Who's her mommy?
The Guardians, except for Kraglin who stayed to look after Knowhere while Nebula was away, boarded their ship with Peter hitching a ride with them. All were in their respective seats on the bridge, ready to head to Earth. Ready. What a strange word for Peter and Nebula. Were they actually ready? They had known they were parents for what, a few hours? And now they were about to meet their 6-year-old daughter. Was this even the right thing to do? Or was it better for them to just leave the girl alone? She was being taken care of by Asgard’s royalty, anyway, maybe she’s better off? These questions, none of them had any time to contemplate over anymore. None of the two had the guts to ask what the other thought. Both walking on eggshells especially after their last conversation.
Nebula may have been stealing one or two or three glimpses of Peter, hoping he would show any indication that they were still on good terms, or any emotion that would give her a clue of how he was feeling. But as the latter simply focused on driving the ship with Rocket, not once looking back at her, she figured he was probably still upset. This caused her mind to wonder. Wonder about all the times she watched Peter from afar on Earth, not once did she have the courage to let her presence be known. Maybe she should have… Nebula tried to shake the thoughts away, but if not this, she would be thinking of her daughter. Her daughter. It sounded so alien. Suddenly, she preferred thinking about Peter instead. Unfortunately, she was left with no choice when Cosmo approached her.
“Hey Nebula,” the space dog greeted, sadness, uncertainty, and a bit of fear in her voice evident. “I… I just want to say I’m sorry… This shouldn’t have happened… I mean the baby was obviously a specie I had never seen before… I should have at least wondered or thought about it…Then maybe we could have–”
“Stop it, Cosmo. None of this is your fault.” Nebula wanted her words to come out as an order, but somehow it came out as a sad whisper. It made her internals cringe. But at the same time, Nebula was unhappy. It pained her to see Cosmo torturing herself over something that really wasn’t her fault. But Nebula’s response didn’t make Cosmo feel any better. It made the golden retriever feel worse hearing Nebula not angry but sad. Tears started forming in her literal puppy eyes. “Cosmo, this isn’t your fault. Look at me, do I look like a mother to you?” Nebula looked down at her metallic arm, clenching her fist. No. She thought, answering her own question. This, on the other hand, made Peter look back at his passengers. It broke his heart to see Nebula like this. “A child will be the last thing you would associate with me. So, stop worrying. No one’s expecting you to have figured it out. If anything…” Nebula closed her eyes, making sure no drop of tear would come out. “This is my fault… What mother would leave an infant alone in their house?” She scoffed at herself, “Even in a fake life, I shouldn’t be a mother...”
The chorus of no’s coming from every other Guardian revealed just how many were eavesdropping on Nebula and Cosmo’s quiet conversation. This made Nebula more uneasy than she already was. She suddenly felt vulnerable, and it made her regret talking.
“Stop it, Nebula. This isn’t your fault either.” Peter said while still looking for the right thing to say. He was still holding a grudge over Nebula for not visiting him, but there was no way in hell would let her blame herself for this. No way in hell he would let her think she shouldn’t be a mother just because of her past. “Look, if you think about it, we were supposed to be living in a perfect world, right? So, no crime? No reason to worry about someone kidnapping your child while you’re on a quick shop at the market.”
“Yeah, Nebula. And the market you were in was just right across the street from where I found your baby.” Cosmo chimed in. “I’m sure you didn’t leave her thinking you’d never come back. Gaaah! Now that I think about it, why didn’t I know that was your baby? You were at the area!”
“Enough! There’s no point blaming ourselves here, okay? What’s important is that she’s alive, and she’s safe. We can’t change the past anymore and if we just continue this pity party, instead of looking forward and being our best selves when we meet Nova, we’re just gonna make her uncomfortable and unhappy. So, let’s stop this. Let’s move on.” Peter commanded, leaving the driving to Rocket and looking at everyone until his gaze landed at Nebula. “I think you were and are going to be a great mom.”
Nebula didn’t have any words. Peter could say the stupidest things, but he always knew the right things to say to make Nebula’s heart flutter.
