Chances Come

by Ney Mitch

  “I am not engaged at all, sir,” Jane assured him.

  “I am engaged myself for the first two dances,” Kitty lied, “and so is Miss Darcy.”

  Jane, Mr. Darcy, and I gave her a quick glance, but we said nothing. After all, Georgiana was not engaged, and Sir Aleck had only requested Kitty’s hand for the first dance.

  “Then,” the Colonel continued, “it would be a shame for Miss Bennet not to dance for the first two sets. Miss Bennet, would you do me the honor of requesting your hand for the first two dances?”

  “I would be delighted,” Jane responded.

  “Very good. And then Miss Elizabeth, Miss Kitty, and cousin, can I request your hand for the third, fourth and fifth sets?”

  “You may,” we all agreed.

  Everyone began talking amongst themselves. While doing so, I moved from Darcy’s side and went close to Kitty.

  “You lied,” I whispered. “You and Sir Aleck are only dancing the first set. You know that the Colonel is in love with her, don’t you?”

  “Yes, now hush,” she whispered. “For, of course, we are at a ball and there are many ears.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  And while we were standing there, the names were announced as the guests entered. Through all the talking, we heard the announcer speak the next set of guests’ names loud and clear.

  “Mr. Charles Bingley, Mr. William Hurst!”

  We all turned at the names and we saw Mr. Bingley enter, along with Miss Caroline Bingley, Mrs. Hurst, and her husband, Mr. Hurst.

  How many months it had been since I had seen any of them!

  For Miss Bingley, Miss Hurst, and Mr. Hurst, I could say that all those months felt too short a time. I would have been content with never seeing them. With Mr. Bingley, the surprise would be entirely surprising to me. At one point in my life, I would have been overjoyed to have seen him. Yet, now, with the situation about to unfold in a most painful manner, I wished him also to be on the other side of the world; anything for all parties to avoid the awkwardness that was about to ensue.

  When they entered, Mr. Bingley did not notice us, for he was eager just to meet Sir Aleck. I noticed our host was kind to Bingley, but his speaking with that company was quick, and Bingley’s group were soon walking around.

  With too much lack of reserve, I immediately turned to Jane. This was her first time at seeing Mr. Bingley in so long. Her eyes fell on him, they widened slightly, and I could only guess as to what she was feeling. For Jane, with great strength of reserve, always managed to conceal her feelings and it was not always easy to know what lay underneath. Yet, she did look on him. She did mark him. And she remembered him for, despite her protestations of being indifferent, she did love him.

  Next, I looked on the Colonel.

  There was a flash of anger and resentment in his eyes!

  It was the pang of jealousy. He had to of course know that this day would come, yet nothing can ever prepare a person for an actual event occurring, I suppose. Yet, the Colonel soon remembered himself and he masked his inner disquiet with a look of strength and calmness. And thank god for that!

  Mr. Bingley’s eyes scanned the throng and, sooner than later, his eyes fell on us. Whatever surprise and emotional alarm was felt on Jane’s side, Bingley’s was larger. His eyes widened, his jaw dropped open and shock caused him to freeze in place. For Jane was right before him and in the same room. If there had been any moment where he thought and dreamed of her, it was most apparent that the dream had caught up with him. Throwing all apprehensions of future complications aside for the moment, I wondered what the sensation was like for them both. To have dreamt of each other, and for that moment, to see the dream suddenly become a reality. Sudden and pure. Jane perhaps desired that moment to occur one day and knew that she had wished in vain. Bingley clearly once desired it as well, and now it was thrust upon him. Both had once believed in this dream and nourished it. Now, the dream was so close that they both could touch it.

  Oh, to know what they were feeling!

  “I see acquaintances of ours,” Mr. Darcy observed. “Excuse me, for I should bring them over.”

  His words broke the spell that had fallen over the rest of us.

  As he walked over to Bingley’s company to speak to them, I looked at my companions. Georgiana, who had been wholly ignorant of Jane’s tear between two men, looked pleasant in her enviable ignorance. Kitty bit her lip and tried to look anywhere else but at the two people who had nothing to gain from this next scene. I saw Jane and Colonel Fitzwilliam look at each other, then look away, and then look at each other again significantly.

