Harley had always considered himself lucky, for a number of reasons.
He'd met Iron Man at eight years old, shortly after his dad had gotten up for cigarettes and milk one chilly November morning and never came back. The Mechanic had become sort of a father figure to him after that, their fateful meeting in his home state of Tennessee leading to a clunky relationship that became something deeper, faster than it felt like Harley could even blink. Even though he didn't get to see Tony all that often for several years following the entire 'suit losing power & superhero with PTSD' ordeal, they managed to keep in touch through handwritten letters, and Tony insisted on sending monthly payments to help his family cover the bills. Harley hadn't been stupid. He knew without Tony's generous contribution, they'd have likely ended up on the street.
But his relationship with the man had been more than that. Their bond wasn't a transaction. Harley didn't trust a lot of people, but he certainly trusted Tony. The man had even insisted on flying him out to meet Pepper and to tour Stark Industries, at one point. Harley hadn't know Pepper that well, not at the time, as he mostly only talked to Tony through letters (all of which remained in a shoebox, on his closet shelf, even now) but Tony had written about her plenty of times, enough to make Harley want to meet her. And sure, the idea of New York terrified him a little bit, but his mom had insisted he accept Tony's offer, wanting him to see the world through a lens that was bigger Rose Hill, Tennessee.
He and Tony had gotten a lot closer after that first trip to New York, but Harley couldn't make visiting a regular habit while still trying to finish school. So, he'd been limited to holidays, and even then, it was only a day or two that he could manage to fly up while trying to maintain his summer classes that would spruce up his resume for when he'd eventually have to apply for college and scholarships.
And for a while, things were good.
But then, Thanos had arrived.
Harley had survived The Snap, even as it had taken his mother and sister before his eyes. He'd called Pepper, a week after he'd come to terms with what exactly had happened, still unable to get through to Tony's cell, not knowing at the time that he was missing. She'd arrived 13 hours later, having driven herself through the night since the airlines were still down after losing half of the population. She'd been bundled in a heavy winter coat, the slight swell of her stomach announcing her pregnancy long before the words had ever left her mouth. She'd barged into his home, thrown a duffle bag of clothes together, and flicked light switches on and off as she went into each room, her face showing her determination to find everything she needed to take him home with her. He'd watched her, somewhat dumbstruck as she moved confidently through his childhood home, and he didn't even have time to rethink his choice to call her before she'd bundled him in the car and made the long drive home, her body a rigid line of worry the entire time.
It was then and there that he realized Tony was engaged to quite possibly the scariest, most determined, yet terrifyingly composed woman he'd ever met.
"You know…" He'd said, eyeing her as they rolled to a stop at an abandoned gas station. It had maybe been a lively, small town where everyone knew each other once upon a time. He could almost envision neighbors frequently getting together for grilling on the weekends or stupid Christmas traditions. But after the decimation Thanos had wrought, it was a ghost town. It shockingly hadn't been raided, and the gas pumps worked, by some miracle. "This is probably inappropriate, but you're kind of a bad bitch." He'd said, watching her through the passenger seat window as she filled the car up.
Pepper had eyed him, leaning heavily against the car as the pump ran, rubbing thoughtfully at the small bump on her stomach, her sunglasses low on her nose and her scarf fluttering in the cold breeze. "I'm aware." She'd said, raising an eyebrow at him. Harley had burst into laughter, for the first time since his mom and sister had disintegrated in front of his eyes. Tears had followed shortly after, greeted by great hiccuping sobs that he couldn't control, squeezing at his lungs. Pepper had patted his back before grabbing his hand, gripping it tightly, as she'd started the car up again, her blue eyes shining with unshed tears of her own. Harley hadn't known much else at the time, except that he could trust her.
It took some time, but they'd eventually gotten Tony back, nearly two weeks after Pepper had come to his rescue.
They'd both been terrified he'd died in the wait between, but when Carol's signal lit up in the twilight sky, they'd been given hope once more. He'd opened up a lot to Pepper over those two weeks where it was just the two of them, and he'd been the one to go with her to her first ultrasound, since Tony hadn't returned by that point. The sound of Morgan's heartbeat as the wand rolled across Pepper's stomach had been such an odd thing to witness, and Harley found that he sort of believed in miracles, after that.
