Misadventures in Paradise ↠ Peter Parker [2]

03 | Welcome to Westview

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MISADVENTURES IN PARADISE
iii. WELCOME TO WESTVIEW

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   RILEY KNEW IT WAS horrible to think, but she was almost expecting something terrible to happen to Roman. It was the budding pessimist in her.

   After her phone call with Director Hayward, she was in Westview, New Jersey by daybreak. She didn't say much about it to Peter or her family, only that she had a new assignment that required her immediate assistance.

   It was admittedly difficult reassuring Peter that everything was fine. She did have a rather explosive reaction to whatever Hayward said on the phone, and it worried him, even more, when she refused to utter a word about it to him. But Riley kept these details away from him to protect him. He just didn't realize that.

   Tony and Pepper, on the other hand, didn't mind the lack of details, only telling her to be safe and sending her off with a hug and a kiss. This wasn't abnormal for the family. Riley recently stopped telling them the details of whatever missions were going on out of respect for them. They didn't need to worry about the safety of the world anymore.

   (Sometimes, however, Tony asked her for little details on whatever she had going on when he was feeling particularly nosy. It was nice gossiping with him without worrying about how he was going to use his billionth suit to save the day).

   It was early in the morning, a cool breeze crossing the world as the end of August neared. The sweet colors of the sunrise were concealed by fog. A gloomy start to the day. Despite hardly sleeping last night, Riley was wide awake. The adrenaline from spending the night overthinking fueled her as she sat in a fully packed van, courtesy of S.W.O.R.D.

   She wondered what she would be dealing with in Westview. Hayward didn't mention too much on the phone, to her dismay. Whatever it was, it was strong enough to overpower Roman. The thought alone made her nervous.

   Whenever she got like this, she found herself thinking of Vision. He never fully understood the complex myriad of human emotions, always acting like they were a symptom that could be treated. He always said that anxiety and nervousness were caused by a response in the amygdala, and then he'd suggest doing something calming, like going for a stroll or playing chess with a friend. They often did these things together as a way to bond and waste time.

   If Riley closed her eyes, she could bring herself back to those days with ease. Back then, it felt like Vision was the only one she would never lose. She thought she'd always have someone to play chess with or debate silly things with. And yet, here she was, living a life without him. It was hard adjusting to him being gone.