ｇｏｌｄｅｎ．

The library was not one of Remi’s favourite places, but itwas a place he found himself going to quite a lot. He put a lot of pressure onhimself to get good grades, and that meant putting in some extra time studyingwhen many of his friends were… not studying. It was a familiar place, though,and there were a lot of familiar people. Including, he noticed, his sister,Penny. It was not surprising that Penny was there, given her general love ofbooks, history, and the library in general. This love did not, however, extendto the upper shelves of the bookshelves. Neither did her arms, apparently.

“Whatcha doin’?” Remi asked, sauntering up to his sister. Heleaned against the bookshelf, looking up at the books out of Penny’s reach. “Whichbook are you after? I can get it for you.” Remi offered, reaching up and restinghis fingers against the book he thought Penny was reaching for, but he wasn’tone hundred percent sure.

penny had been so caught up in her little of act of stretching towards the blatantly unreachable shelf that she hadn’t noticed her youngest brother pop up next to her. when he spoke penny all but jumped out of her skin. “oh my god, remi,” she exclaimed quietly, a hand over her heart as though that would slow it down. “i can’t even tell you how much you just scared me; i didn’t even see you come over here! how’d you do that so quietly?” she asked, only realizing after the fact that of course he’d be quiet — they were in a library, after all. penelope looked up her brother’s much longer arm and nodded with a sigh, “that’s the book. i don’t even know why the shelves here are so . . . tall,” she mumbled the last part, trying to hide the complaint. “thank you, by the way. without you popping out of the ground just now i might’ve gave up on it,”

“they learnt to live me, i think a snake-cat has to be less maintenance than that.” he deadpanned. despite how absurd the premise was, there was an essence of truth in the latter words. growing up with an overactive imagination had lead him into some crazy situations, that always started with some weird hypothesis he set out to prove. traditionally nothing good followed him saying the words ‘hey guys i have an idea’ - and he’d made peace with that. “i’d be wounded if i wasn’t on speed dial. seriously would have been the most hurtful thing i’d been through.” his usual level of dramatics, though he realised it was probably the wrong words given everything that had happened lately. so in true bradley fashion, he breezed by it. “i’m guessing your home is a lot calmer than… home. yeah, i can’t imagine not visiting home when i leave. seems impossible to imagine fully leaving it behind at this point.”

“oh please, you’re too hard on yourself. i can confirm you’re much easier to love than snake-cat,” she said back to her brother. penny knew bradley wasn’t an overly serious kind of guy, and she was hoping he hadn’t been serious about that. when penny first ended up with the wilsons, bradley was already there. at the beginning, penelope was for sure a bit colder, more closed off; but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t a fan of bradley from the start. she hadn’t been the best at showing it at that time, but she always knew bradley (and remi) were truly as good as a brother could be. penny laughed at his theatrics, “if that’s the case, i’m glad i could spare you that pain. matter of fact, i’ll move you to the top of the list,” she joked back. penny noted that the wording may not have been the best, but she knew bradley wanted to keep the mood light, so she let him. times were hard enough, she figured it wasn’t too bad to go along with him as he changed topics swiftly. she hummed in thought at his words, “it is calmer, a lot quieter, for sure, but . . . it does get sort of boring sometimes, being alone for that long. you guys are just so entertaining,” she laughed lightly, “i could never leave anything about home behind. that’s why i only moved out of the house and not the city. like, really, a stone's throw away if i ever need you guys,”

penny browsed through the shelves, not looking for any title in particular. after a few minutes of this, a cover caught her eye. she reached up to grab it and quickly realized the book was too far up. penny couldn’t help the small frown that appeared on her face — she didn’t hate her height, but she’d be a liar if she said it didn’t get in her way, and with today already giving her some problems, this was just the cherry on top of a cake she didn’t want. frown still intact and brows furrowed, penny got up on her tiptoes and reach up with her other arm, hoping that would get her closer to the book. and it did get her closer, but the book was still out of her reach. penelope let her hand fall to her side, and took a deep breath to smooth over the slight annoyance before reaching to try again, as though her arms would magically get longer. little did she know, someone had been watching her little struggle this whole time.

