A/N: I have no clever comments today, so I'm just gonna say thanks for the reviewage and please keep the feedback coming! :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see Prologue)

Chapter 35

Rory had been so determined to stay up until midnight for New Year. There had been talk of inviting Sookie and Jackson over, maybe Lane and Zach too, but people had their own plans, and in the end it was just the family of four sat around the TV to see the ball drop with Dick Clark's usual commentary. Even Mrs Rossini had declined the invitation to attend, stating she had seen quite enough New Year celebrations in her time. She was grateful to still be around for one more, but she valued her sleep too much to give it up.

As it was, just as soon as the moment was over, with hugs and kisses all round, Rory called it quits and went to bed. Jess willingly went with her, and Luke and Lorelai weren't far behind. It had been a nice night spent together, as they always were, but Rory was pretty sure she had never been this tired before in her whole life. On making some comment about that, she wasn't entirely happy to hear from her mom that it would only get worse after the baby came along. Rory couldn't think about that right now, she hadn't the brain capacity for it. She just needed sleep. Unfortunately, when her mind started to whir with possibilities, worries and concerns, it became completely impossible to rest properly. Beside her, Jess was already dead to the world, snoring a little, but not so much it should stop Rory getting to sleep. No, it was her own brain keeping her awake - it just wouldn't be quiet.

Forcing herself to think only of nice things and happy times, Rory even resorted to counting sheep in an attempt to fall asleep. Often she would read a book to help her drift off, but that would mean putting on a light and probably waking Jess, which wasn't fair. He was working so hard. Though he got a couple of days off for Christmas, Walmart had him back in most days since, and he had helped Luke out at the diner too. He was always rushing to and from either job, fetching and carrying for Rory too. If she wasn't already completely in love with him before, she had to be now. He was just being so wonderful about everything. Jess hadn't even complained too much when he realised he was going to have to attend Friday night dinner at the end of the week. Rory wasn't particularly looking forward to that either, but she would go and make nice because it was the right thing to do.

Heaving a big sigh, Rory shifted around under the covers, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in. That didn't come easy with her ever-expanding baby bump, pains in her back, and indigestion that was getting to be almost constant no matter what she did or didn't eat. She began counting in her head again, and thankfully this time, she barely made it to fifty before sleep claimed her at last.

There were bells ringing somewhere, and if Jess found out who it was making that noise he was going to do them some serious damage, of that he was pretty certain. He came to way too fast, squinting at the clock on the nightstand. The exact time was lost on him but it started with an eight, so he was not at all happy. Work weren't expecting him until four, and he and Rory were supposed to be catching up on some sleep here. Thankfully she was sleeping through what Jess had now figured out was the phone ringing. Lorelai and Luke would've left for work already, and so Jess rolled out of bed and wandered sleepily out into the hall in only his pyjama pants. He reached the phone just as the machine kicked in. Leaning heavily against the wall, he listened as the message started to be left.

'This is a message for Rory Gilmore and Jess Mariano. I just got word that an apartment has become available in New Haven. Ground floor, spacious, and with a good deal on the rent..."

That was as far as the realtor got before Jess grabbed up the phone.

"This is Jess Mariano," he said quickly. "Er, where exactly is this apartment?" he checked, looking around for a notepad and pen to take down the address and finding it just in time to do so.

In doing so, he noticed there was already some writing scrawled on the top sheet of the pad. Lorelai's handwriting said she and Luke left already to go to the inn and the diner respectively. She didn't want to wake them and hoped Rory felt better for the rest. Jess didn't have time to think about that right now as he jotted down the address of the apartment and gave the realtor his full attention.

"And we can see it today?" he asked.

"I would advise that you come over just as soon as you can," said the helpful lady on the other end of the line. "Obviously we don't usually even work January 1st, but the client wants a fast deal and these kinds of places do get snapped up pretty fast. I've got three other clients to inform as it is..."

"No," Jess cut in fast, knowing he and Rory had to see this place before anyone else.

It was a nightmare trying to find an apartment that was right for them. Ideally, they needed something on the ground floor so there wouldn't be the problems of non-functioning elevators or a multitude of stairways to carry the baby up and down, including stroller, groceries, and whatever else he or Rory might be carrying. It had to be big enough for two adults and a child, and in a decent enough neighbourhood that Rory would feel safe there alone, plus it couldn't be too expensive if they were going to afford it. So many caveats and addendums made it difficult to find the perfect place, but there was a chance this was it. Jess couldn't let it slide by - time was running out!

"Er, what if we came over now?" he asked then. "Could you let us see it before you called these other people, please?"

