CHAPTER 10: For good, for bad, for always.

Luke stood in the airport looking debbonaire in his suit. He held a piece of cardboard with Lorelai's name scrawled across it. It would have been incredibly romantic if Jackson wasn't standing beside him, as Davey and Martha screamed and carried on.

"Don't you think you could take those two to the other side of the terminal or something?" Luke asked.

"Oh, sure…. I'LL move my two kids across the airport so that you, a single man can stand exactly where you want to stand. Absolutely! You crank!" Jackson picked up Martha and grabbed Davey's hand, "Come on Davey, we don't want to stand next to scrooge as we wait for Mommy!"

Luke rolled his eyes. He liked Jackson, he really did, most of the time. He could feel his panic start to rise as it got closer to the moment he would see Lorelai. He knew she wanted this too, but something about Lorelai Gilmore could feel so intangible. How do you catch this beautiful creature? How had he? He squashed the small fear that he never would.

His heart skipped a beat as the most incredible woman came walking out of the terminal. Her loose curls cascaded and even in sweats and an Al's Pancake World t-shirt, she looked like a piece of heaven. Lorelai was on her phone and had a disappointed expression on her face, until she looked up and saw Luke. Her smile calmed him down. Man, could she light up a room. And that smile was for him. She loved him. She broke into a run and jumped into his arms, crushing his card board sign.

"Oh no! I am a sign destroyer!" Lorelai lamented.

"It's okay, as long as you know YOU are Lorelai and I'm here to pick you up." Luke joked.

"You can pick me up anytime! Pick me up in the morning, pick me up in the evening- Hey, where'd Sookie go? She was right behind me. We were just around hundreds of cats. I'm so glad April wanted a dog! Did you see Rory on TV? She won't answer her-" Luke cut Lorelai off with a kiss and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Get a room, why don't ya!" Jackson huffed as him and Sookie strode passed the lovebirds.

"Jackson!" Sookie scolded.

"What? He was very rude to me and Martha and Davey!" Jackson insisted.

"I want to get a cat." Sookie revealed.

"What!? We just got a dog!" Jackson shook his head as they exited the airport.

"I want a cat, Daddy!" Davey yelled.

"Oh, boy." Jackson groaned. Neither of them had any idea what was in store for Lorelai.

Luke finally broke away from the kiss, "We gotta go."

Lorelai looked surprised, "We do? Where? Hot date? Who is she!? Are we going spelunking? I've always wanted to."

To Lorelai's shock, Luke rolled her luggage out to an old timey Ford Model-T.

"What is this? Ginchy, nifty, and keen! I'm like Debbie Reynolds!" Lorelai admired the light blue car.

Luke put her luggage in the back seat and opened the door for her, "Luke, this is, thank you!"

Lorelai was deeply impressed by the romantic gestures. Maybe, she wasn't lying when she told Sookie she was going to fly back to the states and get married and make babies. She smiled as she thought about their life together and drifted off as they made their way to Stars Hollow. Lorelai felt a little guilty when she realized she fell asleep during the ride, but Luke just smiled at her as he pulled up next to the diner.

"Oh good, I am starving!" Lorelai enthused.

Luke opened the door for her and to her surprise pulled out a blindfold.

"Luke, I didn't know you had this side to you. Kinky." Lorelai joked.

Luke rolled his eyes.

"Sorry." Lorelai laughed as he blindfolded her and led her into the diner.

She felt a smaller hand grab hers.

"Lorelai, it's April. I'm going to lead you into the bathroom." she explained.

"Oh good, I really have to pee." Lorelai was getting more confused by the second.

Once they were in the bathroom, April took off Lorelai's blindfold. Five beautiful dresses hung on the stall.

"Pick which one you like best. I got your measurements from your mother. She was really confused when I asked, but I told her it was for a science experiment, but that only confused her more." April rambled, "I'll let you get gussied up. There's some make-up and jewelry in the case on the counter. Don't take too long! Ceaser might have a heart attack."

With that, April left the bathroom. What was going on? This seemed like more than just a fancy date. She eyed the dresses. The purple silk flowy one was standing out at this point. It had a 1950s prom dress look to it, and after the vintage car it seemed to make the most sense. Lorelai slipped it on and was surprised that her mother knew her measurements this well. It hugged all the right curves. Lorelai dabbed a little make up on, so she could lose that "I've been on a plane for twelve hours" look. She added a pearl necklace and earrings. The effect took her back in time and she eyed herself in the mirror. If her and Luke had lived a few decades ago, would everything have been simpler? Lorelai rolled her eyes at herself…. The only reason she had met Luke is because of the choices she made as a teenager. For good, for bad, for always.

