Chapter Six

The morning of her interview, Rory Gilmore was wide awake at 4:00 am. She had never been a morning person; she felt she did her best work in the evenings and late at night. It was only vats of coffee, a habit happily inherited from her mother, that made her function before 10:00 in the morning. But on this day, Rory's subconscious had assured that she was awake before the sun. It was probably a reaction to the day a few weeks ago where she'd slept through her alarm and had to race around like a chicken with its head cut off. This was not a day she could afford to be late.

Her grandparents had used their pull to get her this interview; even though she didn't really want it. She needed to make a good impression so she wouldn't have to rely on their connections or hear about it from them if things went horrible. Her mother had once gone on a date that Emily had helped set up and, when it didn't go well, Lorelai had heard about it from Emily. Rory did not want that to happen to her. And being late would definitely get back to Emily and Richard Gilmore.

So, Rory was wide awake at 4:00 am, laying in her bed and staring up at her popcorn ceiling. She was running through her script in her head, making sure that every word she said to Logan that day was preplanned and rehearsed. It would be the first time in a decade (more than a decade? Less than a decade? Rory wasn't quite sure when the last time she spoke to Logan was) that she said a word to the young Huntzberger and, with her secret and the effect that Logan had on her, she needed to be prepared. If she knew what she was going to say, there was less of a chance of unplanned , spur-of-the-moment, potentially derailing things to happen.

Finally, at about 6:00, Rory rolled herself out of bed and began preparing. She tried not to worry too much about her wardrobe. She was a professional woman who had to dress professionally on a daily basis. She'd been to multiple interviews throughout her career of various different levels of professionalism. Rory knew how to dress herself. She would not allow the fact that she was meeting Logan deflate her sense of self. Without putting too much thought into it, she grabbed her favourite power pantsuit, a fun polka-dot blouse, and headed into the bathroom.

Rory Gilmore was a fully grown woman, dammit. Logan Huntzberger would not be her undoing.

An hour later, and thanks to Rory's stubborn confidence, Rory walked out of the bathroom, her makeup flawless and her outfit unchanged from the decision she made when she went into the shower. This, Rory thought to herself, was a good sign. This interview would be no different than the countless others she had conducted. Even if it was with her ex-boyfriend (almost fiancé) and secret father to her son.

Speaking of Ricky, the young boy was sitting at the kitchen table, a bowl of cereal in front of him. Unlike Rory, and her mother, Ricky was a morning person. More often than not, Ricky was up, breakfast made, before Rory.

"Morning Ricky," Rory called. She tried to school her voice. She was anxious, that much was extremely obvious, but she didn't want her son to know that anything was up. It would only lead to questions that Rory couldn't, or more accurately didn't want to, answer.

"You never signed my permission slip," Ricky spoke in response. He didn't look up from his cereal, which Rory knew was not interesting enough to hold his attention. What he was doing was not looking at her, a clear sign that he was upset. It didn't happen to often, that Ricky was upset with Rory, but when it did it broke her heart.

"I'm so sorry, Rick. I've had a lot on my plate. Is the trip today?" Rory cursed in her head. She'd promised to sign the permission slip weeks ago, when Ricky had brought it home and it totally slipped her mind. Her son, fortunately or in this case unfortunately, was not a pushy kid. He let you know what he needed and then waited, patiently or at least that's what Rory thought, until you accomplished it. However, with Rory's sometime scatter brain, a trait she'd inherited from her mother, things tended to get forgotten. The permission slip, for a class trip to the Bronx Zoo, was one of those things.

"It is, Mrs. Smith said that if I didn't bring in my permission slip I couldn't go and that there wasn't a place for me at school, so I'd have to stay home." Ricky still didn't look up from his breakfast and Rory's heart shattered even further. Her son, without even really trying, was the king of the guilt trip.

Then, what her son said hit her. He couldn't go to school. His class would be in the Bronx and there wasn't another spot he could go, except maybe the principal's office which Rory didn't want. He couldn't stay at home either. He was ten, which meant he technically could be left alone, but Ricky had a habit of losing himself in a book and forgetting to eat or go to the bathroom unless he was told to do so. Her only option was to bring him with her. On her interview. To Logan Huntzberger's company. To Ricky's dad's company.

"Shit!" Rory swore aloud.

She called everyone she could think of in New York. Unfortunately, all of those people worked in the same industry as she did and therefore, had the same hours. Everyone was either already at work or headed to it. No one could look after Ricky; Not on such short notice. Rory was left with only one, absolutely unperfect, choice.

Ricky would have to come along on her interview of Logan. Hopefully, she could leave him in the lobby with a book. He, much like Rory, could read for hours and not get into any trouble of any kind. Her son wouldn't really be the problem in all this.

What Rory was really worried about was Logan himself somehow meeting the boy, or someone in Logan's office noticing the potential connection between this blonde haired boy and their blonde boss.

"You should wear a hat today, Ricky. We have a bit longer of a walk than normal and it's pretty sunny out. I don't want you to get a sunburn or anything," Rory persuaded as the pair got ready to leave their apartment. She hoped that maybe masking his recognizable blonde locks would lessen the chance of anyone making the connection. Ricky just gave her a strange look.

"It's October, mom," was all he said in response before walking out of the door, hatless. Rory sighed. Just once, she thought, couldn't the universe break her way? Was that too much to ask?

Huntzberger Enterprises was housed in one of the countless high-rise, skyscraper office buildings that dominated the New York City skyline. It was not an architectural marvel, at least as far as Rory was concerned. It looked just like it's neighbours; a lot of glass, a large spacious lobby that, despite the size held only a security desk and a large bank of elevators behind a secure gate. Apparently, none of the occupants of the high rise was concerned about their guests waiting in this main lobby.