And for five years, he lived with the Stark's, while they tried to figure out how to save the universe. He'd watched Morgan be born, and begin to grow up, and he'd learned to cope with his own losses, in a way that wasn't detrimental to the people who had taken him in, that he'd grown to love. Tony, for his part, took Harley's sudden insertion into their lives in stride, learning to adapt to the role of a father faster than any of them had expected. Harley had already considered him a dad, but once Morgan was born, it was like the floodgates of fatherly love opened in him. Harley had lost a lot, but he was lucky enough to gain Tony, Pepper, and Morgan in the face of his grief.
They didn't officially adopt him until Steve had showed up with Natasha, the burnt-out gauntlet dangling from his fingertips, his blue eyes full of despair. It seemed like all hope of getting the snapped back was destroyed with that single look, so they'd done what they felt was right. Pepper had been insistent upon the adoption, telling him it wasn't a sign they were giving up, but that for now, they needed to be a family. Harley hadn't really had to think too hard about it before accepting.
They'd moved out of the compound and into the cabin after that, and for a while, things were good. As good as things could be when half of humanity had disappeared off the face of the earth, at least.
He got to watch Morgan grow up into the precocious, brilliant young girl, who's smarts bested his own at times, even at five years old. He watched as Pepper and Tony fell back into love, despite all the loss they'd faced, tied together by horrors other people couldn't even bear to think of.
And for a long time, Harley was happy. He'd lost a lot, more than most, but the Stark's had stepped into the role of his family as if they were destined to.
Then, Scott fucking Lang had showed up, and everything sort of went to shit after that. He'd think it odd, several years later, that he couldn't remember exactly why Tony had decided to give into the time travel plan. He knew they'd talked about it, and there had been a specific reason that Tony had wanted to try and solve everything. But something seemed to sort of…blur the conversation out.
He had a lot of memories like that with Tony.
They felt important, like they were talking about something that needed to be remembered, but there seemed to be some sort of mental block that prevented him from recalling what, or who, exactly they'd been discussing. It struck him as strange, years later that he couldn't remember what had been so important to Tony that he'd be willing to die for it when he had Morgan, Harley and Pepper, but after the dust had settled and Tony's sacrifice had really set in, he tried not think too much about the days leading up to his death, so he figured that's why he couldn't remember. He'd blocked it out because it was too painful to think about. Or that's what he told himself, at least.
Tony had died.
And Harley hadn't even known until Steve, Pepper, Rhodey, Happy, and a litany of other people that Harley didn't really know (and probably wouldn't be able to place if he ever saw them again) had walked through the front door of the cabin, carrying his adopted father's body on a clean white sheet. Later, after he'd seen firsthand the destruction the battle against Thanos had wrought on The Compound, he'd wonder where they'd found the sheet, and how they'd kept it so pristine the whole way home. It was an odd thought, but one that had always stuck with him. He supposed grief did that to people, made them remember the strangest details, the brain too focused on trying to keep the body functioning through the heart-rendering pain that loss brought to remember anything other than the minute.
Tony had gotten Harley his family back, his mom and sister alive and well, but at the expense of himself. And what really sucked about the whole thing? His dad had tried to come back, after that. Like he could just join the family again as if he hadn't left them in the first place. Harley had laughed in his face at that, then shut the door. He'd blocked the numerous numbers from numerous burner phones that his dad tried to call him on, shutting him out. He'd had a dad. Someone who had been there for him, even though they weren't even related. Tony had loved him, and taken care of him, brought him into his family, trusted him with his wife and daughter as if he were truly his own son. So, yeah, he was good. He didn't need his sperm donor to try and man up for once in his life.
Harley had found out, later, that his dad had survived The Snap. He'd looked Harley up, too, but had made no effort to find him once he'd learned he was still alive. Harley was pretty sure he'd only reached out after everything had been fixed because he knew the Stark's had taken him in. He'd always been a selfish, greedy asshole and Harley knew he only wanted in on their fortune.
So yeah, Harley considered himself lucky.
