Title: Bluest of Blue
Summary: How would Rory react if suddenly Tristan was no longer there?
Rating: PG/PG-13 There is not really any language, I'm not really into that. The rating might not be PG because of later chapters.
Author's Note: I have started several fanfics but this is the first one that I have every actually finished. Tristan and Rory are in their junior year (before Run Away Little Boy, which I think we would all like to forget ever happened) when something happens to Tristan that could change him and Rory forever. I don't want this to be a fluff piece; it is actually quite long. PLEASE e-mail me with any comments.
Disclaimer: No, I don't own any of the characters featured in this story.
The news had spread throughout the school by third period. Everyone knew that the night before Tristan Dugrey had been hit by a drunk driver coming home from one of his parent's charity functions. The car had hit him broadside. Tristan's gleaming silver Porsche had spun off the road and into a ditch. The fire department worked for three hours to remove Tristan from the wreckage. He was transported to hospital, still alive but badly injured.
"Tristan Dugrey is one of our finest students and what has happened to him can be considered nothing but tragic. He is currently undergoing surgery to repair numerous internal injuries and tomorrow will be transported to the burn unit of the Hartford Medical Center. It is not yet known when he will be capable of returning to school. Let this be a lesson to you all," the speaker concluded lamely, "Never drink and drive." A half-hearted applause rose from the students in the assembly hall as Headmaster Charleston nodded smugly and returned to his chair.
"What a heartless prick," Paris announced to Rory, who was seated beside her. Rory only nodded her head in response. The assembly had been called in order to dispel the many rumors about the accident, but instead had turned into a campaign against drunk driving. "They will really use any opportunity they can won't they?" Madeline and Louise, seated beside Paris and Rory, spoke their agreement. The three slide out of the row of upholstered chairs, leaving Rory sitting by herself.
Rory remained silent, but was as appalled as Paris at the insensitivity that the Headmaster had shown towards Tristan. Staring straight ahead she made no attempt to move from the seat, her body frozen. She had no control over her thoughts; they roamed over all the possibilities of what could happen to Tristan. Would he be okay? When she had heard the news earlier that morning she refused to believe that it was as serious as everyone said, hoping that the gossip mill of Chilton remained true to form in exaggerating every thing. The assembly that had been called at the end of the day had dashed her hopes of that. Sighing heavily Rory lifted the strap of her bag over her shoulder and headed towards her locker.
She walked through the bare halls; they seemed to be even colder than they had been the day before. Her saddle shoes clicked loudly on the stone floors. Students were huddled in groups, discussing the accident, discussing Tristan. She heard snippets of conversation and was disgusted at the lack of sympathy the students held. As she passed one group of girls it was all she could do not to roll her eyes when she heard one of them wondering aloud if he would still look the same. "Money, power and looks," thought Rory. "That is all these people care about." Needing to get out of the cold, uncaring atmosphere as soon as possible Rory hurried the rest of the way to her locker to get the books she would need for homework that night, then ran to catch her bus.
"No!" Rory drank her coffee silently, a small grin on her face as she watched her mother and Luke argue about Lorelai's coffee addiction. It was familiar. It was normal. After the day that she had had at school she welcomed the warm and cozy feeling of her hometown with open arms. She could almost feel the difference in the air. It wasn't dull and full apathy; it had color and life. The hustle and bustle of the diner drew her away from her thoughts about Tristan. It was a much-needed break.
Lorelai returned to their table grinning happily. She held her second cup of coffee up as if to prove her triumph.
"I see you won him over," said Rory, laughing at her mother's childishness.
"Yeah, well," replied Lorelai. "I have had a lot of practice. It's something I've gotten very good at." Still grinning she shouted over the heads of the other customers, "Isn't that right Lukie?" The exasperated grunt of a reply caused Lorelai and Rory to laugh even harder. Shaking her head, Lorelai whispered to Rory, "He should know better than to mess with a Gilmore!"
"Especially when it comes to coffee!"
