A/N: So here's the final chapter to We Don't Talk Anymore. Instead of focusing on one month in particular, I decided to give you some snippets of their time together as a couple over the months following the last chapter. I hope you all like it.
A further note, I've decided to take a three month hiatus from writing. I'm in a place right now where I need to focus on getting myself better, finish my fourth year of university and get my kids the help that they need. As well as a house move next weekend. So I have a lot on my plate right now. I will return with the next chapter of A New Beginning on the 1st June.
Thank you all for sticking by me.
Chapter Twelve
The Following February…
"Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you all on the dance floor for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bingley!" the lead singer announced loudly and happily into his microphone.
The guests all cheered and clapped as Jane and Charles entered the hall that they had hired at the Queens Hotel for their wedding reception. Elizabeth joined in with the clapping and smiled warmly as she met her older sister's excited and happy gaze, both sharing the moment that Jane was finally married. When the clapping was finally over, the band started to play with Jane and Charles taking to the dance floor for the first time as husband and wife.
Watching as her sister swayed to the music in the arms of her new husband, she felt a familiar arm slip around her waist.
"They look so happy." Elizabeth said in a whisper.
Will leaned his head down, resting it on her shoulder.
"They do," Will agreed, "They'll have a long life ahead of them."
"I wonder what's next for them, what's next for us." Elizabeth whispered, turning her head to look at him.
Will smiled encouragingly, kissing her briefly before pulling her on to the dance floor as the others started to join the married couple by swaying to the music.
"These past three months have been…heavenly." Will breathed into her ear.
Elizabeth grinned as she wrapped her arms around Will's neck and felt his own wind around her waist as they moved to the gentle music, the sound of the singer's voice carrying all the dancing couples through.
"It's been a dream," Elizabeth agreed, "I never thought five months ago when you came back home that I would be here now. Happy. With you. In love."
"I'm glad that you said that. All I want is to be with you."
"I want the same."
As Elizabeth looked around the room, she noticed in the far corner, hidden away by some curtains was Charlotte locking lips with Richard. Grinning from ear to ear, she tapped her fingers against Will's shoulder and gestured for Will to look in that direction with her head. Watching her boyfriend's head turn, she laughed quietly at his surprised expression.
"Lizzy, I have something to tell you!" Anne sang, rushing over to them both and wrapping her arms over their shoulders.
"What is it, Anne?" Elizabeth asked.
"You know Charles' cousin, Milo? He's only gone and given me his number! We're going out for dinner at the weekend." Anne squealed in delight.
"That's great, Annie." Will muttered, continuing to stare in the direction of his friend and cousin in the far corner of the room.
Anne huffed in annoyance.
"Is that it? You could at least pretend to show some interest-"
But before Anne could continue her rant, she followed Will's line of sight and gasped when she saw Richard and Charlotte kissing in the corner.
"Clearly their idea they would be concealed by the curtains failed." Will said amusingly.
Anne released her grasp on their shoulders and strolled over to where the kissing couple were in the corner, causing Elizabeth to roll at eyes at Anne's interference.
"I really wish she would just mind her own business." Will sighed.
"I know. She gets a bit scared of being the only one without a relationship in our group. Jane and Charles are married now. Clearly Rich and Char are together and we're-"
"Madly in love and about to whisk away from this wedding reception?" Will whispered in her ear huskily.
She felt a shiver down her spine. Elizabeth met his heated gaze, wrapping her arms around his neck once more.
"Well…we've eaten the food, had the photographs done, wished the couple well…I suppose we've done our duties as best man and bridesmaid…" Elizabeth muttered quietly.
Will nodded his head.
"I'd have to agree there. The speeches have been made and the bride and groom will soon be making an exit…"
"And what exactly do you have in mind for us once you've whisked me away?"
"Well it involves carrying out a particular fantasy I've had in my mind since I first saw you in this dress.." Will whispered into her ear.
"Fantasy?" Elizabeth whispered back, closing her eyes as she came up with a few different scenarios in her mind about what he had thought about.
"The minute we are behind a closed, locked door, I'll tell you all about it." Will promised.
Feeling his hot breath against the curve of her neck, the way he was able to plant pictures into her mind without actually giving away too much detail of his fantasy made her desire and need for him grow from a tiny flicker to a full-on flame.
"Get me out of here." Elizabeth breathed.