He'd dodged a lot of bullets, and he was still kicking. He'd gained a new family and gotten his first family back. There was no doubt he'd lost things, important things that still hurt to think about for too long, but he'd learned to roll with the punches under Pepper's guidance.
And he'd gained a little sister, in the process.
And god only knew, the things he would do for his sisters.
Ariel and Morgan.
Ariel was still young, and he was pretty sure she wouldn't remember much from The Snap, or even really, Post-Snap 2.0. So, he'd gone home, flown back by Pepper, who insisted he reunite and be with his mother and sister. And he'd promised Morgan he'd be back. But once he was back in his childhood home, with the mother and sister he'd lost, it'd been really hard to leave again. He'd gotten to watch Morgan grow up, and after five years, he was given the opportunity to do the same with Ariel, his own perspective on life having vastly changed.
He hadn't meant to let Morgan fall by the wayside.
He really hadn't. It had sort of just…happened. Life got crazy, and time slipped away from him faster than he could keep up. Life during The First Snap had been strange, and with the loss of half the population, school had been cancelled for a while. Most of Harley's class didn't go to school for the first three years, and with the government unable to keep track of everyone, it'd been utter chaos when everyone returned. So, Harley was older than some of his classmates, once things finally got sorted and the government began mandating school again and he knew he really should have graduated earlier and gone to college. He didn't let the age difference of some of his classmates deter him from finishing out his high school years, too determined to enjoy a part of life he'd sort of missed out on in the past five years. And by the time graduation was rolling around, and he'd begun to apply for colleges, he knew he wanted to go back to New York.
Pepper had been ecstatic to have him back, inviting him to stay with them while he looked for a dorm or apartment, and promising to call and give him a recommendation. Not that he needed it, his grades and inventions spoke for themselves, but he knew it never hurt to have friends in high places. And Pepper was more than just a friend, she'd been his mother. He still considered her one, and he was glad to be able to see her again more frequently.
She'd caught him up that first day back, after picking him up from the airport and while they waited for Morgan to finish up her week at a private boarding school she had evidently enrolled the pre-teen in. They had sipped their coffee on the porch of the lake house while they talked, and she'd told him about Morgan's off the chart's smarts. Harley, of course, hadn't been surprised in the slightest. Morgan had always been too smart for her own good, but he couldn't be more proud of her. Pepper seemed to be doing good, too. Sad, but good. She was mostly worried about Morgan, and she told him how she wasn't sure she could do everything on her own. Harley had done his best to reassure her, to let her know she was a great mom, and she'd seemed to accept the reassurance, even though she looked doubtful.
Morgan had hugged the hell out of him when they picked her up later that evening, and he saw the snickers the older girls held back as he hugged her fiercely in return. When neither Pepper nor Morgan were looking, he'd flipped the girls off and mouthed a few choice words that had left them turning red and scampering away. He hated bullies, and he was most certainly not about to let them fuck with one of his little sisters.
And when they'd gotten home, he'd found the little twerp's notebook.
He knew it was rude to snoop, but her notes were cute. She wrote them in loopy cursive, almost illegible at the speed she'd surely recorded them at. They seemed like harmless, random scribbles at first. Brown hair. Brown eyes. Likes egg drop soup. Hates carrots (loser). He'd wondered, briefly, if she was writing a story. But the other notes had been more detailed, and frankly, a little stalkerish.
She'd startled him with her return, and he'd never seen her turn such a bright shade of red in such a record time. Her immediate attempts to wrestle it away from him had done nothing to spurn his curiosity and when he finally managed to pull the story out of her, he'd been…doubtful, to say the least. But Morgan was adamant that she was telling the truth, and the thought that he couldn't remember what motivated Tony to snap rattled through his brain. There was something missing, an important piece. It almost seemed like this Peter kid filled that piece. It made sense, even if he didn't want to admit it. He'd talked with Tony about something important, something he now couldn't remember. Morgan had said it was like everyone had woken up that morning and forgotten him. And maybe he was being stupid for believing a nine-year-old. But he owed it to her. He'd accidentally disappeared out of her life for three years, and she seemed to be holding a bit of a grudge about it.
