I've had a lot of notes from you guys, and because of the limitations of this platform (if you send me a comment without signing in, I can't answer you directly), I've decided to do what I try to avoid and giving you my last buffer chapter. Read on to learn more.

First things first: as I said last week, this chapter is rather saucy. This platform (fanfiction-dot-net) has a guideline that Mature for Adult (read: explicitly sexual) content is not allowed, so there is a segment of this chapter that I will not be publishing here.

"But Wheel," I hear some of you cry, "I've read lots of sexy stories here on . The guidelines seem to just be suggestions, not real rules!"

Ah, my sweet reader… perhaps you haven't been around the block of this hell site quite as long as I have, or perhaps you just haven't been in the toxic fandoms quite as much as I, but the way this site works is that if a reader decides to complain to administration about basically ANYTHING, admin generally will take a story down without author's consent, no questions asked. I've seen it happen.

(Also, the ease of anonymous commenting on this site allows for A LOT of abuse, which is the reason I left in the first place.)

So! The last, sauciest part of this chapter will only be available on Archive of our Own. It's a very easy place to find: just Google "Archive of our Own" and, when you get to the site, use the search function to search for "Film and Television." Search engines don't like punctuation, as a rule, and the last time I checked, my story was the first that popped up under that search.

My username is different on AO3, and you'll find a lot more stories from a lot more fandoms that I've written over there. As I said, I used to publish on Fanfiction-dot-nope, but abuse sent me packing a few years back.

Now, second: some of you seem rather perturbed by my absence of late, and on one hand I feel I should apologize because I did say I would try to publish weekly, but on the other hand, I don't usually feel obligated to apologize that I'm a person with a job, a family, and a life I'm also expected to lead.

My job is very busy right now, and I'm leaving it at the end of the summer to go back to school full time for the first time in ten years. The decision to return to school has led to a major overhaul of my life and my finances, and those things (as well as the occasional dinner with my aging parents, or day out with my young nephews, or evening with my close friends, or even just desire to watch TV rather than write) means that the words aren't flowing as quickly as they have before.

What I mean to say then is that I will publish chapters as I find the time and inspiration to write them, but the time and inspiration are at much more of a premium than they have been at other times in my life. Please be patient with me. I intend to finish this story (I have plans for what happens next) but now I am not sure when.

I believe that's all I had to say on the matter. This author's note has really gotten out of hand, so without further blather, here's your next, fun, saucy chapter of Digital Media.


DANC1100: Stress Reduction Through Movement

"I don't have anything to wear!" Rosemary wailed.

Elizabeth bit her tongue to keep from laughing or pointing out the absolute mountains of clothes scattered across Rosemary's dorm room, nor the seven outfits she'd already tried on. Elizabeth also refrained from mentioning the fact that Lee, the only person she could imagine Rosemary being quite so indecisive about impressing, was unlikely to be there.

When Faith had insisted that Elizabeth needed to get out and do something fun before she drove herself crazy about what to do about Gowan and his unfair grading practices, and had suggested a dance club with and 18+ night, Rosemary had mentioned the plan to Lee. He, however, hadn't said anything about coming, maintaining his careful professionalism.

Jack, Faith, and Elizabeth had a quiet bet about how the night would go as regarded their friends. Faith was sure that Lee was going to show up to surprise Rosemary. Jack thought Lee would come, but pretend that it was just an accident he happened to be in the same place at the same time they were. Elizabeth's money was on him not coming at all.

Thinking about not thinking about her Economics paper naturally meant that it was suddenly all Elizabeth could think about. Every time she pictured the "C" on the top of her paper, Elizabeth wanted to cry. Her midterm had come up Aces, so she had an overall B in the class, but if she couldn't fix it, it would put paid to her hopes of graduating a year early SumMa Cum Laude.

Rosemary continued to insist that Elizabeth should challenge the grade, but Elizabeth was frightened to try. She wanted real advice from someone who might know, but she didn't yet know any of her teachers well enough to ask, Abigail was wise and thoughtful, but not part of the University system, and Lee had been cagey about it ever since he'd given her the paper in the first place.

She had no idea what to do, and every option seemed worse than the one before it.

