Crash

I wanted to say sorry

Charles and Penelope left for L.A. that evening. It was a long flight, and it had been a long day. With her head resting on his shoulder, Penelope slept the entire way back, only waking when the wheels finally touched down. 

Part of her was happy to be home. Most of that was due to Charles being with her, but to some extent, it was just nice to be back and not have to leave for a few weeks. It was times like this, where she and Charles were living in the same country and not a thousand miles apart, that she thought about the future. They couldn't do long distance forever, not if they wanted to make this work. Penelope couldn't imagine her life without him, but it still going to be a tough conversation to have. Her life was here in L.A., but his was firmly in Monaco. Was it fair for her to ask him to give that up, if he was even willing to in the first place?

Suddenly, Charles nudged her side, snapping her back to reality. "What are you thinking about, hm?" he said gently, yawning as the plane rolled down the runway with decreasing speed.

Penelope did her best to brush off the question. Sometimes she forgot how easy she was to read. "Nothing. You excited to be back?"

"It's no Monaco, but it has you. So, for that reason, the answer is yes."

It's no Monaco. Penelope cursed herself for asking the question in the first place. How could she convince Charles to uproot his life when in his heart he probably didn't have any desire to? On the same token, moving to Monaco meant Penelope had to give up everything. Her dance studio, Jasper, her family, her TV show...all of it was in L.A. Leaving would end her career, or at least change it enough to make her future unrecognisable. That was a big decision, and it was too soon to make it right now.

"Okay, Romeo. I, for one, can't wait to go home and sleep. I don't have work until tomorrow morning, which means a full..." Penelope paused while she checked her phone. "Twenty hours of doing nothing."

"Ah, yes..." Charles chucked nervously, giving her his best 'I have something to tell you that you're not going to like very much,' smile. 

"No," Penelope moaned, putting her head in her hands. "What did you do?"

"Uh, well, remember that interview we have to do with Ferrari?"

"Oh, no, please don't tell me-"

"It's today! Uh, surprise?"

Penelope glared at him, shaking her head. "If I were you, Charles, I would get off this plane before I push you out. How does that sound?"

"Yes. Okay. I was going to tell you but with the race and my surprise that you loved that I spent all day planning..."

"Charles?"

"Yes?" he said hopefully, having escaped to the next row over, just out of reach. 

"Stop talking."

"Okay. Yes. Okay. Sorry."

Penelope wasn't finished yet. "Oh, and remember that white dress? I'm burning it."

Now it was his turn to complain. "No," he groaned, looking genuinely distraught. "I'll do anything."

"Too late. To think, I was going to buy it in red, too."

Penelope smiled to herself as the plane door opened, listening to Charles complain and groan behind her. 

********************

Upon entering the rink, the first thing Penelope noticed was how quiet it was. She'd figured that since she now had work to do this afternoon, she might as well tackle something else on her to do list. Charles had driven home, wishing her luck, and Penelope had made her way here, hoping to fix the mess she'd made.