*****

A FRIEND IS SOMEONE WHO KNOWS YOU BUT LOVES YOU ANYWAY

*****

*ring ring*

RORY: "Hello?"

LORELAI: "Hey Honey, Guess what? We reached the Grand Canyon!"

RORY: "See the point of that question is to actually let the other person guess before you answer."

LORELAI: "Oh, you didn't really want to guess. You always complain when I make you guess."

RORY: "True. So how was the Grand Canyon?"

LORELAI: "It was big!"

RORY: "That's it? That's all the description I get?"

LORELAI: "I sent you a postcard."

RORY: "Cool! So does that mean you're coming home now?"

LORELAI: "No, not straight away. I hope you don't mind, but I decided I really wanted to visit the Pacific Ocean and managed to convince Luke that since we were so close now… "

RORY: "You managed to convince Luke?"

LORELAI: "It wasn't that hard. I told you he's secretly having a good time."

RORY: "I can't believe you guys will have driven across the entire country."

LORELAI: "Pretty cool, huh?"

RORY: "Very."

LORELAI: "Although I think we'll be ready to abandon the jeep and fly home once we finally come to the end of the line. So at the risk of sounding repetitive, are you still all right by yourself? Because you could always stay with any number of people in town. Or with my parents. Hahaha."

RORY: "I'm fine, really. Occasionally the house seems a little quiet. But it's a welcome change."

LORELAI: "I am not that noisy!"

RORY: "You are so. Besides, I have Jess to fill in the lonely nights."

LORELAI: "Oh that sounds so wrong! I was this close to having a heart attack."

RORY: "I didn't mean it like that! It's just that I can help him out at the diner and stuff so by the time I get home I just fall into bed. Alone."

LORELAI: "Can you install a video camera above your bed just to reassure me?"

RORY: "Then we'd just do it at his place."

LORELAI: "You're not really sleeping with Jess are you?"

RORY: "No. We're not even together. But I do have kind of a confession to make. Remember the other night when we ran into Grandma at the mall? I went lingerie shopping."

LORELAI: "With Jess!?!?"

RORY: "No, not with Jess! But I bought some stuff that looks like it would be more at home in your closet than mine."

LORELAI: "Naughty!"

RORY: "No it's not! There's nothing wrong with wanting nice underwear is there?"

LORELAI: "Not unless you want someone to see it. Then both you and the offending underwear should be locked in separate rooms until you're at least 25."

RORY: "But I had no ulterior motive."

LORELAI: "In that case, cool, is it pretty?"

RORY: "It's very pretty."

LORELAI: "Does it have leopard print?"

RORY: "No!"

LORELAI: "Snakeskin print?"

RORY: "Eew, no. Mom, I haven't become a hooker!"

LORELAI: "What about a stripper? Porn Star? Any leather?"

RORY: "You know we really shouldn't have these conversations. I'm hanging up now. I'm going to the diner."

LORELAI: "Are you wearing your new underwear? Did you buy Jess a furry G-string too?"

RORY: "Are you in a public place?"

LORELAI: "I'm in the car."

RORY: "Is Luke listening to your side of this conversation?"

LORELAI: "Nah he went to pay for gas and I gave him a long list of snacks to pick up while he's there to keep him busy."

RORY: "You do know you're not supposed to use cell phones at gas stations, right?"

LORELAI: "Nothing's blown up yet."

RORY: "Well hang up before something does."

LORELAI: "Okay, Luke's back anyway. Bye Rory."

RORY: "Bye."

*****

"Hey, where's the coffee?" Lorelai demanded when Luke got back to the car with her junk food.

"Their machine was broken," Luke explained.

"What? I don't accept that!" Lorelai cried.

"You hate the coffee they have at gas stations anyway," Luke reminded her.

"Need Coffee!" Lorelai pouted. "Even crappy coffee's better than no coffee."

"I got you some coffee flavoured icecream," Luke passed her the tub.

Lorelai's eyes shone "I love you!"

She said stuff like that all the time, and he knew it didn't mean anything, yet Luke could feel a warm blush creeping over his face at the words. So he quickly busied himself in stowing the rest of the food in the back of the car before setting off again.

"Why are we friends?" Lorelai asked out of the blue with a mouth full of icecream.

"Uh oh, here we go again." Luke muttered softly.

"I mean, I obviously drive you nuts. What are you a masochist or something?"

"You make life interesting," Luke told her.

"I knew it!" Lorelai gloated. "But it's always nice to be appreciated. So thanks for saying it."

"Thanks for being it."

Luke's attention returned to the road ahead and Lorelai's to her icecream.

Several minutes later she spoke up again. "Hey Luke? I like having you around too. It should be obvious, from the last however-many days we've spent together, but I wanted to make sure you knew."

"I know."

"You're a really good friend," Lorelai added.

