Honeybee - The Head and the Heart

"Do you have clearance to be here?" The woman perched behind the desk kept her voice clipped, hardly looking up from her computer. She already seemed to have formed her judgment at the two teenagers in front of her.

"Um, n-no, we were just looking-" Lila started, shaking her head slowly. She was trying her best to be polite, but the hand the woman held up seemed to Lila like the receptionist was trying very hard to poke her patience with a stick.

"If you don't have clearance, the door is right behind you," She spoke, typing on her computer. She regarded Lila and MJ, who stood next to her, with an air of dismissal. "We're not doing school tours today, either."

"Why would you?" Michelle asked. "It's a Saturday."

"I can't help you. Have a nice day."

The air left Lila's nose quickly, her frustration brimming. "We're l-looking for Sophie Nelson. Her girlfriend t-told us she was h-here, and Sophie said we could come in-"

"Sorry, but this is Stark Industries," The receptionist was acting more impolite by the second. She said the words slowly and very sounded out, like the girls she was talking to were stupid. Michelle's jaw twitched and Lila felt her back stiffen. "I'm sure you can understand that the things that go on here are very important. I can't just let you waltz through because you don't have the clearance."

"I do, though," All three heads turned to the elevators to see none other than Sophie Nelson step through, tablet tucked tightly under one arm, and the other extended to Lila. "Hey, Phish Food." She pulled Lila in for a tight hug, kissing her head. She smiled at MJ, and pulled her in for a hug, too (though that one was stiffly reciprocated).

She looked really good. Sophie was completely in her element at Stark Industries, talking on the daily with the press in regards to her employer's vision. She'd cleaned up the Blip fiasco that left Pepper's company in disarray like she was cleaning her kitchen, and smoothed out wrinkles within company operations that left Stark Industries a well-oiled machine. Pepper was delighted and relieved, happy to have that stress taken off her already full plate. Within a few short weeks, Sophie was promoted, and now was head of public relations for Tony Stark's legacy. It wasn't the journalist dream she'd started out with, but Sophie was working a dream job.

Being so successful was in part due to Sophie's no-bullshit policy. Unfortunately for the receptionist, she was about to learn that. All Lila could do as Sophie turned her stilettos to the woman behind the desk was watch with a pitying gaze. "What are you doing?"

"Miss Nelson, I-"

"You've worked here since March seventh, Mandy," Sophie said, narrowing her eyes at the woman who now looked concerned. "Not long at all."

"I assure you, Miss Nelson, I complied with protocol. These girls don't have clearance to make it past the front desk."

Sophie held her hand up and Mandy fell into a submissive silence. Lila bit back a smile as her friend continued. "Your time here has been brief which makes you lucky, because if you had been here longer than a month, I might have reported this." She pointed back to Lila without looking away from Mandy. "That girl there? She's like my little sister. She's the most respectful teenager you might ever come across. Her friend is a different story but I still vouch for her." She shrugged in apology while Michelle smiled and nodded in thanks.

"Now, I'm well aware that just because she's family doesn't excuse it, but I think if Pepper Potts heard you'd turned Lila away, she'd be more than a little disappointed."

"Miss Nelson, I-"

"Lila Landry and her father Ted are very close associates with the Stark family and Stark Industries. So, yeah, I'd say she does have clearance and permission to be here."

"I just thought-"

Sophie smiled sarcastically. "Well, you thought wrong, Mandy. Next time you think something, run it by me, I'll be sure to tell you you're wrong. And I'll be sure to have Happy Hogan stop by and provide the correct clearance for these two girls since you seem to need it so badly. I'll even throw in some badges with big, bold lettering telling you to mind your business. Girls," She waved her free hand at Lila and Michelle, "Follow me."

MJ let out a low whistle as the three of them rounded the corner. The silence they left behind told them Mandy was reeling. They stepped into the open elevator before anyone spoke a word. "Cute shoes, Sophie," Michelle mentioned while Sophie presses a button.

"Thanks."

"Damn, Soph," Lila laughed the last of her nerves away. "You didn't need to put the fear of Thor in her."

"Eh, maybe not," Sophie shrugged. She sent a smile Lila's way, eyes full of mischief. "She also didn't need to talk to you like you were stupid, but here we are."

They rode up several more floors, all the way to the top before stepping out. The large windows painted a panoramic scene of Manhattan, Stark Tower standing boldly just a few blocks down from them. Sophie had explained prior that the Avengers had relocated upstate while the business side stayed downtown.

