Chapter 4: Battlefield
She couldn't believe the bad luck she seemed to have this day. First, she found out that she's married to Logan, forcing her to go see him. Then, she blew up at him but even worse: more because she was angrier with herself than with him. Which meant she'd be forced to apologize to him sooner or later. All this resulted in making it impossible for her to concentrate on today's classes and throw her even more back than she already was anyway. Now, here she was once again, talking with Logan, in her apartment, the only Logan-free place she really had still left here in Yale. And to round it all up nicely, her mom just had to pick that moment to show up, and, what had she said? Luke postponed the wedding? How was that possible? And what did all that babble mean about him having a kid?
All in all, this day officially sucked, she thought as she hurriedly positioned herself between her mom and Logan.
"Mom…"
"Oh, please, don't tell me you're considering taking him back! He broke your heart! He ruined your life! You said you wanted him out of your life and that was the best decision you've ever made!" Lorelai furiously exclaimed and pointed to Logan. "That, sweetheart, is not keeping him out of your life."
"Mom," Rory tried to start explaining, but was cut off again.
"Seriously, Rory, what were you thinking? After everything he did to you? After what his family made you go through? After the way they treated you?" Lorelai's glare went past Rory to Logan, who still stood behind her, speechless, pale, with eyes wide with panic. "Didn't you already do enough to her? Look at her! She's not well, she's hurting, all because of you! She's overworked and sleep deprived because she needs to catch up on what she missed because of you! Because of you they think she's crazy and forcing her to go to therapy! Why can't you just leave her alone?"
"Mom, stop it!" Rory yelled, finally managing to stop her mom's rant long enough to stare at her. "Logan is here because I invited him here. We need to talk a few things through. That's…"
"Oh no, you really fell for him again, didn't you?! Rory! I know that you loved him but really, how can you be so blind? Didn't you learn anything from my relationships? Especially the one with your father?" Lorelai shook her head. "He's exactly like Christopher! He'll never be able to just be there for you when you need him! Or was he there for you over the summer? Was he there for you these past months? He'll just keep hurting you, just like Christopher kept hurting you and me! Please, Rory, don't make the same mistake I did! I know we're…"
Oh, this was so going too far! "He's not like Dad, Mom!" Rory protested, taking a deep breath. "Logan for sure had made his share of mistakes but he has yet to get somebody who is sixteen pregnant! And then making the same mistake seventeen years later!"
"That you know of," Lorelai snorted. "You never know with womanizers like him."
"Mom, stop it! You have no right to talk about Logan like that!" Rory out right told her mother, hardly believing herself. What was she doing here? Fighting with her mom again, over Logan, again, and that when they weren't even together anymore! Hell, now she even defended him, really the last thing on her mind. Yet, she couldn't let her mom attack Logan like that.
"I have every right to talk to the little bastard in whatever way I want to! He hurt my baby! He estranged me from my baby! And don't let me start with how he made you doubt your whole life so much so that you dropped out of Yale!" Lorelai though just continued to rant.
"Well, I'm back now! So please…"
"Yeah, after you finally got rid of him! But for how long… now with him back, huh?" Lorelai asked deridingly.
Taking a deep breath, Rory shook her head. "Mom, how many times do I have to tell you that Logan had nothing to do with me dropping out of Yale? Or with me enrolling back? My whole life I had worked for the same goal, never looking right or left. It just was right to take time off from everything and think if that still was what I really wanted to do with my life before it was too late. I did that, my head's clear now and I'm back on track, stronger than before and more determined."
"You never would have had doubts in the first place if it weren't for that asshole Huntzberger who is, or do I need to remind you of that, his father. Without you being his girlfriend his father would never have bothered to crush your ambitions!" Lorelai pointed out, glaring once again at Logan.
"The crisis would have hit anyway, Mom. I wasn't sure enough about my skills or Mitchum would never have managed to hit me so hard. But, nevertheless, you can't blame Logan for what his father did! Or how would you feel if you're blamed for every mean thing Emily ever said to her maids?" Rory retorted, desperately trying to make her mom see some sense.
"That's not the point! All I know is that we finally managed to get some balance back, but here he shows up again and already we're fighting again!" Lorelai raged.
"Yes, and it's your fault, not his! If you've just listened to what I have to say we wouldn't be fighting right now!" Rory said, hoping that that was true.
Before her mother could say anything more, a car backfired outside, causing both Lorelai and Logan to jump a little.
