Author's Note: As always, thank you to everyone who's been reading this story, and special thanks to everyone who's been kind enough to review.
Chapter 9: The Upset
Luke approached April's room cautiously. After such a heated fight with Anna, the last thing he wanted to do was confront her again, especially in front of their daughter. But he had even less desire to leave their fight unresolved, like a wound left to fester. Besides, he was not going to avoid April while she was in the hospital just because of an argument with Anna. Mustering his resolve to keep his anger in check, he slipped into the room.
He immediately noticed that April had fallen back asleep. Anna was in her usual seat by the girl's bed, reading a book to herself. As Luke stepped closer he saw that it was a children's book.
Anna looked up at him, but rather thanirritatedby his presence, she simply looked tired. "She's out like a light," she informed him quietly, glancing at April. Luke nodded as he sat down beside her.
"The doctor said that's normal," he ventured. She said nothing in return, but continued to look at the book in her hand. "What've you got there?" Luke asked.
"'Harold and the Purple Crayon,'" Anna said, closing it and showing him the cover. She looked again at April, who was still sleeping soundly. "It was her favorite book growing up. Still is. Purple is even her favorite color because she loves this book so much."
Luke nodded as he said, "I think I heard her say something about that."
"I was reading it to her and she fell asleep," she explained.
They sat in silence for several minutes, neither wanting to be the first to broach the subject they had just fought over. Luke contented himself with watching April sleep. He took comfort in her breathing patterns, so rhythmic and constant. Before long he found himself wondering what it would have been like to watch her sleep when she was a baby. Or a toddler. And once again, his mind returned to the immutable fact that he would never get to have those moments. They were lost forever, stolen from him by the woman sitting right next to him. It should have made him angry again, but looking at his daughter in the hospital bed, he could no longersummon the will to be mad.
He was about to apologize for his part in the earlier shouting match when there was a light knock on the door, soft enough to draw attention but not so loud as to wake April. The door slowly opened to reveal a new visitor: Rory.
"Hey," she whispered, waiving as she spotted Luke by the hospital bed. He immediately jumped up and walked over to give her a hug.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, sounding both surprised and pleased at her presence.
"Mom told me about April, and I was in the neighborhood, so I thought I'd drop by and see how you were doing," Rory explained. Looking over, she saw Anna and smiled. Luke followed her gaze and realized they had never met before.
"Anna, this is Rory - Lorelai's daughter. Rory, this is April's mom, Anna Nardini." An odd expression flashed across Anna's face, closely followed by a slight blush in Rory's cheeks. "Am I missing something?" he questioned.
"We've sort of met already," Rory explained as she did her best to hide her embarrassment with the 100 gigawatt Gilmore smile she had obviously inherited from her mother.
"At my shop," Anna filled in as the realization dawned on her. "That's why you were there. You were checking me out."
Luke's head swung back to stare at Rory in shock. "When was this?" he demanded.
Rory shifted uncomfortably. "A while ago. Mom told me about April and I was curious." Noticing Anna's look of suspicion, she hastily added, "Mom didn't have anything to do with it. Actually, she told me not to go, but I went anyway..."
"Rory, its okay," Luke assured her, not wanting to delve into that particular issue again. "We can talk about it later. I'm just glad to see you." And he was. Luke was surprised at how touched he was that she had come to the hospital. She had only met April that one time in Philadelphia, and yet she had driven out of her way to visit her future step-sister in the hospital.
Just then, Luke felt something strange. At first he thought the sickness and diseases present in the hospital atmosphere had finally gotten to him and he was suffering some sort of heart attack or stroke. And then he realized the sensation was coming from his shirt pocket.
"Luke, I think you're vibrating," Rory advised him, not even bothering to hide her amusement.
He quickly fished in his pocket for the offending cell phone, grumbling to himself about Lorelai "always changing the damn thing on me..." However, when he noticed the caller's number lit up on the screen, he grew serious. "I really need to take this," he told both women before quickly exiting the room.
Rory smiled at Anna. "You have no idea how weird it is to see him with a cell phone," she commented lightly.
"Oh, I know. Pretty hypocritical considering his 'no phone rule' in the diner," Anna replied, although her voice was not unkind. Giving Rory a quick once-over, she stated, "So you're Lorelai's daughter."
