After obsessively re-watching Gilmore Girls, I realized how alike Lorelai Gilmore and Shawn Spencer are and I couldn't stop imagining how a chance meeting between them would go down. So I took to my laptop and started writing a story. I've tried really hard to keep everyone in character, but if you have any comments/suggestions let me know. You don't have to watch both shows to understand what's going on, I've tried to make it easy to understand no matter which fandom you're a part of, be it Psych, Gilmore Girls, both or neither. Although if it's neither I'm not entirely sure why you're here...Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
It had been nearly two hours since Shawn had bid farewell to New York City with a final stop at his favorite pizza place before hitting the road, but already his stomach was telling him it was time for dinner. He had been hoping to make it all the way to Hartford, Connecticut before dinner. Not that he was headed to Hartford for the food, but it was the closest city and they were bound to have cheap hotels where he could spend the night.
He'd been in NYC for nearly a month, it had definitely been one of the more exciting stops on his cross-country motorcycle trip, but it was also the most expensive and he was nearly broke and needed a place he could live cheaply for a while and make some money. He wasn't sure where his next town to stay a while would be, but he wasn't big on planning these things either. Shawn much preferred just driving wherever he felt like going and settling down for a few weeks in whatever city or town gave off a good vibe.
His stomach twinged painfully again, and he knew he needed to stop for food before he passed out from starvation. A road sign for Stars Hollow caught his eye and he pulled off at the next exit, hoping there'd be some decent food there. It was dark by the time he pulled into the main town square, but even with only the street lamps and the light from storefronts illuminating the town, he immediately felt as though he'd stepped onto the set of Footloose…or Mermaids…or Gremlins. It's quaintness was a little alarming, but at the same time oddly comforting.
He spotted what looked like a diner on a street corner and parked his bike across the street, carrying his helmet under his arm as he walked into the building with the oddly misleading sign 'Williams Hardware'. He glanced around as he walked in, taking note of the scattered clusters of customers. As he wandered into the diner towards the counter, he noticed as people glanced up at him, taking a moment to evaluate the out-of-towner before returning to their meals and conversations. Shawn was used to this by now, it happened in every small town he'd been in. Besides, it wasn't like he ever minded attention; he typically sought it out in fact.
He reached the counter and sat right in front of a glass display case of donuts, a very good place to sit in his opinion. He picked up a menu that was tucked next to a napkin dispenser and started glancing through it.
A gruff looking man in a flannel shirt made his way over and pulled out his order pad "What'll you have?" He questioned, only glancing up enough to know that the guy was clearly not from Stars Hollow and that usually indicated an annoyingly picky or slow customer.
"Hmm…I'll have a hamburger with extra pineapple, barbeque sauce, cheese, and guacamole." Shawn said and glanced back at the menu "Oh and cheese fries with bacon…and a pineapple smoothie."
Luke stared at the guy for a moment, waiting for an apology and some sort of real order. When the guy looked up expectantly, he realized he was serious. "This is a diner. We don't have pineapple, guacamole or smoothies."
"No pineapple?" Shawn asked incredulously "But how do you make burgers without pineapple? It's like having a Japadog with no bun!"
"A Japa-what?" Luke asked and furrowed his brow in confusion "What are you…did Taylor send you? I swear if he's trying to make me change my menu…"
Shawn sighed because clearly Japadogs were also not on the menu. "I'll just have a cheeseburger and chili cheese fries" he said as he placed the menu back. The diner guy nodded and went to place the order.
The bell over the door jingled as a new customer came in and leaned against the counter a couple stools down from Shawn. "Luuuke I need coffee, preferably in IV form. Or in one of those giant martini glasses they have in bars…ooh or-"
Luke cut her off as he walked in from the kitchen "Why would I have a giant martini glass?" He questioned, not even bothering to get her coffee yet since she was clearly still on some crazy caffeine high.
"Are you pretending I don't know your secret plans to transform this place into a late night jazz club where Rat Pack impersonators will come and sing and Miss Patty and Babette will dance on the counter and flirt with the pianist." Lorelai rambled on as she had a whole visual now and was fully intending on sharing every detail with Luke.
Shawn had overheard the rambling story and couldn't help but picture this place being a jazz club. He glanced over in amusement to see who was providing this bit of entertainment and he had to do a double take. The woman standing next to him was beautiful; she had striking blue eyes and dark hair that fell in gentle curls. He tried not to stare, but he couldn't help it; after all, he was Shawn Spencer and he wasn't exactly known for disliking women.
