Author's Note:Thank you all so much for the reviews. I really, really appreciate the feedback. I think I feel so compelled to write this because it's the one story line that left me feeling uneasy at series' end and it really wouldn't have taken much to resolve it. So I think this is my way of getting closure while also working out/ironing out the series in my own head-the subtext, the character motivations, etc.

I just hope readers enjoy it, whether it's for the nostalgia or the mild angst (it's coming), or the sappy sweetness (it's coming, too). If you enjoy it, then it won't feel so much like self-indulgence.

The Way We Weren't

Waking up next to Lorelai was… nice. In some ways it felt natural, like they had not missed a beat. But of course they had. They'd missed a year-long beat. As he watched her sleep, her hair splayed over the pillow, her breathing slow, he puzzled over their problem. She had opened up to him last night about her feelings about Rory. They were making progress. But he worried that they would both struggle to talk about their relationship. And they needed to talk about it, to talk about what happened. There remained an awkward tension between them that he knew would only be broken by some serious discussion-maybe some yelling. Ugh, maybe even some crying. He hated to see her cry.

Luke wasn't worried that they would get there. He worried that it would take time. They had wasted so much time already. He wanted to be settled.

He reset the alarm for Lorelai and got ready for work.

~ooooo~

Lorelai woke up alone, but feeling better than she had in years. Rory was off conquering the world, but she had her inn, she had friends, she had Luke. And soon she would have April, too. At least she thought she'd have April. They hadn't talked about it, but she assumed that Luke understood, there was no way that Lorelai would be kept from his daughter, no way no how. She felt a little pang of anxiety at the thought of what assuming does.

Nope. Not going to think that way. This is going to work. It's going to be different, in good ways.

She stretched and sat up, swinging her feet over the side of the bed in preparation to stand up, then saw the note. She picked it up.

Stop by the diner for breakfast. Let's give them something to talk about.

She could almost see the smirk on his face as he was writing that second sentence. Energized, she quickly got ready for work and headed out to satisfy the gawkers and gossip-mongers.

~ooooo~

Luke looked up when he heard the bells jingle to see a beautiful woman coming through the door, smiling brilliantly at him. She marched up and took a seat at the counter after waving to Patty and Babette, who had long since finished breakfast and were loitering at a table in the corner waiting for this very moment to arrive. A lanky brown-haired man next to her let out a sigh and said, "Lorelai, maybe you can help me."

"Hi, Kirk." She then addressed Luke, who was getting ready to pour her some coffee and said, "Oh, to go, please. I need to get to the inn to train the new assistant manager." She turned back to Kirk. "What's up?"

"I'm trying to convince Luke to put a new item on the menu. I call it Huevos Pancheros. It's a fried egg with sausage and salsa wrapped up in a pancake, like a burrito. Oh, maybe I should call it a Panrito? Or an eggcake burrito? Anyway, I think it would be a big seller. There's just one problem I have to figure out: the syrup makes the pancake fall apart, so you can't pick it up to eat it."

"That sounds disgusting, Kirk." Lorelai responded.

Luke handed her a to-go cup and asked, "A new assistant manager?"

"Yeah, part time. She was going to work full time for a month or so to help out Michel while I was on the trip with Rory, but now..." She looked a little sad. "Maybe I'll take some time off, anyway."

An idea struck Luke, but he tried to focus on the present. "How about something to eat, too? I could make you one of those bagel and egg sandwiches and wrap it up to go."

"Ooo, with extra bacon?"

"Sure, why not? Take another couple of years off your life," Luke said as he rolled his eyes. "I'll make you a deal. I'll throw on the extra bacon if you drink some orange juice before you go." He plunked a small glass of OJ in front of her.

"Okay, but I won't enjoy it."

As Luke went to the kitchen to make her sandwich, Lorelai was keenly aware of people watching her. It might have made her uncomfortable if she wasn't used to it. When he returned with a bag, he didn't hand it over immediately. Instead, he leaned on the counter and asked her what she was doing tonight.

"Well, I thought I'd start that letter-writing campaign to make Shamrock Shakes available all year, but I can put that off a day or two. What did you have in mind?"

"Just dinner out," he answered. "Nothing fancy. Seven?"

"Sure." He flashed her a smile as he looked around to make sure that people were watching, then gave her a kiss goodbye. Not a peck, but a serious, long, deep kiss. Feeding the rumor mill in Stars Hollow is usually a better choice than hiding from it and it's a choice that has an upside.