“you don’t think having a snake-cat is cool? not going to lie, i just lost a little bit of trust in you.” finishing with a somber shake of his head, he made no effort to keep the smile from his face. “we know.” he nodded, having no doubt that he spoke for their brother too. one of the first things he’d learnt about penny was that she’d be there no matter what. that had yet to falter. “and you know if you ever need anyone or anything, you know where i live.” something he hoped that she’d already know, but it never hurt to say it. “aw, are you saying you miss us pen? i thought you’d love being out of the crazy house.”

“only a little bit? i can learn to live with that, i think. hopefully, the same way you think mom and dad will learn to live with your snake-cat,” she said with a laugh. bradley was probably the only person with whom she could entertain a conversation about a fake animal and not feel utterly confused. it’d been like that ever since they first met. bradley had already been with the wilsons for a bit before penny got there, and while it was slow going at first because they were both on the quieter side, once the walls had dropped a bit the conversations were never anything less than fun. penelope had quickly learned that bradley was an imaginative kid; she considered it one of his talents. “i know,” she smiled, “i’ve even got you on speed dial, just in case,” she’d said it lightly, but it was actually true — penny’s got all of her siblings on speed dial. once she’d gotten used to having a family, relying on them became second nature. “aw, of course i miss you guys! why wouldn’t i? i mean, i love my place, too, but . . . home is always home, you know?”

“it’s been hard to pinpoint lately,” natalia admitted, thinking hard over her question. there was the obvious thing that was eating at her, of course, but was that the only cause? she had stressed herself out so much lately that it could really be a mix of things. she wanted to tell the woman everything, wanted so badly to let an adult know what was going on. maybe it was just for solidarity, maybe it was to get some insight, or even just calming words from an adult that wasn’t her family. natalia could only imagine how she’d react, though, and she didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on her, either. “it’s just–” she sighed, struggling to even find the right words to express her frustrations. “have you ever felt so certain in your future, like you have your entire life planned out in front of you? you’ve got all these plans, and then one tiny, stupid little mistake messes everything up. and then suddenly it’s impossible to see that future, but you don’t want to let everyone down?”

“now that’s understandable,” penny agreed. she couldn’t think of a single person that wasn’t having some level of difficulty these days, not even herself. it’s near the end of the school year, and that’s stressful enough as is for a fairly new teacher. that compounded with the recent death of a close cousin had penny running rather thin. unlike the younger girl, though, penny’s had enough time to at least figure herself out, how to navigate situations that are so far from ideal. for penelope, ever the workaholic and ever the empath, that meant keeping herself busy with tasks, family, friends, and students alike. she listened as natalia found the words to describe what was going on in her head. “i can’t say i’ve felt exactly what you’re describing, but,” she added, “i do know what it’s like to feel so uncertain about your life, and i do know that fear of letting people down. they’re both tough things to deal with, and i didn’t know how to deal with them for a long time, believe me,” people who knew penny when she was younger could vouch for that; she wasn’t fully aware of herself until she was practically in college. “but i do know that if something is disrupting your life the way you’re saying it does, it’s not a mistake; it’s just a life change, right? and life changes aren’t bad — they’re just there, and you can work with them,”

he couldn’t stop the smirk on his face at her words, quickly shrugging at his sister. “in my defence, i think this cat’s part snake, doesn’t seem like the have any bones with the way they’re moving.” smiling at the next words, he had no doubt she meant them. penny had always gone above and beyond to help when it was needed, or even when it wasn’t and they simply wanted something. “i think we should have it covered, you can save your superpower for another time.i’m sure it won’t be too long until i do something crazier than adopt a cat without asking. like the time last year when i took apart the toaster to see if i could put it together again - and turns out i could not.” something he could laugh at now, but had caused panic at the time. “if you’re not staying… you have time to come back home for lunch? before the end of school craziness steals you for a few weeks?”