So, when he'd gone to his first round of classes that week and overheard one of his classmates bitching about not getting an apartment because the guy who owned the place, someone named Peter had been too much of a 'control freak' Harley wondered when his luck would run out. He'd hit Eddie up for the flyer, and the guy had given him the address without second thought. Harley had warned him against giving it to anyone else, telling him he probably shouldn't be sharing stranger's home addresses, but the guy had just scoffed and walked away with an eyeroll and a sarcastic 'good luck.'
Douche.
He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised that the guy who opened the door had brown hair and brown eyes. Harley wasn't an idiot. He knew it was an incredibly common hair and eye color combination, but there was something about him, something familiar. Harley knew when to trust his gut, and it had been screaming at him that this kid before him, who was stiff and awkward (and had possibly the saddest brown eyes Harley had ever seen), was important.
And if Tony had taught him anything, he'd taught him to trust his gut.
So, he'd been fine with rescheduling the interview, and his ears had perked up a bit when he realized they even shared a professor. He'd texted Morgan and let her know he was maybe on to something, though he'd been careful to omit any details, and all she'd sent back was a set of side-eyed emojis and a request that he keep her updated. He'd just rolled his eyes in response. He didn't tell her what he was planning. He knew he should trust his gut, and he was going to. But he needed to make sure this Peter guy was legit, and that he wasn't some freakshow that had somehow manipulated Morgan. He didn't seem like the kind of guy to do that, though Harley knew first-hand that first impressions could sometimes be deceiving. Luck had always been on his side, but he also knew it was bound to run out at some point so he figured he'd lean into it while he still could.
He'd ended up getting back to the apartment before Peter had, and the other boy had arrived in such a frantic hurry, he'd practically bowled Harley over. Peter's reflexes, however, were lightning fast and Harley was pretty sure if he hadn't steadied him, he would have landed flat on his ass.
He'd been a little surprised to be offered the room after only three questions, but when Peter told him his last name and sealed the deal on Harley's hunch, he couldn't bring himself to say no.
He wanted to know more.
Morgan may have been the one who 'remembered' Peter, but Harley was still suspicious.
It was hard to stay that way, though.
His new roommate had an air of secrecy around him, but he also looked like a kicked puppy. He moved quietly around Harley, his brown eyes watching his every movement whenever they were together, which Harley soon found wasn't meant to be frequent. He was pretty sure Peter was avoiding him, if anything. And that just wasn't going to do. He had an obligation to a very pushy pre-teen to figure out what the hell was going on.
When Peter told him the name of the school for his new job, it had taken everything in Harley not to immediately call Morgan to find out what the hell she was up to. Somehow, he knew she had played a hand this. He wasn't sure what she'd done, but he knew the job hadn't fallen into Peter's lap for no reason. She is such a sneaky little shit. He thought, suppressing his urge to roll his eyes.
Instead, he texted her while talking to Peter, waiting for her to explain what, exactly, she was up to.
Harley?: Morgan Hope Stark, what did you do? He works at your school? I thought we were supposed to be partners. I was supposed to be the one you told when you found something.
Harley waited, biting at his thumbnail. A text bubble popped up and he raised an eyebrow, staring down at the screen. It disappeared, and he waited a bit longer, but it didn't reappear. Busted. He thought. He shook his head, lips pursed and moved to lock the phone. They were going to have a serious conversation about this. Right as he hit the lock though, his screen lit up with a message.
Morgs ⎊: I'm pretty sure I should be asking the first question of you. also, technically, he doesn't work there until tomorrow. so, no, he doesn't work at my school. not yet.
Harley's eyes widened at the message and his fingers flew across the screen, texting her back twice as fast as it had taken her to respond.
Harley?: what do you mean?
He frowned, waiting as her text bubble popped up again.
Morgs ⎊: mom told me you found a roommate. and you just told me a few days ago that you had a lead on him. I'm not a dummy. 1+1=2, Harley. so you know what? why don't you go ask your new roommate about it?
