CHAPTER 35: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

"Luke?" Unsurprisingly, Lorelai got no response. "Luke?" She nudged him again, speaking quietly.

"Mmmm?" He murmured half asleep, unwilling to open his eyes.

"Come on, babe. It's time to get up."
"What time is it?"

"7:30"

"We told Rory we weren't getting up until 8," he growled, turning over away from her.

Dragging a finger down his side, she spoke knowingly. "Well, Rory is going to be in here jumping on us soon, and, considering the fact that you don't have a shirt on, I figured you might want to get a head start on her."

At the sound of "no shirt", Luke immediately shot up. "Crap," he grumbled, looking around the room for his shirt and making her laugh.

"Hey, there you are Sleeping Beauty," Lorelai grinned.

If looks could kill, the glare he shot her definitely would have.

Reaching over, she ran a hand through his sleep rumpled hair. "Your shirt ended up on my side on the floor… Here." She reached beside her and handed it to him. "I almost slipped on it a few minutes ago going to the bathroom."

"Well you're the one that threw it there, so that's your own fault." Standing up, he walked towards the door, focused on getting ready before Rory could appear at their bedside.

Right before he reached the door, he heard a soft, "Hey, Luke?"

Turning back, he saw Lorelai smiling. "Yeah?"

"Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." Walking back over, Luke placed a soft kiss on her lips. "I'll be back in a few."

Entering the room a few minutes later, Luke saw something folded up on his pillow and Lorelai sitting crisscrossed on the bed with a mischievous grin. "What did you do?" He questioned immediately.

"I didn't do anything," she denied, her grin growing larger. "I just figured there was a gift that I needed to give you away from little eyes."

Narrowing his eyes at her suspiciously, he walked over and grabbed the object off his pillow and unfolded it. With an eyeroll, he groused, "What the hell are these?"

"Do you like them," Lorelai answered, trying to hold back a laugh.

"Do you seriously expect me to wear these?"

At her nod, he questioned further. "Now?" She nodded again.

Sighing, Luke turned to walk out of the room again. "I can't believe the things I let you make me do," he grumbled.

When he walked back in a short time later, Lorelai's hands immediately flew to her mouth, trying to muffle the laughter that was escaping her lips. "You look so great!"

Looking down, he began to chuckle with her. "These are awful!"

"I know!"

"There's mistletoe over my…"

"I know!" She laughed again. Standing up, she walked over to him, her finger trailing the waistband. "Who would have thought that Christmas boxers could be so amusing? I am so doing this every year!"

"I'm gonna go put my pants back on now," Luke grinned, capturing her hand.

"You just wait until Rory goes to bed tonight. I'm sure seeing these babies the second time is going to be even better!" Lorelai exclaimed, pecking his cheek.

"You're crazy." Returning her kiss, Luke shook his head. "Now let me go get dressed. There's no way in hell I could live with Rory coming in and seeing this."

"Come on, Daddy Luke! You have to hurry!" Rory exclaimed as she tugged Luke's hand, pulling him down the stairs behind her.

Tightening his grip quickly, he caught Rory before she could slip down a stair. "Woah, kid. Be careful. You can slow down. I don't think Mommy will start without us."

"But she will!" She looked up at him while shifting anxiously.

"She's right you know." Lorelai smiled from the couch as they descended the final stairs. "It's already 8:05. You said 8:00, so two minutes from now, your seven-minute leeway is up and I start opening."

Rolling his eyes as he sat down on the couch, Luke questioned, "Since when do you have a seven-minute leeway?"

"Since five minutes ago."

Opening his mouth to respond, he shut it quickly and sighed. "Okay, whatever."

"Wow you submitted so easily." Standing up, she walked over to the tree to grab the presents to hand out. "I expected more of a banter."

"Think of it as another Christmas Gift," he deadpanned.

After she finished handing out the presents, Lorelai plopped down on the floor next to her pile of gifts. "Okay, Rory. It's your year to countdown"

"Countdown?" Luke asked, eyeing Lorelai suspiciously.

