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Hey! What have you guys been up to? I missed you. Every one of you! Here's a new post. I'm like a boomerang, baby. I always come back. :)
Luke and Lorelai get engaged. They're getting married! Too bad it's not to each other. Ruh-roh! What can possibly come of this? Season 2ish, Rated M, and complete. Enjoy the read!
I Now Pronounce You Mismatched Part I
A series of unplanned events.
Lorelai was familiar with the pattern. It was, after all, what filled her thirty some-odd years. Starting with the day some stork, which had to have been experiencing an out-of-this-world beak itch, let her plummet into the Gilmore clutches. Honestly, a shark's open mouth would have been better.
She was used to obstacles, as the path to her was a well-treaded one. Life had made her a funny person. If she didn't have funny, she'd have madness.
Standing at the counter of the diner, the announcement of a proposal fresh from her lips, she found herself unable to speak. She couldn't even summon the funny that was always on standby. Useful during those rare moments when the rest of her brain decided to vacation.
Luke had taken to focusing on the faces of townies smashed against his windows. For a while, he seemed genuinely distracted by the scene. But then, he was back. Looking at her, too nervous to look at her. Moving his feet, busying his hands.
She knew she'd heard him wrong.
She planted her hands on the counter and looked down at them while smiling wide and beautiful at the crazy thing her auditory sense had created.
"Um…" She shook her head, regained eye contact. "I think I'm going to need you to repeat that one."
"I said I'm getting married."
Lorelai gasped. She expected, at the very least, a pause of reflection or an acknowledgement of the total shock factor. Had he completely lost his mind?
"I…I just told you that Max…proposed to me." She eyed him for confirmation. He shrugged ever so slightly, and she continued. "And your response to that was…" One more time. Maybe if she heard it one more time, it'd finally—
"I told you I'm getting married," he said again slowly.
Third time definitely wasn't any better.
She needed to sit down, and she did. She sat without checking to make sure a stool was actually there. She looked to Luke, eyes wide and confused.
"W-when are you getting married?"
"How should I know?" he asked irritably.
She shook away the question, the wrong question. "I mean—when did you get marri—when did you decide to get married?" she asked, flustered.
He looked around for something to do. "Last night."
Lorelai stood back up. "Last night you were at my house!"
"Yeah, so?"
She leaned in enough to catch his eye again. She needed him to see every bit of her disbelieving expression. "You were at my house telling me that you and Rachel were over. Because she left. Again."
He didn't say anything.
"Am I wrong?" she followed up when he didn't.
"Jeez," he said under his breath. "A lot happened after that, okay?"
"Well…obviously."
He offered a nod. "I, uh, guess congratulations are in order."
"For what?" she shot back.
"For the engagement." He glanced to the window again and saw as the group of busybodies conversed anxiously amongst themselves. Where were fire hoses when you needed them?
"I-I'm not engaged," she defended.
Weariness was in his voice. "You just said you were."
She shook her head and kept shaking it through her first words. "I told you Max proposed. I didn't say I was engaged." She gestured to him with an uneasy chortle. "You're engaged…as recently revealed to me in the world's most disturbing and nonchalant manner because apparently you get engaged all the time unbeknownst to me."
He spent a few seconds quietly thinking. "So…you said no to Max's proposal…" he assumed.
Looking irritated, she responded with, "If I had said no, do you think I'd be passing out daisies…and standing here talking about proposals?"
"Hell if I know. You're not exactly the most textbook person," he revealed plainly.
She shook her head and answered low. "Well, I wouldn't be."
The microwave oven dinged for her muffin, and Luke kept focus on Lorelai. "So, you didn't say yes. And you didn't say no… What exactly did you say?" he asked with a curious expression.
She was honestly having a hard time focusing her brain. "It's complicated."
"It doesn't seem all that complicated to me," he pressed. "You came in here today with an entourage." He stuck his hand out to the glass to signify the swarm that had followed her to his business. "And last night you were the happiest I've seen you in weeks. It seems to me like you've already made up your mind. If you told him you'd think it over, I think it's safe to say that you've reached a conclusion."
He'd spoken so fast and so matter-of-fact, that it took her a few seconds to drop shock and catch up. But she did.
"Well…not necessarily. Who's to say really? I mean, this is only the biggest decision of my life, Luke."
"That goes without saying."
"Good. So, you understand."
"Do you love him?"
"Excuse me?"
"It's yes or no. Do you love him? There shouldn't be a grey area for that." He shot the words at her as if their main purpose was to back her into a corner.
Lorelai looked over to the table where Rory was texting and not privy to the status of her and Luke's discussion. Her fingers involuntarily grasped the edge of the counter as if steady ground needed to be found fast. She turned eyes back to Luke.
"What kind of question is that?" she asked with no inflection. "Number one, totally…inappropriate. Okay. Just...so very…not appropriate. And number two, would I be here if I didn't?"
He shook his head warily. "I guess not."
"Okay, then."
He took a sharp breath and finally turned to get her muffin. As he dropped the saucer in front of her, he said, "You seemed sure when you came in here last night. Didn't seem like anything had to be thought over then." He looked down at the muffin as he spoke. "Now that there's a flower wilting on my countertop upstairs, you want to be sensible."
"I'm always sensible," she argued.
He eyed her. "A little rash, wouldn't you say?"
"On your body? Off topic, but sure, let's talk about it."
He rolled his eyes. "Passing out flowers when you can't even answer the question of whether or not you love the guy. Rash. And not sensible."
"I answered that question!" she spat. Luke mumbled 'whatever' under his breath. She went on with a squint of her eyes. "Can we get back to your colossal news, please?"
"What news?"
Her expression asked him if he was serious. "What happened between last night and now? Last night, Rachel was gone. As in, not here anymore. As in, 'remember to write', 'don't let the doorknob hit ya'. And now…? I mean, how thought out was this?"
"I dunno," he answered quickly while staring straight at her. "Probably about as thought out as yours."
"I've been dating Max for a year."
He shrugged. "And I've been dating Rachel for over ten years. What's your point?"
She rolled her eyes. "I knew you for four years before I even knew Rachel existed. You can't throw a Swiss cheese relationship in my face."
"Swiss cheese," he repeated dully.
"Holes, Luke. The gaps in your relationship are bigger than the Grand Canyon. That ten years isn't impressive at all when you factor that in."
"Oh, really?" he started emphatically. "Well, that year you're so proud of isn't exactly Swiss cheese-less either, now is it?"
"What made you propose?" she asked out of nowhere.
"Because I wanted to."
"What made you want to?"
He threw his hands out. "I don't know! What makes anybody propose? Pick a reason!"
"What would I even be choosing from? You two were broken up! How do you go from being broken up to an engagement? You're asking me to connect dots that aren't even there!"
"Look, what's the big deal? It doesn't matter when or why it happened. The fact is, it happened. What, you think you're the only one that can get engaged on a whim?" He didn't let her answer. "Well, you're not. I'm engaged. Just…get used to it."
She laughed. Shook her head. "I can't believe you right now."
He glanced at her. Took a breath as he calmed. "So…this is…how it is. You and I are both engaged." He nodded resolutely and then gestured at her. "Well, you're still trying to decide," he said in a way that seemed to mock her, "So, I'm the only one that's…engaged." Lorelai stared at him with no expression. He looked down, scrunched his brows pensively, and met her eyes again. "I definitely don't understand why you'd burst in here passing out flowers if you were still on the fence. That just…it doesn't make any sense at all." His eyes flashed away for a second. "I mean, any rational person would think you'd just gotten engaged last night."
There were so many seconds of silence between them. Just eye contact.
Lorelai finally dropped her eyes. Shook her head again. Stared at the tiny nuts in her muffin as she asked a quiet question. "And that rational person would, in-turn, do what?"
He let another quiet fall over them. A longer one. Finally, he cleared his throat. "Wait for her to come in, I guess. Wait for her to make it official. Then he'd say…"
She finally lifted her head and looked directly into his eyes, making his heart pound and pound.
"How happy he is for her," he finished on cue.
She looked left. Just looked away. She had no choice but to accept his answer.
The day wasn't proving to be the best.
"Well, thanks. But again…I haven't decided anything."
"You will, though."
And then she was staring at him again. He didn't look confident in his assumption. In fact, he looked uneasy and just generally unexcited.
"Congratulations to you and Rachel," she followed appropriately.
Luke smiled a little. "Better late than never. Thanks."
She met his smile. Held in her questions of concern and her dim outlook on his spontaneous and uncharacteristic decision to marry his ex-girlfriend. Last night, she was his ex-girlfriend. Lorelai wondered if the 'ex' had even fallen away before she took on the new role as fiancée.
"Did you have a ring?" she asked as positively as she could.
"No, I'm gonna pick one up today." He nodded like everything was on schedule and planned out perfectly.
"Oh, okay."
"What about Max? Did he have one?" he asked.
She shook her head and picked at her muffin. "First comes the answer, then comes the bling."
"One way to go."
An amused smile came across her lips. "I guess spontaneity truly is in this year. Preparation is overrated. When the mood strikes, buy the cow on credit. Seal the deal with a kiss and a 'hold that thought'."
Luke nodded idly. "Listen, I better get back to work. I have a lot to do today."
Lorelai smiled. "Same here."
He shot daggers to the windows before his eyes softened and he met Lorelai's gaze again. "If you can, you know, not tell anybody about this whole thing just yet…that'd be great."
She held up a thumb in agreement but at the same time, asked quietly, "Secret engagement?"
He sighed. He looked older and so tired. "Not a secret. Just…private. For now, anyway."
"Why private?"
He tilted his head at her. "Take a look outside and ask me that question again."
She did look outside. Smiled a bit at all the people that seemed to multiply. "Understood."
"Thought you would."
She picked up the dish with her morning muffin. "So…just to be certain…you're not having any second thoughts or anything, are you?"
He looked down as he shook his head. "Why would I be?"
She set her features in a stern regard. "It's yes or no. There shouldn't be a grey area for that," she mimicked in her best Luke voice.
He rolled his eyes. "My answer is no," he stated clearly.
The delight disappeared from her face quicker than he was used to as she answered with a sobering, "Good. Engagements are serious business. Can't…enter into them lightly. So I hear anyway."
Luke dropped his eyes again, and there was an uncomfortable silence.
"Well, my, uh, table waits," she announced. He looked at her and offered a courteous smile at her much bigger, plastered one. "Mind if we get some coffee brought over?"
He waved her to her seat, letting her know he'd take care of her. "You got it."
"And, um…" She'd started inching over to her and Rory's table but stopped ungracefully as she said to him, "I'll be sure to keep you posted on my…thing."
He smiled automatically. "You do that."
She made it over to her table in a hurry.
Luke turned to the brewer, slid the basket out, and shoved it back in place with fresh grounds. The machine got to percolating, and he fought the urge to rest his head against the heated metal.
He sighed and his shoulders drooped. "What a day; what a day," he whispered.
