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Chapter 21

Posted on Wednesday, 7 May 2008

Still Results Day, Week 3
a rehearsal studio in Las Vegas

"If you want to continue, I'm willing to dance with you."

"Then, yes, I want to continue."

Will and Lizzy stood in the rehearsal room, still in the dance hold. They looked at each other, wondering if they'd made the right decision. Finally, Will spoke.

"So, I guess we call Thea? Do you have her number?"

Lizzy nodded and stepped away from Will. She picked up her purse and pulled out her cell. Before she could place the call, a chirping sound came from the jacket Will had tossed onto a chair. He pulled his cell out of a pocket.

"Hello?"

"Will, it's Anne."

"Anne! How are you feeling?" Will asked. Lizzy crossed the room to where he stood. Will put his cell on speaker.

"I'm well. The painkillers are still working. I have to talk quickly, while Mummy is in the shower. I just want to tell you how sorry I am for Mummy's outburst. I want to ring Lizzy and apologize to her, too, but I haven't got her number. When you see her at tonight's show, please tell her how sorry I am."

"Hi, Anne. I'm here."

"Lizzy?"

"Yes, it's me. You're really okay?"

"Yes, really and truly. Lizzy, please let me apologize on Mummy's behalf. She tends to be a tad overprotective."

Lizzy looked at Will and rolled her eyes, but kept her voice level as she said, "I noticed. But don't worry about it Anne, not a problem."

"Thank you, Lizzy. I have a question. Has anyone suggested that you two dance together now that George is gone and I can't dance? I mentioned it to Thea."

"Yes, Anne," said Will. "The producers did suggest it and we've just decided to give it a try."

"Brilliant! Now, Will, you listen to Lizzy. She's a very good dancer. Remember that you need to loosen up a bit, right?"

"Right."

"And Lizzy, remember the advice you gave me several weeks ago about how to loosen up a partner? Well, I haven't tried it, but perhaps you should."

"Anne!" cried Lizzy over Anne's giggles. "How many painkillers have you taken?"

"Oops! The water stopped running. Must go. I'll be watching tonight!"

Will ended the call and turned to Lizzy, "What was that last bit about?"

"Nothing."

"Anne thought it was worth mentioning."

"Anne was giddy on painkillers."

"Lizzy, if you know a good relaxation technique, I'd be happy to try it. Tell me."

"It was a joke, not even funny, just something stupid I said once. Forget it."

"Now you've made me curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat," said Lizzy, as she wagged her finger in front of his face.

"Satisfaction brought it back." Will smiled smugly, as he grabbed her hand.

"Huh?"

"It's the second half of that expression."

"I never heard that. Anyway, I'm not telling you what I said to Anne, so give up. We have to be in makeup soon, and we still haven't told Thea." Lizzy removed her hand from Will's and placed the call to Thea.

later that evening
"Come Dance With Me" Ballroom set

"Okay, everyone, it's show time. Line up, please." Thea looked at the dancers and nodded. "Good, keep that spacing. And remember, smile!"

The band started to play the theme music and the lights came up. Brad and Stephanie faced one of the cameras.

"Welcome to our results show for week three," said Brad. "As you can see, our lineup is a little different tonight. George Wickham had to go shoot a few more scenes on his new film, and Anne deBourgh isn't feeling well. So that narrows the choices for our encore dance. Our judges have conferred and agreed on tonight's encore, which will be very special."

"That's right," said Stephanie. "Our judges have requested that Emma Knightly and Frank Churchill repeat their lovely waltz. And singing it for them tonight is Emma's husband and singing partner, George Knightly."

Clearly surprised, Emma turned toward the band to see her husband standing in front, microphone in hand. He blew Emma a kiss, and the music started. Emma and Frank whirled around the floor as George sang "The Tennessee Waltz," using the lyrics they had written for their wedding. When the dance was over, Emma crossed the floor and kissed George.

"Thank you, Darlin', that was so sweet!"

"Anything for you, Emma."

The rest of the cast had run to their dressing rooms to change out of the costumes from the previous night and into their jeans and boots. As they gathered in the Green Room to wait for the line dance, they asked Will about Anne.