"Thanks for giving me that image" Luke grumbled with a poorly hidden smirk as he crossed his arms. "But sorry, no giant martini glasses yet. Why do you need coffee anyway? I mean, you are planning on sleeping at some point in your life, right?"
"Bah who needs sleep?" She said with a dismissive wave of her hand as she settled herself down on a stool.
Shawn sensed this was a good time to chime in and make his introduction to the gorgeous woman next to him…of course it had to be a very Shawn Spencer introduction. "Jordan Cochran didn't need sleep and she was very productive…she invented stuff and resurfaced the floor of her room instead of sleeping."
Luke looked at the guy like he'd grown another head while Lorelai glanced over with a look of curiosity mixed with concentration. "Real Genius" she finally said and grinned at the guy who must have been an out-of-towner because she definitely would have noticed a guy making Real Genius references before.
Shawn beamed back at her, more than thrilled she'd gotten the very obscure reference "Shawn Spencer" he said extending his hand "President of the Val Kilmer fan club…pre-The Island of Dr. Moreau."
"Batman Forever made the cut?" She questioned with a look of fake shock.
Shawn shrugged at that and held up his fingers with only a little space in between "By this much…because he's still Batman. And also Jim Carrey was in it."
Lorelai grinned at that "I think you're being too kind with that call…although you are president of the fan club so that's understandable." They both sat there smiling at each other before she realized she hadn't introduced herself "I'm Lorelai Gilmore, Stars Hollow executive chair of all things pop culture."
"What a coincidence, I run the Santa Barbara branch…I didn't see you at the convention this year" he joked back, more at ease than he'd felt in a while. In fact ever since he'd left home, he hadn't found anyone who got this many of his references. Even Gus was usually slower than this.
"I was going through a Bender phase then, I made the mistake of watching The Breakfast Club the week before so the whole idea of a convention seemed cliché and made me extra angsty."
Luke had poured her coffee and was bringing the Shawn guy his meal, but he'd caught most of their conversation and was utterly confused. "Please tell me you're related" he said to Lorelai, unable to grasp the idea that there were other people as unusual as her out in the world.
"No, thank god" Shawn said before he could stop himself, he saw Lorelai glance over at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, obviously privy to the meaning behind his answer. "Because…there's no way I could tolerate being related to someone who disses Val's work in Batman" he said to cover up what he had really meant. He tried to find a way to change the topic and glanced down at his food "Are you sure there's no pineapple back there?"
Luke had caught on to what the guy had meant by 'no, thank god' to being related to Lorelai. He wasn't surprised; pretty much every guy who met Lorelai was head over heels for her within the first five minutes of talking to her, it wasn't like he had been any exception. He scowled at the guy and shook his head "No pineapple." He repeated and went to get the guy's chili fries.
"Pineapple on a hamburger?" Lorelai questioned as she looked at Shawn, suddenly she was starving and she snatched a fry from the plate Luke set down before looking up at him pleadingly "Luke, I want a cheeseburger with pineapple!"
Luke rolled his eyes and glanced at the guy "Great, now you got her whining about it" he glanced back at her with a stern look "Lorelai, you don't eat cheeseburgers with pineapple. You've never eaten a cheeseburger with pineapple, and if this guy had never brought it up you never would have wanted a cheeseburger with pineapple."
"True, but now thanks to my new friend Shawn, I have a dire longing to have one. Please Luke! I'm sure Taylor has pineapple, you can go and cut one up and make me and Shawn very happy." She gave him her most adorable pout, knowing it had about an 86% success rate on him.
"What are the chances you'll stop whining about this if I tell you I'm not getting a damn pineapple?"
"Zero" she said, making a zero with her hand as she stole another fry from Shawn's plate. "I'll also eat all your other customers food and annoy them so that you have a room full of complainers and end up with no tips."
Luke threw up his hands in exasperation and then headed towards the door.
Shawn watched in amusement and raised an eyebrow at her "Well that was certainly effective…are you two dating?"
"Me and Luke?" She questioned with a snort "No" she shook her head at that "We're just friends…well and he's my coffee supplier. But I'm single." She blushed a bit as she added that in because it didn't sound as subtle as she'd been hoping.
A smile tugged at Shawn's lips as he heard that and saw her blush, it was apparent the Spencer charm was having an effect. "So Lorelai" he started, deciding to let the single thing go so as not too embarrass her, although he couldn't deny he was very happy to hear it, "Where exactly am I?"
