All For Us

.6

ALL FOR US
"EDITH"

A SMILE can hide almost any pain. Lonnie knew that more than anyone. She had mastered the art of the smile and wave. The look of happiness was one that could easily be faked, everyone pulls it off at some point in their life, some even going on to perfect it. Because if you really think about it, at the end of the day, we're all just suicidal kids telling other kids suicide isn't an option. 

Paris is the one place on the trip Lonnie was really looking forward to. As cliche as it sounds, she always pictured herself finding love in Paris and having a picnic by the Eiffel Tower. After the water monster thing Lonnie found herself looking forward to Paris even more. Whether she'd admit it or not, she needed this trip, this break. 

"Ready for Paris?" Lonnie asked MJ with a small smirk.

"I read the Eiffel Tower was secretly built as a mind control antenna to create an army of the insane." MJ said as she held out a cup of coffee to Lonnie. 

"Oh." Lonnie wasn't really sure what to say to that and instead of adding onto her "oh" she just decided to grab the cup.

"Which is why it's my favorite destination on the whole trip." MJ said with a wide grin. 

"Good news, we're going to Prague!" Mr.Harrington announced as he walked out of the hotel and towards the rest of the students who were all waiting outside for the boat. 

A frown formed on Lonnie's face as she looked up to Mr. Harrington. The world always seemed to be against her. "What? Prague?" Murmurs and complaints were quick to form among the group. All of them wanting an answer as to why they were headed to Prague. 

"Yeah. Tour company called. They upgraded us." Mr. Harrington explained. "You should've heard me on the phone with them. I really gave them hell."

"All I heard was crying." Mr. Dell commented as he placed his hands on his hips.

"I was n-not..." Mr. Harrington let out a sigh. "Come on student's, the ride is this way."

"So much for Paris." Lonnie muttered as she followed after Mr. Harrington and the other students.

As they all rounded the corner, everyone's complaints and frowns were silenced at the sight of the black coach bus. Lonnie raised her left brow slightly as she stared at the man standing outside of the bus holding a single sign that read Midtown High. In an odd way, he somehow looked familiar to Lonnie.

"Look at our upgraded ride." Mr. Harrington proudly announced.

"Bro, you see that?" One of the kids asked.

"It's pretty sick." Another commented.

"I'm impressed, Mr. Harrington." Mr. Dell said with a wide grin.

"Maybe this won't be so bad after all." MJ said before taking a sip of her coffee. 

"Yeah, maybe." Lonnie said with a small shrug.

"Hey, MJ!" Brad called as he walked over to the two girls. "Wanna sit with me."

"Oh, well Lonnie and I..." MJ started.

"It's fine." Lonnie said with a small smile.

"But we were..."

"It's not like this is our last travel. We can sit together next time." Lonnie reassured.

"Are you sure?" MJ asked.

"Positive." Lonnie said with a reassuring smile. 

"Great! Thanks Lonnie." Brad said with a smile.

"No problem." 

One by one the students all filed onto the bus, Lonnie taking a seat in the back. She was busy in her own mind, trying to wrap her head around why exactly the man outside the bus looked so familiar. She was so engulfed in her own thoughts that she didn't even hear Peter trying to get her attention. 

"Oh, geez. S-sorry." Peter quickly apologized, removing his hand from her shoulder as Lonnie placed her hand over her now racing heart. 

"No, no. Don't be sorry." Lonnie said with a small smirk. "I wasn't paying attention. You just scared me is all."

"Uh, do you m-mind if I-I sit here? Uh, Ned is w-with B-Betty." Peter asked as she rubbed the back of his neck.

"I don't mind at all." Lonnie said with a small smile.

"Uh, t-thanks."

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"So...How's y-your foot?" Peter asked. 

"It's fine." Lonnie answered.

"H-hey I'm sorry for..."

"What's that?" Lonnie asked as she pointed to the small brown box that was sticking out of Peter's bag.

"Oh, I-I don't really know. I h-haven't opened it y-yet." Peter said as he grabbed the small box from his bag and held it in his hands.

Lonnie watched in silence as Peter stared down at what Lonnie guessed to be a present. The look in Peter's eyes was one Lonnie was all to familiar with. It was the same look she has carried with her since the day her mother died. It was the look of guilt. 

Peter let out a small sigh before opening up the box to reveal glasses with a Stark Industries card underneath. It took a few seconds for it to click in Lonnie's head but once it did it took everything in her not widen her eyes.

"Tony Stark gave you a gift?" Lonnie asked as she stared at the glasses.

"Uh, y-yeah." Peter said with a nod, his eyes never once leaving the box. "I-I, uh, I had an i-internship." 

"Oh, that's cool." 

"Y-yeah...Yeah it was." Peter with with a small nod.

Lonnie was never all that close with Tony. Sure she saw him as family and even went as far to call him uncle Tony, but she hardly ever saw him. Before he had moved away she had spent plenty of time with him, helping him get back into shape and whatnot. But after he moved away with Pepper, Lonnie rarely saw him and settled for one face time call a month.

"Well, are you going to try them on." Lonnie asked after a minute of Peter just staring at the glasses.

Peter hesitantly grabbed the glasses and placed them on his face. Lonnie watched as he drew in a shaky breath and she wasn't blind to the tears that had begun to gloss over his eyes. She didn't know Peter or his relation to Tony, but she knew that this kid was more than an intern to Tony and she figured that Tony was more than a boss to Peter.

"For the next Tony Stark, I trust you. Say Edith." Peter read the small card aloud.

A confused look began to form on Lonnie's face as Peter jumped slightly and the lens of the glasses began to glow a blue. "Hello?"

"Uh, hi?" Lonnie said, well, asked as her confusion deepened.

"Huh." Peter said, a small smile forming on his face. "So he made you for me?"

"Who are you talking to?" 

"Cool." Peter commented as he looked around the bus in amazement. "Yeah, he did."

"Okay, seriously, who are you talking to?" Lonnie asked.

"This is so cool." And that's when it finally clicked in Lonnie's head. Peter was talking to an AI, one Lonnie couldn't hear. "Wait, is MJ texting? No, no, that's wrong."

"Peter!" Lonnie scolded as she lightly smacked his shoulder.