Dear Ace,
Well, you did it! And so beautifully, in your own way, the way you knew you needed to, and I'm so proud of you for that. You're probably wondering why you're reading this, and where I am. Well I'm not coming. Let me first say, I love you, I think I've probably loved you from the moment you called me a butt-faced miscreant all those years ago. But to be honest, he loves you more. He loves you enough that he would have let me have you, not that you're just a thing to have, don't let your inner feminist feathers get ruffled. As much as I know you love me, I also know you love him in a way that is beyond anything I could ever comprehend at this point in my life and that is what you need at this time in your life. I know that you did not ever do anything to jeopardize our relationships, ours, as while as the one he and I have. For that I thank you, your integrity is one of things I love most about you. You would have stayed with me, and we would have probably been happy, but you deserve more than that. You deserve your great romance, and although I would've liked to be person with whom you had it, I'm not, he is. And you both deserve a chance to experience it, and you can't if I'm around.
Don't try to find me right now, first of all you won't, and second of all, I can't see you right now, because all my generosity in giving you what you need more than what I want may go out the window. I will be okay, I have the people and things around me that I need to fix myself. I do hope that we may be able to continue our friendship in the future. It has been one of the best things in my life the last couple of years and I would hate to loose it. Just please tell Colin YES or NO. He'll know what you're talking about and he'll tell the right people who can relay the message to me so that when I'm ready I will be able to contact you. Please don't ask them where I am, they don't know. They do know that I've written this letter. I spoke with him, several times, we're okay, he knows that I'm not mad at him, after all, how could you ever hate him, what with his dimples and accent? Take this opportunity Ace, you may not have another.
All my love,
Logan
Rory Gilmore sat in the window seat of her dorm room, still in her cap and gown, with tears running down her face. She'd known that something was growing, they'd all known, but she and he had decided that they're love for him was more important than trying to find out if there was anything there. Just then she felt a hand on her should and she turned into his arms and cried.
"Ssh, I know, but you have to believe me, he wanted this Rory, he wanted us together." He said rubbing her back and she curled into his arms.
"I didn't want to hurt him." Rory said.
"I know you didn't, neither did I, That's why he did it the way he did. You know Logan, always has to be in control. This is the way he needed it to go, so that when he's ready he'll come back and we can all be friends." He said drolly. That got a smile on her face, what he was looking for.
"So last week, when you came back from the pub, that wasn't a black eye from the sorority girl's boyfriend?" Rory said.
"No, it wasn't. he deserved one punch I gave it to him. Besides we both decided I looked rather rugged with it, added to my appeal." He said.
"Finn, getting punched in the face by a sorority girl's boyfriend because you hit on his girlfriend would have given you rugged appeal. Getting hit in the face, willingly I might add, by your best friend because you and his girlfriend fell in love, gives you no rugged appeal points at all." Rory said smiling faintly tracing the faint remains of the wound.
"Not even a little?" Finn asked.
"Not even a little." Rory said, then taking a deep breath. "Okay, as much I'd love to sit here and discuss this, there's a party in my honor being put on, and I should make an appearance, you and I can talk later." Rory said standing and taking her hat and robe off, handing them on her coat hook.
"You're chariot awaits my dear." Finn said standing and bowing gallantly. She and Finn walked out the door hand-in-hand laughing at something Finn had said, not doubt stupid and silly.
Logan stood in the distance, watching her walk toward Finn's Porsche. His entire soul ached at that moment, but he knew that given time, he'd be better, the ache would dull and eventually he'd return and they'd resume their tremendous friendship.
Four years later.
"Colin" Rory said into the phone trying to keep her voice from shaking.
"Rory, it's 2am." Colin said looking at the clock.
"Come to Hartford General, please." Rory said.
"Oh Jesus, just tell me he's alive." Colin said getting up and getting dressing.
Rory started to cry, "He's alive, but barely, please Colin." She said.
"I'm on my way." Colin said about to hang up and run out the door, he'd have to pick up steph on the way.
"Colin." Rory said before he hung up.
"What do you need?" He asked.
