It had been two days since Tony found Aspen's trigger words, and he had still not told her nor Peter about them.
During that time he and the girl had continued to go through Marie Blue's computer, but the whole time Tony was trying to make sense of the girl's situation.
She had explained to him that she was still training to become some sort of "new generation" of Hydra soldiers before Bucky broke her out. Tony was able to make the connection that Hydra had chose to do that to her after they realized that she had gained super strength when brought back to life, and she had confirmed his thoughts.
Aspen explained to both him and Peter that, while she didn't know Hydra's exact plans for her, she did know that they originally didn't intend for her to be a soldier, it simply happened after she accidentally received powers.
Tony quickly figured out that the girl had no idea about her trigger words, and he made the decision that it was better for her to stay clueless.
He knew that the information would just make the girl more stressed, and he really didn't want that. Plus, he understood that the idea that someone can bend and control your mind can make you do crazy things; hell, he had experienced it firsthand when Wanda Maximoff entered his head. Tony didn't want Aspen to feel dehumanized, so he decided to shove the information into the back of his mind for the time being.
"I'm bored." Aspen said, spinning in a circle in her chair.
"Call Peter." Tony suggested, not looking up from his computer.
"He's at school still. I already tried to call him and he yelled at me." The girl pouted, stopping the movement of her chair.
The girl had to take a second to stop herself from getting sick from the dizziness.
"I don't know, kid. Go make friends or something. You are a sixteen year old girl for crying out loud." Tony mumbled, somewhat mockingly.
"One: I don't have time for friends. Two: I'm fifteen, for your information."
Tony spun around to face the girl with a smirk on his face. "One: that's depressing. Two: Incorrect. You are sixteen."
"What? No i'm not-" she started only to cut herself off.
While she was talking, Tony had simply pointed to the calendar on his wall with a smirk on his face.
"Huh. It is my birthday." She said with a blank expression. "Wait, how did you know that?"
"You're file. Remember that time I tied you to a chair and then found out that you are actually dead? Yeah, I saw your birthday then and made a mental note." The man shrugged like it was no big deal.
"Aw, I'm touched." Aspen said placing a hand over her heart. "But it's not that big of a deal, I never have really celebrated my birthday."
The man just stared at her, so she shrugged and continued. "I never really had any friends to celebrate with so.."
"Enough, you're depressing me! We're going to do something fabulous. What do teenagers like these days, fancy cars? Skydiving? Drugs and alcohol? Whatever it is, i'll give it to you."
"Tony, what? Stop. I'm not doing anything for my birthday, I think it's kind of dumb anyways."
"But it's your sweet sixteen! You know when I turned sixteen, I met this blonde chick named Jess, or was it Tracy? Anyway, she gave me the best present ever, I mean her legs were wrapped around-"
"Oh my god, stop! Too much information! I'll let you do something for me if you never tell me anything about your personal life ever again!" Aspen shouted, making the man glad that his plan worked.
"Thank you." He said with a smug expression. "You are going to have the best birthday ever."
Aspen rolled her eyes at the man's words and put her head in her hands. She was frightened by what the oversized child might do for her.
The pain she felt increased even more when she heard a loud, dramatic gasp from behind her. Her shoulders tensed and her face cringed and she turned around slowly, preparing for what was about to come.
She finally turned all the way and saw Peter standing in the doorway with a huge, open mouthed smile on his face.
"It's your birthday?!" He said in a high pitched, excited voice.
"Maybe?" Aspen said, still cringing at the boy.
Peter then let out the most unmanly squeal she had ever heard and threw his backpack on the ground. The smile never left his face as he ran full force at the girl then tackled her into a giant bear hug, causing the strong girl to stumble back.
"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you-" He started to sing way to loud for the girls comfort.
She didn't know what to do to make him stop, so she did what her instincts told her. Aspen punched him in the arm and shoved him away from her. "Stop that! You are a terrible singer!"
Aspen tried to fight the smile that came to her face, but to no avail. The girl ended up smiling like an idiot at the childish boy in front of her.
"You have to let us celebrate!" Peter said, nearly bouncing up and down with excitement.
"I already convinced her," Tony piped in and Peter smiled even wider (which Aspen didn't even think was possible).
"Please don't do anything too annoying." Aspen said, deeply regretting all of her life choices that had led her to this point.
Peter's eyes suddenly became comically large and he leaned over and whispered in Tony's ear. She was completely terrified by what the two could possibly be talking about.
The young boy pulled away from Tony and they nodded at each other.
