Pan's Game || OUAT Fanfic || EDITED VERSION

Chapter 26; In Hindsight, Maybe Challenging Andrew Wasn't A Good Idea

"It's both a blessing and a curse to feel everything so deeply."

~ David Jones, Love and Space Dust

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Alice's P.O.V

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    Ray and I promised each other that we wouldn't ever mention our little moment ever again. What happened in the cave, stays in the cave. Ray went back to his tent and I went back to the tree house acting as if nothing ever happend. Which was really hard. Everything makes sense now that Ray has confessed his feelings towards me, but it also made it more complicated.

    My heart is conflicted. I love Ray, but not like that. So where does that put us? We aren't friends or lovers. How can one be "just friends" with someone who loves you? Or vice versa? And what about Peter? I have to stay focused on The Game. This incident will just drive me off track. I can't afford to fall in love at this point.

    My heart is split into two. One part longs for Ray, and the other longs for Peter. Is it possible for that to happen? And are my feelings towards them real? Am I like Tessa Grey, where Ray is Jem and Peter is Will? What would Tessa chose? I don't deny that I feel a certain attraction towards Peter, but I can't pinpoint the feeling. Is it love or is it just the moments that Peter and I had finally taking it's toll?

    And all this happened just because I read "The Child Thief". How did my life get so complicated?

    "Alice!" Peter shouts, his voice like a hard slap, bringing me back to reality.
    I blink. "What?"
    "Have you even been listening to a single word I've been saying?" he asks.
    I sit up on the bed and nod. "Yes," I say, then I shake my head. "No."
    He sighs. "I said, "you'll be training with the other Lost Boys today"."

    "Okay, sure," I say.
    "Are you alright with that?" he asks.
    Am I alright with that? After my incident with Ray?
    "Yeah," I say. "Yeah, I'll be fine."
    "Felix will be leading the training lesson," he says. "So you don't have to worry about anything."
    Sure, five hours of training with Ray and The Bloodlust Trio, what could possibly go wrong?

****

    "Hey, look!" Andrew hollers, gesturing with the sword in his hand. "The runt's girlfriend is here."
    I sigh, walking up to the crowd of Lost Boys. In the center of the crowd is Felix, demonstrating how to block a side cut with his sword. He makes eye contact with me and nods, acknowledging my presence in the group.

    Felix continues teaching the younger Lost Boys the rules of dueling. None of which is new to me and I decide to tune him out, sizing up The Trio instead. Andrew stands a few meters away from me, as always, he's flanked by the two brothers. Andrew's face is expressionless, no doubt he's bored out of his mind. I recall what Peter told me about Andrew's skill in dueling.

    "He's the last person you'd want to be in fight with," Peter says. "He'll beat you within seconds even Felix can't match Andrew's skill with the blade."
    "How'd he get so good at sword fighting?" I ask.
    "Felix and I taught him everything he knows," Peter explains proudly.
    "So the student has become the master?"
    "Sadly, yes," Peter says.

    Jerome flanks Andrew's right while his brother, Hunter, flanks his left. Jerome scrutinizes Ray and whispers something to Andrew. It must've been amusing to Andrew as he laughs outloud. Hunter remains unfazed by their joke, focused on Felix's explanation with a neural expression. Andrew examines the crowd and his eyes land on me.

    He smirks, realizing that I've been staring at him. "Like what you see?" he mouths.
    "Of course," I mouth. "Not."
    "Feisty," he mouths. "Just the way I like my girls."
    I scrunch up my face in disgust.
    "Get into your pairs," Felix announces.