Four Hours Later
8:34 A.M.
Peter's POV

For once, Peter didn't mind the presence of Michael Johnson as the older man stood next to him in the elevator. He tried not to lash out at him even though he had no ill will towards him at the moment; he was more so focused on just what he would say the moment he stepped out onto the floor of the penthouse he was heading up to.

He pushed his glasses up his nose before his hands clenched into fists. He did his best to contain the anger boiling within him by the second but it was only getting worse. After everything Sidney had explained to him in the hospital, he only got more furious when he thought about it.

"I saw Harry shoving Christina," she had said, trying to prevent more tears from arriving. "I thought he was going to hit her. I heard her tell him that she was glad his father had died... that he was a murderer. He then called her a bitch and told her she was unlovable..."

Sounds like she figured out Norman's identity, Peter thought, feeling ashamed that he knew who had killed Margaret for almost two years and he never told Christina about it.

The moment the elevator opened, Peter stormed into the entry room, Michael right behind him as he looked around. "HARRY!" he bellowed, seething with utter rage. "WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?!"

Michael was taken aback by the younger man's anger, as he knew Peter (years ago) to be a kind-natured person who rarely ever screamed at anyone. But, at this moment, he couldn't really blame him for how he felt.

"HARRY!!!" Peter screeched, breathing heavily as he searched every inch of the downstairs area for his ex-friend. "SHOW YOURSELF, YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"

"Jesus, is there a problem here, Parker?!" came a voice in a retorting tone from the top of the stairs.

Both men spun around to see a smug-looking Harry Osborn standing next to the railing with his arms crossed, his eyebrows raised in confusion.

Without hesitation, Michael was the first to stomp up the stairs towards Harry and he gripped him by the collar of his shirt. "You son of a bitch!" he shouted, propelling him against the wall. "You hurt my daughter! You fucking hurt my daughter, you sick bastard!"

Harry raised his hands up to protect himself as he narrowed his eyes at the older man, in utter disbelief at what he was saying. "You're one to talk, Mr. Johnson," he snapped in return, tilting his head. "Considering that you left Christina nearly ten years ago because you were a deadbeat?"

"That doesn't matter right now!" Michael fired back, trembling from head to toe. "I may have been a shitty father but I wouldn't ever bring myself to drive my child to suicide!"

Harry's eyes widened at those words and his jaw nearly dropped in surprise. "What?" he replied, dumbfounded.

"Because of what you did to Chris, she tried to take her damn life, Harry!" Peter said in a broken voice, finally entering the conversation. "Sidney overheard every fucking word you said to her. I told you to not go anywhere near Christina and look at what you did! You not only didn't listen to me but you broke her!"

Harry stayed silent for just a moment, processing this information. But, his expression changed from shock to indifference.

"Well... fuck her," he muttered. "She said my father was a killer... that he murdered her mother. She's gone batshit insane, do you two realize that?"

"Maybe she was right and still is," Peter said, interrupting him. "Maybe Norman was a deranged psychopath that targeted her and Margaret. Maybe he did kill Christina's mother... maybe he did do that. Maybe he was a fucked up lunatic."

"You want to say that to me again, Peter?!" Harry said under his breath, advancing towards him to possibly slap him again.

Michael suddenly shoved Harry back about five feet from where he was previously standing. "Hey, get the fuck back!" he snarled, holding a menacing stare in his direction.

"What do you think you're doing, Johnson?" Harry asked in a dumbfounded tone, his jaw dropping at the force of the shove.

"I'm making sure you don't beat the shit out of Peter like you did a few weeks ago," Michael responded furiously. "Now, you listen here, Osborn... I may have taken the love my daughter and ex-wife had for me for granted and I may have left them but I would never ever do anything to bring Christina to want to end her life. At least I'm not some worthless loser that's trying to drink himself to an early grave and I'm not the one losing my mind and my friends along with that... and all because you think Spider-Man is a killer, for crying out loud! Even I know he isn't a murderer."

