The pair of us walked around Queens for a while, him pointing out different places to me. One of which was Ned's house. Then we made it to his apartment complex, him leading the way to his particular door.

He fished a key out of his pocket, opening up the door and allowing me to walk in first.

"May! I'm home!" Peter called as soon as we entered. This caused a young woman to appear in my vision. She had long and straight brown hair, which laid flat against her back. She had the same light brown eyes that Peter had, along with glasses that went over them. She showed the two of us a large and friendly smile.

"Who's this?" Aunt May asked as I gave her a small wave and a smile. She returned both.

"Aunt May, this is (Y/N)," Peter spoke as I she smiled even wider. Everything about her seemed welcoming and kind.

"Well, it's great to meet you, (Y/N). Come on in, Darling," Aunt May called, waving for me to follow her into the kitchen.

  I heard Peter's phone ring. I gave him a stern look that told him not to answer it. He slid it out of his pocket and looked at the name before looking back to me with apologetic eyes. He then proceeded to answer the call, acting almost like he had to.

  I almost immediately knew who was on the other end. It felt like it could only be one person, otherwise Peter wouldn't have looked at me so sympathetically.

"Mr. Stark? Is something wrong?" Peter spoke, making my heart race.

"Oh, it's probably his silly Stark Internship. Come with me, Honey," Aunt May stated as I nodded, following her into the kitchen while Peter stayed in the living room. He paced the room while speaking into his phone, though he didn't do much of the talking. I'm sure Tony was just rambling and lecturing.

  Aunt May had me sit down at her table, placing a small snack in front of me. It consisted of apple slices and a warm caramel dip.

"Would you like something to drink? We have apple juice, orange juice, sodas, and water," May explained to me as I shook my head.

"I'm alright. Thank you, though," I responded, watching her grab herself a water and sit down across from me at the table.

"So, are you new at Peter's school?" May asked as I shook my head slowly, picking up an apple slice and dunking it in the warm caramel.

"Um, no, I don't go to school with Peter. I met him when he came into Avengers headquarters with his Stark Internship," I explained to May as she tilted her head a small bit to examine me. In that time, I began eating my apple slice.

"Are you an intern as well?" She asked as I felt my stomach twist.

I thought Aunt May knew who I was. But, in this moment, I now realized that she didn't. And she might lose her mind if she finds out that I'm Black Widow's daughter. She also might not want me to hang out with Peter...

Just when I felt at a loss for words, Peter walked back in. He placed himself in the seat next to me, putting his phone up on the table. May turned her attention towards Peter, arching an eyebrow in a curious nature.

"What did Mr. Stark want?" Aunt May asked as I looked to him, also wanting to hear the answer to this question. His eyes met mine, and I could read the regret in them. And I understood what that meant.

"Just wanted to make sure that (Y/N) and I are okay," Peter spoke as I let out a small, dry laugh. Because that wasn't all. There was something else.

"Okay. Then what's the catch?" I asked as Peter sighed, his head tilting downwards and suddenly being unable to look at either of us.

"He'll be here in a few minutes," Peter mumbled as I nodded, grabbing another apple slice.

"There it is," I whispered as Aunt May's eyes widened. She had been putting pieces together this entire time, and suddenly everything was making sense to her.

"You're (Y/N) Romanoff. Black Widow's daughter," Aunt May breathed out with wide eyes. I nodded while looking down.

"Yeah," I answered shortly, not knowing how to sugar coat that.

"Peter Parker! You kidnapped Natasha Romanoff's daughter?!" Aunt May yelped. Peter became a stuttering mess again.

"It was consensual kidnapping," I clarified as she looked between the two of us.

"So, you helped her run away?" She asked the panicking boy as I closed my eyes and exhaled a shaky sigh.

"Yeah," Peter answered in a small voice as I shamefully looked down at the floor. I should've never gotten Peter involved. He didn't need to get tangled up in all of this. It wasn't fair.

