Disclaimer: Jane Austen's works are in the Public Domain with no existing Copyright. Also, I'm a dork.

A/N: Wow. Did you guys know I'm in law school? They say the second year is when they work you to death and that is actually true! I'm extremely sorry it took so long to write this chapter, but I'm finally back and after this chapter things should be wrapped up soon. If anyone is still reading, THANK YOU! Here we go!

Ellie, Catherine, and the maid waved Mr. Tilney off after breakfast and Catherine was not imagining it when she felt the whole penthouse breathe a sigh of relief. Mr. Tilney wasn't a bad man, he wasn't mean to the staff, or anything specific, but he carried around a lot of tension with him and it spread out around him like a cancer. Ellie and Catherine left almost immediately for 30 Rock and the week officially began.

Catherine was generally speechless during the 30 Rock tour and then she laughed harder than she ever had in her life as she attempted to rollerblade for the first time at the plaza. They had just enough time to go home and change for dinner. The restaurant wasn't particularly fancy, but they had decided to make a big deal out of it for fun.

Ellie was finished touching up her hair and makeup and decided to see how Catherine was doing. She knocked and heard Catherine shout "Come in!" As she pushed the door open she saw Catherine attempting to do something with her hair.

"I'm almost done," she said as she unsuccessfully tried to twist her hair into a chignon.

"Here," Ellie said taking Catherine's hair from her hands and pinning it into half a bun with her curls trailing down her neck and back. Ellie then looked at Catherine's face and saw she had done a good makeup job and they hurried down to the street to catch a cab.

Jekyll and Hyde was like nothing Catherine had ever seen before. While the three of them ate dinner there were actors going crazy all over the place and she had never been so terrified and entertained while eating dinner. With the show raging around them, they never really had a chance to talk, which is why Catherine was pleased to see Henry escorting them home. He came up to the penthouse with them and had coffee and cake in the entertainment room while they all played Mario Kart on Ellie's Wii.

It was a fantastic evening and they laughed and trash-talked as one by one, Ellie beat them at every single race. Reluctant to end the evening, they put on a movie that even Henry wouldn't mind and eventually they all fell asleep on various couches. Catherine who had been sitting with Henry on the big couch woke to find him spooning her and she felt herself flush as an indescribable feeling of joy bubbled within. She noticed the clock on the cable box said 6:30 and she shook Henry gently.

His response was to groan lightly and tighten his hold on her, snuggling closer. He seemed to realize what he was doing a moment later, though, because he opened one eye and peered at her as a sheepish grin blossomed on his face.

"It's 6:30," she whispered. "I thought you might have to work."

"Oh, thanks," he responded, though he made no move to let her go.

"Do you?"

"Have to work?" he asked, his grin widening.

"Yes," she tried to suppress the giggle bubbling in her throat.

"I suppose so. I don't have to leave for a bit, though."

"Good," she said as she settled back onto the couch, this time facing him, and shut her eyes. It didn't work, though, because she could feel his gaze and so she opened her eyes.

"I'm glad you're here," he said softly.

"Me too," she said.

"What are your feelings on morning breath?" he asked seriously.

"I don't know. I suppose if we both have it, it gets cancelled out, don't you think?"

"I'm glad you feel that way," he said before moving in for a long, searing, toe-curling kiss.

Things were getting pretty hot and heavy when they heard Ellie yawning and stirring on the other couch. Henry paused for a moment before checking the clock. With a sigh he dropped one last kiss on her mouth before getting off of the couch.

Catherine heard him shuffle into one of the spare rooms and sat up when he emerged clean and in fresh clothes.

"You keep clothes here?"

"Yeah, just in case."

"I have no idea what Ellie wants to do tonight," she confessed.

"She'll let me know and I'll meet you guys wherever," he said. "I'd better get going. Have a good day," he said kissing her with a freshly brushed mouth.

"No fair! Now I have morning breath and you don't!" she laughed.

"My stance on the issue is firmly in the 'I don't care' camp," he said kissing her again.

"I'll see you tonight," she said smiling against his mouth.

He stood up reluctantly and waved for her to follow him. She stood and followed him to the front hall where he gathered her into a warm embrace just before one last good bye kiss after which he left for work.

"He really likes you," Ellie said as she walked into the kitchen to start the coffeemaker.