The entire time, Peter was watching this exchange with a small smile on his face; unlike what had happened in Margaret's funeral, Michael was the good guy this time and was doing the right thing, which was the exact opposite of what he had done last time. And, for a slight moment, he had hope that Harry would do exactly what Michael was describing: drink himself to death. But that thought was abandoned as soon as it appeared.

"What you did to her is also illegal, technically," Michael added with a smug smirk. "I could have you in prison for what you did."

"Is that a threat?" Harry questioned.

"Yes, it is," Michael said. "I could have you behind bars for up to three years... maybe longer. You ever go near my daughter again, I might just make that happen."

Harry didn't say anything whatsoever, but he looked as though he was utterly terrified of that outcome.

Feeling satisfied, Michael just turned around and walked back towards the elevator, Peter following close behind. Both of them were glad that a fight hadn't broken out, but they were also happy that they had successfully scared Harry into never going within a hundred feet of Christina ever again.

_____

Three Hours Later
11:40 A.M.
Christina's POV

The brunette's eyes snapped open and she sat upright, clawing at her chest as she tried to breathe as best as she could. She trembled from head to toe as the effects of the nightmare lingered for just a little while longer than it should have.

"Hey, hey, Chris..." came a younger voice from her left as she felt two hands on her arm. "It's alright... It's okay."

Christina spun her head in Sidney's direction and saw her gripping her arm with a worried gaze in her brown eyes. After a few moments, she slowly began to calm herself down, breathing deeply and closing her eyes before relaxing against the bed she was lying in. "Oh, shit..." she murmured, feeling extremely tired and confused. "Sorry..." she added quietly.

"No, no..." Sidney whispered, shaking her head lightly. "There's nothing to be sorry for..."

The sound of the steady beeping of the heart monitor next to the bed brought Christina back to her main question at hand, and she looked back at Sidney. "W-Why am I in the hospital...?" she asked, squeezing her eyes shut and opening them back up seconds later.

Before Sidney could answer, though, the door to the room opened and a female nurse walked in with a clipboard clutched in her right arm. The woman, who seemed to be in her late thirties, walked over to the side of the bed and looked down at her.

"Ah, you're finally awake..." she said in a caring tone. "How're you feeling?"

"Really tired..." Christina answered with a slight yawn. "Ma'am... what happened...?"

The nurse peered over at her with a professional albeit sympathetic stare in her eyes as her lips pressed into a thin line. "You overdosed on medication you had taken the night before," she informed her as politely as she could. "The symptoms were pretty severe but we put some Naloxone in your system to reverse the process and help you breathe better."

Christina seemed momentarily stunned as she stared up at the nurse, fiddling with the blanket that was draped over her lower torso and legs. "I... I don't remember that happening..." she admitted, lowering her gaze and refusing to meet anyone's eyes.

Both the nurse and Sidney looked over at her with slight surprise in their eyes, having not expected to hear this coming from her. For a moment, they didn't really say anything, but the nurse spoke up again.

"Well... it's honestly good that you don't remember," she told her gently, scanning the heart monitor and IV in Christina's arm. "You seem to be in fighting shape now... the drugs look like they're finally gone. You should be able to go back home tomorrow."

The brunette nodded her head timidly. "Okay..." she whispered. "Thank you..."

"No problem, Miss," the nurse replied with a kinder smile now, writing a few things on the paper attached to the clipboard before exiting the room and going back to her job.

Christina continued to stare at the foot of the hospital bed, a little scared of bringing her head back up to look at who was still looking directly at her. Her lips parted as she attempted to start speaking, taking a deep but shaky breath. "Sid, listen..." she began, her voice trembling.

"Explain yourself..." Sidney replied bitterly, cutting her sister's sentence off.

"I really don't remember what happened," Christina said truthfully, finally looking up at her sister and shrinking from the pure anger and distress in her eyes.

"Oh, I believe you..." she muttered, staring down at her older sibling. "I just want to know why you did what you did to yourself."

