[ He lets out a long breath, and only the barest twitch of his head betrays the fact that he glances up at her behind his mask. ]
... Thank you.
[ And he practically whispers it.
Another deep inhale before Peter forces himself to straighten, rolling his shoulders like that might help him regain his composure (and maybe a little bit of his dignity, though he’s reasonably sure that’s long gone, today). It’s only he’s stretching out his fingers, slightly sore from how tightly he had clenched them into fists, that he realizes—
He’s still holding Gamora’s hand.
Another time, he might have smirked a little knowingly, because Gamora wouldn’t have allowed that unless she wanted to. Or maybe he would’ve jerked away like he’s been burned, babbling to avoid having to apologize. But now, he just— slowly releases her hand, giving her the opportunity to pull back, if she wants. ]
[ Gamora seems to notice again in the same moment, looking down to their joined hands. Oddly, she hadn't balked at the contact, not even now, and just... allowed it – offered it freely, as both a comfort to Peter and a way to ground him in the aftermath of the tunnel.
She's almost worried he'll rub her face in it, at first, but nothing comes. Nothing smug or some insistence about that unspoken thing – that they haven't even mentioned since their fight. She's grateful for that, because she doesn't know what to do with it, and Peter, for reasons all his own, hasn't insisted. That carries through to now.
But, instead of releasing him in turn, she keeps her own fingers gently curled around his, and then pushes herself to her feet. She holds onto Peter's hand, offering it as a way to pull himself up. ]
[ His mask hides the stunned look that crosses his face when she doesn’t let go. Things make a little more sense one she gets to her feet, still with his hand in her grasp, and he figures it was a convenience thing. She was going to help him up anyway, so why go to the effort of dropping his hand?
He takes a rallying breath before pulling himself up with Gamora’s help, and thankfully, taking those long moments to compose himself means that his legs don’t buckle beneath him again, as they had when they climbed out of the tunnel. The whole... thing has still left him shaken (and shaking, at least a little), and Peter wishes desperately that he’ll never have to see another cave like this one for the rest of his life.
There’s a dim light that illuminates these chambers, and he could probably retract his mask, but he doesn’t. That layer of obscurity feels almost comforting, given how much he’d already betrayed, and in all likelihood, he’ll keep the helmet on until they find their employer. ]
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no subject
... Thank you.
[ And he practically whispers it.
Another deep inhale before Peter forces himself to straighten, rolling his shoulders like that might help him regain his composure (and maybe a little bit of his dignity, though he’s reasonably sure that’s long gone, today). It’s only he’s stretching out his fingers, slightly sore from how tightly he had clenched them into fists, that he realizes—
He’s still holding Gamora’s hand.
Another time, he might have smirked a little knowingly, because Gamora wouldn’t have allowed that unless she wanted to. Or maybe he would’ve jerked away like he’s been burned, babbling to avoid having to apologize. But now, he just— slowly releases her hand, giving her the opportunity to pull back, if she wants. ]
no subject
She's almost worried he'll rub her face in it, at first, but nothing comes. Nothing smug or some insistence about that unspoken thing – that they haven't even mentioned since their fight. She's grateful for that, because she doesn't know what to do with it, and Peter, for reasons all his own, hasn't insisted. That carries through to now.
But, instead of releasing him in turn, she keeps her own fingers gently curled around his, and then pushes herself to her feet. She holds onto Peter's hand, offering it as a way to pull himself up. ]
Let's get back.
no subject
He takes a rallying breath before pulling himself up with Gamora’s help, and thankfully, taking those long moments to compose himself means that his legs don’t buckle beneath him again, as they had when they climbed out of the tunnel. The whole... thing has still left him shaken (and shaking, at least a little), and Peter wishes desperately that he’ll never have to see another cave like this one for the rest of his life.
There’s a dim light that illuminates these chambers, and he could probably retract his mask, but he doesn’t. That layer of obscurity feels almost comforting, given how much he’d already betrayed, and in all likelihood, he’ll keep the helmet on until they find their employer. ]