"See you then." And he disappeared back into the kitchen. Lorelai paused to regain her senses and strength in her knees. When she got up to leave at least three pairs of eyes above three open mouths followed her out the door.

~ooooo~

By lunchtime of Lorelai's first day back to work since her life turned upside down (for the umpteenth time in the last three years) she had given Sookie a play-by-play of her movie night with Luke (minus the heavy pillow talk about Rory), refereed a dispute between Michel and Derek, found a new feed supplier for the horses, chewed out the printer for yet another mistake with color, and reconciled the books, all (except gossiping with Sookie) while being shadowed by Heidi, her new assistant manager. It probably would have been more appropriate for her to shadow Michel, but Lorelai didn't want her to quit before the end of the week, so she limited Heidi's interactions with the ill-mannered Frenchman to a couple of hours per day.

This was good. Busy was good. Not thinking about Luke was good.

Yes, not thinking about Luke was good. Yesterday she had slept most of the day and didn't really have time to think much about their relationship. Last night she was pretty comfortable with him and even this morning she felt calm and confident that they would be fine this time. But the more time she spent away from him, the more little pangs of anxiety and doubt popped up, usually without warning. Maybe she still felt bad about Rory leaving, or maybe she was just worn out from the emotional ups and downs, but she didn't think that was it.

For a working lunch she sat down with Sookie to try a new dish for the regular dining room menu and to go over the menu for a wedding taking place on Saturday. When they were talking about the cake, Lorelai noticed that Sookie's eyes were darting around the room a little and she was shifting in her seat. Finally, Sookie just burst out with, "Are you and Luke going to get married now, or what?"

Lorelai just stared at her for a moment, then calmly answered, "Well, Sook, we've been back together for less than two days… after a year apart… In that time I've been married and divorced, Luke has had to fight for custody of his kid, and my daughter has left home. I think we can take a little time to settle down before we tackle this particular question, don't you?" She wondered briefly if she was trying to convince Sookie or herself.

"I still have that cake topper."

"What?"

"I still have the cake topper," Sookie repeated. "You know, the one that has Luke's butt? Unless it's fallen since then. Has Luke's butt fallen? It's been a year and a half. Oh, God, please tell me he still has that gorgeous butt."

"His butt is just fine, Sookie."

"Okay." Sookie sighed. "Look, it's none of my business, but you were so happy when we planned that wedding, when you thought you were going to marry Luke. I've never seen you so happy, not before or since. I just want to you have what you deserve-a happily ever after with Luke."

"That's what I want, too, Sookie." Lorelai sighed and closed her notebook. "But we have a lot to work through first. I mean, it's really comfortable right now, but there are times when I just feel… scared. I mean not Nightmare on Elmstreet scared, but scared that love isn't enough. You know, The Way We Were scared." Suddenly a cold chill traveled up her spine. "Ohmygod, that's exactly what happened to us."

"What did, sweetie?"

"The first time we broke up… I called him, just like Katie called Hubble. I even told him it was like Katie calling Hubble-you know, she needed her best friend because she'd lost her boyfriend, but her best friend was her boyfriend… And we made up just like Katie and Hubble made up. Well, not that night, but still…"

"But then Katie and Hubble broke up anyway."

"Yeah, and she married someone else."

"Oh, wow." Sookie tried to find something positive to say, "Oh, but you didn't stay with Christopher."

"No, I didn't." Lorelai looked worried. "What do you think that means?"

Sookie shook it off. "I don't think it means anything, sweetie. You and Luke aren't in a movie. You're perfect together and you're finally going to be together and that's that."

But Lorelai was still worried.

~ooooo~

Luke's day was a little less intrusive than the day before. People still hounded him, mostly about whether he and Lorelai were going to get married. He had no answers. Of course it was what he wanted-to marry Lorelai and maybe have a family. But to him they felt stuck. It was silly to think this way, he knew. It had only been a couple of days. They'd had a good talk last night, but not about them, not about the things they really needed to talk about. And he was impatient. He wanted to kick-start this thing, but he knew they had to be careful.

During the mid-morning lull he found himself lost in thought and that wasn't a good thing. Being in his head is a big part of what got them into this mess to begin with. But he was having a hard time relaxing. It was like those times when you can't think of an actor's name, so you try and try and all you end up with is frustration. Then, all of a sudden, while you're thinking about something totally unrelated, the name will find its way to the surface. He decided he was trying too hard to 'fix' things with Lorelai. He needed to let it simmer, to put it on low, so to speak. So left the diner in Caesar's care and went over to Lorelai's house. Great way to avoid thinking about you and Lorelai, Danes.