"Luke's Diner" she answered him with a slightly confused smile, she wondered if that was some sort of philosophical question or if he had short-term memory loss.
He laughed at that and shook his head "I gathered as much from the menu…although the sign outside does confuse things a bit. But I was wondering more about this town…I've been in small towns all over America but this one seems pretty unique. In the short time I've been talking to you, everyone in here has been talking about us and two people have come in just to get a better look at me. Oh and one guy has walked by that window four times and has pressed his face against the window twice…although I'm not entirely sure he's watching us."
Lorelai smiled in amusement and glanced over to see Kirk walk by again "Oh that's just Kirk, Luke threw him out today because he sent his grilled cheese back three times so he's been casing the place ever since, waiting until Luke's in a good enough mood to let him back in." She watched as Shawn gave an understanding nod "But answer me this…how did you notice all that, am I that boring?"
Shawn chuckled and shook his head "No, definitely not." He grinned at her to erase any fears she might have had about that "I just have…a gift I guess. I notice and remember pretty much everything. The memory I got from my mom but my dad was the one who forced me to take in everything, he wanted me to be some sort of super cop." He shrugged, knowing he was getting a little too personal and going to a bitter place so he decided to ease up a bit. "While I would be one helluva cop, I think I'd be just a little too sexy for the uniform. I want to be respected, not ogled."
Lorelai laughed at that and couldn't help but envision him in a cop uniform…yeah that was definitely a sexy visual. Her gaze drifted down his body for a moment before returning to his face, she blushed as she noticed the smirk on his face and she knew she'd been caught.
Luke walked back in with a pineapple and slammed it on the counter "You're paying for this and for the therapy I'm gonna need for that run in with Taylor" he growled and pointed an accusing finger at Lorelai.
"Well I'm definitely not paying if you plan on serving it to me in that form…also I have no burger yet." She pointed out and pushed the pineapple back towards him.
"I'll pay" Shawn piped up, the words sounding very foreign to his ears "For the pineapple and her burger…someone's first pineapple burger is a special experience, it's my treat." He explained to her, hoping to make a good impression on her, besides he could put it on Gus's card.
Lorelai smiled appreciatively at him for that "Well thank you…I should try new things more often" she said and turned to Luke who was cutting up the pineapple "Luke, you should attract handsome out-of-towners more often."
"They're not my type" Luke responded dryly as he picked up the burger from Cesar and added pineapple to burger and handed Shawn some pineapple for his burger.
"He does have a sense of humor!" Shawn said in surprise "Sort of a Dr. House type of humor" he noted and eagerly added pineapple to his burger.
"Hmm true" Lorelai said with a nod "But he walks much better than House and has no pill addiction…that I'm aware of. Luke, are you secretly hiding an addiction to vicodin? It could make you a bit funnier in a tragic way."
Luke rolled his eyes and walked off to go help other customers.
"I'll take that as a maybe" she said to Shawn as she picked up her burger and took a bite. Her eyes widened as she chewed and she looked over at Shawn in amazement. "This is incredible" she gushed as her tongue darted out to catch the drops of pineapple juice that had escaped during her first bite.
"Told you so" he said with a smirk as he watched her lick her lips in fascination. She was by far the most interesting woman he'd met in a long time and definitely one of the most beautiful. He silently thanked his stomach for going crazy earlier and forcing him to make a detour in Stars Hollow. Thinking of his stomach made him remember how hungry he was and he eagerly took a bite of his own burger. They ate in near silence as they savored the taste of their burgers.
As soon as they were done, they exchanged a happy look with each other; both were full and content in each other's company. Even though they had finished their meals, neither wanted to leave and they especially didn't want the other to leave.
Lorelai could tell this guy was passing through town and that as soon as he left the diner, he'd be gone from Stars Hollow for good. She couldn't bear the thought of losing a pop culture aficionado so soon and decided to stall for time. "So why are you in Stars Hollow anyway?"
Shawn grinned at that, relieved to have a topic he could spend some time on. "Well I had to stop in The Chat Corner for some shopping, I've been hitting up every cat boutique on the East Coast." He joked and then shrugged "Also I was hungry" he answered truthfully "I left New York and have just been traveling north, I was planning on stopping in Hartford for the night, but was starving before I got there."
Lorelai shuttered at the mention of Hartford and all the negative associations she had with the city. "Well I'm glad you chose Stars Hollow instead, Hartford is a breeding ground for Satanic activity."
