TITLE: Familiar Feeling

AUTHOR: Annabel

PAIRING: R/J

SPOILERS: Shouldn't be any

DISCLAIMERS: I own nothing (except the characters I've made up for this story)

RATING: PG-13 for now.

INFO & SUMMARY: This is an AU fic. Rory has just graduated from Harvard and is living in New York with Alicia, a new colleague. Both girls are working at the New York Times. Rory has never met Jess before (meaning Jess never came to Stars Hollow, although he is Luke's nephew) and they have not even been aware of each other's existence. Lane and Dave live together in New York, Lorelai and Luke live together in Stars Hollow. Briefly put, pretty much everything that's happened on the show up to season 4 has happened prior to the time of this story, with the exception of everything involving Jess.

A/N: So, this idea came into my mind yesterday and I immediately started writing. I wanted to try something a bit different, so I don't yet know where this will lead. But the pairing definitely is R/J. So, this is AU, if you find something confusing let me know and I'll do my best to clear it out for you. But the next few chapters will give you more insight into the characters and their lives, especially Rory and Jess. Let me know what you think!:)

Familiar Feeling

Chapter One

He'd been awake for a while, just lying in bed and looking at the room he was in. He'd never seen a lamp like the one that was hanging from the ceiling, he'd never seen an armchair that was coloured bright neon yellow. There were photos on the walls, each of them portraying four or five girls in weird costumes and flashy makeup. He let his gaze take its time and made mental notes about all the interesting details he found. He always did that, meaning whenever he got to a new bedroom. And he'd seen his fair share of bedrooms.

He sighed quietly looking at the sheets surrounding him. They were disturbingly pink, but the girl next to him was undeniably attractive. She was lying on her stomach, her hands under the pillow, her short black hair messy and her bare back revealing her dark skin. The sight was familiar to him, he wondered how many girls he'd seen like this.

He sat up on the bedside and rubbed his face. He was pretty sure he didn't remember everything that had happened last night, but he was happy that his hangover was relatively nonexistent, although he did crave for a glass of cold water. He scouted the floor, located his clothes and noiselessly he got dressed. He was so good at this, leaving without being noticed, it was almost like an art form he'd created.

He went to the door of the room and after placing his hand on the handle, he heard her mumbling something in her sleep and rolling on her back. Resisting the temptation to glance at her one more time, he pushed the door open and was out of the bedroom with no disturbance to his previous night's encounter.

He found himself in a living room, and got a few flashbacks of the night, how they'd stumbled toward the girl's bedroom. The living room was pretty basic, just a couch, some armchairs and a big dining table. It was in deep contrast with the girl's colourful bedroom. There was another door on the other side of the room, slightly cracked and probably leading to another bedroom. Quietly, he moved to the direction of the front door, hoping to find the kitchen somewhere along the way.

He found what he was looking for and walked to the sink feeling relief. His throat was dry and he looked at the cupboards wondering where he might find a glass, when he heard a voice behind him.

"The glasses are above the sink"

He turned slowly, only to find a girl sitting by the kitchen table, looking at him with mixed curiosity and amusement. Her presence had surprised him, but so did her appearance. Her skin was pale, her eyes a very distinctive blue and her brown hair which was cut to the shoulders was tucked behind her ears. She was dressed in light blue sweatpants and a white tank top, and she seemed so simple and effortless when she was looking at him. She was the complete opposite of the girl he'd just tried to sneak out on.

"So, trying to sneak out unnoticed?"

He turned his back on her to get the glass and after he'd filled it he drank the water to get his throat and vocal cords working again.

"It would have worked had it not been for you" he said casually as he turned to look at her again.

"I apologise" she said and was glad to see him smile when he nodded at her. "I'll just look out of the window now so you can continue the sneaking out"

She turned away from him and heard him chuckle.

"Thanks for the water. And sorry for the disturbance"

"No problem" she said and turned to look at him just in time to see him disappearing to the corridor.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

She sat by her desk, tapping a pen against the table and sipping coffee from the cup on her lips. She loved Sunday mornings, not having to go anywhere, just being able to sit back and have some coffee without a rush in the world. Especially lately, when she'd felt somehow restless she knew to appreciate the moments when everything seemed right in the world. She felt pretty good, she didn't even have a hangover since she'd went to bed early instead of going clubbing with Alicia like she'd asked her to.

And so Alicia had found yet another guy. Rory wasn't surprised. She'd only lived with Al for a few months and known her for about six, but she couldn't remember when Al had last spent Saturday night alone. She herself had guys stay over occasionally, but her track record was nothing compared to Alicia's. 

She dropped the pen on the table and settled herself better on the chair. She took a big gulp of coffee and thought about the guy she'd met earlier in the kitchen. He'd been pretty good-looking, dark-haired, brown-eyed, maybe had some Italian blood in him. He'd really caught her attention, there was something in him that she found intriguing. Something unfamiliar and new, she couldn't really put her finger on it, but he was just somehow…

"Rory, did you get lucky last night?"

Alicia's voice startled her and she turned to look at her roommate. Shaking her head she said that she'd stayed in alone like she'd planned.

"What made you think that?" she asked out of curiosity.

"Oh, just the smile on your face"

Had she been smiling? She hadn't realised that, and why would she have smiled anyway? She was thinking about some guy Alicia had spent the night with, there was nothing to smile about.

"Or did Alex call?" her friend asked as she entered the room and sat down on the unmade bed.

"Alex? Yeah, he called yesterday, but… Alex isn't really… I don't know, 'the thing' is just missing whenever I'm with him or talk to him"

"Well, we both know that if 'the thing' isn't there right away, it never will be" Alicia said seriously, but soon grinned again. "I got lucky last night"

"I know. I saw the lucky man before he left" Rory said chuckling.

"He was pretty good-looking, right? I mean, I don't remember everything about last night, but I'd say he was hot. And looks weren't his only good quality" Al winked and made Rory shake her head amusedly.

"Yeah, he was pretty good-looking. Though I just got a glance of him, didn't really have time to pay more attention"

Alicia yawned and asked if there was still some coffee left. After Rory had nodded, she left the room and headed toward the kitchen. Rory, on the other hand, got off her chair and went back to bed, pulling her blankets back on. She felt warm and comfortable, a nice change to the anxiousness she'd lately been feeling. Yeah, she just needed a relaxing day with a good book and life would seem better again. 

A/N: A short first chapter for you, the next ones will be longer. I'm just dying to know your opinions. Feedback is definitely appreciated, but please be gentle with it…