Notes:

A huge thank you to booknoser321 and Bellieve328 for the very helpful betaing. Thank you also to erinwert who helped inspire the title (which comes from the Sara Bareilles song of the same title) and to all of you (you know who you are) who assisted with deciding on a text messaging format. 3 you all.

The first chapter of this story has actually been up on AO3 for a while and I just realized that I'd forgotten to post it here. I've only just published Chapter 2 though so for today I'm going to upload both chapters 1 and 2. After this, I will post updates weekly from now until the story is complete. So from now on you will get a new chapter every Monday. Enjoy!

Uncharted - Chapter 1

Lizzie paused the 98th episode of her video blog at 3:19 and stared at her face for a moment. She was supposed to be finishing up final edits on the written portion of her thesis project, but instead, when she'd gone to look up a specific reference in her videos, she'd gotten sucked in and for the past half hour she'd been re-watching the last few videos and thinking about William.

She pressed play again, sucking in a breath as she watched emotions flicker across her own face. She remembered that moment so vividly, as though it had happened only yesterday and not nearly six weeks before. She remembered how dejected she'd felt, how saddened. She'd genuinely thought that it was over before it had begun, that she had missed her chance and that William would never know how she truly felt about him. And then, he had told her that his feelings hadn't changed, and, even as she watched it now, she felt again the relief and hope that had come flooding over her, and the overwhelming torrent of emotions as she finally admitted to herself how she was feeling. She recalled how utterly terrified she had felt in that moment, how exposed. In fact, there had been a split second where she'd very nearly lost her nerve, as she'd searched for the right words that had failed to come. But then she'd done it. She'd pulled courage she hadn't been aware she had from out of nowhere, closed the distance between them and in the next moment revealed herself to him by kissing him. It was weird watching it happen, even weirder watching herself kiss him on camera knowing that over 400,000 people had also watched this moment, some multiple times if the comments her twitter followers had flooded her with were any indication.

Lizzie paused the video again and this time the image was frozen on their second kiss, the first kiss between them that William had initiated. She would never forget that moment, even if it hadn't been immortalized forever on video. She would always remember the comforting strength and warmth of his hands as they encircled her back and held her, the surprising softness of his lips as he pressed them against hers and poured months' worth of frustration and yearning into that kiss. She recalled how his kiss had taken her breath away, how her heart had been beating so rapidly within her chest that she was certain he could hear it. But most of all she remembered how liberating it had been to finally act on something she'd been suppressing for months, and how happy it had made her. How happy it still made her. Who would have thought that a year ago, when she'd first started this project, she'd end up being in a relationship with William Darcy?

As Lizzie moved her finger on her trackpad to press play again, her phone suddenly vibrated while simultaneously making the sound that indicated a new text message had arrived. Instantly she reached for her phone and for a second she indulged herself in the hope that it would be from William, even though she knew it was unlikely. He'd been away on business for the past week and though she'd heard from him once or twice in that time, those messages had been far too rare and fleeting.

Sure enough, the notification indicated that the message was from Gigi. Smiling despite her disappointment, Lizzie quickly opened the message. Ever since she and William had started dating, she and Gigi had been in near constant contact and Lizzie was fast coming to think of Gigi as one of her closest friends. In fact, Gigi's messages during the last few weeks while she and William had been apart and Lizzie had been finishing her schooling had been a godsend. She frequently sent her encouraging messages, and funny images that always seemed to come at the exact moment when she needed an interruption from the tedium of her thesis project. Her latest message was no exception and Lizzie burst out laughing as she stared at her screen in disbelief.

- Thought you might be missing my brother, so I made you something

Below the text was an image of a lobster with William's face photoshopped onto it.

Still giggling, Lizzie typed her response.

- ?

Gigi's response was immediate.

- It's my brother as an agoraphobic lobster

Lizzie shook her head as she pressed send. This was definitely one of Gigi's stranger messages.

- I see that. But why?

- Because I can!

Plus I thought you might need a laugh. You've been working so hard!

- It's great! Thanks!

I wasn't working that hard though - got distracted by my vlog when I went on to pull a reference

- Well you do have an expressive face! I see why it would be distracting

Lizzie laughed.