"God, I hate this place! And I hate that you're living here! It's a dump and the neighborhood is even worse! Have you any idea how many nightmares I had about getting a call that you've been killed because you surprised someone breaking in? Or got raped and killed on the way home?" Lorelai asked, throwing up her hands, and her eyes narrowed on Logan. "And that she lives here is your fault also. She'd live in a dorm on campus, safe, if not because of you and your stupid father."
It was obvious that her mom hadn't heard a word of what Rory had said. Tiredly, she closed her eyes. God, she was so sick of this. Some may find it nice that their parents didn't think it possible that their beloved child could make any mistakes, but really, it could also get pretty much annoying. Lorelai and most people had never believed that anything was actually Rory's fault. She and Dean had broken up – every one had been convinced that it had been Dean's fault, though it was actually Rory's fault. She had an accident and everyone blamed Jess, no matter how many times Rory assured them that it hadn't been his fault. Dean broke up with her again and everyone blamed Jess, forgetting that it was Rory in the first place who hadn't loved Dean enough to fall in love with Jess. At least most gave her the full blame when she broke up Dean's marriage – though she knew that many still blamed Dean as well, if not more. But only a year later she steals a boat and it was Logan's fault when in reality she had talked him into it. She dropped out of Yale – it was Logan's fault. She lost herself for a while – it was Logan's fault as well.
But it wasn't. Logan was responsible for a lot of things but not for his family's actions or for her decisions about Yale and her shattered dream to become a reporter.
Did everyone really believe that she had so little substance that she couldn't make her own mistakes? That she had so little will power that again and again the men in her life could just bring her to do any stupid thing they wanted? Yes, Logan had talked her into doing a lot of things she would never have dreamed of doing before she got to know him, starting with jumping off a seven-story scaffold. Some of the things had been more than worth it, some had indeed been stupid. But bottom line was that even the stupid things had made Rory's life richer.
"You think you can worm your way back into my daughter's heart again? After the way you broke it? How can you even dare to come back here? Especially after she told you once and for all that she doesn't want to see you again?"
Lorelai's words penetrated into Rory's thoughts and she opened her eyes again to see her mother standing in front of Logan, poking holes into his chest with her finger. But it was Logan's defeated, pale face and the way he stood there, taking all the blame Lorelai threw at him in a stride while his eyes filled with more and more remorse and hate and pain that made Rory see red. He just listened to the things her mother threw at him and didn't protest once and she knew deep down that that was because he agreed with everything her mom accused him off. But this was wrong.
This needed to be stopped.
Enraged, she moved over to them and wriggled herself between them to stand in front of Logan. "Stop it, Mom! I know you love me. I know that you don't like to see me hurting or making mistakes. But I'm twenty-one now and what's going on with Logan and me is my business and mine alone. If I have things to blame on him, I'll blame him, not you. If he hurts me, I'll lash out to him, not you. And if I want or need to talk to him, you have no say in that, nor in my decision to give him another chance or not or believe him when he tells me that he loves me. It's my life, Mom, not yours, and it's high time you finally start to realize and respect that," she told her mother in a calm, but determined voice that even surprised Rory.
For a moment, Lorelai just stared at her daughter before her eyes widened and her face fell. "Oh, God. You're really back together with him, aren't you? You fell for his pretty face and sweet tongue again, didn't you? Oh, Rory…"
"For Heaven's sake, no!" Rory hissed, calmness forgotten. "I'm not back together with him! I'm just married to him!"
This time it was her eyes that widened with shock. Oh, no… this wasn't how she had wanted to tell Lorelai. Not like this!
"What?" her mom shrieked, staring incredulously at her daughter.
"Way to go, Ace," Logan murmured from behind her.
Groaning, Rory let her head fall forward.
"What?" Lorelai asked again, her eyes going from Rory to Logan and back to Rory. "What did you just say?"
Taking a deep breath, Logan stepped forward to stand beside Rory. He may have not said a word so far but that didn't mean that he wanted Rory to face this fury alone. "We're married," he repeated, bracing himself for the storm he knew would come.
"No one asked you!" Lorelai snapped at him, incinerating him with her glare, before she looked back at Rory. "Please tell me that this is one of his sick jokes."
