LIONHEART.

they are a mess. things keep shifting between them; whether that's for better or worse remains to be seen. forced or not, the pair is spending more time together than ever. @outlawiism seeks her & then she seeks him. SECRETLY, of course.

❛   why does it sound like you want us to go on this fake date ?   ❜ one thing is the two hanging out behind closed doors, but being out there in some fancy restaurant or another will only lead to the PRESS finding them. photographers sent by their fathers, obviously. ❛   yanno, you'd have to be soft & lovey-dovey.   ❜

Carol has lost count of how many times she's been told they need to act like a COUPLE in public. if they give in, it will put more pressure on them to perform from here on out. ❛   your shallow bad-boy persona would shatter.   ❜

they are a goddamn mess. the lines have already blurred more for his liking than he could normally handle.   &   yet he doesn’t have the luxury to bail. besides, what’s more scary is that he doesn’t want to. he wants to stay with her. he’s convinced he’s going insane.

❝  yea’ ‘cause it already hasn’t shattered or anything. the rumors alone are enough to ruin our lives.  ❞   Peter adds with a low tone.   ❝  what’s so bad about a date with me anyway  ?   we can still bicker. just under dim lights while eating overly expensive food. we both win.  ❞

she'd  spent  a  good  majority  of  her  career   alone.      isolated  from  her  family  for   their  security,     keeping  her  walls  up  high  enough  that  nobody  can  climb  them,    lest  they  have  a  death  wish.      since  those  walls  came  crashing  down  —     exposed  the   softer  version   of  penny  that  was  kept  hidden  as  the  core  of  the  earth  —      she's  learned  the  feeling  of   being  whole.      she  clings  to  it  now,     nails  like  talons  sinking  deep  into  its  flesh  as  if  it  might  be   ripped  away   at  a  moment's  notice.      peter  fills  that  emptiness.      reminds  her  that  even  late  at  night,     when  she's  three  hours  deep  into   bluey   and  emma's  long  since  fallen  asleep,     her  family  is  only  ever  a  phone  call  away.      it's  okay  to  make  that  phone  call.

she  takes  care  of  him  the  way  she'd  take  care  of  all  of  her  family  —      with  a   full  stomach   and  the  reminder  that   he  will  always  be  welcome  here.      that  her  home  will  always  be  home  for  him,   too,   for  as  long  as  he  needs  or  wants.      that   peter  is  family.

❝ worry  not,      we're  havin'   homemade  pizza   fer  dinner,  ❞      penny  assures  him,     turning  back  from  the  pantry  to  lay  out  the  ingredients  needed  to  start  the  dough.      as  he  enters  the  kitchen,     penny's  grin  lifts  at  one  corner  of  her  mouth,     a  quick  glance  behind  the  other  to  ensure  he  had  no   shadow   trailing  behind  him.      ❝   they're  in  the  sauce,  ❞      she  shares  with  a  teasing  wink,     just  in  time  for  the  slap  of  tiny  bare  feet  to  make  its  way  down  the  hallway  and  into  the  kitchen  after  him.

this is a universe on its own. every time Peter steps into Penny's residence, he feels like he is stepping into a pocket dimension so precious that he almost freaks out. trouble always follows him, no, he cannot even allow himself to think that way. he is stronger now, more aware. he would protect them. hell, he protects them even when he is not around. he wonders if a similar kind of life could have been his had he never gone to space, living oblivious to the possibilities, the countless lives he got to touch. could he ever be 'normal' by Earth standards  ?   definitely not.

even if he were just some guy, perhaps his head would always be fixed on the heavens, wondering what he had missed. it is a privilege to have a taste of that life here. domesticity, routines, order, there is a human side of him that craves those things even if he keeps it suppressed most of the time, always throwing himself into a new adventure because his blood boils all the same. however, having family beyond the Guardians helps the void left behind by his mother feel a bit smaller, never gone, but bearable.

