(Josie Sayz: Here it
is, my sequel to ‘Peter and Jane’ (original ‘Peter and Jane’: https://josiesayz.blogspot.com/2017/01/peter-and-jane_20.html).
I was inspired by watching a television programme where a teacher told his
student to write her own ending if she wasn’t happy with the way things turned
out in her life, so that’s exactly what I did. This is Jane’s perfect happily
ever after.
Disclaimer: I do not
own any of the characters or location references – these are works by JM Barrie
and ‘Disney’.)
Staring at the clock,
her stomach knotted. Its rhythmical ticking rattled at her temples. Three
minutes had passed since she last looked at it. She shuddered as the door
squeaked open. “You still staring at that clock?” chucked the gentleman in a spruce,
navy suit, as he shuffled into the room, with a large cardboard box hugged
between his arms. Her heart crashed into her ribcage.
“Just
checking the time, Mister Starkey,” she replied with a nervous laugh. Exhaling
a long sigh, she returned her attention to the computer screen.
“Time’ll
go a lot faster if you keep busy,” Mr. Starkey told her, as he crossed the
room.
“Time
would go a lot faster if these computers actually worked,” she retorted,
smashing her index finger over and over again on the mouse. “Useless thing,”
she uttered under her breath. Pressing her palms into the edge of the table,
she slid herself out from her desk.
“I’ve
told you before: complaining will get you nowhere,” Starkey sang. “You know we
can’t afford a faster server.” She sighed in defeat, folding her arms. Placing
his box down on the far side of her office, Mr. Starkey asked, “Can you send
this first class for me, Jane?”
“Of
course,” Jane agreed with a shrug as she neared him. Pulling open the top desk
drawer, she pulled out a marmalade coloured booklet and a roll of matching
stickers. Heaving the parcel onto the postal scales, she chuckled to herself.
“That’s a pretty weighty parcel, Mister Starkey. What’s in it, gold coins?”
Jane joked.
“It’s
the paperwork for Jas to sign, so the deal can go ahead,” replied Mr. Starkey
lowering his head. His shoulders drooped as his hands sunk into his pockets. Shifting
her sight from Mr. Starkey to the floor, Jane pulled her pen out from her
ponytail. Opening her mouth, she flickered her sight towards him. Her sentence
hesitated. Her bottom lip wavered. Snapping her mouth shut, she recoiled,
lowering her head.
“Should
I send it tracked, sir?” she muttered.
“Best
to,” he nodded.
While
Jane knelt at the tawny table to copy out the tracking information, Mr. Starkey
paced the room. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Examining the
piles of paperwork that lined Jane’s desk, which she had accomplished
throughout the day, Mr. Starkey hovered over them with a heavy exhale. Seven
stacks lay in perfect piles, each with a sticky note in the centre, providing a
brief description of its contents. Glancing at each pile in turn, Mr. Starkey
hummed in approval. “Good work Jane; I have never had a junior quite as
efficient as you,” he mused, observing her neat stack of sticky notes, three
pots of paperclips, each containing different sizes (all without contamination)
and elaborate pen pot, with each cylindrical section dedicated to a different
colour inked pen. “Everything is so perfect.”
“Thank
you, Mister Starkey,” she blushed, as she finished copying the address from the
box into the office postal booklet. Feeling her cheeks tingle, she pinched her
lips in. Out of the corner of her eye, Jane stared at his shoes. Her stomach
lathered. Her heart raced in her ribcage. Pressing her hands into her knees to
rise, Jane inhaled a shaky breath. “So,” she murmured, peeling a sticker from
the bundle and rubbing it onto the box. “You’re agreeing to merge with ‘Hook’s
Inc.’?” she asked, as her voice got higher.
“It’ll
be good for business,” Starkey assured Jane, as he loomed over her. “Everything’s
online nowadays and no one reads newspapers anymore,” he grumbled. “The
‘Neverlandian News’ will be a dodo before the year’s out if we don’t act fast.”