When Rory didn't say anything, she backed away, shaking her head. "So you're married? As in happily ever after 'til death do you part? God, Rory, what were you thinking?!?! And when did that happen? Last time I had you on the phone you still hated him and that was yesterday, Rory! Yesterday! So what was this? A lie? Because I refuse to believe that that boy managed to get back on your good side, convince you that he loves you and that you can't live without him and then gets you to marry him! You don't just get married in one day!"
"No, Mom, you don't understand. It's not real… just a misunderstanding," Rory hurried to say, shaking her head. "I didn't lie to you!"
Logan doubted that that would help calm down Lorelai. And he refused to let Rory's acquiescence that she hated him get at him. It was nothing new after all. And she had every right to hate him. Lorelai was right. He had messed up her life after all.
"A misunderstanding?" Lorelai unbelievingly repeated. "Rory, you coming home for lunch when I expected you for dinner is a misunderstanding. You getting into a cab and telling the driver to head for the airport but ending up at the train station is a misunderstanding. Ordering pizza and getting pasta is a misunderstanding! But you don't get married on a misunderstanding!"
"Lorelai, please, let us just explain…" Logan tried to clarify the situation but got cut off by Lorelai.
"That's Ms. Gilmore to you. But I think I made it clear that I was talking to my daughter here, didn't I?" she told him icily.
Biting his lip, Logan looked at Rory who looked downright stressed then back to her mother who still glared at him. Perhaps waiting for a 'Yes Ma'am, of course' or something like that. Well, she wouldn't get it. "With all due respect, Ms. Gilmore, but I fear we're both in this mess. Whether you want it or not, you'll have to deal with my presence here for a while longer."
"What I have to do or not is my business and my business alone, Limo-boy," Lorelai snubbed him.
"Mom, Logan!" Rory intervened. "First of all, his name is Logan. He's right, we're stuck together at least for a while and it would make everything a lot more bearable if you call him by his name and actually restrain yourself from barreling into him like that."
What he really couldn't get though was why Rory kept on defending him like that. He didn't deserve that. And he didn't want that. He meant what he had told her earlier: he didn't want to come between her and Lorelai. "Rory, no. She's right. I don't mind," he protested.
"See, even he knows that this is entirely his fault. The only one refusing to see the light here is you." Lorelai of course immediately used his word.
"No, it's not. And as I'm the only one that really has to decide here, it doesn't really matter what both of you believe or don't believe," Rory contradicted and sighed. "But we have a marriage to explain and take care of. Mom, please sit down, shut up and listen," she addressed her mother and nodded to the couch. When Lorelai opened her mouth again, Rory held up her hands. "Please, Mom. You've said your piece and a lot of what you said was simply unjustified. Now it's my turn. Once I'm finished you can go on with your tirade for all I care, but first you'll listen to what I have to say."
Lorelai was clearly unhappy about that, but she did surprise Logan by actually sitting down and not saying another word.
"Logan, though I appreciate you wanting to help me here, I think it's best for you to leave now," Rory said, turning to him.
Startled, Logan looked at her and began to shake his head. "No, Rory. You don't have to face this alone."
"I know and I'm not and thank you for that by the way. But this here is something where you can't help. In fact I think your presence here makes this even harder. So please, Logan, just go now," Rory pleaded with him.
"But…"
"I think my daughter asked you to leave," Lorelai warned him in a threatening voice.
"Mom! I'm handling it, okay?" Rory said angrily to her mother before she turned back to Logan. "See. Your presence here just heats up everything."
Apparently. Logan still didn't have to like that though. But in the end, he nodded with a sigh. "All right. Look, Mr. Wellburn would like to talk to us sometime in the next two days."
"I'll call you," Rory said with a nod and went over to the door to open it for him.
Reluctantly, Logan grabbed his jacket and went over to her. Standing in the door, he looked hesitantly at Rory. But she nodded. Sighing, he nodded and looked back at Lorelai. "Ms. Gilmore. It was a pleasure to see you again," he said, not able to help the sarcasm there. "Ace," he said with a last glance at Rory and finally left. Outside, he stopped though and listened how Rory closed the door again, bolting the locks.
Unhappy about the whole situation, Logan descended down the stairs. Not without casting a wary glance at the scary looking guys who lived downstairs though – or making a relieved sigh once he was safely outside. Well, safely was perhaps a bit of a stretch. No way could someone describe this neighborhood as safe. He hated it here. And Lorelai wasn't the only one who hated the fact that Rory now lived in this creepy part of New Haven. Even if he knew only too well that he wasn't supposed to care or even worry anymore about that. But it wasn't something he could just stop. He loved Rory, no matter that she didn't want to see him anymore, no matter that he grew aware of just what his so far unexplainable feelings for Rory were way too late and no matter that he knew that she was better off without him.
