Luke's POV:
"Jess, you've been in there for half an hour, we're going to be late", I barked, through the closed bathroom door. Finally the door swings open and he comes out with his perfectly gelled, dark hair.
"This doesn't just happen, you know. Those of us who are fortunate enough to have hair that doesn't need to be covered with a baseball cap every single day, prefer to actually take time on how it looks", he remarks, pointing to his head.
I roll my eyes. I grab my keys and Jess follows me downstairs, out the door, and to the truck.
"Why did she even invite us over? it's not an occasion or anything.", he asks.
"Well, I told her about what's been going on recently and she wanted to take our mind off things", I explain, as I turn the key into the ignition, starting the car.
"So it's out of pity?", he mumbles.
"No, Jess. Believe it or not, some people enjoy other people's company", I reply.
"But, she felt bad for us, and felt obligated to do something", he continues.
"No, it's not... she's not... would you stop asking so many questions?", I argued. I see him smirk, obviously pleased with himself that he got me riled up.
When we pull up in front of the Gilmore house, Jess begins to open the car door but I stop him.
"What now?", he grumbles, rolling his eyes.
"You will be polite, you will be courteous, you will not roll your eyes. Understood?", I demand.
"If I say yes will you promise not to include me into a never-ending conversation with Lorelai?", he says.
"Deal", I agreed.
"Then, yeah whatever", he mutters, then makes his way out of the car.
Jess's POV:
After sitting down at the table for 20 minutes and listening to Luke and Lorelai argue about whether there should be a limit to how much coffee one can be served or not, the food was finally here.
Lorelei got up from the table to get the food from the delivery man, leaving me, Luke, and Rory.
"What, did you order for all of Connecticut?", Luke calls when he see Lorelai walk into the kitchen with five bags of food. He gets up and walks to the kitchen, leaving Rory and I.
"I'm surprised you're not hiding a book under there", Rory points out.
"Luke wouldn't let me", I state.
"Ah.", she comments.
Luke and Lorelai come in with trays of Chinese food. Once everyone sits down, Rory and Lorelai start to pour the food on their plates, Luke and I wait for them to finish attacking. Luke just takes an egg roll with a spoonful of white rice.
"Here, let me help you with that", Lorelai says to Luke, pouring him half of everything.
"You must've mistaken me for you", he says. I just take an egg roll with two dumplings.
"So Jess, you're going back to school on Monday. How do you feel?", Lorelai asks me. Until now, I've successfully been avoiding conversation. "Oozing with excitement", I reply sarcastically, not looking up from the egg roll I've been picking at. When I look up I see Luke giving me the 'warning eyes' to be polite. "It's about time he goes back, between spring break and the extra four days he took off, I've been seeing way too much of him", Luke jokes. "You would see a lot less of me if I wasn't grounded every week", I try. "You wouldn't be grounded every week if you stopped getting into trouble", he retorts.
"What'd you even do to get grounded? I can't keep up anymore", Lorelai says.
"Does the whole getting arrested thing ring a bell?", Luke reminds her. I chuckle and Luke shoots me a glance and I immediately wipe the smirk off my face.
Within minutes, Rory and Lorelai had already finished their seconds and Luke and I were still on our first servings. "You barely ate anything", Lorelai says. "Trust me, there was a bigger mountain of food on my plate 15 minutes ago", he replies. Lorelei gets up and starts gathering the dishes and Luke helps her.
"So, how's it going with your 'stuff'?", Rory asks, once again, putting air quotes around 'stuff'.
"It's going", I answer.
"Could you be any more vague?"
"I could"
"You're impossible, Jess"
"So, I've been told"
Luke walks back with Lorelai and announces that it's time to call it a night.
"Thanks for having us over, Lorelai. Jess and I really appreciate it", Luke says, putting emphasis on my name, motioning for me to thank her as well. I give her an affirmative nod.
"Wow! Did I just get the nod of approval from Jess Mariano?", she exclaims, pretending to be all excited.
"See? People aren't so bad, you got through the night", Rory adds.
"Good night, Lorelai. Good night, Rory", he says.
"Night", the girls say in unison.
Luke tries to hide his smile, walking back to the car.
"This counted as one of your mandatory family dinners, right?", I confirm, once we begin driving back.
"Yeah, I guess it did. And I have to say, your behavior wasn't too bad tonight, so thank you for that"
"Good enough to take off a week from my grounding?", I try, not expecting a yes. To my surprise, Luke didn't automatically shoot me down like he usually does.
"I think we can work with that", he reasons.
"Did I hear you correctly? Luke Danes actually compromising?", I joke.
"This doesn't mean you can slack off in the diner. I'm rewarding you, don't make me regret it", he warns.
