I'm writing as fast as I can! Here's the next part, hope you like it...
The next morning, Luke was trying to find an appropriate moment to apologise to Allie, but there just didn't seem to be one. In the end he decided just to go for it, regardless of the fact that she was trying to carry plates out to people.
"Allie. Look, I'm really-"
"It's fine. Don't need to say anything." she cut him off, and set down the plates before heading back to the kitchen.
He went after her. "Please, I'm sorry... I didn't mean-"
She cut him off again without pausing in her stride. "I told you, it's fine. Seriously."
Luke wasn't sure that it was fine, but she didn't seem to want to talk about it, so he caught her wrist and swung her into his chest, hugging her fiercely. She resisted at first, surprised, but then he felt her relax and hug him back.
"I'll help you with anything that you need. Anything. And I promise that I won't tell your mom anything."
She looked up at him. "Thank you." she sniffed.
He let her go just as suddenly as he had grabbed her, and went out the back.
"I feel neglected. How come I never get hugs like that from Unkey Luke." pouted Jess exagerratedly from the bar.
Allie laughed. "Maybe if you'd behave yourself for more than five minutes, he'd be able to stop yelling at you long enough to give you one."
"He's quite a master at communicating his feelings, don't you think?" observedJess, but before he could go on, the diner door jingled as Lorelai and Rory came in, bantering animatedly about something.
"Ooh. Look who's here!" Allie grinned at Jess, then batted her eyelashes and wrung her hands together dramatically. "So have you confessed your undying love for her yet?"
"Shut up." hissed Jess throwing the teatowel he was holding at his sister. "I don't... I don't even like her that much. Anyway, I told you, she's got a boyfriend."
"Please. Change the record."
Jess glared at her. "Well she has. She could just break up with him... but she hasn't, so I don't know..."
"Oh you poor tormented soul." Allie remarked flatly. "Get over it and make a move already."
"Hi Jess." Rory had come up to the bar.
"Ohh... does that poor girl have to take matters into her own hands every single time?" scolded Allie, supressing a smile at the dirty look from her brother, and then left, as Jess, cheeks burning, turned to Rory, hoping she hadn't heard Allie's last comment.
"Hi."
"So... did you get the assignment in?" asked Rory for lack of anything else to say.
"Yeah. Uh... thanks for the help. And actually..." he was feeling brave, "... I have to critique this short story, and I thought maybe you'd have a few opinions on it."
Rory nodded with a small smile. "I might do. Unless this is a sneaky way of trying to get me to do all your assignments so you don't have to do anything?"
Jess put on his best shocked face. "I would never do that." he told her indignantly. "Anyway, I've already critiqued some of it. You probably won't be able to come up with as many points as I have."
"We'll see about that." Rory smiled at the challenge.
Meanwhile, Lorelai was talking to Luke. "So have you sorted out this baby dilemma thing yet?"
He sighed. "No, she hasn't really been over-eager to discuss it."
"Well if she wants to have a termination, she'll have to do it soon. She can't keep putting it off." Lorelai ran a hand through her hair. "Ok. I'll make her a doctor's appointment, and I'll take her there."
"No, I should take her... she's my..."
Lorelai interrupted. "I think it would be better if I took her. I mean... I'm sure you'd be very sympathetic and sensitive, but you're... you. And you're also a guy. I'll take her."
Luke looked semi-offended. "I am sensitive." he grumbled. "You don't even know her that well."
"And you two are bosom buddies? I suppose you could recite her deepest darkest fears and secrets, and write down a list of her crushes and dreams, hmm? And what about her hobbies? Do you even know any of them?" Lorelai asked accusingly.
"Ok, ok! I get the point. You take her."
Luke called Allie over. "Allie, we want to help out, and... and there's a doctor in the next town that you can go to if you want to have a... a termination."
"If you're sure that's want you want." added Lorelai pointedly. She caught the brief hesitation in Allie's eyes.
"I'm sure. That's what I want."
"Ok. Well, I'll make an appointment for you, and I'll drive you over." Lorelai told her.