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
"Mom," Rory whined pathetically for the third time.
"Rory, I promised."
Rory followed her mom into their house and stayed on her heels as she turned to place her sweater on the coat rack.
"I'm the daughter!" she reminded her. "Secrets aren't expected to be kept between the mom and the daughter. It's the exception! Come on, Mom. Pleeease!"
Lorelai smiled and headed into the living room. "Sorry, Sweets. Luke isn't exactly mister open-book as is. I can't betray his trust or he'll never tell me anything else. And then if anything particularly juicy happens in his life, I won't be in the loop. Is that what you want, huh? A loopless mom?"
"Well, you're in the loop now, and I don't find that I'm benefiting from it much."
Lorelai sat on the sofa, and gripped the cordless phone, which had been snagged en route. "But doesn't it feel good knowing that at least one of us is-"
"No, it doesn't," she interrupted grouchily to Lorelai's amusement.
Rory only had her mother's mannerisms to go by when she returned to their table earlier at Luke's. That was really all that she needed considering Lorelai never hid dissatisfaction well. She questioned her, of course, and only got news that Luke wasn't devastated to hear of her pending engagement. Everyone could relax. She told of how he actually had his own news to share. It was a slip-up, and to keep from breaking her promise to him, she didn't elaborate. As Rory eagerly tried to follow up on the leak, Lorelai only said that she'd know soon enough.
Rory found that quite unacceptable.
Standing in front of the sofa, arms folded, Rory looked down at her mom who was seated with a vice grip on the cordless. "Who are you calling?"
"Hm?" Rory nodded toward the phone. "Oh! This? Um…Max," she revealed nervously.
Rory frowned. "Is this news?"
"What do you mean?"
"Is it forbidden? It's a phone call to the guy you're seeing. Why are you acting like this is something huge?"
She smiled. Seemed to hold her breath in for a long moment. "Because," she drew out. "Maybe it just might be."
Rory was sure she didn't mean what it sounded like she meant. Considering they had done nothing but have an early breakfast at Luke's, with no further discussion on the marriage matter, Rory knew the low probability that Lorelai had reached a decision to Max's very important question.
"You don't mean…" Rory began with certainty. Lorelai's expression told her otherwise. "Oh…wow…you do mean."
Lorelai bit her lip. "What do you think?"
Rory quickly sat beside her. "About what? You haven't even told me what you've decided! What'd you decide?" she asked at once. "It's yes, isn't it? Or no. Oh, it's no. Poor Mr. Medina. Jeez, Mom, are you going to call and break his heart? If you're going to do that, you should do it in person. Wait, maybe it needs to be done in person, regardless of the answer." She tried desperately to think. "What's the proper way to do this? We don't have a lot of experience with this kind of thing in this household. Think we should call Miss Patty? She'll know."
"Relax, Babe. We don't need outside help. I can handle this, I think."
"I can't believe you didn't talk this through with me. I feel jipped. And curious. Mostly curious. What's your answer?"
Lorelai closed her eyes for a second. Tight. Like a child preparing for a big surprise. Then she opened them with a look of determination.
"My answer is…" She held her breath again. Wrinkled her forehead tighter and tighter. "…yes."
Rory's eyes widened. "Yes?"
Lorelai flinched.
"Did you just-?"
"Wait, just let me think for another second," she muttered as she laid a hand to her forehead.
"Put the phone down, Mom."
She shook her head, no. She couldn't put the phone down. She'd picked it up with the intention of calling Max with good news. All she had to do was work herself up to it. The decision was made, damn it. As far as she was concerned, there was no going back. Going back involved breaking up and being single. No one to fill the 'plus one' on any prospective wedding invites.
She didn't care for the pressure. She was supposed to have time. She was supposed to be able to think freely and carefully about a future with Max. That was all that was supposed to go into the decision. She wasn't supposed to be thinking of Luke's impulsive proposal that made her feel she had to get in the game or step back out of the way of the other players.
Last night, it was her moment. Confused as she was, she was happy. This morning, it was her moment! Thoughtful as she was, there was excitement. It was all about her life as a married woman. A woman married to Max Medina. Now, all thoughts circled around what her life would be like over the next few months if she turned Max down. There would still be excitement, happiness, and wedded bliss. It just wouldn't belong to her. She couldn't wrap her mind around having to deal with all of that…as an unattached person.
Luke was making a mistake. She could feel it. She was bothered by it. Why Rachel? Why a proposal? Why last night? She needed more time to clear her head, but she had no time. Absolutely no time. She was making huge decisions with a cluttered headspace.
"I'm doing this. I'm calling Max."
"To tell him what?"
She breathed deeply one final time, clicked the button, and got a dial tone. "Yes. I'm calling to tell him yes," she stated confidently. She dialed, whispered "yes" over and over. As if she would forget that one word.
Rory slowly looked into her face. Gave a cautious and resigned reminder. What was she going to do with her mother? "Marriage is forever, Mom. It's expensive rings and real live beating hearts and…people's lives changing." She paused. "Ideally, it's forever. Just try to be sure."
With the phone to her ear, Lorelai stared doe-eyed at her best friend and kid. In the seconds their eyes were locked, she was frozen.
"Hello?"
Rory heard when Max answered. She glanced at the phone then back at her mom.
"Hello?" he said again. "Lorelai, Rory?" The house number had come across his caller id.
Rory broke contact from her mom and leaned in a bit. "Hey, Mr. Medina," she said courteously. She didn't hear his response. Just a prolonged muffled voice. "Hold for my mom," she followed before standing. She patted Lorelai's head affectionately and walked away.
Lorelai watched her until she was gone. She found her tongue after Max's fourth "Lorelai? Hello?"
"Hey, Hon," she began with a bare voice that improved once she cleared her throat. She sat back and tried to relax. "How was your night?...mmhm…mmhm…I have been thinking actually. That's uh—that's kind of why I called…" She rubbed her sweaty palm over her thigh.
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
Rory disapproved.
Lorelai knew it. She could feel it. She bugged her endlessly with pleas to just admit it! After agreeing to marry Max, Lorelai's first order of business was to get Rory's take, and upon doing so, she found that Rory wasn't over the moon. Sure, she smiled, hugged her, told her she was happy for her, and she couldn't wait to welcome her English teacher into their home…but Lorelai doubted Rory would hotwire a car with a breadstick and take off in search of Max if she thought he was leaving. If she wasn't willing to do that, how serious could she be? Despite all protests, though, Rory refused to summon her inner Mikey. Kirstie Alley and John Travolta definitely got the more supportive kid in that respect.
After the fifteenth you-can-tell-me-anything-Rory-I-won't-be-mad mother/ daughter talk where Rory asked her to please get a hobby, Lorelai figured she was overreacting, searching for things that weren't there. Being officially engaged, she decided, did strange things to a person.
There was no grace period in telling the town, and once they knew, they immediately began involving themselves in the procession. If it wasn't Kirk offering his multitude of skills in every category imaginable, then it was Gypsy shooting off hot honeymoon spots where she had certain connections through 'special friends'. And the only thing that surprised Lorelai about Patty's offer to organize the male entertainment for a bachelorette party, was her waiting two whole days to extend the invitation.
Lorelai suggested and Max agreed on a small and speedy ceremony, only three weeks from the official engagement. The venue was a given. The town square. It was beautiful, accommodating, and great in a pinch. It was one of the few things decided upon early. Everything else was being juggled between work, coffee, sleep, and her constant indecisiveness.
With only two weeks to go, Lorelai was at work when she learned of Sookie's supposed-to-be-a-surprise wedding shower. While grateful, she accepted the news with a soft sigh. The event she'd planned to keep low-key had too many caring individuals feeding it super-grow formula every time she turned around.
She left the pink goody-filled kitchen of the inn and headed into town to meet up with Max. They'd made an appointment to meet with their chosen Officiant, who she knew formally from the high number of inn weddings she'd headed.
As soon as it came into view, Lorelai made the choice to pull into Doose's for refreshment. On her way in, she was caught off guard by Rachel and Luke exiting the small store.
"Whoa!" She hopped back from the door just in time to avoid a collision. "Hey there, you two!" She always grinned like a nervous idiot in Rachel's presence. Now was absolutely no exception.
Rachel returned the smile. "Sorry, didn't mean to plow into you, Lorelai."
"Don't worry about it. Gives me a chance to show off my catlike reflexes." She looked from Rachel to Luke to the bags he held. "So, doing some shopping, huh? Anything for me in there?" she teased with a playful stretch of her body to look inside.
"Hm, not sure. Do you like salad?" Rachel asked.
"Please," mumbled Luke. Both women looked up at him. He frowned and focused on Lorelai. "What? You don't."
As soon as Rachel turned to her for confirmation, Lorelai shrugged weakly. "I would actually love it if it weren't for all the vegetables."
Rachel found that amusing, and Luke rolled his eyes.
"Bar-b-que, then?" she offered instead.
Lorelai nodded eagerly. "Big fan of bar-b-que." She smiled more. "So, you were shopping with me in mind."
"Is there any other way to shop?" Rachel answered good-naturedly.
"Little warning: Indulging her may seem harmless, but it leads to levels of obnoxiousness I'm sure you never thought possible. Choose your words wisely," Luke heeded.
Lorelai moved her amused eyes from him to Rachel. "Do me a favor. Ignore the crank to your left."
Rachel shook her head. "Oh, I plan to." She followed that with a shove to Luke's side as he ignored their jaunty collaboration.
"You can join us for lunch if you want. Chef Moi. There'll be plenty."
Lorelai caught Luke rolling his eyes and ended up smiling because of it. "Well, Rachel, I really appreciate that. And it's tempting—trust me—but unfortunately, I have an appointment to get to…and plus, Luke, here, thinks that if I took you up on that invite, there's a very good chance that 'plenty of food' will quickly turn into 'not enough food'."
"He doesn't think that," Rachel laughingly disputed.
"Oh, yes, he does," Luke chimed in.
"He totally thinks that," Lorelai added shortly after.
"Come on, Luke, play nice," Rachel told him.
"Yeah, Luke, play nice," Lorelai goaded.
"Hush."
"Hush?" Rachel gawked. "You're telling me to zip it now?"
"No, not you," he corrected quickly. "Her!"
Lorelai nodded airily at Rachel. "Yeah, that was for me, don't worry. He has no problems ordering me to silence."
Luke gave a nod. "Exactly."
"I think he's kind of proud of it, actually," she continued.
He shrugged. "Wouldn't say proud, but it does bring a sense of peace over me. It's nice."
"Well, as long as you're centered…"
"Close to it."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Alice…one of these days."
"Threats? Really? Forgetting I'm the guy with the coffee, I see. Remember how important self-preservation is to you."
She frowned, nodded. "Well, that is true."
"I'm surprised you keep forgetting that."
"Not so much forgetting, as is allowing you to remember and appreciate why I let you live."
"Dark for you."
