Author's Note: So, sorry this took so long to write. I've been swamped with college essays, so the last thing I want to do at the end of the day is write some more. Anyway, I really want to develop Bingley and Jane's relationship, which I did a bit here, and I'll do some next chapter I suppose. Actually, I'm thinking next chapter won't really have much action, just some Darcy/Lizzie and Bingley/Jane relationship development. I also developed the character's backstory a bit, here, actually, I think I just did Darcy's. Anyway, this is becoming really difficult to write just because I don't know what to do with the story, so suggestions are welcome (PLEASE). Anyway, thanks for reading, and seriously, please please please please review! I will respond as soon as possible, but I need some feedback, I don't even know if you all are enjoying it or not, hopefully the former, but you can just write something short like "hey Hannah how's it goin'?" And then I'll be all "man, I'm great, thanks for asking!" Anyway, in conclusion, please enjoy and please review.
Chapter Five
Lizzie was certain someone had made a mistake. Or maybe it was a very elaborate prank. Either way, something was wrong. She had just got off the phone with the people from Caltech, and apparently she had a job now. A real job. A career. Jane, who was as excited for her sister as she possibly could be, demanded they go out to celebrate. They sat at a square table on the balcony of their favorite Mexican restaurant, each sipping on a margarita. The sun was setting, and the weather was perfect, marking the end of summer. Well, the end of September, but the weather in LA made the summer feel longer.
"Are you excited?" Jane asked, setting the heavy glass down.
"Of course I'm excited," Lizzie responded, "this is the first true step in my career."
"What are you researching?"
"Sustainable agriculture," Lizzie said, still in disbelief.
Jane smiled widely, "I'm so happy for you!"
"I'm happy for me, too" she laughed, raising her eyes to meet Jane's.
They both paused as they raised the margarita glass to their lips.
Will Darcy watched the sunset from his office perched at the top floor of his company's office building. He stretched and rolled his head around before closing up his final documents. He congratulated himself on a successful deal with Google that had occurred earlier that day, and he couldn't wait to head home for the weekend. His sister was driving down from San Francisco, where she was staying with friends, to spend her final week before school with him.
As he was taking the elevator down, he realized that he had barely seen Gigi all summer, and he was looking forward to her visit even more. He had emailed her about Charlie's new love interest, and her strangely intriguing sister; but most conversations were short, and usually revolved around some drama among the girls Gigi was friends with.
Opening the door onto the street, he was greeted by the refreshing, and perfect late-summer-early-fall California temperature. And then he immediately halted when he saw two familiar strangers sitting at the Mexican restaurant across the street. The high rise across the street was another business, but Will wasn't quite sure what it was, but on the ground level they had a fantastic Mexican restaurant that he often ate at for lunch. In the outside area sat Jane and Lizzie chatting, and sipping margaritas. He thought Lizzie looked incredibly beautiful in the fading light, but then he begrudgingly admitted that he thought she looked beautiful in every light. He stared for what seemed like an eternity before Jane caught his eye, smiled and waved.
"Is that Will?" Jane said abruptly changing their conversation. She looked at someone across the street, and then waved.
"Will...Darcy?" Lizzie asked, turning her head to follow Jane's eyes. She tried very hard to mask the expression of horror that she felt.
Will just stood there, completely frozen, until he somehow managed to find the strength to wave back. He was unsure of whether or not to go and talk to them, or just find his car and leave. The latter won out, and he simply walked away, somewhat mortified, and found his car parked on the street by the office building.
Lizzie turned back to Jane who was laughing to herself, "he's so weird, why does he always act like that?"
Jane shrugged, despite knowing the answer. Now that her and Charlie were "official" they were able to have proper one-on-one dates without speculation from their friends and family, and their conversation tended toward their better halves who seemed to hate each other. Charlie confided in Jane (under several promises from Jane that she wouldn't tell Lizzie) that Will had certain feelings for Lizzie, though Will denied it. Jane, who suspected some sort of attraction, was confused by his mannerism around her sister. He was always cold, and unfeeling; hardly the behavior of someone who wanted to get to know Lizzie better. Lizzie, as stubborn as ever, responded in snarky, sarcastic comments that did little to coax better behavior from Will, instead he would become more reserved. Jane often noticed that after a particular dig from Lizzie he would brood off in a corner, before gaining enough confidence to offer his opinion again, and with any amount of luck, Lizzie would keep her mouth shut. Her and Charlie often laughed at both of their behavior, and Charlie tried to sneak in some of Jane's advice to Will, without seeming too obvious. "Jane told me that she loves a guy dressed in royal blue," Charlie would gesture to a royal blue shirt. "That's hardly relevant, Charlie," Will would reply, and later try and hide the blue shirt from his friend. Somehow, one of the main focuses of Charlie and Jane's relationship was their friends. Jane never told Lizzie about giving Charlie tips to give to Will. However, she did like to see the fruit of their work. When Will wore a certain blue shirt, and Lizzie had a certain look in her eyes, Jane knew that her advice was paying off. "That shirt looks good on him, right, Lizzie?" Jane would ask. "That's hardly relevant, Jane," she would reply, and later try and hide her feeling of attraction from herself by reprimanding him everytime he spoke. Charlie and Jane would shrug, but continue to play their roles as passive gods, trying to create a romance that, from the looks of it, would never happen.
