A/N: My updating schedule is very wonky right now as I try to get all the fics to a reasonable stopping point before they all go on hiatus for December. It's complicated, people! Anyway, here we are on 23rd March, which means it's Jack Mariano's birthday :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 36

"Thanks, guys. Really, this is all very cool."

Jack was smiling but his heart wasn't entirely in it. He was sat in the living room of his house, surrounded by brightly coloured paper and all the gifts that it used to be wrapped around. His family and friends had all been very kind and generous today, and he genuinely was grateful for the money spent and effort made. Unfortunately, it was taking a while for him to get over the whole Alison situation. Ecstatically happy wasn't a setting on his dial right now, not even on the occasion of his seventeenth birthday. At least everybody here today understood that. It had been worse at Friday Night Dinner a few days ago. Gran had tried to make a fuss, and it was Jack's decision not to tell her what had happened with Alison, at least not right now. He had smiled his way through dinner as best he could and was doing his best here too, but it wasn't easy.

School had been the usual torture of having to sit two desks across from Alison in English, hearing rumours and gossip in the library and the locker room, and enduring sympathetic looks and the like from his usual group of family and friends. Jack knew he needed to grow a pair already and just get on with his life. Unfortunately, that song about the first cut being the deepest was proving to be very much true.

Getting home from school, Jack knew there would be presents and a big deal made by the adults in his close family circle, but now he was ready to make an escape to his room and just mope for a while. It didn't really help but it was all he wanted to do of late.

A knock on the door was an easy out of all the family fun. He said he would get it before his parents, grandparents, sister or cousin had a chance to react, and pretty much ran for the door. It was impossible not to smile when he found Martha and Alex on the porch, the former of which had a large cake box in her hands.

"Happy Birthday, Jack!" she said happily.

"That's about the fourth time you said that to me today," he reminded her as she forced the box ino his hands. "Did your mom send the cake?"

"Nope. This is a Martha Belville original," she told him, grinning wide. "And it's actually not a cake per say," she explained. "I figured maybe your parents already bought you one of those, so this is something different, something special," she explained. "And if you hate it, I won't be offended, I swear. No big deal."

"No big deal?" Alex echoed as Jack ushered his friends inside. "Are you kidding, Mar? All the way here you've been-"

"Ssh!"

She shushed him with a severe look that had Alex miming zipping his lips shut and holding his hands up in mock surrender within a second. Jack actually laughed at that, bringing the not-a-cake into the kitchen. He set the box down on the counter and opened it up, eyes widening at the sight.

"It's a marjolaine," said Martha, still smiling widely. "It's a layered nutty meringue with praline and cream and chocolate... It seemed like such a good idea at the time."

"Mar, it looks awesome," he promised, putting an arm around her shoulders and pulling her in close for a moment. "Thanks. I mean it."

"Did somebody say chocolate?" asked Tori as she appeared in the doorway.

"Martha made a marjolaine," Alex explained with a look.

Tori came further into the room and peeked into the box. "Wow. That's impressive."

"Well, I hope you guys enjoy. We should be going anyway," she said, ushering Alex back out already.

"Yeah, since you're not exactly in a party mood, we made plans for the movies," said Alex to Jack.

"That's cool," his friend promised him. "You guys have fun, and thanks again for the..." he said, gesturing towards the box.

"Marjolaine," she supplied. "And you're more than welcome."

When she was gone, Jack stared into the box and let out a long sigh.

"You don't like it?" asked Tori.

"What?" he checked, shaking his head. "No, I... I'm sure it'll be great. It's not about the dessert."

Tori knew exactly what it was about and she hated that she couldn't make it better. Telling Alison Forester just exactly what she thought of her had made Tori feel better herself, but it didn't fix Jack's broken heart or wounded pride. Nothing could do that, except time. Stepping forward, she threw her arms around her brother and hugged him tight. He was initially a little surprised by the sudden embrace but went with it and hugged her back.

"You're gonna be okay, bro. I promise, you will."

"How'd you know?" he asked as they parted.

"Because, I'm super smart," she said, smiling at her own joke and glad to see him do the same. "Besides, if people never got over bad experiences in love, we wouldn't be here."

