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This was going to be the second time Elizabeth would see William today and yet, it did not bother her. It should have been cause for alarm because she had just met William yesterday. Generally when she went out with a guy, she would not hear from him for some time before they saw each other again. But, things with William seemed different.
Their first date went off so well that it was hard to believe, especially since it was a blind date. There was the normal apprehension about meeting someone new and trying to hold a decent conversation. But, as soon as they got passed that, their date was pleasant. In fact, Elizabeth could not remember the last time she had such a good time.
Many small discoveries about William revealed themselves to Elizabeth on the second date. She discovered a guarded nature in William that made him mysterious. She did not think that he was mysterious on purpose, but instead was reserved when it came to information of a personal nature.
I suppose if I were the heir to a successful and venerable publishing company, I wouldn't like sharing that information all the time with strangers. Elizabeth laughed wryly at the realization. She imagined what it would be like if she had to explain this every time she met someone new. She shook her head in disbelief. That is a great undertaking indeed. No wonder he was reluctant to share it.
Next, Elizabeth dreamily sat back in her chair as she remembered playing catch with William in the afternoon. Jane had expressed her concerns that William might be put off or that he might not pass her test. Although Elizabeth listened to Jane's concerns, Elizabeth did not worry. She some how knew that William would do well playing catch. However, when it was time to go through with it, a fleeting moment of doubt overcame her. She questioned herself about using such a subjective method of determining someone's worthiness. Her doubts were soon alleviated when William exceeded her expectations for playing catch by throwing honestly and without hesitation.
Then lunch! She sighed deeply as she thought about the delightful lunch with William. I can't believe I talked about a comfortable bed being one of life's simple pleasures! Elizabeth bit her lip as she smiled. He must think that I'm crazy or desperate. Then suddenly the thrilling memory of William's parched reaction afterwards caused Elizabeth to giggle.
Then there was also the incident of the kiss at the end of the date. She did not usually mind being kissed by an attractive, single man, but in this instance, something triggered in Elizabeth that caused her to retreat. Although there was an undeniable attraction between them, Elizabeth knew that there was also something more underneath the allurement, and that's what she was afraid to confront. Could William bethe one? She wondered. It was an unsettling feeling to realize that the person who existed only in your dreams and in the hidden passages of your heart could actually be real. That's why Elizabeth quickly pulled away from William's gaze. She was not ready to have her idea of the one come together with the person who embodied all the ideal qualities whom she had just met only a day ago. As a compromise, Elizabeth had innocently kissed him on the cheek, but it left a lingering sensation. Their mysterious connection could not be overlooked and treated lightly.
Elizabeth was brought out of her reverie by the sound of her pen drumming rapidly on the table. She looked at the pen in her hand as if it were put there mysteriously. Then suddenly, as she was hit with the realization of the current situation, she dropped the pen from her hand like a hot coal and smacked her forehead.
"William's coming over and I still have to straighten out this place and myself!!" Elizabeth shot out off her chair and hurriedly picked up the stacks of papers from the table. Her head did quick movements like a bird as she searched the room for somewhere else to set the papers down. Elizabeth's eyes settled on the counter of the breakfast bar. She then rushed towards it and practically threw the stacks on the counter. She went back and hastily arranged them in some order, but she abruptly abandoned them when she realized that she had to do something about her own appearance.
She flew to her room and struggled to throw off her sweatshirt which ended up crumpled on the floor. Elizabeth frantically searched her closet, roughly pulling and pushing the hangers. She finally settled on a pair of jeans and a wine colored three-quarter inch sleeve shirt and threw them hastily on her bed. She proceeded to get ready with the same urgency. As she shook her flannel pants off, she picked them up and threw them on the floor next to her sweat shirt. Then she hastily put on the clothes she picked out from the closet. Elizabeth decided to stick with her house slippers instead of putting on shoes. It's not like we're actually going anywhere. She thought.
Elizabeth zipped up her pants and buttoned them, as she sped out of her room towards the bathroom. Then she reached up and undid the messy bun on her head. As the bulk of the curls fell on her shoulders, she shook her head to unloosen the bun more. When she reached the bathroom, she looked at the mirror and laughed. "I should probably do something about my hair." She said with a grin. The massive waves in her hair bounced above her shoulders as she moved around, trying to get ready. But, before she worked on her hair, Elizabeth took off her glasses so that she could put on her contacts. Although she liked wearing her glasses, she was not quite ready for William to see her wearing them. She did not have time for make up, but decided to moisturize her face and lips. When she finished, she returned her attention to her hair.
"Let's see. . ." Elizabeth wanted to leave her hair down, but she felt that it looked too messy the way it was. She decided on a compromise and pulled back the sides that tickled her face and left the rest down to shower passed her shoulders. When she finally fastened the barrette around her thick hair, she heard a quick knock on the door. Her eyes widened, "He's here already?" She checked herself one more time in the mirror. She was a bit flushed, but it's no wonder because of the hurried manner she prepared herself in.
When Elizabeth reached the door, she hesitated and took a deep breath and bit her lip nervously. When she finally opened the door, she temporarily lost her ability to speak at the sight of William's breathtaking appearance.
William wore a pair of fine fitting khaki pants and a white collared shirt that hung on his frame attractively. However, Elizabeth had not noticed his clothes very much. She was distracted by the bare skin exposed underneath his Adam's apple because the top button of his shirt was left undone.
"Hello." William held the handles for the bag of take-out food in one hand.
Elizabeth's lips had moved, but nothing had come out.
"Elizabeth, are you alright?" William cautiously approached Elizabeth.
Elizabeth slightly shook her head. "Ah, yes. Sorry." Elizabeth smoothed down her hair. "Hi. Please come in." She stood back to allow William in. As William walked in, he saw that Elizabeth was wearing her house slippers. He smiled warmly at the domestic image of Elizabeth.
As Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, she pointed in the direction of the living area. "You can put the food on the dinner table. I'll get some plates and forks."
William proceeded towards the living area and was immediately upon the dinner table. He placed the take-out bag on the table and took out the different sized cartons of assorted Chinese food from the bag.
Elizabeth put the plates and forks on the counter of the breakfast bar. "What would you like to drink?"
"What do you have?"
"Well, Jane just went to the store today." Elizabeth opened the refrigerator door, "We have some juice, soda-- oh that's strange."
"What?"
"There's some wine."
William turned to look through the opening of the breakfast bar. "What's strange about that?"
"Jane and I don't normally drink wine. Well, Jane will have some if we're out somewhere, but she's not the type to drink a whole bottle by herself."
"Perhaps she's saving it for a special occasion or something." William's eyes traced Elizabeth's figure as she stood with one hand on her hip and the elbow of her other arm resting on the door. Not many women in William's acquaintance wore jeans.
Elizabeth shrugged. "I suppose." Then she turned to face William. "So, what would you like?"
William blinked a few times. "What would I like?" William could not help blushing.
"To drink." Elizabeth looked at him inquisitively.
"Oh, right." William cleared his throat. "I'll have a soda." As Elizabeth turned around and grabbed a soda, William shook his head at his preoccupation with ` Elizabeth's form.
Elizabeth set the soda on the counter and poured herself a glass of water from a pitcher that was in the fridge. "Would you like ice in your drink?"
"Yes, please."
As Elizabeth took a glass from the cupboard, she could feel William's eyes locked on her. She self-consciously tucked some hair behind her ear and tentatively went to get some ice from the freezer for William's drink. Although William had already reproached himself for staring, he could not bring himself to stop. She waited for William to say something, but he just continued observing her.
