From The Beginning
A/N- Thank you for all your reviews, I really appreciate them, so please keep them coming.
Disclaimer: I don't own characters or the show.
Chapter Seven
The Bracebridge Dinner
'I can't believe it.' Rory says sympathetically to her mom and Sookie, 'All that work you guys did.'
'A crazy amount of work.' Lorelai sighs heavily, 'I hate snow.'
'No you don't.' Rory smiles.
'Ok no I don't, but I hate that it's stopping the Bracebeidge group from getting here. We planned so much, we have costumes and music, and the food...'
'Oh the food.' Sookie sighs heavily.
'Well maybe we could have it.'
'All that food just for the three of us? We're good but not that good.' Lorelai comments.
'What about Luke?' Sookie asks as Luke comes over to the table.
'What about me.' Luke ass refilling coffee cups.
'Luke eats, you eat right?' Sookie turns to Luke.
'What's she on about?' Luke asks directing his question at Lorelai who just shrugs.
'Luke eats and Jess eats, we could invite them.'
'Oh that could be fun.' Lorelai replies, though the part about inviting Jess doesn't sound so appealing, but with Luke there she can't say that.
'We should invite everyone.' Sookie exclaims.
'Everyone who?' Lorelai asks.
'Everyone, everyone.' Sookie claps her hands together.
'Sookie hun you're going to have to give us more, everyone who?'
'Taylor, Miss Patty, the whole town!'
'We do have all that food,' Lorelai says slowly.
'And all those empty rooms.' Rory adds.
'It could be like a crazy over the top slumber party.' Lorelai smiles widely, 'Let's do it!'
'Seriously?' Jess rolls his eyes at Luke and then goes back to his book.
'Yes seriously, we've been invited and we're going to go.'
'What is it with this town? They sure do know how to cook up some bizzaro things.'
'Yeah they do but that doesn't take away from the fact that we're going.'
'Whatever you say uncle Luke.' Jess reluctantly closes his book and stands up. 'When do we leave?'
'Once you change.'
'I don't need to change.' Jess replies looking at his Clash shirt.
'Yeah you do, dress up a little ok?'
'Whatever.' Jess turns and grabs a black button down from the closet. He comes out of the bathroom five minutes later in the shirt, and with his hair gelled messily.
'Much better, let's go.'
'I didn't know he was going to be here.' Dean complains to Rory as Jess walks in, Rory's eyes travel over to Luke and Jess, who are standing talking to her mom. Or rather Luke is talking while Jess stands there looking bored.
'Yeah, is that a problem?' Rory ask turning back to Dean with a hint of confusion.
'No it's just...I don't like that guy.'
'You don't know him.'
'I know enough, he got into a fight at school today, and when I tried to break it up he just kept on hitting.'
'He did?'
'Yeah, there's something off about that guy.'
'I'm sure he didn't mean to.'
'You weren't there.'
'No but I mean...I'm just guessing that he wouldn't deliberately hit you.'
'He would because he's crazy.'
'Dean...'
'What?' He snaps.
'I mean come on you're basing this on just one thing, he's new here I just think you need to give him a little more of a chance.'
'Rory trust me that guy is messed up, I mean forget the fact that he kept hitting when he saw it was me, but the very fact that he was in a fight to begin with should tell you something. Stars Hollow High isn't exactly the number one spot for fist fights and then he shows up and suddenly there's a huge fight.'
'Yeah...ok I guess you're right.' Rory sighs slightly, turning her gaze back towards where Jess had been standing, but he's no longer there, she scans the room but there's no sign of him, so she figures he must have gone up to his room.
Rory climbs up into the carriage and breathes in the crisp snowy air, the cold nipping at her skin, she reaches for the blanket and pulls it over her lap. She takes one last look around and then tells the driver to go. A few seconds later Jess jumps in beside her.
'What are you doing?' Rory snaps.
'I heard there was a pretty strict two per sled rule, I'm just stopping you from break that rule.' Jess smirks over at her.
'You shouldn't have bothered.' Rory crosses her arms over her chest.
'I can jump out again if you like.' He offers.
'Maybe you should.'
'Did I do something to offend you?'
'You got into a fight at school.'
'Ah...I don't see how that's anything to do you with.'
'Dean tried to help and you kept hitting.'
'He should go into public service or something, I didn't need his help.'
'Why were you fighting?' Rory demands.
'Because Chuck Presby is a jerk.'
'You were fighting Chuck Presby?' Rory asks in a calmer voice.
'Yeah.'
'Oh...he is a jerk.'
'Yeah.'
'So...' she looks over at him, 'how come you're still here?'
'What do you mean?'
'Well schools out, you hate it here clearly, so why aren't you back in New York for the break?'
'My mom didn't want me to come.'
'I don't believe that.'
'That's your right I guess.' Jess shrugs.
'Well...did you talk to her?'
'Luke told me that it was his idea that I should stay here.' Jess looks over at her, she looks sadly back at him.
'Oh.'
'Yeah.'
'I'm sorry.'
'Don't be, that's just Liz.' He shrugs. 'I like it by the way.'
