Elizabeth was getting flustered over what to wear to this ball. Why on earth did it have to be a costume ball, and of all choices, a Jane Austen themed costume ball? Why couldn't Becky have organized a simple black-tie event, instead of adding complicated fancy dress into the picture? Along with a few other girls, she was heading to the costume department of the university theater society later that day for some help and inspiration. From what she'd read, girls of the Austen era were usually in long dresses, and richer people tended to have more brightly coloured dresses, jewelry and feathered accessories with long white gloves. Their hair was also ridiculous in tight ringlets, but she'd be damned if she was going to spend hours with curling tongs when she had natural waves. She'd pin her hair up and they would just have to do. She was resenting the amount of time she was spending debating all of this and wished she'd just agreed to go on another date with Henry and never mentioned this damn ball to him. She sighed, knowing she could not endure radio silence from Becky for weeks if she didn't go, and knew she had to make the most of a badly themed situation.

As always, being a man meant an easier choice of clothing, but a waistcoat, braces, top hat and tails were still the order of the day. She smiled to herself imaging Henry as her Mr Darcy, and made a note to borrow the prettiest dress she could find to be the date on his arm. She needed to wear something that at least fitted comfortably or she knew she wouldn't enjoy herself. Maybe she and Henry could just stay a little while, then find a way to leave early and go back to his place. Maybe practice their kissing a little more… She stopped herself shifting from foot to foot and feeling a warmth rising up the skin of her neck. It was only Monday, and forty-eight hours seemed such a long time to wait.

Across campus, Henry was also having a clothing crisis, possibly for the first time in his life. He had a pocket watch of his grandfather's and some braces, along with a white undershirt, but that was as far as he'd got. He needed a waistcoat, smart trousers, a suit jacket and a top hat to complete the look. Whose idea was this costume ball anyway? Why couldn't it just be a black-tie dinner event without the added stress of wearing a costume? He sighed, his thoughts naturally turning to Elizabeth.

He knew that she would look beautiful whatever she wore, but he was looking forward to seeing her in a dress, having only seen her in jeans, sweaters and sneakers before. He expected her dress would be clinched in at the waist and flowing to the floor, showing off her gorgeous figure. Dresses from that period tended to show a good amount of cleavage, and his mouth went dry thinking about Elizabeth's breasts, enhanced and pushed up and together by a form-fitting corset. He tried to keep these thoughts at bay so he could actually concentrate on his school work, but he was twenty, she was beautiful, and he was very, very attracted to her.

Elizabeth and Becky struggled to find space for their dresses in their dorm room. Their shared closet was full to near exploding and the doors didn't shut, so they had to settle for hanging them over the back of their desk chairs, which they then moved to the far wall. Things would be a little cramped for a while and they'd have to study on their beds, but it would only be for a couple of nights. Elizabeth didn't anticipate much studying would be done until this whole event was over. Becky was stressed about organizing the whole thing and couldn't concentrate and Elizabeth was trying not to let thoughts of Henry make her stare into space with a stupid grin on her face.

It had been a mission for them both to carry the dresses over from the theater department and of course Fiitzgerald was at the top of the hill, so it had made it even more difficult. It was early evening and Elizabeth was starving hungry, thirsty and tired all at once. She looked over at their elaborate costumes and shook her head at Becky.

'Jane Austen themed Becky, I mean really?'

'Listen how many times do I have to explain? This ball uniquely encompasses history, literature, an appreciation of European culture…'

She drifted off mid-sentence and Elizabeth glanced over at her. She sighed in defeat.

'But you're right, it's the hardest thing I've ever had to organize and I am so never doing this again!'

Elizabeth laughed, kicked off her sneakers and fell back onto her bed. She rubbed her hand over her forehead to try and stop a headache threatening to develop and tried to remember if she had anything remotely edible in the communal fridge down the hall.

The ringing of the telephone on the wall startled both girls, and Becky stared at Elizabeth, her jaw dropping.

'Oh my God. It's Henry. It must be!'

Elizabeth sat bolt upright and looked over at Becky. 'It might be Dan, I mean…'

Becky shook her head. 'No way, I saw him earlier it is totally not him.'

The phone continued to ring and Becky stared at Elizabeth, and stared back at the phone, trying to Jedi mind trick her into answering it. Elizabeth jumped to her feet ignoring the throbbing in her head and answered on the fifth ring, just before their answer machine kicked in.

'Hello?'

'Hey Elizabeth. I thought I'd give you a call, say hi.'

His voice was soft and gentle down the phone and she swore she could hear him smiling. He had made a promise to call her, and though they had their second date organized, Henry was a man of his word. Calling her halfway between their last date and their next seemed perfect to keep their newfound spark alive, though Henry doubted even the fire department could extinguish the flame he held for Elizabeth.

