Chapter 24 What Next?

After her father left, Rory finished her coffee and returned to her bedroom to change her clothes. As she was doing her hair, she decided she would tell Dean how she felt about him. Rory thought about last night and her day with Tristan. Every time Tristan touched, looked or kissed her she felt as if an electric current pulsed through her body. Rory was beginning to realize that whatever she felt with Tristan was not there with Dean. She hopes that she won't hurt Dean when she explains to him how she feels.

Rory heard the doorbell ring and quickly looked at her phone. She smiled when she noticed it was two o'clock. Dean was always on time, not like Logan who would show up unexpectedly whenever he wanted. She checked her hair and went to the door and opened it. Dean was smiling and handed her a take-out cup of coffee.

"Extra cream and sugar just the way you like it. I figured you could use it if you have been writing all day, and here are the mini cheeseburgers you like so much, I added a side of our smoked mac and cheese." Dean smiled and handed her the coffee carrier and bag of food.

"Come in Dean. Did you make these for me?"

"I did." Dean shrugged off his coat and hung it on the hall tree. He followed behind her as she walked to the kitchen with their food.

"Is your dad home?" he asked her.

"No, he's gone to the hospital to…." She wasn't able to finish because she felt Dean behind her. He put his arms around her waist and leaned in and kissed her neck.

"Ummm, Dean...what are you doing?" Rory shrugged her shoulders and tried to sidestep away, but he wouldn't let her. She turned around and pushed against his chest. He took his left hand that was wrapped in gauze and gently pushed a strand of hair from her face, with the back of his fingers he smoothly ran them down her face. Rory looked into his eyes than at his hand. She took his hand in hers and looked at him in surprise.

"Dean, what happened?"

Dean took a step back from her, as she held his left hand gently in the palm of her hand.

"Oh it's nothing, I got burned last night during a fire call. It happened when I was pulling someone out of the fire."

"Does it hurt much?"

"No, It's okay, Ror…" he took a step closer to her and put his thumb under her chin leaning down to kiss her. She turned her head, and he kissed the corner of her lips.

"Rory, what's the matter?"

Rory chewed on the flesh of her bottom lip thinking how she should start the conversation. She took his hand leading him to the family room where they sat down on the brown leather couch

"Dean, I think we should talk first," she said gently to him.

"Okay," he replied sitting back and putting his arm on the back of the couch behind her.

"Is there something wrong? I thought after the kiss the other night that we still had feelings for each other. Am I wrong?"

"No, it's ummm,..." she had trouble looking at him and turned her head away from him

"Rory," he said gently touching her face. She turned and looked at him.

"What's this about? You told me that you and Jess aren't together.."

"Jess and I are best friends we aren't together in a relationship, it's that... you know I just got out of a long painful relationship."

"Yea, I know. But I thought that it was over. When I kissed you I felt something, Ror, something that I had been missing for a long time."

"Well, you are a great kisser, the kiss was good."

"Good?"

"Great actually. Dean you really have improved since we were younger, but Dean, it's just that I can't get involved with you again."

"Why Rory? I still have feelings for you. Deep feelings. I am in love with you."

"I know you loved me, but Dean right now I am not in love with you."

He sat up straight and pulled away from her.

"So you don't love me."

"No, I'm not in love with you like I was when I was 19. I am thirty-three and we have been apart for fourteen years. Things have changed and I don't want to be like my mother."

"What does your mother have to do with this. Are you still in love with Logan?"

"I.. I don't know ….. when it comes to Logan ….it's hard to explain. Logan and I have been in a relationship on and off for fourteen years, and until I get things straightened out in my life, I can't get involved with you. I don't want to hurt you Dean. Can we be friends?"

A small tear slid down her face, and he gently reached out with his thumb and wiped it away. He sat there quietly wanting to pull her in his arms and tell her that he could make her forget him, that he loved her so much that soon she would feel the same way, but he hesitated. Dean had a feeling that there was more to this and he thought about the conversation that he heard Paris and Tristan having. He began to wonder if Rory had feelings for Tristan because it was obvious that he had a thing for her.

"Rory, do you feel the same way about Tristan?"

"Dean I appreciate how thoughtful you have been, bringing me flowers, food, checking on me and my grandmother. Tristan has been doing the same thing. It means so much to me and seeing you both after fourteen years it's just…." Rory didn't want to hurt his feelings, she could see the questions in his eyes.