"Darn right!" Lorelai held up her mug and the two girls clinked mugs. Their giggles subsiding the two turned their attention to the much-adored beverage in front of them. After gulping the hot nectar down Lorelai asked, "How was school today?"
Rory scrunched her nose. "It was weird. You remember me telling you about that guy Tristan?"
"Evil, devil incarnate, Satan's spawn Tristan? Bible boy who always calls you Mary?" Lorelai thought of all the names that had been attached to the front of his name.
Rory nodded. "Yes that Tristan. Except he really hasn't been that bad lately. That was last year. Sometimes he even calls me Rory."
"That's an improvement."
"Yeah, anyway, he was in a car accident last night. I think that it is pretty bad by what everyone is saying."
Lorelai reached over to put her hand over Rory's. "Oh sweetie… I'm sorry. What happened?"
Thinking back to the assembly held that day Rory replied, "He was hit by a drunk driver. They were saying that his car spun into a ditch on the side of the road, and then caught on fire. They managed to put out the fire quickly, but it took a while to get him out."
"Is he going to be okay?" Lorelai was surprised at the genuine concern that she saw in her daughter's eyes. Not because it was unlike Rory, who was probably the most thoughtful girl she knew, but because she didn't think that Rory and Tristan got along very well. All that she knew about him was that it seemed to be his life's ambition to make Rory's life difficult.
"I hope so. I really don't know." Rory was looking out the window, a small frown on her face. "I hope so."
Lorelai squeezed her hand, causing Rory to look back at her. "I'm sure that he will be sweetie." Rory just nodded her head and the two finished their coffee in silence.
"Dean… I know. I'm really sorry." Rory twisted the telephone cord around her finger. "I'm just not feeling up to going out tonight."
"Are you sick?" Rory was glad that Dean wasn't there to see her eyes roll. She had known that getting out of dinner tonight was going to be difficult.
"No Dean," she assured. "I'm not sick. I just have a little headache. I didn't sleep very well last night."
"Do you want me to come over there," Dean asked, concern evident in his voice.
"No, it's okay. I just need to get to bed early tonight that's all. I am sure that I will feel better tomorrow." Rory unknowingly held her breath, waiting for his reply.
"Okay, so I will see you tomorrow?" The hopefulness in Dean's voice made Rory smile. At least he wasn't mad at her.
"Yeah, I will see you tomorrow."
"Okay. I hope you get to feeling better. I love you."
"I love you too. Bye."
As Rory hung the phone back in the cradle Lorelai pranced into the kitchen. She looked at Rory, to the phone, and back to Rory. "Who was on the phone?" Not waiting to here Rory's answer she opened the cabinet and pulled out a package of cookies.
Rory shrugged her shoulders. "It was Dean."
"Oh, weren't you two going out tonight?" Lorelai took a bite out of the chocolate chip cookie she held in her hand. After chewing for a few seconds, she ran over to the sink to spit it out. "Yech! When was the expiration date on those things," Lorelai asked, disgusted.
Rory picked up the package and examined it. "What's today's date?"
"The 18th. I think. Maybe it's the 19th. Michel wasn't at the inn today so I didn't really have to pay attention to details." Lorelai tapped her finger on her chin. "Yeah… it's definitely the 18th."
"Aww… that's the problem. This expired on the 16th."
"That's only two days ago…" She was interrupted by Rory shaking her head.
"The 16th… 3 months ago." Rory laughed when her mother recoiled in disgust.
"Yuck. That's so gross." Lorelai went back over to the cabinet, pulling out another package of cookies. This time she checked the date before popping one into her mouth. "So, anyway. Weren't you and Dean going to go out tonight?"
Rory took one of the cookies from her mother. "We were going to. I called asked him if we could cancel."
"Why?" Lorelai nibbled thoughtfully on her cookie.
"No particular reason. I just need to get the sleep early tonight. I didn't sleep much last night. I'm kinda tired." Rory gathered her books from the kitchen table and started to head towards her room.
