Chapter 42
For the first couple of days, they only exchanged a few words if it was necessary. Luke supervised as Shelby baited her hook the way he showed her and cast it out onto the water. Once both lures were floating in the water, the two sat in silence.
Luke couldn't keep his mind off what happened. It had to be extremely terrifying to be involved in an accident. For both of them. He couldn't help beat himself up for allowing it. He was the one pushing them together. Luke thought for sure Rory could help Jess. Instead, it drove Jess away and caused him and Lorelai to be in a fight. The things he said alone bothered him, though he wasn't too thrilled about what she said to him. They were both upset. Honestly, who knows how he would react if it had been Shelby in Rory's position. Possibly he could have felt the same way if roles were reversed. If it had been both Jess and Shelby in an accident, Luke would have wanted to make sure both of them were okay, and he really was very glad Rory was okay too. He didn't know what he would have done if one or both of them came out worse. In fact, the guy had been going a little overboard, making sure Shelby had her seatbelt fastened before Luke even started the truck whenever they went anywhere.
As Luke let out a breath of air, he felt a hand on his arm. He looked down to see those eyes of his looking back at him and couldn't help smile. Leaning over, Luke touched his forehead to hers before leaning back. Shelby smiled a little for him. She leaned over and rested her head against his side while holding onto her small fishing pole, finally getting to use it. And it only took five months.
With everything that happened, he was glad the most important person in his life wasn't upset with him, and at the moment, nothing else mattered. Despite his disgust on sitting on the ground, Luke and Shelby ended up propped up against the log they were sitting on, sticking their fishing poles into the ground. So far, no fish seem to be biting, so basically they just laid there, listening to the sounds of the lake and its surroundings.
With no words or any kind of conversation, Luke and Shelby just laid there, enjoying each other's company. Eventually, Shelby drifted off to sleep sometime in the early afternoon. Her head dropped limp against his arm, getting his attention.
Since it was nice out without that much sun, Luke joined her. He closed his eyes until finally sleep overcame him. They woke up two hours later by some raindrops dropping on their faces. Luke opened his eyes first, hoping that was rain and not anything dropped by a bird. Sure enough, a spring shower started pouring, forcing the two to move things inside their tent until it was over.
While they listened to the rain, Luke got out his guitar to give Shelby another lesson, this time letting her have a go on her own. Compared to her size, the guitar practically overshadowed the kid. Shelby's right arm barely reached over the top to reach the strings. It was still enough for the kid to play, though.
"Yeah, that's it," he praised when Shelby strummed the right notes Luke was teaching her. They worked on Shelby getting Mary had a Little Lamb down, another easy song for beginners to learn. All that occupied their minds at the moment was music notes and lambs for about over an hour until she had it down and playing the song on her own. "You're gonna be the next Reba McEntire, kiddo." Shelby smiled at that since Reba was still a favorite of hers.
Eventually, Shelby wanted Luke to play something, choosing Life's a Dance first, singing it together as Luke strummed on his guitar. Luke had to admit, the song was fitting. It was surely a hard lesson to learn, one he hoped never had to learn again.
The next one Shelby sang on her own was One Voice, one of Billy Gilman's songs. That one worked for her vocals, Luke thought as he listened, strumming along as she sang the words. One could tell Shelby really sang it from the heart, putting all she had into it. Miss Patty couldn't be any more right when she said the kid had talent.
After the third song, Luke asked what it was Shelby wanted to be or do when she grew up and finished school since they hadn't really discussed it yet.
"Um, I don' know," she replied, honestly.
"No ideas at all?"
Shelby was sitting between her legs, leaning backwards while holding onto her heels. She stared at nothing, as if in thought.
"If you could be anything you want?"
"Ummm..." Shelby thought for a moment before she shrugged. "I don' know, Dad," she finally told him.
"Well, you have plenty of time to think about it," Luke assured her.
"Wha' did you wan' to be when you were a kid?" Shelby asked him, curiously. "Did you know?"
"Uh, well," Luke had to think back into his childhood on that one, staring up at nothing in particular. "Well, I remember wanting to be a professional baseball player when I was about your age, and when I got a little older and went through my hockey phase, I wanted to be a professional hockey player."
"Wha' happened? How come you never became a baseball player or a hockey player? Did you change your mind and worked in a diner, in'tead?"
Luke shrugged, leaning his arms on top of his guitar. "When your grandpa got sick and told me he was passing the store onto me, I figured I'd keep it going for him, even if it meant turning it into a diner. Sometimes, plans don't work out the way we want them to. Since I could also cook, that could be my career."
"Wha's going to happen to the diner when your gone?" Luke couldn't help notice the worried look she now wore.
"I don't know. Taylor'll probably buy it and turn it into something he'd want." He couldn't help shutter in disgust. Luke didn't want to think about Taylor getting his hands on the diner.
Suddenly, Shelby exclaimed, "No!" now looking like she just been traumatized or something.
"What, kiddo?" he asked, now concerned.
