It's been days since Peter and Gamora talked, maybe even weeks. The only reason they would talk was if they were on a mission. They hadn't talked about what happened between them that one night. It was still strange to think that someone would ever care for an assassin. But, just because they didn't talk to each other, didn't mean they didn't communicate in other ways. They would do small things, such as smile at each other when nobody was looking or walk beside each other as their fingertips brushed. At some points Gamora would open her mouth to say something and nothing would come out. But, the weird silent treatment didn't last for long.
Gamora lay on her bed with her knees curled up to her chest, in a deep sleep. She was dreaming about Peter, about all of the adventures they had so far, about the time they almost kissed on Knowhere, when he saved her from the freezing cold vacuum of space, those multiple times when he tried to get her to dance, when he helped her out of the shower when she had a panic attack. She dreamt about how comfortable she felt around him, how safe he made her feel, even though she wouldn't admit it out loud. "Peter." She muttered. A smile formed on her lips. Suddenly, the dream quickly turned dark. The smile on her lips flipped upside down to a frown, and she started to toss and turn, as images of Peter going through complete hell appeared through her mind. "Peter." She muttered a little louder, as her eyes squeezed tightly.
Peter lay on his bed, almost asleep. He was listening to his mix tapes. He heard Gamora mutter his name, mind you his bed is right next to hers on the opposite side of the thin, metal wall. At first he thought she was calling for him. He got out of bed and walked next door to her room. The door wasn't shut all the way. Without looking inside, he made a soft knock on the door. "Gamora? You okay?" No response. Maybe, she was just dreaming. The next thing he heard was Gamora's bed squeaking. He peaked in the room and saw her tossing and turn, viciously. He ran into the room, whispering her name, trying to calm her down. Now, she was starting to yell his name. He put a hand over her mouth and used his other hand to restrain her wrist from hitting him as she flailed around. "Gamora." He whispered. He started to softly shake her. "Gamora." He whispered, again. She shot up on her bed. It was clear that she was sweating, as her hair and black tank top were soaked. She started to pant and look around the room. "Hey, you okay?"
Gamora nodded. She was so embarrassed that Peter saw her having a nightmare, especially since it was about him. "I just had a nightmare. Really, i'm alright."
Peter stared at her. "I heard you saying my name. Was it really serious?"
Gamora sighed and shook her head. "This is so embarrassing. Yes, it was about you and yes, it was very serious."
"Why are you embarrassed?" He chuckled and quickly returned to being serious.
"You would understand if you were in my position."
"I know. Being raised to be an assassin, not really fun."
"Tell me about it. I used to have nightmares all of the time, all of my...siblings would laugh when I awoke. I'd get a beating each time I cried, whether it was in my sleep or not."
"Talk about shitty parenting. You deserve much more than that." He sat next to her on the bed.
"Thanks, Peter but, after all I've done-"
"No. Don't talk like that anymore." He said in a stern voice. He gripped her shoulders firmly but, not tight enough to where it hurt. "I forbid it. As your awesome leader and friend, I order you to not talk such none sense." He said, partially joking.
"Jesus, you sound like Drax." Gamora chuckled. She starting cracking her fingers and stared off into space without noticing Peter still being there and staring into her eyes.
"Gamora?"
She snapped back into reality and looked at Peter. "Yes?"
He looked at her hair, which was in sloppy braid with loose hairs sticking out on both sides. He turned to her back and took her hair out of the braid. Gamora was about to asked what he was doing, but him playing with her hair felt so good. She hummed and leaned into his touch. He smiled softly and started to re-braid it. His touch was gentle, unlike his roughhousing, childlike nature. Her heart started to race with each strand of hair he grabbed. She wasn't sure what the feeling was but, in a way she kind of liked it. She then started to realize something. Was she falling, falling for Peter? No, it couldn't be. There's no such thing as love. Such nonsense does not exist. Then again, what if it did? Peter had finished braided her hair and turned to face her.
"There." He said with a proud smile. "You look-" He thought about what happened the last time he called her beautiful. He did not want to make that same mistake.
"Beautiful?" Gamora asked.
"Um...yes." He replied in shock. "You aren't going to hit me?"
"I'll think about it." She said with a chuckle.
He chuckled along with her. He felt awkward just sitting there though. He started to get up. "Well, if you don't need anything else, i'm going to head back to bed." He said gesturing to the door with his thumb.
"Oh, yes. Of course." Gamora gave him a soft but, hurt smile. "Peter?" She called to him, right before he started to exit. He turned around to her, raising an eyebrow. "Um, can you-" She thought about her choice of words. "You know what, nevermind. It was stupid, anyway."
Peter looked at her in confusion. "No, i'm sure it wasn't stupid. What'd ya want?"
She played with her fingers, obviously looking nervous. Wait, since when was Gamora, the deadliest woman in the galaxy, nervous? "Peter, I am going to admit something to you and if you tell the others about it, I will snap your neck." Ah, there she was. Peter seemed nervous at the threat, but walked over to her. "Peter, I have a...fear."
Peter let out a snort, but, then quickly regretted it. "Sorry." Gamora rolled her eyes. "Gam," She gave him a death stare at the name. "Gamora, you don't need to be embarrassed about that either. Everyone has fears. It's nothing to feel ashamed of. Now, what's your fear?"
Gamora took in a deep breath. "I'm afraid of losing you." She regretted what she said, but added on. "And of course, the rest of the Guardians; Rocket, Groot, Drax." He looked at her with an expressionless face. 'Oh shit, I broke him.' She thought. "But, for some reason, I feel like I've grown closest to you. Peter, yes, of course they understand me, but, you, I don't know what the word is." Peter was confused. She took his hand and held it, as she bit her lip trying to think of the word. "Care? I mean they care, too. It just seems like you care about me more than anyone else."
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know why!"
"Gamora, you know I've never judged you for who you were before. Why do you think I would?"
"Everyone else does."
"Since when do you care what other people think about you?
"I don't know it's stupid."
"You shouldn't."
"I really don't care as much as what they think as I do with you. I don't want to lose you."
"I don't want to lose you either and we won't I promise."
Gamora was silent for a moment. "Peter?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you stay with me until I fall asleep? I'm-"
"Afraid?" Gamora nodded silently, embarrassed, as she felt defeated. "Of course." The two toss and turned until they found a comfortable position. They were facing each other. Peter was practically hugging her, Gamora's head on his chest. He had his left arm under her neck, playing with her hair. His other arm around her middle, holding her close. "Always." He whispered in her ear. She smiled and nuzzled into him. Soon, Gamora was passed out in his arms. It was the best feeling in the world. He didn't know why he felt like this. It was probably because she was unlike any woman he met. Was it true? Was he fooling around and falling in love? Either way, he knew he would be making his mother proud, no longer sleeping with random girls and leaving the next morning. He gave Gamora a soft butterfly kiss on her cheek. He saw her smile get bigger. "I'm not letting you go, I promise." He hugged her closer. Yup, no way he was letting her go.
