Title: Some Things Change
Author: Christine (Christine.2001@juno.com)
Rating: PG-13??
Spoilers: Umm…I guess up until "The Third Lorelai"…the rest came from my head.
Pairing: R/T
Starring: Rory, Tristan
Guest Starring: Lorelai, Dean, Luke, Lane
Summary: Tristan and Rory have become good friends, although she and Dean are still dating (they never broke up the first time). After something happens with Dean, Rory sees that things are beginning to change between her and Tristan.
Disclaimer: Nooo officer! That's not Tristan stuffed under my bed……Well….I was going to give him back!!…. Eventually.
Feedback: Oh, YES Please! This is my first fic and I want to make sure I'm doing it right.
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"I'll come back after school and pick you up so we can study. And on the ride back to Stars Hollow, we're going to talk about whatever this is that is making you into this less than scholarly student."
As the bell rang, Rory stood and gave Tristan a mock salute, "Yes sir! No sir!" and then headed out of the class. "I'll see you after school!"
"Whatever it is that's bothering her, I'm determined to find out. I can't stand to see her so unhappy like this," Tristan thought as he walked out of class. "Well, whatever it is, I'm going to be there to make sure she's okay."
End of Chapter 5
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Chapter 6/16
With one more aggravated tug at her locker, Rory's entire body sagged in defeat. "What a way to end the already terrible day," she thought. Not that today, in particular, was so much worse than any other day. She got the same glares and the same insults, yet there were other things that somehow made the day a little less "cheery". There was the whole Dean break-up thing. It's not that she regretted her decision at all. Because, she really didn't. It was just that break-ups were always pretty hard. Especially with your first boyfriend. Then there was the "Guess the Mystery Man" thing. That didn't help too much. And to top it off, her normal source of amusement wasn't here. Well, it had been here….until he left for a stupid routine check-up. "And now, and now my locker won't open!" she thought angrily. "Why won't you open?!?" she shouted at her locker.
"Tsk, tsk, Rory. I knew you'd miss be, but I never thought you would resort to talking to your locker." Hanging his head and giving it a gentle shake of disapproval, "I honestly thought more of you Rory."
As Rory glared at his down-turned head, she retorted, "Well talking to you has always been as much fun as talking to my locker, so I figured that I'd give it a try."
His head whipped up revealing his smirk. "Mary, Mary, Mary. I'm hurt." He clutched his chest feigning pain. "Need a little help with that?" he asked, gesturing to her locker.
"No. I was just asking 'Why won't you open?' as more of a rhetorical question. I wasn't actually going to try and get it open," she stated, the sarcasm dripping from her voice.
"Well, since you don't need my help…" Tristan spun on his heel as if leaving.
Sighing, "Tristan?"
He spun around, charming grin in place, "Yes, dear?"
"Will you help me get my locker open?" she asked quietly.
"Of course!" With long strides, he reached her. From behind her, he gently pulled on her waist to move her away from the path of the locker door. Balling up his fist and pounding at just the right spot, the locker sprang open easily. Tristan noticed how well his arm fit around her waist. "Ugh…not now DuGrey. Think friendly thoughts…..Ok! Not too friendly!"
Stepping out of his grasp, Rory proceeds to take things from her locker. "Thanks."
"No prob." Just as she's about to shut her locker door, he stops her. Reaching over her shoulder into the locker, he pulls out her English folder. Pushing it into her already stuffed backpack, "I think we'll probably need this tonight."
"Oh yeah. Right." She didn't fail to notice his warm breath on her neck. Or how good he smelled. But he always smelled like that. He smelled like Tristan. Tristan. Her friend Tristan. "What's wrong with me today!!"
"Rory…Rory?"
Rory is shaken out of her thoughts just now noticing that Tristan had been talking to her. "I'm sorry. What?"
Chuckling, he takes her backpack from her and swung it over one shoulder. "Let's get going." Noticing that Rory wasn't following, Tristan turned back around to find a very sad faced Rory. "Or not…"
"Do we have to study??" she half whined.
"Well we could," he pauses to wiggle his eyebrows for effect, "do OTHER better things," he says suggestively.
"Ugh! Such a pig!" She punched his arm as she blazed past him towards the door.
With a shocked expression, "Why Rory! Where is YOUR mind? I was talking about getting coffee! Tsk, tsk…I'm ashamed. Truly ashamed."
Walking back up to him, "Oh, you are not and you know it." Placing her arm in his, "So…did I hear something about coffee?"
He laughed, but his voice changed from teasing to gentle. "Well, I'll make you a deal. You get coffee, and you tell me what's been bothering you."
Rory let out a frustrated groan. "Fine."
The car ride back to Stars Hollow was filled with mostly a companionable silence. Tristan knew Rory was thinking about something by the way her eyebrows were furrowed and the distant look in her eyes. He just wanted to give her some time to think.
