A Gradual Descent

Chapter 7: Bargain

Author: Knowhere

Rating: R

Disclaimer: Nothing.

AN: The story has taken a bit of a turn. A little unexpected but perhaps I can change the course of direction from what I had originally planned. I'm a bit torn, actually. I like it as much as I'm leery about it. Don't know, maybe things will write itself out and though not what I originally envisioned, maybe it'll be better. Who knows.

Enjoy!

Summary: Literati. She refused to be a cliché, falling for the seemingly dangerous guy when she was with the safer one. He refused to let the innocent girl of his friend to make him feel something unwanted. He'd tease, flirt, and have his fun, but they're both unprepared by the need to be with one another. AU.


Rory rolled over, pulling the sheet with her. She could hear the soft breathing of Jess at her back. Staring blankly at the red digital numbers that told the early morning hour, she felt the bitter edge of disappointment. It had been a little over two months since she and Jess had started sleeping together on a regular basis. It wasn't everyday, but he spent at least four or five nights in her bed. They never slept at his place and the topic of Simon and his continual presence in Jess's life was an unspoken issue between them. Rory hesitated in bringing Simon up to Jess and since Jess only spoke of what he wanted to, they never discussed it.

Though Rory had noted a while back with heavy suspicion that Jess only wanted a physical relationship, Rory wanted to give him time. They started all of this in murky waters and while Rory wasn't tricked into doing anything she didn't want to do, her irritation also began to grow at the uncomfortable indecision. At times, it was obvious that Jess didn't want a serious relationship. They didn't talk much about serious topics such as family, life goals, or fears and since Simon was an untouched topic, Rory knew that there was a large part of Jess that he didn't allow her to touch. Because of all that, Rory didn't share all of herself either.

But there were some times, those elusive times that touched Rory beyond any man had ever had. Jane had asked her the other day why she put up with Jess. Rory knew the answer but hesitated to answer. Not because she didn't know how to explain it to Jane. It was because she wanted to keep the answer to herself. Some times, Jess's eyes would go soft when he looked at Rory with an intensity that haunted her. It was as if Jess wanted to figure out every part of her just by looking. Other times, it was with his body that Jess surprised her. He was an excellent lover, but sometimes, his body spoke for him. His touched burned her, especially when he laid her out in the bright lazy Saturday sun and mapped her skin with gentle lips, persistent kisses, and insistent tongue.

She did note, however, that Jess did eventually feel more comfortable with meeting her for coffee, dinner, or just to hang out on a park bench and watch the evening joggers. It had just taken him time. And while it bothered her that they didn't have a deeper connection beyond sharing a good time and a warm bed, she also didn't want to loose what they had if all Jess required was some more time. Rory knew for a fact that being with someone like Jess demanded patience. She just didn't know if she could be patient enough.

Rory bit her lip, reliving the indecision of what they shared. She felt Jess shift behind her and she held her breath as his legs touched hers gently beneath the covers. His arm snaked over her hip and around the front of her chest to seek and hold her hand in his. Jess scooted closer. "Awake already?"

This was one of those moments that made her want to hold on and learn the virtue of patience. Just hearing his gravely morning voice nearly undid her. "Yeah. Just woke up."

"Hmm." He nuzzled the back of her neck and snuggled his bare body even closer, tucking her bottom into the harder cradle of his lean hips.

Rory sighed a big release of breath and reached to grip his arm tighter.

Jess levered himself up on his elbow to look at Rory. "You okay?" She shrugged. He dipped his head to nuzzle her soft cheek. "What are you thinking about?"

Rory paused, knowing that he never asked that question. It was just too personal. And looking into his sleep heavy eyes right now, her breath caught and she didn't know if she was ready to talk about it. But she knew that if she let this slip through her fingers, she probably wouldn't get another chance. "What are we doing Jess?"

His brows knitted together in momentary confusion. "What do you mean?"

Rory laid a warm hand on his chest. "I mean us. What is this?"

Jess paused, wondering how much to admit. But he knew that Rory wasn't stupid. He might have been trying to keep his distance, but he knew it was all for naught. Somehow after he had spoken to Uncle Mike and decided to keep things casual with Rory, she had noticed it and given him the space he wanted. And because she gave him distance, Jess began to wonder if he made the wrong decision. "Why don't you just ask me what you want to ask?"

"Are you going to open up? Is this just a matter of time and I just need to wait it out or is it a hopeless case? I mean, what do you even call me? Your girlfriend? Lover? Oh, that girl I'm seeing?"

