BEFORE THE COMPETITION
PETER TOOK THE TIME TO RUN THROUGH A BRIEF COURSE OF HIS SUIT AS HE NEEDED TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT EVERYTHING DOES. Although Peter knows how to use his suit, many upgrades left the hero baffled, to say the least. Tony decided the give Peter more than what he needed, but the idea of having different types of web-shooters excited Peter. He could believe he has a web grenade--that's new. Karen--that's what Peter is calling his suit now--went over everything quite briefly.
If Peter had to say, the ricochet web was probably his most favorite, but the boy couldn't deny that the web gliders were another one of his favorites, too.
The superhero was lying on top of one of the many containments, trapped inside of the concealed building, and now, Peter was bored out of his mind. It felt like an eternity since Peter was locked inside the facility; the only company he has is Karen. As Peter's mind wanders around the thought of Liz, Karen was intrigued by the name as she listens to Peter gush over the senior student.
"She's--She's the best friend. She, uh, she's just a girl who goes to my school," Peter places his hand over his stomach as he stares at the ceiling dreamily, and his mind running over the thought of Liz. "And, uh . . . yeah. I just . . . I really want to tell her, but it's kind of weird, you know? 'Hey, I'm Spider-Man.'"
"What's weird about that?" Karens asks softly, digging deeper.
"What if she's expecting someone like Tony Stark? Imagine how disappointed she'd be when she sees me."
"Well, if I were her, I wouldn't be disappointed at all."
Peter waves his hand at the compliment, smiling softly under his mask. "Thanks, Karen," Peter's smile slowly turns into a frown at the mere thought about Eszter, but he was rather confused. There was something--a feeling--in the pit of his stomach whenever he's around Eszter. It was odd. Peter has never felt this way around her since he first met her, but what's more confusing is that they're the same feeling that Peter feels with Liz. He was starting to freak out. "Hey, Karen?"
"Yes, Peter?"
"How do you . . . how do you know if you like someone?"
Peter was puzzled by this new profound feeling towards Eszter and how he suddenly became nervous around her to the point that his palms would sweat. The butterflies he'd feel in his stomach, Peter was certain Eszter was the cause of it. However, Peter didn't know if he should worry or not about these sudden feelings.
"What do you mean?"
"It's just . . . I've been having this weird . . . feelings around my best friend, Eszter. I guess--I don't know. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's weird, you know? I mean, not in a bad way, but like, in a friendly way."
"Well, how does Eszter make you feel?"
It was suddenly a therapy session with Peter and his suit.
Peter sighs, a small airy laugh escapes his body as he tries to find the right set of words. It was that feeling when you know how it feels, but not good at putting it into words. Peter was jumbled with how own thoughts and his heart, feeling like he was having a mental fight with himself.
"She makes me feel . . . great," Peter breathes out. A light smile breaks onto the surface but hidden behind his mask; it was subconscious. "I mean, she's my best friend. Eszter has always been there for me. She's really, really pretty--beautiful, actually. Obviously." Peter could see her, the way he pictures Eszter instantly, and how she's smiling. "But Eszter is more than that; she's nice, smart, driven. She's very sassy, like--like, she has a huge attitude, which is kind of cute, actually."
As a few memories come to mind, Peter chuckles--from the sound of her laugh from whenever Peter says something funny, which is rare; Eszter is usually laughing at Peter rather than his words. From the way Eszter's eyes crinkle closed and the way her shoulders bounce from her loud laugh to the way she covers her mouth to conceal the smile behind it. To the way Eszter's horrible dancing from when they had their mini dance party way back then, though that seemed to have been a one-time thing. Then, it was how she merely ignores the way people look at her; even though Eszter is affected by their words, the enhanced tries to be unfazed. And the sound of her voice--it's soft and silky, yet raspy at the same time.
Peter can listen to Eszter talk all day, and he wouldn't get bored.
"Is that how you feel towards Liz?"
"Yeah," Peter answers in a heartbeat. But as soon as he blurted it out, Peter was quick to take it back. His eyes widen. "Wait, no, no. I mean, I don't know. This isn't about Eszter. This is about Liz." Peter stutters.
The mere thought of having feelings for Eszter was terrifying. Not that Peter made it seem like he didn't like Eszter, the boy has always found the enhanced to be quite attractive, but she's his best friend. He didn't want his confusing feelings to ruin the friendship he built with Eszter. Peter wasn't sure how she'd take it if Eszter were to find out. However, he needed more time to think about this because it felt so sudden; does Peter have feelings for Eszter?
