Story Title: Seventeen Ain't So Sweet
Author: Jess x Loverr X
Rating: T/PG-13
Summary: This is after the car crash, which sadly sent our poor Jess away from us for awhile. This story is basically about a different reaction that Rory might have had when finding out. It's also about Jess and his journey back to his home, and back for a second chance with the girl of his dreams.
Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls.
A/N: Mayday Parade inspired this chapter. I hope you like it.
Having So Much To Say:
Please don't tell me,
That I'm dreaming.
When all I ever wanted was to,
Dream another sunset with you.
- Jamie All Over : Mayday Parade
"Why'd you call, Jess?" Rory asked, barely audible.
When Jess hadn't said a word, Rory contemplated asking him again. She knew he didn't just randomly call people in the middle of the night, and she still didn't understand why he thought he had the right to call her.
"I've just been lonely, I guess." He answered, breaking Rory away from her thoughts, just to have new ones form.
"Ha!" Rory let out sarcastically. "You're lonely?"
Jess sighed.
"Please don't act like this, Rory." He practically begged.
"Like what, Jess?" Rory asked seriously. "Should I be acting like you didn't just abandon me the first chance you got?"
"I didn't mean for it to happen like that!" Jess protested in his defense. This just made Rory fume even more.
"Like that?" Rory questioned. "You were planning different ways to leave?"
"No, of course not," Jess responded quickly. "I'm not even sure why I did it now."
"You left for a reason, Jess. And even if that reason was me, the way you handled the situation was stupid."
"You don't know what I was thinking, Rory." Jess responded seriously.
"You obviously weren't thinking." Rory shot back before he had a chance to continue. She was sick of this. Sick of fighting with him over the phone. Sick of believing for once he would call her to tell her he was coming back. Tell her he didn't want to be away from her anymore.
"I'm getting your car fixed." Jess suddenly blurted out. This caught Rory by surprised because she had fully believed her car was far from repair.
"You're what?" She asked, nerves calming.
"Well, I'm not fixing it personally," Jess corrected. "Just sending the money up to help pay for it."
Silence took over once again as the information registered in Rory's brain.
"Thank you." She whispered quietly. Jess let a small smile take over his lips.
"It's the least I could do."
"How are you getting the money?" Rory suddenly asked, realizing the situation Jess was in.
"I was thinking of selling drugs by night-"
"Jess!" Rory interrupted.
"Calm down, Rory." Jess smirked. "I was just kidding."
Rory waited patiently for him to continue.
"I'm still working on it."
"Just don't do anything drastic, promise?" Rory asked. "If you can't pay for some of it, I'll be glad to pitch in. The accident was partly my fault-"
"Rory, just please let me do this for you, okay?" Jess begged. "I just really want to do something. Please let this be that something."
Rory wasn't like any of the other girls from Jess's past. When she was broken, Jess felt as though he has failed her. When she was home alone, having to care for herself, Jess knew he had put her that way. He had tried to lighten up her night with an ice cream trip, and ended up almost taking her life away.
"Okay."
Next Morning:
"Since when did cereal boxes start giving directions on how to make cereal?" Lorelai asked squinting at the box of Corn Loops. Rory slowly sauntered her way towards the kitchen table, her eyes barely open.
"Pour me a bowl." She practically demanded. Lorelai didn't read too much into it.
"Hold box over bowl and slowly turn box opening downward." Lorelai's nose scrunched. "What is this, the 'slowest possible way to make cereal' instructions?"
Rory stayed silent, waiting for her cereal to be made.
"Make sure bowl is securely resting on top of table or counter. Slowly pour the amount of cereal you are able to digest into your system."
Rory rolled her eyes as her mother got eye level with the bottom of the bowl, and made sure it didn't move even the slightest when she shook the table.
"It looks secure." Rory commented when her mother tried a little harder to move to bowl.
