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"Mr. Wilson, the ship is receiving some weird signals."
The babbling man trembles some more on his seat and waits patiently for an answer that doesn’t come. He finds the courage to repeat what he’s just said and months of constant minimal violence and massive psychological trauma help him dodge the bottle aimed at his head.
"I heard you the first time, Bob! So what? Who gives a shit about that planet? It’s not the one we are looking for!"
The taller, bulky man on the other side of the small spaceship glares at the poor guy shaking and stammering excuses and grabs another bottle of artificial beer from under his seat. He looks at the monitors flickering in front of him, but Bob knows he’s just pretending to read and study the info they are transmitting to ignore him and his completely serious message.
"But captain… it’s really strange, it’s…!"
"It’s dead!" Wilson interrupts him raising his arms in an exasperated gesture. "It’s a fucking, goddamn dead planet, Bob! No one gives a shit about a dead planet, right?" Wilson frowns and the scars on his face shift and make funny patterns on his cheeks and lips. "Now keep driving this starshit and ignore those signals.”
Bob must be suicidal today, because he bites his lips and insists, fighting the survival instinct that’s screaming at him to shut up and continue with his duty.
"Captain Wilson, please, listen to me. The ship is telling me…"
"Hey, hey! The only one here who’s supposed to hear voices is me, okay?" The captain springs up as if he has been mortally offended and walks all the way up to Bob, who shrinks away from him hoping nothing bad will happen to his head, limbs or vital organs. Fortunately Wilson isn’t a complete savage, so he just shakes a finger in front of his face, warning him with a glare.
"Don’t listen to the ship, Bob. Ignore it, it doesn’t exist. Trust me, every time you hear a voice that can’t obviously be there, you must ignore it. Understood?"
"I-I’m not hearing voices, sir." the shaking pilot says. "I’m just reading the data." He glances at his monitor and his suspicions are confirmed once and for all.
"And the data say that planet is inhabited.”
For the first time since he have been accepted on this ship, Bob can see a look of surprise and deep bewilderment on Wilson’s marred mug. The captain hums, raising an eyebrow that lost all its hairs so many years ago, and his eyes moves to look at the gray, sad planet visible from the main window.
"Are you sure, Bob? Because if this is a joke or a mistake…”
"It’s not!" the pilot assures him frenetically. "I swear, Mr. Wilson, I’m not joking and I’m sure about this. I know that planet is supposed to be dead, but the ship is clearly receiving life signals from it!"
The captain frowns again, but it’s not the same annoyed and irate scowl from before. He’s pondering, meditating on what to do: keep looking for that rich world this mission is all about or visit an infamous planet that is supposed to be abandoned?
Wilson is obviously thinking about the monetary reward and the glory, because if the planet isn’t dead anymore, if there is still life over there, then he would become a hero, a legend among space explorers. Bob, with his innocent and humble heart, thinks about the scientific consequences and joy that such a discovery could bring.
"WANDA!" Wilson shouts at the top of his lungs. From the second bay, where their rooms, supplies and equipment are located, a voice is heard. More precisely, a stream of curses and other not very nice words.
Then a little door slips open and a woman with a blonde ponytail and a face as marred as the captain’s enters the cabin. And her frown is as epic as his.
"What?" she barks. Her overalls are dirty with gun oil, grease and red patches Bob hopes are just ketchup stains. "I’m working down there, not jilling off!"
"Language, sis! Not in front of your boyfriend!" Wilson jokes pointing at Bob, whose face turned as red as the little lights and buttons on his workstation. Wanda gives him a pitiful look, then turns back to her brother, scowling again.
"He’s not my boyfriend, asshole. What do you want? Is it important? I hope for your balls it is, Wade."
"We may have found life on the spider planet." Wade calmly explains with a nod towards the window. Wanda’s eyes widen and she rushes next to Bob to look at the screens and at the melancholic world out there.
"Are you fucking kidding me? That’s… that’s not possible…" she shakes her head, because the data are right and that’s undeniable. Suddenly Bob looks excited and cheerful.
"Did you discover it?" Wanda asks him abruptly. It’s hard to tell, but her scarred face softens a bit and she almost cracks a smile when the pilot nods frenetically. "Well, isn’t that cool? I’m surprised, Bobby." She pinches his cheek and Bob turns even redder, but somewhat also happier.
"For God’s sake, I just ate!" Wade grumbles glaring at the couple. "Anyway is he right? Is there really life down there now?"
"Yup." Wanda confirms re-reading the data once more. "Definitely. The signal is weak, so there must be just few people, but…"
"Wait, wait, wait!" Wade exclaims waving his hands to hush his sister. "People? I thought we were talking about weird animals or even those spiders that planet was so famous for!” He looks panicked now. “Not people! Why people? How?”
"You tell me." Wanda shrugs. "But the signal doesn’t lie. Whoever is down there is like you or me or Bobby. Although there are also some spiders…" she leans over the screens again and her chest bumps into Bob’s shoulder, making him squirm. "Yeah, the signal is mixed. There are definitely people down there, but some of those spiders must have survived too." She brightens like a light bulb. "Guys, you know what this means? This is the discovery of the century! That planet should be a dead shithole, but if someone managed to survive that radioactive disaster…"
"Shall I start the landing procedure then?" Bob asks moving expertly his hands on the console, already knowing the answer, satisfaction and pride burning in his eyes. Wanda sits next to him and starts listing all the prizes, rewards and recognition they are going to get.
