The little girl quickly moved around the table, trying to get everything prepared. Since she couldn't touch matches or lighters, really anything to do with fire, she grabbed two flashlights from the junk drawer they kept in the kitchen and set them, upright on the table, turned on.
The only thing she really knew how to make by herself was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and even then, the kid couldn't make one without getting jelly all over her hands and on the counter. The outside of the bread was also covered in red jelly, placed directly across from each other on the table.
Kinsley froze when she thought she heard a noise. Her mom had went upstairs to take a short nap before her big sister got home from school. So, that gave the kid at least an hour. Though, she was still learning the concept of time, having not inherited her big sister's gift of being so smart. Kinsley was smart, just not anywhere near as good as Rory. Of course, it could also be that Kinsley didn't seem to take much of an interest in school or reading as her sister did. She did enjoy whenever Rory would read to her, or when their mom would read to her at bedtime.
As soon as she put the finishing touches on her latest scheme, something Kinsley learned from Michelle Tanner from her favorite TV show at the moment (it changes, monthly, sometimes weekly), she ducked her head to spy up the stairs to see if her mom was coming down before making a quick dash for the phone.
Spinning on her heels, Kinsley checked one more time for her mom before dialing the number to the diner.
Luke picked up on the third ring. "Luke's Diner."
Grabbing her Talkboy they had found at one of the town's rummage sales that Kinsley just had to have, having been a fan of the Home Alone movies, she pressed play and held it up to the phone as her mother's voice played to make it seem like it was Lorelai and not a six-year-old little girl trying to set her mom up with the local diner owner. The kid had recorded her mom a week ago when the washing machine wasn't working.
"Again? Um, okay. I'll be right over." It did seem strange she was repeating her exact same words from the last time Lorelai asked for the repair help. But Luke didn't think too much of it.
Luke was there in fifteen minutes which Kinsley dashed into her sister's room, shutting the door, carefully as she heard the diner owner's heavy footsteps on the front porch. He rang the doorbell a few times before Lorelai finally emerged from her room, wiping the sleep from her eyes. She was surprised to see him standing there with his toolbox in hand.
"Luke? What are you doing here?"
An eyebrow was raised, catching the immediate surprise. "You called me. You said the washing machine was acting up again."
"Uh, no I didn't. I've been asleep for the past hour or so," she replied, honestly. "Only Kinsley's been…" It was then realization clicked on, remembering how much her youngest loved her Talkboy toy. Lorelai couldn't help smile. "I think you've been tricked."
"Tricked?"
Lorelai then explained about the kid's new toy and how she could record people's voices with it. Turning around, she called out for her youngest. "Oh, Kinsley," she called in a sing song voice. "Can you come here, please?"
But the kid remained in hiding, still hoping her mom and Luke would see what she made for them. Unfortunately, she heard an extra voice and realized her big sister had gotten home at that point, wondering out loud why Luke was there with his toolbox if he had already fixed the washer and didn't know something else needed to be fixed.
Kinsley heard her sister's footsteps coming into the kitchen. "Why are the flashlights sitting on the table, wasting battery life?" she heard Rory ask towards her mom. Soon, Lorelai and Luke joined her. Rory also noted the flowers sitting in the vase with the dirt and roots still attached as if they were freshly pulled from the ground and the messy-looking sandwiches sitting on the table.
Raising her voice in a normal, firm tone, Lorelai called once more for her youngest to show herself and begun counting to five, a method she had to adopt with her youngest.
Once her mom begun counting, it was then Kinsley got up off the floor where she had her ear pinned to the space underneath the door, and slowly opened it.
"Yes, Mommy?" she asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible while trying to hide her Talkboy behind her back.
"Sweetheart, one of the loves of my life," Lorelai chuckled to keep the situation light-hearted. "Is there something you want to share with Mommy?"
"Um…" Kinsley hesitated.
"Maybe start by explaining why you were in my room?" Rory told her little sister, still wearing her backpack.
