"I miss you already, kid." Lindsey gave her a playful frown as he followed her up the sidewalk, carrying a couple of her bags in one hand as the other held onto his foam cup of coffee... much needed after their early morning drive back to Arizona.
At that age, she normally drove herself back and forth, but since her recent health issues, she was instructed not to drive, so she was stuck hitching rides for awhile, which Lindsey didn't mind... He would rather she didn't make that journey alone, anyway.
Penny glanced back over her shoulder, stepping up the patio stairs as her brown eyes grew soft. "I'm gonna miss you, dad." She admitted, even though it was always very obvious.
She had been in LA for over a week, which really wasn't all that common at that point in her life. She usually made the trip out to California for long weekends, but that time around, she found herself pretty busy.
She had a few doctors appointments, got together with some friends, hung out with her dad and Erin, and above all of those really exciting things, she was able to spend more time with her mom, which is what was really making it hard for her to leave.
They had started calling each other almost everyday, which is something they both really enjoyed. They usually didn't talk too long, but they talked long enough to make it feel like they were closer and that was all that really mattered to either of them.... They didn't need to cover every single base right off the bat, even though they definitely still had a lot to learn about one another.
Anyway, during one of their phone calls, Penny had briefly mentioned that her dad was driving her home in a few days and Stevie asked if she could take her out to dinner before that happened. Of course, the younger woman was all on board and the night before they left, Stevie came to Lindsey's to pick her up.
And they had the best time together, they really did. They went to an Italian restaurant, where they spent two hours taking up a table- talking and laughing about all sorts of things.
Penny told her mom all about her school years- only the good stories... She didn't want to dive into the details of her health issues, which took up a lot of her childhood, even though she knew Stevie would care.
She didn't want her to worry her, not in the slightest, so she bypassed all of that.
And Stevie was very open when Penny asked her questions... She had no secrets, not really and even if she did, she already felt like she trusted Penelope more than anyone in the world to keep them for her.
Anyway, it had been a very emotional week, so when the young blonde pushed open the front door to the home that had seen her through it all, it felt like she'd walked right into her safe haven.
"Penny?" Barbara's voice lingered in from the living room, which caused her lips to turn up instantly.
Lindsey cracked a smirk as well, always feeling a little lighter when he got there as well.
Jess and Barbara brought a lot of comfort to him- they always had, but especially after Stevie left... They just made him feel like everything was going to be okay and he definitely needed that reassurance during that time.
"Grandma?" She playfully called back as she traveled through the foyer, setting her bag down on the accent chair on her way through to the living room.
The older woman was sitting on the sofa, still in her nightgown with a robe covering her shoulders and hair rollers holding her bangs in place.
She had just gotten up and Penny coming home was the best way to start her day.
"My sweet girl." She wiggled her fingers with one hand as the other held onto her mug. "Did you have a good week?" She wondered, sitting up a little more to readjust as her eyes remained on her granddaughter, who was moving towards her.
