AN: First of all, this is to the anonymous reviewer with the many creative names. If you really hate my story that much and think I'm ripping off the show, then why on earth are you still reading my story? Seriously, you're being incredibly negative. I think I used to be you a couple of years back, I always looked on all the negative stuff about my life, now I'm cured. I'm actually a happy, cheerful person now, but this is not to comment on you or me as a person. It's about the story. Did I say in the beginning that there were going to be simillarities to the episode? Yes I did. I did not lie or hide it. Was some original dialogue used? Yes, because so many simillar things happened and I can't rewrite the whole thing, put in a different schedual just so people who doesn't want to see the show being used in fics can stay happy. And I couldn't just skip this moment in my story, because Rory going off to college is an important moment in Lorelai's life and I had to write about it. I can't completely break free from the show, because not all things are under my control. I only control Lorelai directly, Luke and Rory partly. Any changes are side-effects to Lorelai's choices. I can't force you to read on. If you're looking to a magical change in the next chapter, don't bother. Check in after 10 or 15 chapters, then you should be more satisfied, but then again I don't know what you want to happen, so. But lets take a recap of the story. At this point in the show, Jess was a jerk and he was long gone. I'm not saying he's completely without jerk tendensies and I can't tell you about his future appearances. With the exception of the shock of Luke being married, Lorelai didn't view Luke as more than a friend, while in my story, she's not only in love with him (which makes the fact that he's married even harder for her and she has to hide behind a facade to deal with it), she's having his baby. Do you honestly think that once that baby is born, that things won't change? Do you think I'm just gonna hide the kid away and forget about it? I'm sorry you find my story boring and unoriginal. This isn't a quick-fix story, if you want that, then try one of the hundreds of quick-fix stories on here. Lorelai isn't saying "I love you" in the first chapter. Things aren't perfect. They are complicated and messy. I'm not gonna tell you much, but I can tell you this: Luke won't stay clueless until the end. He's going to find out. I'm not saying it's the next chapter or maybe the next ten, but he will know long before this story ends. Wanna know how many chapters I've estimated this story will have? 100 + ... I'm not even closing in on the end, pal. Frankly, I haven't even reached the middle...

Asta-Gilmore - Welcome to the story, wow reading the entire story from the beginning :) I love hearing when people do that :)

Babs25 - Well Jess won't be a lot in the main storyline, but he will be mentioned now and then. Hope that's workable for ya... lol

smileyGGfan - lol, well we all have our events and I wouldn't trade the one I was at for even a million set tours, but I'd still love to go on the set and see it up close, that would've been awesome. Here's to hoping you see Lauren next time ;) I too would love to meet Lauren, but if someone was to ask me to trade like say my Jewel, Eliza or Clare encounter for that, then I'd probably say no. Those encounters (1 in Eliza's case, 2 in Jewel's and 3 in Clare's) mean the world to me and did something to me as a person.

LukeNLorelaifanatic - Well, I moved away at sixteen and I have to admitt those first hours and the first night alone was weird, but I got pretty quickly used to it and don't worry, you will too. Well I know that Jewel and Sean aren't dating, cause Jewel is married... lol, has been for three years now. But for me it was just so incredible to get a live kiss between them, because that must be the only time anyone gets to see a live kiss between the two. I don't ship actors, I want them to be happy with whoever they find. So if anything happened between LG/SP, then cool, if not, then that's cool, too.

Lorelai was grateful that she'd forgotten to leave the porch light on, as this meant less view for the prying eyes of Babette. And if Babette didn't see the several bags filled with costume equipment for the party she was in midst of planning, then less likely the chance was for her or Morey or both coming over to help her carry, which again limited the amounts of questions regarding the pregnancy thrown her way, which she'd had about enough of for the next month or so. She loved her town and neighbors, but with the situation being the way it was, the idea of being constantly, though ever so unintentionally, reminded about how the situation was far from the way she wanted it to be, was too much to take for the time being.

