The next day Lizzie sat in the backseat of a four person Porsche for the first time. It was, in fact, a Bingley Porsche, and they were on the way to school. Jane was left at the Bingley mansion for the time being, due to the fact that Mrs. Bennet was conveniently not answering any phone calls, text messages, or emails. The only text that Lizzie's mother seem to have gotten was the one Lizzie sent late the previous night that read; "Mom. If and when will I see you again?" The response to the message was, "Will be over with the girls tomorrow." Lizzie tried to explain to her mom that it simply wasn't appropriate, but to no avail. It seemed that Mrs. Bennet's phone had misplaced itself again.

Charlie had convinced her that it was okay, but Lizzie was still upset that her mother wasn't following the common rules of courtesy by asking to be invited over first. Throughout the course of the day her other three sisters met her in giggling frenzies, asking for their oldest sister. And of course, if the romance between her and the actor had progressed.

After Mary asked her if Charlie had made a move yet, Lizzie finally lost her patience. "With Jane sick he can't go around kissing her! Just leave me alone!" Mary had strode off quickly, insulted, and Lizzie was left to feel guilty about it for the rest of the school day. Her mood was temporarily lifted, however, when she entered her HL History class and Charlotte was sitting there waiting for her.

"Hey Lizzie! Have a nice weekend?"

"Yeah, didn't have time to do any CAS though. Unless caring for your sick sister counts as community service, I can't clock in for this week."

"I forgot about Jane. I got your text about her though, how is she?" Charlotte looked sympathetically at Lizzie as she pulled her notebook out of her bag. "Yeah I was only able to work two hours at the vet clinic this weekend. I hope that's enough. Maybe next week I can convince them to let me paint some kennels or something for creativity credit."

Lizzie shrugged and began to rummage through her bag as well. "Jane's fine. She's at the Bingley's getting better until mom remembers about her and takes her home. And I'm sure they'll let you paint somewhere."

"I hope she gets better," Charlotte continued conversationally, but just then the teacher came in and all talking vanished quickly. "Yeah," she whispered as the lights turned off and the documentary on Stalin turned on. "I'm sure my boss'll find something for me to do."

Lizzie merely nodded and all talking was finished.

***

"So when are your family coming?" Caroline asked disdainfully from the backseat next to Darcy. William looked less than enthused about sitting next to the redhead, but it was only polite to let the guest sit in the front. Besides, Charlie would never let him drive. The Porsche was his baby and no one, not even his oldest friend, was allowed to drive it. If Caroline wasn't Caroline she still wouldn't be a person to talk to, as she was texting someone or other all the time. So William typically occupied himself with a book when forced to sit next to Charlie's sister.

Elizabeth was enjoying the cooling weather and had her window open a crack. This only managed to irritate Caroline more because, even though there was no one important there to see it, her hair was still getting ruined from the breeze. However, not even Caroline could break the mood so with closed eyes she answered the teenager's question. "She never told me. She's bad with detail."

"You can tell her it's rude," Caroline grumbled.

Will had enough and he finally spoke up. "It's not like you're going anywhere. Why can't you tolerate something spontaneous for a second?" Caroline only stuck out her bottom lip in a pout.

"I've already told her," Elizabeth commented, pushing the fact that Darcy came to her defense again in the back of her mind. "She didn't answer her phone."

"Hey Charlie, bet she's trying to get you together with her daughter!" Caroline supplied with false enthusiasm.

Charlie reddened and the hands that gripped the steering wheel turned white, yet his face remained neutral. "Caroline, really!"

"No, it all makes sense!" she continued, and Lizzie was strongly tempted to just put on her headphones to block her out. "Her mom only answers her phone to tell us she's coming, they just happened to not be there when Jane got sick, that's it!" Now the tips of Charlie's ears were red and still he said nothing.

Darcy snorted."You act as if Elizabeth isn't even in the car!"

"No it's fine," Elizabeth assured Darcy. "If Caroline has something bad to say about my family, I'm sure she would take the mature approach instead of acting like a monkey." Slight smirks ran across the faces of both men briefly before a silence overtook the car. It would have been the comfortable silence shared between friends had Caroline been there, but with her in the vehicle it just became awkward.

"Does anyone like music?" Charlie asked cheerfully.

***

"Such a lovely home! So furnished, so expensive! I assume you have decorators, Charlie dear?" Mrs. Bennet had spent the past twenty five minutes praising everything and anything in the house as Charlie gave them the grand tour. At first the remaining Bennet girls that had not experienced the pleasure of having the tour were excited, pointing at things that interested them and talking amongst themselves, but not they were tired of their mothers constant interruptions on how much things were worth, how much they cost and how 'oh so lucky' Charlie Bingley and his sister were.

