[ It hurts, hearing all that, realizing just how close they had come to being— something. How close they were to finally doing something about whatever it was that lay between them. Peter had waited so long for exactly that, biding his time, trying to cultivate a perfect moment, ever since they met on Xandar. Ever since they swayed together on Knowhere. Ever since Gamora took his hand, standing among the ruins of the Dark Aster, and said they were a family. Ever since he looked at that ugly, barbed thing driving itself into his heart and thought, This is gonna be a problem.

And then they dashed themselves and what might have been on the rocks of Ego’s planet.

Which is about his luck, all things considered.

But when she continues on, he frowns. He finally turns away to look at her, confusion clear on his face. ]

You... you didn’t. Ruin anything, I mean.

[ He rubs at an eye, collecting the words, thinking back on everything that happened (though he does it reluctantly). ]

—Listen. If this is— if this is about how I reacted, back at—

[ bleached white bones turned ghostly by the scattered glow of Ego’s veins. heaps and heaps of remains, telling the tale of how many families ego had fucked over, how many dreams he shattered when his progeny wasn’t good enough— ]

—back in the caverns. I was— confused. And angry. And overwhelmed. It was my fault. Not yours.