Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own anything.

Authors Notes: Hello again! :) Here's the next chapter. I hope you like it! Thanks to everyone who reviewed. You guys are the best! I hope to get another chapter out soon. Please r/r!

A Second Chance

By Angel

Chapter 7: Revelations

~Chilton the next day~

Rory walked into school deep in thought. She wasn't sure what to do about her newly discovered feelings. 'What if he doesn't like me? What if he just wants to be friends? That would hurt so much. I don't think I could stand being rejected. It's much safer to act normally until I get a hint of what he feels. That's what I'll do. I'll pretend everything is the same until I know how he feels.' Having made her decision she walked to her locker to see a familiar form leaning against it. Her heart fluttered at the sight of him. 'Oh boy, this is going to be harder than I thought.' Smiling, she walked over to him. "Hey Tris."

"Morning Mary." Tristan said with a smile that made Rory's knees weak. "Ready to go to class?"

Rory composed herself as she finished getting her books and closed her locker. "Am now, let's go." She said as they began to walk down the hall. Without realizing it, both teens walked closer to each other than normal. Every so often their arms would brush against each other sending tingling sensations shooting up their arms like electricity. Rory had to concentrate really hard to keep their conversation going. 'Remember Rory, he's just a friend. A friend!!! You don't know how he feels about you, and until you do, Tristan is just a friend. Now act normally! Act like you don't notice the tingles. Or how good his cologne smells, or how incredibly hot he looks, even when he's in a Chilton uniform…whoa! Stop right there! No more thoughts about Tristan! Act like nothing has changed Rory. Nothing has changed! Breath! Okay, now concentrate on your conversation.' Rory stopped her inner dialogue and continued with their morning banter hoping Tristan didn't notice her moment of inattentiveness.

Lucky for Rory, Tristan was too busy fighting his own inner battle to notice. 'Every time she's near I feel so nervous, yet I'm crazy without her. Sometimes I just want to tell her everything, but I don't want to lose my friendship with her. What if she hates me again? I don't think I can handle that. She's so beautiful. Every time she's around the whole world seems to brighten. But when she touches me…I can't help but notice how my arm tingles every time she brushes against it. Or how beautiful her eyes are. They're like two deep blue pools I wish I could drown in. How can I forget when the smell of her shampoo drives me crazy every time she's near?' Tristan let out a groan inside his head. 'Don't even go there DuGray. You're only torturing yourself. Get a grip! She's a friend! A friend! Now focus!' Tristan ordered himself, before he turned his attention back to their conversation. Countering Rory's remark, he followed her into the classroom just as the bell rang. As they sat down in their seats both Rory and Tristan let out an inner sigh of relief. It was going to be a very long day.

As time passed Rory came to the realization that she had become very hyperaware of Tristan. She would be sitting in class and would be listening to the teacher, but she would also notice everything Tristan was doing. Like how he tapped his pen when he was bored, or how he rubbed the back of his neck whenever he was stuck on a question. It was almost like by admitting to herself that she liked him she had turned on some internal Tristan radar, which could track Tristan down in a heartbeat. Whenever he was near she just knew. Like at this moment, she knew he was walking towards her. She didn't need to turn around to confirm this. She had somehow known the moment he came down the hall.

Soon enough a familiar shape was leaning against the lockers beside her. "Hey Mary, got any plans for the weekend? If not then we could make some plans of our own…" Tristan said, as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Closing her locker, Rory rolled her eyes, trying to submerge the flutter of her heart. "Dinner with my grandparents remember? But nothing much besides homework for the rest of the weekend."

"How about Saturday morning. Meet you at your house at ten?"

"Sounds fun. See you then." Rory said as she went to the bus stop. Inside Rory was thrilled. She was going to get to spend even more time with Tristan! Lately she couldn't seem to get enough of him, and she treasured every moment they spent together. Waving goodbye, she got on the bus, anxious for the weekend to begin. She couldn't wait for Saturday.

Tristan watched as Rory waved and got on the bus. He wanted to jump with joy. He was going to get to spend more time with Rory! Every minute with Rory was worth more to him than all the money in the world. Letting a real smile light up his face, he walked to his car. He definitely couldn't wait for Saturday to arrive.

~Saturday~

Sitting in his car Tristan thought over the last two months. His friendship with Rory had become really close, but there was always his underlying attraction to her. At times he thought he sensed the same attraction coming from her, but he was never sure if it was real or just his hopeful heart. He really liked his friendship with Rory, but it was getting harder and harder to contain his feelings for her. He felt almost ready to burst. 'Maybe if things go well today, I'll tell her how I feel…' he thought as he got out of his car. Hoping for the best, Tristan took a deep breath to calm his nerves, and walked to the Gilmores front door.

