Thanks for the feedback! The following chapters are a timejump to S6, and how the change in events affected that respectively.

Rory closes her car door with a sigh. It feels good to be back at the apartment, and it'll be even better if Paris doesn't wake once Rory's inside. Rory needs some quiet. Getting her boyfriend and his friends home is like herding cats. It took long enough to actually get them all in the car and then, after dropping off Colin and Finn, Logan rambled the rest of the way about hurting the folk singer's feelings and his trip to Omaha, not trusting that it even has electricity despite Rory's assurance that the singer is used to it and electricity came last week. Logan didn't seem to believe her but accepted it, staggering out the car and allowing Rory to help him up the steps. For a moment, she was terrified Logan would ask her to come with him to Nebraska but after a slurred I'll miss you Ace Logan stumbled through his door. Rory is relieved that he's going to be away for a few days. She can't really place why, but is thankful not to have go out on another drunken night and listen to Logan complain about college, his father, his entire privileged life. Looking up at the apartment, Rory pauses before going inside. She's already dreading her friend waking up and demanding a boggle tournament. Usually, Rory doesn't mind talking to Paris but tonight she wants to be alone with her thoughts. A sound behind her breaks Rory's reverie and she stares upon turning to see.

"Jess."

"Hey."

"Hey."

Rory can't stop gazing at him and it seems the feeling is mutual. Jess is staring back, half-smiling, and Rory half-smiles back. She can't seem to move, make sense of it. Jess is standing in front of her after over a year of separation and finally Rory forms some words.

"I...sorry. That wasn't a sentence," she says, blinking, but Jess quickly says, "I got this gist."

"What are you doing here?" Rory asks as Jess walks over and he says, "I got a job. Professional driveway skulker."

"Pays good?"

"Yeah but the hours suck."

Rory smiles but can't shake the strangeness of it. Expectantly, she starts to ask, "Jess?" and Jess replies, "I'm in town on a little business. All nice and aboveboard."

"How'd you know where to find me?"

"Luke," Jess admits. "I shook it out of him. He wasn't sure if it was okay."

"It's okay," Rory says and it is. "You look good. The years don't seem to have hardened you."

Jess smiles and remarks, " Yeah, you look good, too. I know this is kind of weird, but there's actually something I wanted to tell you. Show you, actually."

Rory glances up at the window of Paris's room and, following her glance, Jess adds, "I can come back another time."

"No," Rory clarifies, "it's just we're kind of exposed here. Paris's bedroom is right there - I share an apartment with her."

"Huh."

"Yeah - plus you know your professional skulker gig? It had better pay well because it's kind of sketchy out here."

"Right."

"Yeah. You want to come in?"

"You sure?" Jess asks and Rory says firmly, "Yeah. Come on. But just be careful. She's a very light sleeper."

Rory leads Jess upstairs, heart thumping. She's dazed, in disbelief that Jess is actually here, but it doesn't hurt to see him. For months after they broke up Rory wouldn't even allow herself to think about Jess, and in the moments where she imagined seeing him again it wasn't like the last time he left. Rory couldn't think of anything brilliant to say. Instead, all she felt was this terrible, searing sadness and would wrench her heart away from her daydream. Lightly, Jess steps behind her into Rory's bedroom and nervously Rory says, "So here we are."

"Casa Rory," Jess says approvingly, looking around. Rory focuses on placing a pillow in front of the door and explains, "So our voices don't carry." Jess nods.

"Very prudent."

Rory gives him a nervous smile and says, "The whole place is a little rougher than I'd like."

"Yeah, but you can handle it. Is the plan still to be an overseas correspondent?"

"Right now," Rory agrees. "I know I might wind up in places worse than this."

"You should see my place."

Rory smiles, curious, but Jess is glancing at a dress hanging on the door and asks, "Is that for Halloween?"

"No, no," Rory says quickly, embarrassed. "It's for this thing my grandmother wants me to go to...she picked it out."

"What thing?"

"Some dinner...I don't know if I will." Rory looks away, embarrassed. She almost went into the whole story before she caught herself and looks back at Jess. "So, where are you living, Jess? I want to know about you, mystery man."

She takes a seat on the bed and, as he settles on the chair opposite, Jess says, "I'm in Philly."

"Really?"

"Don't laugh."

"No, I'm not," Rory says honestly. She was surprised but not amused. "Philadelphia's gotten cool."

"And New York's gotten expensive," Jess comments. "Anyway, it's a pretty cool scene in Philly now. Lot of younger people there...pretty big art scene."

