Chapter Six

It was strange being back in her childhood bedroom. Everything was exactly how Rory remembered it, but she was seeing it with different eyes. These eyes were older, wiser (in theory) and, frankly, in need of a minor prescription. These eyes saw her through the start of the career for which she'd dreamt for years. They'd seen late nights with Paris and tense rides on the subway. They'd seen Lorelai ten years before. Emily ten years before. And she hoped, with all of her heart, that they would see both of them ten years from now, and then ten years from then, and ten years from then. And still, even with the whispered prayer for more years, Rory knew that those years wouldn't quite be what she'd hoped, because he wouldn't be there. Richard. The man who believed in her, even at her lowest and most lost.

There was a knock on her door and Lorelai walked in, closing the door quietly behind her as she said, "He's waiting out in his car, you know."

"Who?"

"Who do you think?" Lorelai asked, sitting down on the edge of Rory's bed. "That boy that you claim nothing is going on with."

"Logan," Rory murmured. "I told him to go home."

"And I believe you. But, he's still out there. I went out to bring him some cookies from the kitchen and he suddenly pretended to be pulling up directions on his phone."

"Aren't those cookies in the kitchen old?"

Lorelai shrugged. "It's the thought that counts." She reached forward and pushed Rory's hair away from her face. "How are you doing?"

"I'm fine," Rory said. "I should be asking you that question. I mean, he was your dad."

"Yeah, he was. But, you two had a really special relationship. He was so proud of you, babe. You should have seen him when you first got your job at the New York Times. If someone could have imploded from pride, it would have been him."

Rory smiled sadly.

"Anyway, I came in here to tell you that I'm heading over to your grandma's."

"I thought she said she wanted to be alone tonight," Rory said.

"She did. But, since when have I ever listened?"

"It'll be good for you to be there," Rory said, pulling her knees into her chest. "Do you want me to come with?"

"No, you stay here," Lorelai said. "Maybe go out and talk to your stalker. Tell him that our bushes out front are available."

"I'm sure he'd be interested to learn that."

Lorelai leaned forward and kissed Rory's forehead. She stayed there for a moment, the day settling on her, and murmured, "We're going to be okay, kid."

"I know."

Lorelai headed out of Rory's bedroom and quickly gathered her things before heading out to the elder Gilmore house. Rory padded into the rec room and peered out the front window. Sure enough, Logan's car was parked out front. He'd moved it down one house, in a paltry attempt to make his presence unknown. Unfortunately, he'd parked in front of Babette's house, which landed him in an unexpected conversation with the rotund homeowner through his barely rolled down window.

Rory pulled on her jacket and headed outside, giving Babette a small wave as she approached. Her neighbor pulled back from Logan's car and immediately charged toward her, enveloping her in a tight hug. Babette smelled like warm cinnamon, and Rory found herself unintentionally melting into her.

"Oh, sugar, you must be just torn up right now," Babette said, chest heaving against Rory.

"I'm okay," Rory said.

"I saw your mom leave. Is Luke in there with you?"

Rory shook her head. "Mom told him to open the diner up for the night. She said she didn't want him to lose an entire night of business."

"That's your ma," Babette said, voice wavering. "Always thinking of others. Are you alone tonight? Because you shouldn't be alone at a time like this. You can come over here with me and Maury. We recorded one of those Agatha Christie stories!"

"He's actually here for me," Rory said, pointing toward Logan.

"Oh! Of course!" Babette said loudly. She glanced over at him and said, "I'm not going to lie, I sort of forgot you were there, sugar."

Logan gave her a strange look.

"Thank you, though," Rory said. "I appreciate the offer."

"You're like family, Rory. And family takes care of family. Well, anyway, I'll let you two get inside." Babette gave her another tight hug and told her, "That one was for Lorelai, okay? You give it to her from me."

"I will," Rory promised.

Rory walked around to the passenger door of Logan's car and slipped in. He watched her quietly as she put on her seatbelt.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Well, if you're going to sit out here in your car all night we might as well take it somewhere."

"I was just heading out," he said, voice unconvincing.

"I know."

"But, I guess I can go for a short ride," he said, smiling slightly. "Where to?"

"Just start driving, we can decide as we go."

He nodded, turning the key in the ignition and shifting the car into drive. She watched him as he drove and said, "You know, you didn't have to stay. I really am fine."

"I know you are."

"Don't you have work in the morning?"

"That's the benefit of being your own boss," Logan returned. "You set your hours. And, coincidentally, my boss is having me start mid-morning tomorrow."

"How convenient."

"Where do you want to go?" he asked.

"I don't care. Let's just drive."

He pulled away from her street, Stars Hollow laid out in front of them above the car's dashboard. She forgot how much she loved this town. It made her feel complete in a way she didn't even really realize she was missing in New York. She was happy enough there. She made a life for herself that anyone would be happy to have, but this was home.

"Does Molly know you're here," Rory asked, needing to reference the small red-headed elephant in the car.

"She does. I told her that about your grandpa. She said it was good for me to be here for you."

"That's nice of her to be so understanding."

"She's pretty nice. How's Rob?"

Rory thought of the several missed calls from him on her phone. She learned from Paris that he showed up at their apartment, wanting to apologize for the way he'd been on the phone. Paris told him that Richard was in the hospital and he'd immediately wanted to come to see Rory. Thankfully, Paris told him that Rory would only want to be with family. When Rory realized how much she didn't want him with her, she knew it was over. It probably should have been a while ago.

"We're breaking up."

"As in it's on-going?" he asked slowly.