"He does?" Catherine asked elated.

"Of course he does." Ellie smiled and looked at her critically. "What would you like to do today?"

"I know it's not terribly exciting, but I'd like to see the Guggenheim," Catherine said quietly.

"No problem! It's just down the street. I haven't been in ages, so it's totally okay!" Ellie greeted Ilsa, the maid, and wandered towards her bedroom. "We'll leave after breakfast."

Catherine smiled at the bounce in her friends step after sleeping all night on a couch. She followed her example and went to take a shower and change for the day.

The Guggenheim was peaceful and tranquil in a way that Catherine hadn't realized she'd been craving until she'd experienced it. Growing up in a large family in houses that were always too small peace and tranquility were not things one came upon easily. Ellie seemed to recognize Catherine's need for peace and eventually wandered off. Catherine protested, but Ellie assured her it was fine. Catherine was growing to love her new friend and didn't want her to think she was ungrateful, but she had been craving this peace.

She wandered alone through the museum and finally found Ellie waiting in the gift shop near the front entrance. They meandered through the shop and eventually decided on a few purchases, before heading out to the street. They agreed to continue the mellow theme for the day and headed to the Central Park Zoo next. After afternoon ice cream they meandered home to find Henry sitting in the entertainment room watching a 24-hour news network. Ellie and Catherine went to change for dinner and emerged as Ilsa announced that it was ready. With only the three of them at the table it was a relaxed and happy atmosphere.

"The three of us should go to the Soho Photo Gallery this weekend. Stan at work was telling me about a great exhibition going on right now," Henry suggested.

"Oh, photos? Meh, I don't think I could handle that," Ellie said, pouting. "Catherine can go if she wants to, though."

"I think it sounds great. I'd love to go," Catherine said smiling shyly for Henry.

"Perfect, we'll go on Saturday."

When dessert was over they moved back to the entertainment room where Ellie began looking for a movie to watch.

"Ellie? It's been such a long time since I checked my email, do you mind if I use your computer?"

"Not at all, I'll get it for you." Henry was sitting next to Catherine on the couch and holding her hand tightly in his.

"What do you think will happen after this?" Henry asked.

Catherine blushed and debated whether she should willfully misunderstand him. She decided to be honest. "I don't know. I start school in September and basketball takes up all of my free time October to March. I don't even know if I'll be free in the summer time." She frowned at the general lack of freedom that faced her.

"I've been thinking..." he started before he was cut off by Ellie re-entering the room.

"Here you go," she said brightly as she handed Catherine an open laptop.

"Thanks!" Catherine's face had flushed a deep red and she resisted the urge to drag Henry from the room to find out what he'd been thinking. Instead she logged into her email account and began skimming the subjects of her messages. She hadn't looked at a computer in over a week and the messages had been piling up. One of the newer ones caught her eye. It was from James and the subject read "Isabelle Thorpe." She clicked it open and read quickly.

"Oh my goodness!" she said sitting up and nearly dropping Ellie's laptop on the floor.

"What's wrong?" Ellie asked turning away from the movie collection.

"It's James. He caught Isabelle and your brother together on the golf course a few nights ago."

Henry and Ellie shared a look. The golf course could only mean one thing.

"Were they...?" Ellie asked quietly.

"Yes." Catherine said as tears sprang to her eyes. "The rest of the email is just James going on about the unfaithfulness of women and how wrong he was to ever trust her." The tears were now rolling down her cheeks. "How could she do that to him? When I left they had just become exclusive and she goes off with...with..." she started sobbing and felt Henry gather her into his arms and hug her tightly.

"It'll be okay," Henry said quietly into her hair. "He'll be okay."

Catherine could only reply with a babbling stream of incoherent noises. She sat up and wiped her face with her hands while nodding her head over and over.

"You're right," she squeaked out. "He'll be fine. I just can't stand that my supposed friend was so awful to my favorite brother. I don't understand what kind of person could do that!"

Ellie brought her a box of tissues and sat down on the other side of her.

"What can I do to help you feel better? Ice cream? Whiskey? Let you beat me at Mario Kart?"

Catherine laughed and hiccupped at the same time. "No, that's okay. I think I'd like to go to bed though."

"Of course," Ellie said. Henry stood with Catherine and walked her to her door.

