Flower Child (Peter Parker, MCU)

Every Batman Needs a Robin... or an Alfred

Best Friend - Sofi Tukker

Had Lila not been completely washed over with shock, she may have thought she stared at the mask for far too long. But it wasn't necessarily her fault, she'd been through the ringer that day: first having to actively compete in the academic decathlon, then almost dying, and finally seeing that Peter Parker, the boy she had more than a small crush on, was Spider-Man. It was a lot for any fifteen-year-old to swallow.

As soon as Lila saw what Peter had pulled out of his backpack, the red mask with white eyes that had saved her life twice now, her mind went on the fritz, and all conscious thought ceased. She barely even heard Peter ask, "Now do you understand?"

A significant span of time must have passed after the initial question, for the look on Peter's face grew worried. Lila still hadn't moved, spoken, or blinked after locking eyes with the Spider-Man mask. "Lila?"

Finally, Lila looked back up at Peter. Mouth opening and closing like a fish, she struggled (more than usual) to find the right words. "I...I - and y-you..." She trailed off, suddenly finding the need to sit down. She moved to her desk on wobbly legs and sat in her chair, gaze focusing on the wall behind Peter as she let her first initial thoughts come to her.

Peter Parker is Spider-Man.

Peter Parker fought Captain America.

Peter Parker is a superhero, and you were going to kick him out of your room.

"Lila," Her attention was back on Peter. A twinge of guilt settled in her stomach at seeing his panicked expression, which was enough to sober her up and begin to rationalize her thoughts. "I need you to say something, p-please."

"I th-thought you were lousy at keeping secrets," Lila breathed, eyes darting back to the mask and up to Peter. She ran her fingers through her hair and wiped at her eyes, which still had streaks from her tears. At the look of slight confusion on Peter's face, Lila breathed out a small laugh.

"What? I can - I can keep secrets-"

"Clearly. E-Exhibit A." Lila gestured to the Spider-Man mask Peter still held. "I just... you made it so o-obvious with Liz, I r-really never would have guessed-"

"Wait, you know I like Liz?" It was difficult to tell what panicked Peter more, the fact that he revealed his secret identity, or that Lila had known about his crush on Liz. Lila pretended it didn't hurt for him to admit it.

She stood up, rubbing her hands on her legs. Shrugging, she said, "I d-don't know if you've noticed, but I don't t-talk a lot? So I just - I just watch people. It's h-hard to miss the way you l-look at her." Mostly because I want you to look at me like that. "I just can't believe I missed th-this." Holding out a patient hand, Lila looked to Peter.

Reluctantly, Peter handed the mask over to Lila. The texture surprised her, the fluid fabric sifting through her fingers as she adjusted the mask to stare right back at her. Despite her best attempts not to, the crushing weight of the last week hit her again. "S-So, your Stark Internship..."

"Yeah," Peter agreed. "It's this." She didn't say anything in response, opting to think over what that meant, how much Peter had actually done for her besides picking out a computer for her dad's shop. It was a vicious cycle of taking things in. Peter seemed to take her silence for something else, for he added, "Lila, please, you can't - you can't say anything-"

"So it was you?" Peter grew quiet once again as she looked up to him, eyes shining with unspilled tears. "It was you at - at Delmar's? Fighting off those bank robbers? It was you today in W-Washington? In the elevator?"