Luke groaned as the alarm rang loudly from the night table, pulling him out of a deep sleep. He rolled over and threw an arm over Lorelai, burying his face in her neck. "Make it stop," he requested.
Lorelai smiled softly and pressed a kiss to his forehead before she reached over to turn the alarm off. "Go back to sleep, babe," she whispered. "I'll be back later."
"Back?" Luke frowned, propping himself up on his elbows as he watched her roll out of bed and reach for a pair of sweatpants. "Where are you going? It's two a.m."
"I told you last night," Lorelai said. "It's Rory's birthday. I have to go to Yale and wish her a happy birthday at the moment she was born, it's tradition."
"I don't like you driving all the way to Yale in the middle of the night," Luke told her.
"I'll be fine," Lorelai said, pulling a pair of sneakers on.
Luke sighed as he looked at her carefully for a moment. "Will you at least call me when you get to her dorm so I know you got there safely?" he requested.
"After I park the car and before I sneak into Rory's bed," Lorelai promised. She smiled as she leaned down to kiss him softly. "This is kind of weird, me kissing you goodbye. Usually it's the other way around."
Luke smiled softly and leaned in to kiss her again. "Be safe."
"Always," Lorelai smiled.
After brewing a quick pot of coffee and depositing it into a travel mug, Lorelai climbed into the front seat of the Jeep and began the hour long drive to Yale. She'd called Paris the night before and asked for her help in getting into the dorm, and although Rory's roommate hadn't completely understood the reasons behind Lorelai's request, she had agreed to help in exchange for an interview about starting a small business in a suburban town.
The traffic was light in the middle of the night, and Lorelai pulled up in front of Rory's dorm by three-thirty. She made a quick phone call to Luke, who sleepily told her to wish Rory a happy birthday, and then downed the last of her coffee before she made her way to the front door of Rory's building.
"Thanks, Paris," she said with a smile as she stepped into the warmth of the building. "It's getting cold out there, I guess the weather is finally realizing it's fall."
"Yeah, yeah, the weather's changing, this time of year is wonderful, but then come the miserable months of January and February," Paris rolled her eyes. "Now, what inspired you to open your own business?"
"I'm not doing the interview now, Paris," Lorelai said as they stepped into their living room.
"But I need a scoop!"
"And you'll get your scoop," Lorelai promised, tossing her jacket on a chair. "Later."
"But the paper says-"
"Your deadline's not for a week, you told me last night," Lorelai said, stopping outside of the bedroom door. "You'll get your interview, Paris. Later. I promise."
"Fine," Paris sighed, dropping onto the couch and reaching for a textbook.
Lorelai shook her head slightly before she slipped into Rory's room, smiling when she saw her daughter sleeping peacefully on her side. Lorelai brushed some hair out of her face and leaned in to kiss her cheek softly before she settled into the bed beside her. "Wake up, little girl," she whispered, running a finger along her arm.
Rory stirred and then turned onto her back, snuggling into Lorelai's embrace. "Mom," she sighed happily.
"Happy birthday," Lorelai whispered.
"Thank you."
"I am so proud of the woman you're becoming," Lorelai informed her. "You're doing such a fantastic job at Yale, you care about everyone around you, and you'll do anything to make other people happy. You're my favorite person in the world."
"Back at you," Rory sighed. "I didn't think you would come this year."
"You think I'd miss our birthday chats?" Lorelai asked. "Never. We've done this every year, since year one."
"Tell me about it," Rory requested.
"Well," Lorelai sighed, settling back against the pillows. "We were still at Grandma and Grandpa's, and my mother had this elaborate birthday party planned for you, some princess tea scenario."
"You never told me that," Rory whispered.
"You'd been unusually fussy that night," Lorelai continued. "Almost like you knew something horrible was about to happen. So I pulled you into bed with me, and began telling you what had happened a year before. You calmed down immediately, and I knew then, that I would always tell you the story of how you were born."
"What happened at the princess tea?" Rory requested.
"Well, my mother wanted to dress you in some frilly pink dress and invite all my dad's business partners, and I told her it was too much for a one year old's birthday party," Lorelai sighed. "I'd had my own thing planned, which involved a road trip to the beach to introduce you to the ocean. And ice cream."
"I do love the ocean," Rory admitted.
