Blue Plaid, Coffee and a Baseball Cap

A/N: Please read and review. Not that reviewing will affect whether or not I complete this, but I'd like your input so I know where I'm going right and where I'm failing spectacularly. If you know what I mean… Thanks!

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Lorelai's phone chimed in her ear and she groaned as she rolled over in bed, glancing at the clock. She muttered something about the time and cupcakes before reaching onto her nightstand and grabbing the ringing fiend. She stared at the caller id and blinked.

"Mother," she said as she picked it up, "What time is it over there in Hartford? Because here is Stars Hollow it is what we call dawn, a time far too early to be receiving phone calls from even our most loved ones."

She heard her mother's impatience. "Lorelai, it is 7 in the morning; it is hardly dawn. I figured you would be up by now making a nice warm breakfast for my granddaughter before her half hour ride on the filth-ridden public bus to school. But, I guess I was mistaken. Perhaps your alarm clock didn't go off because you had a blackout last night, or maybe you drifted back to sleep, because I dare say it would be nothing short of shocking to hear that my 32 year old daughter finds it unlawful to be woken at 7 o'clock in the morning."

"I assume you didn't call just to make sure I'm awake, Mother Machiavelli." She rolled over in bed and squinted into the light that was coming in from between the drapes.

"I don't know what you're insinuating Lorelai, but I haven't time to figure it out. I'm on my way to the beauty parlour."

"Oh, good, I'll just document that in my personal day-planner so I'll know not to call you while your head is under the dryer," Lorelai groaned with sarcasm.

"There's no need for that, Lorelai, I'm just calling to remind you about Rory's parent-teacher conferences tonight."

Lorelai sat up in bed. She couldn't believe this had slipped her mind. But then, she couldn't recall ever knowing about this; she didn't think it was the kind of thing she would forget, but then, after forgetting Friday night dinner last week, anything was possible.

"Lorelai?" Her mother's shrill voice called her back to attention. "Lorelai? Are you still awake? Really, now –"

"Yeah, I'm here, Mom," she said, rubbing her head, thinking about coffee.

"You did know about PTA meetings tonight, I assume…?"

"Of course I knew about them, Mom."

"Good, so you know they start at 8.30 at Chilton?"

"Oh, look at that, it's right there in my day-planner after 'Mom's dinner', 'Dad's martini' and 'Dad's subsequent trip to bathroom to relieve himself of said martini.'"

"Lorelai, I don't understand your humour, but I need to go. See you on Friday."

She could almost hear her mother's smug look as the phone line went dead.

-LINE-LINE-

Rory trudged into the kitchen, her cross-tie loose around her neck, her knapsack slipping down her shoulders and her eyelids drooping.

"You weren't up again last night, were you, Rory?" Lorelai asked, straightening Rory's hair band and handing her a poptart and a mug of coffee from Luke's.

Rory nodded and muttered something barely discernable. She looked at her cup.

"Luke?" she said, and she glanced at the clock on the wall. "You woke up in time for Luke?"

"Don't ask…" Lorelai groaned.

Rory took a seat at the table and tied her tie with her poptart between her teeth.

"Hey, Rory…?" Lorelai asked, trying to sound nonchalant as she put away the box of poptarts, "How come you didn't tell me about your parent-teacher interviews tonight?"

Rory looked up quickly and then took a sip of coffee.

"I thought you knew. It was in the Chilton newsletter," she said, not looking up from the mug.

"Rory… when was the last time I read the Chilton newsletter? Was it in the issue before the one where I told you to give them to Miss Patty to use for her litterbox? Because that seems like awfully early to be announcing it."

"People at Chilton think ahead," Rory said, still not looking Lorelai in the eye.

"Is there something you want to tell me before I go to this meeting tonight?"

"No…. Yes. No. Well, I don't think you should go."

"Why not?"

"Well, aside from the fact that you're going to look like Vivian Ward to their Vivian Leigh…"

Lorelai was hurt.

"Not nice," she warned.

"Sorry. That's not it. I like that you're not Caroline Bingley in a business suit. I'm sorry I said that. It's Mr. Medina…"

Lorelai couldn't wait to talk to this guy. Rory was really struggling academically for the first time and it was clearly upsetting her.

"What about him, hun?"

Rory looked at the floor. "He gave me a D on my paper."

"When was this?"

Rory didn't say anything.

"Rory, honey, when did this happen?"

"Last month," she muttered.

Lorelai could see that saying anything about the grade was pointless as Rory was already beating herself up about it enough anyway. She was, however, shocked and a little disappointed. She knew Rory was intelligent and she definitely knew that she working harder than she ever had before, so Lorelai didn't understand where this guy was coming from. She'd read Rory's essays before – hell, half the time she didn't even understand most of the big words.

"Don't worry about, kid, I'll talk Mr. Medina about it tonight."

"Mom, promise you won't do anything embarrassing."

"I promise. Now, get your jacket, I'll drive you to the bus or you're going to be late."

Lorelai pulled over at the stop and Rory leaned across the car and planted a kiss on Lorelai's cheek.

"Thanks for not being mad," she said, "About the grade and everything."

Lorelai smiled. "Okay, scoot!" she said playfully, waving Rory away, "I have an inn to run and then an appointment with my hairdresser and makeup artist. I think you might be on to something with this Scarlett O'Hara meets Caroline Bingley in a business suit thing."