Keeper of the Stars

By Kimmie

Chapter 1

Posted on Friday, 19 May 2000

Sing us a song, you're the piano man

Spring, 1993

"Lizzy, that's no song! It doesn't even have a harmony!"

"Well, I can't help it if I'm not as naturally talented as you are!" Elizabeth saucily replied back as she stuck out her tongue at her best friend. As soon as she made sure her friend got the point, she turned back to her big-note piano music to concentrate on learning it.

Eight-year-old Elizabeth Gardiner made an interesting sight at the piano. With brown hair cut in a bob, and big brown eyes, Elizabeth could twist anyone around her finger if she wished. With her lively disposition, people often could not picture her concentrating as she was at this moment. Eyes fixed on her music, biting her lower lip, sometimes sticking her tongue out a little (a habit she possessed when concentrating), and with legs barely touching the piano pedals, Lizzy was intent on learning her new music.

It was the first "real" song Elizabeth was learning. Prior to this, her teacher taught the theory and easy songs out of lesson books meant for little children. When Mrs. Brandon, her piano teacher handed Elizabeth the big-note piano music to "Keeper of the Stars" her expressive eyes lit up at the thought of finally learning something out of the lesson books. For the second day practicing it, she thought she was doing rather well at learning it, but her friend did not.

"Come on! Get off the bench! I'll show you a better version." Elizabeth finally consented because whenever William Darcy took the bench at the piano, he could mesmerize his audience. Already at age ten, William had an incredible gift; and he had no scruples about showing it. His talent is what made Elizabeth beg for piano lessons from her parents four months ago, and indeed, she showed a talent as well, as she quickly learned the notes and techniques.

This time, when William started playing, was no different from the rest. His hands played both the melody and harmony naturally, and as the music enveloped her, Elizabeth stood up next to her friend and sang in her young soprano voice:

It was no accident me finding you
Someone had a hand in it
Long before we ever knew
Now I just can't believe you're in my life
Heaven's smilin' down on me
As I look at you tonight

I tip my hat to the keeper of the stars
He sure knew what he was doin'
When he joined these two hearts
I hold everything
When I hold you in my arms
I've got all I'll ever need
Thanks to the keeper of the stars

Soft moonlight on your face oh how you shine
It takes my breath away
Just to look into your eyes
I know I don't deserve a treasure like you
There really are no words
To show my gratitude

It was no accident me finding you
Someone had a hand in it
Long before we ever knew.*

The duet brought Elizabeth's mother into the living room, where the piano was situated. Leaning against the doorway, dishtowel in hand, Mrs. Gardiner stood smiling at her daughter and friend. At the conclusion of the song, Elizabeth's mother clapped enthusiastically, drawing the attention of the two performers. Playing the part, Elizabeth and William stood side by side, next to piano and bowed to the one-person audience.

Mrs. Gardiner smiled, "Come on, you two! Lunch is served."

All thoughts of piano were forgotten as the two ran towards the kitchen for their macaroni and cheese.

No one was really sure how Elizabeth and William became such good friends. They each had their own group of friends, of course, made up of entirely all girls on Elizabeth's side and all boys on William's side, but somehow Lizzy and Will, as they were known to each other, got drawn together, and they have been inseparable ever since.

William Darcy was the son of a very wealthy couple, Ann and George Darcy. He was rather tall for his age, and showed promise of good looks later on in his life with his brown curls and brown eyes. Unlike most children at that age, William was reserved. Shy around strangers, and only opening up when with his family and friends, he wasn't as popular as Elizabeth was in their fourth grade class. But since the day they became friends, Lizzy's and Will's personalities only seemed to compliment each other.

They first met each other in third grade. Elizabeth moved to the small town in Connecticut when she was in kindergarten, but she skipped second grade; thus the age difference. When discovered that they were in the same religious-ed classes at their church, George Darcy and Edward Gardiner also discovered that they went to high school together. A friendship began amongst their parents, and William and Lizzy were forced into each other's company. Before anyone knew it, they didn't actually have to be forced to do anything together; they wanted to naturally.

And now they were inseparable.

Baby Mine

"Remember Lizzy," Mrs. Gardiner reminded her daughter as they walked up the path to the Darcys' home, "she's only a baby. She won't like noise and she'll be very fragile. And I doubt Mrs. Darcy will let you hold her," she said, quieting the unasked question coming to Lizzy's lips.

"Oh, I know! But I'm glad that Will has a new baby sister. Now we'll have somebody else to play with!" Elizabeth's eyes lit up at the idea, but Mrs. Gardiner chuckled.

"She won't be big enough to actually play for a many months yet, Lizzy. You'll have to be patient."

A small, disappointed "oh!" escaped Lizzy's mouth, but Mrs. Gardiner just smiled at her daughter's youthful innocence. Suddenly, they were at the door of the huge house and were ushered in by Mr. Darcy.

"Come on in! Anne and Georgiana are right upstairs in the nursery." Mr. Darcy eyes smiled down to Elizabeth, "And Will is waiting there with them, Lizzy. He can't wait to show you his new sister."

When Elizabeth and her mother entered the nursery, they encountered Mrs. Darcy sitting in a rocking chair, holding they tiny newborn with William leaned over his mother's shoulder at the tiny face.

The son and mother were happy to see their friends, and there were many congratulations done on Mrs. Gardiner's part while Will lead Lizzy to where he was standing, observing his sister.

Mrs. Darcy, seeing the way her son's friend was looking at the baby spoke up. "Lizzy, would you like to hold Georgiana?"

At this, Elizabeth's head popped up with a smile. "Can I really?"

A doubtful grin appeared on Mrs. Gardiner's face. "I don't know, Anne. Isn't she a bit young?"

"Don't worry, Maddy! William held her, and he was fine. Besides, she'll just be sitting on the rocking chair, and I'll be right there, near her."

Mrs. Gardiner stood there for a moment, with her hand upon her chin, thinking. However, seeing her daughter's puppy-dog eyes, she finally consented. The only thing keeping Elizabeth from cheering was remember that babies don't like noise.

As Elizabeth sat down in the rocking chair, and as Mrs. Darcy set the little baby in her arms, her eyes were wide. Never before did she ever hold a baby, and the young girl was all curiosity.

"She has blue eyes just like you, Mrs. Darcy."

"For now, Liz. They may turn darker as she grows older. Even William had blue eyes."

"And so did you, Lizzy," Maddy Gardiner included, "and now look how dark your eyes are."

"I still think she's going to have blue eyes. Look at her blonde hair." Elizabeth smiled down at Georgiana, and she thought she smiled back. "Look! Georgy smiled!"

The two women laughed at the nickname Elizabeth seemed to have given the baby and her statement. Mrs. Darcy thought it was necessary to correct the girl. "No, Elizabeth. She can't smile yet. She's too young."

Elizabeth didn't say anything at this. But she felt that Georgiana did smile at her.

Georgy, as she was known, grew and grew until finally William and Elizabeth found her old enough to play with. Not like their other friends, but they still found it enjoyable to watch her grow and learn.

William took to being the older brother rather well. He absolutely adored his younger sister, and took it upon himself to become the protective older brother. Throughout the first few years of Georgiana's life, there was only one major showing of any jealousy at the attention that Georgy received.

As her hair grew, it grew in golden ringlets. Whenever she was seen by anyone, they always exclaimed about her beautiful curls.

William slowly started to get jealous at this. What he didn't realize was he got the same attentions for his curls, but they died down as he grew older.

Finally getting tired of no longer getting attention from his relatives, he went on a crusade to convince his parents to take his younger sibling for a haircut. When they consented, he was relieved and thought his problems were over. Unfortunately, the curls came back, along with all the attentions. Once again, after a while, William decided to convince his parents to take Georgy for a trim again. But once again, the curls came back.

By this time, the novelty of the baby with curls wore off for all the relatives, and William finally could live with the fact that Georgy's curls were permanent. And so ended the jealousy.

Through the end of elementary school and the beginning of middle school, William and Elizabeth remained very close and best friends. But only friends. Their classmates always expected for them to "go out" as only middle schoolers can "go out." Nothing ever came out of it though, and they were just friends.

