Chapter 37: Drop-outs and Drop-ins
Rory sat in front of her laptop at her desk, putting the finishing touches on a last minute article requested by her boss. She had a feeling it would happen, as she knew the publication wouldn't be able to resist an article on the Obama family's Christmas plans.
As she looked at the photos of the family, she wondered what it must be like to watch one of your parents running for president at that age. It made her think of the milestones she'd been privy to in her mother's life and she smiled proudly, grateful for the atypical circumstances surrounding her existence. If Obama was elected, she hoped his daughters would see things similarly. She let out a sound and added a few lines in her article to express that sentiment.
She scanned through her writing one final time before sending the draft to Scott, then grabbed her phone to reply to the ongoing conversation with Miles. She hadn't expected to miss him on this particular trip. She had never missed him before. But the two of them had become better friends in the last two months, and she'd been finding him less bothersome than she had in the past. It was strange not having him around.
"April?" Rory called, looking for her step-sister. They were due to leave for the much anticipated tour of April's boarding school shortly, and April had nervously changed her clothes three separate times. She'd gotten upset with Luke's attempts to calm her down, reminding him that as a man, he couldn't possibly understand her clothing dilemma. Next, she'd resisted Lorelai's offer to help, claiming she always looked perfect without having to try, and Rory hadn't heard much since then.
She tapped on April's door, and was relieved to see a much calmer teenager in front of her as the door opened.
"Good choice," Rory smiled, gesturing to April's grey tights, navy wool skirt, and sweater. It was more bland than anything April would've normally chosen, but always eager to add a little quirkiness to her look, April had added a necklace and earrings she'd gotten from Liz for Christmas and a bracelet decorated with little turquoise embellishments. "I wanted to tell you that my first interview with Yale was completely sprung on me by my grandfather and I had on jeans and a t-shirt. Yale, April. So you're already way ahead of the game."
April took a deep, cleansing breath, "Thanks. Are Dad and Lorelai mad? I didn't mean to blow up at 'em, they were just... trying too hard. You know how parents can be."
"I'm sure Luke only used up a few boxes of tissue," Rory teased. "I'm going downstairs for coffee, you want some or you want to hide from the parental types a little longer?"
April turned to grab her notebook, and slid it into her bag before joining Rory in the doorway again, "I'm good. Let's caffeinate."
The two entered the kitchen to find Luke finishing breakfast dishes, and he eyed his daughter warily. Rory laughed as April patted him on the back and apologized for her earlier outburst. After splitting the meager amount of remaining coffee between two mugs, Rory began making another pot.
"Where did Mom run off to?" she asked.
"Taking the dog for a walk before we leave," Luke rolled his eyes, "Paul Anka has developed a fear of large snow drifts lately, so he's stuck to the back yard, and now that the snow's melted a little, she figured she'd indulge him."
"That dog is so odd," April shook her head.
"Says the one who he keeps sneaking off to sleep with," Rory said as she finished preparing April's coffee. She handed her the mug and sat on a stool at the island, "You should've heard the guilt trip my mom was trying to give him last night."
"Oh, he's still odd. I'm not complaining about his chosen bedroom, though. Keeps me nice and toasty."
"You shouldn't let him sleep on the bed with you," Luke frowned.
"Tired of him stealing your spot?" Lorelai called as she entered the kitchen, draping Paul Anka's leash over its designated hook on the wall. "I told you we should've gotten the king-sized bed."
"The bed is for two people, and two people fit fine." Luke pointed at Paul Anka as he trotted happily into the kitchen, "You have your own bed, furball."
"Which I'm leaving in April's room," Lorelai grumbled. "If he likes it in there so much, he can sleep in there full time."
"Please," Rory rolled her eyes, "You'll move it back the second you and Luke get back from dropping us off at the airport."
"Nope," Lorelai replied, knowing full well Rory was right. "Oooh, who made more coffee?"
"Me, because you drank almost the entire first pot on your own. That's for me and April," Rory stood and pulled the travel mugs she and April had gotten in their stockings out of the cupboard, pouring the majority of the pot's content into both, then gestured to the remaining contents, "There, you can have the rest. That is, afterall, what you left us."
Lorelai rolled her eyes and poured the leftover coffee into her own travel mug, then followed Luke upstairs, watching as he changed into a nice pair of pants and stared into the closet.