"Yeah!" Rory exclaimed. Holding her hand up in the air, she called, "3, 2, 1, Open!" With a happy laugh, she began tearing the paper off her boxes.

Watching as Lorelai and Rory tore the paper from all their boxes as fast as they could, Luke noted how they didn't bother to open them but only rip the wrapping off. "What the hell are you doing?"

Looking up at him quickly, Lorelai reached over and grabbed his hands, putting them on the box in his lap. Looking back down, she continued tearing at her own boxes. "It's a race. Rory and I always see who can rip the wrapping paper off of our presents the fastest. Who ever wins gets to jump into the big pile of wrapping paper before we clean everything up. It's like jumping into a pile of leaves."

"Shouldn't you always win because you have fewer boxes?" he prodded, still not opening his.

Shifting her gaze quickly to her daughter, Lorelai was thankful when she realized Rory didn't hear Luke. "Shhh! She's not supposed to realize that," she whispered harshly. "Now open your presents like a good boy or I am putting you on the naughty list."

Twenty minutes later, the living room was a sea of wrapping paper.

"So, what do you think of all your cool stuff, hon" Lorelai questioned as she watched Rory gaze at all her now-opened presents with a bright smile.

"It's the best! Thank you, Mommy! Thank you, Daddy Luke!" She exclaimed, hugging each of them. Stepping back, she held up her arms, now covered with slap bracelets "Look at all of the colors!"

"They're so pretty!" Lorelai answered with the same excitement. "And they all go perfect with the rainbow dress you got!"

"Can I wear them to Mia's tonight? I want to show her!"

"Sounds good to me."

"Yay!" Turning around, she took in the paper covered floor. "Can I jump in the wrapping paper pile now? I won the race"

"Why not?" Lorelai smiled.

Gathering all of the paper together, she put it into a pile. "Well, it looks like with Daddy Luke's presents' we have an extra big pile this year. You ready sweets?"

"Yeah!"

"Okay, hold my hand," Lorelai instructed, reaching over the rail to hold Rory's hand from the second step. "Ready, 1,2,3!"

Jumping as hard as she could, Rory flew happily into the pile, some paper flying up around her. Giggling loudly, she stood up and threw some of the paper into the air. "Merry Christmas!"

Scooping up into her arms quickly, Lorelai placed a loud kiss on Rory's cheek. "Merry Christmas!"

From the side, Luke watched them remake the pile and jump into it together. Unable to hide it, a smile grew on his face as they began making "paper angels". Before he knew it, he was right in the middle of a paper fight that somehow, yet unsurprisingly, ended up being two against one. Being pelted on both sides, Luke chuckled and grabbed Lorelai, pulling her quickly onto the couch, making her laugh loudly. "Help me, Rory!" she exclaimed.

Running over to her mother's aid, Rory latched on to Lorelai's arm, pulling her as hard as she could. "Let go! Let go!" She grumbled, but Luke wouldn't give an inch.

"What's the magic word?" Luke grinned, tightening his grip on Lorelai, making her laugh harder and making Rory's determination even greater.

"Please!" Rory exclaimed, her strength wavering. "Pretty please with sugar on top!"

"But I don't like sugar," he smirked as he shook his head. "Try again."

"Ummmm… Pretty please with vegetables on top!"

"That's better." Chuckling, he released Lorelai.

Rory, worn out, threw herself unceremoniously on the floor.

"Tired, sweets?" Lorelai smiled, plopping herself down on the floor beside her.

"Yeah…" Rolling over onto her side, she eyed her pile of presents. "Can I go put my books on my shelf? I can rest in there."

"Sure. I'll come get you when breakfast is ready."

As Rory grabbed her pile of books and strolled out of the room, Luke cleared his throat, gaining Lorelai's attention. "I can see why you like doing the paper pile."

