Disclaimer: I own nothing, nadda, zip.

-Chapter 2-

"I can explain." Rory slowly stated, not completely sure that she could.

Lorelei clenched and unclenched her fists. 'Lied' That one word kept running through her mind. Rory had lied to her and it wasn't something she could cope with or accept. "Oh, there had better be an explanation involved. And a good one at that."

Rory nervously pulled at a strand of hair as she eyed her mother, trying to predict her reaction to the truth about Rory's night out. "I went to a concert."

"With who?"

"Tristan."

"Tristan?" Lorelei burst out, cutting off Rory everytime she opened her mouth to speak. "Tristan DuGrey? Bible Boy?"

Suddenly Rory's feet appeared very interesting. Her eyes had left her mother's face and focused on something safe, something that wasn't eyeing her in anger. "Yes, but..."

"No buts. What is it about this guy? Because according to you, there's nothing there. You don't even like him. Yet you've kissed him, lied to me about him, and cheated on your boyfriend with him."

"I did not cheat on Dean." Rory's voice raised slightly at this accusation.

"Oh no? What would you call it?"

Rory brushed past her mom and headed toward her room. "I thought you wanted an explanation." She had stopped and once again turned to face her mother, her hand resting on the doorknob.

"I do."

"Then let me explain. Quit jumping to conclusions and yelling and accusing me of things that aren't true."

Taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself, Lorelei closed her eyes. Memories of being 16 herself flashed through her mind and she held back a shutter. She recalled the very first time she had lied to her mother. "Ok, fine." She opened her eyes and nodded, gesturing with her left hand for Rory to continue. "Explain."

"A few days ago, Tristan asked me to go a PJ Harvey concert with him." As she spoke she removed her hand from the doorknob and crossed her arms over her chest. "I said no, I didn't want to go anywhere with him. And then he really made me mad when he told Paris that I had agreed to go with him. We were talking about the concert and his big mouth when Dean showed up. I went with Dean and tried to push Tristan and the concert out of my mind. But mom, I couldn't. As much as I tried to deny it, I wanted to go to that concert. I know it was wrong to lie to you and to go anywhere with Tristan period, but I just...I don't know."

"You like him." Lorelei stated softly.

"No!" Rory's arms came uncrossed at this idea and flew, palms out, in front of her. "But I don't hate him. And I love PJ Harvey."

"I know that you want to think there is nothing more to it than that, but you jeopardized your relationship with Dean for this guy."

"PJ Harvey is a woman." Rory told her, knowing full well that wasn't who Lorelei meant.

"I meant Tristan."

"Mom..."

Lorelei motioned for Rory to follow her over to the couch and both sat facing each other, legs crossed Indian style underneath them. "You and Dean just got back together today. You're saying that nothing happened, how do you think Dean is going to react? He already hates Tristan."

Rory bit her bottom lip and contemplated her mom's words. "I thought about all of that before I left. Something in me just had to go tonight. I'm sorry that I lied, but I didn't think you would understand."

"Me? Not understand? Rory, hun, I was ten times more rebellious than you. I would have got it. You can tell me things."

"So we're cool? You're not mad anymore?"

"No, I'm mad. Lie to me again and I'll be forced to do something I have never done before, ever." At Rory's raised eyebrow Lorelei answered the unspoken question. "I'll ground you. It will be just like you see on television. No phone, no friends, no t.v., no leaving the house, no nothing."

Rory pretended to shudder at the thought. "Oh! The horror, the horror."

Lorelei smiled at her daughter and rolled her eyes. "Never do this again, do you understand me? I will have to go into mom mode again and next time it will be worse, got it?"

"Got it."

"Good, now go to bed."

Rory stood up, but leaned over to kiss her mom on the cheek. "Night mom, I love you."

"Love you too sweets." She watched her daughter walk away, but halt halfway to her room.

"Hey, what did you tell Dean when he called?"

"That you were at your grandparents."

"You lied for me?"

She nodded, "And that is something else that will never happen again."

"Thanks mom!" Rory flashed her a smile before disappearing into her bedroom and closing the door. Lorelei stared intently at the closed door before sighing and looking away.

-----

Rory leaned against the wall as she waited for her bus to approach. Before it even came into view a silver Porsche came to a stop by the curb just feet in front of her. "Want a ride?"

Raising a hand to forehead, she shielded her eyes from the glaring sunlight. "No thanks." She told the car's driver.

"Rather take the bus?"

"Rather not be in a confined space with you."

Tristan raised his hand to cover his heart. "You wound me Mary."

"Mary? I don't know a Mary. You must have me confused with someone else. Meaning, we don't know each other and my mom always told me not to get in the car with strangers."