"Well, maybe I'm biased, but I'd be impressed if you showed up like that," she observed, grinning. Luke chuckled and she followed him into their walk-in closet, leaning against the doorway. "Do we know if the people we're meeting are male or female?"
"Uh, a Mr. Hotchkiss, the dean of students, I guess is the main person. When I talked to him on the phone, he wasn't specific about the other faculty that would be there," Luke glanced over his shoulder with a smirk, "So, no, I don't think anyone would be impressed by me showing up without a shirt. Nevermind that it's freezing outside."
"His loss," Lorelai sighed dramatically and reached for a light blue button-down shirt, handing it to him. "Do you still have that coat my mother got you our first Christmas together?"
"Downstairs closet with your coat museum," Luke replied and wrinkled his nose as Lorelai grabbed the navy cashmere scarf her mother had bought him this Christmas from the bedroom, "Really?"
"Yeah. I know you can afford to send April here, but Mr. Hotchkiss doesn't. You have to at least look the part until she's in," Lorelai grabbed a tie-dyed shirt from her dresser and held it up, "Once she's in, I'll let you borrow this and a pair of cut-offs for the first day."
"What if I say something stupid?" April asked quietly as they walked to the school's administration office.
Luke reached over and squeezed her shoulder. He knew her propensity to ramble when she was nervous almost exceeded Lorelai's rambling abilities, but he also knew that when it came to school, she thrived under the pressure. He'd seen it at her math contest the previous year and while studying for tests.
"I kinda wish Mom was here," April said nervously. "No offense, Dad, I'm glad you, Lorelai, and Rory are here, especially since they've been through these kinds of schools, but it's a big deal and it's the first really big thing aside from science camp I've done, and-"
"I get it, you don't need to explain yourself," Luke replied, putting his arm around her as they walked. "You know, I have no idea what it's like to interview for a fancy school like this, but when I finished sixth grade - that wasn't part of middle school when I was a kid - I hated that my mom wasn't there for it."
He felt Lorelai's hand tighten around his as they walked and he returned the gesture.
April nodded and leaned against him for a moment, "I'm gonna call her as soon as we're done."
"I think that's a good idea."
Luke gazed at the surroundings as they approached the austere colonial building that housed the administration offices. Its bright white pillars and accents shone in the sunlight, a stark contrast against the dark red brick. Nothing was out of place, cracked, or dirty, and Luke wondered if perhaps the janitorial staff was stuck working through the holidays.
Once indoors, he was surprised at the red and gold marble, which provided an unexpectedly warm ambience. An older man approached the group of four, holding his hand out as he made eye contact with Luke.
"Mr. Danes? I'm Mr. Hotchkiss, I believe we spoke on the phone. I trust your holidays were pleasant?"
"Very, thank you." Luke replied, finding himself growing a little nervous as well. He cleared his throat and gestured to Lorelai, "This is my wife, Lorelai, and her daughter, Rory."
Mr. Hotchkiss nodded and smiled warmly, shaking their hands as well, "And where do you attend school, Rory?"
"Oh!" Rory chuckled, "Actually, I graduated from Yale in June."
"Rory's a journalist," Luke added proudly.
"Oh, very good," he nodded, "Well, that's very impressive. April, I believe you'd mentioned Yale as a potential interest in your application as well. It's important to have a support system, and if you have similar aspirations as your sister, her knowledge and experience may be of help to you. Now, if you'll follow me, first I'd like to show you some of the common areas, and I know April expressed interest in our swim team, equestrian center, and science labs as well, so we'll make sure each of these is covered. Before we begin, does anyone have any questions?"
Lorelai hung back as she watched April gaze at the pool in awe.
"You know this Hotchkiss guy?" Rory asked quietly.
"Nah, he wasn't here back then," Lorelai replied. "Actually, this pool wasn't either, they must have upgraded it."
"Like you ever spent any time near an athletics center."
"Um, excuse me, I broke into my school long before you ever tried that. They keep the pool heated throughout the year. Nothing like a midnight swim party during winter break."
Rory giggled, "Did you get caught?"
"Of course not. There were a few seniors and they'd spent all four years becoming good friends with the janitorial staff who, stupidly, looked the other way on several occasions."
Lorelai smiled as April's awe turned into excitement upon hearing Mr. Hotchkiss speak in more detail about their swim team. Seeing April's nervousness fade caused Luke's to taper off slightly as well, and Lorelai's smile widened as he spoke a little more freely with the dean.
