I don't own GG, but gosh darn it, I'd really like to some day. Until that I'll just play around and write my own plotlines.

A/N So, first off thanks for reading and reviewing. I hope my old readers will revisit this and actually like it. As for the new readers, I'm glad you like it. And now, here's the next installment. Enjoy

Big smooches to Smashmo for helping me out, she's really an angel in disguise, who never loses patience with my errors. Thank you!

Chapter Two

The talented and somewhat crazed chef, Sookie St. James, was running around frantically in her beloved kitchen at the Dragonfly Inn. She was busy making some chocolate and vanilla éclairs, that were extraordinart, if she did say so herself. The kitchen help was also running around, although with a lot more grace. They routinely put out small fires in pans and removed hand towels from the stoves; something that Sookie was not known to care about or even notice. All she cared about was making the small miracles that other people called meals.

It was in the middle of the breakfast rush and Sookie was in the process of checking on some of the specially ordered scones she'd made for an English guest, who simply loved them beyond words. Not that she could blame him, because really, they were made by her. Suddenly the door to the kitchen burst open and Michel was ungracefully stumbling inside, making Sookie pay attention, Michel was never without a certain amount of elegance.

"What's up Michel? If you're gonna complain about the married seniors in room twelve and their spoiled grandchild one more time, I'm telling Lorelai on you."

Michel didn't quip as he normally did and Sookie looked up from the oven with trepidation growing in her chest. "What?"

The Frenchman swallowed, looking pale under his darkened skin. "I just got a call from that woman that Lorelai lives next to. She-" Michel broke off, looking oddly uncomfortable.

"What?" Sookie demanded again, not moving an inch from the scorching oven. "What did she say?"

Finally Michel seemed to regain some courage and he straightened up, looked Sookie straight in the eye and answered, "Lorelai has been in an accident; it is serious."

The kitchen resounded with a deafening bang as the plate of scones fell unceremoniously to the tiled floor. Sookie didn't notice; she was already on her way outside to her car, terrified that she might just lose her best friend. I better call Jackson and see if anyone else is planning on going to the hospital…

**

In the meantime at the hospital, Rory felt her body stiffen when she locked eyes with the serious looking doctor. A serious doctor…this can't be good, she thought, gnawing nervously on her bottom lip. Please don't be dead Mom; I can't live without you…

An insane urge to giggle erupted inside her, when after Rory rethought her statement her mother's teasing voice flew into her mind soothingly, "you can't live without me? Corny, hon. Now coffee and junk food those things are what you can't live without…Uh and reruns of eighties shows of course."

"Rory?"

Rory flinched and looked up and met her grandfather's concerned face. He looked as though he'd already repeated her name a few times.

"Huh?" she managed to stutter and Richard reached out, placing his hand on the shoulder that her grandmother hadn't already taken ownership off. "The doctor wants to tell us about your mother, Rory."

His voice and the gentle touch he used reminded Rory of one of the times she and her mom had watched Animal planet and seen how the handlers had tried to calm a wounded animal. Is that what I am right about now? She wondered, but then realized that she'd once again drifted off from reality.

Rory blinked and tried her damndest to concentrate on the still waiting doctor's words.

"Miss Gilmore was brought in with several broken ribs; one of which punctured her lung, which we had to repair the damages to. Her right leg is broken in three places and there might be permanent damages, we really can't say until she begins her psychical therapy." The doctor hesitated, glancing briefly over at Paris. It was obvious that he really didn't want to be the bearer of bad news in front of the blonde he'd never forgotten. Eventually he spoke again. "All those injuries are in fact the minor ones. The thing that has us most worried right now is her head trauma. She suffered a great blow to the head and although we've done everything in our power as of now, I have to inform you that Miss Gilmore has slipped into a coma and there's nothing left to do but wait and see if she wakes up on her own…"

Emily let out a gasp hearing this and tightened her already iron grip on Rory's thin shoulder. It would most definitely bruise, but Rory didn't mind, knowing that her grandmother didn't know what she was doing. Besides, she surmised, the pain kept her from screaming out her own fears.

Coma…

Luke crossed his arms to keep them from banging his fist into the nearest wall. Don't do this to me Lorelai!

Comas were a big deal; people didn't always pull back from them and the thought of Lorelai Gilmore not waking up and declaring everything fine and dandy almost broke Luke as he kept his jaw clenched. Trying to keep himself in check wasn't working well and he couldn't help but send a vicious glare towards the still talking doctor.