"I knew you would," Lorelai sighed. "That was the day I decided to run away. It took me a couple weeks to come up with a plan, to get everything ready, and then I took you onto the bus and went as far as two dollars and seventy five cents would take me, to a quaint little town called Stars Hollow."
"And the rest is history," Rory said knowingly.
"It will go in the books," Lorelai agreed. She was silent for a moment before she asked, "So how's your life? Any requests?"
"Another Madonna world tour," Rory replied.
"I'll call her in the morning," Lorelai nodded. "You know, this position reminds me of a position I was in at this exact moment nineteen years ago."
"Here we go," Rory sighed.
"My stomach was huge and I was swearing like a sailor…"
Rory smiled as she snuggled into Lorelai's embrace, reveling in the comfort of a tradition she had known for her entire life, the only way she knew how to start her birthday.
XXXXX
"Hey, handsome, where can a girl find a good cup of coffee in these parts?" Lorelai flirted as she approached the counter of the diner later that morning.
"Here," Luke shoved a mug into her hands before he moved around to clear some plates.
"Wow, romantic," Lorelai commented.
"Sorry, we were slammed this morning," Luke sighed. "How's Rory?"
"Another year older," Lorelai said sadly. "We did go out to an early morning birthday breakfast. It was no coffee cake and balloons, but it did the trick."
"I'll make her coffee cake when she comes home this weekend," Luke promised.
"She'll like that," Lorelai smiled.
"You want anything?" he asked.
"Just a muffin," Lorelai requested.
Luke placed the requested object on a plate in front of her and then moved to wipe down the counter. "What's on the agenda for the inn today?"
"Tom's working on the kitchen, and yesterday Sookie told him he was making too much noise in the sanctity that will be her kitchen," Lorelai replied. "So I'm distracting her with wedding plans. Want to join us?"
"I have to work," Luke rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, but it's your wedding too," Lorelai replied. "I know it's not your thing, but I want you to be comfortable with it."
Luke leaned against the counter and smiled softly at her. "The plan's still for something small?" he asked.
"Yeah," she nodded. "On the grounds of the inn."
"No tuxes?"
"No tuxes," Lorelai promised.
Luke nodded and considered for a moment. "That's all I want," he conceded. "Just do whatever will make you happy."
"I'm very good at making myself happy," Lorelai nodded. "Hey, why don't I call her and ask her to meet me here? That way, we can run all the decisions by you before we finalize anything."
Luke looked at her closely for a moment before he nodded. "Sure, call her," he said.
"Really?" Lorelai's eyes lit up and she reached into her purse for her cell phone.
"Outside," Luke added.
"Luke," Lorelai pouted. "It's raining. And cold."
"So call fast."
"Do you want me, your future wife, the woman who is going to make all your dreams come true, to stand outside in the cold rain and get sick?" Lorelai gasped.
"No, I want you to take that damn cell phone out of my diner," Luke replied.
Lorelai bit her lower lip and looked at him for a moment before she asked, "What if I make it worth your while?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I'd be willing to do the shower thing," Lorelai said suggestively. "In exchange for one tiny phone call."
Luke raised his eyebrows as he looked at her carefully. "Tonight?" he asked.
"Upon request," Lorelai nodded. "Hell, we can go upstairs right now and use the shower up there."
"Tempting," Luke laughed. "But considering there aren't any towels or soap, I think I can wait until we get home."
"So we have a deal?" Lorelai asked, holding up her cell phone.
"I'm going into the kitchen," Luke sighed, pushing himself off of the counter.
"You're the best!" Lorelai called after him as she dialed Sookie's number.
XXXXX
"Are you sure you don't want to use the gazebo?" Sookie asked later that day as Lorelai maneuvered the Jeep through the streets of Stars Hollow.
"Positive," Lorelai nodded. "Luke gave very few stipulations about the wedding, and one was that it be on the grounds of the Dragonfly."
"But it's not going to be ready," Sookie insisted.
"We don't have a date," Lorelai shrugged. "We can wait."
"I thought you didn't want to wait."
"I don't," Lorelai shook her head. "Neither does Luke."
"So why wait?" Sookie asked. "Why not just use the gazebo?"
"Because Luke wants the inn," Lorelai shrugged. "I don't know why, but he so rarely asks for anything like this. It's important to him, which means it's important to me."
