That Kind of Girl [1/5]
Title: That Kind of Girl (1/5)
Pairing: Liz/Dennis, Liz/Jack
Rating: PG
Word Count: 4,000+ by the end
Spoilers: Various Season 1 episodes
Summary: AU. Liz quits The Girlie Show at the End of "Pilot."
Like most other Friday nights, Liz sat down on her couch to watch TGS.
Well, not her couch. Their couch. Hers and Dennis's. When Liz quit what was then The Girlie Show, to protest at Pete's firing and get away from the insane new executive, Jack Donaghy, she found she couldn't afford even her modest Manhattan apartment anymore. Craving social contact in the absence of her old work environment, she'd fallen back on the easiest option: getting back with Dennis. And when she'd mentioned her difficulties making rent, Dennis jumped at the chance to invite her to move in with him.
The guy had more than his share of flaws, but he genuinely liked her. That was something, wasn't it?
Although Mr. Donaghy had transformed the show almost beyond recognition -- adding Tracy Jordan, removing Liz and Pete's influence, and renaming it TGS with Tracy Jordan -- Liz still had a sense of ownership of the show, as if her baby had grown up and she was watching it go out in the world.
There was that word again -- baby -- was it time for her to have a baby?
And she had to admit that Frank wasn't terrible at running the writing staff. A lot of the sketches lacked polish,and there were more screw-ups than during her tenure to be sure, but the show was consistently pretty funny. Tracy Jordan had reinvigorated the show, and Liz often thought about the things her scripts could have done with his brand of humor.
Dennis came in from the kitchen with two bowls of chili. One thing she loved about him was when she'd come in from a tough night directing at the Improv Troupe, or teaching writing at the community college, or working on the various writing projects she could never seem to get finished, and see Dennis there with a warm bowl of comfort food.
"Hey Dummy, has your show started yet?"
On the other hand, there was the way he called her dummy.
What was frustrating about her writing is that she kept coming up with sketches. She'd often have writers' block when she worked at 30 Rock, but now the ideas just kept coming. Some of them she could adapt for the improv group, but for the most part they fit better with TGS. The book ideas and screenplays she was trying to write, well, those were nowhere to be found in that frustrating brain of hers.
One tough thing about having two jobs and writing was that she didn't get much time to watch TV. She even couldn't watch TGS live, instead waiting till she got home from Improv.
"So Liz... I've been thinking and, uh... you have a really good heart, and I haven't dated anyone so cool since that chick Jamie back in high school, who had huge boobs... anyway, we're not getting any younger, and I think this is working pretty well. So, uh, will you marry me?"
Dennis flipped open a jewelry box. There was a big diamond. Liz involuntarily gasped.
"That's actually just a costume ring. It's a stand-in, cuz my buddy Colt hooked me up with a great deal on a..." he searched for the word. "conflict' diamond, I think. Anyway, I'll get it as a soon as his cousin in Jersey talks to his pal at the Port Authority..."
Liz held up her hand. "I don't want to hear it."
And for once, Dennis shut up for a second and let her think.
Things were pretty comfortable with Dennis. She'd thought her life had turned a corner when she'd gotten The Girlie Show. She'd become a success, an insider, and would have money and access to a better class of people. But that had turned out to be only half a season, and once again she was on the outside looking in. New York was littered with people who had had a brief shot at the spotlight and spent their lives trying to get back there. She was almost 37, and both her fertility and her marketability in the entertainment world were fading fast. Maybe she'd peaked, and it was time to accept her gentle decline into mediocrity.
After a long pause, Liz answered. "Yeah, OK." She softly smiled afterwards to generate a little more enthusiasm.
"That's awesome. You won't regret this." He pointed his finger at her to add emphasis at the end.
He kissed her. It wasn't Saturday night, but Liz had sex with him. It was a special occasion.
**
It was mid-afternoon the next day when Liz called Jenna. By then, she would certainly be home from whatever she'd done the previous night.
"Dennis? Oh, Liz..."
"C'mon Jenna, he's a nice guy."
