Work Text:
Ted & Penny
Felix / Penny
1425 words
♡
Penny was the light in Ted’s dim world.
Once she had recovered socially from her not-so-flattering first impression in kindergarten, complete with more monsters that one could imagine and a psychopathic mother, everyone was able to see how bright, colorful, and cheery she was. She could make you grin with just her perfect smile. Penny was the purest and most wholesome girl you could ever find. Everyone loved her, especially Ted. He painted pictures for her, told her jokes, and quickly became her best friend.
Ted thought he could be getting out of hand, with his similes about her, but he really did believe that Penny was just so perfect; like the smell of fresh rain, the feeling of passing a quiz with flying colors, the taste of the fanciest food out there, made with love and care, she was the sight of the night sky that you experienced when you were next to someone you loved.
But above all, Penny embodied love and change, in its purest and most beautiful form. The metamorphosis from a robotic, stale, snitch android to such a happy, wonderful girl was like no other. His love for her left him breathless.
Anyone who had the pleasure of meeting her absolutely loved her, and everyone at their old school had came around to her, even Buggs, who always stuffed her locker with fresh roses, all with love.
And above all, Penny loved, and she loved hard. If you found yourself in her attention span and experienced her love, you were one of the luckiest people alive.
Ted Huxley was the first, or so he thought.
While all the other kids loathed Penny for her qualities and abilities to confiscate anything under the sun, Ted didn’t hate her for it. He didn’t find himself being recognized by Penny for quite some time, maybe a few months after school started, by doing simple tasks for her. Ted was near inseparable to her at this point, and from an outsider’s perspective, they were an odd match. But all through grade school and middle school, things stayed the same.
Ted was many things to Penny.
A shoulder to lean on in your hardest times, a help with moral support, and a good friend who had always stuck with her.
A lover was never one of them, though.
To many others, Ted was cold, and a lesser of his brother, like a block of ice, but Ted reminded Penny of fire; a force that could get you through any distant dark spot in your life. Just not someone that you would walk down the aisle with.
Ted made Penny feel like she was wanted and needed in the world, especially during her dark times and recovery. He made her feel important.
He made Penny feel loved.
But Felix also made Penny feel loved.
Penny properly met Felix on the first day of junior year, and from there, she noticed how her heart could expand just from a sight of someone she had just met. Although she wasn’t anything besides a normal 16 year old now, her brain short circuited when she tried to talk to Felix and she couldn’t even figure out why. The next day in class, she was open about her struggles.
”Aaagh, I can’t believe that I messed this up so bad! I met the first boy I might like and I can’t even talk to him-?” Penny vented out loud, garnering the attention of Ted.
”And it was Felix Huxley! Your own brother!” Penny turned to Ted after noticing he was looking strangely at her.
“Could you put a good word in for me?” Penny pouted. “I don’t want to have a cute boy mad at me!”
”Hey- I’m a cute boy!” Ted protested from his seat.
“Yeah, you are! But you’re not the cute Huxley boy that I have a crush on! That’s Felix, and I just ruined my chances!”
Ouch. Ted hid his face with his hands, hoping that Penny hadn’t seen his saddened expression. Even if she did notice, she didn’t bring it up.
She didn’t mean to say it like that, right? Maybe it was just her weird way of taking that could either be comforting or bluntly honest.
”Hey, Penny, calm down, I’m sure you have a chance. If it helps, I’ll tell him some…wonderful things about you!”
“I’m sure everything will be okay. Didn’t you say he called you cute anyways when you came over? Maybe he already does like you back!”
“You might be right! Thank you, you’re such a great friend to me!” Penny hugged him and buried her face in his chest.
Ted felt his heart crumble a little bit at her words again, but it all was gone again when she hugged him.
Like always, Ted was right. It took a week of Ted feeding false rumors and facts to Felix, (that had ended up backfiring and making him fall even more in love with Penny) before they had their first date at the park. Ted sat on the ladybug springer and watched the two smile and laugh together, something he and Penny had done so many times before.
It wasn’t special enough, what they had done. He wasn’t special enough.
Penny was still Ted’s light in the dark world, but she still wasn’t his girlfriend, even though he loved her more than himself.
The two’s next dates were more successful each time, as they’d spend their times smiling and holding hands at various, expensive locations.
When Penny returned that morning in homeroom with a dark purple mark on her neck, Ted knew he was too late, and struggled to conceal his tears that flooded to his eyes while Penny chattered to the rest of the class.
That night, Ted flicked out the light on the bottom bunk of his bed, and thought about what would happen if he was his brother, and if he was with Penny.
He dreamt of a shared bond that was as strong as the one they shared, but it was different and hadn’t faltered a bit when Penny had started talking to his own twin. Their love was fiery, like running until your heart burned out on you; destroying your lungs.
But no. They’re happy together and maybe I should just leave it that way. Just a high school crush.
~• Time-Skip around 5 years •~
Ted was the first person Penny told about Felix proposing to her. They were now 21 years old and their relationship had only grown stronger since high school. But Ted had been the first person she had told because he was still her best friend and still felt her love above many others.
”You should be our man of honor! Felix thinks it’s a wonderful idea too!” Penny exclaimed,
Ted’s heart ripped into its final shred.
“Sure! That would be so sweet!” Ted lied. With that, he felt his world collapse. He’d been reckless with his own heart and Penny’s too; giving her a romantic impression since day one and never acting on it.
He was too late.
That night, he cried himself to sleep and thought about how socially reclusive he was in middle school and high school. He hadn’t had the guts to confess to her then, or even tell Felix his true feelings either. It was all his fault that his biggest nightmare was coming true this Friday.
~
The way that Penny looked at Felix told him everything. She was so in love, with a happy relationship with somebody more confident and beautiful than himself.
To Penny, Felix was her everything, a chance lover who just so happened to have a twin brother who was her best friend and was always supportive of their relationship; always ready to break a limb to make sure that they were happy together. A twin brother who harbored no feelings for her.
To Felix, Penny felt like a warm hug, just like he said as they started their vows. Ted listened in and pretended that he wasn’t about to break down right then and there.
He stood there with a huge grin on his face, and his business suit neater than usual. The urge to run and hide somewhere grew louder with the two exchanging vows.
But Ted didn’t cry in sorrow or guilt, he loved Penny and Ted with his heart, and both liked him back, even only if as friends.
Every candle eventually burns out, and everyone has to face their demons alone.