Holy crap, Peter might have feelings for Eszter.
Why is he still thinking about this?
It felt almost wrong, in a way. Imagine dating your best friend, and then they break up; things will surely become awkward and result in an end to their friendship. No, Peter wouldn't let that happen. But who knows, maybe this feeling will go away? But why is his heart beating so quickly? At the mere thought of Eszter, Peter noticed the way he feels giddy.
No longer wanting to think about this topic any longer, feeling a bit flustered, Peter changes the subject. "Hey, how long have we been in here anyway?"
"Thirty-seven minutes."
"What?" Peter exclaims, sitting up. "Thirty-seven minutes? That's insane. I cannot take this anymore. I got--I gotta get out of here."
Peter rolls backward near the edge of the containment, placing his hands on the surface and pushing himself up in the air. The boy lands just beside the containment, landing in his signature Spider-Man pose. He shrugs off both the yellow jacket and the gray sweater underneath that, entering the same containment box that he had just broken out of.
"There's got to be something in here I can use," Peter kneels in front of the bag he had taken from the bird-man. He unzips the bag and begins digging inside. "Okay, let's see." Peter tosses aside a few items that didn't prove to be of any help, but then the hero finds a familiar Chituari energy crystal inside. "Ah, hey, it's like the glowy thing."
As Peter examines the alien object, he rolls it in between his gloved hands. Turning it around, it was brighter than he remembers.
"That glowy thing is an explosive Chitauri energy core," Karen informs.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Peter stands up quickly as he discards the Chitauri core back into the backpack, taking a few steps back. His spider-senses were tingling, making Peter feel uneasy at the thought. "You mean, we've been carrying around a bomb?"
"It would require radiation to transform it into an explosive state."
Peter turns around as he pulls out his phone from his pocket, quickly going through his contacts before scrolling down to Ned's name. A picture of Ned pops on the screen as soon as Ned clicks the call, and all Peter can do is wait for his friend to pick up.
However, the phone peeps as the call fails, Peter groans in defeat.
"No, no, no," Peter then trists Eszter, hoping that maybe she'd pick up. Again, the line didn't go through. "No!" Darting out of the containment box, Peter jumps on the massive door and begins pounding on it, hoping someone will hear him. "Hey! Please! Please, somebody, let me out! Karen, you have to help me override that time lock."
💜
THE COMPETITION
Eszter was in her room, getting ready before the big competition, when the enhanced was beginning to grow nervous. It was like her heart was pounding harshly against her chest, thumping in a beat in her ears. As it turns out, Eszter was being placed on the panel, alongside her teammates, but the enhanced was a bit terrified. Although Eszter has participated in a few competitions, the enhanced had been opting out of them for the past few weeks.
Once she was dressed, Eszter put her yellow Midtown School of Science and Technology jacket on. She had changed one too many times, and Michelle was starting to get annoyed, constantly hearing Eszter freak out over today's competition; Michelle stormed out of the room. In the end, Eszter stays with her last choice and quickly grabs her phone before following Michelle out of the hotel room.
Checking for any notifications from either Peter or Ned, but Eszter hadn't gotten anything from their missing friend; instead, the enhanced had a few from Ned, who asked if Peter had ever gotten back. Apparently, the boy hadn't returned last night.
Eszter groans, mumbling something under her breath before tucking her phone into her pocket. Maybe a quick detour, Eszter marches over to Ned's room, knocking harshly.
"Ned, it's me. Open up," Eszter drops her hand back to her side. Once she hears the door clicking, it suddenly swings open. Greeted by an anxious Ned, Eszter notices how his eyes were wide in a deep sense of worry, taking a deep breath. "Where the hell is Peter?"
"I don't know; I don't know. He hasn't called or texted me. He's gonna be late for the Decathlon, and we won't be able to cover for him," Ned stresses.
"This is . . . not good," Eszter shuts the door and places her hands on her hips, biting her lip anxiously. She watches as Ned began to pace the room, but it was making Eszter a lot more stressed. "Okay, um, how about--how about we just go and hope that he shows up?"
"He's not gonna show up, Eszter," Ned exclaims. The sound of despair drips from his words. "Who knows what kind of trouble he might be in. He's gonna get in so much trouble."
