After Christmas break was over the spring seemed to fly by. Steve and Peggy's graduation was coming up and the group was preparing for the ultimate party (courtesy of Tony) and their finals before the summer months.
"Wow I can't believe I'm graduating. It seems like yesterday I just started." Peggy was saying towards the girls, for once eating separately from the boys. Little did Peggy know, Steve had an idea proposed; he was going to take the first year out of high school off and take Peggy to Germany, Austria, Switzerland, or anywhere else she wanted to go.
"I know! I can't believe you won't be here next year." Pepper cried, hugging the brunette teen tightly within her skinny arms. "I'll miss you so much." Pepper continued to cry, slightly ruining her makeup.
"Guess seriously we need to study! Finals is next week and I didn't work this hard all year to have a final grade of a B." Jane whined towards her two sobbing friends. Jane was sad Peggy was leaving, mind you, but she also had finals, an over-protective godfather, who hated her boyfriend, and a few extra assignments she wanted to complete. Safe to say, the petite brunette was stressed.
"Ok chill Jane, you'll do fine. You aced every test before, what makes this one any different?" Maria asks, not worrying too much about her grades, she already completed most of her assignments being Principle Fury's right hand student helped.
"Chill? I cannot 'chill'. I've been studying all year on this quiz and I cannot fail! Besides Erik is being ridiculous. He's basically banning Thor from entering our house just because he accidently broke the garbage disposal trying to fix it last month." Jane replied, pinching the bridge of her nose and lowering her reading glasses.
"I thought you said Erik didn't care about the garbage disposal? Besides didn't Thor pay to have it fixed?" Maria questioned, more interested in her friend's love life issues than her own.
"Yeah he did, but Erik thinks he's dangerous. But we're studying over at Silver Diner later." Jane said, smiling evilly at her friend, a rare thing to witness. "Enough about my love life, how's yours? Is Clint asking you to the prom?" Jane asks, placing her elbows on the table and her face in her hands looking at Maria suspiciously.
"No not yet. We haven't talked about it actually. He keeps ignoring the subject every time I bring it up, maybe we'll do something else." Maria guessed, looking slightly disappointed. Although she would deny it in a heartbeat, Maria Hill actually was looking forward to Prom. She had an amazing guy in her life she wished would ask her already, best friends to dance with, and an amazing senior year waiting for her.
"Well he'll have to ask soon. You need to find a dress and he'll need a tux." Jane replied, looking through the calendar on her phone.
"Yeah well enough about my love life. Tasha what are you and Loki doing?" Maria asks, once again shifting attention towards the redhead sitting next to her.
"Oh we're going together. In fact Odin is willing to pay for a limo big enough for all of us." Natasha replied, looking at her friends with a bright blush on her pale cheeks.
"Great now you definitely need Clint to ask you!" Jane said, squealing in delight. It was her first prom, she hadn't attended any dances prior to her junior year, preferring to study or hang out with her very close friend Darcy.
"Yeah he does. What is that boy's problem any how?" Natasha asks, gladly shifting the attention back towards her much taller friend looking at her with curious eyes.
"I don't know ask him. He's the one who's been distant lately." Maria snapped, standing up abruptly, dumping her trey of most uneaten food and marching inside the school building.
"What's her problem?" Peggy asks, not having heard the earlier conversation.
"We'll tell you later." Natasha unintentionally snapped at her, running after the fuming brunette with Jane close behind. Pepper and Peggy ignored their friends' distressed tones and continued to talk about graduation, life ahead, and Steve and Peggy's summer plans as newly graduated students.
Once inside the building Natasha and Jane easily spotted Maria, basically shoving anyone in her way heading towards the girl's bathroom.
"Maria wait! Maria! Maria Hill stop!" Jane tried to yell at her friend, ignoring the weird looks from her classmates as the duo followed the brunette teenager.
Inside the bathroom they noticed Maria leaning against the sink, tears slowly streaming down her cheeks, staring at her own reflection in the mirror.
"Maria what happened?" Jane asks, walking cautiously towards her friend, noticing her wince slightly at her advancement.
"He doesn't like me. He doesn't want to date me." Maria said in a small voice, barely audible to her best friends.
