Your Mind // 001

017 - Free

WARNING: literally pure filthy smut <3 (I gave a lot this time to make up for your wait)

ALSO I made a Henry Creel Oneshot book so if you want to request some stuff go check it out :D

[Peter's POV:]

Peter Ballard was lost.

He hated to admit it, but he didn't exactly have a plan for when they reached outside of the lab gates. It wasn't that he wasn't expecting to make it out, although his original plan to let Josephine go on her own, but he couldn't really think when carrying the body of an unconscious girl whilst bleeding from his neck, not to mention the several bruises across his body. He had already torn a piece of his clothing to bind the wound on her waist, but he knew it wasn't enough to stop the bleeding.

It wasn't too much blood to be fatal, since it was only her skin that had been nicked, but the excess exertion of her abilities had nearly stopped her blood circulation. If she'd given out more energy, she would've ended up in a coma, like he had, or worse.

The soft stirring of her breathing was what kept him going as he ventured through the seemingly never-ending forest. It was a sign that she'd wake soon.

He silently cursed himself for not noticing the wound earlier. He should have checked. He should have stopped her from pushing herself over the edge. Most of all, he shouldn't have killed those guards.

It was like a primal instinct, an animal suddenly unleashed. With only the amount of energy needed to hold a book, he could send a man flying at the speed of sound or snap his neck. It was uncontrollable. It was why he hated himself for letting Josephine take out the chip.

Don't get him wrong, he hated having the damn thing in his neck. It was suffocating. But he'd rather suffocate than see the fear that flashed through her eyes when he had killed those guards. It was like every denied allegation from her father about Peter's past had come to light, everything she had hoped wasn't true had shown itself.

If he'd known that she'd find out eventually, he would've told her the minute they met in the Rainbow Room. Then she wouldn't have fallen for such a lie and be dragged along in all his problems. But he liked it. He liked having someone in that god-awful place, someone he could rely on. He liked everything about her. Her smile when he complimented or praised her. The way her eyes twinkled even in the dark. Her hair when she woke up, all messed up and tangled like a bird's nest. Everything was like a breath of fresh air that he'd been cut off from.

He knew he was far from deserving of her. She needed more than a lying psychopath with a past of murderous instincts. Though he hated to admit it aloud, Warren was probably a better fit for her. At least he didn't have the potential to hurt her as Peter could've. She'd be safe.

These selfless thoughts seemed out of the blue, newly discovered. A question lingered in the back of his mind, one that had had its stay for far too long. It was one Peter had continued to push away at any moment it was considered.

Was it love?

It was an absurd statement, that Peter Ballard was in love with another person. It was like claiming that pigs can fly.

But every time he met her warm gaze or glanced at her soft, flushed lips, he couldn't help but feel his heart rate increase and his stomach do flips. He couldn't help but smile when she did, or when she made a witty remark. She was beautiful in every way.

Another reason why he should stay away from her. Who knew what these newfound feelings could do, if not restrained?

Hawkins National Laboratory, 1975