"Look, we don't have time--"
A sudden knock interrupts the two.
"Ned, Peter, we're gonna be late. Come on, Let's go."
Ned rushes towards the window, pushing the curtains out of the way to see Liz standing outside their door. Then he rushes toward the bed. "Okay. Hold on, hold on."
But then Eszter frowns as Ned reaches for the Chitauri core, tossing it into his backpack before zipping it close. Ned flings the bag up and over his shoulder but stops when Eszter steps in front of him, hesitant.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. You're not taking that thing, are you?"
"Yes," Ned answers as if it weren't obvious. "Peter said we needed to protect it. You heard him; it's evidence."
"Yeah, but you don't know what this thing could do while he's gone," Eszter retorts cautiously, but by the look on Ned's face didn't appear that fazed. "I don't know about this, Ned. I have a bad feeling."
"Well, you're gonna have to just shake off that feeling because we have to go," Ned turns Eszter around and directs the enhanced outside, immediately are greeted by Liz.
"Oh, Eszter, I didn't know you were in there," Liz smiles.
Eszter flashes her own smile, covering up the nervous look on her face. "Oh, uh, yeah. I just finished getting ready, so . . ."
"Great. We're just heading to the competition, so, let's go."
"Right," Eszter chirps as she lets Liz lead the way, but the enhanced glances over to Ned, giving him an anxious look before following the older girl.
They both knew Peter was screwed. As they were trailing behind Liz, Eszter continuously spams Peter with several text messages, hoping that he'd respond within seconds. However, it seemed that none of the messages were being read with each message that Eszter sent. The enhanced didn't know if she should worry or not, but she hadn't heard from Peter since the night she went swimming. Eszter trusts Peter and what he's doing, but she couldn't ignore the anxious feeling that bubbles in her chest with every second that Peter is away. The enhanced was worried for the worst possible scenario, and Eszter can't do anything, making her feel useless.
Eszter's palms were becoming sweaty as the nerves intensified as they were getting closer to the competition. The enhanced never thought she would be participating at such a last-minute, but now that Peter isn't here, Eszter couldn't help but panic. She might've had three-and-a-half mental breakdowns in her bathroom.
Now, the group crowded on the first floor, feeling quite hectic.
"Alright, guys, stay close. It's roll call," Mr. Harrington calls out. Then, he began to run through the list of names, calling on each student as they chirp in response; however, as soon as Mr. Harrington reaches Peter's name, Eszter cringes. "Peter?"
"How did I see that coming?" Flash scoffs. He rolls his eyes, crossing his arms across his chest as his lips tugged in a smirk.
Liz frowns, turning to Eszter. "Do you know where Peter went? We just saw him last night."
Eszter gapes, suddenly on the spot as the attention slowly shifted back to the enhanced. Quick, Eszter needs to come up with a lie, anything. However, with the several eyes staring intensely at the enhanced, waiting for Eszter to give them a reasonable reason as to why Peter wasn't here. With the competition nearing, everyone felt antsy and on-edge, and with Peter gone, things felt downfall.
Ned looks up in alert, noticing the frantic look in Eszter's eyes. "Peter is just sick!" He rushes to Eszter's rescue. Stifling a small smile, Ned lies with ease. "Uh, you know, we kind of had a lot of candy last night, so he'll be late."
"Yeah, right," Flash retorts with a loud scoff. "He's not gonna show up."
Mr. Harrington glances down at his watch. "Alright, well, we gotta head backstage."
Liz gives Eszter one last look before she turns away, granting the enhanced fresh of breath air. Eszter felt as if she couldn't breathe. The tension had grown thick as the lies continuously flowed, becoming more frequent between the best friends. However, Eszter never knew that being friends with Spider-Man would create such a difficult situation for her.
Cindy pats Eszter's shoulder, giving her a small smile before she follows the group. With a friendship slowly blossoming, Flash passes Eszter and nods subtly without a single insult--surprisingly. It seemed like the two could be friends if they tried, though the enhanced couldn't believe she could become friends with someone like Flash. Although the boy is bad with expressing himself, Eszter knows the true feelings hidden behind his 'popular kid' facade.
