Over the next month, Wendy and her family worked out being cordial to each other. She was still making smart comments at them, but she reduced it to only when she felt it was necessary. Glad to see progress, her parents expanded her grounding to being allowed to go to Granny's and the library as long as she was back by sunset. Her brothers were still keeping a close eye on her at school, making it impossible to sneak off to Neverland.

The only time she saw Peter was when he spent the night at her house, which was almost every night. Sometimes they'd talk or make out, and sometimes they'd watch movies until Wendy fell asleep. He was always gone when she woke up, and there was always a gift waiting there. Usually it was small things-flowers, a new ribbon for her hair, hot cocoa placed carefully on her end table. Then one morning, she felt something cold against her neck. She sat up and looked down on it. A necklace, with one silver star hanging from it. It was absolutely beautiful.

Wendy used one of the rare times both her brothers were too busy to breathe down her neck all day to find Peter and thank him. She finally found him at his locker, stuffing his coat inside. Grinning, she tapped him on the shoulder. She waited until he turned around to kiss him softly. He pushed her away from him, shocked.

"What are you doing?" he asked in a sharp, hushed tone.

"Thanking you for the necklace," Wendy explained uneasily.

"Not here, you're not."

"Well why not? I'm your girlfriend remember?" she replied defiantly.

"And we're the only two that know that."

"If you're worried about my brothers, they had some-" Peter covered her mouth looking annoyed.

"Look, Darling. Everyone here thinks this," he said motioning between the two of them, "Is completely one sided."

"They... They do?" she asked confused.

"Yes. As far as they know, you're fawning over me and I'm letting you."

"And you're okay with that?" Wendy asked feeling rage creep up on her.

"Quite frankly, yes."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. This was not her broken lost boy that left her presents and held her until she fell asleep. This- this was the heartless monster she'd been warned to stay away from.

"You can't be serious! Why can't you just let yourself feel something for once?" she demanded angrily.

"Because love is weakness. And I can't let myself... I can't," he replied shaking his head.

"You can't or you won't? Face it, you care more about your reputation than me!"

"That's not true. I just... I've spent a lot of time making sure I'm closed off and cold and I can't just throw that all away."

"This is ridiculous! You can't say you love me but I'm expected to be yours and no one else's! I risked everything for you did you ever think of that?! My friends, my family. I had a reputation too, but I gave it up! I gave it all up for you and you don't even care."

"That's not true! Wendy, please." Wendy. So he knew she was mad. Good. She shook her head and stepped back.

"No. No! I'm done. I'm done sneaking around just to entertain you. I'm done being the one who cares more. So you better figure out just how important your precious reputation is, because I'm through coming in second. Choose now, before you lose me forever."

Wendy turned around and stomped off. It was better to pretend she was angry than absolutely heartbroken. They'd just started out only to be torn apart by his pride. Tears stinging the back of her eyes, she ran. She ran out of the school and into town. She didn't know where she was going just that she had to get as far away from him as possible.

Somehow, she managed to end up at Granny's. She slowed down a bit and sat down in the booth her and Peter sat in whenever they were there.

"Wendy?" Ruby asked walking over.

Wendy just put her head down and tried to will the tears to stop. She was being ridiculous. She wasn't usually the type of girl to cry over a boy, but she felt like she'd been kicked in the chest.

"Oh, sweetheart don't cry," Ruby pleaded wrapping her arms around her. Wendy just shook her head and sobbed into her arms.

"How could I have been so stupid?" she muttered more to herself than anyone else.

"It's not your fault. It'll be okay," Ruby assured her holding her tight. That was Wendy's favorite thing about Ruby. Even when she had no idea what was going on, she always said the right thing.

"Do you think I could get a cup of cocoa to go? I should get home," Wendy said after awhile.

"Sure. Sure okay. Will you be alright while I'm gone?" Ruby asked. Wendy nodded weakly and Ruby went in to the kitchen.

Wendy looked down at her necklace and thought about the night before she'd gotten it. Her and Peter sat by the window looking at the stars.

"See that? That's the Little Dipper," she explained pointing at it. He looked over at it, mildly interested.

"What's that one?" He asked pointing to another constellation.

"That's Orion's Belt," she told him smiling. She loved stars and in her infinite boredom while being grounded she'd started studying constellations.

"That's my favorite star," she added after a minute, "The second star to the right." She would've gone on, but she could feel his gaze on her intently.

"Peter! You're not even looking," Wendy chastised looking over at him.

"I've said it before and I'll say it again, Darling. You're incredibly distracting," he said lowly leaning in towards her.

"So one track minded," she whispered her heart beating a million times a minute.