"Gotta keep you on your toes. As long as you hold onto the reminder, you have nothing to worry about. Just keep it stuffed between the beloved Trekkie years and Mickey Rourke's original face."
"Oh, I'll stuff it somewhere, alright..."
She smiled, respectfully exited their zone, and let her attention drift over to Rachel, who had eyebrows raised.
"Hey," Lorelai acknowledged.
Rachel's beautiful and not entirely comfortable smile led the way. "That was… an interesting display of whatever that was."
"Yeah, I'm sorry," began Lorelai. "But, ya know, he started it."
"Yeah, right," Luke grumbled.
Lorelai clasped her hands. "So, you agree. Excellent."
"I didn't start anything. You started it," he countered easily. "Like you always do."
"No, no, I am pretty sure that-"
He copied her silly inflection. "Well, I am extremely certain that-"
"Okay!" Rachel interjected. She laughed amicably when they both looked at her. "We better get this stuff to the apartment." She looked up at Luke for confirmation, and he nodded in agreement.
"You're right," he stated with apology. He shook away the silly, pointless argument. "Let's get this ice cream upstairs before it melts." He immediately looked at Lorelai to tell her he'd catch her later, but Rachel's outburst stole his focus.
"That's what I forgot!" she exclaimed. "Ice cream!" Luke brought the bags up higher to peek inside for the half pint. "I told you I was forgetting something."
"You sure it's not in here?"
"Yeah, pretty sure."
Lorelai jumped in. "Well, I'll see you two later on in the diner. I better hurry along before I'm late for my appointment." She moved in and grasped the doorknob as Rachel and Luke both rattled off their 'see you laters'.
No sooner than she pulled the door open, did she hear Luke volunteer to run in and get the forgotten item. Rachel thanked him and offered to take the bags on to the apartment. The door closed just as there were sounds of bags switching hands. Seconds later, the business door opened and closed again.
"Afternoon, Luke!"
Luke rolled his eyes. "Hey, Taylor," he followed monotonously without slowing.
Lorelai was in frozen foods when Luke arrived. She was looking over items she had not come in the store for.
"You picking up ice cream too?" Luke asked distractedly as he opened the door to the ice cream case.
She stopped dawdling and walked over to him. Sighed. "Hey."
Luke fingered the brands. "Hey back." He reached in and grabbed a carton of butter pecan. When he stepped back, Lorelai closed the door for him and faced him. After a second of standing there, she began to back up while gesturing for him to follow her.
"Walk with me; talk with me," she encouraged.
Luke gave a look of impatience at the show of what appeared to be another crazy Lorelai antic before he willingly followed her further into the store. "What's this about? Rachel's going to wonder where I am, you know," he complained.
"My, she has you on a leash already? Maybe I should get some pointers from her."
"Very funny."
Lorelai stopped when she had nowhere else to walk. Looked on the shelf a little ways over and saw beef jerky and pickled sausages. She started perusing. "So, how are things?" she asked simply.
"What things?"
"All things."
"Any thing specific?" he asked with annoyance.
She smiled and looked at him. "Rachel, Luke. The woman who you asked to marry you and who said yes? Remember her? The woman who affectionately refers to you as her snuggly sweet poo bear?"
"She does not call me that," he disagreed with a sigh.
"She does in my head."
"Yeah, not weird at all." He gave her an exhausted look. "You going somewhere with this?"
"Yes, and obviously you're in a completely different car." Her eyes dropped to his chest. "I just want to know how things are coming along. I've hardly seen you at all this week. I even missed the big reveal—how, the night after you told me your news, Rachel slipped up and told Patty and Patty slipped up and told everyone in town. I don't even know how you're handling all of this."
He shrugged. "Well, the news has been out for a week…in this town…so it's not hard to determine how any sane person would be dealing with it."
"With joy and glee, I presume."
"Sure. There will be plenty of that when it's all over."
"How many days now?"
"Three," he answered with a nod.
"Wow, it's really closing in, isn't it?"
"Seems that way."
"What time have you decided on?"
He shrugged. "I think Rachel said sometime before the lunch crowd comes in. So, eleven fifteen, eleven thirty, maybe."
She shook her head. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd think this was a hair appointment or a date to pick out a ceiling fan."
"Sorry to disappoint you, but there aren't a lot of frills with a City Hall wedding," he announced evenly as he brushed his fingers across the film of ice on the container.
Lorelai nodded. "I guess not." They looked at one another. "How is the cohabitating coming along? Any more misplaced milk catastrophes? I hope not because I can only imagine the confused looks you'll get if you start petitioning to have pictures of milk cartons placed on milk cartons."
He grasped the back of his neck. "It's going okay. It's getting a little less weird every day. That's something."
"Ready for forever?" she asked with a kind smile.
His brows rose. "I better be. Like it or not, it's coming. Are you trying to get deep on me here or something?"
She chuckled. "No, not particularly. Just sharing a little part of my home life." She caught the questions in his expression and added, "It's something Rory now casually asks me twice a day, on average."
"Why?"
"It's a fun hot-seat question. You agree?"
"Not really," he replied dryly.
"She doesn't think I'm committed to this," she revealed.
"To what? To Max?" he asked, appearing more interested.
Lorelai glanced at him, not sure if she imagined his enthusiasm. "Max, marriage, balls, chains, and shackles. She asks, I tell her I'm still in, and the cycle continues."
"Sounds exhausting."
"It's our thing. Apparently something I inspired."
Luke sat on the question for a moment. "But you are committed, right?"
She smiled. "I'm nothing if not loyal to my commitments."
"It doesn't bother you that Rory is asking you that multiple times a day? Has she actually said that she doubts your commitment? I can't really see her saying that."
"I infer, she doesn't deny…that kind of thing. She's just looking out for me."
He couldn't stop himself from asking questions about that topic. "But…why would she think you're not serious, though?"
"Because I'm me, would be my first guess," she answered with amusement.
"But…she isn't right, though, right?" he clarified once more.
She reared back. "My left hand's value like quadrupled overnight. Who would find issues with that?"
He sighed with thinning patience.
"Come on, it's a joke, Luke. Why the serious face?"
"I'm not being serious." He didn't seem to believe his own words.
Lorelai ignored it. She punched him softly, playfully. Joked, "I have two weeks left to let it all sink in, though. Compared to your few days. Still seeming like a good idea that you're rushing to the alter?"
"What makes you think I'm rushing? I'm not rushing."
"I disagree." She said that with a short laugh but meant it very much.
"Well, I'm not. Besides, what's the point of waiting? When you become engaged, you're locked in. Only reason to wait is to plan some big unnecessary event. I'm not into that, and thankfully, neither is Rachel." He hesitated a moment. "If anything, I should be surprised that you're planning a wedding as fast as you are. You're the one that seems to be rushing."
"Plenty of people plan a wedding in a month."
"Yours is being planned in three weeks," he noted. "And I doubt any of those people had so much uncertainty when it came to the proposal."
She studied him. "Now, it's my turn to ask if you're going somewhere with this."
"Nope. Nowhere."
Lorelai nodded. Luke could nearly see the thoughts whirling around inside her overactive brain. "I have a question for you."
"Okay..."
She looked down. She had yet to shake the feeling that he was making a mistake marrying Rachel. Over the course of the week, she'd grown hopeful that he'd come to his senses, but all of that had come to an unexpected halt when he revealed his plans to travel to City Hall in mere days to complete the deed.
He'd told her over coffee four days ago. So casually, too. It was so him. What was with him and his cursory bomb dropping?
It was only a coincidence that the date of her big day was decided fifteen hours later.
"You're the most levelheaded person I know," she began. She met his eyes. "How sure are you about all of this?"
That simple question made him frustrated. "Why do you keep asking me those kinds of questions? What is it that you expect me to say?"
"I've only asked you once…"
"First day I told you, you were questioning me up a wall, too," he pointed out.
She tossed her hands out. "Okay, fine, twice."
"Whatever. Either way, you have to stop addressing me like I don't know what I'm doing. I know what I'm doing!"
"You're questioning me too!" she argued. "You don't see me overreacting." She allowed time for consideration. "You're my friend, and I've earned the right to an opinion, I think. I mean, no offense, but you and Rachel's engagement is a little out of the blue and weird. I'm happy for you, of course, but I have a right to speak on the weirdness!"
He focused on her. "Did you just call my relationship weird?"
"I said no offense."
"Well, I'm offended."
She smiled at the return of his everyday gruffness. "Look, I just want to be sure that you know what you're getting into."
"I do."
"And that you're happy."
"I am."
"And…that you won't move away and open up a Litchfield Luke's or a Madison, Wisconsin Luke's."
Corner of his mouth turned up at her extravagance. "I don't plan to."
"Or even a…Luke and Rachel's…anywhere. No name changes."
"Is that an order, Sergeant?" He asked the question with a mild tone and a strong frown.
"Humble request, Corporal."
He sighed, let his eyes roll round slow. "Again, I don't plan to."
She nodded at that. "Also…"
"Also? How many of these do you think you're entitled to?"
"Enough to make my heart content."
"I'd probably miss my wedding if I agreed to that."
She held up an index finger. "Just one more."
"One more."
"I want you to know that…" In her pause, they stared at one another, and she blinked perceptively. Ended up sighing and smiling. Luke's eyes were kind of, sort of…very captivating. She had to focus to piece together her splintered thoughts. "Um, with you now off the market, you're leaving Kirk as Stars Hollow's most eligible bachelor. Thanks for making us the laughing stock of the north."
That made him smile. "You have my deepest sympathies."
She took a breath. "I have to ask this totally indecent question. Get ready for the eye bulge."
He squinted confusedly. "What?"
She asked the question instead of repeating herself. "Rachel isn't pregnant, is she?"
His reaction was the exact one she expected. She held off amusement and appeared serious as she awaited the answer.
"Pregnant? What? No! What made you even-"
"I'm sorry. Not my place to ask. Definitely not my business. I was just wondering because of the whole fast, courthouse-wedding thing. But she's not pregnant; I heard you; I'm sorry for jumping to that conclusion. Back to the regularly scheduled program."
He held a tight expression. "Lorelai, I swear-"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Let's forget I asked!"
He rolled his eyes like he was back to being unsurprised by anything she did or said. "You know, I could ask you the same question."
She nodded. "I know. You could. And the answer would be no. I'm not knocked up."
He turned red.
"Sorry," she volunteered.
Sometimes, Luke thought, it was downright embarrassing how much he flustered in her presence. He regained his composure. "Marrying because of pregnancy? You do realize this is the new millennium, and we're not hooking up in the back of dusty Mustangs anymore, right?"
"Hey, speak for yourself," she teased.
"Jeez." Second blush in fifteen seconds.
Lorelai reached onto the shelf and snagged a treat. "I hope you don't mind. I just felt like a little one-on-one talk. This is the best I could do on such short notice." She played with the wrapper. "Can't seem to get any face time with you these days."
