After a nice shower, I dig into my bag and take out my hastily packed clothes and spread them on the bed to decide what to wear. I sigh happily when I see I packed my favorite pair of dark blue skinny jeans. I also pick out a nice, cream colored sweater. Thankfully, I had grabbed the first things I saw on the floor, and since I had worn these things only a few days ago, they had yet to reach the laundry hamper. They weren't really dirty, and only slightly wrinkled from being in my bag, so I changed into them, smoothing out the wrinkles best I could. I looked at my arm where I cut it on the window, and notice that while I was sleeping, it had scabbed over. I rolled my sleeve back down and went to fix my hair. I glanced at the mirror in the bathroom as I was brushing my chocolate brown hair and realized with a start, I had forgotten my makeup. I don't usually wear much, I'm not like the girls who put four pounds of it on to cover up a "blemish" that you wouldn't be able to see anyways. I always put some under-eye concealer on because I always have dark bags under my eyes. "Oh, well. I look decent enough, I guess," I think to myself. I exit the bathroom, leaving my hair down in natural waves, pack up the rest of my stuff the best I could, and slip on some socks as I mentally prepare myself for what was to come. Tony and I, well, we are very similar, so I don't know how he and I are going to get along. Maybe with Pepper there, he might be different, although I doubt it. I take a deep breath and leave my bedroom, well, Dad's bedroom, and enter a lovely living area, complete with a small kitchen and dining bar. I go to the windows that line an entire wall, and stare out at the beautiful city of New York. I gape in wonder at all of the skyscrapers lit up and all of the cars on the streets, considering it was 8:30. Late for dinner, but when you are a billionaire with a skyscraper just for yourself, I guess you can eat whatever you want whenever you want. I turn from the picturesque view and spot the elevator. I go to hit the button but there is no button and it opens when I get close enough, as if it was an automatic door at Wal-Mart. I step into the elevator and say, with a shaky voice, "J-J-JARVIS?"
Immediately came the response. "Yes, Miss Banner? I assume you would like to be brought to Sir and Ms. Potts?"
"Yes, please, JARVIS. Oh, and JARVIS? She prefers to be called 'Pepper'", I tell the AI, with a bit more confidence.
"Yes, Miss Banner. She has told me that on several occasions. While on the topic of abbreviated names, please call me 'J'. Only Sir calls me that, but I do enjoy irritating Sir", replied JARVIS.
"Of course, I'll call you 'J', but only if you call Pepper, 'Pepper', from now on. And, no offence, but, are you human? I thought you were a machine, but you are acting like a human person, what with your 'enjoy irritating' and 'abbreviated names'".
"I will certainly call Ms. Potts 'Pepper' from now on, and to answer your question, I am a machine, built in remembrance of Sir's butler as a child whose name, I'm told, was Jarvis. Sir built me to be as human-like as possible, because before Pepper came into his life, he was very much alone so, he wished for companionship," JARVIS explained.
"J, have we even moved?" I ask, realizing we have been standing here, well, I've been standing on the elevator for several minutes while we talked.
"Oh, yes, Miss Banner. Before you even asked me to call Pepper 'Pepper', we were on the floor where Pepper and Sir are waiting. While talking to you, I have simultaneously been lying to them for your sake. I could sense your elevated pulse and shallow breathing, both of which are symptoms of anxiety, so I kept up a conversation with you to help calm yourself. I have apparently succeeded, as your breathing and heart rate has decreased to a normal level."
"Oh," was all I could say, stunned. "Well, thanks, and what did you tell them?"
"I explained to Sir that you were preparing to beat him in a game of wits and snide comments, which made Pepper instantly start telling him to, and I quote, 'behave yourself, because if she is already thinking of comebacks, then you must have had it out with her before you even got home,' to which Sir tried to respond, but was shot down by Pepper," JARVIS explained, with a hint of humor.
I smiled. "Thanks, J. You're a life-saver."
"You are certainly welcome, Miss Banner. Are you ready to exit the elevator?"
"Yeah, go ahead, J. And thanks again."
The door opens as I take a deep breath and step out of the comfort of solitude.
Hey all! Sorry this chapter is so much shorter, but when I was first writing this story, I never planned on publishing it, so breaking it down into chapters reveals to me that I am inconsistent in my length of "scenes". I'll try to be more consistent later on! And while I'm on the topic, I have written a lot for this story and have a pretty good idea as to where I want it to go, but if you have any ideas AT ALL, let me know! I will see what I can do to make this story as awesome as possible. Thanks so much for the support!