"What? What are you talking about? Clint's been crazy after you since he met you last year." Natasha argued, walking closer to Maria only to see her flinch once more.
"What happened, you're more tense than usual." Jane said, moving her hand to rest on her shoulder, which Maria quickly shook off.
"I'm fine. Just drop it." Maria said, wiping her eyes and fixing her make-up to make sure she looked normal again.
"You're not fine and we're not going to 'drop it', so just tell us." Natasha argued, standing on the opposite of Jane behind Maria.
"No I'm fine. Just leave me alone." Maria cried, beginning to leave the bathroom with the two girls right on her tail.
"Maria stop! Tell us!" Natasha yelled, running after her friend, whom was a faster runner her height helping her keep long strides.
"Just drop it Romanoff." Maria snapped again, running towards the exit only to knock into the broad and hardened chest of the one and only Clint Barton.
"Hill? What's wrong?" Clint asks, looking at the crying girl who now lay on top of him, due to the impact Clint had fell on his ass bringing Maria with him.
"Nothing, I'm fine. Just drop it." Maria snapped at him, not realizing it was Clint and not Natasha or Jane.
"Maria please talk to us!" Jane yelled, stopping when she saw the sight of her best friend basically straddling the guy she's upset at.
"No just drop it Foster!" Maria snapped, jumping off of Clint like he was Lava and rushing out the door.
"Maria wait!" Natasha yelled, stopping in front of the door to see Maria jump on her motorcycle and sped out of the school's front parking lot.
"Great she's gone." Natasha stated the obvious, breathing heavy due to the sprint she and Jane had to do just to keep Maria in their sights.
"What the hell is going on?" Clint asked, totally in the dark on the situation that unfolded literally and figuratively in his lap.
"Maria's upset about something. She won't tell us but I'm pretty sure you're the reason why." Jane snapped angrily at the blonde archer in front of her.
"What me? What did I do?" Clint asked, totally looking like a kicked puppy.
"I don't know, something to do with Prom?" Natasha asks, looking at her longtime friend and eyeing him carefully. Soon the rest of their group showed up, Peggy and Steve holding hands, Pepper and Tony talking with Tony's arm wrapped snuggly around Pepper's small waist, Bruce, Thor, and Loki all three arguing over some last minute homework assignment.
"What's up male Katniss?" Tony asks, looking from the blonde archer towards the two panting girls. "What's going on?" Tony asks, still in his usually sarcastic and narcissistic voice.
"Maria's upset and we don't know why." Jane said, her breathing finally evening out.
"Why is she upset? She seemed fine earlier?" Peggy asks, looking at her friends with curious eyes.
"I don't know she won't tell us. And you would have known if you weren't so focused on yourself earlier!" Natasha snapped at the brunette with ruby red lips.
"Wait how is this my fault?" Peggy asks, suddenly becoming defensive and glaring at the redhead, who wasn't bothered by the harsh look.
"You weren't paying attention! You didn't even notice that Maria hasn't been herself since spring break have you?" Natasha asks in a stern tone, leaving no room for question.
"What she has? When did it start?" Pepper asks, also curious to why her two friends were being dramatic.
"Ugh not you too?" Jane asks in an over-dramatic voice. "She hasn't been herself. She goes to the beach with her family and Clint and suddenly she's a whole new person! She's been a lot quieter! She hasn't even bothered to talk about prom, and she's on the committee." Jane said in a quick breath, glaring at the blonde in front of her. Pepper could be so self-centered at times.
"I didn't know, but we have to find her!" Pepper said in her usual high-pitched voice that caused Natasha's ears to bleed at times.
"No duh genius!" Natasha snapped at her, earning herself a glare from Pepper, Tony, and Peggy, who weren't amused at the two girl's short tones.
"Ok, we're in. Where do we start?" Bruce asks, breaking the tense atmosphere with his calm and collected voice.
"I saw her leave the school and turn right, she's probably going back to the city, probably to her dad's office. We should start there." Natasha said in an authoritative tone. The others didn't bother to question the redhead; they knew she meant business when talked that way.
Soon the entire group was in their cars, driving on the highway headed towards NYC. Natasha, Loki, and Clint all rode in Loki's black Jeep. Peggy, Steve, Tony, and Pepper all rode in Tony's Cadillac. Thor, Jane, and Bruce all rode in Jane's red van.
