A/N: sorry that it took so long to get this up, but I've had writer's block in a major way. I'm not going to carry this story past the night of the play, because my creativity has just given out on me. If anyone wants to take this further, just write your own sequel. But don't fret, after this chapter, I still have one more to go.

Disclaimer: No, I don't own the characters or the settings, just the plot.

A very angry Dean walked towards Rory. She greeted him with a smile and hoped that he would wait until they got outside to confront her about this. No such luck.

"Ror, what the hell is going on here?"

"What do you mean?" She tried to act as innocent as possible, hoping he wouldn't guess how disappointed she was that he had walked up right then and interrupted a possible last kiss between her and Tristan.

"What I mean is I spend the last fifteen minutes looking for you and I find you here, flirting with the accountant." Rory tried not to flinch when she heard the nickname.

"I wasn't flirting with him." She tried to sound hurt. "He's moving away. I just wanted to say goodbye. There was a lot of anger and stuff between us, and we had to sort that out. He didn't want to leave with me still hating him."

"He's moving?" Dean asked, sounding half shocked, half relieved.

"Yes, he's moving."

"Well that's good. Are you ready to go home now? Your mom and Sookie are waiting by the car."

"Yeah, I'm ready. Let's go." Rory knew at that instant what she had to do. When she got to the parking lot, she pulled her mom aside. "Mom, do you mind catching a ride home with Sookie and letting me drive Dean home in the Jeep?"

"Sure hon, why?" Normally Lorelai would have made some joke about what they could be doing, but she could tell by the sound of her daughter's voice that she wasn't thinking about anything sexual.

"I need to talk to Dean about something."

"Something being…"

"I'll tell you when I get home, okay?"

Lorelai had a hunch about what her daughter was going to do, but didn't say anything about it. "Sure babe. Be home by midnight."

"I will be. Thanks." Rory kissed her mom on the cheek and headed off to the Jeep while Lorelai climbed into the passenger side of Sookie's car. They both drove off towards Stars Hollow, with Rory making sure to give Sookie a bit of a head start.

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Rory and Dean were quiet as they headed home. Rory was trying to figure out what to say when they got to Dean's house, and Dean was just happy that Tristan was gone for good. They cracked a few jokes as they drove, but the level of comfort that had been there before was gone. Dean attributed this to the fact that Rory was a bit tired, but Rory knew better.

They pulled into Dean's driveway. He moved to kiss her and get out, but Rory grabbed his arm. "Dean, wait."

He heard a bit of nervousness in her voice, and also a sense of urgency. He knew that whatever she had to say was important, and all of a sudden, he got a little scared. "What is it, Ror?" he asked, trying to sound calm.

Rory took a deep breath. She had rehearsed it in her head so she wouldn't ramble on, but this was still harder than she thought it would be. "Dean, this isn't working out. I mean, it was great in the beginning, but we're growing apart. We're not as close anymore. We…"

"Wait, are you breaking up with me?" he said this with a bit of disbelief.

"Yes Dean, I am." She hadn't wanted to be this harsh, but being sweet and gentle would make it harder for both of them. She had been going through this since before they left the Chilton parking lot, and she was sure that this was the right thing to do. "It's just not working…"

"Is this because of the accountant? Because you said he was moving. But he's not moving is he? You just said that to keep me calm…"

"Dean, this isn't about Tristan. And yes, he really is moving. This is about us."

"Rory, you can't do this to me." He sounded desperate now. "You mean everything to me. I love you, you know that."

"And I love you, too." It was the wrong thing to say; she knew that the instant the words left her mouth.

"Then why are you breaking up with me? You love me, you know we're right for each other." He grabbed her and pulled her to him in a desperate kiss.

Rory shoved him off of her, and since his door was open, she ended up shoving him right out of the car. "Dean, it's over!" she practically shouted. She had been ready to cry a moment ago, but now he was just acting pathetic. It was really getting on her nerves. She leaned over to close the passenger door. She didn't see Dean's hand reach up to grab it. As a result, she ended up slamming his hand in the door. She quickly opened it back up when she heard his cry of pain. Rory made sure his hand and all other body parts were out of the way before closing the door again. She looked out his window to make sure she wouldn't run over him when she drove off, but he was no longer on the ground. He was at her window, nursing his swollen hand.

"Rory, please reconsider." He leaned into her open window. But she'd had enough. She jerked her door open, knocking him to the ground. She didn't do this to hurt him; she just needed him out of the way so she could leave. She sped out of the driveway, leaving Dean to choke on the cloud of dust she left in her wake. Rory could barely hear him call her name one last time as she drove off into the night.

A/N: So, what did you think? Was I too mean to poor little Dean? I probably shouldn't have tortured him that much, but I just couldn't help myself. I don't know when I'll be able to post the next and last chapter. Review please!

~*~*~Mistress Desdemona~*~*~