'Hey Henry,' she looked over at Becky, who mouthed 'told you' at her and smiled, trying and failing to appear disinterested in their conversation.

She was really happy Elizabeth had finally found a guy that interested her enough to bother getting to know more. She was oblivious to the male attention half the time and simply not interested in the other half, and had a select few close friends. Becky was glad the net had widened somewhat and found Henry, and for the weeks that she'd known him she'd seen a happier side to Elizabeth. She was more relaxed and thinking about life as well as her studying and Becky was happy she seemed to be finding more of a balance. After all, no one could work all the time. However, she wasn't sure that recently she'd had the right balance with her studies, so pulled on her headphones and started reading. She definitely had some catching up to do.

'How are you?'

'I'm good, we just picked up our costumes from the theater department. They're kinda heavy.'

'I'm sure you'll look amazing.'

'Did you get yours?'

'Tom and I are headed down there in a little while, I have some accessories here already.'

'Accessories?'

She turned away from Becky, giggled and twirled the phone cord around her finger, smiling into the receiver at him. It was really good to hear his voice, Friday night seemed like a long time ago and Wednesday was still too far away.

'Well, my grandfather's pocket watch. Speaking of time, I'll pick you up at six? Meet you by the fountain again?'

'Seamless link there McCord. Sounds good.'

'I'm looking forward to it.'

'I can't say I am quite yet, but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing you.'

'See you Wednesday Elizabeth.'

'Bye, Henry.'

She hung up and stared at the phone cradled in the receiver, smiling to herself and chewing on her thumbnail. She turned to face Becky slowly, and her roommate pulled her headphones off and looked at her.

'Shut up.'

'I said nothing!'

'No but you're thinking of saying something.'

'Maybe! I'm happy for you. He could be really good for you Lizzie.'

Elizabeth smiled back at her and flopped back down on her bed still grinning. Becky was right. He could be really good for her, and the very thought excited and terrified her in equal measure.

Elizabeth had decided there was one advantage to her dress and that was that it was long enough to hide her sneakers underneath it. Otherwise it really wasn't her cup of tea. She felt frumpy, the lace around the bust was itchy (though enhancing and uplifting) and the multiple layers of the skirt had the potential to become very hot. Even the sleeves were long and immovable. At least the colour was pretty, a deep crimson with velvet panel at the front and small lace flowers around the cuffs and neck line. She sighed. Becky had left much earlier to help decorate the dining hall and had taken her costume with her, leaving Elizabeth alone. As much as she was looking forward to seeing Henry, Elizabeth was apprehensive about the night ahead.

It was amazing how much more relaxed she knew she would have felt if she was wearing her own clothes and not going to a mass-populated event. She liked social gatherings and being around people but never found them easy. Small talk wasn't really her thing with those she didn't know well and she sometimes found it difficult to think of things to say to the point where she'd not bother saying anything at all. Boarding school was so different to college, the kids she'd met there were there because they had to be, either by parental choice or horrific circumstances such as her own. Sticking together had been the order of the day but UVA was different and she was finding it hard to find her way.

She sighed again, and took a glance at the clock on her night stand. She'd let the time pass and it was now just after six, but she couldn't quite bring herself to head downstairs yet. She took a long gulp of water and peered out of the small side window, looking towards the fountain. Her heart caught in her throat as she saw Henry, top hat, tails and dress suit pants facing the fountain watching the water. She looked a little closer and could see a white rose in his hand, and as he turned to look at the entrance of Fitzgerald, she could see an identical flower pinned in his button hole. She gulped down hard, trying to swallow her anxieties at being at this party and grabbed her purse to meet the man who was waiting for her.

He heard the gravel crunch from a distance away and looked up from his pocket watch to find Elizabeth walking towards him. He felt butterflies in his stomach as his face automatically formed a smile and he met her halfway across the forecourt. One hand tipped his top hat at her and she giggled, shaking his head at the ridiculousness of it all.

'Hey Elizabeth. You look beautiful.'

He kissed her on the cheek next to her mouth and she turned to catch the outside of his lips. He pulled back away from her, a little embarrassed at leaving her with parted lips, disappointed he didn't have the courage to kiss her hello. She blinked slowly at him, her lips curving into a smile. He held out the white rose to her and she took it from him, trying not to twirl around excitedly and thumbed the petals gently.

'Thank you. You scrub up pretty well yourself. I didn't know this ball had magicians in attendance.'

'Ooh Adams that's a low blow. I was going more for the Oscar Wilde look.'

'Oscar Wilde, really? Maybe Oscar Wilde at a pet funeral.'

