Archive of Our Own ^beta

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening?

In the lane, snow is glistening

A beautiful sight

We're happy tonight

Walking in a winter wonderland

***

The aroma of fresh gingerbread brought something warm to Colin on one mild frosty Saturday in December.

“Baking again mum?” 

Sitting with his back against the sofa as he sat on the living room floor, he stretches his neck to peer over the piece of furniture to see his mum walking into the room from the kitchen. Her hair was messy on top of her head, her face flushed from the oven heat which made the flour that was stuck to her skin ever so clear. His mother always liked to bake, so much so her children got her a ‘Backing Queen’ apron which she wore constantly. But the garment she wore over her clothes was different today. Today it was white, with the message ‘It’s beginning to taste a lot like Christmas’ stitched across the top. Surrounding it was delicious Christmas treats, such as Christmas puddings and mince pies. 

Colin lets out a small smile, knowing when that apron appeared, it was truly the time for the festivities to begin in the Bridgerton household. 

“Well we are in December, and Christmas is around the corner.” His mum replies as she throws the tea towel in her hands over one shoulder. “We are decorating the house today. So it’s the perfect time to start my festive baking with some gingerbread that we can all decorate later this evening.”

Colin scrunches his face. “You know gingerbread is most people’s favourite in this household? I have a sneaky little feeling that you made them to make sure that we all stay until this house is complete.” 

“Do not reveal my tricks, especially to Eloise.” 

“Oh don’t worry, I’m not saying no to some gingerbread.” Colin says with a laugh. In fact, he wouldn’t say no to any food, but he would never miss out on his mum’s gingerbread. The spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg giving the biscuit such a memorable taste, layered with sweetness from the decoration one created on top of it. But it wasn’t just about the taste, it was also the tradition of the family decorating gingerbread together, which has happened in this household since Colin was a young boy. It formed one of the most entertaining evenings of the year, and call Colin a sentimental eighteen year old, but he was happy that the tradition still took place. 

“Are you sure you trust Anthony and Daphne with the icing after last year though?”

His mother looks confused. “I don’t recall anything happening last year.” 

“Then you must have missed Anthony and Daphne’s faces getting painted red and green after they argued about who used too many jelly buttons on their biscuits.” Colin tells her amusingly, which grew when he sees his mother shake her head, unimpressed at her children’s antics. But even with them all growing up, they were all still a child at heart, especially around the Christmas time when they were all together. 

The most wonderful time of the year, he recalls people saying. 

“Well it can’t be worse than the time that Gregory stuck them jelly buttons all in Hyacinth’s hair.” His mother admits with a tut. “Spent hours trying to brush them out.” 

“Oh what memories Christmas time bring eh?”

“Some of the very best.” His mother smiles fondly. “And I can’t wait to see what the festive seasons brings this year.” 

Colin lets out a snort. “What kind of chaos it will bring, you mean?”

“It always chaos in this household, but the best kind.”

Colin smiles, nodding in agreement. 

“And I’m sure the chaos will begin this evening. Better hide the icing when Daphne and Anthony arrive.” Violet jokes, before continuing to say, “But for now..” she points at her son with one arched eyebrow. “Don’t you be sneaking in there to grab a piece. I have counted them, twice.”

He mocks an innocent face. “I would never do that.”

His mother hums, sending him a look which said ‘I know you would’. She was about to express it with words, but a large crash just outside of the room cuts her off. 

“Gregory!”

“Hyacinth, that was your fault!”

“Oh why did I trust my two youngest children to decorate the tree.” He hears his mother mutter under her breath as she closes her eyes to compose herself for what she was about to face outside of the room. It was a few seconds later when she makes her way out, Colin watching her with wide, humorous eyes before letting out a chuckle.

More so to the tangled mess he had in his hands, wondering why his mother trusted him in untangling the lights this year. 

So far, he really was getting no where with it. 

The Bridgerton household always went big with the decorations at Christmas. Starting with a big red bow tied to the knocker of the front door, and walking into what Colin could only describe as Santa’s grotto. The colours of red and gold took over the household, from the tinsel around the fireplace to the delicate baubles - in multiple shapes and sizes - that made a journey up the Christmas tree. Lights were draped inside and outside the house, and it brought some sparkle and warmth that made the place look cosy. It mesmerised anyone who walked by.

Colin does spot a few younger ones gawking at the lights on the house from his room at times, especially at the Santa in his sleigh with his reindeers. The animated lights making it seem that the sleigh was flying across the wall.

He wasn’t surprised at the attention it received, it was one of his favourite too. 

Each child had a snow globe in their room (Colin’s one was of a little village, and it looked like snow had dusted the rooftops when the globe was shaken) and a range of ornaments were spread all around the house. There were ones that stood still and wonderful with all its glitter and others that danced and sang some Christmas classics.

Colin occasionally presses the ON button for the Christmas tree just outside Eloise’s room, and walks off whistling ‘Rocking around the Christmas Tree’ as the tree sung that song and spun around in its place.

It was practically in the brother handbook to irritate his siblings whenever he could, and to hear the annoying groan from Eloise’s room when the musical Christmas tree sang its tune always brought a smile to his face. 

But no matter how much they irritate each other, they always came together with setting up the decorations. Their mother giving them a part of the set up to do each year. Last year Colin was on the ornaments, but that’s been handed to Francesca this time. Hyacinth and Gregory got given the best job of decorating the tree - how much of a disaster that was going, Colin doesn’t even want to know. Eloise was helping their father with the outdoor lights while Colin was stuck with the indoor ones. 

The people missing were Anthony, who was working all afternoon. Daphne, who was spending time with her boyfriend before this evening. And Benedict, who wasn’t coming home from university until next week. 

Which where Colin could’ve been. But after being on the fence of whether to go to university or to travel the world in his last year of A-levels, some of the subjects he had taken didn’t end with the best result. But after getting his grades, his mindset changed on where he wanted to be. Now, working towards heading to university for a degree in Business with Tourism Management. He was part of the small group of year 14’s who stayed behind an extra year to retake certain subjects with the hope of passing them this time round. 

He internally screams that he was still in school, but a small part of him was glad that he was home. Especially around the festive season, his younger self cheering with glee that he could experience another year of Christmas in his family home from the start. 

Well, right now, a cheer of glee was more groans of frustration as the lights he was trying to untangle were getting more tangled no matter how hard he tried. They had even begun to tangle around his hands which made it extremely more difficult. 

After a few more attempts to untangle, Colin could do nothing more but throw his hands down into his lap with a huff. He looked down at the colourful lights with a scowl, glaring and muttering at them like they were his worst enemy. 

“Stupid bloody things! I mean what purpose do you have anyway, all you do is light up in different colours and flash occasionally. And why are you so tangled when I know mum put you in neatly last year-”

A soft giggle at the door interrupts his small rant.

“Having trouble there?”

Colin was about to turn around and direct his scowl towards the person who was teasing him. But when he sees a waterfall of auburn curls, a face with gentle blue eyes and rosy lips that spread into a kind smile. His bursts into something brighter instead. 

“Pen!” He greets his friend with delight. “What are you doing here?” 

Penelope moves more into the room as she speaks, “well you know how lacklustre the decorations are over at my house, we already had them up before midday. So Eloise dragged me here to help you set up.” She leans on the back of the sofa, peering over the cushions at him and his tangled hands. She playfully pinches her brows, “now are you using them lights for the the walls or for yourself?” 

“Haven’t you heard, festive handcuffs are on trend for the season.” Colin jokes in a grumble, getting a laugh out of the other. Looking up at her with round, pleading eyes, he holds out his hands. “Help me, please?” 

With a mere gentle roll of her eyes she moves around the sofa to join him on the floor. Tucking her legs underneath her, she turns to him with a bubbly laugh when seeing the mess he’s created. “Oh Col, how have you done this?” 

He watches her dig her hand through the tangled wires to find the end in hope to try and unravel it, and throughout it his face softens, with fondness overtaking his eyes. It was joined by a smile that expressed a similar feeling as Penelope scrunches her face in concentration with the tip of her tongue poking out between her lips. 

She looked so adorable, and he couldn’t look away. 

Perhaps there was one more reason, that he was glad that he was home. 

Penelope Featherington came into his life when he was thirteen years old, when herself and her family moved in across the road. Colin didn’t meet her straight away, Eloise immediately tugging the new, shy - at the time - girl on their street along on all of her crazy adventures. He actually met her a few weeks later, when he got knocked off his bike by her beret that flew into his face from the wind. 

He remembers as he laid on the grass and slowly removed the hat off of his face he saw her kneeling by his side. Eloise was on the other side of him laughing, but she looked worried. Blue eyes becoming wet with unshed tears as she asked him if he was okay and apologising in small squeaks.

Colin didn’t reply with words at first, instead he joins his sister laughing. His shoulders shaking in the grass as his chest vibrated from the loud noise escaping him. 

“Well that was very silly of me, wasn’t it?”

The smile he received off her was worth the bruised bum and the telling off his mother gave him that day for getting his new jeans muddy. 

Because that was the day a friendship was born between them. 

Throughout the years, even though Eloise and Penelope had a special bond that could never be replaced, Colin had developed a bond with her too. He remembers moments of their friendship clearly. Like when he was fourteen, he remembers how excited he was when she gave him that space journal he always wanted for his birthday, and they spent half of his party looking through it together. At fifteen, he remembers how scared Penelope was of thunderstorms that sometimes kept her awake at night, and at one of Eloise’s sleepovers he remembers on his walk to the kitchen for a midnight snack spotting Penelope by herself in the living room, flinching at every clap of thunder that rumbled outside the Bridgerton home. 

He stayed with her for hours that night, distracting her with his whacky topics of conversations, playing games and watching movies.

They both lost a lot of sleep, but it was worth it for such a fun night in the end. 

At sixteen, he remembers the competition they had to see how many books they could read in a year, from one summer to the next. She won by a big margin, and he bought her ice cream for that entire summer as her prize. Her favourite ice cream was strawberry, but she wouldn’t say no to bubblegum too. 

And what he means by that, is that she would steal some of his bubblegum ice cream with her tiny little spoon when he was delightfully eating it. He never shared food, even with his family, but he did make an exception when it came to her. 

Then last year, at seventeen, she was the first person to celebrate with him when he passed his driving test. Penelope was also the first person to drive in his first car, an old red Citroen, and they blasted her Taylor Swift playlist and sang from the top of their lungs as he drove them around the estate. 

They were many more moment in between them ones. Times of laughter, moments of vulnerability and tears, having conversations that were light and funny and discussions that were deep and moving. If they ever felt stuck, they turned to each other, if they ever felt sad, they knew the other would cheer them up quickly.

But right now, Penelope was in her first year of A-levels, - or AS levels, according to the educational system - and Colin knew that he could survive another year of school with Penelope by his side, and Eloise too on occasions. He would spend lunch with them both, or if they had a free lesson together they would hang out in the common room. 

Throughout the years, Penelope Featherington had become one of Colin’s greatest friends.

Until - she wasn’t.

Until Colin realised she was something more. 

