A/N: Hey! I'm so proud of myself—two stories in one week! Wow…okay anyway, this is after Quiet and New Beginnings—it's basically an encounter between Lorelai and Jess…kinda mushy, cute-ish. Oh, well. It's also from 3rd person POV. I thought I'd try something different. Okay, then---pretty pretty pretty pretty please review!!
Oh, and Happy Holidays!
Mother and Jess
It's a lazy Thursday afternoon, nearing the end of October. There's a cold snap in the air, and a light breeze coaxes the last remaining leaves off Stars Hollow's trees. School just let out, so Jess Mariano is sitting behind the counter at Luke's Diner. He just started his shift five minutes ago, and already he's bored. There are no customers in the diner at the moment, so Jess is reading (or rather, rereading) Franny and Zooey. Fleetingly, his mind goes to Rory, as it always does when he's reading, and he wonders what time she'll come in for her after-school coffee and kiss. His lips curve up in a tiny, slight smile, and he's momentarily lost in thoughts of her.
Suddenly, the bell above the diner door jingles, signaling the arrival of a patron. Jess glances up, and the small smile fades into a neutral, detached expression. It's Lorelai Gilmore. She's alone—probably waiting for Rory—and Jess inwardly groans. He isn't sure if he's ready to deal with Lorelai one-on-one—normally, Rory or Luke would be there to act as his buffer, or the diner would have at least one other customer for him to tend to. But no. Not today. He curses Luke and Cesar both; Cesar for getting the flu, and Luke for driving out to Hartford to pick up a shipment of pickles that came in at the last minute. Damn pickles. Jess thinks to himself, then rolls his eyes at the absurdity of cursing pickles. No. It wasn't the pickles' fault—it was probably fate or karma testing him, or perhaps biting him mercilessly in the ass for being such a jerk when he first got here. Jess rolls his eyes again at the thought.
Lorelai collapses dramatically onto a barstool, arms crossed, banging her head repeatedly on the counter. Jess stares at her for a moment, then pours a cup of coffee, and, after a few moments of mental debate, decides to play nice. He sets the coffee cup in front of her; her head perks up and she begins to thank him, even while gulping down her coffee. When she finally stops talking, they both look at each other warily and settle into an awkward silence, Jess with his book and Lorelai with her coffee.
Finally Jess, unusually uncomfortable with the quiet, puts Franny and Zooey down and decides to play Luke (for a few minutes, at least.)
"So…long day?" he asks casually, trying to alleviate the discomfiting stillness. Lorelai looks at him suspiciously.
"What are you doing?" she inquires, raising her eyebrows. Jess resists the urge to roll his eyes.
"Making small talk. You know, talking about superficial subjects to fill up time?" Lorelai smiles a little and nods in acknowledgement.
"Sorry. Missed my cue. Start over."
"Okay. So…long day?"
"Yeah…like you wouldn't believe." And she proceeds to tell him of her adventures at the inn, with Michel's new Gucci suit (and its new coffee stains), Kirk's boxes of defective skin care still lying around, and Sookie's managing to light her sous-chef's hair on fire. Jess merely plays his role as listener, refilling her coffee and adding his minimal two cents. When she asks about his day, he gives her a neutral sentence or two, and it seems to satisfy them both.
A lull occurs in their odd but ordinary conversation, and Lorelai looks up, her face pensive.
"Why are you doing this, Jess?" she asks. The boy in question hides his surprise at being caught off guard behind a cool exterior.
"Why am I doing what?"
"Talking to me. I mean, jeez, Jess. This is the most you've spoken to me—or anyone besides Rory—since you got here. Why? Why the small talk?" Jess doesn't answer, focusing his attention and vision on the now-empty coffee machine.
"Hey, I'm not complaining. I'm not one for animosity…except when I am. Anyway, it's just…strange to hear actual words coming out of your mouth, you know?" Jess still doesn't look at her, and she frowns, frustrated.
"You know what? Fine. Whatever. I guess I said something wrong…I shouldn't even try anymore. I was giving you another chance—which by the way, you really don't deserve. But whatever. Tell Rory I'll see her at home, okay?" she snaps bitterly. "Oh, and this is for the coffee." She slaps a five on the table and turns to go, disappointed and angry.
"I did it for Rory." Jess' voice is low, quiet, but it still echoes in the empty diner. Lorelai turns back around—this is clearly what she wanted to hear him say. He continues on, still not looking at her.
"All of it. I did it all for her: stealing her book, switching those tapes, drawing the chalk outline, wrecking that snowman—"
"That was you?"
"—bidding on her basket, making that care package, messing with Dean…I did it all for her, Lorelai. Anything to make her notice me. And now that she has…well, everything's to make her keep noticing me." Jess finally meets Lorelai's gaze, and she almost gasps. The look in his eyes is intense, sincere; she's shocked speechless.
"I don't want to lose her, Lorelai—that's why I'm sucking up to you and every other person in this damn town that doesn't like me. I really care about her. I probably even love her, but I'm not sure because I've never felt this way before…" His voice trails off, and he turns away, obviously embarrassed and uncomfortable with spilling his guts over the diner counter. "Here," he mutters shortly, pushing another cup of coffee towards her, "take a cup to go." Lorelai is grinning widely at him, and she digs another bill out of her purse, sliding it across the counter.
"Here's a tip, Jess. Keep the change." She turns around and is almost out the door, when Jess calls out again.
"Lorelai, this is a twenty. I only gave you coffee, not a lap dance." She ignores the sarcastic comment, still grinning.
"Just keep it, Jess. You definitely deserve it—and not just the money, either." She leaves, and Jess is left astonished behind the diner counter.