In a world like this where some back down
I, I, know we're gonna make it
In a time like this where love comes 'round
I, I, know we're gonna take it
In a world like this where people fall apart
In a time like this where nothing comes from the heart
In a world like this,
I've got you
Lizzie sighed and laid down on the couch. She could not believe October was ending. Time had flown.
She was spending her Sunday afternoon, going over all she had written in college and in graduate school, looking for inspiration for future projects. William had left again to New Orleans so she had decided to have a lazy weekend and make some progress on her to-do list.
They had been together for almost six months (five moths and three weeks if he corrected her), and she could not be happier, for a lot of reasons. They spent time as a couple, but they also gave each other space. Both of them were independent people and did not need to do everything together. Oh, but when they were together… Lizzie blushed involuntarily at the memories.
She continued to learn things about him, and about herself. She discovered that, when he was concentrating very hard on something like work, he tended to speak out loud his thoughts. The first time it had happened, she did not know if he was talking to her and was disconcerted. Shortly after that, she found it amusing (and sweet too) when he did the same when he was thinking about her.
As for herself, she found out that she was less confrontational and more tolerant. When their opinions clashed (which was not often) and she was getting frustrated, instead of storming out like she used to do in her previous relationship, she would stay calm and silent for a minute to think, and then she would talk things over with him. And they always found middle ground.
Lizzie's relationship with his mother had changed for the better. Lizzie now trusted her enough to talk about topics that she would have avoided in the past. However, some things never changed, and her mother would drop some not very subtle hints about marriage and babies, but not with the same insistence. Fran understood that her daughters had careers and goals, and that finding a rich husband was not in their priorities. The fact that her two sons-in-law happened to be rich was purely a coincidence. The important fact was that Bing and William loved her daughters.
Lizzie was still distracted in her thoughts when her phone chimed. She smiled as she read Charlotte's text, announcing that she had been able to take some days off work to go to San Francisco. They had not seen each other since the sentence hearing and were looking forward for some 'bestie' time.
Charlotte and Mark had broken up after her birthday in March. The distance and work had taken its toll, and she had decided to end the relationship. Lizzie and she had talked a lot over the phone, and that had helped Charlotte to move on, and now she was enjoying her singleness.
Lizzie made further arrangements with her friend over the phone, and then she continued to read her stories. She finished the day with Chinese food and an episode of her now favorite TV, and a good night call from William. He was coming back sooner than planned, and he teased Lizzie about his plans about six-month celebration. With a smile on her face, Lizzie went to bed.
William was having lunch with Lizzie in his office in Pemberley, and his mind was revolving about the same thing: when it would be a good time to ask the question?
Despite the fact that he had worked at lot while at New Orleans, his mind kept going back to the woman he had left in San Francisco, and that had caused some curious moments during his meetings. He had to force himself to get in CEO mode, and pushed away the idea that had plagued his head for the last days.
The past five months, three weeks and three days had been the best of his life, and he was ready to take their relationship to the next level. During that time, he had discovered that Pemberley Digital was part of his life, but not all his life. The other parts of his life were Lizzie and his family; and he wanted to be a better man for them, because of her.
Also, he learnt that she had impromptu dancing parties with no reason whatsoever, and he would always happily join her. He learnt that he loved going to bed and waking up with her. He loved holding her close and feeling her heart beat against his. It was probably the highlight of his day. Sometimes it still surprised him how corny he could be.
But most importantly, he learnt that he wanted to live with her. It did not matter if it was in her apartment or his house; he only cared about living with her.
And since his return to San Francisco the day before, the question had been in the tip of his tongue. He probably could not wait longer, knowing that Charlotte was going to be in town, and he would not have alone time with his girlfriend. So, he was about to blurt out the question, when Fitz burst through the door.
"Hello, love birds," he greeted. He noted that William seemed about to say something, but when he saw him, he closed his mouth and looked down at his sandwich.
"Hi, Fitz, how are you?," Lizzie said with a smile.
"I'm doing great, Lizzie B. At least you seem happy to see me, not like my friend here," Fitz said, pointing at William.
William could not really explain to Fitz why he had reacted like that. The phrase "Lizziedoyouwanttolivetogether" was ready to jump out of his mouth. He breathed deeply before he spoke.
"Sorry, Fitz," he said, "How are you?"