"In the flesh."
"You look old enough to be in college."
"I am in college," Rory volunteered. "I'm about to start my last year at Yale."
"Yale, really?" Anna said, although her surprise also seemed to extend to the "last year" portion. "That must be quite a challenge."
"Yeah, but I enjoy it."
Conversation momentarily exhausted, Rory was about to ask after April when Anna remarked, "So, your mother must have had you when she was pretty young..."
Rory was used to hearing such comments, having grown up with them all her life. They did not bother or offend her. She was proud of her mother and the life she had built for them. "Yep. She got pregnant when she was sixteen. And then I came along nine months later. She moved out of her parents' house and basically raised me by herself."
"Really?" the older woman commented, and for once, Rory felt as though she actually heard a note of approval in a response to her mother's 'pregnant at sixteen' story. "That must have been very difficult for her."
"Yeah, it was. She started out as a maid then worked all the way up to managing the inn. That was the Independence Inn in Star's Hollow, which burned down a couple of years ago. Now she owns the Dragonfly. But my dad wasn't around much when I was growing up, so it was mostly just her and me. Well, and Mia and Sookie at the Inn. And everyone else in town. Oh, and Luke," she added in a sort of bemused realization. "I guess after we moved out of the Inn, he was always around to help out. Fixing things. Looking out for us. And he made sure we didn't starve. In a lot of ways he was like a father-figure to me, even before he and my mom started dating."
"That's funny," Anna said, looking towards the door through which Luke had left. "I honestly never pictured Luke as the 'fatherly' type."
"Oh, well he definitely had a tough time with it when Jess moved in with him."
"Jess?"
"Yeah, his nephew. A few years ago, when Jess got into some trouble back home his mom sent him to live with Luke, to straighten him out."
"Did it work?" Anna asked,genuinelycurious.
"Partially." Not inclined to go into further detail about Jess's time in Star's Hollow, she left it at that. "Jess's actually a published author now. He's in Philadelphia working at a bookstore. April's seen it, actually."
Anna nodded a bit. "I remember her telling me about a book store."
They stood in silence again for several moments, each glancing at the door, waiting for Luke to return. Finally, Rory started the conversation again, remarking, "So, my mom tells me that April's doing really well, that she's been awake today."
"Yeah, well she's been asleep most of the day. She wakes up for short periods, but the pain medication makes her pretty tired."
"But it sounds like she's going to be okay," Rory said hopefully.
Anna smiled, cautiously agreeing, "It looks that way."
The attention of both women was quickly drawn to Luke as he walked back through the door, no longer on the cell phone. He quickly looked over at his sleeping daughter, as if to reassure himself that she was still there, still okay, still breathing. When he turned his eyes to Rory and Anna, they were watching him intently. Anna raised her eyes in a question, sensing that he had something to say.
"I just got a call from the police," he announced. "They found the guy who hit April."
Lorelai was running late.
Her quick check in at the Inn had turned into a long, drawn-out fiasco involving a vegan couple from the city who insisted on a meatless, eggless, milkless, meal; a small fire in the kitchen that left Sookie with one less eyebrow to pluck; and Michel... being Michel. As well, one of the maids had quit, and with the other out sick with the flu, Lorelai was forced to don her old hat and turn down a few beds before leaving. By the time she was on her way home to check on Paul Anka before heading back to the hospital, she was exhausted. And she was going to be a full hour later than she had informed Luke when she had talked to him on the phone earlier.
He had sounded distracted during their brief conversation, as though he wanted to tell heraboutsomething but was waiting to talk to her in person. Their call had been brief - he told her April was doing okay and to pick him up at the hospital when she got done with work. The fact that he ended the call with an unprompted, "Love you," eased her paranoia that whatever was bothering him involved her. Despite their reconciliation, she still felt as though she could lose him at any moment, that she would suddenly wake up from whatever dream she was in and find herself alone again. But things seemed to be going really well.
Pulling into her driveway, Lorelai felt a stab of deja vu. There was a car parked in front of her house and a figure sitting on the front porch. But instead of Luke's truck and his familiar flannel-clad self, she realized that it was Christopher's car and Christopher himself waiting for her. She suddenly regretting not having returned the messages he had left her the day before.
