Chapter Text
Four Years Ago…
Penelope Featherington had moved back to London after an eight-year disappearance. She left behind everything she knew at fifteen when her mother and father decided to ‘move to the country’. Penelope was aware of her parents’ failing marriage, and this ‘move’ was meant to be a quick ‘fix’, so really Penelope couldn’t argue, she couldn’t protest anything. After all, Penelope was still legally ‘a child’ even though she was probably more mature than every other person within her household.
The household that encompassed herself, parents and two terrible, God-awful older sisters.
The move itself had honestly devastated her. She left behind her friends, her life, her school, and everything that she had ever held dear. It took Penelope time to adjust at first, I mean city and country were extremely different, but after a while she had truthfully gotten used to the quieter life. She slowly began to fall in love with her surroundings, and she truly saw her parents happy for the first time… in a long time. Penelope’s life plan was pretty much mapped out from there.
You see she was always put on the career path of following in the family footsteps (Well her fathers), ‘Featherington Law Firm’ (FLF for short), he ran one of the most prestigious law firms in the country, and for a long time, Penelope really thought that she’d be happy with that life, she truly thought this was how her life was meant to be. After all, she was always her daddy’s girl…
Well that was until everything came crashing down six months ago.
After the said incident, Penelope packed her bags, got in her car, and drove away from her parent’s house in Devon, and somehow that journey led her back here, to London. On a whim she enrolled herself into art school (she did always love to paint, create, and tell a story through art), she took money from her trust and leased a flat (in a dodgy part of London) and begun her life, alone. Her parents weren’t too happy, but after the ‘incident’ they didn’t argue, they just sent her cash and asked no questions.
Penelope hated taking money from them, but truly she had no choice until she got on her feet.
So here she was on a sunny Sunday, in London, standing in line paying a parking ticket she had been given earlier that week. This was her fourth parking ticket since she had arrived in London six months ago, but she couldn’t complain, it was her own fault, time keeping wasn’t a great trait of Penelope Featherington.
She had just met up with some friends for lunch earlier that day, so she was a little dressed up for the government office, but this was the only time she had to visit and pay. So she stood a little uncomfortably shifting from heel to toe in her red bottomed platformed heels with high waisted jeans, an off the shoulder cropped white top, and a leather jacket.
She felt good.
She ran her fingers through her hair in annoyance. The queue hadn’t moved in ten minutes as some old guy was arguing every point on the ticket. She played with a stray curl that had fallen from her clip, her hair used to be so long, however, last month she braved the chop for a ‘bob’. (It was a spur of the moment choice, but she loved it) Her natural curly ginger hair suited the cut, it was always bouncy and pretty easy to style, however in the summer… it was a little harder to tame due to the humidity, so she had it pinned back with a claw clip. Penelope had gone through a transformation over these six months. She truly didn’t think anyone, and I mean anyone, from Devon would even recognise her now. She felt like a totally different person.
She managed to pay her ‘expensive’ fine after being in line for over thirty minutes (it was ridiculous) and then she quickly made her way to the exit. As Penelope made her way out, she couldn’t help but notice further down the line a tall, dark haired, blue-eyed, handsome stranger smiling at her as she departed. She smiled back, albeit with a slight blush. She turned as she got to the exit to see if he was still looking at her, and yep, he definitely was.
She smiled to herself and took the win.
Cute guy checking me out? I’ll take it - she thought.
Penelope wasn’t an outright flirt, hell, she had only ever been in one serious relationship and that was with her childhood sweetheart, Alfie Debling. (Cheating Prick) However, in London, Penelope was this new, strong, confident woman…somehow, she had gained a different personality over these past six months. In Devon, she was a people pleaser, she always done exactly was she was told, or done exactly what was required of her, expected of her. But really, Penelope never took the time to actually think about who or what she ever wanted to do or be.
But now, she was beginning to realise that just maybe she had been suppressing this side of her for so long, so maybe, this was her.
Penelope walked to her car, her little Angie, this was her beloved red Mini Cooper. God, she loved that car (even though little Angie was nearly on her way out). She got this car for her eighteenth birthday, and even though her father had tried to send her multiple ‘new’ cars since she had arrived in London (three in total, and they were obvious bribes), she would simply refuse to sign for them and send them straight back. She didn’t want to take anything she didn’t have too, she had finally secured a job in local bar, and even though it reduced the amount she used of her ‘parents’ money, she still needed them for rent. Unfortunately. When she beeped the car to unlock, she heard someone come up behind her.
“Hey.”
She quickly turned to see the handsome stranger who had been admiring her in the line moments earlier. But now here he was, stood in front of her, slightly out of breath, and holding out a sheet of paper. Penelope took the moment to take him in. He had natural curly chestnut hair that was swept back, he donned an expensive tailored suit, deep blue eyes, and a devastatingly gorgeous smile.
He was hot.
Like really hot.
“You eh, left your receipt back there,” he rubbed the back of his neck and looked a little nervous as she took the paper from his hands, “Thank you, I didn’t realise.”
He smiled, “No problem, I mean, running after you nearly got me killed, but I like living on the edge,” he let out a little laugh.
Now she was smiling.