"Sweetie… are you okay?" Rory looked back at Lorelai.
"Yeah… I'm just tired. I told you that."
"I know… it's just," Lorelai threw her hands up, "I don't know. You're acting kind of strange."
"I'm fine Mom. Really." Rory offered a shaky smile, then turned into her room closing the door.
"Okay," she heard from outside the door. "I'm just going to order some pizza. I'll let you know when it gets here."
Rory didn't respond. She just leaned against her door, sinking slowly to the ground. Loosening her tie she brought her other hand up to her neck, trying to relieve the kinks that had formed since the beginning of the day. Bringing her knees up to her chest she rested her forehead on them.
It had been a long day. She wasn't sure why she was so tired, but all that she could think about was Tristan. She was worried about him; she was terrified for him. She didn't know why, they weren't even very good friends. Sure, they talked, they laughed, and they bantered. He insulted her, made lewd comments that embarrassed her. He was unfailingly obnoxious. She could count on that from him. She could count on him. They had a routine, and she was comfortable with it. But he wasn't there. And there wasn't anything that she could do about it.
Sighing, she leaned back and banged her head lightly on the doorframe. Standing up she pulled her US Government book out of her bag and set it on her desk. Sighing again she turned on the overhead light and sat down to work.
School had returned to normal the next day. It was as if nothing had ever happened. Rory was amazed at the difference from the previous day. Students were laughing and joking together. Earlier that morning when she was walking to her locker Rory caught herself expecting to see Tristan standing there, leaning confidently against it, one ankle crossed over the other. Now, at the end of the day Rory found herself anticipating Tristan's smug grin as she walked past some of his friends. But the bearer of grin that she had come to expect wasn't there. Instead she walked past unnoticed.
Rory decided not to take the bus home that afternoon. Instead she called her mom and told her that she was going to go to see Tristan at the hospital. Lorelai had sounded surprised, but Rory assured her that she just wanted to see how he was doing. Lorelai told her to give Tristan her regards, and then told Rory to be home no later than 6:00. Smiling at her mother's understanding Rory hung up the phone after promising to bring home dinner. She hauled the heavy book bag over her shoulder and then ran to the front of the school to hail a cab. "Hartford Medical please."
Tristan had been moved to the burn unit about an hour before. The short trip, combined with the heavy painkillers, had exhausted him and he could think of nothing but the overwhelming urge to close his eyes and try and sleep. When he heard the soft tapping on his door he ignored it, hoping whoever it was would go away. His eyes remained closed when he heard the door open and someone shuffle it.
Rory drank in the sight before her. There were wires and tubes running all over the room; Tristan was in the center of it lying on the small hospital bed. A huge white gauze was wrapped around his head, and a large purple bruise covered the left side of his face. His hands were bandaged, as was his right arm. There were cuts and bruises along his exposed left arm. His left leg was enclosed in a cast and pulled up in traction. "Oh Tristan…" she breathed.
Tristan mustered all the strength he had to open his eyes when he heard the voice. He saw her there, still in her Chilton uniform with her yellow backpack slug over her shoulder. Her eyes were wide with fear. Smiling weakly he managed, "Hey Mary."
Rory almost choked on her tears when the piercing blue of his eyes met hers. She cringed at his scratchy voice, but was relieved that he seemed happy to see her. Grabbing a plastic chair from the wall beside the door, Rory rushed over to his side. She sank into the chair, and, unable to hold his hand, placed her hand on top of his arm. "Hi." Her voice was almost a whisper. "I'm sorry. I know that you are probably really tired and that you're probably worn out by all the visitors that have come through that door already today, but I had to come and see you. I'm so sorry…" her voice tapered off for a moment. "I had no idea it was so bad."
"I'm glad that you came by." Tristan was whispering and his raspy voice was hard to catch. He kept the small smile on his face, but closed his eyes. The medication that he was on was very strong; it took so much strength for him to stay awake. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me. I haven't done anything. Is there anything that I can get you?" Rory was desperate for something to do. She wanted to be able to do something to help him. "Are you in much pain?"
