PYEWACKET - Chapter 2 -
(A Polin Fanfic)
Read it from the beginning on AO3 or here
Go to Ch. 3
Penelope is in love with Colin.
Colin is in love with Penelope.
Both think that their love is unrequited and don't want to act upon their feelings in case it ruins their friendship.
Enter, Pyewacket...
My submission for Polinween Week 2 - 'What's a Little Fur Between Friends'
Pairing: Colin/Penelope
Rating: Teen and Up
Bridgerton Modern AU
Chapter 2 - Back Home
Colin dropped his suitcase and rucksack on the floor of his room then flopped face first onto the bed with an appreciative groan.
It was good to be back…but he was absolutely shattered.
He’d worked his backside off trying to pack in everything he’d needed for his book into a matter of weeks instead of months. His reward for such a feat was being able to return home four days before Penelope’s Halloween party.
He had hoped to return sooner, but there had been delays in travel due to bad weather and times he just couldn’t change his itinerary.
Still, he was here now and that’s all that mattered.
Without even taking his jacket off, he let out a long sigh and closed his eyes. A quick nap is all he needed…
The quick nap ended up being a few hours long. He woke up feeling rested, but starving.
Checking his phone, he realised it was much later than he’d thought and quickly got up. He had arranged to meet with Eloise and his brother, Benedict, at a local pub that evening and he was going to be late.
He quickly showered and changed then headed out. Walking briskly, it took him a little over fifteen minutes to get there and as soon as he entered the bar area, his siblings both waved at him from a table near the back.
“Brother! Thank you for gracing us with your presence,” Benedict jibed amicably as soon as he approached them.
“Don’t start,” Colin retorted good-naturedly. He gave his older brother a quick hug before turning to do the same with Eloise and then sat down. “Not until I’ve had something to eat at least.”
Benedict pushed a pint of Guinness towards him and grinned.
“Drink up, we’ve already ordered food. Got you the steak and kidney pie, it should be here soon.”
“Thank God,” he said meaningfully before taking a generous mouthful of his drink.
“And while we’re waiting, you can tell us what’s going on with you and Penelope,” Eloise piped up with a knowing smirk.
Colin choked a little on his drink and put his glass down with a thud, the black liquid sloshing up the sides.
“What do you mean?” he asked guardedly.
“Oh, come on, Colin, we’re not stupid,” his sister scoffed.
“That’s a matter of opinion,” he murmured dubiously.
Eloise ignored him and held her hand up as she started listing off all the reasons, tapping a different finger each time.
“You’ve been in contact with her every day…”
“Not every day…” he objected half-heartedly.
“You sent her that cat ornament that looks exactly like Pye…”
“That was a birthday present and pure coincidence,” he dismissed.
“I’m not talking about that one and you know it,” she told him.
Oh God.
“Well, she really liked the first one...” he mumbled and took another drink.
He wasn’t about to tell them that he’d also bought Penelope back yet another black cat trinket.
“And you’re home nearly two months early!” she concluded triumphantly.
“I’ve simply got all the information I needed for my book,” he pointed out trying to sound nonchalant even though he could feel a tell-tale heat begin to warm his cheeks.
He’d put that down to the alcohol if asked.
“When have you ever come home early, Colin?” Benedict questioned wryly, taking up the mantle of inquisitor. “Usually, you’re late or don’t even come back at all just because something else took your fancy.”
Colin frowned, feeling slightly annoyed at that interpretation.
“I…”
“No, he only stays away when Pen has a boyfriend,” Eloise interjected helpfully.
“Ah yes, that’s true,” Benedict agreed with a nod.
“No, it isn’t,” Colin protested, his frown deepening.
But it was – and he was starting to feel far from comfortable that they’d apparently noticed it as well. He didn’t want them ruining everything by hinting things like that to Penelope. He wanted to see her first before he made any kind of admission. Sending messages to each other and talking over the odd facetime call didn’t really help when he was trying to gauge if his feelings could be in any way reciprocated. If they were, then he’d happily announce his love for the world to hear – if they weren’t…well, his siblings clearly didn’t any need any further ammunition.