"I guess that makes sense," Sookie sighed.
"Besides, we want to have it outside anyway," Lorelai shrugged. "We may not even have to wait until the inside is done. Which is why we're going to look at the gardens right now."
"So you're doing okay?" Sookie asked. "You and Luke?"
Lorelai reached for her coffee and took a long sip before she nodded slowly. "We're okay," she confirmed. "Things will never be the same, but we're moving forward."
Sookie nodded and looked down at her lap. She was quiet for a moment before she realized that the car was no longer moving. "Lorelai, what's…" she trailed off when she saw Lorelai staring out the windshield at their former workplace. "Oh."
"I want to go in," Lorelai said, pulling the car into the driveway behind the contracting trucks.
"What?" Sookie asked, following Lorelai across the grass. "Lorelai, this is ridiculous!"
"What's so ridiculous?" Lorelai asked. "It's my former workplace, I want to make sure they're keeping the charm alive."
"Lorelai, you have no say over anything about this place anymore," Sookie cried as they walked through the open front door.
"I know, I just want to see it," Lorelai said.
Sookie stopped beside her and they looked around what had been the lobby, which was very much the same, sans the check in desk. "Wow, it still looks great," she said.
"I can't believe they're making this place into a house," Lorelai said. "It's going to be huge."
"I wonder if they're keeping the kitchen the same," Sookie said. "It would be great for someone who loves to cook."
"Twelve rooms upstairs," Lorelai considered. "Let's go see what changes they've made."
"We shouldn't," Sookie said, but Lorelai was already walking towards the stairs. She stood awkwardly in the lobby for a moment before she followed her.
XXXXX
Lorelai smiled into the phone later that night as she sat on the couch, feet propped up on the table. "That's great, Rory," she said, looking up when the front door opened and Luke stepped inside. "I'm going to miss you, but I'm glad you're going out to celebrate your birthday. We'll celebrate this weekend…yeah, he just got home. Hang on." She stood and held the phone out to Luke. "It's Rory. She wants to talk to you."
Luke smiled and took the phone, holding it up to his ear. Lorelai smiled and leaned against the stair railing as she watched him talk to her daughter. "Hey, Rory, happy birthday…I'll make it this weekend, I promise…yeah, I'm looking forward to it too. Are you doing anything tonight…sounds good. Make sure you stay safe…I know she did…okay, have fun. Here she is."
He handed the phone back to Lorelai, who said a quick goodbye to Rory and then replaced the phone in its cradle. She glanced at Luke as he dropped his wallet and keys on the desk and then moved to the kitchen to get a bottle of water out of the fridge. "So…how was the rest of your day?" she asked.
Luke shrugged. "Pretty routine," he said. "I left before the dinner rush, which is actually nice."
"Good," Lorelai nodded. "I like having you here more."
Luke smiled and stepped closer, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I like being here more," he agreed. "And I know things are taken care of at the diner, so I don't have to worry."
"Good," Lorelai repeated, looking down at her feet.
Luke narrowed his eyes at her. "What's going on with you?" he asked.
Lorelai shook her head quickly. "Nothing," she said. "Why?"
"You keep saying 'good,'" Luke pointed out. "You, the woman who never stops talking, keeps repeating one word over and over."
Lorelai sighed. "Sometimes I hate how well you know me," she said.
"I've had years of training," Luke said firmly. "What's going on?"
"Sookie and I went to the Independence Inn today," Lorelai said. "It looks amazing, Luke. They kept almost all of it the same, but they renovated some of the bedrooms and they converted half of the dining room into a library office type situation."
"That's good," Luke nodded. "I bet it was nice to get closure."
"Right," Lorelai said. "Closure. Closure is…good."
"You're doing it again," Luke shot her a pointed look.
"Sorry," Lorelai sighed. "Stopping."
"Okay," Luke said. "Do you want anything special for dinner?"
"I already ordered a pizza," Lorelai said. "Half vegetable."
"Thanks," Luke said. "What do you want to do tonight?"
"You can pick the movie," Lorelai told him. "I'll grab some beer."
"Okay," Luke said, turning towards the living room. He paused and turned back to her before he asked, "you sure there's nothing wrong?"
"I'm fine," Lorelai nodded.
