The Neverland Wars

Chapter 6

Peter

"Right," I clear my throat and open my door, ushering her into my bedroom. "This is where you'll stay tonight."

She stands awkwardly in the center of the room, glancing towards the bathroom before turning back to me. Her expression is neutral but her fingers itch at the hem of the t-shirt I loaned her after the nurses took her scrubs. My clothes nearly swallow her slim frame.

"This is your room," she says flatly.

"Yeah, well, I don't mind loaning it to you," I grin cheekily.

"He gave my room to someone else, didn't he?"

I feel my breath leave my lungs, not realizing I'd been holding it. "We fought for him to keep it empty. It was for awhile. But our ranks grew, and he needed a space—"

"I guess that's what happens when you become a casualty," she cuts me off.

"You're not a casualty," I say reassuringly. "I'll work on getting you your room back. But in the meantime, my bed is comfy. I think you'll like it."

"Are you sleeping here too?"

"No, I'm rooming with Seb."

"I don't want to kick you out of your own room."

"It's fine, really. I don't mind."

"I insist. I can sleep on the floor—"

"You'll sleep in my bed. Seb and I already talked about our sleeping arrangements. I'll take his floor for a little while."

"You could stay in here too. You know--with me. You could stay here, with me."

"Honestly, Em, it's just a room. It really doesn't matter--"

"I don't want to be alone," she blurts, her eyes wide like she can't believe she said it out loud. The sentence hangs in the air between us for a moment before she takes a breath, and repeats it. "I don't want to be alone."

Immediately, my heart squeezes in guilt, and I nod. "Oh. Okay. Of course."

"Sorry."

"Don't be sorry," I take a step towards her. "I'll stay."

She nods, looking somewhat reassured as she walks over to the bed and peels the sheets back, sliding in. She winces as she settles into a comfortable position.

I grab a pillow from the other side of the bed, plopping it on the ground.

"You can...you can sleep here. In the bed. The bed's plenty big enough."

I regard her thoughtfully, how she's scooted to the farthest possible side of the bed to leave an adequate amount of space for me plus some room between us. She left me the side of the bed she knows I like to sleep on. We fell asleep together as kids all the time. It was...comfortable. Safe. So why does the idea of it seem almost foreign now? Surely she and I aren't that different than we used to be? This shouldn't be a new feeling, so why is it? I feel the tops of my ears get hot as I pick the pillow up from the floor and put it back on my side of the bed, sliding under the covers quietly.

We both lay on our backs, staring at the ceiling. My heart is pounding in my ears, so loud I'm almost sure she hears it. I don't know why I'm so nervous. It's Emma, I tell myself. We grew up together.

"Breaking my nose was the first thing that happened," she says finally, breaking the silence.

"What do you mean?"

"I heard the nurses talking about my nose. That they didn't know when it happened. It was the first thing that happened. The first night."

"You remember?"