Possibility of Tomorrow - 22

Cont...

 Tony had insisted that Peter stay the night at the Tower after he flew back from Spain that day. Peter was exhausted and more than happy to comply. Between the stress, school, and the cops, all he wanted to do was lay down and just kinda sit. Not sleep, not yet. Just recharge. 

He had lost track of Darling after they left the school, but he couldn't say he was surprised to find her laying on the kitchen table, feet on the chair in front of her as she layout on the wood surface. 

"You good?" Peter asked, pulling open the fridge for, something.

 "Not dead yet," Darling muttered back. 

Peter snorted and closed the fridge digging his vibrating phone out of his pocket, "It's Ned. And MJ. And basically everyone in math class." 

Peter sighed and tossed it at the table, momentarily forgetting that Darling was lying there. She caught it without missing a beat and flipped it around to read. 

Peter hopped up the wall and lay down on the ceiling, so they were facing each other. When had life with Darling in it gotten so, normal? Just existing together. Peter frowned; he hadn't even known her that long either.

 "Wow. Twenty-five exclamation points. You probably should answer that before he explodes out of nerves." Darling smirks, letting her hands flop above her head so she can look up at him. 

Peter sighs, "Probably."

 "What?" Darling frowns at him, "What's wrong?"

 "Nothing." Peter automatically responds, then rethinks, "It's just, I just revealed myself as Spider-Man. I'm not sure I'm ready for that."

 "Then when will you be?" Darling asks. 

Peter blinks; when will he? "I don't know, I just, I wanted to get through high school first."

 "High school, and then it'll be college, and then it'll be your job, and then who knows? Peter, can I say something candidly?" Darling looked at him seriously.

 Peter's nodding before he can think what it means, "Of course." 

"You need to live life. And not just finishing high school and going to college. Not just being an adult and growing up. That's what everyone tells you you need to know and do, but you don't. You need to stop fearing the unknown, the what if's and just live. Do what you love doing. Make life worth living. Be Spider-Man if that's what makes you feel alive. Be Peter Parker, who's into photography, if that's it. But stop living at only half because you think something's holding you back. It's not easy. But it's life worth living." Darling encouraged. 

"I want to but-" Peter shook his head. 

"But what?" Darling shrugged.

 "But I have Aunt May to think about and expectations to fulfill. I can't just drop everything and travel the work like you." Peter finished trying not to sound condescending. 

"Then who says you have to?" Darling surprised him by saying, "Talk with your Aunt. Figure out your dreams. Don't spend all your time on a boring backup plan if nothing pans out. Just go for it." Darling shrugged like it was so easy. 

"But I'm not like you! I can't just do it. I have a life I have to live." Peter shook his head, trying not to think about how her idea thrilled him. 

"And I have three different world organizations trying to kill me. Living life isn't limited by our responsibilities but enhanced by them. Going through life without living it isn't living it. It's just existing." Darling smiled up at him. 

Peter thought about that, living life, making it memorable. Maybe he could, maybe-

 "Peter Parker, get off my ceiling." Tony snapped with a grin on his face as he walked in.

 Peter scrambled down, "Sorry." Darling snickered as she tilted her head to see Tony, "You're late."

 "And you're legally dead. Get off my table." Tony retorted, grabbing a mug and starting the coffee maker. 

"You know I'm surprised you don't have one of those fancy Italian espresso machines with all the tricks and toys." Darling chuckled, sitting up. 

"I tried. Pepper said no." Tony said, turning so he was facing both of them, "So do you want the bad news or the really not good news?"

 "Aren't those the same, Mr. Stark?" Peter pointed out. 

"I'm trying to be engaging here, Pete, goodness. Tough crowd." Tony shook his head and sat on the island bar stool.

 "Bad news first." Darling decided, cutting off their petty fighting. 

"So the guys you rounded up are all guns for hire. None of them are Ten Rings or Hydra. They were hired online and had their payments wired to offshore accounts. So cliche." Tony shook his head like he was disappointed. 

"And the not great news?" Peter prompted. 

"The not great news is that we can't figure out who hired them. The transfer was a dead end, and the IP address is fried." Tony sighed, getting up to retrieve his coffee, "That and Mr. Good and Righteous flaked on me. I get to Spain, and he's skipped town, rude."

 "It's not like you called ahead; he is a fugitive from justice, remember?" Darling rolled her eyes. 

"Eh, details." Tony scoffed playfully.

"And the good news?" Darling pulled the conversation back. 

"Besides saving the techiest high school in New York? Do you need more?" Tony joked.

Darling gave him a pointed look, "Stark." 

"Alright, alright! I'll stop. They did get a sketch of the suspect. Apparently, they FaceTimed once to walk through the details. But that was a bust too, and if this person is as good as I think they are, it could be fake too." Tony flopped back into his chair, looking tired beyond his age. 

"So we have nothing." Peter clarified. 

"Pretty much Underoos. They'll go to prison for what they did but whoever hired them is in the wind." Tony sipped his coffee, nodding. 

"Can I see the sketch?" Darling hopped off the table. 

Tony held out the tablet as he guzzled more coffee, "Don't know what you're expecting to find. Facial rec didn't pop at all." 

"Well, you never know." Darling flipped off the tablet cover to look and promptly froze. Peter said something, but it wasn't computing as she stared down at a face that graced her nightmares. 

She knew who this man was. And the fact she was looking at his face wasn't an accident. He was too good for that. No, this was purposeful; this was a warning and a dare all at once. A statement saying I know who you are and where you are, come and get me if you dare. It was a warning, it was a dare, it was a threat. 

