Brides and Prejudice

Proposal One

"Night Lissa," Shane shook his head as he dropped her off a block from her house so that Lissa didn't have to worry about the whole family running out to question her about where she'd been.

"Night Shaney," Lissa poked her head through the window and kissed his forehead.

He playfully swatted her away. "Just don't... leave without saying goodbye again." He said with a rueful smile.

"Why didn't we work out again?" Lissa asked with a grin as she leaned on the edge of the car's window.

"Because kissing feels incestuous and it would please our parents too much."

"Ah, yes. And I won't this time, promise." She smiled, adding a wink.

"Good, now go and finish saving the day." He shook his head before driving away.

~

As Lissa made her way to the house, she looked curiously at the little BMW sports car in the driveway. It wasn't an M class but it did say look at me with its ostentatious red. Just looking at it, Lissa couldn't help but think that the driver was trying to compensate for something.

Wearily, she the passed the car, getting the worst feeling. Still, she made her way to the back door but upon making it to the door, she heard a voice that stopped her in her tracks. A horrifying image of a dark haired and pasty skinned boy a few years older than her, who had no vision problems yet wore a pair of black spectacle to make him look smarter, but in the end just made his murky brown eyes look even bigger than they were. With him always was his collectable trading cards, Yugioh, pokemon, and whatever else had been in fashion when they were younger. Acted utterly tough but at the sight of any bug larger than a dime and he screamed bloody murder. Add the fact that because he was older, he thought himself wiser, following her and Jean wherever they went, even correcting Lissa on everything, even things he had no firsthand knowledge of.

"No!" Lissa cried out loud in horror and stopping in her place only to clap her hands over her mouth. Thankfully no one heard her.

~

"Yes of course. My mother does apologize that she was unable to make it. Her health." He said accepting the tea from a reluctant Lindy. "Though I guess," He glanced at Jean Bennet wearily. Her normally kind blue eyes stared at him almost unseeing, almost like a lifeless doll and her once blonde hair that even he had to admit was more than quite fetching was now a black so dark, it washed her out and made the redness of her retinas more prominent while highlighting the dark circles under her eyes. "Well yes," He coughed as Jean just blinked at him. At the moment, he knew that he had most certainly picked the best choice for him. "And do you know just when Elisabeth will be back?" He asked Mrs. Bennet once more.

"Very soon dear," She assured while Lindy snorted under her breath. Kady elbowed her but not without a giggle. Marie worriedly looked between all her family before settling on nibbling a cracker from the small cheese tray.

~

"Shane,"

"Lissa, I haven't even made it around the bend."

"Well do a U turn and come back for me." She said between clenched teeth.

"Lissa what's going on?"

"He's back!" She said through clenched teeth, taking refuge near a tall hedge.

"He? Who?"

Lissa let out a groan. "You know who."

"No I don't know who, Chase?"

Lissa sighed. "No not Ch-"

"Ah there you are, thought I heard something out here. I do have very good ears. You know I went to police academy and they trained us to use the full extent of out ears' capabilities in order to be alert."

"Willy Coley, oh man." Shane laughed. "You meant him... I gotta see this. Coming back." He said from the other line before hanging up and doing a U turn.

~

Lissa did not miss the glare her mother was aiming at her but she completely disregarded it as she by passed the living room for the kitchen. Willy following her not unlike their childhood, still chatting on about police academy.

She took a beer out of the fridge and used the corner of the sink to pop the bottle.

Willy winced at the less than lady like manners but breathed through his nose as he figured that his mother would have something to occupy herself, with teaching Elisabeth to be a proper lady. Yet, as Elisabeth took a good gulp, he watched as she licked her bottom lip, left to right before ascending to the top lip, right to left.

Gulping again, he tore his eyes away before he coughed to get her attention.

She glanced his way with a bit of a grimace.

"Elisabeth there is something I must tell you, then ask of you."

"No," Lissa shook her head. "Please don't Willy."

"Will please!" He exclaimed, no longer liking the childhood nickname.

At Will however, Lissa's face scrunched before her eyes had quite a murderous light in them at the thought of another Will.

"But if you must say it that way, I don't believe I will!" He said offended by her other abruptness. His mother would definitely have to work on that! Yes he did ask her when he was ten and she had rescued him from the spider the size of his fist. Then when he was sixteen when he had fallen asleep on the couch with her and quite believed that in order to preserve her honor, it was after that, his mother had finally explained the birds and bees to him, then at twenty five, he had been about to enter the police academy. He had been training for the NYPD. He was hours away from home and he recalled Elisabeth's desire to travel and everyone wanted to be in New York, who was someone. It had only seemed reasonable. Now that he was almost thirty and up for a promotion in which his main competition was a family man barely a half decade older than him, he felt he could make quite a case. "But we have known each other quite a long time."

"Too long," Lissa muttered, nursing her beer as she remembered all the less than pleasant memories of holier than thou moments of Willy's.

He merely ignored her. "And you do know that I quite admire you. And the city." He said plainly like as if New York City was the only city possible, reasonable, hence even if he merely said city, they would know where he was referring to. "Is a lonely place after such a long time. There is also my..." He paused.

"Intimacy issues." Lissa prompted.

His neck flushed red. "Yes, those. And Shane is now otherwise occupied. Not to mention Jean's mishap wedding. I believe romance is not all that it is cut out to be yet I do find you attractive. Nor do I find the idea of us... unappealing despite."

Lissa's eyes widened.

"And I can provide for you so that you do not need to live in Italy as a waitress." He said with the slightest disdain. "But instead we can travel once a year to where you would like. With that being said."

Lissa panicked. Was William Coley dropped on his head as a child? As proposals went, this had started off as one of the worst she was sure she'd ever heard and she used to watch the day time soaps with her art teacher at lunch. Also, how many times did she have to reject him for him to understand she didn't want to date him, be his prom date, much less his wife!

"I'm a lesbian!" She shouted as he got down on one knee, diamond ring and all to her mother's delighted shriek.

In the faint background she could hear a male chortle, one that sounded like Shane's. A shrill scream, sounding like her mother, and someone saying 'I knew it', either Kady or Lindy but she paid none of them any attention as Willy stared up at her in horror.