Peter Pan The Killer

Chapter 21: Peter Pan's Strange Effects On You

Gwen crossed out 15th of July on her calendar, marking seven days since she made the bet with Peter Pan. It had been a week, and she felt sane to say the least. Her exams were today, and she was praying to all the gods in existence to help her ace them. Just one more week and it would be summer break, then it was back to the case.

The killer's eyes flashed in her mind for a moment, as she recalled last night's events. Gwen touched her fingertips, then shook her head. He had the nerve to touch her like that!

She grabbed her bag and headed off into the hells of examinations.

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Gwen stretched up in bed, feeling lighter than before. One day down, four to go. She felt confident about the test today and hoped her confidence would manifest itself as exemplary results.

One could dream.

She lay on bed staring up at the ceiling, when the summer winds blew into her bedroom. He was here. An unusual unsettling sensation bloomed within her. She was tensed for different reasons. She did not bother to glance at the window. The bed creaked, as another figure rested atop it. Gwen still did not shift her attention from the pale plaster ceiling.

"You're strange...." she muttered, "Don't you feel you're wasting your god-damned time killing people," she said.

A low chuckle came from the man beside her; she felt its vibrations thrum within her. In a split second, he was above her, pinning her wrists above her head. A gasp elicited from her throat. He was less than a hand span away from her. Gwen only then noticed how a woody scent folded her whenever he was near.

"Time means nothing to me," he whispered, his breath fanned across her face.

"How can time mean nothing? We live to chase for time. It gives life meaning," she whispered back. A mirthless grin spread across the killer's face. His eyes glinted with icy madness.

"It only means so much, because we dread death," he said.

"That's the point. Everyone would face the same fate called death; it gives us a time limit. It gives us something to live for," she retorted.

The ice in his eyes grew thicker, yet if she looked hard enough, the slight translucency of the ice allowed her to peer into what lay beyond the frosty wall. Secrets. Trauma?

Entranced by the mystery behind his gaze, she did not realise the distance shrinking between them. "Not everyone... Has the same fate," he said, his voice so low, but their proximity made even the slightest sounds resonate into her bones.

It silenced her, she grew heady inhaling his scent, their breaths mingling in the little space between their lips. The silence seemed to stretch on. Gwen did not have the strength to break it. The strange and heated atmosphere consumed her. 

It happened only for a millisecond. Amidst the entangling heat, Gwen noticed the white frost melt in his eyes, only to be hardened back up once again. Yet it was in that split second that she glimpsed what she assumed to be an underlying human emotion. Was it sadness? It left her to question.

"How can you not suffer the same fate?" she managed after a long moment of silence. Peter Pan tilted his head and brought his lips close to her ears. She felt his cold lips brush her earlobe, sending shivers down her spine.

"Monsters can't die," he whispered into her ear.

He released her from his grasp and got off the bed in the next moment. Gwen's heart was still racing. Her ears were burning, and she was unable to form coherent thoughts. She took a breath and steadied herself.

"If that's true, my question is," Gwen said, getting off the bed and striding up towards his leaning figure against the window.

She stared him straight in the eye. "Who made you turn into a monster?"

She knew she got him this time. The question caught him off guard. His usual cockiness flickered. His smile left his face, replaced by the menacing frown. Another mask he wore as a murderer.

"What if I told you I was born a monster?" he said, answering her question with another. One which she answered with confidence.

"I wouldn't believe you," she said. He was silent once again. But soon after she knew she lost her chance to peek into the ice walls, as his mischievous grin bloomed across his face once again. She noticed that was the thickest mask he wore. Withholding all his secrets and emotions.

He hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head up. "With the number of strange questions you've been spouting, you're making me think I'm already starting to win this game," he said.

"No, you're not. In fact, I think it's clear that I'm gaining the upper hand," she retorted. He chuckled in response.

"Oh, really?" he said, then closed the space between them, leaving only a few centimeters.

The magnetic field around him turned on. Gwen found herself unable to pull away. His eyes trailed down her face towards her lips. Gwen's heartbeat grew erratic, her breathing constricted. He drew closer still. Gwen stood there unable to move. When there was only a sheet of air between them, he stopped and pulled away. Gwen was breathless just by that.

"From the looks of it, I'm most definitely winning," he said, before jumping out the window.

Gwen was still fixed in place. Strange thoughts running through her mind. Why was she acting so unusual? As soon as he came close, her body would shut out all rational senses and succumb to the heat of the moment. It was so frustrating, yet her heart would not stop hammering against her chest.

She saw something that night. She saw a human within the shell of a monster. Even though it was only for a second, it was enough to shift her perspective to a whole new angle, just like Pauline said. She had a new urge to find the truth beyond the masks, what drove him to kill. It only made sense. No one was born a cruel murderer, so what made him do so?

It was strange how she felt the need to know. Throwing him behind bars was supposed to be the ultimate goal. She would do that. But along the way, she could not help but give in to the curiosity. He was mysterious and unusual.

A small voice in her head even thought he was alluring.