Scraping a hand through his combed back hair, Mr. Starkey puffed an exhale. “‘Hook’s
Inc.’ is full of all the modern technology your little heart desires,” he
chuckled. “Sure, it’ll mean a lot of change,” he told her with a shrug. “But
better the change than lose the business altogether.”
“What
about our jobs?” Jane asked with a furrowed brow, her heart crashing at her
chest. “Will we all be safe? ‘Hook’s Inc.’ seems rather competitive. Wouldn’t Mister
Hook rather scrap our paper than befriend the competition?”
“Don’t
worry, Jane,” he replied with a warm smile. “That’s what the paperwork’s for.
Jas and I have come to an agreement where we’ll all be safe. If he doesn’t
intend to keep staff numbers for the ‘Neverlandian News,’ the way I see fit, he
must move any of my staff to the
‘Hook’s Inc.’ social media team.” Swallowing, Jane scratched a hand to the back
of her neck. Her chest shuddered.
Lowering
her sight to the ground, Jane’s brow puckered as she asked, “Doesn’t Mister
Hook pit his employees against one another? My friend Peter’s been competing
with Harry Hook over their new editor opening.” The thought of Peter brought
butterflies to her stomach. Feeling her cheeks redden, a sad sigh escaped her. “And
he appears to be winning…”
“I take
it, you’re seeing Peter later,” Mr. Starkey mused. “You are dressed for a date,” he pointed out, with raised eyebrows.
Glancing down at her seafoam dress, decorated with delicate daisies, Jane bit
her bottom lip as her cheeks turned a deep scarlet.
“Who’s
going on a date?” sang a slim man, with his hair pulled back in a ponytail, swinging
the door open.
“Little
Janey, who else?” Starkey teased. Winking at Jane, Mr. Starkey nodded at his
two employees before leaving the room. Seeping in a long, slow breath, Jane
shoved the parcel addressed to Jas Hook off the scales and into the corner. Scraping
together a scattering of papers, Jane thudded them against the table, before
returning to her desk.
“It’s
not a date, Fox,” Jane sighed, seeing his prying smile.
“Are
you seeing Peter later?” Fox asked with wide eyes and a beaming grin.
“Yes,”
she muttered, as her blush brightened. Curling her bangs behind her ear, Jane began
thumping her fingers onto her keyboard. Glancing towards the clock, its ticking
sent a shudder down her spine.
Perching
himself on the edge of Jane’s desk, the grin on Fox’s freckled face grew. “He’s
going to ask you to move in with him, I know he is,” Fox blurted out. Jane’s
heart hammered. She could feel her blush brighten. Dropping a bundle of filled
envelopes onto a pile at his side, Fox’s eyes widened as he awaited Jane’s
response.
“Don’t
be daft, Fox,” she laughed, shoving him with a giggle. “Peter and I are just friends;
he’s made that very clear.” Stretching for a drawer below her desk, Jane pulled
out an empty envelope. With a groan, she sat up straight and stuffed the pile
of papers inside it. “Yes, it’s heart-breaking,” she sighed. “Yes, it hurts
more than anything, but there’s
nothing I can do about it.” Shrugging, Jane’s shoulders drooped.
“He’ll
realise what an idiot he’s being soon – trust me,” Fox winked at her. Blushing,
Jane shook her head, exhaling a nervous laugh. Hopping off the desk, Fox
scooped up his pile of envelopes and carried them over to the franking station.
“If he doesn’t, man, it’s his loss,” Fox muttered, shaking his head. “You’re a
great girl, Jane.”
“Fox,
we’re just friends okay?” Jane sighed. “I’m helping Peter with the décor for
his new house, that’s all,” she confessed with a shrug.
Watching
Jane make a start on franking the post, Fox plonked himself back down on her
desk. Yanking at the elastic band in his hair, Fox shook his head, allowing his
sandy hair to flop down his face. “You know,” Fox began with a cheeky grin.
“Helping Peter with his decorating is just an excuse to get close to you.”
“Is not!”
Jane protested.
“Is so.