Not quite believing her, but understanding that she didn't want to talk about whatever it was, Luke turned to the living room and disappeared from Lorelai's view.
She leaned against the counter and bit her thumbnail for a moment, the images of the Independence Inn flashing through her mind. Something had clicked inside of her when she and Sookie had seen the renovations taking place, but she wasn't sure what it meant. There was a lot changing in her life right now, and she wasn't sure if her mind was properly processing her emotions.
The sound of the doorbell cut through her thought process, and she snapped into action as she reached for the fridge and pulled two beers from the fridge. She grabbed a stack of plates and napkins, then offered Luke a smile as she sat down beside him on the couch. "Thanks," he said as he took her offered beer and then placed a piece of pizza on her plate.
Lorelai opened her beer and then turned to look at the TV. "What did you pick?" she asked.
Luke swallowed his bite of pizza before he answered, "The Shining."
"Scary, I like it," Lorelai nodded. "Good choice."
"Thanks."
Lorelai chewed thoughtfully on the pizza and turned to watch the opening of the movie show Jack driving his family through the mountains of Colorado. She took a sip of her beer before she reached for the remote and paused the movie and turned to look at Luke. "I want to buy the inn," she said.
"You already bought the inn," Luke said. "You need to stop drinking so much coffee, it's starting to melt your brain."
"Not the Dragonfly, the Independence," Lorelai said. "They're converting it into a house."
"So you want to buy it," Luke repeated.
"Yes," Lorelai said. "Or…no. I want to talk to you about buying it."
"To live in," Luke repeated.
"It's my first home," Lorelai said. "It's where I grew up. I was so sad when Mia sold it, but now they're converting it into a house. We've talked about buying another house, and now this one is here."
"It's huge," Luke replied. "We don't need all that room."
"Well, we need a room and Rory does too," Lorelai shrugged. "A guest room."
"That's three rooms," Luke said. "Half the house would be empty."
Lorelai sighed and reached forward to put her beer on the table. She knelt on the couch and reached out to place a hand on his shoulder. "Luke, we've been through a lot these past couple months," she said softly. "But I want to try eventually. For another baby. Or babies."
"I know you do," Luke said, reaching for her hand. "I'm just trying to wrap my head around this."
"It's big," Lorelai said. "I know I'm throwing a lot on you with this, and I don't expect an answer right now. But I want you to know what I'm thinking."
Luke sighed as he leaned back against the couch cushions. "It's a lot," he admitted. "This is really what you want?"
"Yeah," Lorelai said. "Picture it, Luke. You'd love the kitchen. You can make Rory and I breakfast and we'll sit on the porch with our coffee overlooking the lake. Rory would live in the library, and it would just be perfect. Our kids could all have their own room, and they could even have a play room or something. Can't you see it?"
Luke smiled softly. "It would be nice," he said. "I'm just surprised you want to raise a family in a big house like that. You hate your parents' house."
"Yeah, that's because it's filled with all kinds of creepy furniture," Lorelai shrugged. "This is the inn. It would be our home. No creepy furniture."
"And you'd be okay with leaving this house," Luke stated.
"I think so," Lorelai nodded. "I mean, there are a lot of memories here, but we talked about moving before. And Rory would be okay with it. I'd talk to her about it first, of course, but you're the one I'd be building a life with. I wanted to talk to you about it first."
"Do you know anything about how much this is going to cost?" Luke asked.
"I haven't gotten that far," Lorelai said. "You don't have to make a decision now, I just want you to think about it."
Luke nodded and squeezed her hand. "I'll think about it," he promised.
"Thanks," Lorelai said, leaning forward to kiss him. "We can watch the movie now."
Luke leaned forward and grabbed the remote. He pressed play and leaned back against the cushions, reaching for his pizza. He turned to look at Lorelai for a moment, then said, "You still owe me a shower."
She laughed and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Nothing like The Shining to get us in the mood for shower sex," she said.
"What can I say, I'm a romantic guy," Luke smiled.
"That you are, my future husband," Lorelai said happily.
XXXXX
"You know, it's not good for a girl's ego to wake up alone after a night of passion," Lorelai announced as she walked into the kitchen and reached for the pot of coffee that was already brewing."
"Your ego can take a dent or two," Luke informed her from where he stood at the stove.