Eszter looks at Ned with a thankful look, glad that he was there to help fill in the blank when she couldn't. The enhanced nudges Ned's arm, motioning him towards the stage as the two friends start walking in the direction their friends had gone. Not as nervous, Eszter was more composed than before; however, the enhanced was more worried about Peter.
A staff member politely informed the teens to shut off their phones, making them place their belongings in the bucket as they weren't allowed to have anything with them during the competition. Eszter powers down her phone as she didn't want Peter's notifications to attract the staff's attention; the enhanced hands one of the staff her phone. It will be a couple of hours that Eszter won't see any updates on Peter, making the enhanced feel uneasy at the thought, but she only hoped that it would give time to wait for him to respond. Peter had been radio silent ever since he left.
Right now, Eszter can't think about Peter; instead, her focus is solely on the competition. One wrong answer and it will cost them the win, and Eszter couldn't let her mind slip away from the questions and everything she's studied for. The Decathlon is an important part of their lives.
Eszter wipes her hands on her jeans, letting out a shaky breath as she felt someone lightly touch her arm. Beside the enhanced stood Ned, who offers his friend an encouraging smile, which eased her nerves. At this moment, Eszter was grateful to have someone by her side, helping her through her nerves. Preventing another anxiety episode, Ned does his best by keeping Eszter's hopes up and reminding her that she's smart and has nothing to worry about. As long as Eszter stays focused, the enhanced will get through the questions with ease.
Standing in a line, Eszter was behind Michelle while Ned stood behind the enhanced, and slowly, the group begins to walk on the stage. Excitement struck through Eszter's veins and with the adrenaline pumping, but the enhanced could feel the anxious nagging in the back of her head. She was afraid to mess up and get the answers wrong, but at the same time, Eszter felt prepared for this moment. Eszter practiced throughout the school year, and Liz made sure that everyone was prepared.
"Please be sure that all cell phones are turned off."
Both teams sit silently at their respective tables as Eszter tries her best not to tap her feet, making it obvious that the enhanced is nervous. However, the enhanced hadn't noticed she was tapping them, but once she did, Eszter stops.
"Let's begin," the woman announced. She looks down at the list of questions, reading the first one. "Who introduced the theory of punctuated equilibrium?"
Eszter freezes as she takes a moment to think about the question. The sound of pencil grazing across the paper fills the silent building; picking up her own pencil, Eszter writes down her own answer, certain that it was right. With shaky hands, the enhanced lowered the pencil, hoping that no one had noticed the way her hand trembled.
Two names, Eszter thought to herself. I know this.
"Times up," the woman calls.
Just as Eszter was going for her buzzer, another buzzer had gone off in the other team. "Gould and Eldredge."
"That is correct."
The Midtown team shuffle in their seats, growing more nervous as the competition goes on, missing questions that they could've gotten in a heartbeat. It was making the chances of winning slower.
Flash grimaces, determined to win.
"According to the modern synthesis, a change in the allele frequencies in a population is called . . .?"
Flash buzzes. "Evolution."
"Correct. During his voyage on the Beagle, Darwin was able to compare similar finch species from the Galápagos Islands, Cocoa Island, and . . ."
Eszter was the next to buzz. As the silence grew intensely, Eszter swallows. "The mainland of South Africa."
"That's correct."
As proud as Eszter is with herself, the enhanced couldn't celebrate too early. However, it encouraged Eszter to continue to give her answers, more confident with her knowledge as she breezes by with each question. But then, as the deeper the competition went, the more intense it had gotten. Eszter was becoming more flustered, feeling overwhelmed as she slowly started backing away from her buzzer, afraid to get the last few questions wrong.
As they were nearing the end, everyone felt just as tensed, unable to contain the overwhelming sensation of panic and nervousness. Flash was starting to sweat nervously.
This was now or never.
The questions became harder as they progressed, and with each one, Eszter risked each one with her answers--much to her delight, the enhanced had gotten them correct. Eszter breathes out in relief, feeling the shakiness of her breathing, but Ned continued to give the enhanced a thumbs up. Eszter was growing more stressed and is already starting to wish the competition will end, wanting to be more relaxed. Her mind was racking up with information--as much as she can retrieve.
Eszter bites her lip nervously as a buzzer goes off and a student answers; then, the process repeats with correct or incorrect answers. Team Midtown had their fair share of incorrect answers, letting the other team steal their question, granting them a point.
"We have now entered sudden death. The next correct answer wins the championship."