"Darling!" Tony shook her, making her jerk back from him, "You with us?" Both he and Peter wore matching looks of concern.

 Darling gulped, trying to get her dry mouth to work, "I-I know him."

 "Who? FaceTime guy?" Tony clarified, taking the tablet back.

 "Yes." Darling breathed, feeling her whole world collapsing in her. 

"Who is he?" Peter asked, handing her a water bottle. 

Darling chugged half of the water bottle immediately; when had she gotten so patched? "He was the organizer of the group that I was in. Uh, he would tell us what to do. He trained us, taught us." 

"Okay, what's his name?" Tony said, gently rubbing her hands as he guided her to a chair. 

Darling could feel herself hyperventilating. Goodness, no, she didn't want a panic attack now; all she wanted was Bucky, not Tony. Tony was doing his best, but she didn't feel comfortable burying her head in his chest and crying. She just wanted Bucky. "I don't know. I don't know his name." Darling hiccuped. 

When you don't know, focus on what you do. Bucky's encouragement echoed through her head. What did she know? 

"I know how to find him. I know how to get ahold of him." Darling shoved away her paralyzing thoughts and focused on what she did know, "I can find him." 

"I'm not sure that's a good idea. You almost had a panic attack talking about him. Going after him could trigger it worse." Tony soothed. 

But she was already decided. Darling knew what needed to be done, "No. He wants me. I'll get it done."

 "Not alone, you won't." Peter firmly shook his head, "For someone that equipped, you're gonna need help. I'll back you up." 

Tony made a sound of distress, "Peter-"

 "End of discussion." Peter's voice took on a different harshness. 

Tony backed down at that, "Fine. What do you need, kid?" 

Darling looked at them both and knew deep down this was something she would need to do alone. But they didn't need to know that yet. "I need a burner phone without a GPS tracker and a way to trace a call." 

"You got it. FRIDAY?" Tony nodded. 

"Security trace is set up. The phones in Boss' reject pile should fit the qualifications." FRIDAY responded. 

"Alright, my lab." Tony led the way. Peter dug through a box of rejected prototype StarkPhones for one without a GPS chip on it. Tony set up the tracing equipment and plugged in two sets of headphones and the phone.

 Peter and he would be listening in on the conversation but wouldn't be able to say anything. Darling took the phone, forcing her hands not to shake, all the years thinking of this moment and now it was here. 

"Whenever you're ready." Tony nodded, slipping on his headphones. Peter followed suit. 

Darling dialed the international number she had memorized and paused then, staring down at the phone. This was it. 

She pressed call before she could think about it and chicken out. Putting the phone up to her ear, she thought of everything Nat and Bucky had taught her of being calm. 

The line picked up. The trace began. "I was wondering when you would call." His voice was silky smooth and smug beyond belief. 

Darling grit her teeth inwardly, "What do you want?" 

"Why, you're my best operative, why don't you tell me?" His charming voice sent chills down her spine.

Darling focused her anger into calm, "Money, chaos, my dead body." 

He laughed then, "Goodness no. I would never want you dead. No, I want you back, my darling. I want you to come home, where you belong." 

Darling could feel her skin crawl, "I am not your darling. I am not your anything."

 "Oh, but you were the best I had. With you gone, I've had to go to more desperate measures." The man almost whined.

 "That is not my concern." Darling hissed. The tracker said she only had to talk to him for thirty more seconds. 

"Oh, but is this?" The man sounded like he was grinning, and Darling didn't like it one bit. He had sent a photo attachment. Tony clicked it open on the holo screen, and Darling's blood went cold. 

It was Bucky, and he looked like he'd been beaten half to death. A swollen black eye, blood gushing from his head, bruises beginning to form. 

Darling was seething now. Now she wasn't scared; she was furious. "The Winter Soldier, how did you manage that one?" Darling's voice was even and almost amused. She was in the mode now. It fell away, the lab, Tony and Peter, the photo on the screen. Now it was just her and the man on the other end of the phone.

 "I was desperate. I had to call on your understudy." The man sounded bored now, "He did remarkably well." 

"Then it would seem you have no need for me," Darling commented. 

"Now, don't say anything rashly. We wouldn't want to insult your poor father, would we?" The man mocked. 

The anger in Darling tightened, so he had known, "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." 

"So you do know. Tell you what, I'll let him go if you come back." The man offered. 

Darling didn't even think before scoffing, "If you think you'll be alive for that to happen, you're very wrong. You'll just be another name on the long list of kills he has. Have fun with that." She hung up before he could respond. She was breathing heavily. 

"What did you just do?" Peter asked, horrified. 

"Did we get it?" Darling ignored Peter. She wasn't sure she knew the answer. 

"We got him," Tony affirmed but had a matching look of horror and fear that Peter had. 

Darling nodded once before hitting redial and call and putting the phone back up to her ear. The call connected, and the man picked up. "On second thought, I'd really like to watch him kill you. I'll see you when I am good and ready, and if he or anyone else you kidnapped isn't alive when I get there, it won't be him killing you." 

There was a long beat of silence before dark chuckles came from the other end of the line, "I await your arrival. Do come alone."

 "Don't bother. You won't notice me arrive." Darling snapped back and hung up again. There was dead silence in the lab as they all comprehended what she'd just done.

"What did you just do?" Peter asked again, sounding frightened. 

Darling turned to look at both Tony and Peter, "I don't know." 

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