Realising in the summer that had just passed, how deeply in love with her he was. 

Discovering feelings that didn’t come in a flash, that built gradually like a flower reaching its bloom, and it wasn’t until the petals around his heart opened that he realised what was buried underneath. It hit him on one of their movie marathon nights, when they were in Colin’s room munching on a Domino’s pizza while watching E.T on his tv. He glanced her way, opening his mouth to ask her if she wanted something sweet after. But the words never left his mouth, and his eyes didn’t look away. 

It was the first time that he saw her, truly. 

And she looked so beautiful and radiant under the warm light coming from his lamp on his bedside table.

He spent some time quietly observing her, noticing how rosy the apples of her cheeks were. How her eyelashes fluttered against her skin throughout watching the film, how her sky blue eyes were so expressive they could paint a thousand pictures. He watched how her hair moved across her shoulders and down her back, falling like a waterfall, and he stared at her lips and watched them move when she was eating, or when she was commenting on the scene playing on the screen.

Not that he was taking any notice of the film in that moment, all his focus staying on Penelope. 

And it shocked him how much he wanted to kiss her, hold her in his arms. Intertwine his hand with hers and never let it go.

Colin listened to his heart that night, and his feelings consumed his whole entire body, flowing through him throughout the following weeks. 

A flutter of his heart when she smiled at him, his stomach twisting in pleasant knots when she was close. He noticed how fond his eyes grew and a small smile that was reserved for her came around when she was in his thoughts. 

Which was constant, but that wasn’t something he was complaining about.

He realised how happy he was to be in her presence, how he wanted to spend every moment with her. When he received a text or call from her, he would jolt with excitement. She was his comfort that gave him so much warmth, she was his happiness that made him sing with glee. Penelope was a wonderful person, her heart so full of kindness and gold, and he realised how many things about her he was fond of, how he enjoyed finding out new stuff about her too. 

Because he wanted to know more, he wanted her. 

It was a feeling that felt electrifying, and also scary. 

His heart, like right now, screaming his feelings at him loud and clear. 

He was in love with his best friend, Penelope Featherington.

And has he told her that? Well, no. Because one, he hasn’t found the right time to do so, and two, he didn’t want to ruin their friendship if everything went completely wrong when telling her. If there was one thing he valued the most, it was their friendship, and it would completely destroy him if he lost it. 

He was scared, utterly terrified, and he didn’t know how to find the confidence to tell her how he feels.

So right now he cherishes every moment spent with her, just like this moment now. Appreciating the tingle that ran down his body when her nimble fingers brushed his skin when she untangled the lights from his hands, and beams brighter when she cheers triumphantly when she sets his hands free.

His feelings, well, they were kept under lock and key for now.

“There!” Her mouth stretches out into a wide grin as her eyes sparkled. “You are now free!” 

“My hero.” He murmurs as he throws the tangled lights at his feet, distracting himself from intensely staring into Penelope’s eyes, knowing he would get lost in them. “You can now write being a master of untangling Christmas lights on your CV.”

She lets out a small giggle, and she opens her mouth to give her reply. But the frustrated groan from his sister Eloise makes both of their heads turn.

“It’s not fair dad!” 

Colin burrows his eyebrows as he glances between Penelope and the door. “What’s wrong with Eloise?”

He watches her sigh, moving to makes herself comfortable on the sofa. “You know the winter ball that’s happening soon?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Colin grumbles, joining Penelope and sitting next to her. For people doing their A-levels, the school hosted a ball just before the Christmas break, and for weeks it was what everyone in the upper years talked about. Posters had been stuck on multiple corridor walls, discussions of what one was wearing or who they were bringing as their date had deafened Colin’s ears in the common room, and he’s had to suffer hearing Cressida screeching for everyone to vote for her for the Queen of the ball. 

A Winter Wonderland - that was the theme this year, and Colin thinks they should use the titles Ice Queen and King instead. It would be the perfect title for a person as cold as Cressida Cowper. 

Not like he cares, he wasn’t going. He hasn’t been to the last two, and he certainly wasn’t going to drag himself to this one. 

“Well, Phillip has asked Eloise to go with him-”

“Phillip?”

“He’s in Year 13, a year above me and El, his father brought him some green house for his birthday a few weeks back.”

“Ah! Phillip Crane!” Colin says after realising who this Phillip was in their conversation. “He’s a decent bloke, quiet, but he can get a laugh out of you.” 

“Well, he’s been making Eloise smile so widely that I sometimes think her cheeks will burst.” Penelope tells him with raises eyebrows. He made a similar expression in response. “Anyway, Eloise obviously wants to go with him, but you know what your dad is like-”

“Extremely overprotective?” Colin pipes in, not surprised. His father have always been like that, especially with his daughters. 

Penelope nods her head. “I think she thought today was the perfect opportunity to ask your dad about it, since everyone is so jolly about putting the decorations up. But he still remains firm, no matter the puppy eyes Eloise has been giving him. He states that under no circumstances will she be going to any event with some bloke he doesn’t even know. Unless he comes around to family dinners about four times before then.” 

Colin snorts. “Are we really surprised? He was like that when Daphne introduced Simon.” 

“But Simon and your dad are like best friends now.”

“True.” Colin hums, but then frowns when he realises Penelope hasn’t mentioned that she was going. “You not going?”

“And be a third wheel if your dad allows Eloise to go with Phillip and just stand on the sidelines for most of the night. I can think of many other things to be doing.” 

“Yeah, going to prom or a ball ain’t always the glamorous night everyone claims it to be.” Colin sighs, Penelope nodding in agreement. He notices some sadness in her eyes as she plays with a thread on her jumper, and he doesn’t know what it meant, but he wanted it gone immediately.

“Hey..” he nudges his arm with hers. “Maybe we could do something together that night?” 

Just as the sadness came, it went in another second. Penelope turning to him brightly with a sweet smile. “I would like that.” She purses her lips in thought for a few moments. “We could go to the Christmas Market again?”

Colin perks up with excitement “Ooo and have one of those cookies, the ones with the melted chocolate in the middle?”

“Well actually.” Penelope grabs her phone out of her pocket. “I actually found this stall that-”

“Dads, they’re just - ugh!” 

The living room door slams shut, making the two on the sofa jump as Eloise storms into the room and paces in front of them. Arms crossed over her chest while displaying something on her face which was a mixture of anger and frustration. 

Penelope shares a look with Colin, sliding her phone slowly back into her pocket. “Still no luck El?”

“No.” Eloise groans, lips forming into a small pout. “He’s says because I’m still his little girl that he needs to be this protective.” She throws her hands up into the air. “It’s a school ball, Phillip ain’t taking me to Las Vegas!”

“If you were going to Las Vegas I would be sneaking on the plane in your suitcase.”  Colin jokes, but it’s not funny to Eloise, who sits on the end of the coffee table visibly upset. 

Penelope reaches forward, squeezing her best friends knee in comfort. “There’s always next year.”

“But what if things are different next year?!” Eloise exclaims softly, her gaze dropping to her lap as she twist and turns her hands around.  “I-I’m not being soppy! But I-I think I like Phillip, a lot.”

Colin looks on at his sister, concerned at her sadness. The thing with Eloise was that she never showed vulnerability, or even expressed her feelings, especially to him or any other siblings in the household. So for her to be so open about it all in front of him shows how disheartened she was about not being able to go with Phillip to the ball. 

He was quickly in his head trying to figure out a solution, but there was only one idea that made sense. 

An idea which he wasn’t best pleased with, but he wanted his sister to be happy. 

Colin lets out a sigh, maybe he could stand this type of event for one night.

“All right, you’ve twisted my arm.” 

Eloise looks at him confused. “I haven’t twisted anything.” 

“No it’s a saying- never mind.” Colin shakes his head, leaning forward in his seat. “Look, I’ll go with you, to this ball.”

“With me?” Eloise takes a moment before scrunching her face in disgust. “I’m not taking you as my date.”

“No! That’s not-” Colin takes a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose before speaking again. “Look, dad obviously is being protective because you are going alone to this ball with Phillip. But if someone was there to chaperone you, for example, one of your older brothers. Dad would feel more calm about you going knowing that someone was there looking out for you.” 

The lightbulb came alive in Eloise’s head, and she looks over at her brother slightly impressed. “That’s actually a great idea, which is rare from you.” 

“What can I say?” Colin holds up his hands as he leans back against the sofa with a smirk. “I’m a man with many great ideas.” 

His sister rolls her eyes, before frowning again just a few seconds later. “But who are you going to take as your date?”

“Do I need to take anyone?”

“Um yes! I’m not having you watch me like a hawk all night.”

“Isn’t the point of a chaperone to accompany you?” 

The glare he receives gives him her answer.

“Well I-um..” he stutters out, quite unsure on who he would bring. He was flicking through the people he knew in his head, but as his eyes meet the curious ones of Penelope’s, he feels entirely stupid because there was only one person he would like to go with.

And he was staring at her, imagining them dancing in a crowded room. Standing on the side as the go back and forth sharing gossip, laughing into their glasses of fruit punch. Taking silly photos in the Photo Booth, smiling as they put them away to keep. He imagines the fun that they would have.

To bring Penelope as his date, he liked the sound of it, and it made his heart boom. 

He turns back to his sister stating,  “I’ll take Pen.”

“What?”

“Me?”

“Yes, you.” Colin turns to his surprised friend with a smile, ignoring his sisters dumbfounded expression. “We were planning to do something together anyway, and having your company would make the night extremely  enjoyable.” He turns to his sister with raised eyebrows. “And having Pen would also make dad feel a whole lot calmer about the situation, and I know you would enjoy the night more with having your best friend by your side.”

Despite the rosiness that has spread across Penelope’s cheeks, she nibbles at the corner of her lip with uncertainty. “Are you sure-”

“That’s brilliant!” Eloise jumps up, looking much happier than she was before. “With a small group of us going, dad will feel much happier letting me go because it won’t seem like a date! Then I can have the best night with Phillip and my best friend!”

“And me!”

“Oh yeah you too.” Eloise rushes out to her brother, ruffling his hair which he pushes away with a ‘get off’. “My favourite brother!”

Even if he was annoyed that his hair was now all over the place, Colin’s mouth does twitch upwards into some sort of smile.

“I must go and tell dad! And I’ll bring mother too, she’s great at convincing him.” 

Eloise now walks with a spring in her step as she exits the room, and Colin watches on happy knowing that he sister was bubbling again with glee. He turns back to his friend and sees her staring at him with an unclear but gentle gaze. 

“That was nice of you.” 

“Well, I have to make my way back to the top of the favourite brothers list somehow. Moved down a bit when a spilt coffee over one of her books.” 

A muffled giggle pushes out of Penelope’s pressed lips, but the familiar uncertainty returned to her face. Colin noticing it even when she looked away. He turns to her with questioning eyes, asking what was the matter.

“It’s just-” She looked insecure, which heightened Colin’s curiosity. “Are you sure you want me to go with you? I mean there’s plenty of people at school who would want to go with you, you’re quite popular.” She meets his gaze with lingering sadness. “People will talk.”

