The Wallflower

Lost

A/N:
Hello lovelies! I am so excited for y'all to read this update! It was such a fun and exciting chapter to write! Thank you for your patience!

I want to thank a few people who helped get this chapter where it needed to be.

First I want to thank Victoria for being so supportive of this fit through the entire journey. She has always jumped at the chance to read the updates and give me feedback before they went live and as a thank you I added her to the pic! Love you so much, Tori!

The other person I have to give a HUGE thank you to is Lyndsay, aka my resident Scot. She helped me nail the Scottish dialogue and I am forever appreciative of her! Slàinte Lyndsay!

Enjoy!
~

Colin groaned as he massaged his stiff muscles, trying to release the tension that had built up from hours of writing in his journal. His neck was aching badly due to being hunched over for the past three days. Michael's friend from the shop, a man named William, had devoured the few passages Colin had shown him during their meeting. He'd instructed Colin to prepare an entire pamphlet's worth of stories to share with the public.

Now, Colin had but a few hours before he'd have to stand in front of a crowd of strangers and read his personal thoughts and musings during his travels in Scotland. William had wanted to share the Scottish travels with the Scottish people first. Finding it more interesting to hear a British (or Sassenach as they called him) man's perception of their lands and culture.

Colin sighed as he rewrote a particular passage yet again, trying desperately to work out the wording that would convey his thoughts the best way. Despite his nerves, he felt a surge of excitement as he thought about the possibility of his travel logs being published. He had never even considered it before Michael had suggested it, and he now couldn't believe that it might actually happen thanks to William's offer.

As he worked on revising the passage yet again, Colin allowed himself to imagine what it would be like to see his book on store shelves and know that people were reading and enjoying his stories. He couldn't help but feel a sense of immense pressure as he sat there, knowing that this was his chance to do something truly meaningful and impactful. He had dreamed of a moment like this for years, and now that it was finally here, he wanted to make sure he didn't let the opportunity slip through his fingers before it even began.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Colin let out a sigh and rubbed his forehead, trying to shake off the distraction. "Come in," he instructed with just a hint of frustration in his voice.

Francesca entered the room with a spring in her step, a cheerful greeting on her lips. She made her way to the chair across from Colin's desk, her anticipation growing with each passing moment. As she perched on the edge of the seat, she couldn't help but wonder what marvelous things Colin had written down over the last few days. He'd been incredibly secretive about the whole thing.

"How's it going?" she asked excitedly.

Colin leaned back in his chair and let out a hefty sigh. "I think it's done." Fran beamed at his words and jumped to her feet.

"May I read it?!" she exclaimed, reaching for the notebook. Colin snatched it up before she could and held it to his chest.

"Absolutely not. I can't take any criticism right now and besides, I have to get this to the printer right away. He has to start printing copies for tonight." Francesca frowned and slumped back in the chair.

"Fine, I guess I'll have to wait to hear it like everyone else," she mumbled dramatically. Colin rolled his eyes and chuckled. It was moments like these that reminded him of just how young she was.