Out of their friendship also came out a friendly rivalry with the piano and grades. Elizabeth proved to be a tough competitor in both fields. She proved to have a wonderful talent for piano, and she quickly outplayed all the lesson books. At recitals, William and Lizzy delighted the audience with piano duets and their own solos.

In school, Elizabeth remained the at the top of their class, despite her being a year younger than everybody else, with William just behind. Never could he ever "beat" Elizabeth with his grades, but he never resented that. Never did the competition turn hostile, for they were best friends.

And so they were inseparable through fifth and sixth grades. And then tragedy struck.

* "Keeper of the Stars" by Tracy Byrd

Chapter 2

Posted on Saturday, 20 May 2000

How do I live without you?

Early in the summer of 1995, Elizabeth was sitting in her room reading a book, when the phone rang. Picking it up, she wasn't surprised to find that it was William.

"Lizzy, do you think you can come over now?"

Elizabeth could sense a tone of sadness in William's voice, and couldn't figure out what could be wrong. "Why, what happened?"

"I can't tell you now. Can you get a ride?"

"I don't know. Let me go check." Covering the phone receiver, Elizabeth yelled for her mother. "Mommy!!!"

Mrs. Gardiner, who was just down the hall, walked to her daughter's bedroom with a frown. "Elizabeth Lynn Gardiner! How many times have I told you not to scream?" Seeing her daughter's worried countenance, however, caused Mrs. Gardiner's face to soften. "What's wrong?"

"William has something to tell me, and he needs me to come over. Can you take me?"

"Yes, I can. Just give me a minute to finish what I was doing."

Within ten minutes, Elizabeth and her mother were in the car going to the Darcy's house. Inside the car, it was quiet and tense while Mrs. Gardiner drove with a frown. Earlier that day, Mrs. Darcy told her the news, and Mrs. Gardiner wasn't sure how Elizabeth was going to take it. She was afraid that if she said something, the news would come out before William had a chance to tell his friend himself.

Arriving at the house, Mrs. Gardiner made her way to Mrs. Darcy's office where she was already making plans to travel to the Midwest while Elizabeth made her way to William's "play" room, which really turned into his computer room and video game room. Entering the room, she saw Will playing with little Georgy. Seeing Elizabeth, Georgiana ran towards her with her blonde curls bouncing and her arms out. Scooping Georgy up, Elizabeth hugged her little friend as the two-year-old squealed in delight.

Standing across from Elizabeth with his hands in his pockets, William murmured, "I was going to put her down for a nap, but she somehow found out you were coming over and refused to sleep until she saw you."

Elizabeth smiled at this and replied, "I'll put her to sleep if you would like." William just nodded, and Elizabeth left for Georgiana's room.

Returning to the playroom, she saw William standing, looking out the window. When he heard Elizabeth coming into the room, he talked without turning around. "Lizzy, my grandfather died."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, William...but why couldn't you tell me this over the phone?" Elizabeth's face scrunched up in confusion.

Still without turning around, William replied, "He left the company to my father."

Starting to realize what was happening, Elizabeth sat down. "Yeah?"

"The company's based in Columbus, Ohio, Lizzy."

Tears coming to her eyes, all that Elizabeth could say quietly was "Yeah?"

Turning around, also with tears in his eyes, William finally said what he was meaning to say. "We're moving."

The tears were now freely running down Elizabeth's cheeks as she realized her best friend was moving six hundred miles away from her.

"Lizzy, don't cry." William took a seat next to Elizabeth and hugged her.

"How can I not? You're moving! How will I live without my best friend?" Elizabeth cried into William's shoulder.

"We'll see each other again, and we can always call."

"It's not the same."

"I know it's not, Lizzy. I know it's not." William finally let the tears fall on his best friend's hair.

After William, his mother, and Georgiana returned in a week from William's grandfather's funeral, William and Elizabeth spent as much time together as they could. Since Mr. Darcy had to stay in Ohio for the company, the Gardiners were helping Mrs. Darcy get ready to move, giving Elizabeth and William an excuse to be together a lot.

But neither one of them wanted to realize how fast the moving day was approaching.

The day before the Darcys moved, the two families went to see the movie, "Pocahontas" together. The ending of the movie only seemed to worsen the pain of the impending separation between the children, and they both grew quieter as the day flew by.

The family was to spend the night at the Gardiner's since everything from the Darcy mansion was packed and in the moving trucks. Neither William nor Elizabeth wanted to go to sleep that night; they knew that when they woke up William would be leaving and most likely, it would be a long time before they saw each other again. Most of the night, they sat in the living room watching movie after movie, but towards dawn they both fell asleep.

As the Darcys got ready to leave, not much was said. In turn, Elizabeth said good bye to the family. Mr. and Mrs. Darcy were grave and silent, and Georgiana was as happy as ever because she didn't realize what was happening.

When Elizabeth got to William, at first they both just stood looking at each other. Then Elizabeth reached out and hugged William around the neck. Their parents let them stand there for a few minutes, not saying a word, with tears running down their cheeks. Finally the pulled apart, and without a word, William got into the family car.

As the car drove away, William turned around and sadly waved back to Elizabeth.

In the beginning, there were constant phone calls between Elizabeth and William. At least once a week one of them would call the other up and they would talk for at least an hour. About a month after the move, Elizabeth received a cassette in the mail. Playing it in her room, she realized it was a recording of William playing the song, "If I Never Knew You" from "Pocahontas" on the piano. She just lied there and cried.

The constant phone calls, however, did not last. As the months rolled by, William became more and more distant during the calls they had, and by Christmas they stopped all together. Elizabeth was afraid to call; afraid that when she called, he would be as distant as ever.

She missed him. She missed mocking the snobs of their town as they always did, or seeing movies together, or just sitting in a room talking. And when, shortly after Christmas, her parents announced that she was to be an older sister, she missed the chance of sharing her happiness with William as he did when Mrs. Darcy became pregnant. She missed him when, early in September of the next year, her baby sister Lydia Ann Gardiner was born. But by then, there all communications with her old friend was cut.

June 30 , 1997

The sun seemed to mock Elizabeth this day as she stood by the double grave holding her now orphaned sister. The past three days seemed like a blur to Elizabeth. The phone call, the arrival of her aunt and uncle, the sympathies.

June 26th was a day that Elizabeth wanted to forget, but she knew she never would. That night, her parents went out to a party, and she baby-sat little Lydia. At ten o'clock, Elizabeth went to sleep. She didn't hear the rain start to fall, she didn't hear the sound of metal and glass smashing, and she didn't hear the sirens. It wasn't until past midnight that she got the call. It wasn't until past midnight that she learned her parents died instantly when a drunk driver sped around the curve on the wrong side of the road and hit her parents' car head-on just a half mile down the road.

The next night, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, her aunt and uncle from Ohio, arrived to take care of Elizabeth, the funeral arrangements, and other things before they took their niece back to their home with them.

Elaine Bennet was the sister to Edward Gardiner. At the age of 45, she still maintained an air of youth and intelligence. She originally was an elementary school teacher, but decided to quit after the birth of her second daughter.

Steve Bennet was a sensible man of the same age as his wife who was a manager in the Nationwide Insurance headquarters in downtown Columbus. He was known for his wit and dry sense of humor.

When they heard of the death of her brother and his wife, they wanted to have the same reaction as Elizabeth; to close up and not talk, to look passive, to look as if nothing could hurt them. For that is what Elizabeth did. She set her jaw, raised her chin, and went through the day nodding to anyone who gave their sympathies in person, and only talking when need be. But when her aunt and uncle went by her room at night, they heard her weeping. They knew they had to be strong for her, to let her know that it was okay to let her emotions show, but even at the funeral as they stood behind her, they could see that she still would not let her tears go.

At the end of the service, Elizabeth went around thanking everyone for coming and their support. She went to all her friends and said good bye, and not one tear was shed. She went to all her parents' friends and all her relatives, distant and close, and still not one tear was shed. Lastly she went to John.

John was the organist at her church, the piano teacher to William and herself, and a close friend.

"Lizzy, they're in a better place now."

Elizabeth lowered her head. "I know."

"And moving to Ohio will be a good change for you. It will get you away from here. Maybe you'll end up seeing William there, too."