Colin narrows his eyes at her words, silently wanting to scream at everyone who has ever made Penelope feel so small. 

Because in his eyes, she shined brightly like the star on top of a Christmas tree. 

And if he could tell the full truth, lay his heart out on the line. He would tell Penelope how close he wants their bodies to be as they danced, to gaze into her eyes and get lost forever. Mention that when seeing her smile it lights up a fire inside of him. He would reveal that he wants Penelope to be the Queen of the ball, and give her the most special night of the festive season. Because she has his heart, and she deserves it. 

But them words were captured, frustratedly, just like his hands were in those twinkly lights. So instead, he says something that subtly reflects his thoughts.

“Well screw what other people say, let them talk. Because the only person I care about in this scenario is you.” Colin replies sincerely. “And I want to go with you to this winter ball, I mean you’re the only one who respects my food critiques when we are at any event together.” 

That comment brings the sparkle back in Penelope’s blue eyes. 

“Pen..” he swallows thickly, wanting to say more but reigns himself in. “You’re my best friend.”

“And you’re mine.” Penelope tells him with a bright smile, before her face morphs into something playful. “But I might have to decline.”

Colin frowns. “And why is that?” 

“Well I didn’t receive a great promposal now did I?” Penelope scrunches her face. “Or a ball-posal, I suppose.” 

Colin’s eyes widen. He knows that Penelope was teasing him, but he realises it’s something that he wanted to do. 

He wanted it to special, and that starts now.

“Colin I was only joking-”

But the man himself had already shot out of his seat, and his senses led him to the kitchen. Which wasn’t a surprise, but he wasn’t there to grab a snack. His eyes wander around the room, thinking of what he could use to make this ball-posal a success 

He was about to move to the next, but then he spotted his mothers gingerbread on the cooling rack, and an idea came alive in his head.

Surely his mum wouldn’t scold him for the crime of taking a piece of gingerbread, when it was for a sweet and somewhat romantic gesture?

Not thinking of the answer, he gets to work.

Picking up one of the many gingerbread men his mother had made and some light blue icing, he creates an outline of a t-shirt on the gingerbread men’s body before writing Winter Ball? in the middle of it. 

It was quick thinking, and it wasn’t his best work. But he adds a smiley face on the head of the gingerbread man with some black icing to make up for it. 

Holding the delicate, now decorated biscuit behind his back, he makes his way back to the living room where Penelope was still in her place on the sofa. 

Colin stands in front of her, playing nervous. “Penelope..” he starts slowly. “I have a very big question to ask you.”

Amusement shone in Penelope’s eyes, but she composes herself to act curious. “What is it?” 

He takes a deep breath, acting like he was about to ask the biggest question of his life. But even though the scenario was comical, his heart still fluttered nervously. He lets out a large grin after his exhale, presenting the gingerbread man to her.

“Will you make me and this gingerbread man very happy by being my date to the Winter Ball?”

There was a pause, before the room was filled with laughter. Penelope throwing her head back and presenting a sound that was so light that Colin could listen to it all day. His smile remains on his face as he watches Penelope shine brightly, his mouth widening when she stands up and takes the gingerbread out of his hands. 

“Now how can I say no when you’ve put so much effort into such a wonderful ball-posal.” 

She takes a bite of the head, and moans in delight at the taste as she collects the crumbs from the corners of her mouth with the tip of her tongue.

Colin may or may not have gotten lost in a trance for just a few seconds.

“Mmm.” Penelope hums, savouring the treat in her hands “Your ball-posal tastes pretty good too.” 

~~~

It wasn’t long before the upper years at school found out that Colin was attending A Winter Wonderland, and who he was taking as his date.

“You taking Pen to the Winter Ball?”

“You are the sixth person who’s asked me that today.” Colin groans in the last hour of the school day in a half-empty common room, looking up to his friend Will who wearing a big grin. Apart from Penelope and Eloise, he did have some other friends too. One being Will Mondrich, another member of the small group of year 14’s, but who’s been by Colin’s side since the first day of secondary school. 

Who was the only one who knew about Colin’s love for Penelope, after he drunkenly told Will at an end of summer party, hence why his friend was smiling boldly at the news.

At least someone was smiling, he’s been faced with confused looks and many questions all day.

“I nearly ripped Fife’s greasy curls out earlier when he asked and started to mock Pen.”

“Well he’s still walking around like a lost puppy trying to find a date, so what he says is nonsense anyway.” Will throws his bag down on the table and sits opposite Colin. “But this is huge right?” 

Colin shrugs his shoulders. “Kind of. I mean yes Penelope is my date but I haven’t told her about my feelings. And Penelope thinks we’re going because we’re chaperoning Eloise and her date Phillip, which is kind of the main reason I’m going anyway.” 

“But you’ll still be with Penelope.” Will says. “And maybe this would be the perfect opportunity.”

Colin looks at his friend confused. “The perfect opportunity to do what?”

“To tell her you love her.” 

“Geez Alice!” Colin jumps out of his skin as he looks over his shoulder to see his other friend and Will’s girlfriend Alice behind him. “When did you get here?” 

“A few moments ago.” Alice slides into the seat next to Will and kisses his cheek in greeting before speaking again. “So is this the time where you’re gonna tell Pen you love her? Because it would be so romantic! At a Christmas theme Winter Ball! This festive season always makes different types of love spread far and wide.” 

Colin looks at Will with bulging eyes. “You told her?”

Before Will could open his mouth to speak, Alice lets out a scoff. “He didn’t have to tell me, I can see it all over your face. You have little success in hiding your emotions when Penelope is around.” 

Colin softly grazes his cheek with one hand, slightly feeling betrayed by his own face.

But he reflects on his friends words, would this Winter Ball truly be the right time to tell Penelope how he feels? He gets it, an event like this brings romance and love together, or it makes something new bloom. But it was also an event that was loud and would sometimes bring lot of trouble from what he’s heard from the past balls that have taken place.

Would a warm and heartfelt confession be too much with all the cold and fake ice and snow? It was going to be a winter wonderland after all. 

However, maybe it wasn’t the location. Perhaps it was just finding the right moment. But where does he find that? Does his eyes have to wander the room to find the perfect spot, or will it come to him and hit him straight in the face. Does he write it down, or speak it out loud? Would it be a feeling or a thought that would spur it all?

Colin doesn’t know, but as each day rolls by, his heart is screaming for him to break the lock and tell Penelope all. To defeat the fear that holds him back, that bounds his hands and heart from reaching out.

Maybe the sparkle of the Winter Ball could do the trick. Well, if he had a plan. 

“What would be the best way to tell her? How do I?” Colin asks the couple. “Because I would want it to be special, heck I want the whole night to be special for her.”

“Ooo!” Alice opens up her backpack and begins to pull out some paper and pens with some excitement. “Let’s brainstorm some ideas.”

The two boys simultaneously lets out small groans.

“Not again with the brainstorms.” Colin whines.

“We don’t need to brainstorm everything babe.” Will adds on.

“They get the mind rolling! Oh come on, I’ll even write it in green and red to make it festive!”

It wasn’t long before the three students were crowded around a piece of paper, trying to come up with some ideas. But each idea sounded too simple, possibly insane, or them ones you see in romantic films that you just wouldn’t see play out in reality. Colin’s mind was getting more scrambled as every idea got discussed and jotted down, even the writing in red and green didn’t help. 

With a few minutes left till the end of school bell, Colin finally sits back with a deep sigh. “I don’t know, nothing there is really screaming to me.” 

“Well then maybe at the end of the day you just have to speak from the heart.” Will suggests, but that gets a snort out of Colin.

“Yes my heart, the one thing that I feel is holding me back.” Colin takes a moment as he tilts his head in thought. “But perhaps it’s a better idea than singing ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ to her.”

“Oh come on!” Alice says with a small pout at the dislike of her idea. “Us three would perform a cracking rendition that would get Penelope swooning over you.”

“Or we just sound like screaming cats.” Will mutters, which gets him a nudge in the ribs by his girlfriend’s elbow. “Ow! Alice!”

Colin laughs at the now bickering couple in front of him, watching as he puts away his abandoned work and gets ready for the end of school bell. When his ears start to ring from the loud noise, he stands up from his seat while throwing his bag over his shoulder. 

“Right I’ll leave you two alone, walking home with Penelope today.” 

Today was Tuesday, and Eloise stayed behind in school every Tuesday for her Physics club. Which meant that it was only Colin and Penelope who were walking home, and it was one of the reasons why Tuesday’s was one of his favourite days of the school week. 

And it was also because he didn’t have double maths on Tuesday, but that’s an entirely different conversation to have on another day.

He waits below the school’s old oak tree, which gets decorated vibrantly this time of year, just like every other day to meet Penelope. Leant back against the bark, he was scrolling through his phone on twitter for about five minutes before he heard Penelope’s sweet voice calling his name. 

He glances up to see her smiling as she walks closer, and he couldn’t help but smile back. But his eyes widen when noticing something familiar on the top of her head, something he hasn’t seen since they first met. 

“A beret?” Colin asks, gesturing to the green, round, flat-crowned cap. Which was the same shade as her coat, and Colin came to the conclusion that green was one of her colours all year round, as it suited her magnificently.

“Thought it was the time to bring it back.” Penelope says. “But don’t worry, I have clipped it on my head so it won’t be flying anywhere.” A playful look embraces her face. “Don’t want a repeat of last time do we?”

“Oh I don’t know. I think a beret being flown into your face is gonna be a new fashion trend.” 

That gets a giggle out of Penelope, smacking his chest playfully as she looks over her shoulder. But the sound escaping her fades when she does that, turning back to Colin with a slight roll of her eyes.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Anything.” Colin replies, his tone slightly confused.

She gestures to her head. “Do I have a burning hole in my skull from the glares of Marina and Cressida?”

He frowns at her words, but then he follows her gaze to the school steps where he sees the two girls mentioned sending Penelope a fiery look, and he couldn’t help but roll his eyes too. Colin knows he gets a lot of attention at school, girls finding ways to get close to him and get into his good books. And he knows since the announcement of the Winter Ball people have been giving him the eyes to choose them as his date. Marina and Cressida have been the worst, every time he’s turned a corridor they somehow seemed to be there, asking about what his plans were for that evening. 

Every time, he’s made some excuse to get away from them. Every time he’s denied their advances. Because one, he has no interest in them whatsoever. And two, he only wanted one person, and he was taking her to the Winter Ball. 

So it was no surprise that they were sulking at the news like they had lost their favourite toy, and doing their usual routine of glaring at Penelope wherever she went. Probably sneering at her under their breath too, making Penelope feel small where she stood. It may not be a shock, but Colin didn’t like it one bit.

He squints his eyes at them in some sort of hard stare for them to move along. But instead of them turning away, they start waving at him in a weird flirty sort of way, hoping that it would lure him in their direction. Instead he makes a face at them, and guides Penelope by her shoulders to start walking in the direction that takes them home. 

“Ignore them Pen.”

“It’s quite hard to when they appear in every corner at school, felt like I was being haunted all day.” Penelope slightly shudders before sending him a pointed look. “I told you people will talk.”

“And I told you I don’t care.” Colin replies in some sort of melody while giving her the same look back. He smiles at Penelope’s reaction before looking out to the view in front of him, admiring the decorations outside peoples houses while recalling a conversation he had with his mother this morning. “But I do care about the disappointing stare that I’ll get from mum if I don’t answer the questions I received from her this morning.” He looks down at Penelope before continuing. “So, first question. Do you know what colour dress you are wearing yet? Because mum wants me to get a tie in the same colour.”

“Oh..” Penelope appears startled at the question with widened eyes. “Well me and El are going dress shopping tomorrow after school so I can let you know then.”

“And favourite flower, for the corsage?”

“Corsage?” Penelope repeats slightly perplexed. “Well I quite like orchids.” 

“Noted and - oh! Mum asked if you are okay to come around an hour earlier for pictures and all that. Well I suppose if your getting ready with Eloise then you will already be there but-” 

“Colin, wait a minute.”

A soft hand on his arm halts his walk, and he turns on the spot to see Penelope looking at him with confusion written all over her face. 

“What’s the matter?”

“Are we - are we really doing the whole experience?” Penelope questions, becoming shy as she looks down and plays with her fingers. “I just thought we were doing this for Eloise, chaperoning her the whole night.”

Colin sighs, running a hand across his mouth, thinking that maybe he should’ve elaborated sooner that while this all at the beginning was so his father would let Eloise go to the ball, it was also for Penelope too. But would that mean opening his heart? Which was something that he was struggling to do.

However, it would be crime to keep the confusion living on Penelope’s rosy face, unsettling concern that shouldn’t be there. So perhaps being at the Winter Ball wasn’t the start of unpicking the lock that was holding everything in, maybe it was now. 

So Colin takes a step closer, a deep breath escaping into the frosty afternoon air before saying, “Just because we chaperoning Eloise, doesn’t mean that we can’t experience it all too. I want us to enjoy the sweet and cheesy routines that a winter ball has, which include a full on photoshoot that I know mother will direct and placing a corsage on your wrist with a flower that matches the one of my suit jacket. We can be repulsed over the over the top decorations and giggle behind our drinks at people’s bad dancing. And I want to dance with you, four dances minimum-”

“Four?”

“Well I’m not going to this Winter Ball without dancing with my favourite dance partner.” Colin scoffs, recalling back to the many times they have been on the dance floor together on many birthday’s and celebratory parties. It was such an enjoyable time, whether they were bouncing their feet on the ground to some lively tune or they were close together, swaying to something slow. Dancing with Penelope was a highlight at any event. If he could see her with a smile as she moved her body to the beat everyday, hear her voice while she sang her heart out or her little giggle that was muffled into his shoulder when they were close, his heart would sing of glee.

If he had the chance to hold her in his arms everyday, his heart would do more than sing.

He leaves his thoughts when her laugh tickles his ears, and he sees the confusion replaced with something more light and gentle, that brightened her blue eyes which were too mesmerising to turn away from. Made her pinky glossed lips spread fondly as she looked at him. 

And it made him want to be daring.

And after a few moments of hesitation, daring is what he becomes, as he reaches forward and grabs one of her hands, holding it in his. He smiles when noticing how small her hand was compared to his large one, and notices how soft and delicate her skin felt when his thumb mapped out the back of it. Her skin was pale, like winter snow, and it made the glittery pink nail varnish on her nails sparkle.

He looks up from their now joined hands to see Penelope looking somewhat surprised at the small touch of intimacy, something new for the two best friends to share. But she doesn’t pull away, in fact, Penelope holds on tighter as Colin talks again. 

“I want us to have fun Pen.” He speaks softly, a tone reserved for the two of them. “Because a girl with a heart of gold like you deserves to have a special night in A Winter Wonderland.” Colin gulps thickly with nerves as he admits with a small smile. “And I would be more than happy to give you that special night under the fake ice and snow.”  

Perhaps in that moment he was too daring, opening a small part of himself to her, and he holds his breath as he waits for her response. 

“I..I have to admit I was a little upset of not going.” Penelope confesses with a small shrug to her shoulders. “It would be my first winter ball, but I knew what would happen and I didn’t want be disappointed with these expectations that I created in my head.” Her smile then widens. “But that all changed now, and I’m glad I’m going with you.” 

Her admission makes his heart thud loudly in his chest, so loud that if Penelope stepped closer she would hear it. But externally he doesn’t show how his internal self was feeling, how excited he felt. Instead he squeezes her hand, saying. “Well like I said, I wouldn’t have chosen anyone else. So let’s show the school, and mostly Cressida and Marina that we are the best dancers in town.” 

Colin smile turns cheeky as he spins her twice on the street, chuckling at the little squeal that bursts out of her before their hands leave each others and they continue their walk home. Popping in to the little corner shop half-way through their journey to grab a drink and some snacks. 

“It’s quite exciting, to have something new on top of our usual Christmas traditions.” Penelope says as she pops a red fruit pastel into her mouth.

“It is indeed.” Colin agrees, finishing his Twix off before his face lightening up as he remembered a tradition of theirs was in his backpack. “And speaking of our Christmas traditions,” he swings his backpack to his front, pulling at the zipper. “I have your Christmas card in my bag.”

Penelope whines, “you always get your Christmas card in first!” 

“Because I can’t wait to see your reaction to my Christmas pun.” Colin exclaims as he hands over the card, eagerly waiting for her on open it. It was only a few years back that the tradition of giving each other a Christmas card had started, but the exchange wasn’t just a card with a festive message, it also contained a written Christmas pun to bring some more jolly to the festive season.

“Did you hear the forecast for Christmas Eve? They’ve calling for rain, dear!” Penelope reads from the card that had Santa and his reindeer sleighing above a wintery village on the front. A bright giggle was her reaction, looking up at Colin with wide, amusing eyes as she held the card close to her chest. “That’s a good pun.”

“What can I say?” Colin spreads his hands with a casual shrug to his shoulders, making slow steps down the street. “I’m just a charmer when it comes to these things.” 

He only takes a few steps forward before his friend’s words make him come to a standstill.

“Well I like your charm. I like it a lot.”

Colin freezes in his tracks, taking a moment to decide if those words were actually spoken out loud or if they were just in his imagination. Once realising that he heard those words loud and clear, with a flutter in his stomach and his heart pounding again, he slowly turns to Penelope who was staring at him sweetly.

“You-You do?” Colin asks her, slowly and nervously, raising his eyebrows at her. 

Penelope nods her head with a small, shy bite to her lip, nudging Colin playfully with her arm as she moves past him to continue the walk home. He loses himself for a moment, watching her walk away with slow, blinking eyes, thinking of how wonderful she was. It was only when he hears her calling for him that he snaps out of his trance and makes a quick move to catch up to her with a skip in his steps.

Feeling like today they took a new direction in their friendship which felt so good. 

And Colin was trying desperately to maintain the happiness that wanted to burst from him as they continued their journey home. 

Where their hands find each others again, fingers intertwining throughout their conversation. And Colin doesn’t realise until he lets go of her hand when she makes way to her front door, waving at him over her shoulder before heading inside. He remains on her driveway, flexing his hand as he feels a tingling sensation run through his body, the warmth of having Penelope’s hand in his slowly slip from his fingers. The touch felt absolutely perfect, having her hand in his felt so right, and he already wanted to hold her hand again. 

He couldn’t stop the smile bursting on his face this time as he made his way to his house across the street. Feeling a little bit more than excited for the Winter Ball that was just around the corner.

Feeling more hope than fear, with telling Penelope how he feels.