The doorbell rang as Aunt May stood up to go answer it. I slid the plate of apple slices and caramel in between the two of us, wanting to share with him. He offered me a stressed smile, grabbing a slice and beginning to eat.

"So, do you know who Spider-Man is, then?" I asked in a hushed tone of voice. The person entered the house, talking with May in the doorway.

Peter went quiet as he assessed my question.

"Um, kind of," He breathed out as I arched an eyebrow at him.

"Kind of?" I asked in confusion, turning my attention towards him in an intrigued manner.

"It's complicated, (Y/N)," Peter exhaled a deep breath as I looked down and nodded.

"Isn't it always..." I mumbled before hearing someone knock on the kitchen doorframe. Standing there, attired in a black t-shirt and jeans, was Tony Stark. May was standing back behind him in the living room, seeming a little bit confused.

Peter and I went silent, both of us watching Tony step into the room and sit in the chair that May had vacated to answer the door. His attention flashed between the two of us, seeming both relieved and angered all at once.

"Peter, I think we'll need to have a talk later. You're beginning to become reckless. Perhaps Nat was right. Maybe I shouldn't have introduced the two of you," Tony grumbled as I exhaled a shaky sigh.

"It wasn't his fault," I quickly spoke up. Both boys looked over at me.

"Then it was yours?" Tony asked as I nodded, being fully prepared to take the blame for this.

"Yeah," I breathed out quietly. Tony nodded, his eyes glaring at me in a manner that expressed that I was in trouble. But what more could he do? How much more can they ground me?

I couldn't keep holding eye contact with Tony. Instead, I took a glance over at Peter, who seemed too afraid to look away from Tony.

"Why are you looking at him? I'm talking to you. He's not," Tony grumbled as I looked back to the billionaire seated at the opposite end of the table. I was just annoyed with Tony at this point.

"Probably because he doesn't actively look like he's going to scream at me," I grumbled, leaning back in my chair. Tony sighed, seeming exhausted from having to argue with me so much. But I love pissing him off.

"Let's make this easier for the two of you, okay? (Y/N), if you don't leave without my jurisdiction anymore, Peter Parker will be able to keep his internship," Tony spoke sternly as both of our eyes widened.

"What?! That's so unfair!" I protested as Tony looked between Peter and I with a stern expression.

"Actually, it's quite fair. If you wish to help him out, you'll do what your mother and I say," Tony growled as I let out a deep sigh.

"You're not my father, Tony. So stop acting like you are..." I grumbled in a hostile tone, meeting his eyes with aggression.

"I might as well be. The amount of sleep I lose because of you and the sheer amount of times I've had to come save your ass isn't something I would've done if I didn't think of you as a daughter," He seethed from the opposite end of the table.

Peter seemed far beyond uncomfortable. And, honestly, I couldn't blame him. This is an argument that Tony and I have been adamantly avoiding for months now. It was going to be a loud and angry discussion between the two of us. And if my mom got involved, it would only be worse.

"And that's your fault. I never asked you to do any of that," I muttered, my eyes flicking down to the floor once more, my heart hammering in my chest as anxiety shot through my veins.

He was far beyond pissed. But I couldn't care less. Not right now. Instead of arguing back with me, he turned his attention towards Peter.

"As for you, Mr. Parker. As long as you aren't reckless anymore, with anything, you will keep your internship," Tony added as Peter slowly nodded, his eyes locked on his feet.

"Now, let's go home, (Y/N)," Tony spoke up as I felt my eyes sting, a lump forming in my throat. Like that feeling that you're going to start crying. But I bit back the urge to sob. Instead, I rose to my feet, looking at Peter.

He offered me a weak smile, but I couldn't return it. Not right now. Not when I felt the urge to scream and bawl all at once.

"Bye, Peter. And thanks for today. You have no idea how much it means to me," I whispered in a hushed tone of voice. He slowly nodded, staring at me with a form of empathy.

