ACADEMIC STANDING
“Lizzie, have you heard from Lydia?”
“What?” she asked, her heart at once at a gallop. She clicked the email open and began to read.
“Lydia. Has she contacted you?”
“What?” But she still wasn’t listening. All she could do was read that first paragraph again, because what it said couldn’t be right. She had a loose wire in her head firing off the wrong synapses. This couldn’t be real.
To E. Bennet:
The purpose of this letter is to inform you of the decision reached by the President of Student Affairs at Meryton College, following the previous correspondence sent to you on December 18 regarding our institution’s zero tolerance policy for plagiarism. Upon reviewing the evidence provided by Dr. Greenfield, we have scheduled a formal hearing to occur on December 30 to discuss the charges and appropriate disciplinary actions, up to and including expulsion. Please appear in the Dean of Students Office, Oakham Hall, room 304 at 10:00. Failure to attend will result in immediate expulsion.
37
This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be.
Elizabeth felt her skin heating, her lungs clamoring for air. She felt all these things as a distant observer, detached, a driver who had lost control of the car and was chasing it as it glided toward the freeway. The words on the screen didn’t change, no matter how hard she tried to convince herself she’d read wrong.
The car that was her body was about to collide with the interstate at rush-hour and all she could do was watch.
“Elizabeth! What is going on? Did you hear me?”
She released a shaky breath, the rolling sensation in her stomach taking a hard turn toward nausea. “Expelled.”
A pause. “What?”
“I… I’m going to be expelled.”
“No you aren’t.”
The response was so immediate, so Jane, that it nearly made her cry.
“I’m looking at the email right now.”
“No.”
“Jane—”
“That has to be a mistake. Or a joke.”
“It’s from the President of Student Affairs. I’m facing expulsion.” Elizabeth reread the line again, willing it to change. It didn’t. “For plagiarism.”
“What?” The word came out half breath, half giggle. “No, that’s ridiculous. It has to be a prank or something.”
Yes, it had to be. Only it wasn’t. She shook her head, eyes beginning to burn as she skimmed the rest of the email. “I don’t think so. I have a hearing in five days. They’ll decide if I’m expelled then.”
“So you’re not expelled yet. Told you.”
“But…” But the words were still there. Plagiarism. Expelled. A spark of hope burst but died just as quickly. Things like this didn’t just go away.
She hadn’t done anything wrong. This had to be a mistake. It just had to be.
“Elizabeth,” Jane said softly, her voice bringing her back to earth, “you don’t plagiarize.”
“I know.” Elizabeth swallowed. She glanced to the doorway. The room where she’d spent the happiest nights of her life remained unchanged, and the sound of laughter downstairs told her that Christmas was well underway. But the view from here had been altered. It was no longer her haven, the place outside real life. And when she left, she couldn’t take this with her.
Expelled.
“Lizzie? Lizzie, talk to me.”
Elizabeth released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, but the awful pressure under her breastbone didn’t diminish. “Jane, I think I need to go—”
“Okay. And I know you have this whole other thing on your mind now, but please just tell me if you’ve heard from Lydia.”
She blinked. “Lydia? How in the world could I have heard from Lydia? My phone’s been off. Plus, we’re not exactly BFFs.”
“I have to ask. Kitty’s going mad with worry and won’t stop calling.”
“Why is Kitty calling you? Why are we worried about Lydia?”
“Right before break, Lydia…did something really stupid.”
That was a truly disturbing revelation, because Lydia wasn’t exactly known for her forethought. Elizabeth almost hated to ask, but thankfully, she didn’t have to. Jane continued the next second.
“Lizzie… She and Wickham…started seeing each other.”
Elizabeth’s stomach lurched. “What?”
“It started right after you left. I didn’t want to upset you,” Jane replied miserably. “I knew you’d find out but you were on your vacation and seemed to be having fun and knowing that she was with him would have ruined all that.”
Well, it wouldn’t have ruined anything, but she certainly would have taken notice. Elizabeth allowed herself a few seconds to absorb this new information before releasing what she hoped was a tempered breath. “Did you at least warn her?”
“Of course I did. I told her he wasn’t to be trusted and what he’s put you through and… I don’t know if she didn’t believe it or if she didn’t realize how serious it was. You know Lydia. She doesn’t always think things through.”
That was an understatement.
“Anyway,” Jane said a moment later, “she and Wickham went out a few nights ago and never came back. That’s why Kitty called me—she thought my dad might be able to do something. I tried to explain that attorneys aren’t private investigators, but I don’t even know if that got through. I was hoping you might have heard from Lydia—that she might have reached out to you if she was in trouble, since it involved Wickham.”
Elizabeth shook her head. Then, upon remembering Jane couldn’t see her, said, “Well, my phone’s been off and I… No, I haven’t heard from her.”
“I’m starting to get really worried.” Jane swallowed audibly. “Tell me I’m overreacting and everything is probably fine.”
She wished she could, more than anything, but her mind was busy dredging up the things Will had mentioned in his email—how he’d talked Georgiana into running away with him, into sleeping with him. There had at least been a motive there—hurt Will, possibly touch some of the Darcy money, a combination thereof. Lydia didn’t make any sense, unless perhaps he believed he could hurt Elizabeth through her dormmate.