As the announcer asked another question, Eszter doesn't reach for her buzzer but prays that someone in her team is willing enough to buzz in. However, neither team members reached for their buzzer, not until Michelle did. Everyone turns to the curly-haired girl as she pauses for a second, filling the room with suspense.
"Midtown Tech?"
Michelle makes a face as if it were the most obvious thing, and with full confidence, she answers. "Zero."
"That is correct. Midtown takes the championship!"
The Midtown Tech team jumps out of their seats in excitement. Eszter pushes her chair back, not able to hold it in as she squeals, cheering with her teammates. Ned and Sally cheer before giving Michelle a double huge, making the girl smile as she bobs her head. She doesn't gloat, especially not like Flash, who had jumped out of his seat and began screaming in pure excitement as he flails his arms about. Once Ned pulled away, he and Eszter jump into each other's arms.
Eszter squeals into his ear, but Ned was too ecstatic to care, but the boy was equally shouting. Then, the two pulled away so Eszter could give Michelle a hug, to which the girl wrapped her arms around her friend.
"Oh, my God," Eszter pulls away, gobsmacked. "We won!"
Michelle chuckles at their excitement; she bounces her brows. "Hell yeah, we did."
Eszter turns around at the feeling of someone touching her shoulder, spotting Liz grinning like a Chesire cat; opening her arms wide for the enhanced, Eszter doesn't hesitate before flinging her body into Liz.
"We won!" Liz giggles ecstatically.
"Crazy, right?"
As Eszter and Liz pulled away, the enhanced barely had time to brace herself when someone came rushing behind and lifting Eszter from the ground, spinning her about. Squealing in surprise, the enhanced hadn't a clue who was holding her until she heard the boy shouting, exclaiming their victory; Flash had gotten ahold of Eszter while she was distracted.
"Hell yeah!"
💜
As a result of their victory, the team explored Washington to celebrate. Everyone had been giddy and still feeling the rush from the competition. Eszter couldn't stand still as she would occasionally find herself celebrating with either one of her teammates, though the enhanced tried her best to keep her voice down and not catch too much attention. So far, no one had noticed Eszter walking past them.
"We won," Flash gloats, flashing the trophy off to random people as they pass by. "See this? Yep, cause we're awesome."
"You guys, I am so proud of you," Liz pulls Cindy to her side.
"I'm glad that I listened to you and joined this nerdy group," Eszter grins as she walks beside Ned.
"See? I told you it could be fun," Ned chuckles.
"Told you we didn't need Peter."
"Flash, you didn't answer a single question," Ned retorts.
Eszter cackles loudly.
"More than you. Besides, we still won, and Peter isn't here to see it," Flash walks backward, looking at Eszter as he wiggles the trophy. "I call that a win."
As the group arrives at the Washington Monument, Mr. Harrington made sure each student was sticking together, but then, the teacher noticed one of his students was missing. Looking around for them, Mr. Harringotn spots Michelle standing afar.
"Taking it all in, Michelle?"
Michelle holds her book open, squinting up at the tall architecture, grimacing. "Oh, yeah, I just--I don't want to celebrate something that was built by slaves."
"Oh, I'm sure the Washington Monument wasn't built buy--" Mr. Harringotn cuts himself off when his eyes meet the security, who had been listening in on their conversation; the dark-skinned man scrunched his face and gestures with his hand, making Mr. Harrington make a face. "Okay. Enjoy your book."
"Thanks."
Eszter finally turns her phone back on to see multiple notifications from Peter, the enhanced was relieved to see he was alive, and as she was about to call him back, Eszter sees Ned was already calling him. Instead, the enhanced locks her phone, stuffs it into her pocket, and walks closer to Ned, waiting to see if Peter would pick up.
"Peter," Ned whispers, catching Eszter's attention. "Are you okay?" There was a mumble from the other end, but Eszter frowns as it was inaudible. "It's safe. It's in my backpack."
Ned tosses his bag on the table for it to be inspected through the X-ray, but Eszter only placed her phone as she had nothing else.
"You missed the Decathlon. We covered for you. We're at the Washington Monument."
Eszter placed her phone on the table as she waits to walk through the metal detector, already knowing that she will have issues. But the enhanced watches as Liz was talking to Peter, noticeably upset. The security beckons Eszter forward. With a small huff, the enhanced walks through the monitor as it began to blare; embarrassingly, several eyes turned in the direction of the noise, spotting Dusk in the same premises as them.
