Chapter 2

"Here?" Daddy said. "I have another two blocks to go." He glanced at the MapQuest directions in his hand.

"Yeah, here is fine, Daddy," Janelle answered. "We can walk the rest of the way."

"But anything could happen to you out here at night."

"Daddy, this is Netherfield Park, not Longbourn City," I said. "Nothing is going to happen to us out here."

I knew exactly why Janelle wanted Daddy to let us out early. She didn't want to get out of Daddy's old hooptie in front of Chuck's house.

Daddy sighed. "OK. But listen, I'll be back here at this stop at 11 o'clock sharp to pick you up."

"Eleven, Daddy! That's too early!" Janelle protested.

"OK, eleven thirty, but no later."

As Janelle and I got close to Chuck's house, we could hear the music and see cars lining the street in front of the large manicured lawn. Some of the cars were Jags and Mercedes, and I could better understand Janelle's concern about having Daddy drop us off here.

We had to step through people hanging out on the front steps to get in the door. Even as crowded as it was, it seemed like only a minute had passed before a nice-looking guy who was about 5'10" with milk chocolate skin approached us. When I saw the way he looked at Janelle before giving her a hug, I thought, this is Chuck, and he definitely likes her.

"Chuck, this is my sister, Liz," Janelle said loudly, trying to talk over the music.

"Nice to meet you," he said, smiling. He had a very nice smile. You have good taste, Janelle, I thought.

Chuck offered to take our coats and get us something to drink. I let him take my coat, but told him I was fine. On cue, Chuck took Janelle's hand and they headed off together.

I watched them walk away with a smile. Since I didn't know anyone, I decided to find a spot in a corner in the living room to people-watch. The crowd was multiracial, which I thought was cool, and a lot of people were dancing or just hanging out. I spotted a place to stand just as some girl bumped into me. She had been carrying a cup of Coke or something, which spilled on her blouse.

"Why don't you watch where you're going!" she shouted. "Look what you did!"

"Excuse me, but you bumped into me," I answered. "Besides, if you wash that out now, it'll come out."

"I didn't ask you!" she snapped, then turned away.

Welcome to Netherfield Park, I thought, and stifled a laugh. I watched her walk up a nearby staircase, heading to the bathroom I suppose. She passed a tall guy on her way up the stairs. I started to head back to the corner, and then I stopped and looked at the guy again.

Now, I pride myself on not being boy-crazy, so normally I don't stare like this. But something about this guy got my attention. He was about 6'2" and well-built. He had a handsome face, but that wasn't it. It was his eyes. He had some of the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. They were light brown, a little lighter than his skin, framed by really long lashes.

Suddenly, he looked down and caught me staring at him, and grinned. Oh, real smooth, Liz! I thought. I turned away, but this time I couldn't hold back my laugh. When I finally felt that I could turn back without embarrassment, he was still on the stairs, but now he was talking to the girl who had bumped into me earlier. His girlfriend? I wondered. Or maybe in her short skirt and now damp-and-slightly-see-through blouse, she was more interesting than me in my black T-shirt and jeans. Oh, well.

I decided to go in search of something to drink or eat. I wandered into another room, where tables had been set up with a few remnants of pizza, subs, and soda pop. I was pouring myself a cup of ginger-ale when I noticed a woman trying to work her way through the crowd while carrying two platters of food. No one was moving out of her way.

I walked closer to her and shouted, "Coming through!" to some of the kids blocking her path to the table. That got a few of them to move. When she came closer, I asked if I could take one of the trays off her hands. She nodded and I took one.

She was an attractive black woman with a few strands of gray in her relaxed hair. "Listen, honey, can you grab one of those trays that's almost empty, and then put this one down?" she said.

I did so, and then followed her back to the kitchen with the empty tray in hand.

Because the kitchen had a swinging door that shut, it was several decibels quieter inside. There was hardly an empty spot on the kitchen table or counter, which were covered with food and beverages. The woman took the tray from me and placed it on the stove, along with the one in her hand.

She sat on a kitchen chair and offered me a seat. "Thank you so much! I'm Chuck's mom, Lois, by the way. What's your name?"

"I'm Liz."

"Are you a friend of Chuck's?"

"No, I just met him tonight. He's a classmate of my sister's." I didn't know what, if anything, his mother knew about Janelle, so I didn't say anything more than that.

"Well, welcome to my home. This is how I keep my sanity."

When she saw the surprised look on my face, she laughed. "I guess it doesn't look like it, because I'm so stressed tonight. What I mean is, hosting parties at my home for my kids keeps me sane, because I know where they are and what they're up to. I've been doing this since they were young teens. And walking around to serve food allows me to keep an eye on things."

"It seems like you need extra help, though," I said with a grin.

"Usually my husband helps, but he's out of town this weekend."

"I don't really know anyone here, so I can help you, if you'd like."

Lois gave me an appreciative smile. "Would you? That would be great, and I'd love the company. Are you are Meryton State also?"

"No, I'm still in high school. I'm a senior at Longbourn High."

"Longbourn… my sister-in-law graduated from there, but that was way before your time. What kinds of things are you involved in at school?"

