Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls. All I own is this story, and the characters I may have made up. I stole the title, "Forever and Almost Always" from Kate Voegele's song off her new album "A Fine Mess".
A/N: Another story! YAY! I'm actually excited about your thoughts about this and can't wait for the feedback! This will only have two chapters to it. Please let me know what you thought in a review!
HEADS UP!! This will be an AU fic. It will be somewhat light and fun in the beginning of the chapter, but it will have a few weird vibes, and will get into angsty mode towards the middle or somewhere around there.
Summary: After a year of marriage, Rory and Logan are faced with a tragedy that leaves one of them grieving…and the other in the hospital.
Background Info:
Rory and Logan got married after season 7, and have been for 1 year. [It's been about 1 year and 9 months since Rory graduated] They moved to New York after they returned from their honeymoon. Logan works at HPG under Mitchum and Rory works at the New York Times. She writes under Rory Gilmore because she always has, but the fact that she's Rory Huntzberger is not a secret. Mitchum and Shira started to get to know Rory when they heard about the wedding and now accept her as their daughter-in-law. [They actually like each other!!] Every two weeks, Rory and Logan commute from New York to Hartford for bi-weekly Friday Night Dinners.
Enjoy!
*Italics are THOUGHTS and SONG LYRICS! Clue: Song lyrics will be centered, thoughts will not!
--
It's Friday Morning, a dinner night…
"Hey, Ace?" Logan asked, walking into his and Rory's room doing his tie.
"Yeah?" Rory said from the bathroom.
"Colin just called. He wanted to know if you'd be up for the pub before dinner tonight."
"Oh, I'd love to, but I can't. I promised my mom I'd hang out with her. I'm gonna take off work early and go to Stars Hollow to go shopping. But you should go. You never hang out with the gang anymore."
"Well that's because I have an amazing wife I'd rather hang out with."
"My little kiss up." Rory teased him. "But seriously, Logan. You should hang out with them tonight…I can even get you out of dinner." She added in a sing-song voice.
"Are you sure?"
"Oh, Logan. Don't be sad. There will be other dinners, you know."
"Haha. You're hilarious."
"And you love it." She laughed before giving herself one final look-over.
"I love you, Ace. You know that, right?" Logan said after a few minutes of silence.
"Yeah, Logan. I know you do. I love you, too."
"I know." He said with an oddly detached voice.
"Logan. Hey. What's wrong, babe?" Rory asked, touching his arm.
"I don't know. I just have this weird vibe today."
"Hmm. Well, I'm sure it's nothing."
"Yeah. You're probably right."
"I always am, aren't I?"
"A little cocky today, are we?"
"Maybe a little." She laughed. "Well, I have to get to work. I'll see you later tonight. Have fun!" Rory said, giving him a kiss.
"I will, Ace. I love you."
"Love you, too!" And she was out the door.
At the New York Times…
"Hey, Rory." Said Becca, her best friend and secretary while she was walking to her office, a cup of coffee in hand.
"Hey, Becca. Do you have any messages for me today?"
"Not yet. So how was your night? Did Logan live up to your expectations?"
"Completely, actually. It was great. Logan took me to this fancy restaurant and then we came home and…" Rory stopped, seeing Becca's face. "Sorry."
"It's okay. I mean, I like to know about your life, but your sex life is yours and Logan's business. Not mine."
"That's probably a good thing. I should get to work." She paused, leaning forward and whispering, "They have cameras everywhere." Then in a regular voice added, "See ya."
"See ya." Becca said laughing.
A few hours later…Rory is working…
Beep. Beep. "Rory?" Becca came on over the intercom.
"Yeah?"
"Your mom is on line one."
"Okay, thanks." She picked up the phone. "Hey mom. What's up?"
"Hey, hon. I just wanted to call and ask how you were doing. See what's going on. You know, just normal mother-daughter stuff."
"Uh-huh. Like I'm going to believe that."
"Why, what ever do you mean?" Lorelai asked in her best innocent voice.
"First, we are not normal." That earned a snort. "And second, you have that 'I'm up to something, don't believe anything I say' voice." That earned a gasp.
"How could you talk to me like that? I'm your mother. Without me you wouldn't be on this earth. Which means somebody else would be sitting in that fancy pants office of yours that you love so much."
Rory rolled her eyes, knowing she lost this one. "I'm sorry, mommy! I love you, mommy!"
"Aww! That's my little kiss up of a daughter! All is forgiven!"
"Why, thank you. I don't know what I would have done if you were mad at me." Rory teased.
"Funny." Lorelai said in a dull tone. "So when are you coming? I want, no, must, shop!" Lorelai said, suddenly excited.
"Umm…I guess I could leave now. There's not much going on around here." She said, looking out her office door.