She took his hand in hers and said, "Dean, Tristan and I never dated while I went to Chilton and when you and I broke up… he had already left to attend a military school. I never saw him again until I woke up in the hospital. You were my first… what we had was something very special. Dean, I like you, I really do. When we were younger, you were the greatest boyfriend. You were thoughtful, generous, protective, kind and strong. I wish that we had met now that we are older, and not when we were so young.. and we didn't have this history. I know if you hadn't been my first boyfriend I wouldn't be the person I am today. I like you as a friend, and I want to stay your friend. You taught me what safe feels like." *

**Direct quote from AYITL between Rory and Dean.

"What are you saying Rory?"

"I am saying that I do have feelings for you, just not the type of feelings that you have for me."

Dean was quiet for a moment. "Okay, I get it. So it's Tristan."

Dean looked at her and then stood up. He had to leave here before he made a fool of himself.

"Rory, I have to go."

'Will you call me?"

"Yeah, maybe later." He walked toward the door, and she followed. She handed him his coat and opened the door. He turned and walked out to his truck and never waved or said goodbye. He backed out of the driveway and left.

Rory shut the door and felt very confused. Her grandmother and father owned a publishing company, and she was going to inherit it, Colin McCrae works with her father, and if he realizes that she is Lorelai Hayden, he will tell Logan. Then Logan will find her again, he is engaged, and she has let him go. She loved Logan too much, the hurt from the miscarriage was still there. She needs to talk to someone, but she couldn't talk to Paris. She quickly tried to call Finn and got his voicemail.

"G'day, I'm not available to talk right now but if you are one of my Sheilas, leave me your number, and I will give you a tingle. Grrr."

"Finn this is me, I need someone to talk too. Please call me back when you get this message."

She didn't want to take the chance that Logan would hear it, so she quickly deleted it. There was only one person who would understand and that was her mother, grabbing her purse, jacket and her grandmother's car keys, she got into the car and left the house.

Rory got on the interstate and drove to Stars Hollow, she thought about Finn's message that Logan went to her home yesterday and she wondered if he would return to Stars Hollow today to look for her. If he was there what would she do or say? Would she tell him that she had lost the baby, their baby… would he want her back or would he turn to Odette, the chosen one. Except for Dean and Logan, Rory very little experience when it came to boyfriends. When she and Dean broke up, he just faded away until now. When Jess told her he loved her he left and went to California. She wondered if she hadn't gotten pregnant would she have gone back as soon as Logan returned. Rory slammed her hand on the steering wheel and began to cry. Damn Logan, it was all his fault. Why couldn't she hate him?

Rory was no longer the naive girl from Stars Hollow that Logan had met. Granted thanks to Dean, her first lover she wasn't a Mary. Logan had changed her too. She was still Rory Gilmore, but no longer naïve but very cautious.. Living in Logan's world in Yale and then traveling as a reporter changed her. She became skeptical, and no longer was flattered as easily as she once was. She didn't have many friends and the two men that she was very close to, besides Logan, she told them goodbye.

Today Dean told her he loved her, and she hurt his feelings because she couldn't love him back. The more she thought about it as she was driving, the angrier she became. How dare he be hurt, he left her first, he married Lindsay then he flirted with her and took her to bed telling her he made a mistake and used her to cheat on his wife. He never wanted to work for their relationship, and neither did Logan. Funny these two men were the same. Dean and Logan always wanted the easy way, not willing to work in their relationship and they expected her to be the one to be there for them. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She felt the tears slide down her cheek and used the back of her hand to wipe her face. She needed to get a grip before she saw her mother. If only Jess were here. She quickly hit the phone Bluetooth app in her car and said, "Call Jess." His phone rang four times before it went to voicemail.

"This is Jess. Leave a message."

Rory disconnected the call and found herself exiting the expressway for route 91 that would bring her into Stars Hollow. She slowed down as she approached the town of Stars Hollow and looked at the clock in the car. It was three on a Sunday afternoon and she wondered if her mother was at the Inn, at Luke's, or home. She decided to go to Luke's first to see if Luke or her mother were there.

She parked in front of the diner and walked inside. As the bell rang, Luke came out from the back.

"Rory, what are you doing here? Are you supposed to be driving?"