"It makes her so happy," She smiled. Sitting up, she moved closer to where she could take a hold of his hand. "Thanks for playing a long. I don't know how many paper cuts you got in the process, but if you're anything like me, I'm sure the tips of your fingers aren't feeling to great right now."

"I only got a few. It's no big deal." Reaching behind him, Luke pulled a small present from behind the couch cushion. "Are you up for tearing a little bit more paper, or have you had your fill?"

"Huh?" Looking at his outstretched hand, she eyed the gift warily. "Where did that come from?"

"I hid it," he chuckled. "You like to snoop, so I hid it somewhere I knew you wouldn't think to look."

Reaching for it, she could tell by the size and the weight exactly what it was. "Luke," she sighed, "You promised you wouldn't…" she faltered off.

"Just open it." He answered with a flick of his chin. "Humor me."

Tearing the paper carefully, she removed it and opened the small box. Her breath caught in her throat as she was met with a silver necklace with a sapphire pendant surrounded by small diamonds.

Tracing the jewel slowly, Lorelai whispered an almost inaudible, "Luke…"

"Do you like it?" He questioned her as he watched her just stare at the box.

Taking a shaky breath before she spoke, Lorelai looked up at him with loving eyes. "I love it." She answered softly. "Luke, this is too much. We promised that we wouldn't buy expensive gifts. I…"

"If you love it, then it's not too much," Luke cut her off with reassurance.

Looking back down at the box in her hand, she finally decided to carefully remove the necklace from the box. "Will you put it on me?"

Taking it, Luke pushed her hair to the side and pulled the necklace around her, slipping the clasp through the loop smoothly.

Turning back around to him, she wore a bright smile as she reached up and fingered the jewel that was now around her neck. "It's perfect." Standing up, she settled herself onto his lap, her hands coming to rest on his cheeks as she brought him in for a soft kiss, whispering a quiet, "I love you," just before their lips met. Slowly and deliberately they kissed, Lorelai inching closer as Luke took her deeper.

Breaking for air, he drew her into his embrace. "I love you too, by the way."

"You didn't have to do this," she informed him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I know, but I wanted to." Pulling back, he tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear before smiling small. "I wanted to do something nice for my girl."

"Well, this goes way beyond nice." Leaning her forehead against his, she pecked one last short kiss on his lips, a smile growing on her face to match his. "Merry Christmas, Luke."

"Merry Christmas, Lorelai."

"I can't believe this year is already almost over! How is tomorrow already New Year's Eve?" Lorelai questioned as she walked into their room a few nights later with a cup in her hand. Taking a sip of it herself, she smiled at Luke's reflection in the mirror as she sat the glass of water on his night stand.

"You know, you could just get a cup of water yourself instead of mooching off of mine."

"But I don't need a whole cup. I only need a sip." She reasoned with him. "If I got a whole cup, then I would be wasting a dish because I can't drink the whole thing, and that's one more dish we have to wash."

Turning back to her with a smirk, Luke shook his head. "You can talk your way out of anything, can't you?"

"Of course. You should know that by now."

With a quiet laugh escaping his lips, Luke slipped into his pajama pants and turned to face her. "So, you mentioned the new year… Are you still planning on going to Patty's party tomorrow night?"

"About that…" Lorelai faltered off. Taking a second to get comfortable, she pulled back the covers and slipped into their warmth. Snuggling deep into the bed, she watched as Luke changed his shirt. "I thought we could do something different," she spoke plainly, throwing out the statement casually and waiting to see his reaction.

"Different? Is there another party I need to worry about getting dragged to?" He questioned her warily.

"No… I heard that there's an ice skating rink set up in Woodbridge, and I thought it might be fun to go. Me, you, and Rory can do that, and maybe we can get some ice cream after." Seeing his raised eyebrows, she added, "And some frozen yogurt for you, and then we can come home and spend the rest of the night here."

"You want to go ice skating?"

"Yeah…" she nodded. "Are you okay with that? I know you don't really want to go to Patty's party, and I don't want to go alone, so I figured you might want to do something else."

