Lizzy was aided by William's cousin so the verbal 2x4 was softened a bit...It's a little shorter than my usual chapter but there is hope for a second on this weekend with a visit with a foe from the North ;)
Lizzy found herself walking at a furious pace back towards campus. How could he have treated her so badly? Had she been blind all these past weeks and didn't see what a boorish person he could be? Replaying the last twenty minutes in her mind only outraged her all the more. He'd been condescending and knew that if she'd stayed a minute longer her famed temper would have exploded all over him and their guests. Not a recipe for family acceptance or assuring a good outcome on her immigration. She continued her furious pace, breathing the cool air deep into her lungs. In short order she found herself back on campus. Too riled up still to sit quietly in the library, and realizing that in her hurry to depart she hadn't had lunch, Lizzy decided to stop into Au Bon Pain.
Finding a table over in the corner, Lizzy relaxed as she drank in the first few spoonfuls of soup. She was about to have another spoonful when she heard her name being called. Looking up Lizzy groaned, Charlie Bingley, the second to last person she wanted to see right now. She tried to paste a smile on her face as he walked over. "Lizzy do you mind if I join? I'm glad I've found you. I really need to talk."
Lizzy raised a brow and indicated the chair across from her. Why would Charlie need to talk to her?
"Lizzy, I was talking to Darcy this morning and he made me realize that I owe you a huge apology."
"Apology? I'm not sure I know what you're talking about." Lizzy asked puzzled.
"For this past weekend, and Caroline. I'm so sorry for imposing Caroline on what should've been a time for only close friends and family. I knew she shouldn't have come and yet, I didn't want to deal with her whining and complaints if I told her she couldn't."
Lizzy laughed, "I'm not so sure you took the easy way out in the end. Of course, we were all forced to share in your suffering a little as a result."
Charlie groaned. He really had been thoughtless. "Why didn't you say anything? If you had I would've told her she couldn't come."
Lizzy actually felt bad. Charlie really was a good guy, he just did some thoughtless things every once in awhile, kind of like someone else she knew. Smirking at the thought, Lizzy placed her hand on top of his. "Look, I didn't say anything and I told William not to say anything, so I have some responsibility with regards to Caroline ultimately being with us this weekend. That said, I wish you'd asked us if it was ok rather than assuming."
"Of course." Charlie said glumly, "I promise I will next time."
Lizzy felt the need to lighten the mood so she continued," Now, the fact that you didn't tell her we were getting married before we all got there? Well I'm sorry, but THAT was entertaining. Don't you think your weekend would've been easier if you'd told her in advance?"
Laughing at himself a little he said, "It certainly would've been cheaper. Did William tell you that I had to fork over $1000 to Caroline so she could find a dress and shoes to wear to your wedding?"
Lizzy's jaw dropped, "No. I hadn't heard that. Oh, I'm sorry. I guess you did get punished." The amounts that people could spend on clothing had always floored her. She was trying to remember what was so special about Caroline's outfit to cost that much when Charlie interrupted her.
"Actually, when I was talking to Darcy this morning he mentioned some meeting over lunch. Weren't you guys supposed to be meeting with the lawyers right now?"
Lizzy was startled from her thoughts, "Oh, uh, William is meeting with them today and I'm going to meet with them tomorrow once he's worked the details through."
"I must've misunderstood. I thought you were meeting together. Well, you're certainly lucky to have Darcy taking a look through everything first. There's no one smarter or more detail oriented. He's such a good guy." Charlie said with a smile.
"Yea I guess so." Lizzy said with a slight smile. She was thinking back to their earlier argument wondering what had been actually going through William's mind at the time.
"Hey Lizzy, I should go. You seem to have a lot on your mind."
"I'm sorry I'm so distracted Charlie. Just so much going on all at once you know."