Jack knew she had a point, he just wished that he would feel better already. He supposed some of it required an effort made. The daily moping probably wasn't actually helping. Tough as it was, maybe he should try to put thoughts of Alison Forester out of his head and move on. Perhaps today was a good day to start.

"Oh, come on!" Jack laughed heartily, even as he argued with Doula's right to make the move she had just pulled. "That's practically cheating!"

"No it's not!" she argued, throwing a pillow across the couch.

"You're both going down!" Tori told them, concentrating solely on the TV screen and the game as the two of them 'fought'.

From the doorway, Rory stood watching a while, unable to keep the smile from her face. She wandered through to the kitchen then, bringing a couple of missed glasses to Jess who was washing dishes in the sink.

"I feel like it's been so long since I heard him laugh like that," she said, caught somewhere between laughter and tears herself. "Maybe he's finally getting over her."

"Had to happen eventually," her husband considered. "It's amazing how a girl can get under your skin so fast," he said knowingly.

Rory smiled and wrapped her arms around him from behind. Her cheek rested on his back and she sighed.

"They say first love is the big one, the one you never get over. I kind of get it. I mean, it all feels like such a big deal at the time, and it's so easy to compare everything after to that first experience," she said thoughtfully, "but it was so different for me the second time. When I met you, it scared me half to death how much I could feel and so fast. There I was in this safe happy little relationship, and then this whirlwind came rushing through my world, tearing it all apart... and as terrifying as that was, I loved it," she smiled as Jess dried off his hands and turned around to face her. "I loved you, I think probably from the first time I saw you, though of course, I didn't know it then."

"Really?" he checked, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her in closer. "Because I was pretty damn sure from the first time I laid eyes on you that you were it for me, Rory Gilmore. Couldn't explain it, still can't, but I knew."

"That's because you're very smart," she said happily leaning in for a kiss. "We were seventeen," she recalled. "Now Jack is that age. Pretty crazy, huh?"

"Kind of is," Jess agreed, reaching up to gently push her hair back off her face. "Still happy?"

The question wasn't just about whether she was happy in their marriage, it had to do with her health scare recently too. The doctor had confirmed that there was no mystery illness involved, and since Rory definitely wasn't pregnant, she was either headed for being menopausal, or more likely, she was just way too stressed recently. Jess had done his best to get her to relax more, take time out, not overdo it these past few days. She already seemed calmer, which was probably because she felt it too.

"Happy doesn't even begin to cover it," she promised, going in for another kiss.

Unfortunately a rapping on the door spoilt the moment.

"The kids will get it," Jess told her, but Rory was already wriggling to get away.

"As engrossed as they are in their game? Not a chance!" she declared, heading for the front door herself.

Jess sighed and shook his head, going through to the living room when he heard the kids making noise. He told them to keep it down some, but honestly, Rory was right, it was great to hear and see Jack laughing again. Doula too, actually. She had come bouncing in all full of beans this afternoon, telling Jess how her grades were up and how cool it was going to be to spend a chunk of her Summer vacation with April in New York. It felt good to see her so happy too, to know he helped get her back on track. Jess had so many problems as a teen and very few places to turn, at least not until Luke. He was determined that was never happening to his sister or his own kids. They would always be able to come to him with their news, be it good or bad, and any problems or worries they had. He wanted only good things for the three of them, always.

"Tori?" Rory called from the entranceway.

"What?" she called back, eyes never leaving the screen, thumbs still working the controller almost too fast to be seen.

Jess never saw Tori abandon anything so fast as when she glanced up and realised it was Dax that had been at the door. She stood fast, blocking Jack's view of the screen. He tried to shove her aside and Tori moved up next to her boyfriend, looking seven shades of awkward. Jess understood, because he wasn't loving the show himself.

"Hey," said Dax. "Um, I, er... Jack? Happy birthday, man," he said, holding out what appeared to be a badly wrapped book to Tori's brother.

Jack looked a little confused, but paused the game so Doula couldn't beat him whilst his back was turned. He took the gift from Dax with thanks and then tore off the wrapping.