"Fine, thank you for asking. How was New Orleans?"
"Promising, you might hear more about it later," William replied.
"Good," Fitz replied, "So... Brandon and I are having a Halloween party this Friday, and your presence is required, no excuses, I mean it," and he gave William them an envelope with the invitation.
"Thank you, Fitz," Lizzie responded.
"Is it a costume party?," William asked wary.
"No, Darcy, not like the ones we used to have in college," Fitz noted.
"Oh, I want to hear about those," Lizzie said with a smirk in her face.
"Thank god," William added at the same time.
"Now I really want to know about that!," Lizzie exclaimed, and William laughed.
"I'll tell you later, Lizzie B, when Darcy is not around," Fitz said and winked, "Anyway, the party is invitation-only, and you must wear black."
"Why so many requirements?," William questioned.
"Because we like classy things, Darcy," Fitz responded, "See you there, and don't be late."
"Oh, crap!," Lizzie suddenly said, and both men turned to her.
"What is it?," Fitz asked.
"My friend Charlotte is coming to visit and …," Lizzie said.
"Yeah, I remember her. Bring her to the party. The more, the merrier."
"Okay, I'll tell her. Thanks, Fitz,"
"See you Dizzie!," he finished and left.
"Well, it seems that we have a party to attend now," William chuckled.
"Yeah, we do," Lizzie replied.
"Are you sure Charlotte would want to go to the party?," he asked.
"Yes, I don't see why not. We don't have any specific plans for Friday and she can use a good party."
"Allright," he said, and continued to eat his salad.
"Ok, I have ten minutes. Tell me about the wild parties you had in college," Lizzie smirked.
"Wow, this place looks very fancy," Charlotte said when she saw the venue for the party.
"And look at that view!," Lizzie exclaimed.
The party was being held in a super exclusive night on the rooftop of a hotel near the sea, with window panels and a magnificent view of the San Francisco skyline.
Charlotte had arrived the day before, and since Lizzie had taken the afternoon free, they had lunch, ate a lot of ice cream, and talked and talked. They had even gone shopping, as Charlotte wanted a new dress for the party. She loved the lace upper panel of the dress, and had not hesitated to buy it.
Lizzie and William were all in black, as requested. She was wearing a one-shoulder party dress that Jane had sent her months ago, and William looked dapper in his suit.
The three walked towards one of the windows and admired the view.
Among the guests, William saw a lot of familiar faces, including Samantha and even Fitz and Brandon's parents and Catherine de Bourgh. He was very surprised because he did not expect Fitz to invite them for a Halloween party.
Catherine saw him too and walked towards him. She was surprised to see Lizzie and Charlotte next to him. She greeted Lizzie and then proceeded to interrogate Charlotte about her presence in San Francisco, and was about to start talking about business when someone else grabbed her attention and she left.
William was looking for Gigi, who said she was going to arrive with Fitz, but they were nowhere to be seen. That was very suspicious, William thought.
In that instant, the music died and the lights dimmed. Someone spoke in a microphone and asked the guests to walked towards the back of the room that offered the prettiest view.
There, standing in front of each other, were Fitz and Brandon, wearing a blue and white suit respectively. Georgiana, dressed in a very colorful dress, was standing next to them, holding a small pillow in her hands.
"Is this what I think it is?", Lizzie murmured in William's ear.
"Yes, I think they are getting married."
Brandon's sister, Denise, officiated the ceremony. Brandon and Fitz had written their own vows, and when they said them, there were a lot of tears, especially in their family's eyes, that never thought that day would finally come.
Lizzie was moved when she listened her friends spoke of their love for each other and when they exchanged rings.
Apparently, Georgiana was the maid of honor and she gave them the rings. After that, Denise concluded the ceremony, and Fitz and Brandon kissed for the first time as a married couple. There were applause, cheers and a lot of hugs. Eventually, Fitz and Brandon made their way to where Charlotte, Lizzie and William were standing.
"I can't believe you just got married!," William exclaimed, "Congratulations!"
He stepped forward and hugged his friend and Brandon.
"Thank you very much, Darcy," Brandon said with a big smile in his face.
"It was a beautiful ceremony, I'm very happy for you," Lizzie said.
"Thank you, Lizzie B," Fitz responded and hugged her.
"Congratulations to both of you," Charlotte added.