"It's okay Luke, I'm fine. I need to talk to mom; do you know where she is?"

"Yes, she should be at the Inn until four. Something about a luncheon that she and Sookie were putting on."

"Oh, I won't bother her then."

Rory then went to leave the diner, but Luke walked over to her and touched her arm.

"Ror come and sit down and have a cup of coffee. You look upset about something. Can you tell me what's wrong? Maybe I can help. ."

She sat down at the counter, and he gave her a cup of coffee.

"Have you eaten?"

"No"

"Okay, let me give you some pie. I made a pumpkin pie today. Here let me cut you a piece and give you extra whipped cream." Luke handed her the pie after he added more whipped cream. She looked at it and started to cry silently.

Luke walked around the counter and put his hand on his stepdaughter's shoulder.

"What's wrong?"

"It's everything. Logan, Dean, Jess, Dad, Tristan... I don't know what to do?"

"Logan, did he find you? You know he had the nerve to show up here in Stars Hollow looking for you yesterday?"

She looked at him shocked, "So Finn was right he did come here. I was hoping that what I heard was wrong. Did anyone tell them where I live now?"

"Don't worry, nobody told him where you were living, and your mother and I weren't here, so he's lucky or I would have told him off. So what is this about Jess, Dean, and Tristan?"

"No, it's Dean,. He…" Her hormones were all over the place, and she still hasn't had her period since the ectopic pregnancy.

"Dean, as in your old boyfriend Dean? Wait we saw Dean yesterday, what's going on? Are you two dating, because I thought for sure you and that doctor were dating."

"No, he stopped by to see me today..."

"Okay, you mentioned Jess? Are you two…." he pulled away from her looking her over to make sure she was okay and thinking about the idea of his nephew with Rory. That can't happen, can it? He was Rory's stepfather now, and Jess's uncle. They were related now, how would that work. Then he thought about Lorelai and how upset she will be if there is anything between them.

"Luke, Jess offered me a job, and my father offered me a job, but it's complicated, and then there is Tristan, Dean, and Logan."

Luke looked at Rory and could not understand what she was saying, she was just like her mother when she became upset, rambling, leaving off words. You had to be a master in the Gilmore Girls language to understand what was going on, so he decided to feed her first and call her mother. Lorelai would know what to do.

"Here go sit in the corner, the restaurant isn't busy right now. I will bring your coffee and pie over to that back table. No one will bother you there."

Luke led her to the table in the back corner of the diner away from the window and close to the back of the room.

Just then Rory's phone rang. She looked at it and saw it was Tristan.

"Luke I have to take this."

He nodded as she answered her phone and went outside, leaning against the building wall she answered her phone.

"Hello,'

"Mare, hey I finished my surgery so I thought I would shower and come over. I went to check on Gigi and she had left already with your father. Your grandmother wanted to know if you were coming in today."

Rory started to cry, "I'm not home, I'm in Stars Hollow.."

"Mare," he said cautiously, "Why are you in Stars Hollow? How did you get there?"

"I drove, and I'm at Luke's, I need to talk to my mother…"Rory sniffled.

"Mare, stay there, I'm going to hang up and leave now. I will be there in thirty minutes," he instructed her and then hung up before she could argue with him. Something was bothering her, enough for her to leave her home and stop working. He wondered if Logan appeared at her father's home.

Rory wiped her face with the sleeve of her coat and pushed away from the wall. She walked back into the diner. Luke heard the bell ring and hung up the phone. He followed her as she walked to the back table and he placed her pie and coffee cup in front of her. He then filled her cup.

"Is everything okay? I called your mom, and she is on her way."

"Yea, I'll be okay once I talk to mom. Thanks, Luke," Rory replied quietly sipping her coffee. She began to pick up a fork and took a small bite out of the pie, chewing it slowly thinking. She was sipping her coffee when the bell rang in the diner, and her mother walked in.

Lorelai looked anxiously at Luke and walked to the counter, he indicated with his eyes where Rory was sitting. She walked over to the table put her purse down and then shrugged out of her coat. Rory looked up and immediately jumped up and threw her arms around her mother.

"Hey sweetie, what's wrong? What happened? Are you supposed to be driving? Does your dad know that you are here?" Lorelai peppered her with questions.