Grinning from ear to ear, Will took hold of her hand tightly and rushed out of the crowded wedding reception and up to their hotel room.
ooOoo
March
It was the first time in three weeks that the four girls sat round Elizabeth's coffee table drinking a glass of wine each. Elizabeth smiled as she lazily put her feet up on the sofa, trying to make herself more comfortable.
"So, how was the honeymoon?" Charlotte sang, looking directly at Jane.
Anne rolled her eyes.
"Please…it was their honeymoon…code for all they did was have uninterrupted sex." Anne joked.
The girls laughed, watching as Jane turned a light shade of red from embarrassment.
"Hey, there's nothing wrong with a healthy sex life." Elizabeth said defensively, with a tone of amusement.
Charlotte raised an eyebrow as she took another sip of her wine.
"I take it that you're speaking from experience?" Charlotte teased.
Elizabeth couldn't help the grin on her face as she tried to hide behind her glass of wine. Her relationship with Will was going excellently and they had never been happier.
"And your little relationship with Richard?" Jane mentioned casually, "How's that going? Have you been caught out again by getting a little hot and bothered in a place you thought was private?"
It was Charlotte's turn to become embarrassed, causing all four women to laugh loudly.
"Yeah, okay, we're all in relationships. Charlotte's with Richard. Elizabeth's with Will. Jane and Charles got married. And I'm-"
"With Charles' cousin Milo?" Elizabeth asked.
"It's early days." Anne stated.
"Early days means nothing for you, Annie." Charlotte commented with a smile.
"We're taking it slow, but I really, really like him." Anne gushed.
"Maybe that's a good thing that you're taking it slow. It means you'll get to know each other better." Jane said admirably.
"Well you already know him Jane, so you'll be able to tell if he's a keeper." Charlotte pointed out.
"Milo is sweet, he's considerate. I think he'll be good for you, Anne." Jane stated honestly.
"Thanks Jane." Anne smiled.
"So…tell us, Jane, how was the honeymoon?" Elizabeth asked, steering the conversation back to the original subject.
"It was magic. Two weeks in the Caribbean. It was the perfect opportunity for us to relax and spend some quality time together…" Jane gushed, blushing a deep crimson as the other three raised them eyebrows at her.
"It sounds like the two of you had a wonderful time." Charlotte sighed happily.
"I think it's great!" Anne said enthusiastically, "This time last year we were all in very different places and now it just seems that everything is starting to click together nicely."
As Elizabeth pondered on Anne's words, she couldn't help but agree with her friend that everything really was starting to click together nicely.
ooOoo
April
Their cups of tea sat half drunk and forgotten about on the coffee table as Elizabeth curled up against her boyfriend as Will tapped the keys on her laptop keyboard.
"So, our bosses have given us two weeks off in June. Is there anywhere that you particularly fancy going on holiday to?" Will asked.
"Well it depends on what type of holiday we both want." Elizabeth replied.
"I think maybe a holiday where we can explore at our own leisure but also have lazy days where we can just relax and be with each other is ideal."
"I like the sound of that. Are there any places in the world that you want to explore?"
Will looked down at her and nodded.
"Well I've seen Thailand and it was beautiful. But I've always wanted to see Rome, Pompeii, I would love to go to Paris, explore the palace of Versailles." He replied softly.
"So why don't we do a week in Paris? We can explore Notre Dame, The Lourve, the Eiffel Tower among other things. Then we can do a day at Versailles and then fly to Rome. We can spend a day exploring the ruins of Pompeii and then stroll through the streets of Rome." Elizabeth suggested excitedly.
Will laughed, running his hand through her wavy hair and kissed her forehead.
"It sounds like we have a plan. I'll get everything booked now before I have to go back to mine." He said warmly.
"Are you planning on coming back here once you're finished at home?" Elizabeth asked.
"Can't get enough of me, eh?"
Elizabeth felt her heart beating faster in her chest as she pulled out the small velvet box she had hidden down the side of the sofa before he came over that afternoon. Will looked at her with one eyebrow raised, a look of curiosity on his face.
"I wanted you to have this." Elizabeth muttered shyly.
"Are you proposing?" Will asked curiously.
"No! But I think we're at this point now and I'm really hoping that you won't think I'm trying to rush anything." Elizabeth replied defensively.
Will cupped her cheek and looked deeply into her eyes as his free hand took the small box from her palm.
"Lizzy, I don't think you need to be scared about us rushing anything. I love you, you're the person I want to be with for the rest of my life." Will promised in a soft whisper.