They don’t see how Wade’s mood has suddenly become darker and sulky. He sits back on his seat, playing with the artificial beer bottle and worrying over those people that mysteriously managed to survive and that are now waiting for him and his starship.
He glances over his reflection on the shiny surface of his console and grimaces.
- - -
The instruments and radars aboard the ship give them the exact position of the mysterious life forms that miraculously survived the explosions. Wanda begrudgingly accepts to wear an ugly protective suits to shield her body from the high and dangerous level of radioactivity, but Bob assures her and Wade that there seems to be a clear place farther ahead.
"They must have built something. Maybe the scientists are the ones who survived." Bob guesses as they approach the clear area; they can already see it, some round and short houses surrounded by a gray wasteland and dead trees. The air looks fresh, brighter, over there and Wade instinctively takes out his assault rifle from the back holster.
"Captain?" Bob asks tentatively and his voice sounds more scared than ever through the intercom of their helmets. "Uh… Forgive me, but… I don’t think it’s a good idea showing up there with weapons."
"If those guys are really scientists, then how come they never sent any SOS? Message? Any ‘help us, we are here eating ash and dust!’" Wade’s grip on the assault rifle gets stronger as he growls: "Maybe they are explorers and treasure hunters like us or space pirates. Maybe they had to land on this planet because their ship was broken or something."
"Or maybe they are some lucky civilians of this planet that hid away when the explosions occurred and now are looking for a way to survive." Wanda intervenes; her tone is playful and witty, maybe a bit wicked when she adds: "You really want them to be just random, unimportant guys you can shoot at, don’t you?"
Wade mutters some swears under his breath, but the intercom transmits them the same.
"Yeah." he admits and by the way he’s talking Wanda and Bob can tell he’s scowling. "Why are there people here? You know I hate them! They judge you, they hurt you…”
"They disfigure you." Wanda concludes for him with a sad voice. "Yes, I know. I got burned too, remember?"
"You are different." Wade replies surly and Bob feels the strong urge to rush back to the ship and leave them alone, because this is personal and he doesn’t want to embarrass them with his presence… even if he’s not sure Wade and Wanda can actually be embarrassed by someone or something.
"I’m not different, you dickhead!" Wanda says kicking her brother’s ankle and lifting a huge cloud of gray dust. "Did you see my face? Hell, I bet some parts of my body are even worse than yours! How the hell am I different from you?"
"You have someone."
Wanda abruptly stops and Bob makes a strangled sound, walking fast to catch up with the captain. He can’t see her face beneath the helmet, but he can feel she’s surprised as much as him by Wade’s words and wonders why she isn’t denying them or getting angry.
"Come on, laggards!" the captain exclaims, hurrying to change topic. "We are almost there!"
"The… the suit says that the air is becoming healthier here." Bob shyly announces after a while, reading the info on the internal part of his helmet. "Captain, I think we entered the safe zone. There is no radioactivity here!"
"Yeah, look at that." Wada points at a patch of brownish soil next to one of the small, circular houses. Tiny, green plants are sprouting from it.
"Holy shit, it’s a garden." Wade breathes out. He lowers his rifle and kneels down, touching a delicate leaf with a finger. "How the hell did they do this?" He turns back to Wanda and Bob, who are slowly removing their helmets and tentatively taking small breaths of air. Then Wanda inhales and exhales, nodding.
"The air is really pure. Fuck, it’s like being on top of a mountain!"
"Whoever did this is a genius!" Bob says giddily, taking out some instruments from his pockets to continue his analysis. "They removed the radioactivity, disposed of radioactive waste, planted food!"
"Yeah, yeah, amazing…" Wade mutters giving the tiny plants another look. Then the door of the nearest house opens and he raises his rifle, letting out a surprised shout.
The young man on the doorframe yelps too and freezes on the spot, his big, brown eyes filled by fear, shock and awe. He observes the three strangers clutching his hands and not daring to move a muscle.
"It’s a boy." Wanda whispers, but he hears her the same and jumps and tenses, his panicked eyes returning to the rifle Wade is still aiming at him.
"Idiot, put that down!" Wanda hisses. "You are scaring him!"
Wade, in complete bewilderment as the boy, snaps out of it, lowers the rifle, clears his throat and asks gruffly: “Who are you?”
The boy, who’s wearing simple red and blue clothes torn here and there, frowns and shakes his head. Wade misunderstands the gesture and his tone becomes rude: “I don’t wanna play games, kid! The only ones I play are the ones on my old, precious Gameboy and those in bed! Now don’t be stubborn and tell me who you are. Are you from here?” He raises slightly the weapon again and the boy steps back. “Or are you a space pirate? Although you are too scrawny to be one…”
The boy looks confused, now, and Bob decides to intervene, even if that means the rifle will be probably aimed at him.
"M-Mr. Wilson, sir? I think the boy can’t understand you… us. He can’t understand our language."
"What?" Wade moves awkwardly on the spot, but then remembers he’s in charge and barks: "What the hell are you talking about, Bob? He’s clearly human! Of course he…"
"The inhabitants of this planet spoke a different language, doofus." Wanda explains casually. "Everyone knows that. It’s written in every storybook of this stinky Galaxy. If only you would read something else apart from your porn magazines… which are the only games you play in bed."