"I can't begin to imagine. There's one last thing I wanted to say to you though. I'm glad Darcy's found someone who can make him happy. He's always taking on so much responsibility and taking care of everyone around him. He needs someone to take care of him for a change. I know you have been and well, thanks. He's my closest friend and deserves the best." Charlie started to walk off when Lizzy stood up. She gave him a hug, tears in her eyes. "Thanks Charlie, he's been very fortunate in your friendship too."
Charlie wasn't sure what the tears were about but he could feel how genuine Lizzy was in her sentiments. It made him feel good that he'd approached her and tackled his mistake. If only it was so simple to fix things with Jane.
William decided he couldn't worry about Georgie yet. She'd be back on the 20th and he'd worry about her disappointments when they were together. Hopefully a full month would give them time to work through her disquiet over his marriage and whatever else was going on. Lizzy was a separate challenge altogether and she'd be back soon. Clearly he'd screwed up, to the point that his cousin was, for all intents and purposes, laughing at him. He truly couldn't see where he'd gone wrong. He only wanted to help, and figured it'd be a better division of labor to continue reviewing the forms while Lizzy made lunch. Why did she take everything so negatively? Why didn't she simply talk to him?
Putting away the groceries, Will recalled the last time he did this activity. It was a lot more fun with Lizzy. Next time, he hoped. Opening the refrigerator, Will decided he'd start work on dinner. He knew how to make a salad and figured that'd be a good place to start. Chopping vegetables he replayed the morning over again in his mind. Maybe he should've had them wait to start until she was home. She'd told him this morning how nervous she was about starting the green card process. He thought he was helping by getting through the forms but, if it was him, he'd want to be involved in every detail. Of course, that was it, wasn't it. He felt like an idiot when he realized what he'd done.
Looking at the salad he was pretty pleased with his work. It was colorful and had all kinds of different veggies. 'At least I've done one thing right today,' he mused. He reopened the refrigerator to see if anything inspired him for the main course. He saw chicken and fish but wasn't confident he could turn them into anything good. Opening the freezer he spied a package of meatballs they'd made the prior week. He could manage spaghetti and meatballs. He found a jar of sauce and a box of pasta in a cabinet. Two pots were needed and he set everything on the counter. Opening the jar of sauce he was struck again by their conversation earlier in the day. She'd asked him to open a jar for her. But there was more to it wasn't there. She claimed she couldn't do it. She was acting a part; the part he'd cast her in. William sighed. That wasn't what he'd intended. Not at all. At this point, he couldn't wait for her to get home. He wanted to talk through the morning and set things right.
Lizzy slowly trudged home. She hoped she could make William see how his words and actions had made her feel. It wasn't a conversation she was excited for, to say the least. To be honest, she was exhausted. Three classes, a meeting of the Crimson staff, questions from her classmates (apparently news travels fast) and a fight with William was really more than she wanted to take on the day after her wedding. All she really wanted to do was curl up in her bed and go to sleep. And yet, her clueless husband awaited her.
The elevator door opened and the door to the condo swung open, almost simultaneously. Their doorman must have alerted William to her arrival at home. She was still angry, and frustrated, and so resisted her desire to collapse into his arms like she truly would've liked. Setting her bag down she briefly acknowledged William on the way to her room, the room she didn't sleep in the prior evening, and laid down on the bed. She just needed a few minutes of quiet...
A few minutes had passed before she heard a soft knock and the door cracked open, "Lizzy? Can I come in?" William's voice called out.
Lizzy knew they needed to have this talk; she couldn't put it off. "I'll be out in a few minutes."
Pulling herself out of bed she noticed a pile of documents with a vase of pink peonies and lavender next to it. She smiled to herself. 'Maybe this won't be so difficult after all.' She washed her face to refresh herself and then returned to the dining room where she spotted dinner on the table along with two more bouquets of flowers adorning the buffet and table.
"Either Pemberley Enterprises recently purchased a commercial grower of flowers in South America or you realize you royally screwed up." Lizzy said as she looked up at William.
