Engaged

Chapter 5

Over the next several weeks, Iain and Elizabeth continued to use every on-set opportunity they had to test out their feelings for one another.

They also started making a habit of going to each other's apartments for supper at least once a week. Not that they didn't end up at each other's apartments more often than that, both for takeout and telly or just to talk about anything and nothing, but these nights they specifically set aside to actually cook, and intentionally spend the evening with each other. Neither of them were willing to call it such, but they both knew they were dates, as there was no way just the two of them could be seen eating alone together in public, or even be seen alone together in public very often at all, or rumors would get started. Not that there weren't always rumors floating around, but the fewer rumors there were to reach the ears of Elizabeth's fiancé at the moment, the better. They both knew a day of reckoning would be coming if Elizabeth did decide to pick him over her fiancé, or even if she didn't but her fiancé started hearing rumors she couldn't deny or explain her way out of, but that was something they'd rather put off for as long as they could if possible.

During these dates (and the other nights they ended up at the other's apartment), especially the first few weeks of doing them, they intentionally avoided talking about themselves at all, as Iain knew Elizabeth was still trying to figure everything out and didn't want to pressure her at all, especially as he still didn't really feel very good about the whole thing, and Elizabeth was trying to ignore the fact she had a very real decision she was going to have to make eventually, an eventually drawing ever closer as each week passed.

But eventually the season crossed past the midway point of filming, and Elizabeth knew they were going to have to actually start talking about them, for as much as she had insisted that this was her life and her decision, it was still in reality a two person issue. After all, if Iain didn't actually feel like he could possibly spend the rest of his life with her, then there was no decision for her to actually have to make, and she needed to call their entire experiment off as soon as she could before it did explode in all of their faces. She was pretty sure she knew what his answer would be, but she needed to know for sure before she could begin thinking about her own decisions she was soon going to have to make.

So as they made their way through supper at Iain's apartment on one of these date nights, she looked across the table at Iain and said, "So I've been thinking...."

Iain paused with his fork still stuck in the piece of lasagna he'd been about to pick up and looked across the table at her, giving her his attention and waiting for her to continue.

After a few seconds she did. "We're past the halfway point of filming, which means we only have a little over two months to go before filming wraps. And while that might seem like a long time, it really isn't when it comes to the kind of decision I'm going to have to make before it's over."

She paused again for several seconds, toying with the breadstick she'd picked up at some point, before continuing, "Which means you and I have to actually begin talking about this. And I'm not saying you've been avoiding it, it's me whose been avoiding it and you've just been trying to give me my time and space, which I'm grateful for. But we — or really I — don't have the luxury of time anymore. So before those discussions can even begin, I have one question I need you to absolutely honestly answer me. Okay?"

"Of course, Lil — anything," replied Iain.

"Do you believe you could, and would want to, spend the rest of your life with me? Is that something you can honestly say you could see yourself doing one day? I know feelings could change if we did start dating, but is it even something you would want, something you can see as a possibility?"