Pride and Prejudice and Teenagers.

Chapter 13.

With Will suspended and Charlie still unwell, the week passed smoothly. However, come Monday when the pair return, things become a little too smooth.

I notice things are off as soon as I walk into the class Jane and I share with the now infamous Will and his friend. Jane is sitting in her seat, but Charlie isn't beside her.

"Hey Jane, I swear I just saw Charlie walk in here..?" I ask, but she doesn't raise her eyes from her mobile phone in front of her. "Hellooo, earth to Jane?" I tap her shoulder and she jumps. When I see that her eyes are red and puffy, I automatically sink into the chair beside her. "What happened? Is Charlie okay?" I ask.

She wipes her eyes and fakes a laugh softly. "Charlie's fine." She sighs, her eyes drifting to just behind my head. I twist around in my chair and spot Charlie sitting on the opposite side of the room next to a blonde-haired girl with glasses.

"So he is here! I knew I wasn't imagining things!" I say. "I'll move then so he can come and sit down."

"No, don't." She rushes as I stand, dragging me back into the chair beside hers. "Just look." She slides her phone in front of me.

'After everything that's happened, we've decided to distance ourselves from everyone for a while, just until things calm down. We won't be inviting you over or to sit with us at lunch anymore. Exams are coming up and we all - Charlie especially - need to focus on our education. I hope you don't take this in the wrong way, you're still one of my closest friends.'

"What's that all about? Who sent that?"

"Caroline." Jane sighs. "Keep reading."

'Will wants to spend more time with his sister and we all want to see her more too, meaning we won't be around much outside of school either. And don't tell anyone, but between me and you, I think Charlie and Georgiana would make a cute couple. I think we're all hoping they'll get together. Anyway, love ya. Carrie xx'

"Is it not obvious that they don't want anything to do with me? And that Charlie is obviously infatuated by Georgiana and never really liked me?" Jane asks, her lip wobbling.

"You can't be serious?" I almost shout but manage to control my volume level. "Caroline knows Charlie loves you, but wants him to be with Will's sister so she can become closer to Will herself."

"Caroline wouldn't push me and Charlie apart for her own personal gain. I know she wouldn't." Jane states. "And even if she did, I couldn't be with Charlie if all of his friends were against our relationship, could I?"

"Jane. You have to put your happiness first." I want to explain to her that Caroline Bingley would throw her own mother under the bus to get what she wants, but I know Jane is just too nice to see it.

"I know. And I really like him. But if they force him away from me he'll forget about me anyway." She pouts.

"He'll find his way to you, trust me." I tell her, patting her hand. The chatter in the room dies down around us suddenly and I look over to the doorway where Will is entering the room. His eyes carry heavy bags beneath them and his hair looks messy and unkempt. I stare at his bottom lip, that is still slightly red and swollen from where he was punched. A painful-looking scab is the only real evidence of the fight. George on the other hand has a black eye and cuts on his face still.

"Stop staring." I hear Jane whisper into my ear and I realise my mistake. I notice a few faces from our class have turned to look at me and I quickly turn back to my friend.

"I wasn't staring. I thought I heard someone say my name." I say quickly. She looks at me with scrutiny in her eye but doesn't press me on the subject. The rest of class comes as nostalgic to me, with just Jane and I chatting and working together. Things have certainly changed since the newcomers joined our school.

The bell rings and cuts Jane's sentence short. We stand to leave and I watch helplessly as Jane waves at Charlie, who doesn't even look up. Jane's smile falters for a moment, and when it returns it doesn't meet her eyes.

"Don't worry, he'll soon come to his senses." I tell her quietly as we exit the room. I find George and Denny standing opposite the door, waiting for us so it seems.

"We thought we'd escort you to lunch." George says, grinning.

"Despite the fact you both look like it's you who need the escorting, we will accept." I laugh, and we begin our walk.

"So does it all still hurt?" I ask.

"What does it look like?" George asks and I scrunch my nose up.

"Pretty bad. Will it scar?"

"Well the nurse who did my eyebrow stitches said it might do, but hey, girls find scars hot, right? I mean I've already got one and look at all the attention I already get." He says, flashing his charming smile to a girl we walk past.

"I can't believe he's just getting away with it! He beat you up!" I can't help but exclaim.

"I don't care. It's whatever."

"No it's not whatever! We can't let him get away with doing that to you! We should go speak to the headmaster." I say, suddenly changing my route to walk to the main office.

"Elizabeth!" He yelps, and follows me. "I don't care, just leave it."

"No! If he thinks he can do this without being properly punished then he'll do it again!"

"He was punished, he was excluded for a week."

"That's not enough!" I say. "I'm sick of his stupid face around here. I think he should have been expelled."

"Just fucking leave it, Elizabeth." George growls, making me stop in my tracks.

"What's your problem? He literally beat you up - in front of the whole school - and you want him to get off easily?" I ask, but he doesn't answer. Instead, he places a hand on my back and spins me around, walking me back down the corridor towards the cafeteria.

When we walk in, with his arm around my shoulder, I realise what it must look like. Many heads turn our way, probably to see how well-healed George is. My eyes turn to my friends. Jane is slumped over her uneaten lunch unhappily, whilst Beth chatters away nonchalantly in her ear. Beside Beth sit Nick and Denny. Charlotte is sitting on an otherwise-empty table behind ours with Colin, comparing notes from some shared homework.

I look over at Caroline's table, finding Charlie looking bored but distracted by some work in front of him. Caroline has spread her things across the table, mostly across the spaces Jane and I used to sit. When my eyes fall on Will I notice him staring just below my head. Is he staring at my chest? That pig! I think, looking down and suddenly realising he's staring at George's hand which is over my shoulder fiddling with the collar of my shirt absentmindedly. When I look back up at Will he's gone from his seat.

George and I sit down at my table.

"I've texted both of them." Jane sighs.

"Jane!" I say exasperatedly. "Charlie and Caroline?"

"Yep." She says, wincing.

"Any replies?"

"No." She shrugs, pretending it doesn't matter when I know it's killing her. I have a good reason to go and give Charlie a piece of my mind for what's happening. Part of me wants to give him the benefit of the doubt in that he's so in love with Jane he needs to spend time away from her so he can properly study. Yes. I'm sure that's right. Just last week Jane was telling me about their first kiss as a couple and now he doesn't want to look at her? Something is totally wrong here.

At the end of lunch, we all get up to go to our classes. I walk with Nick.

"George is alright, you know? I think you two would be well suited for each other." He tells me.

"I guess I like him, but I'm not sure about romantically. Sometimes I think I'll never fall in love. It seems like a strange concept to my cold heart." I joke. "But I'll admit I like George a lot better than most guys. I mean, if you compared George to Will, it's like comparing Jesus to a bit of gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe."