We watched as the adults slowly filed out of the office, and I felt filled with guilt. The girl's parents had tissues in their hands, dabbing their puffy eyes. Stacy's mother stopped in front of me for a moment, looking as if she wanted to say something before shaking her head and storming away. Fox was next, shaking his head in disbelief.
"You kids gonna be okay?" he asked us all with a sigh. Not a single person even bothered to nod; we knew the truth. "I thought so. Just so you know, Ken's not mad at you. He's just startled, that's all."
"Ken?"
"Our principal, genius," Michelle scoffed, kicking her leg to the side and hitting Ned. "I mean, he'd be crazy if he wasn't freaked out. I just don't understand what we're supposed to do now."
"Absolutely nothing." Michelle sat up a little straighter as my father kicked the door shut behind him. Ned looked ecstatic and kept nudging Peter, who was giving him a dirty look in return. Faith and Betty seemed to stop breathing while Thomas slunched over. I felt like doing the same. "Her name was Kate, by the way. Freshman, above-average intelligence. Her birthday," he glanced over at me, "was actually pretty close to yours."
"I didn't know what to do," I tried to explain shakily. "She... I..."
"I know, it's not your fault. What is your fault though... you really tried to find Hawkes alone? I'm sorry, no, with your friends. People who have no experience dealing with psychopaths. You're putting all of their lives at risk!"
"Anthony Hawkes has connections everywhere," Thomas spoke up in my defense. "And I mean everywhere. Do you really expect her, no, us, to stand by and allow the government to take control of this?"
"That same thought process made Cap a criminal, Mother Nature!" Thomas blinked a few times in confusion. "Never mind. I know who we're working with, and I know that there's definitely a mole or two working with Ross as we speak! The point is that they know we're doing something, but they weren't supposed to know what. Because of this, they're most definitely going to want more closure."
"You really think Hawkes wouldn't have sent the girl?" I snapped, raising my voice. "She still would've died, no matter the location. He's made his point, and he'll probably make a hell of a lot more! I can't waste any time, so I found the help I needed!"
"And how's that working out for you?" Dad questioned, rolling his eyes. Faith raised her hand slowly. "Yes, dear?"
"Um, Mr. Stark..." she said slowly. "I think we might have actually found something." I looked at her in surprise, my jaw dropping.
"Actually?"
"Don't answer that," my father stopped her, raising a finger in her direction. "What's your name?"
"Oh, um..." Faith said slowly, her face turning pink. "Fa- Faith. Faith Franklin."
"Yeah, I like you," he smirked, shaking her hand before stepping back and looking at my friends. I thought she was going to pass out. "So here's the dealio. The three of you are gonna go home and stay there. Happy's telling your parents that you all are under Stark Industry protection... if that even means anything anymore. I don't need you dying on my watch."
"Three?" Betty repeated.
"You, Miss Glares-a-lot, and Teddy Bear. Faith's coming with me; if she found something, that's for me and me alone right now to now." I raised an annoyed eyebrow at him. "Water Girl and Jolly Green Giant go back to the apartment."
"What do I do?" Peter asked him. He had this confidence in his voice I hadn't heard in a long time.
"Making sure they, especially her, don't leave until I say so."
____________________________________________________________
"Should I get you a drink, oh mighty protector?" Thomas joked dryly, sitting on the kitchen table with one of his potted plants on his lap. He kept bending his pointer finger back and forth over it to make it grow as he watched Peter sit uncomfortably in front of the apartment door. "A Shirley Temple for the amazing Spider-Man?"
"Dude, unless you're actually gonna make something for me, you gotta stop with the jokes," Peter sighed, running his fingers through his hair in defeat. I chuckled to myself, petting Harley's back from my cross-legged position on the couch. "Trust me, I'm as bored as you are."
"Then let's go get a pizza or at least some ramen!" the Elemental groaned. "I'd... kill for edamame right now."
"Then make it with your special powers!"
"The only thing I can do right now is speed up the growth of my oregano, genius!"