"Really? Huh it seemed so innocent" he said with a look of mock alarm, he could obviously tell she had some aversion to something or someone in Hartford, but he wasn't going to pry.
She nodded and then glanced up at him again "So if you're just stopping in Hartford, what's the final destination?"
He shrugged at that "I have no idea, I was just planning on driving until I found someplace to settle for a while." He explained before realizing he needed to give a little back of background. "My dad and I aren't really close" he started and looked away for a moment "So after I graduated high school, I packed a bag, got on my bike and left home. I've been sort of aimlessly traveling ever since. I've been home since then, well Santa Barbara anyway, but I just stay with my best friend Gus. Sometimes I'm just there for a holiday but other times for a couple months when I just need some familiarity, ya know? But I really like traveling, I've been to every state besides Hawaii and Alaska, and I've been to Mexico and Canada. This is my third time on the East Coast, but I've never explored Connecticut much. Although there's not a lot to explore…"
"Hey!" Lorelai protested at that with a little pout "There's a lot in Connecticut…" the words sounded lame even to her and she gave a small smile. She was sure Connecticut had to seem very boring compared to everything he had seen, she was pretty curious to hear more about his travels. She'd always wanted to travel more, but of course having a kid at 16 really put a damper on those plans. She and Rory would travel one day though, and that would be even better than going alone. Although this hot loner biker traveling the country thing was really working for Shawn.
"There is" he said with a nod, really believing his words ever since he'd come across Stars Hollow. "I just meant land wise…Connecticut's about the size of a city in California."
She laughed at that and leaned a bit closer as she got lost in thought "I've always wanted to go to California…not just to meet all of my heroes, well okay mostly because of that, but also because I've heard there's lots of towns just filled with people who will appreciate my weirdness."
Shawn laughed at that "This is true…although this town doesn't seem too normal…" he said as he cast a glance at the window where Kirk was now just full on pressed against the glass, salivating as he stared at people's food.
Lorelai smiled and gave a half shrug "I suppose we are a little bit quirky here" she said and gave him her cutesy grin which got her the desired reaction she had hoped for, Shawn swallowed roughly before offering a dazed smile in return. He lost his train of thought for a moment before she prompted him to continue and he went on telling her about places he'd seen and the past few weeks he'd spent in New York.
They were so caught up in talking, they didn't realize when they were the only ones left in the diner and were oblivious to the amount of noise Luke made as he cleaned up around them in order to get them to take the hint. Eventually, he gave up and walked up to them "Time to leave" he muttered gruffly as he waved them towards the door.
"What? It's only…10!" Lorelai said in surprise as she glanced at her watch and shot Luke an apologetic look "How did it get that late?"
"I blame the DeLorean…there must have been some sort of time travel involved." Shawn said as he glanced around the now deserted diner, wondering how they could have missed everyone else leaving.
"Back to the Future" Luke shouted before Lorelai could, he was proud to have finally gotten one of this guy's absurd 80's references.
Lorelai tried not to laugh at the way Luke had shouted out the movie like he was competing against her on a game show. She wasn't even going to say that one, she thought it had been a given. "Sorry to stay so late Luke" she said as she got up and Shawn put enough money on the table for the food and a very good tip.
"I'll walk you home" Shawn offered as they stepped outside, not ready to say goodbye yet.
Lorelai smiled at his offer but then realized the walk home would be the last time she saw him…unless "What are your plans for sleeping tonight?" She asked before realizing how terribly that was phrased, and not just grammatically. "Not that I'm offering…that. That would be wrong on so many levels. But I'm not repulsed by the idea either, I mean you're very…um and I ya know…" she was rambling and making a fool of herself and took a deep breath. "I run an Inn, so if you're looking for a place to stay for the night, I'd be more than happy to check you into a room at a decent rate" she said with a smile, wishing she'd led with that instead of mumbling like an idiot about spending the night with him.
Shawn chuckled at her adorable rambling, a bit off put that she hadn't been offering, but then more than flattered when she mentioned she wasn't repulsed by the idea. The inn thing got his attention and he nodded enthusiastically "That sounds great, thank you" he told her with a genuinely happy smile "But I'm still going to walk you home after I get checked in, I don't want you to walk home alone."
She let out a snort at that before smiling because the offer was sweet "That must be the city boy in you talking, Stars Hollow is the safest town on the planet. The last crime to occur here at night was when Kirk slept-walked naked and gave little old lady Weston an almost heart attack from the sight."