  Mr. Darcy met Bingley’s company, I heard Caroline Bingley’s effusions of flattery when she met Mr. Darcy, and I was vexed, but not intimidated. As Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley spoke, Mr. Bingley’s eyes never left Jane, and then Miss Bingley looked on me. Ah! There was the familiar disdain in her eye, the chief animosity that consumed her when in regards to viewing me. She still hated me. How very amusing!

  Chapter 14

  The Ball of Errors

  Mr. Darcy escorted the Bingleys and Hursts over to our group within a few seconds of them speaking and Jane’s alarm must have been astounding. I felt for her in that instant. Bingley, on the other hand, was overjoyed and displayed it without reservation or awkwardness.

  “Miss Bennet,” Mr. Bingley began, his face all aglow, “Miss Elizabeth, Miss Kitty, and Miss Georgiana, I cannot tell you how delightful it is to see you all once more. The surprise that I feel in this instant is overwhelming, for Darcy has just informed me that you have been staying at his townhouse for quite some time.”

  “We have been there for a fortnight, sir,” I answered, “and it is a pleasure to see you all once more.”

  “It has truly been too long since I have had the pleasure of seeing you. Yet, I can see that you are well.”

  “We are very well, sir,” Kitty added.

  “Mr. Darcy also was manifold in his surprises,” Jane added, finding her voice, “for he had not informed us that you and your company were attending as well.”

  “I confess that I wished for it to be a surprise on both sides,” Mr. Darcy admitted. “Very seldom do I have the pleasure of offering surprises. Therefore, I wished to savor the moment.”

  “You are full of surprises yourself today, sir,” Caroline Bingley voiced. “No matter! Jane, it is so lovely to see you again. You are in the very best of looks.”

  “Thank you, Miss Bingley. Your gown is most exquisite. And Mrs. Hurst, you are two of the loveliest sisters here.”

  “Oh, our looks do not compare to the ones that are set by yours and Miss Darcy here,” Mrs. Hurst continued, looking at us. “Miss Elizabeth and Miss Kitty, this is the loveliest that you have ever looked. It is a surprise to see you all, indeed.”

  “I echo such sentiments,” Mr. Bingley replied, looking at Jane, overwhelmed. “Darcy, you never mentioned a word of this at all.”

  “For some reason, I was curious to see what your reactions would be,” Mr. Darcy explained, “and it had been most amusing now.”

  Mr. Bingley was clearly amused. “This sort of behavior is something I never would have taken you for. I am quite diverted, and I could not be more overjoyed by it. Now that there are such friends to be met, I feel as if this ball shall be the greatest one of the season.”

  “Of course, it shall be,” Sir Aleck responded, passing by us as he overheard what we said, “for it is Christmastime, and I am the one who gave it. Now, Darcy, acquaint your lovely ladies with my one rule, and then I shall return to collect what is my due.”

  Sir Aleck continued to walk past us to speak with some gentlemen who were sitting down.

  “You must excuse Sir Aleck’s ways,” Colonel Fitzwilliam explained. “He is not an overbearing man or a tyrant. He is actually quite the best conversationalist in the place, and you will admire him. He just prefers to start relationships with people from the middle rather than starting from the very beginning.”

>   “What is the one rule?” I asked. “What could he mean?”

  “His rule of dancing with women that he just made the acquaintance of,” Mr. Darcy answered my question. “He shall expect you to hold one particular set aside for him to dance with you.”

  “Well,” Kitty said, “that is a rule that I do not feel oppressed under. I do so wonder if he would be willing to hold me for the second set, or am I presumptuous in thinking he has not already secured a woman’s hand for that?”

  “With Sir Aleck,” Mr. Bingley answered, “never presume anything. What dances are you already set down for?”

  “I am to dance with Sir Aleck for the first set, and the Colonel for the fourth set.”

  “Then might I require your hand for the fifth?”

  “You may,” Kitty giggled.

  “Then simply inform Sir Aleck that you are engaged for those sets and he shall manage himself around them. He is quite flexible in that way.”