The kid tried her best to look as cute as possible while making sure to keep her back hidden from everyone. "I, um, made dinner for you and Luke," she answered honestly towards her mom.
Both of Luke's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, stealing a look with Lorelai.
Turning back to her, Lorelai asked, "Why would you do that, kiddo?" Her arms had been folded across her chest this entire time but remained as gentle as possible while still keeping some firmness.
At that, the kid's gaze dropped towards the wood-paneled floor. She then began pressing the toe of her light-up tennis shoe against it.
"It's okay, Kinsley, you're not in any trouble. Just tell me why you made us dinner and then lied to Luke to get him here."
Forcing a look up at the waiting adults and teenager, she shrugged. "I thought, just because it didn't work for Michelle's dad and teacher, it wouldn't work for you and Luke."
"What would work?"
Her gaze dropped right back down. Fortunately, Lorelai knew who her daughter was referring to, unlike Luke, who asked if Michelle was a friend in her class.
"She's a character from the TV show Kinsley likes," Lorelai explained, knowing the guy well enough to know he probably wouldn't have seen Full House at some point. "There's an episode where Michelle makes dinner to try and set her dad and teacher up on a date."
Oh…" Luke casually nodded his head before it fully sunk in. His eyes enlarged. "Oh," he was suddenly very uncomfortable and awkward, and turned a shade of red, trying to hide it by looking elsewhere.
Lorelai also felt a little awkward about it, so she refocused back on her youngest. "Sweetheart, remember the lesson learned in that episode? You can't put two people together like that and expect them to fall in love. It doesn't work that way. Luke and I just friends."
Kinsley looked up again. "But, you got weird when Luke was dressed up for the bank," she pointed out. The kid may not be smart like her sister was, academically, she sure did have smarts in other areas. Not to mention, very observant."
The adults fidgeted at being called out.
"I was surprised to see Luke, dressed up and not wearing anything flannel. That's all. It didn't mean anything. Okay?"
The kid shifted her blue eyes between the adults, not buying it at all.
"Can you tell Luke, you're sorry, Kins? I'm sure he had to leave the diner to come here."
Kinsley dropped her gaze back towards the floor. "I'm sorry, Luke," she apologized, sincerely.
"It's fine, Kinsley. The diner was in one of its lulls anyway, so no real harm done." He shrugged. "I probably would have said I'd come later if we were busy."
Lorelai moved closer to ask Kinsley for her Talkboy. "Kinsley, honey, I need you to hand it over," she said when the kid hadn't moved.
After having to ask a third time, Kinsley eventually pulled the toy from behind her back to hold it out to her mom before she headed down the hall without another word.
Lorelai let her go before turning back to Luke. As Kinsley climbed the stairs, she heard her mom also apologizing to Luke and him assuring once more, it wasn't a hassle. He was happy to come fix anything that needed it. Kinsley dropped a knee on one of the stairs, holding onto the railing in both hands. She rested her forehead against the railing, as well, in disappointment.
As long as Kinsley could remember, Luke had always been around and had been the one to teach her how to master her baseball skills. Over the summer, while playing t-ball, Kinsley had somehow convinced the guy to step in as assistant coach when the coach asked the adults if anyone would be willing to step up and help, and none of the other dads could or would. They were always going to the diner to eat, and seemed to always be around, even more than her own dad. Though, Kinsley did love Christopher, and was excited whenever he called or came for a visit whenever he could. The kid thought Luke could be like a second dad and knew for sure he and her mom liked each other, they just wouldn't admit it. It was why Kinsley thought the plan would work for her, even if it didn't for Michelle.
Once Luke had left to return to the diner and Rory had retreated to her room, Lorelai searched out where Kinsley had disappeared off to. She found her still on the stairs. Kinsley was sitting forward, holding her chin inside her folded arms she held on her knees.
Causally folding her arms, Lorelai leaned a shoulder against the railing. "You wanna talk about what happened?" she asked, gently.
Kinsley barely shook her head before turning away, laying her cheek on top of her forearms.