The two of you’ll be painting a wall and before you know it, he’s carrying you
to his room to make out,” Fox stated, folding his arms. Feeling her face heat
up, Jane pinched her lips in. Turning her back to Fox, Jane grabbed an envelope
from the pile and placed it on the scales.
“That’s
not true,” she declared, trying to hide her blushing hue. Making a note of the
envelope’s weight, she gave a long sigh. “We’ll meet up at ‘Lagoona’s Lounge’ for
coffee after work; sit opposite each other for an hour and just talk. He’ll
check the time on his phone bang on seven o’clock and act like he has somewhere
else to be, when we both know he’ll just be sat at his computer with Wendy all
evening. We’ll leave; he’ll give me a hug, kiss the top of my head, just like
he’s my gay best friend,” at this Fox chuckled. “Then we’ll go our separate
ways and he’ll never look back.”
“Sounds
like an a**hole,” Fox laughed.
“He
is,” Jane sang back.
Stacking
the franked envelopes on top of Mr. Starkey’s box, Jane spun around on her
heels and turned towards the photocopier. As Jane punched her finger into the
screen, it rattled under her harsh force. She growled at the photocopier’s lack
of response. “You’ve gotta be more forceful,” Fox told her. “Like this.” Leaping
to the rescue, Fox punched his thumb into the ‘COPY’ button. “Tell ya what,”
Fox muttered, nudging Jane. “Stand him up. Teach him a lesson. Leave him high
and dry, wondering where you are,” he insisted.
“I
can’t do that,” Jane objected, as her heart sank to her stomach. “Peter’ll be
mad, he’ll-”
“So?”
Fox shrugged. “He’s done it to you – several times, if I recall.” As Fox turned
to Jane, she twisted herself away from him. “You’ve never shown him how much
he’s hurt you – the photocopier maybe, but never Peter.” Pinching her lips in,
Jane let a little giggle escape her. “Give him a taste of his own medicine,”
Fox declared, punching his fist in the air. “Don’t turn up tonight. Ignore him
for a few weeks or months, then randomly contact him out of the blue and act
like everything’s fine, but don’t tell him what you’ve been up to.”
“I
can’t do that!” Jane screeched.
“Why
not?”
“I just
can’t!” she exclaimed, shaking her head. As her heart rapped against her
ribcage, thousands of thoughts of her previous romance with Peter fluttered to
the front of her mind. Running his hands through her hair as they kissed. His
lips locking with her own. Stroking her wrist as he held her hand. The tingling
shudder he brought her, as he rubbed is hand up her thigh. Her heart raced. A
smile poked into the right corner of her mouth. Contemplating standing him up,
crept a shudder up her spine. Her smile dropped. “Peter’d get angry,” Jane
murmured, shaking her head. “Push all thoughts of me away and probably forget
me forever. I can’t do that. I can’t hurt him.”
“He
does that to you!” Fox raged.
“I know,”
Jane sighed, staring as the photocopier gobbled up her paper, spitting it out
the other side. Fox rubbed her arm. “I just want the old Peter back. I want to
have fun, actually spend time together, go places and actually do things, like a walk around the park
or a picnic or a day at the beach… and plan the future and-”
“I
know,” Fox mumbled, seeing her eyes sparkle. Hearing her sniff, he squeezed her
arm tight. “I know,” he whispered.
“Peter
only seems to care about himself these days,” she squeaked. Flopping her head
against his shoulder, Fox pulled Jane into an embrace. “You know, the whole
four years I’ve known Peter, I’ve always put him first,” she sniffled. “Peter
has always been my number one priority. Every decision I’ve ever made has
always been what would be best for the both of us. I’ve included him in every
discussion, every thought process, whether we were together or apart.”
“Now
that is true love,” Fox smiled,
gazing down at her, as he rubbed a hand up and down her back.
“If you
ask Peter, he’ll say I’m being stupid,” Jane sulked, furrowing her brow. “That
I shouldn’t be thinking of him all of the time. Does he not realise that’s what
you do when care about someone… when you’re in love?” Pushing herself out of
Fox’s embrace, Jane folded her arms, hunching her back. “I don’t think Peter
Pan has ever been in love.”