After the tour commenced, the dean asked to speak with April alone, leaving Rory, Luke, and Lorelai in the office lobby. Lorelai noticed a bookshelf filled with yearbooks split up by decade. Finding the 1980's section, she pulled one of the books out, flipped through it with a smirk, and handed it to Rory. It wasn't open to a page of portraits, but rather a few candids, and Lorelai pointed to one as Luke peered over Rory's shoulder.
"I just look fat, but you can see little fetus Rory under my sweater vest here." Lorelai pointed to a girl at her locker, scowling unmistakably.
"You don't look fat, you look pregnant. You're scrawny with a belly, and man, you look pissed," Rory laughed.
"I'd probably just puked in the bathroom," she pointed to the girl standing next to her, "Only person in my entire group of, quote unquote friends that visited us in the hospital."
"Where'd she wind up?"
"No idea. She moved a few months later, and we weren't that close. She was nice, though. Brought you a stuffed bunny."
Rory turned to the portraits and saw a photo of her mother she'd seen at her grandparents' house. For as grumpy as the girl in the candid looked, this one was smiling brightly, a mischievous glint in her eye; she had no idea that it would be the last of her official high school pictures.
"Whatever happened to your yearbooks?" Rory asked curiously.
"Didn't finish the year, so I didn't get one. The only reason I know those photos are in there is because I saw your dad's. My freshman yearbook is somewhere at your grandparents' house, though," Lorelai shut the book as Rory handed it back, and walked away to put it back on the shelf, careful to ensure it looked as though it had never been touched.
Rory turned to Luke, "You still have your yearbooks?"
"No, was never much for school or photos, and I didn't keep most of my track stuff aside from the trophies. I think I let Kirk borrow the letterman jacket once for a Halloween costume a decade ago, and never got the damn thing back."
"Well, that's Kirk," Rory nodded, unsurprised. "He probably stained it and was too embarrassed to tell you."
"Or gave it to some dumb girl and told her it was his," Luke grumbled. He rubbed his hands together nervously as he sat on the bench outside the office, "They've been in there awhile."
"Transcripts, interests, social activities. Oddly personal questions..." Rory thought back as she joined him, "You know, she's actually lucky, my Chilton interview was over the phone, and it was painfully awkward because I couldn't see Headmaster Charleston's face, so I couldn't gauge his reactions. I had a few very unimpressive answers to some things because I thought his silence meant he was waiting for more, and I rambled worse than Mom when she's nervous. Ugh," she shook her head at the memory. "My point is, April is a far better interviewer, and she's doing it in person, so she has the advantage of obvious social cues," she patted Luke's knee, "Relax a little."
Several more painful minutes passed, and Luke shot up the second the door opened, nearly knocking Lorelai off the bench. She and Rory exchanged an amused glance as they stood - far more slowly - and watched April pause outside the doorway to shake Mr. Hotchkiss's hand.
"April, it's been a pleasure. Mr. Danes, Mrs. Danes, Rory, thank you for your time and for bringing April today. I'm sure we'll all be speaking again soon," he smiled.
April was giddy the entire walk to the car as she discussed the details of her interview, both to the three adults with her, as well as her mother on the other end of the phone, ensuring wouldn't have to tell the story twice.
Rory watched her own mother closely as they drove home. Aside from the yearbook, and the story about the pool, she'd been uncharacteristically quiet. She could tell Luke noticed as well as he grinned at April's excitement, but never dropped his wife's hand as they walked.
Once home, April ran up to her room to finish telling her mom about the tour, and Luke went upstairs to change, while Lorelai kicked off her heels and dropped onto the couch. Rory pulled her legs up under her as she sat in one of the living room chairs.
"Pretty weird for you today, huh?" Rory asked.
Lorelai took a deep breath before replying, "Yeah."
"You were pretty quiet. Too many bad memories?"
"That's the weird thing," Lorelai dropped her head on her hand as she leaned her elbow on the armrest. "It wasn't all bad memories. I mean, there's a layer of gloom that kind of wafts through it all, but there's a little sunshine here and there too. It's weird looking at it from such a different perspective now, and seeing April so entranced by it all, when it was never that exciting or thrilling for me."