"Yes, Mrs. Bennet. There's no way I could have come up with all this. If I had my way the walls would still be white with a few pictures of Golden Retrievers on them!"

"Oh aren't you just the cutest thing? Isn't he girls?"

"Mother, we've said yes three times already," Mary drawled tiredly and rolled her eyes while Charlie covered his smile with a palm.

Mrs. Bennet frowned. "Well a man doesn't have to get tired of hearing himself being called attractive now does he?"

"No, he doesn't," Charlie agreed with an easy smile, though he was all too eager to end this tour as soon as possible. The Bennets had come, surprisingly enough, right in time for dinner. Mrs. Bennet had come with the ready excuse that she had run her phone over with her car, accidentally of course, right after she texted Elizabeth. Lizzie was astonished that the first thing out of her mother's mouth was not the desire to see her sick daughter but to see the entirety of the mansion. Lizzie was able to convince her mother that Jane's health was more important and that the showing of the mansion could be kept until after dinner.

The tour ended quickly after that, and they made their way back to the main living area where Darcy, Caroline and Elizabeth were already stationed.

"Are you all planning to go to the Halloween Dance in two weeks?" Lydia blurted out, then was nudged by Kitty.

"You just can't ask people if they're going to a dance or not," Kitty whispered to her twin and rolled her eyes.

"I don't know, maybe," Charlie shrugged. "I'll go if Darcy goes, right bud?" Darcy didn't even smile back at him and Charlie's one sided chuckles became awkward very quickly. He cleared his throat and began seriously. "If your sister's better by then, then yes. I'll go."

"So, what are we going to do now?" Mrs. Bennet piped up after a moment of silence.

Caroline's mouth turned up in a fake smile. "You know Mrs. Bennet, some of us do have school tomorrow and don't like to be kept up longer than we have to."

"Yes some of us need as much beauty sleep as we can get," William commented dryly, much to Elizabeth's pleasure. Elizabeth found it astonishing that, had she not been a guest at Caroline's house, she would have said the very same thing.

"Oh," Mrs. Bennet said, the disappointment etched clearly on her face. "We should get going then."

Charlie, ever the pleaser, felt guilty at Caroline's sudden dismissal and sought to make up for his sister's rudeness, though it may cost him an evening. "You don't have to... we could play cards, or... something?"

"No it's fine, the girls have school tomorrow too," Mrs. Bennet sighed. Elizabeth stood up as if to leave with her mother, but Mrs. Bennet merely waved her to sit back down. "Elizabeth honey, you'll have to stay with your sister." Caroline's eyebrows crossed at the Bennet mother's rudeness but chose to say nothing.

"Well, if you insist on keeping me here then I hope you brought some clothes. I can't go around wearing other people's clothes forever, can I?"

"Caroline has some that would fit you, I'm sure, Good night everybody!" With that she left with the other three girls.

"Thank you Charlie!" Lydia and Kitty chorused together.

"Forgive her," muttered Mary darkly as she closed the door behind her.

The room was silent for a moment and Lizzie gazed dumbfounded at the closed door. "I don't believe that woman!"

Caroline stood up triumphantly and went to the door. Opening it, she turned around. "Try that mother in law on for size, big boy!" She closed the door and the room was quiet.

"I hate it when she does this, I'm sorry Charlie," Elizabeth apologized sincerely. "I think it's time that I went to bed too."

"Anytime, I like you and your sister," Charlie smiled, then realized his mistake. "Not that I don't like the others, what I meant was..."

Elizabeth smiled warmly. "I know what you meant. Goodnight Charlie," she hesitated. "Goodnight Will."

"Night Lizzie!"

"Goodnight Elizabeth," Darcy rumbled quietly, pausing a moment and then returning to his book. After a while he began to feel the eyes of Charlie Bingley on the back of his head and he looked up. "What?" Charlie wiggled his eyebrows in response and Darcy sighed. "What?"

"You were looking at her all night."

"I was not! There's no proof of that!"

"Yes there is! You've been on the same page of that book for an hour!"

"I'm a slow reader," Darcy quipped short temperedly.

Charlie rolled his eyes. "Oh please we both know that isn't true," he lowered his voice several octaves. "I think you're sweet on Elizabeth Bennet. Like, even more than you already are."

Darcy pressed his lips together and exhaled deeply through his nose. "I think," he began slowly, "that if she wasn't in association with such people, I would be in some danger of... liking her more than I should."

Charlie hissed through his teeth. "That's bull! You know maybe someday you'll learn to show some emotion."

"Maybe someday you'll learn not to show your emotion so clearly on your face so that any fool can take advantage of you! Now goodnight!" Darcy put his bookmark in roughly, slammed the book on the table and left. The door made a loud noise as he shut it, and Charlie shouted out a quick, "Night!" before Darcy's hurried footsteps could no longer be heard climbing up the stairs.