“You won’t mind that she’s on a date tonight then.”
Eloise’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he stared at her in surprise.
“I thought she was meeting with her editor this evening?”
“She is,” his sister clarified with a brief smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “For dinner at a swanky new restaurant in town. Very businesslike.”
Colin felt like he’d been punched in the gut. Put like that, it didn’t sound as though their meeting was purely about her new book and yet, Penelope hadn’t told him that it was anything more. He’d only spoken to her the day before – surely she would’ve said something?
“Penelope has no interest in Fife,” he asserted, more to appease himself than anything.
“She doesn’t,” Eloise agreed. He relaxed at that confirmation, then immediately tensed again when his sister added, “but he’s interested in her and he’s been pushing for more lately. So much so that she’s asked for a new editor once this book is finished.”
Colin was stunned, angry and upset in equal measure, each emotion warring to be expressed. Stunned that all this had been happening and he had no idea. Angry that Fife wasn’t taking no for an answer and ‘pushing’, whatever the hell that meant. And upset because he had spoken to her almost daily and she clearly hadn’t wanted to tell him – he’d believed they were closer than that.
It was the anger that eventually won out.
“What restaurant are they at?” he asked abruptly.
“It’s fine, Pen’s going to message me when she gets home,” Eloise told him, ignoring his question. “Any problems before then and she said she’ll call. It’s all under control, don’t worry.”
Don’t worry? Of course he was going to worry. He hated the thought that Penelope might be put in an impossible position by that arse.
“Ah, here’s our food,” Benedict observed, giving their waitress an appreciative smile as she placed plates down in front of them.
Colin picked up his knife and fork and stared at his pie, wondering where his appetite had gone. He’d been starving not five minutes previous and now his stomach felt like lead.
“Your food will get cold,” Eloise pointed out as he continued to sit there.
He looked at her blankly, his whole body seemingly a whirl of feelings that made his head spin – and then Benedict decided to add confusion into the already unsettling mix.
“You know, even if Penelope did take Fife back to her place for whatever reason, he’d never make it past Pyewacket.”
“Oh yes!” his sister agreed with a laugh. “That cat is like a guard dog when it comes to Pen.”
Colin looked between the two of them and started to think he must still be asleep and all this some weird, horrible dream. Penelope was having dinner with a lech, and they were sitting here completely unbothered, yammering on about a cat?
What alternate nightmare universe had he stumbled back into?
His cutlery made a stark clanging sound as he dropped them and they bounced off the edge of his plate, drawing their attention.
“What bloody hell is going on here?” he demanded, his voice full of irate frustration. “Are you two just winding me up? First all that about Fife and now some nonsense about the cat.”
His siblings stared back at him in surprise.
“No. No wind up,” Benedict assured him, shaking his head. “Fife is a dick and Pye is oddly protective of Penelope.”
“It’s true,” Eloise concurred. “Pye seems to dislike anyone that’s interested in her. It’s like he can sense it or something. Don’t know if it’s a jealousy thing but he really didn’t like Alfie. He scratched him a couple of times, put a dead mouse in his bag and crapped in one of his shoes.”
“That just shows good judge of character,” Colin muttered derisively.
His siblings both nodded and laughed at that. At least he wasn’t alone in his dislike of Albert.
“And then there was poor Jack,” Benedict said, his amusement increasing.
“Oh yes, Pen told me you set her up on a date,” Colin cut in unhappily, glaring at his brother.
Benedict held up his hands in mock surrender but couldn’t wipe the mirth from his face.
“It wasn’t really a date. He was the brother of a woman who was doing some modelling for me. Penelope was at my studio when he dropped his sister off and they started chatting. They’d both just come out of relationship’s and I thought it’d be nice if we all continued talking over dinner. It was perfectly harmless,” he explained reasonably. Colin gave him an incredulous look, which seemed to amuse his brother even more. “Anyway, we all,” he emphasised, with a nod, before continuing, “went back to Pen’s place after for a coffee and Pye wouldn’t let the poor guy even sit next to her on the couch. Kept hissing at him whenever he tried. In the end, Pen picked him up and put him outside but as soon as Jack sat down, Pye just came out of nowhere and jumped straight onto his lap…claws out.”