At this, a tear finally escaped Elizabeth's eye. "It doesn't matter. He doesn't care."

"Of course he does! He's your friend!"

"No, he doesn't. I called them and left a message because they weren't there. Mr. and Mrs. Darcy called, but said that William wasn't there at the moment, but they would tell him I called. He never called back."

At this, John didn't know what to say. As long as he knew William, the boy was always kind and always showed an affection for Lizzy. John couldn't even imagine him being anything but this.

At this point, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet motioned at their niece that it was time to go.

"Well, I guess this is good bye, John. I'm going to miss you."

"Take care, Lizzy. And remember, you'll only get better if you practice."

"I know John. Good bye." Elizabeth and her piano teacher shook hands and she headed towards another chapter of her life.

On the plane to Columbus, Elizabeth finally broke down and cried, even though she wasn't alone. The only person that she would've cried and shared her feelings with was William, and he wasn't there to comfort her.

As she stared out the airplane window, weeping, all that she thought was William. I need William.

Chapter 3

Posted on Sunday, 21 May 2000

Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound

It was late at night by time the plane landed in Columbus. Since Port Columbus wasn't a very big airport, the Bennets and Elizabeth had to get a connection at Chicago. Unfortunately, the weather was bad and the already 1 hour layover turned out to be 3 hours. So at ten o'clock on the night of the funeral, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and Elizabeth dragged themselves off the plane, got their luggage, and made their way to the long-term parking lot.

The ride back home was made in silence. Elizabeth just stared out of the window, Mrs. Bennet slept, Lydia slept in her car seat, and Mr. Bennet drove the half hour ride to the suburb where they lived.

When viewing the downtown area, Elizabeth's attention was held. She never lived in a city where there had a "real" downtown area with tall buildings and such. In Connecticut there was only Hartford and New Haven, and those cities, well, really didn't impress her with their atmosphere. So Elizabeth took in the sites of the tall skyscrapers until she wondered which building was William's father's and she quickly looked away.

Driving North on Route 33, Elizabeth looked out the window again. Right away, she noticed that Ohio was different than Connecticut. Ohio was like a line of never-ending businesses and overlapping cities/suburbs. They encountered no "middle of nowhere" yet. As they drove along the road, they came upon a river to the left-hand side of them and the businesses became more scarce. There were more and more trees with houses off the side of the road. Across the river, Elizabeth saw lights of mansions and the lights at the end of the houses' docks for their private boats.

Geez. And I thought Connecticut was the rich place and this place was full of hicks.

Eventually, Mr. Bennet pulled onto a road going into a subdivision. The houses here weren't big, but they weren't small, either. There were middle class homes arranged neatly with well-trimmed landscaping, identical mailboxes, and trees lining the streets. After driving about a mile into the development, the car finally turned onto a dead-end street and then into a driveway.

The house looked very neat from the outside: cut lawn, trimmed bushes, trees, and flowers along the walkway. The house itself wasn't of typical style; it was obvious from the windows that the second floor didn't extend over the whole house, thus showing that the master bedroom was most likely downstairs.

Upon entering the house, Elizabeth was relieved to see that it wasn't too clean; it wasn't messy, yet it looked comfortably lived in. The walls were light, and the wooden parts of the house were made of cherry wood.

"Mom? Dad? Elizabeth?" Elizabeth turned around to see one of her cousins walking down the stairs. She was of medium height (about an inch taller than Elizabeth), with shoulder length blonde hair, and hazel eyes. In short, she looked exactly like her mother.

"Yes, honey. Come say hello to Liz and meet your new cousin." Jane came down the stairs the rest of the way and hugged her cousin.

"Liz, I'm so sorry. I loved Aunt Maddy and Uncle Edward too."

"I know Jane, I know." Elizabeth had to shut her eyes to keep the tears from coming. Although the cousins couldn't see each other that much, they were good friends. They exchanged letters through the years, and when they did see each other, they were like the best of sisters.

When they parted, Jane looked at her new cousin who was sleeping in Mrs. Bennet's arms. For the past couple of days, Lydia cried with the unfamiliarity of her aunt and uncle and the loneliness from her parents, exhausting herself. During the whole traveling ordeal, Lydia slept, much to the relief of her aunt and sister.

"Mom, do you want me to put her to sleep? I set up a crib in your room, next to the bed."

"Yes, if you could, that would help." Jane took Lydia and disappeared down the hall.

"Elizabeth, do you remember where Jane's room is?" Elizabeth nodded. "Since we don't have enough rooms, you will share with her. Mary's is right next door, and little Catherine's is straight ahead from the stairs. You look exhausted, why don't you go to sleep?"

"Okay Aunt Elaine. I am tired. Good night." Elizabeth kissed her aunt and uncle on the cheek, quickly got ready for bed, and was asleep before Jane even went upstairs to go to bed herself.

The summer of '97 actually went by pretty fast for Elizabeth. With time, the pain of losing her parents dulled. Her aunt and uncle and cousins helped as much as they could to help her deal with her pain by making her feel as part of the family. They gave her chores to do, they gave her piano lessons where Jane and Mary took theirs, they provided her with everything she needed; they treated her as their own. They even gave her violin lessons for a while since there was no school orchestra, but they didn't last very long. Elizabeth never had as much interest in the violin as the piano, and the only thing that kept her going with that instrument in Connecticut was the school orchestra.

Once in a while, Elizabeth would wake up from a nightmare where she would relive the phone call of her parents' death. In her nightmare, she would cry and scream for her parents, and Jane had to wake her up out of the dream. As the summer wore on though, the nightmares became less frequent and the nights began to become more relaxing for her.

In the family, Elizabeth felt secure. For most of her life, she was the only child, and now she had four 'sisters'.

Jane was one year older than her, so therefore in the same grade. Elizabeth was grateful that when she entered high school in the fall, she wouldn't be alone in her experience. Jane was always kind; she never wanted to think anything bad about anybody. She was also very quiet unless she was with her family or friends.

Jane also played the piano and the clarinet in the school marching and symphonic bands. With her practicing, she was more diligent than Elizabeth due to her patience. Elizabeth, on the other hand, could never sit for more than an hour practicing even though everybody could see that she was happiest while playing.

Mary was ten years old, and to tell the truth, rather cranky. She was only happy if she was reading books that weren't even literature; history books and medical books and other reference books. Nobody could ever understand where her interest came from. She also played piano, but not as well as her cousin or sister.

Catherine, or Cathy for short, was four years old and a rather pleasant child unless she didn't get what she wanted. Spoiled, due to being the youngest child of the Bennets, she had to adjust to not being the youngest after Lydia came in.

Lydia. Being less than a year old, Lydia adjusted rather well to her new "parents." It didn't take her very long at all to forget Mrs. and Mr. Gardiner, but as she grew to learn how to talk about a year and a half later, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet made sure she knew who her real parents were with pictures of them.

Early in August, Jane had to go up to Ohio Northern University for marching band camp, so the whole Bennet clan packed the car and took her up to Ado, Ohio to drop her off for a hot and humid six days without air conditioning. Just as the Bennets, minus Jane, were about to leave, Elizabeth thought she saw William walking into the dorm carrying what looked like a trumpet case.

Shaking her head, Elizabeth dismissed the thought. I'm just wishing it was him. What's the chance that I moved to the same school district that he moved to? For the rest of the two hour ride home, Elizabeth didn't think about him.

At least she wouldn't admit it.

After Jane's return, the Bennets celebrated her fourteenth birthday since it really occurred during band camp. Soon after that, Elizabeth went to her new school (where she wondered why in the world it had a green roof) and decided her new schedule and to take a tour. And soon after that, she entered school in a new district with new people with no idea what it would be like.

The first day of school approached quickly for Elizabeth. Even though she never had trouble meeting new people before, she was worried now. Worried because she knew she changed. No longer was she lively; in the last two years of middle school, she became withdrawn and when her parents died, she completely closed up unless she was with her new family. If ever one of Jane's friends came over, Elizabeth wouldn't open up because she was afraid of losing another good friend. She only trusted Jane as a friend, because Jane could never leave her; she was in her family for good.

