SOTF Archive/SOTF Classic

"Well... that's a nice plan." Raina sometimes forgot that money was more of an issue for Penelope's family than hers. Arguably, the Roses spent more on their children regularly than the Fitzgeralds, what with putting Cameron through Yale and all the material ways they made up for their lack of presence in the home, but they could afford to do that.

Still, it wasn't like Raina was suggesting something totally outlandish. She had to resist the urge to argue, knowing that Penelope's intentions were good. "I don't think it's a waste though, not if you get something good about it." She smiled, trying to lighten the mood again. "Hey, maybe if we went on a trip like that, you could come with us."

Anyway, the white picket fence and two-point-five children dream had never been hers. Maybe it was good enough for Penelope, but Raina wanted to do something with her life. Creating things for people to enjoy themselves with was good work, she would never deny that, but Raina wanted to look out on the world and see an impact that she herself had made.

She was going to change the world someday.

...But this wasn't the time or place to get into that. She had come over to relax with her best friend, not get into a semantic argument about spending money.

"Definitely go with the robot body. Get some sweet robo-tattoos and overthrow humanity."

Penelope snickered. "You see, now you're speaking my language. Humanity will fall beneath my metal heel!"

She sighed. "But yeah... maybe I would go if your parents wanted me to come with you for whatever reason, though I'd probably need some convincing, I wouldn't want to cost you guys a ton of money or anything."

She gently rubbed the head of the cat in her lap. "To go back to what we were talking about just now though, I dunno. I'm not sure if what I want to do will be what actually happens in my life. There's not really any correct path, and sometimes circumstance can really screw things up. We all just do what we can and get through."

She shrugged, raising her hands into the air. "I'd be happy with an epicurean lifestyle with a loving husband and a child that I can raise. But I know you, and I can't imagine that something that simple is something you'd want, am I right?"

Raina laughed a little again. "Yeah, I don't think I'm going to be settling down like that any time soon. More power to you if that's what you want and it'd make you happy, though."

"Now," she said, adopting a serious expression and shifting in the beanbag to tuck her legs up underneath herself. "Something really important: your mom promised me hot chocolate when I got here."

"Oh um... in that case, it's probably ready?" Penelope said, as she picked the cat off of her lap and placed it down on the bed beside her.

"Let's head down and get it ourselves," She said, while standing up and stretching her arms. "Hopefully my mom actually made it rather than forgetting, but even if she did we can always just make it ourselves. It's not too hard!"

She glanced over at her computer screen as she was passing by, seeing a Skype notification pop up as she did so. "Oh actually, one sec, lemme respond to... uh..." She leaned over, clicking on the Skype symbol in her taskbar. "Oh it's Icy. Let me respond to Icy real quick, you can head down without me."

Raina grinned and extricated herself from the beanbag chair with some effort, stretching as she stood. She had met... well, talked to Penelope's friend Icy over Skype a few times and didn't resent the brief interruption; if anything, it meant that she got to get to the kitchen first and pick out the mug of hot chocolate that had more whipped cream.

"Alright, see you in a minute!" She hurried down the stairs, the scent of the kitchen drawing her forward.

Some parts of winter weren't so bad.

Penelope tapped out a short message to Icy, explaining that Raina was over and that they were going downstairs to get some hot chocolate, before hitting send and moving towards the door.

"Alright, coming!" She shouted into the landing, before hurrying down the stairs to join her friend in the kitchen.

---

Life is often unfair, and sometimes the future holds undeserved misfortune, but on this day, all that mattered was this moment, preserved in eternity.

End.