"I genuinely don't know," the brunette said in a desperate tone, sitting further up on the bed and grabbing Sidney's hand. "All I remember is kicking Harry out and then everything went black. Did I do anything before... that? Did I say anything?"

"You just said that Peter wasn't a part of this and that I had no right in calling him for help and that I had no idea what loss what and that you weren't my concern," Sidney snapped at her sarcastically, jerking her hand out of hers. "I went into your room after that and said that what Harry told you wasn't true, that you were loved, that you deserved everything!"

Tears were quickly falling down the young girl's face as heaving sobs left her.

"Sidney..." Christina whispered, trying to reach out to her.

"And then I had to watch you nearly die!" she cried out, backing away from Christina. "You scared the fucking shit out of me and Peter, Chris! Apparently, what I said to comfort you did absolutely nothing!"

"That's not true, I don't remember you telling me that..." the older sibling said, a few tears falling down her cheeks now.

"I should have tr-tried harder," Sidney murmured through her cries, stammering over her words. "I did nothing... I-I did nothing to help y-y-you.... This is all my fault. My fault!"

"No, Sidney!" Christina yelled, grasping her sister's hands to provide solace. "Sweetie, don't say that... Don't say that about yourself, kiddo. Look, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I did that to you."

"Good..." Sidney uttered as she sighed shakily. "I'm glad you're sorry. I didn't want to lose you... I should have done something... I knew that wasn't actually you saying that stuff to me last night. I should have called the police sooner."

Christina squeezed the young girl's hands as she stared up at her, her blue eyes containing a pleading expression in them. "Sid... I'm sorry..." she whispered, her voice a lot calmer now to try and soothe Sidney. "Look at me, kid..."

Sidney glanced at her.

"I really am sorry, okay?" she continued, her eyes looking sincere. "I never meant to scare you or hurt you, I promise you that. I will do everything I can to make it up to you... Will that be enough?"

Sidney's brown eyes looked downward and away from Christina for just a moment. But she looked back up seconds later.

"You better..." she whispered, her voice breaking again. "I forgive you for this but please... don't you ever do that to me or any of us again...."

"I won't," Christina said instantly, being completely honest with her. "I promise."

Sidney nodded her head, deciding to believe her once again, although she was getting tired of having to go through this over and over again.

"Who all's here?" Christina then asked, breaking the young pre-teen girl out of her thoughts.

"Peter, Mary Jane..." she began in return. "Aidan, Mom, and Dad... They're all here. Mom and Aidan were allowed in here, but he wasn't..."

"Was Aidan alright?" the older woman asked tenderly, tilting her head out of curiosity.

"Yeah, he was," Sidney answered. "He seemed really worried about you, though. He has this sixth sense, I guess."

"He's smart..." Christina muttered under her breath. "Was Michael okay?"

Sidney tensed up slightly before nodding her head a little. "Yeah, he was..." she murmured. "He was really concerned as well..."

Christina drew in a heavy breath and sighed to herself. "Can... Can you send him in here?" she asked sheepishly, glancing over at Sidney.

The younger girl looked at her out of pure puzzlement. "What...?" she replied dumbly.

"Send Michael in, please..." Christina said, nearly demanding this. "If Peter or Mary Jane try to protest, you tell them I said it was okay. Do you understand?"

Sidney nodded meekly, lowering her gaze.

"Yeah, okay..." she said.

"I think we're long overdue for a talk," Christina added.

Sidney left the room not too long after and the brunette woman braced herself, her heart about to burst out of her chest from anxiety.

Minutes later, the door slowly opened and Christina's father entered the room, and she perked up at this. She actually smiled at him for the first time in years as she looked in his direction. "Hi, Michael..." she murmured.

"Hi, Christina," Michael replied, nodding at her as a form of greeting, feeling awkward standing in the open doorway.

The young woman gently patted the empty space next to her on the bed. "Please come and sit..." she said. "It's okay."

Michael hesitantly moved away from the doorway, allowing himself to walk over to the bed but nervous that Christina would kick him right back out of the room. He decided to tread carefully with what he thought was about to happen; he didn't want to push his daughter even further over the edge than she already had been.