"What do you mean? I've seen you in the diner all week."
"Yeah, that's true," she said with a nod. "You and Rachel served my coffee, and you and Rachel served my eggs, followed by a little of you and Rachel both handing me some jelly when I asked for it. It's been a great week."
"Yeah, she's taken pretty well to the whole diner experience."
"That, she has."
Luke didn't pick up on any strife there. "You haven't been in much anyway. You have a lot on your plate now."
"I guess."
"Have you told your parents?"
Lorelai chuckled a little, nodded. "Yeah." She'd told Emily and Richard, watched as they bit back bitterness. She wasn't marrying a son or grandson of someone with social or ancestral ties to greatness, so there was no reason to expect much from them. A sigh here, a forced smile there, a 'where are you registered?' and she'd left the Hartford mansion satisfied. They had exceeded her expectations. "They were on their very best mediocre behavior," she finished.
Luke genuinely seemed pleased with that. Every time Lorelai and her parents made a step in a good direction, he was optimistic—though, in his experience, the feat was usually followed by something traumatizing. "They're going to the wedding, then?" He didn't care for the feeling of the word on his lips.
She nodded. "They'll be there. Crying for all the wrong reasons."
"Long as they're there."
Lorelai hid how happy she really was with her parents' compliance. "Invitations should be arriving in the next day or two." She pointed at him. "So, you, mister, can just choose either the chicken or fish and drop it in the special handcrafted lace-covered box…which, by the way, will be set up on the counter at Luke's, pending your approval…"
His anticipated eye roll let her know instantly that it was okay. "Why can't you just have them mail it back to you like normal people do?"
"Because I'm not normal people, Luke. Besides, this way is more personable. And fast. The wedding is two weeks away, you know."
He sighed. "I don't know about going to the wedding."
"No, it's okay. Rachel is invited, too, of course. I wouldn't-"
"Weddings aren't my thing," he interrupted. "Sorry."
She stared at him for a moment. Stated slowly, "Well, they aren't my thing either, but I'm going to be there." She smiled to lighten the mood.
He shrugged. Said once more, "Sorry." Though, he didn't seem very sorry at all.
Humor left her, and only disappointment remained. "How can you not come to my wedding?" she asked with knitted brows. "What are you going to be busy doing?"
He pointed over his shoulder. "Look, I have to get going. I'm sure Rachel is waiting for me. I'll see you, okay?" He turned halfway before Lorelai stopped him with a soft touch to his arm.
"Wait, are you really not going to answer my question?" She was very confused.
He faced her again. "I don't like weddings," he said clearly. "It's nothing personal."
"Of course it's personal, Luke. If you choose not to come, I'm going to take it very personal."
"Why?" he asked like it was absurd.
Her wrinkled brows smoothed out in an instant. The words took a while longer to come. "Wow. Epiphanies can really suck," she said with simplicity.
"What are you talking about?"
"All this time, I thought of you as a close friend. You just made it clear that I was wrong."
He gave her an exhausted look. "I would rather pluck out one of my eyeballs with red hot pliers than go to a wedding." Would pluck out both before he'd go to one of hers. "Get the picture?"
She took a breath. "I'm sorry, Luke. I know it sucks, and I'm probably being completely selfish with this, but I want you there. There are a lot of people who can check the 'will not attend' box and get away with it, but you, I'm sorry to say, are in the small group of people who can't."
"Jeez, Lorelai. This is ridiculous," he muttered.
"And unfair. Don't forget unfair."
He glared at her. "I'd say that qualifies. Especially since I'm not making you come to mine."
"I offered," she reminded. Albeit, a little halfheartedly, but she did offer. Luke wasn't remotely interested in that offer.
He clenched his jaw. "I'll think about it," he grumbled.
"You have to come."
"I said I'll think about it," he snapped.
She smiled warmly in spite of his very real frustration. "Okay. Think about it. But don't take too long."
He resented the idea of going to her wedding. And he knew he'd end up going if it meant that much to her. Unfortunately for him, it did.
"Alright, I really have to go. Rachel probably thinks I skipped town by now," he relayed sullenly.
At that, Lorelai finally thought to look at her watch. "Yeah, I have to take off, too." They broke away from their isolated corner and headed upfront.
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
"I don't like it."
"Lorelai, this is gorgeous!"
Lorelai eyed the gown and only ended up shaking her head again adamantly toward Sookie. "I'm sorry, I just don't like it."
Sookie studied the dress. "But…" She really didn't see anything past the perfection. "What don't you like about it?"
Lorelai stood across the room of the boutique, hands in pockets. She advanced upon the dress, moving through a sea of white chiffon and smooth satin.
She made it to the dress, got her close-up view, and gave it a thorough examination. When she looked to Sookie, she found her friend already wide-eyed and eager to hear a retraction. Lorelai pouted in apology and Sookie slumped forward.
"It's just not right."
"Too beautiful?"
Lorelai chuckled. "Too…showy," she explained.
"What?"
Lorelai stepped to the rear. "Look at the train. What is that, like ten feet long? It's way too much."
"It's an average sweep train. Four inches, max."
"It's not me."
Sookie laughed. "We've been looking at dresses all afternoon, and I've seen four that I thought were perfect for you, and you hated every one."
"Not hated," she said pitifully. She held a frown toward the dress that Sookie recommended. "Sookie, this has beads all over the chest. I never said I wanted beads over the girls. And look at all these ruffles at the midsection. This has to be the busiest wedding dress on the planet. I bet it comes with its own itinerary."
Sookie's hands went up in defeat. "Okay, another one gets checked off the list." She looked at her watch and then looked around for the saleslady who had gone off into the back some time ago. "You want to keep looking in here or drive some more? We have a half tank of gas and about two hours left before we have to head back to town."
They were just outside of Manchester. Had managed to sneak away even though the engagement party was that night, and Sookie had many last minute touches to put on the party.
"I'm all for heading back. As you know, I found the perfect dress an hour ago."
Sookie rolled her eyes. "That's your idea of the perfect dress?"
"It fits the occasion."
"The occasion being your wedding…" Sookie clarified.
"The occasion being my wedding, yes. One that is going to be simple and modest, mind you."
"Lorelai, that dress is going to make guests fall asleep as you come down the aisle. It was extremely plain. The most exciting thing on it was the sash, which I'm not even sure comes with the dress."
Lorelai smiled. "It was a beautiful dress, Sook. Not gaudy. Simple. And beautiful. And I want it, so can we please leave this place and go back to the other place before someone scoops the only one in my size?"
Sookie relented. Shook her head as she noticeably gave in. "Well, at least we won't have to stop at an ATM. I'm sure you have the twenty or thirty bucks for it in your pocket."
Lorelai smiled at the harmless and silly joke. She draped her arm across Sookie's shoulders. "Best thing about simple is you can dress it up how you want. I'll make it pop; you'll see."
Sookie sighed and patted her hand supportively. "I'll tell you one thing, that Payless Shoes thing had better been a joke. As best friend, I automatically take half the responsibility for your wedding attire. You gotta throw me a bone here."
Lorelai laughed softly. "Don't worry, Hon. I aim to make you proud of your fifty percent."
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
The engagement party was made for Lorelai.
It seemed no one remembered that there was a groom in the equation. All gifts were for her, and even the color scheme of the event catered to her gender. Max was a good sport, though. He and Lorelai sat on their throne, of sorts, and allowed the town to shower them with attention.
Lane provided the music, and she used it as practice for their wedding, since she'd snagged that gig as well.
During the gift giving, Lorelai was happy as could be. Receiving presents had always had that effect on her. She marveled over the guests as much as they marveled over her and her dolled up beau. Everyone was dressed so fancy!
"Oh, look, a gravy boat," Max admired.
Lorelai looked at the dish the color of spring green that he had just taken from the gift bag. She smiled amusedly. "That one is yours."
Max chuckled. "We're supposed to be sharing, remember?"
"Only applies to the good gifts that have a use in chateau Gilmore."
"It has a great use. You know all that creamy goodness that goes over my cubed steak you love so much?" He held up the dish. "This has a hand in giving you that."
"That little dish?"
"This little dish."
"Well, okay. Drop it over in the probation pile."
He leaned over and put it on the table with a smile. "I have an intriguing question."
"Intriguing questions are always welcome."
He nodded, rubbed his hands together. "Are you planning on making chateau Gilmore, chateau Medina or any variation thereof?"
She went from looking at him to looking at her hands. "Well, the house has grown accustomed to its name, so I can't say for sure."
He reached over and took one of her hands in his, causing her eyes to go to him. She was met with a kind smile. "What about you?"
"What about me?" she asked teasingly.
He was patient. "Will there be any name changing with the owner of said house?"
She used both her hands to play with his. Had all focus on that. "Do you want there to be a change?"
"It'd be nice…"
She nodded. "Then there will be a change," she declared.
"But it'll only be nice if that's what you want."
"It comes with the territory, right?"
"Not necessarily. You can keep your name if you'd like. It won't make us any less married."
She considered it. "Only reservation I have is not having the same name as Rory."
"Of course. Well, how about-"
"Maybe we could change her name too."
He cocked his head, smiled at her spontaneous suggestion. "We might want to discuss that with her befo-"
"Ooh, or maybe we could all three get a new name! How awesome would that be! Like…uh…Hot Stuff. Mister and missus Hot Stuff, with the youngest of the Hot Stuff bunch, Rory Leigh." She took on a thoughtful expression. "I've never noticed that Rory's name sounds like 'royally'. Isn't that cool? Royally Gilmore. It fits, somehow. Hot Stuff would probably mess that up. Taint its sanctity, you know? Well, I think we're going to have to ditch Hot Stuff. But we can come up with something equally great. We've got time."
Max stared at her pensively. "You're really beautiful when you're flustered."
"Who says I'm flustered?" she asked, slightly offended. "Nice job covering it with the flattery, by the way. You definitely know your audience."
"We don't have to decide anything right now. I didn't mean to put you on the spot with this."
"I'm not on any spot. I'm on a cloud. A really big, fluffy cloud, thanks to you and your very kind offer to take me on for the rest of your life."
"And your life, too," he added.
She shook her head. "Won't matter. Guys drop first," she said with a wink.
He chuckled. "Oh, yeah. Of course."
"You can count on me to make your farewell extra spicy, though. Just imagine it: In bed, teeth in a glass, one part of your body stiffer than the rest… You'll be the envy of all your friends."
"You paint a disturbing…yet, arousing picture," he said with laughter.
She rubbed her hands over his with a wide smile. "Feeling really good about marrying me, now, I bet, huh?"
He locked his eyes with hers. "I haven't stopped feeling good since I asked you, Lorelai Gilmore. Never doubted it for a second."
Lorelai returned his stare. Worked out the best way to respond. She was never really good with the heartfelt moments. She loved the sweet talk. Processed it well. But that, unfortunately, didn't make the words flow any better.
