Jess still wasn't the type of man to dress up in a penguin suit and look the part of a gentleman. You had to be a special kind of human being to bring out that side of him, a side he didn't like to remember existed. This occasion was something special however, his uncle was finally getting married after a million and one years of settling for boyfriend of the year instead. It was a warm Autumn morning and Jess walked around with his jacket hanging over his arm rather than wearing it.
"If you got married last night, why do I have to dress up?" He asked his uncle, who was busy fixing his own tie in the mirror. It's not that Jess was hurt that he hadn't been invited at the last minute, he was just stirring his uncle up, wanting to ruffle his features a little.
"Because as far as anybody in the town knows, this is the wedding." Luke reminded him, pointing towards the cuff links on the table. He didn't have to ask before he was handing them over to the older man. Luke fiddled with his jacket sleeves and looked over at his nephew, a man now - long gone was the rebellious boy he'd taken in long ago. "Oh by the way, don't tell Kirk about last night. We don't want to hurt his feelings and have him moping around town for the next six years."
Jess mocked disappointment, and crossed his arms over his chest. "Is it your life's mission to ruin all of my fun?"
Luke rolled his eyes and took one last look in the mirror. "You caught me, now pass me that." He pointed towards the hairbrush that sat closer to Jess.
He handed it over and watched as his uncle turned into someone he's never seen before, someone who looked confident and accomplished. The smile on his face read loud and clear that he was happy to dress up, that for once this was his choice to look good for Lorelai, that nobody was forcing his hand for a dinner party, or making him do something against his will. Jess was a little blown away by this, he meant it the day before when he'd told his uncle how great he'd looked, but this was different, something had completely changed overnight.
When their car pulled up in town, Jess gave his uncle's knee a squeeze. He waited for Kirk to get out of the car before speaking, knowing that funny little man was a nosy parker. "You've done this twice now? I don't think you need any more pep talks, but I will say this - there is nobody who deserves this wedding more than you do." He told him, locking eyes with his uncle for a small moment. When he moved away, Kirk was there to open his door for him. Jess stepped out and adjusted his own suit, now including his jacket.
A sea of familiar faces met his eyes as he walked down the aisle with his uncle. They sat down side by side in the front row, awaiting the bride who was no doubt going to be a little late. In the background Hep Alien played a familiar tune and Jess couldn't help but smile a little, maybe he'd once hated this town but it felt right being right there in the midst of it all.
The calm didn't last long before Babette was running across the grass screeching like a bird, as she flapped her arms in the air too. "She's coming! I just saw the car! Lorelai is coming!" She hollered as she finally made it to the congregation.
Jess stood up and followed as his uncle stepped forward, he's been to weddings before, but most of the time he just slipped into the back row and tried to remain unseen. This time was different, he stood there beside his uncle feeling proud. He felt proud as he watched Rory walking down the aisle first, a big smile across her face as she made her way to the front, standing on the other side. She gave Jess a small wave, and he couldn't help but smile in return.
When Lorelai walked down the aisle, Jess could feel the change in the air around him. Not only did everybody else stare at her in awe, but his uncle looked like he may pass out in happiness. He watched in silence, patting his uncle on the back proudly as that aisle felt like it was a mile long, or time had simply slowed down to savour the moment.
As Luke said his vows, Jess felt like he might shed a tear or two, but he didn't.
When he watched his uncle kiss his bride, Jess couldn't help but feel like this was a turning point in his own life, a reminder that happiness can happen to anybody, even stubborn diner owners who was a professional crank, then maybe that just meant it could happen to anybody.
It's been said that there's no party like a Stars Hollow party, and only now was Jess inclined to believe that. With a cup of Miss Patty's special wedding day punch in his hand, Jess found himself talking to people he'd never expect to have conversations with, people he'd avoided as a teen, people he never knew existed, and everyone in between.
When Rory was finally alone he saw the opportunity as his chance to have her alone, as he approached she turned around and gave him a grand smile. "There's my favourite author." She said cheerfully, and Jess couldn't help but grin back.
"I could say the same about you." He pointed out, which made Rory nod her head in pride.
"Not yet, you haven't read it, I could be your least favourite."
Jess shook his head. "Not possible."
Rory took the cup from his hand, the strong scent of alcohol wafted through her nostrils. "Woah.." She coughed before taking a brave sip. "Miss Patty sure knows the best way to get drunk."
Jess nodded as he took his drink back. "This is the only wedding that I haven't needed one of these to get through."
That made Rory smile again, in a different way. The pair walked together, finding one lonely park bench to sit on. They swung their legs back and forth in silence until Rory spoke up. "I didn't know if I was going to write about you, us. I wasn't sure, but this morning I just couldn't stop the words from flowing out of me, you know?" She felt silly saying this all out loud, but Jess watched her, listening to every word in complete sincerity. "Do you ever get like that? When you're so full of words but you don't know how you're going to get them all out?"
Jess nodded his head, but didn't say a word. This was Rory's turn to speak, and he wasn't going to take that away from her.
"When I look back at everything, all the times that I've thrown the towel in on myself, the moments where I've all but given up. You were right there holding onto the towel, telling me to hang it up instead. I know that's a stupid analogy but I'm on a roll here and I don't want to stop." He smiled at that, missing the way she rambled whenever she was nervous. "I don't think I've ever thanked you for that, or credited the impact you've had on my life and I just started thinking about how I wouldn't be a Yale graduate without your push, I wouldn't be writing a book without you and I don't even know how to begin thanking you for that."
Jess shook his head, this time he was going to stop her there. He reached out and placed his hand on her knee, squeezing ever so gently. "You don't need to thank me for believing in you. You were the one who believed in me first." He put it simply, and Rory turned towards him, her face softening as she realised what he had meant. It didn't seem like much to her when she was younger, showing him kindness, telling him the truth about his potential, but now she saw it, saw the man beside her for who he was, the man he always was inside - who she always knew he could be. She closed both her eyes and the gap between them, lips meeting without much warning. Jess' hands cupped her face as he kissed the woman he loved, the woman who showed him how to be himself.