This story takes place right after Partings. However, Lorelai never goes to see Chris

Lorelai listened intently but with frustration as Luke desperately listed all the options they'd have if they chose to elope. The problem was that it was way too late for this. Maybe if he had reacted this way last night, things would have been different.

"Luke," she interrupted.

He stopped his ramblings about Maryland for a moment and stared into her pooling eyes.

She looked at him directly and quietly stated "I'm leaving."

Not believing what he heard, he replied "What?" with a slight chuckle.

"I talked to Sookie and Michel this morning. They've agreed to let me take Mike Armstrong up on his offer."

Luke's voice raised an octave when he questioned with disbelief "What? You're selling the inn?"

"No." Lorelai quickly explained. "I'm going to take him up on his offer to be a consultant."

Leaving no time for Luke to interject, she nervously continued "I told him I'd give him six months. I'll be traveling to different hospitality venues around the world that the Armstrong group has an interest in acquiring. In turn, I'll provide them with my feedback and suggestions on the locations."

Luke's dark eyes pierced through her when he dismissively said "You aren't leaving. You can't leave. You can't just walk away from us! This is crazy!"

Her stomach was in knots but she knew she needed to persist.

Matter of factly she stated "I am leaving."

Concerned she was coming off too harshly she followed with "I'm not just walking away from us. We need time. You need time to be with April - to bond - without worrying about how I'm feeling. I need time to try this on my own. I've never done that before. I've always had someone by my side - either my parents, or Rory, or you - I've never done anything alone. This is the right time for me to try it.

She could tell from the devastated look on his face that he was taking this strictly as a rejection of him.

Softly she said "Luke, I was SO wrong to give you an ultimatum between me and April. I could never choose if you asked me to pick between you and Rory. That was so unfair of me! You were just doing what Luke Danes always does. You were putting your family first. That's one of the reasons I fell in love with you. You are fiercely protective and loyal to your family."

Almost in a whisper she finished with "I always knew you'd be like that when you became a dad." The disappointment was written all over her face that she was not going to be the one to give Luke his first born.

Luke shook his head and replied with insistence "No. You are NOT leaving. We need to work this out HERE. You running away is not going to fix our problems. I've been so stupid. I'm SO sorry that I've been totally ignoring how you've been feeling. I was just so wrapped up in April, I didn't notice what was going on. Now that I know, I'm going to change, Lorelai. I swear that I can fix this. I just need time to..."

"No, Luke!" she angrily interrupted. "No more TIME! I'm falling apart here. I need to get out of here. There is nothing you can say to change my mind so please stop trying."

She hesitated and then added "I'm sorry if this hurts your feelings but I need to get away from you. It's too painful to be near you right now. I'm not saying it's always going to be like this but for now, I need a break."

Anger was beginning to boil inside of him. He knew he had been a jerk these past few months. He knew he deserved her angry words but this was too much.

His seething eyes darted from the wall back onto her as he harshly questioned "You need a break, huh? You need a break from ME, right? Okay Lorelai you've GOT it!"

And with that, he stormed out of her house and out of her life.