Tristan shook his head, but it felt like he had a five-ton brick inside instead of a brain, so he stopped. "No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure? Because I could go get the nurse or get you coffee or something like that…" Rory trailed off when she say saw him shaking his head.
"No… That's really okay." Tristan managed a small smile.
Rory returned the smile, the spoke cautiously, "Everyone at school really misses you. I think that there might be plans to have some kind of mourning session."
"And will you be joining them?"
"Depends," said Rory, trying to lighten the mood. "I might be able to handle it a while, but if they start to light candles and set up a shrine I am out of there!"
"I'm not dead yet, Mary," Tristan joked weakly. "Give me a few days though..."
"Don't say things like that Tristan. You're going to be fine." Rory hoped that her voice sounded more cheerful and optimistic than she felt.
Tristan unsuccessfully tried to shrug his shoulders. They sat in silence for a moment, each trying to figure out what the other might be thinking. "Why did you here come Rory?" Tristan's question broke the silence.
Rory shifted her gaze from his eyes. It was the same question she had been asking herself all day. Why did she want to visit him? Why was it so important to her that she had not been able to think of anything else? She starred at the gray wall behind his head, and then over to the window. Finally she spoke, "I needed to know how you were doing."
"You needed to know?"
Pursing her lips, Rory nodded her head. "I needed to know because I was driving myself crazy thinking about what could have happened and how serious is might have been." Rory noticed the beginnings of a smirk on Tristan's face.
"You were worried about me Mary?" Rory rolled her eyes when he called her Mary, but his mild teasing was welcomed.
"I'm here for my own personal sanity really," Rory defended.
"Ah, I understand," Tristan said weakly, his eyelids drooping. "It has nothing to do with the fact that you actually care about me."
"Well… I didn't mean for you to find out this way," Rory continued the light banter. Tristan chuckled softly but his laugh turned into a racking cough. The arm that Rory's hand had been resting on was brought up to cover his mouth. His whole body tensed, and Rory looked on concerned. After a few moments he relaxed.
"Sorry," Tristan looked slightly embarrassed.
"No," Rory said, shaking her head. "Don't be." She replaced her hand over his arm and then looked up to make eye contact. "I do care about you Tristan. I came because I needed to find out for myself if you were as hurt as everyone said. I wanted to allow myself to believe that a person as resilient as you could not been as injured as everyone was saying. I think that I was hoping that it was all a rumor. Does that sound silly?"
Tristan shook his head, and Rory continued. "I needed to come because I did not want to allow myself to think that you were hurt. I had to see it for myself."
"And now that you have?" Tristan was somewhat shocked at Rory's revelation. He did not doubt her sincerity but he could not help but wonder why she was acting so caring towards him. He had honestly never thought that she would be someone to worry about him.
Rory smiled, "I think that you were hurt very badly," her eyes quickly scanned the bandages on his body, "but I think that you…" she trailed off and peered into his eyes. They were questioning but at the same time urging her to continue. "But I think that you are going to be just fine." She grinned shyly at him, and he smiled back.
"Well then," Tristan said, "I am glad that you have been able to come to that conclusion. It always helps to have and optimist by your side."
Rory just shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She glanced at the clock on the wall and which read 5:45. "Oh my gosh!" Rory checked her watch to make sure. Tristan looked at her spastic actions, confused.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing it's just," Rory began frantically gathering up her stuff, "It's just that I told my mother I would be home by 6:00. I only have 15 minutes to get home!" Rory slung her backpack over her shoulder and without thinking leaned up and gave Tristan a kiss on his cheek. Pulling back she squeezed his shoulder comfortingly, "I'll try to come by some other time. I am glad that you are okay."
Rory squeezed his shoulder again before hurrying out of the room. Tristan smiled as the door slung closed behind her. "Rory Gilmore," he sighed, rolling over to his side, "I will never understand."
