Chapter 2: No More Cats

Rory looked at the phone book in her cell phone. Her finger hovered over the call button, his name on the screen. She could hear the rain drumming against the windows; it made her more depressed than normal. That may also have been because of the half full martini glass beside her. She didn't know why but she did it. She pressed the call button on her phone and held it to her ear. The phone started ringing.

Logan looked down at the caller ID on his cell phone. It was flashing a number he knew by heart even though he had deleted her entry from his phone.

"Rory?" he asked answering the phone hesitantly.

"I'm in London," she stated.

"You're where?" he asked, confusion lining his voice.

"London," she replied. "It rains a lot here."

"Yeah, I know," he said.

"Of course you know, you lived here for a year, I remember," she said. She remembered the long months they had spent apart, and the short fleeting reunions they had had not often enough.

"Why are you in London, Ace?" he used his nickname for her. It sent shivers down her spine. Hearing his voice say that word, no one else could make her feel the way he did, all with one simple word.

"My grandparents paid for me to come here for a few weeks. They're trying to get on my good side," she explained, taking another sip from her glass. "I think mom told them I'm sad or depressed or something. They must've thought a nice holiday in London would have brightened me up."

"Have they ever been to London during winter?" he asked sceptically.

"I doubt it," she replied, surprised at how easily the conversation was flowing between them. She'd expected him to still be mad after what happened at her graduation, when she'd rejected his proposal. "The museums are nice though, and libraries of course."

Logan remained silent, unsure of what to say. This phone call was so out of the blue. He'd left her without a word after she'd said she didn't want to marry him. Why had she called him now? "I'm in L.A. Dad sent me here to look at a newspaper and magazine. It's nice and sunny here." he said trying to break the silence.

All Rory did was take a big gulp of her drink as the conversation lapsed back into silence. She swallowed, rather loudly actually, well that's what Logan thought anyway.

"Rory are you drinking?"

"Hm? Oh yeah, I guess," Rory said." I have been for a while, don't feel drunk though, not even a bit tipsy."

"What are you drinking?" he asked her concerned.

"Vodka martini," she replied, taking another sip.

"Vodka martini? Where the hell did you get Vodka from?" Logan was confused. Rory had never been much of a drinker, maybe he and his friends had been a bad influence on her.

"Your place; when I was packing up my stuff I found a bottle in the back of your cupboard. I wondered why it wasn't out with everything else, I figured it was cause you all ready had some out there. Thinking that you'd miss it seeing as its alcohol, I took it to annoy you." Rory told him, wincing as she remembered the events from before she'd moved out of Logan's apartment.

Logan started laughing. "That's not Vodka, its water."

"What?"

"Colin and I tried to trick Finn one year and gave him a bottle of Vodka with water in it for Christmas; we figured he'd already be too drunk to tell the difference. He wasn't. He knew it wasn't Vodka." Logan explained.

"Well of course he did, he would've known as soon as he opened the bottle," Rory said.

"Yeah he did actually; took one whiff and looked at us like we were crazy. Made us drink nothing but Vodka all night, and Steph and Rosemary too because they were in on it. It was ok for the girls though, they could have Vodka martinis and the like but Colin and I were stuck drinking it strait because martinis are too girly for us."

"You and your ego Huntz…" Rory said with a laugh. He'd missed her laugh, it was so sweet. God why hadn't she just said yes? No, why had he even asked her in the first place? It was too soon. She had her whole life, her whole career ahead of her. She couldn't marry him right after college; she needed to live her life. And now she was without him.

"Logan?" Rory asked, and he realized he had zoned out and hadn't heard a word she'd said.

"Sorry what did you say?" he tuned back into their conversation pushing the depressing thoughts and memories to the back of his mind.

"Never mind, I better go its late." she said yawning.

"Ok, bye Ace."

"Bye Logan."

"Wait," he said before she hung up, "why did you call me?"

"I missed you Logan," she said simply, ending the call. She exhaled and flopped back on her pillows with a sigh, picking up her glass and taking a drink, only now tasting the difference. Ace. His words echoed in her brain. He'd called her Ace. She'd missed him calling her that. His voice. She'd missed his voice so much. To put it simply, she'd missed him. It hadn't been right since he'd left. She rolled over flicked off the lamp beside her before she snuggled down under the covers and fell asleep.

Logan rolled over in his hotel room in Los Angeles, looking at the digital clock beside him. It read 1:13 A.M; two and a half hours since Rory had called. He still didn't know why she had. She'd said she'd missed him but how could she say that? He'd proposed and she'd said no, so how and why did she now miss him. He didn't understand and it was what was keeping him awake. It reminded him of when he'd been in college, when he couldn't sleep without knowing if she was ok, and not mad at him. It'd kept him awake many a night, especially at the start of their relationship when their banter had often ended in hateful words. He reached out for his cell phone, the bright light temporarily blinding him. When his eyes had adjusted he opened up a blank text message and started typing, his fingers moving furiously.

Rory's cell phone went off with a loud jingle of bells. She woke up immediately and reached out blindly for her phone. She opened it and immediately shut her eyes. The bright light hurt them. When her eyes had adjusted, she realized she'd received a text from Logan.