- Gigi, you really think it's MY face I was staring at?

- :D

Have I told you how happy I am about you and William?

- Only about 3000 times!

- LOL!

Well, you're good for him, he hasn't smiled this much since he became my guardian

The unspoken implications of Gigi's message hung in the air for a moment, causing Lizzie to draw in a sharp breath. William had yet to really talk to her about his parents, and it was only now dawning on her how much their loss must have shaped him and contributed to the reserved, awkward exterior she'd first encountered. Not for the first time, she felt immeasurable regret at the way she had so wrongly judged him.

Another text message from Gigi startled her out of her thoughts.

- He's good for you too, I think

Lizzie smiled.

- I think you may be right about that

- Of course I am!

- HA!

- Okay, I should let you get back to work

Can't wait to see you next week! We're lunching before I head off to Sanditon, right?

- Definitely!

I'll call you later this week

- Sounds good!

With a shake of her head and a wry smile, Lizzie set her phone back on the desk and glanced once more at her computer screen. She really should stop watching her own videos and complete the last of her edits on her thesis project. With one last, wistful glance at William's lovely face, Lizzie reluctantly closed the YouTube tab and returned to the word document containing her thesis.

LB-LB-LB-LB-LB

William Darcy had been stuck in meetings for what seemed like days on end. They weren't even the dynamic, interesting meetings he enjoyed where ideas were flowing and major decisions were being made. No, these were the dry, legal sorts of meetings that were necessary but incredibly dull. In fact, he thought wryly as he tugged at his tie and wished once again that there were windows in the stuffy LA conference room, these meetings were as unpleasant as Lizzie had once imagined him to be.

Today's meeting was particularly tedious and as the lawyers continued to drone on about contracts and liability related to the Sanditon project that Gigi was going to be running, William found his thoughts drifting to Lizzie. He smiled as he pictured her in his mind, her face animated as she spoke excitedly the way she always had in her videos, even when she was speaking ill of him. It had been three days, two hours and twenty six minutes since he'd last heard her voice and twenty seven days since he'd last seen her. He missed her dearly. He tried to imagine what she was doing right now, and a picture came to his mind of her sitting at her desk, hunched over her laptop as she put the finishing touches on her thesis project. The previous week, he'd coerced her into sending him a copy of it and he had been impressed and fascinated by the amount of time and thought she'd put into it; he had been awed by her cleverness, creativity and ingenuity. He'd given her a few notes, which she'd assured him had been helpful, but he knew without a doubt that she was going to do very well on her project.

More importantly, he was certain her new business would be extremely successful. In fact, the business plan she'd written had positively blown him away, and he knew she wouldn't have any difficulty securing funding for her company. If he thought for a moment that she would accept it, he'd even offer to back her himself. Not because he was madly in love with her, although that was true, but because it would be a smart business move. He understood, however, that this was something she wanted and needed to do on her own, and he respected and admired that. Movement from the lawyer across from him pulled him out of his reverie, and he forced himself to return his focus to the negotiations at hand.

Half an hour later, much to his relief, William finally left the conference room, signed contracts that had been painstakingly drafted and amended over the past few days, tucked safely into his briefcase. This marked the last of his business dealings in LA, and with a spring in his step, he left the building, flagged a taxi, and pulled out his phone. Without looking, he dialed Lizzie, set the phone to his ear as he climbed into the taxi, and informed the driver of his destination.

After the fourth ring, Lizzie's voicemail picked up causing William to frown. Where was she? Why wasn't she answering? With a sigh, he patiently waited for her outgoing message to end, then he cleared his throat and spoke, "Lizzie, it's William. I have finished up my meetings in LA and am heading back to San Francisco tonight. Call me when you can." He hesitated, wanting to say the words that had been on the tip of his tongue for weeks but it was probably still too soon. Besides, such declarations were better said in person rather than over the telephone. Instead he said, "Goodbye, Lizzie," before hanging up and staring at his phone with displeasure.