Elizabeth gave a long, heavy sigh, which made Rosemary turn and give her a narrow, suspicious look.

"You wouldn't happen to be thinking about exactly the topic we've planned this little excursion to keep you from thinking about, would you?" she asked, suspiciously.

"Not at all," Elizabeth said, giving Rosemary the full potency of the guilelessness of her wide, blue stare. "In fact," she continued, noticing a convenient change of topic on the floor, "I was just wondering why, exactly, you appear to have a regency gown in your collection."

Elizabeth reached down to pick up the dress, which was light blue with forest green detailing and looked like it had been plucked straight out of a better production of Sense and Sensibility.

Rosemary waved a dismissive hand at it.

"Borrowed it from the costume shop and never got around to returning it."

Rosemary turned back to her closet and the problem at hand and Elizabeth held the dress up to herself, liking the romance of the old-fashioned style.

"It really suits you," Rosemary said, catching her. "You'd make a proper Jane Eyre or-" Suddenly Rosemary's eyes went wide and she gasped. "I've just had the most brilliant idea!"

Elizabeth thought she should keep a running list of otherwise-innocuous phrases that, when said by Rosemary LeVeaux in a certain tone of voice, became terrifying.

Rosemary, unaware of Elizabeth's uncharitable thoughts, continued laying out her plan.

"You and Jack will dress as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy for Halloween!" she cried.

"Halloween?" Elizabeth said. "Rosie, I don't have-"

"The theatre department always throws a huge Halloween party every year," Rosemary continued as though Elizabeth hadn't spoken, "and of course costumes are required. You two will be perfect as Lizzie and Darcy, and Faith can be Fanny Price, and I will be Emma Woodhouse, of course."

"Of course," Elizabeth muttered.

"So what do you think?" Rosemary asked, finally acknowledging again that Elizabeth was in the room. "You'll be perfect as Lizzie Bennet!"

Elizabeth opened her mouth to object again, but her imagination suddenly presented her with a picture of Jack dressed in Colin Firth's tight breeches, vest, and frock coat from his own foray as Mr. Darcy. The image made Elizabeth's mouth water, and she closed it quickly to keep from drooling.

"Fine," Elizabeth said, "I'll do it if you can convince everyone else, and if you know where to find the costumes."

Rosemary grinned. "Don't worry Elizabeth, I have a plan!"

Add another one to the list, Elizabeth thought.

~?~?~?~?~

The light of the club was a low red-purple and the music was the sort common to dance clubs- all driving beat with minimal melody and lyrics that would make your eyes roll if you could hear them. It wasn't so busy that the girls couldn't move through the room, but the press of bodies and movement had raised the temperature to nearly 80 degrees, a stark shock given that it was hovering just above freezing outside.

Rosemary, Elizabeth, Faith, and Dottie found a table and shed their coats onto the chairs. It was like it had been a signal- the sudden appearance of short dresses and bare arms seemed to call every unaccompanied man in the room toward the four.

"Hi," one guy said, catching Elizabeth's attention with a gentle hand on her upper arm. "Do you wanna dance?"

Elizabeth smiled at him- he looked nice and she'd have liked to, but…

"I'm waiting for my boyfriend, but my friend Dottie would love to dance with you," she said, pulling Dot forward and into the boy's path.

He didn't look too disappointed with Elizabeth's replacement, and gestured a blushing Dottie toward the dancing with a shy grin.

Elizabeth barely had a moment to laugh for a moment with Faith and Rosemary about Dottie and her dance partner when Elizabeth had another tap on her shoulder.

"Would you like to dance?"

This guy was taller than the first and gave the impression of confident swagger with only a few words. Elizabeth considered for a moment, then decided.

"Sorry, I'm waiting for someone just now, but my friend Faith would love to dance with you," she said. Carson was expected with Jack and Doug, but Faith would enjoy teasing him by dancing with a handsome man when he showed up.

Elizabeth barely had time to look around to check whether Jack and the guys had arrived yet, when she had yet another tap on her shoulder.

This man was reed-slender and his dark skin glowed nearly-blue in the low light, leaving his grin bright as a flash.

"Hi, my name is Martin," he said.

Elizabeth opened her mouth to tell him that she was waiting for her boyfriend when he cut her off.