There was a long pause when Jess knew she was considering it, and he decided to play every card he had.

"The baby is due in eleven weeks and we really have to have a place by then, it's worrying the hell out of my fiancée," he explained, barely exaggerating actually, since Rory had experssed concerns before now. "Please, help me out here."

"Okay," she eventually gave in with a sigh. "But you would have to be at the apartment ready to view within the hour, otherwise..."

"We'll be there," Jess promised with the biggest grin on his face. "Thank you."

Moments later, the phone was back in the cradle and Jess was all but running back to the bedroom. Rory had woken up somewhere along the line, but she looked like she wished she wasn't.

"Sleep!" she moaned. "Why are you all upright and stuff? It's sleep day," she declared.

Jess shook his head as he crouched down by Rory's side of the bed.

"Sorry, sweetheart, but sleep's gonna have to wait," he told her, not surprised when she groaned and hid her head under the pillow.

"You're a crazy person!" she told him.

Jess tried not to laugh at her.

"Ror, c'mon!" he urged her to move, pulling the pillow away from her face. "That was Rosie, the lady from the realtors, on the phone," he explained. "She found us a place but we really, really have to go now. She's holding it for one hour, and if we're not there, she's going to offer it to other people."

Rory opened one eye and peered at him then.

"Does it sound good?" she asked sceptically.

"She's a realtor, she makes everything sound good," he shrugged. "But this could be it, Rory. This could be the apartment we've been waiting for. We can't miss it. Time's running out."

His words had two meanings and she knew it. The hour deadline he mentioned was ticking away as long as she laid there unmoving, plus the time they had left to find an apartment before the baby came along was getting less and less every day. Eleven weeks, that was all they had left. If this was a great apartment, and it could be, they really couldn't miss this chance.

With a groan, Rory fought to sit up and Jess helped her achieve it.

"Why did I have to give up real coffee?" she complained, pushing her hair back off her face.

Jess leaned down to kiss her forehead; "Because neither of us wants a son with two heads and ADD," he reminded her. "C'mon, we need clothes, unless you think the lack of will get us a discount."

"Mmm, this view could knock a few dollars off a price," she said with a smile, letting her hands run over Jess' bare chest. "But it's all mine, so Rosie doesn't get to see."

"Clothes it is," he agreed with a grin, planting another quick kiss on her lips before they both really did have to get to moving.

"Right on time," said Rosie as the car pulled up to the kerb and Jess helped Rory out into the sidewalk.

It seemed like a nice neighbourhood, not that there were exactly bad parts of New Haven, but less nice certainly. This was a decent and clean looking street, and the apartment block Jess and Rory had been expecting turned out to be a large converted house with just a half dozen apartments inside. It looked nice, homely, friendly if that was really an adjective one could apply to a building. Rory looked up at the facade and a smile came over her face. Somehow just seeing that reaction to the outside of the place, Jess had a feeling they had found their new home before they ever got inside.

Rosie took them in, reiterating the fact that she really was doing them a serious favour by letting them see the place before calling her other clients. Whether that was supposed to add pressure and force Rory and Jess into taking the place, neither was sure, but it really didn't make any difference anyway.

It wasn't the biggest apartment in the world. There was only one bedroom but it was big enough for both a double bed and a crib, plus all the storage the three of them should need. The bathroom wasn't huge, neither was the kitchen, but that wasn't a great concern, and there was a pretty decent-sized living room area that could be used for everything else. It would need redecorating, since Jess was pretty sure the last people who lived here were right out of the nineteenth century, but it was all clean and decent looking.

"What do you think?" he asked Rory as they completed their tour.

She looked out of the window at the lack of view and shrugged.

"All the important stuff is here," she told him. "I never cared much about a view or anything. It's in a good place, there's parking space, and okay, so the baby won't have his own room, but I don't think he would really need that right away, and..."

"Rory," he cut off her rambling when he realised she probably needed to breathe. "Yes or no?" he asked her simply. "Because I'm cool either way."

"Okay," she nodded then, a smile overtaking her face. "Yes. I love it!"

Rosie seemed almost as thrilled as the couple she had made a deal with. The paperwork was duly signed and by the time they drove back to Stars Hollow, Rory and Jess were the proud tenants of their very own apartment.

"This is so crazy!" Rory laughed, unable to help it. "Jess, we have an apartment! An apartment, and it's ours."

"It's ours for as long as we keep up payments on the rent," he reminded her. "But yeah, it's pretty much ours, I guess. Since Luke gave us half the diner, I can't imagine we'll fall behind," he considered.