"I'm fine with it." Luke agreed. "I heard someone talking about the rink in the diner a few days ago, and I thought about it. I just figured you wouldn't like it… with it requiring some sort of coordination and all," he continued teasingly.

A scoff escaping her lips, she stuck her tongue out at him. "Ha ha… I actually happen to know how to ice skate, thank you very much. It was one of the only Emily Gilmore approved activities of my childhood."

"Well how was I supposed to know? You're always complaining that you have no athletic ability, and I figured that skating would be the same," He taunted her with a grin. Walking over, he plopped down on to his side, propping his head up with his hand to look at her. "Am I going to be shocked and see some gold medal level skating?"

"I'm sure I'm no Butch Danes," she emphasized his name, a smile gracing her lips at his scowl. "But I can hold my own. Tell me, did Butch ever learn how to skate?"

"Butch? No." Luke rolled his eyes. "But Luke? Yes. I went through a hockey phase like every other kid that lives in the northeast."

Laughing at his suddenly gruff demeanor, she pushed him, forcing him onto his back and wiping the frown off his face. As she curled into his side, she spoke again. "Hmmm. From hockey to baseball and track… Now, I'm not a pro at sports, but even I know those things don't have much in common."

"Oh, I loved hockey more than the other two. Hockey was all I wanted to play… til I broke my nose the first time. Skated right into a tree."

"Is that why your nose is slightly crooked?" She questioned with mock innocence.

His free hand immediately flew to his face. "My nose is not crooked."

Giggling, she nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder. Placing a soft kiss there, she smiled. "No, it's not. But saying it is is good payback for you teasing me about my athletic ability."

"So you're allowed to make fun of yourself and of me, but I can't tease you?"

"Exactly," she confirmed, his hand squeezing her shoulder affectionately as she nodded.

As the conversation came to a natural end, they laid in comfortable silence, winding down for the night. Naturally, Lorelai shifted until she could get comfortable. After a few turns and maneuvering of Luke's arms and her legs, she sighed contently. "How in the world am I supposed to make it to midnight tomorrow? It's only 10, and I am almost at the point that I can barely keep my eyes open."

"I'm sure you'll find a way," Luke placated her, his eyes still shut and his hand running slowly through her curls.

"If that way requires an enormous amount of coffee, will you be my supplier?"

"If you promise to drink one cup of tea, then sure?" If Lorelai's eyes had been open, she would have seen the taunting grin reappear on his lips.

"If I drink the tea, then you have to eat ice cream and not frozen yogurt, and you have to eat the whole cone too." She negotiated.

"Are you trying to kill me before the new year can even start?"

"No… I plan on getting a kiss out of you at midnight, so I'll save plotting your demise for sometime later in the year."

Chuckling softly, Luke planted a soft kiss to her hair. "Good to know."

"So that's a yes to our deal then," Lorelai questioned hopefully?

"Yes, Lorelai."

"Good…"

With that, the room once again settled into silence. Just before Luke could fall asleep, he heard a barely audible whisper. "I forgot to tell you. Happy New Year's Eve Eve, Luke."

Reaching down to her side, he pulled Lorelai closer, squeezing her side affectionately. "Good night, Crazy Lady."

Grabbing his skates from the by the door, Luke walked out to the truck and tossed them in the floorboard of the passenger side. Making it to the driver's seat, he sat down with a relieved sigh. It had been a long day, and there was nothing that could make his day better than spending the night with his girls, even if it meant going out for a while.

"Hey! You're off early!" Lorelai exclaimed happily as she opened the door for Luke before he could even make it up the stairs.

"I am. Everyone in town is getting ready for the party, so the diner was dead." Taking in her appearance, he noted the way she was bouncing slightly from foot to foot. "You look excited," he stated plainly.

"I am! What's not to be excited about? I get to spend the night celebrating with my favorite guy and I get to surprise my kid with her first-time ice skating!" She grinned.