"Even though you're a brunette and a non-celebrity, you can do better. Not Dennis. You can have something like what Jack and I have."
"You mean be the booty call for a rich guy?"
"First booty call. I'm the first one he goes to when his date that night doesn't put out..."
Liz moaned.
"...or if they need a third."
"AGGH!" Liz knew that sound would be Jenna's signal to stop.
"Jenna, please just be happy for me."
"Fine. Congratulations, if that's what you want."
"Thank you."
**
A few days later, Liz dropped off something of Frank's at 30 Rock. Donaghy had put Kenneth the page in as the producer. Liz didn't know Kenneth that well, but it didn't seem to be a very successful promotion, judging from the general sense of chaos.
Jack Donaghy happened to be on the elevator going down.
"Mr. Donaghy."
"Ms. Lemon."
"You put Kenneth in charge? How's that working out for you?" she asked with a bit of a laugh.
"He... requires mentorship. But he's doing alright."
"Uh huh."
Jack looked her over and inhaled. "Lemon, would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"
Aha. So he was going to come crawling back. "Sure, OK."
"So.. Astacio's? Around 8?"
"See you then."
**
The first ten minutes of dinner was filled with uncomfortable small talk. Liz wasn't sure if she was looking forward more to the food arriving or to Donaghy finally getting down to business.
"Is this how you usually dress on dates?" Jack didn't sound mean, but instead genuinely flabbergasted.
Liz defensively grasped her blazer. It was a nice restaurant, but she'd dressed more business-formal than date-formal. "What? Is this a date?"
"What did you think it was?"
"A business meeting."
Jack was incredulous. "A business meeting about what?"
"Never mind," Liz said sheepishly. "And anyway, I'm engaged."
"You're not wearing a ring."
"Well, there's a problem with the... forget it. It's not important. And none of your business."
Jack smirked. She hated that.
Dinner hadn't even arrived yet. Liz saw an uncomfortable evening ahead, and thought about fleeing, but she was really hungry and the lobster she ordered sounded really good.
Against her expectations, with the pressure now off on both sides, Jack was really pleasant to talk to; not pleasant in an inoffensive, bland way, but exciting, as if it was an adventure to discuss things with him. He was sharp, curious, and engaging. It's called charm, she thought to herself, and she allowed herself to notice for the first time that Jack was a very handsome man.
Who had asked her out on what he thought was a date. That was weird.
"So tell me about this fiancee of yours."
"Who? Dennis?"
"If that's his name."
"I don't know. We've been seeing each other on or off for a couple of years. He proposed to me last week."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you."
"What does he do?"
"He sells... uh.... personal communications solutions."
"Like... cellphones?"
"No. Beepers."
Jack stifled a laugh.
"OK, OK, get the 80s jokes out of your system. I've heard them all."
"I'm sorry." Jack collected himself. "It's just that you strike me as someone who could do better than a beeper salesman who can't get you a proper engagement ring."
Liz opened her mouth to tell him to buzz off, but something stirred in her before she did. Jack was right. Dennis was terrible, and she always thought she could do better. Not that she was getting good offers, at least until today. Well, sort-of-good offers. She reminded herself that Jack Donaghy was a bad man.
"Well.. shall we?" The check paid (He'd refused her offer to split it, luckily. The lobster was expensive), Jack indicated he was ready to go.
"Yeah." Jack's hand instinctively went to the small of her back and led her out the door.
Outside, Liz turned to him. "Thanks for dinner."
"My pleasure." He gave her a look that made her melt a little bit inside.
Liz winced as something occurred to her. "You're not going to call Jenna now, are you?"
"I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I told you my immediate post-date plans. Do you need a ride home?"
"No thanks, I'll just get a cab."
After a beat, he reached into his suit pocket and produced his business card. "Here's my card. Give me a call if your 'engagement' doesn't work out." He put air quotes around 'engagement' in a way that she found simultaneously annoying and cute. Jack touched the side of her arm and gave her that look again. "See you around."
Liz waved at him with her fingers as he turned to walk away. She stared at the card for a minute and absentmindedly put it in her purse.
