(Penny's P.O.V.)
I had gotten tired of reading to Cole. I mean I read four chapters and he seemed like he was asleep. I looked at him peacefully swaddled in his blankets. He looked like a little child. I averted my eyes back towards the book and folded the corner of the page I was on. It was interesting reading the same books over again because I would take note of different details that I didn't realize the first time I read them. I closed the book and placed it on his night stand. I stood up to leave but as soon as I touched the doorknob, I felt the urge to look back at him. Before I even knew it, my feet were treading towards him. I stopped right in front of his bed. I leaned close to him and spoke under my breath.
"Sleep tight and stay safe, Little Mittens"
I smiled and kissed him on the forehead. I pulled away and examined his scratched face. When I felt a cold hand touch my face and before I knew what was happening I felt my lips locked with his, my eyes widened. I pulled away gently and looked at Cole with my mouth gaping in surprise.
"You missed." He mumbled, with his eyes still closed.
I felt my cheeks warm up and I placed my hands on them, in hopes that I could cool them down with my shivering fingers. I stood up and left his bedroom abruptly. Did that just happen? I pinched myself as I walked down the hallway. I hissed at the feeling of being in reality. I continued my way to the main meeting area. I saw that Collin guy talking to Cole's dad. As he sees me walk in, he calls towards me.
"Penny, me and Cole made up, right? You helped us."
I fiddled my fingers, becoming nervous.
"Penny?" He called towards me, while making an effort to walk over to me. Cole's dad stopped him, growling underneath his breath.
"Don't go near her." He glared at Collin.
"N-no, it's fine. He's right. We ran into him in the forest and resolved things." I started nervously, gaining confidence as I spoke.
"I was wanting to invite a few people for dinner tonight. At the Bluerose village." Collin tried to sound formal.
"And how do I know this isn't a trap?" Cole's dad spoke in a deep voice.
"U-uh you may bring your best guards if you truly do not trust us sir. We will gladly provide for them as well." Collin started to become nervous.
"Alright, who are you wanting to come?" Cole's dad remained stern.
"Well, I was thinking you and your wife and the people I ran into in the woods." Collin tried to compose himself.
"Which are who exactly?"
"Allison, Cole and Penny." I smiled as he listed Allison first. She was obviously the person on his mind.
"Alright, that should be fine…...Cole!" He alarmed.
I turned around to see Cole leaned against the door frame weakly. His dad rushed to help support him.
"What are you doing? You're supposed to be resting." I said.
"I know I just got sick of lying and doing nothing. I need to be productive." He responded.
"You weren't even sleeping for that long." I tilted my head at him.
"Go back to bed, Son. Look at yourself. You can't even stand on your own. How do you expect to be productive?" His father commented.
Cole just nodded and his father started to walk him back to his room. I was left awkwardly standing with Collin.
"Soooo…." He started.
"Just go." I said abruptly.
"Alright." He turned and left the building, leaving me in my own peace of mind.
I walked into the kitchen and grabbed an apple from the table. I took a bite out of it, making a snapping noise, and headed outside. I walked around the village just to explore a little more. I had only been here for a few days and I hadn't gotten to just look around and get a feel for the place. It was sunny outside with a few clouds scattered in the sky for slight shade. The village is quite magnificent. It was much larger than mine, that's for sure. They had lots of little shops. Ones with knick knacks, some with antiques, others with abundances of produce, a few bakeries, with wonderful smells flowing from them. There were fish shops, clothing stores and of course I saw that ice cream cart Cole bought me ice cream from. The list could keep going but I'll stop there. I saw children running along with a ball weaving between them. I bitterly smiled and looked down at my frail body. I feel like I had lost all hopes of ever baring a healthy child after I had starved into a pile of twigs in the rogue territory. I always dreamed of having children when I was young. Just thinking of it makes me happy but also it deepens the empty hole of being without family. I always wanted to start my own but how could I possibly do that now? I can't even nourish myself. How could I support a baby? My eyes began to tear up. I quickly wiped my tears up because I didn't want anyone to see and took a bite of my apple. I took another deep breath before continuing forward. Time went by and I eventually found myself back at headquarters. I just fiddled around, not knowing what to do.
"Hey" I heard a sweet raspy voice. I turned around.
"Cole! Go back to resting!" I walked towards him.
"No, No. Please, I'm fine. I don't want to rest anymore." He spoke softly and stared at me.
"Stop looking at me like that." I felt myself start to sweat. He became super flustered.
"Sorry, I wasn't paying attention." He turned his gaze and rubbed the back of his neck.
"So you're feeling better?" I tried to cover the awkwardness.
"Oh yeah. For sure . I can actually stand now."
"Are your cuts bothering you?"
"I mean I can feel them a little but not really."
"Ok, good." I nodded my head. This couldn't get any more awkward.
"Cole, you're awake! Let me check your bandages." We heard Caroline's voice and looked towards her.
"Ok." He pulled his shirt off and I immediately blushed to a shade of red.
As Caroline walked towards us, she noticed and lended me a slight smirk. She turned him around and examined his back, where he had been damaged.
"They're looking good. You'll probably have them off in a day or two. I'll renew them before you leave for dinner." Caroline said.
"Dinner? Where?" Cole questioned, turning around to look at her.
"At the Bluerose village. You were invited with dad, mom, Penny and Allison. I guess no one told you."
Cole groaned, making it obvious he didn't like the sound of that.