A Missed Opportunity (Part 2/3)
Pairing: Jack/Liz
Spoilers: Takes place after the season 6 finale
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Not mine. Everything belongs to Tina (as it should). Special thanks to everyone who commented last time. As a writer, any kind of commentary is like crack to me - so feedback is much appreciated!
A week later, when Jack steps off the elevator on six, he bumps into a euphoric Liz. She is practically floating down the hallway, clutching her old wedding dress she purchased long ago to her chest.
“Lemon.” Jack nods in acknowledgement as she approaches him. “What do you have there?” He asks, his fingers causally waving in the direction of the dress.
“It’s my ham napkin!” She sighs happily. “I finally found a dry cleaner that thinks they can get the smell of cured ham out!” Jack nods listlessly while Liz holds the dress under his nose, “I can’t get married in something that smells like a deli.” She grins, her nose twitching when she inhales the still pungent scent of meat emanating from the dress.
“Dresses already? You just got engaged.”
“Criss and I decided that we want to get married as soon as possible. So if I get pregnant, it won’t look like it’s a shotgun wedding.” Jack tries to not let his face show how taken aback he is by their sudden need to move things along. “That actually reminds me, are you bringing a plus one? I’m meeting with the caterer next week and she wants a ballpark figure of the number of guests we’re expecting.”
“Liz, slow down. You don’t think you’re…rushing things?” He asks, in the hopes that he can avoid her question about him bringing a date.
Liz raises her eyebrows, “We’ve been dating for over a year, Jack. We’re trying to have a family. And, as you’ve pointed out many times, I’m not getting any younger. What am I supposed to be waiting for exactly?”
Her words cause him to feel a pang of regret; of course Liz has internalized his brutally honest, and sometimes harsh, words and used them to justify a quick and speedy engagement. “Point well taken. When exactly will these nuptials take place?”
“November 17 - 6 weeks form now,” she beams, “and then I’ll be a married lady!” She playfully punches Jack’s arm, and Jack chuckles nervously to offset his dismay.
“Well, it sounds like you have a lot on your plate. So I will let you get to it…” He gives her a slight, quick nod and presses the elevator button so he can make a hasty retreat back to his floor.
“Hey, Jack, if you don’t have a date lined up, there’s this lady who goes to my aerobics class. She’s really pretty, she’s a lawyer, I think? About a couple years younger then me, I could give you her number -“
He bristles at her suggestion, “I don’t know what’s harder to believe - that notion that you are regularly attending an aerobics class or that are you trying to set me up on a date.”
She smiles bashfully and gives non-committal shrug, fully aware at how absurd it is that she is trying to improve somebody else’s love life. “I just think you two may hit off.”
“Trust me, my love life is not so dire that I need Elizabeth Lemon to play matchmaker.” He replies tersely, causing Liz to frown.
“I didn’t mean to offend you…” She begins, but Jack is quick to interrupt her.
“Finding someone beautiful and eligible to accompany me to a mildly entertaining event is what I do best, Liz. No need to worry.” He deliberately ignores the hurt look on Liz’s face and steps on the elevator. His abrupt and standoffish attitude, he hopes, will curtail her revealing any more additional details about this wedding that he wishes to God was not scheduled to take place. One thing is certain though - he’s going to have to be very drunk to be able to survive this event, he’s sure of it.
---
Luckily, Hank has asked Jack to visit several different affiliates along the east coast, resulting in him being out of town for two weeks. He hopes that being away from her, from her utter happiness and contentment, will bring him some clarity on the matter. It must be his new found single status and loneliness, he reasons, that has him lusting and coveting his best friend. He forces himself to believe that this is a strange, inconvenient and temporary infatuation and one that will dissipate once he sees her say “I do” to another man.
He can’t pretend that this is true, though, when he receives a late night call from her one night and grins just from hearing the sound of her voice. That he practically swells with pride after she thanks him for helping her solve the latest Tracy and Jenna feud. And he certainly can’t pretend that this is only a silly crush when his heart expands when as she asks him when he’s coming home and then reveals that she misses him.
“Hey, Jack?” She says, right before he is about to hang up.
“Yes, Lemon?”
“Sorry, I’ve been out of it lately. The whole wedding planning thing isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”
He can’t resist asking, “Oh, trouble in paradise?”
She snorts, “No, Criss and I are great. It’s just a lot of planning and you know how I am when it comes to attention to detail and organizing. And Criss is even worse at those things than I am. Huh, it would be so much easier if I just married you!”
For a moment, he doesn’t even know if he can find words, “I’m sorry?”
“Oh, I meant…you know, someone like you. Who’s anal about getting all the little details right. You’re good at that stuff.”
He lets out an uncomfortable chuckle and says, “Of course. Well, better luck next time?”
Practically sensing that she’s rolling her eyes at his comment, he smiles when she lets out an exasperated sigh and says, “Good night, Jack. Come back home soon.”
“I’ll do my best.”
---
He is finally back home at the end of his long and boring trip. Although he misses Liddy very much, he’s thankful that Avery took care of her while he was away and that she is scheduled to bring her back tomorrow. Having one more night of quiet before jumping back into his routine is ideal. He opens the door to his apartment and sets down his bags with a heavy sigh. Right as he does so, he hears an urgent knock at the door. His brows furrow in confusion, since it’s rather late at night and he’s certainly not expecting any visitors after his business trip. Looking through the peephole, he sees an irate and agitated Liz waiting outside the door.