She bit her bottom lip and arched her eyebrow, “Oh is that true? Or is this some type of pick-up line?” She laughed a little as he shifted a little uncomfortably on the spot at her question, all the while she used the paper to cover the smirk that had washed over her lips.
He lifted his hand to his chest obviously pretending to be a little offended, “I was simply being a kind Smartian.”
Oh he had charm.
She liked that.
“Well, I’ll be on my way then, thank you kind Smartian,” she remained serious as she turned back around to her car. She heard him swallow a little nervously behind her, “W-Wait I know this is absolutely crazy, but would you like to get a drink?”
She turned back around.
Should she?
“I don’t even know your name,” she teased him a little more.
After all, she was having far too much fun with this.
He pushed his hair back, took a breath, and then held out his hand, “Anthony.”
“You want me to shake your hand?” she looked down at his vacant hand and then up to his deep blue eyes.
He nodded.
Penelope considered her options. A drink is just a drink, right?
I mean truly what was the worst that could happen, right?
So, she turned to lock her car and then slid her hand into his, “I’m Penelope.”
And then it was instant, whatever this was.
Four Months Later…
It took a total of 122 days to get to this point where Penelope Featherington was madly, totally, and completely in love with Anthony Bridgerton.
From the moment they met in that parking lot they had been inseparable.
It was scary how fast she fell, and it was even scarier how much he loved her, because he really did, she had never felt love like it before. Never. She learned quickly that Anthony was probably one of the best people she had ever met. He lived in a large, shared apartment with three other people, who were coincidently his siblings, Ben, Colin, and Eloise. Colin was hardly ever there right enough as he was a ‘world traveller’ as Anthony so eloquently put it, but she quickly found out from Eloise that he was really a ‘fun’ holiday rep who had no doubt shagged most of the European woman demographic. Ben on the other hand, was ‘master of ceremonies’ who specialised in elaborate, wild, ‘punk’ themed special days. But Eloise… now Eloise quickly became Penelope’s favourite, not only because she wasn’t like anyone she had ever met before, but their shared love of the arts, and soppy romantic old black and white movies, made them soon become fast best friends. Penelope had quickly become a part of their crew, which should have sent Anthony running off in the opposite direction. But he didn’t. In fact he embraced it, loved it, and asked her to move right in after a month.
It only took the other siblings another month before they had enough of the ‘love show’ and they got their own apartment a few blocks over. Penelope couldn’t deny that it wasn’t a relief, as being silent while Anthony done unspeakable things to her at any given point of the day was becoming a little tiring.
They needed the alone time.
Desperately.
Anthony worked as an investment banker, and he was pretty darn good at it. Him and his siblings didn’t have the easiest time growing up, unlike Penelope who had every little thing at her disposal. Their father died when they were young, which left them in a mess, and then their mother passed a few years ago, so that left the four Bridgerton siblings to take care of each other. As that’s all they had left. The way Anthony spoke about his mother was one of the reasons she fell madly in love with him, she really was his whole world.
Until he met her.
Well, that’s what he told her every morning.
Anthony stepped up when his mother passed and took care of the four of them. He felt the responsibility being the eldest. Anthony was only five years older than Penelope, Benedict three, Colin was two, and then Eloise was her age (Probably why they got along so well only being a month apart).
So on that fateful day four months ago in a line paying ludicrous parking fines, 28-year-old Anthony Bridgerton met and fell instantly in love with 23-year-old Penelope Featherington.
It was safe to say her favourite age would and always be 23.
But now, here they were in that bar where they had their first drink together, with Ben standing in between them, along with Colin at one side, and El at the other. She knew in this moment as she held his hand in front of their favourite people in the world, that this, right here, was all she would ever need.
So,
They vowed to love each other, choose each other, every single damn day.
That bar soon became their favourite place.
That bar was everything.
Present Day…
“I quite like Phillip,” she said while sipping the last of her hot chocolate.
Anthony rolled his eyes at his wife of three years, “Yeah you would.”
Penelope sat up and playfully smacked his arm, “Oh come on, he’s a nice guy. He’s perfect for Eloise, and he’s cute.” Anthony turned around to look at her, “Excuse me,” he slammed on the breaks, probably not a great idea in the snow… but they were nearly home, and the roads were eerily quiet.
He turned in his seat, “Did my wife just refer to another man as cute?” He raised his eyebrow and then pouted his lips.
She rolled her own eyes this time, slowly unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned over the console, she ran her fingers up his chest and leaned to whisper into his ear, “Oh baby he is cute, but my god, my husband is so god damn sexy.”
Anthony swallowed.
Hard.
He leaned over to kiss her.
Touch her.
Do anything that could bring her closer in any capacity. This woman still had the ability to drive him completely insane with one look.
He shook his head and started up the car, “Right well, I’m parking so we can get upstairs, as soon as possible,” Penelope giggled, climbed off him, and went back to her seat.
Penelope was just about to buckle her seatbelt back in when…
IMPACT.
Another car came sliding into the back of them with such force.
PAIN.
Anthony saw everything in slow motion.
First, he felt the strain of the seatbelt against his chest, there was a crack, glass flew everywhere. Secondly, he watched his wife’s whole-body fly through the windscreen, it all happened so quickly that he couldn’t even move, he couldn’t shout.
But then…
…It was black.
Everything was black.
Every single little thing.
It was all darkness.
… It was all gone.