Harley rolled his eyes at her snark, realizing he'd been the one 'busted' this time. And as if she didn't already perfectly embody the man who had raised her for the first five years of her life, her sass was on par with what Tony's had once been, too. He was pretty sure she was going to be the death of him if not by pure annoyance, most certainly through a heart attack with the way she raised his blood pressure. Her and her stupid plans were going to end up with her getting kidnapped. If not by Peter (who, by now, he was almost positive wasn't going to do anything of the sort, though he still didn't necessarily trust him alone with his baby sister), then by some other stranger. She was such a mischievous little shit.
What, exactly, was she up to? How the hell did she get Peter involved at her school? What was she planning?
It was times, and questions, like these when he really missed having Tony around. The older man would have already taken over the situation, a stern conversation with Morgan that would have resolved everything at the ready.
But Harley wasn't Tony, and he did things differently.
He let out a soft huff of frustration at her secrecy, and briefly considered calling Pepper to fill her in on her daughter's antics. His fingers even hovered over her name on his phone screen as he waved goodnight to Peter, but the sight of the other boy, quietly slipping into his room and the sound of his window squeaking open when he thought Harley had gone to bed, made him hesitate.
Maybe it could wait a little bit longer.
Peter obviously had some secrets of his own, secrets that maybe even Morgan wasn't aware of. He'd asked her, when she'd finally opened up, if she'd told him everything. She'd said yes, but he'd seen the way her jaw had tightened, and having helped raise her, he knew she was lying. Why, he wasn't exactly sure. But he knew she was keeping something else, something important about Peter, from him.
He also knew, if he called Pepper before Morgan was ready to involve her, he'd probably get the cold shoulder for the rest of his life. Hell, if he knew her like he thought he did, she'd die first just to be the one to get the last unspoken-word. Aside from the frightening idea of never having one of his sisters speak to him again, and despite his other apprehensions, there was something deep down, the told him Peter wouldn't hurt Morgan.
He blew out a breath and swiped away from Pepper's name on his phone screen, brow furrowed in thought.
He still had some things he needed to figure out, before he called in the cavalry. Besides, Pepper was already going to be furious that they had kept something like this from her to begin with, so really, what harm could a little while longer do?
Lips pursed in concentration, Harley made his way to his room, hoping sleep would help calm his racing thoughts.
Tomorrow was a new day.
Who knew what it would bring?
Peter was late.
God, why did it feel like he was always fucking late?
Fuck.
He'd even tried to plan ahead.
He went to bed early the night before (cutting his patrol time down by an extra forty minutes), set his alarm for an hour before he had to actually even be up, and by the time he'd stumbled into the kitchen, Harley had made a pot of coffee with a cup reserved for him, cream and sugar added in, just like he liked (which was another weird coincidence, but whatever. He'd ask about it later). The other boy had already begun to pass back out on the couch, blearily waving goodbye and wishing him luck as Peter had slipped out the front door.
He'd even made it a point to leave thirty minutes early, for Christ's sake. And yet, here he was, running five minutes behind.
Goddamit, he was going to lose this job before he'd even started it.
To be fair, the woman screaming should have been his first sign that the day wasn't going to go the way it should.
Obviously, he'd had to stop to help her, pulling his mask on as he darted after the figure that had grabbed her stroller out of her hands and webbing the guy down. But he'd miscalculated his aim, and the would-be kidnapper managed to free himself as Peter tried to stop the baby carriage from rolling into the oncoming traffic. By the time the grateful mother had caught up to the spot Peter waited at, the guy had a three-minute lead on him that had led to a twenty-minute chase through the early morning sidewalk traffic. When Peter finally did catch him, the man had put up a fight. He'd pulled out a gun (and god, Peter really, really hated when they pulled out guns), waving it wildly before he started shooting. Peter had narrowly avoided getting caught up in the spray of bullets while attempting to web him up and it, admittedly, had been a bit of a damper on the start of his morning.
Once he'd successfully managed to catch the guy though, he'd written a hasty note that had ended up slapped on the web he'd tangled the would-be kidnapper in before leaving him for the cops. Then, he'd busted his ass trying to get to the school on time.
And (of course), he was still ten minutes late.
Every time he tried to catch a break, the universe simply seemed to laugh at his efforts.