~~~

One Week Later 

“Smile!” 

Colin blinks rapidly as the flash from the camera blinds his eyes. 

“Okay one more-”

“Mum!” He groans, looking pleadingly towards his mum from where he stood at the bottom of the stairs. 

“You’ve already taken so many of me already!” 

“But this is the first time that two are my children are going to a Winter Ball, I want to capture every moment!” His mother strolls over to him and tidies the lapels of his jacket which was a part of his black suit. “And I know Eloise will only start complaining after the fifth photo and start running towards the door.” 

“Well I don’t think she’ll get very far.” Benedict, freshly arriving home from university, chortles as he appears at his mother side. “Think it will be hard to pull Phillip away from dad’s interrogation.” 

The three of them by the stairs turn their heads to the small Christmas tree in the foyer, where Phillip was standing uncomfortably in front of with Edmund who was talking sternly to him, arms crossed against his chest. Colin felt bad for the poor bloke, who looked like he wanted to run before the night had even started.

“Perhaps we should stop the conversation now before he’s scared of ever stepping in here again.” Colin whisper, somewhat jokingly.

“I don’t think we can help, I think he’s about five seconds from bolting.” Benedict snorts.

“Imagine the state of Eloise when she comes down the stairs and sees that her father has scared her date away.” Their mother sighs as she spots her two youngest children in the corner of her eye. She makes her way to them. “Hyacinth! Gregory! Go and distract your father with something.”

The two brothers find amusement in their mother’s request, chuckling as Colin steps down off the stairs to stand in front of his brother. Gesturing to himself, he asks, “So, how do I look?”

“Very smart.” Benedict replies with a growing smirk, which always meant something. He scrunches his face as he gestures to Colin’s hair. “You’ve even done your hair differently.” 

“It’s not that different!” Colin replies, teasing the ends of his chestnut curls between his finger and thumb. “I just styled it a bit more.” His hands then move to the arms of his suit jacket, playing with cufflinks and pulling at the material. “Are you sure the sleeves are not too short?” He fiddles with his tie. “And is my tie wonky?”

“Stop fussing.” Benedict chuckles, looking on at him amusingly. “You are acting quite nervous.”

“I’m not nervous.” Colin rushes out. Okay, he was actually petrified, and if someone could feel his heart right not they would ask if something was wrong. But he wasn’t going to tell his brother that, even with the non-convinced look he was getting. “Okay maybe I’m a little nervous.” Colin reluctantly admits with a sigh. “I don’t know why though-”

“Because it’s Pen.” 

Colin meets his brothers eyes with his now wide ones, and there was something knowing hidden in them. Like he knew his heart was frantic because of his red-haired best friend. Like Benedict knew what Colin’s thoughts contained of every day, how he felt, and it makes him question how obvious he has been. 

Benedict slaps his right shoulder with a small smile. “Not all of us our clueless to how you feel brother.”

Colin opens his mouth, in shock at first, but before he could use his words to reply he gets cut off by a loud gasp from their mother.

“Oh, my girls! You look beautiful!” 

He quickly turns around to look up the stairs, and he swears he lets out a gasp too. Or perhaps he loses his breath, getting taken away as he stares up at his best friend who was making her way down the stairs. 

Who looked so beautiful, a goddess that was so stunningly captivating that he wanted to frame this moment with his eyes forever if he could.

He knew Penelope was wearing blue from the matching colour of his tie. But he didn’t realise how truly wonderful the colour was on her. Mixed with a sheen of silver that could only be seen when the light hit the material, the off the shoulder light blue dress accentuated her body in all the right places and flowed out around her feet. Her auburn hair was loosely curled, pinned back in a low half-up, half-down look by three silver flowers. The colours making the colour of her hair pop so boldly Colin loves it even more than before. Her face was painted with light makeup; a shimmer on her eyelids, some rosiness to her lips and cheeks, a tint of something that illuminated her face so wonderfully. 

