Study Buddies ✷ Peter Parker (disc.)

[ 050. ] sweet home new york

     She's about ready to pull that whole 'don't make me come back there' mom line on them when Sel finally butts in, much to Rosie's relief. "It doesn't matter anyways, you losers!" she huffs, sighing unnecessarily loud to emphasize her annoyance (in typical Sel fashion). "You won't be in the car long enough to hear the song anyways."

Rosie turns around just in time to catch the last glimpse of the boys' perplexed expressions before they finally look out of the right window and see the giant 'A' symbol donning the large building. They're back to chattering again, but it's more tolerable this time —— she can admit she'd much rather hear their excited whisperings about whose autograph they should get first (Finn says Ant Man, and Rosie doesn't have the heart to tell him that he's on the other side of the country) than their same argument over who gets to sing what part in Rosie's favorite song (like, she's pretty sure they should know by now that she'd be singing along so loudly that no one could even hear them, anyways).

     Sel barely has time to pull her car to a complete halt before Rosie unbuckles her seatbelt and slings the front passenger door open. She can hear Sel make a half assed comment about being careful with Velma, and under normal circumstances, Rosie would point out how much she loves the fact that her best named her car after Velma Kelly.

     But these aren't normal circumstances, because she can see the two people she cares most about right there, speed walking towards the parked car, and Rosie doesn't really care about anything else.

It's been, what, barely a month since Rosie's seen them last? Barely a month since they spontaneously showed up in her dorm room for her eighteenth birthday, declaring her an official Avenger and only leaving her the next morning with a tearful goodbye and an abundance of hugs. Here's the thing, though: that's a lot for Rosie. Pepper and Tony have been the only family she's had for six years, and being away from them so much absolutely sucks. She had almost opted out of attending Danforth Prep all together because of it, but Pepper encouraged her to give it a try (which, obviously, Rosie is beyond thankful for).

     She hugs the fabric of her MIT hoodie closer to her chest as she jogs across the grass, noticing the way Pepper and Tony pick up their speed when she does. It's cold (unsurprising for New York in December, Rosie supposes) and she feels the frosty air nip at her cheeks, but she's too distracted to completely focus on it. Finn calls to her from back at the car —— something along the lines of "Rosie, wait up!" —— but she doesn't.

There's a squeal of excitement that Rosie barely realizes is her own as she skids to a stop in front of her aunt and uncle, barely giving herself a chance to catch her balance before she throws her arms around both of them. It's much warmer now. Pepper kisses the top of her head, telling her how much she had missed her, though the sentence is muffled by Rosie's hair. She clutches them tighter, burying her face in her aunt's shoulder as she inhales her scent. Peppermint perfume; the one Rosie had given her for her birthday.

She pulls away after a moment, though immediately regrets it when the cold air brushes over her exposed skin again. Tony smiles down at his self proclaimed favorite niece —— a remark Rosie always rolls her eyes at, considering she's his only niece —— and she returns the gesture.

"Well geez, kid," he says, taking a hand to her hair and ruffling it until it's just messy enough for her to swat his hand away. She fakes a grimace, but the hint of a smile that gleams in her eyes betrays her. "I know you missed me, but you didn't have to run."

Rosie looks unimpressed. Pepper laughs.

"Don't flatter yourself, Uncle Big Head," Rosie spits back. Tony looks hurt, melodramatically placing a hand over his heart. "Besides, you ran too."