Colin winced at that and squirmed a little in his seat as Benedict began to laugh in earnest at the memory.
“I can’t wait to see what he does to you,” Eloise chimed in with a grin.
Colin rolled his eyes at her and picked up his knife and fork again. He refused to take the bait. Even so, as he finally started to eat, he was uncomfortably aware that Pye had unsettled him a few times over calls, although he’d never admit that out loud. He was always with Penelope, staring at him over her shoulder or sitting on her lap. His eyes seemed to transfix him at times, almost as though searching for…something and weirdly, Colin, more often than not, felt as though he came up lacking.
He put a forkful of creamy mash into his mouth and gave himself a mental shake. He was being ridiculous. It was just a cat. Benedict and Eloise had got into his jet-lagged head with their absurd theory when he should be focussing on more important things – like what was happening with Fife.
His gaze flicked to his sister’s phone to see if any messages had flashed up. It was still early, but he hoped…
“Colin will be fine, Eloise,” Benedict dismissed airily, still grinning. “He and Penelope are just friends, right brother?”
The dark-haired man swallowed his food and shook his head.
“Can we not talk about something else?” he suggested wryly, determined to change the subject. “As odd as you both believe Pye’s behaviour to be, I think it’s even more bizarre that after years and years of decrying romance and anything vaguely associated with it, I hear that Eloise seems to actually be in a relationship.”
His sister immediately tensed beside him and he knew his ploy had worked.
Colin smirked as Eloise then proceeded to spend the next ten minutes denying anything and everything with even more vehemence than himself.
They finished dinner and had another round of drinks then decided to call it a night. Thankfully his siblings hadn’t returned to their previous teasing and he’d enjoyed the rest of the evening, bar one thing – Eloise still hadn’t heard from Penelope.
He glanced at his watch. It wasn’t that late, only ten o’clock, but surely she’d had enough time to have dinner and go home?
He stood beside his sister outside the pub as they waited for Benedict to go and get his car. His brother was taking Eloise home before heading back to his studio to finish off a commission that was due in a couple of days time.
A soft buzz had him turn his head and he saw his sister check her phone. Phillip had been texting her on and off throughout the evening so he was half expecting to be disappointed again but she looked up, suddenly, and smiled.
“She’s home.”
At bloody last.
“Good.” There must have been a wealth of meaning in his tone that he hadn’t accounted for because Eloise suddenly reached out and touched his arm. He gazed at her quizzically as she stared at him and the silence stretched out between them. “What is it?”
She seemed uncertain, which was unusual for Eloise, but then she clearly made her mind up to say what she wanted to say.
“Look, I know I’m probably the last person to give advice when it comes to love,” she began. Ignoring Colin’s huff of laughter and nod, she continued more determinedly, “but one thing I’ve learned is that lying to yourself about how you feel doesn’t make it go away.”
Colin sighed and shoved his hands into his trouser pockets.
“I’m not lying to myself, El,” he replied quietly, darting her a quick glance. “I know exactly how I feel.”
She looked confused at his admission.
“Then what’s stopping you telling her?”
Where to start? Their friendship being ruined for one – especially if she didn’t feel the same. And, in fact, did she feel the same? He hoped…he very much hoped that she did. But he wasn’t sure. Which in turn made him a coward because when push come to shove, would he actually be able to cross that line? He wasn’t sure about that either.
He looked at his sister again and she stared back at him expectantly, waiting for a response.
So, Colin did what he did best. He deflected with a joke.
“Pye, for one,” he quipped, summoning a bright smile. “From the tales you and Benedict told earlier, I’d be lucky to even make it through the door.”
Eloise shot him an exasperated glare.
“Colin, be serious,” she snapped in frustration.
“I am!” he exclaimed, his face a picture of innocence.
He was saved from any further discourse when Benedict’s classic, light blue, Jensen Interceptor purred to a halt in front of them.