"Call Frank, Please, find him, we need him here." Rory said.
"I'm on it. I'm going to pick up Steph and we'll be there in hour tops. Hold on Rory" Colin said. Colin knew that she'd meant for him to find Logan. Even if she hadn't asked, he would have called his contact. The person who'd he'd had all his connection to Logan through since he'd left.
Finn and Rory had progressed slowly after her graduation. They'd both been in New York. She at the Times, he'd been in the MBA program at Columbia. She's lived in a small walk-up in Brooklyn; he'd been in a spacious loft in Chelsea. They'd had their moments, but ultimately, Logan had been right, they loved each other and that was what they'd been celebrating this night. He'd asked her to marry her. He'd just finished his program, would be graduating in a week, with plans in motion to start his own toy company. They'd been on their way to the Hallow, as they call it, to tell Lorelai, Luke and little Steven the good news. A drunk driver had run a red light.
Colin and Steph showed up 40 minutes later, they found her sitting in a secluded patient room in the white Armani dress he'd bought her two weeks before with his blood all over her, as a intern attended to casting her arm and whipping her cuts and bruises. She looked up at them when they walked in and held up her hand, "I'm supposed to be getting married." And then lost it completely. Steph looked at Colin alarmed, before going to her side. Colin went to her other side.
"That's quite the ring you've got there. You sure your hand can handle it?" Colin asked as a joke. Rory just cried. "Okay, no humor. Steph's going to stay with you and I'm going to find out how he's doing. Have you called Lorelai?" Colin asked.
Rory shook her head no, "we were going to surprise them." She said.
"I'll call them, plus I should put a call into Sydney. You okay for a minute?" Colin asked. Rory nodded against Steph's shoulder.
Finn was going to be okay. He was currently in surgery for a broken leg, shattered shoulder and jaw, but as far as living goes he'd live, he'd just be a lot of pain for a while. That was the report he gave Rory 15 minutes later after calling Finn's sister in Sydney, who was having her jet readied as they spoke and Lorelai, who would be here within 10 minutes even though the drive was 40 minutes. He'd put a call into his Logan contact, who had assured him that he'd get into contact with Logan the moment Colin hug up, but since none of them knew where he was, no one knew how long it take him to get to the hospital.
Lorelai had gotten there by 3:30am, and been briefed on the current situation. Rory was asleep after having seen that Finn was in fact alive and as okay one can be when they were just used as a human crash test dummy, Finn's words.
The following days were tiring, they were spent at the hospital with Finn who, despite his humor, was in pain and terrified by what had happened. He didn't let it show to often, but when it was just he and Rory, who'd been moved into his room, he'd taken down the wall and they'd cried together. Rory carefully crawling into his bed so that they could cuddle together.
They'd been lying together in silence thinking, Colin had just stopped by on his way back from the courthouse, to bring Rory coffee and food and Finn, pizza in a straw. His jaw was wired shut because of the break so Colin had taken it upon himself to find as many things that he could make into smoothies as possible. So far it was looking like pizza in a straw was a no go although Chicken noodle soup had been a success the previous night.
"We have to have Colin call his guy. He doesn't know. He needs to know. He needs to be here" Finn said in frantic but mumbled speech. Even though they all could call the Logan's old assistant for messages for him over the last four years, it had become Colin's unofficial job, and they'd all kind of liked it that way.
"He already did. He said he's on his way and he'll get here as soon as he can." Rory said knowing whom Finn was talking about without asking.
"Colin said Sara will be here later on." Fin said of his sister. She'd come the previous night, but they'd both been asleep, so after seeing that he was okay with her own eyes, she'd gone to a hotel to sleep.
"Yes, around dinner time. Colin said she'd bring you more chicken soup in a straw since you seemed to like that the best so far. " Rory said quietly.
"Mmm." Finn said quietly, as fell into a light sleep. He was still on quite a few pain meds and spent a lot of time sleeping. Rory had been discharged that morning. She'd gone home to the Hallow with Lorelai for a while and was now back,
Rory was sitting in a chair reading a book a few hours later, while Finn slept when there was a knock at the door.