He loved her.
It had taken him a long time to realize it, but now that he knew, he couldn't just stop loving her. He had tried to. God knew that he had tried to. Had tried to go back to the way he had lived before he had met Rory. It had taken one kiss with some girl he couldn't even remember the name of anymore to realize that that would be impossible. Of course he hadn't wanted to believe it, so he had tried it again, taking it further this time – or at least that was the plan. Truth was that he couldn't.
Really couldn't.
It should have been one of the most embarrassing moments of his life. But it wasn't. Strange as it was, it was one of his best moments. Because the minute he realized that no matter how nice or sexy or willing the girl in his arms was, there would be no way that he'd get himself up enough to have sex with her. Simply because she wasn't the one whom he wanted. She felt all wrong and to be with her was a pain, not a release. She wasn't his girlfriend.
She wasn't Rory.
She wasn't the girl he loved.
Wasn't it an irony that he realized that he loved Rory while trying to have sex with someone else? Yeah, he thought so. He spent a couple of weeks trying to figure out what to do then. To stop loving her. He couldn't. When he heard that she was coming back to Yale he knew that he'd never be able to stop loving her. And seeing her, as hurtful as it was to see how she practically ran away from him, had only proved that to him. So he had tried to make contact. And failed. So he had come here to her new apartment, getting the scare of his life when he waited for her to come home and had the time to get a real good idea of just where she was living now. How could her family allow her to live there? Didn't they know how dangerous it was for a beautiful, naive girl like Rory to be in such a neighborhood? Not to mention what dangers awaited her when the people around here got wind of the fact that Rory came from a more than wealthy family?
All he wanted to do was to take her into his arms and take her away from that dump. Bring her home to his own place where she belonged anyway. But, of course, he hadn't been able to do any of these things. Oh, no. She had been very clear about what she thought of him exactly. Or of his declaration of love. Or about the chances that she'd ever forgive him for what he had done and would take him back.
And he couldn't blame her. Every single thing Lorelai had accused him of was true. He brought her to his family who then hurried to destroy her life. He was the one who had talked Rory into taking more risks. Without him in her life she never would have had the idea to steal a boat. And once she did it, he had been stupid enough to be amused by it, positively surprised even. He had helped her steal that boat instead of taking her home or at least someplace private to find out what exactly had happened. Instead of consoling her, even though he had seen that something was upsetting her. And wouldn't that be enough, once he did found out what happened, did he then reassure her that his father was talking bullshit? Had he told her just what an amazing writer and reporter she was? Oh no, of course not. He had been way too angry at his father to think of just what Mitchum had done to her. Just how much he had crushed her. Or he could have at least explained to her why his father had attacked her like that. But no, not one word. He had just pretended to believe her when she assured him that everything was fine and that he should go.
If he had just acted so differently then he was sure she would never have dropped out of Yale. Hell, he should never have allowed his father to give Rory that internship. He had known that something was in the back of his father's mind after all. Actually, best thing would have been to keep her far, far away from his mad, cruel family. What had he been thinking when he brought that wonderful girl to that pit of snakes and sharks?
What he couldn't understand was why Rory never blamed him for what his family did to her. Not once. Even during that stupid fight in the bar she didn't blame any of this on him. Sure, she had ranted about their life but he now knew that she never had meant to blame him. But he thought she had. It was what he had expected ever since the whole boat fiasco had happened and somehow he hadn't really heard what she said but just what he expected her to say. It hadn't helped that earlier that day he had another terrible time with his father and he had just felt like everything has been suffocating him. He had gone home earlier because he had needed to get away. Because he had needed to see Rory. But when he arrived, there was this guy who had been eating up his girlfriend with his eyes and she didn't seem to mind that in the least. That alone had made his blood boil but then to also be passive to that guy's open dislike and disapproval of everything Logan stood for – and what Rory stood for, for that matter - had made him furious. And then that guy dared to criticize his and Rory's life. So yeah, he had acted like an ass. But that guy sure had deserved it. It was one of the few things that happened in his relationship with Rory that he wasn't sorry for – and probably never would be.