I told Lois about serving as editor of the yearbook, on the National Honor Society, as a student council representative, as a peer counselor and a member of the track team.

"You know, my nephew runs track also. He's a senior at Pemberley High School. I don't know if you'd know him—William Darcy?"

"I don't know him," I answered, "but I definitely know his name. I know he holds the state records in the 400 and 800 meter hurdles."

Lois nodded. "That's him. He's around here somewhere. If I see him the next time we go out, I'll introduce you."

Lois and I talked for the rest of the evening, taking periodic breaks to replenish the food and beverages. She told me that Chuck was the youngest of her three children. She also had a 25-year-old daughter who was newly married, and another daughter who was a senior at Spelman College in Atlanta. She asked all about my family, and about my college plans. When I told her about the LOFTY Dreams scholarship, she said that her nephew Will was also a recipient.

"I'm really happy about that, because it means he'll be here in town," she said. "Otherwise, I think he'd be off to someplace like Harvard or Stanford. His father—my younger brother Billy—was very active in the community, and I think Will looks at this as a way to honor his father's memory."

I wondered what had happened to her brother Billy, but it seemed rude to ask.

On one of our food runs, Lois said, "There's Will now. I'd like you to meet him." She called his name, and the cute guy with the pretty eyes I had noticed earlier started heading our way. I was surprised but happy; this was promising.

When he was a few feet away from us, the same girl who had bumped me earlier ran up also, and slipped her hand inside his arm. An annoyed look crossed Will's face.

I turned my head a little to hide my laugh. Yes, she was pretty, but her shirt was dry now and no longer see-through, and it looked like she had become an unwelcome appendage to Will. Definitely not his girlfriend.

Lois seemed a little surprised by the girl's sudden appearance, but she recovered quickly. "I'm Lois, Will's aunt," she said. "And you are?"

"Candy," the girl answered.

"Well, Candy and Will, I want you both to meet Liz." Lois held out her hands toward me. "Liz has been helping me out tonight."

They both spoke at once, but I caught what each of them said. From Candy: "Oh, I get it now! You're the help!" and from Will: "Why would I want to meet her?"

Lois gave them both a withering look. "No, Candy, she's a guest just like you are," she said coolly. "She's just being kind. And Will, I wanted you to meet her because she's going to be in the LOFTY Dreams program with you. But I guess now is not a good time. Why don't you both go back to the party? Will, I'll talk to you later."

As they walked away, I guess Will was fed up with his extra appendage. He shook her off his arm and said something sharp to her. She gave him a look and walked away.

As soon as Lois and I got back to the kitchen, I couldn't contain myself anymore. I burst out laughing.

"Oh, Liz, I'm so sorry," she said.

"No, please don't apologize!" I answered. "It didn't bother me at all."

"OK, maybe I don't owe you an apology for Candy, since I don't even know her. But I do for my nephew. He knows how I expect him to conduct himself in my home. And I will talk to him about it."

"Thank you, but you really don't need to, Lois," I said. "That was actually pretty entertaining."

Lois started laughing, too. "It was, wasn't it? Poor Will seemed like he was having trouble getting rid of her."

I noticed the clock on the stove; it was 11:08. I realized that in four food runs, I hadn't seen Janelle once. I had better find her so we could get ready to leave. "My father wants my sister and me to head out by 11:30," I said. "I should go look for her."

Lois gave me a hug. "Liz, it was such a pleasure meeting you! I hope I'll see you again."

"It was great meeting you, too, and I hope so also," I answered, hugging her back.

I finally found Janelle outside the house, in the backyard. There was a pool there, empty and covered now because it was fall. However, several people were hanging out around it. Chuck and Janelle were sitting on a lounge chair that was barely big enough for the two of them. He had his arm around her shoulder and their heads were close together.

So I wouldn't embarrass her, I tapped Chuck's shoulder. "I'm sorry," I told him when he looked up. "I'm still in high school so I have a curfew. And Janelle needs to take me home."

Chuck gave me a resigned look and stood up, holding out a hand to help Janelle up. "Liz, Janelle and I will get your coat and meet you out front."

Several minutes later Janelle and I were walking down the street to meet Daddy. "OK, chica," I said. "What was this about your not being sure he liked you? You two could barely have been any closer on that chair."

Janelle was beaming. "OK, OK, I was wrong!"

"He's very cute," I said, "And he seems like a nice guy."

"Oh, he is! So what about you? Did you meet anybody tonight?"

"I actually spent most of the night talking to Chuck's mother. She's really sweet. Did you get to meet her?"

"No! Chuck wouldn't let me. He said she would talk my ear off and ask me a bunch of questions, and he wouldn't get any time with me."

I laughed. "That's exactly what she did with me. Now she knows all about you."

Janelle's eyes got big. "What did you tell her?"

"Well, I didn't tell her you were his girlfriend, because at the time I didn't know. But I told her a lot of other things about you. I made sure she has a very good impression of you."

Janelle grinned. "Come on, we're going to be late meeting Daddy." She grabbed my hand and we ran the rest of the way.