He laughed at that and grimaced a bit at the visual of that "Well I'm glad it's safe, but I'm the kid of a cop…I'd feel better if you let me."
Lorelai accepted his offer with a nod "Then I'd appreciate that, thanks." They stood still for a moment, perfectly happy to smile foolishly at each other in the middle of the town square. Eventually she got a hold of herself and started to lead him off towards the Inn, but was stopped when a hand was suddenly wrapped around her own, gently tugging her back. Her breath hitched as she turned back to look at him, wondering if he was about to make a move.
"My bike…" he said as he nodded his head towards his mode of transportation carrying his only possessions. "We should probably take it with us." He said with a slight smirk, not letting go of her hand quite yet.
"Oh…yeah, right." She said as she glanced over where he had indicated "That would explain the helmet you have with you."
He chuckled at that and shrugged as he led her over to his motorcycle "Well I could also just really like ramming my head into things…but I think having a motorcycle is a little bit sexier reason to wear a helmet."
"I'm with you on that one" she said as she approached the motorcycle and straddled it, she clutched the handlebars and gave him her best 'bad girl' stare "How do I look?"
He grinned broadly as he took in the visual before him and it took all of his willpower not to lean in and kiss her. "Pretty damn hot" he replied honestly and then placed his helmet on her head. He found that the bulky barrier took away some of the temptation because he couldn't kiss her even if he wanted to. He placed his hands on her hips and slid her back a bit before getting on the bike in front of her "Hold on" he instructed as he waited to feel her arms securely around him before he started the engine.
Lorelai's heart was racing at an alarming rate and she really hoped he couldn't feel it, even though it was very possible seeing how close she was pressed up against him. It wasn't that she was nervous…not of the bike ride anyway, but every flirty comment and gentle touch exchanged between them set her skin on fire and made her feel like she was back in high school. She just hoped she didn't start twirling her hair and giggling like a teenager. As they made their way through the town streets, she focused on directing him to the Inn and controlling her breathing. She didn't want to think about how close she was pressed against him or how good his stomach felt underneath her hands. When they finally reached their destination, she leaned back and let out a sigh of relief mixed with regret because she already missed being so close to him. She gently tugged off the helmet and handed it back to him, hoping she wasn't blushing because she still found it very gallant he had foregone a helmet for her safety. Granted the Inn wasn't very far, but it was still adorable. "Let's get you checked in" she said with a smile and led the way inside.
Shawn gave her a head start because he was still recovering from the short ride on his bike. Since he'd only brought one helmet on his trip, it had been a while since a woman was on his bike with him. He was sure he'd never been that distracted on his bike before and he didn't know if it was just because of the way Lorelai had been holding him and subtly moving her hand over his stomach or because he'd never felt this attracted to someone in such a short time of knowing them. He shook his head to clear his mind and followed her up the stairs and into the Inn. Lorelai was already behind the counter with another guy who must be some sort of night manager. As soon as he walked in, the two began bickering and trying to get access to the computer before Lorelai cleared her throat and announced loudly "Tobin, don't you have to go check on that thing?"
Tobin gave her a look for that, he'd been confused as to why she'd shown up so late, but of course as soon as he saw the ruggedly attractive man walk in, it had all made sense. He had wanted to get a chance to talk to the new guest and check him in, but Lorelai had fought him over it and resorted to some underhanded measures to do it. "Can I take your bags, sir?" He asked with a cheerful smile as he approached Shawn.
"Uh sure, thanks" Shawn said as he handed him his bag and then walked up to the counter where Lorelai was already busy on the computer.
"So one night then?" Lorelai questioned, trying to keep her voice clear and not sound too hopeful that he would stay longer.
"Yeah" Shawn said with a nod, he'd known from the moment they pulled up that this place was nice and therefore quite pricy. After a month in New York, he didn't have the money to spend an expended period of time here. While he was definitely considering spending more time in Stars Hollow, he would have to find someplace cheaper to do it.
Lorelai gave a curt nodded and stared intently at the screen as she finished making the reservation, trying not to seem upset. She criticized herself for even being the littlest upset that Shawn wasn't staying, after all she'd only known him for a few hours, it was absurd that she was this attached already. She glanced up with a smile and handed him a key "You're in room 7, I'll show you the way" she said before Tobin could pipe up. She discreetly stuck her tongue out at the night manager as she stepped around the counter and led Shawn toward the staircase.