"Yay!" Lorelai cheered. "You just made mommy happy!"
"Alright. I'll leave now. See you in about an hour and a half."
"M'kay. Bye, hon!"
"Bye, mom." As Rory started cleaning up her papers, she got a bad feeling. Maybe I shouldn't leave yet. Then Becca came in her office.
"Hey aren't you supposed to go to Stars Hollow and visit your mom before dinner?"
Shaking off the feeling, she said, "Yeah. I'm leaving right now. I'll see you on Monday. Bye!"
"Bye!"
Rory walked into the elevator and got another, stronger feeling. What is up with these bad vibes? Maybe this is what Logan was talking about. Maybe… A ringing pulled her out of her thoughts. A glance at the caller ID revealed it was Logan. Okay. No bad vibes. Don't want Logan to get freaked. "Hey!" She said, trying her best to hide the vibes.
"What's up, Ace?" Success.
"Nothing. Just leaving the office."
"I meant with your voice. Something's wrong." So close. How does he do that?
"Nothing's wrong. My voice sounds fine to me. Why? Does it sound like I'm getting sick?" Maybe I can hide it.
"It's not a 'I'm getting sick' voice. It's a 'I've got something on my mind and I'm not telling my husband' voice. Ace, you can't hide this from me. What's up?"
Thinking about it, she thought, I should tell him. He's right. I can't hide this from him. I shouldn't. He's my husband. He'll help me through this. He'll calm me down. But that's also why I don't want to tell him. He'll get so freaked out. But if I don't tell him, he'll get freaked out about the fact that I didn't tell him…
"Ace? You still there?"
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. Listen I have to go. I'll talk to you later. Bye." She hung up before he even had the chance to say anything. I can't tell him. Not yet.
--
Rory had been driving for 50 minutes, debating whether or not she should tell Logan. That's it! I have to tell him! She picked up her phone and dialed his number.
"Hey, Ace."
"Hey, Logan. Look, I'm sorry about earlier. You were right. I have something on my mind. I just didn't want to tell you because I was afraid you'd freak out. So when I tell you, you have to promise me you'll stay calm."
"Okay…should I be sitting or standing for this?"
"I don't know. Sitting, probably."
"Okay…" He took a deep, confused breath. "I'm sitting now. What's going on, Ace?
"Well, remember how this morning you said you had this weird vibe?"
"Yes…"
"Well, today at work I kind of got one too. And then again right before you called me. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Logan."
He was silent. Then he took a deep breath. "Ace…you should have told me."
"I know. And I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to worry about me."
"Ace, that's my job. What would happen if I didn't worry about you?"
"The world would probably end." Rory said, making the mood lighter.
"Probably." He chuckled. They were both silent, just listening to each other breathing.
"Logan?"
"Yeah?"
"I…uh…have another bad vibe." She said on the verge of tears. "But it's stronger than the last two. Logan…I'm scared."
"I know, Ace. You just have to stay calm, okay? Everything is going to be okay. I promise. You're driving, right?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, just be care…" He was cut off by an odd noise.
Then Rory screamed. "LOGAN!"
"ACE!? What's going on?"
He heard crunching noises and then the phone line went dead.
He called back immediately, but it only rang in his ear and went to voicemail. Her cheery voice greeted him…
-Voicemail Greeting-
"Hey, it's Rory. Can't come to the phone right now…"
Logan cut in. "Just leave your name and number and she'll get back to you ASAP."
"Logan, you do realize this is my cell, right?"
"Yes."
"Then why'd you talk?"
"Because now we're a cheesy old married couple."
"Hey! I'm not old or cheesy. You on the other hand…" She trailed off.
"Hey! Ace, now that was uncalled for!"
"You started it!"
"And now I'm ending it." Silence. Then Rory could be heard laughing.
"Wait! Logan, the thing is still recording! Just leave a message! Bye!"
"Bye!" They both started laughing, and then, Beep.
-End Voicemail Greeting-
"Ace, it's me. What happened, babe? I hope you're okay. I'm going to come look for you if you don't answer soon. Just…call me back, okay? I love you, Ace. And just…be careful." He just hoped it wasn't too late.
--
He called Rory 8 times in the last 10 minutes, each time getting her voice mail. Now he was getting even more worried. His phone rang. It was Rory. He answered and the relief was evident in his voice.
"Ace! Thank god! I was so worried about you."
"I'm sorry…" Wait. This was not Rory.
"Who is this? Where's my wife?"
"I'm sorry, sir. I called the last number in this phone. I'm a paramedic…"
"Paramedic?"
"Yes, sir. What is your wife's name?"
Growing impatient, he said, "Rory Huntzberger! Where is she!?"