"Thanks, Charlotte, happy to see you here," Brandon replied.
"This was quite a surprise, for everyone," William noted.
"Yeah! You know how I like Halloween, and surprises. It was also a surprise when Brandon proposed a month ago." Fitz responded and looked at his now husband.
"And then we decided to surprise anyone else," Brandon added, "Only my sister and Gigi knew about this."
"That explains why she was so busy lately. It's amazing that she kept the secret all this time," William said.
"I know! You should have seen her when we asked her to be our maid of honor. A lot of flailing was involved!," Fitz said.
"Anyway, we have to continue our round, but, Darcy, I want you to be our witness in the marriage license," Fitz added.
"I'll be honored to," William responded.
"Thank you brother," Fitz finished and asked him to follow him. William left momentarily to sign the paper, along with Brandon's best friend.
When William returned to his companions, Gigi was explaining to them the dress that she has wearing. She had asked the grooms if she could choose her dress, and Fitz had replied that she could appear dressed up as a peacock, and he would not mind as long as she was in the ceremony.
"So, I took his word for it," Gigi finished, pointing at the feathers on the dress.
"You look lovely," William said, and kissed on the cheek.
"Thanks, big brother," she replied, "The three of you look great."
"It's so sad that Kate went out of town with James, she would have loved to be here," Gigi added, "Now if you excuse me, I have to check some things. And Charlotte, I'm sorry that you had to see your boss on your day off. But if my aunt knew that she had not been invited, no one would ever hear the end of this."
"It's okay, Gigi," Charlotte replied, "I totally understand."
"Well, enjoy the party!," she exclaimed and left them.
And that was exactly what they did.
Lizzie was dancing with William to the song that they had danced on the date that had marked the beginning of their relationship.
"This is nice," Lizzie said, resting her head against William's shoulder.
"It is," he replied, pulling her closer to him. It was the first time since the party had started that they had a moment for each other. William had been dancing with Gigi, Charlotte, and Lizzie, but not as much as he wanted.
"I'm very happy for Fitz and Brandon," Lizzie said to him.
"Yes, me too," he replied.
"They really love each other," she added.
"Well, they have nothing in us, sweetheart," he said and lifted her head so he could kiss her. It was not the breath-taking kiss that they used to share, but it was enough to accelerate Lizzie's heart.
"How did you call me?," she chuckled.
"'Sweetheart'… do you not like it?," he asked, with a frown in his face.
"No, it's not that," she replied, "It's just that you never called me that before."
"It just came to me…" he said. William Sr. always called Ann sweetheart, and for that reason, William had always associated that word with a strong love connection.
"I love it," she said, and kissed him again. They finished the song and walked away from the dance floor to have more privacy.
They kissed some more and talked about the party, but William could not help but wondered if Lizzie would like to get marry in a similar situation. Since he had arrived to the conclusion that he wanted to live with her, he had thought about marriage too. He knew that she was the love of his life and wanted to be beside her the rest of his life.
"One step at a time," he said to himself. First, he needed to ask her about living together. He did not want to rush things or pressure her.
"Oh, where is Charlotte?," Lizzie suddenly asked, and William got distracted.
"Ah… I don't know," he replied and scanned the room.
"She went to the restroom, like fifteen minutes ago. I hope… Oh, no!" Lizzie said.
She had found Charlotte, talking with Catherine de Bourgh, and by judging with her friend's face, she had spent most of those fifteen minutes with her.
"I thought my aunt was gone already, she usually does not stay this long," William said.
"I have to rescue her," Lizzie spoke, ready to walk in her direction.
"Wait! I don't think that's necessary now," William said. A man had approached them, spoke to them, and had finally taken Charlotte to the dance floor.
"Who is he?," Lizzie asked, puzzled. Charlotte's distressed face had been instantly replaced by a smile.
"Ian Heller, Brandon's best friend."
"I see, he's cute," she noted.
"Hey!," William complained, and wrapped his arms around her waist tightly.
"Not as cute as you, sweetheart," she laughed, and kissed him one last time before she took him to the dance floor again.
Hours later, Lizzie was ready to go home as she and William had not stopped dancing and her feet hurt. They said goodbye to Fitz, Brandon and Gigi, who was going to stay longer.
After Charlotte had danced with Ian, Lizzie saw her with him for the rest of the night. She saw them dancing, sitting together, and talking.
