Computers aren't my strong suite and somehow I no longer have a spell check for English, so I'm sorry if there are any spelling mistakes in this and any upcoming chapters.

Rory felt tears streaming down her face as she left New York behind her on her way back to New Haven. She didn't know why she was crying. She didn't know what she had hoped for when she went to Truncheon. She hadn't even been aware that that was where she was heading until she'd found herself standing on the street right outside.

She should be happy. She was in pursuit of her dreams. Not the dreams she shared with Jess about owning a store filled with books and coffee and growing old toghether amongst the shelves. Not the dream she shared with Logan about getting married and moving to San Fransisco and cultivating and avocado tree in the backyard of their own house. But her dream. Her life-long dream about becoming a reporter. About traveling the world. About writing.

She should be celebrating. She should be jumping with joy about the offer Hugo had made. She should be rushing home to tell everyone that she was going to be a reporter – a real reporter. She should be sharing the amazing news with everyone she loved. So why had she landed on the doorstep of Truncheon before she'd even told her fiancé the great news?

No. She sniveled and wiped the tears from her cheeks using the back of her hand. She couldn't let her mind go there. Jess was a closed chapter. Somehow, that knowledge seemed to drive even more tears to her eyes and it wasn't long before she was right out blubbering.

Matt had been wrong in his letter. Jess wasn't waiting and hoping for her to come home. Matt hadn't seen the look on Jess' face when she'd told him about the baby she'd lost. Their baby. The signed papers on the coffee table and the way he had turned around and left the store just now felt more like closure than her leaving had ever done. Jess had closed the chapter of them.

She took a deep breath. The closing of one chapter meant the start of another. The chapter of her. Of Rory Gilmore. This time she wouldn't let anything get in the way of her pursuing her dream. This new chapter had gotten a jump start with the offer from Hugo and this time around love would have to fit into the chapter of her dream instead of the other way around.

Nodding to herself with this newfound determination, Rory passed the exit towards New Haven and continued down the road. There was someone she needed to share the amazing news with before anyone else; someone that had been writing on this chapter all along.

Guided by the melody of his ringtone Matt rummaged through a stack of clothes on his bedroom floor searching for his phone. Why was it that things seemed to just disappear into a black hole the second they left his hands?

He finally found it under a shirt he hadn't been using for days, how on earth had it ended up there? Seeing Jess' name on the display, he answered.

"Hello Matt?" Jess' voice sounded weird and Matt had to look at the display again to make sure it was really his friend on the other end.

"Jess?"

His question was met with a laughter that sounded like nothing he'd ever heard coming from Jess ever before.

"Jess?" He asked again, even more confused.

"Did you change the lock?" Jess asked and Matt slumped down at the bed, immensly confused. What was going on?

"No. What lock?" He ran a hand through his hair. Was Jess drunk? No. Jess never got drunk. "Where are you?"

"At the apartment." Jess stated. "Or at least I'm trying to be, but you've changed the lock."

"No." Matt got up and started making his way to the living room. It was empty. "I have not changed the lock."

"Well..." There was another laugh, but this time the bitterness behind it was evident. "...something's wrong, because my key doesn't fit into the lock anymore."

"What?" Matt walked to the apartment door and opened it. There was no one there. He was just about to close the door when he head a rustling sound coming from downstairs.

"It doesn't fit." Jess explained again and this time Matt heard Jess' voice echo through the stairwell.

He hung up the phone and hurried down the stairs where he was met with an inebriated Jess trying to unlock their downstairs neighbor's door.

"Jess?" Matt called for his attention and laid a hand on Jess' shoulder.

"Matt!" Jess turned around, almost falling over in the process until Matt caught him and placed his arm around him for support. "Did you know they've changed the lock to the apartment?"

"You're on the wrong the floor." Matt explained as he started leading Jess towards the stairs.

Jess looked at the door he'd been trying to unlock. "Huh" He simply stated before focusing his attention on moving up the stairs.

After almost having carried Jess up the stairs all while trying to explain over and over again why his key hadn't been able to unlock the door, Matt finally dropped his roommate down on his bed.

"I'm gonna go get you a glass of water" Matt explained as he took Jess' shoes off. "And you're going to drink it and then you'll thank me in the morning."

"Whatever" Jess muttered and buried his head in his pillow.

Matt placed Jess' shoes on the floor and pulled the cover over him before he went to get the water he'd promised. He'd never seen Jess like this before. Sure, he had been drinking a few beers whenever they were hanging out at the pub, but Jess never got drunk. Not like this. Not even after the first time she left.