"Thanks, Romeo," Lorelai said, moving to the fridge for the milk. "Is Rory up yet?"
"I haven't heard her, I'm assuming she's still sound asleep," Luke shrugged.
"And I'm assuming that's the Danes family coffee cake that smells so delicious," Lorelai stated.
Luke smiled and pointed to the table, where the cake sat in front of the chair he had attached balloons to. "Just waiting for the birthday girl herself," he said.
"Well, she's a college girl now, she probably won't be up for hours," Lorelai shrugged. "I'll make sure it tastes okay."
"No you won't," Luke said sternly.
Lorelai paused, her hand hovering over the coffee cake, the knife poised to cut. "Luke, it's for Rory," she insisted.
"For Rory, huh?" Luke asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "And how does you eating Rory's coffee cake benefit her?"
"Duh, I have to make sure it tastes okay," Lorelai rolled her eyes. "I can't let my precious baby girl eat bad coffee cake."
"And it has nothing to do with the fact that you're hungry and impatient," Luke observed.
"Hey, you snooze you lose," Lorelai shrugged. "She has to learn that eventually."
"Here," Luke handed her a plate of eggs and bacon. "To tide you over."
Lorelai beamed at him. "You do love me," she said.
Luke smiled and leaned in to kiss her. "Couldn't stop if I tried," he murmured before kissing her again.
Rory's door creaked open and she rolled her eyes. "You know, you have a room," she said as she moved towards the coffee pot.
"So do you, go back to it," Lorelai said, wrapping her free arm around Luke's neck.
"Coffee cake!" Rory exclaimed, moving to the table. "Thanks, Luke."
"You're welcome," he said. "You're lucky you woke up when you did, otherwise your mom may have inhaled the whole thing without even chewing."
"Funny," Lorelai rolled her eyes as she sat down. "So how are we going to continue the Rory Gilmore birthday celebration today?"
"Well, I have to stop by and get a burger," Rory said as she cut into the coffee cake. "Oh, are the renovations finished on the bookstore yet?"
"Not yet, Andrew and Taylor are locked in some sort of battle over construction permits," Lorelai shrugged. "That will have to wait a couple weeks."
"Or months," Luke rolled his eyes.
"Okay, well, I definitely want to check out the apple festival tonight," Rory continued. "You'd think it would be easier to find a good class of cider in New Haven. It is still Connecticut after all."
"Apple festival, done," Lorelai nodded. "Oh, we can get Luke to enter his pie in the contest."
"I'm not going to the diner today," Luke shook his head.
"You're not?" Lorelai asked.
"No, it's Rory's day," Luke said.
"Aw, Daddy Luke," Rory smiled. "But you have to at least go to the diner to cook me a burger."
"Yeah, Caesar's burgers are totally dry," Lorelai added.
"And his fries aren't crispy enough," Rory added.
"Fine, two burgers, but that's it," Luke agreed.
"This is nice," Rory said. "You really didn't have to devote an entire weekend to me, though. I would have been fine with dinner."
"Hon, you're the daughter," Lorelai reminded her. "Our lives are devoted to you."
"Rightfully so," Rory nodded.
"We have a picture of you in our closet," Lorelai continued. "And when you're at Yale we light candles around it every night before we go to bed."
"Stop," Rory said.
"We say the Hail Rory before every meal," Lorelai said.
"You're being ridiculous," Rory said.
"I am totally serious," Lorelai insisted. "Luke, tell her I'm serious."
Luke rolled his eyes and pointed to her plate. "Eat your coffee cake," he ordered.
Lorelai sighed and took a bite of her coffee cake. "I'm so finding a new husband and daughter," she said. "Who are nice to me."
"Good luck finding someone to keep up with the endless talking," Rory offered.
"And the constant coffee high," Luke added.
"The pop culture references."
"The talking during movies."
"Okay, thanks for proving my point," Lorelai said, shoving another bite of coffee cake into her mouth. "I'm going to go shower. You can make a list of all the things you love about me while I'm upstairs."
"Consider it made," Rory nodded.
XXXXX
"So, what's next?" Lorelai asked as they walked away from the ice cream stand that afternoon.
"We could go switch the stuff on the shelves of the market," Rory suggested.
"Taylor installed cameras after the time your mom switched the peanut butter and jelly shelves," Luke rolled his eyes.