Not that it mattered. There were plenty of other things he did regret. Because each and every one of those little things resulted finally in the end of their relationship. But then, he should have known that it couldn't hold. Why should something this good stay a part of his life? He didn't deserve it. Which he proved time and time again when he had majorly fucked up. And Rory sure didn't deserve the life he would have been able to offer her anyway. Sure, he had the money. But he knew that the job he would be forced into would take over his entire life. He had already a chance to experience it in this year so far, with his father dragging him all over the country to meetings and overseeing and managing different branches of the company and supervising personnel all over the country also. There had been way too much time that he hadn't been able to see Rory – or even his friends for that matter. Rory didn't deserve that. She deserved someone who was able to put her first, give her the time and attention she needed. The heir of the Huntzberger empire could never give her that.
Or could he?
With a sigh, he looked up to Rory's apartment. He wondered what was going on between her and Lorelai right now. Probably nothing good. When he had left the apartment it had still rather resembled a battlefield than a shabby living room. He just hoped that this mess wouldn't endanger their reconciliation. God, he hoped not. He didn't want to be the reason for yet another bad thing happening in Rory's life.
Sadly, he turned away and went over to the bus stop to wait for the bus back to campus. They should have taken his car. Or perhaps not. His eyes fell on a group of guys across the street, wearing gang colors and giving him and his obvious expensive clothes a look that made him feel very uncomfortable. He wasn't keen on finding out how long it would take them to take his Porsche apart. Not to mention that it would only draw attention to Rory.
Closing his eyes, he let his head hang down.
This. Day. Sucked.
Warily, Lorelai watched her daughter as she softly closed the door behind Logan and let the bolts slid back in place. The top alarm system Paris and Doyle had installed was the only thing that had stopped Lorelai from forcing Christopher to go visit her at her new place so far. She knew that as soon as he'd see this horrible place he'd give Rory no peace until she moved to a better place. Christopher may not have been around much – and he had often hurt both of them – but she never had the slightest doubt that he loved Rory and only wanted the best and safest for her. And if Christopher failed…
No. She couldn't go to her parents. Not anymore. Not after everything that happened. But perhaps… no. Not even for this. At least, not yet. After all, so far nothing had happened to Rory here. This place, as much as it was a dump, was surely safer for her than any contact with that – boy. And Lorelai had been so sure that they finally had gotten rid of him. Yet, here she sat, waiting for her baby to explain to her just how she happened to get accidentally married to that boy. Oh yeah, she really was burning to hear that explanation.
"So, I'm waiting. Or am I still supposed to be sitting here and keeping my mouth shut?" Lorelai asked sarcastically. She couldn't believe that her sweet little girl had really told her to shut up.
Taking a deep breath, Rory slowly turned to her and met her eyes. "Look, Mom, I'm sorry for snapping at you. Really, I am. But you went over the line. Far, far, far over the line."
Defensively, Lorelai crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You've always been way too nice. I just told Limo-boy what he should have heard a long time ago."
Rory shook her head. "For the last time, his name is Logan. It's not that distant sounding from Limo-boy so it can't be that hard to remember. And I'm not a child anymore. Nor am I sixteen anymore. I deal with Logan, not you!"
"Well, if you're married to him then you obviously didn't do a good job of dealing with him!" Lorelai pointed out, her voice rising again. "Since you met him, that boy did nothing else than mess up your life. He's no good for you, when will you finally get that?"
"And when will you get that this is still my decision! You don't know him! You never bothered to get to really know him or you'd know that he's not the Godfather!" Rory countered.
Shaking her head, Lorelai jumped up to pace. "That's not true! I did give him a chance and what did he do? He nearly got yet another of Emily's maids fired because he stole that stupid thing! What guy steals from the family of his girlfriend? If he'd need the money, but no, he just did it because he was bored."
"Oh, please, don't tell me you never did something wrong! Remember Grandma's wedding planner, huh? You basically did the same thing to her like Logan did to that maid, with the only difference that you got the wedding planner fired for real!" Rory pointed out, and then took a deep breath. "Look, I'm not saying that he made the best of impression that evening but it's not as if you gave him a chance at all back then! Even if he'd be nothing more than a perfect gentleman you still would have hated him, simply because he's rich and unlike you, didn't run away, even though he hates a lot of this world as much as you do," Rory calmly said and shook her head. "But then you don't know that. You don't know anything about him."