Feeling relieved, Elizabeth smiled and leaned forward, pecking his lips with her own before she nudged his leg with hers; telling him to silently hurry up and open the box. Will laughed, releasing her face as he opened the small box, looking slightly confused at the contents.
"You gave me…a key…" Will said quietly.
"It's yours. A key to my flat." Elizabeth clarified.
He let out a tiny gasp of surprise, a gasp filled with appreciation and meaning before he looked from the key to her.
"You're giving me my own key?"
Elizabeth nodded.
"Yeah, I just thought instead of you knocking every time you come over, you could just let yourself in. It would also save you having to knock on my dad's front door and pester Lydia for the spare key. You'll also be added to my list of people who I know has a key."
"So how long is this list?" Will asked teasingly.
"Not that long! My dad has my spare in case I lose mine, Jane has one, I think Charles did at one point but I think he may have lost it-"
"So, I'm not technically the first male to have been given a key to your flat?" Will joked.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes, reaching for the velvet box but Will closed his fist around it tightly.
"What are you doing?" Will questioned.
"Taking it back. You had to make a joke about my gesture." Elizabeth answered with a laugh.
"Hang on a minute, hang on, it's my key now. You can't just take it back." Will protested playfully.
"Yes, I can."
"No, you can't."
"Can." Elizabeth insisted, trying to pull his fist open.
"Can't." Will growled, moving his hand to her ribcage and started tickling her.
Elizabeth let out a fit of giggles as she writhed to try and get out of his range. They fell to the floor, still wrestling for control over the velvet box until Will managed to pin her arms above her head. As she struggled to free herself, she noticed the gleam in his eye and smiled widely.
"Thank you for the key, I love it." Will whispered.
Arching her back off the floor, she caught his lips with her own and kissed him passionately.
ooOoo
August
"Alright, honest opinion please. What do you think of this flat?" Will asked.
Elizabeth waked around the empty living room, trying to picture her boyfriend living in this tiny one bedroom flat. The letting agent had excused himself to the kitchen to give them a few moments of privacy to discuss the idea of whether Will should sign a tenancy agreement for his own place.
"You really want my honest opinion?" Elizabeth questioned.
"I wouldn't have asked you here if I didn't. I'm doing well at the BBC and it's been almost a year since I've worked in Southampton. I can't keep living at home forever and it would actually be nice to not have to share the bathroom with Georgie. Your opinion is important to me, Lizzy." Will answered.
The truth was, she didn't think this particular flat would be any good for Will. It was too small; the kitchen was practically the size of a storage cupboard and the rent was too high. Higher than what she paid for her two-bedroom flat in Gunwharf Quays.
"Is it really practical for you to rent your own flat?"
"What do you mean? I've just told you why I need to get my own place."
"I just don't want you to waste your money. The rent on this flat is too high for a one-bed. My two-bed is cheaper. I don't want to see you getting conned." Elizabeth explained.
"So, you're not on board?" Will snapped.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes.
"You asked me for my opinion. Why ask me if you don't like what I'm going to say?" she asked, her voice filled with annoyance.
"You're my girlfriend, you're supposed to be supportive!"
"I am supportive! I've listened to you trying to picture yourself in so many flats now. I've listened to how you're planning to buy this piece of furniture to go where and how you're going to get some pictures of us printed from our holiday. You know the pictures of us at the Eiffel Tower and walking around the ruins of Pompeii because you loved those ones even though I look absolutely gross and don't want them framed and on display. I can put those little things aside because they aren't that important in the grand scheme of things but when it comes to you working as hard as you do only to have the majority of your wages be spent on rent and bills, I have to say something." Elizabeth argued defensively.
"I get it. You don't want me to take this flat." Will replied stubbornly.
"Honestly? No, I don't want you to take this flat. What's the point anyway? Most of your time is spent staying with me and the odd occasion you do decide to stay at home. For Christ sake, you may as well just move your stuff in with me!" Elizabeth yelled.
The couple paused, looking at each other tensely before Will cleared his throat.
"I'm a little confused. What exactly are you saying?" he questioned.
"I'm just saying that aside from being conned out of your hard-earned money, you spend practically all of your time staying with me at my place. So, what's the point in even looking for your own place?" Elizabeth answered.
Will frowned at her in confusion.
"So…what am I supposed to do?"
Elizabeth huffed in annoyance.
"God you men can be a little dense at times." She muttered.
"Your point?" Will asked.
