Chapter 4

"I still can't believe he proposed to me in a restaurant full of a bunch of strangers," Lulu purred, staring longingly at her new fiancé as she held her left hand against her chest, forcing every light in the room to attach to the rock sitting on her ring finger.

"Sure was something," Elizabeth replied, forcing an all-too-painful smile at the blonde, before shifting her eyes back to her untouched grilled chicken sandwich.

Jason would have thought she'd been starving after confining herself to his guest bedroom for two days straight, but it was clear she could barely stomach the conversation, let alone the food. She'd been shuffling her silverware around on her napkin for the past twenty minutes, speaking only when spoken to, so he was surprised she had actually dignified Lulu with a response.

"So, we were thinking the end of the month," Johnny said proudly, sliding his arm over the back of Lulu's chair as they sat inside Kelly's diner.

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open as the butter knife she'd been rolling between her fingers clanged loudly against the floor. "Uh, sorry," she gasped, pushing her chair back and bending over to pick up the silverware. She paused briefly, leaving her head tucked between her knees, and Jason knew she was trying to stop herself from hyperventilating.

"I know, I know," Johnny murmured, grinning at the back of Elizabeth's head as her fingers wrapped around the knife so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "You think it's soon, but I just can't wait to marry Lulu."

The brunette's head jerked up hurriedly, colliding hard with the edge of the table. "Son of a bitch," she moaned, slowly sitting back in her chair. She rubbed one hand over the back of her head and attempted to hide her tear-filled eyes with the other.

"Oh, goodness," Lulu cried, leaning over to pat her gently on the shoulder. She stiffened under the blonde's touch, her eyes swinging to Jason's as her lower lip quivered. "You hit your head pretty hard there, but you really should watch your words."

Jason choked on his cola and had to pound his fist against his chest to catch his breath. He felt Elizabeth's eyes narrow into a glare, and he was too terrified to see if she was looking at him or Lulu.

"Looks like we caught everyone off guard with that one," Johnny laughed, popping a fry into his mouth and grinning at his friends.

He really was one of the stupidest people that Jason had ever known.

"I'm-I'm fine," Elizabeth hissed, shrugging out of Lulu's touch as she continued to clutch the butter knife tightly in her hand. "Just trying to get my bearings."

She gripped the chair with her free hand and scooted closer beneath the table, and it was only when Jason cleared his throat and nodded at the knife, that she dropped it back on the napkin.

"As you were," she muttered, smiling politely at Lulu and Johnny. "The end of the month, I believe you said."

"Yeah," Johnny nodded, flashing a soft smile as he looked across the table at Elizabeth. "We thought about eloping-"

"Or rather, John did," Lulu cut in, with an uncomfortable laugh. "My parents would never approve of doing such a thing, and to think he mentioned Las Vegas? I refuse to go to a town where prostitution is legal outside the city limits, and you can get married by Elvis. Not to mention that gambling breeds addiction."

"So much for going to Atlantic City for the bachelorette party," Elizabeth snorted, rolling her eyes.

Lulu's eyes snapped to the brunette's face, and she looked offended for a few seconds, before her lips broke into a wide smile. "That was a joke…Right?"

Elizabeth arched an eyebrow at her as if to ask if she was seriously asking that, and Jason was pretty sure she was going to vocalize those feelings, so he stepped in.

"Uh, are you getting married here? Or are you going back to Europe?" he asked, tugging at the collar of his t-shirt when he felt his friend shooting daggers at him with her eyes.

Something told him that no matter what he said or did, everything that was going wrong with this lunch would somehow be his fault.

He should have known this the second they stepped into the diner, and Lulu flung herself into Elizabeth's arms like the two girls were best friends having a reunion after ten years apart. He also should have known this when Johnny told Elizabeth that she looked beautiful in the strapless, green sundress she was wearing, only to follow it up by saying that Lulu had the exact same one. And he wasn't even going to get into the fact that Lulu had asked Georgie Jones if there was anything on the menu that wasn't fried, deep fried, or marinated in grease.

Really, none of this should have been his fault, but it was.

After all, he was the one who whispered to Elizabeth to be patient and kind to Lulu, even if she was too touchy feely. And he was the one who rolled his eyes and agreed that the dress would knock Johnny off his feet, and he was the one who kicked her under the table when Elizabeth muttered that Lulu must be afraid of getting a stain on her perfectly starched, cranberry polo shirt.

Jason was really hoping that Elizabeth didn't honestly believe that a greasy burger and an order of cheese fries were enough to make up for the fact that she dragged him along to this.

Then again, it wasn't like he was going to nag her about it either.

"I called Father Coates this morning," Johnny answered, raking a hand through his perfectly coifed, chocolate locks, a gesture that caused Elizabeth to literally swoon to the point that she nearly fell out of her chair. Seconds later when she realized what he was saying, she clucked her tongue so softly that Jason was the only one who heard it.

How in the hell was he going to survive this lunch?

"Lulu and I are going to go look at the church later this afternoon," he continued, glancing briefly at the blonde, who was picking nervously at her plate of lettuce.