He laughed with her and watched as she unclipped her hair, her honey-coloured curls falling past her shoulders and refastened it with the flower secure in the clip. He brushed back some strands behind her ear, leaving shorter waves to frame her face and let his hand graze over her jaw and his thumb brush across her lips. He held out his arm to her and she linked hers through his.

'Shall we?'

'Yes let's,' she replied, her enunciated English accent not lost on him.

Becky and her team had done a fabulous job of decorating the dining hall. Large round tables for guests were adorned with long white tablecloths and medieval-style candlesticks. Each table was named after a different Jane Austen novel. White roses and pink peonies accompanied the candles with scattered flower petals surrounding them. Candles and pretty lamps were dotted around the edge of the room giving off a gentle, yellow mood lighting and a harpist sat in the corner adding to the atmosphere. Becky had been working so hard to pull all this together and Elizabeth hoped she'd be able to catch up on her missed studies after this was all over.

She was still hanging onto Henry's arm as he guided her to their table, their place names next to one another. Dan and Becky were sat with them, along with Tom and his girlfriend and a few others Elizabeth hadn't met before. Henry held out her chair for her, guiding her to sit carefully so she could fold all her dress underneath the table. He placed his top hat between his knife and fork and stood next to her looking down. She watched him swallow hard as his gaze flitted over the expanse of her neck and chest the dress showed off. He sat down next to her and she took the opportunity to do the same to him, watching his profile and running her eyes over his firm jawline, thick sandy brown hair and those sparkling hazel eyes. His waistcoat was a deep bottle green and the gold chain of his pocket watch dangled between it and his jacket. The buttons looked a little well-worn but that added to the effect and his undershirt was crisp and well-turned out. He looked after himself and it seemed to Elizabeth he was the sort of man who could look after her too, without being too oppressive.

Henry and Tom ventured to the bar, returning with a bottle of red and white wine each with several glasses balanced between their fingers. UVA turned a liberal blind eye to underage drinking especially at more formal events such as this and trusted its students to behave sensibly. There were mainly literature and history professors in attendance tonight who were quite relaxed and had a rather raucous table up near the dance floor. She suspected the wine there had been flowing for a while.

She watched Henry as he poured a little wine into his glass, swirled it round the bottom before tasting it. The menu had a fish starter and chicken main course so Elizabeth figured it would suit the meal, and nodded when he looked questioningly at her empty glass before pouring. She was more of a beer girl really, but had wine on special occasions and when she did, it made her a little giggly.

They had finished their first course and she'd made her way through several slices of French bread on the side much to Henry's amusement. In fact she'd finished the basket.

'What?' she smiled over at him.

'Nothing,' he murmured. He was beaming at her until Tom yelled at him from across the table.

'Hey lovebirds! Pay attention. McCord! I said how many push-ups they got you doing this semester?'

'Very funny. It's not all about push-ups guys...'

'Chin ups!' Dan chimed in. 'How many chin ups can McCord do?'

'Million dollar question,' Becky said, hitting Elizabeth with a look that suggested she had kept something from her friend.

Elizabeth shot her back a look and a tiny shrug of her shoulders. She hadn't realized Henry's degree was on a military scholarship. She didn't think of Henry as a man who would willingly engage in combat, but knew he seemed very principled and driven to do the right thing in a given situation. It was the little things he did with her that made her think that, showing up on time, his consideration and his commitment to keeping a promise, no matter how small.

Their plates were cleared and their wine glasses were topped up. Elizabeth felt a little heat in her cheeks as Henry turned his chair a little more towards hers. His knuckles grazed her forearm and she looked across at him.

'I don't think it ever came up in conversation, but I'm in the ROTC marine core.'

Elizabeth smiled at him. Her great uncle had served in the military in Europe in the second World War and though she wished sometimes there was an easier answer to world conflict than war, sometimes action had to be decisive. It was courageous that Henry would want to serve his country for the good of others.

'I didn't realise that's what you wanted to do. I mean I think it's admirable to want to serve your country…'

'Don't get me wrong. I want to serve and see justice in the world but not as you might think. I'd much rather conflict was solved by a peaceful process and not war. I hope maybe one day my degree in religion can help with that. Improve my understanding of views of others, help others understand each other. Who knows. Pipe dream maybe.'

She ran her finger up and down the stem of her wine glass, her head leant towards him. 'I think it's good to dream.'

He smiled, tilting his head in the opposite direction to hers and moving closer towards her. His eyes were on her lips and her breath hitched in her throat. His gaze lingered for a while before his thumb brushed across her bottom lip. She curved her lips around it's tip, sucking gently and kissing it and watched the darkness flood into his eyes. She wondered what the earliest feasible time was that they could leave the party.