Her attention was stolen away before she could ruin the moment by speaking.
"Hey…sorry, hope I didn't interrupt anything too good."
Lorelai looked down to Rachel who cradled a gift. "Hey!" she greeted with true surprise. "You're here. You made it!"
Pleased at Lorelai's welcome, her words were sprightly. "Yeah, I did. Thanks so much for the invite. I hope you don't mind, I was kind of strapped for time, so I ended up getting some lame hoary gift for you guys," she ended while holding up the nicely wrapped gift with apology.
Lorelai's eyes widened before she was grinning. "Well, we can never have too many of those gifts, and you've actually just livened up the whole table here." She reached for the box eagerly.
Max and Rachel both laughed.
"Can't really blame her for that one," mused Max to Rachel.
Rachel laughed a bit longer. "It's his and hers bath towels," she revealed. "Little on the boring, traditional side but that gorgeous embroidery will change your life," she exaggerated.
Lorelai chuckled. "Well, my current life was starting to get a little frayed, so the timing couldn't be better." She tapped the box. "Thanks so much, Rachel."
"My pleasure."
"Thanks from me too. You know, I think this is the first gift of ours that I'm able to use."
"Really?"
He nodded. "I was starting to feel like a prop. So, thanks. Really."
Rachel laughed. "Well, congratulations to you two." She looked behind herself. "I don't know where that fiancé of mine went that fast..."
Lorelai instinctively looked around. She didn't know Luke was there. She never thought he'd come. It was a big enough battle trying to get him to consider the wedding. Even after she saw that Rachel was there, she still didn't think there was a possibility of her having an escort.
"…Hopefully he hasn't ditched me. He promised to stay and dance one dance, though, so I have about a fifty-fifty chance that he's still here."
Lorelai looked back at Rachel, impressed. "You got him to promise a dance? How'd you do that?"
Rachel shook her head, grinned like she had a secret. "Let's just say that I had to remind him of my powers…as a woman." She ended that statement with a knowing look at Lorelai, and Lorelai, of course, got the meaning immediately. Whether she wanted the true meaning or not, she got it.
She nodded, but chose to remain mute on that one. Her eyes happened over to Max, and she smiled and rubbed his knee. "How often do you think I'll have to pull out the big guns with you, mister?" she teased.
"With any luck…every single day of our existence together."
Her smile spread as she looked away. She instantly grew distracted. Rachel living there all the time with Luke had to be driving him crazy. A person didn't just go from loving solitude to being problem-free with a roomie. A very permanent roomie, at that.
Their wedding was in two days.
Day after tomorrow, Luke would be a married man. A man married to Rachel. There was no buildup. Not like with her and Max's wedding, where there was so much to do and so much town involvement that you couldn't help but mark days on the calendar. For Luke, it was a countdown that only existed for those who cared enough to keep track.
Lorelai glanced at her watch. There was at least thirty-nine and a half hours left until his and Rachel's I do's. Less than two days. Where in the hell was the time going anyway?
"Speak of the devil!"
Lorelai broke free of her thoughts and looked over into Luke's face. He wasn't altogether thrilled to be there. Festive gatherings weren't exactly his idea of fun. He approached Rachel's side and her arm went around his waist. He brought her closer by her shoulder and kissed her hair in a gentle and methodical fashion. Pulled back and sighed as both their hands slid away and they took separate but close stances.
Lorelai's eyes bounced uneasily between the two of them. Talk about weird. Had Luke just exhibited such a fluent form of PDA? His perfectly toned cheeks didn't suggest he had. He took in the mountain of gifts casually. Lorelai could only imagine how much more comfortable he'd grow in the coming months and years with the gooey displays. He'd have lots of practice at being the perfect, loving husband by then.
"Lorelai, are you okay?"
She turned to her fiancé. Smiled warmly. "Hm? Yeah, why?"
Everyone looked at her, and she shared her reassuring smile at the unneeded alarm.
"You looked a little frozen. Worried," he mentioned quietly for only her to hear.
"No, I'm fine." She took a breath. Closed her eyes and opened them again when they were on Luke. She lifted her eyebrows. "Glad to see you come out, Stranger."
"Well…not a lot to do tonight." He touched his hair. Kept one hand firmly in his jeans pocket. Lorelai looked over the blue button-down shirt, untucked at the bottom and loose at the collar, noting that he'd put a little effort into dressing up. He looked nice. It seemed to come easy for him. That worked out well because Luke was a very simple guy, and he definitely didn't go out of his way for fashion.
He and Max were different in that respect. Max groomed in the mirror for half an hour daily, and ninety percent of his wardrobe was professionally cleaned. Luke groomed rarely, but in looking at him now, Lorelai noticed that his scruff looked shorter and more maintained. The neat whiskers were just long enough to rest obediently against his skin. He'd been going on four days without shaving, so it'd been much longer.
By the time he had both his hands in his pockets again, Lorelai's eyes were back on his. This, after tossing a glance to Rachel. She had to remember that Luke didn't stand alone anymore. There were to be no more harmless assessments with him. Just as no one could harmlessly assess Max Medina, no one—not even her—had the freedom to do it to Luke now.
She glanced over at the gift Rachel had presented. Shifted her focus easily to that. "Before you decided to grace us with your presence here, Luke, we were thanking Rachel for the gift. Should we just be thanking her or did you have something to do with it, too? The thank-you cards are tiny, and I need to adjust my font accordingly if your space-hogging name needs to go on there."
Luke rolled his eyes. "Rachel picked it out," he revealed plainly.
"Used his credit card, though," Rachel volunteered.
"Well, well. Nice teamwork, you two!"
At Max's laughter, Luke took notice of him. He found his manners. Still went with his first instinct to address the two of them as a couple instead of Max, alone. "Thanks for inviting us out. This is a, uh, nice…" He looked around at all the people and decorations. "...setup here. Very…pink."
"Feelin' at home, are ya?"
Ignoring Lorelai was such a fine talent. It didn't even take effort anymore. "Congratulations," he said to them both before looking to Max. "And good luck to you."
"Chances are pretty good that I'll need it, aren't they?" Max followed, obviously teasing his bride-to-be.
Still, Lorelai pointed between them. "Hey, no male bonding on my watch. What do you think this is, a strip club?"
"Jeez."
Max shook his head. "None of that until tomorrow night," he followed dutifully.
"And then never again," Lorelai reminded with a wagging finger.
"It ends there, I promise," Max assured, no argument.
Lorelai grinned, turned eyes to the couple standing there. One who obviously didn't want to know any details, and another who wanted them all. She chose to address the one who appeared to be in pain.
"Max is having his bachelor party tomorrow night at a nudey bar," she revealed to Luke. "You want to go?"
He frowned at her.
"Lots of boobies! Lots of fun! Seriously, it's on the fluorescent sign above the joint. On the perfect night, you can see it from the highway. Four reports of overturned big rigs in the past month alone. Those U-Turns at sixty miles an hour are tricky business."
"Luke's not really a strip club kind of guy," Rachel contributed.
Lorelai glanced at her. Of course she knew what kind of guy Luke was. For just a moment, she felt offended at being addressed like she didn't know his character. Was about to take up for herself but decided against it. Realized instantly, the idiocy of arguing about such a thing with the man's soon to be wife, of all people.
Besides, Rachel wasn't the enemy. Why would she be?
"Luke, you're more than welcome to come if you want," said Max. "Lorelai's banishing me there in an attempt to, and I quote, 'get it all out of my system while I have the chance'." He chuckled. Lorelai smiled proudly. And he went on. "My brother's going to be there, a couple of his buddies, and one or two of mine. It'll be as civilized as possible. Or at least that's the plan."
"Perfect answer, Babe."
"It's the truth."
"Sure, it is." Lorelai winked at him like the two of them were trying to fool someone else's fiancée.
Max could only laugh. He shook his head and looked back at Luke. "I'd be more than willing to share this classic night of buffoonery with you, Luke. You and I both are tying the knot so it's befitting. How about it?"
He was such a good guy. Luke could see that. Was honestly happy that Lorelai was getting that.
But hanging out with him was never going to happen.
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't. It's only me in the diner tomorrow night, and if I went, I'd have to close early. Sorry."
Rachel spoke up. "Yeah, it's kind of my fault. I was supposed to work, but I decided to drive out towards the coast tomorrow, see what kind of shots I can get." She gave a smile of anticipation. "If all goes well, I may head up north a ways, so I won't get back until late. If there's one thing positive I can say about this area, it's that there's lots of beauty. Lots of strange magnificence."
Lorelai looked at Luke. Saw him all quiet and thoughtful like only he could be. She bit her lip, ended up speaking the words that had come to her in a flash. "Well, actually, if there's only one positive thing about this place…" She looked to Luke again, and his eyes were on her, curious yet leery of her direction. She went on anyway, feeling confident that she was helping him on some level. "…It's probably safe to say that that one thing is this guy right here. Right?" She presented Luke to her.
Luke glared, and Rachel amended. "Well, of course I meant besides…Luke." She said that easily then seemed to reflect on what had just happened. Her eyes flitted to and from Lorelai in the seconds that followed.
Lorelai felt the awkwardness immediately. "I, uh, only say that because I know my pookie wookie couldn't bear being less than best," she said while leaning over and tickling Max's chin. Max humored her with a smile, though he could clearly see the mood had shifted. Not on his part, though. Lorelai sobered and looked between Luke and Rachel. "Guess I was thinking a little too much about Max."
"Guess you were…" Luke replied with hidden edge.
Lorelai met his eyes and blinked her focus away.
Rachel jumped in, cheerful. "Okay, well we're going to run off and mingle a little." She slid her hand in Luke's and pulled him along. "Once again, congratulations on the engagement! We'll stop by again before taking off," she promised.
"That'd be great," Max responded. "And thanks for the best wishes. Congratulations to you guys, too."
Lorelai nodded her agreement on that. Thought it was best if she kept her mouth closed.
She and Max looked at one another as Luke and Rachel stepped away. They sighed, smiled. He rubbed her cheek with a light touch and dropped his hand.
"Are you feeling good about things?" he asked softly.
"Of course," she assured.
He leaned in closer. "Fourteen days."
She repeated the countdown to him with confidence.
"I love you, Lorelai Gilmore."
Lorelai sighed softly. Showed contentment as she whispered for him to "come here". He did, but slowly. Gave her time to reciprocate if she wanted to. His slow pace only increased her urgency and she leaned in faster to meet his lips. They kissed for only a second before Sookie was there.
"Okay, break it up, lovebirds." She grinned as they did that. "Sorry Max, but I wondering if I could steal Her Majesty away for a sec. I could use some assistance at the hor dourves table."
Lorelai rolled her eyes dramatically. "Ugg, Empress' work is never complete." Before she could stand, she addressed Max. "You mind, Honeybunch?"
"Of course not," he answered. "Just don't keep me waiting too long."
