Lithe (S.R) Book 1

Losing My Religion

"Well you've got a week of warmth." Pepper squeezed her shoulders before letting her go.

The two girls watched the driver put her suitcase in the trunk before opening the door so they could slide in the backseat. Rebecca finally pulled off her hood and took her sunglasses off when she was out of sight. She looked outside through the blacked windows seeing no paparazzi in sight.

"Wow. No cameras in my face." The young girl mumbled, peeling off her jacket to get comfortable. "I'm kinda surprised."

"Well, your father's being rewarded tonight in Vegas. So that's the big story of the day." Pepper mumbled, looking at something on her phone. No doubt it having to do with Stark Industries.

"That's right. The Apogee Award? Right?" She pulled out her own phone, seeing no new notifications.

"That's the one. You didn't want to go?"

"It's not a lot of fun to be in Vegas when you're only 20 and can't do much of anything." Rebecca sighed softly. "And knowing dad he's going to spend most of his time on the casino floor."

Pepper gave the girl a sympathetic smile. "You know, he's already planning your 21st birthday this summer right? It's very rare for him to start planning something so far in advance."

"Yeah, that's because it's a party. And Tony Stark loves to party." Rebecca let her head rest against the cold window, staring out at the palm trees and city streets passing her by.

Pepper watched as her eyes glazed over, officially rolling back into herself. She has been able to watch this young girl grow before her eyes the best of 10 years. When she was given the job as Tony's assistant she would have never realized that she would also become this sort of mother figure to the youngest Stark as well. But she took it in stride. Rebecca never needed much guidance, she was always a step ahead of her time just as her father was at that age. But the difference was Rebecca didn't want that recognition, so Pepper had tried her best to let her just be an average teenage girl.

By the time the car had made it to the mansion in Malibu, Rebecca was ready to spend some time alone and hopefully get some sleep that she desperately needed after her crazy first half of the semester. They pulled in from the gate, looked up at the original designed mansion.

"You don't have to come in. I'm sure you're busy." Rebecca told Pepper, as she grabbed her items.

"Are you sure? I have a little bit of time."

"No it's fine. Go spend it doing something you actually like to do. It's very rare to not play tag along to my dad." She smiled before giving the woman anther hug. "Thanks for picking me up, Pepper."

"Anytime, Becca. Let me know if you need anything." Pepper gave the girl another smile.

"I will. Happy early birthday by the way." Rebecca gave her a large smile and pulled herself out of the car. She gave the driver a big 'thank you' as he pulled her luggage out of the trunk. The dancer rolled her suitcase up the cement steps before pausing to put her code into the front door. The glass door automatically popped open for her and she stepped through the entrance. The open living room was exactly how she left it after winter break and the same way it's been for most of her life.

"Hey, Jarvis." She spoke to the house.

"Good to have you home, Ms. Stark." The computer responded back to her.

She sighed, just standing in the empty room. She was alone. Again.

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Rebecca woke up early the next morning despite how much she wanted to sleep in. But given the fact that she was still on east coast time, it was probably better to keep up with it to not hurt herself when her short break was over. She knew her father returned sometime the night before or early that morning as she heard Jarvis' greeting, but other than that she was deaf to the world. Sleep was one of her best friends, since it gave her time to rest her constantly working muscles.