"I think he's just nervous around you," Jane finally replied, "I mean, you do criticize him every chance you get,"
Lizzie glanced at her sister, "Okay, first of all, does he not deserve it, the man said I was 'vile' if I remember correctly. And second, I am only calling him out on his bullshit, I mean, the whole spiel about a 'truly put together woman', seriously, how can his standard be so high? No woman on this planet has all the accomplishments that he listed-"
"Yes, I know, you've told me," Jane cut her off, exasperated. They both paused and sipped their margaritas, "I guess he works here, then,"
"I don't see why it matters," Lizzie began, "Oh, wait, yes I do! Now, I know to avoid this restaurant for the rest of my life."
"Lizzie," Jane sighed at her sister, "this is our favorite Mexican place, we're not going to avoid it just because Will Darcy works near here,"
"You doubt my determination?"
"Not at all," Jane replied, "I fully believe that you have every intention of never coming back to this place, which, by the way, has the best guacamole in town, because you dislike-"
"Hate," Lizzie quickly corrected.
"Sorry, because you hate the guy who works near here. It's not exactly the best way to deal with things you dislike...sorry, things you 'hate'" Jane finished, placing her hands under her chin and looking at her sister.
"The 'best' way to deal with things is subjective," Lizzie finally said, looking over her margarita, "Some people think natural gas is the 'best' way to solve our foreign oil problem,"
"And, is it not?" Jane asked, half-heartedly.
Lizzie looked aghast, "Jane! How could you say something like that? Of course it's not!" Lizzie began lecturing her sister, "fracking has led to the creation of unnatural fault lines, which has resulted in stark increases of seismic activity. I mean, Oklahoma started having earthquake only a few months after fracking began in the state; it's not a coincidence, fault lines don't just 'appear'"
"Okay, okay," Jane leaned back in the chair, "I see your passionate, and I'm sorry I asked."
Lizzie was about to say something when their food finally arrived. Jane commented on the amount of jalapeños Lizzie put on her food, Lizzie just lightly threw a slice of the spicy pepper at her.
"I saw Jane and Lizzie today, eating at that Mexican place, you know, across from my office building," Will told Charlie over the phone as he drove to his house in San Clemente.
"And how are they?" Charlie said, mildly interested, because he had a lunch date with Jane the next day.
"I mean, I didn't talk to them, but from across the street they seemed fine," he turned to get off the exit to the beach. Nighttime was the best time to go to the beach, Will thought, and every time he had a chance, he would sit on the shore and watch the dark waves roll onto the sand.
"Why didn't you talk to them? We're pretty good friends at this point, I mean, Jane and I are going steady, I think you could've gone and talked to them,"
"It didn't seem right," Will explained honestly, "You may be close to them, but I hardly know them,"
"Will, they came to your birthday party,"
"Because you invited them,"
"Because we're all friends," Charlie sighed audibly into the phone, "Anyway, am I going to get to see Gigi at all this week, or is it special sibling bonding time? You know, it's not normal for two siblings to be as close as you two are, it's weird."
"It's what happens when your parents die when you're young," Will paused, not really meaning to say that out loud, "but you can come visit us in San Clemente this weekend, just, please, don't bring Caroline,"
"Fair enough," Charlie said, feeling slightly guilty for questioning Will's relationship with his sister, Gigi was only in high school when their parents died in a freak car accident involving a drunk driver, and Will was only a sophomore in undergraduate school. He wanted to go to med school, but quickly changed his major to computer science when he realized he would have to fill his father's position. He also had to fill his parents' position as Gigi's guardian, and the two were now inseparable, "I'll talk to you later about that potential visit to San Clemente; if I don't make it, tell Gigi I said hi!"
"Alright, talk to you later," Will said and then hung up the phone as he pulled up to an empty parking lot on the beach. He sighed heavily as he stepped out of the car.
He slid his shoes off, and stuff the socks inside them. He rolled up his slacks so they were at his knees, and he walked into the ocean until the water was just under the rolled up fabric. He stood silently for awhile, he felt childish because he wished his parents were here, so they could give him advice. Advice on how to run the company, and what to do with his future, how to help Gigi, and about what to do about this very stubborn girl who, Will decided, was the most confusing person he had ever met. He liked to imagine that his mother and her would've gotten along very well, both passionate about the environment and both sarcastic. His father, he wasn't quite sure. Will was like his father in many ways, very serious and reserved, and he imagined Lizzie's sarcasm would have put him off, or maybe he would've liked it, the way he liked his mother's. Gigi was supposed to be home soon, but he couldn't tear himself away from the ocean. It seemed to hold answers, but was reluctant to give them away.
Eventually, he made himself leave, and got back into his car. He decided not to put his shoes on, but instead, drive barefoot with his damp, sand-covered feet. He would clean the car tomorrow. This was the first time in his life that he was as lost as he was the time his parents died. He wasn't sure what made him feel this way, but he would talk it over with his sister. Gigi knew how to tell him exactly what would make him feel better.