  “Good.”

  “And Miss Kitty, you have helped me to determine how I wish to spend the evening myself, for I am also in want of partners.” Now he turned to Jane. “Miss Bennet, if I am not being presumptuous, might I request your hand for the first two dances?”

  “Thank you, Mr. Bingley,” Jane responded, a little breathy, “yet, my hand has already had the good fortune to be secured by the Colonel.”

  Mr. Bingley immediately turned to Colonel Fitzwilliam, who bowed his head to Bingley, diplomatically.

  “Sir,” Colonel Fitzwilliam began, “our minds rested in the same place, I see, for when it comes to a choice of partner. I could not resist the pleasure of dancing a couple of sets with the lovely Miss Bennet, for it seemed like too great of a pleasure to miss.”

  Both men looked at each other, and of course I already knew that the Colonel was aware of Bingley’s feelings for Jane. Yet, within Mr. Bingley’s eyes, I could discern keenness, an ability to discern the situation. He eyed Colonel Fitzwilliam with a suspicion that was too marked to be mistaken.

  Mr. Bingley knew that the Colonel loved Jane! I wished that I was seeing things incorrectly; however, I did not believe myself to be mistaken in this. Out of a desire to know all, I had a great anticipation for my first dance with Mr. Darcy. I wished to speak with him on it, and I knew that he would tell me the truth. He always preferred to get to the heart of the matter.

  “Well,” Mr. Bingley replied, smoothly, “then, might I be so bold to request your hand, Miss Bennet, for the third and fourth set?”

  I raised my brows. For Mr. Bingley to secure Jane’s hand for the next two dances was like that of a chess player showing his next move. There was a serious game afoot now, and Mr. Bingley and Colonel Fitzwilliam may have had no choice but to play it.

  “You may,” Jane replied simply. Colonel Fitzwilliam was unable to fully conceal the aggravation at Bingley’s request, nor could Bingley fully conceal the agitation that was rising within him. Nor could Jane fully conceal the discomfort that she felt at the whole situation.

  This was all a mess!

  “Well,” I interrupted the awkwardness, “that settles all. Jane shall be secured of the first four dances. This is a report that we must tell Sir Aleck, for I get the feeling that he shall feel greatly ill-used if Jane does not at least secure the fifth dance for him.”

  My announcement broke the spell, and everyone flinched, removed from the daze that were cast by Jane’s persistent suitors.

  “Sir Aleck?” Mr. Bingley repeated.

  “Yes,” Kitty added. “He has put the requirement on all in our company to secure one dance for him, and we must not disappoint such a host. I know that I am not up for the task of being anything else but obliging in that nature.”

  “Sir Aleck has been known to dance every dance at his balls,” Georgiana added, “therefore, I can report, on good faith, that he means as he says.”

  “Well, if that be so,” Caroline Bingley said, “then I am willing to assist in that regard. His last ball that we attended, he had me marked down as the first woman to dance with.”

  “Then may fortune find you for the second one,” Georgiana responded, “because he has first requested Miss Kitty’s hand.”

  Caroline gave Kitty a quick look.

  “But I have no doubt he shall find you for the second one,” Georgiana stressed.

  “Dear Georgiana, this is why I have missed you! You always say such lovely things. That is the Darcy elegance about you.”

  “The Darcy elegance?”

  We all turned to who spoke and I felt immediate joy to see Sir Aleck appear and ease his way into our company. I could not explain why, but there was something about him that I found joy in. In ways that I could not describe, he felt… real.

  “Have you come to find out which of us you shall dance with in order?” Kitty asked, coming forward first, and without pretension. Her eagerness and lack of refinement was something that could be regarded as a hindrance, but I was not in the mood to judge or censure her for it. Also, Sir Aleck did not seem to mind her behavior.

  “That was my precise mission.” Sir Aleck smiled at her. “Does this eagerness indicate that you are still willing to be my first partner?”

  “I am very ready for it,” she responded, then she turned modest for a moment and her voice grew delicate and shaky. “If you will have me.”

  “Yes, indeed, I should like that. Your gown is lovely, for it suits your style.”