Colin stepped forward and opened the door for his sister. She looked like she wanted to say more but finally huffed out sigh and clambered in.
“Are you sure you don’t want a lift?” Benedict asked, leaning over the centre console to see him.
Colin bent down and shook his head.
“No thanks, the walk will do me good,” he replied, before straightening up and taking a step back to close the passenger door with a slam.
He stood and gave a little wave as Benedict pulled away from the kerb then began the relatively short walk back to his flat. He’d only gone a few steps when his mobile buzzed. He took it out and smiled when he saw it was a message from Penelope.
It wasn’t long. Just a quick text to say that she hoped he was home safely from his trip and asking if he’d enjoyed his evening out with his family. There was also another apology for not being able to join them. An apology that he took as an opening to give her call because he really, really wanted to know what had happened at her dinner with Fife.
“Hi,” he greeted when she answered after a couple of rings, “I’m walking home so thought I’d call instead of messaging back.”
“Did you have a good night?” she asked.
Perfect opportunity.
“I did, thanks. How about you? Did you have a nice dinner?” he queried.
He tried to keep his voice light but even he heard the faint accusation colouring his tone.
So did Penelope, clearly, as there was a distinct pause before he heard her sigh heavily then ask shrewdly, “El told you, didn’t she?”
“She might have mentioned it,” he admitted cagily, noticing that she hadn’t actually answered his question.
“Oh, I bet she did,” Penelope chuckled. “I think she hates my editor more than I do.”
From the way she was speaking it didn’t seem as though anything untoward had happened that evening, so he was relieved at that. But still…
“Why didn’t you tell me you were having trouble with him, Pen?” he asked abruptly.
Because that’s what he really wanted to know, wasn’t it? Why, when they’d been in contact practically every day, hadn’t she confided in him?
“I didn’t see the point,” she replied, sounding a little confused. “What were you going to do? Jet back from Bali or wherever you were off to next and sort him out for me?”
She laughed and he wasn’t quite sure what irked him more - the genuine puzzlement in her voice at the thought of telling him, or her clear amusement at the idea that he might come back to help.
“Well, I guess we’ll never know now, since you never told me, will we?” he remarked dryly.
There was another slight pause and then she said softly, “Oh Colin, you’re not really upset about this, are you? I just didn’t want to worry you when it was all under control. He’s an annoyance but nothing I can’t handle, and tonight was the last I’ll see of him, thankfully.”
Now it was Colin’s turn to sigh.
She didn’t want to worry him.
Him.
And all the while, he had selfishly been concerned with his own hurt feelings.
Now who was the dick?
“Oh Pen, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything,” he told her apologetically. “I know you’re perfectly capable of dealing with prat’s like Fife yourself. You’re amazing.”
“I don’t know about that…” she began self-depreciatingly.
“Well, I do and you are,” he assured her firmly, then added lightly, “But, just know that now I’m back, if you are ever in need of any muscle…call Eloise. I’ll hold her coat.”
Her answering laugh warmed him and he grinned. They continued chatting throughout his walk home and long after he’d let himself into his flat and settled down on his couch. They talked about their upcoming books, his trip, the new restaurant she’d been to that evening – apparently the portions were small but the prices were high. Penelope admitted to having made herself some supper because she’d still been hungry when she’d got home.
She also, eventually, told him about Fife and his unsavoury comments. Colin was quite glad that he had been out of the country as he listened to her. He was certain he would have done something to the bastard had he been around and quite possibly ruined her contract with her publishers to boot. As it was, he merely interjected with the odd expletive as she talked, relieved that she would no longer had to deal with him.
“It’s getting late,” she finally said. “You must be so tired, you only got back today and I’m sitting here talking your ear off.”
He glanced at his watch and saw, to his surprise, that it was approaching one o’clock in the morning.
“Don’t worry, I have another,” he joked, reluctant to end their call despite the time.
“I could probably talk that one off too,” she laughed, then continued ruefully, “but my phone battery is low and El is coming over early tomorrow…well, this morning, to help me sort some things out for the party, so I’d better go.”
