"This place is at least twice the size of that little place in Philly." Callie whispered to Jess as they stood in the kitchen of the fourth apartment they'd looked at.
"Yeah, its pretty nice." he nodded.
"Well, how do you like it?" the Realtor asked with a smile.
"Can you give us just a minute?" Callie asked.
"Of course, I'll wait for you downstairs." the woman said with yet another smile.
"There is no way a normal person should smile that much." Jess said after she'd left. "Its not natural."
"Uh huh." Callie said as she watched him look around the room. "Do you really, really, deep down hate the idea of coming back here?"
"Its just weird." he replied. "Its been a while since I left, and coming back just seems, I don't know." he shrugged as he kicked the baseboard in the dining room.
"If you're going to be absolutely miserable, then we shouldn't move here." she said as she stepped behind him and wrapped her arms around him.
"You want to move here." he reminded her.
"I want out of Philly." she corrected him. "I just thought that this place isn't too far from some of the bigger cities, and you have family here."
"I owe you, remember?" he said, turning around. "You weren't too gung-ho on moving to Philly, but you did it, so its time I returned the favor."
"You're sure?" she asked hopefully.
"I'm sure." he nodded.
"So, we can get this place?" she asked eagerly.
"Let's go sign some papers." he laughed.
"I'm just saying, you could have left at least some hot water." Rory said as she and her mother walked along on their way to Luke's.
"It's cold, I was cold, the hot water felt good." Lorelai replied with a mischievous grin.
"But I was cold, too." she whined.
"Ah, but a wise man once said, "You snooze, you lose.", and I think that at this moment, those are very good words."
"You're mean." Rory said. "To try to freeze your own, and your only, child like that."
"Hey, you're twenty-four, its not like you're helpless, its not as though that little bit of hot water is all that stood between you and death." Lorelai said as they stopped to wait for traffic across the street from the diner. "Its not as though I left an infant to fend for itself."
"That early in the morning, its the same thing." Rory argued as they stepped onto the corner.
"Hey, is that Jess?" Lorelai asked, pointing to the dark haired couple just coming out of a building down the street.
"Yeah, that's him, and that must be Callie." Rory said as she waved to the pair.
"Callie?"
"His girlfriend." she answered. "Been together for about two years now."
"Well, aren't we knowledgeable." Lorelai commented. "How do you know all this?"
"Jess and I are friends, remember?" Rory answered as they sat at the nearest table. "We keep in touch, meet up now and then for coffee, that kind of stuff."
"Slipped my mind." she shrugged. "I also forgot that Jess was even going to be in Stars Hollow."
"Your fiance's nephew is in town and you forgot." Rory shook her head. "Tisk tisk on you mother."
"I've been busy." Lorelai defended herself.
"That and old age is starting to set in." Rory laughed. "So old."
"You're never getting a hot shower the rest of you visit."
"I can go over to Lane's, or Sookie's, or..." Rory went on.
"Fine then, I'll have to think of something else to punish you with." Lorelai said, holding up her hands in mock surrender.
"Do you two know what you want?" Luke asked as he filled their coffee cups.
"BLT, french fries, large ice tea, and a piece of pie for dessert." Lorelai smiled.
"Same here." Rory added.
"So, Jess's girlfriend came with him." Lorelai said as Luke wrote down the orders. "Is she evil?"
"She's actually his fiancee it turns out, and no, she's not." he answered, tucking his pencil behind his ear.
"Ha!" Lorelai shouted, spooking Rory.
"Hot coffee over here." she said as she wiped up some coffee.
"Sorry." Lorelai laughed. "I told you." she said, pointing at Luke.
"That doesn't count." he argued. "You said it as a joke."
"But I said it, and it's true, so I was right." she argued back.
"What?" Rory asked.
"When look said that Jess was visiting, and that he had something to tell him and Liz, I said he was getting married." she explained.
"You were joking, so it doesn't count." Luke repeated as he turned and headed back to the kitchen.
"Whoa." Rory said. "He's getting married."
"Kinda weird?" Lorelai asked.
"A little, yeah." she admitted. "Ooh, here they come."
Callie walked through the door, holding it open for Jess behind her and stopped and stared at the two women at the table near the window who were watching them with a freakish sort of amusement.
"Who are they?" she whispered to Jess.
"Rory and her mom." he answered.
"Oh, yeah, I recognize her now." she said, remembering the picture Rory had sent Jess when she was on a trip to China with some friends.
"Hey, Jess." Rory said as she waved from her table.
"Hey." he said as he and Callie walked over. "Callie, this is Rory, and her mom, Lorelai. She's also Luke's fiancee."
"Hi." Callie said with a smile.
"Hi." Lorelai replied.
"You guys here for lunch?" Rory asked. "Sit with us." she said when they nodded.
"Thanks." Callie said.
