The Romano's weren't meeting for Thanksgiving dinner until three p.m. and it took about an hour to get to there house in the suburbs. So after her and Quentin's walk, Penny thought it would be a good idea to make some food to bring to the house.
After discussing with Quentin, he said it would be a good idea to bring some sort of dessert. Usually the family just has pumpkin pie; however, Quentin's face soured when speaking about it. Penny thought that it would be a good idea to make something different.
Slamming the front door behind her after the walk, she shouted for Ms. Birdie's attention, claiming that it was time for baking.
She actually enjoyed baking rather than cooking. With cooking, you can be free and mix and match what ever flavors to create the perfect dish. When Penny tries to do this, it turns out disgusting. She doesn't have that "cooking-gene". Baking was instructional, orderly, and clean. The bakers needs this much flour, this much sugar. There was no room for error when she is following it word for word.
With Ms. Birdie in the kitchen, they asses all the materials in the kitchen and decide on making cupcakes. Actually, two batches of cupcakes: one chocolate and one spiced. They gather everything and quickly start to measure the dry ingredients. They work swiftly, rushing around the kitchen, close to bumping into each other.
Once the cupcakes are in the oven, they wash the bowls to reuse for making two different types of frostings. Just like before, Penny works on one batch and Ms. Birdie works on the other. She couldn't help sticking a pinky finger in the cream cheese frosting every so often. She would let out a soft groan and get back to work.
The edges of her lips started be pulled upwards, not controlled by her. She felt comforted, as if a warm blanket spread across her back and she was shoved in front of a fireplace. She never really had a home, but now, on the day she is suppose to feel the most grateful, she knows her place. She belongs with the Romano family. Every person has been, the least, kind and, the most, life-saving.
She still has those sneaking thoughts of "I don't belong with people like this", "I only drag them down and use them", and "I'm not worth it". Over the course of the few days, she became good at not letting those thoughts express themselves in physical actions. However, at night, they are the only things she can think about, creating red-rimmed eyes in the morning. She still hasn't heard back from the casting director about her audition. She no longer has the effort of hoping she has a chance. She has been thinking of finding another job, but she is too tired to find another passion.
Everyone around her are helping, but they are not the cure. She is terrified of rejection if she asks for help.
Soon, the frosting was done, but the cupcakes still needed time to finish and cool. Penny untied her apron and placed the perfectly folded cloth on the counter. 'I'm going to take a shower," she states before journeying up the stairs to her room. She stands in front of her closet, perplexed in what she should wear. Was it a formal occasion, where she would be wearing a full length gown? She didn't think so. Was it more causal, where she could just show up in sweats? She doesn't think that either. She decides on a white, burnt orange, and brown plaid dress. With its thick, tank top-like straps and square neck line, she also grabs a white turtleneck to layer under. It was a nice outfit, very in-season with the orange, red, and yellow leaves.
She takes a quick shower, only focusing on the most important parts. Outside, she dries off her body and puts her red hair into two tight braids. After zipping up the side zipper, she rushes downstairs to see Ms. Birdie frosting her set of cupcakes already.
"I didn't want to touch yours. You still want to do them, right?"
Penny's heads moves up and down, and grabs the piping bag and starts swirling it around the cake. Ms. Birdie showed her how to do it after a few botched frosting attempts. It was a little harder than it looked, but very easy to catch on.
The cupcakes looked wonderful! Ms. Birdie and Penny really out did themselves in baking for the holiday. They packed them into a container and went there separate ways to finish getting ready. It was around lunch time and they had a little over an hour until they left. Penny would have eaten dinner, but for the whole morning she had been stuffing herself with cupcake batter and frosting. If she ate anymore sugar, she was going to throw up. She went back to her bathroom to to her makeup and finisher her hair.
After placing the finishing touches and putting on a pair of brown, high-heeled ankle boots, she hears a knock at the door. "Hey, Penny, you ready? We have five minutes until we leave."
"Yeah, just a second," She pulls the door open, standing on one foot and using a hand to pull the shoe up her foot. She gives him an accomplished smile, "I'm ready."