"Shut up!" Wade shrieks indignantly, the blush spreading on his face and ears hidden by the helmet. "Of course I knew it! I just forgot it! Don’t you ever forget things, sis?"
He looks back at the boy, who spent the whole time observing him with wide eyes and trembling hands. “So this means he’s really a civilian of this God-forsaken shithole!” He groans and rubs his suit-covered neck. “We can’t take him, he’s not an animal! How are we supposed to prove our discovery now?”
Wanda senses her brother is on the verge of a nervous breakdown, so she steps in. The young man of the spider planet looks at her with curiosity, studying her scars, but he’s still tense and suspects every single move.
"Okay, sweetheart." Wanda starts showing him her hands. "See? I have no weapons. We don’t want to hurt you. We just want one of those." She nods at the garden next to the house and Wade splutters.
"One of those?" he repeats with a high-pitched voice. "Fucking Galactus, Wanda, are you insane? I am the only one who’s supposed to be wacky! Those plants don’t prove shit, they could come from anywhere! We need an animal or something like that!"
"The ship data mentioned some spiders." Bob remembers and it’s the second time that day that Wanda looks at him with something akin to admiration. Her voice is also gentle, enough for him to blush and smile goofily.
"You are a freaking genius, Bob! I forgot about those!"
"See?" Wade pouts. "You forget shit too!"
"The boy must know where they are." Wanda ignores him. "Bob, we need to talk to him! Don’t you have something in your pockets? Come on, tell me you do!"
"Uh! Uh, let me see… mh…"
Few minutes passes as Bob rummages through his pockets and little bags attached to his belt; Wade returns the boy’s look - he seems almost fascinated by him and Wade can’t help but squirm under his brown, soft gaze. Wanda waits patiently for Bob to find the right tool and she laughs triumphantly when the man takes out four old universal translators.
They are little, red microchips that allow the person who puts one of them behind their neck to understand the language of whoever is wearing another identical microchip. Wade doesn’t understand how they work - he probably never will -, but he knows they have something to do with brain waves and complicated shit like that.
"Here." Wanda says handing him one, then she frowns. "Why are you still wearing your helmet? Take it off, the translator goes on your neck."
Wade whimpers and even if his eyes aren’t visible, Wanda notices the subtle nod towards the boy.
"What, are you shy?" Wanda mocks him, but there’s no cruelty in her voice. She sighs and shakes her head, blond flocks of hair falling on her eyes, the ponytail fluttering gracefully in the air.
"Come on, Wade, I don’t want to repeat you every single thing the boy is gonna tell us. You need to use the translator too."
"He’s gonna be so happy. Three strangers coming from outer space and two of them have the face of a munched meatball." Wade growls slowly removing his helmet. He hears the boy gasp - he knows his scars are worse than Wanda’s, despite her constant, rude reassurances and ‘I-have-the-coolest-scars!’ attitude. He avoids the young man’s look, he can feel his brown eyes burning a hole in his pride and tries not to appear mortified.
He attaches the microchip on the back of his neck, after failing two or three times because the ravaged skin doesn’t let it stick easily.
"Take it." Bob says gently to the mysterious man, who must have realized what’s happening and slowly extends a hand to take the translator and wear it.
"Can you understand us now?" Wanda asks and the young man’s mouth splits into an excited smile.
"Yes!"
Wade whimpers some more, the sweet, warm voice hitting him with full force. The boy turns to him again and asks timidly: “Who are you?”
The captain frowns. He’s not going to show weakness, trembling legs and sweating hands to this alien boy. He has to appear strong, majestic, fearsome. A lot of money and fame are involved in this whole unexpected affair.
"I asked you first." he brusquely answers and the boy adorably blushes.
"Sorry. I-I couldn’t understand before, you sounded so strange and…"
"So? Who are you?"
The… alien (even if it sounds wrong calling him that) cowers and sheepishly mumbles a weird name, a sequence of sounds so odd and funny the three explorers can’t help but gawking at him.
"Bless you." Bob politely says.
"What?" the boy says, looking panicked again. "What… what do you mean? What’s wrong?"
"Was that a bad word, boy?" Wade asks stifling a laugh. "Did you just swear at us?"
"No! It was my name!"
"Well, we can’t pronounce that and I don’t even understand how you did it." Wanda explains with an amused smile. "It reminded me of ‘Peter’ though. It’s a typical name from our planet, can we call you that for the time being? Don’t worry, it doesn’t mean ‘shit’, ‘motherfucker’ or ‘odd boy living in a dump’."
The alien - Peter - nods, not looking exactly sure about it, but wanting to do his best to resolve any difficulty. Wade clears his throat and faces his soft gaze and delicate face with the courage of a hero… and the stupid, beating-fast heart of a highschool girl in love.
"Speaking of that, why are you here, kid? Did you do this?" and he indicates the garden and the safe zone they are standing into.
"You didn’t tell me who you are.” Peter replies and now he has lost any trace of shyness and fear. He almost looks taller, standing on the doorframe with a decisive stance and a frown wrinkling his beautiful features.
"Are you pirates? If you are, please leave. There is nothing here for you and I don’t want problems."
Shit. Wade thinks biting his lower lip. He doesn’t need an erection right now. Thanks God the protective suit is baggy and loose enough to not show anything that would cause a tremendously awkward situation.
"We are not." Wanda hurries to say. "We are explorers… and occasional treasure hunters. We were looking for a rich planet we heard of when our ship received life signals from this one."
