Never Again

Ch. 4

It was finally Friday. School would get out early today and Aunt May would return around 3:00PM. Even though that meant I wasn't going to be staying with Mr. Stark anymore, I was excited for her to return. It was the first time she had ever gone on a trip longer than two nights without me and though I would never admit it outloud, I missed her when she was gone.

"Ready, kid?" Mr. Stark yelled. I tugged on my shoe and grabbed my backpack, tossing it over my shoulder. Mr. Stark had gotten much better at getting up early to take me to school. He was up before me now and even though he couldn't cook anything but toast, he always made sure I ate before we ran out of the tower and into one of his expensive cars.

"Coming!" I yelled back, racing into the kitchen. I grabbed a piece of buttered toast and followed Mr. Stark down to the garage. I ate my toast on the way down and brushed my hands on my jeans as Mr. Stark unlocked one of his Audis. I slid in the passenger seat and Mr. Stark started the engine, taking us out of the garage and towards Midtown High.

As soon as I arrived, I met up with Ned by his locker. He turned to walk with me to my locker as we talked about our weekend plans.

"Do you think you can come over?" Ned asked. I shrugged, spinning the dial on my locker. "I could come to your place if that's easier. I know May's just getting back, but I really want to show you this new comic book I got."

"Just stop by tomorrow or something," I said. I grabbed my Spanish notebook and slammed my locker shut. "I'll be back before lunch, so just come by around 3PM. I'll tell May you're coming." Ned nodded.

"Awesome."

* * *

Only one more class after this, I thought to myself. I set my backpack down beside me and sat down in my seat. We had just finished lunch and there was only about an hour and a half left. I only had science left now that I was in calculus. I can do this.

Ned sat down beside me in his desk and dropped his calculus book on his desk. Everyone turned to look at him as the book made a loud noise and Ned's face turned red. I hid a laugh, knowing Ned wouldn't like being laughed at even if it was all in good nature, and bent down to grab my book, but quieter.

"Peter Parker to the front office, please. Peter Parker to the front office, please." I looked up from where I had been digging through my backpack. "Bring your things." That was an odd request. Mr. Stark knew better than to take me out of school.

I glanced up at Mr. Pats. He nodded, so I zipped up my backpack and headed down the hall towards the front office. The halls were empty since it was the beginning of class. I did pass Mr. Hoki, but he must have heard the announcement because he didn't give me any trouble. It was eerie to walk through the halls and have the only sound be your footsteps. School was never this quiet and even if it was, I was never around to experience it.

As I neared the front office, I spotted Mr. Stark sitting in one of the chairs with his sunglasses on. He pointed to the sign-out sheet silently, so I signed myself out. I said goodbye to Miss Cam, the front desk worker, but she just gave me a sad smile. Confused, I turned to face Mr. Stark.

"Mr. Stark?" I asked. He glanced up at me, but his sunglasses stayed on. "What's going on?" He stood up and motioned for me to follow him.

I walked with him out to his car. He didn't say anything and after ten minutes, I tried talking to him again.

"Mr. Stark, why did you take me out of school early?" I asked. Mr. Stark glanced at me briefly and sighed.

"I'll tell you when we get back to the tower," he promised. He returned his full attention to the road, so I just looked out my window as we flew through New York on the highway.