Overall, Colin thinks in this moment he’s fallen in love with his best friend a little bit more. 

She was made for this Winter Ball, like a snowflake ready to shine in the middle of it all. And his whole body tingled delightfully as she was getting closer to him with a shy, reserved smile.

“Psst! Brother!”

“Uh-huh?”

“You might want to pick up your jaw from the floor.”

Colin glares to the right at Benedict, who was cheekily grinning at his side.

Hyacinth pops up to his left with a giggle. “I think his jaw has already run away.” 

“Stop it, both of you!” Colin hisses, his glare moving between his two siblings just as Penelope gets to the bottom of the stairs. Clearing his throat and subtly moving his jaw - just in case it was still hanging in shock - he straightens out his jacket as he steps forward to meet his friend on the bottom step. 

“Pen,” he breathes out, looking at her in awe as he tries to find his words. But as he continued, he was left utterly speechless and could only let out singular words and phrases. “You look - wow - I mean - wow um - gah-”

Penelope silences him with a soft giggle, smoothing some imaginary lint off of his shoulders with a twinkle in her eyes. “You look handsome.” 

Colin mouth spreads into a smile so blinding, and in that moment he feels like they get lost in each other, like they were the only two in the room. Admiring one another, discovering each other all over again like it’s the first time they have met. He could’ve stayed in this moment forever, if Gregory didn’t clear his throat by his side.

Holding the urge to roll his eyes, he glances down towards his younger brother with gritted teeth. “Yes, Gregory.”

A small white box gets shoved into his face. “The corsage.” Gregory not so subtly whispers to him and to everyone around the room. “You need to give the corsage to her.”

Colin face widens as he suddenly remembers the event this evening. “Yes! The corsage!” He was quick to take the box off of his brother, which led him to nearly dropping the box and juggling it between his hands before he had a firm grip on it. He lets out a breathless laugh at his nerves which was making him a fool, becoming flushed in the cheeks as he looks over to Penelope again who was finding amusement in the situation. 

But he was nervous, the good kind of nervous that rumbled underneath the skin. His palms were now sweaty and his stomach was twisting in knots, but somehow it brought a fire within him that he wanted to explore. It grounded him as he took a deep breath and pulled the corsage out of the box, asking Penelope for her left hand to slide the Cymbidium Orchid onto her wrist. 

“One of my favourite flowers.” 

“Well I do listen to you.” 

Penelope giggles through pressed lips, reaching hesitantly to straighten the same flower on his jacket.

It wasn’t long before his mother was calling them all over for photos. 

A few of Eloise and Phillip, and a few of Colin and Penelope. Some being sweet and some being funny. It was all kind of blur, and Colin didn’t settle back into reality until their mother was pulling the four of them into a final group photo.

“Mum do we seriously need more photos.” Eloise groans as Phillip pulls her into the spot where her mother wanted them to be. “We’re going to miss the night all together in a minute!” 

“Oh don’t be so dramatic, it’s just a few more.” Violet inspects the situation of the four of them standing next to each other. “Right, prom poses please!”

Colin chuckles at his sister’s unimpressed face as she moved into the pose, but he couldn’t complain of having Penelope in his arms. With her back against his chest, head resting on his collar bone, he wraps his arms around her waist. And he tries to hide his small smile when he feels a tingling sensation from her hands resting on his.

Tries to ignore how comforting it was to have Penelope in his arms, how right it felt, but he couldn’t help but tighten his arms around her just a little. 

And after a few photo’s, he couldn’t help but stare down at her. Admiring her beauty, capturing it. Noticing every curl in her hair, the whispers of strands that framed her face. Every dimple, every feature, every flutter of her eyelashes and every twitch her mouth made when she smiled. He soaks in her happiness, the radiance beaming from her face and just found her absolutely-

“Beautiful.”

“Hmm?”

Penelope turns to him slightly with wide, curious eyes, and panic strikes through him as he realised what he said out loud. But instead of cowering away, he fights against the panic and works with a small part of his heart instead.

“Beautiful.” He repeats to her, more loudly so only she could hear. “That what’s I was going to say earlier. You look so beautiful Pen.” 

Her curious eyes soften around the edges, some sort of warming fondness covering her blue orbs. She turns to him more, clutching one arm that was still wrapped around her as she smiled brightly. It was a smile that turned him to goo, and he couldn’t help but return a similar smile to her. 

In the corner of his eyes, he sees the camera directed their way. In the distance, he hears the click of the device as a photo was taken. 

