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Post by Anthony Warwick on Jan 6, 2021 6:59:24 GMT
Anthony was sitting at the clerk counter of Warwick’s Books. His head resting in his hands as he stared down the top counter top. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and his dark auburn hair was disheveled from the amount of times he’d ran his fingers through it. He’d done it. He’d finally done it. After months of wanting to meet, but of not having the courage to do so, he’d finally bloody done it. Now...He had to wait. He’d had a pen pal for quite some time, at least a year, and every week he went down to the inn to pick a letter up and then to drop it off another the following day. It was always the highlight of his week,and before he knew it, he had a whole shoebox full of her letters. He’d gone through and reread every single one she’d ever given him before he’d made his decision, and now he could only hope it was the right one. He hoped she’d want to meet him. “Ah fucking hell…” He grumbled. Not bothering to watch his language since it was a slow day. The social season was upon them all, and everyone was busy off getting fitted for new dresses, finding caterers, whatever they needed for their fancy parties. He rubbed his hands over his face, blinking his blue eyes as he reached forward to continue to fold his little paper crane’s he always stuffed into one of her letters. He has nearly a dozen scattered across the counter table, having built up the nervous habit. The bell at the door chimed and he didn’t look up from where he was still folding the paper. “Welcome in, let me know if you help finding anythin’!” He called out. Thomas Cartwright |
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Post by Thomas Cartwright on Jan 8, 2021 15:43:26 GMT
The perfect way to delay his studies? Well, when he couldn't drink (it was far too early for that, unfortunately, even for him), gamble, or roll his sleeves up in a foolish boxing match, it left him with one choice: visit Anthony. He was perhaps one of the first true friends he ever had when leaving the country, when he was thrust into this high society by a grandmother he hadn't yet known. It also helped that Thomas was rather fond of the Warwick's new shop, even if the other man appeared to be a little distracted these days. Maybe he needed to get out once in awhile.
With a wide grin on his face, he entered the shop with that familiar door chime to see Anthony behind the counter. His expression dropped slightly, because the man was clearly consumed within his own thoughts, and creating a whole flock of those cranes. On top of it, he didn't even bother to look up.
Curiosity pursed his lips a little as he removed the hat from his head before striding in further. The door closed gently behind him. "I see you've been...busy," he said of the paper birds. It also seemed like the bookshop was extra slow today as well, for he couldn't see anyone in sight. "You only get this strange when something has happened." Approaching, he placed the hat upon the counter as he took one of those origami animals between his fingers for closer inspection. Anthony really was rather good at these. |
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Post by Anthony Warwick on Feb 10, 2021 18:29:45 GMT
Anthony recognized the voice almost immediately, and those bright blues of his flickered up for the briefest moment to see Tom come in and approach the counter. He laughed in nervous laughed then, "You can say that again, friend." He chuckled, glancing at the pile of cranes. He finished the current one, tossed it on the pile, and grabbed the next piece of paper, starting to fold it. He pondered for a moment about telling Tom what he'd done. He knew about Pen, or at least that Anthony wrote to someone he could only assume was a woman.
His fingers worked more frantically before he abruptly stopped, slamming his hands down on either side of the paper. There was a heavy weight in his chest, that he had to get out. He had to tell someone what he had done. "I did it." He blurted, staring at the other man with big eyes. He pushed off the counter, turning on his stool as he stood up and began to pace. "I wrote to Pen again," He waved a hand as his pace quickened, "And this time!" He held his hands in front of him and shook them, as he turned on his heel and went back, to repeat the pace. He covered his face with his hands then, groaning loudly. "I asked her to meet with me." His voice had risen an octave, as his nerves were getting the best of him. "What if she doesn't want to see me? What if she denies me the opportunity to lay eyes on her Tom!" He voiced his concerns before he glanced at his friend. "What if she tells me No?!" He said in a giant rush of words as he continued to pace.
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Post by Thomas Cartwright on Feb 10, 2021 21:35:42 GMT
Eyes remained upon the little crane as Anthony began to talk. 'I wrote to Pen again,' he said, and Tom barely acknowledged him. "Uh huh..." Well, that was nothing new, and his friend was probably about to go on and tell him what his "dear Penelope" said this time. Sure, it had been interesting and exciting the first few times, to have this secret pen pal and all...but he kind of figured Anthony would grow out of it after a couple of months. Instead, he kept talking about her, whoever she was.