"Yeah, whatever"
Luke shakes me for the fifth time that morning, telling me to get up. I've been awake for five minutes, I just hadn't gotten up yet.
"Jess, come on, it's time to get up"
"Just give me five more minutes", I whine, sounding like a kid.
"I've given you ten minutes, come on, I know you're tired"
Reluctantly I get up and sit upright on my bed. It's a start, at least. I watch Luke button up his flannel then put on his baseball cap. "Jess...", he says in a warning tone when he notices I hadn't gotten up yet. "Alright, I'm up", I say, slowly standing up and stretching.
"Most teenagers get to sleep in on Sunday mornings", I mutter loud enough for Luke to hear.
"Good for them, looks like you're not one of them", he sarcastically replies.
After getting ready, Luke and I walk downstairs to the diner. Cesar had already opened it, so there were a few people already seated.
"Do me a favor and go get the mail", Luke says to me, pointing to Kirk, approaching our mailbox.
When Kirk notices me behind him, he jumps. I had a confrontation with him the last time he was delivering the mail, he was taking too long, and I wasn't in a very good mood.
"I can just take those", I say, motioning to the letters that were addressed to 'Lucas Danes'.
"By law, I'm required to put these in your mailbox"
"By law, I'm required to not punch someone in the face but that hasn't stopped me before."
"I'm just going to put these in the mailbox, you're making me nervous"
"Kirk! Just give me the damned mail!"
"I'm going to need identification that you're Lucas Danes, I can't just hand you someone else's mail"
"Identification? You see me everyday, I'm his nephew!", my voice is beginning to get louder.
"Yelling won't make me go quicker"
He slowly puts the letters in the mailbox, one by one. I cross my arms, waiting. He looks at me as he closes the mailbox, then speed walks away when I take a step closer to the mailbox.
I snatch the the papers out of the mailbox then walk back into the diner.
"It took you long enough", Luke noted.
"Tell that to Kirk", I say, putting the pile of letters on the counter. I watch Luke go through the mail and put aside two letters.
"Are those from Liz?", I ask, trying not to show interest.
"One's from her attorney and... one's from a judge", he answers hesitantly. At least he told me the truth.
"A judge?", I repeat.
Luke sighs. "That doctor wasn't kidding when he said that I would have to discuss it in court", he responds.
"You've gotta be kidding", I insisted, throwing my hands up in frustration.
"Unfortunately, I'm not. Liz just had to make the situation worse than it already was, didn't she?", he tells me.
I uncomfortably look down at my shoes, that had just became a habit everytime Liz's name was mentioned. Luke notices this and gives me an apologetic look.
"Jess, I know this is a lot that's being thrown on you right now, but don't worry about it, I'm handling it", he assures me. The court can't honestly believe that Luke abuses me. It's ridiculous. And Liz is obviously taking advantage of the situation which makes me even more angry.
Luke reads through the letters and I continue to watch him, attempting to read them upside down from my point of view.
"Refill coffees and take orders", Luke tells me, when he notices me trying to read the letters. I roll my eyes, he's trying to spare my feelings again by not letting me read the letters.
Coffee mug in hand, I go around and refill cups, take orders, and avoid anyone who tries to talk. Even if it's just a short 'how are you'.
As if I didn't want to be there enough, lo and behold, Shane walks in with some guy that I've never seen before. She smirks when she notices me looking at her then makes her way to the counter. I walk over to Luke who's still rereading the letter from the judge.
"I'm not taking her order", I tell him.
"Jess, I'm busy"
"I'm not taking her order", I repeat.
He finally looks up and sees who I'm talking about.
"Weren't you the one who broke up with her?"
"Yeah, so?"
"So, why do you care that she's here with another guy?"
"I don't care, I just don't want to hear her annoying voice", I scoff.
"Little busy right now", he motions to the letters.
"Fine", I grunt and walk back.
"Hey Jess, we're ready to order", Shane calls, giggling uncontrollably.
"That's great", I reply, wiping the counter.
"Have you met Shawn? He's my boyfriend", she declares, ignoring the fact that I'm not paying attention to her.
I finally walk over to the side of the counter where they're sitting.
"My condolences", I say to the guy.
He raises his eyebrows in confusion. "I'll just have oatmeal and coffee", he says.
"This is a diner, we don't serve oatmeal"
"It's on the menu"
"Then, we're out"
"Then just coffee", he decides.
"Same here, just coffee", Shane adds.
"I'll try my best not to spit in it", I mutter, getting two cups of coffee.
I walk back with the two cups.
"Actually Jess, I changed my mind, I want orange juice", Shane smirks. I put one cup of coffee down in front of Shawn.