'Like what?' Rory asks trying to figure out what he means.
'Your snowman, snow woman actually.' He nods towards the town square which is dotted with snowmen.
'You know which one is mine?' Rory asks feeling oddly excited that he noticed.
'It definitely has a certain flare, it kind of looks like Bjork.'
'That's what we were going for,' Rory beams, her cheeks flushing with pride, 'everyone thinks that other one will win though.'
'Really? It's so overdone, you should win.'
'No arguments here.' Rory smiles.
'So what do you and Dean talk about?'
'Sorry?'
'I mean when you spend time with him, what do you talk about?'
'Just...I don't know...everything.'
'Like?'
'Just everything.'
'Does he know who Bjork is?'
'I've played him some stuff.' Rory says quickly.
'Ah so you've got that teacher/student thing going.'
'Jess,'
'Sorry, it's just from the small amount of time I've spent with him in class he just doesn't seem like your type.'
'Well he is my type.' Rory defends.
'If you say so.'
'I do.'
'Ok then.' He smirks.
Rory leans back and stares up at the sky as the snow starts to fall again, brushing against her skin lightly as she breaths out creating white clouds of air which swirl up above her, she turns her head and catches Jess watching her, he turns away quickly and her heart skips.
'So how about you?' Jess asks.
'How about me what?' Rory asks.
'Are you staying in Stars Hollow for break?'
'Yeah,' Rory shrugs, 'I mean I haven't heard from my dad and I don't normally visit him...so...'
'Do you get on with your dad?'
'Yeah I just don't really see him all that much, he's never really been around and now he's here more and it's a little...I don't know.'
'Weird.'
'Yeah, is it bad that I find it weird?'
'It's a bad reflection of him as a dad, not you as a person.' Jess replies, 'I get it, if my dad showed up now it'd be weird, more than weird.'
'It's just weird for me because my mom and I are so close, and yet I hardly ever see my dad. I feel like I should make more of an effort to get to know him now that he's living closer, but I don't know, calling him up and asking to stay feels wrong, like I don't want to ask because he might not want me there but he'd feel like he had to say yes, and then that would feel awkward, or he'd say no and then that would just...suck.'
'Yeah.' Jess nods, 'It's kind of a tough situation.'
'Yeah,' Rory looks over at him and smiles, 'I feel like I need to let him make the first move.'
'That's smart,' Jess nods, 'so if he asked you to stay for winter break, would you go?'
'That's...I mean he's my dad so...'
'Rory,' he holds her gaze, 'it is ok if you think it'd be too weird to go, you can't just jump from zero to one hundred all at once, you need to get used to the idea of having him around, there's nothing wrong with that.'
'You know something?' Rory asks.
'What?'
'You're kind of smart.'
'Yeah right,' Jess laughs, 'I think all this snow has gone to your head, don't think Luke didn't warn me what you and your mom are like when it snows.'
'I can't help loving the snow, I mean I'm not as obsessed with it as my mom but it's just so pretty, it's like everything is better when it snows, softer and cleaner.' Rory says dreamily. 'Like anything could happen.'
'See I think you have to make things happen, if you want them to, adventure won't find you, you find it.'
'Yeah?'
'Yeah,' he nods seriously and then holds his hand out, 'so come one.'
'Come on what?'
'Do you want to sit in this sled and go back to the inn right away, or do you want to jump out and do something different?'
'Different?'
'Different from everyone else.'
'Dinner will be ready soon after we get back.'
'So we'll just stay out a little while.' Jess says and slowly she reaches her hand out and puts it in his, he holds it tight and helps her stand up. She breathes in deep, looks at him and then they both jump.
'Ok so what do we do?' Rory asks still holding his hand.
'We make things happen.' Jess pulls her along and she has to run to keep up with him. Both of them run through the heavily falling slow, their steps labored by the snow which had already fallen, but soon enough they're standing in the town square in front of the overly done snowman.
'What are we doing?' Rory asks nervously.
'You want to win right?'
'Yeah.'
'And you deserve to win, right?'
'I think so.'
'So...let's make sure it happens.' Jess nods at the snowman, 'I think it's about time this one had some work done.' He says pushing his fist through one arm.'
'Jess!'
'What you wanted to win.' He smirks.
'But this is vandalism.'
'It's a snowman, it'll melt in a few days anyway.' Jess says, 'Come on, live a little.'
'I don't know if I can.' Rory says though it does seem tempting, 'It's destructive.'
'Rory,' he holds her gaze, 'they power buffed.' He adds and with that she slams her fist into the snowman, sending chunks of snow cascading to the ground.
'That was so much fun.' Rory beams.
'We'd best keep going then.' Jess replies.
Half an hour later Rory and Jess walk back into the inn just before dinner is about to be served, thankfully Rory's hands have dried off on the walk back, and the flush in her cheeks is easily explained by the cold, so nobody suspects that it's caused by spending fifteen minutes attacking a snowman, or from the spark she'd felt when Jess took her hand.
A/N- I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did please let me know by reviewing.
I'm going to be away for a few days so there won't be another update until next week, sorry.