As soon as he got his bag in his room, Shawn turned toward Lorelai "So now time to take you home" he said with a small smile "Don't think you're going to get out of it even after you've wooed me with how nice my room is."
Lorelai chuckled at that "Well I'm glad you like it, but I wouldn't dare get out of it. A handsome suitor must always escort a lady home at the end of the night" she said the last sentence with her best Southern belle impression, which earned a grin from Shawn and an eye roll from Tobin who was still lingering, hoping to get to talk to the handsome guest.
"After you mi'lady" he said with a half bow as he gestured towards the door.
"What a gentleman" she said in the same accent as she fanned herself and led the way out of the room. Tobin caught up to her as she was walking down the stairs "Alright, I know when to admit defeat…that one definitely plays for you team. He already seems quite taken with you, not that I blame him. If I went the other way, I'd have a 'The Way We Were' type of crush on you." He whispered to her, hoping to get back on her good side. In his scheme to get Michele's job, he wasn't above resorting to flattering her and convincing her the attractive guest was into her.
"Aww thanks Tobin…although that reference just proves why you're on Team Rainbow" She whispered back with a smile, surprised by his change in mood; not that she minded the compliments.
Tobin laughed at that and waved the duo off before returning to work.
After a quick discussion, Shawn and Lorelai decided on walking back to her house since they were both recovering from the first bike ride. Lorelai pointed out some of her favorite places on the walk home and they had a competition to see who could make the most pop culture references, as they came up organically of course, they couldn't just compulsively shout out movie references.
By the time they reached her house, they were both laughing and Lorelai was grinning so much that her face actually hurt. "Well this is my house" she gestured and turned back to him "I would invite you in, but…it's late" she finished with a shrug and glanced down. 'And I have a 16 year old daughter who's probably in bed' she mentally added, not sure why Rory hadn't come up yet. She was never embarrassed to mention her daughter, quite the opposite; she always had a feeling of pride when she brought up her genius, Harvard-bound daughter. But with Shawn…she was almost afraid of scaring him off. She mentally kicked herself for how stupid that was and then realized she'd been looking down for quite a while and she looked up at him.
Shawn hadn't expected to be invited in, but he found that he still didn't want to say goodbye, and furthermore he didn't know how to say goodbye. "Right, it's really late" he said with a nod and glanced at her house and then back at her as he tried to figure what to say. He noticed she was staring down and thought maybe she wasn't too happy about him leaving either. "I'll see you tomorrow?" He questioned as he moved a little bit closer.
"Yes! I mean sure…I'll be at the Inn, for work…tomorrow at 8" she clarified and smiled shyly, wondering why he was making her so nervous. "If you're gonna leave Stars Hollow bright and early the least I can do is send you off with a fabulous breakfast from our chef Sookie."
"Breakfast" he said excitedly, not sure if the thought of food or the company he'd be sharing it with was making him more excited. He picked up on the not-so-subtle hint about his plans she'd slipped in there "Although I might feel bad if you go all out for my send off, I wasn't planning on leaving quite so soon."
"Oh yeah?" She asked in surprise, excitement and hope flitting across her face.
"Yeah…this town is pretty great. It's like Springfield meets Quahog, with a little bit of Bikini Bottoms thrown in."
She laughed at that, not bothering to hide her pleased grin "Wow we need to put that slogan on a bumper sticker…it will definitely draw the animation enthusiasts."
"I claim copyright on that," he said with a grin and moved a bit closer "So I'll see you tomorrow then?" He watched as she nodded at him and he softly smiled at that "Goodnight Lorelai" he murmured as he leaned in and gently kissed her before leaving to go back to the Inn, hoping he hadn't been too forward.
Lorelai stood there for a full minute after he left, still surprised by the goodnight kiss, but not wanting to risk moving before she memorized everything about it. With a small smile, she eventually turned and went into her house.
"And where have you been?" Rory greeted her from the living room couch as soon as Lorelai walked in the door.
"Oh you know, just hooking on the corner by Doose's for your future college tuition money." She replied as she put her bag down and plopped down on the couch by her daughter, unable to keep the cheerful grin from her place.
"Eww don't say 'hooking' and 'Doose' in the same sentence ever again!" Rory protested and made a face, unable to get the visual of her mother and Taylor out of her head.
"I didn't say with Taylor Doose! Wow your mind goes to a dirty place" Lorelai scolded and laughed at how traumatized her daughter looked.
Rory scowled and then looked at her mother "Seriously, it's almost midnight and you weren't answering your phone, I was really worried!"
