Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Chapter 29

The Bowie, Deep Space

He found it in the common room, in the hands of both the first and last person he wanted to see in the moment.

She was sitting on the couch, too engrossed in her examination of the music player to even notice his arrival until he'd cleared his throat.

"Oh." Gamora glanced up from the Zune to acknowledge him before turning her attention back to the little device. "Is this yours?"

"Yeah." Despite himself, Peter felt a heat rush into his face at the question.

Why? It was a simple enough question. It didn't mean anything. But it'd come from her, and she was talking to him...

"It's called a Zune." Peter hesitated for a moment before taking a seat next to her on the couch, careful to maintain just enough space to keep things cool. "It's kinda like a really fancy Walkman—"

"Walkman?"

Right.

"Here." He offered out a hand, and she gave him the little device. "See? You just use these buttons to select a song, and then...bam! Instant tunes."

Gamora's brow furrowed as a confused smile slipped across her lips. "Why would anyone have need for that?"

Her words cut deep, but Peter did his best to shrug them off as he scrolled through his collection of 1960s hits. "I don't know. It's fun, it lightens the mood...or helps set it." He paused, realizing how awkward the words sounded, and hastily added, "You weren't a big fan of it, at first, but you came around eventually."

Gamora's smile turned sympathetic. "No, I didn't."

Another rough blow, but she'd never been one to let things go easily. At least, not until she'd met them.

Met him.

"Okay, yeah, maybe." Peter shrugged as he thumbed down to a particular song. "But just give it a try. One of our favorites."

"Our?" Her smile wavered as the first few measures of the song played out, and Peter's heart dropped as she started to stand up. "I'm sorry, no. I know where this is going."

"Please?" He tried to grab hold of her arm. "It's just one song—"

"It's not just one song." The words came out barbed as she yanked her arm from his grasp. "Please, Peyton—"

"Peter." Despite every attempt to keep his cool composure, Peter's shoulders sagged. "It's Peter."

How could she forget that? His Gamora or not, she still knew who he was, right? She still had to know his name. And yet, Peyton...

"Right." Gamora's tone softened ever so slightly, though she couldn't bring herself to look him in the eyes again. "Look, Peter, I'm sure you're a great guy, and I'm sure your Gamora loved this song...but this isn't fair to either of us, okay? It's not going to happen."

Peter was silent for a long moment, trying to think of a way to reach her, to make things better. Why was this so hard? Sure, his Gamora hadn't been very open when they'd first met, but at least she hadn't given him those stupid, sympathetic looks like he was some sort of confused kid. Why couldn't she understand? Why couldn't she just give him a chance?

But by the time he found the courage to ask such a question, Gamora disappeared, so long gone he couldn't even hear footsteps in the hall. And just like that, Peter was alone again. Alone, with Sam Cooke crooning in the background.

If you ever change your mind,

About leaving, leaving me behind,

Baby, bring it to me,