"Taylor can' have the diner," she shook her head. "I will make sure he don' ge' i'."
Luke smiled at that. But he didn't want his kid working in just a diner for the rest of her life, turning into a third-generation grumpy but kind-hearted Danes. He wanted her to do better than that. "That's great to hear you want to keep the place from Taylor, kiddo. You don't know how happy that makes me. But I'd rather you go to college and become something you'd enjoy doing."
"Wha' if I like working in the diner?" She stared up at him in confusion. "Don' you?"
"Yeah, I love it," he assured her. "But there's more out there than just working in a diner. Plus, my talent is cooking, that's why I opened a diner while yours could be something else. Who knows, maybe you will be the next Reba McEntire."
"Bu' I can' sing in fron' of a lo' of people," Shelby pointed out, sadly.
"Like everything, it takes practice. I know nothing about Reba or any other singer for that matter, but maybe they had a hard time talking as a kid and they had to learn to open up in front of others."
Shelby was now staring at the floor of the tent.
"Hey," he got her full attention again, "you can be anything you set your mind to, kiddo. Whatever you decide when you grow up, I'll back up one hundred percent, okay?"
Shelby nodded. "Okay."
Luke moved his guitar from his lap, setting it beside him, and called her over, afterwards. Shelby crawled over and climbed into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tight, kissing the top of her forehead in the small space her hat didn't cover.
"Love ya, kiddo."
"I love you too, Dad," she replied.
The spring showers ended up lasting through until late morning, the next day, so Luke made sandwiches for dinner inside the tent. Once the rain stopped, the fishing resumed. That was mostly what the two did the whole time. They ended up staying through the weekend and into the next week. Luke wasn't worried about Shelby missing much in school. Mrs. Avery had informed him they wouldn't be doing much for the last few weeks. Besides, he would help Shelby catch up on any work she'll miss.
Luke did other things with Shelby on their trip, like their hiking trips the two usually took in the mornings and played catch with each other. Mostly, he tried to keep both their minds occupied. It was harder to do while fishing, especially when Shelby wasn't saying much and neither was he. It wasn't until late Tuesday morning did he hear her finally say something while they sat there waiting on a bite. Actually, it was more like singing, but the words were unfamiliar to him.
"You'll be in my hear'. Yes, you'll be in my hear'. From this day on, now and forever, more." Over and over, Shelby sang those words to herself, just barely audible. He wasn't sure where she learned the words from.
Finally, Luke asked, "What's that you're singing?"
Shelby must have been deep in thought because when Luke spoke, she jumped out of her skin, looking up at him. Quickly looking away at the lake, she said, "A song from Tarzan. I saw i' on TV one time."
"Oh," he nodded. "It was stuck in your head so you started singing it, huh?"
The kid chewed on her lip, sucking it in. It looked like she was hesitating on telling him something more. "Jess was tear, too. I don' know why bu' I wen' over and..." She paused in mid-sentence, staring at the ground.
"And did what, kiddo?" Luke encouraged her to continue.
Her top teeth scraped against her lower lip for a long time. After a few minutes, Shelby managed to say, "I sang i' to him."
Luke smiled at his daughter's confession, wrapping an arm around her and rubbed her opposite arm. Not long after he started rubbing her arm, Shelby looked up at him.
"Do you 'till wan' to hear my 'tory abou' Jess?"
Luke had to think about what she was referring to. "Your..."
"Wha' Mrs. Avery was going to share a' ta mee-ting," she reminded him.
"Oh," his eyebrows rose at that. Luke completely forgot Shelby written a story about Jess, in school. That seemed so long ago, too, it was surprising Shelby still remembered herself. "Uh, sure. If you're ready to share it with me."
Shelby nodded. "Promise naw to tell no one?" she asked.
He agreed. "I promise. Do you remember what you wrote?"
Again, she nodded. "Some of i'," Shelby admitted. "I row ta' Jess and I have a lot of fun, toge-ter, and ta' he would watch ow for me, and make sure nobody messed wi' me." Shelby had to stop to remember more of what she wrote. "He said he never wan-ted a bro-ter or sis-ter, bu' I wasn' ta' bad. Tis wasn' par' of the 'tory because he jus' told me a couple weeks ago, bu' Jess told me I wasn' jus' his cousin anymore."
Luke asked with curiosity, "What were you?"
"He said if I told anyone tis, I was dead mea'."
He chuckled a little at the ground before looking back at her.
Shelby stared up at her dad, sadness returning by this point. Tears even appeared. Taking a breath first, she said, "Jess said I was..." her voice trembled, trying to get the rest of the words out. Luke rubbed his hand along her back. She managed to get the words out, but they ended up a mumbled choke. He told her to take a deep breath before repeating it. "J-Jess said I w-was like his baby sis-ter." One of those tears escaped, running down her cheek.
It caught Luke off guard. "Jess said that?"
She nodded before dropping her head towards the ground, sniffing in a few times.