The yearning he'd felt for Lizzie since leaving her to return to San Francisco nearly four weeks earlier suddenly bloomed into full force, and he ached with the desire to see her face and hear her voice. As the taxi navigated the dense LA traffic to take him to his hotel, William closed his eyes and allowed memories to filter through his mind. Lizzie standing off to the side at the Gibson wedding, looking absolutely beautiful as she watched her sister and Bing dance. The light that sparkled in her eyes whenever they debated music, art, or literature during her stay at Netherfield. The pleasant timbre of her laugh the time he'd pretended to be Fitz for her videos. Her soft smile that he'd seen countless times on her videos, but that had meant so much more on the rare occasions when she'd directed it at him. The complete shock and jubilation he'd felt when she'd kissed him for the first time only a few weeks before.

The taxi jerked to a stop outside of his hotel, jolting him back to the present. Upon gathering his things and paying the driver, William hurried to his room and wasted no time in lifting his laptop screen. He ran his fingers delicately over the trackpad to wake it up, then clicked on the tab he'd left open that morning. As he sank onto the uncomfortably high backed chair, he pressed play, a smile tugging at his lips as Lizzie's clear voice filled the room. It wasn't as good as seeing her in person, but it was the next best thing, and he'd take what he could get.

LB-LB-LB-LB-LB

Panic was beginning to set in. Her thesis was due in less than forty eight hours, and suddenly nothing about it seemed right. With a sigh of frustration, Lizzie threw down her pen, giving up on the paragraph she'd been rereading for the past twenty minutes and instead burying her face in her hands. She shouldn't have let herself get sucked into watching her videos earlier. All they'd done was make her miss William more than she already did, and with time running short, she couldn't afford the distraction. In addition to polishing her final draft, she still needed to update her bios on her YouTube, twitter and tumblr pages so that they reflected her current situation. She also had several emails to answer relating to the financial backing for her company. Plus, she had at least half a dozen phone calls to make.

Deciding she needed a break from words, Lizzie returned to her browser and reopened YouTube, quickly navigating to the window where she'd be able to edit her profile. With a sad smile and a tiny bit of nostalgia, Lizzie reread her original description, "My friend Charlotte and I are embarking on an epic expedition to document the insanity of my family for a few weeks." Lizzie chuckled remembering how fresh and exciting this project had felt back then and how she'd had no idea just how epic her expedition would be or how illuminating. She'd been so different then - they all had, really - and sometimes it was hard for her to believe it had only been a year. So much had happened in such a short time span that it made her wonder what the next year was going to bring. There was so much about her future that was unknown however, that the thought merely added to her earlier panic, and she forced it from her mind to be visited at a later date when her thesis due date wasn't looming over her ominously.

Taking a deep breath, Lizzie deleted her original description, and for a moment she merely stared at the empty text box. How could she possibly summarize the past year of her life accurately in one statement? After several failed attempts, she finally settled on, "My yearlong video diary of my sisters, my best friend Charlotte, and eventually a guy named Darcy." She stared at Darcy's name for a long moment, swallowing hard as she fought another wave of yearning for him. Lizzie forced herself to take a steadying breath, then saved the new profile, and pulled up twitter. She was just about to update her profile there as well when Lydia burst into her bedroom.

"Really? You still don't knock?" Lizzie scolded though it was half-hearted. It was actually pretty nice to see another person after all the hours she'd been cooped up alone.

"Sorry, sis, not enough hands." Lydia flopped onto the stool beside her and thrust a large box into her hands. "This just arrived."

Lizzie smiled at the decorated carton. "Jane?"

"Yup. It's really heavy too. I swear she put rocks in it or something." Lydia nudged her lightly with her elbow. "Well, come on, open it."

Laughing lightly, Lizzie deftly opened the box. Jane had been sending her a care package every week during the home stretch for her thesis, and although they weren't necessary, Lizzie appreciated them. Most of the packages had consisted of various combinations of baked goods and tea, and as Lizzie lifted the lid to this latest one, she saw much of the same, although this time there was also a Newsies playbill and a mug.

Lizzie handed the playbill to Lydia, who promptly giggled. "It's like a whole cast of Darcys!"

Lizzie snorted. "Lydia!"

"A stage full of singing and dancing Darcys. Could you imagine?"

Shaking her head, Lizzie moved on, pulling the mug out of the box and promptly burst out laughing when she saw that it was adorned with a red Newsie hat and a bowtie.