penny struggled to hold back a laugh as she feigned shock at her brother’s words. “part snake with no bones? oh, if you thought mom and dad wouldn’t keep it before, imagine when they hear that,” she joked. if there was one thing she could count on bradley for, it was a laugh, and she’d always appreciated that about him — laughing was something she didn’t do enough of when she was younger. the laugh she’d been holding back was released at the word ‘superpower’. “for some reason, taking apart a toaster seems a lot less harmful than bringing home a snake cat. but still, if you two need a hand, the offer is always on the table,” she replied with a smile. “i can definitely do lunch! i’d love to, really. you know i hate not seeing you guys as often as i wish,”

he beamed, staying close to penny as she ended up closer to him, “oh, i’ve heard, your students come and find me if they can’t find you! even they know.” luci laughed, smiling never fading. not as if it was hard to know, though, the pair didn’t exactly hide the fact that they were fond of one another. plus, there was something to having to grow up in crestview, they both could understand what that was like. naturally, they had come together, “you make it easy not to fee awkward around you.” it hadn’t been that way when they were younger, but now? being around penny kept him calm. 

a look of shock passed over penny’s face before a melodic laugh passed her lips and brought a smile back to her face, her one dimple showing. “oh my gosh, do they really? how often is that?”  penny genuinely found it funny that she hadn’t noticed how obvious they were. she supposed it made sense; it’s true, the pair were together more often than not. even now, as they walk through the halls laughing and giggling and smiling, with barely any space between them — discreet wasn’t a word anybody would use, honestly. at his next words, penelope couldn’t help the soft smile and light blush that appeared on her face. she looped an arm through his and rested her cheek against his shoulder as she replied, “that’s really sweet, luci,” she lifted her head but left their arms linked, “and i feel the same, “ and she was being honest. in school, neither of them were fully grown into themselves yet; working together all these years later really made the changes more evident.

“ i just don’t know what to talk about, ” jake said honestly. it wasn’t much but it was the most honest he’d been since his sisters death. he looked at his cousin for a moment. “ how do you i’m lying? ” he questioned while playing with his extra soccer ball that had be resting next to him. he kept his eye glued to the ball because couldn’t look his cousin in the eyes. he knew he was probably displaying a lot of emotions being and he didn’t want to deal with them at the moment.

“talk about how you feel, jake. i know it’s easier said than done,” penny reached out to put an empathetic hand on his shoulder, “but i know you don’t just feel nothing. you’re probably feeling a gatrillion things, and that’s okay. you don’t have to name them all.” penny hugged her knees to her chest and rested her head on top of them. “i know you’re lying because you’re human. all of us are feeling something over losing her,” she finally pointed out the situation directly, “i know i am,” she said quietly. penny herself hadn’t fully talk about it either because she’s wanted to seem strong for everybody else; she hoped that her being open would make her cousin feel more comfortable.

miss wilson had always been one of natalia’s favorite teachers. because of her heavily involvement in extracurriculars, she spent a lot of time at the school, and grew to get to know many of the teachers quite well over her last four years. she’d spend a fair amount of her free time in teacher’s rooms whenever she needed an adult, or even just a quite space, and it was a good system for her. she had bonded especially with the older woman, treating her as a stand-in mother figure in a way, since her birth mom wasn’t as involved in her life as she once was. as she pulled up a chair to sit next to her, she let out a small laugh and relaxed into the plastic seat. “i guess it’s just the stress of the year,” she shrugged, trying her best to play it cool. she wanted to tell miss wilson the truth, share all of the things that were actually bothering her, but what would she say? could she risk sharing her newfound pregnancy with an adult that wasn’t her family first? what would happen if that got out? “senior year has been more hectic than i thought.”

penelope had only been a teacher at the high school for a little over a year and a half, and that’s exactly why the depth of some of the connections she had to her students almost shocked her sometimes. penny always knew that she’d love this job and the connections she’d make — she just never expected it to all happen so quickly. there were some students that were just so great, though, that it couldn’t be helped; for penny, natalia was one of those students. natalia had been one of the first to really engage with her outside of class, and being “the new teacher” at the time, it was something that penny had deeply appreciated. penny hummed and nodded through the younger girl’s response. “it is a lot going on this year, huh?” she asked in agreement. penny understood the feeling completely; the recent loss of her cousin had shaken the entire community, and she was only just keeping herself together for the sake of everybody else. “is there anything in particular making things crazy for you? anything you wanna talk about, anything i can help with?”