Sitting down next to her, he fiddled with his fingers as he slowly met her gaze.

"Are you okay?" he asked her in a gentler tone than he normally used.

"I'm okay now," Christina responded with a small smile, chuckling lightly and feeling more at ease around her father than she had in so long.

"That's good..." he mumbled, glancing back down. "Listen, Chris... um... I get it if you still hate me – I understand, even. But I just wanted to explain everything. And I'm hoping you'll let me... if that's okay."

The brunette tensed up just the slightest bit as she took a deep breath, looking right at Michael. "Talk..." she said.

Michael sighed deeply as he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. "I'm gonna say this in one go..." he muttered before facing his daughter. "Look... Peter told me what happened... I know what Harry did to you. We went to where he lives and I threatened him; he should be in jail for condoning what you did. But, knowing him, the police won't do anything. Peter explained all of what happened last night. Sidney told him what Harry said to you. And what Harry said is not true and I don't want you to believe those words."

"Then why did you call me a bitch at Mom's funeral?" Christina asked, frowning a little bit.

"I don't know why," Michael answered truthfully. "Probably because I was a piece of shit that refused to see just how much my own daughter meant to me... None of what I said was true... except the whole falling out of love with your mother thing. I should have brought up the topic of divorce like a grown up instead of having an affair with Allyson. I still loved Margaret but it wasn't romantic. I left you and her like a damn coward. I was a selfish bastard that only thought of himself."

At this point, a few tears had begun to fall down the middle-aged man's face as he closed his eyes, his hands trembling.

"Dad..." Christina whispered, reaching out to him.

"I didn't even think about how much I hurt you," Michael continued, crying now. "I broke your heart. You needed me and Margaret needed me and I just abandoned you. You were the best thing that ever happened to me and I took that for granted. You're not a bitch; you're one of the sweetest souls in this world... If I had stayed... I could have saved her that night... I could have protected her and I could have protected you, too. I could have warned you about the Green Goblin... about Norman."

"No, Dad, stop..." Christina muttered.

"I failed you both," Michael said, his voice breaking. "I failed as a father and a husband. And I'm sorry. I really am sorry. And I'm not gonna stop apologizing. If you want me out of your life – If you want me to walk out of that door and to stay away from you forever, I will. That's your choice, and I'm going to respect that... no matter how much it hurts."

"Dad, I don't want you to leave," Christina said, speaking up in a louder voice now.

Michael began to recover from his emotional breakdown as he stared at his daughter, extremely dumbfounded that she was referring to him as 'Dad.' "What?" he mumbled.

"I want you to stay," the younger woman replied. "Look... I don't think I could ever forgive you for leaving us...." She then took a deep breath. "But... I'm willing to try and give you a second chance."

Michael blinked. "You... You are?" he questioned.

Christina nodded. "I don't want to hate you," she said. "I have a good reason to, but... I want to actually be your daughter again."

"You don't have to do that," Michael protested. "You can hate me if you want, I'll understand."

"No," Christina responded. "I want to give you the chance to actually be a good father again... to put Sidney and Aidan first, and to put me first. I'm giving you the opportunity to not mess this up again."

"I won't mess up," Michael said genuinely, wiping his tears away. "I'll be better, I promise. I really do."

"Then prove that you want to be better," Christina said, reaching out to grab her father's hand. "Okay?"

Michael's head just bobbed up and down.

The two decided to make a 'trial run' of sorts in order to test the waters of their reconciliation. Christina had no plans of forgiving Michael for a very long time but she wanted him to be a part of her family again; she also wanted to see if he could actually be better, and it seemed as though he was already making that attempt. That relieved her.

They talked for another hour before Michael said he was going to take Allyson, Sidney, and Aidan somewhere to eat. He mentioned that Sidney needed to get out of the hospital for a little while before offering to bring Christina something back, to which she gave him the details of what kind of food she wanted.