"I'm sorry to have ruined the evening," Catherine sighed as Henry hugged her again.

"You didn't ruin anything. I'm going to write Fred and email about this whole thing, though. He should've known better."

"No, I don't blame him anymore, really. She acted like a...like a snake!"

"You are much nicer than I would have been if this were happening to Ellie," he chuckled.

"Will I see you in the morning?"

"No, I've got to go home tonight. But my father is coming home tomorrow night and you're all coming to my place to have dinner."

"Oh, wow! That's great. I can't wait." She gave him a watery smile and he gave her a kiss goodnight before she retreated into her room.

Sleep was an elusive companion that evening though as Catherine lay in bed for some time, tossing and turning. There was so much running through her head that she was getting dizzy. Eventually she opened up the French doors that led to the balcony and sat on a chair. The night air was cool, and there was a delightful breeze tickling her skin.

Henry had been thinking... It repeated over and over in her mind. He'd been thinking about the future. How were they going to continue this relationship if he worked in New York and she went to school in Maryland? She couldn't see any way around it and was dying to know what type of solution he had come up with. Before she knew it, the sun had started to rise. Catherine didn't feel the least bit tired, so she decided to go for a run through Central Park. She got to the kitchen just as Ilsa was beginning breakfast and she told the maid where she was going in case Ellie woke up while she was gone.

Catherine had been staying with the Tilneys for four days now and hadn't once taken advantage of the park as a place to take her daily run. It was getting warmer and she decided to head back to the penthouse. When she walked in the front door she could hear Ellie and a man speaking in angry voices in the dining room. Though, Ellie's voice was less angry and more desperate. When Catherine appeared in the doorway to the dining room she found Ellie and her father sitting at the table. They both stopped talking when they saw her and Ellie's face flushed. Mr. Tilney stared her down as and Catherine felt as though she had done something terribly wrong.

"I need to clean up, please forgive me," she said before hurrying off.

Ellie followed her to her bedroom and shut the door.

"Catherine, I'm so very sorry. My father says we have to go out of the country for business and he has to leave almost immediately. He's calling his travel agent now to book you a flight home." Ellie's voice wavered and she was on the brink of tears.

"Did I do something wrong?" Catherine asked, remembering Mr. Tilney's look.

"No, not at all. He's just like this sometimes. He get's lonely on these long trips and makes me come with him. I'm really sorry about it."

"Okay, well I'll just take a shower and pack up and we'll figure things out."

"I'm afraid there isn't time for that. He's having a car sent for you almost immediately and he's booking you on the next possible flight. I tell you what. Go take your shower, bring your clothes and I'll pack everything else up. Would that be okay?"

"I...I guess so. I-It's so sudden!"

"I know, I really can't apologize enough for this."

"It's not your fault Ellie. I should go ahead and get clean. Thank you for packing for me."

Ellie hugged her tightly despite Catherine's sweaty appearance.

"I'm really going to miss you. Will you email me the second you get home so I know?"

"Of course." Catherine grabbed an outfit suited for traveling, set aside her sandals and took everything to the bathroom to clean up. When she emerged she had her toiletries ready to pack and found Ellie waiting at the front door with her suitcase. Together they walked to the elevator and descended to the lobby.

Outside of the front door a black car stood waiting to take her to the JFK airport. They exited the building in silence and Catherine turned to her friend one last time for a hug.

"Promise me you'll keep in touch," Ellie said tearfully.

"I promise. Maybe you can come see me sometime," Catherine said.

"Maybe," Ellie said wiping away a rogue tear.

The driver put Catherine's suitcase in the trunk and opened the door for her. She climbed in and waved goodbye to the best girlfriend she'd ever had. As the car pulled off, she remembered she hadn't left a message for Henry.

"Wait!" the car jerked to a halt and she rolled down her window and stuck her head out. "Ellie!" The young woman turned back and looked at the car. "Tell Henry I'm sorry and I'll write him soon!"

Ellie nodded and waved.

"Go ahead," Catherine told the driver as she sunk back in her seat and watched the city fly by.

All too suddenly her life seemed to have begun to mirror the romance plots she used to sigh over. She cursed herself for ever having wanted her life to be like one of those wretched books in the first place. Leaving the city without even seeing Henry one last time hurt so much she couldn't breathe.