“But I still hate you for not visiting me.” To this, Nebula’s suppressed smile finally broke free. She looked him in the eyes and finally said:
“Thank you, Peter. I needed to hear that.”
“Yeah, and I needed to say it. So, if you don’t want me to hate you, next time you go to Earth, you better knock on my door with a gift.” Peter joked. It made him feel a lot better when her smile didn’t leave her lips.
“Yeah, then you’ll have a heart attack after seeing it’s another baby.” Rocket snarked, joining in the conversation, making everyone except for Peter and Nebula laugh. “Oh, come on! That was funny!”
~
EARTH. NEW ASGARD.
The Guardians parked their ship on an open field in New Asgard and were greeted by Asgardian guards who escorted them to King Valkyrie’s court. Compared to the planet Asgard, New Asgard, as one might say, was a step down, but it certainly wasn’t less beautiful. After staying for more than a decade, the Asgardians really made a home on Earth.
King Valkyrie was sitting on her throne as the Guardians walked in. The death stare she gave was enough for Peter to conclude she knew exactly why they were there. And the moment they were face-to-face, she stood up, and immediately said, “No.” One simple word that said it all. Wanting to be with his daughter wouldn’t be a walk in the park. “You can’t have her. And you’re never going to have her.”
“I may have told my contact we’re looking for your daughter you never knew you had.” Rocket told Peter defensively.
Peter could only give his friend a sarcastic smile. And with his proven and tested negotiation skills, Peter cleared his throat, and tried to lighten the mood, “Come on, can’t we at least talk about this?”
“There’s nothing to talk about. She’s my daughter, and I’ll die first before I let anyone else have her.”
“So be it.” Nebula drew her metal arm to a weapon, and Valkyrie, the Asgardian guards, and the other Guardians followed.
“Woah, woah, woah. Come on, I’m pretty sure there’s a peaceful way to settle this.” Peter put a hand in front of Nebula, stopping her from charging against the king of Asgard. Peter continued to make his case with Valkyrie, “Well, technically, she’s, our daughter.”
Valkyrie, with her sword pointed at Nebula, stared at Peter then at Nebula, then back to Peter again, and with a raised eyebrow, “What, you and her?” she questioned.
The way Valkyrie said that made Nebula’s blood boil, and she was tempted to cut Peter’s arm just so she could slit the Asgardian’s throat.
A woman, graceful as what you’d expect from royalty, entered the halls from the door at the side of the room, and stood next to Valkyrie like she wasn’t surprised to see a brewing fight within these walls. Peter figured she might be Valkyrie’s wife.
Valkyrie made eye contact with Nebula, “You’re delusional to think I would let my daughter get near a child of Thanos.” She said through clenched jaw.
That was Nebula’s breaking point. More than a decade had passed since her father’s death, and since then, Nebula had been trying to be better. She was slowly healing from every trauma and pain her father caused her. She fought with the Avengers, saved the galaxy, became the leader of an entire planet. To be associated and labeled as a genocidal monster’s daughter after all that, enraged, wasn’t even enough to describe how Nebula felt.
Nebula pushed Peter’s arm aside. Valkyrie welcomed the fight and raised her Dragonfang. But before Nebula could get any closer, Peter stepped in front of her. “Nebula, stop it. I know we both want to be with Nova, but we can’t hurt anyone here.” Peter whispered through gritted teeth. “What’s your endgame here? Killing her so we can get our daughter? Do you want our daughter to hate us forever? You can’t kill her mom."
“I am her mom!” Nebula hissed.
“She doesn’t know that! Once you kill Valkyrie, whether you are Nova’s biological mother or not, our daughter will only see you as the murderer of the woman who loved her and raised her! Do you want that?”
This caused Nebula to groan in frustration. No matter how much she hated it, Peter had a point. “What do you suggest we do then, Peter, reason with her? How’s that working?!”