"I was wondering if you could introduce me to your friend?" he asked, nodding at Rosemary.

Elizabeth laughed- he seemed to have been watching them- and gestured Rosemary over.

"Rosemary, I'd like to introduce you to Martin," she said. "Martin, Rosemary really knows how to dance, so I'll warn you in advance."

"No problem," he said, holding out a hand toward Rosemary and cocking an eyebrow. "I'm the best dancer here."

Elizabeth was surprised at the statement until she saw Rosemary meet Martin's eyes with an amused, challenging look.

"You want to bet, Martin?" she said, just loud enough to be heard over the music. "Because I'd say I'm the best dancer here."

Martin grinned. "Only one way to find out, wouldn't you say?"

Rosemary nodded and put her hand into his, allowing him to pull her out onto the dance floor with an impressive little spin at the end.

Elizabeth laughed in pleasure. Even if Lee didn't show up, it looked like Rosemary was going to have fun.

Elizabeth looked around and was oddly surprised to find herself alone. The music thrummed through her bones and she wanted to dance, but she decided she could wait until the guys arrived. She was just about to sit down when the fourth guy of the night walked up to her table.

"You wanna dance?" he called over the din.

He was perhaps an inch shorter than Elizabeth- nearly three in her heels- with swarthy skin and dark hair and eyes, impossible to tell their real color in the low light.

"I'm waiting for my boyfriend," Elizabeth answered with an apologetic shrug.

The guy didn't seem to find this off-putting. "I'll return you in one piece for him, promise! It's just they've started playing salsa and I want to dance and no one else looks free just now."

"Salsa?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yeah, it's my favorite. Do you know how?"

Elizabeth shook her head.

"I can teach you if you want. I'm Carlo, by the way." He held out a hand and cocked his head toward the dance floor.

Elizabeth only gave it half a second of thought before she took his hand and let him lead her into the dancing. She would be damned if she let the fact that she was the only one of her friends there who had a boyfriend make her the only one who didn't get to dance. Besides that, she'd always wanted to learn to salsa.

On the dance floor, Carlo pulled her around to face him and took both her hands so that they were far enough apart that she could see both of their feet.

"You hear the music? It's five beats- or really, four and half. The fifth beat is fast. Follow my feet, okay?"

He took a step back with his left foot, and Elizabeth mirrored him with her right foot.

"No, when I step back, you step forward," he called over the music.

"Right, of course," Elizabeth said, shaking her head and feeling foolish- she did know how to dance.

Carlo stepped back with his left foot again, and this time Elizabeth followed correctly, but then he shifted his weight to his right foot, which threw Elizabeth, who had placed her weight on her own right foot, off her balance.

"Sway your hips," he said, dropping one of her hands and resting his on the swell of her hip to guide her. "It keeps your weight on the right foot."

After two more false starts, Elizabeth had finally gotten the rhythm and step pattern down. She wasn't quite comfortable enough to look her dance partner in the eyes yet, but he seemed to be pleased.

"You keep doing that," he said. "You've got it now."

He spun away then, to Elizabeth's surprise, and started dancing around her, keeping one hand on her at all time, occasionally turning her with him, making her look good.

"Move your shoulders," he said, leaning close. "You've got the rhythm now, just move with it. Your feet know it now."

Elizabeth had had several dance teachers say the same thing to her, but somehow it was easier when Carlo said it in this loud, crowded room where it was clear nobody was watching her, and the music seemed to course through her veins.

It barely took three more measures before Elizabeth was grinning, and following Carlo's lead. He grinned bright at her, took her hand, and spun her, pulling her in where she was, to her own surprise, still perfectly in step with him.

"Senorita bonita!" he cried, and Elizabeth threw back her head and laughed.

The music continued for another ten minutes before there was a break meant to let people change partners or buy a drink.

"You're a better dancer than you think you are," Carlo said. "If you ever want to go out dancing, you should give me a call."

"Just imagine what my boyfriend would say," Elizabeth said with a laugh.

Carlo shrugged. "Just tell him I'm your gay dance partner."

"I don't lie to Jack, as a rule."

Carlo blinked, looking surprised. "Who said it was a lie? I thought it was obvious!"