He doesn’t know what any of the photos will look like, but he’s already knows what his favourite photo will be.

~~~

Walking into A Winter Wonderland, Colin already felt chilly even if the decorations of ice and snow were fake. 

“They certainly went all out with the theme this year haven’t they?” Penelope comments as they walked through an arch made to look like ice into the school’s main hall arm in arm. Colin nods his head, agreeing with his friend with a gentle hum. 

The decorations certainly wasn’t as tacky as he had seen in pictures from the previous years. 

Snow covering the corners of the hall, while snowflakes trickled up the walls. Tables decorated with white tablecloths with a light blue runner in the middle were placed around the huge space being used as the dance floor. At the centre of the table were silver painted branches, with baubles hanging off the ends of them, lights wrapped around the main branch that gave the decor a subtle glow. 

Just like the lights that were draped across the ceiling, glowing down like stars twinkling across a night sky. 

A mixture of white and shades of blue painted the venue, and each little section had their own names written in white paint on a wooden post. A Wonderland Feast, the buffet that already had Colin’s mouth watering, was far right, and opposite that was Santa’s Sleigh, where people could have a photoshoot with props in a big red sleigh in front of a wintery backdrop. 

And just to the left of him, was Snowflake Lane. Through some doors which led to a corridor of the school was an experience to take a frosty walk surrounded by sparkly snowflakes and shiny icicles with fun activities and games to keep you warm. It seemed romantic, by what he saw through the doors, seeing couples up close and laughing together, and he knew it was the place he wanted Penelope and him to go. 

Not right now though, but later, definitely later. 

But he had two thoughts after his eyes finished exploring the hall. One being how much of a budget did the school give the Winter Ball committee team? And two, maybe he was glad for whatever budget they received. Because he had Penelope as his date in such a surprisingly magical event, that lit up her eyes as she scanned the room. 

And watching her eyes being so expressive did return some warmth to his body, that cut through the subtle chills that were running down it.

“I feel cold just looking at this place.” Eloise grumbles, tugging Phillip closer to her.

“Tell me about it.” Colin says with an exaggerated shudder, making his sister roll her eyes at him and his friend on his arm to giggle softly. 

“Ugh, come on Phillip.” Eloise starts to pull her date further into the room. “Let’s go before my brothers lame humour takes over you.” 

“It’s not lame! And El remember I meant to be keeping an eye out on you so - El? Eloise?” 

Colin unlinks his arm from Penelope’s and stretches his neck to look above the merging crowd to find where his sister went. But she seems to have gotten quicker with her feet as of late, because Colin had no sight of his little sister and where she and Phillip headed off to. 

“And I lost her.” Colin sighs in somewhat disbelief, turning to Penelope with ‘can you believe it?’ eyes which gets a snort out of her.

“Seems that you’ve already failed your task in chaperoning her.”

“I guess I have” Colin says, before scrunching his face up at her a few moments later. “Hang on, I thought we were chaperoning her?” 

“It’s only a we when it’s going right.” 

“Oh so if it’s a disaster it all falls on me.” Colin lets out a scoff after his words, turning away with his arms crossed and mocking a sad pout. “I see how it is.” 

He hears Penelope laugh behind him, and his lips were twitching to break out into a smile when hearing it. But he holds firm to keep up his performance despite her continuous teasing. 

“Aww.” Penelope comes up to him and pokes him in the side playfully. “Have I upset you?” 

Colin performs a dramatic sniffle, wiping under his eyes to sweep away some fake tears. “I thought our friendship was…different.” 

“Oh stop being dramatic!” Penelope says in between a laugh and a groan, shoving him away which finally breaks him of his performance. A deep chuckle escaping through his wide smile as Penelope gently rolls her eyes. 

“I suppose if she isn’t crying in a corner at the end of night then my job as a chaperone would be a success.” Colin muses with Penelope nodding in agreement. And besides, with Eloise now gone it left him and Penelope alone to enjoy the night, and that did make some excited little bubbles pop in his stomach. “So Miss Featherington,” he holds out his arm with some cheeky sort of grin. “Are we going to A Wonderland Feast first or are we going to take a spin on the dance floor?”

“You decide.” 

“Well..” Colin licks his lips and Penelope was looking at him already knowing his answer. “My tastebuds are starting to tingle.” 

“Why I am not surprised?”

And a few moments later Penelope’s laugh filled the air from Colin eagerly pulling her along through the crowd to the buffet table.  

The night in A Winter Wonderland moved along swiftly, with Colin feeling light on his feet because of the fun he was having with Penelope by his side. They tasted some of the buffet with Penelope invested in his detailed reviews of each little thing he ate. They laughed behind their drinks at peoples bad attempts of flirting with their dates or their attempts of dancing, Penelope hiding her face in Colin’s arm to muffle her sound at Fife’s horrendous attempt at a robot to impress an already unimpressed Cressida.  

But it wasn’t long before they were bringing their own moves to the dance floor too. 

Colin twirled Penelope around to some songs from the noughties, and they both brought out their best disco moves from tunes from the seventies. The two of them remained in their own bubble as they brought their spark to the floor, with bright smiles and happiness rolling throughout their bodies as they moved.

Seeing Penelope so happy and free as she danced with him made his heart spark with delight. Because every moment with her felt new, exciting. Brought colour into his world which most times he viewed monochromatically. It’s what made Penelope so alluring, her aura so fascinating to discover that Colin just wanted her more. Her sweetness that brightened her was different to her fierceness that kept her grounded. The softness that consumed her was different to how she was when standing firm. Penelope was just a unique person, with so much wit and wisdom, and Colin was glad that she was in his life, that his heart desired her. Because it brought him to enjoy moments, even the most simplest ones with her, just like he was enjoying every moment here at this Winter Ball. 

It was leaving him with a wide smile on his face, a fonder one when she wasn’t looking. And it was in those moments that he was picking on the lock on his heart, wanting to break it apart and reveal all to her. A message in his head telling him go go go and let his love soar. But there was always something that held him back.

A near fight at the buffet table stopped him there, and when on the dance floor there was always some interruption that made him swallow his words. The courage slipped away, but Colin’s believes it may have been a sign. A gut feeling telling him that the moment wasn’t now. 

And while a gut feeling may bring someone comfort, it brought Colin a rising ton of frustration. 

Because when was the moment? Would the moment ever come? Or was his feelings suppose to remain in the shadows and never find the light?

“I don’t know why they couldn’t just say that I placed Rudolph’s nose in the right place!” Penelope whines with a small pout as they walked away from ‘Pin the nose on Rudolph’, one of the many games in Snowflake Lane. “I was literally a centimetre away!”

“Well it’s the rules Pen, you’ve got to place the nose on the correct spot.” 

Penelope stops and places her hands on her hips. “You can’t be keen on the rules now when you were complaining about the rules in ‘Icicle bowling’ just a minute ago.”

“Well Michael is on that station. He twists the rules in any game!” 

Penelope makes a face which lets him know that his words were true, and the both fall into contented laughter that comforts them greatly. Colin gaze remains on Penelope as he finds her hand to hold it in his, which he’s discovered it’s one of his new favourite things to do. “You having a good time?” He asks with a shy smile.

“The best!” Penelope replies quickly with her face beaming. “Are you?”

Colin nods his head. Despite his frustration of struggling to tell his best friend how he felt, this night has been glorious so far. “I’m having a great time. But every moment with you is the best.”

The rosiness that attacks Penelope’s cheeks doesn’t take away the brightness of her smile, and she lets out a small giggle as she squeezes his hand as a response to his words.

“So where to next?” Colin asks with a soft clearing of his throat. 

He watches as Penelope purses his as she looks up and down the corridor, raising his eyebrows when she lets out a gasp. 

“Let’s guess the Snowman’s name!” 

“Why are these games so ridiculous?” Colin complains with a chuckle as Penelope walks over to the snowman which was almost the same size as her. Picking up the pen, she carefully looks at the board to discover what other people guesses were.

He rolls his eyes fondly at the concentrated expression on her face, and moves to join her and give an answer to the guessing game. But suddenly, he stops.

With everything around him fading away, and all of him remaining on Penelope. Who was surrounded by snowflakes and ice, with shades of blue and white that complemented her dress from where she stood. The glitter from the decorations dusting a slight shimmer over her pale skin, highlighting her adorable rosiness on the apples of her cheeks.

Colin blinks in amazement at the sight, at her beauty. Mouthing a small ‘wow’ as he admires the woman that he loves with such grace. Feeling his heart thumping slowly in his chest, feeling that fire that grounded him before slowly returning inside of him, pushing him to do more. A burning sensation of passion had begun to spread in his veins, and an urge to say the words that have been held on the top of his tongue becoming strong and intense. 

And something about it all, felt entirely different.

Perhaps, this was the moment. 

He felt ready, he felt the moment here and now, and maybe that’s what it was all about. He didn’t need to find the moment with his eyes, he needed to feel it within himself. 

Colin loved his best friend Penelope Featherington, and he was ready to tell her that. 

So he continued to walk over to her, but his strides were now full of determination.

“What should we put down for the snowman’s name?”

“Can we talk?” Colin rushes out. 

Penelope turns to him, expressing a cute, confused expression that makes him swoon. “That’s quite a long name for a snowman.” 

“No Pen I-” he lets out a breathless laugh and takes the pen out of her hands so he could hold both of them in his. “I mean can we talk?”

“About-About what?” 

“Us.” Colin breathes out, and watches as Penelope eyes widen as he continues to speak. “It’s just, I’ve been keeping something inside of me for so long and I can’t contain it anymore. I want to tell you- I need to tell you.” 

Penelope shuffles on her feet, her lips spreading into a smile that was encouraging. Her eyes move as if she was trying to find the answer in his, but with no luck in doing so, she softly replies. “Tell me what?”

“Pen! Pen!”

Colin mouth slams shut as he hears his sisters voice behind him, and he whips around to see Eloise moving closer with small shake to his head. Panic strikes through him, this wasn’t what was suppose to happen. And as his sister moves closer, he was silently cursing her for her bad timing.

“Eloise-”

“Pen.” Eloise ignores and pushes past him to Penelope, gripping one of her arms tightly with urgency. “Bathroom break? I need to speak to you.” 

Penelope moves quickly between the two siblings, lingering on Colin’s desperation for her to stay. Both of them exchanging a silent conversation with their eyes. “Um El, me and Colin were just having a conversation-”

“Well save it for later!”

Colin eyes widen. “No Eloise we can’t-”

But it was too late, his sister was already pulling Penelope down the corridor, and all Colin could do was watch her go. Running a hand frustratedly through his hair as Penelope looks back over her shoulder at him with apologetic eyes before disappearing from his view.

The confession was ready on a plate, his heart ready to burst. His love for her ready to be revealed to the girl that captures his thoughts. Now, the moment had gone, and he had to hold it all in again.

From his face to slumping his shoulders, Colin couldn’t hide his disappointment, and he dragged his feet back into the hall with hope that there was still good buffet food left or some embarrassing dancing that could cheer him up just a little bit.

“Hey mate! You having a good time?!”

A slap on his back makes him jump, and he turns his head to see Will and Alice over his shoulder, both wearing big grins on their faces. He tries to match their smiles, but it dims around the edges. “Hey, you’re both looking good.” 

“And look at you mate! I’ve never seen you this dapper.” Will replies, pulling at Colin’s jacket playfully before his head moved around the room. “Where’s Penelope?” 

“Are you okay Colin?” Alice asks, noticing Colin’s crestfallen expression. 

“Pen’s with El, and not exactly.” Colin answers both of their questions, letting out a sad sigh which makes them look at him with some concern. “I was going to tell Pen that I love her, but then my sister interrupts and drags her away. And I feel like this whole night has been me being ready to say how I feel and something or someone pushing a dagger in and destroying my chances.” He crosses his arms against his chest, grumbling in one short breath. “Maybe we should have just gone with Alice’s plan and serenaded her with Mariah Carey.” 

“Well I’m certain we can put a three part harmony together-”

“We are not about to ruin a Christmas classic that gets played every year!” Will states, looking between his now pouting girlfriend and optimistic friend. Quickly kissing Alice’s pout away, he turns back to his friend with a pat on his shoulder. “Mate when I said to speak from the heart, it all starts with feeling it. A feeling that never goes away, that wants you to push the words your soul has ever dared to whisper.”

Well Colin believes that what he felt, a sort of flame consuming his entire body. He could still feel it now, lingering in his core, brewing and ready to bubble again. “I do feel that. It’s most strongest feeling I had.”

“Then when the next opportunity comes to tell Penelope how you feel, grab it with both hands.”

Colin snorts. “With Eloise around like a flying hawk I don’t think a chance will come again.” 

“You’ll get your chance.” Will promises.

Colin nods his head, slightly believing his friend. “But what if this is a sign from the universe that Penelope doesn’t like me back and it’s saving me from heartache.” 

That gets a big laugh from Alice and Will, leaving Colin himself looking on confused with burrowed brows.  

“Colin..” Alice breathes out at the end of her laughter. “There will be no heartache in this scenario, trust us.” 

Before the still confused boy could reply, the intro of ‘Cha Cha Slide’ started to boom from the speakers, making Alice’s smile grow on her face. 

“Right you two, let’s get on the dance floor!” 

And in between the slide to the left, slide to the right and 2 hops this time, 2 hops this time Colin feels more certain than ever before. That this Christmas he won’t feel so blue, that his heart will feel new when he tells Penelope how he feels. The next opportunity could come tonight, or maybe tomorrow, or in a few days time under some other Christmas lights, but he was confident he would have another chance to tell her. And he would make sure in that moment there would be no interruptions, not from any school disruptions, not from his oblivious sister Eloise -

“Bored of her already?” 

- and there would be certainly no interruptions from Cressida Cowper, he would make sure of that.

But he couldn’t escape her at the buffet table, where he had returned to grab a drink, leaving Alice and Will on the dance floor and him wondering where Eloise had dragged Penelope off to. Cressida’s voice was chirpy, and could make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. So Colin knew who was behind him the second he heard her voice and his body went cold. 

Turning to her and her friends - or her minions, as Colin likes to call them - who were standing behind the blonde, tall girl, a deep frown embodies his face from the irritation he feels from her words. “What?”

“Penelope, she’s not here.” Cressida chirps with a sly smirk. “Did you have to run away? I understand if you had to.”

The group of girls giggle at Cressida’s words, making Colin’s frown deepen. “No I didn’t run away. Penelope is with Eloise, so I was with Alice and Will. We are aloud to hang out with other people here.” He looks around the hall, looking for Cressida’s date. “Where’s Fife, did he run away from you?” 

He could tell the questions struck her a little, but she plays it off with an over-exaggerated laugh. “Oh Colin!” She smacks his arm hard, and Colin immediately shrugs away from the touch. “You are quite funny!” 

He makes a face, not knowing where she found any humour in his words.

“But I told him to go and be a child with his friends. I mean did you see him doing the robot, it was horrible-”

“Found it quite hilarious if I’m honest.” 

“And embarrassing.” Cressida carries on exasperated, ignoring Colin’s injection of words. “A man like him does not know how to make a night like this special for a girl like me.” 

Colin tilts his head in agreement, knowing that Fife’s arrogance was quite unflattering to everyone. 

“But the DJ is playing some slow numbers soon.” Cressida says with a flirty smile and a finger twirling through a strand of her hair. “You know, the ones where you dance close with your partner.” 

Colin tries to be interested, but he couldn’t help but think there was something more exciting coming from the cup in his hand than the woman in front of him. “That’s nice.” He mumbles, bringing his drink to his mouth.

“And I think I want to dance.”

“Great.”

“With you.”

“Oh.”

His movement freezes as he stares at Cressida’s with wide eyes, who was staring back at him confidently. He lowers his drink, speaking slowly. “With me?”

“I’m sure Penelope wouldn’t mind.” Cressida steps forward to him, and he immediately takes a step back. Perhaps Penelope, being such a kind person, wouldn’t mind, but he would. Because the only person who he’d want to dance with in those songs was his best friend. Dancing with Penelope gave him the good tingles that warmed his core. He knew dancing with Cressida’s would turn him into stone.

Awkwardly laughing, he tries to be nice to get out of the situation. “You know Cressida, I’m pretty tired out from all the dancing I’ve done already. So I’m just gonna wait her for Pen and-”

Cressida cuts him off with a much harsher scoff. “Pen this and Pen that. Oh come on Colin, stop this!” 

Colin straightens his spine, the atmosphere around them changing to something tense. “Stop what?” 

“We all know you are here with Penelope so Eloise could go with Phillip, it’s common knowledge.” She lets out a sharp laugh. “As if you would actually take Penelope as your date.”

Anger bubbles inside of him. “Of course I would take Penelope as my date.” He almost growls. “She’s my best friend!”

“I mean her dress makes her look like a block of ice, I felt sorry just looking at her when she arrived.” Cressida’s carries on with bringing Penelope down, but that was only making Colin’s temper rise. “She whines all the time, she basically doesn’t have any friends apart from a few who feel bad for her. In classes she makes me bored that I roll my eyes so far into my skull, and I feel like she’s passing that boredom onto others, including you.” Cressida shows another sly smirk. “Perhaps now you are away from her you can spend more time with people who are truly your type and-”

“Enough!” Colin snaps at her, cutting her off harshly and loudly. It made a few heads turns, but he didn’t notice them as he glared at Cressida’s with his red face which was seething from anger. He didn’t care about any of the attention he gathered. as he was not going to let Cressida’s think she can continue to mock and degrade people, especially Penelope. “How dare you?! How dare you stand here thinking that you sprout such nonsense to me!”

“C-Colin.” Cressida nervously giggles, changing her tune, her eyes warily looking around at the people that were subtly peering into their conversation. “People are staring, you are causing a scene.” 

“Then let me cause a bigger one, because I ain’t dancing with you! It was a no before, but it’s a bigger no now.” Colin lets out a scoff. “In fact, let me be clear on something-

“Now-”

“-Penelope is the only person I want to dance with! She’s the only person that I want to spend time with. Because she’s amazing-”

“Oh don’t flatter her Colin!” 

“Why shouldn’t I?”

Cressida scrunched up her face in irritation. “Because she-”

“Is the most wonderful woman I have ever met.” Colin interrupts her, and in that moment, he feels the lock on his heart break into tiny little pieces. There was nothing stopping him now. “She’s wonderful, inside and out.” He continues on, his eyes welling with emotion just thinking about her. “Penelope is the most caring person, putting everyone else before herself. She’s got this wittiness that makes anyone smile, she has this wisdom that makes her so interesting because she makes you think to your wildest imaginations.” 

He breaks out into a smile. “She’s taken me on some crazy adventures. She’s made me laugh, made me angry, let me cry on her shoulder in tense conversation and let my heart soar in others, and there’s no one else I would go on these adventures with. Because…because Penelope is my best friend, she is wise, strong, and beautiful.” A shuddering breath escapes his lips. “Her beauty just blows me away, every day. And I know you don’t have a caring bone in your body Cressida, but I do, and I care for Penelope more than anyone. Actually, it’s more than just caring, it’s much deeper than that, and it terrifies me. But it’s amazing at the same time, she’s amazing, and I feel sorry for you for being so blind to see that.” 

Cressida was in a state of shock at his confession, she probably couldn’t believe it. But her over-exaggerated expression doesn’t phase him as his face returns stern, taking a step forward and speaking to her more quietly. 

“So perhaps you need to stop putting people down and take a look in the mirror and find out who you truly are.” He then smugly smiles. “Now why don’t you run and let Fife perform the robot to you again, slower if you want a partner for the next few dances. And I’ll enjoy my evening, right here.” 

The now embarrassed Cressida face crumbles in frustration, before she lets out an ‘ugh!’ and pushes past her flock of people, who follow her with quick steps to the other end of the hall. Colin watches her go with his smile remaining intact, before letting out a breath that he feels like it’s wanted to escape for some time. It relaxes his shoulders, settles his core. Makes him feel so open it was like he was walking on air. 

It was openness throughout his body that he was starting to enjoy. 

The small crowd who were peering in on the conversation had now slowly moved away, but Colin turned to his friends who remained behind him, who he caught in the corner of his eyes as he moved. They were both looking at him impressed on how he handled the situation, but there was something different in Alice’s eyes, which were wide and alarming. 

Silently asking her what’s wrong with a frown, she nods her head to the right which he follows with his eyes. Suddenly, his face drops.

Because Penelope was standing there. 

And by her face, shades of uncertainty and gratitude that shaped it, emotion brimming in her eyes, saying so much but so little in her blue orbs that it was almost unreadable, Colin knew she heard what he said.

Every…single…word. 

“Pen!” Colin gasps, rushing over to her. “I-”

“Shall we dance?!” She rushes out, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the crowd that were waiting for the next song to begin. It was so quick, the response being so unexpected, he stumbles over his feet.

“Um-y-yeah sure.” 

With the starting notes of ‘Perfect’ by Ed Sheeran beginning to softly entertain the people in the hall, Penelope was in Colin’s arms. Hesitantly, he rests his hands on her waist while her hands find his upper arms, her head resting on his collarbone as they softly swayed to the beat. He kept looking down at her, trying to make eye contact, but she kept avoiding him and remained silent as the song hit the first chorus.

Was this it? The response to opening his heart? Not directly to her but she had heard his words loud and clear. Fear strikes him immensely, the silence from his friend overwhelming him. However, deep down, as they danced, he knew this wasn’t a mistake. Reliving how alive his body felt when he spoken his feelings out loud to Cressida, knowing how much more electrifying it would feel to say what his heart desires to Penelope herself. He feels like a door has opened, and he’s already taking one step through it, now he just needs to take another. 

And taking that other step, doesn’t seem as scary as it did before. 

“Pen I-”

“Do you know what Eloise was worrying about? Phillip tried to kiss her and she panicked and shoved the cupcake she was eating in his face.” Penelope nervously rambles at him with a high pitched giggle. She was now making eye contact, but it wasn’t with the confidence that she usually has around him. “I mean a cupcake isn’t that bad, imagine if it was a egg sandwich or something else that smelt horrendous! She was so embarrassed but I told her that I wouldn’t mind having a cupcake shoved in my face, unless it was like a really horrible flavour or that sticky icing that you can’t remove from your hair and-”

“You’re rambling.” Colin chuckles softly, raising a hand to gently cradle her cheek.

“Oh.” She whispers, a reaction to his words or to his touch Colin doesn’t really know. But then her lips start to tremble, and her eyes well up with tears again, and he wants to know what’s causing that. 

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He asks, bringing their movement to a halt. He uses his thumb on the hand holding her face to make soothing circles on her cheek. “Tell me.” 

“Did you mean it?” She whispers after a few moments of hesitation, nibbling at the corner of her lip. “What you said to Cressida, was it true?”

After a few minutes of silence, where Colin feels like they were the only people in the room, the first thing that moves was his lips that spread into something fond. The next was his other hand, which moved to push back some loose curls that had fallen around Penelope’s face before cradling her other cheek. After letting out a contented sigh, he finally uses his words.

Because he didn’t want Penelope to think this was all an act. All of this was real, everything with her has always been real.

“Of course it’s true.” Colin tells her assuredly, stepping impossibly closer to her. “You are so special to me Pen.” 

That musters a shaky smile from the redhead he was cradling. “As are you, to me.”

The words make his heart stutter, and now he was nervous again, exhaling shakily as his gaze moves over his friends face, lingering on her lips as his eyes passed. He could feel the sweat on his palms, his stomach twisting in knots. But them little notices were absently floating in the back of his mind as his focus remained tenderly on the woman he loves. 

With everything around him moving slowly, like a slow beating heart. A moment that couldn’t just pass by casually, something he had to hold on to.

And oh, Colin doesn’t let it go. In fact, he holds it tightly with both hands. 

So in a crowded room, under the twinkling lights, surrounded by glittery snowflakes and dangling icicles, Colin Bridgerton kisses his best friend.  

A gentle peck to test the waters, moving to something much firmer when Penelope surges up to meet his lips again after the second they were apart. With their lips moving in a passionate embrace, his hands find her waist again while her arms wrap around his shoulders, a little noise escaping him as he feels one hand tug the hairs on the nape of his neck.

He embraces it though, and inhales the softness of her lips, how they taste like cherry. Something sweet which makes the corner of his lips twitch up into a smile as they moved gently against hers. He surrenders to the touch of her lips, melts into the touch of her hands as they slowly caressed him, and all of it felt amazing, magical. So magical that Colin never wanted to stop.

But as the chords of the songs outro began to fade away, they pull away from each other with small lingering touches. Their foreheads resting against each other’s, their breaths coming together as one and small smiles radiating nervousness even if they were happy. 

It was the shame that the bubble they placed themselves in popped when Colin looked up at saw eyes on him for the second time that night. 

More eyes this time, with all different expressions. Some looked on confused, while others were in shock - he notices his sister with her mouth dropped wide open from where she stood with Phillip on the other end of the room. Some people were also looking at them with a smile. Alice and Will smiles shining the brightest as they silently cheered for them on the end of the dance floor. 

It seemed that Penelope had noticed all the eyes too, but she didn’t act calm and casual like Colin. Instead her head whips around the room with widened eyes, and she looks up at him with fear, as if she’s realised what has just happened, before jumping out of his embrace with a small push. “I-I must go.” 

“Penelope wait!” 

The redhead pushes past him too quickly for him to reach out to her, but he knew he couldn’t let her just disappear as she exited the hall. With some encouraging nods and hand movements from Will and Alice, telling him to move. He was quick to follow.

“Colin! Did you just kiss-”

“Not now El.” 

He ignored everyone as he pushed past them to find the woman that he loves, his heart leading him in the direction to her.

The moment was here, and he wasn’t going to let it slip through his fingers this time.