"She called to say she's feeling all right. Not sure if she is all right, or if it's just the painkillers."

"No permanent damage, I hope?" asked Charlotte.

"The doctors don't expect any."

"So what happens next?" asked Rich Fitzwilliam. "I mean, your partner is out for the duration. Does that make you the couple not returning, or will two couples go home tonight?"

"I don't know what will happen. It's possible that Anne and I would have been the ones to go this week anyway."

Hannah Jenkins poked her head through the doorway and called, "Dancers on stage, please!"

They took their places for the line dance. Standing next to Lizzy, Will remembered that she had fallen the previous night.

"Lizzy, is your hip okay for the bump?" he whispered.

"Sure."

"I wouldn't want to hurt you."

"I saw your sissy bump, Will. I am not afraid of you."

"Them's fightin' words, ma'am. I might just bump you full out."

Surprised at Will's playful attitude, Lizzy said, "Then go for it, Will. It's the other hip that got bruised, so you can't hurt me."

Before he could answer, the band played the theme and the lights came up on the set.

"Welcome back," said Brad. "Tonight we have another treat for you. Our stars have taken time from their already busy schedules to learn a line dance. And here to sing their hit, ‘Gimme Back My Pickup' are the McVay Brothers!"

The dancers moved left, right, kicked, stomped, turned, and stomped again. The audience clapped in time to the music, and good moves were rewarded with whistles. The bump moved down the line perfectly, and Lizzy's bruised hip did not hurt.

As soon as the show went to commercial, the dancers went backstage. After the break, the McVay Brothers returned to the stage to sing "She Never Cried When Old Yeller Died So Why Should I Cry Now She's Gone?" *

Standing backstage, Will said to Rich, "That's a real song?"

"Must be, they're singing it."

Will shook his head in dismay.

Then Emma joined them, and said, "Dang, but Ah love that tune! And Ah was like ta cry mah eyes out when that dohg dahd." Rich and Will exchanged amused looks over her head.

Lizzy joined them and said, "I cried when I saw that movie. Never watched an animal movie again." Seeing the amused expressions still on Will and Rich's faces, she went on to say, "My, my, don't we have a couple of sensitive new-age guys here!"

"Well, who cries over some stupid mutt?" asked Caroline.

"You probably drown kittens, too," muttered Lizzy. Charlotte, who had just taken a swig of water, nearly choked. David thumped her on her back until she nodded that she was all right.

"On stage, please," said Hannah. "You okay, Charlotte?"

"I'm fine," she answered, still fighting giggles.

The dancers stood on the stage in pairs, except for Lizzy and Will, who stood alone. Brad welcomed the audience back and recapped the scores.

"In first place, with 25 points, we have Emma Knightly and Frank Churchill. Tied for second place, with 24 points, are Jane Gardiner and Mike Chiara, and Rich Fitzwilliam and Charlotte Lucas. Behind them are B and Harriet Martin with 21 points, and Caroline Blake and David Sanderson with 20. Next are Hank Carter and Cindy Witmer with 18 points. The couples with the lowest judges' scores are Will Darcy and Anne deBourgh with 14, and George Wickham and Lizzy Bennet with 12."

"When we combine viewer votes with judges' scores, we find out who's at the bottom of the list," said Stephanie. "But tonight we're doing things a bit differently."

"That's right," said Brad. "We are not announcing the bottom two. Instead, we can tell you that the dancers not returning are George Wickham and Anne deBourgh."

The audience gasped. The dancers looked confused.

"George Wickham cannot return to the show because of other commitments," said Stephanie. "Anne deBourgh fell and broke her ankle, so she cannot return either. Rather than send two couples home this week, we've asked the partners of these dancers if they would pair up and continue in the competition. Lizzy, Will, come on down!"

Lizzy and Will walked down to the dance floor and stood side by side.

"So, are you ready to compete?" asked Stephanie.

"We don't even have next week's assignment yet, so I think I'd have to say no," laughed Lizzy.

"Will, how do you feel about this change?"

"I'm very sorry that Anne had an accident and was injured, but I've spoken with her, and she says she'll be fine. She has wished Lizzy and me well. She even had some advice for Lizzy."

