AN: Just a warning…there's no point to this story, in my opinion. I just wanted to write something where Tristan is verbally expressing his feelings…not just keeping them inside. I hope you enjoy this…and as usual let me know what you thought by leaving me a pretty and amazing review!

By the way…this entire story is Tristan talking so I'm not sure if the quotes with no end will confuse anyone…but if they do, sorry. You will be notified when someone else is talking…this story is pretty self-explanatory.


Title: A Man's Best Friend

Summary: One night Tristan converses with his "best friend".

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I own zip…

Pairing: TRORY…duh…


"I've always heard people say that life goes on after one's heart has been broken. Personally, I believe that's a load of bullshit.

"Let's be reasonable; if your heart is broken once there is only a slight chance that you'll survive. But what if one's heart was shattered with a sledge hammer multiple times? Huh? What then? After it being completely demolished, will life still go on?

"Yes, you say?

"Well I agree… it will go on.

"You'll go on living a miserable, pathetic, unworthy life. So what's the point?

"In conclusion, if you're 'living life' and you're 'unhappy', then you're not exactly living life…you're just here wasting valuable oxygen.

"Okay, let me stop. I'm beginning to sound a bit acrimonious.

"Alright, alright…a lot acrimonious.

"But can you blame me?

"No.

"You know why?

"Because if you went through a tenth of what I've been through, you'd agree with every single thing that I have to say.

"Oh man, do I sound as pathetic as I think I sound?

"Never mind. Don't answer that.

"You know, I remember the first time I saw her. I walked into class late- I had a note so don't even give me that look- and I noticed her the minute I walked in. She was so beautiful, she still is. But anyways, I made my way to the back of the class, my eyes never leaving her. I saw her shift uncomfortable as I made my way to my seat, and from that moment on I knew we had ourselves a 'Mary'.

"And the first time I talked to her…she was just too cute…


I see her walking down the hallway, so I come up from behind her.

"Hey, Mary. Hey Mary."

She turned around confused, "me?"

"Yeah, you," I smile sweetly at her.

"My name is Rory," she tells me.

"I'm Tristan," I properly introduce myself.

"Hi."

"So you're new?" small talk wasn't my fortei, and it still isn't.

"Obviously."

Mary had an attitude… I liked it!

"Well, Remmy's class is rough," I kindly let her know.

"Yeah, I could see that."

"You know," I smirked taking a few steps forward, "I could loan you my notes if that would help," at this point I had her backed up against a row of lockers.

"Really? That'd be great," I did not miss the sarcasm in her voice.

"Yeah? How great?" my smirk deepened.

"So great--"

"I could even help you study if you want," I said cutting her off.

"Tempting, but I kind of view studying as a solitary activity, but thanks," she told me before moving past me. She then proceeded in making her way down the hall.

"Bye Mary," I waved.

"It's Rory," she turned back as she continued to walk.


"That girl's something else.

"She completely surprised me, but being the master that I am, I was able to conceal my shock.

"Oh! And do you remember the time when I told you about how I talked to her after English class?

"No?

"I specifically remember telling you; the time when she got a bad grade and the timing to talk to her was horrible?

"Still don't remember?

"Let me refresh your memory…


"Hey Mary," I said after Paris had just finished subliminally attacking her.

"And it just keeps getting better," she rolled her beautiful blue eyes as she opened her locker.

"Oh you look sad," I truly was concerned.

"I'm fine," it was obvious she didn't want to be bothered.

"Bad grade?"

"I have to go," she told me shutting her locker and walking away from me.

"You know what Mary," I said as I stopped her, "See I can't figure out why we're not friends. I think it's because I make you nervous."

"I think it's because you can't learn my name."

"We're both in this school, together, for a reason…"

"Harvard's my reason."

"So, do you have a boyfriend?" I cut the crap and flat out asked her.

"None of your business," she bit back.

"Is that a 'no'?" I smirked.

"It's code for get out of my way and leave me alone," she said trying to get around me.

"See, I think you like me, you just done know how to say it."

"Oh boy," she sighed.

"So, what are you doing this Friday night?"

"Are you serious?"

"As a heart attack."

"Do you honestly believe I'd go out with you?"

"Well, why not? I'm sexy, hot, have a body of a God--"

"Annoying, cocky, conceded, rude, crude – shall I go on?"