Elizabeth cleared her throat. "I appreciate you bringing dinner over. I had lost track of time while I was working and completely forgot about it."
William glanced at the large stack of papers at the end of the counter on top of the breakfast bar. "It looks like you had a lot of work to do."
Elizabeth's shoulders dropped slightly as she poured the soda into the glass. "Yes. I'm usually pretty good at keeping paper work down to a minimum, but essays are a completely different matter." After she had poured William's drink, she grabbed both glasses and headed towards the dining table.
"I find myself always looking for something else to do besides grading essays." When Elizabeth reached the table, she set the drinks down gently.
William raised an eyebrow."Really?"
"Well, this time I did actually make progress." Elizabeth smiled playfully. "Besides, I've earned this break."
William laughed and looked back at the stack of papers. "Yes, it looks like you certainly did."
Then they both looked in wonder at the group of various cartons laid out on the table.
"Well, I hope you're hungry." William let out a small laugh.
"There certainly is a lot of food." Elizabeth took one of the plates William had set on the table from the counter.
"It seems Anne wanted to make sure that we had enough to eat." William took the other plate.
"Anne? I thought she had her dinner plans." Elizabeth's brow was furrowed as she looked at William.
William swallowed and blinked several times before he responded. "Ah . . . she did. Before she left, Anne wanted to help me out on a few things."
Elizabeth smirked. "Anne seems to take prodigious care of you." After examining the various cartons, Elizabeth settled on a large carton of fried rice.
"Indeed she does." William hesitated before he picked up a carton of the same size, but filled with chow mein.
Elizabeth carefully scooped out some fried rice onto her plate. "Did you guys figure out what to do about that future investment?"
"Future investment?" William had scooped out some chow mein and set the carton down. He was now deciding on which carton to open next.
"Yes. While we were talking on the phone, you had mentioned that you and Anne were talking about a possible future investment." Elizabeth picked up the carton of chow mein. As she forked out the noodles on her plate, Elizabeth furtively glanced at William.
"Oh, that." William cleared his throat. "Well, I . . . I was having trouble deciding how . . . deciding how to proceed." He took a slow drink of his soda.
"Investing is tricky business. It involves a lot of risk taking, doesn't it?"
"Indeed it does." William could not take his eyes off Elizabeth. If she only knew. He thought.
"Does Anne know a lot about investing?" Elizabeth continued to inspect the other cartons.
William swallowed with effort. "I wouldn't say that she knows a lot about investing per se, but she's very good at . . . planning for the future."
"Planning for the future?" Elizabeth looked up at William curiously.
William slowly ran his fingers through his hair. "She has a way of putting things in perspective."
William's cryptic responses bewildered Elizabeth. She began slowly, "Well . . . I hope this investment turns out to have a favorable outcome for your future."
With a meaningful look, William said, "I hope so too."
William's comment and look unnerved Elizabeth. She quickly changed the subject.
"Shall we sit?" Elizabeth pulled out a seat at the head of the table and sat down. William faltered before he took the seat to her left. They searched the table for utensils for a moment before William spotted some chopsticks. He reached over for the chopsticks on the other side of the table and then handed some to Elizabeth. As he pulled his chopsticks out of the wrapper, he observed Elizabeth do the same, but when she broke hers apart, she turned away from the table and rubbed the sticks together.
He looked at her questioningly.
"You rub the sticks together to get rid of the splinters caused from breaking them apart. That way they won't fall into your food."
"Oh." William copied Elizabeth's actions.
"Have you ever eaten with chopsticks before?" With ease, Elizabeth picked up some chow mein noodles with her chopsticks.
"Yes." William began picking up food with the same fluidity as Elizabeth. "But, I don't use these kind of chopsticks very often."
Elizabeth smirked inwardly at the remark. He's used to those fancy sushi places. She thought.
Suddenly, Elizabeth caught a familiar smell and her attention was drawn towards William. "Where did you get that?" Elizabeth pointed with her chopsticks at his plate.
William looked at the direction where Elizabeth pointed. "The Orange Chicken?"
"Yes. I didn't see any." Elizabeth peered at the cartons as if the one she missed had hid from her.
William smiled and looked over the cartons and found the one Elizabeth wanted and passed it to her. As she took the carton from William, her features became brighter. A faint smile escaped Elizabeth's lips as she scooped out some Orange Chicken onto her plate.
"I take it that you like Orange Chicken?" A grin was spreading it's way across William's lips.
Elizabeth set the carton on the table with downcast eyes. A faint blush spread on her cheeks. With a sheepish look, Elizabeth said, "I confess I have a weakness for it."
William laughed. Well, then it's a good thing that I asked Anne to order some. He thought.
The couple ate in silence for some moments. Although it appeared that they were preoccupied with eating dinner, they were in fact thinking about the other person.
Elizabeth snuck furtive glances at William from time to time. She was bemused by the fact that this handsome, wealthy, pleasant, single, man had brought her dinner. She admitted that things had gone rather well so far, but she could not help feeling that something amiss was bound to happen. She just felt that since things were going so well that something was bound to happen that would ruin it. Elizabeth wondered if is she really had a chance with William. So far they got along well, but they hardly knew each other. She could not help thinking that when William did know her better, would he ever consider. . . could she consider... She picked up her glass and took a long sip. This is crazy! She thought. One thing at a time. She repeated to herself over and over. Just get through dinner!
William was thinking about his resolve from earlier in the afternoon. He had decided that he would not allow his actions to be influenced by his feelings. He would remain objective in getting to know Elizabeth. William looked around Elizabeth's apartment. It was smaller than his home that was closer to the shore, but it had a more cozy feeling. Very faintly, he could hear music playing. Opera. Italian. The Marriage of Figaro." He thought. Although it was faint, he was familiar enough with the opera to make it out. William listened more intently. He could hear the melody, but he could barely make out the lyrics. Then suddenly he heard the chorus. Voi. . . che. . . sa-pete. . . As he took a sip of his drink, he glanced at Elizabeth. She was concentrating on her food. The song was about unrequited love. Perhaps it's just a coincidence? He wondered. Elizabeth doesn't seem to be the type to be so obvious with her feelings. He gulped his drink. Get a hold of yourself ! What else could it be, but a coincidence. You're letting your feelings get the better of you again. William inwardly steeled himself.
Elizabeth observed William staring intently at the CD player across the room. She had put on music while she was working, but had forgotten to switch it off in her race to get ready.
"Is the music bothering you?" Elizabeth looked at William with concern.
Elizabeth's voice brought William out of his daze. "Oh, no." He turned to look at Elizabeth before he said, "In fact, it's very nice. Is it The Marriage of Figaro?"
Elizabeth, impressed that William knew, smiled warmly. "Yes, it is. You seem to know it very well to be able to recognize it so quickly."
"It's been a long time since I've heard it." William hesitated. He moved a piece of Orange Chicken from one side of his plate to the other with his chopsticks before he said, "My mother enjoyed opera very much. This was one of her favorites."
Elizabeth detected a slight tone of somberness in the last part of what William had said. She proceeded with caution. "It sounds like you're close with your mother."
William looked up suddenly from his plate. "Yes, I suppose we were." William set his chopsticks down and began turning his glass in circles. "I . . . I admired her very much."
Elizabeth picked up on William's use of the past tense when he talked about his mother. She set her chopsticks down. "Would you like me to shut off the music?"
"No, I don't mind it."
Elizabeth looked unconvinced.
William tried to reassure Elizabeth. "It's a very beautiful opera."