“Nonsense,”
chuckled Fox, nudging her. “He’s probably just really insecure.” Turning
towards him, Jane’s lips parted as her eyebrows slanted upwards. “He probably
thinks he’s not good enough for you – not until he’s got this job and the house
is sorted, at least. Now you watch,” Fox beamed. “Everything’s finally fallen
into place with him. He’s bought a house, he’s in promotion talks with the boss
of a major social media company, in a small town, that’s taking the world by
storm. That’s enough to fill his ego. He’ll soon realise that the only thing
missing from his plan is you by his side… and you my dear…” Taking Jane’s hand,
Fox’s grin softened, as he lifted her arm above her head, making her twirl.
Spinning, the skirt of Jane’s dress billowed out above her knees. “Are beautiful.
If he can’t see that, it’s his loss.”
“Thank
you,” Jane murmured with a sniff.
*
Exhaling a deep puff,
Jane’s shoulders deflated, as the door swung closed behind her. “Boo,” Fox called
as he hopped down the last step.
“Hey,”
Jane muttered rolling her eyes.
“I left
my notepad in your office,” explained Fox, walking alongside her. Passing some
papers into her left hand, she let the fingers of her right trail across the
magnolia walls and sighed.
“Won’t
you miss this place?” she muttered.
“I
guess,” shrugged Fox. “It has a sort of rustic
charm to it. Why? What do you know that the rest of us don’t?”
Turning
to Fox, Jane asked him, “You know that banker’s box you carried, for me, to
reception with the post?”
“Yeah?”
Fox muttered with a stern glare.
“That’s
the paperwork for ‘Hook’s Inc.’,” Jane explained, swinging open the door to her
office. “Starkey wants Mister Hook to sign it.” Whistling an exhale, Fox
scraped a hand through his hair. “I know,” Jane replied, seeing Fox’s wrinkled
brow.
“How soon
d’ya think we’ll leave?” asked Fox. Jane shrugged. Clawing his right hand
through his hair again, Fox gripped the back of his neck. He hummed to himself,
staring at a spot on the carpet. “Might not be so bad,” he decided as he rolled
his shoulders. “More financial security in a larger firm. And I might finally get to meet the famous Peter Pan then too.” Winking at Jane, he scooped his notepad
up from her desk.
Wandering
over to the fax machine, Jane slotted a small stack of papers into its opening.
“Fox, are you seeing Curly tonight?” Jane asked, as she prodded her finger into
several buttons. The machine bleeped a hesitant second after the clicking of
the plastic, as Jane’s finger released it.
“Yeah,”
he nodded, with flushing cheeks. “Can you believe it? We’ve been together eight
months this weekend.”
“Aww,”
Jane cooed.
“I
think I love him,” Fox confessed. “He makes my heart race every time I see him.
He’s on my mind all the time. We text every morning and every night we’re apart.
I know some might say things are moving too fast, but I think I’ve finally
found the one.”
“Aww,”
Jane sang again. “I’m so glad you’re happy,” she told her friend through
sparkling eyes. “One of us deserves to be.” Turning her attention back to the
fax machine, its current silence made her growl. “You know why no one ever
answers these things?” she raged. “Because no one this side of the millennium uses
a fax machine anymore. Rob’s never gonna get a reply. I bet ‘Hook’s Inc.’ don’t
have to communicate with extinct technology.” Chucking at her side, Fox shook
his head.
“Now
that’s something to look forward to,” he mused.
A
buzzing hummed in the air. Jane’s brow creased. Squinting at the message panel,
on the fax machine, it still read: ‘AWAITING RESPONSE’. Arching her head over
her shoulder, a smile crept into the corner of her mouth. Fox had plonked
himself down on her desk, with his head glue to his mobile phone. Letting out a
giggle, Jane scooted up beside him. “Will I be invited to the wedding?” she
teased, peering over Fox’s shoulder. He had received a text message from Curly.
