Prom and Prejudice

"Fabulous. I'm so sorry I haven't been able to catch up with you since I returned from London. Things have been so hectic." Caroline began to look me up and down. "And who is this?"

Jane put her arm around my shoulder. "This is Lizzie Bennet. She started last semester."

"Bennet? I'm afraid I don't know your family. Where do you vacation?"

The questions. These questions were always the start. It didn't take too long after asking questions about my family -- what they did for a living, where our second house was, the status of my father's 40IK -- that my true identity would be revealed.

"LBI," I deadpanned.

Caroline's eyes widened. "Sorry?"

I wasn't sure if I was imagining it, but I believe I detected a slight British accent. I wasn't aware that you could pick up one of those in a few months. I'd been at Longbourn the same amount of time Caroline had been in London, and I knew I wasn't speaking with an entitled accent.

"LBI. Long Beach Island. You know, on the Jersey shore? I'm a scholarship kid, so I don't get off the continent much." I decided it would be best to get it out of the way.

"Oh." Caroline crinkled her nose as if she could smell the mediocrity. "Anyway, Jane, lovely to see you. We must catch up soon." She kissed Jane good-bye and turned without giving me a second look.

"That's Charles's twin sister," Jane whispered in my ear.

"That's Caroline Bingley?" I tried to not groan. "Jane, I seriously question your taste in guys."

Jane grimaced. "Charles is nothing like her. He's really close with her and cares what she thinks ... but Charles is ... he's ..." Jane became flushed. "He's right over there."

I followed Jane's gaze to two guys who'd just entered the hall. "Which one is he?"

"The one on the right."

The two guys couldn't have looked more different. The one on the right, Charles, was walking around the room, smiling and greeting people. He had the same dirty-blond hair as Caroline, but his blue eyes sparkled with positive energy. Everybody seemed happy to see him, and he, in turn, seemed genuinely excited to be there.

The other guy was harder to read. He was tall with dark hair and a look of eternal disdain etched upon his face. He might have looked handsome if he hadn't looked like he was in pain.

"Who's the guy he's with?" I asked.

Jane let her glance leave Charles for a moment. "Will Darcy."

"Is there something wrong with him?"

Jane shrugged her shoulders. "He does look a little upset. Will can sometimes be overly serious, but his brood is worse than his bite. If you get the chance to know him."

I had a feeling there weren't going to be many people here this evening that I would want the chance of knowing. And I was pretty sure the feeling would be mutual.

"Jane!" Charles made his way right to her. "Just the person I've been waiting to see!" He threw his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

Jane was speechless, and her long hair could not disguise her reddening face.

Charles, beaming from ear to ear, turned to me. "Hi, I don't think we've met. I'm Charles Bingley."

"Lizzie Bennet."

He shook my hand and gave me a warm smile. "Lizzie, so good to meet you. I've heard all about you from Jane. She says nothing but the nicest things."

Because Jane was a saint. She couldn't say anything bad about anybody. And believe me, I had tried to get her to.

Charles turned to his quiet friend, who had been peering around. "Darcy, come here and say hi to Jane and her friend Lizzie."

Darcy approached and gave Jane a quick kiss on the cheek. Then he turned toward me and his hazel eyes locked with mine.

"Hello," he said, shaking my hand and giving me a small, curious smile.

"Hello," I replied. I was slightly unnerved by his expression. He could have been judging me. Or he could have been making a slight overture toward acquaintance. Or he could have been plotting a way to throw me into the fountain outside.

He opened his mouth to say something else, then thought the better of it and decided to walk briskly away.

Charles laughed this off. "I don't think Darcy has recovered from the jet lag! Lizzie, it's really great to meet you, but would you mind if I take Jane away for a dance?"

Jet lag seemed to be the least likely reason for Darcy's rudeness, but Charles and Jane were so desperate to be in each other's arms on the dance floor that I could hardly prolong the conversation. As the two of them began to dance, I walked aimlessly around the cavernous hall trying to find Charlotte, my only other friend on campus. I weaved through conversations between my fellow classmates -- bragging about opulent holiday gifts, swapping tales of exotic destinations -- conversations I couldn't be a part of. After a few minutes, I gave up and went over to the refreshment table and began to fix myself a cup of tea.