Lorelai stopped in front of Rory. "I know that he made you do things you never would have dreamed of before you met him. I know that he hurt you, badly, more than once. I know that he broke your heart, more than once as well. So badly this time that you even stopped drinking coffee! Or did you think I haven't noticed the lack of caffeine in you? Me, who raised you with coffee since the moment daddy's sperm battled down my egg?"
"Mom!" Rory exclaimed, making a face.
"Well, that's how it is and it's you who points out time and time again that you're not a child anymore," Lorelai said, feeling a lot more gleeful than she probably should.
Sighing, Rory sat down and looked up at her. "Mom… don't you think I don't know all that? It's my heart that's broken and my system that screams for coffee. I haven't forgotten that. Nor have I forgotten what Logan did or didn't do. But that doesn't mean that he's simply the bad guy here. That everything we experienced together was bad or that there hadn't been wonderful times. Or that just because he did break my heart he's automatically responsible for his father's actions, the hole in the Ozone or that Bush got reelected. And it sure doesn't give you any right to barrel into him like that. He didn't deserve that, Mom." Her blue eyes bore themselves into Lorelai's as she shook her head once. "He didn't. And now that that's said let me also tell you that he wasn't here because I'm thinking of getting back together with him. I've learned my lesson. He was here because we unfortunately managed to get married, which we found out this morning. Rather, I found out. So I only went to him to tell him the news. Now we're trying to figure out what to do to rectify this mistake. There's noting more going on between us."
For a long time, Lorelai stared into her daughter's eyes and it hit her with sudden force that Rory was right. She wasn't her little girl anymore. She was an adult now and Lorelai had better remember that. Her knees giving away, she sank back down onto the couch, taking a few deep breaths.
"Mom? Is everything okay?" Rory asked concerned.
Waving her concern away, Lorelai nodded. "Okay. I'm listening. Tell me how someone can accidentally get married. And it better include you two being on the run from killers so you had to marry in true Nick and Julia style."
Rory gave a strangled laugh. "Sorry, Mom, got to disappoint you. But I think it's more original. Definitely Oscar worthy."
"Shoot. Mommy's waiting."
Sighing, Rory leaned back. "Almost four months ago Finn had his 'And a half' birthday party. So he invited a few of his friends to a trip to Las Vegas, Logan and I included."
"You went to Vegas without me?" Lorelai asked shocked. "Why didn't you say so when we were there?"
Rory nodded. "Didn't want to disappoint you. And I swear I didn't set a foot into one of the casinos or play Black Jack." She blushed. "Actually, we were only there for the weekend and well, we… uh…"
Raising an eyebrow, Lorelai helped her out grudgingly. "You didn't see much of the city."
"No…" Rory shook her head, blushing some more. "I'm afraid not. The most we were out was the party Finn held in his suite. Now, I told you about Finn…"
Impatiently, Lorelai nodded. "Crazy Aussie who's more drunk than sober but still manages to be amazingly well informed about the basics of life and has an in-depth knowledge of psychoanalysis that your shrink would be envious of."
"Uh yeah… though part of this sounds like he's an alcoholic. He's not. Really not," Rory assured with a frown.
"Whatever. Come to the part where you exchanged rings," Lorelai demanded.
"Well, Finn being Finn has the fixation that no trip to Vegas is complete without a wedding," Rory said with a sigh.
"Oh, so you and Logan just thought, why the heck not, let's get married?" Lorelai summarized darkly.
"No! Of course not," Rory protested with a glare. "You see, there are people who offered fake weddings. Don't ask me why. They just do. So Finn organized such a fake wedding and he talked Logan and me into playing groom and bride. We didn't want to but you don't know Finn. It's like with Kirk. It's easier to play along than to say no. So we ended up being the ones who got married."
Shaking her head, Lorelai frowned. "Stupid, stupid, stupid. But I don't see how a fake wedding four months ago can make you husband and wife now."
"It shouldn't. But you see, Murphy thought it funny to mess a little with my life. So the fake priest we had now turns out to be a real, licensed lay magistrate. And that makes every wedding he performed and every document he signed legal," Rory explained, closing her eyes. "Or to be more specific… it makes the fake wedding Logan and I had back then legal and so we've been officially married to each other ever since."
Speechless, Lorelai stared at Rory while she digested what she heard. "Why would that magistrate do this?" she asked eventually.