"Everything. Mom. Jess called and offered me a job and told me before I decide that I should talk to you," she began.

"He offered you a job? That's great isn't it?" Lorelai asked her not sure that this was the reason she was upset. She currently did not have a job and if Jess is offering her a job with a salary this was good news. "Hon this isn't why you are upset is it."

"Well….no…. I was offered another job by Grandma and Dad and they would like me to go and work for Hayden and Sons running one of their companies."

"Oh, so you will be traveling again?" Lorelai asked not quite sure what Rory wanted her to say.

"With Jess's job, there would be very little traveling I could stay in this area and work digitally. With Dad's and grandma's company, the headquarters is in Hartford, the problem is I have no experience in working with a multimillion-dollar business."

"So, what's the problem?" she asked her confused. "I mean Rory are they going to pay you because a month ago you were working you're but off for Taylor on the Stars Hollow Gazette and you weren't getting paid."

"I will be paid. Jess has written up a contract for me. I would get my own column, with benefits 401K and I can choose my articles. With Dad's offer comes a corporate office, title, but there is more...Dean came over today and told me that he was still in love with me, but mom..."

Luke came over with a mug of coffee for Lorelai and the coffee pot to refill Rory's cup. He looked at his stepdaughter and was worried about here. When Rory arrived, she was upset rambling on about Logan, Dean, Jess, and Tristan. Luke liked Tristan, the young doctor, and in his gut, he felt that Tristan was the right match for her. He was successful, respected, and had a great career ahead of him.

After meeting Tristan, Luke checked into him and found out that Tristan, went from the military academy to one of the most respected Ivy League colleges and paid for it himself through the ROTC program. He knew that Richard would like this young man too. He knew his wife was leery about him, but he reminded her that he was not the same high school kid that was kicked out of Chilton.

"Ror, what about Tristan? You and Tristan seem to hit it off at breakfast." Luke asked her as he poured her a cup of coffee.

"Luke, Mom it's just …. Rory looked at them both and shook her head taking a deep breath..

"Dean has been checking on me, bringing me flowers, giving me rides to the hospital. The other day he leaned over in the car and kissed me... the kiss was nice, but it didn't give me sparks, it was like when I kiss Jess. Mom, I don't know…. maybe I haven't gotten over Logan yet, but I talked to Dad and….."

"Okay, so you kissed Dean, and there were no sparks. So did you feel sparks with Logan?" Luke asked her.

Luke understood what she was saying. He remembered when he kissed Nicole, it was nice, comfortable but when he kisses Lorelai there is that magical element that seems to go through their bodies. It's what Richard has said, "Once you kiss a Gilmore, no one else can compare."

Both Lorelai and Rory looked up at Luke and smiled. "Wait ….you understand sparks?" Lorelai asked her husband.

Luke blushed and said, "Of course I understand what she is saying there is that feeling, it's special…."

Lorelai smirked and stood up and got close to her husband, "So do you feel those sparks when you kiss me?" She hovered her lips close to him, and Luke bit his bottom lip.

"Lorelai…"

Lorelai placed her hands on her husband's abs and slowly moved them down to his pants buckled and then let her right-hand slide between his legs.

Rory started to blush and giggle.

"Lorelai, not here," he told her and put the coffee pot on the table and grabbed her arms.

"Okay… upstairs now?" she asked him huskily.

Rory looked at the two of them, "Dirty...get a room you two." Lorelai was leaning against Luke's chest with her hands around his neck ready to kiss him, she looked over her shoulder and smiled.

"Ok, so tell me when you kissed Logan did you get sparks?"

"No, kissing Logan was different. Kissing Logan was like an adventure. Everything with Logan was like an adventure, but it wasn't…"

"It wasn't like?" Lorelai asked her daughter trying to get her to respond.

"Tristan…" Rory said and looked up, and there stood Tristan, in his scrubs wearing his black leather coat.

"You get sparks when you kiss Tristan? Bible Boy?" Lorelai said surprised.

Tristan couldn't help hearing the conversation, and his face lit up in a bright smile. Rory quickly got up out of her chair and ran over to him.

"Mare, are you okay? You sounded upset so I came right from the hospital I was worried.."

Tristan looked up and saw Luke standing beside Lorelai at the table where Rory just left. He nodded to Luke and gave him a raised eyebrow, and a smirk to let him know he heard what Lorelai said. Tristan kissed Rory on the cheek, and he put his arm around her waist as they walked over towards the table.