"And what was that advice?" asked Brad.

Giving Will a look that said Nice try, Lizzy smiled and said, "Professional secret."

later that evening, McCarran International Airport

"You have your schedules and boarding passes right here," said Hannah. "You'll be met by a production assistant from the New York office. She'll arrange for a rehearsal space while you're in New York.

* This is an honest-to-goodness country song. I don't know who wrote it. I heard it once in the car while station surfing, and was amused by the concept and the lyric "She didn't stand up for the national anthem and she wasn't a John Wayne Fan."

Chapter 22

Posted on Monday, 12 May 2008

Week 4, 5 days until showtime

To Lizzy, the pilot sounded unreasonably cheerful as he said, "Welcome to New York, ladies and gentlemen. Local time is five AM, and it looks like it's going to be a sunny day. Please remain in your seats with your seat belts fastened until we reach the gate. Have a great day!"

"Don't tell me what kind of day to have," Lizzy muttered.

"Ahh, not a morning person?" asked Will.

"No, especially when I didn't get much sleep. You, on the other hand, dropped off the minute you were allowed to recline your seat. How do you do that?"

"I've always been able to get right to sleep. It's a sign of a clear conscience."

Lizzy rolled her eyes and sighed. Will pulled his briefcase out from under the seat in front of him and removed the envelope Hannah had given him.

"Good," he said, "We have time to get you some decent coffee before we have to be at the studio for prep and makeup." He continued to read the itinerary, took out a pen, and added a few notes.

"Oh joy, you're a morning person, you're self-righteous, and you're organized. Any other annoying habits I should know about?"

"I don't think it's annoying to be a morning person or organized. And why am I self-righteous?"

"That bit about a clear conscience."

"Joke, Lizzy. Although, now that I think about it, your conscience is probably what kept you awake. You're burdened with the secret of Anne's advice. If you unburden your secret, you will probably sleep like a baby."

"Nice try. I don't need to unburden anything. Right now, I could sleep like the dead. This is prime sleeping time."

"But the sun is coming up."

"Yeah," she yawned, "I know. It's delicious to wake up, see that it's becoming light, and then roll over and go back to sleep."

Ding! They heard the signal that the door was open. Lizzy stood up and stretched. She reached for the overhead bin, but Will got there before her. He swung down her bag and handed it to her.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Do you have everything?"

She felt her shoulder for the strap of her purse and nodded.

"Good. Then let's go. The PA is supposed to meet us by the luggage claim."

later that morning, in a TV studio in New York City

Will and Lizzy stood in the wings as Reggie Gleason and Kerry Mynor settled onto the stools in the interview area of the stage. The lights came up and Reggie spoke.

"Welcome back to ‘Wake Up!' Did you watch ‘Come Dance With Me' last night, Kerry?"

"You bet. What a surprise!"

"Yes, indeed." Reggie turned to face the audience and said, "For those of you who didn't see it, last night, on ‘Come Dance With Me,' viewers were expecting to see two dancers leave the show. But they didn't expect the two dancers to be from different couples. One pro and one celebrity left the show last night, and their partners are now going to dance together. Here is the newly joined couple, Will Darcy, from the CNC Evening News, and his professional partner, Lizzy Bennet."

Lizzy and Will walked out onto the stage, greeted the hosts, and perched on the waiting stools.

"Good morning," said Kerry.

"Good morning," replied Will. Lizzy just smiled.

"Well," said Reggie, "Last night's show was full of surprises. First came the announcement that your partner had been in an accident, Will. What happened?"

"She fell down some stairs and broke her ankle. Freak accident. It wasn't so much how far she fell, but the way she landed. Fortunately, there will be no permanent damage.

"So she will be able to dance again?" asked Kerry.

"Oh, yes," said Will. "But not in time to finish the competition.

"What went through your mind when you found out about the fall?"

"My first thought was fear that she was badly injured."

"You didn't see your dancing career flash before your eyes?" asked Reggie.

"No. My first concern was for Anne."

Watching Will, Lizzy could see that he was using every ounce of self-control he had to keep Wickham's name out of the conversation. She was so focused on Will that she jumped when the next question was addressed to her.