Peter instantly relaxes and he looks happy and relieved. He shows a little smile, nods at Wanda and turns back to Wade to answer his question, not doubting for a minute what the woman just told him. Wade finds it extremely endearing.
"Yes, I did this. I isolated this zone from the radioactivity.”
Bob approaches him with a big smile, eyes twinkling with excitement and respect; the young man listens patiently to him as he starts asking all the different procedures and ideas he supposes he used.
"Okay, enough of nerdy talk!" Wade steps in, rudely interrupting them just when Peter was becoming as excited as Bob, happy to finally be able to share his inventions with someone. "Listen, kid, are you the only one here? Are there any other… survivors?"
"It’s just me and my aunt." Peter answers and Wade wonders why he always talks with that low, timid voice when he speaks to him. "But she… she is old and not feeling very good." His brown eyes are casted down, now, and Bob peeks into the house through the open door, a sad expression etched on his face. He can see the pale, wrinkled face of an old woman resting on a big pillow, surrounded by a halo of gray hair, the body hidden by blankets, old sheets and even some clothes to keep her warm.
"Can we help in any way?" he asks softly, followed by Wanda, who also goes near the alien man: "Yeah, do you need medicines? Food? We have spare supplies on the ship."
"Hold ya horses!" Wade blurts out, eyes frantically moving from Bob to Wanda as if he can’t believe they are really saying that. "We are not here for a missionary mission! We are here for whatever specimen this planet can give us! Animals! Spiders! Whatever! As long as they can kept in a cage and brought to some freaking scientists!"
Wanda studies his sweaty face, his worried eyes settling for few milliseconds on Peter, his heavy breath and then she smirks. Smirks like a bitch.
"Oh." she says, red lips forming a perfect ‘o’. "You don’t want to help this poor soul who miraculously survived a radioactive attack and is now taking care of his old aunt?" She shakes her head, faking disappointment. "Fuck, bro, I knew you were a dick, but I thought you were better than this."
Wade blushes and he knows the sight must not be appealing, not with his scars and scabs disfiguring his face, but he doesn’t give a fuck and finally moves closer to Peter and his two companions. The alien man doesn’t step back, he keeps looking at him in that soft, gentle way Wade can’t almost stand, because it’s too calm, relaxed, trusting.
"Listen to me, pretty eyes." he growls at Peter shaking his index finger in front of his face and the boy doesn’t falter or cringe. "We are not heroes, okay? We are here because this planet was supposed to be dead, but you are here instead, you and those freaky spiders your people decided to kill with radioactivity because fuck the police and fuck healthcare." He takes a deep breath then continues, voice huskier than ever: "We will help you and your aunt, but you will tell us where the spiders are. Okay? We just want that.”
"We will take them back to our planet." Bob explains with growing hope. "They will have to believe us, those arachnids could be found just here and it will be the definite proof. They will send a lot of help here, boy! Researchers, scientists, doctors, colonists! And you will become an icon!"
"And you will earn a lot of… money?" Peter concludes. "Right?"
"Well, yes.” Wade admits crossing his arms on his chest. “It’s a good compromise; you will gain fame, love all around the galaxy and a better place to live with your auntie. Surely you can’t keep living like this for the rest of your life.”
"I thought you called me ‘Peter’, not… ‘Shirley’." the boy says looking puzzled. It takes a while for Wade to understand, then he groans and rubs tiredly his eyes.
"Did you just unknowingly quote that old as balls movie? Please, tell me I heard wrong. Wanda, stop laughing!"
"I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend." Peter murmurs, his cheeks redder than Wanda’s lipstick. "But can’t you take one of my plants instead of one of those creatures? I have more seeds, so it doesn’t bother me losing one. You can take it."
"Plants don’t prove shit!" Wade curtly answers. "We need something typical of this place, otherwise they will never believe us! And you don’t want to come with us, right? Not with your ill aunt. And we don’t kidnap people, so… deal?" He extends a hand, grateful for the glove that hides his ugly skin and won’t let the young man touch it. The last thing he wants is making him puke.
"… Deal."
Peter takes his hand and shakes it, smiling gently. Wade feels the blush coming back, a warmth rushing over his ears and back, and he mumbles: “Great. Now let me see this old lady.”
He sees her - and makes a face because she really is in bad condition -, then gives Bob the task to take care of her with the medicines and instruments they have on the ship. Bob comes back after few minutes, carrying a lot of boxes, healthy food and two cushions to let her rest better. In the meantime Wade and Wanda have observed the simple, poor walls, Peter’s small bed with some books scattered on it, the kitchenette and the toilet inside a tiny, bad-lit room. They also notice a strange machinery in a corner of the round and spartan house and they assume that must be the thing that is keeping them safe right now.
"It looks cheap." Wade comments even though he doesn’t know shit about that stuff. "What is this beep? Is it normal? And why are those lights flickering? I don’t want to catch brain cancer, baby boy!"
Peter blushes at the nickname and nervously assures him that the machinery is working well, that those sounds are perfectly normal and no! he must not touch that!
"Keep your bloody hands off this thing!" Wanda hisses kicking his brother in the ass when he tries to touch an alluring red button. "You, me and Bob are already fucked up enough and you don’t want to kill this man and his aunt, do you?”
"I was just making sure it was safe…" Wade grumbles and cracks a smile when he hears Peter stifle a giggle.