Rory, meanwhile, was staging a battle in her head. "What should I tell Tristan? I know I'll tell him about the break up with Dean. Should I tell him that he was the reason for my fight with Dean? I know I told Lane that I didn't break up with Dean because of Tristan, but maybe I'm just fooling myself. I wouldn't give up my friendship with him for the world. But the question is, do I tell him that…AAAaahhh….But what he wants to know is what is bothering me! How do I say that my Mystery Man, the guy I know but don't recognize, the guy who makes me feel so wonderful, the guy of my dreams, is driving me crazy!!! I can't. That's just too weird. No. I'll just stick with the break-up and take it from there."
Soon she realized that they were parked in front of Luke's. For how long, she didn't know. Turning, surprised, to the driver's seat, she found Tristan staring back at her.
Answering her unspoken question, "We got here a few minutes ago. You just looked like you had some stuff to think about for a little while."
She smiled at this sweet gesture, "Thanks. Now, where's that coffee you promised?!?"
"Right this way."
They exited the car and walk into the hardware store turned dinner. They sat at Rory and Lorelai's normal table and Luke walked up sending a disparaging look Tristan's way.
"Rory, the usual?"
"Yep. I'm boring like that. And can you make it to go?"
"Ok. It'll be out in a second." Luke turned walking towards the kitchen.
"Um Luke?" Rory said.
"Yeah?" he said a bit disgruntled. Rory just gave him a look back showing her disapproval at him ignoring Tristan.
"Bible boy, you want the usual too?"
"Yeah. Thanks Luke." Tristan was definitely intimidated by this man who was so obviously protective of Rory. But Tristan definitely understood the feeling.
"Yeah, whatever." Turning to Rory, "He's better than that no good bag boy anyway," he said pointing at Tristan. Tristan looked in confusion at Rory, then Luke, then back at Rory. "You made the right choice kid." With that, he went to the kitchen to go prepare their orders.
Rory sheepishly looked down at the table, staring at it as if it held the meaning of life.
Tristan reached under her chin and gently lifted it up with his fingers. "Rory, what did Luke mean by that?"
Rory was about to try and look away, but Tristan's steady gaze held her attention. She hated that. It was always something that he could do with his eyes that held you at his mercy. Granted it had usually been used on the girls he was chasing after, but whenever he used it with her, she didn't want to admit that it worked with her, just as well. Taking a deep breath, "Dean and I broke up."
The words were quick and jumbled, but Tristan knew what he heard. Dropping his hand from her face, he stared back at her shocked. He had been waiting for this day, but it made him feel so terrible that the bag boy had caused Rory so much pain that she had been practically comatose all day. Suddenly, he was filled with anger. "Who does that bag boy think he is? He's not going to find anyone better! There's no one better." Taking her hand, "Rory. He's an idiot. Why he would ever break up with you…well it's just beyond me. I mean-"
Before he could finish his rant, Rory stopped him. "Tristan, I broke up with Dean. Not the other way around."
Again, Tristan fell back in his chair in a stupefied state. "Oh." Silently he thought, "She couldn't have met someone else could she? Why? When? What's going on here?" "umm…Rory," he began tentatively, "why did you break it up with Dean? He didn't try anything did he?" His voice turned angry at that last thought.
"OH NO! No…nothing like that….."
"Then what?"
"Well, he was kinda jealous of you," she mumbled incoherently.
"What did you say? It sounded like you said he was jealous of me. I mean that's ridiculous!" He chuckled, but on the inside his heart was pounding; so much that he would've sworn she could hear it. "Oh please say I heard right."
"Yeah, that's what I said." Her voice was barely audible over the pounding of his heart. "Haha..but that's ridiculous right? I mean, we're just friends." A half smile graced her lips.
Tristan's heart stopped pounding suddenly and he tried not to show the hurt he felt as his hopes fell for possibly the thousandth time during the course of their friendship. Laughing softly, "Yeah…pretty ridiculous."
Silence fell over them and they were saved from an awkward moment when Lorelai bounded in to beg for her coffee. Throwing a quick wave at the couple, she threw herself onto on of the bar stools and flashed her brightest smile at Luke. Although he looked unrelenting, it was evident that he had a soft spot for the Gilmore Girls.
With as bright of a smile as she can manage, Rory stood up. "Well, we better get cracking!"
"Sure," Tristan replied with his own smile. What could he say? Her smiles were infectious.
As they go to pick up their food, Rory goes to put down some money, but as usual Tristan shoved it back. "Tristan! Let me pay for once!"
"No Rory. I want to. What else am I gonna do with this money? It makes me happy to pay for you. Besides the deal was I'll pay, you talk. You agreed to it!"
With a roll of her eyes, she grudgingly relented. They had been through this too many times in the past and she knew it was useless to protest. "Ok ok. I give up. Mom, Tristan and I are heading back home to study for the English final."
"Sure thing, babe," she said throwing a glance their way before going back to her verbal sparring with Luke.
"You didn't want to wait for Lorelai?"
Glancing back at the oblivious adults, "Naw, I think she's going to be a while."
Getting back in the car, they drove the short distance to Rory's, preparing themselves for the grueling hours ahead.
End of Chapter 6
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