"So Lizzy, what about your former partner, George Wickham?"

"George wanted to continue with the show, but he was finding it increasingly difficult to juggle his dancing and his responsibility to the producers of the movie he's in.

"So he chose to leave ‘Come Dance With Me'?" asked Kerry.

"He had to leave to go back to his movie." Lizzy avoided looking at Will.

"So now it's week four, and all the other pairs have several weeks of rehearsal and three shows behind them. You two are just starting gout. Is it a daunting prospect?" asked Reggie.

"It's a challenge, certainly," said Will, "But I have faith in Lizzy's talent as a dancer and as a teacher. I just hope I can keep up with her."

Lizzy smiled and said, "The most difficult part is the adjustment that comes with a new partner. One of the responsibilities of the pros is choreographing each dance. Once you get to know a partner, you know how to show him to his best advantage. One of our first tasks is to figure out Will's strengths and showcase them."

"And weaknesses?" asked Kelly.

"When I'm through with him, he won't have any!"

"You pros make it look so easy," said Kelly. "You know, glamorous, civilized."

"Isn't there a line from a book, something about every savage being able to dance?" asked Will.

Lizzy laughed, "Jane Austen! I'm impressed, Will."

"And what dance will you be doing this week?" asked Reggie.

"We aren't supposed to tell," said Lizzy. "We haven't started to work on it.

"Well, good luck to you both. I'm sure we'll all be watching. Lizzy Bennet and Will Darcy, ladies and gentlemen." The audience applauded as the show went into a break. Lizzy and Will said good bye to the hosts and left the stage.

After they had microphones and makeup removed, Lizzy and Will took at taxi to the CNC headquarters, where they were met by a camera crew, who would film bits of Lizzy's tour for their video clip. After the tour, Will left Lizzy in his office and went in search of the News Director.

When Will returned to his office, he found Lizzy curled up in his recliner, sound asleep. He turned off the overhead light and turned on his desk lamp. He pulled a folder of research out of his briefcase and began to read and make notes.

Lizzy woke up in a dimly lighted room, wondering why she was sleeping in a recliner rather than a bed. She looked around and saw Will tapping away at his computer. He looked up when he heard her stretch and yawn.

"Good morning," he said, glancing at his watch.

"So it is still morning?"

"Yes, just barely. I would have called the PA to take you to your hotel, but you looked so comfortable that I thought I'd let you sleep."

"Not your typical office furniture."

"No, but I find it very comfortable. If I have a lot of research to do, especially if it isn't going well, I find it relaxing to recline while I surf. Speaking of relaxing..."

"No. I am not telling you what Anne said to me."

"All right, you can't say I didn't try. We should get you checked in at your hotel, grab some lunch and then face up to rehearsal."

As she got up to leave, Lizzy noticed something on the bookshelves behind Will's desk. She walked over and picked up the award.

"Peabody award?" she exclaimed.

"Yes. It's for a series I did on the Enron mess. The Peabody Awards are---"

"I know what they are. I'm impressed, Will. This is a big deal."

He shrugged, "It's my job. I get satisfaction out of knowing I've covered a story in depth. An award is nice, but I don't choose a story with an eye to getting a prize for it."

"Very different attitude from what I'm used to. When we choreograph a dance, we're always thinking about bringing home the hardware. I hope I can help you get a dancing trophy to keep your Peabody company."

"I would be honored to have it on my shelf. Come on, I'll drop you off at your hotel."

Lizzy went to her hotel, showered, changed, and had a room-service chicken caesar salad. Will went home, showered, changed, and had a small steak, salad, and baked potato, loving prepared by his faithful housekeeper, Mrs. Reynolds.

meanwhile, in a rehearsal room in Las Vegas

"Louisa! Get my uncle on the phone. I want to know why those two got to appear on ‘Wake Up' and nobody else did."

"Yes, Caroline," replied the faithful assistant.

"And get me a fresh latte, this one is positively glacial!"

"Yes, Caroline." Louisa rose to leave in search of coffee.

"Louisa! What about my uncle?"

What kind of coffee should I get him? Louisa thought, but said, "I'm going for your coffee. Perhaps you should call your uncle yourself. You're more likely to get through. His assistant will just take a message if I call."