Knowing that she didn't have any of the same classes as Jane's, except Spanish class, didn't improve matters much. At least if she had some classes with her cousin, then she could hide behind her, but they didn't even have lunch together, and Elizabeth had to face the day alone.

Getting off the school bus, Jane immediately left to relieve her instrument in the band room, while Elizabeth made her way to the Commons, or the cafeteria. Seeing all the unfamiliar faces unnerved her and she immediately took out a book to read until the bell rang. When the bell finally rang, she mechanically made her way to her locker and then to her first class, Honors Physical Science. Nothing, however, could prepare her for what, or who, she encountered when entering the science room.

There, in the center of the room, surrounded by friends sat William Darcy talking and laughing. Elizabeth was surprised at how much he changed. He grew taller and his masculine features were becoming more defined. His voice was even deeper than Elizabeth remembered it to be.

She was about to greet him when his facial expressions stopped her. He looked up, met her eyes, and a flash or recognition flashed across his face. But a second after, his eyes turned cold, he nodded, and then turned his attention towards his friends again.

Elizabeth felt tears rise up in her eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness as she thought they would be; they were angry tears. Angry that he didn't even have the decency to greet her in a more polite way. Angry that he forgot their friendship. Angry at herself. Angry that she expected their friendship to be like it always was in that first second of recognition.

Elizabeth quickly calmed herself, stuck her head up, and preceded to another table where she sat down in the back and began reading again.

The morning passed without Elizabeth meeting anyone knew; she just passed the morning by reading whenever she was by herself. At lunch, she sat by herself, but after a couple of minutes, two girls came and introduced themselves.

"Hey, can we sit here?" The girl with dark blonde, curly hair asked.

"Sure."

"I'm Susan, and this is Christie." The other girl, who was tall and had bleach-blonde hair smiled and greeted Elizabeth.

"I'm Elizabeth. Are you two freshmen?"

"Yes, we are," Susan replied. "You're in my first period science class, aren't you? Are you Jane Bennet's cousin who moved from Connecticut?"

When Elizabeth looked more closely at Susan, she recognized her as sitting two rows in front of her in first period. "Yes, I believe we are in the same class, and yes, I am Jane's cousin."

Christie looked at Elizabeth with sympathy, "We heard about why you moved here. We're sorry about your parents."

Elizabeth smiled sadly at her two new friends, "Thank you." Then her smile turned mischievous. "Wow, things get around fast here."

Susan laughed, "Yep. Nothing ever stays a secret here."

The first week at OHS turned out to be a good week for Elizabeth. Every day at lunch, she ate with Susan and Christie. In English class, she met three new friends: Elizabeth, or Liz, as she was called, Mary, and Sharon. The girl who had the locker next to Elizabeth's, Katie, also became a good friend as they saw each other in the mornings and throughout the days.

And through the first nine weeks of school, Elizabeth became happier and more and more like her old self. She learned how to ignore William, who she learned was the most popular guy in her grade, just like he ignored her, and it didn't even bother her. She took pride in her schoolwork again, and she quickly climbed to the top of her class (with William right behind her in science). She grew up in those nine weeks, and her friends and family saw it.

And so did William.

At the beginning of the second nine weeks, Mr. Smith, the physical science teacher, changed everybody's seats around so that William and Elizabeth sat next to each other and were lab partners.

At first, they didn't say anything to each other unless they were forced to because of school work, but one week into the new seating arrangement, William said something voluntarily.

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents."

Without looking up from her worksheet she was doing, Elizabeth coldly replied, "Yeah, well, it's a little too late for that."

"What? I told you I'm sorry to hear about it!"

"You knew the day after it happened, and you never called. You had a chance the first day I walked into this class room, and now you waited ten weeks to say it, and it's not too late?"

"You're being incredibly stubborn."

Elizabeth finally looked up with her fiery eyes. "Who is it for you to judge, Will? You're the one who stopped calling. What's happened to you?"

"What's happened to me? Nothing happened to me. We grew apart, and that's that."

The teacher, who was calling the class to order, stopped the argument from going any farther. For the rest of the year, William and Elizabeth talked only when they had to, but that little argument was enough to fuel rumors about any relationship William and Elizabeth ever had.

Ever since William saw Elizabeth walk through the classroom door, he was amazed at her appearance. She grew taller, and looked older than the girl he left two years ago. No longer did she have a baby face, but it thinned out and her wavy hair grew out to just below her shoulders.

She looked confident; she held her head high and dared anyone to think what they wanted to about her. And the day of their argument, he realized that she had her own mind, and wasn't ready to fawn over him because of his popularity status. He also noticed she had the most expressive eyes.

But they were worlds apart. He was a popular athlete; soccer in the fall, and track in the spring, and she wasn't popular at all. He was rich, living in a huge mansion and she was an orphan living in just a modest house.

Besides, what would his friends say if he all of a sudden started spending all his time with her again?

No, the friendship was over, and they just had to deal with that.

Chapter 4

Posted on Tuesday, 23 May 2000

Make new friends, and keep the old

Elizabeth was pleased to find out that all her new friends were more or less friends with each other. That is except for Christie and Mary. Apparently they had a fight a couple of years ago and they haven't talked since. She also became better friends with Laura, who moved from Michigan prior to freshman year. Laura was in her science class and geometry class, where they constantly made fun of the teacher who was too happy and never stopped smiling.

Elizabeth was content with her new life. She missed her parents very much, but she had the support of all her new friends and family. She could honestly say she didn't care about William's friendship anymore; she didn't like how he changed, and if he didn't value the friendship, then he wasn't worth it. She could always remember the good times they had when he was the William she loved.

Nobody knew about her prior relationship with William, besides Jane. If one of her friends confronted her about one of the several rumors that went around about Elizabeth and William, she would just say it was an argument about some lab they had, and that somebody misconstrued it. Elizabeth had yet to find a real close friend in school that she could trust. Most people at this school were all superficial; they may seem nice to you at first, but in the end, they just wanted popularity. There were a few, Elizabeth had to admit, who were truly nice to everyone, but they weren't people that she could become friends with.

The first day of the second semester brought about a change. Instead of Health class, for example, Elizabeth was thrust into another class of physical education where, in fact, the only thing accomplished during the eighteen weeks was the competition between the (mostly) idiotic guys for who has the biggest ego. This was a class where Elizabeth would only do as much as need to get the "A" (as to not upset her grade point average) and have social time with her friends.

Luckily, Jane and Sharon were in her gym class to make the latter part of the syllabus for the semester an easy goal to reach. The three were sitting on the bleachers the first day of the class waiting for the gym teacher to make everyone be quiet (a difficult talent to master seeing that part of the competition between the guys was to see who could either talk or burp the loudest), when Elizabeth noticed a quiet girl sitting just in front of them. The girl had shoulder length red hair, blue eyes, and it seemed as if she was around Elizabeth's height.

Wondering if the girl was new herself, Elizabeth decided to introduce herself. "Hi! Are you new?"

Realizing that someone was speaking to her, the girl turned around and smiled. "Yes! I just moved here from Kentucky."

"Well, I'm Elizabeth, and this is Jane, my cousin, and Sharon. I moved here just at the beginning of this year."

"I'm Charlotte Lucas."

"How do you like it here so far?" asked Jane.

"Well, erm, it's different, I suppose."

"Why'd you move to Ohio of all places??" Sharon asked next.

Charlotte laughed. "Actually, my father is a captain in the Navy. And they moved him here."

"Umm...Charlotte? Where exactly does the Navy have a base around here? We're in the middle of nowhere." Elizabeth questioned.

Everybody laughed as the thought about the legitimacy of the question. "Well, he's actually working at Ohio State. He teaches R.O.T.C. there."

"Ahh! I gotcha!" Elizabeth happily laughed.

Sharon and Jane observed Elizabeth laughing in relief. Sharon, who only knew Elizabeth for that one semester, could even see that she improved. Jane was happy to see that the sparkle finally returned to Elizabeth's eye; but she was saddened to see it disappear a moment later.

"What about you, Elizabeth? Where did you move from, and why?" Charlotte innocently wondered.

At the question, Elizabeth's smile left her face and she looked down towards her hands. "I moved from Connecticut because my parents died. I'm living with Jane and her family now."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Elizabeth. I didn't know."