Since moving Rory into Yale, she had only seen Luke a couple of times. But with the whole hassle of his divorce she wasn't seeing herself getting any closer to finish what she had started before she'd found out about his marrying Nicole. Also, the larger percentage of their conversation had become more and more focused on her diet and how coffee and junk food wasn't something a pregnant woman should eat. Luke had managed to sneak in a few more healthy items in her everyday meal, in exchange for upping the amount of caffeinated coffee in his special Lorelai coffee with ten percent. The remaining part of their conversation mostly featured Luke ranting about lawyers and Lorelai talking about Yale, the Inn or the town in general. While waiting for Luke to finish up her take-away meal just ten minutes ago, Lorelai had told him about Jackson's latest idea to wire the entire house to the baby monitor. Luke, of course had called it a crazy idea that only the two of them, or possibly Kirk, would come up with.

Finding it difficult to hit the keyhole with the key in the pitch black that was her front porch, Lorelai wandered around to the kitchen entrance, dropping the bags of supplies the minute she stepped in the door. Locking it behind her, she proceeded to take her food to the livingroom and sunk into the couch just as the phone on the livingroom table rang. Not bothering to check the number, she lifted it to her ear and spoke.

- My back is aching, my feet are swollen to sizes you wouldn't deem possible, unless you actually saw them, then you would report it to Guinness World of Records. And not only is your little brother or sister currently doing a Joey Jordison impression on my bladder, I am also up to my neck in capes, rings and elf ears for Aaron Thompson's Lord of the Rings party that Sookie shanghaied me into organizing. Beat that.

- How about me returning from class only to realize Grandma broke in and redid the entire common room in 25,000 dollars worth of furniture and stereo equipment, Rory replied.

- Seriously, that's not fair. You know you win by default if Emily Gilmore makes it into the conversation.

- Sorry, Rory apologized. - I'll try to leave her out next time, so you can win whose life sucks most at the moment.

- I appreciate that, babe, Lorelai grinned. - And let me just say it.

- Say what?

- Hah, I knew Emily was in your room. I told you I could smell it and you, my friend, dismissed me.

- I'd apologize, but you'd just keep on going like the Energizer Bunny, Rory sighed. - So what's this I'm hearing about elf ears?

- Well this morning me and Sookie met up at her house to do some paperwork on the Inn, while Jackson hooked the baby monitor up to the house's central sound...

- Really.., Rory interrupted. - You can do that?

- I don't know. Shouldn't I be asking you that?

- Since when did I become a tech wiz?

- You're more than I am, Lorelai shrugged.

- True, but still...

- You're telling me in that thorough education Chilton is supposed to give you, they didn't teach you anything regarding technology?

- Not to Journalism majors.

- Not anything?

- Unless you count learning the basics in using a computer, then no, nothing.

- How is it they left technology out of your education, considering the generation you belong to, but they still made you take Golf?

- That's for physical fitness, Rory reasoned. - If I'm to be an overseas correspondent, I'd benefit from being in some sort of physical shape.

- But Golf?

- Maybe one day I'd have to write about Golf, Rory suggested. - You never know.

- But what if you'd have to write about technology, what then?

- Then I'd consult an expert, Rory shrugged. - And now we really came off on a tangent.

- What we do best, Lorelai grinned.

- I think you're mistaking this for what you do best, Rory countered. - So back to this morning. You and Sookie were doing paper work, Jackson was working the sound system, and...

- So me and Sookie were thinking back to the good ol' days where we still had income, which lead to me reluctantly letting her know the estimated cost of restoring the Inn would be another 20,000 dollars.

- You're kidding, Rory exclaimed.

- Wish I was, Lorelai sighed. - So now, in addition to planning the restoration of the Dragonfly, hiring new people, having the baby, keeping the baby alive, I either have to stretch my budget or come up with a plan to get more money. So far I've thought of a somewhat risky bank job, but how me and Sookie are gonna manage to conceal our identities, not to mention getting away, with the two probing bellies sticking out in front of us, is beyond me. If I was caught, you wouldn't mind bailing mommy out, would you?

- As long as it doesn't interfere with my classes, Rory shrugged.

- That's my girl, Lorelai grinned. - Of course my inevitable going to jail would cut way back on my already precious time with you, not to mention the hassle of getting your baby brother or sister back from social services once I was released. So instead I decided to go with Sookie's idea of starting a small temporary catering company.

- Sounds like a more reasonable decision, Rory concurred. - But where do you fit into a catering company?

- Well, Sookie's gonna do all the cooking...

- That's a given, Rory deadpanned.

- Hey, I resent that. I kept you alive for nineteen years, didn't I?