“I don’t know, Nebula! But I gotta try!” Peter faced the two women opposite them. “Look, we’re not here to take her from you forever. We realize we can’t do that. She is your daughter just as much as she is ours. And we can’t thank you enough for taking her in. But we won’t leave until we secure a relationship with our daughter. You can’t take that away from us either. This wasn’t our choice. We didn’t even know we had a daughter till today.” Peter started tearing up. And seeing this, Nebula realized just how much Peter already loved their daughter. Their daughter. Nebula would never get used to the idea of having a child with Peter Quill. But, seeing him right now, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. “We already lost six years with her. We’re not gonna lose any more.”
This time, a kid wearing an Avengers t-shirt walked in. She entered the room, looking down at the floor, smiling, while skipping like she was playing a game only she could see. The moment Peter and Nebula saw her, it was as if the Earth stopped spinning. One gaze upon her and they knew she was their daughter. Her fair skin complemented by violet accents, you only had to make her skin blue to see how much she resembled Nebula. Her black hair flowed smoothly to her shoulders, and when she stopped at her tracks and looked up, they saw innocence and happiness in her deep black eyes, something Nebula thought was impossible to come from eyes like hers.
“Mother!” The child gleefully shouted, running toward Valkyrie. seemingly not noticing all the other people with their weapons drawn. “My friend Apollo and his family are going to Disneyland. Can we go too?” When she finally got her main concern out of the way, she finally had the time to look around. And when she saw Nebula’s weapon-arm pointed at her mother, her eyes widened with fear, yet she stepped in front of Valkyrie as if to protect Asgard’s king.
Nebula never really knew what a broken heart felt like. Was it what she felt whenever she would hear a drunk Peter say I love you to Gamora in his sleep? Was it what she felt when Peter no longer visited Knowhere, leaving her waiting for nothing? Was it what she felt when she saw him from afar, eating dinner while making another woman laugh? Or was it when Peter announced he was getting married to that woman? No, Nebula figured those weren’t what a heartbreak was. It was probably what she felt at this moment. Because she had never felt more pain than hearing her daughter call out ‘Mother’ but run to a different woman. The look of horror in her daughter’s eyes when she saw her metal arm. Nova looked at her like she was a monster. And Nebula felt like she was being crushed to a million pieces. Her limbs grew weak, and she lowered her arm, trying to fight back tears that wanted to break free from her eyes.
The other woman next to Valkyrie pulled Nova and knelt to talk to the child. “Hey, Nova. How about you go play outside for a while? Your mother and I just have some business we must attend to.”
“No, Mama, I’m going to fight here with you!” Nova exclaimed, determined not to leave her mothers behind.
“What? What fight? There’s nofight.” The woman looked at everyone making sure they understood what she meant. Valkyrie glared at her in protest, but she glared back. Their silent conversation ended with Valkyrie losing and lowering her sword. So, the Asgardian guards and the Guardians did the same.
Nova looked at everyone one more time, then at her mother. “We’re good here. There are just some people we have to talk to.” Valkyrie patted her daughter’s shoulder and gave the child a reassuring smile. “Go, we’ll play with you after.”
Nova crossed her arms, looked to the side, and pouted. “Hmph.” She started stomping out, exaggerating her steps to make sure they knew about her annoyance at being dismissed. The adults could only admire how adorable she looked.
When Nova was finally out of earshot, Valkyrie’s wife stood up, “We should talk about coparenting.”
“What are you talking about?” Valkyrie protested.
“Look, Valkyrie. Nova knows she’s adopted. It wouldn’t be long before she starts asking about her biological parents. We both know this was going to happen.”
“So, we’re just going to give her up?”
“We’re not giving her up, we’re sharing her.”
“No.”
“We knew where she came from when we adopted her. She’s from a planet of abducted people. We’ve always wondered why no one claimed her, and now we know why. And he’s right.” The woman said shooting a glance at Peter. “This is not their fault. They were brainwashed and controlled. They lost their lives without them knowing it, then they lost their daughter. We should feel lucky we’re not going to experience that. It’s for the best of everyone, especially Nova, to let them be in her life.”
“How do you know that?”
“Thor trusts these people. I think we should too.”