"Sorry hon" Lorelai said with a guilty expression as she reached over to stroke through her daughter's hair "I didn't mean to worry you, I should have checked my phone…I forgot I put in on silent earlier today when I was in a meeting and I just haven't looked at in a while…" She trailed off as she thought about Shawn and grinned again.
"Did you do something slutty?" Rory questioned, knowing that her mom's current level of happiness was quite rare.
"No! Well…no." Lorelai confirmed and shook her head, but then decided to confide in her daughter "I met someone" she said giddily as she tucked her hair behind her ear and turned to face Rory.
"Really? Where?" Rory asked, she didn't think her mom had left Stars Hollow today, but she had been gone for quite a while.
"In Luke's" she said with a smile as she recalled the way they met "Luke was nagging me about ordering coffee and not sleeping or something like that when this hot mysterious guy at the counter made a Real Genius reference." She giggled and looked over at her daughter, waiting for some feedback.
"80s movie reference huh? That's a pretty great way to get your attention. But what's this mystery guy doing in Stars Hollow? Does he have a name or do you just go with the anonymous 'John' for your clients?"
Lorelai gasped and smacked her daughter's leg "Uh! I don't like what you're implying, of course I know his name…his name is Shawn." Her lips curved into a smile even just saying his name "He's on this epic tour of the country on his motorcycle…he told me a lot about the places he's visited. He has some really great stories."
Rory noticed how her mom was talking about this guy, she was pretty sure she wouldn't have even been this excited if she had met Mel Brooks. Her giddiness was pretty contagious and Rory couldn't help but smile back "A motorcycle guy huh? Like James Dean? Or Dad?" She brought up the last part cautiously, hoping this guy wasn't just being used as a Christopher substitute.
"Very James Dean" Lorelai confirmed and then shook her head "Not like your dad…Christopher is a rich kid with a bike, it's just one of those things that doesn't really fit. He's like those doctors who get motorcycles during a mid life crisis. But Shawn…" she trailed off as she remembered being on his bike with him "He looks really good on a motorcycle, he's got this rugged look to him and it's just…perfect."
Rory let out a little sigh of relief that this guy wasn't desired for being Christopher 2.0. "So motorcycle guy who makes pop culture references? I can see why you're so excited."
Lorelai shook her head "You don't even know the half of it kid. He's hot and has a great sense of humor. He's from California, so he's really laid back. Oh and pineapple! He loves pineapple and we bullied Luke into getting us pineapple to put on our burgers, you need to try it Rory, you're gonna love it."
"That sounds kinda gross…I'm sure I'll love it" she replied with a grin but then furrowed her brow as she thought of something "So if he's not from around here…where is he now?"
"At the Inn" Lorelai replied with a mischievous smirk "He'd been planning on going to Hartford for the night before he stopped at Luke's for dinner, and I mentioned that I just so happen to run an Inn in town and I could get him a room for a reasonable rate."
"Ahh clever, put him somewhere you can keep an eye on him and he can't slip out of town."
"Okay, that makes it sound like I built a hole for him in our basement. I'm not Buffalo Bill." She protested with a pout.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to sound that way. I was just saying kudos for setting up a way for you to see him again."
"But that's not even the best part!" Lorelai said with a grin, her high spirits having already returned "He walked me home and told me he's thinking about staying in Stars Hollow a while!"
"Well look at you" Rory said with an impressed smile "Does the Stars Hollow tourism board know about you? Because you seem to be really good for business…we might need to rethink that whole hooking on the corner business because apparently you draw quite a crowd."
"Mean!" Lorelai protested but then smirked "Although probably true…but still, you're very sassy tonight. I guess I won't tell you what happened at the very end of the night…"
"Do I wanna know?" Rory asked cautiously.
"I already got to the part where he walked me home!" Lorelai cried in disbelief "Do you think I'm gonna end the story with 'and then we had sex in the bushes next to Pierpont with Babette's other gnomes watching'?"
"Oh great, that's almost a worse visual than you and Taylor!" Rory shrieked and tried to think of non-gross things before she was scarred for life.
Lorelai smirked at her daughter's discomfort, glad she was paying for her attitude. "If you hadn't leapt to conclusions, you would have found out that he just kissed me. It was very innocent and sweet." She smiled as she thought back to it and glanced over at her daughter.