“Oh. I was going to suggest we get breakfast at that café near you,” he replied, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice. He’d really wanted to see her.
“You’re welcome to come here instead,” she offered after a beat.
“I’d love too,” he answered quickly. Probably a little too quickly he realised with a slight wince. “I’ll pick us up some pastries and coffee on the way over.”
“That sounds great,” she replied warmly. “I’ll see you later then.”
“Yeah, see you later, Pen.”
He ended the call and smiled to himself. He’d been really fed up when he’d found out that Penelope had had plans that evening. He’d been looking forward to seeing her again, but talking to her for so long instead had been an unexpectedly soothing balm to the worst of his despondency.
And at least he would get to see her in a few hours. True, his sister would be there so he wouldn’t be able to say much in regards to, well, anything really, but he was looking forward to it all the same.
He got up and switched off the light then headed into his bedroom in a decidedly happier frame of mind than he had been all day.
At her house, Penelope tucked the quilt more snugly around her body with a huge smile on her face. Actually hearing from Colin had been nice surprise. That he was in the same country and only a couple of miles away, made it feel even better.
The fact that she was in her bed while speaking to him made it more intimate, somehow, too. Like he was there with her, laying by her side.
Her whole body warmed at the thought.
She’d believed that she’d long given up hope in anything ever happening between them, but now, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something had changed over the last few months. She didn’t know what exactly, but Colin seemed…different. It wasn’t what he said, but more how he said it that seemed to have altered.
A little bit more flirtatious. A little bit more innuendo. Things that could be taken lightly or to mean something more if she were only to pursue it.
But she never did. She found she wasn’t quite brave enough.
She turned on her side and switched off her bedside lamp.
Maybe it was all in her mind.
Maybe Alfie’s certainty about Colin’s feelings had seeped into the tiny part of her brain that so wanted it to be true, that she was reading far too much into everything he said and did.
But still…
He had sent another gift to her during his travels. A rather lovely cat figurine hand carved from bamboo and bespoke painted to look just like Pye. His note had said it was a thank you for ‘keeping him company’ while he was away.
She’d loved it and placed it on her mantlepiece next to her birthday gift from him. Then she’d picked up Pyewacket and took a selfie with him and the figures in the background. She’d sent it off to Colin who had replied with just one word - beautiful.
Naturally she’d spent a good couple of days wondering what that meant. The picture in general? Pye? Her?
She hadn’t acknowledged his comment. She’d just sent an inane message about sending photos when he got to his next location if he had the time. He’d sent back a thumbs up emoji and the status quo had returned.
Sort of.
And now she was going to finally see him again after all these months away. He seemed keen to see her too, didn’t he?
He certainly sounded like it.
She certainly hoped he did.
More than ever, she cursed Fife for arranging to meet the night that Colin had come back home. She’d tried to get him to change it, but he’d sworn he’d not been able to and, in the end, it had been a price she’d been willing to pay to be rid of the oaf for good.
And, heavens, did she pay.
The man had more arms than an octopus and each one had a horrible grabby hand attached. She’d got through dinner, just – although she could’ve sneezed more food than was presented on her plate. She’d refused dessert as they had concluded the official part of the evening and she’d wanted to leave. When he’d tried to touch her leg, again, she’d grabbed her glass of overpriced wine and poured it straight onto his lap. While he'd sat there spluttering in outrage, she’d told him exactly what she thought of him before walking out of the restaurant without looking back.
Odious man.
A sudden meow broke into her unhappy thoughts and she felt Pye jump up onto the bed. A few moments later he was in her face demanding attention.
“Where have you been, eh?” she wondered aloud. “Out visiting friends?”
He let out another mew as she gave him a quick fuss and then he settled down beside her.
He’d slipped out of the cat flap earlier after she’d come home from her meeting with Fife. She’d been angry and hungry and frustrated and had slammed about the place cursing the wretched human from here to kingdom come.
Pye had watched and listened but it wasn’t until the human who loved her had called, that he’d left. He knew speaking to Colin would make her happy.
He was no longer needed and there was something he had to do.
No one upset Penelope on his watch.
END CHAPTER 2