The boy tells them what he remembers: few years ago the Government decided to use rough tactics to get rid of the deadly spiders that haunted the cities and rural zones. They lured the creatures far from inhabited places, but something went wrong. The bombs they used were too strong and the explosions and following, extreme consequences weren’t foreseen and dealt with. He doesn’t know what happened in the other cities, but his was particularly small and nobody survived the radioactive winds and wastes… apart from him and his uncle and aunt.
"There is a darkroom downstairs, in an underground level." Peter explains tapping a foot on the cold, dirty floor of the house. "My uncle built it, he loved photography. We took refuge in there. The others weren’t so lucky."
"But what about the radiations?" Bob asks from the bed, where he’s giving some kind of syrup to the comatose, feverish woman. "That machine must have took you a lot of time. So how come you and your aunt are still alive? And you don’t look ill."
"When the explosions started, the machine was already working." Peter answers lowering his eyes and voice. "My uncle didn’t like the government, he didn’t trust it. So he asked me to build a shield for the radiations, because he knew something like that would have happened." He suddenly looks tired and so much older. "We tried to convince our neighbours and friends to come here, into this safe zone, but they laughed at us. They said we were crazy, that we preferred the company of the spiders rather than some distant, isolated explosions." He shakes his head, brown hair falling on his now glossy eyes.
"What about your uncle?" Wade asks, maybe not very tactfully, but he has never been good with words. He immediately regrets his question, because Peter starts sobbing silently, shoulders shaking and hands clutched together.
"Smooth." Wanda snorts mirthlessly. Wade sighs through his nose, pinching the bridge of it, and then awkwardly pats Peter’s forearm.
"Sorry, sweetums. I… I didn’t want to…"
"It’s okay." Peter sniffs, wiping the tears off with a sleeve. "It’s just… nostalgia. And pain." He gratefully accepts the handkerchief Wanda is handing him and says: "He… he got killed by the spiders. Many have died, but others grew stronger, I don’t know why. One night they attacked our house, maybe looking for food, and…"
"Enough." Wade interrupts him, sensing he’s in distress and still feeling bad about it. "Don’t talk about it if you don’t want to."
Peter turns to look at his aunt in bed and lets out a shaky sigh.
"She’s been like that since my uncle died. I… I have been trying to take care of the garden, but without his help it’s difficult and I don’t know what to give her to make her feel better. I even tried to build a transmitter and send an SOS, but I didn’t have enough materials."
"Hey!" Wade exclaims to brighten the mood a bit. "Did you forget our deal? Once we have captured one of those fuckers, you and your aunt will receive all the help in the entire fucking galaxy! Everyone will love you, tear-jerking stories are always people’s favorite shit. Maybe in the few next years or so your city will be full of people again and so the rest of the planet."
Peter smiles weakly at him and Wade’s heart skips a beat.
"Thank you." he says and his tone is so sincerely grateful and gentle, the scarred man can just nods and look away, self-aware of his disgusting appearance. But Peter puts his hand on his, now free from the gloves, and Wade jumps on his seat.
There is something in those brown eyes, Wade thinks as the room suddenly becomes hotter. Something wounded and scared, but also so much odd beauty. He remembers he couldn’t even understand this man if it wasn’t for those translators and the reality of this hits him hard.
Still Peter doesn’t look alien; it’s the opposite, it’s Wade who feels like a monster, some kind of fucked up creature, as he sits in front of him and admires his soft gaze and messy brown hair. Peter is intelligent, Peter saved his aunt and is trying to survive with her in this shithole.
Peter is stronger and worthier of happiness and fame than Wade will ever be.
"Well!" Wanda abruptly says after clasping her hands and causing both men to flinch back and interrupt eye contact. "It’s getting late, so I think it’s better if we look for those spiders tomorrow. We should going back to the ship."
"Actually…" Bob intervenes, still sitting beside the old woman. "I’d like to stay here for the night. I want to check her conditions."
"You can sleep in the house next to this one!" Peter says getting up and looking hopeful and cheerful. He must have been feeling pretty lonely for all this time, Wade thinks with sadness.
"I cleaned it." Peter insists. "And now I use it to storage food and keep my chemical lab. There are spare beds and enough space to sleep in there though!" He imploringly looks at Wade. "Please, I would sleep better knowing you are so near! Nights are horrible here, a dead wind raises and I can almost hear the spiders crawling outside."
Years of violence, not completely legal things and piles of money and now Wade is getting soft for a cute boy alone in the world, timid and probably traumatized for life.
He tries not to think hard about it and does what he thinks is good for the young man, ignoring his eyes and the way the artificial light of the room makes them look like dark, small and beautiful planets of sadness.
"Fine, whatever. We will sleep next door. Happy, now?"
"Yes! Thank you!"
And the joyous, bright smile Peter gives him makes his hard heart melt.
Fuck. Wade thinks as he, Wanda and Bob set down for the night among vials, strange liquids and strong spices. Don’t grow too fond of him, Wade. You are not good enough for this boy. And how would it work? He’s going to become a legend and you… you will spend the rest of your life in space, because it’s the only place that will accept you and your ugly soul.
He sees how Bob is looking at Wanda and the way he wishes her goodnight. And he sees his sister’s reaction, a gruff response with red cheeks and a small smile tugging at her lips, so he closes his eyes and imagines the same scene, but with him and Peter instead.