"I know," Rory says eagerly. "I read that in the New York Times. They had a picture of a bunch of young people standing on a roof, kind of eclectic and all. It looked fun. I mean, it was clearly one of those pictures that wasn't candid. It was looking a little stiff, but they looked happy."

She stops, shy, and Jess asks seriously, "Are you nervous?"

"A little," Rory admits. "It's been a long time."

Jess smiles, leaning forward to say, "I'm a little nervous too."

"Good, I'm not alone," Rory says, relieved. The tension feels broken or, at least, lighter than before and Jess tells her, "So, I didn't just come here to chat. I wanted to show you something." He reaches into his bag as Rory remembers, "Right. You said that."

"Yeah, and I didn't think you'd believe it if I didn't show it to you in person."

Jess has got a book out and as he passes it over Rory remarks, "Well, colour me curious. A book." Taking it, she reads the title and then slowly the author. "The Subsect...written by Jess Mariano."

She stares back up and Jess says, "It's no misprint."

"You wrote a book?" Rory asks and Jess quickly replies, "A short novel."

"You wrote a book?" Rory asks again. She can't believe it and in the same moment, can believe it entirely. Jess could always has written something and here it is, his novel in her hands. Rory knows it's great.

"And through a fluke, I got it to these guys that have a small press, and they read it. I don't know if they were high or something, but they decided to publish it."

"You wrote a book," Rory says softly and Jess tells her, "There's no money in it. They only printed like five hundred of them. Believe me, I'm not quitting my day job."

"But you wrote it," Rory insists. That's all that matters. "You wrote a book." Getting up, she starts to turn the pages and Jess jokes, "Yeah, I know. It's hard to believe."

"You sat down and wrote a novel," Rory says in wonder and Jess says, "Author-distributed, too. That's what I'm doing here. I'm going around begging independent bookstores to put it in stock. Got it in a few."

"Cool! Where?"

"Around," Jess says elusively and Rory grins.

" I want to see it in a store."

"I can give you the addresses."

"You know what I'm gonna do when I see it in the store?"

"What?" Jess asks, amused, and Rory says excitedly, "You know that section toward the front, the staff recommendations? I'm going to grab a copy of your book and put it in that section, and then I'm going to write my own little recommendation on a card and attach it so people see it and buy it."

"Read it first," Jess says, sounding bashful. "That way you can discourage people from buying it."

"No way!" Rory retorts. "I know it's good." Sitting back down, she looks Jess in the eye and says, "Jess, you've got such a great brain. I knew that if you could just sit down and stop shaking it around, you could do something like this. I knew it. I knew it."

"I know you did," Jess says, smiling. "I work at that press now. Five smelly guys in a cramped room on Locust Street putting out about three books a month. But it's fun."

"What about a sequel?" Rory asks eagerly. "Are you writing a sequel?"

"You should read it before you get too jazzed about it, okay?" Jess laughs and Rory grins, about to argue when she pauses.

"Shh!" She and Jess look at the door and Rory lets out a breath. " Sorry. I thought I heard footsteps. I think we're okay. I didn't want a boggle tournament with Paris."

"Boggle tournament?"

"You don't want to know."

"It's kind of late. I should go."

"It is kind of late," Rory agrees, getting up with Jess. They start towards the door and stop as Jess says, "So, I just basically wanted to show you that. Uh, tell you... tell you that I couldn't have done it without you."

Rory stares. Out of all the things she imagined Jess saying, she never thought of his thanking her. She is shy, grateful and lost all at once and all she manages to say is, "Thanks."

It's too small a reply but she and Jess smile at each other, shy again, until Jess says, "I'm going to be around for a couple days. Can we talk again? Preferably above a whisper."

"Yeah," Rory says. "I'd like that. How about tomorrow night?"

"Eight okay?"

"Yep."

"Good. I'll sneak out on my own."

"Cool." They move towards the door, Jess handing Rory the pillow, but as she says, "Oh, hey. The book," Jess nods and says, "Oh, it's yours."

Rory smiles, letting him out, and then slowly walks back to the bed. Hugging the pillow to her chest, she opens the book and tentatively starts to read. It's good, it's great, she knows it from the first paragraph, before even reading the opening sentence and Rory is shaken all over. She's so proud of Jess. She knew he always had it in him but wasn't sure if he'd ever act on it and here it is, The Subsect. Settling down, Rory is lost in his words all night.

