TITLE: Lost in the Shadows 10/?
AUTHOR: Jennie
EMAIL: jennieln@pacbell.net
WEBSITE: http://jessifanfic.com/links
DISCLAIMER: College student... need I say more?
PAIRING: Tristan/Rory but will have elements of Dean/Rory, Jess/Rory, and ?/Rory
SUMMARY: This story follows the trials and tribulations of love, sex and friendships of Rory and her close nit group of friends in a time when adulthood is swiftly approaching. Can a friendship overcome a potentially disastrous start?
RATING: R for sexual situations and will be constant throughout the story.
SPOILERS: All of the first season. Yes, Tristan and Rory were in that Shakespeare play together but no, he did not get sent to military school. My Tristan is too smart for that. :o)
NOTES: Big thanks goes out to my beta'ers Jewls13 and Julie and of course to everyone who feedbacked. Believe me, it's what keeps me writing!
AUTHOR NOTE #2: I feel extremely silly. Yes, I do. Earlier I had defended my decision to have Tristan going to therapy because somebody pointed out that the scene basically revealed nothing we already knew and was a 'filler.' But I had defended my decision because I had major plans for a related plotline and it needed an intro… unfortunately, when reviewing my subplots (believe me, we're only a quarter of the way through) I decided not to follow that story line or else I may NEVER end this story. So don't think I'm crazy if I don't end up pursuing that angle. ::ducks her head:: Jennie
DEVIOUS SCHEMES
Whether she just got more sleep or she simply was feeling better, Chilton didn't see as dark and opposing as it did before. Today it was back to being a normal school.
She made it to her locker and was twisting in her combination when she sensed somebody behind her.
"Good morning, Rory." Tristan's voice was soft and his breath warm against her ear and by the time she turned around, he was halfway down the hall.
Rory found herself watching him stroll down the hall and she smiled.
*****
The next two months flew by too quickly for Tristan.
His and Rory's tentative friendship began as a way to ease his pain and maybe subconsciously he hoped that it could eventually lead to something more but instead it simply became a really good friendship. He never would have thought it possible but he seriously thought that in most senses it was better than a relationship. Besides, Rory wasn't ready nor was she interested in anything more from him, THAT he was sure of.
He chuckled as he remembered the last conversation he had had with his brother.
**flashback**
"So wait, let me get this straight. You and she are friends and nothing more?" Travis asked skeptically.
Tristan sighed. "Men and women can be friends. It is possible."
"Oh, I know for a fact it is. It's just you and women being friends that I question."
"You can be a real bastard sometimes, you know that, right?"
"Yeah, yeah. Gotta go little brother. Big date with Kristen. It's our two year anniversary. God, can you believe it? Two years… anyway, call me next week sometime and give me an update on this whole friends thing. I'll be surprised if you two haven't kissed yet. You ARE a DuGrey, you know."
**end flashback**
He was definitely proving Travis wrong.
The song he had been listening to came to an end yet he had no recollection of hearing any of it. Amused, he shut off his car, grabbed his backpack and stepped outside only to be tackled against the side of his car.
"What the—" he started as two arms circled him from behind.
"Tristan!" Rory giggled, loosening her grip so that he could turn around and face her but she tightened her hold almost immediately after. "I got in! I got in!"
"Rory, you're making me dizzy and—" He gasped for air. "You're cutting off my air supply."
She took his face between her hands and flashed him a brilliant smile, her ice blue eyes dancing. "Harvard. I'm in." He had to admit, in that moment he did want to lean in and close the small gap between them, to gently press his lips to hers as he did that night…
He held in his smile as he pulled away from her, needing space or else he was going to go crazy. "God, is that all?"
"You are incorrigible." She picked up her bag and began to walk away but she quickly turned back. "Here I am, all excited about getting into the college of my dreams and you have to be a butt hole and ruin it for me." She turned again, her humor evident, and began towards the school. She was too cute.
"Well, it's good to know that I'll have company." He leaned back against his car and crossed his arms and waited, smug smile in place.
"No," she groaned and stopped but did not look at him. "Not you too." Her head dropped and he thought he saw a slight smile on her face.
Tristan's smile grew wider. "Why do you think Paris wanted to go there in the first place?" Quickly, he caught up to her.
"Um, because her family goes back generations there." She looked at him with her innocent, wide eyes and he felt his heart warm. Yes, Harvard was going to be fun, especially if his dad followed through with his promise.
"Well, yeah, if you want to get technical." He leaned in close and mock whispered, "But secretly it's because of me."
She giggled and her cheeks flushed slightly. "Your ego gets bigger everyday, doesn't it?"
Sighing, Tristan grabbed her hand forcing her to stop walking. "I'm glad that you'll be there with me," he admitted honestly.
She took a deep breath and looked up into his eyes, tiny drops of rain splashing on her nose. It was funny but he didn't even notice that it was raining until now. "You know, so am I," she said, squeezing his hand.
He mentally did a little dance. Outwardly, he allowed a small smile at her confession. "Well, Ms. Harvard, let's get you inside so that you can unload your backpack before class."
