A little plus sign stared back at Lorelai, mocking her. There had to be a mistake. She couldn't be pregnant. She absolutely couldn't be. It must be defective. She reached back into the box and pulled another one out. But again, the evil little plus sign poked up its head again, assuring her that this wasn't a mistake.

Shocked, frozen, and numb, Lorelai sat there staring at nothing. Her whole life seemed to pass before her eyes, showing her once again her night with Christopher. Who knew that something so innocent could cause such a calamity? In one fail swoop she had ruined her life and Chris's.

But it doesn't have to be that way, a little voice inside her whispered. His life doesn't have to end because you made a mistake. It was then that she knew what she had to do.

She walked out of the bathroom and into the hallway. Being late to class didn't matter right now, finding Christopher absolutely mattered. Luckily he was right across the hall, waiting for her. The worried look on his face nearly brought her to tears, but she kept the serious look in her eyes and walked toward him.

"Look, Chris, we need to talk."

"Okay, let's talk."

She took a deep breath before passing the point of no return, "We need to end this."

"… End what? Our relationship?"

"Yes."

"Why? What are you talking about? Did I do something wrong, cause I'm sor –"

"Nothing. You did nothing. You did everything right. It's just… it's my parents! They said that I can't see you anymore because I'm getting too distracted at my young age," She used her Emily Gilmore impersonation for the last part. But it still didn't make things better.

"Since when do you care about what your parents say? This isn't like you!" The pain in his eyes was almost unbearable. How could she hurt someone she cared about so much?

"Chris, I can't do this anymore. I'm sorry, but I'm ending this. It'll be better this way," Tears began to fill her eyes as she looked at him. She had to get away, fast, "Goodbye, Chris."

And she turned and walked away crying.

She waited until midnight, when she heard her parent's door shut. Then, she got out of bed and began packing. In her duffle bag, she put the necessities, as well as her tape player and extensive collection of cassettes. She counted over $200 dollars in her wallet, and adrenaline rushed through her. Lastly, she grabbed her Polaroid and took a picture of her old doll house. It was her favorite part of the whole house, her whole childhood even. One day I'll come and get it back, she thought. Shaking the picture, she stuffed it and the camera in her bag.

Trying to get dressed, she couldn't help but let the tears fall. She couldn't believe it had come to this. The life she knew was ending so fast, it was making her head spin. Finally, she stumbled into an old pair of jeans and her long The Go Go's t-shirt.

Looking at the clock, Lorelai noticed it was getting later. She had to get moving. Putting on her military jacket and throwing her duffle bag over her shoulder, she crept down the hall. Carefully, she placed the note on the floor by her parent's room, and went back to her room. After one last look, she silently climbed out the window.

Arriving at the bus station was only her first dilemma. Lorelai had absolutely no clue where to go. She had been out of Hartford, yes, but not to any of the towns nearby. She had no clue what other towns were like, let alone which she wanted to live in.

When the bus arrived, she still got on. The bus driver gave an odd look, but let her pay the fee and get on. There was absolutely no one on the bus.

She sat quietly. Passing several towns, she could never find one that felt right. So she kept riding. Washington Depot, New Haven, Woodbridge, Woodbury, Beacon Falls, Essex, Litchfield, Gorton, New London, Wallingford, Newington – the list went on. After hours, they stopped again. This time, the bus driver looked back at Lorelai.

"Kid, this is the last stop before I head back to Hartford. From what it looks like, you don't want to go back. I'm sorry, but you gotta get off now."

Almost unaware, she got off the bus. Frantically she looked around, and saw a sign that read "Stars Hollow: Founded 1779". The bus pulled away, and a gust of wind blew her hair. She sat down on the ground against the sign, and started sobbing.

Everything was falling apart around her. She hurt Christopher, she hurt her parents, she was hurting it, and she was hurting herself. Who was she kidding? How could she ever make it on her own, pregnant, and 16? She pulled up her knees and sat crying for who knows how long. She sat alone, waiting for something and nothing at the same time.

A few people began to come out of their homes, walking about. No one seemed to notice the girl crying her eyes out by the sign. She had never felt more invisible.

Then, someone walked right by her. And this person actually stopped by her. And they spoke to her.

"Um… Are you okay?"

Tentatively, she looked up. A boy a little older than her stared back at her. His shaggy brown hair almost hid his soft blue eyes, but couldn't hide the puzzled look on his face. Drying her eyes and trying to laugh, Lorelai tried to reply.

"I don't exactly look okay, do I?"

"I guess not," He helped her to her feet, "Do you know what time it is?"

"Judging by how extremely tired everyone is looking, I'm guessing it's early."

"Try 5:00 A.M."

"Are you kidding?" Richard and Emily would be up soon. Soon it would be too late to go back home. There really was no turning back.

"Listen, shouldn't you be home soon?" Wow, did he just read my mind?

"Uh, I can't exactly go home right now since I ran away a couple hours ago."

"Oh. Well… do you want some coffee, at least?"

"Yeah, that sounds really good actually."

She followed him through the streets of Stars Hollow. They passed various restaurants, stores, etc. This town was so small, but so big at the same time. She had been so upset when she had to come here, but looking around Stars Hollow made her feel like she was… home.

Finally they arrived at an old hardware store. He opened the door for her, walked in, and disappeared in the back. After a while, her returned with a cup of coffee, and gave it to Lorelai. Drinking it, she felt warm and comforted. All the crap that was happening seemed to melt a little.

Once she came back to Earth with the energy to carry on, she tried to start some conversation.

"Do you live here?"

"Yeah. It was my dad's, and now I'm trying to convert it into an apartment or something."

"That's cool."

"So how old are you?"

"Sixteen. You?"

"Nineteen."

"Really? I knew it."

"…You knew it?"

"I could tell," She said, smiling, "So have you lived here your whole life."

"Yep. Nineteen years in Stars Hollow."

"Well, don't you like it?"

He took a deep breath before he answered her, "It's okay. Some of the tradition bull they shove at you gets on my nerves. But other than that it's nice, I guess. Its home."

"That's real nice," She was smiling again, she realized. She was so calm around this stranger, just because he made her the greatest coffee ever. "Well I should actually start moving now. Hey, not to be super pushy or anything, but do you know where I can get a job around here?"

"Uh, yeah. You should check Miss Patties. It's just down the street."

"Great, thanks! And thanks for the coffee, it was amazing."

"No problem. Oh, hey, I didn't catch your name."

"Oh, it's Lorelai. Lorelai Gilmore."

"Lorelai. I like it. See you around, Lorelai."

"… And your name is…?"

"Oh! I'm sor – I for -" He faltered a little, and tried to regain his tough composure. She stood there, waiting. After a while, he found his footing and responded.

"Luke. Luke Danes."