"You haven't told her yet?"

Grabbing his arm, she pulled him inside the house and along with her. "Nope. She has no idea. I wanted you to see her reaction when I told her."

Walking into Rory's room, they found her sitting at her desk reading. "Alright! Up, up, up! Get your jacked on, and let's go!" Lorelai exclaimed, startling Rory and making her jump as she looked up from her book.

"Where are we going?"

"We are going ice skating!"

Gasping, Rory hopped out of her chair. "Really?"

"Really!" Grabbing her jacket off the back of the chair, Lorelai held it out to her. "Here, put your arms in."

As she slid her arms into the sleeves, A look of realization appeared on Rory's face. "But I don't know how to ice skate."

"Don't worry. We'll find a way teach you," Lorelai smiled. "I can't then Daddy Luke will."

Looking up at him with imploring eyes, Rory questioned Luke. "Really?"

Nodding, he ruffled her hair, making her giggle. "You bet. Anything for you kid."

Suddenly running over and grabbing her boots, Rory slipped them on and ran to the door of her room. "Okay! I'm ready! Let's go!" With that, she ran out of the room.

Smiling at Luke, Lorelai zipped up the jacket she was wearing. "See how happy she is? I told you it's worth being excited." Following Rory, she hurried out to the foyer.

Shaking his head, Luke walked out of the room behind her. How they could get so excited about every little thing in life, he wasn't sure, but he knew better than to question, and with a smile, he followed them contently out the door.

"I still can't believe that we are using rental skates while you get to use your own fancy hockey skates," Lorelai frowned, looking over at Luke as he tied his skates and she tried to tie Rory's.

"It's not my fault that I've been skating in the last decade and you haven't." Luke rolled his eyes.

"You could still suffer the horrors of rental skates with us…" Turning back to Rory, she tried for the second time to tie the uncooperative skate. "Babe, will you help me with this? I can't seem to get this skate to cooperate."

Slipping off his gloves, Luke crouched down. "Sure."

Unlacing the skate, Luke quickly retightened it and completed the final pegs, typing the laces in a bow. "There you go, Rory. You're all set." He patted her on the leg, standing up on his own skates.

They're really tight, Daddy Luke." Rory frowned as she stood up slowly, shifting her weight to regain her balance as she stumbled a little.

"I know, but they need to be tight. Don't worry, they'll loosen up a little while you skate." Patting her on the shoulder, Luke held out his hand. "Are you ready?"

As Rory nodded, they finally headed over to the ice to skate.

The initial excitement in Rory's eyes faded slowly as they walked. Watching carefully, she saw people skating around and occasionally falling. "What if I fall," she spoke hesitantly

The fear in her voice caught both of Luke and Lorelai's attention. Before Lorelai could answer, Luke bent down to Rory's level and looked at her directly. "Rory, would Mommy and I ever let anything bad happen to you?"

Shaking her head, she responded with a soft, "No."

"Exactly, no. It's a little slippery, but we will help you."

Smiling at Luke's answer, Lorelai reached down for Rory's free hand. "He's right, sweets. We've got you. Are you ready?"

Without words, she nodded again.

Stepping on to the ice, Luke got his footing and turned back to reach out for Rory. Gripping her hand tightly, he helped her on and then made way for Lorelai to get on.

Quickly losing her balance, Rory began to slip backwards. Before she could fall on her backside, Luke caught her under her arms, keeping her upright. "I've got you. Just keep moving." He smiled down at her.

For the first few feet, Rory kept her blades firmly on the ice, gliding along as Lorelai and Luke pulled her.

Looking down and seeing her feet, Luke shook his head. "Try picking your feet up like you're marching. It makes moving a lot easier."

"But when I lift up my foot, I slip," Rory responded with a frown.

Squeezing her hand, Lorelai smiled. "It's okay. Just take it slow… Watch." Releasing her hand, Lorelai skated gracefully a little bit ahead of them.

