'To Live and Let Diorama'
Authors not: I promise I'll start updating frequently now. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! :D And thank you to everyone who had reviewed! I'm glad you all like the story so far!
Sleeping next to a boy was weird. That was Rory's first thought upon waking up. Sure, she'd slept with Dean, but that felt like it happened in another lifetime…and Dean certainly wasn't Tristan. Maybe she just wasn't used to the feeling of another persons body pressed against hers as she slept. Or the warmth which emanated from him and into her. It was an odd experience, but an experience Rory was glad she had.
The early morning light penetrated through Rory's slightly opened blinds, attacking her eyes and making her squint. It was too bright…too day-like to even contemplate getting out of bed. If she could she'd probably just lay next to Tristan forever. Unfortunately she had work to do and articles to write. There was never any rest for Rory, especially not now that she was a Yale girl. Always swamped with work. So she allowed herself a brief moment to revel in the moment. For the first time since she began talking to Tristan again she allowed herself to truly study him.
His face was perfection, as was the rest of him. In the looks department he definitely scored a ten. His tousled hair looked golden in the sunlight and his skin seemed to glow with warmth. In that moment Rory was sure he was the embodiment of sunshine; golden, warm and utterly perfect. His thick lashes framed his eyes, and she knew if he blinked them open the colour of his eyes would be illuminated even more then usual.
Every angle of his face seemed soft due to the golden sunshine. Rory couldn't believe her luck. Tristan Dugrey had never been on her list of top guys to date…in fact she didn't even have a list. But if she did, he never would have been on it until her grandparents vow renewal. It seemed so odd how time could shape and change someone completely, transforming someone from a boy to a man within the blink of an eye. Would she of seen this side to Tristan if he'd stayed at Chilton all those years ago? Or had leaving Chilton given him the freedom to find himself.
If this was all just one wonderful dream Rory hoped she wouldn't wake up. She was almost afraid that it was real. Nothing could stay perfect forever and she feared the day cracks would start to appear. What would she do if she fell for Tristan just to have it crumble apart? She didn't know how much heartache a person could endure. She'd had her fair share, but probably not even close to what many others suffered from. Rory knew she was a strong person, but in certain things she knew she was weak. This situation would be one of those times.
Also, Rory still liked Logan. Crazy, she knew that, but there was just something about his boyish charm and womanising ways. He could have any type of girl he wanted (and he often had all those types within a week) yet there was something about Rory which drew him to her. Something about her allured him. He seemed transfixed by her, because she was so smart and independent. She didn't need him and that made him want her. He wasn't used to girls not needing him. She knew liking him wasn't that smart. But she couldn't help herself. He was compelling. He was a bad boy. Deep down maybe Rory just liked that darker side to him, his unpredictability. Maybe she wanted to be able to tame that wild side to him, that beast within. Or maybe she just liked how he was real around her. When Logan was with Rory he became genuine…real. In those moments he was a lot like Tristan. Maybe Tristan would have become like that if he'd remained at Chilton. Maybe Logan would have been more like Tristan if he'd had more structure and love in his life.
Tristan cleared his throat, slowly blinking open his eyes. As they rested on Rory's face he smiled. "Good morning."
"Good morning." Rory smiled back. She knew she liked both boys, but in that moment she felt like they were the only two people in the world.
Within an hour they had breakfast together, and Tristan began his trip back to Harvard. Rory felt disappointed that he had to go, but she also knew that she had a pile of work to do and only a short amount of time to do it in. It was best if he went. Rory was just glad it would be the weekend soon. She needed a break.
Her first stop before the paper was the coffee stand. She had two articles due for the next issue of the Yale Daily News and Rory knew the only way she'd ever be able to focus long enough to complete them was if she had a ton of coffee in my system. Rory got an extra large, black coffee with lots of sugar. It didn't sound healthy, but it would keep her awake long enough to finish the articles.
After entering the paper Rory breathed a sigh of relief. Paris and Logan were nowhere in sight thankfully. Rory made her way quickly over to her desk and spread out her work. She'd prepared throughly for each article. Interviews, statistics, quotations and a lot of facts were about to be utilised. She couldn't wait until it was over. She felt like she had no motivation to finish the articles, but unfortunately she had to. She'd made a commitment to the paper, and she knew her involvement with the Yale Daily News would look good on her resume whenever she applied for journalism jobs in the future.
She loaded up her computer and opened up a fresh word document. In less then a minute her hands were flying across the keyboard. Rory used the extensive amount of words she knew to create what she hoped was two great articles. Now they just had to be edited and fixed. Then she'd be done with the paper for the weekend. Rory sighed, adding a few final words to her last article. Suddenly a ping from her computer caught her attention. Someone had IM'ed her.