  “Thank you. I owe much of that compliment to the dressmaker, as we mentioned before, but she is not here to collect your praises.”

  “A woman’s dressmaker is one of the best friends that she could ever have.”

  “And ever will. Until her beauty is no longer of importance.”

  “And when does that day occur?”

  Kitty thought a moment, and then said, “When she no longer has any beauty to speak of. But as you can see with my sisters and Miss Georgiana, they never have to fear that day finding them.”

  “And I believe nor shall you.”

  Kitty sounded so charming in that moment, that I was quite proud of her. Thank goodness Lydia was not present, for if so, Kitty would not have been able to get a word in edgewise; she would have been reduced only to the role of giggling comrade.

  “Then yes,” Sir Aleck said, “I would still love to secure your hand for the first dance. And now, it remains for me to find my way to the hands of the rest in this group. Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth Bennet, you both are still unavailable for the first two dances.”

  “Miss Bennet is now unavailable for the first four,” Mr. Bingley corrected.

  “Indeed,” Sir Aleck’s eyes widened. “Miss Bennet, you have succeeded for the evening.”

  Jane blushed and looked down at the floor.

  “Yet, Miss Darcy, Miss Bingley, and Mrs. Hurst, what of you? Will I be forsaken from the pleasure of your company for the next dance? I could not stand for that to come to pass.”

  “I am prepared to be obliging,” Miss Bingley assured him.

  “Then you shall stand up with me, and I am glad of it,” Sir Aleck confirmed. “And that saves me for the first two dances. Now, Miss Elizabeth, you are free, and Miss Darcy, you had best be so.”

  “I am prepared for any good fortune to find me for the third set,” I mentioned.

  “As am I,” Georgiana confirmed. “It has been too long since I have danced.”

  “Then I shall request you for the third, and Miss Elizabeth, please save my dancing feet for the fourth?”

  “I shall,” I confirmed.

  “And Mrs. Hurst?”

  “I am an old married woman,” Mrs. Hurst responded, “so of course I shall dance!”

  “That gives Miss Bennet time to catch her breath after four dances,” Sir Aleck said. “Therefore, can I have your arm for the sixth set?”

  “You may,” Jane said, “and my breath shall be caught by then.”

  “Good,” Sir Aleck confirmed. “Now, I have my happiness. Let us see if I can
keep it.”

  He bowed to us and left to return as his position as host.

  “He seems like such a good man,” I mused. “Am I correct in my assumption?”

  “Oh, he is,” Mr. Bingley confirmed. “For indeed, I hope that you shall be granted more invitations to his parties. He is a man who lacks pretension and prejudice. He is determined to think well of everyone that he meets, be their station in life high or low.”

  “Then he is like that of yourself and Colonel Fitzwilliam,” Jane responded. “When I met both of you, you both contained that same characteristic in nature.”

  Once more, Mr. Bingley and Colonel Fitzwilliam looked on each other. They were happy to have her compliment them, but they would have preferred it if the compliment were a singular one, where one of them alone had been given it, rather than it be bestowed upon each.

  Yes, indeed, the mess was increasing.

  After admiring the general splendor of Sir Aleck’s home, the dance was to begin, and all had been arranged.

  For the first two sets, I would dance with Mr. Darcy. For the third set, I would dance with the Colonel, for the fourth, I would dance with Sir Aleck, and for the fifth, I would dance with Mr. Bingley.

  Jane would dance the first two dances with the Colonel, the next two with Mr. Bingley and the sixth with Sir Aleck.

  Kitty would dance the first with Sir Aleck, the second with Mr. Bingley, the third with the Colonel and the fourth set with Mr. Darcy.

  I could not recall who Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst were all dancing with, and I did not care very much at all.

  With much anticipation, I went to the floor alongside Mr. Darcy. The music began, he bowed, I curtsied, and we began dancing.

  “Do you recall when we danced at Netherfield?” I asked him.

  He gave me a half smile. “Of course I do. I recall it often.”

  “It was a conversation where much was said, but not to each other’s satisfaction.”

  “I had enjoyed myself mostly and found it all illuminating.”