"That's okay, Charlotte. There was no way that you could know. I'm learning how to deal with it, though." Elizabeth looked up again and smiled at Charlotte. When Charlotte smiled kindly and sympathetically back, Elizabeth knew she could trust her.

Summer 1998 - Summer 1999
(Sophomore Year)

Life continued to improve for Elizabeth. She had no more arguments with William; just by unspoken agreement, they didn't talk of the past, or at all for that matter.

Elizabeth's friends proved to be what she needed to completely heal. They never intentionally reminded her of Connecticut or her parents by asking questions, and they were constantly together in large groups as they went shopping or saw movies together. Lizzy found especially good friendships with Jane and Charlotte; with them she could completely trust, and even eventually told Charlotte about William. And even though Jane and Elizabeth had a different circle of friends, Jane, Elizabeth, and Charlotte would often be a little clique by themselves.

Through Sophomore year, Elizabeth changed, both physically and mentally. She grew taller and thinner (yet not as sickly thin as the bleached-blonde anorexic freshmen girls) and her hair grew longer (after a phase where she had it chin length). She also became more confident in herself and anything she did. She didn't worry about what others thought of her, she did what mad her happy. (Including becoming the top student in every class. And that includes beating William in Spanish!)

All in all, it was a very good year for Elizabeth, and she didn't even complain when the first day of the next school year began to draw near late in August.

I want it that way.

Climbing up the stairs with the bag of school supplies, Elizabeth groaned as she heard the chorus to a Backstreet Boys' song blaring out of the room that she shared with Jane.

(Tell me Why)
Ain't nothin' but a heartache.
(Tell me Why)
Ain't nothin' but a mistake.
(Tell me Why)
I never wanna hear you say
I want it that way.

"Jane!" What am I thinking? She'll never hear me through that noise. Dropping the bags, Elizabeth positioned herself near the partly opened bedroom door. Acting as if she was choking herself, Elizabeth fell backwards into the room croaking, "The music! The music!" After a few seconds of melodramatics, Elizabeth finally fell on the floor, pretending to be dead, but after getting hit with a pillow a few times, she decided to get up.

"Can't we listen to some better music?" Elizabeth complained.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. The Phantom of the Opera. Pearl Jam. Ani Difranco. Celine Dion. Anything but Backstreet Boys!" Although Elizabeth really did dislike the boy groups, she laughed while making the suggestions. She really could stand their c.d.'s; she just learned the beautiful art of tuning things out.

Jane just smiled and went back to sorting out her school supplies. Going back out into the hall, Elizabeth picked up the bags she dropped and dragged them inside the room. "Can you believe we're already juniors?"

"Well, maybe you can't, since you're still a baby, but I can."

"Yes, I still am a baby aren't I? I'm not even old enough to get my temps."

"But come November, I can get my license! And then we won't have to rely on my mom on getting us around."

Elizabeth smiled, "And at least we have lunch and Spanish class together this year. Who else has second lunch? Charlotte nor anybody else has the same lunch."

"A lot of band people. You should have fun."

"Oh yeah. That's what I want to do. Hang out with band people," Elizabeth teased.

"Lizzy!" Jane laughed and threw a pillow at her cousin.

Elizabeth walked into A.P. Chemistry the first day of school in a state of grogginess. How I am ever going to survive the year with Chemistry first thing in the morning is a mystery. Elizabeth greeted her friends from last year's Honors Chemistry class and went to take her seat in the back of the room.

Elizabeth always felt out of place in the chemistry classroom. To start off, she was a year younger than everybody in her own grade, and since she was taking chemistry a year earlier than the people in her grade, she was two years younger than everybody in her chemistry class. There were other sophomores in her class last year, but she didn't know if she was going to be only junior this year.

She received her answer soon enough when she heard somebody take the seat behind her and greet her coldly, "Hello Lizzy."

Elizabeth's eyes popped open from her five-minute nap at that voice. No other male in school ever called her Lizzy; the only people at her school who did were a handful of friends, and that was it. Turning around, Elizabeth faced the speaker.

Almost seventeen, any high school girl besides Lizzy would describe William as 'hot.' Tall, lean but muscular, and dark, William could break many hearts. His curly hair was always disheveled, he was tan and healthy, and his dimples were known throughout the female population at the school.

"Hello Will," Elizabeth responded just as coldly. "I did not know that you took chemistry last year."

"Yeah. I'm still trying to beat you in school."

"You haven't yet, so why are you still trying?" Elizabeth asked archly.

"To knock you down a peg or two."

"Like you should talk."

The two just sat there; William smirking and Elizabeth glaring. "Why'd you even bother sitting here? We're just going to end up arguing."

William just shrugged and looked away, indicating that conversation came to a close. The truth was that William actually did want to sit near her; he missed her, but his ego wouldn't let him admit it. Popular guys like him didn't hang out with girls like her. Even if most people in their grade did like her, she would never be part of them.

But she didn't care.

And that's what intrigued him so much.

The rest of the day passed slowly for Elizabeth. All the teachers ever did on the first day of school was talk about the class, thus giving the students a good opportunity to sleep. Let's just say that the student population of Olentangy High School never had so many hours of sleep in one day.

William turned out to be in many of Elizabeth's classes, including Pre-Calculus, A.P. American History, English, and Spanish. Of course, they ignored each other through all of them, but Elizabeth kept noticing that every time she looked towards Will, he would be looking at her.

No doubt criticizing the way I changed, Elizabeth muttered as she met Jane underneath the flagpole in front of the school.

"Hey Lizzy!" Jane smiled as Elizabeth walked towards her cousin. "How was the first day of school for you?" Elizabeth just made a face and walked past Jane to sit on the ledge to wait for her aunt.

"Could've been better. How was yours?"

"It was okay. I just don't feel like getting back into schoolwork. It's still too nice outside to be cooped up." Jane shielded her eyes from the sun as she gazed over to the student parking lot, where, as usual, the students for some odd reason were honking their horns like it would make the traffic move any faster. "What was wrong with yours?"

"Nothing, really. Except that William's basically in all of my classes."

Jane laughed, "I thought you didn't care about him anymore!"

"I didn't...when he was only in one of my classes. Now I'm forced to actually interact with him almost every day, most likely. And you know what he told me?"

"What?"

"That he was trying to get better grades to 'knock me down a peg or two.' And he was practically staring at me in every class."

"Maybe he likes you," Jane teased.

"Ha ha ha. He made it perfectly clear that he doesn't even like me as a friend."

"Awe. Well forget about him. What else is wrong with school?"

"Hmm. Well, I practically don't have any fun classes, so I'll have no life for the rest of the year. And oh! Guess who's in Choraliers again, ready to take it over?"

"Who?"

"Caroline Bingley. She's the second cousin, or some other distant relative to the new teacher, Mrs. Hurst. And what's worst is that you can actually hear the sucking sound as Caroline makes sure she becomes teacher's pet."

"Lizzy! That's mean!"

Elizabeth laughed and replied, "Hey! I'm not the only one that noticed it. You could see everybody laughing at her."

Jane just shook her head and directed Elizabeth's attention to one of the boy's teams. Whether it was soccer or cross-country, they did not know, but it made no difference as the entire team had their shirts off while running. Author's note: Girls will be girls. ;)

Neither cousin saw where the other's gaze was pointed at, though. Elizabeth didn't see Jane look after Charles Bingley, and Jane didn't see Lizzy look towards William Darcy; both running side by side.

Chapter 5

Posted on Wednesday, 24 May 2000

I used to be a Superhero.

Elizabeth, Charlotte, and Jane were walking down a hall one day after school when they passed the weight room. Peeking in while the other two girls walked on ahead, Jane sighed, "He's so cute!"

Their attentions caught, the other two girls turned around and looked through the window, trying to see who Jane was looking at. "Who's cute?" Charlotte asked.

"Charles Bingley," Jane replied. Charles Bingley was a popular boy at school, being blessed with good looks and a good personality. Over six feet tall, Charles's straight blonde hair, parted down the middle, and blue eyes drove girls to distraction.

"Ooo. He is a cutie. Do you know him?" Elizabeth questioned.

"Er...umm...well, not exactly. But he's in band with me."