Rory laughed sarcastically. "Oh, yeah, that's the best part of it. He claims God pointed out to him how scandalous these fake weddings are. That it dirties the holiness and sanctity of the ceremony. Did I mention that he's strictly Catholic? So he figured out that the appropriate punishment for those sinners was to find themselves really married. Like in getting what you asked for you know?" Rory rolled her eyes. "So this guy, Thomas Jones is his name by the way, goes to the biggest and most successful agency that offers fake marriages and pretends to be an actor. Of course he gets the job. The rest is history."
Once again, Lorelai could only stare at her daughter. "Okay, let me get this straight: You say that a fake priest who officiated at your fake wedding ceremony turns out to be a real magistrate with license to marry couples and on top of that got a holy mission and so pretended to be an actor to be able to marry people while pretending to be fake?"
Rory nodded.
Shaking her head, Lorelai laughed shortly. "Oh baby, you've really got to work harder on a believable story. I give you points for originality, really, but please! That's the most harebrained, unrealistic…" she stopped short when Rory leaned forward, grabbed a newspaper from the coffee table and pushed it into Lorelai's hands. The headline of the article immediately sprang into the eyes:
Find out if you're married!
Ever had a fake marriage? Be in for a surprise.
Shutting up, Lorelai frowned and quickly read through the article. Once she was finished, she read it again. And again. Finally, she let the newspaper fall onto her lap while she stared at Rory, this time truly having no words to say. "Oh my…"
Rory just nodded. "Welcome to my very own version of Alice's wonderland."
After a long moment, Lorelai shook her head. "Rather 'The Wizard Of Oz'."
"Or Narnia!" But then, Rory shook her head. "Nope, I'm too old for Narnia."
"Bugger. At least then you wouldn't have been old enough to be married off," Lorelai commented dryly and shook her head. "But forget the Oscar. They'd never give the little gold man to such a story. Too unrealistic and comical. But you're right: it would be a seller for sure."
"A hit," Rory nodded. "I already thought of just becoming a screenwriter and forget becoming a reporter, write a script, sell it to Hollywood and get rich. Who do you think could play me? How about that girl in 'Sin City'? The traitor. She looks nice. Right age as well."
"You want the traitor to be you?" Lorelai asked, raising her eyebrow.
"She's not just a traitor! In 'Bride and Prejudice' she was a very sweet little sister!" Rory protested. "Besides, in 'Sin City' she only wanted to protect her mother, now, if that doesn't scream me I don't know what does."
Lorelai had to grin. "Whatever. Just make sure that Nicole plays me."
"Wrong hair. And she's too classy," Rory though immediately protested.
"You want to tell me I'm not classy?" Lorelai asked indignantly.
"No, I think Sandra would play you way better. She has the necessary craziness to be you. And the hair would be right," Rory continued with a grin.
"That's it. You're not my daughter anymore!" Lorelai exclaimed but then sighed. "So… you're married huh?"
Rory's face fell and she nodded.
"So tell me about married life: Is it as good as they praise it to be? Or is it only a mean trick of the Pope to prevent having some adult fun?" Lorelai asked lightly.
"Mom!"
"Okay, okay. So, what are you and that prime husband of yours going to do?" Lorelai asked instead.
Rory sighed. "Logan contacted a lawyer who would study the case. But it looks as if we'll have to attend at least a hearing to get an annulment."
"An annulment?" Lorelai asked.
"Seems the best option, right? I mean, it's not as if Logan and I had wanted to get married or ever lived in a marriage. And we've been deceived." Rory shook her head and looked away. "They just have to give us that annulment."
"Yeah, sure they should. Not to mention that this Jones guy clearly is psychotic," Lorelai quickly tried to reassure her daughter – and herself. "I mean, why's he not yet in the next psychiatric hospital?"
"Because he's a fanatic, not crazy," Rory pointed out sadly.
"He's a lay magistrate!" Lorelai protested.
With a smile, Rory laid her head onto the armrest, resting on the couch's back, and looked at Lorelai. "Look, there's not much more we can do about all this. Now tell me why you're here in the first place. What's this about Luke postponing the wedding?" Rory gently asked.
Immediately, Lorelai felt her face fell and her heart clench as she remembered last night when Luke finally told her why he had been so unenthusiastic and distant lately. "He has a kid," she whined.
"What?" Rory exclaimed, frowning.