She winked at him and hopped down to follow Sookie. Sookie immediately began explaining her dilemma. Lorelai only half-listened. Too busy searching the crowd to see what Luke had gotten himself into in the last few minutes.
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
Lorelai saw Max off.
He left his apartment around six with the men she was sure would guarantee that his last soiree as a single man was memorable. He hoped she'd stay at his place and be there when he returned so he could end his evening with the only woman he wanted to see naked.
She told him she'd have to see how the night played out. She had to make another short appearance at work and grab something to eat afterwards with Rory. She couldn't guarantee she'd be up for making the trip back to his place. After he left, she hung around for half an hour to pack smaller items of his. He'd boxed up most of his apartment to prepare for the move to her house.
On her way out, she locked up and dropped the single key in her purse, reminding herself for the tenth time that she had to get Max a key to her place. To their place. She initially thought of giving him the turtle key, but…that belonged to the turtle. Taking away his key certainly didn't seem fair.
Lorelai entered the diner close to eight, Rory on her heels.
It was busier than normal.
"Whoa. If this was Roswell, I'd say there'd been a sighting," Rory commented.
"What's with all the people? They're sitting at our table! They're sitting on our stools! It's madness, I tell you! Madness!"
Luke looked up from the register. "I guess you've finally lost it," he said flatly.
Lorelai grinned and pushed Rory toward one of the many empty seats. Usually around this time, there were only a handful of people. There were now between fifteen and twenty. Most of whom belonged to three larger groups, so there were still plenty of seats available. It wasn't anarchy quite yet.
"Are you advertising buy one get one free burgers tonight?"
He shook his head and passed them mugs of java. "No. Just one of those nights." He sighed and wiped his hands across his bottom. "They probably caught wind of me actually wanting to have an easy night before the big day. Wasn't going down if the fates had anything to do with it."
Lorelai looked down. "So the fates don't want you married?" she determined. "That's not the best sign. Don't want to anger the fates, do you?"
Rory cleared her throat. "I'd like a bacon cheeseburger and a chocolate milkshake, Luke. Mom, tell him what you want."
Lorelai frowned at her. She hadn't even given Luke a chance to respond to her question.
"Give me the same thing," she answered, squinting problematically at her kid.
"Alright. It'll be a while, though. As you can see, it's only me in here, and I swear this has to be the neediest group of people in the history of this business." As if on cue, someone asked for another basket of fries and Luke let him know it was on its way. He looked back to the Gilmores. "See what I mean?"
"How dare they come in a diner and order food?" exclaimed Lorelai in sarcasm. "Have they no sense? No decency? Despicable cretins."
Rory smiled.
"Jeez. Well, at least it's keeping my mind occupied," he mumbled before heading back to the kitchen.
Lorelai looked to Rory instantly. "What do you think he meant by that?"
"By what?" Rory asked in a carefree manner.
"Ear to the ground, Rory! Ear to the ground!" She flicked her wrist to the kitchen. "Luke said he's trying to keep his mind busy. Why would he want to do that, you think?"
Rory's face froze with a momentary grimace. "How would I know?"
"I thought you knew everything!"
Rory rolled her eyes at her mother who was growing crazier by the day since the whole proposal ordeal. Which proposal was the real question. If she was to be honest with herself, her mom's demeanor had taken on the drastic Sam Dawson at Big Boy's change, the day after her night with Max. Maybe it'd just taken an extra day to sink in.
The alternative was too wrong to consider.
"It is the night before the man gets married, Mom. How do you think you're going to be the night before you get married?"
"That's different," she proclaimed.
"How?"
"Well, I'm having an actual wedding. Gown, people, music, reception. There's a lot that could potentially come crumbling down on my freshly styled updo."
"It's a big step no matter its grandeur."
Lorelai allowed her to have that one. "So, you think he's nervous? Like normal man-before-his-wedding-day nervous?"
"Probably."
"Or like I'm-making-the-biggest-mistake-of-my-life nervous?" she offered with an odd sort of expectation.
Rory looked over at her. "The first one," she answered dully, though she had no idea whatsoever which it was. She did it mainly to draw out Lorelai's reaction, though she could see it coming a mile away.
"Well…there's no way to really know, is there? It can be the second one for all we know. I mean, some people do, ya know, probably think that about his situation. It's not the craziest thing."
"Mom, why are you being so negative? We should be happy for Luke right now. Just like you want Luke to be happy for you."
"I am happy for Luke," she stressed. "I've told him that."
"Well, stop doubting everything. Stop doubting Rachel. The entire car ride over you judged her for how she's choosing to spend the day before her wedding. Why is that your concern?"
"It's an opinion, Rory. Everyone has them."
"Well, you should probably have a little less of one," she stated truthfully. "I know you're just concerned. Not jealous. Because you can't be jealous, and you'd never admit to being jealous, and considering where your love life is right now, being jealous would be monumentally bad. So, we're going to focus on concern. Rachel's a great woman, and Luke loves her. That's enough, right? Please let that be enough."
Lorelai was struck silent for a moment.
Rory's blue eyes widened as she waited. "Mom, this is something you shouldn't have to think about."
She sighed. "It's enough," she admitted. "But-"
"Why the but? No but. There is so not a but!"
Lorelai smiled at Rory's whining and pleading tone. "Let's say you and Dean broke up."
Rory gasped. "What?"
"Hypothetically."
She scoffed. "Okay, sure. Hypothetically, you're ruining my life. Go on."
"And he was getting ready to marry someone else."
"Definitely not sucking any less here."
"Wouldn't you want to make sure that he's not doing something stupid and spontaneous? Especially if he had just broken up with the girl five seconds before he proposed."
Rory only thought for a second before she was frowning. "Mom, that would be a totally different situation. Dean would be my ex-boyfriend. My first love."
"Well…and Luke is my friend."
Rory sighed. "Look, I know you care about him and want the best for him. But you've voiced your concerns to him, me, Sookie, and even to Grandma in the middle of a play-by-play for a DAR debacle. Only thing for you to do now is to be supportive…and quiet."
"You act as if I'm being obnoxious or something."
"Close to it."
Lorelai looked at her and sighed. "You worry too much, Kid. You're too young for worry lines. Leave that to the old bags."
Rory relaxed. "You're making grown-up love look really complicated, Mom."
Lorelai sat on that for a long moment. "It's not complicated, Hon," she replied softly with a shake of her head. She looked into her mug then. "You just have to find the one that's right for you."
Rory's eyes drifted over and she spotted Luke in the kitchen. "And in your eyes, Luke hasn't done that," she sensed.
Lorelai brought her hands down to rest on her thighs. "I don't know, Babe. But marriage is a huge step. And I want him to understand that and be sure of what he's doing."
They held that soft but solemn stare. Broke it only when Luke's voice broke them of it.
"Burgers are on the grill. Finish up your coffees so I can serve up those milkshakes, Weirdoes."
"What's so weird about washing down coffee with a little ice cream? The Gilmore pallet is all for integration of temperatures."
Lorelai jumped into banter so easily with Luke that Rory was only left to watch.
Their back and forth routine was home to them. It was natural, like breathing. Came every time they were together for more than a second. Very simpatico in that respect. Lorelai didn't do it with Max, and Luke certainly didn't do it with Rachel.
She watched both their lips curve upward as Luke stepped away to help a customer.
Lorelai turned to her happily. "Hear that Babe? I got us extra whipped cream and fudge." She drew her lips into a playful frown. "I have to let him load my burger up with veggies, though. He slipped that in at the last minute. The Sneak." Her face lit up. "Think I can stick it in a napkin without him noticing?" She looked over her shoulder at Luke and found him glaring over at her. "What?" she asked innocently.
"What are you planning over there?"
"Nothing! I'm being totally good and not conspiring on anything!"
"Sure."
"How dare you not believe my lies!"
Rory quieted her thoughts and went on drinking her coffee.
-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
"Don't get home too late, okay?" Rory said closely to her mom before kissing her cheek and heading for the diner's door.
"Hour tops," Lorelai promised. "It shouldn't take Luke and me too long to finish up here."
Rory gave her a loaded look, which she couldn't exactly place. Lorelai cocked her head trying to read it from that angle. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Just get home when you can. Love you."
"Love you too."
"Night, Luke," she called, slow to take her eyes from her mom.
"Night, Rory!" he yelled from the back.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Lorelai asked amusedly.
Rory didn't say anything else. Just gave her a warning glare and exited the business with a piece of pie for later. Left her mom and Luke alone in the diner.
Lorelai chuckled and turned from the door. "Alright, I'm all yours, Danes. Put me to work."
"Um…" His thoughtful voice rang out from the kitchen. "Mind sweeping?"
"Of course not. I'm a sweeping fool. Where's the broom?"
He came out at that moment and grabbed it for her. As he made it to her and she reached for it, he pulled it away. "Remember, no one's making you do this."
She rolled her eyes, reached in, and snatched it. "I watched you run yourself ragged for over an hour tending to all your customers alone. You wouldn't let me help with that. The least I can do is help you close up now that your resolve has weakened from exhaustion."
He smiled. "Thanks."
Lorelai started moving the broom across the floor as he walked back around the counter. "How long does it usually take you to lock up?"
He cleared items from the counter. "Forty, forty-five minutes if I do it alone."
"Hm, well with me here, that should knock it down to…fifteen."
"Fifteen?" he asked with doubt.
"Or your money back."
"Impressive."
"I put timed pizza delivery to shame."
He nodded languidly. "Knowing you like I do, having you here could easily double my usual time."
"Ping! Insult deflected. Wow, this Luke-guard armor really works."
He chuckled. "Sorry. Don't wanna insult you."
"Especially when I'm being so nice!" she reminded.
"Definitely sorry," he said genuinely. "Keep up the good work."
"When I said 'money back' before, I wasn't kidding. I am getting paid for this, aren't I?"
"If by getting paid, you mean getting nothing but sincere gratitude, then sure, you're getting paid," he answered.
She smiled. "Guess I'll take it. Only because the banks are closed this time of night."
"Once again, Lady Luck teams up with the right side."
Lorelai swiveled the broom easily under the tables. "What time is Rachel due back?" she asked casually.
Luke shrugged. "Who knows."
She kept sweeping, though she had to fight to not gawk at him in that moment. "Shouldn't you know? You guys are getting married tomorrow…"
"She'll be back by then."
"You hope."
"Drop it, Lorelai," he warned.
She paused and looked at him. "Drop what? I'm just-"
"—Doing what you do best. Getting involved in other people's business." He went on speaking before she could get her first words out. "Which is okay because I'm used to it. But just give it a rest for tonight. If you don't mind."
She kept her eyes on him. "You don't want to talk about it?"
"About what?"
"This…thing you're getting yourself into tomorrow."
"My wedding?" he asked incredulously. "Is my wedding the thing that you just called a thing?"
She drug the broom behind her as she headed to the counter. "I didn't mean it like that."
