It had been happening all morning—customers stuttering their orders or cowering ever so slightly behind menus whenever he walked over to refill their coffee cups. To them he would always be a punk kid in a leather jacket who at any moment could deliver a scathing retort, brutal mocking or hold a gnome hostage. Although Jess still wore a leather jacket, and wrecked the occasional wireless router in outrage, he'd ditched the attitude somewhere in Philadelphia a decade ago.

Despite his maturation, he couldn't repress a swell of childish pride from erupting when Kirk walked through the door only to pirouette right back out in one seamless movement. Oblivious to the applause of Miss Patty, who quickly took credit for the lunatic's ballet flair, Jess leans on the counter with a book and smirk to wait for her.

He hadn't heard from Rory in the two weeks since she'd returned to Stars Hollow. It had not escaped his attention that the Pablo Neruda mysteriously disappeared with her, which only fed his nervousness as he thought about her reading his margin notes. The pilfered book and kiss coupled with her vanishing act could mean one of two things: Rory felt the same electricity he did, like protons and electrons drawn together by some universal law that she was determined to study before allowing them to finally collide; or he'd wildly misjudged the intensifying lure between them.

If Jess was going to wait for her to come to him, he may as well increase the odds by situating himself in proximity to her lifeblood. So, he did what any self-respecting adult would do: he told his business partners about an author in Connecticut that he had to see and drove three hours to pour her coffee. 'It's not a total fabrication,' Jess thought, longingly watching the door. 'Rory is writing a book.'

"Quit scaring off the customers," Luke grumbles, emerging from the kitchen and putting his newly acquired cellphone in his back pocket. The older man acted at annoyance, but the glint in his eye gave away just how much he relished the terror his nephew incited, especially in Taylor and Kirk.

Placing his hand over his heart in pretend hurt, Jess smirks, "Hey, you know what they say, like uncle like nephew."

"Yea, yea," says Luke, brushing off Jess's familial ribbing. Though veiled in sarcasm, Luke knew it was Jess's unique way of saying he looks up to him. "Kirk did run get out of here pretty fast. Almost as fast as Taylor's petition to ban you from Stars Hollow is spreading."

"Another petition? I'm flattered, really," drawls Jess with an exaggerated roll of his eyes.

His smirk disappears and is replaced with an earnest expression. "Luke, can I ask you something important?" Nodding supportively, Luke takes a seat next to his nephew and offers his full attention. He's slightly unnerved by Jess's uncharacteristically sincere tone.

With a captive audience, Jess swiftly changes course, his eyes coming alive with amusement. "Are Kirk and Taylor related? Because I once heard this racy rumour about Taylor and Ms. Gleason. And don't even get me started with those weird night terrors they're both prone to." Thoroughly enjoying the battling expressions of relief and confusion sprouting on his uncle's face, he continues to weave his tale. "I once heard Kirk say he thought Taylor was his father, or was it that he loved him like a father? Anyways, in my humble opinion, their eerie civic pride tips the scales."

Luke considers the absurdity of it all for a few seconds before letting out a full bellied laugh. "It would explain why Taylor hasn't killed Kirk yet… So, uh, why don't you let the editor of the Gazette know your theory? I hear you're pretty close these days."

Subtlety was never Luke's strength; he'd always rather get to the point and he sensed Jess wasn't in Stars Hollow solely to torment Kirk. The procession of stolen glances in the direction of the Gilmore house only confirmed his suspicions.

"Yup." Jess trains his eyes on his paperback.

"That's all you're going to say?"

"Nothing to say."

"So, that's still over?"

"Luke, why don't you get over it, move on?" Jess scoffs with a wave of his hand for emphasis.

"Have you?" Luke replies, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Jess admits quietly, looking around to ensure no one is eavesdropping. "I really believed I'd moved on, but Rory and I, we've been getting closer and I've been helping her figure some things out. When she was in New York it hit me – I still love her. I think she might feel the same way."

"For what it's worth, you're good for her and good enough for her. I've always thought so."

"What, no rules about how close we can stand? Or a lecture about how I better not hurt her?"

Luke laughs recalling the system he'd devised to prevent the scourge of teenage pregnancy—a system that was now obsolete considering Rory and Jess weren't teenagers and a Wookie had beaten Jess to the impregnating part. "You know it's not the same now, right?"

Jess nods. He knows it's different this time. He's not that same scared kid acting out and waiting for her to notice him. There's no safe beanstalk boyfriend to run back to because somehow, against all odds, he's become the guy Rory turns to – the perfect union of friction and dependability she craves.

"Just promise me one thing. When you tell her how you feel this time, don't drive away." Luke pulls Jess in for a brief hug, patting him on the back just as the bell above the diner entrance jingles.

Then she appears, her penetrating blue eyes wide in surprise. "Jess," she exhales, unable to fathom how she'd gone the last two weeks without breathing him in.

Jess's heart is beating in his ears and he wonders if its's possible she's gotten more beautiful in the days and hours since he saw her last and, furthermore, how she still manages to evoke this response in him. "Rory," he murmurs.

They stay there, rooted in place, looking at each in wonderment from across the diner; a palpable current of trepidation and yearning coursing between them.

"And there you have it ladies and gentleman – episode 1 of Rory and Jess the later years, just as weird and uncomfortable for the rest of us as the original," quips Lorelai, who had trailed in behind Rory. "Thanks for the hot tip diner man," she says, winking at her fiancé.

"Taylor's petition would have reached you eventually," he mutters."

"You got any popcorn?"

A.N. I love the Luke-Jess dynamic, especially in later seasons when its more apparent how much they care about each other in their own gruff way. I also read a theory that Taylor is Kirk's dad, which sounds plausible. I couldn't not include it.