Around fifteen minutes after he had left, Mary Jane had come into the room and the two women comforted each other for some time. John and his father had also shown up, and Jameson had assured Christina that she could take a longer break from work if she wanted to and that he would pay her.

"Don't protest again, kid," Jameson had said when Christina tried to shake her head. "It's the least I can do."

"We're all here for you, Chris," John added with a sympathetic smile.

"We really are. And, if Harry tries anything else, we'll all kick his ass. I made sure he knew that," Mary Jane muttered with a confident smirk.

The three of them left shortly after that.

Almost immediately afterwards, the door to Christina's room opened up again. She slowly looked back up, kind of aware of who would be standing there.

"Hey..." she whispered, smiling brightly upon seeing him.

Peter didn't say anything at first, as he had rushed over to the bed and wrapped his arms around Christina in a protective and gentle hug, trying his hardest not to cry again.

"You're awake..." he said, still hugging her. "Like... you're actually awake. Oh, thank God."

Christina giggled as she hugged back tightly with her left arm, still being wary of the IV in her right arm. "Yeah..." she muttered and closed her eyes, feeling so safe in Peter's arms. "I am..."

After a moment, Peter pulled back from the embrace and sat down next to her on the bed; he grinned as he reached out to caress her right cheek. "You're alive..." he whispered, just staring at Christina lovingly. "I'm so glad you're alive."

The woman's blue eyes brimmed with tears as she lowered her head timidly. "Me too..." she replied. "I'm so sorry I scared you and Sidney. I didn't know what happened... I wasn't aware that I did that to myself. I'm sorry..."

Peter wasn't quite sure how to reply to those words and he shut his eyes for just a few seconds. "I thought you were going to die, Chris..." he muttered, a trembling sigh leaving him.

"I know," Christina said. "I didn't mean to do that to you."

"I know. It's just... Sidney told me everything, from what Harry said to you to... that. None of what Harry said to you is true."

"Yes, it is..." the brunette murmured, finally beginning to truly break.

"Chris, what did I tell you at the planetarium?" Peter retorted with a saddened expression in his eyes. "He's completely wrong about you."

"No, he's not."

"Yes, he is. You're not a bitch, you're not unlovable, and you're not undeserving of anything. You're the sweetest and most incredible woman I've ever known," Peter said, his voice cracking just the slightest bit. "You're very loved by those that care about you and you deserve absolutely everything. Do you understand me?"

"You're just saying that..." Christina said, a single tear tracing down her right cheek.

Peter instantly wiped the tear away with his thumb.

"No, I'm not just saying that..." he retaliated, shaking his head lightly. "I'm telling you the truth."

"Then why are you telling me all of this?" Christina broke, a cry leaving her. "Why do you care so much?"

"Because I love you, okay?!" Peter said, raising his voice and completely unaware of how he had said those dangerous words. "I love you and I have for a really long time and you're one of the most important people in my whole life and I don't want to lose you, okay, Chris...?"

Christina just froze and she stared into his eyes, completely astonished from what had just happened. She didn't even have time to process... well, that. "You... Y-You love me...?" she whispered out of pure shock.

Peter's eyes widened, the surprise that he had said those words fully hitting him in the gut. "Shit..." he mumbled under his breath, lowering his head for a moment. "You know what, fuck it... Yes, I do love you. I love you so damn much, Christina..."

Christina instinctively raised her hand to hold his that was on her cheek, her heart beginning to race in her chest. "How long...?" she asked, peering up at him shyly.

Peter truly became sheepish and vulnerable in front of her as he smiled in an embarrassed way. "Um... uh... sixteen years..." he said extremely quietly.

Christina let out a breath of amazement. "So... I'm the mystery girl..." she said, referring to their conversation at Peter's and Harry's old apartment on Thanksgiving nearly two years ago.

Peter nodded. "Yeah..."

Christina smiled a little bit out of slight amusement. "Well... uh... I knew you had a crush on me..." she told him. "But... I didn't know you loved me..."

"I've always loved you..." Peter murmured gently, scooting closer to Christina as he admired her beauty. "It's always been you, sweet girl..."