TBC...
Pairing: Liz/Dennis, Liz/Jack
Rating: PG
Word Count: 4,000+ by the end
Spoilers: Various Season 1 episodes
Summary: AU. Liz quits The Girlie Show at the End of "Pilot."
Like most other Friday nights, Liz sat down on her couch to watch TGS.
Well, not her couch. Their couch. Hers and Dennis's. When Liz quit what was then The Girlie Show, to protest at Pete's firing and get away from the insane new executive, Jack Donaghy, she found she couldn't afford even her modest Manhattan apartment anymore. Craving social contact in the absence of her old work environment, she'd fallen back on the easiest option: getting back with Dennis. And when she'd mentioned her difficulties making rent, Dennis jumped at the chance to invite her to move in with him.
The guy had more than his share of flaws, but he genuinely liked her. That was something, wasn't it?
Although Mr. Donaghy had transformed the show almost beyond recognition -- adding Tracy Jordan, removing Liz and Pete's influence, and renaming it TGS with Tracy Jordan -- Liz still had a sense of ownership of the show, as if her baby had grown up and she was watching it go out in the world.
There was that word again -- baby -- was it time for her to have a baby?
And she had to admit that Frank wasn't terrible at running the writing staff. A lot of the sketches lacked polish,and there were more screw-ups than during her tenure to be sure, but the show was consistently pretty funny. Tracy Jordan had reinvigorated the show, and Liz often thought about the things her scripts could have done with his brand of humor.
Dennis came in from the kitchen with two bowls of chili. One thing she loved about him was when she'd come in from a tough night directing at the Improv Troupe, or teaching writing at the community college, or working on the various writing projects she could never seem to get finished, and see Dennis there with a warm bowl of comfort food.
"Hey Dummy, has your show started yet?"
On the other hand, there was the way he called her dummy.
What was frustrating about her writing is that she kept coming up with sketches. She'd often have writers' block when she worked at 30 Rock, but now the ideas just kept coming. Some of them she could adapt for the improv group, but for the most part they fit better with TGS. The book ideas and screenplays she was trying to write, well, those were nowhere to be found in that frustrating brain of hers.
One tough thing about having two jobs and writing was that she didn't get much time to watch TV. She even couldn't watch TGS live, instead waiting till she got home from Improv.
"So Liz... I've been thinking and, uh... you have a really good heart, and I haven't dated anyone so cool since that chick Jamie back in high school, who had huge boobs... anyway, we're not getting any younger, and I think this is working pretty well. So, uh, will you marry me?"
Dennis flipped open a jewelry box. There was a big diamond. Liz involuntarily gasped.
"That's actually just a costume ring. It's a stand-in, cuz my buddy Colt hooked me up with a great deal on a..." he searched for the word. "conflict' diamond, I think. Anyway, I'll get it as a soon as his cousin in Jersey talks to his pal at the Port Authority..."
Liz held up her hand. "I don't want to hear it."
And for once, Dennis shut up for a second and let her think.
Things were pretty comfortable with Dennis. She'd thought her life had turned a corner when she'd gotten The Girlie Show. She'd become a success, an insider, and would have money and access to a better class of people. But that had turned out to be only half a season, and once again she was on the outside looking in. New York was littered with people who had had a brief shot at the spotlight and spent their lives trying to get back there. She was almost 37, and both her fertility and her marketability in the entertainment world were fading fast. Maybe she'd peaked, and it was time to accept her gentle decline into mediocrity.
After a long pause, Liz answered. "Yeah, OK." She softly smiled afterwards to generate a little more enthusiasm.
"That's awesome. You won't regret this." He pointed his finger at her to add emphasis at the end.
He kissed her. It wasn't Saturday night, but Liz had sex with him. It was a special occasion.
**
It was mid-afternoon the next day when Liz called Jenna. By then, she would certainly be home from whatever she'd done the previous night.
"Dennis? Oh, Liz..."
"C'mon Jenna, he's a nice guy."
"Even though you're a brunette and a non-celebrity, you can do better. Not Dennis. You can have something like what Jack and I have."