"You said you wanted coffee"
"Now I'm saying I want orange juice"
I'm not gonna let her get to me. I give in and walk back into the kitchen and pour her a cup of orange juice. When I walk back she smiles at me as I put the cup of orange juice in front of her.
"Actually that coffee smells really good, can I have that cup of coffee back?", she asks, snickering.
"You can have the rest of mine", Shawn offers.
"No, it's okay baby, Jess can just fetch me my own cup", she smirks. I feel the anger build up inside of me. I'm not in the mood for this.
"Sure, Shane. Let me just get rid of the orange juice", I tell her, picking the cup back up. Without giving it a second thought, I spill the cup over her and she shrieks.
"My bad, must've slipped", I state. Everyone turns around to look at the girl now drenched in orange juice.
"What's your problem?", Shawn yells, getting up.
"Don't fucking piss me off", I spat.
"My hair!", Shane screams. Luke rushes to see what all the screaming's about.
"The hell's going on over here?!", he demands.
"Your employee just threw juice on my girlfriend!", Shawn raged.
Luke turns to me, "Jess?".
"It was an accident", I innocently responded.
"It was not! You poured it over my head!", she shrills.
"Jess, apologize", Luke orders.
"No!", I immediately yell. Shane and her new boyfriend stand there with their arms crossed.
"Jess, I'm being serious, apologize!", he repeats.
"No way in hell I'm apologizing to her", I state.
"Do you wanna go outside, man?", Shawn demands.
"You wanna fight me? I can take you out with one punch", I threaten, leaning over the counter.
Luke holds me back. "That's enough!", he yells.
Everyone is now staring, the diner is completely silent.
"Upstairs, now!", he orders me.
I throw the washcloth I'm holding, on the counter in front of Shawn and he squirms. I storm upstairs. I can't believe Luke's taking Shane's side.
I sit on the couch and wait for Luke to come in and start yelling at me. Ninety three seconds later, he's upstairs, storming through the door.
"What were you thinking?", he demands, yelling.
"I was thinking she would melt", I joke.
"You think this is funny? You caused a scene in my diner, you through orange juice on a girl's head, refused to apologize, and now you're laughing?", Luke yells.
"It's not a big deal", I tell him.
"Your attitude is a big deal, it won't be tolerated, Jess"
"Why are you taking her side? She was being such a bitch!"
"As if I don't have enough things to worry about, you getting into fist fights with customers and throwing stuff at them should not be on the list!"
"I didn't punch him, and trust me, I really wanted to"
"Well that just makes everything better", he says sarcastically, pacing around the apartment.
"Admit that you found it a little funny"
"What?"
"Come on! Seeing her drenched in orange juice, her brown hair roots showing, screaming; that was pretty funny"
I can see Luke trying to hold back a chuckle.
"I didn't find it funny"
"You're such a bad liar"
"It wasn't funny"
"You laughed"
"That wasn't a laugh, that was half a chuckle"
"If that's what you wanna believe"
"Listen, I know these past few days haven't been easy for you. But you can't go around throwing stuff on people, understand?"
I don't say anything.
"Jess, do you understand?"
"Yeah, whatever"
"No, I wanna hear a 'yes'."
"Yes, I understand", I say, rolling my eyes.
"Good. Now go clean up the mess downstairs. I'm letting you off with a warning this time cause I know you haven't been going through an easy time. This was a one time thing"
I nod, not believing I got off with a warning.
"Hey Luke?", I say on my way back downstairs.
"Yeah?"
"I'm not sorry that I poured it on her, but I'm sorry that I made a scene, you didn't deserve that", I say quietly, I'm not one for apologies and Luke knows that. He looks at me astonished.
"Thank you, I appreciate that", he replies. I nod and continue to walk downstairs.
Narrator's POV:
The day had a crazy start but thankfully settled down leading up to the evening. It's about 7 pm and the diner is empty. On sundays the diner closes at 8:30 so Jess and Luke were beginning to get ready for closing while making fun of Taylor who stopped by earlier asking about the whole 'orange juice fiasco'.
"I swear, the people in this town have no lives, some girl gets orange juice in her hair and it's suddenly the talk of the town", Jess protests. Luke can't help but chuckle at his attitude.
"It's not everyday someone gets orange juice thrown at them", Luke points out. Jess smirks and says, "Damn that felt good, I would so do that again". Luke shoots him a warning look. "But I won't", he quickly assures him, throwing up his hands in surrender.
The bell above the door chimes and a man in a suit comes in. Jess groans loudly, realizing he has to get back to work.
"Sit at any table you want", Jess tells the man who's just looking around the diner.