He'd arrived at the campus with hair dampened from sweat, his normally gel-tamed curls an absolute wreck by the time he'd reached the front gates. He'd hastily announced himself and the iron gates had buzzed open, allowing him entry onto the grounds. There was no guide for him this time, and he sprinted for the front office, trying to catch his breath and smooth his hair into a semblance of a person who had their shit together before he fully entered the building.
God, he was going to give the worst first impression. Dr. Otto was going to wring his neck herself if he embarrassed her while working somewhere under her recommendation.
His eyes landed on the cork boards by the front door, briefly searching for another flyer advertising his name, but when no such paper announced itself, he continued on, blowing out a steady stream of air as he tried to calm is racing nerves. The receptionist smiled at him when he finally skidded to a stop in front of her desk, her blue eyes bright.
"Mr. Parker, welcome! Thanks for getting here a little early," Peter's breath caught in his throat. Early? He glanced at his watch, tugging his bag higher up on his shoulder and offering the woman a tight smile. "The Dean wanted to speak with you to run through some things before taking you to your classroom, so if you could just wait here for a minute, she should be done with her next meeting momentarily." Peter was still trying to wrap his head around the whole 'early' comment, wondering if the time on his watch was wrong. He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, though, so he decided not to question it. If they thought he was early, he wasn't going to argue it.
"It's no problem." He said instead, still a bit breathless. He glanced at the chairs lining the wall and took a seat at the secretary's encouraging nod. She resumed whatever task she'd been working on, paying him no mind. Peter bit his lip as he sat, pulling a book out from his satchel while he waited. He tried to distract himself with the words on the page but to no avail. His mind was still racing, and he felt a bit nauseous. He hadn't heard anything from the Twitter account, but he still didn't know if he was doing the right thing. He heard laughter coming from The Dean's office, and he slunk a little lower in his seat, carefully positioning himself where he could peer over his book without being noticed as the door swung open.
Oh.
Fuck.
As if his day hadn't already been a shit show, he was met with the sight of Pepper fucking Stark leaving the dean's office.
The two women were distracted, chattering animatedly with each other, and Peter raised his book a little higher to fully hide his face, as his heart raced against his ribs.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuckity fucking fuck. Morgan, what the fuck are you up to?
If he'd had any reservations of the girl's knowledge on him before, they were quickly washed away by the appearance of her mother at the school. He was so fucked.
This would happen to him.
He suppressed a groan and tried to remain still, wanting to draw as little attention to himself as possible as the two women continued their conversation.
"Well, please call me if anything like this occurs again." He heard Pepper say, her voice light. His chest ached. It'd been three years since he'd seen her last, let alone had a conversation with her, and just the sound of her voice, the familiarity that came with it, made him long for something he could no longer afford to have. "She and I will be having a long conversation about everything when she gets home, tomorrow. I can promise you that." Pepper continued, assuring the Dean of a conversation Peter hadn't been privy too.
"Of course, Mrs. Stark. We're happy to have your prompt attention to the matter and we appreciate you coming down to discuss it today. As always, we look forward to our next meeting, as well as any future recommendations you may have." Peter peered over the edge of his book, watching carefully as he tried to remain inconspicuous. His eyes remained on Pepper as she shook The Dean's hand, smiling the smile he knew she reserved solely for business transactions. She glanced towards him, seemingly feeling him watching her, and tilted her head when her eyes settled on him. Peter sank lower in his chair, dropping his own gaze towards the book in his hand, praying that he didn't appear interesting in any sort of way. He could feel the weight of her gaze, lingering on him but he kept his eyes trained firmly down, hoping against all hope that she wouldn't approach.
He felt her attention slide off of him, and he looked back up as she began walking away. She turned back towards the door after a few steps, and cleared her throat.
"Morgan!" She called and Peter's heart practically stopped in his chest. He raised the book higher, his cheeks a flaming red.
Fuck.
He knew this had been a bad idea. He should have trusted his gut. As it was, he struggled to push down the panic rising in his chest, attempting to keep his body as still as possible, barely breathing as he waited. A few seconds later, he watched as Morgan trotted out of The Dean's office, her purple backpack slung across one shoulder and her brow furrowed in annoyance as she reached her mother's side.
What in the actual fuck was going on?
