[ Opening Mingle ]

[randomly_modding]

[Everyone will wake up suddenly, as if having drifted off -- while sitting upright in an uncomfortable office chair. In one hand they're holding the communicator, and in their lap is propped a clipboard with a job application (standard, looking something like this; it requests up to ten years of job history, ) and a pen. The waiting room is also fairly standard, except for being empty.]

[The communicator's lock screen reads, Complete the job application. Time limit, twenty-four hours.]

[There are magazines, fake plants, and computers. There's a staff lounge with food -- tupperware that might have belonged to some of these nonexistent workers, popcorn and cocoa packets, vending machines -- and restrooms. There are exits, but characters will be unable to use them... or make their own, or escape in any way.]

[So the characters are stuck here, until tomorrow morning. Set up a comment telling everyone what your character is doing, and thinking, whether they're obeying the task or not, at any time during the day. Then tag other people! Be sure to check back later in the week, when people are encouraged make threads for the evening as well as the day! Characters that have been claimed are also welcome at this point to join the community, and will be able to make their own posts, which can be tagged by anyone taking part in the event.]

Comments

my heart, peter. my heart.

[cleanedslate]

[ second in your class is... good, right? probably good. depends on what you're competing against, obviously. doesn't have a lot of experience with being second at anything where's a Reed Richards when you need one? ]

Well, it's nice to meet you, P. Peter Parker. [ sorry, he's pretty amused. ducking his head just a little to facilitate eye contact, because it's okay, you're allowed to make eye contact. ] What does your aunt want you to be when you grow up?

[ also foreign: strict, involved parental units ]

[promisebreaker]

[ second to a very pretty girl who's also his ex (maybe) girlfriend. he'll live with it.

the tips of his ears go red, but he does look up and make eye contact.]

Oh. Uh...whatever I want to be, which is a molecular biologist slash biochemist specializing in genetics.

[ yeah, he had pretty great parental units.]

[cleanedslate]

[ well, when you put it like that ]

[ and now you can have a flicker of real interest. he straightens back up, thoughtful ] What's the draw?

[promisebreaker]

[ oh, well most people are impressed enough to just be impressed about his choice of career. they ask what exactly that is. they don't want to know why he wants to do it.]

Uhm...okay. [He is not going to use Dr. Conners as an example because that didn't turn out well, but also because he doesn't want Tony putting together two and two if he happened to have heard about what happened in New York.]

Say we've got a Parkinsons patient. The disease is characterized by low dopamine levels. They start losing the brain cells that develop it.[He is utterly confident now because he knows what he's talking about.] Anyway, the zebra fish has the ability to regenerate cells. If we could give the Parkinsons patient that...they'd be cured. There's some good research going on right now that fish oil can increase dopamine levels, but that's not a cure. It's a bandage.

tl;dr

[cleanedslate]

[ yeah, he's got five doctorates. he wants to talk shop. ]

So, the tangible benefits to your fellow man/woman/intermediate. [ he nods, almost stoic ] Noble.

[ inside he's brooding a little. yeah, he fed lines like that to reporters, but the truth is he spent a lot of his life not really thinking about anything except the specs on paper. he just built it, and didn't worry so much about what it would be used for. he built it because he couldn't not build things, all the time, even when he was high as a kite. just his function. showing up the old man didn't hurt as a goal, either.

this kid is different. a good kind of different. and honestly, SI could use a lot more like him. ]

So, assuming that's not just a line, [ but, you know, still a jerk ] you must have a dream school or three. Get you the rest of the way there.

[ we've got scholarships, Peter~ ]

i love it. They're amazing already.

[promisebreaker]

[ yeeeeah, peter is bright, maybe even a genius, but he's not tony stark level genius. it's a whole other class.

peter learned the hard way the first time around that you have to care about what it's being used for, otherwise you're likely to end up having to save new york city from a giant lizard thing that used to be your mentor. really, peter is a good kid. ]

N-no. It's--it's not a line. [ but he does have selfish reasons for wanting to study these things. For example, why did his body find the perfect balance between human genes and spider genes while the lizard genes took over dr. connors. he wants to see if he can duplicate what was done to him on mice and then maybe later on humans both out of curiosity and out of the desire to do something better for people. he's not entirely unselfish and he's aware of that. ]

Uhm...my dream school is Stanford, but my--I'm the only family my aunt has left and I couldn't leave her alone. [ see, good kid] I'll probably end up at Cornell. They're ranked number 7 in the nation for sciences over all.