"Sir, calm down. Your wife was in a car accident about 10 minutes ago. She's unconscious and is being taken to Hartford Memorial now."
"What? A car accident? Well, is she okay?"
"She's breathing, but we don't know the extent of her injuries. We'll find out more at the hospital."
"Okay. Thank you." Logan said, shocked.
"Of course."
Logan hung up the phone and put his head in his hands. "Damn it!" He yelled.
"Nice to see you too, son."
"Dad, not now. I have to go to Hartford." Logan said getting up.
"Oh, no you don't. You have a job to do."
"Dad…"
"I don't want any excuses, Logan. Now sit. We need to talk."
"Dad! Not now! Rory was in a car accident."
That got Mitchum's attention. Ever since the proposal announcement, Mitchum and Shira got to know Rory better and soon fell in love with her.
"A car accident? Is she okay?"
"I don't know. A paramedic just called me and told me she was unconscious and is being taken to Hartford Memorial. So can I go now?"
"Yes, but I'm not letting you drive."
"Then how the hell do you expect me to get there?"
"You'll take the company car. You are in no condition to drive. Rory will need you with her. Now go."
"Thanks, dad." Logan said sincerely.
"Of course. Now go be with your wife. I'll call the driver. He'll be ready when you get down there."
"Okay."
"And Logan? She'll be okay."
"I hope so." Logan said, running out of his office.
--
On his way to the hospital, he called Lorelai, and Lorelai said she'd call everyone else that needed to know. She was in tears by the time he hung up. The drive from New York to Hartford was the longest hour and 20 minutes of Logan's life. As he sat in the back of the car, all he thought was she has to be okay. He thought about their break up. How lost he was. How…incomplete. But she was alive. He could call her and hear her voice whenever he wanted to. She may not have answered the phone, but she was alive. Now…he didn't know what happened to her. Or what would happen. She has to be okay…I never got to tell her I love her.
I'm sitting here all confused
Never-ending thoughts of you…
…Happiest Times, all memories
I dream of past days gone by
When you were right here by my side…
His ringing cell phone interrupted him from his thoughts.
"Hello?"
"Logan, its Lorelai. I'm at the hospital." She said in a solemn tone.
"How is she?" He asked in a strangled voice.
Lorelai could tell he was hurting. "Not good." She said on the verge of tears. "She's in emergency surgery. She has uh…a broken leg and arm and two ribs. That's all they know right now. Where are you?"
"Um, I'm like an hour away."
"Okay. Well she should be out by then. Emily and Richard will be here in about two hours. Chris is in Boston in a meeting, apparently. And Luke is going to come in about an hour and bring food."
"Okay. I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Okay. Be careful, Logan."
"I will. Thanks, Lorelai."
"Bye."
"Bye."
--
Logan's car pulled up in front of the hospital and he ran inside. He decided to take the stairs instead of the elevator, hoping to get rid of his nerves. As he reached the third floor, he felt exactly the same, but a little more worn out. He spotted Lorelai and went to her. She was crying. Oh, no. "Lorelai. Where's Rory?"
"Um…she got out of surgery like 30 minutes ago. They're moving her into a private room. The doctor said it went excellent and that she was going to make a full recovery."
"Thank God." Logan let out a heavy sigh and dropped down into the hospital chair.
"I went to see her." Lorelai looked at him with a tear-stained face.
"And?"
"She doesn't look like Rory. She's so pale. She's almost green…and…I…" She shrugged. "I'm scared." Lorelai's voice broke.
"Me too. But she's going to be okay." Logan put his arm around Lorelai's shoulders. "She's strong…she's strong and healthy. She'll be fine. You just have to believe in her."
"I know. It's just hard right now."
"It'll get easier."
"You should go see her. She'd want you with her."
"Are you sure? No one else is here yet."
"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. Just go see your wife, Huntzberger."
"Okay." He gave her one last hug and got up to see Rory.
--
He walked in her room and he could feel his heart stop beating. She had tubes and wires coming from every place in her body. Her arms, her legs, her mouth, everywhere. He fell down on the cold, hard, plastic hospital chair with a loud thump. He couldn't talk. His throat went dry and all he could do was stare at her with his mouth hanging open. How did this happen? My beautiful, amazing wife is lying in a hospital bed. Unconscious. Just then, the doctor walked in. "Hello, sir." He said.
"Oh, hi. I'm Logan Huntzberger. I'm her husband." He said, gesturing towards Rory.
"Oh, hello, Mr. Huntzberger. I'm Dr. Goldman. How are you?"
"I'm okay. You?"
"Alright."
"How is she?"
"Well, she had some internal bleeding, but that's stable now. She has a broken leg, arm, and 2 broken ribs. She's very lucky. I just got word that it was indeed a drunk driver that hit her. Most victims of drunk driving on freeways hardly ever make it."