“Lemon?” He opens the door and Liz brushes past him and bursts into his apartment in a frenzy. “What in heaven’s name is wrong?” Her back is currently facing him and he’s tempted to touch her shoulder, but he’s not sure if any sort of contact would be appropriate at the moment. She seems angry, upset and totally unpredictable. Dear God, even this version of her seems to turn him on.
“Criss broke up with me.” She whirls around, her face showing a mixture of panic and fury. “He was cleaning and he found the ring he originally got me. And then he started asking all these questions…”
“Did you tell him the truth?” He asks, trying his best to remain as calm as possible.
“You know what a horrible liar I am, of course I told him the truth!”
“Well, then, the truth is not so bad. He couldn’t afford a decent ring. I could. So I purchased one for you.”
She shakes her head, obviously reliving the argument between her and Criss in her mind. “He accused me of being too co-dependent on you. Too invested in what you think of me. Too…emotionally involved with you.”
“He accused you of being in love with me?” Her eyes are downcast, but when he asks this question, her gaze shifts upward and she nods numbly.
Jack has several follow up questions - too many to even begin to comprehend - but Liz’s mood shifts again and she starts pacing back in forth in his living room. “He’s totally nutburgers, Jack. I don’t even flirt with you! You don’t flirt with me! The whole concept is ridiculous.”
Her most recent comment forces him to abandon what he was initially going to say, so he lets Liz stew for a few moments while he goes to the kitchen to open a bottle of wine for the both of them. When he returns, he hands her a glass of white wine, which she accepts gratefully, and downs the entire glass in three large gulps. She lets out a short, pained sigh and extends the glass so Jack can refill it. He does so obediently, but his eyes narrow in concern.
“Ah, Lemon, you may want to slow down.”
“The best guy I’ve ever been with just dumped me. Right now, I just want to get drunk.”
Even Jack is wise enough to know that this is not the time for a Jack Donaghy motivational speech, so he grabs her hand and pulls her down so she’s sitting beside him on the couch. “In that case…may I join you?”
“Yeah, sure. It’s your booze and your house,” she shrugs, “and you’re the only man I know who’s not an idiot.”
“Well…with that ringing endorsement…” They clink their glasses together and Jack is pretty sure he’s never felt such an acute combination of elation, relief and trepidation in his life. This is his chance to woo her, he’s sure of it. But he knows that this is a situation where Liz is very fragile and, as such, he has to tread very lightly or risk alienating her forever.
---
Between the two of them, they easily polish off two bottles of wine. Liz leans forward to refill their glasses, but when she tips the bottle she sees that it’s empty. “Whops, no more. We made all gone!” She giggles and tosses the bottle off to the side. “Where’s your wine cellar, Jackie? I’ll get us another bottle.” She begins to rise from the couch, but Jack gently places his hand on her arm.
“It’s rather late, perhaps we should call it a night.” While he doesn’t want to cut the night short, to be fair, he also drank on the flight home and while he’s certainly been drunker before, he believes he’s quickly reaching a point where he may not be fully able to control his urges and desires.
“Can this please be one night where you’re not all bossy, ‘Do this, Lemon,’ and ‘I don’t care for those shoes, Lemon.’” Her awful imitation of him never fails to bring a smile to his lips and this time is no exception.
“How about: ‘I care for you and don’t want you to spend the rest of tomorrow vomiting in front of a toilet,” he pauses, and slowly pulls her body close so she’s resting against him, “…Lemon.”
She looks up at him, her mind obviously foggy from the alcohol and chuckles against his shoulder. “Okay, fine…you win. Can I crash here?”
“Of course, I’ll bring you something to sleep in.”
Initially, he’s tempted to give her something that one of his many former bed partners left behind. But he doesn’t like the idea of Liz wearing something that belonged to another woman, and the idea of her in one of his t-shirts is impossible to resist. So a few moments later, he returns with a t-shirt of his and a pair of running shorts and sees Liz sprawled out on his couch. For a moment, he thinks she has fallen asleep but her head swivels when she hears him approach and she gives him a lopsided smile.
“This is for you. You can change in the guest bathroom. I left a new toothbrush there for you to use.” Before retiring to his own room, he sees Liz bite down on her lip apprehensively. “What is it? Do you need something else?”
“Well…no, never mind. It’s stupid.”
“Lemon, you just consumed an entire bottle of wine. If there was ever a time to be honest and not hold anything back, this is it.”
“I know it’s silly, but I’m not used to sleeping alone now. Could I…sleep in your bed? With you? I mean, not with you. I’ll be there. You’ll be there too. We’ll be there together. But not…you know, doing anything Cinemaxy.”
He tries his best to conceal his shock at her request, but he can still feel his eyebrows practically fly up to his hairline. “Okay.” He manages to reply, knowing a simple, straightforward response is exactly what this situation warrants.
“Really? Thanks, Jack. I promise. I’ll be on the complete opposite side of the bed. You won’t even know I’m there.” She declares and then hastily rushes to the bathroom to change. Jack shakes his head at her comment and mutters to himself, “I seriously doubt that.”