"Hmm," was the only reply as the girls looked in to the room again. "Let's go in!" Elizabeth suggested, starting to walk into the room.

"Lizzy! No! What will they think of us?"

"Jane, the room is for our use, too!"

"But we don't even look like we're ready to work out! We're wearing our school clothes!"

Elizabeth frowned, "I feel like they're in a cage in a zoo, and we're here to watch them. Come on!" Elizabeth was just about in the room when Charles went over to change the radio station. "Eww. Forget it; he just put on some 'N Sync song." Elizabeth turned around to face Jane. "I can't believe you're in love with 'N Sync boy."

" 'N Sync boy?" Charlotte laughed.

"Yes. Obviously he likes them since he's not changing the station. Let's go!"

The three girls giggled down the hall as Charlotte pondered, "Hmm. Guys working out in a cage in a zoo. I don't think it's a bad idea!"

Elizabeth giggled, "Nor do I!"

Home alone one day early in November, Elizabeth was sitting in her room doing homework. Well, at least trying to do homework. She had a c.d. blasting in her stereo and she kept thinking about William.

Since their argument, William has been acting weird. One day, he would be polite and actually friendly to Elizabeth, but other times, he would act cold and aloof; staring at her from across the room.

Elizabeth was about to focus again on her homework, when the next song on the c.d. caught her attention.

sleep walking through the all-night drug store
baptized in fluorescent light
i found religion in the greeting card aisle
now i know hallmark was right
and every pop song on the radio
is suddenly speaking to me
art may imitate life
but life imitates t.v.
'cuz you've been gone exactly two weeks
two weeks and three days
and let's just say that
things look different now
different in so many ways

i used to be a superhero
no one could touch me
not even myself
you are like a phone booth
that i somehow stumbled into
and now look at me
i am just like everybody else

Ha! Elizabeth thought. Being in classes with William again has done the same thing to me. I don't know what to think with him, and usually I can judge people's characters pretty quickly. He makes it so difficult, though!

if i was dressed in my best defenses
would you agree to meet me for coffee
if i did my tricks with smoke and mirrors
would you still know which one was me
if i was naked and screaming
on your front lawn
would you turn on the light and come down
screaming, there's the $%^hole
who did this to me
stripped me of my power
stripped me down

i used to be a superhero
no one could hurt me
not even myself
you are like a phone booth
that i somehow stumbled into
and now look at me
i am just like everybody else

Elizabeth got up and walked to the window and looked out the window where the little kids of the neighborhood were out playing. I wish I was a child again, then William wouldn't have changed, I wouldn't have changed, and things would be the same.

yeah you've been gone exactly two weeks
two weeks and three days
and now I'm a different person
different in so many ways
tell me what did you like about me
and don't say my strength and daring
'cuz now i think I'm at your mercy
and it's my first time for this kind of thing

They were both different than what they were while children; nobody expected them to stay the same. Yet, the times that William actually spoke politely to her gave her hope that maybe there was some friendship left to save. They could never be as close as they were; it was too late for that.

i used to be a superhero
i would swoop down and save me
from myself
but you are like a phone booth
that i somehow stumbled into
and now look at me
i am just like everybody else*

Yes. Elizabeth was going to talk to him. Just as soon as she got the courage.

The next Saturday

William stood at one of the end looking at Elizabeth laughing with some of her friends. They were at the Solo and Ensemble Contest; he for the trumpet and piano, and she for singing and accompanying a friend on the piano.

He decided to talk to her about their silence to each other. After seeing his friends interact with her, he decided that they wouldn't care if he was friends with her again or not. One of his friends, Brad, sat next to her in Spanish class, and he could see that they talked quite a bit. Mike and Broderick asked for her help in Pre-Calculus class, too, so they must trust her.

Yes, he was finally going to heal the breech between them, but she was never going to find out what persuaded his decision. He knew her well enough to know that she would never forgive him for letting others decide for him; she had too much pride for that.

Seeing Elizabeth's friends leaving, William started walking towards his old friend.

"Taylor, you did great! Don't worry about it!" Elizabeth reassured her friend as they stood around in the halls. Elizabeth accompanied Taylor on the flute, but she had to wait another two hours until her ensemble sang, so she was waiting with her until Taylor's parents came.

"I know I did well, but I'm still nervous."

"Don't be!"

"Well, here are my parents. Thanks again, Lizzy. I'll see you in school on Monday."

"See you." Elizabeth was about to turn around and leave, when she heard her name called. Smiling at Jane and the other friends she did an ensemble with, Elizabeth greeted, "Hey, you guys! How'd you do?"

Rachel made a face at the question. "I don't think we did too well. We fell apart in places."

"Oh well. At least it doesn't count towards your grade in school."

"Did you sing yet, Lizzy" her cousin asked.

"No! I still have two more hours."

"Did you eat?"

"No, but I'm not hungry. I'll eat later."

"Okay. We're going to eat. Then we have to go work in the office. See you later."

"Bye," Elizabeth smiled to all her friends.

She was walking away again when she heard her name called again, this time by a male. Turning around, she saw William walking towards her.

"Lizzy!"

"Will." Elizabeth didn't know how to react. She didn't want to smile in fear he was going to be rude again, but she didn't frown, neither.

"Lizzy, I wanted to talk to you about us. I don't like us not talking, and I was wondering if you wanted to try to be friends again."

"I would like that, Will. It was uncomfortable not being able to talk to you anymore."

"Friends?" Will stuck out his hand.

"Friends," Elizabeth smiled an took his hand.

As they shook hands to close the 'deal' their eyes met and they both smiled. Suddenly, William forgot what made him change his mind about Elizabeth, and he just remembered how he always missed her. He suddenly wanted to hug her like he used to, but he knew that he couldn't. They grew too much apart, and he didn't know how she would react.

"William!" The two dropped each other's hand as William turned around to see who was calling him. Caroline Bingley, his best friend's sister, was walking up to him. She came right up to William and took his arm. "Hello Elizabeth," Caroline greeted Elizabeth not as warmly as William, but not coldly either.

Caroline Bingley was taller than Elizabeth with blonde curly hair and blue eyes. She was in the show choir and Elizabeth's choir, Choraliers. She actually had a beautiful voice and was expected to play the lead in the school's next musical.

Unfortunately, she chose to flaunt that voice and act as if she was the best in the world, which didn't go over with the student body that well. Not many people liked her very much because of this; if she was to act normal for once, then she probably would be well liked.

To Elizabeth, however, she was rather polite. Elizabeth minded her business while in choir class, so Caroline treated her kindly, unlike the seniors and most of the sophomores in that class. Still, Elizabeth could see through her phony lines and charades, and tried to avoid her where she could. Unfortunately, Caroline was in Elizabeth's ensemble.

And unfortunately for William, Caroline seemed to take an attachment to him, even though he was a year younger than her. "William! Do you know how you did on your solo yet?"

"Not yet, Caroline. Did you do yours yet?"

"No. It's in a half-hour. Speaking of which, will you watch?"

"I don't know if I can." Elizabeth could see William was getting tense, and she had to cover her mouth with her hand to hide the smile. "Did you warm up yet, Caroline?"

"No, I didn't."

"Don't you think you should?"

"Yes, probably. Thank you, William, you're so considerate!" Caroline was about to walk away when she turned around and addressed Elizabeth, "Remember, Liz that we have to meet in the art room fifteen minutes before we perform."

"Yes, Caroline. I know. Thank you." When Caroline finally left down the hall, Elizabeth turned to William again. "I think I'm going to go find some of my friends now. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye, Lizzy."

"Bye."

"Superhero" by Ani DiFranco

Chapter 6

Posted on Thursday, 25 May 2000

Sheep go to Heaven, Goats go to Hell*

"What do you mean you're making me go to prom?" Elizabeth asked Charlotte while in English class.

"It'll be fun! Why should we miss our Junior Prom? Besides it'll be fun going in a big group of friends!"

"Charlotte, you know I'm not the partying type! I don't even like to dance!" Elizabeth whined. When Charlotte huffed in agitation, Elizabeth added, "All right. I'll go. Who else is going?"

"Hmm...I think Lynn's going, and so is Michelle. Also Christie's going, without her boyfriend, and I'm pretty sure the twins are going, too."

