[ For a second, with the way her face twists, he thinks she's going to fight him the whole way on this, and while she's in no position to argue, seeing as how she's on the verge of unconsciousness, he still wants to give her the choice, still wants to let her have agency in the decision. It was Gamora's advice -- and the assassin hadn't been a slave in so many words, but she had been as good as one, she had told him.
So when she finally relents, he doesn't bother to hide his relief. He nods, lips parting to answer, but--
--she suddenly goes, like a marionette with its strings cut. He catches her before she hits the ground and calls her name, desperate and panicked, bracing her against him carefully. Peter has strength enough to pick her up, but-- with the way she's bruised and beaten, with the way her skin is marred with deep bruises and the way her chest rattles with each breath, he's afraid of causing more damage. So he holds her, murmuring quiet reassurances that fall on deaf ears.
It comes as a relief when Groot and Rocket reappear in the alleyway, and the former keens in distress at the sight of Rose slumped against Peter. The Flora colossus extends his arms, ropey vines twisting and twining around her, carefully supporting her neck and shoulders; he lifts her up into a sort of cradle, and Rocket nods sharply before turning and heading down the alley to a waiting ambulance. It's lucky the Nova Corps has a presence on this planet, luckier still that the Guardians were known here, so when he climbs into the vehicle after Rose, the personnel know better than to ask questions.
After that, everything's a blur -- but Peter's as good as his word, sticking with Rose every step of the way, an unwelcome presence in the corner of every room. (The first time a nurse told him to leave, he snapped back at him that he had made a promise, that he still had his blasters holstered at his hips, and that he had no qualms in showing-off just how excellent his aim was. The fact that it was Drax who had to apologize to the shaken man spoke volumes.) At some point, the doctors announced that Rose was stable, and she was admitted into a room, (private, courtesy again of Nova Corps' clout), and by then, the first few rays of morning are lightening the sky.
The team quietly urges Peter to get some rest, but he refuses every time. ("I asked her to trust me. What kind of asshole would I be if I ditched her now?") Instead, he pulls up a chair next to the foot of Rose's bed, folds his arm on the edge of the mattress, and rests his chin there. It's like visiting Mom all over again, the sharp tang of disinfectant hanging in the air; machinery humming quietly; listening to the quiet murmur of nurses and doctors and patients in the halls. Peter has never slept well in hospitals, though that wouldn't stop him from spending the weekends with Mom when he was younger.
So even now, some twenty years later, Peter still stays the night, catching a few moments of sleep here and there and jumping awake when an unfamiliar noise catches him off-guard. The rest of the time, he alternates between staring at the wall (pale green here, too) or listening to his mix tapes. Whenever Rose wakes, he'll be half-asleep at the foot of her bed, headphones skewed on his head while "O-o-h Child" plays softly. ]
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So when she finally relents, he doesn't bother to hide his relief. He nods, lips parting to answer, but--
--she suddenly goes, like a marionette with its strings cut. He catches her before she hits the ground and calls her name, desperate and panicked, bracing her against him carefully. Peter has strength enough to pick her up, but-- with the way she's bruised and beaten, with the way her skin is marred with deep bruises and the way her chest rattles with each breath, he's afraid of causing more damage. So he holds her, murmuring quiet reassurances that fall on deaf ears.
It comes as a relief when Groot and Rocket reappear in the alleyway, and the former keens in distress at the sight of Rose slumped against Peter. The Flora colossus extends his arms, ropey vines twisting and twining around her, carefully supporting her neck and shoulders; he lifts her up into a sort of cradle, and Rocket nods sharply before turning and heading down the alley to a waiting ambulance. It's lucky the Nova Corps has a presence on this planet, luckier still that the Guardians were known here, so when he climbs into the vehicle after Rose, the personnel know better than to ask questions.
After that, everything's a blur -- but Peter's as good as his word, sticking with Rose every step of the way, an unwelcome presence in the corner of every room. (The first time a nurse told him to leave, he snapped back at him that he had made a promise, that he still had his blasters holstered at his hips, and that he had no qualms in showing-off just how excellent his aim was. The fact that it was Drax who had to apologize to the shaken man spoke volumes.) At some point, the doctors announced that Rose was stable, and she was admitted into a room, (private, courtesy again of Nova Corps' clout), and by then, the first few rays of morning are lightening the sky.
The team quietly urges Peter to get some rest, but he refuses every time. ("I asked her to trust me. What kind of asshole would I be if I ditched her now?") Instead, he pulls up a chair next to the foot of Rose's bed, folds his arm on the edge of the mattress, and rests his chin there. It's like visiting Mom all over again, the sharp tang of disinfectant hanging in the air; machinery humming quietly; listening to the quiet murmur of nurses and doctors and patients in the halls. Peter has never slept well in hospitals, though that wouldn't stop him from spending the weekends with Mom when he was younger.
So even now, some twenty years later, Peter still stays the night, catching a few moments of sleep here and there and jumping awake when an unfamiliar noise catches him off-guard. The rest of the time, he alternates between staring at the wall (pale green here, too) or listening to his mix tapes. Whenever Rose wakes, he'll be half-asleep at the foot of her bed, headphones skewed on his head while "O-o-h Child" plays softly. ]