He couldn't believe it. Luke knew Jess cared for his cousin, he didn't think Jess cared that much. Pulling her in, Luke hugged Shelby to him. "That's really great, Shell."
But she shook her head.
"You don't think that's great?" he asked as Luke resumed rubbing her arm.
Again she shook her head.
"How come?"
"Jess lef'." Shelby sniffed at the ground. "And he won' even call, jus' like Bailey."
His heart broke at the mention of her mentor. He tried to point out, "Your mom left, and she eventually called. We just have to give Jess some time."
Shelby raised her arm to wipe her eyes, not saying anything.
Luke tried to think of what to say that might help cheer her up, even for a little while. "There might even be a message waiting for us on the answering machine," he finally said after a minute or two.
Shelby just held her head against her dad's side. Ten minutes went by before she finally confessed, "Jess 'till taugh' me to figh'."
His head swiftly looked down at her.
"He wan-ted to make sure I could take care of myself in case nobody else could. Bu' he said don' do i' unless I really needed to."
Luke let out a sigh. Not about Jess still teaching Shelby how to fight. "Frankly, kiddo, there's been times I've had to defend myself too. I am a little disappointed Jess didn't listen when I told him not to, but at least he cared enough to make sure you could take care of yourself, so I'm not mad."
Shelby looked up at him. "I miss him." Fresh tears appeared before burying her face into his side.
"I know you do, kiddo," he told her, giving Shelby a comforting squeeze.
As it always did, the camping trip ended, and it was time to return to Stars Hollow. Shelby helped her dad pack everything up and load it into the back of the truck. Even though neither one of them caught anything, they were still satisfied with the trip. Oh well, there was always next time.
Shelby slept for most of the drive home but woke up just as they neared the town's outer limits, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands.
"Sleep okay?" he asked as she continued rubbing.
She nodded, still waking up.
It was dark out when Luke pulled up to the diner and parked on the street. Turning off the engine, he slid out, letting Shelby out on his side. While they were unloading, Shelby was the first to catch sight of Rory coming over and sprinted over to the older girl, hugging her around the legs.
"Whoa there," said Rory, surprised by the sudden attack. She held a good hand to the kid's head.
Luke also greeted her, cheerfully.
"You're back," she told them.
"We're back," he repeated.
"You catch anything?" Rory asked when Shelby let go.
"Nah," Luke replied, lifting the tailgate, "apparently the fish went fishing, also." He stepped back onto the sidewalk.
"Too bad."
"Yeah, well," he started to say, but that was when his gaze noticed her cast and paused on his words. He silently took in a breath. "So that's the, uh..."
"Yeah."
"Does it hurt?"
Rory looked her arm over. "No, not really. Just itches a lot," she told him.
"Yeah, I can imagine," he said with sympathy and added, "make sure you don't use a pencil."
"Excuse me?" Rory asked, confused.
"Your arm, you know, when it itches. I broke my arm once. Itching drove me crazy. Grabbed a pencil, shoved it down the cast to scratch..." Luke demonstrated as he explained what he meant.
"Bad results?"
He nodded. "Bad results."
"Got it. No pencils, I promise."
"Good," he told her before offering some coffee, which Rory accepted. Luke picked up their stuff they unloaded, having Shelby carry in the duffel bag. He led the girls inside, unlocking the door first. "Where's your mom tonight?"
"At a party for my grandpa," Rory answered.
Luke set everything on the floor of the diner for now, switching on the lights. "Ah, sounds nice." He told both of them to grab themselves a donut, while Luke started making a fresh pot of coffee.
Shelby helped Rory put down two of the stools.
"So," Rory said, sitting down. "Have you heard from him?"
"Oh, no. I talked to his mom, though. He got home okay," he assured her.
"Good, that's good."
"Yeah, good." Luke returned to making the coffee while Rory asked Shelby which donut she wanted.
"What about his stuff?" she asked him, handing Shelby the one she picked.
"Oh, I'm gonna send it."
Rory nodded as she said, "Right. Makes sense."
Once he poured the coffee grounds into the pot, he reattached it, starting it up. Luke heard Rory sigh at that point.
"Luke?"
He turned around, leaning his hands on the counter as he responded.
Rory hesitated a moment before she told him, "It wasn't his fault."
Luke gave her a reassuring smile as he assured her, "I know it wasn't." Both of them looked over at the little girl who was sitting there quietly, staring at her donut. She had only taken a small bite so far. Luke reached over and playfully grabbed her head.
"I heard what happened in her class," said Rory, giving them a sympathetic look.
"Yeah," he sighed before taking his hand back.
"Rachel seemed worried when she found out, but you guys had already left."
Luke got out two plates for them to set their donuts on. He was still a little upset with her from that night, too. He wasn't sure how Shelby felt, but Rachel was the last person he wanted to talk about, much less see. He changed the subject, asking if anything interesting happened in town while they were gone. Both of them just shot the breeze, hoping to get Shelby talking. It felt like pulling teeth, but eventually, the kid slowly involved herself into the conversation.