"Wow!" Rory watched with wide eyes. "Can you do that, Daddy Luke?"

"I can," he confirmed, watching Lorelai attempt to spin, trying not to chuckle as she wobbled a bit. "Do you want me to show you?"

Shaking her head quickly, she responded adamantly. "No! I'll fall without you!"

Her shaking caused her to lose her balance again, but with Luke's grip on her wrist, he stopped her. "It's okay. I won't let go until youre ready. Just let me know when."

Thirty minutes later, the trio had made a good number of laps. Luke, not wanting to admit it, was starting to cramp from leaning over. As the laps went on, he noticed that Rory's skating had definitely improved and also took note of the thinning crowd. Catching Lorelai's gaze, he jilted his chin towards the side. "Let's stop over there a second."

"Okay!" She agreed easily.

Getting away from everyone to the corner of the rink, they stopped and Luke crouched down before Rory again. "I want you to try something for me princess,,, Do you think you can skate a lap all by yourself?"

Gripping his arm immediately, Rory tensed up. "It's scary."

"You're been skating so well, though," Luke reasoned.

"If you want, me or Daddy Luke will skate right behind you to make sure you don't fall," Lorelai added.

Eying them both warily, Rory frowned, poking her bottom lip out. "I don't want to fall."

"I know you don't, and we won't let you," Lorelai reassured her gently.

Thinking about it for a second, she finally agreed. "Okay… I'll try."

Slowly but surely, Rory skated a lap. Lorelai hovered behind her and Luke skated backwards in front of her, but despite a few wobbles, she was able to stay upright without their help for the entire length of the ice. At the end of the lap, unable to stop, she ran straight into Luke's arms where he picked her and Lorelai enveloped them both. "I did it!" Rory celebrated, squeezing Luke's neck.

"You did, Rory! Good job," Luke squeezed her back, unable to hide the proud smile growing on his face.

"I did it mommy!" She made sure to acknowledge Lorelai specifically as well. "I skated all by myself like a big girl!"

"I know, I saw," Lorelai exclaimed with the same excitement, planting a loud kiss on her cheek. "I'm so proud of you."

"Let's skate some more!" Rory commanded, trying to wiggle out of Luke's grip.

Feeling a little fatigued herself, Lorelai stopped to think for a moment before speaking. "I have an idea, hon. Why don't you skate a quick lap all by yourself, and Daddy Luke and I will watch?"

Despite her initial hesitance, the lap without falling boosted Rory's confidence. Without second thought, she agreed. "Okay!"

Leaning back against the wall behind them, Lorelai took Luke's hand as they watched Rory and her new found talent. "I think we've created a monster," she joked. "It's going to take us a while to get out of here now."

Bringing his arm around her shoulder, Luke pulled her closer. "That's okay. I'm really glad she's liking it. She's taking to it better than I thought."

Not taking her eyes of Rory, Lorelai nodded in agreement. "I know. I'm surprised… Thanks for helping me teach her, by the way. Not that I couldn't do it, but she really trusts you a lot, so it helps."

"No problem." Planting a kiss to her hair in an usual act of PDA, Lorelai smiled small and they faltered off into comfortable silence until Rory's lap came to an end.

"Did you see me?" Rory questioned as she slid into them. "I did it all by myself, and I still didn't fall!" She exclaimed, looking up at them with happy eyes.

"We saw! You did great!" Lorelai answered, holding up her hand for a high-five to which Rory quickly obliged.

"Will you skate with me some more?"

Both of them laughed at Rory's sudden enthusiasm for the sport before Lorelai nodded. "I like that idea," she agreed. "Here's what I am thinking. Why don't we skate a few more laps, and then we can go get some ice cream and hot chocolate on the way home?"

"Hot chocolate and ice cream," Rory gasped!

"Yep! But we've got to finish skating first. What do you say, hon?"

"Let's skate!" Rory yelled, starting off slowly again.

Luke and Lorelai both looked at each other and shook their heads at each other in amusement as they followed behind.