Lorelai peaked her head out of the bathroom, "Is it safe to come out?"

Ceaser opened the door to the bathroom, "At your service, Madam. Please take a seat."

Lorelai looked around in amazement. The diner had been transformed. Lights twinkled, there were beautiful flowers, and delicious fruits and chocolates were out on the tables. She sat down looking around expectantly for Luke and noticed April in the corner with a video camera on a tripod.

"Recording me eating strawberries and chocolate is exciting, but not THAT exciting." Lorelai joked.

Luke came out of the kitchen with two glasses of champagne. Lorelai hadn't noticed all of the photographs on the counter. She saw Rory's face smiling back out of many of them and it brought tears to her eyes. She was starting to realize what this might be.

Luke handed her a glass of champagne, "I want to toast to your success, Lorelai. You have grown an incredible business into a worldwide venture and I am so proud of you. I want to toast to your incredible daughter who is showing us just a glimmer of all the amazing things that she's going to accomplish."

She had never heard Luke speak so confidently and eloquently. Lorelai clinked glasses, "I'll drink to that."

Luke cleared his throat, "But most of all, I want to toast to the love, laughter, and joy that you two Gilmore girls have brought to me. We've both done our share of messing things up, but I just think we weren't ready for the…..the real deal yet. I was scared. I'm….I'm not scared anymore."

"To us." Lorelai clinked glasses again.

"To us." Luke smiled. They both took a sip. They rested their glasses on the table and Luke took her and and led her to the counter.

"Oh my goodness, I remember when you built that horse. Awe, Rory had the best birthday that year. Is that when I broke my leg? Sookie hate when you cooked the duck like that. I didn't know you had all these pictures!" Lorelai gushed.

"I had a little help getting them all together." Luke admitted, nodding towards April.

"Awe, thanks kid! I don't know how you asked for all these and didn't get anyone suspicious." Lorelai mused.

April looked guilty, "I….I pretended Rory was making you a scrapbook and wanted me to round them up."

Lorelai was impressed, "Rory would be proud!"

They continued through each picture, realizing how much of their lives had already been intertwined with such intimacy. Memory after memory. Pictures of "Fiddler on the Roof," which they had worked on when they were in a fight. A picture of the opening of the Dragonfly Inn. A picture of Rory packing for Yale. A picture of Luke and Lorelai at her parents vow renewal before the night had gone so awry. Lorelai had tears in her eyes as she reached the last picture. It was the last one of them taken before everything had ended. She saw how happy she had looked, a smile she hadn't had in such a long time. She was looking straight at the camera, but Luke was looking at her in the picture. He looked like he was in awe. She glanced at him now and smiled, his expression was similar to the picture. His eyes moved back to the photo and he nodded towards it. Lorelai glanced and saw that next to this final photo was a small box. The size that a ring would come in. Lorelai gasped and glanced at Luke.

He picked up the box and got down on one knee, "Lorelai, marry me. I want to spend every single moment of every single day with you and I don't want to waste any more time. I won't let anything get in the way of us ever again. Ever. You know I love you and Rory like you are my family. I always have. Let's do this. We- we can do this! I love you so much...I…"

"YES!" Lorelai pulled him back to his feet and kissed him. Years of longing and disappointment and frustration had led them to this moment. Their kiss deepened and they seemed to forget they weren't alone.

April coughed to remind them and Luke and Lorelai straightened up.

"Sorry! I don't want to interrupt the moment, but I promised Rory we were taping this for her." April apologized.

Ceaser came out of the kitchen crying, "It's all I ever wanted! The two of you together! Are you hungry?"

Luke glanced at Lorelai and smiled. He slipped the ring gently onto her finger and she looked down at the most gorgeous vintage cut ring she had ever seen.

"You hungry?" Luke whispered into her ear.

"Are you kidding? I could eat my own weight in junk food and still keep going!" Lorelai laughed.

"That's my girl!" Luke had tears in his eyes. Finally. Finally, they could be together. For good, for bad, for always.

They sat down to dinner and April and Ceaser only slightly eavesdropped from the kitchen as they prepared the dessert. April had left the camera on in case there were any more magical moments. She didn't want her new sister to miss anything!