Luke walked downstairs, pushing the sleeves of his long sleeved t-shirt up his forearms as he bent down to start a fire. Once he had a flame going, he moved the screen into place and stepped back, brushing his hands on his jeans as he walked over to join Lorelai on the couch.
"What was your interview like?" he asked.
"Didn't have one," Lorelai shrugged, "My private school filtered to three different prep schools in the area, Putnam Hall was one of 'em."
"And you had the highest GPA in your private school, would have been valedictorian for your eighth grade class if you hadn't turned down the offer, and Grandma says you did choose Putnam Hall, and of the three, it was the hardest to get into," Rory looked at her mother with a raised eyebrow, "You were accepted without an interview because all three wanted you with or without it."
"Something like that," Lorelai glanced at Luke and, seeing the look on his face, dropped her hand on his leg, "Don't look so impressed, hon, there's a few things missing in that story."
"Like what?" Rory frowned, curious to know of the holes that filled in the story her grandmother had told her years ago.
"Like I was expected to do all of that. If I hadn't made the choice to go to Putnam Hall, the choice would've been made for me. I picked it to beat them to the punch, not because I actually wanted to go." The room was quiet for a few minutes, only the sounds of the crackling fire keeping the silence at bay. "There were a lot of expectations with them, Rory. It's why I was very careful never to place those on you. You've always had your own, and double the expectations is a very heavy load for a child to carry."
"What would you have done if you hadn't had me?" Rory asked, curiously. When it came down to it, she'd been Lorelai's one way ticket out of that life.
Lorelai thought for a moment and looked up at Rory as a smile spread across her face, "I have no idea, and I am forever grateful that I never had to find out."
Rory nodded, smiling slightly in response, but feeling an overwhelming sadness for the differences in their lives. Even when she'd dropped out of Yale and run off with that damn yacht, her mother's only requirement was that she not give up on school. In retrospect, she was relieved the damage caused by her choices at the time hadn't been permanent; she still kept a countdown to the date when she could hire a lawyer to get the awful mistake purged from her record. She knew if she ever left Blast, it could very well work against her professionally.
April bounded into the room, phone in hand, providing a much needed charge in the solemn energy permeating the room.
"Mom got another call while we were talking. I have a second interview already. I guess it's more like interviews plural, because I have a phone call with the head of the science department and a big one with the head of the school lined up when I get back to New Mexico."
"Way to go, April!" Lorelai grinned, leaning forward to high-five her stepdaughter.
"Thank you! And thank you guys so much for coming. Mr. Hotchkiss mentioned how great it was to see a family like ours work so well together, he usually winds up with the worst of it with blended families. Little does he know... but anyway, I guess Mom talked to him for a long time when he first called, and I have no idea what she said, but it made him interested to see what the dynamic was like."
Luke stood, a proud smile on his face, both for what she'd said about her family, and for her accomplishment, and gave her a big hug.
"Well, I think we should celebrate. April, what do you want for dinner?"
"Chinese takeout. And I know, Dad, not Al's, that's fine. I just really want some egg rolls and lo mein right now, and maybe... some pie?"
Luke rolled his eyes and made eye contact with Lorelai, who was now grinning proudly for an entirely new reason.
"I'll take care of the Chinese food order if you take care of either making or running to the diner for pie," Lorelai suggested.
"Fine. It's now sleeting out, but I'll pick up some celebratory pie," he poked April, "You're coming with since you dragged me into this."
"Fine by me," April grinned, "Just let me change into jeans real quick and we can go."
After Luke and April left, Rory and Lorelai worked on their order. As Lorelai left the living room to call it in, Rory watched Paul Anka staring morosely out the window at the nasty weather. She glanced down at her phone, wondering why Miles hadn't replied to her last text, and decided to pout along with the dog for a few minutes. Their mutual pity party was interrupted by the doorbell ringing.
Rory's jaw dropped as she looked through the peep hole, and she quickly pulled open the door.
"I've got five types of fancy, high-end chocolate, some local, some imported, plus fresh whipping cream from a local dairy. No homemade marshmallows, 'cause those take too long. And I know you're going to say, 'Miles, you're a pest, I will see you in two days, why are you at my house?' and to that I say, 'Rory, I brought you the ingredients for the best hot chocolate you'll ever taste, I just drove four hours, it's sleeting, and I have to pee. Will you please just let me in?'"
Rory laughed and stepped aside, ushering him in, "You're insane!" she shut the door behind him and gave him a quick hug. "What are you doing here?!"
