Elizabeth Eulberg: Prom and Prejudice

"How can you be so thoughtful to someone who has been so unkind?"

Will opened his mouth to speak, but we were interrupted.

"Will?" Georgiana came out onto the roof. "Did you ask?" she said meekly as she leaned against his arm.

He nodded. Georgiana looked like she was going to explode from happiness.

"Can we come tomorrow?" she asked.

"Georgie ..." Darcy elbowed her gently. "Be polite."

"No, it's fine," I said. "Tomorrow works. You know what? You should take the ferry over. It's really pretty although it's ... actually, nothing. The ferry would be fun."

I almost mentioned that the ferry was nearly four times more expensive than the train or bus to Hoboken, but realized that it probably wouldn't be an issue for them.

After we figured out our plans for the next day, we said our good-byes. I still had trouble speaking to his mother, Claudia Reynolds, and tried my best to not completely gush again at her brilliance.

As Mom and I headed to Port Authority to get the bus home, she grabbed my hand, like she used to do when I was little and we were visiting Manhattan.

"Elizabeth, that was such an amazing evening. That Will is charming and very handsome. Why haven't you mentioned him before?"

I tried to not laugh as I certainly had mentioned Will several times to my mother, but never by his proper name. Instead she'd heard the many names I'd given him, like "vile human being" and "pompous jerk."

Now I lied. "I didn't really know him that well -- at least, not as well as I do now."

It was only later, as I sat with that thought, that I realized that it wasn't really a lie, after all. It was the absolute truth.

I WAS EXTREMELY ANXIOUS THE NEXT DAY AS I WATCHED THE ferry carrying Darcy and Georgiana dock at the 14th Street pier in Hoboken.

Our greeting was a little awkward. I received a big hug from Georgiana, but when Darcy and I looked at each other, it wasn't clear whether we should shake hands, hug, or something else. So we simply nodded at each other. I'm pretty sure I heard Georgie sigh under her breath.

I took them on a walking tour of Hoboken. We headed along the waterfront and viewed the Manhattan skyline.

Georgie took out her phone. "I want to take a picture of you two." She held up her phone and motioned for us to get together.

Darcy and I lined up against the railing. "No, I need you closer together to get you both in the photo," she instructed.

I had taken countless pictures on the waterfront and I knew that if you were getting the skyline in the background, you didn't need to be that close.

Darcy put his arm around my shoulder and we leaned in. I slipped my arm around his waist and noticed how easily I fit into the little nook in his side.

"Oh, hold on, I'm having problems." Georgie played with her phone for a few moments while we just stood there in our posed embrace.

"Georgie ..."

She looked up at her brother and blushed. "Um, I think it works now."

I felt Darcy's body begin shaking slightly and looked up to discover he was laughing. He leaned in and whispered, "She's very well meaning, if not subtle."

My cheeks began to burn from the embarrassment. I decided to distract them (and myself) by talking endlessly about the history of Hoboken -- Frank Sinatra, On the Waterfront, anything that sprang in my mind while we walked around.

We grabbed sandwiches at Vito's Deli and cupcakes at Sweet, then grabbed a picnic bench in Church Square Park. Georgie grilled me relentlessly about my music history, where I practiced, where I want to go to college.

I turned the tables on her and brought up her own classes and music. "Why aren't you at Longbourn?" I asked.

Her face fell. "I want to stay closer to home."

I was horrified that I might have brought up a painful subject. It wouldn't be surprising that she didn't want to go to Longbourn, especially since Wick was a local.

"Oh, well, there's one person here who hasn't gotten a grilling yet." I tried to salvage the conversation by turning the attention to Darcy. "Are you prepared for the third degree?" I challenged him.

"I'll tell you whatever you want to know," Georgie offered.

"Fabulous," Darcy deadpanned.

"Okay, okay." There was so much that I wanted to know but was too afraid to ask, especially in front of him. "Most embarrassing Will moment."

Darcy groaned while Georgie clapped her hands. "That one's so easy!"

"Don't you dare," he warned her. "The river is close by and I would have no problem throwing you in."

She studied him for a moment. "I can swim," she stated, then turned to me. "Will used to have the greatest voice. He would sing in all these choirs and have solos."

Darcy put his head on the picnic table.

"Then one day," she continued, "his voice started changing in the middle of a solo during a Christmas recital at Lincoln Center."

"You sang at Lincoln Center?"

Darcy looked up from the table. "I don't think you could really call what I did singing."

Georgie was giggling. "It was so awful. He just kept trying to sing and then a huge squeak would come out."

"Okay, thank you." He swatted at her. "Now you have to say something nice about me to make up for that."

Georgie didn't even hesitate. "He's the best brother in the world. He's always been there for me. Always. And ..." She looked at the ground.

A knowing silence fell over the table. It was only broken by my cell phone's ringtone. I apologized while I reached for it and saw it was Jane. I walked away from the table as I picked up.

"Lizzie?" I could instantly tell from the sound of her voice that something was wrong. "I don't know what to do. I need your help."

"Of course. What is it?"

Her voice was winded. "I can't find Lydia. She left a few hours ago, and the one time she picked up the phone she said she was with Wick and that she was sick of being treated like a child and was going to have some real fun. I have a really bad feeling about this. She isn't answering her phone. I know you said he can't be trusted, and I'm really worried about her."

I'd never given Jane the full details of what Wick was capable of, and I started cursing myself for not having been firmer about Lydia's obsession with Wick.

"I'm heading into the city now. Just keep trying her and tell her that she cannot trust him."

I turned around and was startled that Darcy was right in front of me. "Is everything okay?"

I glanced over at Georgie and kept my voice down. "No, things are not okay. It's Jane's sister, Lydia. She's gone missing ... with Wick."

Darcy instantly tensed at the sound of his name. He clenched his jaw and straightened up his back. The calm, relaxed manner was gone, and the Darcy that I first met seemed to be back.

"This is all my fault," I said.

"Your fault?" Darcy pulled out his cell phone. "No, this isn't your fault. It's my fault."

"But if it wasn't for me, Lydia would've never met him."

Darcy's voice was very controlled, almost too controlled. "No, we should have put him away...." He glanced over at Georgie.

"I have to go into the city. I don't really know what I can do, but I really need to be there for Jane."

He nodded. "Let me talk to Georgie. I want to help you."

"You really don't --"

He cut me off. "Don't be silly."

Darcy leaned down to his sister and whispered something into her ear. I didn't know what he said at the time, but she responded in a positive way. So I had to assume she had no idea Wick was involved.

We quickly walked to the train station, and the short ride into the city felt like an eternity. I wasn't a good enough actress to pretend that I wasn't nervous, so I kept asking Georgie questions so I wouldn't be forced to lie about anything.