CHAPTER 7
Interruptions
WITH a little guidance from Kassidy, Peter had successfully gotten EDITH to delete the photo of him from Brads phone. Kassidy had been watching in amusement as Brad had tried to show Mr. Harrington the photo moments before they pulled up to their hotel, but he couldn't seem to find it on his phone.
To say this hotel was a step-up from the last would be extremely short of an understatement. As the class filed into the lobby, a doorman held the door open for them, and a man sat at a piano, playing a soothing tune.
"What can I say? The squeaky wheel gets the upgrade grease." Mr. Harrington smiled. "Everyone get settled in, rest up because tonight, big surprise, is Pragues annual carnival of lights!"
As Mr. Harrington stopped talking, Peters phone began to buzz, and he looked down at it before showing the screen to Kassidy.
NO CALLER ID
Kassidy pursed her lips before following Peter away from the group as he answered the phone.
"Hello?" A few moments of silence passed as Peter listened to whoever was on the phone, before he nodded his head. "Uh, yes, ma'am."
He stuffed his phone back into his pocket and turned back to face Kassidy.
"What was that about?" she asked.
"It was Maria Hill." he told her. "She said there's earpieces with our suits. Put them in. Await further instruction."
Kassidy's eyes widened for a moment. "Did you grab my-?"
"Yes, I grabbed your suit." Peter finished her sentence, a slight smile on his face. "I've got you."
"Thank you." Kassidy smiled, nudging him.
Suddenly, Ned rushed over to the two, glancing over his shoulder at the group as he went. "Hey, man." he greeted Peter. "Look, I am so sorry if I seem like I'm preoccupied with my relationship. You know, I'm still your guy in the chair."
"No, no, no. It's all good, don't worry about it." Peter assured his friend, shaking his head.
"And Kassidy, just know that if you ever need a guy in the chair... I'm the man for the job." Ned told Kass. "Also, uh, what's the status on the Elemental thing? Where's it gonna happen?"
Peter and Kassidy looked at each other nervously. "Uh, here in the city." Peter admitted, fiddling with his backpack.
"But, we're here!" Ned protested, looking between the two heroes in fear.
"Thanks, Ned." Kassidy nodded, pulling her lips into a straight line. "We're figuring it out, okay?"
"You have to do something, guys, please. We're all counting on you." Ned pleaded, his voice desperate.
"Ned!" Betty called, extending her hand towards her boyfriend.
"Yeah. Yeah, babe." Ned replied, glancing once more at Kassidy and Peter before returning to the group.
Kassidy watched the boy return to the group and begin speaking to his girlfriend, and she shook her head in exasperation.
"Did he come over here to stress us out more, or..?" she began, tilting her head in thought.
"Ah, he means well." Peter shrugged, watching the class absentmindedly.
*
30 minutes later, Kassidy and Peter were back in a dark room, Nick Fury barking orders and instructions at them. Peter was staring at the wall, his eyes wide and blank.
"Are we boring you?" Fury asked, snapping Peter out of his trance.
"He's not bored." Beck reasoned, shaking his head. "He's just thinking about how you kidnapped them."
"They had obstacles. I removed them." Fury argued.
Kassidy held back the urge to argue with the man sitting in front of her. He didn't even care about the fact that he was practically ruining one of the only normal moments they got in their lives; he thought he was doing them a favour.
"They still won't evacuate the city." Maria Hill announced, shaking her head.
Fury let out a sigh and shook his head in frustration. "Idiots." he muttered while lifting his head to look at Kassie and Peter. "So, what's the plan?"
"I will be in the cathedral tower, keeping watch for the fire monster." Kassidy began, looking at Peter for reassurance. "While Peter is across the square, on top of one of the buildings."
"When that shows up, we will radio you guys, and then me, Mr. Beck, and Kassidy will-." Peter began to finish the plan, but was cut off by Beck.
"My name is Mysterio." Beck said, giving the kids a knowing smile.
Peter smiled at the man and let out a small chuckle. "That's when me, Mysterio, and Kassie will move in." he finished.
"Kids, listen to me. The best hope you have, the only hope, is to stop it here now, no matter what the cost." Beck told the teens, his voice now stern. "Maneuver it away from civilians if you can, but most important, keep it away from metal. If it gets too big, it'll be able to draw power from the Earth's core."
Kassidy leaned against the wall behind her, her eyebrows pinched in worry and her eyes staring at the floor absentmindedly. This monster they were about to face could mean the end of their world as they knew it. And her friends were going to be smack dab in the middle of the fight.
"Hey man, our friends are here... I can't help but think we're putting them in danger." Peter spoke up, voicing Kassidy's thoughts.
Fury suddenly stood from his seat, his eye full of rage. "You're worried about us hurting your friends? You, who called a drone strike on your own school tour bus?" he critiqued, moving closer to Peter. "Stark gave you a multibillion-dollar A.R. tactical intelligence system, and the first thing you do with it is try and blow up your friends. It's clear to me that you were not ready for this!"
