As the guests enter the Fellowship Hall, nameplates are scattered throughout the room on the identical linen and floral tables. Jane and Liz search for their names because they have been seated at a different table than the rest of their family.
Jane calls out from the table next to where Liz is standing “Liz, I think we’re over here!”
“Who are we sitting next to?” curiously asks Liz not sure that she appreciates the entire concept of assigned seating at a formal banquet.
“Charles Bingley, Caroline Bingley, Hugh Darcy, Brigadier Jennings, Mr. Woodhouse, Alice Hammer, you, and then me” replies Jane walking around the table and reading each card one at a time to not make a mistake from her previous glancing.
“This should be interesting” suggests Liz wondering what all of them will talk about.
“At least we know Jennings. She was such fun as a counselor at the American Music Institute each summer as teens. I always looked forward to her being with us. I wonder if she will remember us?” considers Jane hoping that the answer will be a ‘yes’.
They find their seats as the program is about to begin but the Bingleys and Darcy are missing.
“Jane and Liz Bennett – how are you doing? It is so good to see you! You were such good girls growing up! I loved having you in my cabin each summer!” delighted states Jennings excited to see some of the girls that she mentored for a few years as teenagers “I want to introduce you to some of my friends. This is my best friend, Alice Hammer and our side-kick, Mr. Woodhouse”
Jane and Liz greet and shake their hands “It’s very nice to meet you”.
“We all live at the Silver Crest now and are having a good time together. You need to come visit me. I’ll make cookies and we can have some of my favorite coffees. I just got a cappuccino machine and I’ve become quite an expert. It’s worth a cup.” Jennings pleased to see both of them again.
“We would love to. We don’t often have a chance to visit Crestwood but we will have to make it a plan to visit sometime soon. Cookies sound delicious!” exclaims Jane missing being around Jennings who has brought many happy memories into her life.
“What about you, Liz? What is your schedule like?” asks Jennings “You could help Jane drive. My apartment has a guest room and a pull-out couch. There would be plenty of room if you both came at the same time.”
“I would love too! We definitely have to make this on our agenda to come see you again” honestly replies Liz who is a meticulous calendar keeper of dates.
“Isn’t it amazing seeing Jane and Grant together and also Emma and Knightly. Elton and April are doing all right even if it was a bit of a shock at first too” reflects Jennings as then adds “I’m sure you remember all of them from camp. There is another wedding coming this summer too. As you know Brandon and Anne got married and now have a little one. Well her sister, Ellen and Ted are finally getting married next June after commissioning. I hope that they are appointed somewhere around here. It would be so good to see them again too.”
“I hope so too. We’re very good friends with Ellen. She’ll make a wonderful officer” shares Jane excited for her friends upcoming summer nuptials.
“How’s your love life Liz?” asks Jennings
Liz looks directly at her and blushes. She kind-of misses Jennings’ bluntness but the answer to that question might be a bit boring.
“Not much to say really. I’ve been very busy with school and now I am working in a career that I am enjoying” Liz answers feeling the words fall flat and then shrugs “There isn’t much opportunity to meet people. Who knows? This may be my lucky year” Liz adds with a self-conscious smile.
“Love may just be around the corner. You never know when it is going to pop up. He may be fallen before you or vice-versa but it has a way of working out if it was meant to be and worth the effort. If it is not worth waiting for or working towards, it probably isn’t worth having” day dreamily replies Jennings as she glances over at Mr. Woodhouse munching on a few decorated Italian wedding nuts.
“That makes sense” replies Jane tasting a few of the flavored mints on the table.
“I think love comes in many shapes and sizes. As a child you’re in love with a doll, as a teen you’re in love with a poster, as a young adult perhaps a model, but as an adult you realize that real people are the best of all with their quirks, nuances, eccentricities, as well as all those other things that make them special and unique. There’s someone right for you if you just give it some time” shares Jennings taking a sip of her fruit and berry flavored punch “We all eventually become a fine wine to someone – or at least a good punch. Isn’t that right, Alice?”
