Chapter 1 – Logan

I sighed and rubbed his eyes vehemently as I stared absentmindedly out of our…I mean my…apartment window. Rory had told me not to be at the apartment tomorrow morning so that she could get her things. I wasn't sure if she would actually come at that time, or beforehand to throw me off, so I left Honor's wedding moments after Rory did, much to Honor's distaste. Right now, however, I could care less. All I care about is Rory. At first I was just "attempting" to be a boyfriend, almost like a personal experiment. I knew I would make mistakes, but this had been the worst of all. Technically, I felt that I hadn't cheated on her. But I could see how Rory saw it that way. I shook my head. How could I have let this happen?

Suddenly, my cell phone started to vibrate in my pants pocket. I pulled it out quickly to check if Rory's name appeared on the caller ID, but it wasn't her. It was just Finn. I angrily threw my phone onto the pool table, where the green felt absorbed the vibrations until my voice mail picked up after what seemed like an eternity. A few seconds later, the apartment line started ringing. I glanced down at the caller ID on the phone to my right, and it was Finn again. After six or seven rings, the answering machine clicked and I heard, "Hey, this is Logan and Rory's place. Leave a message!" The sound of Rory's voice on the answering machine alone killed me.

Finn held out until the beep this time, and left his message. "Hey mate, I somehow lost track of your bloody ass at your sister's wedding tonight. Couldn't find Rory either. I was just heading home, with a leggy blonde I'll have you know," I now heard giggling in the background. Some things are just too predictable. "And I saw you bloody standing at your window. Oh and I caught a glimpse of Rory in the pub across the street. She was chatting with that Dale or whatever his name is from the Yale Daily News. What's going on with you two? If you break up with her, you have to give me notice so I can sweep in and take advantage! Just kidding, mate. Call me when you get this, okay? Later."

I searched the street for Rory at the pub across the street as I silently laughed at Finn's slurred message. And at the fact that Finn lives in the apartment one floor down, and could have just come up and rang the damn doorbell.

I finally spotted her, stumbling down the sidewalk across the street, Doyle rushing in the opposite direction. I quickly ran out to the emergency stairs and ran down them two-by-two until I was on the ground floor, and I burst outside. I quickly cut across the street and caught up to her. "Rory," I started, as I caught her hand.

"Logan! Stop, let go of me!" They were standing at least a foot apart, and I could already smell the alcohol on her breath. There was no way I was letting her go anywhere but back to our apartment tonight.

"Rory, come on. Let's go home."

"Home?" she spouted. "I don't have a home! I'm homeless. I have nowhere to sleep tonight. I don't know what I'm going to do…I don't' know why I'm telling you this anyways, it's not like you care," she finished angrily, starting to walk away.

"Rory, wait," I began. "You know that I care. Come on, I know you do."

"Yeah, that's why you slept with all those girls," she said sarcastically. I could see a drunken sleep already teasing her eyes as she struggled to keep them open. I shook my head and braced myself for her to fight back, but picked her up and started to carry her across the street back to the apartment. She didn't scream, which was good since it didn't draw any attention from passers by, but she still was muttering into my chest. Between the fact that my body was muffling her and that she was drunk, I had no clue what she was saying. I carried her through the empty lobby and into the elevator, and then into our apartment. At least I hoped it would stay our apartment, and not become mine. I weaved through the living room and put her on the bed. She tried to get up, but I gently pushed her back down.

"Ace, get some sleep," I whispered.

She reluctantly settled herself on the bed in what looked like an extremely uncomfortable position. She tried to push the hair out of her eyes but had no success. "I can't believe I fell for it," Rory stated, shaking her head.

"Fell for what?" I asked, confused as hell.

"You saying that you loved me," she finished, her head falling onto the pillow.

My jaw dropped. I pushed the stray strands of chocolate-colored hair out of her face, tucking them behind her ear. "Rory?" I said out into the darkness, unsure if she was even awake still. I got no response, and I sighed deeply. "I do love you, Rory. I love you so much," I whispered, kissing her hand. For now, I would have to wait until she woke up. I held her hand and watched her sleep. I watched as her body moved up and down with the steady movements of her breathing. I would never tire of watching her sleep. Or of being with her, for that matter. After a few hours, she started to stir. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and she smiled at the sight of me, and I smiled back, stroking her hand. Her eyes then clouded over as she remembered the events of the prior hours, and she frowned and pulled her hand away from me.

"What am I doing here?" she asked incredulously, sitting up as soon as she became aware of her surroundings. However, her sudden movement made her head spin. "Oh God," she mumbled, more of the previous hours coming back to her. Then her eyes widened, and she exclaimed, "Oh my God! Doyle's tongue was on my neck!"

I tried to suppress my smirk at this random outburst. "Doyle's what was where?"

Rory completely ignored me and stumbled over to the bathroom, where she furiously began scrubbing at her neck. I couldn't help but smile at how beautiful she was, even at four in the morning after a serious night of drinking. I leaned against the doorframe and watched her. Once I had settled in my position to watch her, she glared at me. "Logan, get out!" she commanded, closing the door and locking it in one swift movement. I, however, managed to hop into the bathroom as she did so, thusly locking us in there together. She sighed angrily and gritted her teeth. "Logan, get out of the way," she stated calmly. I shook my head, and Rory tried to storm past me. I put my arm around her waist, but she still managed to grasp the lock.

She struggled for what seemed like minutes with the lock, until I couldn't help but ask, "Hey Ace, what are you doing?"

If looks could kill, the one she gave me after that remark sure would've. "The lock is stuck. I noticed it the other day, but I never bothered to tell you about it or call the landlord," she replied, her anger at the situation evident in her voice. I tried not to let my happiness over this new circumstance be too incredibly evident, but Rory knew me well. I'm sure she could tell. But perhaps with this, I could have the chance to convince her how much I need her. "Don't be so happy!" Rory demanded. Damn, even through the darkness and all of her anger, she could still tell. Bad job, Huntzberger. Bad job.

"Sorry," I whispered.

"And stop touching me," she said, pulling away from me. I didn't even realize that my arm was still around her waist. Touching her had become so natural, I never thought twice about it. The bathroom isn't incredibly spacious, so Rory quickly found sanctuary at the furthest corner away from me she could – in the bathtub. I smirked at her and sat down on the floor next to the bathtub, across from her. She sighed heavily. "Why can't you just leave me alone, Logan?" she asked, burying her face in her hands.

"Because I love you," I stated simply.

I watched as she slowly shook her head. "Don't say things like that if you don't even mean them."

"I do mean it," I replied, not missing a beat. "Rory, do you remember that night at the pool house, before you had moved out, when you told me you loved me?" She had moved her hands into her lap, where they were fidgeting, but her beautiful face was now uncovered and I saw her nod. Maybe I was wearing her down to see how much I care. Every little bit counts. "I told you that I've said that to a lot of girls without meaning it, and I didn't want to say it to you without meaning it."

"Well you obviously changed your mind since then," Rory shot back, like a knife through my heart.

"No, I didn't, Ace. I love you. There's nothing I wouldn't do to prove that to you."

"Oh, and sleeping with Honor's entire wedding party days after we didn't even break up was showing me that you love me how?" she retorted. Wow, this was gonna be harder than I thought.

I ran my fingers through my hair. "Rory, I thought we were broken up. I've never had a girlfriend before; I didn't know how the whole break-up thing worked. But now I do, and I would never ever do anything like this ever again. The last thing I want to do is hurt you."

I hoped that Ace could hear the sincerity in my voice. Is that a glimmer of trust in her amazing blue eyes?