- By not cooking, Rory pointed out.

- Alright, that's true, Lorelai nodded. - I'm going to be organizing everything and plan the events we're catering. Which is why I have to spend the evening making elf ears and whatever else I'm missing from the costume stash.

- So far it sounds like the perfect job for you, Rory remarked. - You love making costumes.

- Yeah, it is kinda fun, Lorelai grinned. - On the plus side, it's legal, so I won't have to deal with jail or Social Services.

- That's always a plus, Rory chuckled. - But I don't think you'd have to deal with Social Services on the baby matter. I'm sure Luke would be happy to take care of it while you were gone.

- Yeah, I guess, Lorelai sighed.

- So, how is Luke, Rory asked, carefully. - Have you seen him lately?

- Well, he's still haggling with the divorce. Just this afternoon two more lawyers turned up...

- ...two more, Rory interrupted.

- ...in addition to the three that were already there, Lorelai finished.

- Five lawyers? Who needs five lawyers to get a divorce?

- Luke was asking himself the same thing, out loud of course, 'cause my mind reading skills haven't been perfected just yet. I have this nagging feeling he's keeping tinfoil in that cap of his to deliberately keep me from succeeding.

- Yes, I'm sure that's why you couldn't read his mind.

- He asked me to be his character witness.

- What did you say?

- Well, I basicly tried to knock into their heads that Luke was honestly looking for a way out of his marriage, nothing more and nothing less.

- And?

- Well, apparently I have very little credibility as a character witness, Lorelai shrugged. - By the time I walked back to the counter I overheard them planning to bring in two more lawyers.

- Poor Luke...

- Yeah, Lorelai agreed. - As if getting a divorce isn't bad enough for him as it is.

- Have you thought more about telling him?

- No, Lorelai replied, honestly.

- Why?

- Didn't you hear me? It's Luke and the lawyers of the round table over here. He has enough on his plate without me adding to the mess.

- Mom, I get that you couldn't go through with it when Patty told you about Luke getting married. You were in shock, I get that. But you're running out of excuses, not to mention time. He deserves to know.

- Yes, he deserves to know, Lorelai sighed. - But what do you want me to do? Do you want me to go up to him and say 'Hey, Luke, I know you're in the middle of a divorce and everything, but I thought you'd like to know that I'm having your baby, so...'

- Okay, Rory agreed. - Maybe that's not the best approach.

- I swear to you, Lorelai promised. - I'm not gonna keep him out of his kid's life. I would never do that to Luke and you know it. But I just can't do it right now. It's too much right now.

- Just promise you'll do it soon.

- If I promise, can we please change the subject, Lorelai pleaded.

- Can we move on to your check-up?

- Only if there will be no more mentioning of the father.

- Well, your reluctance to let it slip has me in complete suspense, so what am I getting? A brother or a sister?

- I don't know, Lorelai told her daughter.

- Didn't you say you were finding out at your next check-up? Didn't they get a good enough peak at it?

- No, they got a fairly good... peak, Lorelai replied. - They asked me if I wanted to know if it was a boy or girl and I found myself saying 'no'.

- Why...? When we got back, you were dying to know so that you'd know what baby equipment to get. You said you wanted everything to match the baby's sex.

- I know I said that, but that was before... well, Lorelai sighed.

- Oh, Rory said, taking the hint. - So now you're not finding out?

- Well not now, anyway, Lorelai replied.

- Then when?

- I don't know. I guess I always imagined that he'd know by the time I had my check-up and even if we were fighting I would go over there to tell him. Maybe if I was lucky, he'd be in there with me when I found out. But being in the doctor's office, alone, knowing that he still doesn't know he's gonna be a father, it felt more fair for me to not know what I'm having.

- What, Rory said, in a distant voice.

- I don't want to know the sex of the baby until Luke knows, Lorelai explained.

- No, not you, Rory elaborated. - Paris. She's standing right over me, talking about some party and doors being left open. She's really worked up and I just have to take care of this.

- Okay, Lorelai said, in an unsure voice.

- I'm really sorry, but I have to go. We'll talk tomorrow?

- Tomorrow, Lorelai replied. - I love you, kid.

- Love you, too, mom.

And with a click, Rory's and partly Paris' voice was replaced with the hum of the phone.

TBC