“Yes, but I think that I would like to think of myself as a tall glass of cool lemonade” smoothly states Alice as she smiles moving her hand as if it gliding through the air in front of her and pleased with her own joke.
Jennings lifts her lip and shakes her head and the two laugh together as they have many times before.
Liz and Jane turn towards the door and notice that the two men each had observed and an elegantly dressed woman standing beside them. They seem a little out of place and slightly uncomfortable. Bingley notices Jane and immediately smiles.
Carolyn asks the hostess to look at the seating chart. The hostess points to where Liz and Jane are sitting. Carolyn frowns and seems displeased with the option that has just been made available to her. She grabs the arm of the handsome brunette whom Liz noticed in the chapel and moves toward their table.
Bingley sits down next to Jane and seems to hardly contain himself before starting to ask Jane a few questions and in conversation with her. Darcy pulls out Carolyn’s chair. She moves in slow motion holding on to her purse and sliding a hand to fix her skirt as she finds her place. Darcy remains to help to slightly scoot her chair in next to the table. She gracefully sets down her purse on the floor next to her. As if part of a lesson in etiquette to the others, she takes the linen napkin and lays it gently on her lap and folds the ends once inch away to keep the crumbs at bay.
Liz watches her but feels Caroline’s intentional air of superiority aimed directly at her.
“Weddings are such dull things. I don’t know why we bother to attend except for they are our friends” remarks Carolyn to Darcy only even though everyone else at the table can hear her speak and obviously disagree with her.
Darcy doesn’t reply but stretches his neck as if to make his shirt and tie more comfortable. He is very striking close-up even more so than across the room.
“Caroline, you’re so boring. I love weddings! The food, friends, and fun are the best part of any year” states Bingley while looking over at Jane “meeting new friends is great too! You need to relax and enjoy yourself.”
Caroline gazes at him as if a dart is piercing through her eyes but then slightly relaxes when Darcy appears to be slightly surprised at her response, “I guess that I can suffer through another wedding of one of your friends”.
Liz decides that someone needs to liven up the table again. She introduces herself and then asks Caroline “Where do you work? You seem familiar. Maybe we have met before someplace else.”
“I highly doubt it. You probably recognize me because I am news anchor at Galaxy Global Network – GGN. I have a way of making strangers feel they know me” snidely replies Caroline “And what do you do?”
“I’m a copywriter for a local community paper. I’ve been working there a couple of years and I really enjoy it” replies Liz “I write articles about the school clubs and teams, vet suggestions, special community events and other things like that”.
“That’s interesting. You and Caroline are in the same type of business. You both are relating information to the public” intuitively remarks Bingley trying to ease the tension that he feels but not knowing why it exists.
“It’s not the same thing. I report real news and events to people who need to know. She is writing articles about the importance of using cat litter. There is hardly a comparison” retorts Caroline wiping her lip with her napkin.
“Well, I don’t know about you. But I need to know what kind of litter is best for Twinkles and Peaches. I don’t want anything to harm them” replies Alice Hammer glaring a little and not liking Caroline’s attitude “It really doesn’t matter if a bus is broke down Dry River Creek to me. Twinkles and Peaches are my family.”
“Hey they are getting ready to do a line dance. Do you want to try Jane?” asks Bingley taking her hand and not letting her have a chance to refuse as if Jane would have ever thought of doing so.
“Line dancing is one of my favorites! Come on Alice and Mr. Woodhouse, it’s time to jiggle our old bones!” exclaims Jennings pulling them behind her.
“I think that I am going to check my messages. I’ll be back in a few minutes” states Caroline not wanting to be left alone with Liz to ask any more stupid questions that she doesn’t feel like answering just in case Liz should want to interview her for the local paper.
As the music begins, Darcy looks a bit uncomfortable and looks at her a few times but doesn’t say anything. Liz takes a few sips of her punch and decides to plunge into a conversation.
“So what corps are you from?” asks Liz thinking that this is a safe question to begin.
“I attend Pemberly Hights. My family has attended for generations. They have a band, songsters, praise teams, and all kinds of youth musical groups, small Bible Study groups, and are very involved in community programs” states Darcy with what Liz perceives as a slight tone of arrogance. “What corps do you attend?”
