Author's Note: Alright! So moving forwards with the story! I own nothing.
38. Dinner
It took Piper about half an hour to get home. She had to shake the helicopters that were trying to tail her, but she eventually managed it. She slipped in through the windows of the med level and plopped herself down on one of the beds. The team was still there, each already patched up. Dr. Hellen Cho stepped over to her, kit in hand, shaking her head.
"I'm seeing you in here too often Miss Parker." Piper let out a non-committal noise as Hellen cut off what was left of her sleeves.
"Being a hero is a dangerous business." Hellen nodded slightly. A voice from the doorway spoke.
"Yeah and you, like your father are a self sacrificing idiot." Piper grinned up at Natasha sheepishly.
"How's he taking this latest little escapade?" Natasha shrugged.
"Better than most. He's overseeing the cleaning out of the lab you and Doc Connors found in the sewer. No sign of Oc but he didn't have time to grab most of his things. He says he'll transfer the data to your server but he's probably gonna be up all night sifting through it." Piper nodded as Dr. Cho finished stitching up her right arm and moved on to her left. A blonde head poked around Natasha and Glen hissed slightly. Dr. Cho ignored everyone, focusing on her work. Natasha nodded to Piper as Dr. Cho finished her work and began to clean up her arms, gently ridding them of the excess blood. She spoke.
"Do not take out those yourself again young lady. There are some even you wont be able to reach alone. And they need to be in for at least twenty four hours. Do not take them out before them." She waited for Piper to nod before she wrapped up her arms all the way down to the wrists. Without another word she packed up her kit and left. Glen stood in the doorway for a minute. Piper raised an eyebrow at him.
"You ok?" He let out a long breath.
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Piper laughed a little hollowly.
"I've had worse." Glen ran a hand through his hair.
"Somehow that doesn't surprise me. A little bit concerning… Is it always like this?" Piper tilted her head at him.
"Like what?" Glen gestured to her arms, wrapped in sterile white bandages.
"Like this with the injuries and the… Dr. Connors is in a medically induced coma until they can be sure that he's gonna be alright." Piper nodded slightly. "Mr. Stark is thinking about shutting down the internship, that it's too dangerous. The Black Widow got her arm gashed open… And I was part of the group that made the lizard formula." Piper hopped off the table and stepped over to Glen, taking his shaking hands in hers.
"Look at me, please." Glen did as she asked and she looked him in the eyes for a moment before she spoke again. "Being a superhero isn't easy. It's not all the times that the news shows. It doesn't always mean winning, it means scrapes and bruises. It means scars, it means losing. More than anyone can understand." Piper took a deep breath as Glen processed what she was saying.
"I wouldn't blame you if you decided to walk out the door and never look back. If we keep seeing each other there's every chance it will paint a target on your head. And not just because I'm Spidergirl, being the daughter of an Avenger is extremely dangerous." Glen's hands tightened on hers, remembering when Hydra had taken Piper straight out of a coffee shop in broad daylight. "It's up to you what happens next."
They stood in silence for a moment before Glen took a deep breath.
"Well I mean my mom is expecting you for dinner tonight. Can't let her down. Maybe we'll see how it goes from there?" A small smile pulled at Piper's lips.
"That sounds lovely. Let me go change." Glen grinned after her as she raced past him to the elevator.
Sam frowned after Piper. He wanted to say he was over her. He wanted to say it, but he couldn't. When she'd walked out of the Helicarier, stating that there was no team, that she would defeat the Goblin on her own, he'd felt his heart shatter. He honestly didn't know if he'd have gone after her without the others pushing him to. Over the past four months he'd gotten to know the Avengers, her little family, but he still couldn't say he really understood her anymore. She had the kind of guilt complex you couldn't find on anyone else their age. The closest comparison was Tony Stark himself but she was almost worse. He sighed as he, Luke and Danny headed down to their rooms on Captain America's level. He pulled off his helmet, setting it down on his bedside table and flopped down on the bed. He sighed up at the ceiling as he couldn't help but think about what could have been.