Elizabeth ventured hesitantly. "Yes." Slowly her courage rose. "Someday I hope to hear it performed." William continued to observe her, hoping she would continue. "Although the recordings are wonderful, I'm sure it doesn't hold anything to an actual performance."
"My mother always made it a point that we attend the theater when ever possible." A faint smile slowly appeared on William's lips. "I didn't appreciate it then, I was relatively young. Can you imagine a twelve year old boy sitting through Carmen?"
Elizabeth and William laughed, easing the awkward mood in the room.
"It wasn't until I was older that I appreciated it more." William picked up his glass carefully and took a sip of his drink. "I was about seventeen when I first saw The Marriage of Figaro." The somberness from earlier had returned.
"Is that when-" Elizabeth caught herself. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"
William looked directly at Elizabeth. "It's alright."
Elizabeth could not look away. "Is that," Elizabeth swallowed slowly before she said the next words, "is that when you mother passed away?"
"Yes." William thought for a moment before he said, "I suppose it was a while ago."
"But, you still miss her." Elizabeth searched William's face for any unspoken answers.
William hesitated before he said, "Well, yes. She was my mother."
Elizabeth blinked a few times at the obvious fact. Of course he would miss her. She reproached herself for her remark. However, when she looked up at William to see his reaction, instead of expecting to see a reproachful look, instead a look of genuine warmthness appeared on William's face which surprised her.
William leaned closer, not taking his eyes of Elizabeth. "It does get easier." His voice was calm and reassuring.
Elizabeth, touched by his insightfulness, could not deny that his comment was directed towards her feelings for her father. Is it that obvious that I miss him? She wondered. Elizabeth studied William's expression for a moment. There was the warmthness that she had observed, but on closer examination of his eyes, she felt a fraction of the same feelings of grief and loss she experienced, even now. Elizabeth felt as if her emotions were on the verge of escaping from her. She had believed that no one would ever understand how she felt about losing her father. She had reconciled herself to that possibility for so long. Now, it was possible that she may have found someone who could understand. It was too much to bear. She slowly disengaged her eyes from William's face and looked down. A part of her wanted to run away. Another, more dominant part of her, wanted William to put his arms around her. In an effort to save herself from becoming undone, Elizabeth tried to change the conversation.
"How old is your sister?" She tightly gripped the seat of her chair.
Although the manner of Elizabeth's voice was calm, William observed the tenseness that overcame her shoulders.
"She's seventeen. Actually, she'll be eighteen in three weeks." Elizabeth's shoulders slowly loosened. "She'll be graduating from high school this year as well."
The steadiness and calmness of William's voice was soothing to Elizabeth's inner disorder.
William took Elizabeth's silence as a cue to continue. "She's coming out next weekend to visit one of the college campuses out here."
Elizabeth, relieved, looked up. "Oh." She started slowly. "I have a sister who's graduating this year from high school too."
"Which sister?"
"Catherine. She's the one after Mary. Catherine's also the second youngest."
"Jane's the oldest?"
"Yes."
"Then you."
"Right."
"Then. . ."
"Mary."
"Oh, then Catherine."
"Yes, but we actually call her Kitty."
"Ah. And she's the one who's graduating from high school?"
"Yes." Elizabeth grinned. She felt as if a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
"Will Kitty be going to college?"
Elizabeth nodded. "She'll be attending a State College."
"How about . . ." William thought a moment. "Your sister Mary?"
"Ah, Mary." Elizabeth sighed. "Mary earned a full scholarship to a private college."
One of William's eyebrows arched.
"Mary is . . ." Elizabeth cleared her throat. "the studious one out of all of us."
"Do each of your sisters hold some kind of title?" William held back his amusement.
Elizabeth considered the question. "I suppose." Then a playful smile appeared on Elizabeth's lips. "Let's see. . . Jane is the beauty."
William fought back the urge to speak.
"You know what Mary is. Hmm. . .Kitty . . ."A soft wrinkle creased across Elizabeth's brow. "Kitty was silly when she was younger, but when she became a junior, I think she realized that she had to take things a bit more seriously if she wanted to go to college. She's improved since then."
Elizabeth sighed. "Then there's Lydia."
"Lydia?"
"She's the youngest." Elizabeth let out a deeper sigh.
"How old is Lydia?"
"She's fifteen." Elizabeth shook her head.
"Well, that doesn't sound so bad."
"I'm sorry what was your sister's name again?"
"Georgianna."
"Georgianna wasn't a handful when she was fifteen?"
"No. I don't believe she was."
Elizabeth looked skeptically at William.
"Really. Georgianna has always been thoughtful and good-natured." William was in earnest.
Elizabeth realized that it had to be true considering who the brother was. She could not help smiling when she said, "Of course."
William's brows slightly wrinkled, but when he realized the meaning of what Elizabeth had said and the warm smile she gave him, he could not help returning a smile as the nape of his neck burned.
The music had stopped which made them realize that their conversation had ceased. Both broke out of their steady gaze with the other person and shifted in their seats. William cleared his throat and Elizabeth breathed in deeply.
"Do you have any brothers?" William took a sip of his drink.
"No. Do you?" Elizabeth picked up her chopsticks.
"No." William picked up his chopsticks also. "But, I do have a cousin who is like a brother."
"What's his name?"
"Richard. Richard Fitzwilliam."
"Oh. So, you were both brought up together?"
"Yes. Along with Anne." One of the corners of his mouth was upturned.
"That must've been a lot of fun."
William let out a small laugh. "Actually, being around one of them is not bad. In fact, they're quite pleasant. It's when they're in each other's company. . ." William shook his head.
"It can't be that bad." Elizabeth enjoyed watching William's candidness unfold before her.
William cleared his throat. "At first they manage to be civil towards each other, but some how," William shook his head again, "they manage to argue, disagree, or slight the other in the end. A person would think that they're really brother and sister."
"Brother and sister?"
"Yes. They certainly fight like they are."
"Hmmm. . ." Elizabeth took a sip of water.
"What?" William looked up at Elizabeth curiously.
"Have they always been like this?"
William thought a moment. "Yes. Ever since I can remember."
"Hmm . . ."
"What?"
"Well," Elizabeth hesitated before she said, "People show their feelings for another person in many different ways."
"Are you saying that Richard and Anne like each other?" The idea was so foreign to William.
"Perhaps one of them likes the other."
William shook his head in disbelief. "Impossible."
"Well, I haven't met either one of them, so I could be wrong, but you can't completely discount the possibility."
William looked at Elizabeth skeptically.
"There is a possibility." Elizabeth insisted.
William relented. "Maybe."
As they continued eating, William began to describe some childhood and adult experiences between Anne and Richard that illustrated his doubts that there was a possibility that one of them could like the other. Many of them involved Anne being annoyed by something Richard had done. Elizabeth was amused by some of William's descriptions.
"They sound like quite a pair." Elizabeth recovered from a fit of laughter.
William grinned, but it was mostly due to making Elizabeth laugh. "Yes, I suppose they are."
Elizabeth's amused expression slowly disappeared and was replaced with a more serious demeanor.
William observed the change. "Is something the matter?"
"Well, I can't quite figure it out." Elizabeth searched William with her eyes.
William became unsettled by Elizabeth's scrutiny. He thought she found something she disapproved of.
"It was a moment ago, when you were talking about Anne and Richard . . . "
William looked at Elizabeth without the slightest idea of what she was leading to.
"And over the phone. . ."
William's curiosity piqued.
