Lose You to Love Me

//10//

  It should have been a good day.

That's all Penelope could think of when she woke up on Thanksgiving morning. Everyone else around the world was going to spend the day with their families, and Penelope longed to be able to do the same. She had known for months now that there would be a very slim chance that her father would be able to come home to celebrate the holidays, but she had still held on to that hope. When her father had written to her last week and confirmed what she already knew, that hope had been taken away from her. Her mother was trying the best to make the holiday enjoyable- she'd even reached out to Penelope's aunts and uncles to see if they'd want to come over with their children, Penelope's cousins. Each one of them had come up with an excuse to decline the invitation, so that left only Penelope and her mother. Penelope could see that her family's absence was taking a toll on her mother, as the normally cheerful woman had become solemn and quiet. With how badly their Thanksgiving plans had gone, Penelope could only dread what Christmas would bring.

As Penelope was getting ready for the day, her phone rang on its charger, lighting up with her best friend's contact picture. When she picked it up, she could tell that Hope was in a similar headspace as her. "Hey, Pen.", Hope spoke, her own voice laced with exhaustion. "Happy Thanksgiving." "Happy Thanksgiving, Hope. How are you holding up?" Hope sighed, shifting the phone to her other hand. "We're going to go visit my mom, and then my aunts are going to take Hannah for the day. I don't want to be there...my dad...he's going at Bex's place. I don't feel like entertaining his guilt." "Where are you going to go?", Penelope asked, putting the phone on the speaker so that she could finish getting dressed. Hope was quiet for a minute. "Do you think your mom will mind if I come over today? I know that it's supposed to be a day for family, but-" "Hope, stop.", Penelope cut her off sternly. "You are family, and you know that you're always welcome here. Besides, it might get my mom out of this mood she's in." Hope paused, more than likely thinking over Penelope's offer. The latter girl decided to give her another small push to encourage her. "You can help me make a pecan pie.", she offered, knowing that it was Hope's favorite part of the holiday. Hope chuckled, and Penelope was relieved that she had managed to at the very least make Hope smile. "Yeah, okay.", she agreed, unable to come up with a reason that she shouldn't take Penelope's offer. "I'll be done at the hospital around noon. See you then?" "See you then.", Penelope confirmed, saying a quick goodbye before hanging up.

As soon as she had hung up the phone, her mother peeked her head into the room, relieved to see that Penelope was awake. "Who are you talking to so early this morning?", she asked, curiously, wrapping her cardigan tighter around her body. "Hope; She asked if she could come over. I hope you don't mind- I just thought maybe having her here would be good for all three of us." Miranda Park came over to her daughter's side, running her finger's through her hair lovingly. "Of course Hope can come here. Lord knows that poor girl needs as much of a support system as she can get." "Just don't say stuff like that when she's over here- Hope already knows how fucked her family is." Mrs. Park narrowed her eyes at her daughter, and Penelope realized her mistake. "Sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to curse." Mrs. Park shook her head but decided not to scold her daughter too much about it. "Everyone's family is a little broken, Penny", she said with a burdened sigh. "That's why it's important that we keep the ones we love close, and don't take them for granted." Penelope nodded her agreement before standing from the bed. "I still have to get ready, but I'll come down in, like, twenty minutes and I can help you in the kitchen?" Mrs. Park looked at her daughter for a moment - almost as if holding back something she was desperate to say- before offering a small smile. "Yes, I think that'll be just fine, Penny."

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"I can't believe how much food your mom got.", Hope stated, putting another handful of pecans in her mouth. "You'd think she's feeding an entire army." "Yeah, well, you know my mom- she'd feed the whole damn neighborhood if I let her." Penelope finished pressing the uncooked pie dough into the tray, making sure it was neatly trimmed around the edges. "I think she was hoping my family would come after all. Honestly, I was too." Hope frowned, then combatted her sadness with a declaration. "Fuck family.", Hope exclaimed, slamming her hand down on the counter she was sitting on. "The only family I need is right here." Penelope laughing, amused by her friend's sudden burst of energy. "Correction- fuck fake family members. I mean, Hannah and Freya are pretty cool." Hope rolled her eyes at Penelope's attempt to defend her sister and aunt, but there was still a hint of amusement in her smile. "Okay, sure. Fuck fake family.", she agreed, holding up her cup of soda. "I'll drink to that." Penelope threw a pecan in Hope's direction, giggling when it bounced off her cheek. While Hope was focused on her retaliation for the action, Penelope put the filling into the pie crust and set it in the oven. She had just closed the oven door when the outside doorbell rang unexpectedly.

Penelope glanced over at Hope, mumbling a warning about not eating the rest of their ingredients, before walking up to the front door and opening it enough to see who was waiting on the other side of it. She was surprised to see Josie standing on the doorstep, holding a container in her hands. Penelope opened the door further, stepping out of the warmth of the house and into the cold November air. "Hey Jojo.", she greeted, relieved when Josie didn't flinch at the nickname. Instead, Josie offered a small grin, holding out the container to Penelope, who quickly took it from her hands. "It's a tradition in my family to make homemade pies, and this year it was just me...uh...so, I thought I'd bring one over to you and your mom." "That's really nice of you, Jojo.", Penelope said, causing a proud grin to appear on Josie's face. Penelope realized what she had said, and her excitement to see Josie was replaced with concern for the girl. "What do you mean by it earlier was just you this year? Is your dad and Lizzie not helping you?" Josie's pride turned to a pained expression, and she slowly shook her head no, her focus on the ground below her. "My sister went to visit my mom back in Cali and my dad is working so...", Josie trailed off, shrugging her shoulders. "I guess I'm on my own this year." "Bullshit; You're coming to stay with us. Hope's already here, and my mom is making enough food to feed the whole of Virginia." Josie went to object, but Penelope stopped her. "You don't deserve to be alone on Thanksgiving. Please stay? For me?" For me. Josie realized that Penelope was not pitying her, or inviting her to be nice. She genuinely wanted Josie to stay. How could she say no to that? "Okay. I'll stay for a while." Penelope squealed with excitement before pulling Josie into the house to join her and Hope.

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"No way.", Hope argued, pointing her fork at Josie accusingly. "Pecan pie is so much better than Pumpkin, and that's just facts." "Lies!", Josie exclaimed with determination. "Why have the dryness of pecans when you can have the sweetness of pumpkins and nutmeg?" "Well, pecans are always in season, so ha!", Hope reasoned, and Josie just shook her head with amusement. As the two squabbled between themselves, Penelope watched them, realizing that she'd never seen either of the girls as relaxed as they were right now, even in the middle of their debate. Josie was smiling- actually smiling, not the fake one she gave everyone else- and Hope was even warming up to her, despite only meeting Josie two hours ago. When her mother walked by, settling their argument with a simple "Pumpkin pie is better" and a wink in Josie's direction and Hope's expression turned to one of feigned shock causing Josie to giggle- she knew this was what Thanksgiving was all about. Sure, she still missed her dad terribly, and she would continue to miss him until he was back home, where he belonged; Even in the midst of her longing, however, she knew that she was right where she was supposed to be. Surrounded by her mother, and Hope, and Josie, she had never felt more love for something in all of her life than she did for them. She'd never felt more loved in all of her life. Penelope smiled.

It had been a good day after all, and she realized she had so much more to be thankful for than she'd thought.