To: Rory

From: Logan

Why did you call me, really? You can't say you miss me, it's not fair. I asked you to marry me, MARRY ME, and you said no. You broke up with me Rory, how can you call me out of the blue and tell me you miss me? It's not god damn fair!

She struggled to understand what he was talking about. Instead of replying through text she decided she should call him instead; it was much easier in her current state.

"What the hell Logan?" she asked when he picked up.

"What did you expect Rory?"

"Not this, not after we had a perfectly normal conversation before!"

"That was just my upbringing Rory, I was being polite. I didn't expect a call from you. I was in shock and I just did it all automatically."

"And I didn't break up with you Logan! You're the one that left!"

"You rejected me Rory, I proposed to you!"

"I know Logan, I was there!" she snapped.

"Saying 'no' means the end of a relationship," he replied sharply.

"No, 'no' means I won't marry you yet, it doesn't mean I want you out of my life. What did you expect Logan? I had my whole life ahead of me; I'd just graduated from college! There are so many things I want to do!" she shouted

"And you can't do them when you're with me?"

"With you yes. Married to you, no, I can't. I'd have to become Mrs. Logan Huntzberger, planning parties, going to the DAR and getting my nails done while I interview nannies for the kids! That is not who I want to be Logan! I want to travel the world, have a career, and look after my own kids, not hire someone to do that for me. I don't want to plan parties or waste time shopping or just hanging with the girls. I don't want to become your trophy wife. And I do not want to be your mother! Or my grandmother!" she screamed at him.

"I don't want you to be my mother either, I hate her life and I know you do too. I wouldn't let that happen to you Rory. I know how much being a journalist means to you, why can't you trust that I wouldn't have let that happen!" he yelled back at her.

"Because it's out of your control Logan, we're not in college anymore! You can't just fly away on your family's jet when life doesn't go the way you wanted; you can't get yourself drunk to avoid reality anymore!"

"It may be out of my control but it's not out of your's Rory, it's your life."

"And I made the decision I needed to at the time. I wasn't ready Logan."

"Is that why you said no?" he asked her, his voice suddenly quiet.

"Partly," she replied quietly.

"So it's not because you didn't love me? And didn't want to spend your life with me?"

"No that's not why; I did love you Logan, I still do." She heard his intake of breath and paused unsure of how to go on. "I think it's was also partly because of my mom."

"Your mom? But she said yes, I asked her, she approved." Logan said confused.

"Not like that. Because I'm her daughter, I shouldn't be married before her. I felt like I didn't deserve it, to be happily married and be Mrs. Huntzberger when she wasn't happy or married or even with Luke anymore. It sounds stupid but I think that's why, I just wanted to wait."

"Ok." Logan said. "I kind of get that, any other reason?"

"I was scared."

"Of what?"

"That everything I'd worked for, my dreams, would just disappear and I'd just be your wife, organizing parties, shopping with the girls and working for the DAR."

"Rory, I would never have let that happen. That's not who you are and I wouldn't love you if you were," Logan said to her.

"But it's what your parents wanted. It's what people expected."

"Screw my parents and screw other people's expectations! What matters the most is what you want. Besides wouldn't what I have wanted meant more to you then what my parents wanted for you? I wanted you to be a journalist and chase your dreams; you're talented Rory and you deserve to get everything you've ever dreamt of because you have worked so hard for it."

"I just didn't want to be like any of the DAR women. I want to be like my mother; successful, hard working, and a wonderful person. She's always there for me Logan. Whenever I need her, no matter what, she's by my side."

Logan sighed. "What are we going to do? I don't know if we can be together but I do know I can't stand us being apart."

"Can we just go back to being friends?" Rory asked, even though it wasn't what she really wanted.

"When were we ever friends Ace?" he asked with a dry laugh.

She smiled. "Good point. How about we try being friends then?"

"I'm always up for a challenge."

"Me too," she yawned.

"Get to sleep Ace, sorry I woke you."

"Sweet dreams Logan." she replied hanging up.

Logan put his phone on his bedside table and lay awake staring up at the ceiling. Could they do it? Could they be just friends? He didn't know if he could stand spending time with her but not being with her. He let out a chuckle into the silent room as he realized the tables had been turned. She was the true Master and Commander. In college she had been the one that couldn't be without him, now he wanted her more then anything in the world. He needed her with him. But he could never tell her, not any time soon anyway, because it was better that she was in his life as his friend than not at all. And he was afraid she would be back out of his life again if he ever told her how much he wanted her. It was too soon. He couldn't tell her, not now anyway. But she said she still loved him. His heart filled with hope and he opened up his phone again, sending her a simple message.

The next morning, Rory woke up to her phone vibrating loudly against the wood of her bed side table. She reached for it groggily. After her late night conversation with Logan, she had put her phone on silent so it wouldn't wake her up again until morning.

"Hello?" she mumbled.

"Are they gone?"

"Mom?"

"Yes it's me. Now, are they gone?"

"Is who gone?" Rory asked, blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"The cats!" Lorelai stated, as if the answer was obvious.