❝  PIZZA  ?!   my favorite  !   hell yea' they are in the sauce. i'm so gonna use that argument whenever i decide to eat pizza for a week.  ❞   Peter announces proudly. he is one lucky space man, able to eat whatever Earth food he wants without dealing with the consequences thanks to his physiology.

once Emma is back around, it is obvious the Star-Lord's entire focus becomes the little lady.   ❝  yeah  ?    ❞   he retorts with a soft tone that contrasts with the urgency in Emma's.   ❝  c, h — actually, uhm, we could write it together if you want. unless you reeeeally wanna do it by yourself. i can keep givin' you letters. chocolate is a long one.  ❞  he says, gesturing at the paper, unsure if any of it will fit. not that it even matters. okay, he cannot figure out what is on the paper.

for a bit, the blonde debated coming back to this safehouse. mostly because there's been a dangerous shift between them that could cost them their lives. there are SOFTER edges now, which even she cannot ignore. yet staying apart is now impossible given their alliance.

there are no surprises as @outlawiism waits for her to step over the threshold after her RECONNAISSANCE mission. Carol lets out a breath at the sight of him. he looks better. a bit more color to his visage now.

❛ i got a little distracted, but it hardly hurts now. ❜ no point in hiding the cut on her lower lip. ❛   at least we made some progress. your father is throwing a DIPLOMATIC party in a month. i suggest we crash it.   ❜ if he's not up for it yet, she will.

❝  there ever a time you don’t get in trouble goin’ out  ?    ❞   Peter asks, his tone as low as it always has been, but the blonde’s assessment of that subtle shift between them is laced in his voice. it is softer. he can always blame how much better he’s feeling   &   how he’s not being hunted inside these walls. it’s almost dangerous how he’s established a routine. it was too damn difficult for him to stay behind for this one…

❛   i am. i promise.   ❜ the blonde beams up at @outlawiism as he approaches her after a hard day of work. for him, anyway. all she's been doing is UNPACKING her belongings & trying to sort out where to put them. there isn't much since Carol tends to travel light, but he will find a few pictures of her mom & late brother displayed around the apartment now.

it was a bit TRICKY to figure out what to leave here & what to take to the estate, but she knows Peter wouldn't want her to worry too much. she could picture him saying he'd buy whatever she needs. frankly,  she knows he's already working on  improving  her wardrobe for public appearances & whatnot.

❛   Chewie is already settled.   ❜ one would think she's been living here for YEARS. ❛   i rearranged some drawers for my undergarments. anyway, how was work ? did you miss me ?   ❜

that smile makes everything worth it. not that the singer feels like he is facing any hardships whatsoever. the debacle with his father feels sad   &   pointless, first world, even. the tension of the day quickly washes away, his tight shoulders slightly drooping, his charming smile relaxed.

❝  i know she is,  ❞   he comments sweetly. just like that, their beloved orange cat quickly approaches him. Peter picks her up, letting her settle close to his neck. they already have a routine.   ❝  sounds like you took care of the most important thing early on.  ❞   the smirk on his handsome face disappears when he lightly pecks Carol's lips, looking at her like a high school boy madly in love.

he has a tendency to talk a lot, so yes, sometimes she doesn't pay too much attention. other times, it seems like he's perfectly fine filling the silence for both of them. then again, it's not as if she has any answers for either of them. they are both LOST. ❛   you say a lot of things.   ❜

yeah, he knows he is a yapper, but it is a miracle to talk to something else besides the empty recordings he keeps filling for what feels like no reason at all. him managing to go back home feels impossible. Peter tries not to think about that, not yet. besides, he has a guest now. he needs to save her, somehow. since when does he feel like a goddamn hero  ?!     ❝  i am the first person who's ever left the solar system. you can't be from Earth  !   oh man… no offense, but i hope you are not from Earth… 'cause if you are, means i wasted my whole life to do something that was already done.  ❞   the astronaut adds, knowing there are more pressing matters at hand, like the object of their conversation   &   his ship-related problems on top of that.

the gig is up. oh, she will be in trouble now, which is why the blonde fidgets with her hoodie, trying to buy herself a few seconds, as if she could come up with some miraculous excuse for why she didn't say anything earlier. @outlawiism won't leave her out of his sight now.

no point in delaying the INEVITABLE ...

❛   don't freak out.   ❜ it immediately causes the opposite reaction; Carol can see his body tensing. ❛   since this afternoon. it's just a MINOR SPRAIN. i can manage if i move slowly. i've been icing it & i wrapped it up. it's not a big deal ...   ❜ it hardly hurts. well, mostly because she's been sitting down the past few hours.

❝  babe…  ❞   his blood boils not because he is exactly mad at the blonde, but because that feeling of absolute hell is back. the pit of his stomach churns with the kind of feeling that takes over one's entire being, that feeling of everything being wrong, wanting to collapse him like something caught in the event horizon of a black hole.