Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls or anything affiliated with the show.

I'm probably sounding like a broken record but I continue to be amazed by the all the positive feedback. It's remarkable and I love you all for taking the time to comment. To sam.pringle, who wonders what movie Tristan and Rory ended up watching, I was hoping I wouldn't have to answer that. There are only two movies I'm convinced they both would agree on: Ferris Bueller's Day Off and The Breakfast Club. So I'm going to say they ended up watching Ferris Bueller, because Tristan would admire how Ferris was able to skip school, sing on a parade float and drive a Ferrari without getting caught, and Rory would admire the witty dialouge. If you think I'm wrong, let me know. I'd like to see what other people think Rory and Tristan would agree on. Otherwise, enjoy.

xoxoxoxoxo

That Thursday, Rory sat at a table at Luke's diner, waiting for her mother to show up. They had agreed to meet up at Luke's for dinner after Lorelai got out of the inn. Although Rory had planned to work at the inn that week, when Rory went in that morning, the place had been relatively dead. There were only a couple of guests and Rory quickly got bored. Tristan called her around two, asking if she wanted to do something and Lorelai let her go. Tristan picked her up at the inn and drove them back to Hartford, where they walked the streets of downtown, drinking coffee and looking at the stores with all the after Christmas sales. After almost two hours, they drove back to Stars Hollow and despite arguing with him for several minutes, he insisted on waiting with her at Luke's.

He sat across from her, drinking coffee out of one of Luke's huge mugs. "This coffee isn't half bad. I'm used to Starbucks, but this is a good substitute."

Rory felt oddly defensive. "Are you joking? Luke's coffee is the best, a lot better than Starbucks."

"Maybe for a small town girl."

"Bite me."

"Hmm, is that an invitation?"

Rory rolled her eyes. She took a sip of her coffee, watching as Tristan's eyes narrowed. It seemed odd how quickly his face turned from cocky to pensive. "What is it?"

"What's the story behind that bracelet?"

Rory looked down at the medallion strapped to her wrist by leather. "This?"

He nodded. "You always have it on. It's obviously not a pretty accessory."

She took offense to that. "Excuse me?"

"Well, come on. The thing is ugly as sin. There must be something else about it."

"If you must know, it holds sentimental value."

"That's what I thought. So what's the story?"

Rory vacillated before answering. She didn't want to bring up Dean, but she didn't want to lie about it either. "Dean gave it to me for my sixteenth birthday. We had just started dating."

Tristan nodded. "You still wear it, even though he broke up with you."

She shrugged. "Old habits die hard." She was afraid he would continue the subject, so she decided to change it. "My turn. Your locker has all these crude photos decorating it, yet your room is hospital bare. Why is that?"

"Somehow I don't think Harriet would appreciate December's centerfold gracing a wall in her home."

"I don't blame her. But there are other things."

His face subdued a bit. "I put a poster of Iron Maiden up once. She didn't notice it for three weeks, but when she did, I got a long lecture of music a respectable young man should be listening to. It was the most time she had talked to me, or at least at me. After that, I decided it wasn't worth the hassle. I rather have my peace and quiet than a picture on the wall."

"I've listened to Iron Maiden. They are definitely not worth the hassle."

He smirked dryly. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

She was surprised the topic changed so quickly, but she didn't comment on it. "I have dinner in the evening with my grandparents. It's something we do every Friday, no exceptions."

"What about afterwards?"

"Gilmore movie night."

She barely caught the disappointment before he averted his eyes to the coffee. She felt a bit guilty. She had forgotten that he was on his own and didn't have any distractions. By being so available to him, she had made herself his designated entertainment. She felt bad about letting it happen, but what was she supposed to do?

"We could do something on Saturday night," Rory offered.

Tristan shook his head. "My grandfather invited me up for a couple of days."

Rory frowned. "I thought you said you didn't want to stay with him."

"I thought about after we talked and I really don't spend that much time with him. I can give him a few of my days."

Rory chuckled. "I didn't know your days were so valuable."

"They weren't until recently."

He stared at her intensely and Rory felt the heat rise to her face. Was he talking about their friendship? Was it really that important to him?

Jess interrupted their eye lock by offering to refill their cups. "You've had an audience for the last two minutes," he said as he poured the dark liquid into Tristan's cup.

"What?" Rory asked, not understanding what Jess was alluding to.

Jess responded by jotting out his chin toward the window. Rory turned to what Jess was pointing at and her eyes came upon Dean, staring inside the diner, his jaw set in an angry line. Rory's heart leapt into her throat. She hadn't thought of what she would do if and when Dean saw her with Tristan. She convinced herself that Tristan was now her friend and Dean had no say in it, but now, seeing his incredulous and enraged eyes, she felt the need to go to him, to try to explain in case he didn't understand.

He shook his head in disgust and started to walk away. Before she realized it, she was on her feet, exiting the diner and rushing after him. "Dean!"

He kept walking, his hands shoved into the pockets of his black leather jacket. She reached him, almost jogging to keep up. To her astonishment, he talked first. "I didn't believe the rumors, but they were true."

"What rumors?" She asked

"Miss Patty told me you invited Tristan to the dinner. She said she thought you two were starting something. I thought she was crazy. I was certain she was on something. But now I see you with him and…"

"We're just friends, Dean. That's all."

"Since when do you become friends with someone you hate? Because that's what you told me, Rory. You told me you hated him."

"You don't understand. He doesn't have anyone right now. His friends were just shipped off. His parents are an ocean away. He's all alone."

"So the fact that you kissed him back at the play has nothing to do with your new found interest in him?"

"No…okay yes, in part. But only because I was trying to figure out why I kissed him back at the play."

"Did you find your answer?"

"No."

"Then why are you with him now? You didn't get your answer so what's your motivation to be with him?"

She opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. What was her motivation? Why was she hanging out with Tristan? She knew she was trying to help him out, but what was she getting out it?

"Just answer something for me," Dean said. "Did you know Lorelai invited me to the dinner before you invited Tristan?"

She could have lied. She could have just told him what he wanted to hear and make things easier for her. But she didn't know how she would explain why she invited Tristan if she knew Dean was invited.

She hesitated too long. Dean started to walk away. "I thought so."

She thought about following him, but knew it would be a lost cause. There was nothing she could tell him now that would make him understand why she became friends with Tristan.

She returned to the diner, stopping short from the table she had just vacated. There were two empty chairs and some money on the table. She looked up at Jess standing behind the counter. "Where's Tristan?"

"Tristan?" he repeated in mock ignorance.

"The guy I was with."

"Oh, you mean Brad Pitt. He left as soon as you did."

She didn't believe him. She left the diner and glanced at the empty parking space where Tristan's black Porsche had been parked. She could see the sports car driving down the street, turning out of sight in the distance. Her spirits sunk lower into the ground. Why did Tristan leave? She had kept her promise. She had defended their friendship to Dean despite the fact it probably cost her any reconciliation that may have come. So why did he drive away?

"Hey," she heard her mother call. Lorelai came up next to her, mocking her daughter by looking down the street. "Are we waiting for our spaceship to come?"

Rory's mouth formed a grim line. "No, I'm waiting for a baby grand to fall on my head. Maybe it'll put me out of my misery."