penelope. (leaveapenny) wrote in reduxpitch, @ 2016-12-01 11:35:00 |
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If anyone asked later, Lucas would claim that Seamus had put the idea in his head. His cousin had done no such thing, of course, but looking back on what he was about to do was a distinctly a bad idea and exactly something he would recommend. Ducking into Barely a Stitch, Lucas tried not to appear too agog at the bits of frilly lace and silk. This was a bad idea if there ever was one. He didn't particularly like shopping for himself. What made him think that he could shop for Prim with any success? Catching sight of a mannequin wearing a corset, he blushed deeply. That was not something that Prim would ever wear, but it didn't stop him from imagining her in it -- Penelope glanced up when she heard the door, not one to rush and interrogate customers when they first came in, but she did try to keep an eye out on people who were in her shop. The boy who walked in looked out of place - young, cute, sweet. And uncomfortable at being there, if that redness in his cheeks was anything to go by. She got up from where she'd been working behind the counter and walked out toward where he was. “Hi, were you needing some help?” she asked, her tone soft rather than an accusation that he didn't know what he was doing. “I'm Penelope,” she went on, holding out her hand. “This is my shop - and I’d be glad to help with anything you're looking for.” -- "Um," Lucas bit his lip, but took the woman's hand anyway. He made sure he didn't squeeze too firmly when he shook it, not wanting to hurt her when she was clearly trying to help. "I don't really know what I'm looking for?" He admitted. Glancing around again, he quickly turned his attention back on Penelope. "I want to get something for my girlfriend. I just don't know what." Was that the first time he had referred to Prim as his girlfriend? She was certainly his best friend and the mother of his unborn child. They were looking for a place to live together. They were looking to build a future. Wasn't that the definition of a girlfriend? "Well, I think I know what she wouldn't like, if that's any help?" -- Penelope offered him a smile when he took her hand, tilting her head as she gave him an offer to speak his piece. Men, she'd found, were far less comfortable in her shop than women. There wasn't anyone else there which was better for him, no one to make him feel more uncomfortable than he already was. Girlfriend - that she could work with. “Knowing what she wouldn't like is definitely a good start,” she said with a nod. “That rules things out, which makes it all easier. So what wouldn't your girlfriend like?” -- Lucas hadn't noticed that he was the only customer in the shop, which was probably a good thing. Because then he might not have gotten the personalized attention from Penelope, the owner herself. "Nothing too frilly?" He offered. "She's really pretty, but she doesn't always like the attention on her. Which isn't why I like her," he hastened to add. Just in case the woman in front of him thought he was the type of person who liked a girl because she 'wasn't like other But girls' and was attractive because she didn't think she was attractive. "I don't want to make her uncomfortable." Looking around at the various displays, Lucas tried to see if there was anything that he thought Prim would like. Nothing quite came to him. Maybe he should have asked Pippa to come with him. She would know what to get Prim. They'd gone shopping together before. -- It was good that he was so aware of what his girlfriend liked. So many men weren't, in Penelope’s experience. More knew what they liked but that was hardly the same. It made her smile a little more when he mentioned he didn't want to make his girlfriend uncomfortable. She'd wanted to help him before, but that made her want to do so even more. “Alright, well let’s start with the easy questions,” Penelope said. “Had she ever worn anything like any of this before? And what's her favorite color to wear?” -- "She likes blue." Lucas had to stop and think. "She likes to wear dresses and jumpers. And I don't think I've ever seen her in bright red." Personally the color didn't matter to him, but he knew enough that if he purchased something in a color she didn't like Prim wouldn't tell him that. She'd wear it regardless, but Lucas wanted something that would make her happy. "She's a natural blonde, but she's currently a brunette." Was that useful information? "She's worn something like that before." He indicated a bra and knicker set with a bit of lace around the edges. "It was blue and white polka dot." -- Penelope glanced over to the items he was indicating, giving a quiet hum as she considered it. Something simple seemed to be what he was looking for - simple, but nice. And blue. It helped knowing that she didn't like the attention on her, because so much of what Penelope had was attention drawing and va-va-voom. Not to say she didn't have things more demure, but on display not so much. “Okay, well do you think she'd like something like this?” Penelope asked, motioning over toward a teddy that offered more coverage than most of what was on display. “It's kind of more like a dress, doesn't put everything out there but is still pretty?” -- Lucas nodded as he approached the display. "It comes in a different color than red, right? Maybe yellow? That's a happy color." And Prim deserved to be happy, as far as Lucas was concerned. "Or blue." The color could be determined later because he was suddenly struck with the idea that he didn't know what size he was supposed to get either. Prim's pregnancy only complicated that issue. Getting her something that didn't fit wouldn't work either. "And there's something else," Lucas glanced at Penelope out of the corner of his eye, unsure of how the older woman would take the next bit of information. "My girlfriend, she's pregnant." -- “It can be any color you'd like,” Penelope reassured him, because really, color was the least concern. She had fabric to match any color of the rainbow and could make it to whatever he'd like. She'd simply thought perhaps with the knowledge his girlfriend liked to wear dresses, and didn't quite like attention, something less revealing might be appropriate. At the revelation his girlfriend was pregnant, her expression