Eventually, Luke had to return to the diner. As he made his way downstairs, he paused to take a deep breath. He stepped through the curtain to find the diner was packed with townsfolk nursing their coffee or tea. His face set in a forbidding scowl; he began to make the rounds of refills. Fearing his wrath, no one dared to say more than a polite "thank you" to him as he served them. Luke knew they were all there to observe the aftermath of his explosion, but he wasn't about to give them what they wanted. His jaw set with grim determination, he got back into his usual routine, sparing no more than a grunt or a terse "What'll you have?" for his customers. He was so single minded in his desire to ignore what happened, he never noticed the whispers and subtle exchange of monies that took place each time he entered the kitchen area.

Lorelai felt like she was running on auto-pilot. She gathered herself together, grabbed Sookie, Lane and Dean, and rushed to Chilton for Rory's performance of Romeo and Juliet. Numbly, she watched the different groups of students put their own spin on Shakespeare's classic. She tried to concentrate on the performances and the running commentary her friends were providing, but her mind was racing with thoughts of Luke.

She hadn't told Rory about the outburst in the diner earlier that day. Rory was nervous enough about tonight, there was no need to add to that. Plus, Lorelai was unsure of how Rory would feel about the possibility of her mother dating their main provider. Sookie had been unnaturally quiet on the subject since leaving the house earlier. That alone was making Lorelai a little more nervous. As the production drew to a close, congratulations were given to the players, and Rory, still high on their success, announced that they should all going to Luke's to celebrate.

Sookie saw Lorelai's eyes widen with panic. She placed a calming hand on her friend's arm as they gathered their coats. "She doesn't know, honey. It'll be okay. It's not like Luke is going to mention it, anyway. You can fill Rory in on what happened later on, but for now, we will all be there with you. We'll just go eat and leave. It will be okay, I promise." Secretly, Sookie thought that the sooner that Lorelai went back into the diner, the better. That way, this thing can be resolved once and for all, she thought to herself.

Lorelai was quiet on the way back to Stars Hollow. Sookie kept up a flow of chatter with the teenagers in the back seat to cover for her friend's silence. Once they parked, Lorelai and Sookie hung back a little to let the kids walk in front of them. Once they reached the door, Lorelai turned to Sookie with a sad little smile and said, "You know, I hate having my illusions shattered. I really like living in that happy little place in my head where everything and everyone is how I want them to be. And now, here's reality bashing me on the head again, you know? Well, here goes, wish me luck."

Squaring her shoulders, Lorelai pushed open the door to the diner. She heard Sookie mumble a quiet "Good luck." behind her as she stepped through the door.

Rory, Lane and Dean were already seated at a table by the door. She looked around to see Luke leaning against the end of the counter, tinkering with a watch. Lorelai felt like her feet were riveted to the spot. Sookie slipped in behind her, and joined the teenagers. Slowly, Lorelai took a step toward Luke, murmuring "Be right back." to her group at the table.

She approached Luke cautiously, and offered a small smile. "Hey" she said quietly.

"How'd it go?" Luke answered, trying to act disinterested.

"Oh, you know, I think Shakespeare will recover."

"That's good." he replied, still prodding the watch with a tiny screwdriver.

Lorelai looked at the floor, and clasped her hands nervously. "Hey, are you good at dating?" she asked.

"What?" He lifted his head, stunned that she was even going to bring this all up. This was not how we operate, he thought wildly, we ignore these moments and then go on like they never happened, that's how we do this, damn it!

She cocked her head to the side, "Dating, do you have that down?"

Luke set the watch down, "Okay, if this is about that kid, then…"

Lorelai held up a hand to stop him "No, it's not about anything, it's just a question."
Luke smirked at her, trying to relieve some of the tension between them. "Well, I don't know if I have it down. Considering I live with my nephew, I'd say probably not." He drawled sarcastically.

"I don't have it down either. I've never been very good at it really. I've never even really liked it. Too much 'what if'. I like things I can count on. I mean, uh, actually, with Max, it was the first time I was finally like 'Hey, here it is, that one person who will always be there for me.' And then, I turned around, and it's suddenly 'Oops, wrong, keep moving.' Lorelai trailed off with a wave of her hand.

"Why are you telling me this?" he asked seriously.

"I don't have very many people in my life who are in my life permanently forever. They will always be there for me. I will always be there for them, you know? There's Rory, and Sookie, and this town and ... you. I mean, at least I think I've got..." Lorelai paused to look him in the eye.

"You do." Luke replied quietly.

There it was. Right there in those beautiful blue eyes of his. "Good. Just checking. Were you serious earlier? You know, about me and you…"

"Lorelai, can we just forget…" Luke started, a bit of desperation making his voice crack a little.

"Because, I have thought about it." Lorelai continued undeterred. "You know, me and you…"

"You have?" Luke asked started by her revelation.

"Sure. I mean, of course I have. But you and me were different, you know? You're not just some guy that I think I might like to date. You're so much more than that. And dating, it's messy and confusing. So, yes, I have thought of you like that, but I have purposefully tried not to." Lorelai paused seeing the hope in his eyes begin to fade. She placed her hand on his arm and continued quickly. "I don't want to screw this up, Luke. You mean more to me, and to Rory, than I can say, and I am petrified that I am going to screw this up." She stopped to draw a deep breath. "So, were you serious earlier? What you said about dating you?"

"Yes." Luke replied simply.

"Okay. Okay, well, I have to tell you that I may need a little more time to think about all of this, alright?" she rambled nervously, "Can I take a few days, you know, to sort out the mess in my head?" she gestured wildly.

"Take as much time as you need." Luke replied quietly.

"Thank you. Okay, thanks." Lorelai favored him with a shaky smile.

"You'll let me know?" he asked cautiously. "When you're ready, I mean. Let me know, one way or another? Smoke signal? Ask Caesar to pass me a note? Something?"

"Oh, you'll know, mister." her grin spreading, "I will definitely let you know."

"Good." Luke said with a nod. He gestured toward the table where the others were sitting "Your coffee is probably cold. I'll get you a fresh cup." He turned to get the coffeepot and Lorelai walked over to the empty seat next to Rory.

Luke deposited her fresh cup in front of her and turned to go to the kitchen. Rory nudged Lorelai with her elbow. "You two kids were over there whispering together for a while. Anything the matter? " she asked, concerned.

Lorelai took a deep drink of her coffee, and sighed. "Well kid, it's a good thing that your done with your suicide thingy after tonight, because I think that Mommy is about to hurl herself off of a cliff."

"What?" Rory asked confused.

"Tell you later, okay? For now, let's have some pie. I think we both deserve pie." As the words were coming from her lips, Lorelai looked up to see Luke depositing slices of pie ala mode in front of each of them. He really is the perfect man, she thought to herself with a smug smile. She glanced up in time to see the corners of his mouth tilt into a smile of his own as he turned away.