Christina's breath hitched at the close proximity between them, and she began trembling all over. "Peter..." she faintly whispered, just staring at him.

The sudden sensation of his thumb tracing her lips led to shivers traveling down her spine repeatedly, and her eyes fluttered shut at the feeling. But her heart also wrenched agonizingly in her chest, especially when she felt Peter resting his forehead against hers as though he were about to kiss her.

She placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him from going further.

"I can't..." she said, pausing for a moment.

Peter tilted his head out of concern. "You can't what?" he replied.

"I can't... let you in..." Christina mumbled. "I just... I'll end up hurting you. I don't want you to see how much I'm hurting. I want to be happy around you because that'll make you happy. I can't be broken around you."

"Christina..." Peter said, frowning deeply. "It's okay to hurt sometimes. Sure, I want you to be happy but I understand that you break from time to time. It's normal."

"I don't want to keep being like this, though. I want to be happy and I want to be confident in myself again, but I just can't. But I don't want to continue hurting you or Sidney or Dad or anyone else..."

"What do you want me to do?" Peter questioned, staring into her eyes to search for a possible answer. "Is there anything I can do...? Please, Chris..."

That was when Christina allowed a soft sob to slip past her lips as she rested her forehead against Peter's again, gripping both of his hands in hers. Her breathing was strained and her lungs ached with the struggle to inhale oxygen and then let it back out; for a moment, it felt as though her throat were being constricted and that she was being strangled. But, when a sigh left her, it was suddenly easier to breathe again.

"Help me..." she whimpered, sobbing a little harder now. "Please, Peter... Please help me. I can't keep doing this anymore. I-I need help...."

The way she had said those words shattered Peter's heart.

"Okay..." he said. "I'll do everything I can to help you. I can arrange therapy for you... I can arrange AA meetings... I'll do anything. If that's okay with you."

"It is," Christina uttered right away, nodding her head frantically. "I don't care what you do... I just want you to help me. I want to get better..."

"I want you to get better, too..." Peter murmured soothingly, caressing Christina's cheek again to help comfort her further. "I want you to be happy... because I think about us... You and me. The two of us. What we could be. I think about it all the time."

"Don't..." Christina mumbled, although she tried to mask a smile.

"Alright, I'll stop," Peter sarcastically responded, which finally got a laugh from the gorgeous brunette in front of him.

Damn him and his adorableness, Christina thought.

"I think about it, too..." she said, smiling at him. The smile finally reached her eyes.

Peter just kissed Christina's forehead in return, letting out a trembling breath as he held her.

Christina traced invisible circles on the back of Peter's hand that was still on her cheek.

"I love you..." she whispered ever so quietly despite it being just them in the room.

Peter let out a soft but shuddering breath as he pulled back just a little to examine Christina's expression. She wasn't smiling anymore but her endearing eyes held complete honesty in them and that was enough to convince him and he grinned at her.

"I'm glad..." he replied, his eyes filling with tears as he stared back at her. "Although... I don't understand why you'd love someone like me. I'm not good enough –"

"Stop right there," Christina cut him off. "Yes, you are. Don't you dare say you're not. You're more than good enough for me. You're perfect, Peter... You deserve to be happy."

"So do you..." Peter said, caressing her cheekbone again.

"I know..." Christina mumbled. "But... listen to me. You're the sweetest man I've ever known. You've always been there for me even when I never asked you to be. You've always looked out for me and you've always made me feel safe. I always found your dorky personality to be adorable, too, unlike some assholes. You're so kind and gentle and caring... and, I can't deny, really handsome as well."

Peter blushed furiously at that, which made Christina giggle.

"I love you, Peter Parker..." she continued. "I have for a few years now. Sure, it's nothing compared to how you feel... but I hope it's enough."

"It's more than enough," Peter said right away, grabbing one of Christina's hands and bringing it to his lips. He left several delicate kisses on her palm, making sure to linger on each one because he wanted to make her feel loved. "I've loved you since we were five. You were always such a sweet girl and you were confident, too. But you were so kind to me even though I didn't deserve that. You stayed by my side when everyone else walked away. And you always stood up for me... And... you're just so... beautiful. You're a real-life angel."

