Belle had returned to Peter's hideout and did Gwen the courtesy of bringing her stuff after checking out of the motel. Gwen needed a bath desperately, her hair had become a bird's nest and needed a wash. As much as Belle was concerned, they had to get moving as soon as possible. So they'd be stuck on the road yet again.

Better take a bath while she had the chance.

Unsurprisingly, Peter's bathroom was as well-furbished as his entire studio suite. She had still yet to ask him about his interior designing. She wondered if all his hideouts were similar. He definitely had one in Manchester. The thought of them hanging out at his place after Gwen's classes, watching movies, having dinner, filled her with giddy excitement. However, she forced herself to quell it.

She did not know how this meeting with Skul would end. Pauline was the top priority. She could not predict the outcome of her relationship with Peter. Who knew what Skul had in store for them?

Once she was out of the shower, she dressed and could not help but smell herself. Her scent was just like Peter's. His woody scent apparently came from his body soap. She chuckled to herself. Peter was waiting for her outside the bathroom at the bed. He had medical equipment with him. He made her sit on the bed while he busied himself cleaning and dressing her wounds. Gwen's heart felt warm by his concern. He was unusually quiet, however.

"Peter... Is something wrong?" She asked, as he replaced the band-aid on her forehead with a new one. His eyes met hers, but skittered away.

"I remembered some stuff. Don't know what triggered the return of the memories. We'll discuss it later with Belle," he said. Although, for all she knew, he looked like he was far from planning to discuss it with them.

"Were the memories painful...? You don't have to tell us," Gwen reassured. He met her gaze, a frustrated frown on his face.

She wrapped her arms around his torso, leaning against his chest. She could hear his heart beat rapidly. It matched hers. He let out a shaky breath and placed a hand atop her head.

"Wendy..." Gwen heart ached at the vulnerability in his voice. It was raw with emotions.

"What am I to you?"

She felt her heart stop beating for a second. Her body stilled. It was a question she asked herself countless of times. One she had various answers to. But what was the true answer to this question?

She bit her lip before replying, "I... Just want to be there for you. Repent the mistakes I made before..." It was not a lie, but it was not the complete truth either. There was a deeper connection between them, but she was not ready to admit it.

Peter abruptly pushed her away, both his hands on her shoulders. He kept her at arms' length. It was more than obvious from his eyes. Her answer disappointed him. Gwen tried to think of something to fix it.

"I mean, it's not just that. I-"

"Anna... I'm just another Anna to you," his words made her wince.

But he quickly added, "Sorry... I shouldn't have said that..."

Before she could reply, the sound of Belle clearing her throat diverted their attention.

"If you guys are done, we should discuss our next plans," she said, her arms crossed. Peter stood up without a word and walked past her.

Belle was staring at Gwen, a brow arched, before she came up beside her. "A piece of advice, Peter doesn't have the best track record with girls." Then she left to the living room, busying herself with her phone.

Gwen had no clue what to do with that piece of information. However, she without a doubt tasted the venom of envy in her mouth. Peter had other girls? Was Belle messing with her? Was Belle one of those of girls?

More importantly, why was she acting like a jealous girlfriend?

---------------------------------------------

"I have dreadful news. Guess who I saw at Marne-la-Vallee bus station?" Belle said, while munching on a breakfast bar.

"James? Are you kidding me?" Gwen muttered a curse. She realized she underestimated James. He must have tracked the car rental.

"Told you renting the car would be an awful idea," Belle had to add.

Before they could begin arguing, Peter cut in, "We move stealthily. It'll be fine. I want to know where Skul wants us to meet," Peter did not seem the least bit bothered about James, his concern was Skul.

Belle's eyes were darting nervously from her phone to them. Something was up. "Yeah, we head to home ground. He's off the coast of Northumberland..."

Peter visibly tensed. "The foundation..."

Belle nodded, crushing the wrapper in her hands, "He's waiting for us at Neverland."

--------------------------------

"And I think we all need a nutritious meal before leaving for a journey!" Gwen insisted. She sounded like Mrs. Gonzales.

"We're wasting time!" Belle retorted. She was always against Gwen in these situations. So much for being the oldest, she acted like a brat when it came to food.

"Ooh! I know a good place, it's right around the corner!" Peter chirped in. Looping his arms around the both of them, dragging them to another direction.

Belle groaned in frustration. "Kids... I swear."

"Granny, are you treating us to lunch?" Peter asked, resulting in a severe punch to his side by Belle.

"Call me that again, and I'll kill you before Skul does," she warned.

Gwen whistled, "She probably means it." Peter dropped his arm from Belle's shoulder and hid behind Gwen.

"Wendy, help," he whispered. Gwen could not help but laugh. Peter made it his duty to annoy the crap out of everyone. Even Belle was a victim.

Two against one, Belle was forced to agree to the lunch. However, it seemed lunch was far from fate's plan. Just past the row of shops lining the plaza, Gwen's eyes caught on a familiar brown coat. Peter and Belle were way ahead of her.

"James," Belle muttered, as they snuck out of sight into the back row of the shops.

"It's fine we'll sneak past him," Peter shrugged.

"Yeah we can, but we've got extra baggage," Belle very obviously motioned to Gwen, which she felt was very offensive.

"I can handle myself!" She asserted.

Peter's head snapped up, and he pulled the both of them further into the dumps of the back road. Loud generators buzzed as their sneakers squished on soggy trash.

"Peter, wait," Belle stopped them.

"Why? He's coming," Peter retorted. Belle was glancing around nervously. It was the same anxiety she had when they were discussing back at the hideout.

Peter was quick to pick up on her unusual behavior, "Belle... What did you do?"

"N-nothing," she paused and took a breath. Glancing at her phone, she slipped it back into her pocket, just as heavy thuds of footsteps broke the monotonous buzz of the alley.

"Why are we waiting for them to catch us?!" Gwen frantically asked.

Peter did not seem too happy about Belle's plan either. He looked on the urge to grab Gwen and run. Belle however was standing her ground.

Within a minute, James and his men surrounded them.

James Hardwing stepped into the center of the circle. His four other men had guns pointed. Gwen was sure they would not shoot. James had regretted enough letting his men accidentally drive a bullet through her leg. This was a mere show of power.

"You can't keep running from me," James said.

The three of them were silent. A mixture of confusion and annoyance. Why were they standing there waiting to get arrested?

It was then did Gwen hear a sequence of ticks. A low, persistent sound. Belle clenched her fists, holding her breath. It made Gwen suddenly worry. The ticking stopped and a second later one of James' men dropped onto the disgusting ground.

Then down went the rest of them. A series of bullets whizzed in the air, until James was the last man standing.

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A/N: Hey, Lost boys! Leave a vote and comment if you enjoyed. 

Chapter 16 will be out on 5th May 2020 (Tuesday). If you'd like to read ahead, Chapter 16 and Chapter 17 are now available on my Patreon page. Link to my Patreon page in my bio.