"I wanted hot chocolate," Miles shrugged, grinning.
"You came all the way to Connecticut to have hot chocolate."
"Yes. I was out shopping for ingredients, and the closest place that had what I wanted was a two hour drive. I wondered how far that was between Burlington and Stars Hollow, and it was about halfway. So I packed a bag and figured I'd see if my old friend Rory was up for some cocoa."
"Old friend," she chuckled. "Well, uh, we don't really have a guest bedroom."
"Nah, don't need one. Got a room at that fancy little Dragonfly Inn thanks to a storm somewhere between here and Chicago canceling a bunch of flights, and therefore a handful of reservations. Bummer for your mom, though."
Rory shook her head, still shocked to see Miles standing there, in Stars Hollow, in her house, right in front of her face. Before she could reply, she heard her mother's voice call from the kitchen.
"Rory, I don't think I've ever spent that much money at China Garden in our entire lives!" Lorelai stopped in the middle of the hallway and stared at the front door several feet away. She quickly buried the shocked look on her face, recognizing the person in front of her from countless photos, and smiled invitingly, "Hi there. How do you feel about Chinese take-out?"
"I feel pretty good about it most of the time," Miles nodded, his grin widening as he realized he was finally meeting the only-slightly-less-of-a-pest-than-he-was woman he'd heard so much about.
Rory rolled her eyes, "Mom, Miles Evenson. Miles, my mother, Lorelai Gil-ah-Danes. Danes. Sorry. Still not used to that."
Lorelai shrugged and walked toward the young man who'd been the primary subject in Rory's stories over the last few months and shook his hand, "Great to finally meet you, Miles." She turned to Rory, who was watching with amusement as the two people who'd both expressed interest in meeting finally encountered each other. "I added a few things to our order to round it off. We've nearly ordered half the menu. I don't know about you, but I'm impressed. Gonna call Luke and tell him to bring home a few extra pies. Miles, do you have a pie preference?"
"I'm sure Rory's told you about the dry crusty things passing for pies that we've had on the road. I'll have anything not fitting that description."
"Excellent," Lorelai replied, and left to call Luke, leaving out the reason for the extra pies until he arrived and could see for himself.
Rory glanced at the bag of hot chocolate ingredients in his left hand and pointed at it, "Let's take that to the kitchen, I'll point you to the bathroom, and then I'll give you the tour."
Miles nodded, following Rory down the hall and into the kitchen. He set the bag on the island and looked around, "This kitchen is gorgeous. And so odd for two women who don't cook."
"Luke cooks, smartass, you know that," Rory glared, pulling cream and milk out of the bag and placing it in the refrigerator, "Anything else need to go in the fridge?"
"The chocolate."
"Isn't that gonna melt down or something anyway?"
Miles held up a hand, "Trust the hot chocolate master, here, okay? Chocolate in the fridge. The rest can sit out."
"Fine, fine," Rory replied, adding the chocolate to the refrigerator and putting the bag in the large pantry nearby. "So this is the kitchen."
"Home to ol' man Luke-"
"If you want to live through the rest of the day, you'll want to avoid calling the man that, especially in his own house."
Miles saluted, "I'm on my best behavior from this point on. Where's the restroom, and then I want to see library I've heard so much about."
Rory grinned and pointed him to the downstairs bathroom and, a few minutes later, led him back down the hallway and into the library, pointing out the different sections and plans for the future. Miles glanced briefly at the books and, like most people, immediately zeroed in on the pictures of her and April on the mantle.
"You've seen most of those on my laptop," Rory pointed out, crossing her arms in front of her as she watched him.
"Sshhh, you'll ruin the experience."
"There's more you haven't seen in the living room, if fireplace mantle photo galleries are your thing."
Miles laughed, "Any photo galleries are my thing. Lead the way, Gilmore."
"Whose car is that out front?" Luke asked as he set the bag of pies down on the kitchen counter.
Lorelai grinned mysteriously and leaned against the counter, "Rory has a gentleman caller."
"Here?" Luke asked, confused. "Someone we know? Tell me it's not Dean again."
Lorelai snorted, "Yeah, sure, Luke, it's Dean. He was so inspired by our third try, he thought he'd give it one last go, and Rory swooned right in the entryway when he professed his undying... no, Luke, not Dean. That's why I called about the extra pie."