Valkyrie was silent for a moment. Giving it some thought, she finally decided. “We’ll ask Nova what she wants. If she wants to get to know you, then okay.” She said, looking at Peter. “I don’t want Nova hating me if she finds out I took away her chance of being with you. But let me be clear, she gets hurt, you’ll die. If I ever find a hint that you’re brainwashing her into thinking you’re her only parents, you’ll die. And if you ever try to keep her from me, you’ll die.”
“Got it, thanks.” Peter started beaming despite all the threats. He could finally be a father to his daughter. That was all that mattered. “So, how is this going to go? If she agrees.”
“Well, given that you live on a different planet, I don’t think exchanging Nova once a week is healthy. That will be too much traveling for her.” Valkyrie’s wife suggested. Peter was so thankful she wasn’t as hotheaded as her wife. “But we also don’t want her to be so far from us for such a long time. So, how about, we each get one month? One month with you, one month with us, and so on?”
“I’m good with that. But just to be clear, Nebula and I aren’t together. We were never really a couple to begin with. More like teammates who happened to go on the wrong mission and ended up doing it a couple of times without even knowing it. You know what I mean? So, she’s the only one living in Knowhere, and I actually live in Missouri. So, we’re gonna raise Nova separately too. I guess what I’m saying is, is it, one month with you guys, one month with Nebula, and one month with me and my fiancée?”
This wasn’t a heartbreak either.
“Nope. One month with us, and if that’s your case, then that’s not our problem. It’ll be half a month with you and half a month with her.” Valkyrie interjected.
“Okay.” Peter exhaled. A little bit sad that he didn’t get a whole month. But it was better than nothing, and for that he was happy.
“You guys should wait here. We’re just going to talk to Nova.” Said the other woman with genuine smile.
Peter nodded. “Um, I have to ask, how’d you know her name was Nova?”
“It was knitted on her clothes when we got her. Figured maybe that was her name.”
“Right.” Peter grinned as he remembered seeing Nebula knitting on the tape. He didn’t notice then that she was knitting Nova’s name on the onesies. This made him feel warm inside. Peter internally punched himself. He should really stop thinking about their mini husband & wife escape. This time, he internally kicked himself. Mini husband & wife escape? Peter had to remind himself that what happened to them was horrible.
~
The Guardians waited. Peter and Nebula more nervously than the others. She hated that she wasn’t much help earlier. It was all Peter. All she was able to contribute was make her daughter scared of her. She just gave her a reason not to want to get to know them. She hated the wait. She was too nervous. Too scared that she messed it all up. She was pacing the room relentlessly, and she didn’t even give a fuck if she was starting to show the others just how anxious she was. Today was a very long day. It was already too much, even for her. So, when a familiar face showed up, Nebula definitely didn’t have the energy to hide her happiness. “Rhodey?”
“Nebs? What are you doing here?” James Rhodes, former officer of the US Air Force, asked. Equally surprised.
“What are you doing here?” Nebula returned the question. Peter had never seen Nebula smile this wide for years, or at all.
“Sorry, classified information.”
“Even for me?”
“Sadly, Nebs, even for you. How about you? What’s the whole group doing here?”
“You wouldn’t believe it if I told you.”
“Nebs, we travelled through time together. Try me.”
“I’m here to be with my daughter.” Nebula shared, her face showing no signs of joking.
Rhodey’s jaw dropped. “You- you have a daughter?”
“Yeah, apparently. I couldn’t believe it myself.”
“How? With who? If I may ask?”
“With Peter.”
Rhodey looked at Peter, then back at Nebula. “Peter, the idiot, Peter? No offense.”
“It’s a long story.”
“I bet. I didn’t even know you two were together.”
“We aren’t. I told you, it’s a long story.”
“Ugh.” Rhodey groaned in frustration. “I would love to hear it. But I’m here on official business and I have to go look for King Valkyrie. But we have to talk about this and catch up. It’s been what, 10 months?”
“Yeah. Maybe next time.”
“Will you be staying here on Earth?”
“Really depends on my daughter’s decision. If she chooses to spend some time with us, I might.”
