Love Comes To Those Who Believe It
In-Fits-Of-Laughter
Disclaimer: I own nothing except Darcy. He's mine. Always has been. Is Always will be.
So don't you forget it!
I also own the original idea with the unoriginal characters of the story you are about to read now .
You like it? Review.
You don't? Sod off.
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
-- Chapter 1
I can read your mind
Jane Bennet was having a bad day. A very bad day. And for the first time in her life she had voluntarily come to The Midnight Express. She had nothing personal against it really. She had nothing against any bar, for that matter. She just wasn't one of those drinking-types. Given the option she would pick fresh-lime any day. But today was an exception. Today was definitely an exception. She didn't even know where to start – the excess sugar in her coffee(she loved coffee – with the right amount of sugar, please!); the jerk who bumped into her, causing her coffee to spill onto her new skirt – her new skirt; the bad haircut she got at Volumes just because Meg – the one who attended to her normally – was sick; or maybe the writer's block that had resiliently stuck to her since the past ten days… she had many more to go, but her thoughts were interrupted.
"What will it be, dahling?"
Jane mumbled incoherently – maybe because she knew nothing of the ways of a bar – except that Bond, James Bond had his martini shaken, not stirred.
"Bad day, huh?"
She nodded, not bothering with words anymore.
"Ah've got just the thing for you."
A glass of o slightly red liquid was placed before her.
"It's on the house. Go on now."
She lifted the glass to her lips, tipped it over and swallowed its contents in one gulp.
"That's the spirit. Now, spill."
Jane looked up into the woman's electric blue eyes. Surprisingly, she did feel better after drinking that. Only slightly, but still.
"Come on," coaxed Anna from behind the counter.
Jane didn't know Anna. At least not all that. They knew each other through Liz, her sister.
Her sister knew everyone and everyone knew her sister, literally.
Half of the people Jane knew were through her sister. And that was exactly why she didn't want to "spill", as Anna put it.
She trusted her sister; but her sister's friends? Not so much.
And anyway, what did she know of Anna? Or, for that matter, Anna of her?
She was thinking about how to avoid this interrogation, when someone placed their hand on the counter beside hers, and said in a very attractive British accent,
"Two of the regular, please."
Jane looked up at the person beside her, and saw only, a headful of hair. She realized a moment later that the person – a man, obviously, was looking at something behind him.
She turned too, and following the general direction of the turn of his head, saw a heavily-built lady – probably in her mid thirties, and a man of the same physical structure seated side by side at the table directly in front of the door; and a fashionably dressed young couple walking out – actually the woman was pushing the man in front of her, and before disappearing from view, called out, "See you, Charlie."
Her neighbour at the counter, smiling to himself, turned back to Anna (who seemed to be enjoying the spectacle very much).
Anna winked at the man and said, grinning, "She's got him again, huh?"
He grinned back looking slightly abashed. Noticing Jane, he flashed a brief, but friendly, smile at her, too.
And Jane's heart stopped. Or skipped a beat, more likely. It was too late, when she realized that she should have smiled back, but hadn't. He had turned back to Anna, who was preparing his drinks.
Jane's mind started working at about 100 mph, she just had to talk to this guy. She wanted to. She needed to.
Her mind had moved onto the 19th possible way – dropping the glass (and later, paying for it), when her thoughts were interrupted (again!).
"Excuse me. I'm really sorry to disturb you."
Jane turned upon him eagerly, and shook her head to show that he wasn't disturbing her, at all.
"Aren't you - ? Are you - ?" He looked around as though for moral support.
"Jane Bennet?" he rushed, finally.
Jane was surprised, and then she nodded, realizing half-a-minute later that she was an author, with a novel that had hit the bestselling charts and stayed there for three whole weeks, and that she should probably be grateful and happy that people recognized her.
He beamed. "I just finished your book. And I think it's god-damn amazing."
Her smile grew wider. She was really starting to like this.
He stuck out his hand and said, "Charles Bingley."