He rolled his eyes and followed her into the living room. He heard an unfamiliar male voice upstairs and cocked his head, "Lorelai just tell me who-"
He was interrupted by the voices clearly headed down the stairs and glared as Lorelai poked him hard in the ribs.
"It's Miles, her photographer. Do not scare him off, he's a friend, not a suitor, as far as we know, anyway. Put the possessive father figure bit back in your pocket, bud, he's a nice guy."
Luke sighed and shrugged off his jacket, walked to the hall closet to put it away, then returned to the living room to argue his case that he wasn't always that overprotective. Realizing he had yet to actually prove that, he decided to stoke the fire while he waited for Rory and Miles to make their way into the living room. He saw April smirking out of the corner of his eye and shot her a warning look. Everyone, it seemed, was expecting him to overreact to Rory having a male friend in the house.
"Luke, April!" Rory smiled as she entered the living room, "This is Miles, the photographer I work with on the road. Miles, this is my step-dad, Luke, and step-sister April."
Luke smiled warmly, earning a surprised look from Rory, and shook Miles' hand, then stepped aside so April could do the same. It was Luke's turn to look surprised when Rory explained how Miles had wound up in Stars Hollow. He noticed the enamored expression on April's face as she heard the story, and bit back a groan. There were times he desperately missed the younger girl he'd met two years ago who'd been so interested in a boy she barely spoke to the kid. Now, she swooned over boys, romantic movies, and someone Rory may or may not even be interested in.
An hour later, April and Miles were caught up in a discussion about some of the places they'd both visited in New Mexico, and April was impressed at the amount of locations Miles had been able to get to that weren't open to the general public. Rory noticed her mother and Luke had been conspicuously absent, and excused herself to join them in the kitchen. She knew they were trying to give the younger crowd a little space, but it was starting to come off as strange more than unimposing.
"Hiding?" Rory addressed the couple talking quietly at the kitchen table.
Lorelai laughed as she regarded her daughter, "No, Luke was hooking my Christmas present up in the bedroom." She held up the manual for her new TV.
"And now?"
"We were going to make out, but you've ruined that plan, thanks kid."
"Oh, like my presence has ever stopped you before," Rory smirked as she watched Luke's ears turn red.
"April and I think it's hot chocolate time," Miles announced, poking Rory in the back as he walked into the kitchen. "Rory, I need an assistant."
"Uh, I don't-"
"It's easy, I promise."
Rory shot her mother a panic face, and turned to Miles as he placed a heavy bar of chocolate in her hands. "You realize this is the fourth day I've ever lived in this house and have no idea where anything is."
"So, you're resourceful on the road, but not in the kitchen?" Miles teased, "I'm sure you'll figure out a way to find the facts about where things are. First, we'll need a whisk, a bowl, grater, a cutting board, knife, measuring cups, and a teaspoon."
Rory rolled her eyes and looked at Luke, "What he said, where are those things?"
Rather than getting up to take over as the assistant, as Rory had hoped, Luke called out the locations of each item, avoiding eye contact with Lorelai entirely lest either of them start outright giggling over the situation.
"If it's too thick," Miles explained as they reclined in the living room with their mugs, "You can add milk. I try to thin it down, but it's still a little thicker than you're probably used to."
"Noooo," Lorelai moaned as she sipped her mug, "This is amazing. Thanks for sharing."
"I know, I can't believe you drove over four hours to make hot chocolate for Rory and three people you've never met." April said, still awed over the gesture.
Rory smiled with amusement as she watched Miles observe the people he'd heard countless stories about. She was enjoying seeing him in a relaxed setting, outside of work. This was the lighthearted Miles she'd seen on a handful of occasions, far more quick to laugh and smile than the introverted photographer he became on the road.
"-a little coffee river right down the middle of the bus," she heard Miles say several minutes later, breaking her reverie.
"Wait a minute!" Rory pointed at Miles, "You're the one that knocked my coffee over in your sleep, Eric's the one that kicked it away. None of that was my fault. If you'd kept your feet away from my side of the bus, and Eric had just grabbed it instead of acting like he was five, there wouldn't have been an issue," she glanced at her mom and Luke, "Anyway, Kyla and I did the best we could to mop it up, but that's why the bus now has a slight aroma of coffee."
"Oh, but what an aroma," Lorelai grinned.