Jess zeroed in on the last part of her questioning. "Why is the label so important?"

She sat up, flipping on the light and pulling up the sheet. "It's not the label or the name. It's what the label implies. It implies commitment. Commitment to the moment, the future, the other person."

Jess sat up, moving around to lean against the headboard without bothering to take the sheet with him. He was mindless of his nudity. "So it's a problem of commitment."

"It's not just that, Jess. You don't…we don't open up or share much about each other. I don't want to be with someone who doesn't want to be with me."

Those words straight from her lips hurt him much more than he could have ever anticipated and Jess wondered what it meant. "I never said I didn't want to be with you."

Rory's eyes were kind even as she knew her words were painful. "You don't have to say it to show it sometimes." And that was the gauntlet thrown down.

There was nothing Jess could say to counter that. He knew she was right. "Where does this leave us?"

"Are you open to the idea of committing?"

Jess took a long moment before he answered. "I don't know."

Rory nodded, expecting that answer. "Are we going to talk about things that actually mean more?"

"Like what?"

"Everything."

He got annoyed. "Why can't you just leave things the way they are? Leave things alone?"

"That's your answer for everything, isn't it? Leave things alone." She sat up and clutched the sheet to her breasts.

"Damn it, Rory!"

She wanted to be the adult about this, she really did. But she just couldn't help it. Something about Jess whipped her blood into a frenzy every time he started to withdraw into his shell and become the bastard she first met. She wanted the tender Jess she had earlier in the evening. She wanted more, damn it! She wanted what she knew she deserved. A man who wants to be with her, announce to the world that she was his, and have him cherish her like she was a gift, not a pet that he could play with and ignore at his pleasure.

And as much as she didn't want to, she knew what she needed to do. For herself. For her sanity. For her heart. "I don't think we should see each other anymore."

She uttered the statement softly and that took the wind out of his sails. Jess had been primed for a fight. His adrenaline had been rushing at the initial sound of her raising her voice. But this…this statement shocked him. But it didn't. He had been prepared for those words. Or at least somewhere along the lines of Get out of my bed, you asshole. In reality, she picked much more polite ones. He knew that there was no way Rory would put up with being second best. And she deserved to be able to be first in a man's life. She shouldn't be with a man who was afraid to admit his feelings, one who hid behind his best friend as an excuse for not letting her get too close.

Silently, he nodded and slipped out of bed. He reached for his pants and slid them on, slowly. He took a moment to watch her. His last vision of her. He lifted his eyes to hers and they were dark with regret. "I'm sorry."

Rory blinked. "I know. Me too."


Jess left her apartment and as he walked along the streets with the scent of Rory still clinging onto his clothes and his skin, he didn't know if it was because it was so early in the morning or something else, but he knew that things had just blown up in his face. It wasn't quite like Uncle Mike had predicted. Jess's friendship with Simon was still as is, but he had lost Rory.

But what surprised Jess was that the loss of Rory hit him harder than he had prepared for. He had been so worried about loosing Simon that the inevitable thought of loosing Rory had taken a backseat. And now that it had happened, Jess wasn't sure he should fix it. He knew that Rory would be better off without him and for the first time in his life, Jess wanted to do the selfless thing when it came to a woman. He wanted to respect her wishes.

If he couldn't give her what she deserved, then he had no right to go near her again.


"Hey man."

Jess closed the door behind him and rubbed his eyes. "Mornin'."

"You're home kinda early." Simon sauntered toward him in his boxer shorts, lazily scratching at his chest.

"Yeah."

Simon paused by the couch, ducking to catch Jess's eyes. He seemed more subdued than normal. "You okay?"

"We decided to call it quits."

Simon's gaze sharpened and there was no need to clarify Jess's statement. They both knew what that meant. "Your decision?"

Jess hesitated in answering. Technically, they agreed upon it mutually, but Jess knew that it was because he couldn't offer Rory what she wanted. "Hers."

"Hm."

Jess walked the short distance to the couch and rolled onto it, his long legs hanging off the side. "It's my fault."

"What do you mean?" Simon went to the kitchen and started his coffee pot.

"I did it to myself. I wanted to keep her casual."

"Why?"

Jess laughed dryly. "I wanted to have it all. I wanted to keep you and sleep with her."

Simon scrunched up his face. "What does 'keep me' mean? I hope this isn't some weird fucked up Freudian thing."