Sophie walked at a brisk pace weaving around staff as they went about their day. It was surprisingly crowded for a weekend, and it threw Lila for a loop. "The missus texted me saying you guys were headed my way, I was headed down to greet you." Someone stopped Sophie holding another tablet and a pen, and after she signed the screen, both it and the attached employee were gone.

"How is Cara, by the way? I only got to talk to her on the phone," Lila stared at the large portraits of both Stark men hanging on an otherwise blank stretch of wall. A sad tide rolled in her gut for a moment before Sophie ushered her down another hallway. It was quieter, and Lila could recognize where she was being led.

"She's great, she misses you tons. You're welcome to stay for dinner-" She stopped herself and stopped walking. Sophie then narrowed her eyes at the two of them in suspicion. "Shouldn't you be in school right now? What time is it?"

"Does time not exist in this building?" Lila wondered aloud, exchanging a bewildered look with MJ. "It's Saturday, Soph."

Sophie checked her digital watch. "So it is." They came to a stop outside a very nice door that Sophie opened to reveal her office. It was rather spacious, about the size of Lila's bedroom and had sleek modern furniture to decorate. "Sorry, girls, the Ball's really thrown me for a loop. Tons of extra work to do, we have to double down on security measures for the dinner on Wednesday, I have to talk with the Met about which journalists are invited where, I've still gotta sign off on the legalities and NDA's regarding Tony's will... I'm slammed. How are you girls? What brings you up to Manhattan?"

Lila and MJ, who had taken seats opposite Sophie's desk, briefly glanced at each other. "It's our bi-weekly Book Saturday. And since Michelle's headed to Maine in two weeks, we needed to double up. Since we were close to your apartment we thought we'd say hi, but when we called Cara said you were here."

Sophie looked to Michelle. "You're going to Maine?"

"My mom lives up there," MJ didn't show it but Lila knew it was a touchy subject. "Wanted to see me for a bit. I told her she'd have to pay for the Stephen King tours up there and I'd come."

"You would," Sophie shrugged.

Lila thought back to Sophie's reply, suddenly curious. "Did you say you were doubling the security for the dinner this week? Why would you need to?"

Sophie regarded her with a hint of suspicion. "Awfully curious about the dinner, are we?"

"Harry invited me," Lila answered. Though it was the truth, her motives were entirely different. "And my dad might be there, why is security doubling?"

At the mention of her dad, Sophie's gaze softened. "Your dad's going to be there before the event and after for cleanup." Lila still wasn't satisfied, and she could tell. "But, and this really can't be spoken about around anybody else, Norman Osborn asked for an extra security detail around the dinner. Now before you ask why, I don't know. If I can handle Norman Osborn as easily as an extra ten security guards and have him off my back I am so okay with not asking a few questions."

"Are you, though?" Lila asked teasingly.

With a roll of her eyes, Sophie replied. "No. I'm curious about it, but I've got other things to do. What's this about Harry Osborn asking you to dinner?"

It was Lila's turn to roll her eyes. "Soph, I've told you, he's a friend."

"Yeah, who's the heir of a billionaire, Lila. You could do worse."

Lila sucked in a breath through her teeth. "I think you'd be surprised. Anyways, he told me to bring a friend. I was thinking about asking Peter."

"Ah, the old-fashioned jealousy play. Use one boy to make the other green with envy. Little archaic, but I dig it." Sophie smiled upon seeing Lila's cheeks flush deeply.

"What is this, a teen romance novel? No, Soph. No. Harry s-said to bring a friend to make me feel less nervous in a room full of important people."

"If that's the case, why not bring Michelle?" Both pairs of eyes landed on the girl in question. Only the twitch of her upper lip gave her away.

Lila took it as her answer. "Yeah, I'm not putting MJ and the bourgeoisie in the same room if I can help it."

"Why, because they'd try to sue her for not being nice to their faces?"

MJ smiled proudly. "Oh I wouldn't pull punches." There was a beat of silence before Sophie wordlessly asked her to elaborate. "Seriously, I would throw punches."

                            *****

The tree outside Lila's bedroom was always a late bloomer, almost like it was scared to sprout forth. Lila could relate, but it still made her excited to see the leaves slowly making their way out into the open. She almost felt like she could watch them as they grew, if she stared hard enough-

"Lila."

Lila snapped her gaze upwards, and her eyes met Peter's. It was a bit strange, since she was lying flat on her back on top of her bed while Peter hung suspended. She looked away when she heard her name called once again. To her left sat Ned, slouched in her desk chair. "What?"