"Bye, (Y/N). And I'm glad you enjoyed it," He responded as Tony opened up the door. Aunt May said her goodbyes to Tony and I, explaining that she enjoyed having us over. But she had no idea what conversation just took place. She had no idea that Tony was threatening Peter's internship.

Then I was being dragged out of the apartment complex. Outside, a stunning orange sports car waited for the two of us. Of course, it belonged to Tony Stark. The two of us got in, and heading back towards the facility.

The silence was suffocating. The tension that went ignored for too long was now the only thing in the air. And we couldn't avoid it anymore. A small outburst already occurred. More was only to follow.

Upon arriving back at headquarters, my mother was screaming at Thor, who was defensively holding his hands up. She was chewing him out for not helping them chase me down the other night. Thor was explaining that it was because he was asleep, but I knew better. Thor always wanted me to have my own taste of freedom. He wanted me to run free, even if it was just for a little bit. Tony and I entered, causing the room to fall silent.

"Mr. Stark, Spider-Man will be in your lab in ten minutes," The artificial intelligence, Friday, spoke over the intercom system in the facility.

"Perfect," Tony replied, giving me a glance before leaving. He headed in the direction of his lab, which left me with my enraged mother and a god.

"Really, (Y/N)? Running away with Stark's intern? This is why I told him to never introduce you two," My mother muttered under her breath as I exhaled a deep breath.

"I know, but you don't understand—"

"I think I understand a bit more than you think," She exclaimed as I arched an eyebrow curiously.

"You like Peter," She stated without any emotion. I could only blink at her, not entirely sure I understood what she was saying. Anger began to swell in my chest.

"That's not at all what I mean. I meant... You don't know what it's like to be stuck here. To never get to leave. To hardly be permitted outside of the building. To constantly have someone breathing down your neck and suffocating you. To have almost every damn Avenger acting like they're your parent. To have no friends. To truly feel alone. To not know your own last name or your own parents," I ranted, going off on a tangent. Thor stood at my side, mouth agape as I verbally expressed my issues to my mother for the first time.

This stunned her into silence.

It was quite evident that she didn't know what to think of this. Her face was quick to drain of anger and go blank. She stared at me with broken eyes, seeming to want to say so many different things, but being physically unable to.

"Can I just... Can I go to my room? Please?" I whispered softly after a few seconds of silence. I didn't want to be standing here anymore, looking at my mother's blank face.

She didn't answer me. She wasn't even really looking at me. She seemed to have frozen up. Carefully, Thor placed a hand on my shoulder and offered me a sad smile.

"Go to your room. We'll call you down when dinner is ready," He promised me as I shook my head, still staring at my mother. She still seemed to be thinking.

I thought back to what Clint said. About how parts of her past were extremely painful for her. I wonder if I'd mentioned one of them. Because I've never seen her completely shut down like this before.

  I didn't want to leave her in this state. She didn't look anywhere near okay. And it was all my fault. I knew it was.

"Mom? I'm sorry... Are you okay...?" I asked her in a soft tone of voice, and I watched intently as her eyes pooled with tears. Then she blinked a couple of times, seeming to come back to reality.

"No, (Y/N), I should be the one apologizing. I never knew about all those things..." She whispered so softly, extending a hand and brushing a lock of hair out of my face.

  That was something she's done since I was little. It was basically her comfort technique. And it always worked. It made me feel so much better. Her hands were always cold, yet soft. She was always extremely careful. When I would fall and scape my knee on the sidewalk, she would always brush my hair back and caress my cheek. She would do the same thing if I was ever sad or scared. Then she would hug me and promise me that I'd be alright.

"You should go up to your room. I'll let you know when it's time to eat, alright?" She whispered as I nodded slowly. Then she wrapped me up in a hug. And I clung onto her so tightly.

I didn't waste any time, however. I was rather quick as I made my way back upstairs and into my bedroom. After slamming the door shut, I allowed myself to collapse onto my bed, getting lost in my own thoughts.

I felt like a convict in the world's highest security prison.