Lorelai opened her eyes to find an unfamiliar ceiling staring back at her. Well, not totally unfamiliar, but definitely not the one form her bedroom, she was pretty sure.
She sat up on the couch and brushed the hair out of her face. She choked on her yawn when it hit her.
Oh my god. Oh my god.
She had fallen asleep on top of Luke. She had, technically, slept with Luke. Woah. Lorelai ran a hand across her face and fought against a smile. She could still smell him on the cushions; his Luke-ness had imprinted itself of her clothes.
Lorelai fell back on the couch, hugging herself and grinning like an idiot. Did this mean he liked more as more than a friend? Maybe he would even ask her out! Her heart soared at the possibility.
Her hopes surged along with it when she spotted a sticky note on the couch, with Luke's unmistakable sideways scrawl. She read it once, then read it again.
'Thanks for inviting me. It was nice. Maybe we can do something a little different next time. — Luke'
Lorelai tilted her head at the scrap of paper, debating what he meant. Ugh, she hated when people left her super brief messages. It always felt like she had to decode them and search for clues.
"Thanks for inviting me" was pretty straightforward. He was being polite and thanking her for the Movie Night. But 'inviting me'.. did that mean if she wanted to do this again, SHE had to be the one to invite HIM? Maybe it meant he wanted HER to dictate what came next in their relationship, before he revealed what HE wanted.
"It was nice." Generic completement. Did that mean it was just "nice" to him? Because to Lorelai, sleeping next to him had felt pretty frickin' phenomenal. Maybe it was a clue that he wasn't as hung up on it as she was… Or maybe he was saying he had liked it? Maybe.
"Maybe we can do something a little different next time" was the kicker.
"Next time" implied that there would BE a next time, like Luke had enjoyed himself enough to want a next time. That was good. But… "something a little different" made Lorelai pause, her heart jumping in her chest in an involuntarily fight/flight reaction.
Something a little different to her meant not what they did last night. And last night had been, to her at least, pretty perfect. Did.. did that mean Luke didn't think it was perfect? Oh god, now that she thought about it, he was probably super uncomfortable the whole time! He had wanted to watch a movie, not get cozy with some woman on a massive sugar-crash!
Lorelai's good mood shriveled inside her when she thought of the implications.
What if he was disgusted by her? What if he had hated last night, or.. OR what if he hadn't even stayed? That would explain the need for a note! Luke probably left as soon as she fell asleep. She had manipulated him into letting her sleep on his shoulder without even realizing it! He was too nice to say no!
Okay, this was bad. This was REALLY bad. Now Lorelai was rethinking everything about last night. If Luke really hadn't wanted her to sleep on top of him, he would have said something right? Then she remembered: he DID say something. He had asked her what she was doing, in that stiff, choked voice he used when he was trying to contain his emotions. Usually anger. Oh god, was he mad at her?
Lorelai needed to sort this out. She needed to talk with him. Plus, he had coffee, which sounded really REALLY good right about now.
She woke Rory up gently, telling her she was heading Luke's, and hesitated when the sleepy girl asked to wait up, that she wanted to tag along. Rory, brushing sleep out of her eyes, noticed Lorelai's hesitation and tilted her head at her.
"Mom, is everything okay? Are you and Luke in a fight?"
"What? No!" Lorelai yelped, distracted and accidentally catching her finger in the heel of her shoe as she pulled it on, "No, Luke and I are.. fine, we're fine. Everything's fine. What, did he say something to you?"
Rory narrowed her eyes at the older woman. "No… but he was here when I got home last night." A cheeky smile spread across the young girl's face. "You two looked pretty cozy, so I didn't wake you."
"Aaaahhh," Lorelai groaned, covering her blushing face with her hands, "I'm so embarrassed about that! Like, how do you react after sleeping on top of someone?"
"Dirty," Rory added.
"Yeah, but not just that! I mean, is it just a coinkydink, or dya think this is yet another foreshadowing thing, like a When Harry Met Sally situation?"
"I dunno," she answered, narrowing her eyes, "Do you WANT it to be a When Harry Met Sally situation?"
Lorelai spluttered, realizing her mistake in the mini-rant. "I— I don't know. I mean, maybe? But this is Luke we're talking about. Luke."
"Yes, Luke," Rory said calmly, looking at her mother with an amused glance, "the guy who's had a thing for you for like six years and counting. Luke. The guy who would literally do ANYTHING for you! Yeah, I know you're 'just friends', but I don't think that discounts the opportunity for more."
Lorelai blushed and nodded, wondering when her little girl had gotten so grown up. "Yeah, I— I guess."
She waved a hand, dismissing the topic quickly. "We'll just see how it goes. Play it by ear, roll with the stones, eh, Angie?"
Rory grinned, the reference not lost one her. "Hold your Wild Horses there, or else you won't get no satisfaction!"
Lorelai pantomimed a poorly-done air guitar before bounding out of the room, humming a mismatched mixing pot of all the songs they had just referenced.
Rory rolled out of bed and pulled on some clothes, shaking her head at her mother's cluelessness. At least she was finally getting there, noticing Luke as more than a friend. She wondered absentmindedly who would win the betting pool. Quickly pulling on her socks and shoes, Rory met her mom at the door, and they walked arm in arm to Luke's talking a mile a minute about whatever came to mind.
Rory graciously refrained from remarking on Lorelai's nicer than usual outfit of a cute blouse, light sweater, and very tight jeans. She smiled. It was about time Lorelai opened her eyes, and saw what was right in front of her.