Motive or not, Wickham was dangerous. And if Lydia was with him… Well, she was gullible enough to be talked into just about anything. And that much was enough to make Elizabeth feel sick all over again.
“Are you at your parents’?” she asked Jane.
“Yes. We just had breakfast and are about to tackle the present pile. Where are you?”
Elizabeth gave the room another look. God, she didn’t want to leave, but she couldn’t stay. Not with her expulsion hanging over her head. And while she wasn’t sure how she could contribute to the search for Lydia, she knew she needed to try something.
“Nowhere,” she said at last. “I’ll be on the road within an hour.”
“Elizabeth, enjoy your Christmas—”
“I can’t. I need to take care of this as soon as possible.”
“You know campus is closed, don’t you?”
“The administrative office will be open before semester starts. I have to find out what happened.”
“But—”
“Jane, there’s no way I can turn this off and wait. You know that. I need to be doing something.”
There was a long pause, followed by a sigh. “I suppose I do,” she said at last. “I’ll see if I can get out of the family thing this weekend and come back too.”
“No—”
“Elizabeth Bennet, you don’t want to argue with me.”
She was quiet a moment before giving a sigh of her own. “Okay,” she said. “I love you, crazy person that you are.”
“I love you too. And you’re kind of nuts if you think I’m going to let you stew around the dorm by yourself as we figure this out.”
Elizabeth blinked, and without warning, her eyes had begun to sting in that annoyingly familiar way. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Yeah, I guess you will.”
She lowered the phone and ended the call, and her heart sank once again. Downstairs, Christmas was still in full swing, the air full of Georgiana’s laughter and Charlie’s booming voice. And Will too, his own voice a softer murmur that seemed to thread everything together.
She looked around, taking in Will’s bedroom as she hadn’t before. The massive bed where they’d made love, the corner where she’d left her duffle, the dresser topped with an assortment of clutter, the display cases featuring Will’s various collectibles—this place where she’d been happier than she could remember ever having been before.
What would happen if she truly was expelled? The thought of returning to Meryton had been daunting enough as it was, since they had yet to discuss what their relationship was or if it was anything at all. If she was no longer a student there, her reasons for staying in the area became nonexistent.
If she was no longer a student there…
Elizabeth swallowed and released a shaky breath.
Cross that bridge when we come to it.
For now, she needed to get moving. It was time to pack.
Time to go back to the real world.
* * *
“Good lord, how long does it take to ask a simple question?”
It was becoming more and more difficult to keep from socking his friend. Had it not been for the eye-rolls that Georgiana shot him every time Charlie complained about Elizabeth’s continued absence, he might have done something he regretted.
As much as he wanted Charlie to be happy, he was beginning to question the wisdom of mentioning Jane now. Good intentions being what they were, Will should have anticipated that Charlie would develop a one-track mind and not let the subject go. The better move would have been to wait until they were back on campus, when action made more sense.
Still, Will supposed he couldn’t blame his friend—not after the past couple days, at any rate. Being with Elizabeth now was unlike anything he’d experienced—a rush that never ended. There was no crash; there was just the thrill of the present. Of knowing she was here.
Will glanced around the carnage that was their living room. Georgiana and Charlie shared a gusto for gift-receiving. They tore at packages the way a lion might tear at the carcass of a recently felled zebra. Not that Charlie had too much to open here, but the couple gifts he received had been decimated the second he’d claimed his seat.
It was a scene familiar to Pemberley, save Caroline was typically in attendance, but no one seemed to miss her. And it was also easy, frighteningly so, to imagine next year’s festivities, only with more presents under the tree and Elizabeth by his side. Or on his lap. Whichever she preferred.
Will released a long breath, doing his best to suppress the jolt of excitement that shuddered down his spine. He wanted that. Today, next year, and forever. Elizabeth belonged here. She made Pemberley feel more like a home than it had in years. She made him…
Well, she made him. Period.
“Seriously,” Charlie said again when no one provided him the answer he was looking for. “One little question. She’s been up there for over an hour.”
“You asked her to call on Christmas,” Georgiana said after Charlie grunted and threw another dirty look to the ceiling. “Kind of a dick move. Not gonna lie.”
“So it shouldn’t have taken so long!”
His sister gave an inelegant snort. “Yeah. Call up your BFF on Christmas to, out of the blue, ask if she’d be willing to talk to her ex. That’s not going to require any explanation.”
Charlie blinked stupidly and turned to Will. “What kind of explanation?”
“Maybe what she’s doing hanging out with said ex,” Georgiana volunteered ahead of him. She climbed off the couch and began picking up the debris left from the unwrapping with practiced disaffection. “Especially if she hasn’t first told this Jane chick that she’s banging my brother.”
Will frowned. “Could you not?”
“I could not, but I prefer to.”
Charlie barked a laugh. “I want an explanation for that, myself,” he said, glancing at his watch. “I never knew you and Elizabeth were a thing. Well, there was that time when Caroline said you were knocking socks, but you said you weren’t and I believed you.”