Busying himself with balancing the paper bird upon his knuckles, blindly reaching over for another from the pile as if to balance it on top of the other one, he flinched at Anthony's words and the origami bird fluttered to the floor. Thomas' own bright blues blinked, his lips pursed in thought, searching his mind for something to say to that.
He asked to meet her? Oh dear God, he's gone insane, Tom thought.
"Anthony, wait," he urged, trying to get the man to stop pacing. Clearly, he was nervous out of his mind, and Thomas had never seen him this way before. "Why? Why would you do that? You...don't know her. You don't really know her." That was debatable, maybe, but this was completely daft! "What if...what if she's not who she claims? What if she's completely dull in person? What if-" Tom paused, his brow furrowing in concern. "What if...she's ugly?" He gave his friend a look as if to say, did you even think of that? Good thing that I'm here. |
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Post by Anthony Warwick on May 1, 2021 21:25:31 GMT
Tom didn’t understand what Anthony felt. Of course the first few times had been silly and fun, but then things had taken an interesting turn, and he found he quite liked writing to this mysterious Penelope. As the year went by, Anthony had developed some serious feelings for her as well. He wondered if Tom had ever felt such strong feelings towards a woman before that would make him feel as Anthony did now.
Insane he might be, but Anthony needed to do it. He had to see her. See that she was real. His pacing didn’t stop as Tom told him to wait, if anything he became more frantic as he carted his fingers through that auburn hair. Tom’s words had him stopping though, and glared at his friend. “But I do know her. Why would she have any reason to lie to a stranger, to a person on the other side of the quill if she had no worries about me knowing her identity?” He tried to defend her and himself. He waved his hands through the air as he started to pace again.
"What if...she's ugly?" That had Anthony stopping once more and he grabbed a handful of paper cranes and threw them at Tom. “Take that back!” he exclaimed. He felt anger course through him despite Tom trying to probably be a good friend. He didn’t know Penelope. Not like he did. “I don’t care if she’s ugly, I’ve seen her heart, and she’s the beautiful woman I’ve ever seen-er read.” He proclaimed. He really was sounding mad wasn’t he?
Anthony sighed, running a hand down his face as the steam left him, and he threw himself down onto his stool rather dramatically. Setting his elbows on the counter as he let his chin rest in one of his hands. “At any rate, I can’t keep...going on like this Tom. I want to see her, and if she’d an old nana then so be it. If she’s a wee lass, so be it, and if she’s a woman...Then...so be it.” He sighed. “I need the truth, and I’m going to get it.” His blue gaze fell to the other man, as he flicked another crane at him. “Even if you think I’ve lost my mind.”
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Post by Thomas Cartwright on May 19, 2021 19:49:06 GMT
No, he definitely did not understand. Maybe Tom was too much of a visual person, because to grow attached to someone you never met face to face? It sounded absurd! It was almost as though Anthony believed he couldn't find anyone else, that no other woman would look at him.
He was crazy. His friend had completely lost his mind. That was the only thing he could possibly think happened.
Thomas Cartwright never got attached. Now, whether that was because he hadn't found the right woman to want to be attached to, or he was quietly rebelling against the wishes of his dear Nana. Really, he should be catering to the old woman's requests, considering she was hoping to leave all that she owned to him (and his family certainly needed it), but he hated not ruling his own path. Whether or not he already planned on doing something, if he was ordered to accomplish a task, he was going to drag his feet just out of spite.
"Hiding behind a quill makes it very easy to lie about oneself, Anthony," he told him a little sternly. Maybe this Penelope wasn't lying, however, the man needed to understand what he could possibly be getting himself into. What if this didn't have some fairytale ending? What if she was someone that Anthony should not be tangling with?
As the paper cranes can swooping towards the air at him, Tom simply stood there and let a couple of them lightly hit against him before fluttering to the ground. He just sighed. Okay, maybe he deserved that one, but he wasn't about to take it back. No matter how angry his comrade was getting. "No," he told him tiredly, prepared for anymore possible anger directed at him.
Tom sighed again before he turned to lean back against the counter; arms folding across his chest. Maybe he shouldn't be so harsh, but underneath all the comments, he was worried about him. He was worried this might break the man's heart, believe it or not.
It's why love was a bad business.
"You really have fallen, haven't you..." It wasn't a question, just more of a statement for himself to finally relent and let Anthony pursue this...even if Tom did think he was mad for it. "Look, I just...don't want to see you disappointed, alright? This is...a lot, and a big deal. What if she isn't who you are hoping for? What then?" Anthony had said "so be it", but how much of that did he really mean? |
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