"No, that'll do for today."

"Good, now get out of my way."

"So, pick you up at seven?"

"My God, you're like the energizer bunny from hell; you just keep going and going and going and going…"

"Thank you," I smiled broadly.

"I hate the energizer bunny," she stated.

"Oh but it loves you," I gave her a cheeky grin.

"Good for him – now please get out of my way."

"Well… since you said please," I stepped aside, "later Mary."


"That girl has so much fire…so sexy.

"Oh man you should have been at her birthday party.

"I think that day was the day she put a crack in my heart. She didn't completely shatter it, but damn was she close.


"Oh, coming to greet me?" I smirked as I walked through the front door and into her birthday party that was held at her grandparent's house.

"Hello, Tristan," she said through gritted teeth.

"So where's my birthday kiss?" I leaned in towards her.

"It's my birthday."

"So I'll give you a birthday kiss."

"What is wrong with you?"

"Ok, I gotta tell you something. I'm madly in love with you," I wasn't complexly lying.

"Well, good luck with that."

"I can't eat, I can't sleep… I wake up in the middle of the night calling your name. Rory, Rory!"

"Would you shut up please," she hissed.

I was about to say something, but her grandfather walked up to us, "Rory, who's your friend?"

"I don't know, but this is Tristan," was her witty reply.

Her grandfather and I exchanged words, but I don't really remember what was said- oh well, it obviously wasn't important.

But as soon as he left I remember saying, "he likes me."

"He's drunk."

"Let's take a walk."

"And do what."

"Talk?" I suggested, "But if you can't keep your hands off me, I'm sure your grandparents have a spare room somewhere upstairs." Believe it or not, I regret saying these words to her; the look of disgust on her angelic face was a knife through my heart.

"This need to prove that I'll go out with you needs to end because you're pissing me off," she shot back.

Why couldn't she see that I actually liked her and that I really did want to talk to her?

I know, I know, because I'm an ass.

Because I was hurt by her words I replied, "Why are you fighting this? You're gonna give in eventually."

"You wish – I'm going to go find my mother," that was the last thing she said to me that night.

"Wow, meeting you mom. It's a bit sudden, but ok."


"I knew she never wanted that party in the first place and all I wanted to do was make it a little less painful, but that backfired.

"I probably ended up making it worse.

"If only I could go back…

"I need to stop living in the past.

"You know, I think some music will do me some good.

"What do you think?

"I'm glad you agree… let's see what's on the radio.

Baby I don't wanna waste another day

Keepin it inside, it's killing me

Cause all I ever wanted comes right down to you (to you)

I wish that I could find the words to say

Baby I would tell you, every time you leave

I'm inconsolable

"That's enough of this.

"How is it possible to go on living life after you've had your heart broken when songs like this are thrown in your face?

"I don't know either.

"I mean 'of course life continues after you lose the one you love' and yet there's friggin' songs that friggin' say 'every time you leave I'm inconsolable'.

"So which one is it?

"Will I be 'happy' again or will I be incapable of being consoled?

"Oh what would you know?

"Don't give me that look.

"Whatever.

"I can just tell that you're dying to know when my heart was actually 'broken'.

"Well I'll tell you.

"Before, during and after the winter formal is when it took place…the first time.


I had just purchased two tickets for the dance and on my way back I spotted her in the line, reading while waiting to buy her tickets.

And I swear to the heavenly Gods above that when I walked up to talk to her my intentions were good… I swear.

"And she's reading again. How novel," I said.

"Good-bye, Tristan," she said. See how she shut me down?

"Did you get the novel thing? Because…"

"I said good-bye."

"What are you doing here?" I slightly smiled, showing her that I meant no harm.

"I like lines."

"The guy's supposed to buy the tickets."

"Really? Does Susan Faludi know about this?"

"Unless of course there is no guy," I said ignoring her smart comment.

"There's a guy."

"A cheap guy," I retorted.

"Well, what can I say? I like 'em cheap. Sloppy too – bald spot, beer guy, you know, and the pants that kind of slip down in the back, giving you that good plumber shot. That sends me through the roof." Her sarcasm was beginning to annoy me.

"So who is he?" I tried to keep the jealousy out of my voice… because remember, Tristan Dugrey does not get jealous.

"How many languages can you say 'none of your business' in?"