Logan was speechless. He could have lost her.
"Right now, she is unconscious. We don't know when she'll wake up. Hopefully it's soon, so we can see if there was any traumas to her head, i.e. memory loss, brain damage, et cetera…"
He was interrupted by the intercom: "Paging Dr. Goldman to room 8419. Paging Dr. Goldman to room 8419."
"Excuse me." He said. and he was out the door.
Logan looked at Rory. Lorelai was right. She was pale. Very pale.
His phone rang. The caller ID flashed: Colin.
"Hello?"
"Huntzberger! Where are you, man? We're all at the pub and let me tell you, Finn is insane."
"Hey! Well at least I'm not boring." (A/N: The italics are Finn talking!)
"…And I know Rory won't be here, but don't you love us enough to hang out with us every once in a while?"
"Colin…Rory…she's uh…"
"Logan, what's wrong?"
"Rory is in the h-hospital."
"What?"
"She was in a car accident. She was hit by a drunk driver."
"The bastard."
"What? Colin, what'd he say?"
"Rory was in a car accident. She was hit by a drunk driver and now she's in the hospital."
"Bloody hell. Is she okay?"
"Logan? What happened? Is she okay?"
"Not really. She has a broken leg, arm, and 2 broken ribs. She had internal bleeding, but she's stable now."
"Where is she?"
"Hartford Memorial."
"Okay. We'll all be there soon."
"Okay. Bye."
"Bye."
--
Logan walked out of Rory's room to find Luke and Lorelai sitting in the waiting room with bags of food.
"Hey. How is she?" Lorelai asked.
"The same."
"What exactly is wrong with her?" Luke asked.
"She has a broken leg, arm, and 2 broken ribs. She had internal bleeding, but she's stable now. And she's unconscious."
"Oh my god."
"Luke, you should go see her. She'd want to see you." Lorelai suggested.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Just be prepared. She doesn't look like Rory."
"Okay." He walked off into the direction of Rory's room.
"Want something to eat?"
--
Colin, Finn, Steph, and a few select members of the LDB ran in the hospital. "Lorelai!" Steph yelled. "Where is she? What happened? What is going on?"
"Hi, Steph. She's in room 1984. Logan's in there and she's still unconscious."
"Thanks Lorelai!" Steph started walking to her room, knowing how broken Logan was and how he would need someone with him. The rest of the LDB sat in the waiting room.
Logan was in her room sitting on the hospital chair. He just stared at Rory. Steph walked in.
"Logan?"
"Hi."
"Are you okay?" She asked cautiously.
"What happens if I lose her?"
"You won't lose her, Logan." Steph sighed and walked in fully and put a hand on his back.
"You don't know that. The doctor told me that drunk driver victims hardly ever survive."
"That doesn't mean anything. It's a statistic. And I've never known Rory to go along with what every one else is doing."
"Statistics are statistics, Steph."
"Logan, Rory wouldn't have died. She loves you too much."
"It's not her choice to decide whether or not she lives."
"Yes it is, Logan. She can fight like hell or just give up. And right now, I'll bet you she's fighting like hell. She loves you, Logan. You know that."
"I know. But what if she can't fight anymore? What if something happens and she can't do it anymore?"
"Logan, you have to believe that she'll be okay. You have to believe in her. That's the only way she'll ever wake up. She has to know that you have faith in her."
"I do have faith in her."
"Then show it." And then she walked out.
Logan sighed and looked at Rory. "She's right, Ace. She is so right." He grabbed her hand. "I do have faith in you, Ace. I do. But I guess I need to have more…It's just that…when I got that call telling me that you had been in an accident, my world stopped. It was almost as if…you were gone. Like…you had left. I don't know what I'd do without you, Ace. I really don't. I don't really want to find out, either. That time we were apart after the Jess incident, I…I was lost. And I know how cheesy it is, but that time away from you made me realize how much I loved you. How much I needed you in my life. And it kind of scared me because I had never been in love before. I had never felt any romantic feelings towards anyone. But I realized that you were special. I realized that my love for you was something that I couldn't deny and would always be there. And if I did try to deny it, I'd be pretty stupid because you're one of a kind, Ace. And I love you for it. I always will. That's why I came to you that day and attacked you in your hall," he chuckled, "because I had already lost you once, and I wasn't about to lose you forever. So I fought like hell. For you. For us. For everything that we had together. And once you gave us another shot…I was never letting go."
The one thing Logan didn't know…someone was listening.
A/N: Ooooohhh…big cliffy! Who was listening? Review and tell me what you thought!
Song Used In This Chapter: Nina Sky: Surely Missed – I did not use the entire song. I only took a few lines from it because it didn't match that well – it was way to depressing.