"Okay, so I'm going to take Piano, AP Calculus, AP Psych, and Journalistic Theory," Lorelai said, reviewing the plan with Luke one more time as they walked through the main entrance of the school.

"And I will take AP Physics, AP History, Communicative Writing, and Geography." Luke responded.

"And we will meet-"

"Outside of her English classroom."

"Perfect," she said, giving Luke a quick peck on the lips. "Thank you again for doing this," She told him before she hurried off to her first appointment of the evening. Luke smiled as he watched her go before turning and heading towards Rory's physics class.

He located the room and saw a tall man standing outside the room.

"You don't look like Lorelai Gilmore," The man said.

"Ah, no, I'm Luke Danes," Luke said, extending his hand. "I'm Lorelai's...significant other. Rory's a smart kid, as I'm sure you know, and Lorelai wasn't sure if she could make it to all the conferences by herself, so here I am." He explained. He had never used the term "significant other" before, and it was definitely weird, but it just felt wrong to say boyfriend in this context.

"Sure, Mr. Danes. Come on in and I can show you some of Rory's transcripts." Luke followed the man inside.

Meanwhile, Lorelai was glad that she'd kept Luke clear of Rory's piano teacher. She was young, probably less than ten years older than Rory herself- long, blonde hair that she'd curled for the evening, and she was wearing a dress that Lorelai judged as more appropriate for an evening of dancing than for a work event.

"Rory's… trying." Her piano teacher said, and Lorelai had to laugh.

"She has no musical talent at all, right? She gets that from me," Lorelai admitted. The piano teacher smiled.

"Rhythm isn't her strong suit… but all of her written work is perfect and she's genuinely trying, and really that's all I can ask for. I don't expect all of my students to be Beethoven."

"I mean, how could you? If they were all Beethoven, being Beethoven wouldn't be special anymore." Lorelai joked, and the piano teacher laughed.

Lorelai's meetings had passed uneventfully, much like she had predicted. Rory was incredibly intelligent, Rory had a bright future. Rory could do or be anything she wanted, every teacher at Chilton affirmed. Lorelai was practically bursting with pride. She'd made a lot of sacrifices for her daughter, and it was moments like these that reminded her why they were all worthwhile. As she made her way down to Max's English classroom, her elation was slowly being replaced with a sense of anxiety and dread. As she got closer, she realized that Max was standing in the hallway. She tried to turn around but it was too late.

"Lorelai Gilmore," he called after her, and she turned around. "Surprised to see you here."

"Yeah, well, my daughter does go to school here… and these meetings are mandatory, three times a year, every year, so…"

"Right…" Max said. "Well, why don't you come in and we'll talk."

"Oh, I'm actually-"

"I don't have all day, Lorelai," Max told her, and she reluctantly followed him in, taking a seat across from him. "Here is Rory's transcript for this class with a breakdown of every assignment grade… Here is where her grade in this class places her at various colleges throughout the country… and here is my recommendation for what courses she should take next year," Max said, handing Lorelai the papers and allowing her to flip through them.

"Man, I love parent-teacher conference night."

"I recall that you used to love it for more reason than one," Max said.

"Don't." Lorelai warned him.

"Come on… you can't tell me that you don't remember it… that you don't think about it."

"Of course I remember it… but I don't think about it."

"Really?" Max asked, unconvinced.

"Really." Lorelai responded. Max rolled closer to her in his chair, leaving little space between them. Lorelai tried to create space, but she was sitting in a student chair that was planted very firmly into the ground.

"You still with the diner guy?"

"You can't ask me that."

"I'm not asking you that as Rory's teacher, I'm asking you as an old friend."

"Yeah, well, you're not an old friend."

"Come on, Lorelai. You've got to admit that we had some fun times together. He placed a hand on her upper thigh and leaned in, Lorelai struggling to create space between them when Luke burst in.

"You take your hands off of her!" he barked, and Max rolled away from her instantly.

"I guess that answers my question." Max said, looking at Lorelai.

"Come on, Lorelai, we're going." Luke said, helping her into her coat but never taking his eyes off of Max. "Lorelai, go into the hall. I'll be out in one second."

"Luke," Lorelai warned.

"Go on," He said, and Lorelai went, although she was nervous to leave the two of them alone. Luke marched up to Max's desk.

"You stay away from her." Luke spat. "I'd love to pull Rory out of your class too, but it's too late in the year for that, and unfortunately Rory respects you as a teacher. But I swear to God, if you come to our home again… if you put a hand on her again… I will not react as calmly as I have the past two times. Are we clear? Lorelai asked you to stay out of her life and she meant it."

"Yeah, well, enjoy the next couple of months," Max said.

"What was that?"

"Lorelai's never had a stable relationship in her life. Enjoy the next few months before she breaks it off, or before you break it off because you realize she's a child hiding in a grown woman's body. A nice body, but still."

"You don't know what you're talking about. Lorelai is the smartest, most incredible woman I've ever met. If you can't see that clearly you're no better than all of the people here she hates so much. I'd venture to say that's why the relationship didn't work out." Luke said, finally deciding he'd had enough and leaving, slamming the door shut behind him. Lorelai rushed up to him and grabbed at his hand, looking at his knuckles.

"What are you doing?" Luke asked breathlessly.

"I wanted to make sure you didn't punch him." Lorelai whispered in response. They started walking towards the car. It was silent for a little while, but the weight of the moment hung heavy in the air.

"I didn't… but I wanted to."

"Well, thank you for not punching him, because Rory really likes this school."

"That's pretty much the only thing that held me back." He admitted, opening the door for her before she climbed into the car.

"Wow, defending my honor and opening the door all in one night? My knight in shining flannel." She teased, pulling at his tie to loosen it. "Even when you're dressed up."

"Tell me it was nothing more than what I saw."

"Nothing," Lorelai affirmed.

"God, that guy is such a creep."

"Hate him," Lorelai agreed. They sat in silence for a moment before Lorelai changed the subject, trying to keep Luke from stewing about what had just happened. "So did any of Rory's teachers accuse her of murder, or even worse, plagiarism?"

"Nope, stellar reports in every class. She's got every door open for her. She's so incredibly bright. I felt like my heart was going to burst out of my chest I was so proud."

"Welcome to the fun part of parenting," Lorelai said, smiling.