╔══════════════════╗

ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING
ix. WEIRD QUESTION

╚══════════════════╝

  PETER PARKER KNEW HELL. He knew what it was like to be in hell fully well. He had been orphaned as a child, been bitten by a radioactive spider, watched his uncle die, was beaten up by some of the Avengers, discovered his homecoming date's and future wife's fathers were murderous villains, had buildings dropped on him, fought aliens, and one time, he literally died. So when Peter Parker said he knew what it was like to be in hell, he wasn't kidding.

   Today was Friday, July 28th, and Peter still hadn't talked to Riley. He knew she was busy, and he couldn't blame her for that. Maybe he could blame the universe, but never her.

   Peter knew that he would wait for Riley Stark until the end of time, but the end of time was far away and he was growing impatient.

   Peter was restless. He had never felt this way about someone before. Sure, he'd had crushes on people before, but he had never felt the way he felt about Riley ever. Something about her made his stupid little heart soar.

   Peter Parker could be found in his cabin that afternoon. While Ned was getting lunch, Peter had decided to do some cleaning to take his mind off of things. He had been up to his elbows in cleaning products when Michelle Jones barged into the cabin in a state of absolute fury.

   "Alright, that's it!" MJ roared. She slammed the door shut behind her prior to marching forward. "I've had enough of this shit!"

   Peter furrowed his eyebrows together. "Hi, MJ, come on in...?" he trailed off. He took note of the frustrated look on her face. "What's wrong?"

   "What's wrong?" mocked MJ. "What's wrong is you! And Riley!"

   "Me? Wait, Riley?" echoed Peter. Worry rippled through his whole body as he dropped his cleaning wipe. "What's wrong with Riley? Did something happen? Was it Roman? I swear—"

   MJ rolled her eyes and hit his arm. "You guys like each other!" shouted MJ. "Did you both manage to forget that? You like each other a lot!"

   Peter's breathing became hitched in his throat. "How...?"

   "Oh, don't try to play stupid with me, Peter Parker," MJ reprimanded. "Riley's my best friend, and I've known you since middle school. You guys make heart eyes at each other all day long, and then pretend you don't like each other when it's obvious!"

   "...Is it that obvious?"

   "Yes!" confirmed MJ. She sighed, trying to calm herself down. "I know she told you that she likes you. ...She did, didn't she?" Peter mutely nodded. "Then, why the hell haven't you told her you like her, too?"

   "Well, I—"

   "I mean, seriously!" continued MJ. She threw herself onto Peter's bed. "Dude, I've had dreams about you because of how much she talks about you. It's always Peter this, Peter that, and then she tells me Avengers secrets to make up for how much she talks about you!"

   Peter was about to make a comment about how he was super jealous of MJ for being able to hear Riley's varying Avengers secrets, but he had become distracted by the butterflies in his stomach. Riley really talked about him like that?

   MJ rolled over onto her side. She found it how endearing how richly he was blushing. Part of her wanted to run back to Riley's side and tell her all about it, but she refrained. "So? When are you gonna tell her?" interrogated MJ.

   Peter unleashed a troubled sigh. "Scoot over," he mumbled. MJ moved over for Peter to fall onto his bed beside her. He hugged one of his pillows against his chest.

   MJ eyed him as he momentarily thought to himself. He seemed conflicted. MJ nudged him. "Well?"

   "It's... complicated," Peter revealed. "I wanted to tell her right after she confessed, but then there was that storm and Roman..." He frowned. "And-And she's already so busy with her job and... you know, her life. It just feels like it'll never happen."

   MJ and Peter razed at the ceiling as they laid next to each other. "Riley really likes you," MJ encouraged. "Trust me when I say that you're gonna regret letting her go when summer's over. She already made the first step. She's just waiting on you. You know she doesn't know how this shit works. She grew up in the government, remember?"

   "I know..." Peter murmured. "But what about Roman? I mean, aren't they really close?"