"Uh dunno, I'll check." Rory stumbled out of her room and out onto the balcony. "Cat free," she told her mother with a smile even though Lorelai couldn't see her.

"See I knew you weren't going to be an old cat lady at 22!"

"Yeah mom about that, I talked to Logan last night."

"Really? Why did he call? Oh, do tell."

"He didn't call. I did."

Lorelai gasped. "Oh my God Rory, what happened? What did he say?"

"Well I called him and we had a perfectly normal conversation, about the weather of all things. A Finn anecdote arose in there but it was totally normal, not awkward or anything. Then a few hours later I get an angry text message about how it's not fair that I called and said I missed him because I rejected his proposal. So we kind of fought for a bit and then he asked me if I said no because I hadn't loved him and I told him I hadn't because I didn't love, I still do. Then he asked me why and I said because I was scared and because I felt a bit guilty getting married before you, and because I didn't want to become like Shira or Grandma," Rory told her.

"Rory, what do you mean you said no because you felt guilty getting married before me?" Lorelai asked.

"Well you were sad after you and Luke broke up so I didn't want to be all happy and giddy and engaged and planning my wedding when you and Luke weren't engaged or even together anymore."

Lorelai sighed. "Oh honey, I just want you to be happy, no matter how much disarray my love life is in."

"I know mom, but that's just how I felt."

"Ok then. What did you mean about not wanting to become like Shira or Grandma?"

Rory settled down on the couch in her hotel room, knowing she was in for a long conversation. "I don't want to be a trophy wife, Rory Huntzberger, party planner and nanny hirer extraordinaire. I want to travel, have a career, and look after my own kids, like you did with me."

"Well first of all you wouldn't have been Rory Huntzberger."

"Mom, I was going to marry him."

"Yes I know, but you would have been Lorelai Leigh 'Rory' Hayden Gilmore Huntzberger. That's all of your names in one!" Lorelai said excitedly.

Rory repeated the long name. "Man that's a mouthful! My name would not be that."

"Of course that's what it would be; it's perfect for you my darling daughter."

"Mom…"

"Ok, maybe we could take out the Hayden part. He is only your father after all."

"Mom!"

"Ok, ok, ok. You could be Rory Gilmore Huntzberger."

"I can't be a Gilmore and a Huntzberger publicly," Rory said seriously.

"Why not? You'd get anything you ever wanted and anything mommy ever wanted too."

"I could get anything I wanted just being a Huntzberger," Rory said pointedly.

"Oh my God," Lorelai gasped. "You want to be a Huntzberger! You want to marry

Logan, you so do." Rory knew that if her mother was there her finger would be pointing straight at her daughter, a grin on her face.

"No I don't!"

"You do so! You want to marry Logan! Well I hate to tell ya hon, but you're a little late. You're going to have to work for it now. But at least you're speaking to him again."

"Yeah we're going to try being friends. Not sure how the friends thing will work with us, without benefits anyway; or how we'll go when we see each other again. I haven't seen him since graduation. Will he look different? I hope he hasn't done anything to his hair!" Rory exclaimed worriedly.

"I'm sure his hair's fine. So what plane are you catching tomorrow?"

"Not sure."

"Who are you and what have you done to my daughter? My daughter, Miss Organization, doesn't know what time she's leaving to come and see her own mother!"

"I know what time I'm getting to Hartford though," Rory said ignoring her mothers rambling. I'll be there at 6, without delays anyway."

"I shalt await you oh daughter of mine."

"Mom, when did you ever do Shakespeare?"

"I got bored while you were away."

"You read Shakespeare?"

"No. I watched the movie stupid; Romeo and Juliet. Leonardo DiCaprio's a bit of a hunk don't you think?"

"Mom, you're engaged! You can't go around checking out other guys!"

"Sure I can, if they're in movies. Besides, Luke can't hear me. He's busy doing…something."

"Are you in the diner? On the phone!" Rory asked in disbelief.

"As a matter of fact-" Lorelai began before she was cut off by a gruff voice on her end.

"Lorelai, off the phone!" Luke barked as he came in from the store room.

"But it's Rory Luke, Rory. Rory do the Bambi eyes honey."

"Hi Rory," Luke said grabbing the phone Lorelai was holding out to him.

"Hi Luke. Are you going to tell her that I can't do the Bambi eyes through the phone? Or should I?"

"Let's not spoil her day," he replied with a laugh. "Well Rory I'll give you back to your mom. She has 2 minutes to wrap this up or get out side."

Luke handed the phone back to his fiancée. "So what were you saying about being in the diner on the phone?" Rory asked her mother.

"Nothing," Lorelai said, "Well I better go, or Luke will throw me out on the street. Bye sweets."

Rory pulled her phone away from her ear. She was about to close it when she noticed she had received a message from Logan. The time it was sent was a few minutes after they had ended their conversation the night before. Wondering what the hell he wanted now, she opened it with a sigh.

To: Rory

From: Logan

By the way Ace, I love you too.

It was as simple as that and it made her heart flutter. Hope filled her, and she had a shower and got ready with a smile on her face.