"I'm looking for a Jess Mariano", the man states. Luke walks up beside Jess before he has a chance to say anything else. "I'm Jess's guardian, what's this about?", he asks.
"Is Jess Mariano here?"
"His guardian is", Luke answers, stepping in front of Jess. The man flips through some papers he's holding. "Lucas Danes?", he confirms. "Yes, I'm Luke Danes", he replies. "These papers are for Jess Mariano, they state his obligation to be present at a court meeting regarding the custody battle between his mother and uncle, he will have the option to be called up for questioning", the man explains, handing me the papers.
"Thank you", he says, the man nods and walks out of the diner. Jess immediately turns to Luke once the man leaves. "Why didn't you let me talk?", he asks. "Because it wasn't necessary, you're a minor", Luke answers. "I can handle taking papers from someone, I'm not a kid", he argues.
"Cool it, Mr. Ego"
"Can I at least have the papers? They're mine"
"I'll look through them first"
"Is that even legal? They're addressed to Jess Mariano! I'm Jess Mariano!"
"Good, thanks for reminding me, Jess Mariano has to take out the trash"
Jess mutters something under his breath, rolling his eyes.
"And if we don't have enough trash bins throw them in Taylor's", he calls as Jess slams the diner door behind him. Luke reads through the papers. He thinks to himself how this is getting more and more ridiculous every day. Now she's making the poor kid sign these papers and show up to a courtroom? She really has no shame. He stacks the papers back in order when Jess walks in.
"For once you had enough bins", Jess says, coming back into the diner.
"I looked through the papers, the court date is in two weeks. Take a glance at them and sign where it needs to be signed", Luke tells him, handing him the papers. He nods, taking the papers, and sitting down at the counter. Luke watches him carefully read through the papers with complete concentration. "Are you gonna stare at me the whole time?", he asks, not looking up. Before Luke can say anything else, the bell rings again. "We're closing soon, you might as well leave now", Jess states, not looking up. The girl says 'excuse me?' and Jess looks up annoyed. He doesn't like being interrupted when he's reading something important. The annoyed glare on his face goes away when he sees the girl who just came in through the door. He's never seen her before. He thinks she's gorgeous.
"You focus on that, I'll take the order", Luke says to Jess. But Jess gets up before Luke can even get his note pad. Luke notices Jess blush when the girl smiles at him, he can't help but laugh at the sight of his nephew blushing; he never blushes. Jess glares at him and Luke just smirks.
"Hi", Jess greets.
"Hi", the girl replies cheerfully. Jess just stares at her for a few seconds, at a loss of words; he's never found anyone so beautiful before. The girl couldn't be above the age of 16 and she was obviously new in town.
"I'm ready to order", she says, snapping Jess back into reality.
"Oh, yeah, uh, what can I get you?", the young boy says, feeling embarrassed. Luke stares at the color of Jess's cheeks become a brighter and brighter shade of red.
"Just a coffee and croissant, please", the girl says, smiling. Jess nods and walks back to the counter giving Luke a look to not say a word. The smirk on Luke's face said it all.
"Shut up", Jess says, pouring a cup of coffee.
"I didn't say anything", Luke replies innocently.
"Shut up", he repeats then walks back to the table with the coffee in hand.
"I put the croissant in the toaster, it'll be out in a minute", he says. The girl smiles and thanks him, once again Jess nods. Luke sees his nephew wanting to say something else but not finding the words for it. He walks up to the table where the girl is sitting and immediately Jess shoots him a 'don't embarrass me' look.
"We were actually just about to close up, would you mind moving over to the counter?", Luke says to the girl.
"No problem", the girl replies.
"Jess, grab her coffee", Luke says. Jess brings the coffee over to the counter and cracks half a smile to Luke, thanking him. Jess knew that if she sat at the counter he would have a better chance of getting into a conversation.
"So are you new here?", Jess asks, sounding casual.
"Yeah actually, I just moved here from New York City", the girl responds.
"Really? I moved here from New York City about a year ago, I'm Jess by the way"
"Lindsay, nice to meet you"
Luke smiles to himself as he watches Jess talking to the girl. He loves to see Jess happy and this is the happiest he's seen him in a while.
"Jess, lock up when you're done, I'm heading up", Luke says, allowing Jess to be alone with the girl.
"Okay", he calls back.
The toaster beeps and Jess takes the croissant out and gives it to Lindsay. "I should take this to go, it's getting late, first day of school tomorrow", she says apologetically. "Yeah I can wrap that up for you", Jess replies. "So maybe I'll see you around?", she asks. "Maybe", Jess answers, cracking his signature combination of a smirk and smile. Jess watches her leave and wave on her way out. There was something about her. She was different.