Yes, a plate of just lettuce.

When Georgie joked that everything at Kelly's came with a side of grease, Lulu turned white as a ghost, asking for just a plate of lettuce with no grease.

Even Jason, who was doing his damnedest to give Johnny the benefit of the doubt, was having a hard time dealing with this adjustment.

"What do your parents think about this quick engagement?" Elizabeth asked, running her thumb along the edge of the butter knife as she continued to glare at her sandwich.

"Well, once mother realized I wasn't pregnant, and we weren't doing…Oh, what is it? A shotgun wedding?" she asked, holding a hand against her mouth as if she'd just said the most awful three words in the history of the English language. "Why would they call it such a thing? That's just terrible, but anyway…"

She paused, sighing heavily and brushing several pieces of her perfectly placed blonde hair out of her face. "I'm not with child. John isn't after my family's money. I'm not after his money. And well, it just seems to make sense. We've been dating for a while now, and there's really only one option left if we want to move forward."

Nodding, Elizabeth pressed her thumb against the ridged edge of the knife as she chewed her lower lip. "That's a nice way of looking at it," she forced out, swallowing hard.

"And my parents just love John. He's so respectful and enjoys spending time with them," she continued, looking dotingly at Johnny, while Elizabeth was obviously thinking of ways to rip the blonde's hair out.

Jason was starting to think it was a good thing he had come along with her, or else this could have gotten very, very ugly.

"…He loves spending time in the kitchen with my mother, and he doesn't mind golfing with my father on Sundays," she purred, emitting more collective eye rolls from Jason and Elizabeth, that neither she nor Johnny seemed to notice.

O'Brien only liked kitchens because they had food, and the last time he picked up a golf club, Jason was pretty sure it was so he could slam the putter against the side mirrors of Lucky's car.

"Uh, excuse me," Elizabeth murmured, relief washing over her face when her cell phone rang.

She dug through her purse, sliding the phone out as Lulu looked on with annoyance, and Jason used the distraction as a chance to slide the butter knife away from her napkin.

Something told Jason that Lulu Spencer was gearing up to give the brunette another etiquette lesson, but thankfully Elizabeth cut her off before she had the chance.

"I have to take this. It's the gallery owner, so it's probably about my opening," she said, a sincere smile on her face as she pushed her chair back from table, and hurried outside the restaurant.

Jason's eyes followed her as she slipped out the door, and he couldn't help but smile when he watched her chatter away excitedly, one of her hands moving around in the air as she spoke. At least something seemed to be making her happy during all this chaos.

He was having a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that Johnny O'Brien, former whino and womanizer, was now engaged to the modern day Emily Post.

"I really don't think she likes me very much," Lulu sighed quietly, balling her napkin up in her fist before setting it on top of her untouched pile of lettuce.

Either she hadn't gotten that the grease comment was a joke, or she was just as anxious as Elizabeth about all of this. After all, Lulu Spencer was the outsider being forced to step into Johnny O'Brien's former niche. If his friend loved Lulu and planned on marrying her, and he sure hoped Johnny did since he seemed to be so at ease at dealing with her, then Jason had to trust there was something likeable about her.

"She, uh, she never really had any girl friends," Johnny said softly, gently placing his hand on his fiance's shoulder and giving her a faint smile. "I told you before that Elizabeth just reacts differently to women."

Jason grunted, louder than he meant to, and their eyes swung to his. "Uh, sorry," he muttered, holding a hand up as he took a swig of his drink.

His friend narrowed his eyes, knowing that Jason was implying something else, and he was left with no choice but to respond.

"She's just overwhelmed," he lied, agreeing with Johnny, though he knew that was a huge understatement.

He understood that Johnny had every right to leave town and find someone else, but he just couldn't understand how his friend expected to pretend that whatever happened last year, never happened at all.

"John said this gallery opening is very important to her," Lulu said, twisting her engagement ring nervously around her finger. "But he also says she has nothing to worry about because she's amazing. I really would like to see her work, but…" She paused, shrugging as she looked at her fiancé. "I understand that something like that is personal."

"It's a lot of pressure," Jason admitted, wanting that to be the reason why Elizabeth was so upset. "Johnny's right though. She has no reason to worry. Everything she paints is…perfect."

"You've seen her paintings for the opening?" the blonde asked, sounding genuinely interested.

Jason shook his head, suddenly feeling like the awkward one at the table. "I, uh, I haven't seen them, but she's told me about them," he replied slowly, fiddling with his silverware. "I had, an uh, an accident a long time ago, and I can't really see-"

"Oh, of course," she interrupted, nodding understandingly. "John mentioned that. I didn't mean to bring up a sore subject or anything."

If only she could be this nice and less perfect when Elizabeth was around, but something told Jason she made Lulu very, very nervous.

"It's fine," he replied, with a half-hearted shrug. "She just has to explain what it looks like. The colors…The brushstrokes."

