Behind Closed Doors

[allibaz91]

Lol well technically it is tomorrow, by like 10 minutes, and I'm bored, so here's the next chapter lol! A little shorter but still long-ish

Chapter 27

Peter lay down on his bed, sighing heavily. He doubted Clare would ever forgive him for that little outburst – he couldn’t blame her if she didn’t. It had taken her so long to feel comfortable around him again; to admit she loved him. And he had gone and upset her, for what had to be the millionth time. And as if that weren’t bad enough, he had used that line. ‘It’s not you, it’s me,’ he repeated in his head now, disgusted with himself. No wonder she had been angry. He closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep, but it didn’t work. And it seemed like only moments later the door opened and Clare came and sat on the bed next to him.

“What time is it?” he asked, when her silence became more unbearable than words.

“A little before five,” came the dull reply. He sighed heavily. Had it been that long?

“Look,” he said hesitantly, when she still didn’t speak, “I know why you’re angry –”

“Really?” she said, feigning surprise. “Then tell me: why am I angry, Pete? Seeing as how you apparently know better than I do. Why am I so hacked off?”

“I understand you’re mad at me for pulling away from you like that –”

“I knew you didn’t get it,” she said, seeming annoyed. “That isn’t why I’m angry. I don’t just care about sex, Peter! I care about you, and I thought you knew that.”

“Yeah, of course I know that,” he said, bemused. What was her point?

“Yeah? Then why won’t you just talk to me about this problem you’re having? I mean, you could have said before things got that far – or at least explained when you stopped. None of this anger is about you pulling away; it’s because you don’t feel you can talk to me about why you did it! It’s because you don’t seem to trust me!”

“Clare, that’s not how it is!” Peter insisted, finally understanding. “I love you, okay? I would love to talk to you about this; but how can I tell you, when I don’t fully understand it myself?” She looked up at him, and then she squeezed his hand tight.

“I might have a theory,” she said, smiling wanly. So she hadn’t exactly gotten over it yet, but she was willing to put it aside for now, was what that meant.

“Feel free to share,” he said. “Because I am clueless. I don’t know what happened.”

“You didn’t realise when you pulled away?” Clare asked, looking at him. He shrugged.

“I don’t know – I guess it was just a delayed reaction to what was happening.”

“Pete … you only pulled away from me when I started unfastening your shirt,” she told him, watching him closely. “You didn’t think about it?”

“I don’t know,” he repeated. “I thought it was just us – after all we’ve been through …”

“I don’t know if that’s a part of it. But you seemed pretty keen, until then. I don’t think this is about me. I mean, I hope it’s not, but … I think this is about your burns.”

“What? Don’t be stupid.” Peter looked away from her.

She watched him for a moment, then turned his face towards her, looking in his eyes.

“You don’t seriously think I care about some stupid scarring, do you?” she asked.

“I never said I thought that,” he replied, still avoiding her gaze as best he could. She leaned over and kissed him lovingly for a few moments, and stroked his cheek.

“You didn’t have to,” she said quietly. “I love you for who you are. Not whether or not you have a perfect body – which, incidentally, I think you have with or without scars.”

“Thank you, but I told you already, this isn’t about my scarring. Really.”

“Oh no?”

Clare reached over the bed and began to undo Peter’s shirt buttons. He didn’t mind at first, but as she got closer to his burns he felt really uncomfortable. A moment later he flinched and jerked so that her hand was moved away. She sighed a little and looked into his eyes, and this time he couldn’t help but look back, ashamed. She smiled.

“It’s okay,” she said, softly and encouragingly. “It’s only me. Come on.” He sighed and allowed her to continue undoing his buttons. She opened up his shirt and slowly and carefully removed his bandages. He could hardly bear to look down.

“Would you cover those things back up?” he asked, depressed. “They’re repulsive.”

“Not to me,” Clare replied. “They show how brave you are. Your battle wounds.”

“Look, you don’t need to try and make me feel better –” Peter began, but she cut him off by kissing him tenderly on his neck. He half-laughed.

“You,” she said, kissing him, “are incredible. You’re brave, smart, funny, sweet, and absolutely perfect, scars and all. And all these burns mean to me is that my boyfriend is the most daring, fearless person I know. And I’m proud of you. You’re my hero.”

“You don’t have to say those things, you know,” he said quietly.

“But I mean them,” she told him, and something in her voice made him look up. “I don’t know how else to say it, Pete. I love you, and no stupid wounds are going to change that: not now, not ever. How else can I prove to you that I don’t care about them?”

Peter stroked her hair softly, and then propped himself up on one elbow and kissed her tenderly. She kissed him back lovingly for several moments, and he sat up higher and kissed her a little more passionately. After a few more minutes, he suddenly pulled her over the bed and rolled on top of her, and she laughed aloud, looking at him.

“Changed your mind already?” she asked him teasingly. He kissed her again.

“I love you so much …” he said softly, and she grinned and pulled him down on top of her, kissing him passionately. And this time nothing could interfere.

Enjoy!

[Lilone]

Awwwwww Pete and his burns the poor sexy detective!

Thank god they finally got it on lol!

I must admit I didn't see that coming

And you know that I usually work it out

Update soon.

[Adia]

gosh, I'm blushing...

Ahhh, I knew it was about the scars! Poor guy. But Clare said the sweetest things to him that whole scene was just the cuteness!

Great writing.

[Mrs Bishop]

awww the got it on in the end i knew pete would come round

[allibaz91]

Did I disillusion you, Adia? Good guessing though!

Lil I am shocked you never guessed it, actually! Glad I gave you a surprise for once though - usually you already know everything that's coming

Thanks for commenting, guys!

[*~Abi~*]

aww poor petey not suprised that was the reason after all he'd been through a lot

wicked add hun loved it

more soonies

love abi xx

[allibaz91]

Thanks Abi!

[swfc]

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.... that was sooooooo cute. Awwwwwwwwwwwwww....

I swear, I don't know what else to say apart from that.

Right, Clare is so good. Too good for him. And Lil wonders why I don't like Panda. I think this fic already proves it.

That was a really sweet chapter. Must admit, I kind of didn't see that happening. I knew they'd eventually get it on but I didn't expect it to happen in this chapter.

Excellent writing, Ali.

[allibaz91]

Lol Clare is not too good for him - they're perfect for each other

Glad I'm helping the anti-Panda cause

Hope I didnt rush it too much

Thanks loads, Chrissie! Next update hopefully tonight or tomorrow

[allibaz91]

Small teaser seeing as I may not update til tomorrow now (grr, stupid. flippin. MAGAZINE!!)

“I thought maybe you’d gotten self-conscious again, or maybe you regretted what happened last night …”

“Not a chance,” Peter consoled her, and he turned away from the cooker and pulled her closer to him, kissing her passionately. “You’re stuck with me now, Brody.”