Standing up from the railing, Lorelai made her way around, climbing up the stairs to sit with her youngest daughter. She sat a couple steps down as to be more eye level with the kid.
"Listen, Kins," she said. "I know how much you like Luke. We all like Luke, he's awesome, helping us out whenever we need something. But you have to understand that we're just friends. Nothing more. Just friends."
Kinsley switched cheeks, facing the other direction. "I'm not stupid."
"I didn't say you were. But, hun, you're just a kid. Love the way grownups have, is more complicated than you know."
Still not looking at her mom, Kinsley spat, "No it's not. You're just making it com-ta-cated!"
Lorelai tried reaching out for Kinsley, who nudged her hand away with a motion of her shoulders. "I promise you'll understand someday when you're older."
Tears were building up in the kid's eyes. After hearing her mom use the you'll understand someday, Kinsley shot to her feet and stomped up the stairs. She then went straight to her room, slamming the door, shut and threw herself onto her bed, face first into her pillow where Kinsley screamed in frustration.
Lorelai closed her eyes in helpless defeat. Kinsley was completely different than Rory was as a kid. So much so, she struggled with trying to help her youngest. The thought of having a third musketeer had excited the young woman so much when Kinsley was born. As the youngest Gilmore grew, it was apparent the kid shared a lot of Lorelai's stubbornness, and Kinsley was completely different from her and Rory. It even terrified Lorelai to the bone that history might repeat itself despite the fact she was trying so hard to raise her girls the opposite from how she was raised. Despite the differences, she did see a lot of herself in her second born.
Dropping her face in her hands, Lorelai rubbed them repeatedly, her elbows on her knees.
It also didn't help the kid was going through a tomboy phase and enjoyed sports, an area she knew nothing about and had absolutely no skills in. Christopher helped whenever he visited, but sadly it wasn't enough as Kinsley was always outside tossing a ball. For Christmas, when she was four, she had asked for every ball set possible. Baseball, basketball, soccer. Even volleyball. In fact, when Kinsley grows up, she wants Rory to be the one who interviews her when she's wins the championship game, knowing her big sister's dream of going to Harvard and becoming a journalist. Unfortunately, not the reality that there were only journalists who mainly focused on sports journalism. It was cute and flattering enough, Rory didn't have the heart to tell her little sister the truth.
As she sat there on the stairs, Lorelai removed her hands to stare down at nothing. She kept reminding herself that Luke was just a friend and Kinsley was just going through a childhood phase. Luke was the town's grumpy diner owner who got annoyed whenever they came by and picked on him, and would constantly remind her how unhealthy it was to drink the large amount of coffee her and Rory consumed, not to mention the large amounts of junk food.
It had to be an innocent kid thing. Right? Her dad was hardly around and Luke was. It would be only natural for a kid like Kinsley to want something like that. Had they met him sooner when Rory was Kinsley's age, would Rory want the same thing?
Lorelai had no clue. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Rory's voice.
Her oldest daughter came around the banister to ask, "You okay, Mom?"
She forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking, is all."
Rory didn't seem convinced. "You don't look okay." The teenager came up to sit beside her mom to try and cheer her mom up. "I'm sure Kinsley will be alright, Mom."
She gave a short shrug. "I'm not so sure. Kinsley seems so sure there's something more between Luke and I."
"What do you think?" she asked.
"I don't know. I keep telling myself it's only wishful thinking on her part, that it's just one of those kid things that some go through in a single parent home." Lorelai breathed in through her nose, letting it out. "Things were so much easier with you, kid." She let out a chuckle towards her first born.
"That's the thing, Mom. You gotta stop comparing us." Rory shrugged, "I mean, yeah, I was a pretty quiet kid, who never got in trouble. Kinsley has her own personality where she's more active and outspoken than I am. Doesn't mean it's a bad thing."
