Bless The Broken Road

The Chitauri Attack

Peter kicked the grass at his feet, not stopping until he could see the Earth underneath it. He was currently in Central Park, running around in the sun whilst Happy sat on a bench only a few metres away, watching him like a hawk. It had been a day and a half since his father left and Peter felt like it had been an eternity. The only thing that managed to distract him was being able to go out and play.

"You know, you might have more fun if you stop kicking at the ground and try to make some friends," Happy yelled from where he sat. There was a jungle gym not too far from them, the sounds of children laughing and screaming drifting over to where Peter was currently kicking the ground.

Peter just glared at Happy, kicking the ground again for good measure. The forehead of security just gave his Boss' son another look, making the 10 year old groan as he sauntered off to where there was a group of children playing.

Despite his Dad being extremely charismatic, Peter was a rather shy child. When out of his shell and more relaxed with a person, the kid could become a terror with his non-stop talking and bombarding questions but when meeting new people, Peter tended to keep quiet. This meant making friends was normally a large obstacle Peter never really tried to climb.

All the children playing on the jungle gym were extremely loud. Their screams of laughter and "tag you're it" burst Peter's eardrums, making him internally shrink. He tried approaching several groups of loud kids but eventually gave up when they either ignored him or bluntly asked who he was and why he was there. After stuttering over a few hellos, Peter just decided that sitting inside the jungle gym in the almost-quiet was just as much fun as playing outside it with a large group of people.

As Peter crawled into the wooden cave, the only light coming from the large hole he had to walk through to get in, Peter realised he wasn't alone. Another kid sat on the ground, knees pulled up to his chest and watching as Peter walked in with large eyes.

"Oh, uh hi," Peter paused, redness spreading up his cheeks as he realised he was intruding in the boy's space. "I'll just, uh, go—"

"You can sit if you want," the boy shrugged, watching Peter move in more and sit opposite him inside the small space. The laughter from the children running around the jungle gym quietened out as they sat in almost awkward silence for a few seconds.

The boy looked to be around Peter's age with a mop of dark brown hair and a chubby face. As he moved his legs down so they weren't hugging his chest, Peter realised the kid was wearing a Star Wars top.

"I love Star Wars!" The words slipped out awkwardly as the excitement of seeing someone wear his favourite film franchise on their top bubbled up.

"Really?" The kid's face lit up as he nodded excitedly. "Me too! My favourite character is Han Solo!"

"I like Luke Skywalker more," Peter shrugged, a large smile growing across his face. "I want to be a Jedi when i grow up."

"I'm Ned," the kid, Ned, smiled back at Peter. There was something about his face that just screamed 'friendly' and as Peter looked at him, he got the impression that they were going to be good friends.

"Peter," he replied, shuffling closer. They spent what felt like hours talking about Star Wars and Lego's, both of them realising that they had very similar interests. Peter liked his friends back in Malibu but they didn't share the same passion for building Lego Death Stars like Peter and Ned did.

"Edward!" A woman's voice called from outside, getting louder as she approached. "It's time to go home!"

"Bye Peter," Ned pushed himself to his feet, starting to run away to where his mother stood but pausing for a second. "Will you be here tomorrow? I live in Queens but i can beg my mum to let us come back again?"