A/N: I own nothing. Here's Chapter 3. :)

The autumn sun was just beginning to set as I approached Luke's for the second time that day. Everything seemed to give off an orangey-gold glow, and what little warmth the sun had offered was slowly ebbing away. I pulled my hastily-donned coat closer to me, quickening my step, anxious to reach the fully heated diner.

I was grateful that Luke seemed to be missing, with only Caesar standing behind the counter. The place was dead, just an hour before the dinner rush, and I wondered if I'd come at the wrong time. I was about to turn around and leave, when the very person I'd come to see appeared from behind the checkered curtain hiding the stairs.

"Hey," I said.

Jess started, and I thought I saw him blush a little when he saw me. "Hey."

I glanced at Caesar, who was eyeing us with poorly concealed interest, then looked back at Jess. "Take a walk with me?"

"Sure," he nodded, then turned to his coworker. "I'll be back."

"Take your time," he smirked.

We strolled in silence for a long time, until we eventually ended up at the bridge. I stopped, and sat, dangling my legs over the edge, just as I had done last night, but this time I wasn't crying. Jess followed suit, leaving a few feet of distance between us. I didn't even want to analyze the rush of disappointment I felt at that.

"So," I mumbled.

"So."

"That was..."

"Interesting," he finished.

"Luke—"

"I talked to him," he cut in. "As far as he knows, I was trying to comfort you after the breakup, then we kissed, and decided to get together."

"Sounds good," I nodded.

"He gave me a lecture," he chuckled. "About not corrupting you or whatever."

I laughed, rolling my eyes. "Luke would."

He grinned at me, and I felt suddenly nervous. Where was this coming from? I'd never been uncomfortable around Jess before. I didn't know how to act, what to say, how to initiate a conversation. So I said the first thing that came to mind.

"So... we never did practice."

He swallowed. "No, we didn't."

"Should we try again?"

"Uh... if you want. I think, though, that Luke barging in on us will be proof enough for a while."

"Oh," I sighed, trying not to feel rejected. "Okay, then."

Jess looked at me. "Although... maybe we should. Just to be safe. I mean, you never know when we'll have to do it in front of someone, so it's probably best to just... get the feel of it..."

His brow furrowed as he seemed to realize he wasn't making any sense. I sure didn't understand it, but I wasn't an expert in this situation. And he was probably right. We might get caught in a situation where we had no choice but to kiss, and if it was the first time, it might be a little too obvious. It definitely would be to Dean.

And besides that... a tiny, curious, and slightly traitorous part of me just wanted to kiss him... just to see what it was like.

So I scooted closer. "Might as well," I shrugged, my casual demeanor masking the inner turmoil I was experiencing. He gave a little, inscrutable grin, and copied my movements. We repeated this, stopping as our thighs touched—which, even in the ever-increasing cold, caused my flesh to burn—and our eyes locked again.

"Hi," he smirked.

I smiled in return. "Hi," I breathed, and slowly, our faces came closer. His eyes really were beautiful. I had a soft spot for brown eyes. He blinked lazily as the distance in between us continued to decrease, drawing my attention to his thick, dark lashes. I grew more and more hypnotized by some feature on his face that I hadn't noticed before—the eyes, the lashes, a little scar just above his left eyebrow, another at the corner of his lips—until, after what seemed an eternity, our lips met.

My eyes fluttered closed, and I leaned closer. His arm snaked around my waist, and I put a hand against his chest, delighted and confused to feel his heart beating just as wildly as my own beneath it. Kissing Jess was an entirely different experience than kissing Dean. Dean was cautious, careful, and almost always closed-mouthed. Jess didn't seem to be afraid to let a little passion leak in. And boy, did he! Somewhere in the back of my mind, the thought occurred to me that this was the first time I'd ever really been kissed.

The combination of the kiss, his scent, and the crisp, autumn air made me dizzy. I slowly pulled away, my breathing ragged. Jess appeared to be likewise affected by the kiss, and for a while, we just sat there, our panted breaths mingling.

"Whoa," he finally muttered.

"Uh-huh," I said intelligently.

"I think we've got the kissing part down."

"Mmm," I nodded. Jesus, Gilmore, what happened to being smart?

He exhaled sharply, then glanced over his shoulder. "I should probably get back."

"Okay."

"So... I guess I'll see you around?"

I gulped. "You sure will."

He laughed quietly. "See you," he said again, lightly slugging me in the shoulder. I didn't respond, choosing to remain seated until he was out of sight. I walked slowly back to the house, contemplating the events of the last two days. I had gone from having a boyfriend, to not having a boyfriend, to having a fake boyfriend, the last being solely for the purpose of getting the aforementioned real boyfriend back. And I'd just had possibly the single most incredible kiss of my entire life. With my fake boyfriend.

At that moment, I was sure I could give Lane, with all her complications and decoys, a run for her money.

When I got home, Mom was sitting on the couch, holding a magazine open. Judging by the way her legs twitched anxiously, though, she hadn't actually been reading it. She just wanted to appear casual, which meant a serious discussion was coming.

"Hey," she smiled, tossing the magazine aside too quickly. She turned around to face me. "So, you talked to Jess?"

"Um, yeah," I nodded. "We just kind of... finalized some plans."

"So... you didn't...?"

Her question was obvious: she wanted to know if there'd been more than just talking going on between us. And though the answer was yes, I knew that telling mom that would be a huge mistake, so I shook my head. "No, we didn't think we needed to. I mean, we weren't in public, and Luke already kind of walked in on us, so..."

"Okay, then," she said, her voice strained.

"But Mom, you know it'll probably happen eventually."

She sighed. "Well, warn me beforehand if you can, please?"

"I'll try," I agreed, then changed the subject. "So, Chinese?"

Mom seemed both reluctant and grateful for the switch. "I'll call Al's."

A/N: Sorry it's so short. :/ The next one will be a lot longer, I promise! Anyways, kiss scene? SO MUCH FUN! I'm loving this story so much! The question is... are you? Review, please!