❝Just because you hate everybody doesn't mean everybody hates you. You have people that still need you around, and I'm not afraid to admit I'm one of them.❞
. . .in which she must find a way to navigate through a changed world and a changed heart.
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The night was dark and quiet. Andi wasn't sure what time it was, but she knew it was late, or at least it was getting late. She hadn't talked to Pepper since before she left for school, and her phone died hours ago. There was no doubt in her mind her aunt would have plenty to say about her late return home if she was caught, so her goal for the moment was to make sure that didn't happen. Pepper was definitely a lot more comfortable than she used to be with Andi's work as Recluse, but she was still a teenager. There were rules and boundaries Pepper had in place for Andi to follow while under her care, but sometimes she could be just as stubborn as Tony was. It was a testament of just how close the two had become over the years, Pepper thought.
Andi ran quickly through the empty yard of her lakeside home. She ran to the open window where she knew her bedroom was and climbed through, careful to remain quiet in her haste. Her room was dark, just as she expected it to be. She could hear Pepper in the living room watching a movie on TV, so she crawled quietly across the ceiling to shut her bedroom door. She didn't want Pepper to hear her and come barging in to scold her. She didn't have the energy to deal with it.
Once her door was shut, Andi dropped carefully back to the floor. She switched her light on and turned around, startled by the sight of Peter sitting so nonchalantly in her bed. He had one of her books open in his lap, which he placed back onto her nightstand after finally looking over at her.
"Finally! I thought you'd never show up."
"What the hell are you doing here, Peter?" Andi pulled her hood and mask off to look at Peter. She was not at all expecting to find him in her bedroom.
"Pepper let me in." Peter got off of Andi's bed and walked over to her. "She said I could wait on you to get home. I guess she didn't know that'd take five hours."
"And you did?"
"I actually thought you'd be gone longer," Peter replied with a laugh. "I know what you're up to, and I know it's gonna take longer than five hours for you to get answers."
Andi groaned and pressed the symbol on her chest to relieve herself of the suit. She was wearing a tank top and spandex shorts underneath, both of which she couldn't wait to change out of. Regardless of how exhilarating it was to swing her way through the city, it could be very hot and sweaty inside the suit sometimes. Had Peter not been present, she likely would've opted for a shower.
"I thought we were supposed to figure this out together," Peter spoke again after receiving no response from Andi. "Y'know, like we always do?"
Andi picked up her suit and walked over to her closet. "That was the plan until a certain someone made me suspicious," she answered Peter. She hung her suit in its designated spot above the special pod she used to house the iron armor Tony built for her.