Miles laughed, and Rory encouraged him to tell the rest of the room about Batu. She could tell he was starting to grow weary of being the center of attention, but he relented and added in a few more stories she hadn't heard about his time in Mongolia.
After hot chocolate and pie, Luke left to spend a few more hours at the diner and close up, and April decided to join him, leaving Lorelai and Rory to entertain Miles. Rory glared at her phone as Scott Morrow called with a last minute addition to her Christmas story, and she ran upstairs to take the call.
"It's so weird to be meeting you for the first time. I feel like I already know you," Miles sat up and regarded his friend's mother.
Lorelai wrinkled her nose, "I can't even imagine the horror stories you've been told. Let me tell you, only half are probably true."
He laughed, "Nah, only a few horror stories. I kinda lived in my sister's shadow most of my life, even though she was younger. My childhood and Rory's are such a stark contrast... I tend to ask about her's a lot when we talk. It's like the stuff dreams are made of."
"I wouldn't really call Rory's childhood normal, and keep in mind, she may romanticize it a little in the re-telling," Lorelai replied, curious what Rory might have said. "It wasn't perfect. I wasn't perfect."
"You don't hear about a lot of teen moms raising Yale graduates."
"That's all Rory, not me."
"Not how she sees it," Miles grinned.
"Well I raised a crazy person, then. Anyway, I'm glad she's got a group of friends out there. I was worried she'd be too focused on work and wouldn't let herself have fun."
"Really," Miles said, raising his eyebrows in surprise, "Half the time, she's the one dropping the first text to get us all out of our caves. And I'm a perpetual hermit, so the fact that she's somehow managed to drag me into her crazy group of reporter friends says a lot."
Lorelai nodded with a smile, absorbing this news. Rory had never mentioned that, or even implied as much.
"More than that," Miles continued, "She... she's kind of a bridge, I guess you'd say, between the younger reporters and the more seasoned ones. Of course, she's not just the first to get career-obsessed reporters out to have fun, but she's also the one writing the best stories. She talks to the people she interviews, doesn't just hit them with a bunch of prying questions, so she weeds out the people who want to be heard from the people who actually have something interesting to say the way she does it. It's made me a better observer and photographer, following her lead that way."
"You know, when she was in high school, her first writing assignment at her school newspaper was about the parking lot being re-paved, and she turned it into a commentary on life."
"Why does that not surprise me?"
Miles and Lorelai exchanged a proud smile, and Lorelai was about to ask another question when Rory walked into the room, "And I'm done. I really hope I don't have to do that again every holiday until November. It's not all that interesting."
"Please, you could make a parking lot interesting," Miles teased.
"A parking lot?" Rory glared at her mother, "No Chilton stories."
"Just Chilton? Because I have these great debutante photos-"
"You show him mine, I'll show him yours, eighties girl."
"Ha! There are no such photos because my debutante ball never happened!"
"Ohhh, but posed photos did. Grandma gave me an album of old photos back in high school, and there were definitely debutante photos taken before I made the dress too tight. I don't think that shade of frosty blue eyeshadow worked even for you."
Lorelai gasped, "I didn't know she ever got those printed! Burn that!"
"No way!"
"Wait, wait!" Miles stood, his face beaming with amusement, "Rory, you were a debutante?!"
Rory pointed her finger at her mother, "This is all your fault!"
Author's Notes: Putnam Hall is very, VERY loosely based on the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, CT. Hence, the dean's name. And they do have a really nice pool (the school in general seems kind of awesome, but the biggest difference between Putnam Hall and Hotchkiss School is that PH is not a boarding school and HS primarily is). Figured if Amy can loosely base Chilton on a private CT prep school, I can too. ;) They never mention Lorelai's school in the show, but the blazer she's wearing in "Dear Emily and Richard" has a P and an H on it, so I let my imagination run.
I based the name off Israel Putnam, a historical figure from the New England area. According to folk tales, he killed Connecticut's last known wolf. Hence, my decision make the wolves their mascot (mentioned in a previous chapter)... which made me giggle incessantly. Yes, I'm weird. ;)
Miles' hot chocolate is based on several amazing recipes I've found online, and advice from a few friends who refuse to use the powdered stuff. Yum.
Can't tell you how weird it is to edit a winter chapter when it was 100ºF where I live in southern California today... thank goodness for air conditioning.
Four chapters to go...