Paper Walker

Chapter 10

We leave Mr. and Mrs. Bennet frozen in the hallway and talk about books. I tell Sorley about the cat-lady story and how I failed to bring a kitten back with me. He talks about a submarine he was on and how incredible it was to be able to see and breath under water.

A shiver runs down my back when he tells about the crew that drowned. His voice remains calm, yet I see in his eyes he'd rather not repeat that experience. We fall silent for a while, but it's not an unpleasant silence, we're merely deep in thought.

To test my newfound painlessness, I stand up and when he raises his eyebrows, I hold out my hand. "Come, I want to walk. Meet Elizabeth and see Mr. Darcy."

Sorley heaves a dramatic sigh, but takes my hand with a smile. For a brief moment I consider removing the cast. We can probably find scissors or something. However I decide against it. When I come back without the cast I'll have a serious problem.

During the course of the story, which we follow along for a while without actively participating, I tell about Alice and suddenly I wonder out loud: "Do you suppose Alice was a paper walker as well?"

"Could be", Sorley replies after a moment of contemplation. "Just like Bastian."

No idea who that is. I'd like to ask, but the family is about to go to the ball where they'll meet Mr. Darcy and I absolutely need to go with them. We have to cram a bit in the carriage, but it fits if I sit in Sorley's lap. It's not as bumpy, as I thought the ride in the big contraption would be, yet he holds his arms tightly around me. The whole way, butterflies dance in my stomach more violently than the feathers on Mrs. Bennets hat. When we finally get out of the carriage, I'm afraid to look at him and very grateful for the cool night air.

He takes my arm like a perfect gentleman and behaves like he belongs there. Which is very funny, because he's wearing his usual sweatpants and a T-shirt that only has '42' on it. Inside, I hold my breath, we're not going to dance, are we? Oh please, that will be so embarrassing. The only experience I have is swaying and jumping to pop-music from the twenty-first century.

"Come on", he says, when I resists as he steers us onto the dance floor.

"I can't dance, especially not with this lump of plaster."

"Neither can I, but nobody's watching, so it's alright."

It's true, everybody is talking and looking at the couples who are already dancing. The music falters for a moment when the guests of honour make their appearance and then it continues. Now everyone watches the two gentleman they all gossip about. Mr. Darcy is tall, that much is true and some might call him handsome, but I'd much rather look at Sorley. He's grinning at me and puts me unceremoniously next to the row of ladies who are about to begin a complicated figure of bows and steps.

We have so much fun attempting to do the same, which is a total fail, but we try anyway. After two dances we give up and find a place to rest with a glass of punch.

Still out of breath I ask: "What shall we do tomorrow?"

Sorley looks at me with two dimples in his cheeks. "What would you like?"

"Nothing scary", I immediately say. "And nothing dramatic either."

"No sinking ships", he nods and I stick out my tongue.

I let him decide, because my book knowledge is limited to young adults and chicklits and somehow I don't think he has those.

"You will have to go to the library, don't you. Is that okay, with your leg?"

Oh right, the leg, I almost forgot about that. "I'll ask Isla, she's my best friend."

Sorley empties his glass and squints when he asks: "Does she know? About us? I mean, that we can do this?"