"Really? Hot chocolate and ice cream? That wasn't part of the plan," he murmured.

Shrugging, Lorelai wore an innocent grin. "Well, we already planned the ice cream, but I am starting to get cold, so I am sure Rory is too. She can't have coffee yet, so hot chocolate is the second-best option." She reasoned.

"I'm assuming you mean the second-best option for only her, right?" he rolled his eyes.

"Of course! I'd never turn down coffee for hot chocolate… plus, that's what you promised me last night."

"On the agreement that you'd drink a cup of tea too," he challenged her with raised eyebrows.

"I'll drink that when we get home… and don't forget, you have to eat ice cream," she taunted back, a teasing lilt in her voice.

"Yeah, yeah… Just keep skating," Luke shook his head, capturing her arm and bringing her closer to him. "Maybe all of this exercise will make the ice cream take one year off of my life instead of five."

When they arrived home from the rink and the ice cream parlor, Luke carried a sleeping Rory straight into her room. As Lorelai tucked her in and went upstairs to change, Luke locked up and washed any dishes left from that morning. After changing into pajamas himself, he came downstairs to find Lorelai stretched out on the couch.

Descending the last few stairs, he walked over and blocked her view to the TV.

"You're not a good window," she frowned, lifting her chin and trying to get to where she could see around him.

"Well, my mother wasn't a glass maker, so…" he smirked. Nudging her bare leg with his he spoke. "Scoot over some."

With a soft sigh, she turned sluggishly on to her side, making a space just large enough for him to lie down behind her.

Nestling his body closely to hers, Luke slid a knee between hers, his arm coming to rest around her waist. "I meant move your legs so I could sit, but this works too."

Quietly, they both watched as people danced crazily on the screen. Suddenly, Lorelai spoke up. "You're not sad you're missing Patty's New Year's Bash?"

Snorting a laugh, Luke shook his head. "I'm devastated. You know I'm the life of the party every year." Unconsciously, he slipped his hand under the front of her flannel, stroking her stomach softly. "What are we watching?"

"Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve…" She answered, turning her head to look back at him. "Have you not seen it before?"

"It's been a while. I normally don't stay up," he answered plainly.

"Huh…" she acknowledged him simply. Snuggling closer, she burrowed further back into his embrace, his arm tightening around her waist in response.

As they watched the Beach Boys perform, Lorelai hummed along softly before speaking again. "Good night…"

"Mhmmm," Luke agreed quietly.

"Even better year," she said quietly a few moments later.

"I'd say so." He agreed, planting a kiss to her hair.

"Any regrets?"

"Not one… You?"

"Aside from the Great Fashion Disaster of February 3rd, no… But you weren't around to see that."

Patting her stomach, he chuckled. "Any serious regrets?"

Turning her head to look at him, she smiled cheekily. "I am being serious. You can ask Sookie. I looked pretty bad."

"I doubt that."

"Whatever. You're just biased."

"No. You're just beautiful," he retorted matter of factly.

Her face blushing immediately, she squeezed his hand and whispered a genuine, "Thank you."

They both watched as the bands switched with ten minutes til midnight. As the new group began playing, Lorelai immediately perked up. "Oooo, I love them!"

Luke could feel her start to move slightly to the music. Nudging her forward, he climbed over her and stood up, holding out his hand.

Looking at it curiously, she questioned, "What?"

"Trust me," he answered simply.

Pulling her up, he brought her in close, his other hand coming to rest on the small of her back, Slowly, he started to sway them back and forth. "You're missing the party, but that doesn't mean you have to miss the dancing too."

Gasping, a bright smile appeared on her face. "Really? You're gonna dance with me?"

"I told you I would in private."

"I love you…"

"I know," Luke smirked smugly. Tightening his grip on her waist, he answered quietly. "I love you too."

Perfectly in tune with the music, they danced lightly for the next two songs. Watching over her shoulder, Luke noted the countdown clock showed two minutes. As the music ended, they still swayed, following a rhythm of their own.