Piper quickly cleaned up and changed clothes. She switched out her ruined costume for a long sleeved top that would cover the bandages and a pair of nice slacks. She pulled on her leather jacket and headed to the garage where JARVIS informed her Glen was waiting. She handed him a helmet and pulled on her own. The ride to his apartment complex was quiet, just the rush of cars around them to keep them company.
Dinner started out great. The food was delicious, conversation was light and polite. Then after the salad was done and everyone was digging into the main course the subject turned to the events of the day. They stuck to their story that neither of them had been anywhere near Stark Tower when any of it happened. That seemed to get passed the police chief. What hadn't though was the identity of the Lizard which had apparently been all over the news. Neither of them really had to hide their shock at the news, neither of them had quite wrapped their heads around the fact that Doc Connors had done something so desperate and stupid, even if it had been to save Piper. But Captain Stacy took it a step further.
"I'm just saying that anyone who gets close to Stark seems to come out worse for it." He took a sip of his drink as Piper had to hold herself back from crushing the metal handle of the fork she was holding. Apparently Captain Stacy wasn't finished though. "I'm just saying I'm not comfortable having you go back there after this Glen. It's dangerous." Piper set down her fork and let a forced smile pass her lips.
"I'm sorry you feel that way Captain Stacy. Stark Industries would be lucky to have someone like Glen as a full time employee. He's brilliant, innovative and thinks fast on his feet. I understand your concerns though." She turned to Mrs. Stacy. "Thank you for the meal, it was delicious." She set her napkin onto her half finished plate and excused herself from the table. Grabbing her helmet and her keys from the counter where she'd left them she stepped out of the door and walked down the hall of the building. Instead of leaving the building though she went up. It was easy to find the roof access door. She set her helmet down and swung her legs off the side of the building. It took Glen nearly twenty minutes to find her. She was looking over the city.
"Piper I'm so sorry. I didn't know he was going to say anything like that." Piper shook her head.
"No, it's… unsurprising honestly." Glen sat down next to her, a little further in than she was. He didn't have her spectacular balance.
"What do you mean?" Piper shook her head. She brought her hands up in front of her.
"Well let's see." She began to tick off names on her fingers as she continued. "Obadia Stane, Ben Parker, May Parker, Dr. Connors, Norman Osborn, arguably Nick Fury, Claire Brock, Terrance Brock, Richard Parker, Mary Parker, nearly Pepper Potts and James Rhodes. Nearly Mary Jane Watson, Ava Ayala and Liz Allen, nearly Harry Osborn though his life got fucked because of me anyway so that's not really a nearly." Glen held up a hand.
"What are you doing?" She refused to look at him.
"I'm listing people whose lives were either torn apart or straight up taken by their association to a Stark." She kept going. "Justin Hammer, but really he deserved it. Ivan Vanko. Tony Stark in all honesty." She paused and Glen shook his head at her.
"Piper." She didn't let him speak.
"It's not surprising that your dad doesn't want you around Starks, let alone Parkers. Add the bad luck from the two of us together and you'll never dig your way out of it." Glen shook his head.
"That's not…" Piper cut across him.
"What. Not true? Look around you, look at everyone who's ever been hurt. Would you like me to go back over the list! Because it wasn't really done. That's what was worst about what your dad said. He's right." Piper stood and snatched up her helmet.
"I should never have done this. I should never have gotten involved with you. I'm sorry." Piper made to run for the door but Glen just managed to catch her hand.
"Didn't you say that was my choice? That I could decide if it was worth the danger or not?" Piper turned her head away from him.
"Staying is the wrong decision. I won't lose anyone else I care about." She pulled her hand free and raced through the door, stepping around a stunned looking Captain Stacy, barely noticing him as she ran to the ground floor and shoved her helmet on her head, gunning her engine and racing away back to Stark Tower.