"I know it might sound strange, but sometimes it sounds as if you're talking with an accent."
William blushed. He had not realized how closely Elizabeth had been listening to him.
Elizabeth observed William's reaction. She was not sure if she had said something that upset him.
"I-"
"Sorry."
"No, it's alright."
"I didn't mean to-"
"No, really it's alright."
"It's just that I thought you said you were from Philadelphia."
"I am, but. . ." William was surprised at Elizabeth's attention to detail. "I spent a large portion of my childhood growing up in England."
"Really?" Elizabeth, intrigued, leaned closer to William.
"I was born here, but my family lived in England for sometime after I was born, but we would also travel from one continent to the other. It wasn't until Georgianna was born that my parents decided to settle in Philadelphia. I was ten when that happened. Our trips to England were limited to the holidays and summer time when we were out of school. But, then after high school, I went back to attend Cambridge."
"Oh. That would explain it." Elizabeth was pleased to learn so much about William. "I've spent my whole life here. It's not very worldly or sophisticated, but I'm pretty satisfied with how my life has turned out so far." Elizabeth's features were bright.
"I find that quite refreshing actually."
Elizabeth curiously looked at William. "I think I hardly qualify as a worldly or accomplished woman though."
"Why do you believe that?"
Elizabeth was not fishing for compliments. She was aware of the type of women that William interacted with in his acquaintance. She assumed that these women had resources and opportunities that she did not have. These women had the ability to pursue their interests without the constraints of wealth or resources, therefore, these women, Elizabeth believed, were refined and extremely knowledgeable. At least, more than she was. Elizabeth attempted to point out the obvious.
"Well, my modest background didn't allow for things that perhaps a woman of your acquaintance could easily get."
"There aren't that many women in my acquaintance that I would consider accomplished."
Elizabeth felt as if William was challenging her. "You're very severe on these women. Surely, there are at least six that you know who are accomplished."
William leaned back in his chair and nodded in the negative.
Elizabeth looked at William skeptically.
"I must speak as I find." A playful expression came over William's face. Elizabeth understood it as if he was still challenging her.
"I can't believe that a woman who would have the resource and opportunity would not take advantage of it. The opportunities to attend the theater regularly or view collections of art are too great. And those opportunities aren't limited to just what's here."
"Some women do take advantage of what they have, but they don't really appreciate or take the time to understand it."
Elizabeth's brow furrowed.
"In addition to interests in art or music, an accomplished woman must also focus her attention on the improvement of her mind." William leaned closer to Elizabeth. "Not many women of my acquaintance have taken the time to earn a degree while also maintaining an appreciation for art, music, or anything else for that matter. I also can't recall the last time I heard a woman of my acquaintance talk about something that genuinely interested her other than what's in fashion or the latest rage."
"That's a pity then."
William sat back in his chair. "I don't think how many resources a woman has at her disposal determines whether or not she's accomplished." William looked intently at Elizabeth. "It's what she decides to do with it and what she achieves that matters."
Elizabeth did not know how to respond. Is he referring to me? Does he consider me to be an accomplished woman? She wondered.
Elizabeth broke away from the gaze she was caught in. She looked at her glass as if it could help her. "I'm going to refill my glass. Would you like more soda?"
William blinked a few times. "Yes, thank you."
Elizabeth got up from her chair suddenly and picked up the two glasses. As she made her way back to the kitchen, William watched her walk away. He had not realized that he was staring until she was gone. He shook his head and realized that he would have to keep his self in check better.
Elizabeth, relieved for a short reprieve from William's attention, slowly poured another soda. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the lock jiggling. Then the door opened and Jane walked in.
"Jane." Elizabeth, surprised to see her, abruptly set down the soda can which made a hollow noise on the counter.
"Hi, Elizabeth." Although Jane's voice was calm, the heightened color in her cheeks and the brightness in her eyes revealed that she was excited. Jane walked over to Elizabeth standing near the refrigerator. Jane was about to ask Elizabeth about her evening, but saw the two glasses in front of her sister.
Before Jane could say anything, William stood up from behind the breakfast bar and could be seen through the opening above it.
"Good evening, Jane." William smiled sheepishly.
The color in Jane's cheeks became brighter. "Oh, William. I didn't know-" Jane looked at Elizabeth whose cheeks were red. "I hope I'm not intruding."
"No."
"Of course not." They blurted out at the same time.
"William brought dinner over." Elizabeth smiled shyly at William.
William faltered for a moment at Elizabeth's smile before he said, "Yes. It seems that Elizabeth nearly worked herself into starvation." William flashed an irresistible playful smile back at Elizabeth.
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow. "I would've remembered. I'm not so helpless." She looked at Jane who had been watching the two of them. "Besides, I'm sure that Jane would have reminded me."
They all laughed which dispelled some of the tension of a third person happening upon their intimate dinner.
"Jane, will you join us?" William's expression conveyed a sincerity that surprised not only Jane, but Elizabeth as well. She was taken out of her shock when she realized that Jane had left the kitchen and was heading towards William at the dining table. She picked up the drinks on the counter and quickly followed Jane.
As Jane approached William, she noted the intimacy of the dinner on the table, particularly how Elizabeth 's and William's plates were set side by side. "Thank you, but no. I've just returned from going out with Charles and we had dinner already." Even if Jane were famished, nothing could tempt her to disrupt this dinner.
Elizabeth set the drinks down back on the dinner table. "Did you have a good time?"
Jane blushed as she stole a glance at William. "Yes. We had a very nice time."
Elizabeth realized that Jane would not be very forthcoming due to the fact that Charles' best friend was standing right in front of them. She laughed to herself at the silliness of the situation. It seems we must stay on safe topics. She thought. Then suddenly a thought popped into Elizabeth's head.
"Jane, what's the bottle of wine for?"
"Oh." Jane recovered herself. "I'm having dinner with Charles' sisters tomorrow evening. I thought it would be nice to bring it."
"Charles won't be joining you and his sisters?" Elizabeth tried to sound indifferent, but William heard the slight distress in Elizabeth's tone.
"No. He'll be out with his brother-in-law."
"Oh." The experience with Caroline in the ladies room was still fresh in her memory and Elizabeth was apprehensive of what Caroline might do or say to Jane. Elizabeth was a bit shaken up by what Caroline had said, but she had recovered quickly. She did not want Jane to get hurt in the same way.
"Have you met his sisters yet?"
"We've been introduced, but I haven't become acquainted with them." It was obvious that Jane was eager to further her acquaintance with Charles' sister by the brightness in her eyes.
Although the way Elizabeth talked to Jane appeared to be a polite interest in the possibility of Jane getting to know Charles' sisters, her anxiety about the prospect was obvious due to the way Elizabeth had gripped the back of her chair. William realized that Elizabeth had not told Jane about the incident with Caroline in the ladies room last night.
"Charles mentioned that he and Mr. Hurst would come by at the end of the dinner."
Elizabeth eased her grip on the back of her chair and took a breath. "Oh. That should be nice."
Jane grinned at her sister, but subdued her grin to a smile after realizing that William was observing her.
"Well, I think I'm going to get ready for bed. We have to be up early tomorrow." Jane began to say good night to William, but was cut off by Elizabeth.
"We?" Elizabeth did not usual get up early on Sundays.
"Yes."
"What for?"
Jane looked at Elizabeth incredulously. "You've forgotten?"
Elizabeth stared at her sister blankly. "About what?"
Jane sighed. "You've been talking about this for weeks now. We decided that tomorrow would be the day we'd try it."