Much to Eszter's dismay, people began fishing out their phones and taking photos.
Before the officer spoke, Eszter clears things up. "It's the dampener," she answers, hands raised as she lets them know that she has nothing.
Dismissing the enhanced, Eszter avoids the several eyes and cameras pointing at her as she picks up her phone. While at that, Ned was making his way through the metal detector when the Chitauri core began to burn bright in his backpack, activating unknowingly to Ned as he swings his backpack on his back.
Mr. Harrington leads the group of students towards the elevators as the tour guide had to step in, keeping people away from the teens as they were nearly approaching Eszter. Ned pulls Eszter away from the opening as he pushes her more into the middle, keeping her protected and safe around their friends. She smiled in appreciation.
Then, they entered the elevator; Eszter shuffles towards the back of the elevator with Ned, straying away from the people outside their elevator door. No one commented about Eszter grabbing people's attention, not wanting to make the situation worse for the enhanced; Eszter was grateful for that.
"Hey, Mr. Harrington, can I be the one to tell Peter he's expelled?" Flash grins at the mere thought.
"Of course you would," Eszter grumbles under her breath, clenching the railing of the elevator.
Cindy watches the girl. "Eszter, are you okay?"
Eszter looks up and meets the girl's gaze. Forcing a tight smile, she nods. "Uh, yeah. It's just . . . I hate elevators; just the feeling is uncomfortable."
They grew silent as the tour guide began to quote her information. "The Washington Monument is five hundred and fifty-five feet and one-eighth inches tall," she says monotonously. Eszter raises a brow. "Notice how the marble and granite cut around the stone."
Suddenly, the Chitauri energy core burst with purple lights from Ned's backpack, lighting up like a light show; however, no one seemed to have noticed it. It burns its way through the ceiling until it reaches the very top, burning with the maximum heat before the glass shatters with an abrupt explosion. People jumped back as they quickly covered their faces, protecting themselves as shards of glass flew everywhere, and next, the top floor is flooded with screams.
The monument outside began to crack as pieces of the building crumble off, leaving a trail of dirt to cascade.
Ned finally yanks off his backpack when he felt the immense heat radiating from it, and as it clunks on the floor, Ned can see smoke emitting from his backpack.
Eszter squeezes the handles harder, and her knuckles are practically white. The elevator is filled with panicked whimpers as their breathing increased, but no one moves a muscle. Eszter stares with wide eyes, fear beginning to overtake her, but the enhanced couldn't decipher if they were hers or someone else's.
"Oh, my God. Look at the ceiling," Flash's eyes were wide in horror as he stared at the circular burnt mark, surprised that the metal was still intact.
"Just stay calm, everyone," Liz tries her best to keep calm for the others, but deep inside, Eszter could feel her panicking.
"Oh, we are all going to die here," Abraham cries.
"Oh, my God, don't say that," Eszter hisses, afraid to move as her nightmare was coming true.
"We're freakin' screwed."
"Can't you do something?" Flash asks Eszter aggressively, causing the enhanced to glare at him. "Use your powers or something!"
"I don't know if you've notice, Flash, but, uh, I can't exactly use my powers right now," the enhanced snaps just as aggressively, if not more. The mere sound of the elevator creaking forces Eszter to stop yelling. "I would if I could."
"Okay, guys, I know that was scary, but our safety systems are working.
Meanwhile, with Peter. "The safety systems are completely failing."
"We're safe in here."
"The occupants are in imminent mortal danger."
The park rangers open the elevator door from the top floor, struggling tremendously as they are sealed shut and trying to avoid the glass. The wires wobbled for a moment as pieces of glass showers over the elevator, bouncing on top of the elevator. The top hatch opens up slightly as the elevator doors finally pry open.
As the first person to crawl out of the elevator, the tour guide makes her way up first before hauling Cindy up and out of the boxed cage; as Cindy is helped up to the next floor, civilians and park rangers helped lift the girl to safety. Slowly, everyone was getting out.
Mr. Harrington glances between the last few students left. "Okay, who's next?"
Liz goes to climb up before Flash rudely shoves the girl out of the way, making Eszter narrow her eyes at the boy for his poor manners. So much for respect. Nevertheless, Liz was forced to move out of the way as she presses her back firmly against the wall.