"Your music's done."

"O-Oh, right. Sorry." She rolled off her bed and padded over to her record player. Casually selecting a new one, she placed the needle on the vinyl and resumed her seat on top of her bed. Lila sighed, eyeing the homework she'd abandoned in favor of staring out the window. Figuring that she should try and get as much done when she had the help of some of her smartest friends, she pulled her trigonometry notebook back to her.

The three of them worked in harmony for about twenty more minutes, only talking when they came across a problem they needed help with. It was productive, and they all got a lot done, but even Lila, who never had trouble focusing with schoolwork pushed her things away from her in defeat. She sighed heavily, while rubbing her face in exhaustion.

"You okay, Lila?" Peter asked, still on the ceiling.

Lila let out a small laugh, still not quite used to the image. "Yeah, yeah, I'm f-fine. Just trying to stay ahead of things. I completely forgot I h-have to tutor Brad on Thursday and I want to get the stuff for that done since I can't do it on Wednesday."

"Why can't you do it Wednesday?" Ned asked, happy to take a break from his own work.

Putting her school work away in her backpack, Lila shook her head. "There's th-this dinner on Wednesday th-that kicks off a series of galas before the actual B-Ball. It just g-gets things going, but I was asked to be there."

The mention of the gala captured Peter's attention. "Is that what Harry was bothering you about the other day? Are you two going together?"

"We're n-not going exclusively as a p-pair, if that's what you mean," Lila looked up at Peter with a small smile. "But yes, he will be there, and s-so will I. Anyways, he's not my r-reason for saying yes."

"What do you mean?"

"When I saw Sophie yesterday, she said that N-Norman Osborn asked her to supply extra security for the event." She furrowed her eyebrows in thought. "It c-could be nothing, but the way Sophie explained it made it sound like Norman w-was preparing for something bad to happen."

Peter's interest piqued along with Ned's. The latter asked, "Something like what?"

Lila shrugged. "I have no idea."

Peter bit his lip before gracefully unsticking to Lila's ceiling. He adjusted his clothes and turned to face Lila, who looked rather lost in thought. "I could maybe come with you?"

That grabbed her attention. She raised an eyebrow and shook her head, not sure if she heard him right. "You'd wh-what?"

"I could come with you." He repeated himself, apparently liking the idea more the second time he said it. "I could use my spidey sense-"

"Is that what we're calling it now?" Ned asked.

Peter ignored him. "I could use it and see if anything feels off. I'd be more help than extra security."

"Well, Harry did say to bring a friend," Lila mentioned, though internally she was elated she didn't have to pluck up the courage to ask him to come. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind? I kn-know May's got you working a l-lot over at the shelter."

Peter waved his hand dismissively, "Nah, she'll be fine. What should I wear?"

                        *****

Since the days were stretching longer as summer was just around the corner, Ned and Peter walked home with a significant amount of daylight still hanging over their heads. The pair were in the midst of an intense conversation regarding the most recent J. Jonah Jameson conspiracy to surface on his blog ("Howard Stark and Walt Disney: Is Cryogenics a Billionaire Fad?") when sooner than expected, Peter reached his apartment.

"You good to walk home?" Peter asked.

Ned nodded. "I'll be okay. Will you be, Loverboy?" His smile grew teasing.

The joke soared over Peter's head, and he was left feeling completely confused. "Loverboy?"

An air of superiority overcame Ned. His stature and his tone grew to that of an eighty-year-old love guru who had such expert advice he'd been heard on Oprah's SuperSoul Podcast. "Oh, Peter," he placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You jumped onto Lila's dinner invitation faster than you jumped up the Washington Monument, dude."

Peter, flabbergasted, took a step back and smiled dubiously. "Wait, what?"

Ned dropped the persona and refrained from rolling his eyes. "Lila. You like her."

"Well, yeah, she's super nice, I thought we both liked her-"

"Oh, my god, Peter. I like her as a friend. You do not." Peter was quiet, still looking as though he just got slapped. "I'm not saying it in Spanish, dude. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

Peter suddenly had trouble forming a sentence. He sounded like human radio static, a mixture of timid laughter, anxiety, and vehement denial. "What? No. No, no, no. No way. I do not like her like that, Ned."

"It's not like it'd be so bad," Ned argued, still staring skeptically at his friend.

"That's not what I'm saying either," Peter agreed. "Lila's great, she's super nice, incredibly smart, really funny. Any guy would be lucky to be with her."