Christina closed her eyes and shook her head, her entire face blood red. "No, I'm not..." she muttered. "I wouldn't say that."

"But you are," Peter protested, frowning at her. "You're so gorgeous and you get prettier every single day. I promise you that..."

Christina saw that Peter was entirely serious and she just nodded her head. "Okay..." she murmured. "Thank you."

A few seconds later, Christina yawned a little as her eyes began to grow heavy.

"You tired...?" Peter asked in a tender voice, moving one of his hands to rub her arm soothingly.

The brunette's head bobbed up and down as she hummed. "Yeah..." she whispered.

"Why don't you get some rest, then?" Peter offered, beginning to stand up. "I'll go back into the hallway and leave you be."

Christina then wrapped her hand around Peter's as she stared at him with pleading eyes. "No, stay..." she begged, her mouth turned downwards into a worried frown.

Peter stared at her with slight surprise. "Chris, I'll just be in the hallway," he assured her. "I'm not really going anywhere, I promise."

"Stay in here with me..." Christina continued, moving over so there was more room on the left side of the bed. "Lay in the bed with me, please. I don't want to be alone..."

Peter's heart melted just a little at that as he finally gave in and nodded. "Okay," he said, carefully climbing into the small hospital bed and lying down next to Christina. He gently put his right arm around her shoulders and his left hand grabbed hers and squeezed it softly. "Is this okay?" he asked, wanting her consent.

Christina smiled with pure relief as she relaxed in Peter's arms, nodding her head. "It's okay..." she whispered sleepily, growing comfortable again. "I just don't want you to leave me."

"I'm never going to leave you, sweetheart..." Peter murmured in her ear, tracing circles on her forearm to ease her into sleep by assuring her that he was still there.

It started to work.

"I love you..." Christina tiredly said, finally starting to doze off.

"I love you..." Peter replied, beginning to grow tired himself as he also began to fall asleep.

_____

Michael's POV

A few hours later, the door slowly opened and Michael stepped inside with a bag of food from the local Dairy Queen that Christina had suggested. He was about to open his mouth to say something, but he stopped in his tracks as he saw the sight in front of him. He faintly smiled as his words died down.

Both Peter and Christina were holding each other as they were passed out on the small hospital bed in the center of the room. It seemed as though time really had passed because Peter's glasses were now off and were on the tiny table next to the bed, and his head was resting on Christina's chest. The brunette was smiling peacefully in her sleep as her left arm was wrapped around him (she didn't risk moving her right arm too much, as it still had the IV in it), her fingers in his hair to keep him relaxed.

Michael just simply walked back out of the room, planning to give Christina her food when she woke back up. He had no plans of disturbing their sleep or letting anyone else into the room unless it was a nurse.

He wasn't going to disturb or ruin any part of his daughter's life. Not anymore....

A/N: so... a lot happened there...

let's take time to process this.

ANYWAYS, thoughts on this chapter? i'm sorry for posting this one later than normal. i'm getting closer to finals week in my freshman year of college, so i'm trying to focus on that more.

what did you think of peter and michael confronting and threatening harry?

what about sidney's breakdown? i want to hug the poor girl🥺😭

so... michael's redemption... thoughts?

also, CHRISTINA AND PETER HAVE FINALLY CONFESSED THEIR FEELINGS FACE TO FACE! THOUGHTS? IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE SCENES I'VE WRITTEN FOR THIS BOOK!

they're not together still, though. they haven't talked about dating or anything like that, so don't get too happy.

thoughts on the scene where christina begged peter to stay? and when they cuddled? they're so precious together!🥹

predictions for the next chapter?

there are eight more chapters of Part Two, that much is confirmed. what are your hopes for those eight chapters?

be looking forward to the next chapter! it's filled with comedy and wholesome moments between a certain duo of sisters!😁

-denbroughswife