Summary: How would Rory react if suddenly Tristan was no longer there?
Rating: PG/PG-13 There is not really any language, I'm not really into that. The rating might not be PG because of later chapters.
Author's Note: I have started several fanfics but this is the first one that I have every actually finished. Tristan and Rory are in their junior year (before Run Away Little Boy, which I think we would all like to forget ever happened) when something happens to Tristan that could change him and Rory forever. I don't want this to be a fluff piece; it is actually quite long. PLEASE e-mail me with any comments.
Disclaimer: No, I don't own any of the characters featured in this story.
The news had spread throughout the school by third period. Everyone knew that the night before Tristan Dugrey had been hit by a drunk driver coming home from one of his parent's charity functions. The car had hit him broadside. Tristan's gleaming silver Porsche had spun off the road and into a ditch. The fire department worked for three hours to remove Tristan from the wreckage. He was transported to hospital, still alive but badly injured.
"Tristan Dugrey is one of our finest students and what has happened to him can be considered nothing but tragic. He is currently undergoing surgery to repair numerous internal injuries and tomorrow will be transported to the burn unit of the Hartford Medical Center. It is not yet known when he will be capable of returning to school. Let this be a lesson to you all," the speaker concluded lamely, "Never drink and drive." A half-hearted applause rose from the students in the assembly hall as Headmaster Charleston nodded smugly and returned to his chair.
"What a heartless prick," Paris announced to Rory, who was seated beside her. Rory only nodded her head in response. The assembly had been called in order to dispel the many rumors about the accident, but instead had turned into a campaign against drunk driving. "They will really use any opportunity they can won't they?" Madeline and Louise, seated beside Paris and Rory, spoke their agreement. The three slide out of the row of upholstered chairs, leaving Rory sitting by herself.
Rory remained silent, but was as appalled as Paris at the insensitivity that the Headmaster had shown towards Tristan. Staring straight ahead she made no attempt to move from the seat, her body frozen. She had no control over her thoughts; they roamed over all the possibilities of what could happen to Tristan. Would he be okay? When she had heard the news earlier that morning she refused to believe that it was as serious as everyone said, hoping that the gossip mill of Chilton remained true to form in exaggerating every thing. The assembly that had been called at the end of the day had dashed her hopes of that. Sighing heavily Rory lifted the strap of her bag over her shoulder and headed towards her locker.
She walked through the bare halls; they seemed to be even colder than they had been the day before. Her saddle shoes clicked loudly on the stone floors. Students were huddled in groups, discussing the accident, discussing Tristan. She heard snippets of conversation and was disgusted at the lack of sympathy the students held. As she passed one group of girls it was all she could do not to roll her eyes when she heard one of them wondering aloud if he would still look the same. "Money, power and looks," thought Rory. "That is all these people care about." Needing to get out of the cold, uncaring atmosphere as soon as possible Rory hurried the rest of the way to her locker to get the books she would need for homework that night, then ran to catch her bus.
"No!" Rory drank her coffee silently, a small grin on her face as she watched her mother and Luke argue about Lorelai's coffee addiction. It was familiar. It was normal. After the day that she had had at school she welcomed the warm and cozy feeling of her hometown with open arms. She could almost feel the difference in the air. It wasn't dull and full apathy; it had color and life. The hustle and bustle of the diner drew her away from her thoughts about Tristan. It was a much-needed break.
Lorelai returned to their table grinning happily. She held her second cup of coffee up as if to prove her triumph.
"I see you won him over," said Rory, laughing at her mother's childishness.
"Yeah, well," replied Lorelai. "I have had a lot of practice. It's something I've gotten very good at." Still grinning she shouted over the heads of the other customers, "Isn't that right Lukie?" The exasperated grunt of a reply caused Lorelai and Rory to laugh even harder. Shaking her head, Lorelai whispered to Rory, "He should know better than to mess with a Gilmore!"
"Especially when it comes to coffee!"