“Wait. How old is your daughter? Don’t tell me King Valkyrie’s daughter… You’re the real parents of her daughter?” Nebula’s silence was enough answer for Rhodey. “Wow, this is a lot. Damn. I need to know everything. Ugh. 3 days? Are you still here in three days?”
“You know what, I’ll stay for three days, why not?”
“Great. Coffee at the usual place then?”
“I’ll be there.”
“Good. Now I really have to talk to King Valkyrie, you know where she is?”
“She’s supposed to be talking to Nova. Sorry I don’t know where.”
“It’s fine. Thank you for the information. I’m sorry I’m really in a hurry. Gotta go.” And with that, Rhodey left.
“So that’s why you’re ignoring all the guys asking you out in Knowhere.” Rocket teased.
“What? What are you talking about, Rocket? Rhodey and I are just friends.”
“Mhm. Mhm. Sure.” Rocket continued to tease his friend.
“Pshh. Just friends. Rhodey. Isn’t his name Rhodes?
“Everyone calls hm Rhodey, Peter.”
“Sure, sure, Nebs.” Sure, everyone can give you a nickname but me. Everything about what happened earlier didn’t settle well with Peter. Who the hell is this Rhodey, anyway? Who did he think he was, calling him an idiot? Not just that, 10 months ago Nebula was on Earth playing catch up with that guy? The usual? Since when did Nebula have usuals? And on Earth? How often was she here? And how come this Rhodey got coffee dates and Peter couldn’t even get one hello. What’s so special about him, he’s just a knockoff Iron Man.
Peter didn’t have much time to sulk as Valkyrie’s wife returned. “She’s looking forward to meeting you. She’s just packing. It’s like she wants to bring her entire bedroom.” She chuckled.
Nebula breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you.” She didn’t completely scare off her daughter.
“She’s both excited and scared. Take care of her, okay?”
“I will.”
“We will.”
Both Nebula and Peter promised.
~
On the ship, everyone was silent. Uncertain how to approach the child aboard. Rocket told Peter that he could drive on his own, allowing Peter to focus on his child at the back. He told them that they should stay in Missouri since it’s already late, and they shouldn’t shock the kid by bringing her to space right after she left home. Peter’s grandfather was off with his wife, anyway. So, no one would mind if he suddenly showed up with a bunch of aliens. Not that his grandfather would mind meeting his friends.
Nova, though usually energetic, did have a shy side, and so she decided to sit in one corner, and just participate in the staring contest with everybody. But she did look at Nebula most often. Something about the Luphomoid’s metal arm just captivated her. When she finally couldn’t contain herself, she decided to approach the woman they said was her mother.
“Hi, I’m Nova.” She introduced herself like a child on her first day in school. She extended her right hand to Nebula, expecting a handshake.
“Hello, I’m Nebula.” Nebula followed what her daughter did.
Nova sat next to Nebula. “So, am I gonna grow a weapon-arm too when I get older?” she asked eagerly.
When Nebula saw her daughter’s eyes shining instead of fearing when talking about her arm, Nebula felt some relief. “No, you have your father’s arms.” She uttered simply. She thought this probably wasn’t the time to tell Nova what her metal arm really symbolized.
“That sucks.” Nova pouted her lips again.
She seems to be fond of that. Nebula thought to herself.
“So, can I call you Mommy?”
Nebula was taken aback by Nova’s sudden question, she didn’t know how to respond.
“You see, I have a lot of mothers.” Nova nonchalantly shared. “So, I already have Mother and Mama. That leaves only Mommy available for you. Sorry, I don’t know a lot of motherly names.” She said, smiling at her mother as she waited for her approval.
Hearing Nova call Nebula mommy made everything feel real. She felt a warmth she had never felt before. It felt nice and scary at the same time. But Nebula, feeling overwhelmed, wasn’t sure if she was ready for all this. “Nebula’s, uh, fine.”
When Nebula said this, Nova’s bubbly expression suddenly changed, and it was evident on her face that this upset her. “But… aren’t you my mommy?”
“Yeah, but you don’t have to call me that. I didn’t call my mother anything growing up too.” Nebula regretted it the moment she said it. She mentally hit her head for pushing her daughter away.
