don't let me lose you too.

1

i made my way downstairs, my bag packed and in my hand. no one was in the living room waiting for me.
"peter?"
 no response.
"peter!!"  i yelled up the stairs of the avengers tower.
no reply.
i sighed.
guess we just do it the loud way i thought to myself.
i took a deep breath, summoned all my energy and yelled: 

"PETER GET YOUR DUMB ASS DOWN HERE; IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP WE'LL BE LATE ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL." 

"JESUS PAY I'M COMING, GO AWAY" was the muffled reply i got back from his room.

barely satisfied with that answer, i turned the corridor to the kitchen to grab breakfast.
surprisingly, wanda was already fully-dressed and in there, eating an apple.
"hey wanda" i yawned wandering over to check the fridge.
tony forgot to buy milk again.
figures.
that man has assistants for everything but cant even get them to buy groceries.

"hey pay." wanda looked up from whatever book she was reading.
"did I just hear you call peter a dumbass?"

"sure did" i smirked as i made my way over to get coffee.
wanda redirected her attention back to the page.

"whatcha reading there?" i asked as i sipped my liquid energy.

"chemistry textbook" came her nonchalant reply back.

i raised my eyebrow in disbelief. "you're... reading your chemistry textbook?"

"i like to be prepared."

i sighed once again. "wanda its the first day of junior year, you dont need to know-"

i glanced at what she was reading.
"-the ENTIRE periodic table off by heart?"

she turned to look at me. i was surprised to see her so nervous.
"i'm not used to this whole school thing pay. this is my first day of junior, and I havent been to school in like... six years.
illegal human experimentation remember?"

"mmhmm"

"so like i said, i like to be prepared."

i sipped my coffee thoughtfully. time for some cringe 'big sister' guidance.
"wanda," i began.

she was already groaning.
little asshole, i want to make a speech.

"i promise, me and peter will be here to guide you along. you're smart for your age and a fast learner.
that's why the school let you take this year, even after missing out on parts of your education.
"you're smart and likable, and everyone will want to befriend you, and you'll be the popular girl.
or maybe the emo one. we'll have to see.
anyway you'll be fine. I can guarantee you, one thing you do not, and will never need is the periodic table."

as far as speeches went, not bad. she was almost smiling.
there was a hint of pride in my voice, as i talked about her.

she was a month younger than me, so i bullied her with that and called her my little sister.

"thanks pay, i really mean it. it's just nerves."

she looked down.

"this is also my first time doing something without pietro." she added stiffly.

"wanda.." i didn't know what to tell her.
wanda was insanely powerful, but everyone forgets: she's only 17 years old. a kid.
"youre too young to be dealing with this stuff..." i went over to hug her.

"...but i guess someone has to" she replied with a bitter laugh.
we sat for a few minutes in silence. i finally spoke;

"he's proud of you wanda. i know it ."

she half laughed as she wiped silent tears off her face.

"yeah I know"

she stood up "best we get going then. i have all my stuff. where's peter? we'll miss the bus if he doesn't show up."

i checked my phone on the counter. "oh no"
"what?"
 "it's 7:40 and the bus comes at 45.
we both looked at each other.

" count down from three?" i suggested.

"let's do it."

"three, two one.."

I mustered up all my energy, before we both yelled "PETER!!" in unison.

we watched in delight as an unkempt figure raced out of a room, tripped and catapulted down the stairway, before eventually regaining it's balance and making it down. 
"aren't you supposed to have a 6th sense or something to stop you from falling?" i reminded 'spider-man.'

"aren't you supposed to be nice to your fake siblings?" peter replied.

he was wearing a random, probably three day old shirt, with his hair tousled.
"peter, you look terrible " wanda commented. 

he pretended to glare at her. "i woke up ten minutes ago wanda, my alarm didn't go off."

"honestly i'm surprised you have a girfriend"

peter got that weird dreamy look on his face that meant he was thinking about mj.

"yeah, yeah, me too actually..."

me and wanda exchanged looks and eyerolled peter's relationship like petty children.

"I hope you have a nice day at school. Mr Stark will send a car to pick you up." Jarvis echoed from an intercom.

"thanks jarvis!" wanda yelled as the doors shut behind us.

we raced out of the avengers building through the back, making sure no one was paying us attention, and arrived completely out of breath at the bus stop. 
"oh god" peter panted "arem't we supposed to breathe easier than average humans?" peter whispered as the bus pulled up on the curb. 
wanda elbowed him in the ribs.

"OW"

"the bus is RIGHT there." she pointed out.

"it's a fair question though"

"maybe you're just really out of shape" wanda smiled at peter.

ignoring their bickering I hopped on the bus, making sure to smile.
"hey marvin" i said to the driver. "how was your summer?" 

his green eyes twinkled back at me. marvin was one of the sweetest old guys i'd met. he didn't deserve the high school kids that trashed his bus. 
"oh not much payton, just a quiet summer with my kids home," he smiled.

marvin said hello to peter, then glanced behind.

"who's this newcomer on my bus?"

wanda smiled charmingly at him. it was impossible to be in a bad mood around this guy.
"hi my name's wanda, i'm pay and peter's cousin and new to midtown high this year. it's nice to meet you marvin!"

"it's nice to meet you too wanda, i hope you enjoy it in new york."
he directed his attention back to the steering wheel.
"now you kids better find a seat quickly before people start complaining."

we made our way through the bus as marvin pulled off.