Silver Iron

Page 54

Lana's P.O.V

I stood there staring at Winona in my doorway and as she looked in past me she asked, "bad time?"

Glancing at the floor for a second I responded, "yeah, a little bit."

I watched as Winona nodded and then she said, "I just came by to make sure you were alright after what happened in Asgard. I'd hate to have my best friend die on me."

I laughed at Winona a bit and hugged her slightly as I said, "thanks for checking on me, I'm okay though. Physically I'm fine mentally, I'm still a little messy."

Winona smiled slightly and said, "I guess I'll leave you two alone to talk it out a bit? Call me later, yeah?"

I agreed and she waved goodbye as she left.

When I turned back around and looked at Peter his head was down and his eyes were covered by his hair.

Slowly I made my way back over to the couch and sat back with my arms crossed.

Peter didn't look up and so I spoke first, "what? What were you going to say, Peter?"

He finally glanced up and he called, "I said because you're my best friend. Sure, I have Ned but he's always busy these days and you were always there for me. I know I don't deserve your forgiveness. I'm not saying I do, I just… I miss you. I'm willing to go against Mr. Stark even." He paused and fully lifted his head up before saying, "heck I did that today, just to see you. I know he probably hates my guts now."

I laughed and leaned back into the couch even farther as I bleated, “it’s always been about my father, right? Mr. Stark this, Mr. Stark that, Mr. Stark… well, why don’t you go to him and explain everything you did wrong? Did you come here just to remind me why I hate him so much?”  I paused to take in a harsh breath and demanded, “if you came here to apologize to me, then apologize to me. Don’t go off on a tangent about the person who started this all in the first place, Peter!”

Peter’s eyes were full of surprise when I belted out in a spiel of anger. 

As soon as I realized what I had said I closed my eyes tight and looked away. My harsh words ringing through my head as heard Peter clear his throat, “well…” he paused, “if that’s how you feel…”

I couldn’t open my eyes and I couldn’t turn my head to face him. I just sat there and my arms fell to the couch cushions. My hands gripped tightly to the seat as I heard him stand up from the chair.

Pain danced through my heart and knocked on the window to my brain as I thought about that being the last thing I said to him.

I felt the cushion dip beside me as arms flung around me and pulled me into a warm chest. Something hard and edgy rested on the top of my head and something soft and warm dripped into my hair. 

As I opened my eyes I had finally realized that Peter had moved next to me and hugged me.

“Then I guess, I’m going to have to show you how I feel too.”

His voice was warm like freshly melted caramel and it mixed all too well with the warm slick tears falling down his face into my hair.

He was shaking, but he continued, “I don’t know how you feel about me anymore, I honestly have never really known how you felt about me. Just please let me be there for you even just one more time…”

When he finished speaking I began to space out, his words repeated over and over again in my head. Every time it repeated it sounded just as clear, when I finally snapped out of it I realized some of his tears must have slipped out of my hair and onto my face.

I reached up to wipe his tears off of my face when I felt that it was trailing down from my own eyes. The tears I felt on my face were mine, not his, and I hadn’t even realized it until just now.

I was crying for him, and I think from what I could gather, he was crying for me.

If for certain it was this moment, I don’t really know, I just know it was right then that it hit me. 

The reason his betrayal hurt so much…

Why his smile brightened up my day so immensely…

And why his words meant so god damn much to me.

It’s because I liked him, not just as friends, not as best friends, but more than that. I fell for him, all those times he’d pick me up from my darkest moments, all his kind smiles, and his amazing personality. It all built up to how I was feeling about him.

And for the first time in around the fifteen minutes he showed up in person in front of me, I finally took a good look at him.

My eyes were wide open, starting to sting, but I took in his whole appearance. The messy, unkept, disheveled hair, the grey sweatpants, and hoodie, and red and white converse. His eyes had bags underneath them and they were red and puffy as his face was light pink.

I released myself from his grasp and reached up, then I cuffed his cheeks in my hands before mumbling, “oh...Peter.”

My forehead creased as my eyebrows furrowed in concern and I faltered in my words, “I...you...go home and get some rest, Peter. You look horrible...like really horrible.”

He chuckled and croaked out, “thanks, that makes me feel better.”

I slightly grinned at his pitiful joke and sighed, “one more chance...okay? Don’t take it lightly, I don’t usually give second chances. So, go home and get some sleep knowing, we can act like nothing happened tomorrow.”

Peter smiled and hugged me tightly, at first I wanted to pull away but I gradually let him hug me. After a few seconds, I grumbled, “Peter, you need to go home and sleep, so go!”

He laughed and stood up after letting me out of his arms and said, “Right, I’ll see you later, Lana!”

I chuckled as he ran out of the house and shut the door, “that boy.”