"Hello Lorelai, Luke. are you both okay?"

Tristan asked as he pulled a chair out for Rory and then pulled one out for himself so he could sit beside her.

"We are fine, Tristan, would you like some pie, a cherry Danish, a cruller or some coffee? I can bring it right over. "

"Coffee will be good, thanks. " Tristan replied as he took Rory's hand in his.

"Great, I will bring you a cup of coffee. We will be right over at the counter. Let us know if you two need anything?" Luke said, "Come on Lorelai." Lorelai looked at her daughter and smirked.

"Luke I can't believe it. After all these years, Tristan, aka Satan's Spawn, aka Bible Boy, she is in love with him."

"Lorelai, she didn't say she was in love with him."

"No, she implied that there are sparks between them... Luke look at them. Look how she is looking at him, and he is looking at her," Lorelai whispered to him.

"So what do you think the problem is?" Luke said.

"Luke think…. Think how long it took us to finally admit that we loved each other and when I wasn't ready you weren't ready, then you were ready, and I was angry… I don't want her to make the same mistakes I made and waited so long for you," she leaned over and kissed him on the lips.

"I get it, but I don't understand what the problem is… if she feels something for Tristan then what does Dean have to do with anything?"

"She doesn't want to hurt anyone...but I don't understand why she is confused about the job offers? There must be more to it." Lorelai and Luke looked over to the young couple and watched them.

Tristan gently caressed a tear that was dripping down Rory's face and asked, "Babe, what happened?"

Taking a few deep breaths, she wanted to tell him but didn't want him to become angry at Dean. Tristan gave her a small smile and put his forehead against hers.

"Mare. I'm here now, can you tell me what's wrong? What is bothering you."

"Tris, can we go somewhere to talk?"

"Why can't we talked here? " he asked her gently moving a strand of hair off her face and tucking it behind her ear.

"It's not private, people might come in …."

"Okay," he said as he walked over to the counter where Luke and Lorelai were and placed a twenty on the counter.

"She wants to go somewhere to talk. I will call you and let you know how she is later." Tristan told Luke and Lorelai.

Luke pushed the money back at him smiling, "Your money isn't any good here. Just call us and have her call Lorelai later."

"I will," he gently squeezed Lorelai's shoulder and walked back to the table and taking her by the hand she got up, and they walked hand in hand out the door.

"Mare, where would you like to go?" he asked her as they stood on the sidewalk in front of the diner. Rory looked up and down the street, it seemed quiet for a Sunday, and she noticed that the gazebo was empty.

"Let's go over to the gazebo. I need you to hold me.."

"Okay,, " he said and put his arm around her. She leaned her head on his shoulder as they walked to the gazebo. They climbed up inside and sat down on the bench.

"So what's going on. Why did you come to Stars Hollow?"

"I needed to talk to my mother."

"What about? You sounded okay when we spoke this morning."

"Tris I don't know what to do. Dad told me today that grandma is changing her will so I will inherit the Hayden Publishing business, and the Huntzbergers are trying to buy them out."

"Do you think that is why Logan is looking for you?"

"I don't know, but Dad and grandma don't like the Huntzbergers, and they don't want to sell. So Dad said that he recently hired someone to help me run the business. Then there's Jess's job offer. I really want to do that job, and I know I would be good at it and I wouldn't have to travel much, I could find a place in Hartford … then Luke confirmed that Logan was here looking for me and there's Dean, and us… what are we doing Tristan? Are we going to fast?"

"I understand you don't want to work for your dad, but what does Dean have to do with this?"

"He kissed me. He stopped over today, and I told him that I cared for him as a friend, that I didn't have the same feelings as I had when we were kids. Dean got all quiet, he didn't say goodbye. He just left."

Tristen inhaled deeply and sat up straighter on the bench. He looked at her and said,

"He kissed you? When? Did you kiss him back?"

Rory sat up and looked at him. She gently touched his face with her hand. "Before you and I kissed, he brought me to the hospital, and I didn't kiss him back today. He tried to kiss me today, but I turned my head."

"But you have kissed him," he asked her standing up and walking to the railing of the gazebo.

