A/N: helloooo
posting this exactly at midnight to pretend i'm punctual
kinda of a short chapter today but i just thought some people in the story needed time to mull over the consequences of certain decisions (cough cough shes my daughter cough cough) so this chapter is basically a filler but still kinda fluffy!!
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"I think I saw your face in Times Square.
Everyone knows Adelaide Rivers."
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"Tony Stark reportedly has a secret teenage daughter. After an explosion at a warehouse on 117th street earlier today, the billionaire was seen leaving with Spider-Man and a teenage girl who he claimed to be his daughter. The girl has been identified as Adelaide Rivers, a current fifteen-year-old student at the Midtown School of Math and Science. Not much is known about her, but more reports are coming in as we speak so stay tuned for—"
Pepper switched the tv off, tossing the remote on the couch next to the billionaire. She gave him a hard look.
"Seriously, Tony?" she said, furious, "God, you just never think about the consequences of your actions, do you!" The billionaire was exhausted from today and the last thing he needed was his fiancé lecturing about something he knew she was right about.
"I was just angry, okay!" he argued, "They were hurting her and I don't know— I just...I just got mad."
"If they're hurting her then you get her to the car faster! You don't completely uproot her life and privacy!" Pepper argued. Tony stood up in anger.
"She's my daughter and I don't care who knows it!" he shouted. Pepper gave him a look.
"She cares, Tony," she said, "You've completely changed her life forever. She's gonna care a lot."
He wanted to argue back, but she was right. The helicopters and drones hovering outside their windows and the mob of reporters by the entrance of the Tower only proved her to be even more right. He gritted his teeth, falling back into the sofa and hiding his face in his hands. Pepper was right. Adie was going to hate him more than she already did. She was going to want to move out of the Tower forever and never talk to him again.
He had officially just pushed her over the edge.
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When Adelaide opened her eyes, she was so grateful that she wasn't waking up in a hospital that she inhaled deeply, completely forgetting about the fractured rib.
She let out a shout of pain, her hands going to her side. She tried take small breaths to get through the pain. It would definitely be a while before she was sleeping on that side again. She noticed her wrists were also bandaged up with gauze. Her headache was almost gone.
But the heavy feeling over her heart wouldn't go.
Phin was gone.
And it was her fault. Or maybe it wasn't. She still had no idea what had happened there in the warehouse, with her powers and everything. She stared at a blank spot on the wall for a long time, thinking. She did a lot of thinking. She was still thinking when there was knock on her door and Happy let himself inside. She found herself hoping it had been Tony.
"How you feeling, kid?" he said quietly, sitting beside her on the bed. She leaned into him and he put his arm around her.
"Like I broke a rib," she mumbled, making the man chuckle.
"C'mon, you've been in a coma for a week, you died for a minute, and you're letting a little broken rib knock you out?" he teased. She cracked a tired smile.
"I wasn't actually aware of those things when they were happening, Happs," she said. He shrugged.
"Tomato tomahto," he mumbled and then glanced at her, "So today was pretty crazy, huh."
"That's one word for it," she said quietly. Happy studied her for a moment.
"What did that man want from you? Was he an old enemy of yours?" he asked. She shook her head, staring at the bandages on her wrists.
"He wanted my powers, but I'd never met him before in my life," she said, "He was so consumed by greed, Happs. I don't think anyone could have stopped him."
"Greed is the demise of many great men," Happy said and she glanced at him.
"There's a saying, in Russian. Брюхо сыто, да глаза голодны," she said quietly, "Means his stomach is full, but his eyes are still hungry."
"That's a wise saying," he agreed.
Silence settled over them for a while. They both stared at a blank spot on the wall, doing some thinking together. Pepper joined them a few minutes later. But even when Adelaide waited, Tony never came.
By then, it was late so Happy and Pepper both wished her goodnight and told her to call them if she needed anything at all.
"Goodnight, honey," Pepper said, kissing her forehead. Adelaide said nothing and watched her, making her pause.
"Where is he?" she asked quietly. Pepper pursed her lips.
"He's just putting out some fires. Get some rest now, alright?" the woman answered vaguely, moving the blanket around her shoulders. She caressed her forehead for a moment. "I love you."
"I love you too, Pep," Adelaide said, smiling tiredly.
"I'm sorry for everything we did last summer. I really am. Things will be different around here, I promise. We'll sit down and talk about it when you're all better," the woman said. Adelaide nodded.
Pepper smiled, kissing her forehead again, "Sweet dreams, hon."
Adelaide waited until the woman had left the room and was at the end of the hallway before reaching for the phone on her bedside table and calling the one person she really needed to talk to. She wouldn't be able to sleep without talking to him. Even though they had given her the drowsy meds.
"I was just about to call you," Peter said, as soon as he answered the FaceTime call. He was also lying down on his bed in the dark and she could just barely make out his face in the dim lighting.
"How are you feeling?" she whispered. He smiled.
"You were in an explosion today where you broke your rib and punctured both your wrists and ankles and you're asking me how I'm feeling?" he said. She rolled her eyes.
"Well, if you're not okay, it doesn't matter how badly I'm hurt. I'll always worry about you first," she frowned like it was obvious. He gave her a knowing smile.
"I don't deserve you, you know," he said. It was her turn to smile.
"Of course you don't. I'm way out of your league, bugboy," she said, making him laugh. They both settled on smiling at each other. "How's the rest of the team?"
"They're okay. Just a little shaken up. No one was hurt, luckily," he said.
"Have they uh...seen the news yet?" she asked.
"They probably have by now," he said, "It's all over the place. I think I saw your face in Times Square. Everyone knows Adelaide Rivers."
She hid her face into her pillow, groaning quietly. She didn't know what to think anymore. She hated all the attention. She had been too scared to even open her curtains because there were so many drones and helicopters flying around, just trying to get one glimpse of Tony Stark's only daughter. Pepper had even told FRIDAY to initiate the lockdown sequence for the Tower just in case things went south. Lockdown sequence meant all windows closed with bulletproof shutters and no one allowed in or out of the building.
"Have you spoken with Mr. Stark yet?" Peter asked quietly.
She shook her head, "Pepper said he was putting out fires, but I know he's avoiding me. I'm kind of glad. I don't really know what to say to him right now."
"You'll figure it out," Peter said, smiling softly when she yawned, "Get some rest, love. We'll talk tomorrow. I love you."
"I love you more," she whispered.
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A/N: don't worry, if you didn't cry today, you definitely be crying a week from now so go ahead and mark your calendars or whatever
and yeah, i know adie didn't technically react to what happened in the last chapter, but she will next week YOU HAVE MY WORD
so now that this arc is officially over and the next couple chapters should just be wrapping up the loose ends, we will have a window of fluff before heading over to infinity war where there will be MAJOR plot twists (and i mean major) and, of course, gut-wrenching angst. fun :)
as for now, you can simply lay back and enjoy— you've earned it
question: who do you speculate dies in infinity war? peter or adie? both? neither?
see you next week :)