Rory sat in her room, thinking about the last two months. Ever since she had admitted that she had feelings for Tristan, their friendship seemed to get even closer. At times, it seemed as if Tristan gave her hints that he considered he wanted to be more than friends, but she was never sure. Maybe it was all her imagination and he only wanted to be her friend. But she wanted him to be so much more. Letting out a sigh, Rory decided that she couldn't hide her feelings any longer. 'Maybe I'll tell him today,' she thought as she changed for the third time.

Lorelai smiled as she peeked into her daughter's room. She knew what, or more specifically who, Rory was thinking about. She had also seen Tristan's car pull up outside a little while ago. Shaking her head, she nearly laughed at their obliviousness to the other's feelings. To anyone else the attraction between the two couldn't be more obvious. It was so strong that it was almost visible. The way they both tried to ignore it and act like friends was also really amusing to watch. It was like watching an intricate dance. They always said that they were only friends, yet you would almost always find one with the other. If they could, they would find some way to be close to each other, and Lorelai wasn't blind to the fact that they were always trying to have some contact with each other. It was almost like they were joined at the hip. Smiling again Lorelai moved back into the kitchen. 'Hopefully one of them will speak soon, before they drive themselves crazy.'

Tristan knocked on the door at precisely ten sharp. Lorelai opened the door and brightened when she saw that he held two steaming cups of coffee. "Oh you have become my most favouritest person in the whole entire world!"

"Favouritest?" Tristan asked as he followed Lorelai into the house. "Is that even a word?"

"It is in my handbook. Especially on a day when I haven't had my daily morning coffee since our coffeemaker is broken." Lorelai said before gulping down her coffee.

Just then Rory came into the kitchen. "Oh coffee! Tris, you are the bestest person in the entire world!"

"Bestest?" Tristan asked with a grin. "You Gilmores really can't talk until you've had your morning coffee."

"Coffee is what gets the brain going in the morning!" Rory said with a perky tone in her voice from the coffee.

"That's right. Without coffee the world would be at a standstill. People would be boring and dull and the earth would stop rotating. Then all mankind would die out and cease to exist. Life can not exist without coffee!" Lorelai said grinning.

Tristan couldn't help but laugh at this statement. Before meeting Rory and her mother, he had never met anyone who treasured coffee as much as they did. Calming down, he turned to Rory. "So, ready to go?"

"Yup. See you later mom. I have my cell if you need me." Rory said as she grabbed her jacket and went out the door.

"Bye honey. See you guys later. And have fun!" Lorelai said winking at Rory as she closed the door behind them.

"So, what's the plan for today?" Rory asked as Tristan pulled his car out of the driveway.

"It's a surprise." Tristan said with a smile.

"Awww come on Tris, tell me."

"Nope." Tristan said, his smile getting even wider.

"You're evil." Rory said, pretending to be miffed. She really didn't care where they were going, as long as she got to spend the time with him.

"Yup that's me." Tristan said with a smirk. He knew she didn't really care, but he liked teasing her anyway. Their banter was always so much fun. They sat in comfortable silence, listening to the radio for the rest of the ride. When they arrived, Tristan parked the car and turned to Rory. "Alright, close your eyes."

Rory rolled her eyes and heaved a dramatic sigh. Smiling, she complied, squeezing her eyes tight.

Putting an arm around her to guide her, Tristan led Rory slowly away from the car and down the path. Once they got to the entrance of the park he told her to open her eyes.

Rory gasped at the beautiful sight. There was a small dirt path leading into the park, and everywhere she looked there were trees of all shapes and sizes. Far in the distance she could see a glimmer of a lake, and everything was touched by the colors of autumn. "Oh Tris…it's so beautiful!"

Tristan smiled. This park had been his favourite place ever since he was a kid. He was glad he had this chance to share it with Rory. Seeing the look on her face had been worth it. Both teens smiled at each other and stood looking across the path. Comfortable beside each other, they both felt as if the time was almost right to reveal their feelings. Rory was slightly nervous. She felt as if something big was going to happen soon, but she didn't want things to change right away. Just as Tristan was about to speak, Rory broke into the silence. "Let's go explore the rest of the park!" she said, running down the path. Tristan let out a small sigh and began running, following close behind her.

