Lizzy's POV. Shortish chapter, setting the mood for their date 💕 very cute, fluffy, and banter-y. I'll post again soon, but I hope yall enjoyed this one! :)
(Also, a guest reached out to me and asked about timing during the last chapter. Basically, the timeline in my head was that about 24 hours passed between the time they were interrupted and chapter 26. Sorry if I didn't make that clear, I was eager to skip to the action lol)
Stay safe y'all! ~Vinny
The phone must have only rang for two seconds (at MOST) before Fitzwilliam picked up.
"Yes?" His voice asked, breathless.
Lizzy suppressed the urge to smile. "Hey, just lettin' you know, I'm pulling up now."
"Great, yes, wonderful.. ahm.. one question?"
"Mhmmm?" Lizzy asked, an upward lilt on the drawn-out syllable.
"What do you.. wear to laser tag?"
She shrugged, which was difficult to do when your phone was propped between your ear and shoulder as you pulled the car (that you borrowed from your best friend) around to park. "I'm sure whatever you got on's fine."
There was a pause.
"Let's say… hypothetically speaking, I… am.. not fit for the public eye, at the moment."
"Then, hypothetically speaking," Lizzy said, slowly, "I would ask you 'boxers or briefs' and then barge in before you could answer."
There was another, longer pause. Lizzy was the one to break it this time.
She sighed into a laugh. "Just dark clothing is fine. Like, T-shirt and jeans. Or slacks, if you've already sullied your one pair of jeans from gardening."
"I.. I…," it sounded as though Fitzwilliam was struggling to swallow. Then his tone of voice changed rapidly (Lizzy could still tell he was incredibly nervous though). "I own TWO pairs of jeans, thank you very much," he managed.
She giggled. "Perfect. I'll be waiting outside." She breathed out, and cast a (slightly guilty, but mostly curious) eye towards the lavish house. "See you sooooon."
Click. Lizzy put away the phone. She tucked a hair behind her ear, and checked her makeup in the driver's side mirror. She was wearing a lightweight red jacket, leggings, and had her hair curled up into a ponytail. She looked.. okay.
Four or five minutes later, Fitzwilliam emerged from the house. He looked stunning, as always. Lizzy rolled down the window and waved. He smiled at her, and got in.
"So," he said, fastening the seat belt and smoothing out his button down (because of course he wore one), "What's the plan?"
"Well..," Lizzy replied, cheekily, "If you don't already know, I like you, and want to get to know you better… soooo… I found a laser tag place about 45 minutes away, so we can have a proper conversation driving there. Like a mini-road trip, but like, less headache."
"Ah." Fitzwilliam cleared his throat. "You see, I-, uh, love that plan, except hmm. I- I'm not very good at conversation."
"So I've noticed." Lizzy raised an eyebrow. He blushed. So that he wouldn't be too uncomfortable, as she pulled out, Lizzy put her hand (palm up) on the seat divider. An open invitation.
He took it, with no hesitation.
She smiled at him. He returned to gesture, his molars winking like snow at her from the corners of his upturned mouth.
"You have a very nice smile," Lizzy blurted out.
Fitzwilliam's eyes widened, but so did his grin. "I.. thank you."
She looked back at him happily, though she was panicking. Shit. She didn't account for the fact that she might be just as bad at starting conversations. "So… umm….," conversation starter conversation starter… how the hell do you start conversations?
Lizzy lifted her chin and deeper her voice in a dude-bro surfer accent. "So what's your sign, man?"
Fitzwilliam just stared a her. His perfect mouth had fallen open. Lizzy's smile was frozen onto her face. Fuck.
"Aha, ha ha," she tried to laugh, breaking eye contact under the guise of checking her turn signal. "That's, uh, the usual opening line guys use.. on me.. uh, on Tinder. Ha, ha."
Fitzwilliam wasn't laughing, but she thought there was an amused aire to the way he cocked his eyebrow. "You're on Tinder?"
"Well, aha, not anymore," Lizzy laughed, nervously turning pink as she cleared her throat. "Ahm. Obviously."
Fitzwilliam looked away. His shoulders seemed to be spasming, and one of his hands moved to cover his mouth.
She poked him. "Are you LAUGHING at me?"
"No," he laughed.
Lizzy waited. Eventually, Fitzwilliam choked out, "It's just.. TINDER!"
"Okay, that's it," she mock-growled, struggling not to laugh, "I'm turning this car around."
"Alright, alright! It's perfectly.. perfectly fine… to use T-T-Tinder…" he dissolved back into laughter, and this time, Lizzy joined in.
"God," she chuckled, swiping her eyes, "I like hanging out with you."
Fitzwilliam gave her a lopsided grin. "I.. feel the same. I'm.. not usually like this, around people."
"Yeah, you're pretty much unrecognizable from our first meeting."
"How so?"
"Well, first off, you were a total dick."
"What?!" Fitzwilliam cried, "I was not!"
She laughed, and pulled onto the highway. "Uh, YEAH you were! Yelled at me for making your coffee 'too hot' and STARED at me. CONSTANTLY."
"First off," an offended Fitzwilliam said, one finger in the air, "I did not yell at you."
"Yes, you did," she smirked.
"Secondly," he continued, "that coffee was SCALDING."
"You big baby," Lizzy laughed, breaking contact to reach over and pat his cheek.
He deftly avoided her hand, and caught it again, holding it tightly. Lizzy glanced over him; his brown eyes flashed hazel and amber in the street lights.
"Lastly," Fitzwilliam said, eyes intense as they had been that day, "Lastly, I stared at you because you're beautiful."
"Oh," she whispered. Fitzwilliam's face was so close, so pale and so perfect; unsmiling and godlike, he looked as though he had been carved from molten ivory. Lizzy tore her eyes away, and put both hands on the steering wheel. He folded his own into his lap. She tried to swallow. She failed.
"I-in that uniform?" Lizzy joked, her voice squeaking out as a flat note into the thrumming silence, "Pshh, that's horseshit. Aha.. ha.."
But Fitzwilliam didn't laugh.
(Granted, neither would she had she been in his position, but hey— she was very uncomfortable taking genuine compliments! Give her a break!)
"Lizzy," he said in that deep, slow voice of his. "You are.. one of the most— if not THE most— beautiful human beings I have ever met. Everything about you… sparkles. When I'm with you, I… I forget that the world exists. You are always beautiful."
Lizzy had no idea what to say to that.
So, without speaking, she pulled over to the side of the road, took Fitzwilliam's face in her hands, and kissed him.
The moon shone above, onto a velvet canopy of sky and stars. The roadside was quiet, save for cicadas, and the sound of heartbeats intertwining. The rhythms matched. The lights sparkled.
The night, for both of them, was already perfect.