"Huh."

"Thought it might help you out, in the circumstances," said Dax, eyes flitting to Jess more than once as he shifted awkwardly from foot to foot.

"Thanks, Dax." Jack smiled, putting the book down on the seat beside himself and picking up the controller again. "I'm guessing you're out for a while?" he asked Tori.

"For a little bit," she said awkwardly, looking from Jack to Dax to her father.

Jess met Dax very briefly at the Hep Alien concert after party, and it had not been fun. They said 'hi' to each other, and then Tori's father started glaring, and Dax made a fast excuse to get away. Tori wasn't ready to repeat that experience, and so grabbed her boyfriend's hand and dragged him outside to the porch. It was a little chilly, and yet that much warmer than the alternative location somehow.

"I'm sorry," he said, the moment they were alone. "I thought I was doing a good thing, I never thought about your family all being home. Your dad, especially. That guy really doesn't like me."

"He doesn't know you," Tori pointed out. "And yes, I know, removing you from his sight this fast isn't helping to change that but it's awkward right now, and I do want you guys to get along, because you know I really like you, it's just..."

The rest of whatever she might've said was lost in the kiss she received from Dax. Not that Tori complained at all, in fact she got real into the moment for a while there.

"Not that I don't love to listen to you ramble," said Dax when they parted, "but you really have to stress less about the whole your-dad-hating-me thing. Pretty sure it's normal when a girl starts dating."

"Probably," she agreed, nodding her head. "But it was really cool of you to bring Jack a gift. I'm actually impressed you found a book he might like that my family doesn't already own."

"Well, I'm hoping you'll be even more impressed with the gift I brought for you," he said, smiling widely as he pulled something from his back pocket and placed it into her hand.

"A flash drive," she noted, turning it over in her hand and realising something was written on it. "'Songs by Tori & Dax'," she read aloud. "You did more?"

"Three in total, and they're all right there in your hand," he explained. "I think we make quite the team."

"You're amazing!"

"Wait until you hear 'em all, then decide if you really believe that," he advised.

"Pretty sure I'm still gonna think so," Tori told him, pocketing the flash drive. "Thank you," she added, reaching up to kiss him one more time. "So, I was thinking," she said then, arms still up around his neck, "are you busy this weekend?"

"I have some time," he told her easily. "Why?"

"Because I thought maybe we could go out."

"Victoria Mariano, are you asking me out on a date?" he asked, smirking some.

"Well, we are supposed to be dating, aren't we?" she checked, feeling the colour rise in her cheeks as her bravery wavered at his question, even if he was sort of kidding.

"I wasn't exactly sure what we were doing," he admitted, pulling her a little closer, "but since you're asking, yeah, I'd love to go out on a date with you this weekend."

"Cool," said Tori, happily falling into another kiss.

When it started to get late, Jess sent Doula home with a hug and a chunk of Jack's marjolaine which she happily accepted. Jack was happy enough to turn in, kissing his mom and hugging his dad before he headed up, thanking them for a great birthday. It really was so good to see him smiling so much and so genuinely apparently. Maybe the worst was over now, maybe he really could feel better after Alison Forester and her poisonous ways.

"I'm heading up too," said Rory, stifling a yawn behind her hand. "It's been a long day."

"I'll finish cleaning up down here, chase Tori into her room, then I'll join you," Jess promised, kissing his wife on the forehead and watching her wander up the stairs.

He found Tori in the kitchen, hunched over the table, with her earbuds in as she scribbled furiously into a notebook. She had been doing that for more than an hour, but Jess had no idea exactly what it was she was up to. Sitting down on the chair beside hers, he craned his neck to see what she was writing. Immediately she realised he was there, Tori stopped scribbling, pulled out an earbud and looked up at him.

"What's up, Dad?"

"About to ask you the same thing, Tor," said Jess, leaning back in the chair now. "You seem pretty engrossed."

"Kind of am," she admitted, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slow. "I, er... Well, here," she said eventually, shoving her notebook into Jess' hands.