"Come in." Rory said quietly putting the book she was reading down on the side table and standing to greet whoever was there. When she saw him there she lost her breath and ran into his arms and burst into tears. "You came, thank god you came." Rory said hugging him with her good arm.
"I came as soon as I heard. Sorry I wasn't here sooner." Logan said walking into the room. He'd dreaded this moment. The moment he saw her again, worried that he'd loose everything he'd worked on the last four years. He let out a sigh of silent relief. He'd always love her, but he knew, he wasn't in love with her anymore. "What happened? Frank didn't get the details, just that you two had been in an accident and that I needed to get my ass back to Hartford. I assume that was Colin?" Logan said with his trademark smirk.
"Leave it to Colin, not to beat around the bush. We were on our way to the Hallow. We were going to surprise Mom, Luke and little Steven. We had a green light, it happened so fast, he didn't have time to brake, to get out of the way." Rory said with a quiver in her voice.
"But he's okay? Nothing permanent?" Logan asked looking at his best friend asleep in the bed.
"He's okay, nothing permanent." Rory said. "It'll be awhile before he's back on his feet 100, but he'll eventually be fine."
"Nothing permanent? Have you seen the scar these stitches are going to leave? Good thing my accent makes me so endearing otherwise I'd loose her." Finn mumbles as he opened his eyes.
"I don't think she fell for you accent, doof." Logan walking over to his bed and leaning down to hug him carefully. "Besides, mom had her face rebuilt again a while ago, you can always call her doctor if you're really that worried." Logan said sitting on the side of the bed.
Finn grabbed Logan's hand, "Thank you for coming." He said quietly.
"I wouldn't be anywhere else." Logan said holding Finn's hand.
Truth be told, Logan had begun to tie up strings where he'd been so that he could return to the states, his friends meant so much to him and he had missed them dearly. The time for healing had come and gone, and he was okay now.
"So what's the surprise that you were on your way to tell?" Logan asked.
Rory shyly held her hand up, "I've decided to make him mine." She said showing Logan the ring.
"You proposed and you gave yourself a ring?" Logan asked knowing that's not how it happened but wanting to keep the mood jovial.
"That's not quite how it happened thank you very much. I was the perfect gentleman about the whole thing, totally swept her off her feet." Finn said through his wired jaw
"We had coffee and F&B hotdogs in central park and he put the ring in my French fries." Rory says.
"Well it is in the rules," Logan said looking at Finn smiling
"The way to a Gilmore Girl's Heart is by Food and Coffee," They said together smiling.
"Congratulations, you two." Logan said hugging Rory and patting Finn on the shoulder.
"You're okay?" Rory asked quietly.
"I wasn't at first, I questioned my sanity, a few times, but amid updates from Frank, and my work I grew through it. I was right; you two belong to each other. If I'd stayed, it would have gotten messy and I would never have been able to be here now with you two celebrating, and starting to plan the best bachelor party the world as ever seen." Logan said with that scheming looking that he got when they were at Yale and he was about to do something that had a high likelihood of either getting them killed or arrested.
Rory hugged him. Twenty minutes later, Colin and Steph showed up along with Sara, who had yet to see her brother awake. So after bidding them till later, and leaving their dinner Colin, Steph and Logan left for dinner. Logan promised he'd be by the next day, as did Steph. Colin said he'd stop by as soon as he was done at the courthouse.
Finn was released from the hospital two weeks later, after nearly driving the entire staff crazy. Finn did a lot of things well, but being confined to a bed was not one of them. Rory agreed to move into his apartment with him, one because they were engaged and they'd been talking about moving in together before accident, and two because as much as he'd like to think he could, Finn still needed help doing a lot, and someone to watch him and make sure he wasn't doing stuff he wasn't supposed to be doing.