"Really, Louisa, you need to me more assertive," huffed Caroline as she grabbed her cell phone.

In the hallway outside the rehearsal room, Charlotte, Richard, and David stifled smirks as Louisa bustled out past them.

"How does she put up with all that diva business?" asked Richard.

"Years of practice and a very good salary, from what I can see," said David. "I think Louisa is enjoying this whole thing. When we have to practice, I banish her and all cell phones from the room. It keeps Caroline focused and it gives poor Louisa a break."

"You're a prince!" said Charlotte.

"And don't you forget it, cookie," replied David, laughing. He turned to enter the rehearsal room muttering, "Once more, dear friends, unto the breach."

Richard and Charlotte continued down the hall to their rehearsal room.

"So, is it weird?" asked Richard.

"Is what weird?"

"Dancing with me while your partner dances with someone else. I don't mean to pry, but you two are more than just dance partners, aren't you?"

"Yes. We've been dancing together for six years. And more than that for the last two years."

"Just dance partners for four years? David's a slow mover."

"It's a big step. A romantic relationship can complicate a professional relationship. We sort of danced around the issue---no pun intended---for a while before we made the leap from dance team to lovers."

"And, if you don't mind my asking, how did it affect your professional relationship?"

"I don't mind. We hadn't noticed it, or rather, hadn't made the connection between our feelings and our work, but our dancing had been off for a few months while we were trying to decide what to do. Once we made the leap, our dancing improved again. And ever since, it's been great. We're more comfortable working together than ever."

"Which brings us back to my original question. Is it odd being competitors rather than partners?"

"It was odd the first year. Mostly because we weren't sure what we could talk about, and we felt like we were keeping secrets from each other. But dancing together for as long as we have develops trust. We respect that we can't tell each other about our dances, but we can talk about some aspects of the competition. Certainly, we dissect all the dances the night after the show. And David does regale me with stories of Caroline and her outbursts at poor Louisa."

"And what do you tell him about me?"

"Not a lot, actually. Caroline is so difficult that I hate to tell David how easy you are to work with. You are the anti-diva."

"I think it's the athletic background. I've noticed that athletes in previous years have done quite well. We understand the concept of coaching. We respect the coach for his---or her---position, but also for knowledge and experience. You're here to teach me to dance. I know I'm not a dancer. It would be foolish of me to throw away what you can give me."

that afternoon, in a rehearsal studio in New York City

"Okay, break time," said Lizzy. "Pull up some floor. No, wait. You prefer to sit in a chair, don't you?"

"The floor is fine," replied Will. "I've noticed that you dancers just drop to the floor without even thinking about it. So if I want to be a dancer, I'll sit on the floor."

"Sitting on the floor won't make you a dancer, but I appreciate the gesture. So we've worked on the basics of the foxtrot, and I've got some ideas for the choreography. It's time to hear our music and think about how we want this dance to look."

"What is our music?"

"It's a wonderful song and, given our situation, kind of appropriate. You know, Irving Berlin once said that he wrote songs for a lot of people, but for Fred Astaire, he wrote dances."

"We're dancing to a Fred Astaire song? That's setting the bar pretty high."

"I love this song. And to introduce it, I'm going to let Fred sing it. The song is from the movie ‘Carefree,' and the song appears twice. First he sings it to her while she's dancing with Ralph Belamy. Then later, they dance to it."

Lizzy turned on the TV and DVD player and cued up the track she wanted. The scene was a dance at a country club. As Fred maneuvered his partner closer to Ginger and her partner, he sang,

"Must you dance every dance
With the same fortunate man?
You have danced with him since the music began.
Won't you change partners,
And dance with me?
You've been locked in his arms
Ever since heaven knows when.
Won't you change partners and then
You may never want to change partners again." *

Will watched the dancing, but also sneaked glances at Lizzy. She smiled all the way through, and when it ended, she sighed. She cued up another track.

"Okay, here is the part where they dance together. He's a shrink, she's engaged to someone else, and he wants to hypnotize her to get to her subconscious and erase the post-hypnotic suggestion he has given her to hate him."