"Well, it must be nice to have some personal attention from the artist," she murmured, taking a sip of her water. She clasped her hands on her lap, placing them on the edge of the table as everyone quiet again. "I hope that she can warm up to me with the wedding and all that. It only seems fitting to ask her to be a part of it, considering John's going to ask you."

And just like that, she became Lulu Spencer, the sole cause of torture in Elizabeth Webber's life.

"A part how, exactly?" Jason asked, resting his elbow on the table and scratching his forehead against his hand.

"Well, you know you're going to be my best man," Johnny chuckled, slapping him on the shoulder. "Who else would I ask to be by my side on the most important day of my life?"

He nodded, knowing he shouldn't expect anything less from his best friend, but it was Lulu that had him worried. There was no she would actually expect Elizabeth to-

"So, I thought maybe I could extend such to Elizabeth," Lulu said, as if it made all the sense in the world. "I mean, I don't have very many close girlfriends either. I have an older sister, who will definitely be in the wedding party, but my very best friend can't come on such short notice…Who better to trust with the important role of being the maid of honor than one of John's very best friends?"

Oh, fuck.

Elizabeth was going to kill Lulu, then Johnny, and maybe even Jason.

This was bad.

"Sorry about that," Elizabeth called out, coming back into the diner as the tiny bell rang out above her head. "There's space for two additional paintings. Anything I want to choose and I really have no idea…Hopefully there's something in my studio. I don't have enough time to start from scratch."

Smiling happily, she slid into her chair and scooted herself under the table, going as far to actually take a bite of her sandwich, that had to be cold by now. Still, it was nice to see her finally consume something that wasn't liquor.

"Didn't mean to interrupt," she murmured, holding a hand over her mouth as she chewed. "What were you guys talking about?"

Son of a bitch.

Jason scratched his forehead against his palm and stared down at his plate of cold fries. He didn't know Lulu Spencer very well, and while it seemed she was oblivious to most facts of their lives, he was really hoping she wouldn't bring up the wedding.

At least not yet.

"Wedding plans," the blonde replied with a wide grin, and she stared at Elizabeth as if expecting the brunette to respond in some way.

Instead, Elizabeth paused mid-chew, suddenly looking as if she had the desire to spit the food onto her plate. Reaching for her water, she took a long drink, swallowing hard as she washed it all down, before smiling at Lulu. "Of course."

"Actually, I was hoping to talk to you about some of the plans," she said seriously, to which Jason just shook his head curtly at his pile of fries.

This was not good at all.

"Oh, really?" Elizabeth asked, licking her lips nervously. "I'm not a very good planner, and I hate parties. They're so stuffy, and the only advice I can really give you is to have an open bar, because well, then those who aren't enjoying themselves can just drink their way through it."

"Elizabeth," Johnny hissed, tossing his napkin down on the table and glaring at her.

"Not everyone enjoys themselves at such functions, John," she replied, tossing her own napkin down as she stood up from the table so quickly that she nearly knocked her chair over. Jason was quick to react and caught it by the back, and then sat it up right. "I have to go. I need to work on my paintings."

She started for the door, pausing to dig through her purse and pull out a twenty. Turning around she dropped it on the table and glared at Jason. "Sorry for dragging you along," she spat, her eyes rimmed with tears. "Tell Georgie to keep the change."

She started for the door before Jason could stop her, her mass of brown curls bouncing against her shoulders as she huffed her way out of the diner.

"Sorry about that," Jason muttered, not sure why he was apologizing for her, because at this point, Johnny had to know what he was doing.

Yeah, O'Brien was an idiot, but he couldn't be that big of an idiot.

"It's okay," Lulu said, her lips pulled in a taut frown. "I'm sure it's just the gallery opening, and maybe…Well, I probably shouldn't ask her. It's awfully selfish of me to put more stress on her when she clearly has enough for right now."

"Yeah," he replied, ignoring Johnny's cold stare. "I'm going to go too. I need to get to the warehouse."

Johnny nodded a goodbye as Jason got up from the table, and there was no doubt that his friend wasn't pleased with Elizabeth's antics. Sure, he was in a tough spot, but how in the hell did he expect things to be? He was breaking Elizabeth's heart, and either he was so stupid that he didn't realize it, or he just didn't give a damn. Jason refused to give him a spot in the in between.

Pushing the door open to the diner, he started in the direction of the docks, clenching his hands into tight fists when he heard the sound of Elizabeth swearing under her breath. Rounding the corner, he wasn't at all surprised to find her with her back pressed against the brick wall and her head in her hands.

"Elizabeth," he sighed, stepping towards her just as her hands shot out to push him away.

"Don't," she hissed, her fury filled cerulean eyes meeting his. "This is not happening, Jason. She cannot…" Her voice trailed off and she shook her head, causing her wild curls to fall into her face.

"I know," he replied softly, stepping forward again, this time careful to make sure she didn't try to push him away.

"I hate her," she muttered, letting Jason pull her against his him. She buried her face in chest and fisted her hands in his t-shirt. "I can't let her do this…I can't let him marry her….I just won't."

Sighing, he rested his chin on the top of her head, knowing that this was far from over, and it sure as hell wasn't going to end pretty.