Rory and Ricky walked up to the security desk. The guard sitting behind it looked like he took his job seriously, not like the stereotypical bored guard seen on tv shows and in movies. He smiled warmly at Rory at first, a good sign for the outfit she had picked. If you looked like you belonged in the building, the security was usually nicer to you. However, as soon as the guard's eyes landed on her son, his smile faltered. It was obvious he was trying to place why she was accompanied by a small child.

"How can I help you this morning?" the guard asked once Rory was up at the desk. He still wasn't really smiling and was eyeing Ricky, obviously worried that he would start causing havoc as soon as he wasn't being watched. Rory was more than a little offended by the guard's gut reaction that her lovely, quiet, well-behaved son was a potential menace.

"I have a meeting with Mr. Huntzberger. Logan Huntzberger," Rory added the clarification because she was unsure of whether or not Mitchum, Logan's father, had a role in his company. That was something she hadn't been totally able to ascertain in her previous research. Mitchum wasn't mentioned directly in regard to the business, but his presence was very obvious in every article that Rory had read. Was this association just because Mitchem Huntzberger was such a giant in the business world or because he was a part, if not in name, of Logan's business.

"Ms. Gilmore?" the guard asked after checking his computer. Rory nodded. The guard continued to look expectantly at her, like he was expecting more information from her. It wasn't until his eyes once again flitted to her son that Rory realised the guard wasn't going to let her in to see Logan until she explained the presence of the child.

"I had to bring my son because his class is on a field trip and I didn't sign the permission slip. He won't be a bother. Will you Ricky?" Rory turned to her son who, as per usual, had his nose buried in a book. He didn't even register that Rory was talking to him. Rory turned back to the guard, daring him to challenge the fact that the quiet boy with his nose in a book would cause a problem.

At her stare, the guard seemed to relent. He handed over two visitors' passes and pushed a button that unlocked the gate that led to the elevators. "Huntzberger enterprise's is on the twenty-fifth floor."

"Thank you," Rory responded because she was rarely ever not polite. She then guided her unaware son towards the elevators. She pushed the call button and waited as one of the twelve elevators began it's slow progress towards her level. As Rory waited, a few employees of the various companies in the building joined her. Rory didn't recognize any of them, though she wasn't sure why she thought she would. It had been a decade since Rory had any interaction with anyone that worked with Logan.

Finally, the elevator arrived, and Rory ushered her son into the small box. She pushed the number 25 and waited while the other people filed in and pushed the buttons for their desired floors. No one else, it seemed would be getting out on the same floor. For some reason, this made Rory feel a little bit more at ease. She couldn't quite put her finger on why, though she didn't really spend a lot of time milling it over for very long.

When the little sign above the elevator showed 25, Rory and Ricky squeezed past the few other people still in the elevator and emerged into a swanky lobby. Huntzberger Enterprises seemed to favour an open floor plan, as the lobby wall, and almost all walls beyond it, were made of glass. It reminded Rory of the offices of the law firm in a television show she had recently been binge-watching once Ricky was asleep at night.

There must be no secrets here, Rory thought to herself. It didn't bode well for her investigation, unless they were so blasé about their potential law breaking that all of their employees were aware of what was happening.

Trying to now appear shaken by her recent train of thought, Rory walked up to the young, blonde, impossibly thin receptionist positioned behind the welcome desk. The young girl was busy clacking her long fake nails on a keyboard, though she didn't appear to be typing anything. Rory cleared her throat to get the girls' attention. Instead, she got a long finger held up in her face, telling her to wait.

Rory was a little taken aback by the attitude of the young girl, but waited somewhat patiently, nonetheless. Finally, after another twenty seconds, the girl looked up at Rory, a look of distaste and impatience clearly displayed on her flawless visage.

"I'm Rory Gilmore. I'm here for an interview with Logan Huntzberger. He should be expecting me," Rory said, her tone as high-and-mighty as she could make it. If only this young woman knew who Rory was, her utter lack of caring would instantly vanish, Rory was certain.

The young girl pushed a button on her phone, staring at Rory but not speaking. Finally, a crackly voice sounded over the phone's speakers.

"What is it Taylor?" the voice asked.

"I have a Rory Gilmore here," the young girl finally spoke, her voice high and sickly sweet.

"Send her back," was the curt reply that came from the speakers. Taylor, the young girl behind the desk then waved Rory towards a glass door.

"Mindy will be expecting you. The kid can wait on that chair." Taylor's second statement was punctuated by her pointing a long fingernail at a push chair that sat up against one of the walls of the lobby. Rory, rolling her eyes once she turned away from the girl, directed Ricky to the chair and told him to wait their until she was done. Then, she headed through the glass door and into the lion's den.

Mindy was a put together woman in her mid-thirties. She had a no-nonsense air about her that Rory instantly liked. Efficiency was something that Rory found important and Mindy didn't make Rory wait while she pretended to work like Taylor the receptionist had. From the way that Mindy directed Rory through the office, a folder clutched in her hand, Rory guessed that Mindy was Logan's personal secretary. She seemed to have all the answers about where Logan was, how much time he could devote to Rory, and why he could only give her twenty minutes. She was obviously in charge of his schedule.

After being led, at quite a fast pace, through the maze of glass=walled offices, Mindy finally deposited Rory in front of the one office that was constructed with opaque walls. A small plaque on the door read L. Huntzberger, CEO. Finally, Rory was outside Logan's office. Mindy knocked importantly, then pushed the door open and motioned for Rory to enter.