The doctor didn't even blink at the death glare pointed in his direction. He just offered his regrets of being the bearer of bad news. He glanced at Luke with the words, "don't kill the messenger," in his eyes and said, "The surgeons are not entirely finished with her as of now, but I'll let you know when it's okay to go see her." He nodded briefly to them all, ignoring Paris, and walked away without another word.

After a few moments of silence Paris apparently thought that enough contemplating had been done and she straightened herself up, sending an arrogant look the doctor's way. "Well, that wasn't very fulfilling, now was it?" Without waiting for anyone to answer she barreled on. "He obviously doesn't know everything about this case. Mrs. Gilmore, would you please join me while I locate a doctor, who's actually a human being with some semblance of knowledge?"

Emily started out of her thoughts and looked at the blonde girl at her side. Before she had a chance to respond however, Paris had the audacity to grab hold of her free arm and actually yank her away from the unmoving Rory and pulling Emily with her. As the couple disappeared down the nearest hallway, Rory, Luke and Richard heard Paris's disembodied voice say, "…need you with me here. I'm not a Gilmore, so they'll probably not listen to me and from what I know of you Emily, you're not afraid to give it to them straight if needed. Isn't that right? I respect that."

Luke wanted to smile at the thought of the much older and very terrifying Emily Gilmore being bossed around by her grandchild's one of a kind friend, but his features didn't want to cooperate. He sighed and looked down at Rory.

She hadn't moved an inch since the doctor's news had been given. The look in her eyes was dull and broken. I'm not the only one, who won't recover from this if Lorelai doesn't wake up, Luke realized with an inwardly grimace and for the first time since the accident he felt a bit more like himself.

Pushing his own grief and pain into the background for the moment, Luke did what he knew he should have done from the start. He stepped forward and wrapped his big arms around the much smaller frame.

"No, Luke…Please…"He heard her whisper in a pained moan and for a minute she desperately tried to free herself from his grip. Then she suddenly slumped and finally allowed herself to break down.

The warm tears quickly soaked Luke's flannel shirt, and within moments Rory practically wailed in sorrow into his chest. "Rory, she's strong; so much stronger than the rest of us." Luke muttered repeatedly and sent a warning look to Richard, when heseemed to want to take Rory from Luke's arms. "Let it out Rory, don't hold it in…It's all gonna be all right soon. You'll see."

After a long while Rory seemed to slow her crying, but she tightened her death grip on Luke's waist when he gently tried to let her go. With a soft sigh, he wrapped his arm under her knees and lifted her up into his arms and sat down on a chair with the now exhausted girl in his arms.

They didn't say a word, they just bathed in each other's common feeling of sadness and fear. And most of all, desperate hope.

Some time later, they moved to sit next to each other. Rory was resting her head on his shoulder and Luke held his large hands over hers in his lap in silent comfort.

Richard sat close by with Emily in the exact same position. Paris wasn't there at the moment. Not because she didn't want to, but Emily had appeared a half an hour earlier and had declared that Miss Gellar had been asked to leave the premises. Apparently death threats at the nurses' station wouldn't be allowed unless the one making them was actually related to an injured patient.

All four of them waited for the doctor to return and grant them permission to see Lorelai.

The sound of approaching footsteps – a lot of them – made Luke look up and he instantly tensed. Rory lifted her head tiredly and her eyes widened in disbelief when she followed his gaze.

It seemed that half of Stars Hollow had gotten impatient waiting for an update on their favorite speed talker. Sookie, Jackson, Lane, Miss Patty, Babette, Morey, Kirk and Lulu nearly suffocated them with loud and frantic questions about Lorelai's situation.

Luke felt the familiar throbbing in his right temple begin and prepared himself for a growling reprimand towards the townspeople, forcing them to understand that they weren't helping things.

But before he got a chance, Rory beat him to it. Suddenly she jumped to her feet yelling hoarsely, "please be quiet! And sit down and wait patiently like the rest of us! Now!"

None of the Stars Hollow residents were used to that tone coming from their gentle brainiac and some shot Luke an accusing glare, as though telling him that letting his behavior rub off on Rory wasn't appreciated.

Lorelai wake up now or else some of your friends will join you in the immediate future, Luke threatened inwardly and leaned back stiffly, once again crossing his arms to prevent them from doing something not entirely permitted.

After a few minutes of silence, Miss Patty and Babette began whispering fiercely among themselves and Kirk was somehow already deeply involved with the vending machine as he tried to pry out a soda without actually paying for it. Jackson was talking quietly with Morey and Lulu. Lane had placed herself on Rory's other side and oozed support without actually saying a word. Sookie was sitting next to Luke and tears were falling down her face silently. She hadn't said a word after being told of Lorelai's status.