Peter had fallen silent. His jaw was clenched and his eyes tried to look anywhere except the man in front of him. He looked like a wounded puppy, and Kassidy frowned. The girl looked up at Fury, and if looks could kill, the older man would have crumbled to the ground.
"Where do you get off?" she suddenly asked, unable to hold back her anger.
Fury turned around, halfway back to his seat, and stared down Kassidy, obviously trying to intimidate her. The 5'2" girl stood her tallest, not phased in the slightest by the man in front of her.
"Excuse me?" Fury asked, his voice low.
"Do you seriously think it's okay to practically kidnap children and force us into battle?" Kassidy snapped, her voice raised. "You complain that we're not ready, but did it ever occur to you that we were thrown into this without any guidance or warning? And if you think for a second that you offer us guidance, you need to wake up."
Fury stood in front of the girl, arms crossed, and eyebrows furrowed. The silence that had taken over the room was suffocating, and Kassidy wished that she could melt through the floor. Although she didn't regret standing up for Peter, she wished she hadn't done it while she was right pissed off.
"And also, Peter would've never accidentally called that drone if it weren't for you hijacking our trip!" Kassidy finished off after Fury hadn't said anything.
With that, the girl sped out of the room, steam practically burrowing from her ears as she went. The room was overtaken with silence after she left, and Peter followed soon after.
Kassidy found herself on top of one of the beautifully constructed buildings in Prague, overlooking the city silently. She stared at her feet as she kicked them back and forth, pieces of dirt from her shoes falling off.
A small slap sounded from behind Kassidy, and she immediately spun around, a ball of purple pooling in her hand. Thankfully, it was only Peter.
"Oh, hey Pete." she greeted, watching him with a smile as he sat down next to her. "You okay?"
Peter nodded, inhaling slowly as he looked out onto the street below. He reached his hand out after a few seconds, enveloping Kassidy's in his own. He bit his lip with furrowed brows and traced patterns along her hand.
"Do you ever wish you were normal?" he asked, his eyes focused on her hand.
Kassidy glanced down at their conjoined hands, and back up at Peters face. She nodded her head.
"Everyday." she admitted. "But, then I think of all of the opportunities I would have missed out on if I was."
"Like what?" Peter asked.
"Like meeting you." Kassie smiled, squeezing his hand. "I don't know where I would be if I hadn't met you, Pete."
A smile finally crept onto Peters face, and he nodded his head in appreciation. "I could say the same about you." he admitted. "If I didn't have you as a partner, I would be dead meat."
Kassidy's cheeks flushed red, and she looked down at her lap, shaking her head. "No, you wouldn't, Peter." she denied. "You would be just fine on your own."
"I'm serious, Kass." Peter said, causing the girl to look back up at him. "Meeting you was probably the best thing that ever happened to me."
Kassidy couldn't help the wetness that began to pool in her eyes. She gave Peter something between a smile and a frown, before letting go of his hand and pulling him into a hug.
"Ditto." she muttered, resting her head on Peters shoulder as they hugged.
As the two broke apart, Kassidy was suddenly hyper aware of the distance between the two, or the lack thereof. Kassidy's legs were now turned towards the boy, and one of Peters hands rested on her knee. One arm was still around his neck, while the other had fallen to his chest. Without thinking, Peter leaned forward, closing whatever distance had been left, and pressing his lips to Kassidy's.
Almost immediately, Peter pulled away, his eyes wide and cheeks burning. "Ohmygod, I'm so sorry, Kass!" he exclaimed, his words coming out as one breath. "I should have asked, that was totally not-,"
Without letting him finish, Kassidy pulled Peter back in, putting her lips on his. Peter, who had recently backed off, brought one of his hands back up to Kassidy's face, cupping her cheek.
When the two pulled away again, Kassidy caught something out the corner of her eye. When she turned her head, she locked eyes with Mysterio, who was floating in the air in front of the teens.
"Oh, my god!" Kassidy exclaimed, pushing away from Peter and putting space between them.
"I am so sorry." Beck apologized, shielding his eyes. "Did not mean to interfere with that... moment."
Peter and Kassidy's faces were both matching shades of crimson, and neither had the courage to make eye contact with Mysterio.
"I can leave..." Beck continued, pointing behind him.
"No!" Kassidy exclaimed, standing up. "I was actually about to head back to the hotel anyway..."
She began backing away from the two men in front of her, her palms sweaty. She wiped them on her jeans.
"Bye Beck." she waved. "Bye Peter..."
With that, Kassidy floated down to the street below, her eyes wide and hands shaking in disbelief.
*
IT FINALLY HAPPENED🎉🎉
After 42 chapters of this story, Kassidy and Peter finally kissed. I hope I did them justice in the way I wrote this scene, because I was so excited to do so.
I LOVE U ALL<3