Peter’s eyes widened as he watched their conversation. Everyone tried to hide it, but they too felt like Nebula shouldn’t have done that.
“Oh, okay…” Nova’s eyes started to get watery, so Peter decided to butt in to break the tension.
“You can call me daddy, if you want.” Nova looked up at her father, now with a newfound reason to be happy.
Nova’s eyes lit up. “Daddy!” She jumped up to hug Peter. The moment Peter heard it, he knew his world would forever change. But in a good way. In the best way. Peter was just loving every moment as he carried his daughter into a hug.
When he finally put her down, the little girl, like her father, was all giggles. “Dad, Mama said you have a fiancée, is that true?”
“Yeah, I do. Her name’s Alex.”
“She’s gonna be your wife, right?”
“Yep. That’s right.”
“So, she’s gonna be my mom too? Can I call her mommy then?”
Peter couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. But when he saw Nebula’s reaction, pain visible in her deep dark eyes, he knew he shouldn’t take that name away from Nebula. “You know, I think you should reserve that for your real mom.” He suggested, gesturing at the blue woman behind Nova.
“But she doesn’t want me to.”
“Actually, I do.” Nebula said, in a hurry to reverse her former statements, not having the courage to look her daughter in the eyes. “I would love for you to call me mommy.” Nebula said it almost as a whisper.
Definitely where Nova got her shy side. Peter thought.
Nova opened her mouth in glee and jumped at Nebula. She wrapped her arms around her mom, “Mommy!” she exclaimed as she tightened her hold. Nebula, unsure at first, finally returned the gesture. Now Peter saw a smile that beat Nebula’s smile after seeing the War Machine. Yep. This was Nebula’s largest smile to date.
~
MISSOURI. PETER’S GRANDFATHER’S HOUSE.
Thanks to Peter’s kind neighbors, even when barging in late at night, the Guardian’s huge ass ship found a parking space towering over Peter’s and some of his neighbor’s homes.
Peter had Nova stay in the guest room, and he offered his bedroom to Nebula. He told her he would just bunk with the others in his grandpa’s bedroom, so he could finally experience a sleepover with friends. But Nebula declined, not wanting to be any kind of hindrance to Peter. Peter insisted but so did Nebula. When they had been going at it for a while, Peter just yelled, “If you want me to be in my room, then we’re going to have to be in there together, and I’m sure you don’t want that!” He pushed her into his bedroom and closed the door. “Goodnight, Deep!” He yelled as he made his way to his grandfather’s room.
It was 4 a.m. and Nebula still couldn’t sleep. So, she decided to go down. Making sure she wouldn’t wake anyone up in the process. She found herself in Peter’s kitchen and her mind couldn’t help but remember what she saw on that cursed CD. A life with Peter where she actually knew how to cook. And using human appliances for that matter. It was way too far from the truth. But Nebula thought it would be morning soon. Bacon and eggs wouldn’t be that hard to make, would it?
An hour and a dozen burnt eggs later, Nebula finally gave up. She blamed the fact that there were no instructions to follow. She just tried to replicate what she was doing from the video, but turns out, easier said than done.
She decided to go out so she could replace Peter’s eggs. There was no way in hell she’d let him know what she was doing. On her way home from the market after she bought some eggs, she saw an open McDonald’s and decided to buy some takeout for everyone’s breakfast.
Once she’s back to the kitchen, she put the new eggs where they belonged, and put the fast-food on the dining table. While she was at it, she fixed herself a cup of coffee. At least, that she knew how to do, thanks to Rhodey.
While she was sipping her coffee. Peter walked in, still half-asleep. “Hey, it’s early.” He said when he saw her.
“I couldn’t sleep.” She replied.
“Was it the bed? Were you uncomfortable?”
“No, the bed was fine. There were just a lot of things in my mind. I couldn't sleep.”
“Yeah? Like what, like Mr. War Machine?” he joked as he took a glass of water.
“Like I have a daughter I don’t think I deserve. And will you stop that? There’s nothing going on between me and Rhodey. And even if there is, what’s it to you?”