"Thomas," I interrupted the two quietly. "Can you give Peter and me a few minutes alone?" The boy sighed, setting the pot on the table and sliding off to retreat to the room.
"Framework Peter would've said screw it and gotten me the damn ramen," he cursed under his breath. Peter lifted his hands up in defense, waiting for Thomas to be out of the room.
"How am I supposed to compete with a fake version of myself?" he scoffed. "Were Thomas and I... really close in there?"
"You both saved each other's lives more than once," I explained, a smile coming to my face. "And a lot of people... kind of. I think he lost part of himself when he realized everyone he risked his life for was just a bunch of codes mixed together, or maybe he was this miserable before he went into the cryo."
"I wish I knew how to be that Peter, to be honest," Peter sighed, extending his legs out on the floor. Harley took it as her cue to abandon me and curl up on her dog bed next to the TV. "Apparently, I was a lot cooler."
"And also a lot more depressed," I added with a shake of my head, examining my fingernails. "You lost May and Tony. No one knew where Happy even was. The only person you had besides Thomas was the Inhuman community... and then me. I've gotta admit, you sure knew how to sell yourself."
"Alright, hold up." Peter pulled himself up on his feet and sat next to me on the couch, wrapping his arm around me. "Are you telling me that even in the Framework, we were dating?" I blushed, knowing I didn't need a verbal response. "Wow, interesting. Who's the better kisser?"
"Of course that's your main concern," I rolled my eyes playfully, laying my head on his chest. "We've actually kissed what, like, twice?"
"Three times, but we both were unconscious at different points," he corrected me. "But technically... yeah, twice. We didn't, um-"
"Oh, no," I told him. "It took so much energy to even keep from killing you with my powers to even try." Peter nodded slowly with a chuckle he failed to keep to himself, his hand reaching up to run through my own hair every few seconds. It soothed some part of stress in me I didn't know I was experiencing. "I hate to admit it, but my Dad was right. I've put everyone's lives at risk. Stacy was taken just because she knew me and I'm leading everyone down the same path. Hell, I'm doing it right now with you and Thomas. He doesn't deserve this constant battle."
"That doesn't mean you do, Belle," Peter disagreed. "No one deserves to suffer. You asked us for help and we gladly did it. Honestly, I'm starting to think Thomas wants Hawkes gone more than you do." I stayed quiet, closing my eyes as I thought while Peter continued to run his fingers through my hair. It felt like every bad deed I had committed was finally catching up with me.
Back before Ultron, I was nothing, merely a shell of a person. I had Tony Stark to both thank and blame for that. Deep down, I must have known I was meant for something else, otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to persevere Sokovia. Fast forward to my mission with Scott Lang against Darren Cross... the first person I killed with my own hands. At the time, it meant nothing to me, but I was so fine with taking his life. That thought process only darkened. SHIELD wasn't any help, and I definitely killed more than a few aliens on Azoda and Yondu's ship.
"Belle? You okay?" I opened my eyes to Peter's concerned face, giving him a soft smile. "You freak me out when you do that."
"Do what?"
"That thing where you daze off for a minute or two. It's creepy and adorable at the same time."
"Is it now?" I asked him playfully, tapping his nose.
"Oh, gag me with a spoon." I sat up from my position, turning my head and narrowing my eyes at Thomas. He was leaning against the wall by the hallway to the rooms, his arms crossed against his chest and a smirk plastered across his face. "No one told me I'd have to relive every sappy moment between you two."
"Um, some of us never got to live those moments in the first place," Peter piped up in his own defense.
"Let me guess, you shortened her name to a five-letter nickname because it seemed cuter to you... and you've taken her through the city like a damsel in distress to proclaim some hidden truth about you on a roof," Thomas commented, clucking his tongue when Peter hung his head. "Saved each other's life and proclaimed your love for each other?"
"Okay, ruin a happy moment, why don't you?" I laughed, placing my elbow on the back of the couch to better position myself. "Love isn't for you, I guess? Maybe I should tell that to Faith."
