Aftermath (Peter)

[st_hotflashes]

She had been told to rest, and so she did, but she couldn't fall asleep. There were too many thoughts. Too much guilt. She felt stupid and silly - so she finally got up. She messaged Peter that she would like to see him and then she found herself pulling out her Crashdown uniform.

She pulled on the uniform and looked in the mirror. She even put on the headband with bobbing alien attenas.

This was who she was. Liz Parker. She should probably just stop fooling herself.

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[st_hotflashes]

She looked at him for a long moment in silence, lips pressed together, but hinting at a frown.

Liz reached out and wrapped her arms around his torso, hugging his back. And then she started to cry - a cry that she hadn't yet had over what had happened to both of them.

[st_arkintern]

"Hey," Peter says, suddenly, not sure what to do. He doesn't want to pull away, but at the same time, he still wants to hold her.

And that's not something he can do easily from this position.

So instead, he lets her hold him and he folds his arms over her own, his hands set firmly over hers. He doesn't know what to say and he doesn't know why she's crying, but he can do this.

[st_hotflashes]

Liz wasn't sure how long she cried against Peter. Her grip tightened around him and she just let herself cry. She didn't hold back this time and she didn't try to stop herself. Several minutes passed before she seemed to run out of tears and Liz was left with gaspy breaths and shuddered exhales.

[st_arkintern]

As the minutes pass, Peter's still unsure as to what he should do. Eventually, Liz's crying seems to subside and finally, he pushes himself to say something.

"Liz," he starts, softly. "If there's something wrong... I really want you to tell me."

[st_hotflashes]

His voice, and the kindness therein, force an unsteady frown as this time she fights back a sob, eyes shut tightly. It was another minute before she found her voice, rough and quiet. "We almost died... We wouldn't even be here, right now."

[st_arkintern]

"We are here, though," he says, giving one of her hands a little squeeze. "I know that probably doesn't help, but... we're here and we're fine."

And sometimes what he needs to remind himself of when he gets panicky, like he did when they were in the ventilation ducts.

"I love you," he tells her, just in case she needs to hear it.

[st_hotflashes]

The physical reaction Liz had to his words was probably most evident. She seemed to suck in all the air around her while her grip tightened and then loosened. She shut her eyes again as she fought off another wave. Liz knew why Peter faced this sort of thing a lot and was able to deal with it easier too.

Finally she straightened, reluctantly letting go of Peter's body. Her face was now a red hot mess. "sorry... I guess - I guess I've been carrying that around for a while."

She wiped her face with the backs of her hands.

[st_arkintern]

"You don't have to carry things around with you," he says, twisting himself around best he can so he can get a better look at Liz. "We're a team. We can carry those things together."

[st_hotflashes]

She searched his eyes for a moment, then nodded. "I'm sorry... I know you don't keep anything back from me. I need... To do the same."

Liz reached out to touched the side of his face gently. "I promise, from now on, okay. Even if I feel like it's something stupid."

[st_arkintern]

Peter still doesn't feel entirely convinced that everything's okay. "Are you sure that's all you need?" he asks. "I'm still dealing with everything that happened under that warehouse now, and it's been --" Peter tries to dredge up the numbers. "-- a really long time now," he finishes, unable to find a satisfactory answer.

"I don't expect you to feel okay about this right now," he says. "Really, I don't. Just remember that."

[st_hotflashes]

She nodded. The truth was, she felt a strong urge to throw herself at him. She had no idea why, but it was there. Even now as she sat there looking undoubtedly like a mess, she wanted to get lost in his arms and his lips and not have to think. And yet, she knew Peter wasn't ready yet and somewhere in her more rational mind she knew the urge was some sort of response to almost dying.

Liz leaned forward and kissed the side of his face. "We'll figure it out together."

[st_arkintern]

"Yeah," Peter says, nodding. He kisses the side of her face, too. "I'm sure we will."

It might not be easy, but if anyone can do it, it'd be them.

"You ready to head back to the inn?"

[st_hotflashes]

She smiled a little, for real this time, and nodded. She really did love him.

"Yeah. Let's get back."