Disclaimer: I do not own "Girl in the War" by Josh Ritter, Gilmore Girls, or any other geniuses. Please don't sue me.

Rory's eyes sparkled as she laughed. It was a light but rich laugh that Tristan couldn't explain or grow tired of. He didn't think he would ever be as happy as he was right now. The quickly falling sunset behind her was reflecting off her already glowing skin, creating a halo around her body.

"I love you." She mouthed to him and continued spinning in the tall grass. To him, this was perfection.

OOOOO

Tristan woke up to find he was covered in broken glass from the windshield. He glanced over at Rory who wasn't moving.

"Rory?" He couldn't move. "Rory!" He screamed. Just then, sirens came screaming around the corner. Tristan felt tears streaming down his cheeks and the next thing he knew, they were being cut out of the car. Rory still hadn't moved. "Please, help my girlfriend, please!"

"What's your name sir?"

"Tristan, that is Rory. Help Rory. She's not moving. God, why isn't she moving?"

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to calm down. Everything is going to be okay. We just need you to relax so we can get you out of here."

Peter said to Paul "You know all those words we wrote

Are just the rules of the game and the rules are the first to go

But now talking to God is Laurel begging Hardy for a gun

I got a girl in the war, man I wonder what it is we done"

OOOOO

After careful examination, Tristan was released with minor injuries, mostly scrapes and bruises. He sat in the waiting room for what seemed like hours in a state of shock. This wasn't supposed to happen. Rory was sweet, innocent, and perfect. Bad things were not supposed to happen to good people. She didn't deserve this. An elderly lady sat down next to Tristan

"Why are you here?" He didn't want to talk about it.

"My fiancé, she's in surgery. We had a car accident." He got the look of pity, the same look he had gotten earlier when he had walked out into the waiting room.

"I'll be sure to say an extra prayer." The lady said quietly. Tristan nodded his thanks. Tristan couldn't even comprehend God right now. Why would God do this to them, to their future? Yet, if there was a God, he never needed him to listen more than right now.

"I know it seems hard. My husband has been through a lot too. He thinks it's silly. But when he's in here, I try and think of all the happy memories. It makes it easier to believe that there's a God in harder times if you remember all the blessings he has given you." Tristan closed his eyes and tried to remember all the good memories. Trying to drown out the sound of Rory screaming his name, the shattering glass, the horrible crunching of metal as the car closed in around them. It wasn't working.

Paul said to Peter "You got to rock yourself a little harder

Pretend the dove from above is a dragon and your feet are on fire"

"But I got a girl in the war Paul the only thing I know to do

Is turn up the music and pray that she makes it through

"Rory Gilmore?" Tristan's eyes shot open as Lorelei and Luke came running into the emergency room.

"Lorelei!" She whipped around.

"Oh my God, Tristan!" She took in his bloodstained clothes but wrapped her arms around him. "Where's Rory? How is she?" Tristan heard the panic in her voice and his own voice finally failed him. How do you tell a mother that her daughter might not make it?

"They don't…She's in surgery." He said, trying to swallow the lump gathering in his throat as tears started forming for the first time. "She never woke up." He said, his voice breaking in the middle of the phrase. "I'm so sorry." He let the tears flow as Lorelei grabbed him again. "I'm so sorry." Lorelei kept holding him against her cheek as they both cried. He looked like a little boy.

"It wasn't your fault." Luke said.

"They arrested the man, he was driving drunk." Tristan said with a sniff. It was then that a doctor emerged.

"Lorelei Gilmore?" He asked looking around.

"That's me!" She said as she dried her tears and walked over, never letting go of Tristan or Luke.

"Rory made it through surgery, which is a feat unto itself, she lost a lot of blood. She broke her right arm coupled with some broken ribs. She's still unconscious. Right now, it's just a waiting game. She could wake up, but things like this usually take a few days."

"Isn't there anything you else you can do?" Tristan asked. The doctor shook his head.

"I'm sorry, now it's up to her." He noted the frustration on Tristan's face. "Feel free to go in and talk to her, I know it seems strange, but she can hear you, even if she can't react." He added, trying to be comforting.

Because the keys to the Kingdom got locked inside the Kingdom

And the angels fly around in there but we can't see them

And I got a girl in the war Paul I know that they can hear me yell

If they can't find a way to help her they can go to Hell

If they can't find a way to help her they can go to Hell"

OOOOO

Tristan went in to sit next to Rory's bed. It had been four days and she hadn't changed. She looked like Hell, but apparently so did he. He took her hand and held it gently, not wanting to hurt her. She looked so broken and small.

"Hey, beautiful." He said, brushing her hair off her forehead. "How are you doing in there?" He watched her face; she looked as if she was sleeping. "I saw that woman I told you about again today, her husband finally died. She said that it was a blessing. Can you believe that?" He said, starting to tear up. "She told me to think of all the happy times we had together, and that maybe… it would help you wake up." He sniffed. All the exhaustion and fear were starting to catch up to him. He crawled into bed next to Rory, never moving her body out of fear she would feel pain, and cried.

"Please don't die." He begged. "I know that it might be easier to give up, but I am not done with you yet. Don't you dare take the easy way out. I know that's selfish but I don't care."

Paul said to Petey "You got to rock yourself a little harder

Pretend the dove from above is a dragon and your feet are on fire"

"But I got a girl in the war Paul her eyes are like champagne

They sparkle bubble over and in the morning all you got is rain

Tristan fell asleep like that and didn't move again until Lorelei came in to switch "Rory duty" with him. She took one glance at his red face and almost started crying herself. This was so hard on him, on all of them, but she had one hundred percent faith that Rory was going to wake up. She had to wake up. Lorelei put her hand on Tristan's shoulder and covered him up with a blanket. He woke up and looked around, surprised to see Lorelei next to him. He moved to get out of bed but she shook her head.

"No, you should stay. She would've wanted to spend more time with you than with me anyway. I've never seen her love anything like she loved you. You made her," she paused to find the words, "her eyes would light up whenever she saw you."

"They sparkled." Tristan finally found his favorite memory and closed his eyes, drinking it in.

They sparkle bubble over and in the morning all you got is rain
They sparkle bubble over and in the morning all you got is rain"

A/N: If you do not know this song, please download it, or Youtube it or whatever. It's totally worth it, I promise! When I listen to it, I can just see a hospital scene in my mind. I can't do it justice. This is truly one of my favorite songs of all time.