~~~

After a while of following the ends of her blue dress which he saw when Penelope went around the corridors of the school building, he found her in the English block in Mrs Danbury classroom. Which shouldn’t have been a surprise, English with Mrs Danbury was one of her favourite classes.

Slightly panting when he got to the classroom door, he spots Penelope sitting on one of the tables with her back facing him. She was hunched over, looking down at her hands. And Colin could hear soft sniffles coming from her that made his stomach clench. 

He takes a step forward into the classroom with a pounding heart. “Penelope?”

“Colin!” She gasps, quick to turn around to face him. But she avoids eye contact with him, finding her dress interesting instead. “You-you followed me?”

“Of course I did.” He tells her firmly, taking another step forward. “I had to-”

“We don’t have to talk about it.” 

Colin was taken aback by her words. “W-what?” 

“The-the kiss, we-we don’t have to talk about it. Let’s just forget it!” Penelope says with a stutter, swallowing thickly as she paces back and forth across a small amount of space. “It was just s-something in the moment and we got to lost in it! It’s understandable, I-I mean it’s the festive season and at an event like this we can lose ourselves and-”

Colin listens to her ramble on, watching her with widened eyes and a subtle shake of his head. No, no he wasn’t just going to forget this moment with her, how could he when it’s made his heart bloom even more. Her doubts may make her think that this was a moment to forget, but kissing her meant everything to Colin. It cemented his love for her deep in his core, made it soar and run through his blood from his head to the tips of his toes. 

“Penelope-”

“I know Colin! I know I’m special to you and I’m very grateful for you defending me against Cressida. But I know you don’t feel-”

“Penelope I love you.” 

She freezes in her pacing, whirling around to Colin who looked on at her with tender fondness, flashes of vulnerability swimming across his eyes as he stands in front of her with his heart on the line. 

Penelope blinks slowly, almost in a daze. It takes a few seconds for her to respond. “You-” she swallows thickly, contemplating his words. “You-You love me?” 

“Yes.” He breathlessly whispers, finding his grounding, his hand finding his heart as he smiles. “Yes, I love you.” He watches as Penelope eyes widen at his confession, and seeing a subtle twinkle in her eye, it pushes him to continue on. “I have been in love with you since this summer, and throughout the change of seasons it’s grown even more.”

“Why-Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because our friendship means everything to me, and if I ruined that by being hopelessly in love with you it would destroy me.” Colin tells her. “But a friend told me that in the festive season any type of love spreads far and wide, and being here with you tonight I couldn’t miss the opportunity to tell you. You-you mean everything to me Pen, even if I’m still stepping into my future I know one thing that is certain is you. So I had to tell you, even if my love is unrequited, even if you don’t feel the same. I love you..”