Rory returned her smile, although there was a hint of worry behind it. She could tell her mother had already developed a crazy crush on this guy that she'd known less than a day. Rory hadn't even met him but she already knew he lived a life on the road and would only be in town a short while no matter what her mother could fool herself into believing. She just hoped her mom wouldn't be completely crushed when this guy left. "Sounds pretty great." She said cautiously as she looked at her deliriously happy mother.
"It really was" Lorelai said softly and beamed at her daughter before standing up "Alright bed time, you have school tomorrow and I have to actually be up and looking cute by 7:30." She made a face at that realization before heading for the stairs "Goodnight mom, thanks for staying up late to nag me." She teased her daughter as she went up to her room.
"This boy is trouble" Rory muttered to herself, feeling like the real mother in this relationship for what wasn't the first time in her life.
. . . . . . . . .
"Hello?" Gus mumbled sleepily into the phone, too tired to even check the caller ID before he answered it.
"Gus!" Shawn said excitedly, he'd been worried by the fifth ring that his friend wasn't going to answer "You really need to get better at picking up the phone when your best friend calls."
"Shawn?" Gus asked as he yawned and checked at the clock "Is everything okay?"
"Everything's great" Shawn said with a happy grin as he thought over the night's events.
"Then why are you calling me? It has to be nearly 3 am there! It's almost midnight here Shawn, you know I have work in the morning!"
"Work? Oh you mean that pharmaceutical thing…you're still working there?" He asked with a slight frown, that place sounded incredibly dull and he had no idea why his best friend would want to keep going there day after day.
"Still working there? I've only been there for four months, Shawn!" Gus said as he sat up in bed, giving up on the notion that this would be a short call and he could go back to sleep.
"Yeah exactly, four whole months at one job! That's insane!"
"Shawn, why are you calling?" Gus asked bluntly, tired of being lectured about his job.
Shawn grinned again as he remembered why he'd called his friend so late in the first place "I couldn't sleep" he admitted as he glanced around the room at the Inn, her Inn. "I met a girl."
Gus rolled his eyes at that, wishing Shawn could see his obvious exasperation, but he had to settle for making it clear over the phone. "Really? You're calling me because you met a girl? Exactly how many girls have you been with since you began your trip? No scratch that, how many girls have you been with just in the last month?"
Shawn shook his head "No dude, you don't understand. This one's different…she's gorgeous Gus, like really beautiful with these blue eyes…" he trailed off as he got lost for a moment just in the memory of her eyes "And she's funny and loves pop culture almost as much as I do! She not only gets my references but throws em back at me too. She's really something Gus."
Gus frowned slightly at that; it was pretty unusual for Shawn to call just to talk about a girl. Normally it was just some side story to whatever Shawn had really called about, like a labradoodle sighting or a recommendation for some delicious new pineapple dish he had tried. "So you met a girl…" he repeated, not sure where he was going with this "And why did you think I should know about this at 3 in the morning?"
"I told you" Shawn said with an exasperated sigh "I couldn't sleep. I just keep thinking about her, and that leads to wondering how I'm gonna stick around here, where I'm gonna stay and work…and I want the answers now Gus, but it's 3 in the morning and I can't exactly go out and figure these things out right now."
Gus furrowed his brow at that "What are you talking about? You've never worried about that stuff before…you normally just pick a town and all of that seems to work out for you. Why are you so paranoid all of the sudden?"
"Because!" Shawn exclaimed as if it were obvious "It's a small town and I don't know if I'll find something, and then I'll have no reason to stay. And I can't afford to stay at this Inn forever, it's expensive…but it's her Inn, well she runs it anyway, which means I get to see her tomorrow." He grinned again at that.
Gus wasn't sure if Shawn wasn't making sense or if he was just too tired to keep up "Shawn, just calm down, I'm sure everything will work out. You at least have a very wide range of skills by now, I'm sure they'll need you for something."
"You're right" Shawn said with a nod and relaxed into the bed a bit, he always man
aged to find work before. If not through his impressively diverse resume than through his people skills. "Thanks buddy…sorry for waking you up."
Gus nodded and settled back into his bed "No problem, just try not to make it a habit." He paused a moment before adding, "You seem happy."
"I really am" Shawn said with a smile as he thought about Lorelai "Goodnight Gus."
"Night Shawn" his best friend replied before hanging up the phone.
I hope you liked the first chapter! It would be much appreciated if you reviewed to let me know what you think, whether you loved or hated it. Since I'm writing for a very small audience (I doubt many people will read this) any feedback you have for me would be great! Let me know what you think of the concept, if there's any character interactions you want to see or any other comments you may have!