Prodding his thumbs into his phone screen, he texted his boyfriend back. “After
all, I did introduce you…”
“Invited?”
repeated Fox with a frown, as his thumbs raced. “You’ll be the freaking guest
of honour!” he exclaimed. Pressing ‘SEND’ Fox lowered his phone to the table.
His vision blurred as he gazed at the fax machine. “Providing we actually get
married…” he muttered, stating his thoughts aloud. “That means one of us will
have to propose… would he, or should I?” Giggling alongside him, Jane nudged
Fox out of his fantasy.
“You, mister, should get back to work,” she
told him. Leaping up from her desk, Jane hummed at the fax machine. Bleeping,
the mechanics revved as a mint coloured sheet of paper was sucked up from the
tray. Humming loudened, as the paper was spat back out, at the top. “Won’t they
wonder where you’ve been?”
“Nah,”
Fox shrugged. “It’s Friday. No one cares on a Friday. Besides, I’ve done all my
work for the week. Only ten more minutes to act busy.”
“Yeah,
you really look busy,” Jane smiled with sarcasm, rolling her eyes, as Fox
checked his phone. “So, have you got any plans for the weekend?” she asked,
skimming over the fax confirmation.
“Curly
and I are looking at apartments tomorrow. We’ve got three viewings,” Fox told
her, placing his phone back on the desk. “I know to some it sounds too soon,
but we can’t live apart any longer. It’s hard, what with Curly living with his
friends, and me having just moved back in with my parents – it’s embarrassing.”
Buzzing, Fox’s phone danced across the desk. Swiping it, Fox prodded his thumbs
to the screen. “God, can’t it be five o’clock yet!” he sighed. “When will this
week end?”
“Drama
queen,” Jane giggled, shoving him. “Hey, will you give this to Rob on your way
back up, please?” she asked, handing him the fax machine’s sent confirmation
sheet.
“Which
Rob?” he mumbled as he texted.
“Mulins.”
“Sure,”
he replied. Pushing himself off the table, Fox slipped is mobile phone into his
back pocket. “Guess I’d best show my face up there.”
“You
had,” Jane sang. “And if I don’t see you again, good luck house hunting.”
“Thanks,” he nodded. “And good luck to you
too. Remember, I want to hear every detail from tonight, okay?” Rolling her
eyes, Jane hummed. “I’m serious!” Fox exclaimed with a grin. “I want to know he
whisked you off your feet, projected his undying love for you, asked you to
move in with him, possibly propose, and the two of you head back to his and
make up, doing whatever it is you two lovebirds do.”
“Fox –
none of that’s going to happen,” Jane chuckled, as her cheeks reddened. “Besides,”
she sighed. “If Peter was going to
propose, I wouldn’t want him to do it at ‘Lagoona’s Lounge’.” Frowning, Jane
shook her head. “More like at the cosy, little nook in the Enchanted Forest, near
the Babbling Brook, where we had our first, real
date or the cute, little castle turret overlooking Lone-Man’s Island at West-Side
Shore.” Jane’s heart fluttered and her cheeks tingled at her daydream, as a smile
crept across her face.
“So,
you have given it a lot of thought,”
Fox mused. A grin swept across his face, as his eyes widened.
“Shut
up,” Jane snapped, feeling her cheeks turn red. “I’m just trying to prove a
point. Nothing’s going to happen,” she replied with a shrug, as her smile
dropped. “Peter doesn’t want a future with me.” Folding her arms, Jane turned
away from him and lowered her head. The fluttering that had been in her heart
moments ago, sunk to a thud at the pit of her stomach.
“Things
are moving Jane,” Fox insisted, rubbing a hand to her shoulder. “With me and
Curly, with this place… with Peter and his job. Peter’s moving house… and things
are going to start moving for you too. Something’s going to happen tonight… I
can feel it.”
Turning
to face him, Jane shrugged, asking, “How can you be so certain?”
“I can
just feel it!” Fox replied with an eager grin and a shrug. Shaking her head,
Jane sighed, turning away from him. “Hey, whatever happens…” Fox muttered. “Have
a good time, okay?” Turning towards Fox, Jane prodded the right corner of her
mouth up.
