Disclaimer: Alas, none of them belong to me.
A/N: This is my first Gilmore Girls fic, so if you feel I don't get the voices right or anything, please feel free to leave constructive criticism! Thanks.
P.S. This is a one shot story unless demand for another part is extremely high ;)
Rory sat under a tree, a book open in her lap. Anyone who really paid attention though, could tell that her mind was as far away from Russian Literature as it could be. No, Rory's thoughts were on Logan. This weekend they'd be celebrating their three-month anniversary. She tugged on her ear as she thought about it. Three months dating Logan. He was good to her. He treated her very well. He brought coffee for her when she was studying late, taped shows on CNN he thought she'd want to see, and always seemed to know just when she was about to crack from working to hard and rescued her with a fun night out. Everybody loved him when she brought him back to Stars Hollow. He exchanged verbal quips with her mother, but was still very polite. He got along well with Luke. Well as well as anybody could get along with Luke. And her grandparents loved them! The only dinner they ate together in months was the one that Rory brought Logan to. He was a good boyfriend.
Rory ran her hands through her short brown hair and asked herself, 'So why aren't I happy?'
"Hey there, Ace." Logan said, sliding down next to Rory and throwing an arm around her. She smiled and gave her boyfriend a quick kiss on the lips. "You look miserable. What's the quandary of the day?" Logan demanded, looking at her book.
"Hmm?" Rory asked, confused. "Oh. Tolstoy's use of symbolism in 'Family Happiness' is kicking my butt."
Logan trailed his hand up and down Rory's back and Rory smiled up at him. She closed the book and said, "Tolstoy can torture me later." She placed it to the side and learned her head against Logan's chest. Logan tightened his grip on her and kissed the top of her head. "So, I made reservations for Saturday at 7 at La Trattoria Bella. Is that OK with you?
Rory nodded against him. "That's fine. They have good ice cream."
Logan laughed. "Maybe this time I can get you to try a spinach salad."
Rory said, "I have very strict dietary standards. The first is I don't eat anything made of spinach." She looked up at him with a smile.
"And the second?" Logan demanded with a small laugh.
"I don't eat anything made of salad." Rory lifted her head and gave Logan another kiss. Logan kissed her back gently at first, but with more passion as it progressed. It was Rory who finally pulled away. She looked at her watch and said, "I've got to get back. I told Paris I'd help her sew something. Or glue something. Or maybe it was stage a coup and take over a small country. I wasn't really listening, but I promised I'd help her with something."
Logan stood and lifted Rory to her feet. He kissed her again and took her face in his hands. "I'll pick you up Saturday at 6:30, OK?"
Rory nodded. "I'll be there with bells on."
"Great!" Logan said. He started to walk away, but turned back around. "Don't really wear bells. Unless they're discreet and go with the outfit."
"Such a man. Bells go with every outfit!" Rory exclaimed. Logan smiled adoringly at her before making his way back to his dorm. Rory sighed, picked up her book, and walked back to the room. The roommates were all gone, so she'd be able to study there in peace.
"I don't want to wear this dress." Rory said, looking at herself in the mirror.
Paris looked up from her book briefly. "I don't know why. It's nice. Not slutty like some of your shorter dresses."
The dress was dark green with pink stitching. It fell just below her knees and flared out just a little at the bottom. "It's just, Dean loved it when I wore this dress. It feels so weird to wear it on a date with Logan. But Logan loves it too. And I have no slutty dresses!" She finished.
"Not compared to Paris Hilton." Paris said, not looking up from her book.
"At least I'm not her namesake." Rory snapped back, smoothing the front of the dress.
"There's one I haven't heard before. You're so witty!" Paris said sarcastically.
Rory looked at her for a moment and said, "See, if the person you're saying it to actually is witty then the sarcasm doesn't work."
"Whatever. At least I'm not recycling an old dress on a new boyfriend." Paris retorted before closing her book and leaving the room.
"That's it." Rory said decidedly. "I'm changing." There was a loud knock at the door. Rory sighed. "Or maybe I'm not."
"That really is a beautiful dress, Ace." Logan said, putting his menu down and looking at his girlfriend over the candlelit table. There were violinists playing softly in the corner.
Rory smiled awkwardly, pushing thoughts of Dean and his love for the dress aside. "Thank you. I only wear it for you."
Logan smiled. "It's nice to know I mean that much to you." He leaned over the table and kissed her. He pulled away and reached into his pocket. He withdrew a long, thin box. "Happy anniversary, Ace." He said as he handed it to her.
Rory smiled and accepted the box. She retrieved his gift from her purse and handed it to him. "Open yours first." She commanded.
Logan opened the box and removed the watch. "This is great." He exclaimed. He turned it over and read the inscription on the back. 'Always, Rory.' He immediately fastened it on his wrist and said, "Open yours."
Rory did as commanded. Inside the box was a gold charm bracelet. She looked up at Logan, shocked. "It's absolutely gorgeous. What do all the charms mean?"
Logan smiled at her lovingly and said, "Well the pen is for you and your journalistic nature. The Y is for Yale. The coffee mug is for our first date. The umbrella is for-"
"That day with the Life-and-Death Brigade!" Rory said, smiling at the memory. "What's this one for?" She asked, touching the tiny, gold candle.
"Well, that's for that night over a candlelit dinner when I first told you I loved you?" Logan said, reaching for her hand. "I love you, Rory."
Rory pulled her hand away and looked at him in shock. Memories of Dean and this exact situation came flooding back. "Don't say that." She whispered.
Logan's face fell. "But Rory, I do love you."
Rory stood up, placing the box on the table. She shook her head furiously. "No." She said, simply before grabbing her purse and rushing out of the restaurant with tears streaming down her face.
Rory walked back into her room and switched on the light. She put her purse on the table and rubbed furiously at her red eyes. Her mascara was sure to be a wreck by now.
"What's wrong?" A male voice demanded from behind her.
Rory whipped around, a look of panic in her blue eyes.
"Relax." He said. "It's just me. Paris let me in. She didn't want to leave me alone here, but her computer crashed and she had a breakdown. Some weird guy named Terry or something came over and they went to practice breathing exercises. It was all very, very confusing."
Rory's eyes softened as she looked at her ex-boyfriend, happier than she cared to admit that he was there. "Why are you here?" She demanded.
Jess stood there awkwardly, scratching his dark hair. He was wearing a blue button-down shirt and jeans with holes all over them. He wasn't wearing shoes and the customary leather jacket was nowhere to be seen. He picked up her book and said, "Your notes on Tolstoy and Family Happiness are good. I like the comparison to Chris McCandless and Into the Wild. Very interesting."
"Why are you here?" She repeated, secretly pleased he liked her theories.
"If you don't want me here, I'll leave." He said. "But I've tried living without you since you told me to leave last time. Really, I tried. But here's the thing about you." He looked tempted to walk over to her, but stood still. "Once you're in here." He motioned to his heart. "It's impossible to get you out of here." He touched his head. "I still love you. I just…wanted you to know." He looked her over and said, "That is an awful dress."
It was Rory who bridged the gap between them. She kissed him hard on the lips. He was shocked, but immediately wrapped his arms around her waist and deepened the kiss.
Rory pulled away and her smile was huge. "I'm so happy to see you." She whispered. She sat down on the couch and pulled him down next to her. She picked up her book, leaned against his chest and said, "You don't think the fall of male figures is taking it too far?" She demanded.
"No. I don't think that at all." Jess said. He ran his nails along her neck, just where she liked to be touched. Rory sighed and closed her eyes. 'At last.' She thought. 'Happiness.'