"Darn right!" Lorelai held up her mug and the two girls clinked mugs. Their giggles subsiding the two turned their attention to the much-adored beverage in front of them. After gulping the hot nectar down Lorelai asked, "How was school today?"
Rory scrunched her nose. "It was weird. You remember me telling you about that guy Tristan?"
"Evil, devil incarnate, Satan's spawn Tristan? Bible boy who always calls you Mary?" Lorelai thought of all the names that had been attached to the front of his name.
Rory nodded. "Yes that Tristan. Except he really hasn't been that bad lately. That was last year. Sometimes he even calls me Rory."
"That's an improvement."
"Yeah, anyway, he was in a car accident last night. I think that it is pretty bad by what everyone is saying."
Lorelai reached over to put her hand over Rory's. "Oh sweetie… I'm sorry. What happened?"
Thinking back to the assembly held that day Rory replied, "He was hit by a drunk driver. They were saying that his car spun into a ditch on the side of the road, and then caught on fire. They managed to put out the fire quickly, but it took a while to get him out."
"Is he going to be okay?" Lorelai was surprised at the genuine concern that she saw in her daughter's eyes. Not because it was unlike Rory, who was probably the most thoughtful girl she knew, but because she didn't think that Rory and Tristan got along very well. All that she knew about him was that it seemed to be his life's ambition to make Rory's life difficult.
"I hope so. I really don't know." Rory was looking out the window, a small frown on her face. "I hope so."
Lorelai squeezed her hand, causing Rory to look back at her. "I'm sure that he will be sweetie." Rory just nodded her head and the two finished their coffee in silence.
"Dean… I know. I'm really sorry." Rory twisted the telephone cord around her finger. "I'm just not feeling up to going out tonight."
"Are you sick?" Rory was glad that Dean wasn't there to see her eyes roll. She had known that getting out of dinner tonight was going to be difficult.
"No Dean," she assured. "I'm not sick. I just have a little headache. I didn't sleep very well last night."
"Do you want me to come over there," Dean asked, concern evident in his voice.
"No, it's okay. I just need to get to bed early tonight that's all. I am sure that I will feel better tomorrow." Rory unknowingly held her breath, waiting for his reply.
"Okay, so I will see you tomorrow?" The hopefulness in Dean's voice made Rory smile. At least he wasn't mad at her.
"Yeah, I will see you tomorrow."
"Okay. I hope you get to feeling better. I love you."
"I love you too. Bye."
As Rory hung the phone back in the cradle Lorelai pranced into the kitchen. She looked at Rory, to the phone, and back to Rory. "Who was on the phone?" Not waiting to here Rory's answer she opened the cabinet and pulled out a package of cookies.
Rory shrugged her shoulders. "It was Dean."
"Oh, weren't you two going out tonight?" Lorelai took a bite out of the chocolate chip cookie she held in her hand. After chewing for a few seconds, she ran over to the sink to spit it out. "Yech! When was the expiration date on those things," Lorelai asked, disgusted.
Rory picked up the package and examined it. "What's today's date?"
"The 18th. I think. Maybe it's the 19th. Michel wasn't at the inn today so I didn't really have to pay attention to details." Lorelai tapped her finger on her chin. "Yeah… it's definitely the 18th."
"Aww… that's the problem. This expired on the 16th."
"That's only two days ago…" She was interrupted by Rory shaking her head.
"The 16th… 3 months ago." Rory laughed when her mother recoiled in disgust.
"Yuck. That's so gross." Lorelai went back over to the cabinet, pulling out another package of cookies. This time she checked the date before popping one into her mouth. "So, anyway. Weren't you and Dean going to go out tonight?"
Rory took one of the cookies from her mother. "We were going to. I called asked him if we could cancel."
"Why?" Lorelai nibbled thoughtfully on her cookie.
"No particular reason. I just need to get the sleep early tonight. I didn't sleep much last night. I'm kinda tired." Rory gathered her books from the kitchen table and started to head towards her room.
