. She pressed the side of her head as a headache began to make itself known. "Anyways... You had a tough day yesterday and I wanted to help make up for it. If you're still asleep by the time I come back, I'm gonna wake you up and it won't be pretty." Peter chuckled at his own words. "Anyways, see you soon, Ghostie!" He paused. "Okay, that's it. You can end it, JOCASTA. You can turn it—"

   There was a beeping sound that indicated the end of his message. Riley shook her head. Peter really stayed the night? For her? Just to make sure she was okay? Riley smiled at the thought. Peter was too kind for his own good. Though, Riley supposed that was what good friends do, right?

   Riley stretched her arms outward and released a quiet yawn. She didn't realize how badly she needed to sleep in until now. She was surprised JOCASTA even allowed her to. She'd woken up at the crack of dawn everyday for as long as she could remember. Sleeping in wasn't apart of her usual agenda. It was something she was able to do once in a blue moon. Then again, knowing JO, the A.I. probably turned off Riley's alarms for the sake of the girl being well-rested.