Adventures in Babysitting ↠ Peter Parker [1] ✓

21 | Battling Wars At Park Benches

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ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
xxi. BATTLING WARS AT PARK BENCHES

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  RILEY REALLY DESPISED NOT being born normal sometimes. Sure, having superpowers and calling the Avengers your family sounded cool, but the cons that came alongside the pros really managed to fuck with her head from time to time.

   Exploring Staten Island was the perfect excuse for Riley to go through her endless pool of conflicting thoughts. She liked to think that if she were in a movie of some sort, some edgy song would be playing in the background as she stumbled along down the streets of Staten Island and observed the Ferry as it sailed out into the water.

   She wandered until she ended up at the park. It was empty since it was still early in the morning. Everyone was at work or school. This meant that no one could judge her for talking to the artificial intelligence that was built into nearly every bit of technology she owned.

   "JO, how do you know when you're having a midlife crisis?" Riley wondered. She sat on a bench with a cool breeze blowing through her black hair. She slouched forward with her arm propped so that she could speak into her bracelet that could turn into her super suit.

   The female's robotic voice quickly replied, "A midlife crisis usually occurs in the middle of someone's life. Are you planning on dying at the age of 30?"

   "With the amount of stress I constantly put myself under, I wouldn't be surprised if I had a heart attack next week."

  "What's troubling you?" JOCASTA queried. "Is this about Rob?"

   Riley nodded. "I don't know if I should be helping him. I mean, I should because, you know, he's my father," began Riley, "but it feels wrong."

  "You should follow your heart," JOCASTA advised. "I would if I had one."

   Riley chuckled. "How do you always know how to make me feel better, JO?"

  "Tony Stark programmed me, remember? He knows you better than he knows thermonuclear astrophysics," JOCASTA reminded the teenager.

   Scoffing, Riley jokingly asked, "Did he program you to say that?"

  "...Perhaps."

   "You know, it's really nice having you around, JO," she said. "You're kinda like my conscience... one that refuses to give me good advice without looking it up on Wikihow, but a conscience nonetheless."

  "That is very funny, Valor."

   Humming, she leaned into the back of the wooden bench. "I should tell Tony, right?" Riley asked. "Or maybe I shouldn't." She sighed. "Maybe I should just flee the country."

   "I'm afraid that's not gonna work out in your favor, Tink," a voice came from behind Riley. Jumping at the unexpected sound of Tony Stark's voice, Riley turned around in her seat to see him. "Mind if I join you?"

   "What are you gonna do if I say no?" Riley attempted to joke.

   "Sit anyway," admitted Tony, his body clad in a normal suit. He sat down beside her. Riley looked out at the environment ahead of herself as Tony stared at her. "So how's babysitting Mr. Parker going?"

   Riley inhaled sharply. "Well... it's going," she muttered. "I mean, he seems to be fine, especially after what happened in D.C." She paused. "I still don't even know what happened in D.C. if I'm being honest."

   "I know, Tink," Tony replied. "But you did what you should have. No one died and there weren't any injuries severe enough for hospitalization. No one died at the Ferry either."

   Riley's ears perked up at this. "What?" she immediately asked, turning to face him.

   "The Ferry," repeated Tony. "You didn't know Peter was there? He..." Tony sighed, irritated at what Peter had done. "Well, that explains why you weren't there. He tried to take on those guys with the weapons."

   "What!? Is he out of his mind?"

   Tony shrugged. "It's not unlikely. I'm worried about him, but I'm also worried about you."

   Riley tilted her head to the side. "...What do you mean?"

   "You're just... off. At first, I thought it was because of the explosion at the monument because I know how you are about explosions," Tony started, "but you never called me after it. And you always call me. And then I show up here, only to overhear you say—"

   He stopped himself to play a recording of her saying, "I should tell Tony, right?"

   "—What's going on with you, Tink?"

   Riley was silent. She couldn't tell him about Rob, no matter how badly she wanted to.

   "I... I can't tell you." The distress in her voice continued to become more and more evident as she proceeded to ramble. "I really, really want to, Tony, but I can't. I don't even know if it's safe to tell you. I just can't tell you. I can't tell anyone."

   Tony's eyebrows shot upward. "Safe?" There was alert in his eyes and in his voice. "What does that mean?"

   She flinched as she noticed a shadow go over their heads until she realized it was just a bird. "I..." She hadn't realized how much the entire situation around Rob had been killing her. "I'm sorry, I can't tell you."

   Tony scooted closer to the girl. Truth be told, Tony had no idea how to comfort someone. He had to blame his father for that, but seeing the 15-year-old girl so distressed killed him. It killed Tony knowing that he couldn't help her. No matter how many suits he made or how many security guards he hired to privately protect Riley, despite knowing that she didn't need it, Tony couldn't help her.

   "It's... It's okay," Tony unsurely said. He put his arm around her shoulder and uncomfortably patted it. He had no idea how to express his love for the teenager. This might've been all he had.

   She cocked a small smile at him. "You're awful at comforting people, you know," pointed out Riley. For a moment, Tony felt guilt about this, but then she added, "It's okay. I know you care. I do."

   Tony Stark found it fascinating: Riley O'Dair knew him better than... well, thermonuclear astrophysics, for sure.

   Still, Tony was going to get to the bottom of this... because deep down inside of him, Riley O'Dair wasn't just another superhero or agent that used to (and still did) annoy the shit out of him whenever she felt like it. Riley O'Dair wasn't just a kid; she was the Avengers's kid, and Tony would do everything he could to make things right for her.