Paris is going away the next day to see her parents and Rory is impatient all morning. She hasn't told Paris about Jess coming and isn't entirely sure why - Paris liked Jess, she knows, and it's hardly secret, yet it feels private. Rory doesn't want to talk about it to anyone. She's still half-sure it was a dream, that the man she lived with and lost her virginity to is suddenly back in her life. He seems so different now. She feels different too and yet, Rory thinks uncomfortably, in a dissimilar way. Jess looks happier. Still, she thinks firmly, neither of them are those mixed up people who ran away together. The whole thing seems so long ago now. As patiently as possible, Rory waits for Paris to pack and go and, as she finally gets ready, Paris pauses.

"Something's going on."

"Nothing's going on," Rory lies and Paris stares at her piercingly.

"There is. I can always tell, Gilmore."

"Oh yeah, what can you tell?"

"He's back," Paris says confidently. Rory stares, heart thudding, and says, "How...?"

"Logan's back from Omaha," Paris says and Rory releases a tight breath. "And he's going to shack up here for a few nights, right?"

"Sure..."

"I'd go to his - more comfortable, I'm guessing. And I'm guessing no one can hear you through the walls."

Rory gives a nervous laugh and Paris rolls her eyes.

"See you in a few. Hopefully I'll survive not strangling my mother."

"A worthy goal."

Rory feels overdressed in all her outfits. It's stupid, she berates herself, it's just Jess, but her wardrobe suddenly seems too fancy. Since being with Logan Rory guesses she's dressed a little preppier - he likes taking her out to places where a pair of jeans won't cut it and all her normal clothes seemed too plain. When she went back to Yale and started dating Logan Emily was so grateful that she gifted Rory a new set of clothes. As she looks in the mirror one last time Rory hears a rattle of pebbles and she laughs, hurrying downstairs and exclaims, "What are you doing?"

"I didn't know if me being here was secret," Jess whispers and Rory smiles.

"It's fine - Paris is visiting her parents."

"Oh, good. I parked on the street so she wouldn't see."

"You're very good at covert ops."

"Years of practice," Jess remarks. "So, where do you want to go?"

"I'm not sure," Rory admits. "There's college places or we could drive into Hartford, I guess...but that's still a mystery. Even when I went to Chilton, I got right on the bus and headed home. So I don't even have any old high school hangouts to revisit."

"Well, I just prefer not going someplace that has food in the title."

"Meaning?" Rory asks, intrigued, and Jess explains, "Olive, chilli, soup. No gardens. No plantations."

"Got it," Rory nods. "Something funkier."

"Steer me to the college district," Jess says confidently. "I'll find us something funky."

"Sounds good," Rory says. She grins at Jess and follows him to his car, a newer model to the one from New York.

"Hey, you upgraded!"

"Yeah, well. The other one was falling apart. I managed to sell it, if you can believe it. I bet the guy junked it."

The new car isn't fancy but it seems sturdier and, as Rory straps herself in, she says, "So I'm your Sancho Panza?"

"Sure, but does that make me Don Quixote?"

"No," Rory says quickly. flushing and Jess chuckles.

"I hope not. So, Sancho, left or right?"

They find a funky place remarkably fast and Rory is impressed.

"You definitely didn't need a Sancho Panza."

"I did a little," Jess corrects. He smiles, making Rory blush again, and grabs them two menus. Ordering burgers and two drinks, they settle down. Jess clinks his glass against Rory's and says, "Cheers. Cheers to what I'm not sure."

"To now?" Rory suggests and Jess nods, lifting his glass.

"To now."

They take a sip and Rory falls shy, and it seems Jess feels the same as he puts his glass down and says, "So..."

"So?"

"So tell me about the past year," Jess says, and chuckles. "That sounds like hardly any time but it feels like forever."

"For me too," Rory says. She smiles, taking another sip and says, "Well, I went back to Yale, as you know."

"How's that going?"

"Pretty good...anyway, I went back to school. I moved into that apartment with Paris and it's okay, mostly, and everything's good...I'm seeing someone..." Rory's voice falters as Jess looks at her expectantly.

"Luke alluded to something," he says. "Didn't give details though."

"Oh. Well, his name's Logan...he's a senior."

"Been dating him long?"

"A year," Rory says and feels her cheeks flush. "I mean, I was single for a couple of months after you and I broke up. And then I met Logan in the newspaper office...he's part of the Life and Death Brigade. They like pulling stunts."

"Huh," Jess says mildly. Rory looks at her hands, strangely embarrassed. "We've been together since then, basically - we did a stunt together at one event which I covered for the paper. Logan's in Omaha this week."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. How about you, Jess? Are you seeing anyone?"

"No," Jess says shortly. "There's nothing to tell."