He trails off as he looks away, mentally preparing for Penelope’s reaction, ready to build a barrier just in case of rejection or he slips into a puddle of sadness. When he glances back at his friend after taking a steady breath, and seeing her with a blissful smile gracing her face, he holds off the building process.

“You love me.” She says again, in more of a statement than a question this time. Emotions were clouding her eyes, her smile brightening, and Colin didn’t know what it meant. 

“Yes.” Colin nods his head, a hand moving to scratch the back of his neck as he reels in some awkwardness, “if you don’t feel the same it’s okay you know. I mean it will take some time but-”

“I love you too.” 

“Our friendship would-what?” Colin feels like the air just sucked out of him after hearing her words. Or if not that, then he was internally jumping for joy. He couldn’t stop the happiness beaming on his face, a big smile stretching his cheeks. “You love me?”

“I have loved you for years Colin.” Penelope confesses, which Colin couldn’t help but silently gasp at. “It has changed over the years, I have grown up and so did my feelings too. But my heart has never changed, it’s always wanted you. I-I just didn’t know if you’d wanted me like that.” 

He doesn’t know if his smile could widen any further, but he feels like it does. He feels like he was floating on air, and his feet would never touch the ground again knowing that Penelope loved him back. Heck he felt like running to the school roof and screaming it out at the top of his lungs. 

The fear he had was now ripped apart and all he could feel was joy. 

But finding out that she loved him for years, broke him just a little. It makes him wonder how clueless he had been throughout their years of friendship, how he may have mistaken her gaze or her words to him as nothing more than mutual, platonic affection. He didn’t realise that it was something more, that she had these strong feelings buried in her for so long. 

It saddens him think about how long she has waited for him. He felt like an utter fool for not realising how amazing his best friend was earlier. 

“Well I want you, all of you.” Colin tells Penelope, seeing her face melt into a puddle of fondness. A feeling which Colin reciprocates, making them both swoon. But there was a second where his smile dims, thinking about how long Penelope has adored him. “And I’m sorry that it took me so long to- if I could change-”

“No, no regrets.” Penelope cuts him off, walking closer so she was in front of him, gripping the lapels of his jacket as she smiled adoringly up at him. “I wouldn’t change anything between us Colin, because it led us to be here now.” She rises up on her toes, her face moving closer to his. “What I would really like to do is kiss you again.”

And well, who was Colin to deny such a wonderful request?

Cradling her face once more, he quickly moves down to press his lips on hers. Penelope giggles at his eagerness which was muffled between their lips, but she was also quick to respond as their lips moved tenderly together. Cementing their love, they both knew they were about to start a new adventure. One that will be exciting, and one that might be scary, but at least they were going on it together.

Because Colin was in love with his best friend, and she was in love with him too.

And Colin felt like he was on cloud nine as he continued to kiss the redhead in his arms. He couldn’t help but lift Penelope up and spin her in his arms mid-kiss because his happiness was too hard to maintain.

“Colin!” Penelope squeals, pulling away from him and throwing her head back in a vibrant laugh as he moved around in small circles. She tightens her arms around him, hiding her face in his neck as her feet were left dangling in the air. “Put me down!”

After a breathless chuckle that blended with Penelope’s giggles, he settled her back on her feet, humming in delight when their lips met again in a soft peck.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” 

“You know I think that’s my favourite thing you’ve ever said.” 

“Well I think what you just said is my favourite thing too.” Penelope reveals with a soft giggle, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her chin on his chest to look up at him. “You know, for my first Winter Ball, it has been quite magical.”

“Hmm, perhaps I was wrong by saying that these types of events weren’t as glorious as it seemed.” Colin speaks thoughtfully. And maybe he was wrong on that, but an event like this creates lifelong memories, and a night in A Winter Wonderland will be something he would never forget. But right now, he only wants to be with Penelope, and heading back to the school hall wasn’t on the top of his list. Scrunching his nose and nodding to the exit of the classroom, he asks, “But how about we get out of here?”

Penelope was about to nod her head, a yes about to breathe past her lips. But then the chords of ABBA’s ‘Dancing Queen’ was heard faintly in the distance, and Penelope looks back at him with puppy dog eyes instead. “But you know how much I love Abba. We could stay for a few more dances right?” 

Colin chuckles gently, falling for her cute rounded eyes as he kisses her once more. He couldn’t refuse to dance to an Abba medley, not when his feet were beginning to tap to the beat. “A few more.” He murmurs in agreement before spinning her under his arm and walking with her back to the hall, their hands intertwined.

Where they stay for more than a few dances, but Colin was happy to stay in this new bubble with his love for a little while longer.

~~~

“Enjoy your night?”

“Mum!” Colin jumps from making the final touches of his hot chocolate when hearing his mum’s voice at the entrance of the kitchen. With his eyes moving in that direction and spotting his mum by the door wrapped up warm in her fluffy dressing gown - a gift he gave to her two Christmas’s ago which she still loves - he lets out a soft chuckle as he swirls some whipped cream on top of the chocolatey liquid. “I thought you were with dad spying on Eloise and Phillip out the front?”

“Well I’ve made your dad more discreet, if that’s possible.” His mum states, murmuring her final words in a sarcastic manner which gets a laugh out of Colin. Moving to lean against the counter next to him, his mum asks him again. “So, tell me. How did it go?”

Colin drops his head, biting his lip to try and hide his beaming smile. How could he describe a night like this? He doesn’t think there was words to describe it. “It was great.” He decides on in the end, looking at his mum with happiness in his eyes. “It was really great.”

“And you and Penelope had fun?”

“We did.” 

“Well that’s good.” Violet hums, glancing between the hot chocolate and her son before asking playfully with a raised eyebrow. “Now has Penelope gone home or are you having two hot chocolate’s before bed?”

After a pause, he scrunches his face guilty as he realises his mum has spotted another cup behind his, full of hot chocolate too. When they left the Winter Ball both of them didn’t want the night to end, so they’ve been hiding in the living room for a short while before Colin ventured out to get them drinks. “Is it okay if Penelope stays for a bit longer? Just for another hour or so-” 

“Oh you know it’s absolutely fine! As long as she’s home at a reasonable hour. We don’t want to have Portia banging on the door early in the morning with her green face mask and big rollers in her hair.” 

“No one wants that.” Colin snorts, sprinkling some tiny marshmallows on top of the cream before giving it a dusting of cocoa powder. Too deep in joy to keep the smile off his face knowing that he could spend more time with Penelope.

Oh how she has turned him into a swooning mess already. Which didn’t go unnoticed by his mother. 

“You want to tell me why a smile like that is bursting from your face?”

“Is it bad?”

“It’s the brightest smile I’ve ever seen.” His mother tilts her head with curious eyes. “And there’s this twinkle in your eyes that’s unfamiliar.” 

But if her words conveyed uncertainty, the knowing look in his mums eyes as he turned to her proved to him that she knew something had happened between him and Pen. That his heart had burst and taken over his whole body, he couldn’t deny that to the woman who knows him so well. “Mum,” he lets out with a short laugh when seeing his mum face lights up. “Me and Pen are in love and-”

His mum cuts him off with a small squeal, bringing her son into her arms in a warming embrace. “Oh Colin, I’m so happy for you both, and all I can say is finally!”

Colin’s eyes widen, “you knew too?!”

“Of course I knew! I’m your mum.” Violet pulls away playfully patting her son on the arm like he should know better. “Your feelings were quite obvious, and so were Penelope’s too. I was thinking if you two didn’t pull yourselves together by Christmas I would have to go back to my scheming ways in the New Year.”

“And when has your scheming ever gone well?”

His mother mockingly glares at his teasing, knowing that he was right and her scheming in previous years hadn’t really solved anything. It makes a cheeky grin escape him, widening when he hears his sisters groan of ‘Dad!’ coming from the front door. “Think Dad’s already started with the questions.”

“And I better intervene before they cause a racket at ten o’clock at night.” 

With a final squeeze of a hug from his mother, she lets out a merry sigh as she makes her exit. “Oh what magical times this festive season brings.”

Colin, well he couldn’t agree more. 

Especially when he walks back into the living room and sees his redhead beauty looking out of the window. She was now wearing one of his hoodies on top of her gown, and while the elegance of the dress had disappeared with the new layer of clothing, she still looked beautiful.

“Mother caught me in the kitchen, she’s more than happy for you to stay as long as I take you home at a reasonable time.” He says making his way into the space, Penelope turning away from the window to greet him sweetly. Placing their hot chocolates on the coffee table in front of him, he leans back on the sofa with a laugh as he continues. “Don’t want your mother with all her weird spa treatments to knock on the door.”

“Think that would be a start of a Christmas nightmare.” Penelope giggles, knowing that some of her mother’s face masks can cause a fright on first glance. 

Colin smiles at her response, Penelope smiling too, and they both linger in the moment wondering what to do next. It wasn’t awkward, it was comfortable for the both of them. Giving them a small chance to reflect on the night. A chance for both of them to realise that this was all real. 

It was Colin who moves first, patting the spot next to him and encouraging her to join him. She comes willingly, snuggling into his side with a soft glow on her face.

“What was so interesting out the window?” Colin asks.

“Oh! It looks like it’s starting to snow.”

“Snow?” Colin asks surprised. It was rare for snow to hit where they lived, so it was always treat to wake up to see the ground covered in white snow which had fallen overnight, or to see trickles of it floating down from the sky. “Perhaps in a few days time we’ll be walking to school in a real winter wonderland.” 

Penelope hums delightfully at the thought, and Colin couldn’t help but look down to where she was snuggled into his shoulder fondly. Thinking about the school days that he now wouldn’t dread, knowing with Penelope by his side, them being together, everything will just be better. Using a finger to tilt her chin so she could meet his gaze, he murmurs out softly to her, “but the thing that will make me the happiest is just being with you.”

Her smile was blinding, and she pushes herself up to grab both of their hot chocolates. Handing his over, she raises her cup that was decorated to perfection. “I’ll cheers you to that,” she says, and their cups clink together before they both take a sip. Penelope laughing as she removes Colin’s cream moustache from his upper lip with her thumb.

And the night concludes with them snuggled up by the fire, where they joyfully talk the night away in each others arms, the festive lights illuminating their skin as they flashed in all the colours. They discussed their plans to go to the Christmas market, - which Colin will plan as their first date, but he won’t tell Penelope just yet - and they delved into the Christmas traditions that were to come, and the new ones that they were excited for too. 

“Speaking of new traditions.” Colin says, wiggling around to grab the plant he found in the kitchen and dangling it above their heads. “Will you kiss me underneath the mistletoe?”

The cheeky smile that was gracing his face soon disappeared when Penelope cupped his cheeks and planted the most glorious kiss to his lips. 

The most wonderful time of the year, had become even more wonderful now that they were together. Their love wrapped around each others hearts being the greatest gift of all.

~~~

Later on, we'll conspire

As we dream by the fire

To face unafraid

The plans that we've made

Walking in a winter wonderland