Who: Garcia and Finstock What: A date to make up for stuff When: July 19 Where: Formal Rating: low
Medicine was a great invention. Finstock had gone from a useless mess of barf and regret to a mostly functional human again after the cruise ship gave him some medicine and a thing to put behind his ear. Recognizing that he had essentially ruined the beginning of the unexpected cruise, Finstock had insisted they go and have fun at the formal.
He dressed in a tuxedo - not even just a suit - and had flowers and a corsage for Penelope too. You could really get anything on a cruise, huh? He was waiting for her to emerge from the room, having left to be in the hall to give her privacy while she finished getting ready. Obviously she was going to look amazing either way, but as she opened the door, he lit up. “Well there’s no way anyone’s going to notice me when you look that good.” He smiled, obviously not actually worried about that. “You look amazing, Penelope.”
–
Not long after first arriving in Madison Valley, Penelope found herself on a surprise cruise to the Mediterranean, so it wasn’t a total shock to wake up and discover she was on another cruise ship, this one exploring Alaska and Canada. Her excitement over visiting a new place was quickly dampened by the fact that her poor boyfriend was suffering extreme seasickness. After verifying that Penny was okay, she spent the first day and a half of the unexpected vacation bringing Bobby soup and Gatorade until the medicine and patch kicked in and he felt back to himself.
Penelope was a natural caretaker, so it didn’t bother her one bit to spend her time with him instead of taking advantage of the ship, despite his objections. When he said he wanted to make it up to her, she argued that it wasn’t necessary, but it was only half-hearted once she realized he wanted to go to the shipboard formal. An excuse to buy a fancy new dress and get all dolled up wasn’t something she was going to pass up.
Since she’d been in the bathroom while he was getting dressed, it was a surprise when she opened the door and saw him in a tux. A huge grin broke out on her face and she was grateful that she’d gone with a long gown “So do you,” she said.
*
“I clean up okay, huh?” He still didn’t think he could hold a candle to his girlfriend, but he was glad that she at least liked what she saw. He was lucky for Penelope in a lot of ways. Not only did she take care of him on several occasions when the Dome put him in positions where he was an utter mess, but she thought him attractive too. Really, on some days, Finstock wasn’t sure how he deserved her at all.
“I hope you don’t mind that I fully plan on making all the men tonight jealous by showing you off as much as possible.”
–
“You certainly do,” she agreed, leaning in to give him a quick kiss before they headed to the ballroom. It was brief because she wasn’t going to risk ruining her flawless makeup before they got a few professional photos from the onboard photographer.
Garcia flushed a little at his compliment. She knew that she wasn’t the conventionally attractive woman and her self esteem had taken plenty of hits over the years because of it. As far as she was concerned, she was the lucky one because Bobby was one of those rare men who was genuinely good. The fact that she found him handsome was simply a bonus. “As long as you promise not to get into any fist fights and getting thrown in the brig,” she said. Not that she thought it was likely.
*
“No fist fights.” He nodded as they walked. “Does that mean verbal fighting is fine? Or psychological warfare?” He was kidding, of course, and not only because he didn’t want to ruin another night on the cruise. Finstock could fight, but he didn’t enjoy it. He was sure some of his students would be utterly shocked to find it out since he came off aggressive as a coach, but the persona was just that - a persona.
“Now that I don’t want to curl up in a ball and die all the time, we should do all the things. I’m at your disposal the rest of the trip.” He’d obviously give her whatever alone time she wanted not to mention if she wanted some time with just Penny. Otherwise, he’d follow her lead.
–
Penelope laughed since she knew he was kidding. While he might put on a show as the tough lacrosse coach, she knew it was all an act and he was really a giant teddy bear. His secret was safe with her though since she wouldn’t want his students to try taking advantage of his kind nature.
“Tomorrow’s stop was big in the gold rush, so they have a lot of themed activities available,” she said, recalling what she’d read and seen on their previous stop. “What do you think about going to a saloon breakfast that includes a tour of the brothel, the gold rush cemetery, and the town museum?”
*
“You had me at brothel.” Really, Penelope could have suggested watching paint dry and he’d have agreed. This sounded kind of interesting and at the very least it sounded like some of it would be inside so they wouldn’t freeze their butts off. “Do we have to dress up too? I don’t think I can pull off the prospector look. I’d need to stop shaving and let me tell you, this? -” He gestured to where a beard could be, “- not a good look. I’d be arrested for indecent exposure at the very least”
–
As much as Garcia would enjoy dressing up in period appropriate clothing, she was in agreement that her boyfriend could not pull off that look. “Somehow I don’t think you’d have enough growth in one day to really get there,” she said. “But no, I’m pretty sure it’s not an immersive experience like that.”
Some women might take offense to the comment about the brothel. Luckily, it was the part Penelope was most interested in seeing as well.
*
“I’m looking forward to it, then.” He gave her a smile, then even leaned in to give her a kiss. “And then after the tour, we’ll pick somewhere you want to eat.” While they were doing something fancy today, he’d be willing to do it again for her if she wanted to. He was also okay with something more ‘dressed down.’
He paused. “The brothel thing might not be too awesome for Penny, but if there’s something you want to do with her, we can do something together too. If you and she wants.” Because while he was dating Penelope, Penny was important to Penelope and so therefore important to him.