"I wish it was the former but have to be honest and say that it's definitely the latter." William responded.
"And how did you realize the error of your ways?" she asked, a glint of mischief in her eyes.
"To that knowledge I believe I'm indebted to my cousin Matthew. I'd still be miffed that you'd left for class if it wasn't for him." William admitted.
Lizzy raised an eyebrow at this statement. She wondered what Matthew had said. "I'll have to thank him tomorrow," she said quietly. Looking up at William she asked, "Do you understand why I was so upset?"
"I think I do, but I leave you to correct me. I believe that I failed to appreciate how important it was that you are involved in every step of the immigration process. By starting without you I didn't give you a chance to fully participate. Is that right?" William had such a cute puppydog face that Lizzy was inclined to drop it but also knew that wasn't the best course in the long run.
"Let it be noted that you are quite astute Mr. Darcy," she said with a smile. Turning more serious, she continued. "I care deeply and, I guess I expected, and will continue to expect, to be intimately involved in anything that impacts me. For now, that's my immigration status. In the future it could involve a wide range of topics. What I'm trying to say is, if it impacts me, I need to be fully included in all of the details, unless I tell you otherwise." Lizzy stated forcefully.
William sighed,"I understand, really I do."
"Good. And this is a partnership. You made me feel like an idiot when you asked me to leave you all and make lunch. I may be good at making lunch or dinner or whatever, but I'm not your servant. These things are a partnership too and we do them together, ok?"
"Lizzy, I'm really sorry. You're brilliant and I'd never want to make you feel anything less than the amazing woman you are." William pleaded. "I've um, I've made dinner for us. It's not my strong suit but I'm willing to try."
Lizzy smiled and looked down at the intimate setting on the dining room table. "The salad is beautiful. I look forward to eating whatever you've made." William served them and joined her at the table. "Can you help me understand what you were thinking? After I left, I bumped into Charlie. Talking to him made me realize that there was likely some rationale going through your mind but, for the life of me, I can't figure out what it was." Lizzy said as they began to eat.
"Honestly, I'm not sure that I was thinking exactly. I'm just used to dealing with things on my own. I've never had to worry about including anyone else when solving problems. Occasionally I've done some team projects but then we split up the work and did our own thing. After you left, I spent some time trying to figure out what happened. It was then that I realized that, if I was in your shoes, I'd want to be involved in every detail. We're similar that way I think." William answered honestly.
Lizzy looked sympathetically at William, "This is going to be hard for you but its very important to me. I won't be happy if you're constantly trying to swoop in to solve my problems for me."
"I know, if you promise to remind me when I forget, rather than leaving, I'll try to respond calmly."
Lizzy looked chagrined at that statement. She had a bad habit of fleeing when she was upset or angry. Usually it was only for a walk to cool her temper and clear her head. She always came back but knew herself well enough that this was going to be as hard for her as it was for William. "I'll try too. I really just didn't want to explode in front of your cousin so I thought it'd be better if I left to cool off."
"Lizzy, we're ok right?" William asked.
"Yea, we're ok," Lizzy reached over to give him a kiss. Relieved, he responded eagerly to the kiss.
A few minutes later Lizzy pulled away, "I think we should eat this magnificent dinner you pulled together."
"Of course. I'm sorry if I got carried away. I was worried that I'd really screwed up and that you'd push me away." William admitted.
"I married you yesterday William. No matter the circumstances, we committed ourselves to one another and I will always come back to talk things through." Lizzy promised.
He was relieved and they focused on eating the meal he'd made. "Not bad William. I'm impressed. You're definitely in charge of the salad going forward. The spaghetti isn't even too crunchy."
William laughed, "There's a method to my madness. Don't want to set expectations too high on my cooking skills early on in the marriage."
"Don't worry, I'm willing to give you remedial lessons on cooking." Lizzy laughed.
I'll take constructive insights, applause, encouragements in the comments box below...