"This is amazing. Jess, we have an apartment, half a diner, and a baby on the way," said Rory, one hand on her swollen stomach. "We're... grown-ups."

Her apparent sudden realisation and the odd expression on her face when he glanced at her made Jess laugh out loud.

"You just figured that out?" he checked. "Wow, and I thought you had to be really smart to go to Chilton and Yale," he teased her with a smirk that earnt him a smack across the arm with the lease they just signed.

"Be nice," she told him, though it was hard not to laugh herself. "Ooh, I should call Mom!" she suddenly gasped, reaching in her purse for her cell phone and speed-dialling.

Jess sat back and listened to Rory waxing lyrical about the apartment to her mother. Lorelai cheered so loud, he actually heard her from the driver's seat. Jess rolled his eyes at the excitement, because at the end of the day it was just an apartment, at least that was what he would have said in any other circumstances. The truth was, he couldn't really be so cold about this situation. Sure, they were renting an apartment, but they were going to make a home there. It was fine at the Gilmore girls' place, and Jess kind of felt like he belonged in a strange way, but it wasn't entirely home. With Rory, he would build a home at their apartment, the two of them and their son. It was still a little scary, Jess would admit that inside his own head at least, but he liked it. He liked it a lot.

Sunday morning started as Saturday had, with sleep. Lane had switched shifts with Jess so he didn't have to work until the afternoon and he and Rory tried for the second day in a row to get some serious sleep. It was almost eleven a.m. when Rory woke with a large yawn to find Jess already sat up against the headboard with a book in his hand. She smiled at the sight of him, bare chested with one arm behind his head and the Hemingway she bought him for Christmas in his other hand.

"Good morning," she sighed happily, looking up at him.

"Morning, sleepy head," he greeted her, as she moved to sit up beside him.

They shared a kiss and Rory curled into Jess' side without hesitation.

"I slept soooo well," she told him happily.

"Me too," he agreed, hugging her close with one arm.

Putting his book down on the nightstand allowed him to get a better hold of her, and he kissed the top of her head.

"How long have you been reading?" she checked.

Jess shrugged; "I barely got through one chapter before you woke up."

"Hmm, why can't every day be just like this?" she smiled happily. "This reminds me of New York when I first came to find you."

"When you first came to find me, I was sleeping on the floor," he reminded her.

Rory giggled; "You were a real gentleman."

"Yeah, well," Jess shrugged. "Now we're engaged, I don't have to be so decent anymore," he half-joked, leaning down to kiss her lips hungrily.

It was no fleeting moment as the passion rose between them. Lorelai had stayed over with Luke last night so there was no one else in the house, no worries of being interrupted. Of course, making love wasn't quite as it once had been with Rory being six months pregnant, but that wasn't going to stop her enjoying herself. Jess was making her feel all the best feelings right now and she was quite happy to let him continue. Unfortunately, just as they were getting seriously into things, the doorbell rang. Jess didn't even react, just carried on kissing her like nothing happened.

"Jess," Rory prompted him to stop a minute. "The door," she gasped more than spoke as her body reacted to his touch.

"If we ignore it, they'll go away," he said softly, not letting up for a second.

Rory wanted to believe that, she really did, but when the person beyond the door gave up on the bell and started knocking very loudly, she just couldn't.

"Jess," she said again, forcing herself to break away a little. "It might be important."

He knew she was right. There could be an emergency. Mrs Rossini might need them, or there might be a crisis at the diner. It was hardly the responsible adult thing to do to ignore it so he could get some, but honestly, Jess really wished he could go back to being a careless teenager right now, if only for an hour or two. Thirty minutes would've sufficed!

Jess was practically growling as he gave in and let Rory go, climbing out of bed and storming out through the bedroom door in his state of undress, not caring at all about that. Rory stayed put. Somewhere between the pregnancy and the things Jess had been doing to her, there was no way she was moving quickly if at all, and it really didn't take two people to answer the door. Whoever it was, whatever was happening, Jess would come back and tell her if she needed to know about it.

The persistent knocker was now slamming his hand against the door as Jess got out into the hallway.

"Alright, alright!" he yelled crossly. "This better be damn important, wise ass!" he continued as he tore open the door "Who the hell are you?"

"I could ask you the same thing," said the stranger on the front porch. "Rory!" he then called into the house.

Jess was amazed she could move as fast as she seemed to, suddenly appearing at his side, tying her robe around her quickly.

"Oh my God! Dad!" she gasped at the sight of him.

Jess looked from one to the other with wide eyes. So, he probably hadn't made the best first impression on Christopher Hayden. Oops?

To Be Continued...