For a second, Peter was sure they hadn't noticed him, both of them turning towards the front door of the office, Pepper whispering something to Morgan that he couldn't quite catch. He lowered his book again as they turned away, his ears ringing loudly.
And then Morgan glanced over her shoulder.
She hesitated, only for the briefest of seconds as her eyes landed on him. A knowing grin slipped over her face, and she lifted her hand in a small wave, one that anyone watching wouldn't notice unless they looked closely enough. Peter remained frozen in his seat as he watched her, but before he could respond, Pepper was grabbing her hand and tugging her out the door in a whirlwind of winter coats. Peter's heart sank in his chest.
He was so fucked.
"Oh, Peter! I'm sorry, I didn't even see you there!" He was startled out his trance, looking up and closing his book as Dr. Reynold's smiled down at him. "You ready for orientation?" He cleared his throat, glancing towards the glass windows lining the wall, allowing him a view of Morgan waving her hands in exasperation as she talked to Pepper, tossing one last glance over her shoulder towards him, her brown eyes shining before she turned back around. Peter swallowed hard and stood, reaching out to shake The Dean's hand.
"Yeah." The word escaped him before he could think it through, a small part of his subconscious urging him to figure out what the hell was going on. He knew he should decline, right then and there, get up, and walk out of the school and Morgan's life once more, but the idea of someone remembering him prevented him from doing just that. The danger he was putting her should have been reason enough to do so, but he knew if Morgan remembered him, she would do anything in her power to see him again, whether or not he tried to stay away. That much was clear already. He had to make sure she'd stay away from him. He refused to be responsible for something happening to someone he loved again, and even if it meant making her hate him, he would do it. With his plan slowly forming in his head, he released The Dean's hand, meeting her gaze head on. "Should we get started?"
Morgan hated detention as much as the next person, but sometimes, it had its perks and served a greater purpose.
Namely, the plot that she'd orchestrated was finally beginning to fall into place.
She'd spent months working on it. No one really knew what she'd been doing, she'd made sure of that from the start. Harley finding her notebook had sort of thrown a wrench in her plans, but she wasn't about to let that stop her. Not when she was this close already. She loved Harley, but she knew if she listened to his plan, it would take a long time for her to meet Peter again. Besides, she'd been working on her plan long before Harley had come back into the picture. He'd left her for three years, she was allowed to do this with or without his help if she so chose.
She really didn't normally try to get herself into detention. But, she also knew Peter was going to be overseeing some of the classes for the girls who had to serve the weekend detentions, and it seemed her flyer had fallen into the right hands.
She'd known it was too soon to try to talk to him, as she'd watched the panic appear on his face at her flyer. There was something going on, clearly. She knew she'd been right though. His appearance at her school to interview for the job that had 'magically' opened up had all been a part of her plan. She'd wanted to test the waters out, with the flyer.
Needless to say, the water had been frigid. His reaction hadn't been what she'd expected, at all. She'd seen the worry rise in his face, the way his brow had furrowed as he'd run out of the school, and it told her there was something deeper going on.
And yeah, maybe it'd been stupid to let him know she knew he was there, in The Dean's office, but it'd been three years since she'd seen him last, and everyone else had told her he was just a figment of her imagination. She hadn't been able to help the wave she'd thrown him, and she'd seen the way his face had turned as white as a sheet. She hoped their interaction hadn't scared him off. She had a lot of questions that she needed answered, and she'd missed him for so long. Seeing him had only spurned her need for a reunion, and she couldn't help the bounce in her step, even as her mother began to reprimand her.
"Morgan Hope Stark, I told you if you got another detention again on the weekend that I was going to ground you." She looked up at her mom, who was pulling her along as she headed for the classroom, her mouth pursed in annoyance. "Did you think I was bluffing?" She asked, looking down at the young girl, a slender eyebrow raised. "You should know, I don't bluff. Ask Uncle Rhodey. Or Uncle Happy. Hell, even Aunt Nat knows I don't bluff." Pepper continued when Morgan remained quiet. She winced a bit at the mention of Nat, but her mom didn't seem to notice. The last thing she needed was her mom calling Natasha for proof of her statement. She had a plan, and a conversation with the former SHIELD agent would probably land her in more trouble than she was already, if Aunt Nat decided to spill the beans on what she'd helped Morgan do.