Elizabeth thought about what Jane was talking about. Her mind kept drawing up a blank. She looked at her sister for an answer.
Jane shook her head in disbelief. "Kick boxing."
Elizabeth's eyes widened in recognition of the fact. "Oh. Right."
"Well, if you've lost interest in it, I would be more than happy not to go." Elizabeth had been trying for weeks to get Jane to check out the kick boxing class with her. One of her colleagues at work took the class and encouraged Elizabeth to try it. It had taken three weeks of convincing, but Elizabeth had finally convinced Jane to try it with her. Although Jane agreed, she was not looking forward to it.
"No, I haven't lost interest. Are you kidding? We are going." Elizabeth's tone was so decided that Jane knew that there was no hope.
With a resigned sigh, Jane said, "Alright."
Jane proceeded to say good night to William and walked dejectedly to her room. Jane would have preferred to go walking or even jogging, but Elizabeth had been animate about trying this. Elizabeth almost felt sorry for her sister, but she was determined to go.
When Jane had gone into her room, William and Elizabeth sat back down to dinner. They ate tentatively. Although Jane had gone to bed, the presence of a third person in the apartment could not be ignored. The intimate mood that had pervaded the evening slowly dissipated.
Although he was eating, William did not savor the food he ate. William knew that he should leave soon, but it seemed like things had been going well between him and Elizabeth. He was torn between doing the right thing which was allowing them to have their privacy and doing what he wanted which was to continue being in Elizabeth's presence.
Elizabeth knew that the evening with William would end eventually, but now it seemed it would end abruptly. She was not ready for the evening to end, yet.
"Hmm. . . kick boxing." William took a sip of his drink.
Elizabeth looked up at William with a raised eyebrow. "Uh-huh."
William thought a moment before he responded. "Isn't that an aggressive sport?" The corner of his mouth was upturned in a playful way.
Elizabeth laughed. "Yes, it is. But, we won't actually be contact fighting."
William looked inquisitively at Elizabeth.
Elizabeth suppressed the urge to laugh again, but instead smiled. "It's Cardio-Kickboxing."
Still, William looked at Elizabeth for further explanation.
Elizabeth playfully sighed. "Cardio-Kickboxing involves doing the basic kick boxing moves, but in an aerobics-like way."
"Then why not just do aerobics?"
"Well, in cardio-kickboxing, you also get to kick and hit punching bags."
"Oh, I see." William fought the urge to laugh. "I suppose that's the best part of it."
"Absolutely." Elizabeth sat up in her chair. "Haven't you ever felt like hitting or kicking something to let out all of your aggressions?"
"No. I don't think so." William let out a quiet laugh.
"Really?" Elizabeth looked at him incredulously.
William, surprised by Elizabeth's reaction, considered his answer carefully. "I've always tried not to let my feelings get the better of me."
Elizabeth thought for a moment. William tried to say this in a light manner, but there was some seriousness in his voice. It's too soon to be talking about things like this. She thought. Elizabeth decided to stay with the playful banter they had been engaged in. An arched expression spread on her countenance. "Even you would not be able to remain so collected, I'm sure, after one day of teaching."
William could not help laughing. He realized that his last words were more serious than he intended them to be, but a part of him was glad that he had said it. William was relieved, however, that Elizabeth did not pay much attention to it. "You're probably right."
Elizabeth smiled triumphantly at his admission.
"I'm surprised that Jane will be going with you." William tried to continue their banter.
Elizabeth's expression softened. "Yes." Her eyes quickly looked at Jane's shut bedroom door. "Jane doesn't like activities that involve a lot of aggressiveness." Elizabeth looked down at her plate.
As William observed Elizabeth's change in demeanor, he realized that he touched on something that concerned Elizabeth. Then he remembered Elizabeth's behavior towards Jane when she talked about having dinner with Charles' sisters the next evening. It was obvious that Jane looked forward to having dinner with Caroline and Louisa, but Elizabeth's behavior revealed that she was distressed about it. William hesitated before he said, "It seems like Jane doesn't know what happened with you and Caroline last night."
Elizabeth looked up at William in wonder for a moment. Then her eyes wandered back to Jane's door. "No, she doesn't know."
William leaned back in his chair.
Elizabeth looked back at William. "I didn't want to tell her because she and Charles seem like. . ."
"They're getting along really well." William leaned in closer to Elizabeth as he finished her sentence.
Elizabeth looked down at her hands. "I don't care what Caroline says about me. She can look down on me and say what ever she wants and it doesn't matter." Elizabeth took in her breath. "But, Jane . . ."
"I'm sure that she'll be fine tomorrow night." William looked at Elizabeth with concern.
Elizabeth looked doubtful. "I hope so. Jane is such a sweet person. I would be-" Elizabeth stopped herself. She cleared her throat. "Well, at least Charles will be there later on in the evening." Elizabeth tried to console herself.
William wanted to reassure her that things would be fine, but he was not sure how. Before he could he think of anything else to say, Jane called out to Elizabeth from her room.
"Elizabeth, do you have a moment?" Jane's bedroom door was part way open, but Jane was not visible.
"Yes, I'll be there in minute." As Elizabeth called back to Jane, she looked over at William. "Will you excuse me?"
"Of course." William watched Elizabeth walk away and into Jane's bedroom.
When Elizabeth entered Jane's room, Jane was in her robe standing in front of her bed, waiting for Elizabeth.
"What's the matter, Jane?"
"Elizabeth, I'm so sorry to interrupt your dinner."
"It's alright."
"I didn't want to, but . . ." Jane looked at her sister apologetically.
"Jane, please. It's alright." Elizabeth smiled reassuringly at her sister. "What is it?"
"Well, you know I wouldn't dream of interrupting, if it weren't an emergency. . . per se." Jane looked down.
"You're not hurt, are you?" Elizabeth carefully looked over her sister's body. She noticed no injuries.
"No." Jane became flustered. "I'm sorry. This is becoming a bigger deal than it really is." Jane sighed. "I was just wondering how much longer William was staying."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow at her sister. "Not much longer, I think. We're nearly finished with dinner."
Jane sighed with relief. "Oh, alright. I'll just wait a little longer."
"A little longer for what?"
Jane swallowed. "Nature calls."
Elizabeth could not help laughing. "Is that all?"
Jane looked reproachfully at her sister. "I didn't want to go out there and interrupt anything."
Elizabeth shook her head. "Oh, Jane. That is sweet of you, but there's nothing to interrupt."
"There could have been something to interrupt." Jane gave a pointed look at Elizabeth.
Elizabeth looked at her sister with mock surprise. "Jane! What kind of girl do you think I am?"
Jane only smiled and shook her head at her sister.
"If you need to go, just go."
"I'm not going out there like this!" Jane was shocked at such a suggestion.
"It's not like you're running down the hall naked or something." Elizabeth could not contain her amusement at the situation.
"How would it seem if Charles' best friend saw me like this?" She pointed at her robe and undone hair.
"I think Charles would envy him." Elizabeth pointed out in a matter-fact tone.
Jane tagged her sister lightly on the arm. "Elizabeth!"
As Elizabeth rubbed her arm, she could not help laughing at Jane's reaction.
Jane looked sorely at Elizabeth. "I'll just wait here then."
"Jane, it's OK."
Jane sat down resolutely on her bed and crossed her arms.
Elizabeth shrugged. "Alright." And left the room.
As Elizabeth walked down the hall, she saw the table had been cleared and William was no longer sitting there. She quickened her pace to see if William was on the couch, but she heard noises in the kitchen. When she reached the kitchen, she observed William putting a dish in the drying rack next to the sink.
