Five Years Later….
Rory Gilmore looked around her empty apartment one last time. She walked out the door to see her car packed full of her belongings. Her little girl was leaned up next to the car. "Why do we have to move?" The little girl asked as Rory buckled her in.
"It's an adventure." She replied softly before kissing her daughter's head.
"Right, Sandy told me it was because Mr. Donkey fired you." The little girl replied. It was true her boss at the paper had fired her. He had no choice though. He had to let someone go and she was the newest.
"Hey what have I told you about doubting the Momma?" Rory asked as she smiled at her little girl. It was hard for her to believe that her little baby was so big. In her mind Hope would always be the little eight pound thing placed in her arms the day she was born.
"Not to." Hope said as she watched her mother get behind the wall.
"Wave goodbye to Boston baby girl." Rory said as she started the car. Hope just looked out the window. It wasn't long before she drifted to sleep. Which was for the best because Rory wouldn't want Hope to see her cry as she followed the directions she had placed in the glove box. She followed them all the way home. She tried to be happy as she passed the Welcome to Stars Hollow sign, but she knew this wasn't going to be easy. She didn't exactly leave on the best terms. She parked right across the street from the town square. Looking over at the mess of people decorating for the firelight festival.
"Mommy where are we?" Hope asked as she opened her eyes to realize they had stopped.
"Home. We are home baby girl." Rory said as she smiled at her daughter.
"Oh." Hope said as she looked at her mother. "I am hungry." She said as she started to look around.
"Okay, I know where to go to fix that." Rory said as she got out of the car. It wasn't long before the two walked down main street. Rory couldn't help but to notice that people were starring at her.
"Where are we going?" Hope asked as she looked up at her mother. Rory just looked at the shop in front of them with the sign that read: Taylor's Old Fashioned Soda Shoppe.
"That's new." Rory mumbled to herself.
"Mommy answer my question." Hope said as she tugged on her mother's arm.
"We are here." Rory said as the two walked down to the entrance of Luke's.
"Luke's Diner." Hope said as she read the sign.
"Good job baby girl." Rory said as she opened the door for the little girl. The diner was busy, but it seemed to her that everyone seemed to stop what they were doing as soon as she walked in. Miss. Patty and Babette start whispering as she walked passed them and sat Hope on a stool at the counter. Luke just came around the corner from the back and stood frozen at the sight that he saw.
"Rory." He mumbled as he looked at her. He just sat the order in his hands down on the counter before walking to the door. "Diner's closed, you're foods on the house just get out." He said as he held the door open. Everyone just whispered as they left. Once they were gone he just locked the door and looked at the two girls in front of him. It wasn't long before Lane came out from the back with plates.
"Luke where did my table go?" She asked before she realized who was sitting at the counter. "Rory." She said as she dropped the plates in her hands and ran over to hug her childhood friend. "You bitch." Lane said as she looked at Rory before hugging her again. "God we have missed you so much." She said softly.
"What the hell is going on down here?" Lorelai asked as her and April came running down from upstairs after hearing the plates hit the floor. Lane just let go of Rory. For the first time in Five years Rory was face to face with her mother. She just stood up and smiled.
"I'm home." She said softly. Tears just formed as Lorelai looked at her daughter. It took her a second before she registered in her head that this was real. She just ran and wrapped her arms around her daughter.
"My baby is home." She said through the tears.
"I feel out of place here." April said as she looked at her father.
"Come her April." Lorelai said as she motioned at the young girl. "Rory this is your stepsister April." Lorelai said as she moved a piece of hair out of April's face. Rory just looked at her mother puzzled for a moment. "Luke I have both my girls." Lorelai said as the tears filled her eyes again. He was about to say something when Jess and Tristan started banging on the door.
"You know I didn't mind so much you sending us to get supplies to cover the rush, but locking us out is fucked." Jess said as the two walked in. "Where did our rush go?" He asked Luke as he sat his bags on one of the tables.
"I closed up early." Luke answered as he motioned the sobbing mess in the middle of his diner. Tristan stood there in the doorway frozen as he looked at the little girl who was kicking her feet in the air totally ignoring what was going on around her. She had his eyes.
"Mom let me breathe." Rory said as she crawled out of her mother's grip. Her eyes just met Tristan's. What is he doing here? This was far from his scene. "Hi." She said weakly. After all what do you say to the man you were too dumb to admit you loved. The man you left behind five years ago right after telling him he was going to be a dad.
"Okay now I feel really uncomfortable here." April whispered as Hope jumped off the stool she was sitting on.
"Excuse me." She said as she tugged on the bottom of Tristan's shirt. He just looked down and smiled at her. "Are you the man from the picture?" She asked him.
"Hope don't bother him." Rory said as she looked at her daughter.
"She isn't bothering me." Tristan said as he looked at Rory before he knelt down to look at the little girl. "What picture?" He asked.
"The one Mommy keeps in her purse." Hope said as she ran back to the counter and grabbed her mother's purse. She pulled out Rory's wallet before walking over to him again. "Mommy says this is my daddy." Hope said as she handed him the open wallet. He looked at the picture of him and Rory at Chilton before he looked up at Rory.
"You told her about me." He said softly.
"Of course you are her father." She replied softly.
"I knew it was you." Hope said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you daddy." The little girl squealed. He just hugged her back and said "I love you too Hope."
"Hope is her middle name." Rory said as she looked at them. "Her full name is Lorelai Hope DuGray Gilmore."
"That's a very pretty name for a very pretty little girl." Tristan said as he looked at the little girl.
"That's what I thought." Rory said simply.
"Can we eat now?" Hope asked causing her mother to smile.
"Of course, just tell Grandpa Luke what you want." Luke said as he walked over to Tristan.
"Grandpa Luke?" Rory asked.
"We have a lot to fill you in on." Lane said with a smile.