"I haven't told him yet. Haven't really had time. But, it's the right decision. He's not – " she cut herself off before she finished the sentence. He's not what she wanted. He's not who she wanted to be sitting next to her in this car, driving aimlessly through her hometown. She felt such a sudden longing for Logan that it made her chest ache. "We weren't right for each other."

"I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't be. It was a long time coming. We're both better of this way. He can find someone who's really right for him, and I can do the same. Really, it was the right decision. The best decision. I'm…we both will be happier. Well, he might not be right off the bat, but he will be. He'll see that we weren't right for each other and this was the right thing to do. For both of us."

Logan paused for a moment and then said, "Are you finished? You paused a few times, so I couldn't tell."

"Yes," Rory said, a bit out of breath. "I am finished."

"That was quite the ramble."

"Yeah, I felt it happening and then I couldn't stop it."

He smirked. "If you really feel the way you said then it's better to end it. You don't want to lead him on."

"Exactly," she said curtly with a nod of her head. "It's actually sort of a relief. I spent so much time before trying to convince myself that it was working. It felt freeing to just admit that it wasn't."

Granted, that pile of lies had been replaced by an even larger one, namely the one arguing that she had only platonic feelings for the man squiring her around Stars Hollow, but he didn't need to know about that.

"We can just turn right up here," Rory said, gesturing toward the stoplight. It was the one in front of Luke's that was put in during her first year at Chilton.

"Where are we headed?" Logan asked.

"Back home."

He was quiet as he turned down the street, taking her soft directions as they drove. He pulled to a stop in front of her house and when she unbuckled her seatbelt she said, "You can come in, if you want. I can make us hot cocoa. My mom probably has some leftovers in the fridge we can raid. Depending on what they are, they might even be edible."

"I should probably head back," he said.

"Oh, right, sure," she said, tucking her hair behind her ears. She wondered what had changed during the car ride. He'd been basically camped outside her house before. "Well, thanks for being here. It meant a lot to me."

"Just a friend helping out a friend."

His words stung.

"Well, I'll let you get on your way," she said.

He nodded, hand wrapped tightly around the steering wheel. "Night Ace."

"Good night, Logan."

She got out of the car and he called out, "Ace, wait."

She turned back, stomach twisted tightly, and said, "Yeah?"

He was looking at her expectantly, something clearly on his mind. He leaned forward in his seat, poised to say something, but then he drew back into his seat and murmured, "Never mind. I'll see you later."

"Okay."

She stepped back and watched him drive away. Something happened in that car. She didn't exactly know what, but something shifted. She felt it, and so had he. This day had too much in it. She needed to go to bed and have today end. She went back into the house and closed the door behind her. Luke was still out at the diner and the house was eerily quiet. She went into the kitchen for a glass of water. There was a knock on the door and she wondered if Luke forgot his key. Or it was Babette, or any other character from the town, checking up on her. She walked back to the foyer and opened the door, surprised to find Logan on the other side.

"Logan," she murmured in surprise. "What are you –"

He stepped forward, one hand bracing her jaw as he pressed his mouth to hers. She was startled initially, her entire body going still. But then his other hand found her waist and she leaned into him, her mouth moving against his. She'd missed this. God, she'd missed this. She missed him.

He pulled away, forehead pressed against hers as they both breathed raggedly. Her fingers grasped at the sleeve of his leather jacket, wanting to keep him close as possible. Her thoughts drifted to his girlfriend. She'd been here before, pressed against someone who belonged to someone else. It ended horribly for all parties involved. She stepped back, putting deliberate distance between them.

"You should go."

"Ace –"

"You have a girlfriend," she said. "A girlfriend who is sweet and understanding and who in no way deserves this. I technically still have a boyfriend."

"Do you really want me to leave?"

She stared at him helplessly and murmured, "Well, no, but –"

"Because I don't want to leave. I don't want to leave so badly that I was literally going to sleep in my car one house down so I could be near you. That's how badly I don't want to leave you, Ace."

"You have a girlfriend," she repeated slowly.

"Tell me you want me to stay," he said, stepping closer. "Just tell me you want me to stay. Tell me you want me, and I'll be here. Forever. Whatever you need, I will be here."

"Logan-"

"I love you," he blurted out.

"What? Logan, you don't-"

"I do," he interrupted, taking a hold of her arms. "I love you, and I'm sorry for the timing. I know it's awful, but when Paris called me – I didn't just want to be there for you, I needed to be. I needed to be with you. I needed to be there and make sure that you were okay. I've never felt that way before about anyone else but you. It's always been you, Ace. No matter where I've been or where you've been, it has always been you. It will always be you."

Rory blinked rapidly, trying to sort out her feelings. There she was, standing in her foyer on arguably one of the worst days in recent memory, maybe all of memory, and she was happy. She was deliriously, slap-yourself-happy and while she felt not a small amount of guilt at feeling such exhilaration on a decidedly terrible day, she knew Richard wouldn't hold it against her. All her grandfather ever wanted was for her to be happy. She could do that for him.

"You should move your car," she murmured.

"I should move my car?"

"You're parked in front of a fire hydrant," she said, gesturing toward his Porsche. "No real crime happens here, so you can imagine how excited the Stars Hollow PD gets over minor parking offenses."

She could see the hesitance on Logan's face. "Where should I move my car?"

"The driveway is fine," she said. "My mom probably won't be back until tomorrow morning. Luke can park his truck next to yours."

She could see the moment the gravity of what she said struck him. His shoulders relaxed and that trademark smirk took up its usual residence on his face.

"So, I'm staying."

She nodded, a smile creeping onto her face. "You're staying."

A/N: There will only be one chapter after this one. Would love to hear your thoughts on the reunion!