As the teacher, "Mr. I'm always Right" called the class to order, Elizabeth mumbled to Charlotte, "I can't you believe you talked me into this."

Charlotte just smiled triumphantly as the girls turned their attention the teacher. Not that they would learn anything.

Elizabeth hated the class due to the people in her class. Most days, the class was really funny with a combination of the teacher and the class clowns, but most people in her particular class didn't care about school, and it showed. Half of them never did their homework and they always managed to get Mr. Right off of the subject; often to subjects not even appropriate for the classroom. Elizabeth snickered when remembering the different times that the class managed to mention s-x in the lecture.

Elizabeth managed to get on the good side of Mr. Right, though. She did sometimes manage to annoy him at the same time, though, by doing any extra credit offered and arguing for points that she lost on homework. He'd always say some sarcastic remark and she'd just give him an impertinent smile.

However, English class gave Elizabeth a chance to see where William got his cockiness from. With William in the class with his athletic friends, she saw a transformation in him that she didn't like. He turned cocky and arrogant like he was before they became friends again, but as soon as he was away from them, he became like the 'old' William.

Nick Collins was the worst part of the class. Big, sweaty, and annoying, he didn't make many friends. He had such a pompous air to him, and he acted as if he was smarter than everyone else; even the teachers. Many times in course of the class, Elizabeth saw Mr. Right's jaw tense up as he said some sarcastic remark about Nick, in which Nick would never understand that he was being mocked.

But Elizabeth managed to sit back, do her work, and hope beyond hope that one day, her classmates would get a bit of intelligence.

"Are you going to prom, Lizzy?" William asked, turning around in his seat to talk to her.

"Yeah. With a bunch of friends. Are you?"

"Yes. Unfortunately."

"Unfortunately?" Elizabeth snickered.

"Yeah. Caroline Bingley asked me in a hurry, and I had to say yes."

"Why'd you have to?"

"Because it's impolite to say 'no.' Besides, it's her Senior prom, and I might as well spend an evening with her if it makes her happy. It's not the end of the world."

Elizabeth just laughed as she shook her head and returned to her work.

Friday before the Prom

Elizabeth and Broderick were in the computer room during their study hall when her companion mentioned something. "I never knew that you and William were such good friends."

Elizabeth's face scrunched up as she continued looking at the computer screen. "We aren't as good of friends as we were when we were younger. The first two years of high school started out roughly for us."

"Yeah, I know. William didn't know whether to make up with you or not, so he asked me and a couple of his other friends. I guess we all approved, or you wouldn't be talking to him again," Broderick laughed. However, when seeing Elizabeth's face and hearing her tone of voice, the smile left his face.

"Are you serious?"

Broderick hesitated, not knowing what to say. Obviously Elizabeth didn't take it too lightly that William had to consult his friends before making a new friend. Seeing that it was already out, he didn't see any reason to lie. "Yes, I'm serious. But it's not a big deal! Guys do it all the time!"

"And I suppose you asked your friends whether it was okay or not to date Rebecca?"

"Umm...no." Broderick hesitated. "Why are you so mad?"

"Because, apparently, William is such a good friend, that he couldn't trust his own opinion of whether I was good enough to be his friend. He's weak." Elizabeth turned her face towards the computer and set her jaw. Obviously the conversation was over.

In English and Spanish, Elizabeth managed to evade William by talking to her other friends. She wasn't ready to talk to William because she need to cool down first. She didn't understand why he had to get permission to become friends with her again; why he couldn't decide for himself that he wanted to be friends again.

Probably wanted to make sure I was good enough for him, Elizabeth thought as she lay in bed that night. But as she thought more and more, she became sadder and sadder. Sad that he wasn't as good of a friend as he thought; that he didn't want her enough to trust his own opinion. To trust his own instincts.

That night, Elizabeth fell asleep with tears on her face.

Elizabeth stepped into the hall where prom was being held with excitement. Behind her stepped Charlotte, Christie, Michelle, and one of the twins, Melissa. The other identical twin, Kaitlyn, decided at the last minute to buy tickets to not go. Jane went with her own group of friends from band.

Seeing the size of the hall, Elizabeth was surprised. The location of the prom had to be changed from Ohio Wesleyen University because the hall was getting to small. The present hall wasn't that big, making Elizabeth and her friends wonder how small the hall at the university was.

Not that many people were at the hall yet, so the friends had their pick of tables. Sitting down, they talked until Michelle suggested they go outside where other tables were set up.

Michelle sighed, "Isn't it pretty?"

Elizabeth looked around outside and laughed, "Yeah. If you didn't see the warehouse over there," she pointed, "and the highway over there, it would be very pretty."

"You have a point there."

"Come on. It's cold outside, let's go back inside."

As the prom started, Elizabeth's friends managed to get her out on the dance floor and dancing. After a while, Elizabeth was starting to have fun. By time the prom was half over, Elizabeth would be the one making her friends go back out on the dance floor and dance. The only time she got upset was when the d.j. decided to play 'N Sync's "Bye Bye Bye" for the third time in the evening.

The dance floor was jam-packed; there was hardly any room to move. Everybody was bumping into each other, but no one complained. The seniors even started saying that this prom was better than last year's prom.

Later in the evening, Elizabeth was resting her feet at the table when William walked over to the table and sat down, still not knowing that anything was wrong.

"Hello Lizzy."

"Hi."

"Are you having fun?"

"Lots."

"Is there something wrong?"

"No. Nothing at all."

Not getting anywhere with his friend, William just sat there quietly, searching her face to see what was wrong. He was surprised when she talked voluntarily.

"I'm surprised Caroline's not clinging to you like she was earlier."

William made a face as he replied, "I think she's in the bathroom fixing her make-up or something."

"Oh."

The current song ended, and another song started playing; a slow song. Recognizing the song immediately, since he still played it on the piano, William asked Elizabeth to dance. Looking up hesitantly at his offered hand, Elizabeth accepted.

At the dance floor, they hesitantly put their arms around each other as the introduction ended and the words began, Elizabeth suddenly remembered the song. The first song she played on the piano; William's teasing at the song's simplicity, and later, how William would sit with her patiently teaching her his version of the song.

Slowly, William started to bring Elizabeth closer to him, and she surprisingly let him. Halfway through the song, William whispered in her ear, "What's wrong? I know you, and I can tell something's bothering you."

Immediately, he felt her back stiffen as she pulled away slightly. Looking into her eyes, he saw the anger flash through them. Uh oh.

"Obviously, I don't know you as you claim to know me."

"What are you talking about?"

"About you getting permission to become friends with me again."

"Who told you that?"

"What does it matter? Why would you need their permission to make up with me when it's you, William Jeffrey Darcy, that would be friends with me, not them?"

"I don't know! At the time, I thought I did."

"That's a poor excuse. Did you want to make sure that I was good enough for you?" This time, Elizabeth started to cry as the anger faded and the disappointment set in.

William's heart broke as he saw tears falling down his friend's cheeks. Reaching up with his hands, he wiped a tear away. "I have to be honest with you."

"Why bother?" Elizabeth muttered, but didn't say anything else when William's look asked her not to say anything.

"At the beginning, that's what I was doing. I wanted to make sure that my friends approved of you." When Elizabeth opened her mouth to speak, he put a hand over it to stop her. "But I realize now that I don't care." Seeing Elizabeth's eyes soften, he took his hand down and continued on, "You're my childhood friend, and you're still my friend, I hope. I don't care whether everybody likes you or not. I like you, and no matter how much I wanted to deny it, I always did miss you, and care for you, and I always will." William pulled her close again. "Please say you forgive me, and you'll be my friend again." William smiled as he felt her nod against his shoulder.

Through the rest of the song, the two friends quietly danced.

*this line is from a song by the group, Cake. this deserves an explanation of why i chose that line. usually, i choose a line of lyrics that fits the chapter. well, while writing this one, i couldn't think of a song that fit. so, since i couldn't think of one, i chose "sheep go to heaven, goats go to hell" for one simple reason: i like the song :)

Chapter 7

Posted on Saturday, 27 May 2000

Let's hear it for the boy!