When he turned the tap off, Matt heard a strange sound coming from Jess' room. He left the glass on the counter and went to see what was going on. He should have recognized the sound, but it was so unlike Jess that it wasn't until he stood in the doorway and saw Jess' shoulders shake under the cover that he realized that Jess was crying.

He had known Jess for three years and he'd never seen him cry. He'd never even seen him display any kind of sadness or hurt. He was always hiding his true feelings behind his bitterness.

Matt hesitated for a few seconds, but then he figured that Jess probably needed a good cry. He needed to let it all out and he wouldn't be able to do that if he knew anyone was watching. Slowly and quietly, Matt backed away and closed the door behind him with unshed tears stinging his own eyes.

He had wanted them back together so bad he hadn't even stopped to think about how hard all of this must be on Jess. He had thought he could see things between them that they both kept ignoring because they were too stubborn. But maybe it wasn't stubborness or pride that kept them apart, maybe it was self preservation. Maybe Jess was too hurt to ever go back.

"I'm gonna stop meddling" He told himself as he closed the door to his room behind him. Jess was broken in a way he never thought possible and Rory had moved on with her life. Maybe they weren't meant to be. At least not at the moment.

"Mom?" Rory called as she opened the door to her mother's house, a smile creeping onto her lips as she knew her mother would be as excited about the news as she was.

Of course Logan would be excited to...but the news would open up to a discussion about logistic complications as the job she'd been offered involved a lot of traveling around the country. She didn't want discussion. Not right now. For a short moment she just wanted to revel in the fact that someone - someone with influence and contacts - wanted her to be a real reporter. And in her mind, there was only one person in the world that would let her do that right now without bring up the subjects of love or feelings or logistics or all the other things that had to fit into the chapter of Rory Gilmore's dream.

"Rory?" A confused Lorelai poked her head into the hallway. "Did I know you were coming?" Lorelai stepped into the hallway and gave her daughter a hug.

"No." Rory smiled and took a deep breath. "I got a job." She almost whispered and saw her mother's eyes widen.

"A job?" She hesitated for a split of a moment before she asked: "In California?"

Rory shook her head. "Everywhere."

"Everywhere?" Lorelai echoed, looking confused.

"As a traveling reporter." Rory uttered the words with reverence and she could literally feel the joy spreading across the room as her words sunk in.

"That..." Lorelai gestured around her, seemingly lost for words, and when coming to Lorelai Gilmore - that was saying a lot. "...that's amazing!" She finally found the right words.

"I know." She felt happy tears stinging behind her eyelids. This was her dream finally coming true.

They stood in silence for a moment before Lorelai squealed: "Oh my God!"

"I know!" Rory repeated in an equally squealy voice before they threw themselves in eachother's arms, jumping around with joy.

In this glorious moment of joy and utter happiness, neither of them noticed that a torn envelope with the name Lorelai Gilmore and a Stars Hollow address written on it fell out of Rory's handbag and got kicked under a rug by a foot still jumping with joy.

"So you'll be following Obama's campaign trail?" Lorelai asked for the third time a while later as they sat across from eachother on the couch.

"Yes." Rory answered for the third time, her smile grewing even wider.

"And reporting from the road?" She asked for the third time as well.

"Yes."

"The road leading all across the country?"

"Yes."

Lorelai smiled and shook her head. "I can't believe it." As she saw the look on Rory's face, she let out a laugh and continued: "I mean, of course I can believe that you would eventually get to this point - but I can't believe it's happening now. That we've reached this point. Already."

That we've reached this point. Rory smiled. She had done the right thing to let her mother be the first one to know. But sooner or later she had to make reality fit into all of this somehow...

And as if her mother could read her thoughts, she took a deep breath and looked down towards the cup of coffee she was holding in her hands and asked: "So, how's Logan taking all of this?"

"I haven't told him yet." Rory confessed.

Lorelai nodded and forced a smile on her lips. "I'm sure he'll be thrilled for you."

"I hope so." Rory swallowed.

Lorelai opened her mouth, but closed it again without saying anything. After the whole debacle with Jess and dropping out of Yale all those years ago, this was still a sore spot between them.

Rory took another deep breath. "I'm not giving this up." She declared and her mother stirred, but didn't say anything.

Rory closed her eyes to gather strength and then opened them again. "I'm not giving this up." She repeated. "I've already said 'yes' to the job and..." She paused and took a breath before she continued: "...and if Logan..." She drifted off, her voice filling up with tears.

Lorelai reached her hand out and caressed Rory's shoulder and she looked up at her mother with determination in her eyes. "This time I'm not letting anything...or anyone...get in the way. This is my dream."

