[hero, the hard way]↣ p. parker | t.s daughter

|eighteen| - edited

It had been a week. A long, boring, really hard week. Kayden did end up getting expelled. My classmates were on strike for two days before the administration gave in. True to his word, my father bailed out MJ, who spit in the face of a police officer. A total badass, if you asked me.

My case against Kayden was up and coming. The trials were supposed to start soon, at least that's what I was hearing. I tried to keep myself distanced from it. It was hard, you know? Kayden treated me like garbage for two months.

And it seemed like every way I turned, people kept asking about it. I'd been on both the Ellen show and the Daily Show to tell my story, to let other victims know that they aren't alone.

It feels like that, I know it does, but they have never been alone.

I, it seems, was never alone, either.

"Ari, guess what?" Peter asked excitedly, sliding into my room in spider themed socks.

"What?" I mused, sitting up in my bed to give him my full attention. I was reading over the full case report from Detective Benson, and was willing to take any distraction I could.

I lived through it. Why can't I just leave it in the past.

"You can't really guess, just come on!" Peter shot a web at my hand and pulled me to him, causing me to burst into laughter. He reeled me in and them pulled me along by my hand down the hallway. We got into the common room, but it was all dark.

"Uh, Pete? Wha-?"

"Suprise!" The lights went up and I was met by my dad, Pepper, Rhodey, Ned, and MJ all standing up from their hiding places. I looked between them and Peter, to make sure it was real, and he nodded.

"Oh, hey, woah. Thanks, guys!" I said with a small smile.

"Happy birthday, Ari!" Ned said happily, walking over and pulling me into a tight hug. I didn't flinch away. Instead, I returned it.

"Oh, thank you!" I said through a smile. Today's my birthday. My sweet 16. How did I manage to forget?

"You forgot." MJ said plainly, raising her eyebrows.

"I- what- no! Of course I didn't forget about my birthday!" I lied through my teeth. Even I cringed at the attempt.

"Well, we have cake. Chocolate, your favorite." Pepper gestured to the cake on the table. At least, I think that's what it is. It was brown, covered in frosting, and a bit lumpy. As if to answer my question,

"Pete and I baked it ourselves," My dad said proudly. I laughed and nodded, of course. Pepper dished up the cake and we laughed as we ate, we told stories, you know. What you do at a birthday party. But I still had that report sitting on my bed. And I didn't want to go near it.

I mean, it was my birthday. My sixteenth birthday and I was surounded by my friends and family. I get to take a break, right? Just for a minute, I get to breathe, right?

After a few hours, the party was winding down. I said goodbye to my friends (after pulling MJ aside and thanking her for the protest,) and then it was just us in the compound again.

Peter went home to Aunt May, dad was down in the lab, Pepper's doing paperwork, and Rhodey left for some sort of official Air Force business.

I was all alone, staring down the folder that held my last two months. How did this happen to me? Kayden Conner took my innocence, my virginity, and now I was stuck trying to pick up the pieces. So why, tell me, why didI feel bad for pressing charges against him?

Because he loved me. Or he didn't. But I thought he did, and I was willing to let him beat me if it made him happy. And maybe that's stupid, maybe it's some sort of fatal flaw. But I thought he loved me, and I was willing to do whatever it took to keep it that way. But honestly? That's not the way love works.