When he hears his voice inside his ear, his sleepy mind tells him he’s probably still dreaming, so he ignores it. But the voice gets louder and someone is shaking him, so Wade is forced to open his eyes and sit up on his lazy ass.
"… Peter?"
The young man smiles awkwardly at him and Wade studies his face under the soft moonlight entering from the windows.
"Is your aunt okay? Bob can…"
"She’s sleeping well. Your friend really helped her a lot." Peter glances over at Bob and giggles. The poor man is being crushed by Wanda’s generous body and one of her legs is draped over his waist. Wade glares at them, but poor Bob is sleeping like a saint, tense and stiff, his arms on his sides to avoid touching Wanda’s chest.
“At least he’s a gentleman.” Wade grumbles, then takes his attention back to Peter. “What is it then? Spiders? Nightmares? Do you want me to sing you a lullaby?”
“I… I wanted to talk.” Peter answers and his expression doesn’t promise anything good. In fact he looks very worried, almost guilty, and Wade expects something bad.
“I hope it’s important, kid. I was having the best dream ever.” he mutters as they exit the house to talk in the garden. He doesn’t say that he and Peter were making out in that dream.
The young man fidgets and when he looks at Wade his eyes are scared, full of something the captain can’t really recognize. Then he takes his hand and Wade flinches, because he has never liked being touched out of the blue. But Peter’s hand is soft, so small and delicate, and he awkwardly squeezes it in return, hoping to give him some comfort.
“What’s bothering you, Petey?” he asks and tries to joke about it with a grin. “You don’t want me to leave?”
Peter blushes - it’s so clear even under the weak light of the moon covered by clouds - and answers slowly: “I have to show you something.”
“Oh! Okay.” Wade says, blushing, and he lets the boy guide him to the nearest wall of the house they just left and watches as he presses his back to it.
“Close your eyes. Please.” Peter lets his hand go and Wade gulps and obliges.
He hears the boy move and gulps again, feeling the familiar, tight sensation in his crotch.
“Are you… uh, doing something that will cause us to play naked on the ground? Because we will probably regret that in the morning… well, you will regret it, I’d probably think about it with a dreamy smile and pain in my heart…”
Peter giggles shyly. “… No?”
“Oh. Disappointing. Go on then.”
Peter is not near him, he can’t feel his warmth and peculiar scent anymore, and he grows impatient.
“Can I watch now? You are not stripping naked, are you? Because that would definitely make me jump on you, sweetums, and…”
“You can open your eyes now.”
Wade does so and almost lets out a scream.
Peter’s feet are attached to the wall, stuck to it, and the boy is looking down at him from a considerable height. Wade can still see his scared and somewhat hopeful eyes though.
“I… I lied.” Peter says with a trembling voice. “There are no spiders. I killed them the night they attacked our house, but one of them bit me and… and now I’m like this. That’s why it looked like they were still here, it’s because my blood… my blood…”
Wade doesn’t answer, mouth hanging open and mind devoid of any logical reaction.
Peter’s lower lip is trembling, now, and some tears drip on the cold ground.
“I-I… I’m sorry, you mentioned food and medicines and my aunt needed those…! It’s because I became this that she fell ill too, it’s not just because my uncle died. Maybe she fears me, I… I don’t know. The shock…” Peter chokes down a sob and he looks so tiny on that wall, a red and blue spot lost in a gray and dead cosmos.
“I’m so sorry, Wade!” he weeps. “You can take whatever you want, take the entire garden, take one of arms and bring it to the scientists of your planet, that would be proof enough, right? They…”
“They will kill you to study you. You will become a guinea pig, boy.” Wade interrupts him, curt and bitter. “If there are really no spiders - if you are the spiders - then this planet will attract only cruel people, scientists who will open your head and cut your kidneys to understand what the hell happened to you.”
Peter looks terrorized, now, and crouches down on the wall, rocking back and forth as Wade continues: “You won’t be the little, cute hero who helped his aunt and survived hell. You will be a… a…” Wade looks for something better to say, a word that won’t hurt the young man so much, but he can’t find any, so concludes in a breath: “… a monster. And nobody will help you or your aunt.”
Peter hides his face in his arms and wails, a sound so desperate and tragic that Wade can’t stand to hear for too long. He goes near the wall and extends a hand, calling softly the boy.
“Come down.” he says and watches raptured as the other man obeys and crawls nimbly on the wall until his feet are on the ground and his hand into Wade’s. Only then the scarred captain notices a small, ugly scar on its back. He absentmindedly rubs it with his thumb and Peter gasps.
“Does it hurt?”
The young man shakes his head and asks with a slightly raspy voice due to tears: “Yours?”
Wade is about to answer negatively - the boy doesn’t need to know how much his face and whole body give him suffering on a daily basis -, but Peter’s other hand is cupping his cheek and his calloused fingertips are touching the uneven skin as if it’s not bad and disgusting.
His brown eyes are gentle, understanding, there are tears on the eyelashes and all Wade wants right now is kiss him and hold him until he’s feeling better and the fear is gone.
Instead he just nods sincerely and Peter’s grip on his hand becomes tighter.
“Come with us, Peter.” Wade blurts out. Me. Come with me. “You and your aunt are not safe here. If somebody else flies near this planet and finds you….” Worry and rage towards the rest of the universe invade him.