"Sweetie… are you okay?" Rory looked back at Lorelai.
"Yeah… I'm just tired. I told you that."
"I know… it's just," Lorelai threw her hands up, "I don't know. You're acting kind of strange."
"I'm fine Mom. Really." Rory offered a shaky smile, then turned into her room closing the door.
"Okay," she heard from outside the door. "I'm just going to order some pizza. I'll let you know when it gets here."
Rory didn't respond. She just leaned against her door, sinking slowly to the ground. Loosening her tie she brought her other hand up to her neck, trying to relieve the kinks that had formed since the beginning of the day. Bringing her knees up to her chest she rested her forehead on them.
It had been a long day. She wasn't sure why she was so tired, but all that she could think about was Tristan. She was worried about him; she was terrified for him. She didn't know why, they weren't even very good friends. Sure, they talked, they laughed, and they bantered. He insulted her, made lewd comments that embarrassed her. He was unfailingly obnoxious. She could count on that from him. She could count on him. They had a routine, and she was comfortable with it. But he wasn't there. And there wasn't anything that she could do about it.
Sighing, she leaned back and banged her head lightly on the doorframe. Standing up she pulled her US Government book out of her bag and set it on her desk. Sighing again she turned on the overhead light and sat down to work.
School had returned to normal the next day. It was as if nothing had ever happened. Rory was amazed at the difference from the previous day. Students were laughing and joking together. Earlier that morning when she was walking to her locker Rory caught herself expecting to see Tristan standing there, leaning confidently against it, one ankle crossed over the other. Now, at the end of the day Rory found herself anticipating Tristan's smug grin as she walked past some of his friends. But the bearer of grin that she had come to expect wasn't there. Instead she walked past unnoticed.
Rory decided not to take the bus home that afternoon. Instead she called her mom and told her that she was going to go to see Tristan at the hospital. Lorelai had sounded surprised, but Rory assured her that she just wanted to see how he was doing. Lorelai told her to give Tristan her regards, and then told Rory to be home no later than 6:00. Smiling at her mother's understanding Rory hung up the phone after promising to bring home dinner. She hauled the heavy book bag over her shoulder and then ran to the front of the school to hail a cab. "Hartford Medical please."
Tristan had been moved to the burn unit about an hour before. The short trip, combined with the heavy painkillers, had exhausted him and he could think of nothing but the overwhelming urge to close his eyes and try and sleep. When he heard the soft tapping on his door he ignored it, hoping whoever it was would go away. His eyes remained closed when he heard the door open and someone shuffle it.
Rory drank in the sight before her. There were wires and tubes running all over the room; Tristan was in the center of it lying on the small hospital bed. A huge white gauze was wrapped around his head, and a large purple bruise covered the left side of his face. His hands were bandaged, as was his right arm. There were cuts and bruises along his exposed left arm. His left leg was enclosed in a cast and pulled up in traction. "Oh Tristan…" she breathed.
Tristan mustered all the strength he had to open his eyes when he heard the voice. He saw her there, still in her Chilton uniform with her yellow backpack slug over her shoulder. Her eyes were wide with fear. Smiling weakly he managed, "Hey Mary."
Rory almost choked on her tears when the piercing blue of his eyes met hers. She cringed at his scratchy voice, but was relieved that he seemed happy to see her. Grabbing a plastic chair from the wall beside the door, Rory rushed over to his side. She sank into the chair, and, unable to hold his hand, placed her hand on top of his arm. "Hi." Her voice was almost a whisper. "I'm sorry. I know that you are probably really tired and that you're probably worn out by all the visitors that have come through that door already today, but I had to come and see you. I'm so sorry…" her voice tapered off for a moment. "I had no idea it was so bad."
"I'm glad that you came by." Tristan was whispering and his raspy voice was hard to catch. He kept the small smile on his face, but closed his eyes. The medication that he was on was very strong; it took so much strength for him to stay awake. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me. I haven't done anything. Is there anything that I can get you?" Rory was desperate for something to do. She wanted to be able to do something to help him. "Are you in much pain?"