He sighed. Seemed way too tired to respond with much of anything else. "Look, I know Rachel may come off a little too…Rachel sometimes, but she's a good person. And she loves me. And she knows me better than anybody. That's why we're getting married."
She bit her tongue as she stared at him. Pressed her lips together before giving in. "Permission to speak bluntly?"
He didn't say anything. Just nodded once after a reluctant moment.
She didn't hesitate. "If she knew you so well," she mocked, "Better than anyone else, wouldn't she know that leaving this town, leaving you, the day before your wedding wouldn't sit well with you? Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't her inability to stay put a major contributor to you guys' break-ups?"
Lorelai could see immediately that she'd hit a sore spot. His eyes reflected it.
"She didn't take off," he defended. "She just drove to-"
"Just so I know," she interrupted. "Are you convincing me or you right now? Just so we're clear," she went on to say quickly.
His glare was firm and highly contemptible.
Lorelai didn't care. As long as the words sunk in, she could handle the backlash. She was prepared for it and was actually quite surprised to hear him speak so soon. His scowl was fierce enough to claim at least the next few minutes as its own.
"I want to make it clear that this is absolutely none of your business." He clenched and unclenched his jaw as he stared at her, waiting for her to argue. She only lowered her eyes. Not even in shame. It bothered him that she didn't even think that she was crossing a line. "But I'll tell you this anyway," he went on to say, though it was clear he wanted to end discussion completely. "Rachel and I do talk. She knows my doubts, and I know hers. I know what's involved in committing yourself to somebody, believe it or not."
She nodded perceptively. Seemed so interested in what he was saying. "What doubts does she have?"
The question disarmed him, took away the bite. "You just don't know when to stop, do you?"
She sat. "You brought it up," she pointed out. She frowned and spent the next few seconds in thought. "What doubts could she possibly have?"
Luke's eyes automatically went to her then. She seemed to think well of him, as if he wasn't as far away from ideal as he thought himself to be. She had a residual nature of kindness, protectiveness, and loyalty, and he had to remind himself of that. It sometimes tended to be misleading, and he'd spent too many days in their years-long friendship following paths that led to nothing. Though he now knew better, it was still a process. A foolish hope that came as second nature. He was taken, and so was she, and there remained that curse that refused to give him peace.
The doubts he was referring to were actually singular. Rachel's only reservation…was Lorelai. She didn't trust their friendship, didn't trust that Luke's feelings for the blue-eyed brunette were strictly platonic. A proposal from Luke made it take a backseat. It made her happy and carefree and even made her feel guilty for doubting him. But it had come back up. Of course, it had.
But he'd never tell Lorelai any of that.
"Marrying someone is a big decision," he told her needlessly. "Everyone has doubts in some form or another. Everyone. Including you."
She created a smile. "We're not talking about me. We're talking about you, Mr. Less Than Half a Day Til The I Do's."
"Fine. Let's talk about you."
"No need."
"Let's make a need."
She smiled for real. Let her eyes, which had been searching his, drift away to other things. He wanted to change focus, but she couldn't find it in herself to do that. She was, after all, working with less than half a day.
She sighed as the smile faded, and she gently bit her lip in thought before looking at him again. Met his eyes because his had never left her face. "Can you set the scene of that night?"
Confusion showed on his face. "Do what?"
"Help me out here. The night you proposed. Sometime earlier you were at my door telling me about a break-up. Max came, and there was this…tension between you two." That wasn't a part of her central point, but for some reason, she thought it was worth mentioning. "You left after that. I'm assuming you came here to the diner, saw Rachel still here, and then…I don't know what. What was the conversation? What led to an engagement? I'm having trouble seeing it."
Luke slowly took that in as he stood there in silence. When he spoke, he of course wasn't anywhere near satisfying her curiosity. "Haven't we moved past this?"
"How can we move past something when you haven't answered it?"
"I didn't answer it because it's not important."
"Was she here when you got back to the diner? Did you call her and get her back over here? Did you drive to wherever she was? Did you propose over the phone?" she supplied to get him started.
"Jeez, Lorelai, you're going to drive me crazy with this." He exhaled loudly. "She was here when I got back here," he said with a sweep of his arm. "I said…" He searched for specifics, a look of annoyance on his face. "Something," he said as he came up blank. "She said something. We both talked about…stuff, and then I asked her to marry me. She was shocked, I was shocked. We hugged, we kissed, we… You want any more details?"
Lorelai felt a blush cover her cheeks. "You don't remember what you said?"
"It wasn't important!" he repeated.
"It was your engagement, Luke. People tend to remember that kind of stuff."
"Do you remember yours?"
"Of course."
"Word for word?"
"Well…there may be some articles out of place here and there, but yeah."
He crossed his arms. "Let's hear it."
"This is not about me," she said again slowly.
"Let us make it about you," he mocked her. "See how you like the pressure."
She smiled at him. "It's not a fair reverse question. I remember conversations from the sandbox, back when life was simple and boys kept their distance. My memory is kind of awesome."
He rolled his eyes.
"Seriously, Luke, you should remember the night you proposed to your wife."
He clenched his jaw. "You want me to call off my wedding?"
Her eyes widened. "What? Of course not."
"Then what is it that you want to happen? All of these questions, all of these seeds you're trying to plant, what exactly do you want?"
She appeared lost for what to say. Only for a moment. She sighed, shrugged. "I want you to be sure."
"For the love of—stop saying that, will you? I'm sure. I'm sure, I'm sure, I'm sure. How many damn times can I say that before you believe it? Seems to me you won't accept it until you hear me say the opposite of that!"
She sat in silence. Afraid to speak. Afraid to move. She only breathed shallow breaths and stared at him. Too much time passed.
"What's wrong now?" he asked.
She swallowed. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
Still with displeasure on his face, he responded. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure that-"
"I'm sorry, but I think you're making a mistake," she finished.
He reared back, couldn't believe that she'd just said that.
She spoke with regret but laid it out plain. "This doesn't feel right. It feels rushed. I want you to be happy, and if you get married tomorrow to Rachel, you're going to get hurt. God, she can't even commit to staying here for one important night! I know you said you're ready and you know what you're getting into, but I don't feel like you do. I know you think that I'm always speaking out of turn, and you're probably never going to want to speak to me again after this, but not saying this is so much worse than saying it. I want to be wrong, and if I'm wrong great. Even though I really doubt I am. You have no idea how much happiness I want for you, and…god, please don't hate me for this."
She held her breath and took in his expression. His very tense expression that didn't look pleased at all. But he didn't look like he was about to kill her. That was good, right?
"I knew it," he said through his teeth. "I knew you weren't happy for me."
"But I want to be!" she replied instantly.
"But you're not."
"Well, I can't force myself to-"
"Save it."
"Please, Luke. Do not be upset with me. Please. I feel so horrible already."
"You should!" he exclaimed. "You lied to me!"
"When?"
"Two seconds ago!" he bellowed. She started playing their conversation back, and Luke helped her when she took one second too long to acknowledge her deception. "I asked you if you wanted me to call off my wedding. Remember that? You said no. Do you remember that?"
She held out her hands. "Okay, yeah, I lied there," she admitted. "But that's before I made the choice to be completely honest with you. You think I wanted to upset you this much? This is coming at a very great cost to me here."
"You've been lying to me this whole time," he harped.
"Great cost, Luke! What I just said can only end badly, and still, I'm willing to take that chance. Shouldn't that tell you something?"
"Jeez, Lorelai, I can't even…" he began with a strained voice of composure as he held direct eye contact.
"I'm sorry," she offered. He paced to the end of the counter and back. Lorelai watched. "I can leave if you want."
"What the hell good would that do?" he asked as he rolled his eyes.
"Least you won't have to see me," she replied sadly.
He mumbled under his breath then spoke aloud. "You're not getting pity, so cool it."
A smile broke through on her lips. He wasn't too angry. Too angry would have him not wanting to talk to her at all. She didn't think it'd hurt too much to pull out the cute. It was only mildly rejected, which was a good sign.
"I'm going to get married tomorrow," he revealed matter-of-fact.
Lorelai's previous amusement vanished without a trace. "I know," she followed softly.
He came to a stop in front of her. Stared down at her. "So, you're not going to support me?"
Her expression softened and she tilted her head like he should have felt silly for asking such a thing. "I will always support you," she promised with sincerity.
He relaxed. "Except for now obviously..."
"It's the way I feel, but…I never left your corner." She shrugged. "Never will," she ended.
He looked down. Battled ferociously with the hope that sparked to life. Felt his heart beat hard as he looked up and still found her looking at him with a softness that skated so closely along intimate lines.
Heard himself talking before his brain caught up. "I wanted this for so many years that I can't even wrap my head around not wanting it now. I wanted to marry her and be with her, you know? Couldn't think of anything else, really."
She nodded her understanding. "Why…did you ask me if I loved Max?"
His forehead creased at the question that flew in from nowhere. "When did I ask you that?"
"You don't remember?"
He shrugged. He really didn't remember. But he could see why the question would come to him. "Sorry. Wasn't my business," he replied.
"It was an interesting question."
"Why interesting?"
"Well, most people would assume something so basic. But you asked. I was curious as to why you did. But if you don't remember, then forget it."
He didn't say anything for a few beats. "I have my doubts about you too, you know," he revealed brazenly. "About your marriage."
He was surprised to see her smile, but then quickly realized that nothing she did should surprise him with her.
"Getting Even with Lorelai." she presented. "The Macaulay Culkin sequel."
"I'm serious."
"I can't imagine why anyone would doubt a union so perfect from start to finish. Boy meets girl. Girl rejects boy multiple times before she gives in; finally, an unexpected proposal adds climax to tale. Girl turns down boy's proposal. Girl runs into friend-boy who tells her shocking news and then miraculously, girl is ready to commit. How can that not spell out L-O-V-E?"
She continued to smile to herself, aware of how careless it was to talk such a way. Implying things she shouldn't. Just being loose and stupid with words. She could feel Luke's eyes on her for the longest time, but she couldn't find the nerve to look at him. She should have expected his follow-up question. Should have. But didn't. Had too much riding on his inhibited nature.
"You said yes to Max because of Rachel and me?" he asked easily.
She met his eyes with a playful squint. "It did sort of sound that way, didn't it?" He nodded while studying her. "Um it was actually…several factors. But yes, seeing people move forward inspired me to…move forward," she answered.
"And…I'm people?"
"Last time I checked."
He sighed and looked at the counter. "Okay."
"What are your doubts about my marriage?"
"Doesn't matter. I'm not gonna lay it out like you did. It didn't feel too good, FYI."
"I can handle it. I'd like to know your thoughts. You wanted to put focus on me earlier, and now you have your chance. Besides, who wants to stay in the dark on a close friend's opinion?"
"I do."
"Save that for tomorrow, big boy. Now, back to my question."
He rolled his eyes. "I'm tired of talking about this."
"I'm not."
He looked at her with confusion. Her sure response only brought him up short. "Jeez, sometimes you just…" He stopped.