"Alright, I'm leaving!" the Elemental surrendered. "Don't even think about it. I came here for Pete so I could tell him I beat his score on that video game in the bedroom."
"How did you beat my time in Mario Kart?" Peter questioned in disbelief. "Not even Ned can!"
"I'll show you how if you want, it wasn't that hard."
"Go on," I nudged Peter, knowing what he wanted. "I won't leave, I promise." The boy gave me a grin before sliding over the side of the couch and following Thomas happily into the Elemental bedroom. I felt my phone ring in the back pocket of my jeans, and I shifted so I could take it out. Unknown Number was flashing on the screen, so I muted the call and forwarded it to voicemail. I wasn't prepared for it to call again not even seconds later. "Hello?"
"Are you alone?" I tensed at the all-too-familiar voice, looking back over my shoulder to where the boys disappeared. "And don't lie to me. You're not in any position to do so."
"How did you get my number?" I questioned him quietly. Hawkes chuckled darkly on his side of the line. "I'm not afraid of you."
"My dear, we both know that isn't true," the older man told me condescendingly. "Let's not be rash, I have men surrounding your entire apartment complex." I jumped up on my feet and looked down at the ground through my kitchen window. Sure enough, there was a black car parked in the alleyway with a man leaning against it. "By the way, Thomas and your little friend are excellent at that game. Peter, right?"
"Don't you dare even try to touch a hair on his head," I hissed into the phone. "Or I'll-"
"You'll what? Kill my son again?" The silence on the other end of the line was brutal as Hawkes tried to calm his angry tone. "I've been very kind, Isabel. I've let you and your little group of friends hunt me down, knowing at some point you would catch a clue. Little Kate was just a message to say you're on the right path."
"You brainwashed her to self-destruct after doing your will! Who knows how many more you've done that too!"
"Ah, because you care so much about them," he tutted. "I know you haven't changed from the little girl you were years ago. The only people you care about are the ones who are close to you. Superhero business really doesn't fit your style because deep down, you know that if you had to choose between saving your family or some nobody, that nobody would die."
"So what, you just called me for a lesson?" I asked him in angered confusion. "A little pep talk? You want us to find you, don't you?"
"Correction, I want you to find me, and you'll need to be alone, otherwise-" Hawkes's voice was cut off by a gut-wrenching scream. "Your friend Stacy will be next. Then Amy. Then Thomas. Then Peter. Your pals Faith and Betty. Ned. Michelle. Even your friend Liz who had to move away because of you." I covered my mouth in shock, my breathing patterns growing shaky as I tried to keep my tears from falling. "I know everyone you care about, and I know everyone they care about, so if you mutter a single word about this conversation, I'll start cutting your ties."
"When... when do I... how..."
"I'll get back to you the night before January so you can enjoy Christmas with your ragtag alien buddies," he told me, and I knew on his side of the line he was smirking. "Speaking of, I'd get on top of contacting them. Holiday is in just under three weeks. Merry Christmas."
I lowered my phone after he hung up, my bottom lip trembling. He... somehow, he knew everything. Literally everything, down from my time in space to where I lived. Someone was feeding him information. It had to be a person under my father; there was no other way. I looked down at my left hand, rubbing my thumb against my middle finger slowly. Everything I had worked for, loved even, was about to be gone unless I followed his instructions. Slowly, I walked to my room and swapped my phone out for the Guardian's orb, twisting it in half and allowing it to open and emit a faint purple glow.
"Damn, you haven't contacted us in a while!" Rocket chuckled. "We've been worried! What's up, Stark?" I leaned against the side of my bed, cupping the device between my hands. "Stark?"
"It's close to Christmas here," I told him, blinking away the last of my tears. "You ready for me to come?"
"Shit, I didn't realize how close it is. I'll check with Quill. When's the best time for us to call you?"
"Whenever you want. I don't exactly have anything holding me back."