“We’ll take care of your aunt. Bob has a big heart and he’s a good doctor, he can help her! Wanda may be an asshole sometimes, but she’s kind too. And I…” He laughs mirthlessly. “I make good food. Especially tacos. I’m sure you would like them.”
Peter places a hand on Wade’s chest; he looks extremely surprised and asks in a low, incredulous voice: “You… you don’t want to tell everyone I’m here? But you would become rich the same! You would become the hero!”
“No, I would become a murderer who got an innocent boy and his aunt killed just for money and useless fame.” Wade corrects him. “And I don’t want them. Not like that.”
Peter’s face softens and he murmurs with gratefulness and a warm, strange sentiment Wade doesn’t want to give a name to: “You have a big heart too, Wade.”
The scarred man scoffs and looks away, but the now familiar fingertips return on his face and force him to lock eyes with the boy again.
“I can’t come with you.” Peter says with tears running on his cheeks. “My aunt wouldn’t survive, she is too weak.” He shows a smile, a sorrowful, frail smile that just makes Wade want to cry too. “I’ll stay here. Your food and medicines will last for a lot of time and I’ll continue to take care of the garden. I can do it, I survived until now, didn’t I?”
“And what will you do when your aunt is dead?” Wade asks, not giving a damn about tact; he can’t bear the idea of knowing this young man is here, spending days in despair and complete desolation.
“I… I will manage.” Peter’s smile grows and consequently becomes sadder. “I’m used to being alone.”
And Wade realizes he was wrong all along. He has someone, he has his sister and poor Bob, and even if his body and part of his mind are fucked up forever, he’s free and the space is there for him to explore it whenever he wants, whenever he desires to escape and find temporary peace.
But this young man doesn’t belong anywhere. He’s a space oddity trapped on a planet, victim of something bigger than him, something he didn’t ask for, destined to spend his days in this eternal hell just because he found the courage and strength to survive.
Peter is the only one here who is truly, completely and utterly alone.
Wade prays the tears in his eyes will go unnoticed and whispers, stroking the boy’s cheek: “Peter, I’m gonna do something special and a bit weird now, okay? Don’t panic, just close your eyes, it’s gonna be wet, but also cool. I hope.”
He doesn’t know if this innocent soul knows something about kissing, so it’s better reassure him.
But apparently Peter doesn’t need that, because he’s the one who starts the kiss and presses his mouth on Wade’s with a soft moan, delicate hands grabbing his bald head and pulling him closer.
And it’s Peter who presses himself against the wall again and places Wade’s big hands on his hips and continues kissing him with shyness, some awkwardness, but also a lot of excitement.
Wade can’t even think straight - hah, straight -, so he returns every kiss, every touch, every lick, until they are partially naked on the ground, Peter is breathing heavily beneath him and Wade is gently wiping the sweat from his forehead and messy hair. He looks dumbfounded.
“Fucking Galactus.” he gasps looking down at their lower, wet parts. “Did you… do this before?”
“No, never.” the young man admits, worried eyes lost into astonished ones. “You… you didn’t like it?”
Wade places a kiss on Peter’s hairline and snorts: “It was amazing, Peter.”
“I loved it too.” Peter sighs happily nuzzling his neck and his hands caress Wade’s body and face with sweetness, respect, and the scarred man knows he’s fucked, that this young man officially and completely stole his ugly heart.
I’ll be damned if I let something happen to him. Wade thinks and he’s so lost into his thoughts that he almost doesn’t hear Peter’s question.
“Will you remember me?”
“W-What?”
Peter is looking at him, eyes filled by tears again, hands clutching at the fabric of the protective suit.
“Will you remember me? Not… not my face or voice, I know those are difficult to remember after a lot of years, but… just the memory of me. This.” He kisses Wade’s chapped lips and he’s now crying silently, despair visible in every fiber of his being.
“It’s all I will need to know to feel better.”
Wade hugs him, holds him close, promises him that he will, that he will remember his face, his voice, his eyes, everything.
“I’ll visit you. Whenever I can.” he also says and he’s so relieved that Peter can’t see him cry, because that’s the last thing the young man needs. So he hugs him some more, reassures him, lets him sob on his chest and then, when they are both calm and breathing normally, he takes him back to his house, kissing him goodnight.
Peter watches him from the doorframe and the last thing Wade sees before entering the storehouse are his sad eyes shining in the moonlight.
- - -
The next morning he explains to Wanda and Bob what happened - obviously without mentioning the hottest and most personal part.
He expected rage - especially from Wanda -, but his sister surprises him with a sigh and a “and now what?”. Bob would like to ask the boy if he can show him his spider powers, but a glare from Wade convinces him it would be indelicate.
“He can’t stay here.” Wanda says crossing her arms. “Someone else is going to find him. Or he’s gonna die. The food we gave him won’t last forever and that garden won’t provide all the necessary to survive.”
“But he can’t leave either. He’s right, his aunt wouldn’t survive. Her conditions are stable, now, but she’s extremely weak.” Bob replies.
“We could visit occasionally.” Wade suggests, remembering what he told Peter the night before, and he blushes under Wanda’s sad gaze.
“You know our missions can last several months.” she says. “And everything could happen to us, Wade. We could die, we could be killed…” She sighs tiredly. “Damn, bro, I don’t want to give him false hopes.”
“Ms. Wilson…” Bob intervenes and Wanda grumbles: “You can call me Wanda, I already told you that.”