For a moment, Jess's lips curled at the tips. "Maybe. I thought that if things got too serious with Rory than it would screw up what we have."

"Jesus H. Christ, Jess. What the hell were you thinking?"

Jess sat up. "I was thinking I didn't want to loose my best friend."

"Who said you were going to loose me, dickhead?"

"Our friendship has already changed and there's nothing I can do to stop it!"

Simon stalked back towards the couch, cup in hand. "Why are you so afraid of it changing? Maybe it's fucking time we grew up! Learned how to function like normal human beings without each other."

Jess dropped back onto the couch cushions. His arm came up over his eyes; his elbow bent covering near the bridge of his nose. "I know how to be your friend. I'm not sure I know how to be someone else's…anything."

Simon stopped at that confession. In all the years he'd known Jess, even when they shared long conversations, he had never heard anything remotely so revealing about his friend. Simon always suspected that Jess had a fear of abandonment. Though his parents stayed together, they weren't too concentrated on Jess. In the end, Simon suspected it left Jess feeling like he had parents who were invisible.

Thinking back on Jess's words, Simon wondered himself if he knew how to be anything on his own. He knew his career; that was for sure. But personally, he wasn't sure if he could separate his identity from his friendship with Jess. Maybe Jess had a point. They didn't know how to be anything else.

Jess threw his legs around and sat with his head in his hands. "I think we are seriously screwed up," Jess stated, his voice cracking. "I think maybe it's time I moved out."

Simon started to protest, but swallowed the violent gut reaction. "You want to stay here instead?"

Jess shook his head and stood. "No. It's time I get my own place. I need to find some footing apart from you. Apart from Rory." Jess breathed, his throat closing up at the thought of being truly alone for the first time. "There's something wrong with me being thirty and I can't even bring myself to commit long enough to call someone my girlfriend."

Simon wanted to say that he's had several 'girlfriends' and he was in no better shape than Jess was, but decided to keep his mouth shut. They each had their own problems to work out. "What about Rory? Are you going to try to give that another shot?"

Jess shook his head again. "No, I don't think that's a good idea. I can't give her what she needs and I don't want to hurt her again."

Simon reeled at the softly spoken words. Jess might not realize it, but he'd already changed.


"What about the cds?" Simon pointed to the imposing towers next to the entertainment system.

Jess closed up another box and taped along the top. "I have a copy of them all in my computer. Just leave them here."

"Okay. Then you take the movies." Grabbing an empty cardboard box, Simon knelt and began dumping in dozens of DVDs. "I don't have much time to watch them anyways. I know you use them sometimes for background noise when you're writing."

"Thanks."

"The dishes?"

Jess paused and swept his gaze into the kitchen. "Technically they're yours."

Simon rolled his eyes. "How about I give you two of each thing to start you out. Heaven knows you're not going to go out and buy stuff."

Jess couldn't help but crack a smile. "Okay. But make it three cereal bowls." His infamous habit of wolfing down cereal in the middle of the night was once a common joke between them in college. Jess pulled a small white envelope out of his back pocket and laid it on the table. "Here. This month's rent. And next month's too since I'm just skipping out on you without warning."

With a heavy scowl, Simon didn't even bother to examine the envelope. "Take your fucking money, Mariano."

With a lopsided smile on his face, Jess walked over to Simon and drew him one-armed into a hug. "Thanks man. For everything. And I'm sorry about—"

"Don't finish that statement." Simon smirked and thumped Jess on the back and then released him. "Besides, you're moving a few blocks away for god's sake. Stop acting like you're shipping out in the morning."


Eerily alone for the first time in his life, Jess Mariano stood in his apartment. His apartment. Not a house owned by his parents. Not a tiny sardine can dorm room shared in college. Not the large apartment the two men later shared, but a home of his own. The loft was smaller, but comfortable. It had large windows and high ceilings. He could've afforded something bigger but was happy with the smaller environment.

The first few weeks were spent unpacking and rearranging his life into this new space and therefore gave Jess little time to mull on the fact that he was alone. He and Simon met for dinner twice and the banter slowly reappeared between them. Simon told Jess that he was enjoying his freedom to have sex in the kitchen. Jess laughed at Simon's leer and the broken bridge between them was beginning to patch up. It wasn't the same but it was something. And Jess had a feeling that it was better this way. They were more like best friends these days than emotional crutches for one another.