"I just what? Complete thoughts only, please."
"You're all over the place."
"No, I'm in one place. All the time. I talk fast and eat fast, but I don't travel faster than the speed of light."
"You know what I mean."
"No, I don't. I'd love it if you'd explain it, though. But first, your take on my marriage."
"You want me to say I don't think you should get married? Why would I say that?"
"Well, I said it to you."
"Don't remind me. And that's still not a reason to say it to you, Lorelai. I don't have any feelings about your marriage. No stupid vibes. I guess I'm not as gifted as you are. You either want to marry him or you don't. You obviously do."
She leaned in a little. "You said you have your doubts about me and Max. You said that on your own, Luke. I didn't make you say that."
"So?"
"So, it's already out there in the universe. You can keep me guessing and have me think the worst or you can just tell me."
"Think what you want. I'm not saying anything."
"Why?"
"Because it's not my place."
"Make it your place."
"Shouldn't we be cleaning or something?"
"We're talking. Cleaning comes after talking."
"Or after Lorelai leaves. Which is now if you're not willing to drop this. I have stuff to do tomorrow, and I don't plan to be up all night."
She scoffed. "Stuff. He calls his wedding stuff."
"You called it a thing."
"I guess if I jumped off a bridge, you'd-"
"Probably fall trying to catch you, Crazy Woman." He shook his head.
She smiled automatically at that. "Dammit, Danes." She sighed. "Okay, I'll drop it."
"That easy?"
"I think a sacrificed life is worth a dropped subject or two."
He looked relieved. "Still up for sweeping or has your spirit been broken?"
She stood up sluggishly. "I'll finish the job, don't worry."
"Woman of her word. Admirable."
She nodded, moved out onto the floor, and began sweeping once again. "I better finish this up before the little woman gets home and gets the wrong idea. You and I all alone in the diner after hours. You know how many x-rated flicks are made of this stuff?" She glanced at Luke as she said that and was able to see his cheeks flush.
"I can only imagine," he deadpanned. He turned and started breaking down his coffee machine.
Lorelai snickered and allowed a moment of quiet to pass between them. "What are your feelings about tomorrow? Nervous?" she asked with a serious air.
He stopped working and took a breath as he considered. "No, I don't think so."
That surprised her. She looked across the diner at him. "At all?"
He shrugged. "Kind of just feels like another day."
She took that information with a brief nod. "Excited?"
Another moment of consideration followed by another shrug of indifference. "I guess."
"You guess? Luke, this is your wedding day, remember?"
He dropped his eyes back down to his task. "Of course I remember. With you here, reminding me every twenty seconds, it's pretty hard to forget."
She smiled. Stopped working yet again as she approached the counter. "Hey, be sure you don't blink. You might miss the ceremony. Super soon weddings can make your head spin like a top."
"It's only two weeks sooner than yours."
She ignored that fact. "I feel like I should be saying something to you, ya know?"
He scoffed. "Trust me, you've said more than enough already."
"You should've gone with Max to his bachelor party."
"No, I shouldn't have," he countered plainly.
"Had some fun on your last night as a single guy," she continued.
"And you don't think this is fun?"
"Have you ever been to a strip club?"
"Please busy yourself with something."
"I've been to one. Just curious to know if you have. It's not the classiest joint, you know."
There was little comprehension, plenty going on in his head. "I can't keep up with you."
"I gotta tell you, I loved the reality check last night. You know the one." She smiled faintly. "I know Rachel meant well, but I know you, too. I knew the answer to the strip club question before I asked it. I was teasing you. You knew that, right?"
He stayed silent. Gave her a look like he wished she would just stop talking.
She caught the look. Followed that unspoken request. Just took a deep breath and ended up meeting his eyes. "Single to married is a big adjustment. I am trying."
His eyes never wavered. "Try harder."
She was stung by the firm quality of his voice, as if he was shielding his and Rachel's union, protecting it from the likes of her. An image of him standing before the Justice of the Peace came to her, and it didn't leave good feelings in its trail. Only brief flickers of desperation and weakness. All of which confused her and stole her focus.
Hours before the wedding, and already, Rachel was absent. Was this a glimpse of what was to come? He didn't deserve that. He was always there for people he cared about. Always there for her and Rory. She wondered how many days of sadness Rachel would cause him, how many nights of heartache.
She knew she should leave it alone. Fight the negative, unsupportive views that kept popping up like chips of recently dried asphalt under an automobile's tires. When it came around again, she did a better job of restraining it.
"I still have to get you guys a wedding gift, FYI. I haven't forgotten."
"Don't bother. Those are reserved for people wishing the couple well."
"We've established that I wish you well," she defended.
He shook his head genially. "We've also established that you don't want me to get married."
"Doubts stemming from timing. Issue with timing on every angle, mind you, but that's all. Once you walk down the aisle, so to speak, it'll be like this night never happened. I'll be the biggest fan of your marriage."
"Yeah, right."
"Well, maybe not the biggest."
"Thought so."
She smiled at that. "Just don't hold this night against me, okay?"
He, of course, didn't plan to do that, but he didn't go to great lengths to ease her conscience. "I'll try not to."
She sighed in relief and made an effort to get back to work. Just dragged the broom around the area she stood even though it was an area that had already been swept.
"I'm sort of in an ideal, romantic situation," she shared.
Luke sighed. She had no off button about the stupid weddings. He followed up like there were no problems on his end. "What do you mean?"
She stopped and twirled her broom as she looked over at him. "With Max. He's my last first kiss. Last first everything. That's kind of cool. Ideal."
Luke nodded slowly. "Wow," he said amazed. "I was just wondering about that, too. Guess I can now have a good night's sleep since I have that information."
She glared at him. "Hey, Mocker Mockerson. Excuse me for opening up a little. Feeling like I can talk to you a little."
His phony expression slipped smoothly into a frown. "I don't know why you thought that. Especially about that."
"Don't be so macho. This is the night before your wedding. It's customary to sit around talking about past relationships, love, and sex. What do you think Max is doing at his bachelor party right now?"
"Um, heading into the back with a stripper?" he supplied with a shrug. "Who knows."
She half laughed, half gasped. "Why would you say that?"
He smiled. "I'm kidding."
"It'd be just my luck to have that be the case."
He sobered little by little as he prepared a bucket of sanitized water. "No, don't start thinking that way. I was just feeling a little sadistic." He shook his head. "I'm sure he's being a gentleman, keeping his hands to himself, and only thinking of you," he soothed.
She smiled at the sweetness of that. Still asked doubtfully, "Thinking of me while naked women dance around in front of him?"
"I would be," he followed easily. The words came back to him in an instant and he closed his eyes as he stuttered out a proper ending to that. "W-with Rachel…I mean." He opened his eyes to her quickly.
Her eyes were wider and she had stopped twirling the broom. She dropped the expression and started spinning the broom again in a very poor but admirable effort to act as if she hadn't taken that another way.
He swallowed and spoke as coolly as possible. "I meant I'd be thinking of Rachel," he clarified more directly.
She nodded. A little too fast. "Yeah, I know."
He sighed. Mumbled an "oh brother" to himself as he collected the bucket of water and started to slink away to the kitchen to get his bearings back.
But Lorelai went on talking like the moment hadn't just happened. "So um…we've established who my last first everything is going to end up being with," she said with a warm and casual chuckle. "What about you? Does Rachel hold that title?"
He felt too much uneasiness at their previous exchange to fight off her nosiness. He shook his head. "She was MIA for five years. There's been a few firsts since then."
She nodded. Understood the rationale very much but didn't like the mystery of it all. Those firsts had to have taken place since she knew him, and she had no idea.
"Well, it's still romantic. For you two to finally get it right after all this time is fairytale material too."
He looked around. "Yeah." He grabbed the bucket and stepped back. "Well, I'm gonna head into the kitchen to finish getting things put up in there." She gave her acceptance on that, and he thanked her again for her help. "You want me to put some music on? Caesar usually does that when he's closing up."
"No thanks," she answered with a smile. She watched him leave. When he did, she rolled her eyes at herself and started to gingerly sweep. She didn't mean to scare him away. She still had plenty to talk to him about, but she could understand the need for a small break. She decided to give him that. She'd finish sweeping and then find another task closer to where he was so they could resume conversation. A radio would only hinder that. On this night, she wanted to spend every possible second of her time with him. His legal commitment was near. She didn't feel capable of leaving the diner with him so heavily on her mind, with him so close to being married. A panic attack was not out of the realm of possibility.
She completed her task in good time. Made her way behind the counter and found containers to refill. Luke came out as she was toting a box of relish from the storage room.
"Here," he said as he gently took it from her and finished the short journey.
"Thanks."
He nodded and went in the back for the rest of the condiments. As he set the final box down, he looked around. "This'll be it for tonight. I got the grill cleaned and the dishes washed. Everything is straightened up in the back and out here, too. I'll get Caesar to do inventory when he comes in tomorrow."
Lorelai peered into the kitchen through the order window and found that he was telling the truth. How had he gotten things so clean so quickly? She determined that he must've been working on it while the diner was still open. Still, they hadn't spent anywhere near 45 minutes on cleaning. She was owed about another half hour.
She watched him pop each box open with a blade. "Why can't we do inventory tonight? Save Caesar the trouble."
He shook his head. "Nah, I'm pretty tired. And I don't want you to get home any later than you have to."
"I don't mind."
"I know you don't," he said softly with a smile of appreciation. "Caesar'll do it, though. He's used to it. Gets it done quick."
Lorelai looked down at the three boxes. Three boxes that were sure to be emptied in five minutes, tops. "So…this, then we're done?"
"Yeah."
She was slow to accept that. Joined Luke in filling containers. It was done in silence, and they were finished in less than five minutes. They tore the boxes down and laid them down to be carried into the back.
Luke retracted his blade and stuck it in his back pocket. "You want me to walk you out?"
Absently, she shook her head, no. "Your chivalry is duly noted, though. Next time I come in, remind me to bring you a tootsie roll or something."
"I'll be sure to do that."
He walked around the counter toward the door. She picked up the hint that she was to follow him, so she went around the counter and grabbed her things.
"Again, thanks so much for this. I can always depend on you," he relayed sincerely.
She nodded, looked down at the floor as she approached the exit at her slow-moving and incredibly thoughtful pace. "Anytime," she told him casually.
She paused in the open doorway and turned with a kind smile toward Luke who stood waiting to lock up behind her. He looked down. "I don't know if I'm going to see you…before. I have a bit of an early day tomorrow so I may not be able to drop in."
"I understand."
"But I hope everything goes okay."
"Thanks."
"And uh…remember, you have my support. Okay? All of it."
He smiled. "Thanks. That means a lot."
She took a breath. "I better go." She stepped outside. "Night, Luke. See you tomorrow sometime," she called over her shoulder.
"Night."
Lorelai managed to make it to her jeep without looking back.
TBC…