"Even if they have candy?"

"Especially if they have candy."

Rory watched as he dug around in his backpack and pulled out an object in a colorful wrapper. Leaning closer to the passenger side window he opened his hand, revealing a Pushpop. "I debated a Ringpop, but it just seemed too intimate, ring shopping and all."

Rory couldn't help but smile, the bus finally appearing into sight. Faint memories of unidentifiable smells and odd people were forced to the forefront of her mind. Gazing from the bus to the Porsche Rory cringed at the impossible choice. "Although..." She stepped forward and reached through the window to snatch the Pushpop from his outstretched hand. "Strangers do have the best candy." Before she could talk herself out of it, she swung the door open and climbed inside. As she let herself sink into the plush seats and inhaled the smell of new car air freshener, she decided that this was definitely a more preferable method of transportation.

----

Dean checked his watch for the fourth time in the past ten minutes. The bus was scheduled to arrive 13 minutes ago. With a sigh, he stretched his long legs out in front of him and crossed his left ankle over his right. Leaning back against the uncomfortable, yet familiar bench, he trained his eyes at the empty space the bus should appear out of. The empty stretch of road came to life briefly as a silver Porsche flew by, causing Dean to wonder if the driver had missed the speed limit sign not even a mile back which read 35 MPH. His eyes flickered to the coffee sitting next to him and he debated pulling his to-go cup out of the drink carrier and taking a sip. Usually he waited for Rory and they took that first gulp together, but she was now-another glance at the watch-fifteen minutes late. Just as his hand began it's journey in the direction of the sweet-smelling coffee, he saw the bus make it's way over the tiny hill and head in his direction. Standing, he picked up the carrier and waited for the bus to stop in front if him. The smile that he had plastered on his face to greet her with vanished as the doors swung shut after depositing only two passenger, neither of which remotely resembled his girlfriend.

----

Rory laughed as the car sped along the streets of Hartford. They flew past places and buildings she had missed on the bus. "Oh my gosh! Please tell me that that store is not devoted to nothing but Elvis paraphernalia."

"You take this route twice a day, five days a week. You've never noticed this store before?"

"No," Rory admitted, eyeing her bulging backpack, "I'm usually reading."

"What do you have in there anyway?" He asked, gesturing to said bookbag.

"My school books. I need to study for the math test and we have that english assignment due next Monday that I want to start."

"And..." He prodded, knowing full well that two books didn't take up that much room.

"And...a few leisure reading books." Few being the understatement of the year.

Tristan nodded focusing his attention back on the road. "Like what?" He asked, his eyes remaining straight ahead.

"Why?" She asked, wondering if he planned on mocking her.

"Maybe I've read them."

"I highly doubt that."

"What? I can read you know."

She knew he could, she just didn't think that he did. "Fine...I have short stories and poems by Poe, The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, Paradise Lost by John Milton, and two books I'd rather not mention. I'm travelling light today."

"Those two books, are we not mentioning them because they're on the naughty side?" Out of the corner of his eye he saw the blush rise in her cheeks and decided to spare her, just this once. "Dumas, huh?"

"Yeah, ever heard of him?"

"He's on of my favorites." He informed her and smirked as she turned to look at him in suprise. "Ever read The Count of Monte Cristo? It's my favorite book by far."

"Really?"

"Really. I told you I could read and I meant it, Mary." Just then he turned onto the road that led to Stars Hollow.

"Um, are you sure about that? Because that sign you just passed said 35 MPH."

"I saw." His foot pressed down even more on the accelerator and he saw Rory's eyes widen at the sight in front of her. Squinting his eyes in confusion, he held back a smile as he saw Bagboy lounging on the bench waiting for a bus that would only leave him alone and disappointed. He turned to say something to Rory, but her entire demeanor had changed. Opting for silence, he said nothing.

"I completely forgot he was meeting me at the bus stop." Rory said quietly as he stopped his car in her driveway. "How could I have forgotten?" She eyed him and he could read the guilt in her eyes.

"The allure of candy was just too much." Came his attempt to lighten the situation.

Rory brought her hand to her head and began to rub her temples. "This is not funny." She told him. "We just got back together and he's going to think I blew him off. I have to find him." Reaching behind her she grabbed her bag from the backseat. "Thanks for the ride, Tristan." Her voice seemed far off and her eyes never even landed on him.

"Anytime." Once her door slammed shut, he threw the car in reverse. Just as his car backed out onto the road he saw Dean approaching. Resisting the urge to run him over, he settled for smiling at the taller boy as he drove by, knowing that Rory would have a lot of explaining to do.