During the day Rory and Tristan had many 'moments' where one would almost reveal their feelings to the other. Yet something always interrupted before they could say a word. By this time even they could feel the force of their attraction for each other. Being cautious, they kept the situation at a little more than friendly banter, always flirting, but never actually voicing their feelings. Before they both knew it, the entire day had passed by. Laughing as they talked, they began to walk to the entrance of the park.

"No way! It is not possible!" Rory exclaimed.

"It is." Tristan said smugly. "I'm not ticklish."

"No way. I refuse to believe that!" Rory said, getting a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Well, it's true." Tristan said with a smirk.

"I'll believe it when I see it!" Rory said as she quickly turned and began to tickle him.

Tristan, caught off guard, began to squirm and laugh. "Okay…okay…stop…stop!" he said between fits of laughter. "I give up. I'm ticklish."

Rory backed away with a smug grin on her face. "I knew it!"

"But not as ticklish as you are!" Tristan said attacking Rory's sides. Rory started laughing uncontrollably, and began twisting all over the place. Tristan wrapped his arms around her and started tickling both sides at once. Rory, trying to get away, backed up further into Tristan's arms until her back was against him. "Stop, stop!" Rory gasped, wiping the tears she had in her eyes from laughing so hard. Tristan stopped, and both of them stood trying to regain their breath. Suddenly they both realized the position they were in. Yet neither one of them moved. Rory couldn't help but think how comfortable she felt in his arms. She didn't want to move at all. Tristan stood there with his arms around Rory, and couldn't imagine any other place he wanted to be. They couldn't ignore the tingling sensation they felt whenever they came in contact with each other either. They both stood there for a few moments, watching the sunset, highlighting the colors of the leaves, making everything glow with a golden hue. It was at that moment, that they both decided to tell each other their true feelings. They both spoke at the same time. "Tris…" "Rory…"

Rory, too nervous to speak, nodded for Tristan to speak first.

Tristan knew this was it. This was his chance to tell Rory everything. Tristan suddenly became very nervous. Taking a deep breath, Tristan began to speak. "Rory…I…I've been thinking lately. Well, no I thought about this a long time ago, but I never knew what you were thinking, so I never said anything and…" Tristan stopped before his babbling went out of control. He had never been so nervous before in his life. Taking another breath he continued. "We've had quite a history, but we overcame it all and now we're really good friends. I'm really glad that we had this chance to become friends. I never can tell you how grateful that you gave me that second chance. I mean, you've been so great, and I feel like I can talk to you about anything. I realized long ago that I liked you a lot. And…well I've been thinking for a while now, and I was wondering…well…I was wondering if you would like be my girlfriend." There, he had finally told her how he felt. Now, for the first time, his heart lay on the line. She had the power to make him the happiest man alive, or crush all his hopes and grind his heart into little pieces.

Rory stood there stunned for a second, a million thoughts rushing through her head. 'I can't believe it. He has feelings for me! Tristan is asking me to be his girlfriend! Oh my god he likes me!' Realizing that Tristan was still waiting for an answer, she took a deep breath and said without hesitation, "Tris, I would love to be your girlfriend."

Tristan let out a sigh of relief. He had been extremely nervous when she didn't answer right away. He had been so scared that she was going to reject him. He would have died if he heard the words "I only think of you as a friend." Pulling her closer to him, they stood there in comfortable silence as a blanket of happiness fell over them both. Suddenly Rory pulled away and turned to look deep into Tristan's eyes. "Hey Tris, you know that note? The one you wrote at the beginning of the year?"

Tristan nodded.

"Were you serious when you asked me to prom?"

Tristan looked deep into Rory's eyes and nodded again.

"Well, if the offer still stands, I would really love to go with you Tris. I mean as your girlfriend, I suppose it's my duty and everything…" Rory said with an impish grin.

Tristan smiled and laughed. He couldn't help being amazed at how right those words sounded coming from Rory's mouth. His girlfriend. Life couldn't get any better than this. "Of course the offer still stands. I've been waiting for your answer for a long time now. And as your boyfriend I suppose it's my duty to take you." He replied in a teasing manner. Feeling an overwhelming joy bubble up inside them, they laughed again. Tristan wrapped his arms around Rory and they watched the rest of the sunset. Never had either of them felt so complete. So alive.

As Tristan watched the sunset he felt a great sense of peace and comfort come over him. For the first time in his life he could say that all was right in the world. He finally had the girl of his dreams in his arms, and he was never going to let her go.

~Yay! They're finally together! I hope you liked this chapter. I'll try to get the next chapters out as soon as I can. Keep the reviews coming! They seem to magically dispel the nasty writers block : )~