“this is why i hate reality, nothing’s ever easy in it.” the sigh he was making was quickly cut off as the cat moved and he had to shift focus to make sure it didn’t fall. dropping an animal right after you got it didn’t scream ‘i’m responsible enough’ to look after them. “who says i can’t keep secrets? i’m the best at them. i just let everyone think i was shockingly bad at keeping secrets so they’d never suspect me.” though there had definitely been a reason he was never told someone was having a surprise party until the day of said party. “i can get remi to say he wants to keep her too, that’s two against… two. don’t suppose you want to move back home for a day, say you want to keep the cat too so it’s three against two then you can move back out?”

penny smiled as she held back a laugh at her brother. “you’re right, nothing’s easy,” a small laugh escaped as she added, “not even holding a cat, it seems,” penelope reached out to pet the cat in his arms as he spoke. being bounced around in foster care for ten years means you end up being with a number a families, and thus, a number of pets; she was no stranger to animals. honestly, the wilsons was the only family she can remember that didn’t have any. “now, i promise that i love you guys, i really do, but i’m sorry to report that moving back may not be in the plans,” penny looked at the cat, then back to bradley, “but if you and remi really want her, i think i might be able to convince mom and dad for you, if you’d like” if there was one thing to know about penelope, it’s that she shows her love through acts of service; if you want something done, penny’s the one to somehow make it happen for you.

luci smiled brightly, heat traveling up his neck at her adorable giggle, “well, we should sit together and sob then. maybe they’ll take pity on us- power in numbers- and keep their respect intact?” he shrugged, “plus, nothing is more awkward than crying when the people around you aren’t.” of course, there were many added benefits of sitting next to penny, but he wasn’t going to mention those. he wasn’t that bold. 

penny returned the smile easily as she responded, “we absolutely should. we did last year, so we’ve gotta make it tradition, you know,” she glanced up at him and playfully bumped his side with her shoulder, ending up ever so slightly closer to him than she was previously. she giggled (yes, again, because she couldn’t help it) at his follow up statement. “very true. but we’re something like a dynamic duo around here, in case you haven’t heard,” she joked, “so that’s always one less person to be worried about being awkward around.”

“ i’m just going to go ahead and assume it’s allowed,” he said with a small laugh. “ i’m fine, penny, ” he sighed not looking at her and kicking the ball with all of his power into the top right corner of the net. everyone kept asking him if he was okay. i mean of course he wasn’t. he wanted to scream all the time. he was constantly anxious. he didn’t know what to do. he would never tell anyone this, though. it was easier to push it down. “ i’ll sit for a little bit,  ” jake said pushing his hair out of his face and sitting next to his cousin.

penny sighed to herself at his answer; it was the one she’d expected, but not the one she particularly hoped for. penelope was personally of the belief that talking about things made them easier to cope with, and that even just acknowledging them was better than acting like they aren’t there. it was a lesson she’d had to learn growing up; even so, it took her a while, too, and since she could tell jake wasn’t really in the mood she didn’t push it much further. “i kinda figured you’d say that. . .look,” she sighed as he sat beside her, “we don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, really — pinky swear i’ll drop it after this — but i just want you to know you don’t have to lie about it, either, okay? and if you're ever ready to talk about it, this door's always open, at least.”

♡(LAURA HARRIER / CIS FEMALE / SHE/HER / WILSON + #3) is that [ PENELOPE WILSON ] over there? the [ HIGH SCHOOL SOCIOLOGY TEACHER ] is [ TWENTY-SIX ]. i heard they’re a/an [ VIRGO ]- which is probably why they are so [ PASSIONATE & GOAL-DRIVEN ], but also [ PERFECTIONISTIC & NEUROTIC ]. did you hear that she [ HAS BEEN SECRETLY LOOKING FOR HER BIRTH FAMILY  ]… hope no one finds out. ooc ; jalynn, 21, est, she/her !

hey gang i just wanna preface this by saying i’m actually very trash with intros! but i wanna try to keep this clear and concise, and not a total bore to read so here we go: