I'm sure not in Kansas anymore.
It was the single thought running through Rory Gilmore's mind as she made her way onto the tour bus. Surrounded by a sea of unfamiliar faces, Rory's eyes locked on an empty row near the back. She thought of her mom and the crazy rambling advice Lorelai had given her before she had left her house.
Her house. Essentially Rory now lived out of a suitcase. She had no apartment, no home phone, not even a room back in Stars Hollow, really. Her old room had been transformed into a bedroom for Gigi, during the brief marriage between her parents. Rory was sad to see her bedroom go, but happy to know that her dad was once again out of the picture. Her mom truly did belong with Luke, and from the looks he and Lorelai were giving each other at the diner this morning, Rory hoped they would be getting back together soon.
Rory could not believe that today was the same day as her last breakfast at Luke's (or at least last breakfast at Luke's for a while). Her watch read 9:53 a.m. She had only just recently arrived in Cedar Rapids and had a long day in store for her. The bus would be taking all the reporters across town to the town hall meeting where Rory would finally meet Barack Obama. Okay, maybe not meet him – unless there was an urgent need for gum – but at least see the man for whom she owed her new job.
As Rory settled into her seat, pushing her laptop bag under the row in front of her, the woman across the aisle from her looked over and smiled. Introducing herself, the woman passed Rory the front section of the Chicago Tribune. A commotion from the front of the bus raised Rory's attention from the day's top stories. A blond haired man was making his way down the aisle, juggling an open laptop, a messenger bag, and a cup of coffee. He apologized profusely to many of the bus's occupants for his tardiness. He seemed to be the last reporter on the bus, as the bus began to pull away.
Rory brought her attention back to the newspaper, but it was short-lived. The man stopped next to her seat – the only one left on the bus – and looked down expectantly before his lips rose into a grin.
"Hi Mary."
Lorelai had been right. The back of the bus was definitely the most interesting.