[ oh. scholarships are good; in fact, they're the only way he's going to get to college. the parkers probably have a small fund set up for him, but not enough to swing cornell and while he will work at least part time to help fund that education, he's still going to need all the help he can get. ]

<3333

[cleanedslate]

[ first class, and it comes with free drinks. ]

Stanford. [ correcting comfortably. let's have no more talk of Cornell, okay? ] Good school. [ he leans back on his hands ] And who needs Harvard, right?

No MIT? [ Stanford ranks better overall, but MIT's got it beat in biochemistry and molecular biology. plus, alma mater. respect. etc. ]

[promisebreaker]

N-no. I mean...I thought about MIT. MIT is a great school. [Obviously] I just--I can't leave my aunt alone in New York City.

[He grins a little.] You kidding? You can buy your way into Harvard. Who needs that?

[cleanedslate]

[ a kid after his own slightly ruined heart. ]

Right, but pretend that's not a factor. [ impatient little gesture ] Dream school.

[promisebreaker]

[Peter hesitates a little, shakes his head then shrugs] MIT I guess. I mean...if I could get in and...dream school.

[Yeah, he's not good with just dreaming and not dealing with logistics.]

[cleanedslate]

Heh. You know I don't actually give out extra points for kissing my ass, right? [ HE MEANS IT. IF YOU WANT TO GO TO STANFORD, SAY SO. ]

[promisebreaker]

Oh. [The tops of his ears are beet red.] I didn't...I just...it's not something that I've ever thought a lot about. Stanford is a great school and it's in California, which is a long way from home and for a while that--that had it's own appeal and then everything [He pauses a moment, swallowing hard] Everything happened and I don't even want to go that far from home right now because...well...it's--it's complicated. MIT is a great school too and it's closer to New York City. Relatively. I mean, when you're talking California.

so glad you claimed! <3

[cleanedslate]

[ you are frustratingly hard to coax out of that box, kiddo ]

Kid. Seriously.

You're killing me here.

Take the distance to your aunt out of this equation.

so glad you enabled!

[promisebreaker]

[ he has a very strong sense of loyalty to his family! he also has a strong sense of guilt, believing that he's the reason his uncle ben is dead. ]

I don't know. Stanford, I guess. I could go all the way to a doctorate there.

are you kidding me anytime bb | 1/2

[cleanedslate]

Thank you. Finally. Was that really so hard? I thought you were going to have a hernia for a minute there.

[cleanedslate]

And done.

[promisebreaker]

There's just a lot of responsibilities and people I--[wait...what? what?]

Uhm...what?

[cleanedslate]

Done.

[ lifting eyebrows at you ] Are you sure you're second in your class? Because this is basically going to be an academic scholarship. I can't give it to just anyone. [ and you're seeming a little slow on the uptake just at the moment :|a ]

[promisebreaker]

Are you sure you're a genius? [ It's a quick response and his eyes go wide. ] I didn't--I didn't mean that. I just...I can't leave my aunt alone. My uncle died a few weeks ago and she needs me close. She doesn't have anyone else. I'll go to Cornell. I'll get a degree and my work will just have to speak for itself.

[cleanedslate]

[ he's so amused you don't even know, Peter, though some of it trickles out at the died part. ]

Well, then I guess it's a good thing you won't be leaving her behind.

[promisebreaker]

[ amused is better than offended. ]

Yeah. It's--yeah. I mean, she needs me and New York is home. I'd probably stick out like a sore thumb in California anyway.

[cleanedslate]

Not really what I meant, so I guess you two are just gonna have to adjust. I recommend SPF like 120 for the first summer?

[ movin' right along ]

Obviously dorms aren't an option, but do you care if it's a house or an apartment? Ground level or high rise? Two bath minimum, I guess. [ slightly more vague; how do you even function with less than five, over the long term? ]

[promisebreaker]

[Peter is just reeling right now. It's not a bad thing at all.] House. Good kitchen. [It's really all he can manage.]

Uhm...why? I mean...why?

[cleanedslate]

Call it an investment in the future. [ gesturing broadly ] I can't hire you right now. But in a couple of years, when you're done with school... I've got a good feeling about that, sure.

House, good kitchen. [ "nice neighborhood" goes without saying. ] I think we can manage that.

[promisebreaker]

[ That's something else he'll have to take some time to absorb: working for Stark Industries.]

Wow...yeah. I'd--thanks [ because thanks doesn't even begin to cover it.]

I...uhm...I'll talk to her about it when--when we get back. [He just assumes that a house Tony Stark would provide would be in a good neighborhood.]