1 | WALK ON BY

PASSING THE TWO MONTH MARK OF THE DESTRUCTION OF 'THE VULTURE' WERE MONTHS WERE NEW YORK CITIZENS QUESTIONED THEIR CHOICE TO LIVE IN SUCH A CITY AS QUEENS. People had spent weeks to repair the debris left behind from the horrific man, and spent more learning to cope with the fact that a man who seemed so nice was capable of such things. The loss of Liz Allen was one far greater than many would be able to comprehend, but when she had departed from Midtown School of Science and Technology, it had become abundantly clear how truly remarkable the loss was for such an exceptional student. It was not even the man who had made New Yorker's doubt their presence in the state, but more so the fact that they were still suffering from the tragedy of the Battle of New York. For some, they would never recover from the said incident, and others feared more was to come for their earth and that the appalling man was only a prologue to the rest of their lives.

Others like the Gray family were hardly impacted by 'The Vulture's' doings and instead found peace in each other. Their routines stayed the same for the most part, other than the extra precautions they had taken upon the night and early morning. But it was simple things, such as an upgraded security system, and replaced locks on the bedroom windows. It was nothing extreme as the Gray's knew they were safe with each other and nothing horrendous would follow the path of the vile man into their home. It was that characteristic that distinguished them on the streets of Queens for when people saw any member pass they were greeted with smiles and light jokes to brighten anyone's mood on a particularly depressing day.

And when Liz had left the school, Paxton had made it her mission to be aware of her surroundings in case of anything disrupting their lives once more. The girl grew to spot the little things in people that would separate them from other's and increase their levels of specialty. She took a deep interest in her little six-year-old sister who would grow to be an extraordinary woman. Paxton was confident she would become the first female president with a heart made of gold for the people of the United States. It was a goal of Carson's to harbor such a position, and in her six-year-old hands, she would read bits of federal documents and demonstrate her intelligence with the ability to comprehend the Articles of Confederation. She was a gifted girl with a world of possibilities, and as long as Paxton lived, she would have those possibilities within her reach at all times.

That was another trait of the Gray family that made them stand apart from the rest. There were many upon many that did so, but in the near future, there would be one specific thing that would make them the family to look at, maybe the family to even feel sorry for, but for the current time, their life was well, and everything in it was, too.

These were the thoughts of the fifteen-year-old girl - Paxton - when she arose from her long night of slumber in preparation for school. The teenager fluttered open her eyes with her stare directed at the white ceiling and a smile grew on her lips. It was another day, another perfect day. She would rise within two minutes, slip into her clothes in three, dab on light makeup in six, and be sitting on her bed waiting for her best friend to make his way down the fire escape into her room in two. Her routine was flawless and she followed it to a point every morning before school.

But before even rolling out of her bed, she needed to say the simple words that Grandmother Gray had created decades prior. The girl whispered, "Negative thoughts are only a shadow wishing to be positive." Then, and only then, she scampered out of bed to begin her routine.

It would almost seem as if the Gray family believed in mediation and always having a clean aura, and of course, they did. But they didn't practice it on a normal basis, it was more so an escape for them. The girls of the house were encouraged to talk to one another with open arms and to clean their bad thoughts away at the dinner table before eating so that their negative energy didn't spoil their meal. Their father, Bryson, had his part in making sure the girls were always happy, and if they weren't, he made it a mission to convince them that sadness was only a fragment of the joy that would come in the future.

The girls believed him, and not only the girls, but also Troy Lewis, or the boy that lived in the apartment above and was considered part of their small family. He was the person that Paxton adored most as they had been best friends for seven years, and every morning at exactly six-o-three, she would wait to hear his feet padding on the rusty fire escape and his head to come into view in the window so she could just open it up and they could walk to school with Carson Gray in the middle with her hands enveloped in their's.

That was how the routine of the Gray's began each day, and how it should have continued for years to come. But that's not exactly what would happen as something horrifying would disrupt their normal and put their life on a turntable that would never stop spinning.

•••

After an interesting train ride filled with the laughter of three kids as they played their everyday alphabet game, Paxton and Troy had dropped little Carson at her elementary school and began their four-minute walk to Midtown where they would be involved in yet another day full of challenging activities and anticipating math equations. The two didn't really mind school as it was something that made them strive for better, and something that would prepare them for the world to come. School was an everlasting adventure that they honestly were thrilled to be a part of, which only added to the list of things that made them stand out.

As Troy and Paxton entered through the doors of their school they were instantly bombarded with the noises of their fellow classmates as the students lounged by their lockers to await the school bell that would warn the kids that they had six minutes before class began. Just like they had their own routine before they came to school, the two teenagers had a specific route that they navigated every morning that would take them to their lockers and their first period.

So together they passed by the three-hundred hall where students were busy quizzing each other with homemade flashcards on the elements on the periodic table for their test they had later in the afternoon. And like always, Paxton was ready to ace the test thanks to the help of her best friend.

As the two passed the left corridor and made their way to their lockers, they heard Peter Parker and Ned Leeds discussing the repercussions of 'The Vulture' in their local neighborhood. Peter lived across the hall from Paxton though they weren't close, nor did they hardly talk, but Aunt May and Bryson did. So when she heard the friends muttering about the difficult defeat, Paxton only glanced at Troy and stopped at her locker that bordered Peter's.

When she unlocked the metal box, Ned Leeds decided it was then he wanted to start a conversation, "Hey, guys," he chirped, making Peter turn his head to face them and offer a small smile to the group. "Hey, Ned," Troy replied, then opening his locker that was right next to Paxton's. "You guys ready for the chemistry test?" Peter wondered, then closing his locker after pulling his jacket out of it. "Aren't we always?" Paxton chuckled. "It shouldn't be too hard," Troy added in, a simple shrug of his shoulders being used to exaggerate his point.

With a nod, Ned responded: "True," and then looked at Peter who had put an earbud in his ear, "We should get going, Ned," he told his best friend with a simple nudge to the arm, "Oh right, science fair, you know how it is," Ned sighed, gesturing behind him. "Yeah, we get it," Troy assured him. "See you later," he waved, watching as the two boys made their way to the science hall so they could put the finishing touches on their partner project.

When the boys finally disappeared from view, Troy looked at Paxton with a grin, "You know, that Peter isn't too hard on the eyes," he admitted. Paxton whipped her head around and stared at her best friend in shock, "Dude! That's gross! He's our neighbor!"

"There's no rule against admiring good looks when you see them," he spat back with his hands raised in surrender.

Shaking her head in disapproval, Paxton closed her locker and began to walk away while Troy was left to run behind her to catch up. Through the hallway and while ignoring the strange looks from his classmates he shouted, "He's got a nice ass on him, too!"