He found the boxes hidden in a corner of the garage and carried them, one-by-one, to the porch. Even after 11 years he still didn't know about the key in the turtle like everyone else in town did, there was no need to break the back door lock this time. His old key still hung from his keychain. She had never asked for it back and he had never had the heart to remove it. He wasn't like Lorelai in that way. He couldn't get rid of the stuff that reminded him of her. He had stopped wearing the blue hat because he was angry, but he kept it in a safe place just like he kept that blue plaid flannel shirt. As he had hoped, the key still worked and he brought the boxes into the house, stacking them up on the first stair landing after greeting Paul Anka.

When the last box was in place, he stopped to look around. He was too distracted last night to even think about it, but it was the first time he had been inside the house that he and Lorelai had renovated in more than a year. There were some changes. Of course he had noticed the TV last night; it was hard to miss and they were watching it. Christopher had added it, he presumed. But other than the TV the place hadn't changed much. Little touches of him that had been here and there after the renovation were gone, of course. She had put all of those things, all of his things, in his dad's boat during those horrible days after the breakup and he just carted it all off to his sister's without going in the house.

He wasn't sure what he'd expected, maybe to feel the residue of Christopher, like a ghost. But it wasn't there. It was Lorelai's house. Our house, he thought. Still, he made a mental note to talk to Lorelai about replacing that TV.

He took a deep breath, then grabbed Paul Anka's leash and took him for a short walk before heading back to the diner. He still had no plan, no strategy to help them get through this... until he talked to April.

~ooooo~

"So, are you going to tell me what's in those boxes?" Luke asked, yelling up the stairs as he waited for Lorelai to finish primping. "Rory made them sound important."

"They are," Lorelai answered, coming down the stairs in the third outfit she had put on in the last half hour. This one was the perfect mix of casual, but flattering, not unlike what she wore on their first real date years ago. "They contain more things like this," she said, gesturing to the necklace she was wearing. Luke recognized it as the one he had brought back from the Renaissance Fair. They were certainly taking a stroll down memory lane tonight. Maybe that was good. They needed to talk about the bad stuff, but maybe they should remember the good along with it. And, man, there was good stuff to remember. "They're Luke boxes."

On the way to the restaurant, Lorelai explained 'Luke boxes', telling him about Rory's first break up with Dean and how, after the night of the ultimatum she had tried to empty the house of anything that reminded her of Luke. "It was an impossible task, of course, but I was out of my mind. Luckily Rory could see that I wasn't thinking straight and she didn't get rid of it like I asked her to. A few months ago, when I was finally coming out of the fog I'd been in, regret hit me like a sumo wrestler. I cried myself to sleep more than once over the chuppah."

He reached over and put a hand on her knee. "I'm so sorry, Lorelai."

"Hey, it was my doing," she said. "I'm just grateful that my daughter is smart and sneaky. That chuppah is my most precious possession. It has been since you gave it to me."

~ooooo~

Lorelai figured it out about a mile from the restaurant. He was taking her to Sniffy's. She was so excited that she started to bounce in the seat. She couldn't take her eyes off the building as he helped her out of the truck. Anticipation turned to anxiety, however, as they walked, hand-in-hand, closer to the door. A few feet before the entrance she stopped.

"Luke?" He turned back and saw terror in her eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "No, you're not okay. What's wrong?"

She looked into his eyes, searching for answers. "What do they think happened between us?" She swallowed. "How… how much have you-"

"They don't know about -" He stopped and sighed, thinking about what to say. "I only told them that you'd left me. I told them I had been stupid." He said. Lorelai breathed a sigh of relief, but she was overcome with guilt.

"That doesn't seem fair," she said. "It wasn't all your fault."

"Well, I don't think they believe it was, but I didn't share much. I was a mess, so they were probably a little angry with you, but I'm 100% positive they'll be happy to see you and happy for us." She did not look convinced. "Let's go inside. If at any time you feel uncomfortable, we'll leave, okay?" She nodded and followed him, still holding tight to his hand.

But instead of opening the door, he pulled her behind him and said, "Let's surprise them. Stay here for a minute." She couldn't help smiling at his desire to make a big production out of it, so she waited patiently outside, taking deep breaths to calm her nerves while he tracked down the proprietors. He was back out and grabbing her hand in less than a minute. Then, with a flourish and a "Tah dah!" she was ushered inside to face a stunned Buddy and Maisy. She could see the wheels turning in Buddy's brain as he thought about the celebratory dinner he was about to cook. Maisy's face broke out in a grin as she said, "Lorelai!"