   MJ scoffed. "Please don't tell me you thought there was gonna be a whole love triangle thing between you guys. I thought we left that shit back in 2013," she bantered. When Peter remained confused, she clarified, "Dude, Roman's like Riley's big brother."

   Peter sat up straight. "Wait, seriously?"

   "Peter, I'm gonna give you some advice," MJ decidedly stated. "Riley likes you. And if you think you'll both be too busy for each other and that it'll be hard, just remember that she took on Thanos alone, kept up a secret identity for 16 years, and kicked her biological dad's ass right after she found out he pretended to be dead. I don't think anything's impossible when it comes to her."

   Peter fell soundless briefly. "...So... you think I should talk to her?"

   "Yes, you moron!" cried MJ. She sat up to hit him with a pillow. "Man up!"

   "I'm trying!"

   "Not hard enough!" MJ argued. "Look, she's in the cabin right now. If you leave now, you might be able to catch her before she runs off to deal with Roman again."

   Something in Peter seemed to snap once he heard MJ's words. A surge of adrenaline coursed through him, ripping apart every fiber in his body. It was like there was a green light telling him to go, go, go—to run as fast as he could to Riley Stark.

   So that's what Peter did.

   He hardly managed to tell MJ that he was going to do exactly what she wanted him to as he sprinted out the door. Peter Parker was on a mission, and he wasn't letting anything get in the way of his own happiness. Not anymore.

   When Peter arrived at Riley's cabin, he was quick to knock on her door; however, Riley seemed to swing open the door just before his fist could make contact with the wooden boards. Peter had been so amped up that it was like every nerve in his body was on fire until he was in front of Riley. Once he saw her, his high seemed to vanish. His legs turned into jelly and his palms became sweaty all because of this one girl.

   Upon getting over her initial surprise, Riley's entire face lit up when she realized who was in front of her. Her eyes grew smaller as her smile became wider. "Hey, Bug-Boy," chirped Riley. "Come in! Please! I was just thinking about you. I've been meaning to talk to you, actually."

   Peter awkwardly cleared his throat, following her inside. "...Really? Me, too."

   "Well, before you say whatever you wanna say, I have to tell you something first," revealed Riley.

   Peter was about to object, but he just couldn't say no to her. Peter nodded carefully, noticing how she proceeded to play with her hands. He immediately recognized the quirk.

   "This past week, I kinda realized I've been bailing on you a lot," she sheepishly began. She rubbed the side of her arm. She backed away toward her bedside table. "So I... uh, I made you something to apologize."

   Riley returned to him with an object. She shyly passed it to Peter. It was a small bracelet composed of a gray string with lavender and white beads—otherwise known as Valor's iconic colors. Printed on two of the beads were the letters "P" and "R". It was incredibly similar to the bracelet Peter made Riley.

   "I'm kind of awful at arts and crafts, but you know, you made me one, too," elucidated Riley. "You don't have to keep it, but I figured I'd return the sentiment. I just wanted to apologize for being the worst—"

   Peter shook his head. "You don't need to be sorry, Ghostie," he insisted with a kind smile, one that made her melt. "But I'm gonna take it anyway because I love it. Do you mind tying it for me?"

   Riley beamed. "Sure," she mumbled. She stepped closer to him to tie the bracelet around his wrist. "I, uh, actually was about to go find Roman again. Was what you wanted to say important?" She looked up at him, stepping away once she was done. "Or can it wait?"

   No. "Uh... yeah. It can wait."

   He didn't hear what came out of Riley's mouth next as he contemplated what to do. Peter didn't want to be the kind of guy who stood between Riley and her work. But, God, Peter felt like he was about to implode.

   "Actually," Peter continued, stopping Riley in the middle of her sentence, "uh... no. No, it can't wait."

   Concern glossed over Riley's big, brown eyes. "Oh, okay," Riley replied. "What's up? Is everything okay?"

   Peter inhaled sharply. "Can I be honest? No, not really," he admitted, speaking faster and faster as he proceeded to ramble. "It's just... Last week, you told me you liked me. And it really, really took me by surprise. Not in a bad way! In a good way! You know, like when you come home to a surprise birthday party! ...Not that you'd know what that's like. Oh, God, okay... Um... Uh..."