–
“She’s been running around with her friend Trixie and Trixie’s big sisters, Sabrina and Rory,” Penelope said. “But it would be nice if the three of us did something.” If she and Bobby ever wanted to advance their relationship to the living together stage, it was important that he and her ward had a good relationship.
Though in all honesty, Penelope was fairly certain the brothel tour was tame enough for a young teen. She didn’t really restrict that sort of thing, trusting Penny to make her own choices.
* He nodded a few times. It was nice that Penny had some good people in her life. She already had more friends than he had while he was in school, but she also had way better social skills too. Really, Penny was rocking it, even if smaller children still made him nervous. With teenagers you could be sarcastic and talk to them with a little more openness than younger kids. Of course this was mostly from a high school teacher perspective.
“Well, if all else fails, the ship’s going to dock in Vancouver again and when we were there on day one, I found out there’s an aquarium and a science center that are both supposed to be good for kids.”
–
Penelope smiled. “Those both sound great,” she said.
When they arrived at the ballroom, she paused in the doorway. “Wow,” she said in a hushed, awed tone. “This is amazing.” The opulence was something she wasn’t used to, wasn’t normally her style, but she enjoyed having these rare moments and was glad that she’d bought a new dress instead of wearing something that she’d typically wear.
“Guess we should find a table.”
*
This was also not Finstock’s style. The closest he got to this kind of thing was prom. This was far from prom. “I’m suddenly glad you ‘dragged’ me to this.” He looked over, his smile saying she did anything but - he was happy to be here with her. “I thought it’d feel colder, but it’s surprisingly nice. When everyone starts dancing, hopefully we don’t melt everything.” Probably that wasn’t possible. Probably.
“Yes, let’s.” He looked around. “Preferably without any of my now or former students, if you don’t mind.” He’d let her pick ultimately.
–
“We can sit with adults who are not from Beacon Hills,” Garcia said with a grin. She knew he wouldn’t feel like he could be himself around any students because he preferred to display his gruff persona to them, even if she thought his teddy bear side snuck out more than he realized.
She had a feeling it was going to end up being very warm in here once people started dancing and if so, she might have to drag her date away from the festivities so they could stroll one of the decks in the moonlight instead.
*
"This is why you're my favourite human beings." Penelope just 'got' him and he appreciated that above all else. "Which is why I'm going to sweep you off your feet tonight and make the most out of this event." It didn't happen every day, after all, and she deserved it.
"And we'll make sure to get a lot of pictures to remind ourselves just how good we look right now. Because we look great. Going to put other couples to shame. " He gave her a wink.
–
Neither of them bought into societal conventions, which was probably why they got along so well. Nights like this, it was fun to pretend though. “We certainly do,” Penelope said, leaning over to steal a quick kiss.”
She spotted a table that had several couples she recognized from Madison Valley though didn’t know well and steered them in that direction. There were only two empty seats at the table, which meant that no one they were trying to avoid would be able to join them.
*
Finstock was tired after a night of dancing and socializing. It was tough work for a man who usually stayed home half the time. He was enjoying himself though and he was enjoying watching Penelope have fun too. She looked even more beautiful when she was having fun.
They ended up out on the deck looking out at the ocean. It was cold, but for a brief foray out from the heat of the formal gathering, it was nice.
They'd been simply enjoying the view in silence when Finstock finally said, "You ever think about maybe getting a house." He said it, then finally turned to look at her.
–
The chill in the air made Garcia snuggle in close to her boyfriend though it was a literal breath of fresh air after the stuffy ballroom. She was about to suggest they get some hot cocoa and head back to their room, maybe sit on the balcony so they could continue to enjoy the view, when he spoke.
“You mean together?” she asked.
*
He paused slightly. “...Only if you think that’s a good idea. If you think it’s a bad idea, then no, not together.” Yep, he was giving them both an out. While Finstock had done a lot of things in his life, he had never actually lived with a woman he cared about. He had gone through roommates and had some crazy stories to go with those years, but living with someone he cared about that weren’t his parents? Nope.
–
Penelope smiled and leaned over to kiss him. “I think it’s a wonderful idea,” she said. “I mean, I’ll have to talk to Penny, but I can’t see her objecting.” The two got along and her ward would probably like to have more space than their apartment afforded them. She’d never gotten to the point of living with a significant other either and it felt like a huge step, though one she was confident she and Bobby could handle together.
*
He let out a small breath he hadn't really known he had been holding. If Penelope had said no, it would have sucked, but he'd have dealt with it. Sometimes one person was ready more than another. Thankfully that wasn't the case.
Finstock nodded when she mentioned Penny. Of course he'd wanted her well wishes too. That was very important. In fact, he'd want Penny's input on the house just as much as Penelope's.
"Great. Wonderful." He smiled widely. "And now that I haven't completely ruined the mood, want to go back in or head back to the room?"
“I think we should celebrate,” she said, her eyes twinkling at him as she reached for his hand. “Think we can snag some cake and take it with us?” Penelope was glad that they were sharing a room and it was just the two of them. It meant they could have a proper celebration and not worry about any interruptions.
*
His smile warmed and his expression matched her own energy. It was moments like this that he felt younger than he was. “I think that’s a great idea. I’ll go get the cake and you distract everyone with your beauty as we leave.”