"Really?" Elizabeth shook her head. "Not to me it's not!"

Carlo laughed. "Let me guess: you grew up a bit sheltered, maybe religious? Never developed a gay-dar?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I went to an all-girls Catholic school. I don't think I've ever known anyone gay before."

"Bet you have. Half those girls at those schools are kissing each other, not that you can ever tell with girls- they get to kiss and hold hands and hug and nobody thinks anything of it. Speaking of which, one of your friends wants you." He pointed over Elizabeth's shoulder, and when she turned, sure enough, Dottie was hovering nearby, looking conflicted.

As soon as she noticed Elizabeth looking her way, Dottie joined them, grabbing Elizabeth's hand.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I didn't mean to bother you but… well…"

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth asked.

"The guy I was dancing with grabbed me," Dottie said quickly, as though getting it all out in a breath might make it easier.

"Grabbed you?"

Dot didn't say anything, she just looked down and grabbed both of her breasts in her hands, then looked up at Elizabeth with her eyes wide.

"I turned around and got away as fast as I could and went looking for someone I know. There wasn't anyone at the table, and you were the first person I saw."

"Are you okay?" Elizabeth asked again, more horrified this time. "Did he hurt you?"

"No!" Dottie assured her. "I just… had to get away, you know?"

Elizabeth squeezed her hand. "I'm glad you did. Do you want to dance with Carlo? He doesn't even like breasts, so you're probably safe."

"Safe as a baby bird in the nest," Carlo said, crossing his heart, then holding up the Boy Scout salute. "Or if you're not feeling men just now, you and…" He looked at Elizabeth with a frown, and she realized that she knew his name, but had never told him hers.

"Elizabeth," she supplied with a sheepish smile.

Carlo grinned back, and continued, "you and Elizabeth could dance together."

"No offense," Dottie said, "but that does sound like fun. Are you okay with that, Elizabeth?"

Elizabeth gave a little finger-wave to Carlo. "Sorry, but I just got a better offer!"

Carlo gave a heavy, dramatic sigh as the music started up again. "I'll have to find a new random partner in this random bar. What'd your friend look like," he asked Dottie suddenly. "Maybe I should ask him to dance and gay-scare the misogyny right out of him!"

Dottie laughed and Elizabeth scanned the room quickly and pointed him out to Carlo who made his way around the dance floor toward the evening's villain while the two girls fell into the rhythm of the music together.

One song bled into the next, and Faith appeared with them, sans her tall, handsome dance partner. Rosemary and Martin danced by, but soon they were dancing with the group as well, the five of them laughing and moving and dancing to the music, the rest of the world falling away.

~?~?~?~?~

Jack was ready to leave Carson and Doug behind if they didn't shut the hell up and get moving. Rosemary and Elizabeth had said they intended to get to the club at 8:30, shortly after it opened, and he'd hoped to be there around then as well, but Carson and Doug had been playing Call of Duty when he'd arrived and hadn't been willing to shut it down.

They hadn't arrived at the club until nearly 9 it was 9:30 before they made it to the front of the line to pay their cover and get their hands stamped.

The music in the club was loud enough to rattle his teeth, and the place was so busy he could scarcely see three people in front of him.

"The girls are probably waiting at a table!" Doug called.

"The girls are probably dancing!" Jack retorted.

"Without us?" Doug asked.

Jack rolled his eyes. "They wanted to go out to dance," he said. "We're an hour late. You think nobody's asked them to dance in this crowd? Girls that look like that? Be realistic."

"Elizabeth wouldn't have danced with someone else," Carson said. "Don't worry, Jack."

"I'm not worried, and I hope she's dancing," Jack said. "This night was supposed to be about her getting her mind of things. Come on, I think I see her coat at that table over there."

Elizabeth wore a fairly-distinctive pale blue wool peacoat, and when he saw Rosemary's coat in the seat next to it, Jack was sure they had found the right table. The girls were not at it, however, which meant they were probably on the dance floor.

Jack dropped his own brown leather jacket on top of Elizabeth's and started to move through the writhing throng, not bothering to wait for his friends. Whatever he said to Carson- and he hadn't been lying, precisely- now that he was here, he wanted Elizabeth to be dancing with him, not anyone else.

