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penelope | chapter 9

Penelope didn't greet me this time. When I opened my eyes, I was in a small cottage. It was definitely not from this era. I don't think cupids could time travel either. The cottage was old-fashioned, the walls made of logs. Black and white pictures hung from the logs, accompanied by a few shotguns and... were those swords?

"Hey, I thought you might want to stay here for a while."

Penelope?

I turned, facing a much more realistic version of Penny. Her hair was still long, reaching her knees. She wore a beige blouse and overalls. Her eyes were still bright blue, but they had a certain sparkle in them. She looked... happy?

I'd never seen her smile so genuinely.

"Is this your house?" was the only thing I could ask. Of all the questions I had, that was the one I blurted out. Penny ran her hand over an old hand-made table, sighing deeply. There was a certain longing in her eyes.

"At one time, yes. Sometimes I bring cupids like you here. It's less traumatizing when-"

Penny cut herself off, pulling out a chair to sit. What did she mean traumatizing? Wasn't I supposed to be out helping people? Penny motioned to the chair across from her. I took it, tilting my head. What was going on?

"Do you want to see all the people you've helped?" she asked, beaming. I did, of course. I didn't think I was supposed to see them afterwards though. I nodded, not asking if that was allowed or not. Penny was my boss, she had to know the rules. Right?

But that really didn't mean that she followed them, did it? She had to. Penelope was like a god, or something like that. I had never really believed in god anyways.

"Well, close your eyes."

I did.

Raine sat in front of me, playing a soft tune on her guitar. A sweet picture of Raine and Elliot was framed to the side. She glanced at it every now and then, a look of regret flashing in her eyes every time they wandered to the photo. I tried to recognize the song she was playing, but it seemed like something she had written herself.

"Take us away, so we'll live another day," Raine sang. It was an eerie, soft sound. She was good. "Let me go, I'd trade places anytime you know."

She really did miss him. I sat beside her, hand resting on her back. She looked over to where I sat, but since I wasn't really there, she looked away after a moment. I'd heard that some people felt the presence of cupids, even though we weren't technically there.

Raine kept singing. It was a really pretty song. After glancing around, I noticed we were in Elliot's room. His paintings still hung on the walls. On his old painting desk, the glasses sat. She'd glued them together. A few pieces were missing, I could tell from the gaps and bumps.

I sighed, knowing that all would be okay here. My eyes closed, signalling for Penny to move me along. When I opened my eyes, I was in that beige dorm once again.

Tilly sat on her bed, now the only bed in the apartment. She looked so much better. The bags under her eyes were gone, and she looked genuinely okay. I wanted to see Nadia too, but I knew that this would do just fine.

I hovered over to Tilly, to see she was texting someone. The contact name was Nadia. 

"Coffee with everyone at 4?"

Tilly smiled, replying quickly.

"Sure, I'll be there."

I was glad they were still friends. I closed my eyes again. Yasmine and Dean sat in front of me now, holding hands. They were sitting on the edge of a bridge, throwing pebbles into the water. Every now and then, Yasmine leaned over to kiss Dean's cheek. Every time, he blushed bright pink. It was so endearing, seeing them here.

These were the kind of dates I had always wanted to go on when I was alive. Just me, my lover, and the world. Yasmine and Dean would last for some time, I was sure of it. I sat beside them for a while, just watching them love one another.

After a while, I closed my eyes again. Shawn.

I was delighted to see him and his kids outside, playing catch. They looked so happy, so at peace. Milo threw to his dad, and Shawn threw to Grace. They laughed when they threw a bad throw, or dropped the ball. There was no tension, no fear.

Olive would be proud of them. I stood in the middle of their game, sitting in the grass. It was soft, and just a little moist. After they were finished with catch, the family laid down a blanket and a picnic basket.

I wished that my family was this happy. But I'm glad Olive's death didn't tear them apart. In some ways, it seemed to have brought them closer together. I sighed, regretfully closing my eyes.

Now, I faced Joan and Will. They were sitting in Joan's living room, both boy's parents perched around the couches. Joan took in a breath, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Me and Will, well- we're kinda dating now."

After a painful minute of silence, Joan's parents smiled, moving in to hug their son. Will's mom embraced her son too. It was beautiful, seeing acceptance in both boy's families. I heard some sobbing, some congrats, and some laughing. Joan's mom passed out tissues, while Will's mom handed out lemonade. It would all fall into place.

Maybe there would be fighting, maybe it wouldn't be perfect. But nothing was really perfect. Not me, not Joan, not any of the others. That's what made us human. I shut my eyes again, waiting for the next scene to open up before me.

Bambie.

She was bandaged, but thankfully, she was okay. I let out a breath I didn't know I had been holding. Her eyes still held that same light and kindness. She was at home, sitting on a couch beside her brother. They were watching the news. I decided to watch with them, to answer my questions about Paul.

"Murderer Paul Carter was allegedly arrested yesterday on two counts of manslaughter and one count of attempted murder. Authorities say that he was found after and anonymous woman called the police to turn him in," the reporter chimed. I was glad that Paul would never hurt anyone anymore. Bambie's brother hugged her, tears falling from his eyes.

"I love you sis," he sobbed. Bambie patted his back, brushing a tear from her eye.

"I love you too."

I still felt guilty that I couldn't save Bambie from being shot. But I knew it was all over now. I closed my eyes again. 

This last pair would be the final two that Penelope showed me.

I was happy to see Cadence and Delilah back at Fred's, this time with friends. They all laughed together, eating pizza and thanking Fred for the complementary bread-sticks.

Delilah sat on Cadence's lap, looking deep into his eyes. She really loved him, no matter what. They kissed, despite the obnoxious noises Cadence's friends made when their lips locked. Fred was crying again, saying something about how lovely it was to see young people in love again.

I nodded my agreement. I didn't want to close my eyes, because I knew that meant I would go back to being a cupid again. I wanted to stay here forever.

But alas, I couldn't. Reluctantly, I squeezed my eyes shut one more time.