"Oh."

Rory is grateful that they're interrupted by the food arriving. She takes a large bite of burger and shakes her head when Jess asks, "So your boyfriend doesn't know the funky places around here?"

"Not really his scene."

"Ah."

"He likes bigger bars and restaurants." Rory looks up to see Jess raise his eyebrows and adds, "We have fun."

"I'm sure."

Jess eats some of his burger and looks up as Rory exclaims. She's got ketchup on her shirt and, as she wipes it, Jess remarks, "That's fancier than what'd fly in Luke's."

"Oh, I know," Rory says, laughing. "Grandma gave it to me...I've seen more of her lately. She loves Logan. They run in the same circles."

"Better success than I had, right?" Jess jokes and Rory laughs.

"She's friends with Logan's parents. We got to events together sometimes."

"I'm guessing Logan never showed up with a black eye."

"He's very charming."

"Or ran off with you to New York either."

There it is. They smile shyly and Jess says, "I'm sorry."

"Jess, it's okay."

"I shouldn't have asked you to go."

"I had my own mind," Rory says quietly. "I wanted to go with you."

"It was a mistake."

"It was a long time ago," Rory says gently, looking up. "It seems longer than it was, you know?"

Jess nods, shyly agreeing, "For me too."

They eat some more and Jess asks, "So tell me what else you've been doing, besides getting all fancy."

"I haven't got fancy," Rory retorts with a laugh, feeling self-conscious. "I don't have too much to tell...I've been working on the Yale Daily News and I've been living with Paris, which you know. Last year kind of sucked."

Rory ducks her gaze for a moment, feeling Jess's eyes on hers before taking a deep breath.

"Last year sucked for me too," Jess says quietly and Rory nods, steering the conversation back before it gets too hard.

"I met Logan last year at a party...I already kind of knew him but we got talking there. We got together not too long after that."

"And it's going well?" Jess asks carefully and Rory shrugs, taking a drink.

"Yes. Hey, tell me about you."

Jess seems surprised but gives Rory a nod, obliging.

"I didn't stay in the city that long after you left. It didn't feel the same - man, that sounds cheesy but it didn't. I wrote and I looked for new places to work...I didn't have a lot of luck but I found this magazine for young writers in New York. I pitched some stuff to them and met a couple of guys there, and then we moved to Philly. It didn't feel as weird as I expected."

"No?"

"It felt different, but a good different," Jess says, eating a fry. "Not like when I moved to Stars Hollow."

They both laugh a little ruefully but Rory smiles, sitting back in her seat.

"You're doing so well, Jess. I'm so proud of you - is that okay to say?"

"You know it is."

"I loved your book," Rory says shyly. "I think I want to read it again to think more about it, but it's all you...that's what I love about it."

"Oh yeah?" Jess grins but he looks touched. "Thanks."

"I knew you could do it."

They look at each other and Jess breaks the silence by saying, "You could write something too."

"Like what?"

"I don't know - that's for you to figure out. But you could."

"I hope so," Rory says shyly. Her throat feels tight. Going back to school was the right decision, she knows, but she's felt a little lost lately, swept up in Logan's world. She eats a few fries and says, "It's nice just hanging out like this."

"It's been a long time."

"I mean in general," Rory says, looking up. "I like just being here with you, but in general it's nice not doing something which requires lots of money, you know?"

As soon as she says it she feels embarrassed but Jess nods.

"Logan has a lot of money, huh?"

"He does - well, his father does. Logan keeps talking about feeling trapped by it but he definitely enjoys it."

Rory's voice sounds a little sour and, at Jess's nod, she finds herself saying, "I used to find him so exciting. He was so different to anyone else I'd known."

"And you don't find him exciting now?"

"I don't know," Rory says helplessly. "I just feel this pressure, I guess. I was relieved when Logan told me was going to Omaha. That's not great."

Jess looks curious and Rory sighs, sitting back.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to dump all my relationship drama on you."

"No biggie."

"I shouldn't talk about him like that...he's a good guy."

"I'm sure," Jess says quietly. They eat silently for a moment and Jess remarks, "I bet his apartment is an improvement on the one we shared, huh?"

Rory looks at him and suddenly they fall into helpless laughter. Rory laughs and laughs until her sides hurt and, recovering, she says, "It wasn't so bad."

"It was a dump!"

"I was happy," Rory says sincerely. "It didn't seem like it."

"Come on, Rory. We both knew it was a dump."

"Okay, okay. But I was happy," Rory says sincerely. "I was happy being with you. I didn't care about the rest."

