young avengers → infinity war & endgame [p. parker]

THE WAR: EPILOGUE

"It's not who I am underneath but what I do that defines me."

_______

UNKNOWN

Her eyes felt sore, heavy. Like they'd been closed for what felt like days, although she was certain that she wasn't out for that long. After a few more blinks, Valeria's brown eyes were opened at its best. But when she slowly started to take in her surroundings, she wasn't sure if her vision was working properly or just showing her pure lies.

The roof was a smooth pastel green, one she hadn't seen in what felt for so long. Turning her head, Valeria recognized everything in the room: it was her bedroom. Well, her old one, one she abandoned after coming back from Sokovia. Sitting up from the bed in which she had woken up in, Valeria tried her best to stay stable. She couldn't put together why right after what happened to half of the universe, she was in the home that was sold right after her parents passed away.

It was exactly the way she had left it before they went to Sokovia, the last time she had been able to be inside her room. The pain and grief was too much for her to bear at the time, Uncle Manny being the one who cleaned out her room and gathered up her belongings. Valeria had learned how to shove these memories to the back of her mind, to control her emotions. Maybe that was the only reason she hadn't lost it yet.

Up on her feet, Valeria took in the uncomfortable silence, looking out the window to see an empty New York City. But the sky, it was a clear blue. Everything seemed normal, yet it wasn't. Turning to exit the room, her eyes stopped at the arrangement of photographs on her nightstand.

One was of her and her best friend, Harry Osborn. Valeria felt her heart ache, the uncertainty of his fate adding onto the grief she was already feeling.

Right beside the frame was a photograph of herself and Peter Parker. Dressed in formal clothing, they both wore such big smiles that Valeria had forgotten how it must've looked on her. Then it dawned on her, that was their junior prom. Well, was supposed to be.

If that photograph wasn't enough to confuse the girl, the one that was front and center of it was. Picking up the frame to bring it closer to herself, Valeria felt her vision become blurred. She stood in the middle of the two: her parents.  The photo wasn't old, it looked recent, as if it was taken yesterday. She recognized the place they were at, Midtown High School's auditorium.

"Mija? Where are you? The food is ready!" The sound of the voice echoing through the hallways made Valeria drop the frame, jumping at the sound of the glass breaking. It wasn't Uncle Manny, it was a female voice. Following her gut, Valeria rushed out of the room, shutting the door behind her as she wiped the tears off of her face. She didn't know if it was the smartest thing to keep walking, to follow the voice. But it wasn't like she had any other option.