"So I heard you still talking on the phone when I came down to get my night time snack." Lorelai ignored her daughter, and made new conversation.
"Jess called thinking I would cure his loneliness," Rory replied. "I don't understand why he thinks he can just call whenever he feels like it."
"Maybe he knows now what kind of mistake he's made."
"I don't think that's it." Rory whispered softly, before getting up from the table. The cereal bowl was still empty, and her stomach had suddenly lost it's appetite.
"Rory-" Her mother tried to stop her.
"I'm good without the cereal this morning, Mom."
And with those last words, Rory Gilmore slammed her room door and restlessly plopped herself onto her made bed.
Luke's Diner:
"She won't come out of that room, Luke." Lorelai explained as she sat lazily onto one of the counter seats.
"I'm sorry this is all happening to her." Luke spoke sorrowfully and graciously poured Lorelai her morning cup of coffee.
"Maybe we should wait a little longer to show her the car," Lorelai suggested.
A few days after the accident, the car was already being repaired. Rory still hadn't decided whether she wanted the car back or not considering the last memory she had in it was too terrifying. If Rory had decided she didn't want the car, or they couldn't come up with the money to fix it, the car would have been fixed up anyway and given to a car dealer so they could re-sell it.
The car was now all repaired, and Jess was still planning on paying Luke to pick it up and give to Rory tonight. Neither Lorelai nor Luke knows that Jess had already told Rory he was going to pay for it.
"If that's what you think is best," Luke replied. "I was gonna go down to the place after this shift and have it up here in time for the carnival."
"I think it would be better." Lorelai decides. "It would be less of a temptation for Rory before she actually gets her cast off."
"When is that by the way?"
"Two more weeks left." Lorelai answered with a small smile. "Thanks for all you've offered to do, Luke. And if Jess calls again, let him know I said thanks for trying to cover up his mistakes, but it's not gonna work out." She got out before taking one last gulp of her coffee and silently leaving the diner. She hoped Rory had at least fallen asleep, so she wouldn't have to hear her crying.
Gilmore House : Later In The Day
"Rory?" Lorelai quietly called out to her needing daughter as she slowly opened the bedroom door.
Rory slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.
"What time is it?" She asked before taking a glance at her alarm clock. 5:47 p.m.
"Almost ten minutes until the smell of popcorn and cotton candy fills the neighborhood." Lorelai answered with a small smile before taking a seat on Rory's bed. "We don't have to go, if you don't feel up to it."
The younger Gilmore took a few seconds to go over her options, and finally took a peak at her mother's worried face. She curved her lips upwards until a small smile formed.
"I've actually been looking forward to this."
"Good, because I already got us tickets, and knowing Taylor, they're nonrefundable."
Rory smiled warmly at her mother, knowing she was doing her best to cheer her up.
"I've been having a craving for cotton candy."
Stars Hollow Carnival:
"You call that an ice cream scoop?" Lorelai demanded as she watched the young girl scoop her ice cream onto a cone. She turned slightly when she heard a chuckle come from behind her.
"Figures you'd be spending your night tormenting poor ice cream scooping girls."
Lorelai ignored him.
"Talk to Jess?" She asked.
"Yeah, it didn't go over well."
"What happened?"
"He got mad, hung up, regular Jess stuff."
"I'm sorry, Luke." Lorelai apologized. "I didn't mean for him to be mad with you."
"It's okay, I'm sure the kid will move on."
"Mom?" Rory called from behind them as they both turned towards her. Just them Lorelai noticed a familiar looking car being parked in front of Luke's Diner.
"You didn't give in to his begging, did you?" Lorelai asked, confused.
"What?" Luke asked before taking a glance in the direction she was staring at. He found what was causing her so much confusion. Just then, the door of the car started to open.
A/N: Sorry it took longer than I had planned. Not much time to write this past week, but I hope this is alright for now. I'll start writing for the next chapter this weekend. Thanks for reading, and please review!