"Um, could you run that by me again?"

"She hates him, but she doesn't really. She just thinks she does. He wants to get her alone so that he can erase that idea and also tell her that he loves her. So they meet at a little gazebo, he hypnotizes her, and then they dance. Watch."

After the dance was over, Lizzy hit "stop" and turned to Will.

"Isn't that romantic?"

"I'm a little surprised you'd think so. He directs her in the dance. He makes her turn, stop, turn again, all by hypnotizing her. I wouldn't think you'd like the idea of him controlling her mind like that."

"He only does that at first. At first he has to get to her mind, which is resisting him. But then her heart takes over, and she dances with him willingly because deep down, she does love him."

"Oh, I see."

"So what do we take away from all of this? On the surface, it's a cute choice because we have changed partners. But I want to back up a bit and look at the song for its original purpose. He's wooing her. He's saying look at me, dance with me". So in this dance, you're going to woo me. Let's just walk through a few things."

meanwhile, in a hotel in Las Vegas

"I still say it is very inconsiderate of him to leave you like this."

"But Mummy, I can't dance," said Anne.

"And to go off with the partner of that villain who hurt you! That is just cruel. You were a fool not to press charges. And you should sue the producers." Catherine deBourgh scowled at her daughter.

"Mummy! Please stop. I am not pressing charges and I am not suing anybody. You know as well as I do that it would mean I'd never get asked back. As it is now, I am very likely to get a spot on the show next year."

"Why you want to return to this dreadful show, I cannot imagine."

"It's fun, it pays decently, and it's good exposure. I've been scouted by a cosmetics company to be one of their lipstick women."

"What on earth is a lipstick woman?"

"They choose the perfect shade for a woman, and she appears in their ads wearing that lipstick. It's the ‘find your perfect color' campaign. I think it would be brilliant if I get it. They are thinking of calling my shade English Rose."

"Hmph! I don't see how that will enhance your career."

"Oh, Mummy, go back home. I am going to New York to meet with the lipstick people."

"I should go with you."

"No, Mummy. I want to do this on my own. You've managed my dance career wonderfully. But I would like to manage some part of my life on my own. Thank you for coming out here, but I will be all right. I'm shipping most of my things directly home and will take only what I need for a few days in New York. Even if the lipstick job happens, it won't be right away. They may even do the photo shoot in England. Kent is supposed to be the garden of England, isn't it?"

later, in a rehearsal studio in New York City

Will looked at the clock and said, "We need to stop if we're going to get over to the Stay Up studio for the taping."

"It's a good time to quit for the day, anyhow," said Lizzy. "I'm tired."

"How long will you need to get ready?"

"Quick shower, I'll pin up my hair, get dressed. Half hour."

"That fast?"

"Unless I fall asleep in the shower, then I'll be two hours."

"I'll call the driver and have him pick me up at your hotel. It's just a few blocks away."

"Okay, I don't mind walking a bit."

As they walked toward the hotel, Will said, "Um, Lizzy, I suppose since this is my home city I should be the good host and take you to dinner. But I have to work tonight. More research. Do you mind? I promise you dinner tomorrow night."

"That's fine. I love room service, and my hotel does it nicely. My lunch came on one of those little rolling trolley tables. Complete with a little vase and flowers."

"Very nice," said Darcy. "That's definitely a cut above the hotels where the waiter has a tray and says ‘Where do you want it?' and I have no idea because I've got my computer, three newspapers and five legal pads scattered across the desk."

"Do you travel a lot for your stories?"

"A fair amount, I suppose. But it isn't like being a foreign correspondent. They travel on ten minute's notice and often get stuck in hotels that don't have room service. My travel is usually for interviews to prepare stories. Appointments in advance, very civilized."

"A hotel without room service? That's my mother's idea of roughing it."

"My sister's, too," laughed Darcy. "Well, you're home, and I see the car approaching. I'll be back in 45 minutes to an hour. Don't doze off in the shower and drown."

"I won't. See you later!" Lizzy turned and walked into the hotel. Will watched her until the beep of the limo's horn reminded him he had somewhere to go.

* "Change Partners and Dance," Irving Berlin

To Be Continued . . .