She frowned slightly as she shook his hand, and before she could let go, let out an excited squeal, as it finally struck her. She'd finally realized what had been bugging her for the past ten minutes.
"The Charles Bingley? As in, Charlie Bingley? The racer?"
"I presume you've heard of me then."
"Yes. My sister's a big fan of yours, actually"
"So are you now, I hope." He looked almost self-conscious.
Jane blushed prettily.
Elizabeth Swann was seated cross-legged on her bed, her guitar on her lap and her Diary in front of her. She'd written a new song and was trying it out. Gently she started strumming and sang along, glancing once in a while at the words in her Diary.
Here's the thing we started out friends
It was cool but it was all pretend
Yeah yeah
Since you been gone
You dedicated you took the time
Wasn't long till I called you mine
Yeah Yeah
Since you been gone
And all you'd ever hear me say
Is how I pictured me with you
That's all you'd ever hear me say
But since you been gone
I can breathe for the first time
I'm so moving on
Yeah, yeah
Thanks to you
Now I get
What I want
Since you been gone
How can I put it? You put me on
I even fell for that stupid love song
Yeah, yeah
Since you been gone
How come I'd never hear you say
I just wanna be with you
I guess you never felt that way
But since you been gone
I can breathe for the first time
I'm so moving on
Yeah, yeah
Thanks to you
Now I get what I want
Since you been gone
You had your chance you blew it
Out of sight, out of mind
Shut your mouth I just can't take it
Again and again and again and again
Since you been gone
I can breathe for the first time
I'm so moving on
Yeah, yeah
Thanks to you
Now I get, I get what I want
I can breathe for the first time
I'm so moving on
Yeah, yeah
Thanks to you
Now I get
You should know
That I get, I get what I want
Since you been gone
Since you been gone
Since you been gone
Just as the last notes faded away, she heard a familiar voice.
"Now, why didn't I get to hear about this guy?"
She looked up and her face broke into a smile, as she placed her guitar on the bed, gently, and jumped up, not so gently.
"Jane!"
Jane came forward and hugged her sister. "How are you doing? You look a little pale."
"I'm fine. I just finished the song, so everything's just peachy now."
Jane knew how her sister could appear to be suffering from the likes of OCD, when she had a song in her head and kept everyone around her on their toes, until she'd finished it.
"What're you doing here?"
"What? Can't I call on my sister, once in a while?"
"Jane, I know you don't like my glitzy hotel-room-of-an-apartment, and every time you 'call on' me, you do so at the café – two buildings away. You tell me, this instant, Jane Margaret Bennet, what has happened."
"Well…" Jane glanced around the room shiftily.
"You know that game you like a lot?"
Liz was relieved. For one moment she thought it was news from home – and news from home, which came through her sister, was always bad.
"Oh! I don't like Prince of Persia anymore. There's this other -"
But Jane cut her off. "No! I mean that sport – racing in cars and all that. Where they race in cars and –"
Liz could see her sister was rambling again. She did that a lot when she was nervous and uncertain of what to say.
"Yes! Ok. I got it. Racing. Just call it 'racing'."
"Yes. Well, You know the one – Oh hell! I can't do this anymore. Liz, I met Charlie Bingley! –"
"What!"
"And he knows me!"
"You met – !"
"And he's invited me to his practice session tomorrow!"
" – Charlie – What!"
"Yes! He's so – "
"Wait." Liz raised a hand. "Hear me out. I need to get this straight. You met Charlie Bingley?"
"Yes. He's – "
"Yes or no?"
"YES!"
"And he knows you?"
"Yeah! He read my book and liked it."
"Oh. And he invited you to his practice session tomorrow?"
"Yes."
"And you're going?"
"Yep."
"Hmm…"
"And you're coming too."
"Of course. I wouldn't have let it be otherwise."
"Good."
"Hmm…"
"What now?"
"I'm wondering if anyone else will be there."
A/N: Since you been gone is by Kelly Clarkson. I just borrowed it for a short while.