"Oh my god, what has Jane done?"

Lydia promptly tossed the playbill onto the desk and snatched the mug from her sister's hand. "Well, it looks like she printed a Newsie hat and bowtie on a mug. It's a faceless Darcinator."

Lizzie laughed and dug around in the box for the letter she knew Jane had included. As she read Jane's words, Lizzie's smile broadened. "Jane and Bing had it specially made for me 'as something to remember my vlog by.'"

"As if you would ever forget. Remember, sis, the internet is forever." Lydia's face suddenly slackened and the implications of her words hit her.

Lizzie noticed the shift and contemplated her sister's face with concern. "Lydia? Are you okay?"

Lydia forced a smile. "I'm fine." At Lizzie's raised eyebrows, Lydia sighed and elaborated. "I keep thinking I'm over it, over him and then I say something stupid like that and it all comes rushing back."

Lizzie pulled her sister into a quick hug. "It's going to take time, but you're doing better."

"I know." Lydia smiled again and this time it wasn't forced. "I'm okay though, really."

After a long pause, Lizzie smiled back, then reached for the mug as if nothing had happened.

Lydia handed the mug back to Lizzie and watched as her sister traced her finger over the bowtie wistfully.

"You miss him, don't you?" Lydia asked softly.

Lizzie nodded. "Yeah, I do."

Lydia was silent for a beat. "You should call him."

"I can't. He's busy working and I have my th—"

"Your thesis can wait two minutes, and even if he's busy you can leave a message." Lydia took Lizzie's phone from the desk and held it out to her. "C'mon. It'll make you feel better and then you'll be able to focus again.

Sighing, Lizzie carefully put the mug down and accepted the phone. "How did you get to be so smart?"

"From watching you." Lydia swung her arms around Lizzie, engulfing her in a sideways hug. "Now call your man and get back to work!" With that, Lydia sprang to her feet and bounced out of the room leaving Lizzie staring at her phone, a bemused expression on her face.

Her phone buzzed suddenly in her hand, startling her. As she stared down at the notification, she frowned.

Missed call from William Darcy.

The time stamp indicated that William had called less than ten minutes earlier. Lizzie glared at her phone. Why hadn't it rung? What was the point of having a phone if it didn't work properly? With a sigh, Lizzie swiped her finger across the screen. The little red number that indicated she had messages was showing, but given William had only just called her, Lizzie decided to just call him back instead.

Feeling more energized than she had a few minutes ago, Lizzie dialed, a wide grin on her face as she placed the phone to her ear and listened to it ring.

LB-LB-LB-LB-LB

William had just reached the point in Lizzie's 96th video where she'd called him. There was a smile plastered on his face as he recalled what it had been like to hear that message for the first time. He'd just come out of a long, hard meeting, and when he'd checked his phone only to see her number on his screen, his heart had begun to pound in his chest as renewed hope flooded over him. He'd not heard from her since she'd left Pemberley Digital, and though he'd known from watching her videos that she'd learned of his dealings with Wickham, he was still surprised to hear from her. With a slightly shaking hand he'd put his phone to his ear, something inside him relaxing as Lizzie's voice filtered through the line. He couldn't stop himself from smiling when he reached the end of her message and later, when he'd watched the video that had gone with the phone call for the first time, he'd laughed aloud at the look of utter horror on her face in that moment. He hadn't told her yet, but he'd listened to that message at least a dozen times in the days between when he'd received it and when he'd arrived on Lizzie's doorstep. In fact, he still had the message saved and every few days, especially on days when they couldn't talk, he'd listen to it again.

Checking his watch, William sighed, debating if he had time for one more video before he had to head to the airport. He was about to hit play on the next one, when his phone rang, causing him to jump. As soon as he picked it up, his face spread into a wide smile. It was Lizzie, and never had he been happier to hear from her.

"Hello, Lizzie," he said cheerfully as he answered.

"William. I'm so sorry I missed your call before, but for some reason my phone didn't ring."

"It's fine. I finished my meetings and wanted to speak to you before my flight." He winced at the wistfulness in his own voice.

