Hey- it's a given to read, but a review would be... pleasant? desired? expected?
No pressure.

The famous 'I love you' scene

"I love you," Jess breathed. Rory fell silent. Her face became pale for more reasons than the snow. She stared at him with her innocent doe-eyes; rerunning those three simple words in her mind. The boy she'd shared her love of books and music with. The boy she'd care for so much at one point, that now said no more than 'I'm leaving' and now with the 'I love you''.

Then he started to walk away. Towards his car.

He reached for his keys and started to unlock the door to that pathetic excuse of a car. Then something cold, wet and heavy hit him on the back of his head.

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" He whipped his head around seeing the girl he 'loves' actually looking scary. That's what he imagined Medusa looking like – only with more heads...

"I... Uh..." He stammered. Huh. What does one say after being smacked in the head by a ball of what is essentially ice.

"'I love you'?! Seriously?!"

"Well, I would have said 'I really like you a lot', but that wouldn't have had the same affect," he said sarcastically.

Rory paused in disbelief. "Do you really think your persnicketiness is going to help you right now?"

He stared down at his shoes, ashamed of his snarky habit. Jess had never felt so uncomfortable, mostly because of the vulnerability, but also because of the fact that the snow ball was starting to melt down his neck.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Rory could feel all the anger just build up inside of her; all of the things he'd done. Running out on her – twice; keeping secrets; not being there when she needed him... "That is not how you're supposed to say that! Not 'I love you'! You're supposed to have been in communication with me for at least a month and it should not have been after running through the streets and – and—"

"Rory, you're rambling," he stated. He loved the way she rambled in all its annoying glory.

"But I have the right to ramble! So you have to stand there in your stupid emo leather jacket and take it!"

"Ok."

"So here I am rambling!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, turning heads – or, at least, more heads than before.

Jess nodded obediently. "Ok."

"And what is with that?!" She gestured at him angrily.

He frowned. "What is with what?"

"That stupid monosyllable thing you always do! You're smart; you read, and yet you act like there's nothing beneath that stupidly gelled hair of yours!"

Jess frowned. "You loved my hair."

"Well not anymore," she growled with a cutely furrowed brow, stomping her foot on the ground like an angry six year old deprived of ice cream. "And what is with all the gel you put up in that?! There's more grease in it then there is in your stupid car! It's stupid!"

Jess remained still, looking stern and cool, as always. And when Rory paused her rant, searching for more, she used it against him. "And why are you always like that?!"

"Like what?"

"THAT! Standing there; all mad and cool and collected... All you need is a denim jacket and you'd nail that Breakfast Club audition," she sneered; wide eyed and frustrated. Jess kept quiet.

"And – and – you love Hemingway! How can you say you only like the best books and like Hemingway?!"

Jess smiled.

"And also – Why are you smiling?"

He rubbed his hand over his mouth, like he were trying to erase the smile. "What? I'm not," he lied.

Rory stood up straight. "Not anymore, Einstein, but you were." Her eyes pointed narrowly at him. "Something funny to you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Then why were you smiling?"

He smiled again. "Because I love you."

Rory went silent again.

Jess walked towards her, using the rare silence to speak. "Rory, I love you. I do; I love you. And I know you love me too – I know it."

He went silent again, proudly aware of the fact that he was a whole meter closer to her. Improvement. Rory went even more pale. "THERE YOU GO AGAIN!" She growled, gesturing fiercely at her. "This isn't right! This isn't perfect! There needs to be a proper time and place... ESPECIALLY TIME!" Rory concluded – rather loudly – and stormed off in the opposite direction, leaving Jess standing there like the moron in the emo leather jacket that he was. But he smiled. Because he knew; he knew that she loved him too.