"What's going on?" Elizabeth looked at William in wonder.
William turned off the faucet and picked up a dish towel. As he dried his hands, he cleared his throat. "I hope you don't mind. I thought since we were practically done with dinner, I took the liberty of clearing the table."
Elizabeth blinked several times in astonishment.
"I put the leftovers in the refrigerator and," William looked at the dishes drying on the rack, "I managed not to break any of the dishes while washing them." He set down the dish towel on the counter lightly.
Elizabeth slowly walked over to the counter and examined the dishes in the rack. Clean. Then she made her way to the refrigerator and checked inside. All the food was packed and in the bag and placed neatly on a shelf. Elizabeth quickly shut the door. She stood in front of the refrigerator for a moment before she turned to William.
"I hope everything is up to your standards." A playful smile lingered on William's lips.
"Oh, of course." Elizabeth, shocked by William's display of domesticity, tried to regain her senses. "You really didn't have to do all this."
"It was no trouble at all. It's the least I could do for interrupting your work." William suddenly became preoccupied with the linoleum floor.
"Well," Elizabeth let out a soft sigh, "I can't recall ever having been interrupted so pleasantly." Elizabeth could not take her eyes off William. "Thank you."
When William looked up at Elizabeth, he was met with a warm smile that made the back of his neck burn. The warmthness from Elizabeth's smile was becoming increasingly difficult to withstand. He did not expect Elizabeth to react in such a way. William shifted in his place and rubbed the back of his neck. "I . . . uh. . . ," He looked up at her timidly and finally said, "You're welcome."
Elizabeth continued looking at William in astonishment and wonder. The few guys that she had went out with did not even show one eighth of the thoughtfulness that William had showed this evening. It did not seem like he expected or wanted anything in return. Elizabeth was not sure what she was feeling. She was excited, befuddled, and scared all at the same time.
However, William felt the danger of being in such close proximity to Elizabeth who stood closely in front of him. He knew that if he did not act quickly, his resolve to remain objective while getting to know Elizabeth would be all for naught. Indeed, it was becoming more difficult for William not to touch her.
William cleared his throat. "I should be going."
William's words brought Elizabeth out of her daze. "Oh, right. I suppose it is getting late."
Tentatively, they made their way to the door.
"I'll walk you out." Elizabeth proceeded to follow William out the door.
William quickly turned to face Elizabeth. "No, it's quite alright. You should stay inside."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow at William. "It's no trouble at all."
"Well, it's late and I wouldn't want anything to happen to you." He scanned the street intently.
"Nothing will happen to me." William was unmoved by Elizabeth's assurance. Elizabeth compromised. "At least let me walk you to the bottom of the stairs."
William inspected the stairs that lead down to the sidewalk. There were six steps before the sidewalk was reached.
Elizabeth could not believe the seriousness that William treated the whole situation with. She did not live in a bad neighborhood. In fact, it was very near the affluent part of town which William lived in. Before Elizabeth could provide any convincing arguments for the safety of the street she lived on, William spoke.
"Alright, but just to the bottom of the steps." William stated quite seriously.
Elizabeth had to hide her amusement. She could not help wondering if William was usually this protective.
They secretly savored their walk down the stairs, knowing their time together would soon end. They did not speak, enjoying the pleasing presence of the other. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, a touch of bittersweet happiness touched each person. Each enjoyed the evening together, but they found that parting from each other caused some feelings of regret that the evening was indeed over.
"That wasn't so bad." Elizabeth playfully smiled at William, trying to lighten the mood.
William returned her smile. "No, I suppose not."
They stood in front of each other, awkwardly silent for a moment, inadvertently prolonging their time together.
William shifted on his feet. Hesitantly, he asked, "May I call you tomorrow evening?"
Elizabeth grinned. "Yes. I'd like that very much."
William silently released his breath that he had been holding. Aware that if he was going to stick to his resolve, he knew he should bid her good night and leave, but he could not.
Tentatively, William moved closer to Elizabeth. For some reason, this time Elizabeth did not feel the need to step away or change the subject like earlier this afternoon. William placed his hand gently on her shoulder, leaned in and softly kissed her cheek. Before Elizabeth had realized what was happening, it was over.
William stepped back slowly and in a low voice said, "Good night."
Elizabeth sighed softly. "Good night."
They stood there looking at each other for a few moments.
Then William spoke up. "Well?"
Elizabeth blinked several times. "Well, what?"
William let out a small laugh. "Well, I'm not going to leave until you go back inside."
"Oh." Elizabeth could not help laughing. "Alright. Good night." Elizabeth proceeded to go back up the steps, looking back at William from time to time.
"Good night." William's eyes lingered on Elizabeth as she climbed the steps. When Elizabeth reached the door, she turned to give William one last warm look before she closed it.
When Elizabeth was gone, William let out a deep sigh. It was the second night he found himself looking longingly at that door. He shook his head to ward off ideas of possible other ways the evening could have ended. He slowly turned to walk to his car. Although he was pleased that he had stuck to his resolve relatively well through out the evening, it was not easy to forget the sensation still present on his lips after feeling Elizabeth's skin on them. He ran his hand surreptitiously through a wave in his hair. As he got into his car, he realized that sticking to his resolve was going to be much harder than he thought.
Author's Note: This chapter is dedicated to Liz K. I hope you find your way back here some day soon. ~J
Part 1 "Kickboxing"
"I am never, never going back there again." Jane collapsed on the living room couch. She breathed in taking large gulps of air.
Elizabeth returned from the kitchen with two tall glasses of cold water. As she carefully handed one glass to Jane, she proceeded to sit next to Jane, without taking notice to Jane's legs sprawled across the couch.
"Don't even think about it." Jane said breathlessly.
Elizabeth looked at her sister with disbelief. "It was not that bad." She tried again to sit next to her.
Jane glared warningly at Elizabeth.
Elizabeth sighed resignedly and sat on the coffee table. "You really didn't like it?"
Jane groaned. "Like it? Elizabeth, I would do anything for you." Jane leaned over with some effort and placed a hand on one of Elizabeth's. "But, I will never do this again." She then leaned back and arduously took in a long sip of water.
Elizabeth could not help feeling sorry for her sister. The color in Jane's cheeks was a bright crimson hue. Profuse beads of sweat trickled down her forehead as her matted ponytail hung limply on her sticky neck. Jane was never one for extraneous activity. "Well, I'm grateful that you did go with me. But, since you won't go again, I won't have a partner in the future."
Jane wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and sighed deeply as she looked at her sister. Elizabeth's cheeks had a most becoming color which also brought out the brightness of her eyes. Elizabeth's perspiration glowed which only made her look radiant. Although Elizabeth's hair was out of place, the stray hairs that had escaped, softly framed her face. "Well, what about your colleague from work? She seemed very nice. What was her name? Marianne?"
"Yes. Marianne Dashwood."
"Yes! She was very helpful during kickboxing class. She also seems like she shares the same enthusiasm with you about this." Jane sipped her water again.
"Well that wouldn't be too bad. She's student teaching in Music at work this semester. So, it probably wouldn't be too difficult to figure something out with her." Elizabeth pondered the possibility of having Marianne Dashwood as a kickboxing partner.
"I think that would work out well. You both also seem to have a knack for kicking and punching." Jane absently rubbed her arm on the spot that had supported the kicking bag.
Elizabeth laughed. "I suppose we do." Then she moved over to her sister and this time Jane moved her legs to make room for her on the couch. "What're your plans for today?"