And Jess enjoyed solitary life. He buried himself in his new writing project and didn't surface for things other than the occasional fast food run or to stretch his legs out at the park. He found himself oddly at ease without women in his life. For the first time, Jess Mariano, the Playboy, was spending his nights alone. And he didn't mind. He had time to reflect on how he had kept women at bay with the excuse that he didn't know how to give more. And maybe he didn't. He still wasn't clear on that part, but at least he could admit it. He had the itch the other day to call Rory, but figured that it wasn't a good move. She rightfully broke things off and he needed to respect that. He regretted the way things ended, but their time was done.

His cell phone buzzed, vibrating against the kitchen counter. "Hello?"

"Hey kid."

The edges of his lips curled into a smile. Luke. It had been a while since he heard from his uncle. They weren't exactly close, but Jess had fond memories of the man teaching him to fish when he was a kid. Jess's mom wasn't the biggest fan of the small town she grew up in and therefore Jess didn't have many opportunities to visit when he was younger. "Hey Luke. How's it going?"

"Nothing much. The usual, you know. Working the diner. How about you? Your mom mentioned some new book you're working on?"

Jess was mildly surprised. Sure, his parents were extremely proud of their son's ability to live comfortably on his author's salary and the fact that the family name usually graced the best seller's list whenever Jess put out a new book, but his mom was a bit absentminded at times. At least when it came to Jess and the details of his life. "She told you, huh?"

"Yeah. She called to invite me to her birthday party next month and mentioned that you were researching small towns for your next book."

Jess padded over to the refrigerator, digging out a box of juice. "That's about right. Can I ask you a few questions?"

Luke paused for a moment. "Why don't you just visit for a weekend or something? I'm not that great with questions anyways."

Jess shrugged. "Sure, why not."

"Remember how to get here?"

Jess smirked. "I think I have a general direction. There's only one road leading off the highway anyways."

"Smartass."

"Next weekend work for you?"

"Yeah. See you then, punk."


The bell chimed, announcing his arrival. Luke turned around, smiling at him. "Hey Jess. Grab a stool, I'll be right with you."

Jess plopped down, the vinyl sticking to the butt of his jeans. He reached for a menu, his gaze flipping through the usual diner fare. Pancakes, waffles, burgers, sandwiches, salads. Hm, milkshake. He couldn't decide on the flavor, bouncing back and forth between chocolate and vanilla malt.

"Hey kid. You got here earlier than I thought."

"Light traffic."

"Ah." Luke looked mildly uncomfortable but Jess wasn't put off. He knew from experience that his uncle was a man of few words. "So, you hungry?"

"Burger, I guess. No pickles. And root beer."

Luke scribbled down on his pad but paused at the mention of the soda. "What? No milkshake? I remember when you were a kid, you were so hopped up on sugar from all the milkshakes you sucked back that you were bouncing off the walls."

Jess laughed. "Not my fault the machine is right at a kid's height. Seriously, Luke, you should've put a lock on that thing."

Luke scowled. "You probably own me hundreds for all those milkshakes you stole from me."

"Stole?" Jess pretended to be insulted. "Borrowed, is more like it."

Luke chuckled. "It's good to see you kid."

"Yeah, you too."

He turned to put Jess's order in and grabbed a tall glass for the root beer. "Where are you staying?"

"Hotel, I guess." Jess swiveled in his seat. "Is there even one in Stars Hollow?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Yes, dumbass. But you're welcome to stay here."

"What? The diner?"

"Upstairs. My apartment's upstairs and you're welcome to it."

Jess tilted his head and considered it. "That's nice to offer, but I'm planning on working while I'm here so I don't want to get in the way." Jess liked his solitude when working but didn't exactly want to phrase it that way.

"No, it's fine. I don't stay there much these days."

"Oh?"

"Well, I usually stay somewhere else." Even though he was an adult, Luke flushed at the statement.

Jess smirked. "As in a girlfriend's place?"

Luke nodded.

Jess opened his mouth for a witty, sarcastic reply but it died down on his lips. Hell, if he had to strike out in the romance department, that didn't mean everyone else in the family had to as well. Uncharacteristically, he said softly, "That's nice."

If Luke noticed that it was weird how his nephew replied, he didn't say anything. He just nodded again and hitched his thumb towards the door. "So, I'm going back down there for the dinner rush. You need anything, just call, okay?"

"Thanks."