“We weren’t. Then.”
Charlie waggled his brows. “And after then?”
“We were discreet.”
“I’ll say.”
“You mean you two know how to be discreet?” Georgiana asked. “’Cause the sounds you make aren’t very discreet from my end of the house.”
Charlie gave another laugh and the two high-fived.
“It’s not too late to put you up for adoption, you know,” Will said, face burning.
“Psh. I have girlfriend approval. As long as Elizabeth likes me, I’m golden.”
Will’s throat tightened, another excited thrill racing through him. Tonight, after the Christmas festivities had come to an end, he’d tell her that he wanted to continue this when they returned to Meryton. He’d leave off the possibly for the rest of our lives part until later. Much later.
“Well, I’m going to have to leave,” Charlie said, rising to his feet. He shot the ceiling another wistful look as though he could conjure her by will alone. “We have the Bingley Christmas party tonight. Still coming?”
“With bells on,” Georgiana chirped.
“If Elizabeth wants to go,” Will said. “I forgot to mention. We’ve been, uhh…”
Georgiana gave another one of her snorts and stage whispered, “F-U-C-K-I—”
Will scrambled to his feet and rushed to cover her mouth before she could finish—not that it made any difference. All he succeeded in doing was earning a look of triumph from his pesky younger sister while Charlie doubled over laughing.
“Well,” Charlie said after he got a hold of himself, “I likely have some smoothing over to do with Caroline before she’s fit to be around other people.”
Will dropped his hand.
“N-G,” Georgiana finished.
He ignored her, keeping his gaze on Charlie. “You have her present from us, right?”
His friend snickered, reached into his back pocket and procured the gift card. “Yeah. Think this is going to set her off even more. Thanks, by the way.”
Will shrugged. “She told me last year not to make a fuss.”
“You know that’s Caroline for ‘smaller diamonds.’”
“I took her at her word.” Plus, she hadn’t been very high on his shopping list after the last couple months. “If it turns out Elizabeth doesn’t want to get out tonight, I’ll make sure she calls you with the verdict on Jane. Okay?”
“Do you think I could just run up there and—”
“Dude.” Georgiana made a face and waved her hand in front of her nose. “You reek of desperation. You want to scare Jane off? Continue this.”
Charlie shook his head, his shoulders dropping as he sighed. “I love her,” he said simply. “I’ve been in love with Jane since the moment I met her and…”
“And you were dumb.”
“Your brother—”
“If you love the chick, nothing my brother could or did say should’ve convinced you to break up with her without talking about this.” Georgiana tsked. “I say Elizabeth is still up there because she’s trying to convince this poor Jane girl that you’re worthy of another shot if you let Will and your sister convince you of anything.”
“Again, all I said was Caroline raised a good point. I did not counsel Charlie to break it off with Jane.”
“Yeah, but your disapproval is the kind that, like Charlie’s desperation, can be smelled at great distances. If you were vibing, he felt it.”
Will scowled. “Who’s side are you on?”
“Mine. Obvs.”
Charlie laughed and ruffled Georgiana’s hair in a way she pretended to hate, then slung an arm around her to tug her to his side. “I love you, you little shit.”
Will rolled his eyes. “I give up.”
“Finally,” Georgiana said, fist pumping.
Chuckling, Charlie collected his gifts and started for the door. He stopped once he reached the hallway. “The second she gets off the phone, you get on the phone and tell me—”
“I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you.”
“I’m not above texting you every three minutes.”
“I’m not above turning my cell phone off.”
Charlie smirked, flipped him off, and disappeared into the hall. The sound of the front door closing followed.
“Well,” Georgiana said, snatching up one of her new video games. “Think I’m gonna break this puppy in.”
“Glad you like it.” Will tugged his sister into a quick hug, and relaxed when she softened and squeezed him back.
“I love you, turd.”
“Love you, brat.”
“Thanks for the Christmas awesomeness.” She pulled back with a beaming smile. “And seriously, Elizabeth? Best thing that happened to this house in a long time. You gonna put a ring on that?”
Will stepped back, feeling his skin go hot. “What?”
“Dude, come on. It’s me.”
“It’s a bit soon to be talking marriage.”
“Maybe for other people, but not you. It’s not like you’re a spring chicken, anyway.”
“Thank you for that.”
“Seriously, you’re both…you know, marriage age appropriate. It’s not too weird to be talking about it.”
Will snorted and shook his head. “A little premature considering I don’t know how she feels about me, but thank you for rushing me down the altar.”
“You don’t know how she feels about you?” Georgiana gave him one of those looks designed to make the recipient feel three inches tall. “Bro, I say this with love, but you are really fucking dense sometimes. That girl is nuts for you.”
The words had his heart leaping with such hope he thought he might choke on it. He didn’t trust himself to reply, and thankfully Georgiana had turned her attention back to her new game, leaving him summarily dismissed. He found himself climbing the stairs before his brain could catch up with him and talk him out of it—even if she wasn’t off the phone yet, he wanted…
A Higher Education Page 41