It was weird. Whenever she gave over her essays or reports for him to read, Tori was always confident that he would like what he saw. Her father was a great writer himself, a writer of novels, unlike her mom who was the journalist of the family. Still, they were both great at what they did, and always assured Tori that she too had a real knack for the written word. The trouble was, this was no story or article that Tori had penned, this was the one kind of writing that her dad claimed not to get, except in certain exceptional circumstances. This was poetry.

Jess spent a long time reading what Tori had been writing, then he turned the pages back and read another poem and another. His eyes seemed to grow wider all the time, and Tori was waiting for them to roll clean out of his head any moment. After five minutes that felt like an hour, she couldn't take it anymore.

"Well? What do you think?"

"What do I think?" echoed Jess. "I think this is incredible. Tor, you've got a real talent here."

"You think?" she asked, smiling widely, letting out that breath she had been holding for way too long. "I mean, Dax thought they were cool, but the thought occurred that maybe he was just saying that, and even if he meant it, he's not a writer or anything, he doesn't necessarily know what he's talking about," she said all in that adorable rambling rush that was her mother, pure and simple. "But they're good?"

"They're good," Jess confirmed. "I told you, they're incredible, but what I don't get is why I had no idea this book existed." he said, placing it back on the table and making his daughter look at him. "Tor?"

They used to share everything, and though Jess understood that as teenagers kids liked to keep some stuff to themselves, he never thought it'd happen to him and Tori.

"I didn't wanna tell you," she admitted, trying to put her eyes anywhere but on her father who stared at her intently as she gave her explanation. "You always said most poetry was pointless and stupid. I only ever heard you say good things about Ginsberg and maybe a couple of others. I really thought... I thought if you read the kind of stuff I wrote you'd think it was lame and a waste of time."

She was muttering and mumbling by the end, eyes downcast, looking like she felt just so stupid for saying what she was saying. From Rory to Jess in less than sixty seconds.

"I'm an asshole," he said, one hand rubbing his forehead.

Tori looked up sharply at her father's words, a questioning look on her face when his hand came away from his head and he saw her staring.

"Tor, I'm sorry," he told her. "I'm really sorry that you ever felt you had to hide your talent from me. I'm... I'm an asshole," he berated himself a second time, slamming his fist against the table for good measure.

"No, you're not," his daughter promised him. "You're not a bad person, Dad, I swear. I'm the idiot for thinking you'd be anything but supportive about what I want to do with my life."

"With your life?" he questioned, not quite following.

"Well, you know I never knew what I wanted to do when I grew up or whatever," Tori explained. "Teachers keep telling me how smart I am, how I could be a doctor, a lawyer, a scientist, a world leader, whatever. I never felt like any of those were for me, but I love to write. I love to write poetry and I know that's not necessarily a career, but lyricists make some money. See, these all started out as just poems, but... well, Dax writes songs, or music at least. He's not so good with the words, but I am," she explained, offering her ear buds to Jess.

He took them and popped them in his ears as Tori hit the button on her phone. A few moments later, Jess heard an amateur mix of a piano playing, a drum beat, some synched in guitars, and a young male voice singing, which he presumed to be Dax. The words he recognised from one of the poems he just read, and the melody wasn't half bad either.

The smile that spread across Jess' lips proved to Tori he was impressed, but she got real confirmation when the song ended and he told her just how amazing she really was.

"I'm floored by this," he admitted. "All of this," he said, fingers at the edge of Tori's notebook. "C'mere, kid," he said, encouraging her to come get a hug from him.

Tori went happily into his arms and smiled as he held her tight.

"I'm so glad you don't hate this."

"Of course I don't hate it. I love it," he promised her, moving to look her in the eye. "I love you."

"I love you too, Daddy," she said, leaning over to kiss his cheek. "And I should probably be heading for bed right about now," she noted, spotting the time on the clock over his shoulder.

"Probably," he agreed, watching her gather up her things to go. "Goodnight, Tor."

"'Night, Dad!" she called as she headed for the stairs.

Jess leaned back in the chair and ran a hand over his face. His kids, much like his wife, never failed to amaze him. He really hoped that never changed.

To Be Continued...