   "Peter—"

   "No, let me finish," he begged. "'Cause I've been dying to get the words out all week ever since you told me. And before that... before I knew you actually liked me, I was dreaming of the day this would actually happen. And I feel like I've been losing my chance to tell you I like you, too over and over again because I don't wanna let you down. I don't wanna stand between you and your priorities, but I just wanna be selfish this one time."

   Riley stared at him like a deer in the headlights. "You... You like—?"

   "Yes!" cried Peter. He paced around the cabin. "I really, really like you, Riley! You're the best person I know! You're the only person I ever want to be around, and it sucks because sometimes I just want you all to myself. Not-Not in a weird, possessive way. Like... Like I wanna hold your hand and take you on dates and swing across New York with you in my arms and all that stuff you see in the movies!"

   Riley was unable to refrain from smiling at his nervousness. He was just so damn cute. "Pete..."

   "Actually, you know what?" Peter disrupted once again. He finally stopped pacing and planted his feet in front of her. "Sorry, I keep interrupting you, but... I just... Weird question: Can I kiss you?"

   There was an interlude of silence. Riley's heart was hammering so loudly in her chest that Peter could've sworn he could actually hear it. Her cheeks turned scarlet as she inquired, "...What?"

   Peter's eyes widened. "Oh my God," he mumbled. "I really just said that. Wow, I'm so sorry. I don't know what just came over me. You know what? I should just go. Yeah, I think I'll just—"

   "Yes."

   "Huh?"

   "Yeah, you can kiss me, you idiot."

   "Really? 'Cause I don't want you to feel forced or anything like that..."

   Riley shook her head and stepped closer to him. "Pete," softly assured Riley, "listen to me. I'm telling you that you can kiss me."

   That seemed to be enough for him. Their bodies pressed against each other tenderly, the space between them becoming nonexistent. Riley found herself standing on her toes as Peter placed his hand on the side of her cheek. Riley felt like she was in a movie with how everything was moving at that moment... until they hit their foreheads against each other.

   Riley peeled open one of her eyes as she and Peter nervously laughed. She rubbed her head and mumbled, "...Ow." The comment caused the two to giggle even harder.

   The sight was comical as the two tried to share their first kiss with each other. Riley had always imagined it would unfold like it did in the teen movies she watched growing up; however, she was extremely wrong.

   "Can we... try that again?" implored Peter with another laugh.

   With a smile, Riley closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss him. It was a short-lived kiss, but it was a kiss nonetheless. There were no fireworks, no cheering audience members, nothing. It was just a simple kiss that made Riley feel like putty in Peter's hands. Riley felt safe with Peter. She felt like she could take on the world when she was with him. The simple act of kissing made her feel unstoppable.

   When they pulled away from each other, the two remained close to each other. Their hearts raced at the same tempo. Riley was terrified that he would pinch her and she'd wake up, meaning that none of this was real.

   Even after all that, even after all the waiting and pining, even after kissing each other, Peter couldn't help but whisper, "I really like you, Riley."

   Riley snorted gently. "I know," she mumbled. She peered up at the boy happily. "I really like you, too."

   Peter just smiled, relieved. "I know." He pursed his lips and pouted. "Do you have to go?"

   Riley hummed. "I think Roman can wait for now," she admitted. She hesitated. "Unless you want me to leave—" She was interrupted by Peter leaning in and kissing her again. Riley's eyes widened as she just barely remembered to kiss him back.

   "Sorry," apologized Peter after he pulled away. "I've always wanted to do that... Plus, I don't want you to leave... if that's okay."

   Riley took his hand in hers, their fingers intertwining together like they were the missing pieces of an enormous puzzle. "Fine... Only 'cause it's you," she teased. An overwhelming feeling of joy washed over Riley as Peter blushed at her words.

   Peter Parker knew what hell was like better than most people, but when he was with Riley Stark, he felt like he could embrace the flames of the universe with a smile.