Rory had made a surprise visit to her grandparents' house in Hartford, taking a cab up from Stars Hollow. She had a rough few days. She had broken up with Dean, who told her he loved her. School was always a pressure, especially while still relatively new at Chilton. And now, making it worse, was her finding out that Lorelei, her mother, had resumed dating her English teacher once again. Their first fling had been discovered by her classmates, resulting in an untold amount of humiliation and confusion.

Rory hugged her grandmother and grandfather goodnight, before trotting off to bed.

"Emily, what is this about?" Richard asked, as he sat in the den.

Emily did her best to repress her smile. She adjusted her seat.

"Rory had a fight with Lorelei," Emily said, taking a pause. "And she came here."

***

Rory laid in the queen-sized bed in the bedroom Emily created just for her. It certainly wasn't Rory's bed at home – a smaller mattress, closer to the floor, in a more crowded space, in a house that sometimes developed leaks or had a termite infestation. On top of the size of the bed, everything was just… not just different, but immaculate. Her sheets and comforter were pink, and the bed was adorned with all sorts of stuffed animals.

Rory thought about how this wasn't quite her style, especially not the boyband posters on the wall. But her grandmother had tried. Her grandmother had gone out of her way, and quite overboard, in designing this room. And Rory dug into one of the many down pillows once more. The mattress didn't feel foreign. The sheets were warm and felt nice and smooth against her skin.

She let out a deep breath for the first time in several days. The anxieties she felt from Dean and her mom were leaving her. She wondered if Paris and her Chilton classmates had bedrooms like this. They likely did, at least in terms of size and the expense of the bedding. But did they have them specially tailored by doting grandparents? That, she knew from their talk of nannies and divorced parents, was a no. There were no reminders of Dean – no gifts he gave her, no letters he (poorly) wrote her.

The room was silent. The only thing she could hear were her grandparents talking. There was no yelling. There was no rush. They were just a married couple talking about something – most likely her and Lorelei – but there was no chaos. She could not hear their words. But she could hear their relationship – it was healthy. It wasn't her mom running around with her teacher again, while the diner owner made doe eyes from afar.

"How bad could it have been for my Mom," Rory asked herself. And she heard her Grandmother speaking with Lorelei on the phone, a true tone of concern. Emily believed Rory to be asleep. She did not want to interrupt her.

Rory stared at the wall. She loved her mom. They were best friends. But, Rory ran away this evening because of her Mom's drama. Lorelei's life was just constant drama. And maybe, just maybe, the relationship between Lorelei and Emily and Richard was strained not because of her grandparents' stuffiness and societal rules.

It was strained because Lorelei needed drama and chaos.

Rory looked around the room. All of the animals and decorations (except for the boyband posters) were carefully chosen. It wasn't what she was used to. But Rory realized that she could very well get used to this.

And then she finally felt comfortable, the most comfortable she had felt in weeks. And she fell asleep.

Rory woke up. She looked around. This was the first time she woke up in this room. It took her a second to remember where she was – her grandparents. And then she remembered why she was there – she had a fight, her first fight, with her Mom. The night before, she expected the emotion that made her get in a cab to Hartford would dissipate. But it hadn't.

Her Chilton uniform was pressed and neat. Actually, that was an understatement. It looked first-day new. Typically, her uniform was a piled mess at the foot of her bed, or hidden deep in the recesses of a hamper. She put the top and outfit on. It felt nice. Fresh. Prepared.

She headed downstairs. Her grandparents were already dressed and eating, with Richard reading the newspaper. Rory sat down as they made morning chit-chat with her, a plate of eggs and a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice in front of her, along with a browned piece of toast. Usually, her breakfast was a flurried rush of getting ready, downing coffee, and opening a Pop-Tart wrapper while running to a bus.

But this, too, was relaxed. Rosa, the maid, brought her French pressed coffee in china. Rory sipped it. The coffee was much better than Folger's Instant and the perfect temperature. Richard offered her a section of the newspaper. She gladly took it. Richard laughed at a few of her jokes. Emily said her Mom would be here after school. Rory asked if she was angry. Emily said she was concerned.

"Thanks for letting me stay here," Rory said.

"Well, it's nice having you here," Emily said. "You even made your Grandfather put down his newspaper for once."

"Oh, Emily," Richard said, with some playful disdain.

"Well, it's true," Emily said.

Rory smiled. There was just a plate of perfectly cooked eggs, delicious orange juice, a cup of coffee and a uniform that made her feel new and prideful. There was no rush, no last-second drama to get to school on time, no Lorelei forgetting or losing something or already in some sort of personal drama. Her grandmother was already dressed to perfection, makeup done perfectly, and Richard the same.

Again, Rory thought to herself, why did Lorelei want to leave this?

And then, Rory thought to herself, that she didn't want to leave, ever.

Rory returned to her grandparents house after school. Emily was there, already doting, asking if she wanted a snack.

"No thanks, Grandma," Rory said. "I have so much schoolwork to do. Is it okay if I go to my room before dinner?"

Emily smiled and said of course. She watched Rory go up the steps.

"She said her room," Emily thought to herself, a smile on her face.