"Does he go to this school?"

"If he did I wouldn't be suffering in this line talking to you. Now would I?"

"Uh-huh. Well, look, ok, I'll confess something to you. I don't have a date."

"Don't worry, you've got potential. You'll find someone."

"Well I actually thought you'd like to go with me."

"Do me a favor…repeat what you just said to me in your head," taking a small pause, she then continued, "now, did that sound any less crazy?"

I began to lose my patience, "Why is it so hard to believe that I would want to go with you?"

"Because you're not stupid."

"Why thank you?" What else was I suppose to say to that?

"Slimy and weasly, yes, but stupid, no. you'd have to be stupid to think that given our history, I would ever, barring a piano or safe falling on my head, want to go anywhere with you, ever."

I was able to mask my hurt quickly, "Ok, fine, I'll take Cissy."

"I'll send her a condolence card," she told me as she went back to reading her stupid book.

"Yeah well at least she won't be buying her own ticket," I lamely shot back.


"But that wasn't the worst part.

"No.

"The worst part was at the dance, when she walked in with a freakishly tall ogre .

"And the first thing that went through my mind when I first say them together was that she chose that over me?

"Until this day I still cannot believe that.

"But whatever, that's in the past.

"The worst part of that entire night was when she kissed the bean stalk.

"He was so stupid because he was like 'Hey, if I kiss you in a nun gonna some out here and boot me out of here?'

"What a moron.

"It got worse.

"He actually tried to step to me. He got in my face and threatened me in front of my people. I was so fed up with him that I actually lunged at him and punched him in the face. Then people couldn't mind their own business and separated us. If they hadn't, Dean would be six feet under right now.

"But anyways after the fight she left with him.

"God! How could she have left with him?! Didn't she see that she was too good for him, that he didn't deserve her? She's too good for me too and I don't deserve her either, but I can give and do so much more for her. Not just because I have money, but because I care for her.

"I really do.

"But she made it clear that she wants nothing to do with me.

"She went as far as yelling it across the courtyard to her boyfriend – but wait I'm getting ahead of myself.

"This whole 'incident' happened after we kissed.

"Yeah, they had broken up and the night after we kissed.

"Don't act like I didn't tell you because I did.

"It was at Madeline's party. Summer had just dumped me in front of the entire Chilton population and Rory saw, and later she found me sitting in a room on a piano bench.

"So she was trying to make small talk…she was kind of sort of succeeding.

"That was the night she told me her and Bag boy broke up.

"Idiot.

"He broke up with her

"Idiot.

"Anyways we kissed and she ran away crying.

"Yes – ran away crying.

"So the following Monday at school she wanted to talk about it…

"The kiss, she wanted to talk about the kiss.

"At the end of the conversation we chalked it up to a bad night.

"Until this day I would bet my pathetic life on the fact that she felt something when we kissed. A little something in her eye shined while we were talking about it. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but I'm sure it was there.

"You remember what happened next right?

"She suggested I go out with Paris, I did but it didn't work out- that's another story for another time.

"So as I was saying…the day that she told me that she hated me, well, she didn't tell me per say, she just yelled it across the court yard to Bean, anyway that was the day she killed me. And that day was the day before summer vacation. So that summer I had made a vow that Rory Gilmore will mean nothing to me anymore.

"This vow was broken the first day of the next school year.

"I tried with every fiber of my body to ignore her, but it didn't work. Fate was being a bitch and throwing us together.

"For instance, Romeo and Juliet. I was Romeo to her Juliet. How ironic.

"And because the Beave was going to be at rehearsals, she didn't want him to know that we had kissed the year before while them two were broken up.


"You don't want me to tell Dean that we kissed," I sighed.

"By, George, I think he's go it!"

"Okay, if that's what you want."

"It is," she told me… a bit unconvincingly.

"Although, he's gonna find out anyways," I just had to say it.

"What?"

"Well, come one, you know that when we kiss on stage it's gonna be pretty obvious that it's not the first time. I'm a good actor, but I can't hide that kind of passion."

"Look things are really good for me and Dean right now," she told me, "And I don't want anything to mess that up. Especially something that meant nothing at all to me and I wished never happened in the first place."


"Do you now see how she shattered me? Do you see how it is completely impossible for me to move on from this heart break?