"Only when it comes to you," he whispered back, and then they were kissing. And then they were on her bed. Everything happened so fast that night. It was the first and only time they'd been intimate and he'd been so sweet about it, still staying to hold her until she fell asleep. How could that amazing and gentle person be the same person that had reduced her to tears in the hallway earlier?

"Wendy? You need a ride home?" Ruby asked handing Wendy her cocoa and snapping her out of her reverie.

"No. No I'll walk. Thanks Ruby," she said taking it.

"Any time kid," Ruby told her ruffling her hair affectionately. Wendy managed a small smile and walked home.

When she got home, John and Michael were on the couch playing video games.

"Where were you?" Michael asked looking up.

"Buzz off," she muttered stomping up the stairs.

"You're home. Finally!" Wendy would've screamed, but she didn't want to alert the whole house. Peter was sitting on her bed holding a slice of Apple pie. Her favorite.

"What are you doing here?" She whispered sharply,"What if one of my brothers-or worse, my parents, walked in?"

"So you do still care," he said smirking.

"I care about my boyfriend. Have you seen him? About yay high, brilliant green eyes, actually has has a heart?" Wendy asked sarcastically.

"I know you're mad-" he started to say, but she cut him off.

"No! I don't want to hear 'I know you're mad.' I don't want to hear 'You have every right to be.' Because I know okay? I have the right to be absolutely devastated that I gave myself to you and you ripped my heart out right after! I know that you're here to make sure I don't hate you because even someone as heartless as you feels guilt. I know you're gonna tell me that it's for the best and we should just be friends so please just sa-" Peter kissed her cutting her off.

"How could I want any of that? All I want is you. All I'm ever going to want is you," he told her meaningfully pulling away. Oh, Wendy thought her heart stopping.

"I..." she trailed off not sure what to say.

"I shouldn't have said all of that earlier. I was just- Scared okay?"

"Scared? You, scared?" Wendy asked genuinely taken aback.

"Well, not scared exactly. I just... There's so many reasons I don't deserve you, so many ways we don't work. And truthfully, you probably shouldn't been seen with me. Not because I'm ashamed of you or anything I... Care about you a lot. But because Storybrooke is a very small town and eventually, someone is going to tell your parents." He hadn't let go of her the entire time he was talking and their close proximity was making it really hard for Wendy to focus.

"Screw my parents," she said without thinking.

He smiled. "I don't think they'll approve of that very much."

Wendy rolled her eyes and smacked his arm. "Shut up." She waited a minute for asking the next question. "... Did you really mean what you said earlier?"

"Yes. But not in the way that you think," he explained.

"So how then?" she asked.

"Well... When my parents left, I had to learn to take care of myself. And for a while that meant not letting anyone in. But then you come along with your blue eyes and stories and big heart making question everything I once thought was absolute law."

"Really?" Wendy thought blushing.

"Really. And I thought-'this could be fun. As long as I don't let myself get attached'. I'm not proud that I thought that, but I did. And I broke my own rule the moment I kissed you. So I thought if I just let you go early I could save the both of us a lot of devastation."

"Oh, Peter. We were doomed the minute we met. But none of that matters," Wendy told him meaningfully.

"It doesn't?"

"Of course it doesn't. We fight all the time, you drive me absolutely mad, and everyone in town thinks you're going to turn me into some she devil. But we're still here aren't we? There's this... This force between us. I felt it the very first time we spoke. Everything in me told me I should get away, but I couldn't. And now? I won't. Because I need you. And I know in some sick, twisted way you need me too."

He didn't say anything at first, just looked at her. Wendy looked down, feeling self conscious. Great. He probably thought she was crazy.

"I think you're the greatest person I've ever met," Peter said, reading the thought clear on her face.

"Stay out of my head," she protested blushing.

"Nope. I like it in there."

"Even the dark corners?"

He kissed her. "Especially the dark corners."

"You should probably go. I have a ton of homework and it's my night to do the dishes..." Wendy started to say, but he cut her off.

"Or we could go to our tree house," he suggested. She did not like that knowing smirk on his face.

"Our tree house?" she asked.

"Of course. Who else would I share it with?"

"Felix?"

He laughed. "Come on. I have just the game for us to play."

"I don't like this," Wendy said reluctantly, but he was already at the window.

"It's now or never Darling. Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I'll show you adventure!" Wendy called climbing out the window after him.

"That's my Wendy bird. Let's go," he said stopping only to give her a soft kiss.

Wendy laughed. "I'm gonna be grounded for the rest of my life."

"I don't know. So far, I like you being grounded," Peter teased.

"Shut up" she replied and the two disappeared into the night.