"Flash, seriously? What are you doing?" Eszter scoffs
"Don't worry about the trophy," Liz exclaims, but Flash ignored her.
He wanted this trophy because they won. How else will Flash tell people that they won? His parents will be so proud--if they actually bothered to notice.
The elevator shifts and creaks due to the amount of moment, making it more difficult to carry the weight with little to no support. While Flash was hanging on the top, the elevator dropped by an inch, making the boy freeze on cue.
"Take my trophy," Flash pulls his trophy over his head, and one of the park rangers grabs hold of it, frowning before putting it aside.
Just as the men hauled Flash over the edge, the top piece of the elevator gave out and tore from the elevator, sending the boxed machines descending multiple stories. Screams tore through their throats as they all panic at the mere thought of dying, having no one to save them as Eszter couldn't use her powers. They were going to die.
The enhanced felt a spark of her powers but was greeted by a sharp pain shooting through her body, making Eszter cry out from the sudden pain. Her cries warped with the screams coming from her friends. Eszter felt her knees wobble beneath her weight, causing her to crash to the floor of the elevator.
As Ned presses himself flat against the wall, Spider-Man crashes through the window just in time. He fires a string of web as it reflects from the top piece, shooting downward until it latches onto the top of the elevator. Spider-Man opens his legs and plants them in the doorway, holding himself up as he grunts from the sudden weight.
The elevator stops abruptly, causing everyone to crash to the floor, panicking as they looked around, noticing that they were no longer falling. Eszter glances up to see a bed of webs holding the elevator.
Spider-Man grunts as he continues to tug, breathing heavily. "I did it!" He celebrates, but suddenly, the doors broke from the weight as Peter lurches forward. Spider-Man smacks against the walls, grunting in pain as the elevator hits the rails, causing it to stop.
Peter falls through the opening of the elevator, falling inside. Eszter watches with wide eyes as Spider-Man huffs, feeling the wind get knocked out of him. The elevator squeals and the sudden impact caused the elevator to continue falling. Eszter gasps at the feeling of her stomach dropping once again, choking on her scream in the process.
Quickly jumping into reaction, Spider-Man shoots another string of web up to the ceiling, catching himself by planting his feet on the roof of the elevator, bending it. Finally, the elevator screeches to a halt.
Peter clears his throat. Eszter frowns when he lowers his voice and changing it. "Uh, hey, how you doing? Don't worry about it. I got you."
Eszter and Liz were the only ones confused by the change.
Ned grins in triumph, fist-pumping the air. "Yes! Yes!"
"Hey, hey, hey," Peter calls. "Big guy, quit moving around."
"Sorry, sir. So sorry."
Eszter doesn't move as Peter continues to pull them up to safety, but the webs were slowly peeling off with each pull, but Spider-Man managed to get them to the top floor. Yanking the doors wide open, Mr. Harrington began beckoning the teenagers out of the elevator; after Ned, Eszter goes through next. Eszter pushes her feet against the wall as she boosts herself up the door, feeling multiple hands grabbing her arms and pulling her out of the elevator.
The enhanced crashes into Cindy's arms once the girl managed to reach forward and pull her back, causing the two teens to fall backward. Experiencing a near-death made Eszter realize how much she truly values life.
As Cindy was going to ask Eszter if she was okay, the enhanced reassures her. But once Mr. Harrington hops out and reaches for Liz, he flings backward as the elevator drops once more.
Eszter gasps as she rushes toward the edge but was stopped by one of the park rangers. "Liz!"
Mr. Harrington shouts for Liz as he is forced to watch one of his students fall. Spider-Man launches forward and descends from the top floor, soaring down as his spidey-senses tingle as he races after Liz. Once he got closer, Spider-Man catches Liz; flying out through the opening of the ceiling, Liz screams in terror as she watches the elevator continue down the several floors, leaving Liz to hang by a single web.
Peter hangs upside down as he starts the pull on the web wrapped around Liz's hand, bringing the girl closer to him.
Eszter's eyes trail away from the two and up towards the ceiling, gaping at the scene as she notices how the ceiling is burnt; the enhanced hadn't noticed the damage until now--everything was burnt and destroyed. Thinking back to the moment Ned had taken the Chitauri core because he wanted to keep watch of the evidence; however, that evidence almost cost them their lives.