"Well, I'm going to lay here a bit and try to recover some of my strength, but mostly my pride." Jane grimaced as she rubbed her thigh.
Elizabeth laughed again. "You did very well."
Jane looked at her sister doubtingly. "You're too kind."
Elizabeth amused, shook her head. "Well, what else are you going to do besides lay here and recover?"
Jane straightened up. "Hmm . . . I think I'm going to catch up on some reading for work. Oh, I'm also supposed to get my hair cut today too. Then of course you know about dinner."
"Right." Elizabeth looked at her sister intently for a moment.
"What?"
"Jane," Elizabeth slowly drew in her breath, "About dinner tonight."
"I hope they like me." Jane smoothed down her hair and fixed her shirt.
Elizabeth bit her lip. She wanted to tell Jane to be on her guard, that she should watch out for Caroline. But, as she observed the eagerness that Jane displayed at just thinking about having dinner with them, Elizabeth did not have the heart to warn her because then she would have to explain what happened in the ladies room the other night when she was out with William.
"What were you going to say, Elizabeth?"
"I was just going to say . . . that . . . you'll tell me everything that happens, right?" Elizabeth gently placed her hand on Jane's hand.
"Of course I will!" Jane squeezed Elizabeth's hand reassuringly.
Elizabeth managed to form a smile for her sister. She had faltered at the last minute. Elizabeth could only hope that Jane would return after dinner unscathed from any of Caroline's innuendoes or rude comments.
"What about you, Elizabeth? What do you have planned today?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and groaned. "Well, you know that I'll be out on Wednesday, so I have to get sub plans ready. I haven't even planned lessons for the rest of the week, let alone for the substitute." Elizabeth sank further down on the couch. "Then grades are due in two weeks, so I have massive grading to do. You saw all those papers." Elizabeth picked up a throw pillow and pretended to smother herself with it.
Jane let out a small laugh and took the pillow off of Elizabeth's face. "Is it already time for grades? It seems like you just did them."
"This is going to be the second grading period and then there will be one more before it's all over." Elizabeth groaned.
"So, is that all you're doing today?" Jane looked pointedly at her sister.
"Hmm . . . I believe so."
Jane looked at her doubtfully.
"Oh, I'll have the Dodger game on while I work." Elizabeth knew what her sister was hinting to, but she loved teasing her sister.
"Oh." Jane tried to look uninterested. "Nothing else?"
"Well, I did plan to have lunch."
Jane remained quiet, waiting for Elizabeth to continue.
"When I've got some work done, I'll probably take a nap."
Jane slightly shifted in her seat.
"Then I'll wake up, get more work done."
Jane shot an annoyed look at her sister.
"Work some more."
Now, Jane glared at Elizabeth.
"I'll probably be hungry again by then."
"Elizabeth."
"I'll have some dinner."
"Elizabeth."
"Work again."
Jane drew in her breath in an effort to preserve her composure.
"I think by then, I'll probably be ready for bed."
Jane's eyes shut as she shook her head at her sister's silliness.
Elizabeth scratched her head as she looked up at the ceiling. "I think that's all I'm doing today."
Jane tried to look stonily at her sister, but she could not suppress her amusement at Elizabeth's playfulness. Elizabeth had observed Jane trying to give her a hard look, but Jane could never be harsh. Soon, each had erupted into fits of laughter.
After Elizabeth recovered, she added, "Oh, I forgot to mention that William is supposed to call me this evening."
"Ah! So, good of you to share that." Jane playfully threw a pillow at her sister.
Elizabeth expertly caught it before it hit her and lightly threw the pillow back at Jane. "I thought it might be of some importance."
Jane's arms shielded her from what would've been Elizabeth's direct hit and the pillow bounced onto her lap. Jane thought about retaliating, but remembered the new information Elizabeth had just admitted and cast the pillow off to the empty side of the couch. "Of course it's important!" She eagerly settled closer to Elizabeth. "You're not going to see each other today?"
Elizabeth stifled her urge to giggle. "No. We've seen each other three times in the last two days. And may I remind you that I've just met William two days ago."
Jane sighed resignedly and looked down. "Yes, that's true." Then slowly Jane looked at her sister with a raised eyebrow. "I suppose a person could get tired of seeing a handsome and single gentleman too much."
Elizabeth laughed and shook her head. "Have you ever thought that he might get tired of seeing me?"
"Are you forgetting that he brought you dinner last night?" Jane looked at Elizabeth smugly.
"I'm sure he would've done that for anyone." Elizabeth stated in a matter of fact tone.
"I don't think William has a habit of bringing dinner to just anyone." Jane countered.
Elizabeth let out a deep sigh. "I don't want to make it seem more than what it was."
"And what's that?"
"It was just dinner." Elizabeth sounded like she was trying to convince herself rather than Jane. "Yes, that's all." Elizabeth got up and nervously paced behind the couch.
"Nothing else?" Jane, with a playful expression, turned around to look at Elizabeth.
"Nothing else." Elizabeth hesitated for a moment. "Well, we did talk."
"Good." Jane's eyes tried to keep up with Elizabeth's anxious pacing.
"We talked about his sister and his cousins."
Jane tried to practice the same silence from before.
"I talked about our family."
"Really?"
"Yes, I told him about our sisters. It was actually not too bad."
Jane smiled warmly.
"Then he talked about his mother."
Jane's interest piqued even further. "Even better."
"It was actually strange how it came up. I had the Marriage of Figaro playing. It was obvious it fascinated him in a particular way. Then we talked about it and it turned out that it was one of his mother's favorite operas." Elizabeth still paced the room, but now she also fidgeted with her hands.
"It sounds like you two had a wonderful dinner together." Jane looked at her sister warmly.
Elizabeth stopped pacing suddenly. Looking down, with her hands on her hips, Elizabeth quietly admitted, "It was nice." Then Elizabeth quickly turned to face her sister. "You know what else happened?"
"What happened?" Jane sat up straight and her eyes became wide with anticipation.
Elizabeth began slowly, "Last night . . . when I came out of your room . . . William had . . ." Jane was now leaning against the back of the couch eagerly facing Elizabeth. "He . . . William had cleared the table, washed all the dishes, and put dinner away in the fridge."
"Really?" Jane blinked several times. It was not what Jane had expected to hear, but this was even more astounding than what she had expected.
"Yes." Elizabeth resumed her trademark pacing. "I've never seen anything like that before. I'm not sure what to make of it."
"I think it's wonderful." Jane rested her chin on her hand and looked dreamily at her sister.
"Of course it's wonderful." Elizabeth stopped pacing and quickly turned to her sister again. "But, what does it mean?" Elizabeth continued her nervous pacing again. "Of course it doesn't mean anything. He was just being nice." Elizabeth began gesturing with her hands again. "But, was it just this one time he acted this way or is he like this all the time?" Elizabeth hurriedly tucked some of her hair behind her ear. "And if he's like this all the time, then-no, no, I don't think there's any man who can be like that all the time. That would be too good to be true. Right? We hardly know each other, but it seems like he-no, I can't think that way. It's much too soon."
"Elizabeth."
"But, he seems so thoughtful and kind."
"Elizabeth."
"I'm sure he is. But, we just met two days ago. How can anyone really know another person in such a short amount of time?" She turned to face Jane with her brow wrinkled.
Jane sighed in exasperation. "Well, I suppose you'll just have to continue seeing him." She ended with a smug smile.
Elizabeth moved towards Jane and looked at her seriously. "What if he doesn't want to continue seeing me?"