The next couple of weeks passed by quickly for Elizabeth. The A.P. tests were quickly coming up, making the days seem shorter and as if there was not enough time to prepare for the exams. During some of this time, rumors flew about Elizabeth and William and the status of their relationship, but they didn't pay attention, and fortunately for them, they either never got to Caroline Bingley, or she didn't believe them. Everyone in the school, at one time or another, had rumors floating about them, including both Elizabeth and William, but they learned how to ignore the remarks.

Around this time, the choral department was getting ready for its spring concert, which is known for its lighthearted songs, complete with dancing on the risers. Unfortunately, the choreographer for choraliers was Caroline.

The singers supposed that it wouldn't be as bad if Caroline didn't always have her own way, didn't change all the things, and wasn't a cheerleader. With the first dance move to "Let's Hear it for the Boy!", Elizabeth knew it was going to be trouble. The girls were to turn their backs to the audience, with their hands on their wastes and shake their hips.

"What's up with this?" one girl remarked. "We're showing our butts to the audience."

As more of the dance was learned, the moves felt like it belonged more in a cheerleader's routine, not a dance for an eighties song.

"I'm starting to feel like a cheerleader," Elizabeth murmured to her friend, Natalie, who snickered.

Still, that was not the worst. It wasn't until the second day when Caroline decided to change moves each time they went through the song. That's when everybody started complaining and arguments arose. The teacher, Mrs. Hurst actually had to tear her attention away from the computer solitaire game to settle the argument.

For a second.

Because a second later, although there weren't arguments, there were many questions. Questions that Caroline had no patience to answer. At one point, Caroline was yelling at the choir to let her work, but a voice arose from the girls. Anne Elliot.

"Caroline! We're trying to figure out what you're making us do! We're not trying to change the dance, but to ask questions to clarify what we're doing."

This calmed down the Caroline and the choir for the remainder of the class, and they actually learned some of the dance, but the next day was just as difficult as before. This time, however, Anne helped out more. An experienced dancer, she was able to ask questions when Caroline was trying to remember how she even planned the dance. When going through the dance, Anne would be in the front of the room along with Caroline, so when Caroline forgot what she did, Anne was there to remind her and the choir.

These classes, although loud and annoying, made Elizabeth forget about the A.P. exams for the time being, but as the time drew nearer, she got more and more stressed out. Jane, Charlotte, and William had to calm her down as she got nervous.

"Lizzy! You'll do fine, you always do fine!" Charlotte exclaimed while waiting for the school traffic to clear so Charlotte and Jane could get out of school easier.

"I've known you practically your whole life, Lizzy, and I never saw you get so upset. Besides, these tests barely count. If you don't want a college to see it, than they don't have to see it," William tried to persuade.

"I know! But I feel as if I'll disappoint my teachers if I do bad."

"You won't disappoint them, I promise. You've never disappointed anybody in your life." William looked at his watch. "I have to go now, or else I'll be late for practice. See you guys later."

"He's right, Lizzy," Jane added after he was gone. "There's no use to get all worked up over these tests. Now let's go; the traffic's cleared."

The day of the first exam, American History, soon approached. In the large study hall, Elizabeth sat with Charlotte in front and her other friends in back. Next to Elizabeth sat William, with his friends on the other side of him. It was those friends that Elizabeth didn't particular like; the friends that brought out his ego. But as long as she was there, he stayed the way he was always was Elizabeth; like a good friend.

Through the test, Elizabeth calmed down. It was hard, but not as hard as she was expecting it to be; she just wished there weren't so many questions about the post-WWII era.

After it was finished, the test takers went outside where they had a pizza party. Sitting with Charlotte and another group of friends, Elizabeth felt William sit beside her and put his arm around her and pull her closer where she put her head on his shoulder.

"See, it wasn't as bad as you thought it would be, was it?" William asked.

"No, it wasn't, but I'm tired," Elizabeth replied as she pulled away from him and got another piece of pizza. "And I'm just glad one of the exams are done."

"Right. Only one more to go."

"That's right," Charlotte said. "You two have Chemistry to take still, don't you."

"Unfortunately, yes." Elizabeth said with a impertinent smile. Everybody was relieved to see that she wasn't stressed out anymore.

The chemistry exam was hard; everybody agreed to that statement. But when it was done, and Elizabeth put the pencil down a final time, a sigh of satisfaction came to her lips. William turned around in his seat and raised his eyebrows at her sound, but she only laughed, and a smile broke out on his lips.

The next week brought them to Cedar Point Theme Park for a pre-calculus field trip. It was the first time Elizabeth went up to Sandusky where the amusement park was, and she was looking forward to riding the roller coasters, but she wasn't looking forward to the two-hour ride up to northern Ohio, so she brought The Great Gatsby to read.

Sitting quietly next to one of her friends, Elizabeth read. But once in a while, she would look up and glance out the window. One time she looked up and was shocked.

"Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Emily looked up from her book and questioned.

Elizabeth laughed and said, "Now that," pointing out the window, "is what you picture in your mind when you think Ohio."

It seemed like the bus was in the middle of nowhere. Around it, in all directions, stretched miles and miles of corn fields with farm houses and barns scattered here and there.

"Yeah. Didn't you know that?"

"I've never been up this far! I've always stayed in the suburban areas."

Laughing, Emily went back to her book, and Elizabeth just stared out the window for a while longer.

Despite all the excitement, the trip to Cedar Point turned out to be miserable. The students got there, and immediately had to work on packets of problems. It was fine for a while, until it started raining, making the paper and calculators started to get all wet.

There was no way the students had time to do all of the problems. With so many calculations and several parts per problems, the students could only get two or three full problems done. Luckily, the teacher understood and told them that they were to finish them up in class.

Then, the students finally had free time to ride the rides. Unfortunately, they didn't have much time to ride many rides. Soon after, the skies opened up and started pouring, and the park had to close most of its rides. Everybody was soaked, and everybody was cold.

By time it was time to go to the buses, everybody was happy to go home. But then another problem arose. One boy was lost; they didn't know where he was, so the teachers had to go back in the park and search him out. By time the bus finally reached school, it was nine o'clock at night, and nobody expected to be mentally in school the next day.

"Time for the annual popularity contest," said Elizabeth as she walked into the auditorium with Charlotte for the Junior Class meeting. Towards the back of the auditorium, Elizabeth and Charlotte quickly found their friends, sat down, and discussed who they were going to vote for.

It was the time of year that the class voted for their class officers after listening to their speeches. In reality, the truth was that nobody really paid attention to what the candidates said, and that everybody basically knew who they were going to vote for before stepping into the auditorium.

This year was no different; the current president said her speech about the past year, and then the candidates gave their speeches. All of them were of the same quality, except one.

When Nick Collins stepped up to the podium, the students prepared to be amused. Nobody, however, expected Nick's speech. After beginning the speech extremely seriously, like it was in a national campaign, Nick used the strategy of putting down his opponents, which none of the other candidates did. He claimed that last year, the other opponents had to be asked to run because they wouldn't do it voluntarily.

The statement was met with loud "boos" from the students, but yet Nick still went on. By the end of his speech, the juniors could not believe that he was so rude. Elizabeth was amused to see, that after voting, Nick was getting a mouth full from the other opponents and the class advisor, Mrs. White.

Throughout the day, Elizabeth heard of stories where students told him off after he pompously asked if they voted for him. Some things never change, thought Elizabeth.

The year ended nice and peacefully, without much stress. The spring choral concert went on fine, no matter how many fights the singers had with Caroline. Anne Elliot seemed to be the saving grace that saved the girls from hating each other. Also, exams weren't too difficult, and they were over without too much pain.

During the summer, Elizabeth got her driver's license, and was thankful that she didn't have to depend on her aunt and uncle or Jane to get her around where she needed to go. Unfortunately, during the summer, Elizabeth and William never saw much of each other. When school started again, they weren't in any of each other's classes, causing them to become distant again. If they ever saw each other in the halls, they would stop and talk a little, but that was not often. The school was getting so big and crowded, that one may never see some person they had in all their classes in the previous year, the next year.

By time they spent any time together, it was for the publicity for the Valedictorian and the Salutatorian; Elizabeth and William. The last time was at graduation.

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