The Podunk town of Stars Hollow wasn't exactly steeped with historical accounts of America. It was a modest sized town as far as small towns go and it had a homey feel. The residents usually stayed until they were old enough for college and those who remained in the town could probably trace their family lineage back a couple generations. It was the type of town where everyone knew everyone else's business and you couldn't walk down the street without someone questioning the health of your grandmother or stopping you to say that your kid was great in the school piano recital or something equally mundane.

It wasn't Jess's idea of paradise but it held a certain amount of charm. He remembered the fairs he had attended during a summer visit to Luke as a kid and the memories of sticky blue cotton candy and melted snow cones were still vivid. No, he wouldn't want to settle down his life in a place where he couldn't be anonymous like he could back in the city, but it was the perfect settle to glean some inspiration for his new novel.

Jess Mariano, the author, caught a lucky break with an ambiguous book about a man searching the earth for a person he met only once when he was a child. The book was filled with colorful settings and weird characters. The moral of the story was both revered and criticized by book critics. Some thought it was the best book by a new voice of the year, while others dismissed it as the ramblings of a discontented young man trying to find his way in life. Both ends of the spectrum had their valid points in Jess's opinion. And though Simon had silently paved the way for publication, there was something to the writings of Jess Mariano.

But Jess tired of writing vague stories of characters with questionable moral codes who readers wanted to hate but couldn't. After a lengthy discussion with his agent, Jess thought he wanted to try his hand at writing more generalized fiction. He still wanted those characters that were shifty and did what they wanted to get the results that they desired, but he wanted more adventure. Jess wanted to try his hand at a murder. And the town of Stars Hollow provided the perfect backdrop for the location of the crime.

Jess left the diner with a casual nod to Luke, signaling that he was leaving for a while. The diner seemed to be in the center of town. It was directly across from some small park with colorful, albeit slight rusty, playground equipment. Hm…maybe that's where the demented killer once played when he was a kid. Jess shook his head. Who would've thought he'd ever try his hand at a mystery? Although it did go against things he vowed never to write about, Jess took comfort in the fact that if he already made some personal changes in his life, why not some professional ones as well? He could afford to stretch his creative wings so to speak. And he was leaving the name of Jess Mariano the author in tact. To his audience, he was taking a break. But between him, his agent, and his publisher, Jess Mariano was donning a penname and trying to write to a larger mass audience.

Turning the corner, he spied the pathetic excuse for an alleyway behind Luke's. It wasn't dirty or dark. There were however, a few old-fashioned metal-topped trashcans that Jess could easily dirty up in his mind to make the setting seedier. Although maybe the cleaner version of the alley made for an interesting contrast. What if the killer spent time here taking a smoking break and it was his presence that made the alley dirty, not the other way around? With his imagination on full run, Jess inched closer to the trashcans, closing his eyes and visualizing the scene of the book in his eyes. He bent down, thinking about how the would-be killer grew up as a teen, watching the other kids across the street being normal, interacting with girls—shit!

A sudden noise startled him and Jess jumped back, his eyes widening at the sound. A striped yellow head poked out from behind one of the trashcans and Jess laughed at his irrational fear as he spied a small cat. "Damn you scared me."

The cat tilted its head and let out a small meow.

"Come here." Jess stretched out his fingers and the cat hesitantly came forward; ducking its head as a natural reaction as Jess gently scooped her up into his arms. "No tags. Are you by yourself?" He lifted the cat higher and looked into its eyes. Green. It was a scrawny little thing and her ribcage poked through and was plainly visible.

"Didn't think a town like Stars Hollow would have strays. Wouldn't they have a committee and round you guys up, feed you, and make sure you weren't lurking around alone?" Unable to resist, Jess brought the cat to his chest, letting it burrow against the t-shirt he was wearing. When Jess palmed the head, it nuzzled between fingers, nipping gently.

And Jess was a goner. No way could he not give the little thing a home. "Well, if I'm going to have to live alone, might as well have some kind of company." He scratched behind the cat's ears. "What do you say, Killer?"

Deciding to go back to Luke's for a box and something to feed the cat, Jess pushed the door open and walked behind the counter, searching for his uncle. Luke emerged from behind with hot plates. "What the hell is that?"

"Cat."

Luke rolled his eyes but turned and deposited the plates down on the counter. "I can see that. Where did you find it?"

Jess held the cat closer. "I found it by your trashcans."

"Well, there's a animal shelter about fifteen minutes away from here." Luke looked decidedly uncomfortable with the feline.

Jess shook his head. "No, I think I'll keep her. Do you have a box and some towels for her? At least until I run to the pet store later today." Jess paused. "You do have a pet store, don't you?"

