Hang In There// P.P.

Chapter 4: Vulnerability.

I didn't sleep much that night, the nightmare running circles around my mind. It was heading on six a.m. when I decided just to get up. I hopped into the shower, letting the warm water relax my tense muscles and ease my mind. For at least ten minutes I stared in the mirror, looking at the girl in front of me. Barely recognizable due to the bags under her eyes from lack of sleep and a lovely blue-ish purple bruise sitting nicely under her eye. This wasn't me. This wasn't Sophie Osborn.

I got ready and was tying my shoelaces when there was a knock on my door.

"Come in."

I only looked up when the door opened and there stood Harry.

"Hey, Sof. Just wanted to see how you were."

I smiled at the boy and his kind heart, being grateful that he was my brother.

"Not gonna lie, Harry......."

His interest spiked at that moment.

"I could really do with a Haza hug and his famous coco."

Harry chuckled as he walked over to me and wrapped his arms around me. I reciprocated his actions.

"You know I'd never let anything happen to you, right?"

"Yeah I know, Haz. You're my brother, you kinda have to keep me safe."

He rolled his eyes at my response as he squeezed me tighter, making me gasp for air. Harry let go as we decided to go downstairs for breakfast, something we did every morning together, regardless of anything else. Harry wasn't only my brother, he was my best friend.

"You sure you're up for school today, Sof?"

There was genuine concern in his tone.

"I've got a biology quiz......"

I took a sip of the hot chocolate Harry made me before continuing.

"Plus, I gotta make sure that Pete is okay. He needs me right now you know."

"Always so selfless, huh."

I smiled at the boy and washed my mug before grabbing my bag, leaving the house to catch the bus.

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I walked into school feeling great, as if that nightmare hadn't visited me the night before. I thought it was going to be a normal day. Key word: thought. I met MJ as per usual and we walked to our lockers together, as we did every morning. Everything was fine. Of course, I got the odd stare here and there over the purple colour of my eye, but that didn't phase me. Morning classes went well, I aced the biology quiz, everything seemed to be going perfect.

That was until I saw him.

I saw Peter Parker and everything came crashing down. It was as if seeing his face alone had triggered some sort of emotion inside me. Even at lunch, while we engaged in the usual topic of conversation, Star Wars, I couldn't shake the memory of seeing his now smiling face, lifeless and dead only mere hours before hand. It shook me to the core. We had PE after lunch and it was the worst experience. Of. My. Life. Today was my favourite: dodge-ball. I had always loved dodge-ball for some unknown reason, but that day, I wanted nothing more than to be anywhere else. It started out just fine, but slowly, bit by bit, things got worse. I started zoning out, losing focus and concentration. That was until it happened. My mind became all fuzzy, my vision blurring as the PE hall suddenly turned into Tony Stark's office. The students had vanished, replaced by the numerous bodies once again. Blood covered the floor, giving it a carpet of red. I was reliving this nightmare all over again. The blood. The bodies. The faces. I could feel myself panicking, unable to breathe as I looked around in circles before stumbling over and falling next to the corpse of Peter Parker once again.