"You were supposed to be the lookout," Lorelai nudged him with her elbow.
"You do need a good lookout," Rory agreed.
Luke shrugged. "Well, consider me out of any future lookout jobs," he said.
"Done," Lorelai nodded, then leaned closer to Rory. "He'd never live up to you anyway."
Lorelai stopped walking and turned to look down the road before she turned back to Rory and Luke. "I know what we can do," she said. "Come on."
"Where are we going?" Luke asked as he followed her down the road.
"This is the road to the Independence Inn," Rory observed as Lorelai turned onto a side street.
"Yeah," Lorelai nodded. "I want to show it to you."
"You do know you don't work here anymore?" Rory asked. "It's being renovated into a house."
"I know," Lorelai said, stopping on the lawn outside the front porch. "Sookie and I were in here a few days ago, and it was so fun to see what they're doing with the place."
"It does look great," Rory nodded.
Luke reached down and linked his fingers through Lorelai's, squeezing her hand tightly. "It does," he agreed. "Let's go in."
Lorelai turned to look at him with surprise in her eyes. "Really?" she asked.
"Yeah, it would be good to see what they've done with the place," Luke shrugged.
"Let's go," Rory said, leading them in.
"Check and see if they've fixed the window in the dining room that doesn't lock," Lorelai suggested.
"We can use the front door," Luke suggested as he pushed the door open.
"Yeah, but it's more fun to climb through the window," Rory told him.
"Like we're fugitives from the law," Lorelai nodded.
"We'll have to ditch the heels if they catch us," Rory said. "Success!"
"Okay, let's go," Lorelai said, pushing Rory towards the window. "You first."
"Why me?" Rory asked. "You go first."
"Hi, the point is having a daughter is so she can sneak through the window first to see determine the likelihood of clothes snagging on spare nails," Lorelai rolled her eyes. Rory stared at her and crossed her arms over her chest, pointedly glancing at the window.
Lorelai sighed and turned back to Luke. "Let's use the door," she sighed.
Luke stood in front of the open door, arms crossed over his chest as he watched their exchange. "I could write a book about life with you two," he commented.
"Hey, as long as you tell people how pretty we are, say what you want," Lorelai shrugged.
"The desk's gone," Rory commented as she stood in the lobby.
"Yeah, well, most living rooms don't have check in counters," Lorelai commented. "Come on, I want to show you something."
She grabbed Rory's arm and pulled her through the inn to the dining room. "It's smaller," Rory commented as they stood in front of a plastic construction curtain.
Lorelai smiled as she put her hands on Rory's shoulder. "What I'm about to tell you is going to make your brain explode," she said. "You're about to walk into the library."
Rory's eyes lit up. "A library?" she asked as she pushed the curtain aside. "Wow, it's beautiful! Look at the floor to ceiling shelves! And the nook!"
Luke appeared behind Lorelai and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "She looks right at home," he murmured into her ear.
Lorelai smiled as she watched Rory run her fingertips over the windowsill. "She does," she admitted. She bumped her hip against his gently. "What do you think?"
"I think it looks amazing," he replied.
"Hey, can we go look upstairs?" Rory asked, practically bouncing in front of them. Her eyes were shining, and to Lorelai she was suddenly ten years old again, running through the inn and happy with anything life had to offer.
"Let's go," Lorelai said, turning to the stairs. "They're turning the bridal suite into the master bedroom."
"Appropriate," Rory nodded. She smiled as she stepped closer to a door at the corner of the hall. "Room two. We stayed here for the Braceridge Dinner, remember?"
Lorelai smiled fondly at the memory. "Yeah, it was great," she said. "Until my mother crashed our slumber party."
"I always loved this room," Rory said as she pushed the door open. "Remember the time when you were still a maid that time that snotty woman told you the towels were too small so you turned her sheets inside out?"
"Hey, every crime has a consequence," Lorelai shrugged.
Luke smiled as he leaned against the doorframe, watching both Lorelai and Rory light up as they stood in the afternoon sunlight. They were both glowing with happiness as they discussed their memories of the inn, and he felt a wave of calm wash over him at the sight. He met Lorelai's eyes across the room and gave her a slight nod before he moved to stand at her side.
"So, you like this room, huh, kid?" Lorelai asked.