"So, out seeing the sites?" Lorelai asked.
"Apartments, actually." Callie answered.
"Apartments?" Rory asked. "You're moving here?"
"Yup." Jess nodded. "We thought, mostly Cal actually, that once we get married, it'd be nice to have family around."
"Luke just told us your good news." Lorelai said, trying to make pleasant conversation, even she did have some ill feelings towards Jess still. "Congratulations."
"Thanks." he nodded.
"So, any luck?" Rory asked.
"We just signed the papers on one." Callie said happily. "Over on Cherry."
"Nice places over there." Lorelai said.
The three women soon forgot Jess was even at the table when the conversation turned to decorating the new apartment, the best colors for kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms. Jess sighed with relief when finally, after two long hours, he and Callie got to their feet to go meet Liz back at her house, but not until after Rory and Callie made plans to go shopping. He wasn't sure if he liked that idea, but said nothing.
Jess stood in the kitchen of his new apartment, Callie was off shopping with Rory, and Luke and Lorelai were coming over for dinner. He had been hoping that Callie would be home in time to start the dinner, but no such luck. He'd gotten much better with cooking since he gotten with her, but she was still the better cook. He stirred the sauce once more and placed the lid back on the pot and went to answer the door, where someone was knocking, no doubt Luke and Lorelai.
"Hey." he said as he opened to find Lorelai standing by herself. "Where's Luke?"
"Caesar set a small fire, he had to deal with it, so I came ahead of him." she explained.
"Oh, come on in." he said, standing aside to allow her to pass. "Cal and Rory aren't back yet, got too busy shopping I guess."
"Do you want me to come back later then?" Lorelai asked, not feeling to eager to sit alone in the apartment with Jess.
"No, that's okay." he assured her. "Do you want something to drink?" he asked.
"Wine would be good." she nodded.
"Go ahead and sit down, I just need to check the sauce again real quick."
"Great." she said as she sat down in a very floral living room.
Pink flowers on the curtains, large blue flowers on the sofa, purple and yellow ones on lacey throw pillows. It looked like a garden had puked in the room.
"Really like the decor." she said when he came in and handed her the wine.
"No you don't." he shook his head. "Neither of us like it."
"Then why have it like this?" she asked.
"Cal asked me to help pick out some stuff, I told her I didn't care, whatever was fine..."
"So she dumped an English garden in your apartment." Lorelai nodded in understanding.
"I'm taking those little paint samples much more seriously now." he said.
"I bet." she said, as she set her wine glass down and stared at the coffee table.
"I was a coward." he suddenly said, breaking their awkward silence.
"Excuse me?"
"When I took off the last time, I was a coward." he said. "I'm sorry."
"You don't have to apologize to me." she said. "Rory's good with it now."
"I do know you well enough to know that when Rory's hurt, you are too." he said. "I need to say that I'm sorry for how I handled things. I just couldn't deal with letting both her and Luke down."
"So that's why you did it." she said. "Well, it took a lot of guts for you to admit that. It does make me feel a little better to hear you say the words."
"Good." he said, getting to his feet. "I forgot to put the bread in the oven."
"Since when do you cook?"
"Since Cal taught me to." he called back. "Her mother is friggin' Betty Crocker, so she taught Cal, she taught me."
"Oh, sorry we're late." Callie called from the front door. "Where's Luke?"
"Fire at the diner." Lorelai answered.
"Nothing big, right?" Rory asked as she stumbled in behind Callie with a handful of bags.
"No, just a little grease fire." her mother assured her as she took a bag or two.
"What all did you buy?" Jess asked as he came out and took Callie's bags.
"Just a few things." she said.
"Mom, you would not believe the store Callie took me to." Rory said as she sat down on the overstuffed sofa. "Everything coffee."
"You went to heaven?" Lorelai asked.
"Pretty much." Rory nodded.
"Everything there is coffee related somehow. Coffee candles, air fresheners, insense, they even sell coffee scented filters for your furnace." Callie said as she pulled on an apron.
"I got some for you." Rory said with a smile. "And they have all kinds of coffee. French coffee house blends, Colombian, Jamaican Blue Mountain, everything."
"You a big coffee fan?" Lorelai asked.
"Nope." Callie shook her head. "But, I thought you two might get a kick out of the place."
"Jealous?" Lorelai asked Rory as she opened another candle.
"No." Rory said. "I like her, she's nice, and funny."
"I'd date her." she nodded.
"So would I, but, alas, she's taken." Rory sighed.
"Luke's here, dinner will be out soon." Jess said as he ushered everyone to the dining table.
Rory started laughing, causing Lorelai to follow suit. Jess stared at them, and then to Luke who just shrugged in confusion.
"What's so funny?" Callie asked as she took her own seat.
"Jess is hosting a dinner party." Rory cracked up.