Adventures in Babysitting ↠ Peter Parker [1] ✓

08 | Mood Ring

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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
viii. MOOD RING

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   RILEY HAD NEVER BEEN hungover before. Unlike many of her colleagues, she didn't even know what it tasted like, excluding that unpropitious time Fury decided to have a quick drink after one particularly stressful mission and Riley thought it was soda. She'd never experienced the so-called highs and lows drinking allegedly induced; however, when she awakened the next morning with a raging headache and the lingering tingle of death on her limbs, Riley was convinced this was what being hungover was really like.

   The Midtown gang sluggishly gathered themselves early that morning. Riley stood tall, reaching over and rubbing her shoulder. She cringed at the feeling of her sore muscles and bruises that formed overnight after her fight with Roman. Her face contorted with discomfort as she stretched her back, which had an unfortunate ache to it after sleeping on wooden panels.

   A low snicker thundered from behind Riley. "Someone's out of shape," a deep, arrogant voice remarked.

   Riley rolled her eyes as she turned to face Roman. He had a twinkle of mischief in his eyes, reminding the youngest Avenger of a God she once knew. "You're the one talking," she retorted, grumpy. "Didn't I break your nose last night?"

   Roman shrugged nonchalantly and scrunched his nose up to prove that it was, contrarily, perfectly fine. "Gotta love the perks of super-healing," he mentioned. Then, Roman paused. A thoughtful look colored his face. "Too bad it didn't do shit for me when I died all heroic-like."

   She lightly laughed, he smiled. This was how they had always been, even when she was 11. It always fascinated her how she could talk to certain people after long periods of time like nothing had changed, even when everything had.

   Meanwhile, the students of Midtown huddled together, trying to find it in them to stay awake. They weren't sure what time it was, but it was early.

   MJ's gaze was locked on the two famous Avengers in the room as they bantered with one another. "They're supposed to be really good friends, right?" MJ wondered aloud. "Riley said she's known Roman since she was 11."

   "They bickered half the night yesterday," bitterly contradicted Flash through a yawn. "At least it kept Valor up long enough to dry us off." He smiled fondly at the memory of Riley illuminating her body with light, warming everyone up from the rain.

   "It's weird," admitted Ned. "It's like... if Flash and Peter were friends, you know?" He made a face at the concept.

   Peter, who had been lost in his thought up until that moment, perked up when he heard his name. "Huh?" Peter lifted his head, not realizing how hard he had been staring at the ground until then. He tried to relax. "What are we talking about?"