"Yeah, it's always been my favorite," Rory said. "I don't know why."
Lorelai glanced up at Luke before she turned back to Rory. "How would you like it to be your room?" she asked.
Rory narrowed her eyes as she looked between them. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
"We're thinking about talking to a realtor and potentially…buying this place when it's finished," Lorelai said.
"You are?" Rory's eyes widened. "Really?"
"It's not a done deal," Luke said quickly. "We have a lot to talk about, we don't know about the pricing, so don't get set on the idea."
"We talked about it and we're thinking about it," Lorelai added. "But we want to make sure you're okay with it too. Even though you're at school, you're the focus of our little family, and we want to be sure you're coming home to a place where you're comfortable."
Luke squeezed Lorelai's hand tightly as he looked at Rory carefully. "What do you think?" he asked.
"I think it's a great idea," Rory said with a smile on her face. "But it's really big. Are you sure you need all this space?"
Lorelai glanced up at Luke and smiled softly. "It's a lot of space," she agreed. "But we'll make it work. And we fully plan on filling it up with a sibling or two for you. Or we'll certainly have fun trying."
"Gross," Rory made a face. "But…good."
"So you'd be okay with us selling the house?" Lorelai asked. "If that's what we decide to do?"
"Yeah, it'd be sad, but you know how much I love this place," Rory said. "And if I can claim this room as mine right now, I'm totally on board."
"Done," Lorelai nodded. "I'm thinking the boy band posters can go above the bed."
"I will not have Grandma decorate," Rory rolled her eyes. She looked around for a moment before she asked, "How should I organize the library?"
XXXXX
Lorelai looked up from her notebook when she heard the front door open and Luke call her name. "Here!" she called, turning to face the door expectantly. "What's wrong?"
Luke appeared in front of her, his face red and his body tense. "Taylor," he replied. "I swear, that man lives to make my life more complicated than it should be. There has to be someone I can go to in order to complain about the fact that he's trying to control every damn thing that every damn person in this town does!"
Lorelai stood and reached out to touch his arm. "Okay, calm down," she said. "What hap…" she was interrupted when Luke broke away from her to pace the living room. He continued his rant without acknowledging her presence, rambling on about Taylor and fascism, his arms flailing as he ranted.
Lorelai reached out and took his hands mid-air, causing him to pause. "Luke," she said. "Look at me. Take a deep breath, and look at me."
Luke took a deep breath and looked down at her, his face still angry and red. "I just can't believe that he thinks he can control the town," he continued. "Who the hell does he think…"
Lorelai pulled Luke's head down to hers, pressing her lips against his firmly, her mouth working against his as she wrapped her arms around his neck. His body relaxed against hers as she continued to kiss him deeply. After a long moment she pulled away, her eyes sparkling. "I took a page out of the Luke Danes handbook and kissed you to shut you up," she said, her hand moving against his cheek. "Did it work?"
Luke smiled as his hands rest on her hips, his thumbs rubbing the skin above her jeans gently. "I still feel some ranting coming on," he said. "Maybe you should try it again."
Lorelai smiled and leaned up to kiss him again, her hands rubbing against his cheeks. "Better?" she asked.
"Better," he said, taking a deep breath. "Sorry about that."
"Hey, you know I love Ranting Luke," Lorelai said, guiding him to the couch. "Do you want to tell me what happened? In a normal, calm Luke manner?"
Luke sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "I went to the realty office to talk to someone about buying the Independence Inn property," he said. "And Taylor just happened to be there and informed me that he had paperwork involved to halt the construction on the property."
Lorelai frowned, but let Luke continue his explanation without interruption. "Apparently the construction vehicles are blocking the way into town square," he said. "And he has some kind of moronic ordinance that states the construction is laid off until the vehicles can be properly parked. To which I replied he could shove his ordinance, well…you know."
Lorelai smiled as she rubbed a hand over his arm. "Yeah, I can imagine," she said. "So what happened?"
Luke shrugged. "I yelled, I stormed out, and then I drove around in circles for awhile to cool off before I came home to tell you," he said.
"So this was you calm," Lorelai said knowingly.
"Calmer than I was," Luke shrugged. He turned to look at her, taking her hands in his. "I'll get it, Lorelai. I know you want this house for us, and I'll get it for us. I promise."