"Tristan, Yes, but that was before you kissed me. But it's not the same. She walked over to him and touched his shoulder. "When I kissed him, it was nice, but when I kiss you, I feel something different. "

"Sparks?" he asked her with a grin.

"Yes, but…"

Tristan turned and put his hands on her shoulders searching her face. He asked, "But?"

"I'm afraid."

"Mare, what are you afraid of?" He gently pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear. Rory felt that static again, that crackling in the air that always seems to happened whenever they were together. She wanted to melt into his arms, but she was frightened.

"I'm afraid I'm broken, that I won't be able to trust you. You will do things, and then I will begin to compare you to Logan. I will give you my heart, and then some beautiful girl will come by, and you will no longer want me. Tris, you always have girls around you. Connor told me that you never dated anyone for very long. This will happen again, and then you will leave… they always leave."

Her dark blue eyes began to leak a tear that streamed down her face. Followed by another one, and then another until a steady stream of her tears flowed down her cheek releasing the sadness that she had been holding in since she broke up with Logan. Tristan pulled her into his chest gently rubbing her hair and kissing the top of her head. He held her in silence, rocking her slowly as her tears soaked his shirt. A tiny lapse in her crying let him pull her away, and he placed his hand on the back of her hand and his thumb on her chin. Blinking her lashes which were heavy with tears, she looked up at him. He bent his face close to hers and whispered, "I'm not leaving, Mare. I was young, stupid when I left before. And for the other guys, except for Logan, that is all in the past. You and I are here now, and we need to look toward the future, our future. Do you trust me?"

Rory looked at this handsome kind man and wondered how she could be afraid, but she had to be honest about her feelings "I want to…"

"Then that is where we will start. We will begin by trusting each other. We will take everything slow. I lost you once. I won't do that again." Tristan pulled Rory into his arms and kissed her tenderly on the lips."

He put his forehead on hers and said, "Sparks, huh?"

"Yeah, sparks."

He smirked and put his arm on her shoulder, "Let's go back to Hartford. You and I can sit down together, and we can talk to your father after we look over the Pro/Con list."

"What about my grandmother's car?" she asked him concerned about leaving it here.

"I'll talk to Luke and see if we can leave your grandmother's car here, then tomorrow your dad and I can come and pick it up," he suggested.

"But I should bring it back…" she interrupted.

"Babe, I prefer that you not drive until the doctor gives you the okay." He put his arm around her waist as they began to leave the Gazebo.

"Mare we will go slow and work through this, I promise. First we need to find out about the company and second we need to find out why Logan is looking for you."

Rory looked up at Tristan and bit her bottom lip and nodded. She knew why Logan was looking for her, it was because she told him it was over. No one ever walks away from a Huntzberger especially Logan, and he will continue until she confronts him. She just needs to get stronger.

Tristan leaned down and kissed her tenderly on the lips. Taking her by the hand, they walked across the street towards his car. He opened the car door and kissed her before she got in. Leaving her in the car, he walked back into the diner.

Luke was standing behind the counter taking an order from Kirk who was sitting beside Lorelai.

"Everything okay?" he asked, and Lorelai looked at him anxiously.

"Yeah, everything will be okay, I am going to take her home now. Will it be alright if we leave her grandmother's car here? I can have one of my friends bring me back tomorrow to pick it up."

"That's fine. Luke and I will come in tomorrow and bring it back," Lorelai said. "I want to talk to Christopher too. Tris, please look after her. I know that you two have some history, but she's my little girl, and I worry about her."

Tristan looked at her parents and said, "I understand. Lorelai, I messed up once before, and I don't plan on doing that again. She means the world to me."

Lorelai smiled at Tristan. "Thanks. Call me if she needs anything."

"I promise I will. Oh and here is my private cell number, in case you need to get in touch with me, or if Logan shows up again.."

Luke took the card from Tristan and nodded. He knew that he was serious about Rory. He felt a kinship with him, something he never felt between Dean or Logan.

"Thanks, we will see you tomorrow," Lorelai said. Tristan handed the keys to Luke and walked out of the diner. ,

Tristan climbed into his car and looked at Rory and said, "Everything will be fine. I spoke to your mom and Luke and they will be bringing the car back tomorrow."

"Thank you, Tris." He looked at her and pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed it.

Lorelai and Luke stood at the diner window and watched as Tristan drove off.