Both of there eyes lock onto each other. They couldn't help but stare at each other. Her breath catches, surprise at whats in front. His lets out a breath, pleased at the beautiful woman in front of him. Penny has found Quentin attractive in the past, but this is the first time she is attracted to him. He had a similar colored plaid shirt with brown dress pants and shoes. It was completely unplanned and Quentin loved that.
The bedroom door closes behind and, side by side, two people saunter down the stairs. That's all they were, two people. Penny wasn't the girl suffering from depression and recovering from years of abuse. Quentin wasn't a man with many regrets and controlled by ADHD. They weren't a couple surrounded by ambiguity and possible feelings. They were just two people, together.
The two met up with Birdie, who is wearing a conservative navy dress and a pair of flats. She looks up at them after one last check of the sweet treats. "Wow! Look at you too, all matchy-matchy. I love it."
Red and pink creep behind her subtle blush. She looks away, at anything but the older woman in front of her. Quentin answers for her, "We didn't plan it, but I think it is fun." He tries to hid the amused look on his face, but he ultimately failed. He asks the two woman, "Okay, you ready to go?"
He hears a mix of yes and hums of agreement. They all congregate at the front door, shuffling on winter jackets. None could forget there overnight bags, since it was a Romano tradition to sleepover at the house. Quentin, down in the car garage, slides into the driver seat, since he was the only one who knew to get to the house. Also, it was his car.
Before Penny could object or fight, Ms. Birdie sits in the back, claiming that the cupcakes needs to be protected. That leave her to sit in the passanger seat, next to Quentin. She closes her eyes, giving herself a second to collect her mind and thoughts, then opens the door. He puts in soft music from the radio, and they pull away from the city.
The towering gray buildings slowly morph into beautiful trees. Some are the picture-perfect New England fall aesthetic. Others were huge pines with stiff green needles that would only fall in the harshest winds. Lastly, some trees were bare, with nothing covering the naked branches. Penny's heart felt light looking at the scenery. Trees were not something one who lives in the city sees every day.
However, once the houses got larger and fancier, the light feeling in her heart turned heavy, along with a growing tumbling in her stomach. While Quentin's knee was non-stop bouncing, it was like gas was added to Penny's usually still leg. She tried to calm herself down with slow, controlled breathing, but it usually ended up quick and panics.
She didn't know what to expect at her second ever Romano family dinner. Quentin didn't go into detail about his family. Does he have both set of grandparents? Does he have thirty cousin? Her main question was: how many Romano's will be there? She was entering the unknown. She knew the basic family members, expect for one brother and a set of niece and nephew.
She did not want to face the judgement and persecution for unwelcoming family members, because a family always has one.
While she was zoning off and her mind reeling, the car took a sharp turn into a driveway to a beautiful house. The front was a stunning brick with accents of black and white. It had to have about three levels due to the window placement. Penny's heart started to beat fast, memories rushed back to the front of her mind.
It was very similar to her old house in San Francisco.
She didn't like that one bit.
Penny prayed that the inside was not decorated with classic, old fashion furniture and hoped that it had a more modern feel.
Quentin parked behind and beside other cars in the driveway. It was a lot, but they did have a lot of kids. Then again, there was more than six. They all exit the car, Ms. Birdie holding the cupcakes in one hand and her overnight bag in another. Both women stand behind Quentin, hoping for him to lead the way. Ms. Birdie subtle pushed the girl forward so she could stand next to him. A familiar choking sensation of vomit rose in her throat. She clamps her mouth shut in response. She might be able to stop her from throwing-up due to anxiety, but she could not stop the severe shaking her hands were suffering from.
Quentin could almost feel the air and wind created from her uncontrollable hands. He quickly uses his free hand to grab hers, giving it a light squeeze. They glance at each other. Quentin to make sure she was doing okay, and Penny to see what he was doing. Once they had eye contact, they turned away from each other, but not their hands. Still walking towards the door, two hands were entwined.
Finally at the door, she was about to pass out. However, Quentin's hands calmed and grounded her. She was able to take some real, deep breathes before Quentin twists the door open and shouts, "Ma, we're here!"