He could almost hear the smile in her voice as she responded. "I missed you too. Let's never go three days without talking again, okay?"

The permanence of the word 'never' in her statement gave him pause for a second and he had to catch his breath. Sometimes he still found it hard to believe that they were in a relationship, that she was going to be moving to San Francisco, that he had the right to talk to her every day, that she wanted him to. "I think I can agree to that."

"Good." He heard shuffling in the background as she settled herself. "How were your meetings?"

William eased back in his chair. "Fine. Tedious. I am glad they are over."

"Everything is set for Gigi's project now though?"

"I believe so. How is your thesis going? Are you feeling prepared to hand it in and defend it on Friday?"

His question was met with silence at first, and when Lizzie did speak again, he could detect an edge of anxiety to her voice that he didn't like. "I think so. I mean there are still so many little things to do, but…"

She was panicking. He could tell. "It's brilliant, Lizzie. Relax. You are almost done."

Judging from her sharp intake of breath, this was clearly the wrong thing to say. There was another pause, and then when she spoke again, her words came out in one long jumble. "I know, but every time I read it over, everything just seems wrong, and I keep thinking of more things that I have to do, and time is running out, and I also have to make arrangements for after graduation, and mom's freaking out about me moving, and I miss you and I only have two days left, and—"

William knew that if he let her, she'd keep going and work herself up even more so he stopped her, his tone gentle. "Lizzie, your thesis is excellent. Charlotte read it. I read it. You have already taken our notes and made it even better. I assure you, you have nothing to worry about."

"I know, but—"

"Stop. Lizzie, you are overtired and stressed, but you're almost there. In three days you'll be completely done, and this will all seem like a bad dream."

She sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak out on you."

"It's not a problem. I remember how stressful the last weeks of grad school were. I believe I called Bing about coffee beans during my final week."

Lizzie laughed. "What did coffee beans have to do with your degree?"

"Nothing. I was in a state of irrational panic that manifested itself into fixation on hot beverages."

"I can't picture you panicking, William. You're always so calm and proper."

"I have my moments. Just ask my sister. Actually don't, she has a habit of embellishing certain details."

"You realize that just makes me want to ask her more, don't you? I want to know everything about you."

"And I, you. But right now, you have an important task at hand, and I have a flight to catch."

"Call me once you land?"

Once again, William found himself smiling. Her concern for him was adorable. "Certainly. You should take a short break and have a cup of tea. Things will seem less dire after tea."

"Now you sound like Jane."

"Jane is a very sensible person, so I shall take that as a compliment."

Lizzie laughed. "Okay, I promise I'll have some tea before I dive back in."

"Good."

There was another pause and he could sense that Lizzie was trying to say something, but couldn't quite find the words. "William," she said finally, in a low tone that sent a tremor down his spine. "It's really, really nice to hear your voice. It helps."

"I am glad. I should really let you get back to your work though."

"Okay. Bye, William."

"Goodbye, Lizzie." He hung up the phone and frowned at it for a moment. He hadn't liked how panicky she'd sounded and it made him wish he was there with her. Not that he could really do anything to help, but maybe his presence could calm her? He was so proud of her, and he really wanted to see her defend her thesis, wanted to be able to support her through this major milestone in her life. Besides, he missed her dearly and the thought of waiting another two weeks to see her again caused his chest to constrict.

Resolved, William sprang into action, and three phone calls, two text messages, and ten minutes later, it was all arranged. He quickly packed the rest of his things and headed downstairs to meet his taxi. He still had a flight to catch in less than two hours. It just wouldn't be landing in San Francisco.

To Be Continued...

Notes:

When I was testing out the text conversation between Gigi and Lizzie I decided to use one of those iphone image generators to make sure it flowed like text and I've posted those here (thelorelaisquared dot tumblr dot com /post/52105757257/graphical-depiction-of-the-text- c onversation) for anyone who is interested in seeing them (alas I do not have the skills to photoshop Darcy's head on to an agoraphobic lobster, so that part is missing :D from this post but ahundredteas has just made one for everyone's enjoyment. It can be found here (ahundredteas dot tumblr dot com /post/52115146847/baby-agoraphobic-lobster-darcy) )