Tristan shook his head, but it felt like he had a five-ton brick inside instead of a brain, so he stopped. "No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure? Because I could go get the nurse or get you coffee or something like that…" Rory trailed off when she say saw him shaking his head.
"No… That's really okay." Tristan managed a small smile.
Rory returned the smile, the spoke cautiously, "Everyone at school really misses you. I think that there might be plans to have some kind of mourning session."
"And will you be joining them?"
"Depends," said Rory, trying to lighten the mood. "I might be able to handle it a while, but if they start to light candles and set up a shrine I am out of there!"
"I'm not dead yet, Mary," Tristan joked weakly. "Give me a few days though..."
"Don't say things like that Tristan. You're going to be fine." Rory hoped that her voice sounded more cheerful and optimistic than she felt.
Tristan unsuccessfully tried to shrug his shoulders. They sat in silence for a moment, each trying to figure out what the other might be thinking. "Why did you here come Rory?" Tristan's question broke the silence.
Rory shifted her gaze from his eyes. It was the same question she had been asking herself all day. Why did she want to visit him? Why was it so important to her that she had not been able to think of anything else? She starred at the gray wall behind his head, and then over to the window. Finally she spoke, "I needed to know how you were doing."
"You needed to know?"
Pursing her lips, Rory nodded her head. "I needed to know because I was driving myself crazy thinking about what could have happened and how serious is might have been." Rory noticed the beginnings of a smirk on Tristan's face.
"You were worried about me Mary?" Rory rolled her eyes when he called her Mary, but his mild teasing was welcomed.
"I'm here for my own personal sanity really," Rory defended.
"Ah, I understand," Tristan said weakly, his eyelids drooping. "It has nothing to do with the fact that you actually care about me."
"Well… I didn't mean for you to find out this way," Rory continued the light banter. Tristan chuckled softly but his laugh turned into a racking cough. The arm that Rory's hand had been resting on was brought up to cover his mouth. His whole body tensed, and Rory looked on concerned. After a few moments he relaxed.
"Sorry," Tristan looked slightly embarrassed.
"No," Rory said, shaking her head. "Don't be." She replaced her hand over his arm and then looked up to make eye contact. "I do care about you Tristan. I came because I needed to find out for myself if you were as hurt as everyone said. I wanted to allow myself to believe that a person as resilient as you could not been as injured as everyone was saying. I think that I was hoping that it was all a rumor. Does that sound silly?"
Tristan shook his head, and Rory continued. "I needed to come because I did not want to allow myself to think that you were hurt. I had to see it for myself."
"And now that you have?" Tristan was somewhat shocked at Rory's revelation. He did not doubt her sincerity but he could not help but wonder why she was acting so caring towards him. He had honestly never thought that she would be someone to worry about him.
Rory smiled, "I think that you were hurt very badly," her eyes quickly scanned the bandages on his body, "but I think that you…" she trailed off and peered into his eyes. They were questioning but at the same time urging her to continue. "But I think that you are going to be just fine." She grinned shyly at him, and he smiled back.
"Well then," Tristan said, "I am glad that you have been able to come to that conclusion. It always helps to have and optimist by your side."
Rory just shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She glanced at the clock on the wall and which read 5:45. "Oh my gosh!" Rory checked her watch to make sure. Tristan looked at her spastic actions, confused.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing it's just," Rory began frantically gathering up her stuff, "It's just that I told my mother I would be home by 6:00. I only have 15 minutes to get home!" Rory slung her backpack over her shoulder and without thinking leaned up and gave Tristan a kiss on his cheek. Pulling back she squeezed his shoulder comfortingly, "I'll try to come by some other time. I am glad that you are okay."
Rory squeezed his shoulder again before hurrying out of the room. Tristan smiled as the door slung closed behind her. "Rory Gilmore," he sighed, rolling over to his side, "I will never understand."