"Keep making those snide small town remarks and you're going to find yourself homeless for the weekend."

Jess smirked. "Sorry, can't help it."

"Yeah, yeah." Luke took off his hat and then replaced it, all the while glancing wearily into the face of the cat that took to rubbing the crown of her head against Jess's chest, batting at the small pocket on the pectoral of Jess's tee. "There are a couple of clean boxes in the storage room. I just emptied a case of pickles. And I've got some milk for it in the meantime—"

"Kitty cat!" Luke was interrupted by a flurry of brown hair rushing toward them.

In a knee jerk reaction, Jess shielded the cat by cupping its head. "Hey!"

Luke reached to stop Jess with a hand on his shoulder. "It's all right. Jess, this is Lorelai. Lorelai, this is my nephew Jess."

Lorelai smiled but her concentration was on the cat. "So adorable. Can I hold it?"

"No."

Lorelai's smile slipped and she pulled back at the abrupt answer. "Ookay."

"Forgive my nephew, he's socially inept." Jess scowled at his uncle but otherwise kept quiet. Luke raised his brow to Lorelai as a warning. "However, Lorelai can be single minded when it comes to something small, furry, and cute. She didn't mean anything by it."

Jess relented a little but still didn't relinquish his hold. "Fine."

"Nice relative you've got here, Luke." Lorelai smirked.

"Coffee Luke, extra caffeine." Rory stepped into the diner and came to a sudden halt at the sight of Jess Mariano in Luke's diner. "What are you doing here?"

Lorelai hopped up on a stool and pointed at Jess. "Do you know this younger, rude version of James Dean?"

Rory nodded. "Uh, yeah. We've met."

Unable to move, Jess couldn't formulate a reply.

"And you've got a cat." Blurting the obvious, Rory felt a blush stain her cheeks. She had retreated back to the safety of her hometown and her mother's presence after the last time she saw Jess. Things were jumbled up and confused and Rory wanted nothing more than to just wallow in the time she spent, and wasted, with Jess. She had expected to spend a week at home, indulging in favorite movies and comfort foods with her mom, catching up and spending time together. What she didn't expect was to find Jess in the same town, looking rumpled and cradling a cat.

She could barely comprehend the situation. The man who was anti-social with a mean tendency and the ability to curse like a sailor was standing behind the counter at Luke's holding a small grey and black cat striped to look like a miniature tiger.

"Hey Rory."


"Uncle, huh?"

Jess picked up a cardboard box and lined it with a few towels. "Yeah." He had mumbled an excuse of finding a bed for Killer and Rory had just followed him without invitation into the backroom and eventually upstairs to Luke's apartment.

Rory watched as the cat lapped up the last of the milk from a shallow dish. "Small world."

"Yep." Jess reached for the sleepy cat that was on her back, purring with remnants of milk still clinging to its whiskers.

"And you're in town rescuing cats?" Rory was confused and therefore filling every silence with statements that made little to no sense whereas Jess was creating gaps of silence with his short replies.

"I came to see Luke."

"I've never heard Luke mention you before."

"Yeah, I'm sure you two are real bosom buddies." In his peripheral vision, he caught sight of her wince and he reigned in the impulse to scathe with his words. For once, Jess was ashamed how his words had stung someone else. He cleared his throat. "I came to do some research for a new book."

Rory pulled out a chair and sat down. "Oh."

Satisfied with Killer's temporary home, Jess glanced up from his crouching position on the kitchen floor. "I can leave, if you want."

Rory instantly felt bad. "No, don't do that. We're both adults, right? It's not like we can't be in the same town because we're not sleeping together anymore."

Jess noted her interesting choice of words. She hadn't deemed what they had as a 'relationship,' she simply worded it as purely physical. "Right."

She got up and started towards the door. "I better get back down there. I promised to spend time with Mom."

Jess nodded and stared at his shoes. In a moment of weakness, Jess couldn't help but blurt out, "It was nice seeing you."

Rory stared at the out of character statement from him. But she couldn't say the same thing back to him. He had hurt her and she was finally admitting it to herself for the first time. When he left her bed that morning, she had brushed him off as a brief affair. One filled with tumultuous emotions and good sex but ultimately lacking deep emotions. She told herself that it was nothing more than a fling and never to be repeated again. But with her inability to return his sentiment, she knew that she was hurt. And it hurt more than she bargained for.


AN: Read? Please review.