He was a little surprised to find that she was dancing with someone else, but that someone was Faith. The four girls and a tall, slim black man, were all dancing together, grinding and writhing, just as though they were dancing with boys. It was an arresting sight, though Jack tried hard not to think about it too hard.

He got close enough to the group to grab Elizabeth's wrist and pull her slightly away from Faith. She turned and saw him, and her eyes lit with pleasure.

"Jack!" she cried, loud enough that he could hear her over the music, and threw herself into his arms.

He had barely a moment to take her in, but in that instant he noticed that she wasn't wearing pastels as was her habit, but a brief, clinging dress the color of red wine and a pair of black fishnets. Her hair was down, and wild curls stuck to her sweaty face. Her eyes and cheeks were bright with exertion, and she was stunningly beautiful, and sexy as hell.

Once she was in his arms, he registered vaguely that the dress was made of a satiny material, but mostly he noticed that she burned. She'd been dancing constantly for an hour and her body temperature was high, and he was just in from the cold outdoors, and she was like a living coal. She was the embodiment of burning lust.

Even as she hugged him, her hips continued to sway. The shoes she was wearing put her nearly of a height with him, and her pelvis was aligned with his in a way it normally wasn't. Jack closed his eyes. He hadn't expected this when he'd agreed to go dancing with Elizabeth: every movement and touch feeling like a fire in his blood as the music made his bones seem to shake. He knew she lit him like a brand, but he'd hadn't thought of the way it would feel to hold her, move with her, and to know he was allowed.

Elizabeth seemed to have no such compunctions, and leaned back so that she could look at him while continuing to grind her hips against his. Jack wondered if she knew what she was doing, but suspected from the dark look in her eyes that she did.

He put his hands on her waist, his thumbs drawing circles on the soft jut of her hip bones, his palms resting just above the swell of her bottom, and began to move with her.

~?~?~?~?~

Elizabeth leaned back against Jack's chest. She felt like her bones were made of melting wax.

When he had first arrived, Elizabeth had been shocked at how much the very sight of him had set her on fire, but then, as they had begun to dance, it dawned on her that dancing was not entirely unlike sex, and she'd been building up a fire that Jack had set a match to the moment he'd arrived.

One wide-palmed hand was on her stomach, holding her in place against him as Jack rhythmically ground against her bottom, the other hand was moving. First it traveled down her thigh to the hem of her skirt, rucking it up slightly so that the heat of his palm was only separated from the skin of her thigh by her fishnet stockings. He seemed shameless as he drew his hand toward her inner thigh, and then away, causing her core to clench wishing he'd continued up, up, up.

Next his hand did travel up, back up her leg, to her hip, and on up, slowing as he brushed up the side of her breast, making her nipple tighten in desire for a touch, then up farther still, following the line of her arm that she had thrown back to wrap around his neck behind her. He brushed over her armpit as he went- a place almost nobody in Elizabeth's life had ever touched- and the unfamiliar feel made Elizabeth's thighs quake with wanting.

Jack brushed down again, stopping with his hand resting on the bottom of her ribcage, her breast framed in the webbing of his thumb and forefinger as he began to move his other hand instead.

This one went down, straight down the middle of her body until it was resting above her pubis. He pressed her back, insistently. There was no hint of insinuation now, as he pressed his hips agains hers, Elizabeth could feel him hard against her. She sighed and leaned her head back on his shoulder, exposing her neck.

"You look good enough to eat," Jack growled low into her ear, the primal moment affecting his usual good manners. He lowered his head and bit the soft skin at the join of her neck and shoulder, and Elizabeth moaned.

"Elizabeth, if we don't get out of here, I don't know what i'm going to do," Jack said, and his voice was strained, and low, and desperate, and just about the sexiest thing Elizabeth had ever heard.

"Call an Uber to go back to my place," Elizabeth said. "I'll tell Rosemary and Faith where we've gone."

~?~?~?~?~

Post-Note: To get the rest of this chapter (what happens when our heroes get back to Elizabeth's place) please go to Archive of our Own and, using the internal search function, search for "Film and Television." The final section is noted.