Jane gently put her hand on Elizabeth's arm. "Somehow, I doubt that."
Elizabeth looked down at her hands folded in front of her. "Thanks, but I think I'm not going to get my hopes up."
Jane knew it was pointless to argue with Elizabeth about matters like this. Elizabeth was not normally so apprehensive about such things, but William was different than all the guys she had ever went out with. Jane decided to change the pensive mood that pervaded the room.
"Elizabeth, why don't you come with me to get your hair cut? You even said that you've meaning to go."
Elizabeth looked up as if she were brought out of a trance. "Oh, but I've got so much work to do."
"It won't take up the whole day." Jane affectionately touched Elizabeth's hair. "Besides, you know you want to go."
Elizabeth stared at her sister with a raised eyebrow for a few minutes before she said, "Well . . . alright. But, afterwards, we have to come right back." Elizabeth tapped the couch to emphasis her point.
Jane grinned. "Of course."
They both got ready to leave. It was nearly eleven in the morning. Jane's appointment was for half past noon. As soon as the ladies showered and changed, they left for the appointment.
Part 2 "Jane's Surprise"
Elizabeth's eyes were trained on the colored reflections of light dancing on the ceiling of her cozy bedroom. The window in her bedroom had blue, red, and yellow glass sun catchers and they reflected, on the ceiling, the light of the slowly disappearing sun of the late afternoon. Etta James' At Last drifted seductively in the air adding to the laziness of Elizabeth's day.
At Last
My Love has come along.
My lonely days are over.
And life is like a song.
As she lay on her back, her head rested on one hand and the other absently twirled a strand of hair from her new hair cut. Her eyes first focused on the warm yellow spot on the ceiling. It reminded her of the lovely afternoon lunch she had with Jane. They had lunch outdoors at one of the cafes on the main street of town. It was warm, but the cool ocean breeze blew in from time to time providing a pleasant respite from the warm California sun. On Sundays, the main street was usually packed with couples and families walking up and down the street, window shopping or just out and about enjoying their Sunday. During lunch, their topics ranged from the latest developments at work to Charlotte and Maria Lucas' family-graduation party.
Elizabeth's eyes then wandered to the calm blue spot on the ceiling. It reminded her of the rest of the afternoon. It was several hours later when Elizabeth and Jane returned from the salon. After lunch, Jane had convinced Elizabeth to take a stroll on the main street with her as the locals did. As they walked, several stores caught their interest and by the time they had finished walking up and down the street, Jane and Elizabeth had several shopping bags from various stores in their possession. Elizabeth laughed to herself as she remembered her resolve before they left for the hair appointment that they had to come back home immediately afterwards. Jane had a way of persuading others to do what they were not supposed to be doing. Elizabeth was not upset with Jane. In fact, Elizabeth was happy to spend time with Jane because it had been a while since they spent any quality time with each other.
After they got home from their outing, Elizabeth attempted to get some work done, however, the effects of the warm weather and walking around all afternoon had got the best of her. She had worked for an hour when she finally took a nap. Elizabeth had rationalized to herself that she would be more productive and refreshed if she rested. Although Elizabeth had intended to take a short nap, it actually turned out to take up the rest of the afternoon and part of the early evening. When Elizabeth woke up from her nap, Jane had already left for dinner with Caroline and Louisa. Elizabeth let out a steady sigh as she hoped that Jane would be fine during dinner. Some feelings of frustration soon emerged as thoughts of Caroline Bingley invaded Elizabeth's mind.
Determined not to let Caroline get to her, she focused her attention on the glowing red spot on the ceiling. Elizabeth's cheeks became warm and she giggled spontaneously as memories of being with William popped in her head.
At last
The skies above are blue
My heart was wrapped up in clovers, the night I looked at you.
Elizabeth tried to suppress the thrill spreading slowly from her stomach to her chest by hugging a pillow close to herself. But, her feelings could not be suppressed as her thoughts wandered to their goodbye from last night. The soft kiss on her face and the gentle touch of his hand on her shoulder were brief, but she felt the thrill and excitement of the moment each time the image came to her mind.
I found a dream that I could speak too.
A dream that I can call my own.
I found a thrill to press my cheek too.
A thrill that I've never known.
She had thought that William was going to kiss her. The other guys that she had gone out with before would have tried to, but William did not. A million thoughts crowded her mind. The way he said good night was so charming and sweet. He seemed to really care. But, what if it's just a 'friendly' interest? What if he doesn't see me as someone who is more than his bestfriend's girlfriend's sister and he's only humoring them or worse, ME?! But, he really seems like he's interested. And what if he is? Is William even my type? Is he someone I could see myself with now or in the future?
And you smile, you smile.
Oh and then the spell was cast.
Elizabeth sat up. The thrill she had been feeling from the memory of last night quickly dissipated and her shoulders tensed. How can I think of the future when we just met two days ago? This is crazy! Serious relationships don't happen like this. Things are moving too fast. Elizabeth's grip on her pillow tightened with each doubt and worry that crossed her mind.
And here we are in heaven.
For you are mine, at last.
Elizabeth looked at her CD player, annoyed. She got up and shut off the words that pointed out the undeniable hold William had on her feelings, but Elizabeth was not ready to admit to this fact. Then she slowly drew the pillow closer to her as a thought she had tried to avoid, jumped out suddenly into her mind, refusing to be ignored anymore. But, what if he's the one? Elizabeth sat silently hugging her pillow. It was so unlike Elizabeth to let matters about men get to her. It was usually cut and dry. The guy usually turned out to be either a friend or not worth her time. But, William did not seem to fit in either category. Just stick to your decision from before: Get to know William first. Don't let your feelings get the best of you. Elizabeth stood up, turned around, and absently tossed the pillow back on the bed. She shook her head as she thought, That's easier said than done. William's tender display excited, confused, and scared her.
Suddenly, a faint rumble emanating from Elizabeth's stomach. As she rubbed her stomach to calm its disgruntled mood, she walked to the kitchen to get something to appease it. The microwave clock flashed 6:45 in neon green. It was much later than she thought and she still had so much work to do. There was also the matter of making dinner for herself. Elizabeth's frustration soon disappeared, however, when she opened the refrigerator and saw the bag of Chinese food William had put away from last night's dinner.
Before she could further contemplate William's foresight, her stomach grumbled detecting the food nearby. Elizabeth quickly took out the bag with such a fond and eager attitude not usually associated with having leftovers.
As soon as her plate was warmed, she headed to her usual spot at the dinner table where some of her work was already laid out from the morning. She gingerly pushed aside the disorderly papers up the table with one hand and set her plate down carefully on the cleared spot with the other. As she started eating, her eyes could not avoid the stacks of ungraded essays and the painfully empty lesson plan book that taunted at her for some attention. Elizabeth groaned deeply as the weight of the work she had to complete beared down on her unmercifully. Her work did not care that it had been a long time since she had experienced any fun and excitement. It would always be there faithfully, waiting for her to complete regardless of what was happening in her life.
While Elizabeth ate, she gave into the demands of her work by jotting down some plans for the upcoming week. Since she was not going to be at work on Wednesday, she decided to have her lessons for the week ready so that she could start preparing her lessons for the substitute. It was easier for her to have her lessons for the week laid out so that she could plan ahead of time. Elizabeth needed to be more organized this week because not only did she have to do her usual planning, but she also had to plan for another person who would take her place.
She worked methodically and at the same time savored each bite of dinner, trying to revel in what was left of her lovely weekend.