“We both don’t deserve Nova, but here she is. All we could do now is try to be the best parents we could possibly be. And in case it isn’t obvious, I’m mad at you, and I don’t understand why you spent all that time here on Earth with that guy and not with me.” He scoffed, “If you two are just friends like us, how come he gets coffee time with you, and I don’t? I missed you, Nebula.”
“I did visit you. I just never let you know it.” Was it the early morning, or the fact that it’s just the two of them, that made Nebula just tell the truth?
“What? Why didn’t you?” Peter was so confused.
“Because, you were already happy. I didn’t see any need for you to see me.” It didn’t have to be the whole truth.
“What the fuck? Well I don’t know, Nebula, so I could be happi-er? Have you ever heard of that word?”
“I never thought it was possible for me to make someone happier.”
Peter groaned. Of course he couldn’t blame Nebula for feeling this way. But still. He wished he had seen her all these years. He pinched the bridge of his nose, giving up. “Next time, tell me when you’re here, okay?”
“Okay.” Nebula agreed as she took another sip of her coffee. “How about you? How come you never visited Knowhere anymore?”
Peter looked away, “Um you know, the whole getting-abducted-and-losing-a-year-of-your-life thing was traumatizing. I just wanted to move on, you know. And I felt like I couldn’t do it if I’m in Knowhere cuz Rocket and the others can always make me agree to join in missions.” then frantically looked around the kitchen. Then his eyes were fixed at the trash can. “Are those eggshells?” Finally, he found a way to change the topic.
Shit. Nebula overlooked that someone might look into the trash can.
Peter looked into the cabinet where he kept the eggs and was surprised to see that they were still complete. “Were you trying to cook eggs?” He raised an eyebrow at Nebula. And Neubla knew that grin. That sinister grin meant he was about to tease her.
“No. That was here when I got here.”
“You’re a terrible liar.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You should have YouTubed first, honey.” Peter teased. Knowing exactly what he was referencing to.
“Don’t call me that.” Nebula avoided Peter’s gaze. “And what’s YouTube?” Now it’s Nebula’s turn to change the topic.
“YouTube is a site where you can search and watch so many things. It has a lot of tutorials, among other things.”
“Right.”
Peter wouldn’t let Nebula go that easily though. “Don’t worry honey, I like McDonald’s anyway. And by the way, you didn’t tell me you had black hair.”
“Shut up.”
Rocket cleared his throat as he entered the kitchen. “I think I need me some water.”
~
It was a few hours after breakfast when Rocket told Nebula to meet him on the ship. So, Nebula, excused herself from watching Star Wars with everyone.
“In here, Nebs.” Rocket directed her to one of the quarters of the ship.
When Nebula entered, her jaw dropped in surprise. “Rocket, why did you build a kitchen in your ship?”
“So you can practice cooking without anyone seeing you. Also there’s a lot of vacant room in this big ass ship. It feels good to finally capitalize on some of it.”
“What?”
“I couldn’t sleep either.” He looked Nebula in the eyes, “I know there’s someone out there you love, and you want to cook for, even if you don’t admit it, I know you.”
Nebula was speechless.
Rocket opened the fridge. “Just fill her in with the things you need.”
“Rocket, please don’t tell him.” Nebula knew at this point, it was useless trying to deny it to her best friend.
“Of course I won’t Nebs. But I gotta warn you, he’s getting married.”
“I know. I am learning to let go.” There was a long silence that passed. But it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was the silence that comes with feeling safe.
“Thank you, Rocket.”
“It’s nothing, Nebs.”
~
Meanwhile, in the living room. Adam paused the TV when he heard the doorbell ring.
“Can somebody get that please?!” Peter yelled through the comfort room.
“I got it.” Nova said, rushing to the door.
“No, kids shouldn’t open doors. It’s unsafe.” Cosmo followed Nova.
When Nova opened the door, she was greeted by a beautiful, tall woman with auburn hair, fair skin, and hazel eyes.
“Hi, is Peter there?”
“Yeah, daddy’s just in the CR.”
“Daddy?”