Warily getting out of her Jeep, Lorelai sighed, wishing she could avoid the confrontation that was about to occur. No such luck.
"Lorelai," he said, standing up as she approached.
"Christopher... what are you doing here?"
"You've been avoiding my calls," he gave by way of explanation.
"There's nothing more to say."
"Yes there is!" he exclaimed. "You just left the other morning. You said it was a mistake and you didn't love me, and you left. You didn't even give me a chance to talk to you."
"Christopher, there's nothing to talk about. It was a mistake. I don't love you. I'm sorry," she apologized, as sincerely as she knew how. "But I just don't love you. Not the way I love Luke."
"How can you say that?" he demanded angrily. "How can you say you love this guy when just two nights ago you were on my doorstep, in tears, telling me he doesn't want to marry you, he isn't there for you-"
"Things have changed," Lorelai said. "We've talked."
"You've talked?" Chris repeated, disbelieving. "What, you've talked and now everything's fine? Everything he put you through the past few months is all better now? Lorelai, you were at my door crying. You were hysterical for half an hour. It took you half the night just to calm down."
"Luke and I worked things out," she said again as she struggled to maintain the conviction in her voice. "Last night."
Christopher gave her a look of utter disbelief. "You worked everything out with him? What, he just suddenly had a change of heart? He decided you were worth telling things to, like the fact that he has a long-lost daughter? Or did he set a wedding date?"
"Chris, just stop," she pleaded
"Did you even tell him about you and me? You didn't, did you?"
"Actually, I did," Lorelai stated.
His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Really? And what did Mr. Brawny Paper Towell Man say?"
"Its none of your business, Chris. I'm back with Luke. We're working things out. I'm sorry you got hurt; that wasn't my intention. But you need to leave."
Christopher simply stood before her in defiance. "Lorelai, you and I are family.We belong together and we always have. I need you. Gigi needs you."
"Chris, listen to me!" She was starting to feel nervous, having never heard him speak in so desperate a tone. "We aren't going to be together. I'm with Luke. I'm in love with Luke. I'm so sorry I came to you the other night. I know that was terrible of me. You're a great guy, and you're a great father. But you and I aren't meant to be, Chris. That ship sailed a long time ago."
"Its not too late," he insisted. "I know I screwed up before, but this guy - Luke - he doesn't deserve you. He screwed up too. He had another kid, just like I did, but he didn't tell you about it. At least I was honest. I told you when Sherry got pregnant."
"You left me when Sherry got pregnant."
"And what he did was so much better?"
Lorelai sighed. "Chris, it doesn't matter what he did. I forgave him. He forgave me. We're back on track now. Now, please, just go home!"
"Fine, I'll go. But I want you to know one thing before I go."
She barely had time for his comment to register before she felt him grab her by the shoulder. In one swift motion, he had both arms wrapped tightly around her and his lips pressed to hers. The kiss was aggressive and bold, his mouth plundering hers before she even had a chance to react. Christopher tried to express in that one kiss all the love and passion he felt for Lorelai, all the years of disappointments for which he wanted to make amends. If only she would give him just one more chance, he was sure he could bring her happiness.
ButLorelai was not to be pursuaded, least of all by an uninvited embrace. Within a second of realizing what had happened, she put up her hands to try and push Christopher away. But he had a firm hold on her and it took several tries to extract herself from his grip as well as her mouth from his.
Instantly, Lorelai was reminded of the night they had slept together and the terrible morning afterwards. She felt dirty and ashamed, just as she felt then. It all came back to her again as she forced him away from her, anger replacing the earlier frustration with him. But he managed to keep a grip of one of her wrists, making their resulting break apart look like the final move of a badly enacted dance.
"Christopher!" she shouted at him, her patience with the situation having evaporated when he put his lips on hers.
It was then that Lorelai heard the noise that made her blood run cold and her insides turn to jelly. A car door. Turning, she saw Luke and Rory standing in the driveway next to Rory's car, she having clearly driven him home from the hospital. Luke's face was a mask, devoid of all emotion, but his attention was entirely focused on her and Christopher.
"Luke..." she began, needing to explain what had happened, what he had obviously just witnessed.
"Don't bother, Lorelai," he said in a tone full of finality, as though he had read her mind. "I know exactly what's going on here."