Since they were her ride back, Lizzie and William looked for Charlotte.
"Mmm, Charlotte?," Lizzie called her, interrupting her friend's conversation.
"Hi, Lizzie! Have you met Ian?," Charlotte spoke, with a beam in her face.
"Hello, nice to meet you," Lizzie said and gave him her hand. He stood up and shook her hand.
Lizzie took the chance to observe him. He was good-looking, with brown hair and dark eyes. There was a sparkle in them, and for some reason, Lizzie immediately felt at ease with him.
"Nice to meet you, Lizzie Bennet," he replied politely, "Hi, Darcy… again."
"Hello, Ian," William responded.
"Char, we are ready to go whenever you are," Lizzie said.
Charlotte opened her mouth but did not say anything.
"I can give you a ride back...," Ian offered, "I mean, if you want to stay longer…"
"That would be nice, thank you!," Charlotte said enthusiastically.
Lizzie raised an eyebrow and looked at her friend.
"Are you sure, Char?," she asked.
"Yes, Lizzie. I'll see you later," Charlotte responded.
Lizzie agreed just because she had never seen her best friend that smiling after her breakup.
She left with William and while he was driving to her apartment, she asked him about Ian.
William had met him a few times before. He knew that he was Brandon's best friend since middle school back in New Mexico, and that he was a book editor in Los Angeles. He had not spent a lot of time with him, but William thought that Ian was a decent man, and that Charlotte was in good hands. Lizzie's curiosity was sated, for the moment.
"You're staying over," Lizzie noted, while they were still in his car and getting closer to her apartment.
"Are you sure? I thought…," William did not know if he could stay the night with Lizzie since Charlotte was also staying in her apartment, and he knew how her girlfriend feared awkward moments.
"It wasn't a question," she chuckled.
"All right," he replied and turned quickly to her and smiled.
"You didn't need much persuasion," she joked.
"Not when it comes about sleeping with you," he said back.
"Good, because that's what we're going to do. I'm too tired to do something else," Lizzie replied.
"Maybe, you do need some persuasion," William said, and Lizzie started laughing.
At the end, he proved his great persuasive skills, and it was some time before they finally fell asleep.
The morning light was hitting Lizzie in the eyes, and she reluctantly woke up. They had forgotten to close the blinds all the way the night before. She grunted and looked at the clock on her bed stand. It was already past eight. Considering all they had done the previous night, it was understandable that William was still sleeping.
Maybe it was creepy or corny, but she liked watching him sleep. She knew that very few people had seen him like this, and she felt proud to be the only one who could see it now. And she wanted it to see it every morning.
She remembered when she had been worried about Jane moving in with Bing when they had only been dating for eight months. But everything had worked out perfectly for them.
She had been in a relationship with William for six months but had known him for far more than a year so she did not have any doubts about what she wanted. She wanted to live with William.
"What are you thinking about?," he spoke and Lizzie jumped on the bed.
"I'm sorry, Lizzie," he apologized and moved closer to her.
"My god! I thought you were still asleep," Lizzie shouted.
"Sorry for scaring you, love," he apologized, and put a lock of hair behind her ear.
"You're forgiven if you give a kiss," she said, moving her hands around his torso.
William cupped her chin and kissed her until they pulled apart to catch their breath.
"Am I forgiven now?," he asked sweetly.
"Yes, you are," she chuckled.
"So, what were you thinking about?," he asked again.
"I want us to live together," she said in a breath.
"What?!," William exclaimed and sat on the bed.
" William Fitzwilliam Darcy, I want to live with you," she stated.
"I love when you said my full name," he said and reached for her lips again.
"I've been dying to ask you to live with me since I came back from New Orleans, but I never found the right time. You are making me so happy right now," he said when they finally broke apart.
Lizzie was ecstatic by the realization that William had also considered living together.
"I'm very happy now," she said, "and sorry for stealing your moment."
"Don't worry, I'll get my moment," he replied and Lizzie laughed.
"So... we are really going to live together," she said, grinning.
"Yes, we are," William replied, with a smile in his face.
"So, we'll probably need to talk about where...," she murmured as she ran her hands underneath his shirt.
"Yeah, we should... talk… eventually," he mumbled, too distracted to think straight.
They started to kiss more passionately and soon Lizzie was straddling William. They had to stop when they heard noises in the apartment.