Clicking open the message she instantly knew who it was.
Dear Ace,
A proposition: A romantic dinner for two at 6:30. I'll pick you up. Wear a dress. Yes or no?
Rory glanced over to Logan's desk, surprised to see him sitting there with a smile on his face. She hadn't even noticed him come in. She'd obviously been too caught up in her writing. Taking a deep breath Rory removed her gaze from him, clicking his message closed. She could practically feel the smile falling from his face.
A second later he was at her side.
"Hey Ace." He said tentatively.
"Logan." Rory replied in a clipped voice, keeping her eyes glued on her polished article. She removed some sentences, retyping them just to look busy.
"Have I caught you at a bad time?" He asked hesitantly.
"Yep." She replied, keeping all the emotion out of her voice.
"Have I done something to offend you?" Logan questioned, sounding confused. In his mind the last time they'd seen each other had been extremely pleasant. They had coffee and he'd told her his feelings for her. He'd also laid his heart on the line by throwing his hat into the ring to win her affections. He hoped he would win because Rory was everything he could ever want in a girl. She was what someone may refer to as "the complete package" in fact and Logan would be damned if he let someone else swoop in and sweep her off her feet. He'd even told her he just wanted her, no one else. What more could this girl want from him?
"Nope." She answered.
Her short, clipped answers twisted his heart. He hadn't even began trying to win her over yet and he had already failed, or so it seemed. He couldn't lose hope now or it really would be over for good.
"Why won't you look at me then?" He persisted. "Why did you ignore my message?" He couldn't figure her out. "I thought we were in a better place after the last time we saw each other. I made my feelings clear and I thought you were going to give me a fair chance."
"I thought that too." Rory muttered, still not peeling her eyes away from the computer screen. She longed to look at him though, she felt like her body was willing her to.
"Then what changed?" Logan asked, sounding exasperated.
"I realised you can't change. And if you can, you won't." Rory said. "And I realised this after I saw you with a leggy blonde hanging off you outside the coffee cart yesterday." Finally she met his eyes. His were filled with sadness, hers with cold determination. She wanted him, he wanted her, but she also wanted Tristan, and Logan also wanted every other girl he saw. Or at least that's what Rory thought.
"She's just a friend." Logan answered, sounding sincere. "She can be a little…friendly, but nothing has or ever will happen between us. I told you I wanted you and only you. I told you I wanted to be your boyfriend. Why would I say that if I didn't mean it?"
Rory didn't have an answer for that one. She didn't think he would lie about that. Maybe the promiscuous girl really had just been his friend. Maybe Logan was being sincere. He seemed to be, and it made Rory like him just a little more. If this was just a game to him he would have given up by now, she had no doubt about it. But here he was, practically pleading her to understand.
Rory was stuck between a rock and a hard place, or in this case a golden playboy and his reformed counterpart.
"So I'm guessing you don't want to go for Dinner with me then." Logan stated, sadness lacing his voice.
"I…" Rory couldn't believe her situation. How did this always happen to her? Tristan and Dean. Dean and Jess. Jess and Dean. Whenever somebody wanted her, there was always someone else who wanted her too. It just got confusing after a while. She didn't think she'd be able to take it much longer. "I can't." She finally said. "I'm going to Stars Hollow for a while to see my mother."
Disappointment coated his face and Rory felt terrible. She was toying with him and his feelings, just like she was doing to Tristan. She'd always thought she was a good person, had she been wrong? No. She couldn't be wrong about that. She always did the right thing, or what she believed was right.
"When you get back then?" Logan asked hopefully.
Rory took a deep breath, preparing to say no, but instead she said: "Okay." And he smiled one of his breath-taking genuine smiles which she had always strived to get out of him. She'd just made his day by agreeing to go out with him, and oddly enough she was happy that she said yes. Great. Life was just getting more confusing everyday. After seeing Logan with that girl Rory had felt relieved that she wouldn't have to make a choice. Obviously she was wrong.
Old man Twickham had passed away. Rory had been shocked upon hearing the news and even more shocked when she heard what was happening to his old house. The crazy town had decided to make it into a museum for Stars Hollow. Rory honestly couldn't see how that would be a good idea, but it was happening, and she was going to visit Stars Hollow and go with her mother to the opening. She was actually glad to get out of Yale for a while and avoid seeing Tristan and Logan. Tristan had rung, trying to arrange plans to see her but she'd told him the same thing she'd told Logan. She was going home.
This chapter was going to be longer, but I'm soooo tired and wanted to get an update to you guys. I'll be updating again very soon! So enjoy this chapter and review and let me know what you think!