"Same here," Jess says softly. The light mood has been replaced by something deeper and Rory quickly looks away, swallowing the last of her drink.

"One more round?"

"Sure. Hey, I can buy you a beer now."

"What?"

"It was your birthday a couple of weeks ago, right? Happy Birthday."

"It was," Rory says, touched that Jess remembered. Logan hadn't even asked. "Thanks."

Jess nods and says, "I wish I had a gift."

"Oh Jess, you don't have to do that!"

"You should get a gift on your birthday."

"You're here - that's enough."

It sounds more serious than Rory intended and, at the look in Jess's eyes, she quickly adds, "Hey, remember the cake I tried to make you?"

"I can still smell the smoke," Jess says and they laugh hard but, for Rory at least, the moment still seems intense. When she suggests they head back Jess doesn't fight her on it and as they walk slowly to the car Rory asks, "Are you going to be around again? It'd be cool to catch up."

"Definitely," Jess says, smiling at her. "I've missed you, Rory."

"I've missed you too, Jess."

As he smiles at her, Rory knows it's going to be okay between them. They way she left, the history between them isn't too much. The moment she feared for years has been replaced with a kind of friendship, the friendship they've always had, and Rory only wishes they could talk for longer. Directing him back, Jess teases her over Don Quixote but Rory's laughter freezes in her throat as she gets out of the car. Standing by the apartment is Logan.

"Logan," Rory blurts out in surprise and he gives her a cold smile.

"Am I interrupting something?" he asks and hastily Rory says, "No. Hey. When did you get back?"

"Couple hours ago."

"Oh," Rory says stupidly. "I...I thought you were getting back tomorrow."

"I thought I'd surprise you, Ace."

The tension in the air is horribly tight. Rory is aware of Jess beside her, analysing Logan and Logan doubtlessly doing the same. Oh God, what does he think is going on? Brightly, she says, "Well, I'm glad you did 'cause you get to meet my old friend, Jess. This is Logan, my boyfriend. Logan, this is Jess. He's in from out of town."

The men give a slight nod and, inwardly cringing, Rory jokes, "Wow. That sounded so grown-up. We're at the age now where we say things like "in from out of town" and "old friend", 'cause when you're young, all your friends are new, and you have to get old to have old friends."

Logan and Jess laugh, politely if insincerely, and Logan stretches out a hand, to Rory's relief.

"How you doing?"

"Okay," Jess says simply, shaking Logan's hand and Rory announces, "We just grabbed a bite to eat."

"That so?" Logan asks, dropping Jess's hand and putting it tightly around Rory's arm. "Where'd you kids go?" Snorting at the name of the establishment, he says, "I could have picked a way better place for your money."

"I bet," Jess says drily and Logan raises his eyebrows.

"And I bet you and Rory spent hours catching up. How long did you say you'd known each other?"

"A while," Jess says and Logan asks, "You used to date?"

"Yes," Rory breaks in, trying to brush Logan's arm off hers. "We used to date." Understatement of the century, she thinks silently but isn't about to go into it here. The edited version doesn't seem to calm her boyfriend's mood.

"Ah! No hemming. No hawing. Good course of action," Logan says, looking over at Rory and Jess, dropping his arm. "So, were you two high school sweethearts? Rock around the clock, two straws in the milkshake?"

"Logan," Rory says, annoyed. What the hell's his problem? Logan looks at her and says glibly, "Just trying to paint a picture, Ace."

"What do you say we paint it another day?" Jess asks. "It's late. I should get back."

"Oh yeah?" Logan asks. "You going to stare at photo albums from yesteryear?"

"Whatever," Jess says, shaking his head. "Night, Rory."

"Night, Jess."

Rory waits for Jess to get in his car and drive away before marching up to the apartment, Logan at her heels.

"What the hell was that?" Logan demands and Rory whirls around furiously.

"I could ask you the same! What's your problem, Logan? You were a total jerk!"

"Hey, I come back to surprise my girlfriend and she's off on the town with her ex!"

"Sorry I didn't clear my schedule with you," Rory spits. "I didn't realise my free time was yours."

"Is that the guy you lived with?" Logan asks after a pause. "The New York guy?"

"Yes," Rory says and Logan shakes his head.

"He's a total loser."

"Don't you dare talk about him like that!" Rory shouts. "He's not a loser, Logan! You don't know anything about him!"

"And I'm good with that!"

"Fine! You know, I just want to go to bed," Rory says, eyes stinging. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"That's great, Ace..." Logan says, going to the door. "That's just fine."