“My family and I have attended Longbourn Citadel since I was a child. It is a family corps where everyone is comfortable. We have a soup kitchen for the homeless on Friday nights and have a lot of community care activities. We have a band ensemble and a praise team. We’ve just started a songster group which is a lot of fun too” happily replies Liz thinking about how much the corps as grown in the last couple of years.
“Do any of the homeless individuals ever attend your corps?” asks Darcy interested in her answer.
“Yes, of course” replies Liz “They are always invited but actually on a few attend”.
“That would cause such a scandal at my corps” frankly states Darcy.
Assuming that he thinks the same way Liz earnestly replies “Not all of us are born with privileges and the advantages of some. But God uses us no matter where we came from. He sees us as who we are not what things outside of ourselves that define us.”
“I’m just saying that not every corps is prepared to work with the homeless. For some corps more than others this is a rather challenging thing” explains Darcy.
Misunderstanding him Liz replies “I wonder why ‘some’ corps then choose to still have the ‘Army’ somewhere in its name.”
Darcy smiles with his lips closed. Liz doesn’t understand his response but assumes he is mocking her. “It looks like they are getting ready to cut the cake. Are you going over to watch?”
“No, I’m quite comfortable here for the moment” replies Darcy finding Liz’s spirit someone enlightening to his other friends.
“Suit yourself. I’m going to go watch my friends and get a delicious piece of cake as well” replies Liz not sure if she likes or doesn’t like Darcy but feeling that she needs a break to breathe for a moment.
Near the beverage table, Liz is left by herself for a little while to chat with Charlotte Lucas and some of her other friends. Jane attention seems to be completely occupied by Bingley which is rather sweet to see.
As she reaches for another glass of punch, she hears a ping on the floor. Setting her glass down Liz touches her ear and realizes that she has lost her earring. She looks around and sees a shining piece of metal flashing in the light from under one of the tables she bends down to pick it up but someone gently kicks the earring making it hide somewhere deeper under the linen tablecloth. Liz finds herself mostly covered while trying to find the strayed earring. She recognizes two voices from earlier in the evening standing on the other side of the table.
“Isn’t it a wonderful reception! There are so many pretty girls here. I particularly like Jane Bennett. She is so beautiful. She’s sweet and funny. I think we have spent the entire evening talking. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like her” gushes Bingley.
“I’m sure it is the excitement of the day. Jane does seem like a very nice person though. I have no complaints about her” remarks Darcy in a non-committal tone.
“Her sister is rather interesting. What do you think of her?” asks Bingley “She might be someone for you. She seems quick and smart which seems to the type of woman that you like to choose” replies Bingley
“I’m not sure what I think of her yet. She isn’t the beauty of her sister, but I guess she’s tolerable if a little outspoken” taking a breath Darcy objectively observes She’s a little older not to be attached to someone yet” as he walks away still talking to Bingley but out of range for Liz to hear what they are saying.
“Who is he to judge me?” furious Liz thinks to herself “Each of us have our own beauty. Who is he to say one way or another? Why do I care? I don’t know him. I don’t need him to make an opinion of me. I’m fine just like I am. I don’t need to be with anyone who doesn’t appreciate that!”
Darcy smiles at her from across the room as he sees her heading toward their table. Liz picks up her purse and gives Alice and Jennings a hug.
“Aren’t you staying? They still have to throw the bouquet and a few other things. I thought girls always like to stay for that part” asks Darcy with a plea in his tone that surprises himself.
“No, I’ve got more important things to do than try and catch a bouquet” tightly replies Liz.
“Alice and I don’t. This may be our lucky day! Right, Alice?” excitedly quips Jennings. Mr. Woodhouse is asleep for a short nap in the chair beside her. “Before you go, you must make plans to come down and see me again at Crestwood. It would be so good to see you again!”
“I promise. I’ve have to look at my calendar and vacation dates. I’ll let you know” replies Liz walking away before the tears start to fall at the memory of Darcy’s comment.
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