Unhappily, Lorelai nodded. "Turns out an old girlfriend of his neglected to tell him something. Then, thirteen years later a little girl walks into his diner to tell him that he's her daddy."
Now it was Rory's turn to look speechless at her mother. "Wow…"
Sighing, Lorelai nodded.
"So Luke has a daughter? And he never had any idea?" Rory asked.
Lorelai nodded, followed by a head shake.
"But what has that to do with the wedding? I mean, you're not angry at him for having a kid he didn't know of, right?" Rory asked.
"God, Rory, no, of course not. But you know, it's kinda big to learn that you've got a kid and for a while already. Luke's just… dealing with it." Lorelai sighed as she remembered Luke's troubled eyes as he told her the truth. "And I get that, really. I mean, I know what an impact a kid can be. A wedding on top of that is just too much for him. So he postponed it."
Rory was quiet for a moment. "Mom… okay. But he just postponed it, right? He didn't break it off. You're still together and engaged, right? You're just not going to get married on June third but sometime later."
Lorelai nodded. "Yeah… for now," she added miserably.
"Oh, Mom, no! Come on, this is Luke! He's crazy about you! He has loved you ever since you walked into his diner begging for coffee! I mean, horoscope, remember?" Rory said insistently. "That girl won't change what he feels for you. So don't you dare start doubting that or your engagement to him!"
Groaning, Lorelai bowed forward. "You don't understand! I showed him the dress! God, why had I been so stupid! It brings bad luck! I should have kept it at Sookie's! But no! I kept it at home and of course I couldn't wait to see his expression until June. Oh, no, I had to show him and see, now the wedding's off!"
"That's ridiculous, Mom! It's not bad luck! And the wedding's only postponed," Rory protested and leaned forward to lay a hand on Lorelai's shoulder. "Come on. We want Luke Danes. And when we Gilmore girls want someone, we'll get him, right? There's no way we'll let Luke get away again."
"No?" Lorelai asked in a small voice.
Rory shook her head. "No. Not that he even wants to get away."
With a sigh, Lorelai sat up again. "No, we won't. And no, he doesn't. Thanks, kiddo. I knew I had you for a reason."
With a smile, Rory nodded and cuddled up in her corner of the couch again. "So, how was his expression?"
Lorelai grinned. "Stunned and speechless. Just how it's supposed to be."
"I bet," Rory grinned.
"Hey, did Logan see you in your dress before you had your fake real wedding?" Lorelai wanted to know with a grin.
"Uh, no," Rory answered with a matching grin. "It's bad luck, remember? Finn would never have allowed Logan to see me."
"Ha, ha, very funny," Lorelai said dryly but then frowned. "Wait… are you saying you actually had a wedding dress?"
Blushing, Rory nodded. "Well, yeah. I mean, Finn…"
"Insisted, huh?" Lorelai asked, shaking her head. "That Finn… he's really a character, huh?"
Rory laughed. "Yep, that he is."
"So… I want to see the pictures!" Lorelai exclaimed. "If I wasn't even invited to my only daughter's wedding, I should at least get to see the pictures! I mean, Finn for sure had someone taking pictures right? If he didn't get a Coppola to film it."
"Actually, it was Nora Ephron," Rory deadpanned.
Narrowing her eyes, Lorelai looked at her daughter. "That was a joke now, right?" she asked suspiciously.
Breaking out into a grin, Rory nodded. "Yeah, it was. Though you've got to admit that you were uncertain there for a moment."
"Well, you never know with that bunch of people. Or with that Finn guy," Lorelai answered with a shrug.
"Tell me about it!" Rory said with a sigh and met her mother's eyes. "So… we're good, right Mom?" she asked timidly and Lorelai's heart flew out to her. She moved forward to take her daughter into her arms. "Of course, we're good. I'm sorry I blew up like that."
"It's okay," Rory sniffed. "It's kind of a… unique situation."
"You could say that again," Lorelai agreed and stroked Rory's head. She truly was sorry that she had yelled at Rory like that – but she sure wasn't sorry for saying what she had said to Limo-boy. She just couldn't stand that guy. But she knew better than to start with that again. "It's going to be okay," she soothed instead.
"I hope so," Rory sighed. "Right back at you."
Lorelai smiled softly. "I hope so," she too said and looked out the dirty window.
God, she really hoped so. It was high time that the Gilmore girls finally got some happiness into their lives. Well, happiness on the men front.
TBC!