"Alright, Aspen. Come with me." Tony said, starting to walk towards the door. "You are going to be locked in your room until we let you out. And please, don't go all ninja like I know you can and escape. That takes all of the fun out of it."
Aspen hesitantly stepped into her room and sat on the bed. The man shut the door and commanded Friday to lock it and not let her out.
The young Blue knew she could leave at any time, for she still had control over Friday, but in all honesty she didn't want to.
On the outside, yes, she would continue to act like she didn't want this, but secretly she liked it. She liked the new feeling she got from being appreciated--it made her feel happy.
So, Aspen laid back on her bed and closed her eyes, waiting for Tony Stark to come back and get her whenever everything was ready.
☼
A loud knock on her door caused Aspen to shoot up from her bed in fright. She was just beginning to fall asleep due to the amount of time she had been waiting, so the sudden noise caught her completely off guard.
As she was standing up, the door opened and an item was thrown in wildly. The door slammed shut once more only a second later and Aspen was left standing in shock.
She bent own to pick the box up, and noticed a piece of paper taped on the lid.
"Put this on. Come out when you are ready."
Aspen hesitantly opened the box and almost rolled her eyes at what she found. A sleek, black dress was neatly folded inside, and when she pulled it out she noticed that it would reach about her mid-thigh.
She began to wonder how Tony managed to get her measurements, but decided to push the thoughts aside and act like it really didn't matter. He is Tony Stark after all.
The girl did what she was told and begrudgingly removed her comfortable leggings and t-shirt. She slipped the dress over her head then walked into the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror.
As much as she hated to admit it, she really didn't look that bad. As a child, Aspen was never one to willingly wear dresses--much to her mothers dismay. She would much rather have been rolling around in the mud in her overalls than wearing cute outfits with matching hair bows. Of course, she would always wear a dress when necessary (or when her mom forced her to) so now, the girl would simply have to throw away her insecurities and wear the tight-fitting outfit with pride.
It was kind of her motto in a way: if you don't know what you're doing, just act like you do and people will believe it.
So, Aspen would simply have to act like she was comfortable in the dress, and Tony and Peter would believe that she was.
Confidence is key.
The girl turned away from the mirror and began walking towards the door, only to stop halfway and look down at her feet. She was still wearing her signature blue sneakers, and the fact made her smile. Sure, the combination might have not looked nice, but at least she was comfortable.
Aspen shook her head and raised her shoulders, creating a stance that could only be described as confident. She strutted towards her door and pulled it open, but no one was on the outside.
Confused, she began to walk back into the main living room. When she entered she noticed that the lights had been dimmed and their was soft music playing all around her.
Aspen was about to call out in confusion when she turned to her left and was met with a smiling Peter Parker.
Her eyes traveled down his figure and she noticed that he was wearing a black suit. Her eyes continued on their path until they landed on a single red rose in his hand. He reached the flower out towards her and she shyly took it, a blush creeping on to her cheeks.
"Aspen Blue, if you would follow me." He said with a cheeky smile.
Peter led her in the direction of a table in the center of the room. It was covered in a white table cloth and had only two seats across from each other at it. Peter quickly scurried over to one of them and pulled it out for Aspen to sit, and she did with a small laugh. He then ran around the table and took the other seat before scooting in and placing his hands in his lap.
"What is this?" Aspen asked, the smile never leaving her face.
"This," Peter gestured around him, "is your birthday celebration!"
Aspen laughed lightly at the childish boy and looked around the room, "Where's Tony?"
"That's the best part," Peter replied, leaning in and speaking in a hushed tone. "Waiter!"
Aspen bursted out laughing at what she saw next. Tony Stark waltzed into the room in his own suit, holding what looked to be two menus in his hand.
Her laughter never stopped as he set the menus in front of the teens carefully as though his job depended on it.
"Oh my god, this is the best thing ever." Aspen said in a high pitched tone through her laughter.
The rest of the night when on like that. Aspen laughing, Peter smiling, and Tony serving the two teens. She would never admit it out loud, but Aspen was really glad that the two men had forced her to have a birthday celebration because in the end it was actually really fun.
Aspen didn't have to worry about anything in those moments; she could simply relax and be a normal teenager.
Peter loved to see her like that, so carefree and happy. He thought she looked absolutely beautiful that night but was too afraid to say anything.
The Parker boy made a vow to himself then that he would do anything in his power to keep her that way. He would do whatever it took to make her happy again, even if it meant risking his own life.
In was in that moment, though, that the boy's fate was sealed.
It was now certain that Peter Parker would eventually fall in madly in love with Aspen Blue.