"Why don't you move in with me?"
Will smiled, closing the gap between them as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
"You think we're ready for that step?" he whispered.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes.
"I think we should make it official, you practically live there most of the time anyway." She laughed.
"This is big." Will pointed out.
"Huge." Elizabeth agreed amusingly.
"Do we get some new furniture?"
Elizabeth looked up at him, it was her turn to feel confused. Why would she need to buy new furniture when she already had a flat filled with the stuff? It wasn't like anything needed replacing.
"Why would we need new furniture?" Elizabeth asked curiously.
"I just figured that if I move in with you then it would be nice if some of the stuff in your flat were things we bought together as a couple for our home." Will replied.
Elizabeth grinned up at him.
Our home. She liked the sound of that.
"Ours." Elizabeth whispered softly.
"Ours." Will echoed in agreement.
ooOoo
November
The fireworks lit up the dark sky in a blaze of colours, deep reds to purples and bright oranges, yellows, greens and blues and in the distance, Elizabeth could see the bonfire burning on the IBM fields as the smoke rose high into the sky. When she was a kid, she would often go to watch the fireworks at IBM on bonfire night and watch as the large fire burned the effigy someone had made. The fifth of November was a day of remembrance to a failed plot but tonight she found herself remembering the tough time that she had been through to get to the happy place that she was in right now. She and Will were living together now and at first, she had thought that it would be a challenge, the two of them under the same roof. And at first there had been the usual disagreements over leaving shoes in the wrong place or not letting a dish soak overnight if one of them wasn't going to clean it straight away or what supermarket they were going to do their weekly food shop at. But, quite quickly, Elizabeth realised that she loved having someone to go home to every night.
Since it had become 'their' place, their friends had also made a few changes. Jane and Charles were talking about trying for a baby, Charlotte and Richard had moved in together and Anne had finally settled down with Charles' cousin Milo. Her youngest sister and Georgiana had started their final year of sixth form education and were applying for universities. Life was definitely changing in more ways than one.
"Lizzy?"
She broke out of her thoughts and looked up at her boyfriend. The two of them were sat on a wooden bench at the viewpoint on Portsdown Hill and overlooking the fireworks display. It was something they had wanted to do together to celebrate their one-year anniversary. But they had to celebrate it early because Will had to go to Birmingham for a work conference the week of their one-year anniversary.
"Yeah?" Elizabeth smiled.
"Are you okay? You're a little quiet." Will pointed out.
"I'm fine, just thinking about the past."
"It's been a good year."
"It really has. I thank my lucky stars everyday that I get to spend every single day and night with you." Elizabeth agreed.
"I want forever with you, Lizzy." Will whispered softly, cupping her cheek.
She didn't notice him slip his hand inside his coat pocket and she didn't notice him flick open the tiny black leather box until she saw the colours of fireworks reflected into the diamond ring he presented to her at eye level.
"Will…" she said, unsure of how to proceed.
"I love you, Elizabeth Bennet. I feel so damned lucky that I fell in love with my best friend and I know that I was supposed to end up with you. I want forever with you, Lizzy. I don't want anyone else to share my life, only you. So…I guess what I'm trying to say is…will you marry me?" Will said, so warmly, so heartfelt and with tears of happiness forming in his eyes.
Elizabeth looked down at the ring and then back up to her boyfriend's loving gaze. She hadn't expected him to propose to her tonight. It wasn't as if she wasn't sure about her future with him because she wanted everything that he wanted but it still came as a shock. A nice shock. The twenty second pause felt like an eternity before she gasped out an excited 'YES' and watched as he grinned and slipped the ring on to her finger.
The kiss was short as he pressed his lips to her own. When he pulled away from her, she laughed happily as she wiped away the happy tears that had started to leak from his eyes.
"I've never been this happy." Will confessed quietly.
Elizabeth nodded in agreement, cuddling up closer to him as she began to think a few things over. She had been so nervous, trying not to panic but knowing that he was happy with her and remembering his words from almost a year ago, she knew that now was the right time to tell him.
"Will?"
"Yes Lizzy?"
"When you said you have never been this happy, there is something that I've wanted to tell you for a few weeks now, but I've held off, not knowing when the right time was but now feels like I should tell you."
Their eyes met as he looked down at her in concern.
"What is it?" Will asked softly, squeezing her hand with his as he folded his fingers in between hers, continuing to hold her against him as she looked up at him from his shoulder.
"I'm pregnant."
The End