She let out another breath of air, shutting her eyes. "I know." Lorelai knew she shouldn't have expected another Rory, despite how great it was raising a kid with a lot of her same interests. It wasn't like Lorelai loved one of her girls over the other. In fact, she tried so hard to support Kinsley in liking sports and was glad to try to play catch with her. She had to admit, though, Lorelai was thankful that Luke had stepped in when he did. But it probably didn't help. Had she known this would happen, Lorelai would have been a little more reluctant.
"You want me to go talk to her?" Rory asked, breaking her thoughts once more.
"No, not right now. Give her some time."
"Okay. I'll go work on my homework and can check on her during one of my breaks," she suggested. Rory then made to stand, making sure her mom was okay before heading back to her room.
Rory ended up finishing her homework for one of her classes in an hour and a half, and decided to head upstairs to check on her sister. Knocking first, she poked her head in. "Can I come in, Kins?"
Kinsley was now laying the other way, facing her head board where her small basketball hoop was hanging over as she tossed a foamy type of ball that looked like a small basketball. "Sure," she replied just before shooting the ball. It bounced off the hoop and back towards her, landing on her chest.
Shutting the door behind her, Rory came over, asking if she could lay with her. Kinsley scooted over to give her sister some room.
"You okay, Kins?"
Kinsley remained silent that time and shot the ball again.
When it bounced back again, Rory caught the ball, holding it out of her reach.
"You can talk to me, Kins," she assured her little sister.
Kinsley rubbed at her eye, not responding at all.
"Mom wasn't bluffing when she said you weren't in trouble. You know she's understanding about stuff."
Kinsley shook her head, not making any kind of contact with her sister.
"I know you like Luke. We all do, but if him and Mom did date and it didn't work out, things would be pretty weird afterwards, don't you think?" Rory hooked her arm into Kinsley's, hugging it to her.
Kinsley didn't nudge her sister away like she had their mom. "But what if it did work out?" she innocently pointed out.
"Maybe, but there's still that fifty/fifty chance."
"I think it would," the kid insisted. "Mom's the only one Luke doesn't throw out when somebody annoys him. And he already does a lot for all of us. Why can't they just try? I know it can work out. I don't know how, but I do."
"Listen, Kins," Rory turned over, onto her side, to fully face her, lowering her voice so their mom couldn't hear. "We all know Luke likes Mom. It's very clear the way he feels. But it's also Mom's decision, and she obviously wants to remain friends, and we have to respect that even if we don't."
Kinsley gave a pitiful look at her sister. "But I want Luke to be our stepdad," she pouted.
"I know you do. Luke's a pretty awesome guy. But just because him and Mom aren't more than friends, doesn't mean he can't be like a father figure for you. He's our friend as much as he is Mom's, and I'm sure he's glad to have somebody to play catch with and talk baseball with. And Dad will be by soon to visit."
Kinsley still didn't look convinced.
"You love Dad still, right?"
She nodded. "A lot. But he's not here as much as Luke is. I have to wait for-ev-ver," Kinsley said forever like Squints from the movie, Sandlot, one of her favorite sports movies, "for Dad to come back."
"I know." Rory went silent at that. "He tries, though. You have to give him credit for that."
"I just wished he tried to live here with us instead of being far away."
Rory gently scratched her fingers along the back of Kinsley's hand. All the eldest sister could say was, "I know."
Unknown to both sisters, though, Lorelai had been outside, listening at the door. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop. Having made macaroni and cheese for dinner since it was Kinsley's favorite and one of the few things Lorelai knew how to make, she had come up to inform the girls, the food was ready when she overheard them talking. Her heart broke hearing how much her youngest missed her father. The tears soon fell as Lorelai pressed against the wall, feeling like she was failing her own kid.
But what was she supposed to do?
Author's Note:
While in the midst of researching for Healing Love, I had decided to try and work on my Jess story, but then this popped into my head. I thought it would be an interesting idea to make a series of one-shots of Lorelai's youngest from my other story try and play matchmaker between her and Luke, coming up with different schemes. However, this would only be an once in a while kind of thing. My main two stories would still get top priority, I promise!