“Thanks,”
she muttered with a shrug. “You too.”
*
Biting her bottom lip,
Jane pulled at the cuffs of her jacket. Her heart rattled in her ribcage. Tightening
her grip, she wrapped her arms around her waist. Her tongue scraped against the
roof of her mouth as she forced herself to swallow. Shifting her eyes from the
carpark entrance to the park bench, a shudder shivered up her spine. ‘He’s
going to stand me up again,’ she whimpered to herself with a sniff. Tightening
her grip, a shaky breath escaped her. ‘Please Peter,’ she cried. ‘Please turn
up. I know all of those things Fox said won’t come true. I know they won’t.’
Her stomach twisted in a circumbendibus. Catching the glance of family walking
by, she shot her sight to the floor. ‘I just want to see you… even if it’s for
the very last time.’
Leaning
against the window, beside the doorway to the carpark, Jane let out a long,
deep sigh as her thoughts began to trail. Imagining Peter’s smiley face, his
sparkling hazel eyes with the little green flecks gazing back at her, the
warmth, safety and comfort in his cuddles, her vision blurred, as her eyes
began to water. Squeaking, she inhaled a shaky breath. Her arms tingled at the
thought of his touch. Rubbing a hand to her eye, she sniffed. “Oh Peter,” she breathed,
hugging herself tight.
Pushing
herself away from the window, Jane paced back towards the lamppost. Avoiding eye
contact with the bodies that passed her, she stared at her shoes. Inhaling a
shaky breath, she stared at the scalloped edging of her ivory heels. Prodding a
stone with the toe of her shoe, a lump formed in Jane’s throat.
“Hey,”
sang a voice, as a pair of scuffed, charcoal, leather shoes stepped near her. Jane’s
stomach fluttered as her eyes flickered towards his.
“Peter!”
she breathed. “H-hi.”
“You
okay?” he asked with a smile.
“Yes
thanks,” Jane beamed back, as her heart danced in her chest. “Are you?”
“Great,”
replied Peter with a nod. Poking his hands into his pockets, Peter nodded his
head in the direction of the park. “Wanna go for a walk?” he asked.
“Okay,”
Jane agreed with a shrug.
Holding
her breath, Jane concentrated on the beating of her heart, as she pinched her
lips in. Letting out a giggle, she relaxed her shoulders. “What’s so funny?”
Peter asked, turning his head towards her.
“Just
thinking about something Fox, at work said,” she mused, shaking her head. “It’s
nothing. So, how was your day?”
“Good,”
Peter told her, as they arched around the children’s play area. “I got two
reports done early, assisted the editor with some new software – I swear none
of the guys in charge know anything
about technology,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “And impressed the boss with
a new editorial piece.”
“Wow,”
Jane gasped, swallowing the lump in her throat. “Sounds like you’ve had a pretty
good day.”
“Yeah,”
Peter agreed. “It’ll be stupid for Jas to give the new Assistant Editor position
to Harry. He’s done nothing but build on his social media following all week –
posting topless photos, brush editing his selfies, posing for pictures with
beauty models…” Peter let out a sarcastic laugh. “He thinks he’ll get the job
just because his father owns the company or because he has more followers than
I do. The guy’s a joke.”
“Well I
hope you get it,” Jane told him with a smile. “You’ve worked so hard. I believe
in you, Peter.” Beaming her biggest smile, her eyes sparkled up at Peter.
“Thanks,”
he muttered with a shrug. “So how was your day?”
“You
know,” Jane mumbled as the approached a field of flowers. “Same old. I edited
and proof read everyone’s articles, photocopied a bunch of stuff, screamed at
my stupidly slow computer – the usual.” Laughing, Peter shook his head.
“You deserve
far more than that, you know,” he chuckled, as he slowed down at a bench. Jane’s
heart fluttered. Biting her lip, she smiled up at him. “Wanna sit?” Jane shrugged,
perching herself down beside him. “I can see you writing your own articles. Tracking
down the action, sleuthing out the truth. You’d be good at it,” he beamed.