"You know, I've never had a New Year's kiss…" Lorelai spoke up quietly.

Pulling back, he looked at her with surprise. "Really?"

She merely nodded.

"Not even with Christopher?"

"No…" she shook her head. "The one New Year's we were together, he was passed out. And every year before that, I was forced to party with my parents." She rolled her eyes. Seeing the look on his face, she could tell that he wanted to say something but was holding back. "What?"

"Hm?" He questioned, trying to ignore her expectant look. "Nothing."

"Oh, it was something. You wanted to say something, so tell me."

Taking a breath, he questioned, "Are you sure?" At her not, he chuckled softly. "I was going to say that not only is he a jackass, he's an idiot."

"Luke!" She laughed, covering her mouth quickly as to not wake Rory.

"What?" He grinned. "I'm just saying. He had the most amazing girl in the world, and instead of kissing her at midnight, he got too drunk to function. That's just stupid."

"I'm the most amazing girl in the world?" She prodded with a gleam in her eye.

Rolling his eyes, Luke scoffed. "Of course, that's the one part you hear. Not the part where I called him stupid."

"Did you mean it? Me being amazing? Because that's really sweet."

"You know I do."

"Well then that's all I care about hearing. I knew Christ was an idiot a long time ago." Kissing his cheek, she let her lips linger. When she pulled back, she ran her fingers thought the long curls at the nape of his neck as she frowned. "I'm guessing that I'm not going to be your first New Year's kiss, though, huh?"

Shaking his head, Luke answered, "No, but it's our first… and you're the only one I'll share it with from now on." Hearing the countdown start at 20, Luke jerked his chin at the screen. "Speaking of…"

"You've got 20 seconds to change your mind."

"Never," he answered huskily, his eyes boring into hers.

"Don't kiss me too early, or we'll have bad luck," she grinned as his lips moved towards hers.

"I wouldn't want that." He continued to look at her intensely, her arousal growing under his heated gaze.

"This is gonna be a good year, isn't it," she whispered.

"If I have you, it will be."

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" Rang out in the back ground, and Lorelai found Luke's lips tenderly on hers, much softer than she expected.

When he pulled back, she rubbed her lip gloss from his lips. "Happy New Year, Babe."

"Happy New Year, Lorelai," He answered, kissing her again but a little harder.

"Mmmmm," She hummed as his lips broke from hers and began to trail across her jaw line. His hands slid down her side, kneading her hips as he backed her up against the stair rail. "That feels nice."

"That's what I was going for," Luke mumbled.

"You know what else I haven't done to ring in the new year before?" Lorelai murmured as her hands slipped into the waistband of his sweatpants.

"I think I've got a pretty good idea," he growled as her hands groped lower.

Looking at him with a naught grin, she raised her eye brows challengingly. "Let's ring in the new year with a band."

"Bang?" He questioned her with an arched brow. "Dirty."

"I meant it that way." Sliding away from him, she started to saunter up the stairs, a jaunt hinting her step as she knew he was watching. When she reached the landing, she looked back at him over her shoulder. "You coming?"

"Just taking a second to admire what's mine," Luke grinned, not so subtly scanning her frame.

"Well, hurry up. We need to make some fireworks on our own."

Chuckling, he shook his head and moved towards her, chasing her quickly up the stairs and into the room, her laughter echoing in the hall.

A/N: I think... I THINK I may have broken through my writer's block! *fist pumps* I don't know what it was, but there was something about this chapter that was super hard to write. I thought about uploading it on Saturday, but I think the site was down. (Did anyone else have issues?) Anyway, this chapter is FINALLY up, and I have already started a little bit of the next chapter. For some reason the ideas are flowing, so I am definitely not going to question it and I'll keep writing. Thank you all for being so patient and for reading/reviewing! It makes me so happy to know that you have enjoyed my writing so far, so let me know how you feel about this chapter too.