After a round of hugs and confirmations that, yes, they were back together, Maisy took them to what Lorelai thought of as their regular booth and took a seat next to her.

"Well, well, well, well, well…. This is quite a pleasant surprise. How long has this been going on?" Then she looked at Luke. "We haven't seen you since you brought April in to celebrate the custody decision back in January." Lorelai twitched a little at the mention of April. She immediately plastered on a smile, but not before Luke saw the flash of pain. He decided to ignore it for now, but filed it away in his memory for later.

"Um, just a few days," Luke responded, "But I think we've been working up to it for a few weeks." He looked to Lorelai for confirmation. She nodded.

"But I thought you'd married someone else." Maisy asked Lorelai. She was as blunt as ever.

"Um, yeah, well, that didn't work out," Lorelai said. "In fact, I wasn't legally married." This came as a surprise to Luke, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, it sounds like that's water under the bridge, so I won't pry. I'm just really happy to see you two together. It's going to stick this time, right?"

Lorelai smiled at Luke, who took her hand and gazed into her eyes. Without looking away she said, "Yes, Maisy. I think it's going to stick this time."

Maisy gave them both a look that said, "It had better stick." Then disappeared into the kitchen.

Over appetizers and a bottle of wine, Luke steered the conversation. "So, you weren't legally married?" Luke asked, still holding her hand.

"Didn't I tell you? I guess I wouldn't have... When I filed for divorce I discovered that the marriage wouldn't be recognized in the U.S. because we didn't do everything we were supposed to do." She explained. "I'm not even sure that it would have been recognized in France, either, but I tried to file there, too, just in case. Since we don't live there and aren't citizens, it seems that it just doesn't matter." She didn't tell him that it would have been a lot more complicated if they had just made it just a few more weeks to the 'wedding party' that Emily was planning.

"Are you sure this isn't something that's going to come back to haunt you later?" Luke was of course thinking about possible impediments to he and Lorelai getting married, but he didn't say so.

"My lawyer assured me that it wouldn't. I have documentation." She made an effort to look him in the eye while she said this and rubbed his hand with her thumb. He looked down at their joined hands. Something was bothering him. "Maybe we could go see him together. Would it make you feel better?"

"No, no, that's okay. I'm sure you've got it covered." He wanted to talk about Christopher, but he just didn't think it was the right time. Moving onward, though… Luke looked up at her and asked, "You know that trip you were planning with Rory?"

"Yeah, we were going to tour roller coasters. Obviously that's off. I'm not going by myself. Unless… you don't want to go, do you?" She grinned at the thought of Luke on a roller coaster.

"I'd rather watch that glass guy from the cruise. Or maybe stick forks in my eyes." Luke said. "But I had another idea. Let's take a trip, you and me."

Lorelai smiled. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, we've never really done that. The weekend in Martha's Vineyard and a night in the city after a show a couple of times, but we've never really taken a vacation together. There was always the inn, or April-" He saw another flash of pain on her face, but continued, "We have never really had all that much 'alone time'." He was thinking that it would be really nice to get away from the town and pressure of well-meaning friends like Maisy. "And I haven't had a vacation in… Jeez, I don't think I've taken a vacation since that cruise with Nicole."

"That sound wonderful, Luke. Really. Where should we go?"

"How much time can you take?" This was the most important question, he knew.

"Well, the roller coaster trip was going to take a few weeks, maybe even a month." He couldn't possibly be thinking they should leave for a month, could he?

"Do you think you could stretch it to six weeks?" Luke asked, hopeful. "Is there someone who can take care of Paul Anka for that long?"

"I guess so," Lorelai was intrigued. "Babette and Sookie were going to split the time. I'm sure a couple more weeks wouldn't be a big deal."

"And you've got the inn covered?"

"Well, yeah. Heidi was going to work full time so that Michel could take over most of my duties, then go to part time at the end of the summer. I was planning to do things like the accounting and other administrative stuff from the road-you know, set up my laptop in coffee shops with WiFi for a few hours a couple of times per week." She couldn't take it any longer. She had to know. "What did you have in mind, Luke?"

"Well, I thought that maybe you and I could take the boat trip, the one I was going to take with April." He said, watching her reaction. But she kept a poker face. "All of the planning is done, the reservations are made, it's been mapped out. And I thought…"

"Mmm hmm." Lorelai just nodded.

"You hate the idea." Luke said, defeated. "Six weeks with me 'on a boat in the middle of nowhere… Anything can happen,'" he quoted her comments to him just a couple of weeks earlier.