"Charlotte," Lizzie said, a little short of breath, "I did not hear her coming during the night."
"Okay," William replied, flustered, "maybe you should check on her. I'll.. I'll wait here."
Lizzie giggled, as she knew why he was indisposed to get out of the room. She kissed him quickly and left the bedroom.
"Lizzie! Did I woke you up?," Charlotte said. She looked tired but very happy, holding her shoes in one hand.
"Charlotte Lu, why are you just coming home?", Lizzie said imitating her mother's tone.
"Oh, Lizzie! I have to tell you what happened," her friend answered, beaming.
"I am all ears, but just so you know, William is here," Lizzie said.
"Did I interrupt something? Sorry!," Charlotte said, sinking in the couch.
Lizzie looked down and was grateful that her nightclothes were not (that) disheveled.
"Nope," she replied, sitting next to her, "now tell what happened."
Charlotte's adventure had started when she had gone to the restroom. She did not notice that the floor was wet and slipped. She would have fallen if it had not been for Ian, who happened to be nearby and helped her.
Charlotte thanked him for his help but when she looked up, his eyes were the first thing that grabbed her attention. They were very pretty. She blushed a little, but managed to thank him again and walked to the restroom.
"I was walking back to you, when Catherine found me, and started talking about Collins & Collins."
"No!," Lizzie cried.
"Yeah," Charlotte sighed, "She's my boss and I respect her, but my head was not really in "job mode" and she did not leave me talk so I could not excuse myself."
"Sorry, Char. I got... distracted with William, and did not realize until late that you were with his aunt."
"Yes, I saw you and prayed that you would look my way, but Ian came to my rescue, again, and everything after that was amazing."
"Oh! Tell me more!," Lizzie said playfully.
"So, Catherine kept talking to me when all of the sudden, Ian appeared next to us and told her that she had to leave me go because I had promised him the next dance. It was not true, obviously, but I nodded and said goodbye to Catherine. I hope I don't get in trouble."
"Anyway, as we were dancing, he said that he had noticed my SOS look and decided to rescue me. I laughed and thanked him, again. We introduced each other and we kept dancing and talking."
"I did notice that," Lizzie said.
"Well, after you left, we stayed in the party until they sort of kicked us out," Charlotte continued, "I didn't want to say goodbye, and apparently, neither did him, so we found this coffee shop was opened very late or very early. And we stayed there for the rest of the night, just talking."
"Just talking?", Lizzie asked mischievously.
"Yes, Lizzie, just talking," Charlotte replied.
"Wow!"
"I know, right?," Charlotte said, "it sounds like something out of a romantic comedy, don't you think? I never felt that kind of connection with someone like that before."
"Well…," Lizzie sighed.
"Yeah, I know, you and Darcy," Charlotte said.
"I was actually thinking about you and me, but okay," Lizzie joked.
Charlotte laughed and said, "A different kind of connection."
"And what are you going to do now?," Lizzie asked.
"After breakfast, we exchanged numbers, and we made plans to meet back in LA," Charlotte answered.
"That's great!"
"You don't think it's too soon?," Charlotte asked.
"You are not getting married, you just are going out in a date," Lizzie said, "Besides, I haven't seen you this excited in a while. I'm happy for you."
"Thanks, Lizzie. I really like him," Charlotte finished.
In that moment, William stepped out the bedroom, still in his shirt and pajama pants. He had learnt to leave a bag of clothes at Lizzie's place, just in case.
"Sorry, I just wanted to get some water," he said, "Good morning, Charlotte."
"Good morning, Darcy," she greeted, "I really need to sleep now. Thanks for listening, Lizzie."
"That's my job as your bestie," Lizzie replied.
"Thanks again. Now, you guys, go back to whatever you were doing before. I'll put on my earplugs," Charlotte said before heading to the guest room.
William blushed and looked embarrassed at the floor.
"Char!," Lizzie exclaimed.
"See you later," her friend replied and closed the door behind her.
"Oh, well, you heard her, William," Lizzie said and walked towards him.
"Lizzie…," he sighed, putting his glass on the kitchen table.
"We could really use a shower," she replied, and, taking his hand, made him follow her to her room.
"And I think we need to finish what we started, don't you agree?," she murmured, and William agreed emphatically.
In a world like this - Backstreet Boys
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