A/N: I wonder what Jess did that summer Rory was in Washington…

Standard disclaimers apply.

Don't get me wrong

I know you've got your life in place

I've yet to take the hint

Someday I'm sure I'll get the picture

And stop waiting up

- All Time Low

Wasted Time On You

i.

The first week of summer is elating. He's almost…happy. Luke doesn't understand why Jess is more complacent, agreeable, but he doesn't complain. Jess occasionally licks his lips, still unwilling to shake the memory of her mouth on his. He hopes she keeps that ChapStick through the summer so he can taste it again when she comes back.

ii.

He's still in a good mood, but he's a little anxious, opting to take the chair by the phone whenever Luke and he are both in the room (even when Luke isn't in the room). And he always offers to get the mail, hoping that maybe he'll see her neat handwriting on an envelope. She's still settling in, he thinks as he forces himself to refocus on The Fountainhead. This girl makes him do strange things, but he doesn't object.

iii.

He's expecting a call, a letter, anything. But as the days go on, he begins to deflate. For the first time, he considers the possibility that she regrets what happened. He tries to think optimistically; she's probably been busy in Washington. But if that's the case, why has Lorelai received three postcards and almost-daily phone calls?

iv.

His mood is turning sour, and Luke begins to notice the change. But since they don't communicate often (they try and avoid it), Luke doesn't pry. Jess doesn't sit by the phone anymore, but when he goes out, he rushes back at the end of the day to check for messages.

There are never any.

v.

When Jess sees Dean the Bag Boy reading a letter from Rory, something snaps in him. Rory's not avoiding both guys, as he might've thought; she's only avoiding him. Jess is tempted to go up to Dean and brag that Rory kissed him, with Dean not even a few hundred yards away. But he kind of promised Rory that he wouldn't. So he keeps their kiss close to him, but he's so very bitter about it. He can't remember the taste of the ChapStick on her lips, but he knows he'll suddenly remember when he sees her at the end of summer. It'll make him sick.

He still kind of hopes she'll call.

vi.

Face it, Mariano, she's not going to contact you. His trademark scowl is back and he lashes out at customers when they annoy him. Luke doesn't understand why Jess has regressed, but Jess doesn't stick around the apartment anymore. Still, he never gives up the hope that Luke will come in and say, "You have a letter," or, "Rory left you a message."

Whenever Luke opens his mouth and those words don't come out, Jess glowers at him.

vii.

It's almost the end of the summer and he needs to stop waiting for her. It's something Dean would've done. So he goes to a party and finds the biggest tramp in Stars Hollow and shoves his tongue in her more than willing mouth. She tastes of strawberry-flavored vodka and lipstick.

This doesn't even compare, not even for a second.

viii.

He sees Rory at the stupid summer festival and is so glad he has Shane as a barrier between them. With satisfaction, he watches her face drop with shock and sadness. But then that satisfaction dissipates and changes into self-hatred, because she'll never know that he did wait for her and this was a last minute, botched plan just to make him seem less pathetic. To save face.

He watches her and Dean walk around the town, the golden couple once again, and he wonders why he's doing this; her life is perfect as it is. Why did he waste his summer, and why should he continue to waste his time on a girl who's tied down already?

All his explanations start with because she's…

Too bad he's too afraid to finish them, knowing that they'll reveal how deep in it he really is.

A/N: Hey guys - thanks for those who favor the story and myself!

Don't forget to review! It's common courtesy!

MissGoalie