"Like Harry Osborn?" Ned asked, and smiled satisfactorily as Peter's expression soured.

"He's different. That guy's like Flash, he's a total ass."

Ned nodded. "Yeah, but he's super rich and seems super into Lila. You're telling me you not liking him has nothing to do with him liking Lila? And her maybe liking him back?"

"What? No!"

"Fine," Ned held his hands up in surrender, but his expression remained unconvinced. "I'm just saying that ever since the Blip, you and Lila have become a lot closer. Some might even say closer than platonic."

Peter shook his head, ignoring the tiny part of him that assessed Ned's words and kind of agreed with him. "No, Ned. We're really just friends. We make a good team, that's all."

"Okay, well 'just friends', enjoy Harry flirting with Lila all Wednesday night." Ned put finger quotations around "just friends" and started walking away. "Let me know when I'm right!"

Peter stood on the sidewalk outside his apartment building for a solid five minutes, his mind racing and his heart beating a little faster than normal.

                         *****

"So, this is awkward," Harry spoke up. He'd been sitting in the backseat with Lila and Peter in uncomfortable silence. He'd picked the pair up from Lila's house, said hello, and settled into quiet. But much like a bomb was rigged to blow, Harry was rigged to talk. Even if the words came out of his ass.

"What's awkward?" Lila asked, smoothing the pants of her jumpsuit. She sat opposite Harry and was next to Peter, tentatively reading the room. She'd been against Harry picking them up in the first place, not keen to keep Peter and Harry in a confined space for longer than necessary.  Of course, like the majority of their friendship, Lila's vote was vetoed, and Harry arrived promptly to pick Peter and Lila up, deaf to the apologies Lila gave Peter.

Harry shrugged. "I don't know, just thought there'd be more... chit-chat. You know, talking about how my life is, anything new happening with me, talking about any topic relating to me... I thought you'd be good at this by now, Violet."

"You thought I'd b-be good at making conversation?" Lila asked sarcastically, unable to help the smile that fell on her lips.

"Hmm, I guess you're right. What about you, Peter Piper? Got any pecks of pickled peppers you wanna pick?"

Peter, whose gaze had pointedly remained fixed out the window, looked back at Harry in confusion. "Sorry, what?"

Harry cracked a grin, his long limbs stretching lazily across the backseat of the car. "Do you have any questions you want to ask about me?"

"Not particularly," Peter answered honestly, controlling the neutrality in his facial muscles.

Undeterred, Harry pressed more. "Any questions you want to ask in general? Got any conversation starters?"

"A few," Peter confessed.

"Well? Care to share?" Harry's eyes were alight with interest.

Peter's mouth twitched, the ghost of a scowl itching to form. "I'm not interested in topics that'll start a fight tonight."

Harry's grin spelled trouble, and his eyes narrowed. He was game. That's what made Harry so tricky, he was so bold and brash that nowhere was off limits. And the closer he got to trouble, the faster he ran. "Those are my favorite."

"H-He said no, Harry." Both boys looked over at Lila, whose hands were trembling slightly as she fidgeted with her clothes.

Upon seeing this, Harry's posture deflated, and he practically melted into the plush leather seat. Thirty more seconds of silence went by, and Harry checked his watch. Bored once again, his eyes flickered back and forth between the two teenagers sat in front of him.

"You know, Larkspur, I'm really appreciating this Hillary Clinton moment you've got going on. The sleek ponytail, the jumpsuit, the business flats, it's impressive."

Lila's hand instinctively went to her hair. "Well th-thanks, Harry."

Harry nodded, and his eyes flickered back to Peter. "Yeah. But Peter's got tonight in the bag."

"Harry-"

"I'm serious," Harry ignored Lila's warning tone. "You look damn attractive, Pete. You could easily get anybody with that unbuttoned collar look going on tonight. I'll be first in line, though."

Peter was unsure what to say. His cheeks flared and he looked to Lila briefly before back to Harry, who was smirking all the while. "Uh..."

"What? Don't tell me you've lived in New York your whole life and have never met someone who is bisexual?"

Panic settled in with Peter, "No. No, that's not - I mean-"

"Now you're j-just being mean, Harry," Lila glared at Harry, who had cracked a grin watching Peter fumble for the right words.

"What?" He gasped, feigning innocence. "I would never." Seeing Lila's unimpressed expression, Harry schooled his features. "Okay, fine. I'm sorry."

"Thank you."