“Thanks,”
Jane muttered. Feeling her cheeks tingle, she lowered her head. Twisting
herself away from him, Jane gazed over at a budding rose bush. A bee hovered
above a blooming lemon-coloured rose, before shooting off towards a blushing
hue. Letting out a sigh, she dropped her sight to her shoes. The racing of her
heart slowed to a rhythmical thump.
Shuffling
alongside her, Peter scratched the back of his neck as he arched his head
towards her. “Jane…” Peter hesitated, as he waited for her to look at him. Flickering
her sight in his direction, Jane remained twisted away from him. “We need to
talk,” he told her. Clasping her arms around herself, Jane seeped a shuddering
breath through her nose. Her heart leapt to the front of her chest. Pounding pulsed
through her body. Her intestines spiralled. Daggering her nails into her arms, Jane
forced a swallow. “Come here,” Peter sang, with a slight groan, as he stretched
one arm around her shoulders and slipped the other underneath her knees. Lifting
her, Peter pulled Jane onto his lap. Her heart hammered. Her stomach knotted. Brow
raised, Jane’s lips parted, as she flickered her eyes from Peter’s to her lap.
Shuddering a breath, she jabbed her elbows into her sides. “Look at me, Jane,” Peter
insisted, tilting his head in attempts at catching her gaze. “Jane, look at me…”
Swallowing hard, Jane twisted her head in his direction. She flickered her eyes
towards his. They met. Sparkles of green gazed at her. With a sniff, she darted
her sight towards the earthy smudge on his collar. “I’ve given this a lot of
thought, okay? A lot of thought,” he
told her, as the hammering in her chest amplified. “You know I don’t want to
push Wendy away – she’s a really important part of my life.”
“I
know,” she muttered, lowering her hands to her lap. Her chest trembled, as she
inhaled a shaky breath.
“But
you are too,” he told her, running a hand up her back. Shuddering under his
touch, she twisted her head away from him. “Please, look at me?” he asked. Pinching
her lips in, her eyes sparkled as she shook her head. “Jane,” he sighed. “I’m really trying here.” Lowering her head, a
squeaky exhale escaped her. Turning slowly towards him, she flickered her eyes
at his, then back to his chest. Staring at the buttons on his coat, her eyes
danced. Her vision blurred. “I know I made many mistakes by you,” he continued,
rubbing his hand on her back. Humming a response, Jane poked the corner of her
mouth up. With a sniff, she folded her arms, lowering her chin to her chest.
“And I know I keep saying that us is the wrong thing right now-”
“I get
it,” she squeaked. “I just don’t want to keep waiting anymore, Peter. I can’t.”
“I
know,” he whispered, rubbing her arm.
“I
can’t,” she cried. Her chest trembled. “My godmother’s setting me up with her
nephew’s friend on Sunday and she doesn’t want me talking to you anymore…
because I only get upset.” Pinching her eyes tight, she flopped against his
chest. “I don’t mean to,” she sobbed, pressing a hand to his chest. “I just
miss you.”
“I
know,” he whispered, stroking her hair. “It’s okay.”
“I know
I shouldn’t,” she cried. “But I just do.” Hot salty liquid trailed down her
cheek. “I’m sorry,” she squeaked, brushing a hand across her face. Pushing herself
away from him, she rubbed both of her hands across her face.
“It’s
okay,” he repeated, retreating his hands to his sides. “It’s okay. Just listen…”
Sniffing, Jane nodded. “I don’t want to lose you, okay?” he told her, squeezing
her shoulder. “You’re very special to me, Jane. I know I don’t often show it,
and I say the wrong thing all the time, but I do care about you, Jane. I do.” At Peter’s words, her heart
trembled. Feeling her legs quake, she pinched her knees together. Her lips
parted. Her sight returned to her shoes. “Now look at me… look at me,” he insisted.