brightened. “Oh, congratulations,” she said with a smile, her hand resting lightly on his arm for a moment. “We’ll definitely make sure to find something she'll like, and that will be incredibly comfortable. How’s that?” -- When no judgement or lectures came, Lucas relaxed significantly. He had been ready to jump to Prim's defense at the slightest hint of hostility. Thankfully he could just continue to be incredibly clueless on what to actually get his girlfriend. "Thank you. We're exhibited, happy, and nervous all rolled into one." The emotions tended to change on a daily basis, but those were the most frequent. "She's about twenty weeks along, but not not really showing yet." Looking at the display again for several moments, he turned back to Penelope, a slightly stricken look on his face. "Should I get one for now? One for later in the pregnancy? How about one for after?" -- “I can only imagine,” Penelope said with a light laugh. She couldn't even imagine thinking about having a baby, so anyone who was expecting one deserved all the best in her opinion. Halfway there was only halfway, and she knew the body would change more in the last half, but they couldn't assume what would happen. “I think it might be good to get her one she could wear now,” she offered, pausing for a moment in thought. While it was a business, she wasn't all in for making money just for the sake of it. She wouldn't tell him to get something she thought was inadvisable. “I'm not sure about later in the pregnancy, but I would recommend one for after. I think it's important for a woman to feel good after her body has been through so much. Clothes are only one piece of it, but things like this can help. They can give that feeling of… special, cared for, as silly as that sounds. With a baby, with having gone through a birth, even if it's something different I think she would appreciate having something comfortable but special feeling to wear.” -- Lucas breathed a sigh of relief knowing that he wasn't completely out of the realm of thought when it came to what he should purchase. "She's really special," he stressed, because sometimes he wasn't sure Prim realized that and the more he said it the more he hoped it would roll off his tongue while with her. "And I want her to know that I feel that way about her." Nodding, he felt good about his decision. "May I have one in blue and one in yellow?" He asked Penelope. "I think those are the ones she would like the most." -- Penelope smiled a bit more when he said his girlfriend was really special. He seemed like a good kid, and one who had a good view of the woman in his life. That was especially good to know since she was pregnant. “Well if she's really special, we’ll have to make sure she feels that way.” She gave a nod at his request. “One in blue and one in yellow - that I can definitely do.” Tilting her head toward the counter she gestured for him to follow her. “Come back and you can pick the shades you'd like?” Not waiting for a response, Penelope moved back to the counter and pulled out the book of swatches for him to look through, because there were so many shades of blue and yellow. -- If he wanted his sister's assistance before, as soon as he was faced with fabric samples and color samples, he desperately Pippa was there to tell him what to do and what to select. He was pretty sure that there wasn't a difference between some scraps of fabric and Penelope just put them in there for laughs. Pouring over the book, he tried to differentiate between the shades of blues and yellows. Finally he selected a few that he thought Prim would like and looked up at Penelope. "Is there anything else I should do?" -- Penelope waited patiently for him to pick out the shades, getting out a pad of paper to make some notes about what he was wanting. She didn’t want him to feel like she was watching, waiting for him to make a decision. Once he did, she wrote down what he’d chosen and offered him a smile. “Well I do need a bit more information,” she said, almost apologetically considering how he didn’t seem fully comfortable with being there. “For instance, do you want both these colors for now - while she’s pregnant? Or are you wanting one for after? Also I don’t know anything about her measurements… so I guess it would help to know if you knew what size she was?” -- "Both colors for now." If Prim liked them, maybe he could come back and get ones for after the baby was born. Or maybe not, if Prim didn't like the idea of spending money on her. But if she already had the gifts she couldn't refuse them. It was sound logic. Her next set of questions were a tad more difficult. "She's about my height. A few inches shorter. Everything else is sort of average?" He gave a sort of half shrug. "Not that she's average, but do you know what I mean?" He hoped she did or else Lucas was just going to dig himself a deeper and deeper hole. -- Penelope gave a nod, putting a little mark next to the colors she’d written down. She certainly hoped he would be back, because to her it felt quite important for a woman to feel special and beautiful after their body had been through so much. He seemed to care a great deal for his girlfriend, which made her feel like he knew how to take care of her. She hoped, at least. “She’s not average, but in terms of height and weight, you mean?” she offered. “Not to be indelicate, but do you know her bra size? I find there’s no average size for women there, and particularly if she’s pregnant, that’s one of the places she’s bound to have grown.” -- "They're about the size of a good size orange, almost about the size of a grapefruit." Lucas gestured with his hands, not only feeling slightly foolish but also a bit crude for doing so. Both of his siblings would be making faces at him (at the very least) if they say him doing it, but since he wasn't doing it to make a joke or to be cruel Lucas thought he could get away with it. Hopefully Penelope wouldn't think less of him for making the comparison. "But I haven't really noticed much growth… there yet." He knew that was something that happened in pregnancy, but he hadn't noticed it yet and didn't want to ask Prim about it. "But she's healthy and lovely and…." he trailed off. "Is there anything else I can answer for you? Or not answer, as it appears." -- He really did seem sweet, even if he didn’t know the answers to her