"Hey, you busy?" Logan asked sticking his head in Rory's office, three days after Finn was released from the hospital. He'd spent the morning with him, relaxing catching up, letting him know that he was completely cool with him marrying Rory. Finn had been visibly relived. Finn was now in a meeting with his investors for his company and had asked Logan to go make sure Rory took a lunch break. They both knew that she tended to over do it when nervous, and it was clear Rory was nervous about Finn, about the wedding but most of all about having Logan back although she was also clearly happy as well.
"Nope, just catching a bite to eat." Rory said holding up a bag of chips and cup of coffee.
"Finn warned me about this. Get up we're going to eat." Logan said grabbing her coat from its hook.
Rory didn't argue. She'd learned that arguing with him was stupid and didn't get you anywhere. Besides the man had tables reserved all over the city, the meal would certainly be better than coffee and chips.
Once they were seated at one of New York's newest restaurants, each with a glass of water Logan could begin. "Let you breath out Ace. I'm not going to break. Finn's going to get better and you two will have an amazing wedding and marriage." Logan said getting right to the point.
"You never did beat around the bush." Rory said laughing.
"I always thought wasting words was a waste of time. Besides you used enough for the two of us, when you got nervous." Logan said smirking at her.
"Are you ever going to tell me where you were?" Rory asked.
"Johannesburg." Logan said.
"South Africa?" Rory asked.
"Yup. Dad owns a paper there, a small one, so I went there. Learned the ropes. Although I was working, I did mostly travel. I got to see the world. I spent time in Tasmania, I visited Sarah in Sydney. I went to India and Asia. I was all over really." Logan said.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Rory asked.
"Yes, as a matter of fact I did? Would you like to see a picture?" Logan said pulling his wallet out.
"Yes I would. So when am I going to me the girl who stole Logan's heart." Rory said smiling and reaching for the picture Logan was holding out. "Logan she looks about 10!" Rory exclaimed.
"Close, she's 9. Her name is Hannah." Logan said smiling.
"You…she…I'm confused." Rory said.
"I can tell." Logan said laughing. "I met her at an orphanage I did a story on about 8 months ago. Both her parents died from Aids. She's negative luckily but there were no relatives to take her in. I was on the playground playing soccer with the kids after meeting with the head of the place, and there she was sitting off in the corner reading a book." Logan said smiling at Rory. "She was tearing through The Color Purple. Needless to say, we bonded. I would come and spend time with her every week or so, bring her books that I had Frank send me. I made the decision about two months ago that I was going to come back to the states. Reconnect with you all. But I also decided I couldn't leave her there. She needed me. But I think I needed her more." Logan said smiling.
"So you're a dad?" Rory said smiling.
"Yes, I am. And I absolutely love it." Logan said.
"What happens when you come back though? Won't you be working for your father still? That requires a lot of travel." Rory said.
"Normally it would. But I won't be working to start taking over for him until Hannah's older. I need to be around right now, and he understands. I brought him to meet her last time he was over visiting." Logan said.
"Sounds like you and your father are getting a long well." Rory observed.
"After we left Hannah we took a long walk on the beach. Talked about my growing up. His growing up, we came to some conclusions and understandings. I have to say, I first left because of you, but ultimately me being in South Africa have done wonders beyond what even I can comprehend. My mom and dad now spend one week a month on the Vineyard just the two of them. They'd been so enjoying their trips to visit me away from everything that they just decided the way they'd been living was crazy. My mom, she actually is now on the board of Hannah's orphanage. She persuaded her DAR girls to come with her once when she came to tour the place. They're building a whole new school, they'll be able to house 500 kids there when it's done as opposed to the 150 they do now." Logan said, his face lit up like a child in a candy store.
"I don't think I've ever seen you so happy." Rory said quietly. "You're so content."
"I am. It took me a while, as I'm sure it took you and Finn a while as well. But Ace, I know I made the right choice for us." Logan said squeezing Rory's hand as they ate their desserts.
"I was so confused when you left, then I was sad, then I was mad. And all through my emotions he was there. Never wavering, letting me go through what I needed to, all I wanted to do was hug you and say thank you." Rory said quietly looking up at Logan, "thank you for giving me my romance." She said with a tear in her eye.
"No one deserves it more." Logan said smiling at her.
The End