"You're okay. You're okay," Peter assures as he helps pull Liz back onto the floor where everyone stood, letting Mr. Harringotn reach forward as the security helps pull the teenager in. Eszter signs in relief as she relaxes, helping Liz away from the ledge. Glancing up to Spider-Man, the enhanced sees he is dangling upside down. "So, uh, is everyone okay?"
No one verbally answers, too shocked to even form out their words, but Liz nods. Eszter smiles slightly, grateful for her friend, but it immediately disappears as she takes a deep breath. This could've been prevented had Eszter been able to use her powers, disappointing her friends with the thing strapped around her neck. If only Tony and Ross could see how important Eszter having her powers are, especially with scenarios that aren't Avengers-level of threat.
It was a moment of silence, and Spider-Man didn't seem to notice his webs were slowly peeling, too entranced with Liz's eyes. Suddenly, Spider-Man yelps when the web finally snaps, sending the hero flying. Eszter gasps in shock, hand shooting up to her mouth as she watches Spider-Man bounce between the walls.
Mr. Harrington peeks over the ledge. "Thank you."
Then, Flash pushes forward. "Are you really friends with Peter Parker?"
Eszter furrows her brows. "Is now really the time for that, Flash?"
Flash glances over his shoulder, nodding. "Yes. I have to know if someone like Peter could be friends with someone like Spider-Man."
💜
Eszter sat alone in the bus, not in the mood of being near anyone. In fact, the bus was dead silent on their way back to school. Everyone was lucky to be alive right now, and for now, everyone needed their own space to cope with the situation. Eszter felt her own mind running and nearly slipped into another one of her anxiety attacks. Still, the enhanced continued with her breathing exercises, focusing her mind away from the dark thoughts.
Outside the drop-off, parents were waiting in the parking lot where the bus loading is. With the sun disappeared into the horizon, everyone was standing in the starry night, waiting for the bus to park.
Glancing out the window, Eszter notices the many parents out in the crowd, wondering whether Tony or even Pepper was somewhere out amongst the crowd. As much as Eszter was angry with Tony, the enhanced needed someone to comfort her through the rough day; Eszter didn't know what to think about, but the enhanced didn't want to be alone.
Everyone slowly exited from the bus, and Eszter waited until she was the last person left on the bus; hesitantly, the enhanced stood up from the back of the bus and makes her way out of the bus, sadly greeted by parents comforting their children. Eszter walks past Peter as he is greeted by May, watching as the older woman embraces her nephew. At that moment, the enhanced had never felt more jealous.
As much as Pepper and Tony are like a mom and dad to Eszter, she misses her parents. She misses Pietro, and she misses Wanda. Eszter forces herself every day to not think about the loss and the sister she had lost from a war; she wishes she could change. To go back in time and wish that bomb had never hit their apartment, wishing that they would've never gotten their powers because then Pietro would still be alive. She wishes things would've been different.
Eszter kept her head low, but the sound of a familiar voice causes her to look up; the familiar blonde woman was rushing across the street with her arms wide open, making Eszter bloom with happiness. Her heart bursts, knowing that Pepper had come all this way to make sure Eszter was okay. Not only did Pepper arrive, but Happy was also trailing close behind the woman, seeming just as worried as Pepper.
No matter how much Happy pretends to hate everyone, he will secretly care for those he loves, and once he had heard about the Washington Monument, he couldn't fathom the thought. He knew he needed to make sure Eszter was okay.
"Eszter," Pepper exclaims, immediately wraps her arms around Eszter's body, squeezing the enhanced close to her. "Oh, my God--" Pepper holds the enhanced longer, though Eszter feels calmer at the feeling of a motherly figure comforting her. Pepper finally pulls away, cradling Eszter's face as the woman quickly checks her. "--are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Eszter shakes her head, unable to form the words as she was starting to feel her throat swell with a lump forming in her throat and her eyes filling with tears. The enhanced felt like an emotional wreck, and Pepper didn't blame her. Pepper sighs in relief, cooing as she pulls Eszter into her embrace.
Once Pepper releases Eszter, Happy took that as his own cue to pull the enhanced into his arms. She closes her eyes, and with soft sniffles, Eszter was grateful for his comforting side. It was nice, and although Happy doesn't say it enough, he was overjoyed that Eszter was safe and sound.
Now, Eszter wants to sleep this day off and act like this never happened.