Allie shook her head. "Oh, no, no it's fine. I can sort this myself, you don't need to do anything for me. I... I don't want you to go out of your way or anything..."
Lorelai stopped her. "Well, actually... as it happens, I have to make a trip to the town anyway, so I can take you because I'll already be going that way."
Allie raised her eyebrows. "Oh? What for?"
"Umm... I need to..." Lorelai racked her brain. "I need to... pick up some stuff."
"Really." said Allie skeptically. "What kind of stuff would that be?"
"Uhh... stuff for... the inn. Goods for the inn... inn goods." faltered Lorelai.
"Inn goods? What kind of inn goods?" pressed Allie.
"What kind..." Lorelai glanced around for inspiration. "Uhh... inn goods in the form of... of mints!" she decided triumphantly. "Mints. We're all out. You know the ones that you put on the pillows? We have none left, and without them we're in a bit of a quandry coz you can't have guests staying at an inn without pillow mints now can you? Think of what people would say! We could be shut down! So it's very important that I go and get more pillow mints for the inn."
"Oh!" Allie tried to look concerned. "That is important.But why don't you just get some here? In Stars Hollow? Surely you don't need to go out of town for pillow mints if they're that important?"
Lorelai rubbed a finger over her bottom lip thoughtfully. "Right... but you see, we only use the best quality mints... they're... imported, and you can't get them in Stars Hollow, so that's why I have get them from out of town." She glanced at Allie to see if the explanation would hold.
Luke rolled his eyes and shook his head, turning to make more coffee.
Allie decided that she'd cut Lorelai some slack and stop questioning her, and simply accept her made-up story, it was a good effort. She nodded solemnly. "Yes, I understand the urgency. Ok, let me know when you're going."
The next morning Lorelai came by Luke's as usual.
"I got an appointment for her with the doctortoday." she told Luke as he poured her coffee.
He nodded tensely.
"It'll be ok, you know."
He looked at Lorelai. "I know. Yeah. I'm still a bit worried though, what if something goes wrong, or..."
"It'll be ok." Lorelai assured him, putting her hand on his.
Just then, Luke caught sight of his niece. "Allie! Lorelai's going to take you across today."
"Today?" she was faintly surprised. "Uh, ok, I'll just get ready." she headed up to the appartment.
When Allie came back down,Luke pattedher shoulder hesitantly as she was leaving. "Uh... see ya later."
She gave him a nervous smile, and followed Lorelai to her car.
Things had been tense between Rory and Dean for a couple of days now, and it didn't look as though the tension was lessening.
Rory glanced at her watch. "Look, I have to go."
"Now? Where? I thought you didn't need to do any study today."
Rory shifted uncomfortably. "Uh, I don't. But someone else does, and I promised that I would help them."
Dean suddenly understood. "Oh. And who would this someone be, then?"
"I said that I'd help him with some work. And I told you that I will always help my freiends out." For a moment, Rory wondered why she hadn't lied about where she was going. There were a million things that she could've said that would have caused a lot less trouble than this. Her wondering was cut short by Dean's snappy reply.
"And I thought I told you that I don't like you hanging out with him."
"I thought this was sorted." said Rory wearily.
"No, no it's not sorted." Dean's voice was rising. "I hate thinking of you around that guy! I don't trust him!"
"You don't trust me, more like it!" Rory was starting to get mad.
Dean eyes flashed angrily. "Not when you're around him, I don't."
"I can't keep having this same fight with you! I'm sick of it!"
Dean frowned. "Well you don't seem like you're trying very hard to fix the problem."
"Well, what then? How do I fix this? Do you want me to completely avoid him? Shut him out of my life? Because this town is way too small to do that, Dean. So tell me what it is you want me to do?" cried Rory, exasperated, throwing her hands in the air.
"What I want you to do? I don't think that this relationship is really based on what I want, is it? I think that it's about what you want, and in the end that's what you'll do." Dean yelled back, and then sighed, and looked her hard in the eyes. "So it's up to you, Rory. You tell me. Whatis it that youwant?"
