"This is so awesome…"
Peter didn't disagree. He had Ned's backpack slung over his shoulder – along with his own – so it was Ned who slid his keycard into the door to open their room.
"Yeah." Their room was a typical hotel room; there were two queen-sized beds, neatly made with two pillows on each, a desk and chair, a large TV on a dominating black dresser, a small closet and a bathroom that afforded a room for shower, toilet, and tub, and then in another small space a vanity with a sink, a mirror and more than enough room for whatever toiletries both boys had brought with them. For the moment, Peter set his backpack on the bed closest to the door, knowing that Ned would want the one by the window. He drew the curtains back to look out the window and admired the view. "I half expected something to come up that would stop us from being able to come."
By we he really meant just him. Ned wasn't the target that Peter was, after all, and while the avengers kept track of him, of course, they didn't helicopter over him like they all did Peter.
"You don't mind," Alec pointed out.
"No."
It was nice to know that he was cared for – and they were usually pretty careful about making sure he didn't feel smothered.
"Right?" Ned didn't hear the conversation between Peter and Alec – he still didn't know about Alec, even – but he definitely agreed with Peter. "Especially with what happened in Syracuse."
"Yeah." Peter turned back to the room, letting the heavy curtain fall back in place. "One of the reasons I'm not complaining about all of the security they're putting in place."
"You'd be crazy to do that," Ned agreed. He grinned, pretending to look around as if they were being spied on. "So? Ready to sneak out and go spy on someone?"
Peter laughed and tossed a pillow at him.
"No. Let's get unpacked. Then we can hack into the lobby cameras and see if we can watch some of the competition arrive."
Peter wasn't the hacker that Ned was, but in a pinch he could do it, himself – or even have Karen do it for him since he wasn't doing it to get a leg up on the other teams.
"Sounds good."
OOOOOOOOOO
"What are you doing?"
"Are you still in the hotel?"
Stark shook his head, ruefully.
"Romanoff kicked us out. We're at the tower."
"Because you have important things to do at the tower?" Stephen Strange asked, raising an eyebrow. "Or because you want to be close at hand in case something happens…?"
"It's my company, Stephen," Tony reminded him. "There's always something important for me to do, here."
The other man's expression plainly said he wasn't fooled.
"Of course you do."
"So what are you doing?" Tony asked. "Are you going to the hotel?"
"Why would I do that?"
He knew why, of course. If Natasha had sent him packing, that meant he couldn't poke his nose into the lobby, even, and see what was going on – and what Peter was doing. Stephen knew that it wasn't even so much that he was worried about Peter – Tony knew that SHIELD was all over things and that Tony trusted Natasha like no one else to keep his son safe – but the billionaire felt the responsibility of being a dad, keenly, and wallowed in all that came with it.
Including being a helicopter dad (although he denied it, every time).
"Because Natasha's there," Tony replied, forcing down a smile when he saw Pepper roll her eyes off to the side of the call. "Don't you want to see her in action, so to speak?"
"I've seen her in action," Stephen reminded him, drolly.
"Just go to the hotel, will you?"
He could keep teasing him; annoying Tony Stark was one of Stephen's favorite pastimes, after all, but he didn't.
"I might wander over," he told him. "To see Natasha, though," he added. "Not to check on Peter."
"Great. Let me know if he needs anything."
Strange rolled his eyes.
"Goodbye, Tony."
"See you later, Stephen."
The call ended and Tony turned to Pepper, who had been silent during the call but now smiled.
"Feel better?"
"I'm not worried about him," Tony assured her – mainly because he didn't want her to be worried about him. "I just miss him."
Pepper pointedly looked at her watch, but didn't mention that it had been no longer than an hour since they'd left Peter in the lobby of the hotel.
"Well, let's give you something to distract yourself."
"Pity sex?"
She snorted, amused.
"I was thinking more along the line of a meeting with the Asian market. We can go over the third quarter."
Ugh.
OOOOOOOOOO
Peter and Ned were sitting at the desk studying Ned's laptop display when the knock came on the door.
"Room service…"
Ned grinned, recognizing the voice, easily.
"If she doesn't have French fries, I'm closing the door on her."
Peter laughed. Ned had been sitting in the only chair in the room with Peter leaning on the desk, looking over his shoulder. He slapped his friend's shoulder and turned and went for the door.
MJ smiled, cheerfully, when he opened it.
"Where are the fries we ordered?"
She smirked.
"I left them in my other pants."
Peter looked to see if there was anyone with her, but she was alone.
"Come on in."
She looked around as she entered the room but walked over to the desk.
"What are you looking at?" she asked as Ned closed the top of his laptop and swiveled the chair around to look at her.
"Porn."
MJ laughed.
"We linked into the lobby cameras," Peter told her, sitting on the corner of Ned's bed.
"Why?"
"Just watching the people who are checking in," Ned said. "We were hoping to see some of the other teams when they come in."
"Did you see any?"
"No." Peter was the one who answered. "Karen says that all of the flights will be in, today, but some aren't going to be in until early this evening."
"That's going to be tough on them, I imagine," she said. "With the jetlag and all."
Peter knew as well as anyone – and better than both of them – how tough jetlag was.
"Yeah." Of course, they weren't starting the official competition until the next evening, just to make sure that it was fair. The teams would have a social time that night, to meet everyone – and for the teachers and chaperones to also have a chance to meet and go over the schedule in case there were any last-minute changes to the schedule. Sometime the next morning Natasha would meet with the same adults and talk about the excursion out to the compound. Which would give SHIELD a chance to make any last-minute adjustments. "It'll be an early night for them if they didn't sleep on the plane."
"The voice of experience," Alec said, amused.
"Hush."
"You guys want to come to my room?" she asked. "That's where we're all meeting."
Most of the team had checked in; Peter and Ned had watched most of them.
"Let me make sure we can," Peter replied.
"Natasha told us to stay in the room," Ned explained. "To make sure the French girls don't come rushing me in the lobby when they get here."
MJ was amused and didn't bother to hide it. Her and Ned watched as Peter used his watch communicator to call to Natasha. It was a short conversation, and he smiled as it ended.
"We're good," he told her – although both of his friends had heard the discussion. "I have to stay on this floor," he added. "At least until everyone's here. Then I'm in the clear."
It was a security thing, and MJ and Ned both understood completely. And agreed.
Of course, they'd both been in Syracuse, too.
"Come on, then," MJ said. "We'll order some room service and get rid of any nerves."
"Sounds good."