"I'm sorry." Morgan said after a moment, her voice a bit sulky as she tried to change the subject. It wasn't like she hadn't known, when she'd filled the science lab with the stink bombs, that her mom was going to be furious. But it'd been worth it. She'd let the older girls think she was doing it at their behest, as if she had ever been stupid enough to let them get her into trouble. It was laughable to think about, but The Dean had fallen for it, hook, line, and sinker when they'd reported her. If she'd really wanted to, she could have taken them all down with her, but she'd rather not see them while finally putting her plan into motion.
All she'd had to do after her little prank, was wait.
And when Friday rolled around and her mom had picked her up, Morgan had meekly handed her the slip of paper saying she had detention and had to be back by 7 am the next morning. Pepper had taken it, eyes scanning over it quickly, her face going blank, but hadn't said a word. Instead, she'd remained deathly silent the entire drive home, her hands white-knuckled on the steering wheel. Morgan had sat in the silence, contemplating how much trouble this was all worth. Decidedly, enough to piss her mom off. It wasn't the first time, and it certainly wouldn't be the last, of that much she was sure.
The drive back that morning had been eerily quiet as well, and Morgan had been…less than pleased when her mom had insisted on coming in to speak with The Dean. God only knew if she'd bring up Peter. Morgan really hoped Dr. Otto hadn't told Dr. Reynold's about why she'd recommended Peter, because Morgan was going to be in a lot more trouble than she already was if she had.
But Peter hadn't come up once, and Morgan was pretty sure she was in the clear, at least for now. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep the wool over her mom's eyes for much longer, but she appreciated that she'd been able to this long.
And then he'd been right there. Close enough to touch, but still out of reach. She knew she had to be careful. She couldn't blow her cover, not yet. It was bound to happen at some point, but Morgan had never been stupid. She knew her mom would lose her mind if she brought a random boy home, claiming he was her long lost brother. Her mom would never go for it on just her word alone.
No, she had to find a way to prove that this Peter was the same Peter she remembered.
So, she'd waited. Her mom walked her to her classroom, promising to be back at 4:00 pm, sharp to pick her up. With a stern parting look, she'd walked away, already pulling out her phone to answer what was probably some perpetually boring businessman on the other line. Morgan had been privy to plenty of those conversations, and she and her mom would normally make silly faces at each other while the guy trying to get involved with SI would prattle on. But today was not a normal day. Instead, Morgan squared her shoulders and let herself in the room, taking a seat in the back of the class to try and remain hidden from her teacher. If she got caught texting while she was supposed to be in trouble, she'd get another two weeks of weekend detention. And she had no plans to let that happen. Not yet at least. How the rest of the day went would determine that, for her.
She'd finished all her worksheets in her first period, blindly flying through them and tapping her foot impatiently as Mrs. Dove had droned on at the front of the class, some speech about integrity and behaving like a lady falling out her as if she had rehearsed it in the mirror for hours. Morgan hadn't really been paying attention, and neither had the other girls, if their heads resting on their desks were any sort of indicator.
So, the bell finally rang for lunch, Morgan had practically raced outside, her heart pounding a steady rhythm of anticipation in her chest.
He was exactly where she'd expected, sitting under the branches of the willow tree by the pond she'd hidden by that first day he'd shown up, a brown sack beside him, his head bowed as he read a book, whose title she couldn't make out. She took a great breath of air, her lungs filling with the scent of old wood and water lilies. Hesitantly, she raised her hand and tapped on his shoulder.
"Peter?" Her voice was a whisper, catching on the breeze, and she saw his shoulders tighten, before he turned towards her. He was wearing glasses, which was silly, because he'd never needed glasses before. She knew all about his spider-bite and the abilities it had given him. His brown eyes were still the same, but they looked a lot sadder, now and he had a silvery cut that threaded its way through his left eyebrow. He didn't look like he'd smiled in the entire three years since she'd last seen him.
He frowned, looking her over and tilting his head.
"I'm sorry." He said, eyes still trained on her. "Who are you?"