Clessidra | Peter Parker.

8. magic trick

"How is that even possible? Do you stop time for everyone around the planet?"

"As far as I know, yes. Something snaps in my mind, as if time is a material existence moving through a thread, and I manage to stop it as long as my body allows me to. I do what I have to, then I release the grip and time start back from where I had left it."

Tony still couldn't easily wrap his head around the realization. He knew many powers, he had seen some pretty weird stuff in his life, but nothing had even come closer to that. Pietro was so fast that time slowed down for him, but from that to actually stopping it was a step Tony didn't even think existed. Or maybe he did, but it was too much of a scary thought for him to accepting it.

But there she was. June Sullivan, a seventeen year old student with fiery red hair and an idiot as a best friend who held in her hands probably the most powerful thing in the whole world. Because people could have had the scariest of powers, but she could have simply stopped time and then there was nothing anyone could have done about it.

"What's the longest you can hold it?" he asked.

"Three days, if I don't do anything at all. I've tried it only twice, but it kind of... it gave me some permanent problems."

"Like what?"

"My perception of time and space is slightly messed up. Sometimes I become extremely slow at doing things, or extremely fast. It tends to get annoying, and I can't always explain it to my parents. I think my mom thinks I take some kind of drug. That's why I never stop time for so long anymore. There's no need to, anyway. I tried it only when I was extremely pissed with my mum and didn't want to see her, but after three days I started time again and she immediately came back to yell at me about grades."

"Impressive," Tony stated, turning towards Peter. "And you knew about it?"

Peter nodded. "She gained them before me, but didn't tell me until I was bit by the spider. We just made the silent agreement to test them out together, and it just turned into helping people very easily. I think that having them together helped us not to freak out too much."

Tony nodded, then stared down at his watch.

"It's time for me to go, but I'll contact you as soon as possible with information about our departure. Until then, kick ass."

He almost ran out of the room and June and Peter had only time to get out of the room to see him walking out of the door before he was gone.

-

"Something tells me my powers scare people away."

Peter scoffed, following June down the stairs.

"Or maybe Tony Stark is a really busy man and he has given us way too much time for his standards."

June made a hum of response, but didn't say anything. She reached the door and opened it, letting Peter walk before her outside.

"Besides, I'm still here," he said, turning towards her and walking backwards.

She felt her heart clutching at his words and inevitably smiled. "That's because you're an idiot."

Peter shrugged. "But really, you don't have to do this just for me."

June sighed and smacked him on the chest. It was the thousandth time, since Tony had left, he repeated it.

"Stop it. I do it because I think it's the right thing to do, and it could help us." That was not true. If Peter happened to change his mind and decided not to go with Tony, June would have done the same. That was how dependant she was from him.

Peter nodded, not quite believing her yet. From his point of view, June had always been kind of lost. With such a tyrannical mother and a weak father who couldn't stand up for himself most of the time, she didn't necessarily had a strong figure to look up to. Peter knew she didn't look up to him too, but he knew she relied on him, a lot. Maybe even too much, but it had never bothered him.

"Ok, well, I'll let you know when Tony says something. See ya." Peter waved at June with his hand and walked away from her, grabbing his bike and quickly disappearing in the night.

June let out a heavy sigh and walked back inside, squeezing her arms on her chest to keep herself warm. Her father was still in the kitchen, the water boiling on the stove and a cup in his hands.

"I guess I'm going to sleep," June yawned, rubbing her eyes.

Bruce turned towards her with a kind smile and set down the cup on the counter before walking towards her.

"My baby June, I'm so proud of you. And your mother will be, as well, once she knows about your plans. You're our pride," he muttered, gently wrapping his arms around her in a warm hug. June resisted the urge to wiggle away from his hug and hide in her guilt, but his warmness was too inviting for her to move away.

She loved her father more than anything else, to the point where she had almost felt to tell him the truth a few times, but she knew how dangerous it would have been. The worst thing about him, though, was the pure trust he had placed in her. He didn't care about grades or success, unlike her mother, but he knew she was destined to great things, and she hated the fact that she was keeping such a big and heavy thing from him.

-

The amount of things that happened when June woke up the day after made her look around herself in a state of dizziness.

First of all, Simon Fizz had sent her a message to ask her if she wanted to go out with him one of those days. She felt like fainting and at the same time pat herself on the shoulder for achieving something in her life for once, but her mother barged in the room with full force and completely distracted her from anything else.

She started screaming nonsense and June only caught up the words 'Tony Stark', 'Peter' and 'scholarship', and she didn't need anything else. She rarely saw her mother this happy and, besides all the struggles she had put her through in those years, she was glad she had had a good news, even if it was a total lie.

June smiled and nodded at her questions, her arms constantly widened since Heather would throw herself at her, push herself away to look at her, give her a kiss on the forehead and repeat everything once again.

"When Bruce told me I couldn't believe it! I'm so happy, so happy!"

When Heather finally calmed down and decided to go make breakfast, after making June promise to give her all the details, she left and a peaceful silence surrounded the room. June let out a sigh of relief, on the verge of answering to Simon when another message came from Peter, informing her of the news about Tony.

All she could read was 'we're leaving tomorrow freaking afternoon!' before her phone fell from her hands and silently hit the sheets.

Tomorrow?!

I'm SO sorry it took me so much to update. I should have done it days ago, but I'm studying like a robot and I forget the things I have to do :'(

Hope you guys are enjoying this story, I'll try to update as soon as possible!

Love you all, 

Elena.