This is kind of a three part chapter. Of course I'll post them all separate but they take place almost right after the other. Or at least in the same night.
When Lizzy meets Will... interaction ensues.
Tell It Like It Is
Chapter 11
There are two things in this world that Lizzy Morgan, try as she might, could not resist. The first, of course, being those dreaded Girl Scout cookies and the second (oh how it pained her that this was true) was Will Darcy.
It was only a little after six as Lizzy wandered out of the studio. She was searching frantically in her purse, which contains far too much crap to ever find anything easily, for her MP3 player for her walk back to her apartment when she heard someone call her name.
"Will?" she asked, or really more like grunted because protruding from her mouth was a chocolaty little thin mint, that she'd stolen from the guy that does the technical cuts and effects for her show.
He stood awkwardly before her, not really knowing what to say. "Thin mints?" he asked simply. It was the first thing that came to mind.
Lizzy was suddenly forced to make a choice. Finish her thin mint or quiz Will on the obvious questions, such as his reason for being present? Or even, if there was time, why a person such as him had to exist in the universe at all?
She quickly shoved the rest of the cookie down her throat, and tried not to regret her decision to forgo her savory cookie. "What are you doing here?"
Will shrugged. "If I knew, then maybe I wouldn't be here."
"Must you be so cryptic?" she asked as she tried to settle her purse back onto her shoulder. "Not everything has to be a riddle."
"Spoken like a true hypocrite." He stood before her with a flimsy smile gracing his lips and his hands in his pockets. Who was this guy?
"Quick wit? What poor soul did you suck that from?" She shot him a look then turned to walk back down the street. He may have learned more in the art of social interaction, but that didn't make said interaction welcome.
He took three quick steps to catch up with her then slowed his pace to match hers. "I'm not quite as horrible as you like to think."
She turned to him and stopped walking. "What does the devil do with your soul these days?"
"Dancing. The devil takes my soul dancing."
Lizzy waggled her finger at him. "You hate to dance."
"But who's to say that my soul doesn't? Maybe my soul likes to dance and the world will never know because of the young age in which I sold it."
Lizzy couldn't help it. Just like when John the Tech guy went to the bathroom for a moment and she just had to steal some of his cookies. Now she just had to laugh. "I'm sorry," she managed in between giggles. "I just had the most graphic image of you tangoing. You're very uncoordinated in my imagination."
Will watched her laugh. He couldn't help but feel light. In the same way that Lizzy just had to steal those cookies he just had to steal those moments.
"So what are you doing here Will?" she asked regaining her composure but maintaining a light edge that had been lacking at their dinner. He'd forgotten that laughter was the best way to forget.
He sighed. "I was being honest when I said I didn't know." He shrugged and shoved his hands back into the pockets of his khakis. "I had to get out of the office for a moment and then I just kept walking until I ended up here."
They walked slowly down the street, as if they were strolling through a park, or some peaceful environment, and not the hustle and bustle of the city. She had her neck craned to see him and all of his expressions. "Won't Melanie worry?"
He sighed again and as he exhaled with his breath escaped a quick, "Nope." When talking to a girl that could see right through him, it really was futile to lie.
"Trouble in paradise?" she asked, not quite able to stop herself.
Will rolled his eyes. "Things are fine. Not everything in the world has to be perfect. Melanie and I are very… coordinated together."
"Coordinated? Will, you and I both know you hate to dance," she replied evenly, although she could no longer bear to watch his expression.
"I didn't mean coordinated in that way," he replied quickly, while brushing glances in her direction.
"Neither did I."
They walked along together for a couple more moments in silence. Eventually, out of desperation, Will resorted to a generic question. "So how's your family Lizzy?"
"Oh." She looked back at him quickly. She hadn't been expecting that. Will hadn't been expecting the odd look that crossed her face. Was everything not okay? "It's good, I suppose. Bridge's getting married in October. Of course she's over the moon."
"Married? But she's so-"
"Young?" she asked staring straight ahead of her. "Yeah. I know. She really is happy though. His name is Jacob Jones. She's over mostly just excited about adopting the surname Bridget Jones."
"That's classic," he whispered as she chuckled. That was a very Bridget thing to accomplish.
Lizzy smiled. "Yeah, she'll be happy. Mom too. Took up tennis lessons with me when I came home for a summer, it was family bonding thing, next thing I know she's moving into an apartment at the beach with our instructor. My family fulfills all kinds of clichés."
Will watched her for a second looking quite shocked at her even expression. "Your mother is getting remarried?"
"Did I say remarried?" she replied, her face very calm and composed. She'd obviously had plenty of time to cope with this whole idea. "I meant shacking-up. Turns out I'm not the only commitment-a-phoebe in the family."
"You're not a commitment-a-phoebe."
"Oh really? Then why did I break up with Christian when he asked to me marry him?" she asked pulling a piece of gum from her purse and popping it into her mouth.
"Because he's an ass hole."
Lizzy turned to him, her eyes suddenly burning and her lips pinched. "You have no right Will-"
"What?" Will asked, quickly jumping to the defensive. "I have no right to call a guy, that really is an ass hole, an ass hole?"
Lizzy's face melted a little and the spurt of anger slid slowly out of her fingertips. "Ok," she replied slowly. "But only because he really is an ass hole. They're all ass holes. Apparently I have a thing for ass holes."
Will shrugged and tried to resist patting her on the arm. "We all do. Melanie's not the most bubbly person in the world either."
Lizzy smiled. "I don't know what you're talking about. I've always found Melanie to be an absolute sweetheart," she replied her voice coated in an unnatural sweetness.
"Ok, ok." He held up his hands in front of him as if to protect himself physically from her insults. "I'm catching your impersonation of her. But," he shrugged again, "at least she's upfront about it. She doesn't try to be anything she's not. I always know what Melanie I'm going to get."
"Predictability is a four letter word," Lizzy muttered back.
"Only to you," Will replied, facing her dead-on.
Lizzy started walking again (she'd never even realized that they'd stopped) and tucked her hands into her jean pockets. The sun was going down and Lizzy found that in her little strappy top she was starting to get cold.
"So what are you doing for you 'Sea Witch' free time?" she asked slowly, a trace of a smile crossing her face.
Once more, Will shrugged. "Being unpredictable I guess."
Don't blame Will for the way he talks about Melanie. It's all Lizzy's influence on him.
Sorry about typos. I'm dyslexic. (Honestly! That took me three times to spell.)
I've recently (and by recently I mean like a year and a half ago... but our affair has been rekindled.) fallen in love with a character named Jack (not Wikham). If anyone has fallen out of love with reading and wants something lighthearted Jack will do the trick. So go read Can you Keep a Secret.Two of my favorite things: secrets and British people.
Anyway. The next two are all Lizzy and Will (plus a few others, like possibly Anya and Corey) and you see Lizzy at her other job. (she has more than one) So who thinks they know what else Lizzy does to help her put food on the table? (which is really just a saying because she never goes grocery shopping and always just steals from Anya and Corey.)
Who also wants to know how Lizzy will react to... things I cant mention?