"You mean be the booty call for a rich guy?"
"First booty call. I'm the first one he goes to when his date that night doesn't put out..."
Liz moaned.
"...or if they need a third."
"AGGH!" Liz knew that sound would be Jenna's signal to stop.
"Jenna, please just be happy for me."
"Fine. Congratulations, if that's what you want."
"Thank you."
**
A few days later, Liz dropped off something of Frank's at 30 Rock. Donaghy had put Kenneth the page in as the producer. Liz didn't know Kenneth that well, but it didn't seem to be a very successful promotion, judging from the general sense of chaos.
Jack Donaghy happened to be on the elevator going down.
"Mr. Donaghy."
"Ms. Lemon."
"You put Kenneth in charge? How's that working out for you?" she asked with a bit of a laugh.
"He... requires mentorship. But he's doing alright."
"Uh huh."
Jack looked her over and inhaled. "Lemon, would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"
Aha. So he was going to come crawling back. "Sure, OK."
"So.. Astacio's? Around 8?"
"See you then."
**
The first ten minutes of dinner was filled with uncomfortable small talk. Liz wasn't sure if she was looking forward more to the food arriving or to Donaghy finally getting down to business.
"Is this how you usually dress on dates?" Jack didn't sound mean, but instead genuinely flabbergasted.
Liz defensively grasped her blazer. It was a nice restaurant, but she'd dressed more business-formal than date-formal. "What? Is this a date?"
"What did you think it was?"
"A business meeting."
Jack was incredulous. "A business meeting about what?"
"Never mind," Liz said sheepishly. "And anyway, I'm engaged."
"You're not wearing a ring."
"Well, there's a problem with the... forget it. It's not important. And none of your business."
Jack smirked. She hated that.
Dinner hadn't even arrived yet. Liz saw an uncomfortable evening ahead, and thought about fleeing, but she was really hungry and the lobster she ordered sounded really good.
Against her expectations, with the pressure now off on both sides, Jack was really pleasant to talk to; not pleasant in an inoffensive, bland way, but exciting, as if it was an adventure to discuss things with him. He was sharp, curious, and engaging. It's called charm, she thought to herself, and she allowed herself to notice for the first time that Jack was a very handsome man.
Who had asked her out on what he thought was a date. That was weird.
"So tell me about this fiancee of yours."
"Who? Dennis?"
"If that's his name."
"I don't know. We've been seeing each other on or off for a couple of years. He proposed to me last week."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you."
"What does he do?"
"He sells... uh.... personal communications solutions."
"Like... cellphones?"
"No. Beepers."
Jack stifled a laugh.
"OK, OK, get the 80s jokes out of your system. I've heard them all."
"I'm sorry." Jack collected himself. "It's just that you strike me as someone who could do better than a beeper salesman who can't get you a proper engagement ring."
Liz opened her mouth to tell him to buzz off, but something stirred in her before she did. Jack was right. Dennis was terrible, and she always thought she could do better. Not that she was getting good offers, at least until today. Well, sort-of-good offers. She reminded herself that Jack Donaghy was a bad man.
"Well.. shall we?" The check paid (He'd refused her offer to split it, luckily. The lobster was expensive), Jack indicated he was ready to go.
"Yeah." Jack's hand instinctively went to the small of her back and led her out the door.
Outside, Liz turned to him. "Thanks for dinner."
"My pleasure." He gave her a look that made her melt a little bit inside.
Liz winced as something occurred to her. "You're not going to call Jenna now, are you?"
"I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I told you my immediate post-date plans. Do you need a ride home?"
"No thanks, I'll just get a cab."
After a beat, he reached into his suit pocket and produced his business card. "Here's my card. Give me a call if your 'engagement' doesn't work out." He put air quotes around 'engagement' in a way that she found simultaneously annoying and cute. Jack touched the side of her arm and gave her that look again. "See you around."
Liz waved at him with her fingers as he turned to walk away. She stared at the card for a minute and absentmindedly put it in her purse.
TBC...