"How much longer is it?" Clint asked from the backseat of Loki's Jeep.
"Maybe an hour or so? At this speed and assuming we don't hit traffic." Loki replied, glancing at him through the rearview mirror.
"M'kay, I'm taking a nap." Clint announced, pulling the hood of his sweatshirt over his head and leaning back in the seat.
"Where exactly is Mr. Hill's office?" Loki asks, looking at his co-pilot.
"Turn off the highway and start driving towards Manhattan. I think she said it was close to the water." Natasha replied, grabbing her cell phone and dialing Jane's number.
"Hello?" Came the response, followed by a few curses from Thor.
"Hey, do you know exactly where Maria's dad's office is? I can't remember if it's close to the bridge or the docks." Natasha said, looking at Loki to watch his reaction, knowing he could easily hear the conversation.
"I think it's by the docks. Maria always said she hung out there as a kid." Jane replied, yelling a quick cuss and the sound of car horns came through the phone's speakers.
"Ok thanks. See you there." Natasha finished the call and looked at Loki. "Go towards Manhattan and head for the docks." Natasha ordered, glancing back at a sleeping Clint. She easily reached her hand back and slapped him hard on the knee, waking up the sleeping teen.
"What the hell was that for Tasha?" Clint asks, jerking awake and locking angry eyes at his best friend.
"Why's Maria upset with you? She was all happy to go on vacation with you, now she seems depressed. What did you do?" Natasha asks, glaring at him through her blue eyes.
"I didn't do anything why do you always assume I screwed something up?" Clint asks, anger rising in his tone at Natasha's accusations.
"Because you were there. I wasn't, so you're the only one who can tell me what the hell happened." Natasha snapped angrily at him.
"Fine, we went to the beach, Maria's parents fought a lot, then Maria's move left and went back home early. Soon Maria's father followed, leaving us the beach house for the rest of the week. He came back when the week was over to help us pack and leave. That's all I know." Clint snapped back, too upset to think straight and give many details.
"Why did Maria's mom leave? I thought they had a good relationship?" Natasha questions, staring at him like he was lying through his teeth.
"I don't know. Something about her brother." Clint replies, running a hair through his messy spiked hair and looking at Natasha with sad eyes. "I honestly don't know Tasha. She was fine before we left, then when we got home she became moody and started to cry a lot. I couldn't take it so I decided we should take a break." Clint continued, knowing that's the answers that Natasha was looking for.
"What? Why would you leave her? Especially after she brought you to the Outer banks with her." Natasha snapped at him angrily.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't deal with the crap she was pilling on me. She began to talk about the future and the different colleges she was accepted to and which one should she choose because she wants my approval." Clint said in an exasperated tone, obviously showing his disinterest in college.
"Clint she was asking for you help! And you left her? She's probably heartbroken." Natasha said, realization dawning on her. She quickly pulled out her cell phone once more and dialed Jane's number.
"What?" Jane's tired voice came over the phone.
"Jane I know what's wrong with Maria." Natasha said through the phone.
"Really what?" Jane asks, quickly wakening up.
"She's heartbroken." Natasha said, easily giving her all the information she needed without naming names.
"What? Oh my gosh I so should've seen it before." Jane said in a worried voice. "Why didn't she tell us? Spring break was two months ago." Jane continued, sorrow in her voice.
"I know. We should've been there for her." Natasha said, sadness and anger in her voice.
"Yeah I'll call Peggy and Pepper and inform them." Jane said, ending the call with Natasha to dial the two numbers of said girls.
Sighing Natasha laid deeper back into her seat, looking out the window.
"I should've seen it coming. Maria's parents have been unstable for years. I should've been there for her." Natasha said in a whisper, sadness over coming her beautiful features.
"Nat, we're here." Loki said a few minutes later, motioning towards the tall building overlooking the dock.
Ok chapter 12 is up! Sorry if it skipped a lot of time, I really want the story to get on already. Well I hope you liked it! Thanks to all the reviews, favorites, followers, and readers I'm so blessed! Love you all! You guys are the motivation for why I do what I do! Thanks! Opinions, suggestions, comments, and/or suggestions are all welcomed!