"Something that meant the world to me meant absolutely nothing to her and I couldn't handle that.

"I started hanging out with these two idiots; Duncan and Bowman.

"You know them; they've swung by here before.

"Anyways it's because of them that I'm in this situation. If it wasn't for them I would have never broken into that stupid safe, I would have never gotten caught and I would have never gotten pulled out of Chilton.

"I missed the Romeo and Juliet play tonight. And when I had to break it to Mary about what happened I thought I was going to cry.

"As I was walking away, I had to will myself not to turn around and look at her.

"It wasn't fair.

"It wasn't fair that I tried so hard to get her and in return I got nothing.

"I'm lying… I got something. I got a one-way ticket to a military school in North Carolina.

"Military school.

"I finished packing my bags and now here I am waiting for me ride to get here to bring my ass the airport.

"You probably haven't understood a word I've said, Rory, but thanks for listening to my boy.

"I guess what they say about dog's is true; they really are a man's best friend.

"So what do you think that chances of tonight ending on a happy note are? I mean, what are the chances of Rory showing up here, at my house, and telling me she wants me? Yeah I know… Slim to none."

"Um…Tristan?" a feminine voice says from the entry way.

"Rory?" I ask shocked as I get off the couch and stand and look at her; she's still wearing her Juliet outfit, minus the pointy hat.

"If you're busy I can-" she began to say as she looked at my dog.

"No, no its fine – Shoo boy," I tell Rory...with a bark he's gone.

"The maid let me in, I hope I wasn't interrupting anything."

"Nope, nothing," she probably heard it all, "So, what can I do for you?" I asked her, trying to sound calm.

"I'm sorry," she suddenly blurted out.

Uh-oh.

"I'm so sorry," she frantically repeated as she took a couple of steps towards me, "I tried so hard to repress the feelings that you were enticing in me and I wish I hadn't… I never knew what you were feeling--"

"Rory," I tried cutting her off, but she just continued.

"Dean was just there…it isn't working. I feel so stupid."

"Rory," I tried one more time, she was confusing me with her rant.

"And now it's to late, 'cause you're leaving and I feel horrible. I don't want you to go."

"Rory!"

"What?"

"Shut up," I softly smiled.

"Oh…right…I'm sorry…" she wasn't looking at me.

"Rory," I waited for her eyes to connect with mine before I continued, "Why are you here…exactly."

"I couldn't just let you leave the way you did… it felt so incomplete—God I know how this sounds; so cheesy and cliché, but I wanted to see you."

I was at loss for words.

She continued to speak, "I know you probably want nothing to do with me after the way I've treated you, but--"

"I like you," I say cutting her off.

"I know," she said blushing. I raised my eyebrows at her, "I over heard part of your conversation you were having with your dog," she sheepishly smiled.

"Oh…" well this was embarrassing, "Well, you see--"

"I like you too," she said cutting off my pathetic explanation.

My jaw hit the floor.

"Yeah?'

"Yeah," she smiled, as she stood in front of me, millimeters away.

"Military school," I said above a whisper.

"I'm sure I can talk your father into something," she mumbled against my lips.

Within seconds I snaked my arms around her waist, bringing her flush against me and I deepened the kiss, but we broke apart when Rocky start howling and barking.

"He's cute," she smiled referring to Rocky, as I kept my arms around her.

I couldn't help but chuckle, "Yeah, but you're cuter."

"I would hope so!"

One month later…

"Okay, so I guess what people say about life going on after a heart break is true after all. You do move on.

"Especially if the cause of the heart break comes to your house and tells you she wants to be with you.

"Life is good, Rocky. And because you've been such a great friend, I'm going to help you find a nice lady, dog friend.

"You ready Tris?"

"Yeah," I smile at Rory as she pops her head into the living room, "Let's go," I say grabbing her hand and head for the front door.

"Night Rocky," Rory said to my dog. After closing the door behind us she asks excitedly, "So are you ready for a Gilmore Movie night?"

"Thrilled," I smirked as I opened the passenger's side door for her.

"And you'll never guess what the theme is," she widely smiled.

"What is it?" I curiously asked.

"Dogs!"


AN: The END! For some crazy reason I could just see Tristan pouring his heart out to a big German Sheppard.

I don't know, maybe it's just me…

Please REVIEW!! I would really, really appreciate it.