It was just 15 minutes later when Lorelei arrived. Emily was talking rapidly about Rory – worried, concerned. Finally, Lorelei ended the play-by-play and sat on the bed with Rory.

They talked, just as they always had. Lorelei talked about Max, and her past dramas. And then she told Rory about how she spoke with Dean, and how Rory broke up with Dean.

Rory's eyes burst.

"You talked with Dean?"

Lorelei said yes, and apologized, before moving on, mentioning that she was working on being ready for someone to say 'I love you.'" Rory stared at her mother, who was, once again, lost in her own world.

The conversation paused.

"Are you ready to come home?"

Rory blinked and took a deep breath. There was a pit in her stomach.

"I… Can I stay here for the weekend?"

Lorelei's mouth dropped.

"Why? Are you mad at me?"

"Oh, no," Rory said, her hand shaking a bit. "Not at all. It's just hard. I really don't want to deal with Dean for a few days. I have a huge biology lab I have to get done, and I can just go to school tomorrow morning to work on it. There's just so much going on with school. I just need some time to focus on my work."

Lorelei looked at her daughter.

"If it's okay with your grandparents, than it's okay with me," Lorelei said. "I understand."

Then she gave her a hug.

They walked downstairs. Emily and Richard were waiting.

"Grandma, Grandpa," Rory said. "Is it okay if I stay the weekend?"

"Is everything okay," Richard asked, frantically.

"Yes, Dad," Lorelei said. "Everything's just fine."

"Yes, Grandpa," Rory said. "I have my big biology lab coming up next week. I really need to go to school tomorrow morning, and probably even Sunday, and since you guys live so close to Chilton—"

"Yes, of course, Rory," Richard said. "That makes perfect sense."

There was a lull in the conversation.

"Well, in that case, Mom, is it okay if I skip out on dinner tonight? These two sets of identical twins are getting married to each other at the inn, and Michele can't figure out who is who," Lorelei said.

Emily just rolled her eyes.

"The life you lead, Lorelei."

Dinner was, as usual, a three- course affair: A seasonal salad, a main dish involving a leg-of-lamb, and a chocolate mousse desert.

"Rosa," Emily said, sternly. "This coffee glass has a thumb print on the side. For the last time, please make sure this does NOT happen again." Rory squirmed a bit as Emily pulled ran on the maid.

Richard did not look up from the day's Wall Street Journal.

"So, Rory, what time do I have to bring you to Chilton in the morning?"

Rory squirmed even more in her seat.

"Well, Grandpa, about tomorrow morning." She paused enough for him to put the paper down. "Instead of taking me to school… can we go golfing again?"

"Excuse me?" Richard asked.

"What about you lab," asked Emily.

Rory's face was flush.

"You don't have one," Emily said, bluntly.

"Rory! You shouldn't lie to your mother like that—"

"I know. It's just that—"

"No, Rory," Emily said. "It's okay. I know you have been under a lot of stress lately. Do you want to tell us what's been going on? What was the fight with your mother about?"

Rory held her cup of coffee and smelled it. She and her Mom drank so much together over the years. Rory felt guilty. Sad. But, at the same time, a bit stronger than she usually had.

"I don't want to get into the details," Rory said. The first time Lorelei and Max dated resulted in a huge fight with Emily. There's no need to rehash that, yet. "It's just that… I could use some space."

Emily pursed her lips gleefully.

"I see. Well, that's why I set up that bedroom for you. So you can have a place to yourself if it does get to be a bit too much with your mother."

And Richard smiled.

"And, of course, the country club was where we had our first real chat. I look forward to taking you there again, my dear," he said.

"Rory, we're going to the Mark Twain Society fundraiser tomorrow night. If you're interested, you can come with us," Emily said, with a glint in her eye.

Rory smiled.

"I would love to," she said.

"Good. Now, this is a gala event. You only have a few outfits here, so I think we'll have to get you a new dress," Emily said. "In fact, I'd love to take you out after dinner. You could certainly use a few more outfits to keep here. That is, for when you stay here."

Rory smiled, a bit mischeviously.

"Of course, Grandma. You know you have such great taste. I think I could definitely use your eye for a new wardrobe," Rory said. Emily could note hide her smirk. "Grandma and Grandpa, is it okay for me to head to my room? I do actually have some studying to do."

The both said okay. Rory hugged each of them before headed upstairs as her grandparents smiled.

As soon as Rory was out of earshot, Richard turned to Emily, his brow worried.

"Emily, I'm not sure about this," Richard said. "This is not going to make Lorelei happy."

Emily adjusted her seat.

"Well, Richard, part of the reason why I suggested the Friday night dinners is so we could have Rory in our lives. And, not just that, so we could give her some sort of… proper… influence," Emily said. "I don't know what that fight was about with her mother. But every teenage girl rebels against her parents. We know that better than anyone. And Rory? She's rebelling against Lorelei. And she's doing that by coming to us."

Richard again shook his head, nervously.

"Richard, we are going to use the next few days to show that girl everything she can have if she truly wants it," Emily said. "And, plus, is there anything you like more than having your granddaughter around?"

Richard nodded.

"You're right, Emily," Richard said. "Let's show that girl the world this weekend."

Emily leaned back in the chair and looked upstairs, smiling wildly.