Luke noticed Sookie's hands twitching and he knew she was itching for something to do. Finally it seemed she couldn't take it anymore and she turned to Emily and Richard with a wild glint in her eyes.

"Are you hungry? I mean cafeteria food is never a good thing. I should go make something from scratch; can't have you dropping dead from starvation, right? I mean…I think I have some things at home I could turn into a feast…Yeah…then if…when. I mean when Lorelai wakes up, she won't have to eat that filth from the hospital kitchen… she'll probably just demand to get put back to sleep…Yeah, I'll just…Jackson!"

The vegetable and fruit seller instantly rose to his feet and after having patted Rory and Luke on the arm he followed his wife with a concerned frown marring his usually cheerful features.

Rory felt suffocated in all the company around her and rose from the chair. Lane and Luke immediately copied her and she turned around with a small reassuring smile. "I'm just gonna go to the bathroom; I'll be right back."

Luke, she noticed, knew she was lying. He recognized her need to solitude and respected it by sitting back down and gently pushing Lane down as well when she looked like she might just follow Rory. The look in his blue-grey eyes told Rory that he felt the need too, but allowed her to slip away first.

Thank you Luke, you're always letting my needs come before yours, Rory thought out to the diner owner and quickly left the crowded waiting room.

**

Ten minutes later Rory still hadn't returned and Luke was just about to go look for her, when the doctor from earlier came into view. Luke quickly scrambled to his feet and out of the corner of his eyes he saw Emily and Richard do the same, albeit with a little more elegance.

"Is she all right? Has she woken up? Can we see her?" the questions left his lips without second thought.

The doctor smiled comfortingly and explained, "Sadly, Miss Gilmore is still in a coma, but the surgery seems to have gone well and we have every reason to believe she'll recover from her injuries; all she has to do now is wake up."

Luke nodded and Emily repeated his earlier question hesitantly, her usual icy façade had totally crumbled in the last few hours, "Can we see her now, please?"

The doctor's eyes swept across the room and noticed the increased population with a raised brow and answered, "Only the nearest family is allowed in at the moment. Please try to limit your visits today." He smiled with a friendly look in his eyes, "after all, she's been through quite an ordeal. A nurse will come to take you to her shortly."

They all nodded mutely and as the doctor left to continue his work, Rory finally reappeared. Luke watched silently as her entire body tensed seeing all of them standing. Richard apparently noticed too and quickly told her the doctor's news, which brought a relieved smile to her face.

A few minutes later, a tall, stern looking nurse soon joined them. Her eyes scanned the visitors, glaring threateningly at Kirk, who was still sitting by the vending machine looking extremely put out. Lulu protectively walked in front of her boyfriend, covering his shaking frame from the nurse's watchful eyes. Eventually she returned to her job and looked them all over once more with boredom. "If the family members would follow me please…"

Without hesitation Rory and her grandparents hurried after the nurse, but then Rory suddenly stopped. She turned around with searching eyes, noticing with surprise that Luke had reclaimed one of the uncomfortable waiting chairs. She glanced back at her grandparents, who had stopped the moment she had. "This will just take a second," Rory muttered and with determination she walked over to an unnoticing Luke, expertly ignoring the nurse's tapping foot in the background.

"Hey, aren't you coming?"

Luke looked up; he seemed genuinely surprised by her question and answered quietly, while fidgeting with his baseball cap in his hands. "It's just supposed to be the nearest family members, remember Rory?" He added when Rory looked argumentative. "It's okay, don't worry about it. I'll wait out here with the rest. Go on and see your mom and I'll drive you home afterwards…It's fine…"

Rory promptly startled the older man by simply punching him gently on the arm before holding out her hand for him to take. "If there's one person here that my mom considers close family, it's you." Rory explained when Luke didn't immediately take her hand. "Don't be stupid and come with me to see your girlfriend."

The look in Luke's eyes warmed Rory to the core. He looked shy, happy, uncomfortable, hesitant and immensely grateful all at the same time. Then he blinked and his expression turned blank and stood up, taking Rory's waiting hand and followed the rest of the close family. He even sent a matching glare to the temperamental and impatient nurse that reminded the older woman of her manners.

Not even Emily Gilmore uttered a word against his right to be by their side when he reached them.

TBC…

A/N If you liked it, review. If you didn't, then review and tell me all about it;)

EDITED JANUARY 2010