“S-Sorry, Wanda… I think… I think giving him that hope is better than not giving him hope at all.” Bob turns to Wade now. “At least he will have a reason to live! Once his aunt is dead, this boy will be completely alone and…”
“And he will wait for us to save him. To take him away from this shithole.” Wade concludes. “Yes, Bob is right. We will accept only simple and easy missions and come back here at least once in a month to bring him food and whatever he needs. And the day his aunt dies will be the day he comes with us.”
“Are you the same Wade Wilson I grew up with? The same Wade Wilson, Space Explorer with a Mouth, of yesterday?” Wanda jokes, eyeing him in a weird way. “Only simple and easy missions… You really said that?”
“He also suggested to help someone else…” Bob comments with a smile and Wade huffs and rolls his eyes.
“Yeah, I’m going soft, I know! But this situation is so fucking complicated and I… I want to do something good for once.”
"Goodbye, bad reputation…” Wanda grumbles rubbing her eyes, then barks: “Fine! We will do that. For your boyfriend.” and she giggles wickedly when Wade blushes and splutters some curses at her.
Peter thanks them and asks for their forgiveness again; Wanda and Bob must reassure him several times before he’s sure everything between them is fixed and they are not offended or angry.
“Hang in there, sweetheart.” Wanda says ruffling his hair. “We will come back soon with more food.”
“Be strong, okay?” Bob adds shaking his hand with a gentle smile. “And remember to give those medicines to your aunt.”
Peter thanks them again, crying ashamedly and saying he doesn’t know how to repay them.
When it’s Wade’s turn, the young man doesn’t even wait for him to speak; he wraps his arms around his neck and kisses him with anguish, urgency and despair.
“I fucking knew it…” Wanda mutters amusedly as she puts on her helmet.
“Thank you.” Peter whispers while Wade tries to catch his breath after the kiss. “Thank you for everything, Wade.”
“N-No problem.” Wade caresses his cheek and presses their foreheads together. “Everything will be fine, Peter. I promise.”
Peter nods and Wade finds the strength to pull away, wear his helmet and go.
Leaving the safe zone is a torture. The way back to the ship is endless, the sun of this planet seems hotter than usual, Wade drags his feet on the hard ground as if they weight a ton.
It’s when they finally enter their ship that he realizes he must be completely insane.
“Bob.” he calls and the other man, who has just removed his helmet, turns to him and respectfully waits.
“Take care of my sis, okay?”
“W-What?”
Wade ignores his astonished face and calls Wanda too. This time she doesn’t come with a scowl, but with a surprised and worried look instead.
“What is it?”
“The ship is yours. You are the captain… for now.”
She blinks one, two, three times then the realization hits her and she babbles: “… What the hell are you saying?”
Wade takes his helmet again and looks at both of them, completely serious. They make a good couple, he thinks. Bob is a good guy, he will treat his sister like a queen, and Wanda is expert, brave and kind, even if she will never admit the last part.
“I’ll stay with Peter. I will wait for you two with him.” He points down at his protective suit. “I have this too, it will be useful to explore the city. Once his poor aunt is dead, he and I will be free to leave this fucking planet forever.” He grins at his sister. “And I will be in command again, so don’t get your hopes up, sis.”
“But… but why?” Wanda shrieks. “He can endure some more on his own, Wade, there is no need to stay with him! What are we going to do?” she nods at Bob. “Tell him, Bob! His aunt can’t survive still for long, right?”
“N-No, I don’t think so.” Bob confirms playing nervously with his sleeves. “I think two years is the most she can live with her current conditions.”
“See?!” Wanda exclaims looking back at her brother. “Two years! He can do it! No need to stay with him!”
“I want to.” Wade insists finally putting on the helmet. “Don’t be scared, Wanda! You will do a great job, you are my sister after all. And Bob will help you, he’s your boyfriend! Just be careful and remember to bring us food.”
“Fine!” Wanda growls and then she sniffs, forcing the tears back. “Do what you want, you stupid dick! I’ll bring you only vegetables and licorice, I know you hate them!”
“Aw, aren’t you sweet!” Wade coos and the woman storms out, into the pilot bay, to cry in peace.
“Bob.”
“Y-Yes?”
“If something happen to her, I’m gonna shoot at your dick.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And if something happen to you, my sister is gonna be very sad, so be careful, okay?”
Bob blinks surprised, then smiles and nods.
“You too, mister Wilson.”
Wade shakes his hand - and Bob thinks he absolutely has to sign this event on the calendar -, then exits, running towards the safe zone, feeling happy and as light as a feather.
He finds Peter at the small garden; he’s sitting near the plants, sobbing and rocking back and forth, repeating his name like a prayer.
“Peter.”
The young man yelps, springs up and even with his red and puffy eyes, his dirty clothes and hair all around the place, he’s the most beautiful creature Wade has ever laid eyes on.
“You… you came back…?” Peter stammers incredulously and then he’s hugging Wade, hugging him so hard the scarred man can’t almost breathe, but it’s okay, he loves this touch, he loves this contact, he loves Peter. He doesn’t believe in Galactus, God and shit like that, but he thanks whoever is above for having helped him find this young man, this odd soul he wants to show the galaxy to, this odd soul he wants to free, make happy and spend the rest of his life with.
“Come, Petey.” he says wiping the tears off his face. “I’m gonna make you some tacos.”