Digging her nails into her palms, Jane’s chest shuddered as she gazed at him. “I
don’t know how much I can be there for you, what with my mind on the move and
this possible promotion, but I want to try.” Dropping her sight to her lap, a
sigh escaped her. “That’s why…” Stroking a hand across Jane’s chin, Peter directed
her face towards his. Her stomach spiralled. Her heart raced. As a tingling lathered
inside her, Jane’s eyes sparkled at Peter’s. “I want to ask; will you move in
with me?”
“Really?”
she gasped, with a squeak, letting out a nervous breathy laugh.
“Yes,”
he nodded, as Jane erupted into a tremble of giggles. “Really.” Watching the
teary smile stretched across Jane’s face, Peter added, “I’ve already talked
things through with Wendy. She’s going to go move in with her mum – that was
always the plan, eventually anyway… so, will you?”
“Yes,”
she cried throwing her arms around him.
Snuggling
her head against his chest, Jane closed her eyes. She hummed, hugging a hand around
his torso. With a sigh, her shoulders relaxed. The spiralling in her stomach fluttered
into an explosion of butterflies. As the tingling engulfed her, the smile on Jane’s
face softened. A chuckle escaped Peter’s mouth as he gave her a squeeze. “You have
no idea how happy I am right now,” Peter confessed as he rubbed a hand up and
down her back again. Jane giggled a hum against him. “I was terrified I’d
ruined everything. I know I’m not the easiest person to be around… but you get me.”
Gazing down at Jane, the smile on Peter’s face grew. As Jane gave him a tight
squeeze, he kissed the top of her head. Her heart dropped to her stomach, as
her smile drained.
“Wait…”
she muttered leaning out of their embrace.
“Jane?”
Peter gasped. “What’s wrong?”
“I
don’t know if I can-” she muttered, twisting away from him. “I can’t.”
“Can’t
what?”
“Live
with you,” she cried, trembling on his lap. Staring at the rose bushes she babbled
on, “It’s your house Peter… not mine,
not ours. I didn’t pay a penny
towards it, my name’s not on the deeds-”
“It’s
fine,” Peter assured her, pulling her into an embrace. “We’ll sort it,” he
whispered, kissing the top of her head.
“But
what if you can’t be around me again?” she exclaimed, turning to face him. “What
if you need to be on you own for weeks or months or you break up with me again…
what will happen to me then?”
“Relax,”
he chuckled, stroking her hair. “That’ll never happen.”
“You can’t
promise me that though,” she cried with hysterics, shaking against him. “It’s
not like we’re married or engage or-”
“You’ll
be fine. I promise,” he whispered, placing a kiss on the top of her head. As
her bottom lip trembled, Jane flopped against Peter. “I’m not going anywhere,”
he reassured her, running a hand up and down her back. “I promise.”
Cuddled
in a tight embrace, Peter rocked back and forth until Jane’s shaky breaths
calmed. Hearing her exhale a slow, calm breath, Peter leant back. Stroking a hand
across Jane’s face, he told her, “Why don’t we sort out all of the niggly,
little details some other time – like with that picnic you wanted at our little
nook in the Enchanted Forest, say on Sunday?” Giving Peter a sparkling-eyed
smile, Jane nodded. “Right now, all I want is for you to know I’m done with
being an a**hole; I’m done with pushing you away and I want to put things right,”
Peter explained. “I want you to live with me. I want everything to just be me
and you. So, what do you say?” Pinching her lips in, Jane nodded.
“Thank
you, Peter,” she squeaked. Throwing her arms around the back of his neck, Jane hooked
her chin on Peter’s shoulder as she hugged him tight. Twisting her head towards
him, his lips met hers. Closing her eyes, her stomach spiralled with a thousand
butterflies.
“And as
for the other things… like a special promise,” he whispered, lacing his fingers
through hers. “Let’s just wait and see,” he added with a grin. Giggling against
him, Jane pressed her forehead against his. “Come on,” Peter whispered. “I’ll
walk you home.”
“You
won’t have to do that much longer,” she told him with a soft giggle to her
voice.
“No
more waiting,” he told her. “No more counting down the days.” Jane shook her
head. “We’re moving forward.”
-
Josie -
