Gone // Spider-Man: Far From Home [Book 4]

one {Arya's POV}

"Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for coming," I started to say. "My name is Arya Findley-Stark and for those who do not know me, I am Tony Stark's daughter." A wave of mumbles surged through the crowd in front of me and, just like Pepper had told me, I ignored them. I waited for a second for them to calm down before I continued. 

"Five years ago, many people lost their relatives to the Blip, or the Snap, as I call it. I did too. I lost most of my family, including my mother and boyfriend. My father, however, was still with me and I was lucky enough to spend every day of those five years with him until the day he died." I paused, glancing down at the cue cards in my hands. I breathed in deeply and the lump in my throat subsided. 

"He sacrificed his life so we get to live ours. I plan on living my life the way he wanted me to, and I'm sure he expects each and every one of you to do the exact same. My father was a family man. He loved his wife, and he loved his two daughters. My sister Morgan will grow up without a father but my family and I will make sure that she never forgets him. I owe that to my dad.

"Many families are left like mine. Fatherless, motherless, guardianless, maybe even completely parentless," I said. "Which is why Stark Industries and the Stark Relief Foundation will be devoting these next few years to supporting families that were split up or destroyed because of the Blip. We will put in our time and resources to bring families back together, support single-parents who lost their partners in the process, and create safe shelters for children that lost their parents." 

Loud applause erupted in the room and several cameras flashed bright lights in my face. It took a few minutes for them to calm down again.

"My last subject of tonight is the fact that I've been receiving a lot of questions about Spider-Man and Electric Shadow and whether or not they will continue protecting the city now that Tony Stark is gone," I said once the applause and cheers had quieted down. "My answer to this is yes, they will continue keeping New York safe, especially in these times. Thank you for coming tonight and get home safe." 

Another round of applause exploded and the reporters and journalists in the front rows all started shouting questions at me, but I just flashed a smile at the many cameras before walking off the stage. Happy Hogan was right there, taking me to the car that was parked outside.

The doors swung open to reveal another hoard of journalists. They all circled around me and blocked my way. "Miss Stark won't be answering any questions, thank you," Happy called out, pushing aside two reporters to create a path for me. 

I fished Tony's glasses from my pocket and put them on my nose. "Good afternoon, Boss,"  FRIDAY greeted me. "You have one missed call from Peter Parker." 

"Thank you, FRIDAY. I'll call him in the car," I told her. "Has Mr Morita answered my email yet?" 

"Not yet. You do have one new email from Ned Leeds. It contains a blog post about your speech from earlier this week at the orphanage." 

"I'll look at it at home," I said, stepping into the back of the car as Happy held open my car door.

"Was that all?" 

"Yes, that was all, FRIDAY. Thank you." 

"Have a good day, Boss." 

I took out my phone from my pocket and dialled Peter's number. He almost immediately picked up. "Hey, Ry! I'm so sorry I missed your speech. I was on patrol and this group of bad guys was robbing this restaurant and I had to stop them. I'm really sorry," he rambled.

I couldn't help but laugh softly. "It's fine. Are you okay?" I asked. The car roared to life after Happy sat down behind the wheel and turned on the engine.