Pride was shining out of Lorelai's eyes as she leaned in and hugged her daughter.

The evening had been full of opportunites to tell Logan about the job she'd accepted. She could have told him when she stepped through the door and he came rushing to hug her. She could have told him at dinner when he was talking about the arrangements he'd made with the movers. She could have told him as they were walking home hand in hand from the restaurant. She could tell him right now, when they were cuddled up on the couch. But somehow she couldn't bring herself to it.

"Are you okay?" Logan asked with a soft voice as he placed a kiss on her neck.

"M-hm" She mumbled in response as she let yet another golden opportunity to tell him pass her by. Why was it so hard to tell him things lately?

He kissed her neck again and pulled her closer to him. "You've been very quiet tonight."

"Guess I'm just tired." She leaned into his arms and closed her eyes.

"Yeah?" He caressed her cheek with his hand and tilted her head towards his. "Not too tired I hope" he said with a charming smile before he kissed her lips.

Rory couldn't quite explain it. She was kissing her fiancé, the man she was going to spend the rest of her life with and still it felt like was doing something she shouldn't be doing. Like she was cheating.

Leaning over her, Logan intensified the kiss and she felt his hands running over her body. They used to do so great at this part. It used to feel amazing – like the rest of the world didn't exist. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her lips against his in an attempt to recover that feeling once again but somehow she couldn't shake the rest of the world away. Not this time.

Without even thinking about what she was doing, Rory pushed Logan away and moved a few feet away from him on the couch. Without moving, Logan looked at her, confused and hurt. She wanted to explain, but how could she when she didn't even understand it herself?

"I got a job" Rory blurted out and forced a smile on her lips. These were happy news she was delivering, she shouldn't have to force herself to smile.

Logan straighted himself up on the couch."Yeah?" Maybe she was imagining things, but she thought the smile on his lips looked forced as well. "That's great Ace." He leaned in and gave her a kiss. "In San Fransisco?"

Rory cringed. "Not quite."

"So, where's the job?" Logan looked confused, but there was a hint of something else in his eyes as well, something she couldn't quite put her finger on. Maybe she was imagining things? Maybe it was her own guilt about keeping things from him that was playing tricks on her mind?

"All over the country" she began her explanation. "Hugo wants me to follow Obama's campaign trail and report from the road."

It a couple of moments before Logan reacted. "That's great, Ace." Somehow, Rory felt that the look in his eyes and the tone of his voice contradicted his words, but she quickly shook that feeling away.

"I will be a traveling reporter." She tried to smile as wide as when she'd told Lorelai the news, but for some reason she couldn't explain the smile refused to spread across her face.

Again, Logan was silent for a few moments before he spoke. "You will be?" He pointed out her choice of words. "That means you've already decided?"

"Well...yeah." She took a deep breath, prepared to defend herself; her choice; her dream. "See, the reporter Hugo had hired for the job backed out last minute, actually she called with the information just 45 minutes prior to our meeting and it's a really great opportunity and..."

"What about us?" Logan interrupted and Rory shook her head and sighed.

"I can't be that girl that puts her dreams on hold to be with a guy." Not again, she added to herself but didn't speak the words out loud. She hadn't yet corrected Logan on his wrongful assumption that her marriage to Jess was nothing more than a night of poor judgement in Vegas.

"A guy?" Logan looked both hurt and angry. "Is that all I am to you? A guy?"

"No" Rory closed her eyes for a few seconds and when she opened them again she looked into his eyes that were still looking at her. "No" she repeated. "You know that's not all you are to me. It's just...This is such a great opportunity. I can't pass it up."

Logan sighed. "So, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I can't go with you to San Fransisco."

His eyes narrowed and Rory almost felt like he was inspecting her. "Because of the job?"

"Because of the job" she quickly confirmed.

"So let's get married before you leave." His quick suggestion sounded more like a challenge than anything else.

Rory's mouth dropped open at the pure chock from his suggestion. "I'm leaving in three days" she argued when she regained her composure.

"Because of the job" he pointed out again.

"Yes. Because of the job" she answered again, confused.

"Rory..." Logan sighed and shook his head, his voice suddenly sounding very tired and defeated.

Rory sighed as well. "Logan..." she pleaded. "...don't read too much into this."

There was nothing but silence between them for a long time before Logan sighed again. "I found the letter. I was packing up some boxes...and I found the letter from your friend Matt"

Rory had heard the expression 'being lost for words' before, but she had never actually been lost for words before. Not until now.