"Oh, no!" Lorelai corrected him quickly. "That's not it, really Luke. I think it's a great idea… I mean, if I got seasick or claustrophobic I could always catch a train home, right?" Luke nodded. "I just…" She hesitated, trying to find the words to explain her concerns. "You were supposed to take that trip with April." She gave him a pained look.

"Yeah," he explained, "But April is at this super science camp. She can't do both, and this camp is an amazing opportunity. She left today, actually."

"But you were supposed to take this trip with your daughter," Luke had obviously missed the point, so it beared repeating.

"Yeah, and I'll see her after camp." Luke really didn't understand, "She'll still have a couple of weeks before she has to go back to New Mexico and get ready for school. I'll take her out on the boat for a weekend or something then."

"But, Luke, you were supposed to take the trip with April." She decided to be a little more direct. "Don't you think that she'll be a little upset when she finds out that you're going without her, that someone else will be going in her place?"

"It was her idea," he volunteered.

"Seriously?"

"Yes." Luke explained, "She called today to let me know she had gotten settled at camp. I told her about us and about an idea I had this morning that we take a trip together. I talked to her-she has really grown into someone that I can talk to-about how we still need to talk things out and I mentioned your little joke about someone locking us in a room together. That's when she suggested the boat trip."

"Wow." Wow, that girl is smart. And mature. And generous. So much like Luke.

"Yeah, see, all of the things we're worried about that keep us from talking about the things we really need to talk about… Well, most of them would be out of the equation. We'll be alone, so we can yell at each other without worrying about anyone else hearing, but there's nowhere to go when you're on the water. Nobody can just walk away." Lorelai ducked her head, feeling a little shame remembering how she walked away from him without giving him much of a chance to think and respond. "I suppose I could still clam up, but then your relentless questioning would probably break me of that. We would have to face each other and our problems, head on."

Lorelai realized he was right. This was a good solution, and one with a bonus feature. "All of that time together, six weeks of just you and me? We'd come back either inseparable or knowing that we will never be more than friends again…" Either would be better than this uncertainty, she thought. And to have the chance to really bond with Luke… She grinned. "Okay, I'm in!"

Luke smiled, in spite of the pang of anxiety he felt over that last part. He knew it was a possibility, but he didn't want to think about that right now.

Their entrees arrived and as they dug in and made plans. Luke and April had planned to leave the Monday after Rory's party, which was originally scheduled for this coming Saturday. This worked perfectly, since Lorelai and Rory had planned to leave Sunday. They just needed to make a few phone calls. She needed to make sure that Sookie and Babette could still take Paul Anka (Lorelai kept her parents in mind as a backup, remembering how well they cared for the stray that wandered into their back yard a couple of years ago). She also needed to have a meeting with Michel to make sure that he could handle a couple more weeks without her. But then what to pack?

"Luke?" Lorelai asked, "What will I do on this boat?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… you'll be driving the boat, right?"

"Of course," he answered.

"And you'll do all of the cooking."

"Well I'm sure as hell not letting you cook."

"What will I be doing all this time?" she asked, truly concerned. "Sunbathing? Reading?"

"Well, sure. You can read, listen to music. There's a TV. It won't pick up much of anything, but there's a DVD player. I'll put you in charge of entertainment. I just ask that you bring DVDs and CDs only, not the cases. Maybe get one of those binders? And not too many. Space on the boat is REALLY limited."

"Okay, but you're doing all of the work. What work can I do? I can't just sit around and while you do everything." Yes, Lorelai was a bit of a couch potato, but she couldn't stand the idea of not being useful at all.

"Well, you can do the dishes. You like doing dishes." Luke reminded her. "And other things need cleaning once in awhile. And we'll have to do laundry at least once a week. We can't take more than a week's worth of clothes. There just isn't the closet space. We'll have to go in to shore for that, but we'll go ashore often anyway. That's kind of the point of the trip, to visit coastal towns. You can go to the laundromat while I'm shopping for supplies and we can do the rest-dinner ashore, shopping, whatever, together. How does that sound?"

Lorelai smiled. "It sounds wonderful. Very Donna Reed, except you'll be doing the cooking."

"And in our down time, when we're not talking or eating, we can read, fish, play chess…"

"I don't know how to play chess," she said, cringing a little.

"I'll teach you."

"Okay, but no scuba diving. I don't want to get back to the surface to find the boat gone."

"Um, okay, no scuba diving."

A/N: Next Up, "Rachel"