The car stopped, and the driver knocked on the privacy screen twice, letting the three in the back know that they'd arrived at their destination. Lila slid to the door and looked back at Harry once more. "Do yourself a favor, behave yourself. Enjoy the party, try not to start a fight, okay?"

Harry held up a hand. "Scout's honor."

"Y-You were never a scout, Harry, so s-somehow that does l-little to comfort me." Lila was the first to hop out of the car into the cool evening, leaving Harry and Peter in the car.

"She knows me too well," Harry muttered, shaking his head. He turned to Peter and gestures to the car door. "But really, if you ever want me to give you a call, just give me your phone number. I'd love to hear all about your conversation starters." By the end, his voice had turned silky, eyes staring directly into Peter's.

Peter fought the blush that rose to his cheeks, but lost. And Harry, seeing this, smiled to himself as he watched Peter get out of the car.

                       *****

Lila lost Peter to the drink table, which was clear across the large venue filled with guests. He'd mentioned that he was going to go around and see if there was any trouble on the outskirts of the party. When that didn't work, Peter suggested that they grab drinks, and rushed to grab some for the both of them. That was five minutes ago, and Lila decided to wait two more minutes before setting out to find him.

Two minutes came and went, and Lila stuck to her promise. Timidly, she started weaving around people in the direction of where she saw Peter walk, trying her best to avoid running into every single person she walked around. Unfortunately, her luck ran short about halfway to the bar.

She heard the liquid spill before she saw it. Lila whirled around and saw a man holding a half-empty glass wipe at the sleeves of his suit. Lila's eyes were blown wide, mouth agape as she saw the frustrated expression on his face. "Sir, I am s-so sorry. I d-didn't mean to-"

"Eh, it's fine. I wasn't looking where I was going." The man spoke in a casual tone, but Lila was hard-pressed to believe him. His handsome face still betrayed the frustration just under the surface. Lila caught herself staring a little too long, the man had such white teeth, and the brightest blue eyes to match. He was very good-looking, but there was almost a veil over his eyes, a kind of anger or bitterness that had Lila's gut rolling with nerves.

"R-Really, I'm so sorry. If I c-can do anything-"

"Lila Landry. I didn't think you'd come." Both Lila and the man she'd run into looked around to see Norman Osborn break through the clusters of people and walk right up to the pair. The sheer presence of Norman had Lila standing up straighter and smoothing out nonexistent wrinkles on her outfit. Lila's nerves remained, but only out of respect and awe. Norman Osborn commanded attention, and no one was going to deny him that.

"Mr. Osborn, a-a pleasure, as always." She shook his hand, grasping it firmly and briefly.

"Glad you could be here to watch over Harry." The cold indifference in his statement always made Lila wince internally, but she politely remained impassive. Osborn turned and faced the man Lila was with. Having nearly mastered body language, Lila could tell that they knew each other, and they weren't on friendly terms. "Ah, I see you've met Mr. Macendale, head of my personal security detail."

"Jason," He held his hand out, and Lila took it hesitantly. If he noticed, he didn't let on. "Pleasure to meet you."

"Lila, I hate to be rude, but I actually need to speak with Mr. Macendale." His tone, which wasn't very happy to begin with, had soured. The tension was thick between them, and Lila was relieved to have an out.

"Oh, o-of course. Enjoy your evening Mr. Osborn." She nodded to each of the men. "Mr. M-Macendale."

Lila found Peter moments later, and they both agreed that there wasn't any sign of a threat to the dinner. Lila still felt off from the interaction with Osborn and Macendale, but tried her best to shake it off. And when Peter suggested they skip the rest of the dinner and head out in search of ice cream, Lila happily agreed, and gladly put that unease in the back of her thoughts.

Hello! First post of the decade, be proud. Anyways, we're off to the races, I've scattered a few hints here and there, hope you can find them. The title of the chapter is paying homage to the song "Love is Strange" from Dirty Dancing.

Most importantly, and this will be my platform for the evening: Australia is on fire. Not just a singular wildfire, I mean essentially the entire country.

I'm sure by now you've heard a lot of celebrities talk about it and hopefully even some news coverage. Just remember if you're feeling like the Australia fires are inundating your social media, that's a good thing. Word needs to spread. And if you're wondering what to do, I'm posting links in my profile to donate to the effort of fighting these fires. If you can't, that's fine, I get it. Just spread the word. That's just as important.

Love you all so so much, be kind to one another, and let's tear the 20's up. In a good way.

Unedited. Xx.