"Thanks." Luke replied simply.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence until Lorelai spoke up again a minute later.

"Hey Luke?"

"Yes Lorelai?"

"Want some icecream?" she asked with a smile.

"No thank you."

"It's really good," she prompted.

"Okay. Just a little taste."

"Really?" Lorelai was surprised. "You do know this is icecream, right? Not no-fat, no-dairy frozen yoghurt. This is REAL icecream."

"I know. Occasionally, I like icecream," Luke said.

"Really?" Lorelai repeated.

"Yes!" Luke was getting impatient.

"Okay, I was just checking. Open up for the airplane!" Lorelai flew her spoon towards Luke's mouth.

He attempted to give her a withering glare without taking his eyes off the road. "I can feed myself."

"Not while you're driving." Lorelai reminded Luke that he was a stickler for road safety.

He relented and allowed her to feed him a spoonful of icecream.

Lorelai was thrilled. "I haven't done this since Rory was a baby!"

"That disturbs me. But the icecream is good."

"Want some more?" she offered.

Luke accepted, however this time Lorelai's over-enthusiastic airplane-spoon didn't make it into his mouth but hit the side of his cheek.

"Oops!" Lorelai winced sheepishly. "Want me to lick it off?" she suggested jokingly.

"To quote you, 'dirty," Luke said. "And no. Pass me a kleenex."

Lorelai obliged and Luke wiped his face. "No more," he said.

Lorelai shrugged, "okay, more for me. But this was a nice moment."

"You throwing food at me makes for a nice moment?" Luke asked.

"I mean our declaration of friendship. Before I brought up icecream. I predict many satisfying conversations in our future." Lorelai was encouraged.

"So you're a psychic now?" asked Luke.

Lorelai winked. "Sure. Psychic, psycho… whatever turns you on."

*****

Later in Stars Hollow....

"You don't have to work here on a Saturday night," Jess told Rory as she helped to clear tables in the diner after it closed. "It's not like you're getting paid or anything."

"I don't mind," she insisted. "I already did all my homework this morning. It's so much easier without mom interrupting me every 10 minutes. And you can pay me in food."

"Don't we already give you free food?" asked Jess.

"Mostly," Rory admitted, "but I'm always open to the prospect of more."

"So can I ask you something?" Jess asked. He was now sweeping the floor while Rory wiped the tables.

"Sure." Rory replied. "Eew, someone put gum under this table!"

Jess' eyes narrowed. "Kirk!" he hissed, "I've already warned him about that."

"What do you want me to do?" Rory asked.

"Just leave it there and I'll make sure he sits in the same place next time he comes in."

"That will not be a pretty sight."

Jess shrugged unapologetically. "The guy's got to learn somehow."

"You'll make a great daddy. Or headmaster." Rory laughed. "I'm sorry, what did you want to ask me?"

"Oh, right. You and Dean. Is that over for good?"

Rory stopped wiping. "I don't know. To be honest, I haven't been giving it much thought. I don't think we're going to get back together, but hopefully we can be friends. I like things the way they are now. With everything going on at school - Paris, student council, the paper. Then everything in Stars Hollow - Mom, Lane, you.... I don't need a boyfriend."

"You don't want another relationship?" Jess asked.

"Not straight away."

Jess responded nonchalantly. "Hmm."

But then he stopped sweeping and stood in the middle of the diner, broom still in hand. "Not everything can happen exactly on schedule when you want it, you know," he told Rory.

She stood facing him. "What's your point?"

"Sometimes things just happen when you're not ready for them. But you can't put life on hold." Jess was getting himself worked up.

"My life is not on hold!" Rory replied defensively.

"Which is why you're here on a Saturday night?"

They were now arguing rather loudly.

"I like spending time with you. Although at times like these I'm not really sure why. But Jess, I consider you a good friend! Is that so hard to believe?" Rory yelled.

"No, I feel the same way." Jess yelled back.

"Then what is your problem?"

"I don't have a problem!"

"Then what is this about?"

"It's…. it's about nothing okay, just forget it." Jess turned around but felt her hand grab his arm.

"Don't walk away!" Rory commanded. "You don't just start a fight out of no where and then try to leave without explaining why."

Jess spun around to face her. "Well I don't know why."

"Well…" Rory had run out of words so she kissed him instead. Hard on the lips. It was so unexpected that Jess took a moment to respond. The broom fell to the floor as he started kissing her back. But then Rory pulled away.

"Oh my God! I am so sorry!" she slapped her hand across her mouth.

"I'm not," Jess said.

"I have to go!" Offering no other explanation, Rory turned and ran out of the diner.

"Rory…" Jess began.

"Goodnight!" she called.

Jess didn't follow her.

"Deja vu," he muttered to himself and resumed sweeping the floor.

*****