Silent Longing | Bridgerton

7

Phoebe lay perfectly still, a slight frown creasing her delicate features. She could not stop thinking about the previous night, about how she made a dramatic fuss over nothing. The poor Bridgerton boys did not need to know of her sadness and they certainly did not have to be so compassionate to her. After all, they have their own sister to worry about, being that Daphne has caught the Queen's eye this year. A real diamond of the first water she is. Surely suitors will be lining up at the door of the Bridgerton estate just to lock eyes briefly with her.

Phoebe fiddled with her thumbs as she lay staring intently at the ceiling. How was she ever to make amends with Colin and Anthony for ensuring she did not cause a stir or disgrace her family after running out so quickly? Should she move on as if nothing had happened? After all, she thanked them already for their actions. Or should she, with a clear mind and a new day, make sure that they know she is sincere in her thanks for keeping her dignity by escorting her outside of the ball?

Squeezing her eyes shut and rolling onto her side, she groaned as she realized neither option was good. She could either bring up the over dramatic and nearly forgotten events from the night before and make everyone relive the awkward and tense night or she could make it seem as though she was unappreciative of the actions the men had taken to make sure she was alright. Both options awful. Both options embarrassing. Both options reminded everyone that she is a weak woman.

She would rather be a grateful fool than an entitled brat. So it was decided, she would make her way to the Bridgerton's and quickly thank the brothers one last time. She was hopeful she could also take the opportunity to speak with Eloise and Daphne, if she was not too busy, to make it seem as though she was not merely there to thank them and leave.

Rolling clumsily out of bed, the auburn haired girl stumbled her way to the window. Her left hand gently moved her curtains away from the window and she leaned to look towards the Bridgerton estate. Before she could find the beautiful house, she was startled by her mother barging into her room.

"About time you got up. I was thinking I would have to drag you out of bed by your ankles." Portia Featherington rushed into the room, in a tizzy. Her hair already piled high upon her head and corset as tight as ever. It took all of Phoebe's willpower to not roll her eyes as a greeting. "This is no way to prepare for your potential suitors. Especially after they saw you at the ball last evening," Do you mean before or after I ran away? Phoebe wondered. "I can only imagine we should have our hands full with young gentlemen today."

Phoebe brushed the hair that had escaped her braid out of her face and fully faced her mother. "For Prudence and Philippa, you mean?"

The older woman scoffed as she snatched her daughter's wrist and pulled her to the wardrobe. "Prudence and Philippa." she tutted, riffling through the dresses. "My dear, I'm afraid they would not know how to enter society smoothly if it was standing right in front of them." She pulled out a pale green dress with gaudy yellow daisies splattered around. Pursing her lips, she put it back in the wardrobe and Phoebe said a silent prayer of thanks. "I am sure you saw what happened last night, did you not?"

Phoebe felt her heart rise to her throat. Surely she cannot possibly know? "What do you mean?" The sound barely a whisper out of the girl's mouth.

With yet another scoff, Portia yanked a bright red dress from its hiding place and thrust it at her daughter. "It was almost as if I only had two daughters at the ball the entire night." Her piercing eyes were wide as she found Phoebe's staring just as intently back at her. She cannot possibly know...

Phoebe was about to begin a stuttering apology when Penelope peeked into the room. "Mama, there's a carriage outside the window." Her small voice was full of excitement as she smiled at her older sister. Phoebe sent a silent thank you to her sister and took the dress from her mother.

"Hasten, Phoebe! I will have Rose do your hair but you will be so dreadfully late to meet any callers." Portia was scurrying out the door as she began calling for Rose.

Sighing, Phoebe glanced at Penelope, still in the doorway. "Do you mind?" She held up the dress slightly. Penelope quickly shook her head and closed the door behind her.

"How was your evening? We barely spoke after we arrived home. I can only imagine what it was like to be dancing, and with Colin at that..." Phoebe tuned out the rest of her wonderful sister's words as she got dressed. So many new questions were running through her mind. What had Prudence and Philippa done at the ball? Who was at their home? Who was the caller for? When would she be able to escape the presence of her mother and visit the Bridgerton's?

"Well?"

"Ouch, hm?" An obnoxiously tight pull of her corset had caught her attention. She looked over her right shoulder at Pen, holding the strings so tightly.

"What did you and Colin discuss? You seemed to be having a lovely chat." The sadness in Pen's blue eyes was attempting to be masked by her bright smile, but Phoebe knew it was still there. Her sister was absolutely smitten with the Bridgerton man.

"A bunch of nonsense really. Nothing too exciting." That was likely the biggest lie she would tell her sister. It was not nonsense, rather quite important. But now was not the time to get into such matters. Before Rose could arrive, Phoebe rebraided her hair and wrapped it in a delicate bun at the nape of her neck. Nothing too extravagant but to be honest, she was not looking to impress and callers and had her mind on other matters.

Slipping her arm through Penelope's, they descended down the stairs to join the family. To her surprise, there was no caller present. This was quite alright with her, she would have dreaded any unnecessary small talk that would have accompanied this potential suitor.

"Wonderful, you've decided to join us." Portia cooed, glancing at the door as her youngest entered. Phoebe spied her father in the corner, nose buried in the daily paper. "Now have a seat and look pleasant." She gestured toward the small couch and the younger Featherington girls sat together.

After what seemed like hours of quiet whispers and slight changes in position, Phoebe was finally going to lose it. "Mama, I would like to go visit the Bridgertons this afternoon." Her voice was surprisingly clear and she caught her mother's eye.

"Ah,"Portia nearly giggled. "You want to go visit the Bridgertons? After their eldest daughter, declared a diamond of the first water by none other than the Queen, was at her first ball, at her entrance to society last night?" She shook her tightly curled head, frown immediately setting in. "I should think not."

"But mama, what if I was to catch the eye of a potential suitor while there?" The lie was quick but made sense. Who was to say she could not meet a gentleman Daphne turned away? Not that she was at all interested in finding a suitor, but her mother needn't know that.

"Nonsense. There is no reason at all why-"

Portia's retort was cut short by Rose entering the room. "Lady Featherington. A Lord Bridgerton is here to see Miss Featherington." It was as if the air in the room froze, no one seemed to breathe.

Phoebe, shockingly, found her voice first. "Which Miss Featherington?" Her throat felt instantly dry, she was positive that Pen could hear her heart beating inside her chest. Was the universe on her side for once?

"A Miss Phoebe Featherington."

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Hi readers!
Thank you all so much for the love you have been sharing! You have absolutely no idea how much it means to me! I hope you enjoy this little filler chapter, I promise the next one will be more intriguing!
As always, I love to read your thoughts and comments as you follow along with Phoebe. Please comment and like this story so I can receive your feedback and others can find it!