questions. Penelope particularly liked the way he kept stressing how nice she was -- really special, not average. Even when she was simply trying to get some kind of measurement from him, it was more about health and lovely than any kind of actual help. She couldn’t hold that against him, not when he was being so cute about it. “It’s really all dependent on the person,” she said, offering him a smile. “Most women do grow there, but that doesn’t mean all do. I’m not asking to be intrusive, only because I want to be sure it’ll fit her well when she gets it.” She paused, absently drawing against the paper with the quill she was holding. “I’m guessing you want this to be a surprise, yes? So it wouldn’t do to have her come in to be measured, because then she’d know something was up. Not that I’m suggesting you snoop around in her things, but if you had access to her bra or something like that where you’d be able to see her size… that might be helpful.” -- Reaching up, Lucas scratched the back of his head. "I could do that," he admitted. It wasn't like Prim kept her underthings away from him and he was trying to learn how to help out by doing things like laundry and cooking. He would never be as good a cook as Prim, but at least he tried. "My sister might know. Or have a better idea. They've gone shopping together before." Plus Pippa knew all sorts of things about clothes that escaped Lucas' notice. Maybe he had picked out the completely wrong colors. Should he have asked Pippa to come with him? Probably. "Would it be terribly difficult for you if I left and came back for the information you needed? Are there more questions I should know about before I try and answer them?" -- Penelope gave a quick shake of her head, her smile never fading. “Of course not. It’d be less trouble for you to come back later than for me to make things in the complete wrong size and have to redo.” She tore off a piece of the paper and wrote down a few notes, mostly what he needed to look for - bra size, dress size, which would help her most when trying to make a garment for his girlfriend. “Here,” she said, sliding the slip across to him. “If you can find out those things, that should do. If you can only get the bra size that's fine too, but both would be perfect.” -- Lucas took the time to look at the paper and the notes written. They seemed simple enough and he could most likely get the information required. Pocketing the piece of parchment, Lucas looked back at Penelope and flashed her a smile. "Thank you so much for your help. I appreciate it and I think my girlfriend will too." Once she got over the fact that he went out and got her something custom designed and made for her specially. Taking one last look around, Lucas turned back to Penelope. "Do you do things other than ladies' underthings?" It would be pretty odd for him to get Pippa something like he was getting Prim, but his sister deserved something specially made for her as well. Only not underthings. -- “It’s my pleasure,” Penelope said easily, closing the book of swatches and sliding it back into place below the counter. She always made sure every customer was well taken care of, but she would take extra care with this one. It wasn’t often she was given the opportunity to make something for an expectant mother, and she thought someone going through that deserved to feel as good as possible. Her gaze flickered back up to him at his question, and her smile grew slightly. “I do, yes. I could do most anything you’d want, but I’d say mostly people come to me for underthings and gowns.” -- Well an entire gown was out. No matter how generous Lucas was, he knew he couldn't afford something like that for his sister. And even if he could, he wouldn't attempt to design and purchase one for her. "Thank you." He said again. "But I think my sister might kill me if I tried to give her a gown. Not because your designs aren't lovely," he was quick to assure Penny, "but she's particular." That was one word for it. "I would want to make sure that she received exactly what she wanted, which means that she should be here, not me." He looked at Penelope, hoping she understood what he was he was trying to say. "But I will tell her that she should visit." If she wasn't a customer already. The store seemed like a place Pippa would shop at. "How much do I owe you?" -- Penelope quickly nodded, not wanting him to think he'd insulted her in some way. “No, I completely understand. Here,” she paused, pulling open a drawer and fishing out a business card to slide across the counter to him. “You can give her that if you'd like, then she'll know where we are if she feels like stopping in.” She flipped through her design notebook to find the one he'd chosen for his girlfriend, noting the price and adding it up before telling him the total. “Oh, and could I possibly get your name? Just in case I’m not here when you stop by with the measurements, so we’re sure to get them to the right order.” -- Had he forgotten to introduce himself? Lucas couldn't remember, but it didn't seem that far off that he hadn't. "Lucas. Lucas Flint." He took the business card and tucked it in his pocket beside the parchment she'd just handed him. He would find a present for his sister and hide the business card in there. It would be like two presents in one. Okay, that was a bit of a stretch, but Pippa wouldn't say anything. Pulling out his wallet, he carefully counted out the coins and passed them over the counter to Penelope. It was probably a bit more than he should have spent, and more than Prim would have spent on herself, but as far as Lucas was concerned it was completely worth it. -- “Lucas Flint,” Penelope repeated, offering him a smile. She slipped the coins into the register beside her and slid the drawer shut with a click. “Well it's been quite nice to meet you, Lucas. I think it's a lovely thing you're doing for your girlfriend, and she's lucky to have someone who cares so much for her as you do. I’ll be sure to be on the lookout for those measurements coming in so these can be done as soon as possible, yes?” -- He nodded. "I'm the lucky one," he told her, fully believing what he said. Lucas knew he was a product of those who loved him and he knew Prim loved him, despite not being able to return those words just yet. "I'll try to get those measurements to you soon. Thank you, Penelope." |