*****
Rory took a sip out of the steaming mug on the table and stretched her aching back. She had set up 'camp' at a table close to the frosted window at Luke's so that if she got stuck on her research paper, she would have something to look at, but the weather had forced everyone inside leaving her with nobody to watch. Outside the snow was free falling onto the pavement. It fell onto the window and trickled down the glass. The wind was blowing at unimaginable speeds that made the trees outside whip around noisily.
Again, she glanced at her watch. Her mom was late. Nothing out of the ordinary but Rory was waiting to eat with her and if she didn't show up soon, her stomach was going to revolt. She flipped through the pages of one of the library books she was gathering material out of and found a blue flyer in it.
Rolling her eyes, she couldn't help but smile. Sometimes she thought that Tristan was even more stubborn than she was. How he had gotten it in her book without her noticing though, she had no clue. Setting it aside she picked up her pen, determined to actually get some work done.
"So, you done yet?" Jess asked, pulling out the chair next to her and sitting in it backwards.
"Now I know why home is designated my homework sanctuary. Between you and Luke, I haven't gotten anything productive done."
Jess almost looked pleased. "In that case, entertain me. I'm bored."
"Ugh. Why don't you work?" He gestured around them and she realized that they were alone in the diner. "Fine, how about I give you some pretty highlighters and you can color quietly while I read."
Jess clapped his hands in mock excitement. "Oh, goody. Can I, can I?" he said sarcastically. Ignoring the highlighters she offered him he instead picked up the flyer and opened it. "Prom, huh… you planning on going?" She could hear the disgust in his voice and knew that he suspected that she would go with Tristan.
"No, but Tristan keeps leaving these in my locker, on my desk in class, and in my backpack and now he's having random guys ask me to go with them. It's quite annoying."
"Don't give in until they begin to serenade you," her mom said from behind her dropping into the last available chair at the table.
"I'm not giving in at all. The last thing I want is to go to the Prom with a guy I don't know." Rory gave up on her work and quickly began to shove it all back into her backpack as Lorelai peeled off her jacket and wandered over to the counter.
She smacked her hand on it loudly. "Hey, Luke! Starving customers out here!" Lorelai turned back and regarded the two teens, a small twinkle in her eye. Rory instantly knew what she was thinking. "Why don't you take Jess?"
Jess' head snapped up. "What? No. Bad idea."
"Yeah, very bad. Tristan and Jess in the same room together. Bad." Rory's stomach growled loudly.
"Luke!" her mom called again. "Rory's stomach is cannibalizing itself!"
When there still wasn't an answer, she went behind the counter and poured herself some coffee. "Who is Tristan going with?"
Rory shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Probably some bimbo, I don't know. His choice in girls is not what I would call 'tasteful.'"
"Well, then that leaves only Jess—" She was interrupted by Luke's voice bellowing from the back room.
"Jess! What is this?!" Luke stormed into the room fuming. "I told you to restock that back shelf. That place can now officially be considered a disaster area."
"Hey, wanna know a good punishment?" Lorelai bounced up and down in excitement, a hard feat to accomplish in her heels. Luke eyed her wearily. "Make him go to the Prom with Rory."
He snorted. "Make him go to a party? What kind of punishment is that?"
"Think about it. He has to do his hair, dress up in a tuxedo and then come over to our house and deal with my mom fawning all over him and Rory. And best of all, she's gonna take millions of pictures that can be held to use later for mocking and blackmail." Luke seemed to be considering the proposal.
"Sounds good to me." He pointed at Jess. "YOU are going to the Prom."
Jumping up, Jess rushed over to the stock room. "I'll do it now, it's okay. I don't need to go to the dance," he stuttered. "Please," he begged, his eyes wide in panic.
"Too late," Lorelai said before turning her attention back to Luke. "Now that that's settled, we'll have two of the usual, and chop-chop."
Groaning, Luke went into the back, a whining Lorelai not far behind him. Jess staggered over and collapsed into the chair next to Rory's. "Why didn't you help me?" he asked, burying his head in his arms.
Rory shrugged. "I don't know. It might be fun. Besides, I need to torture you as much as possible now to make up for moving away to Harvard in five months."
"I hate you," he moaned.
"I can't wait to see you in a tux, Jess. In fact, I'm going to call my grandma now and tell her the good news." She reached into her mom's briefcase and fished around for her cell phone.
"You are a vindictive witch."
She flashed him a smile and pretended to dial.
She loved making him squirm.
*****
TBC…
If you have time, please review telling me if you liked it or not and why. I live off of feedback.
AUTHOR: Jennie
EMAIL: jennieln@pacbell.net
WEBSITE: http://jessifanfic.com/links
DISCLAIMER: College student... need I say more?
PAIRING: Tristan/Rory but will have elements of Dean/Rory, Jess/Rory, and ?/Rory
SUMMARY: This story follows the trials and tribulations of love, sex and friendships of Rory and her close nit group of friends in a time when adulthood is swiftly approaching. Can a friendship overcome a potentially disastrous start?
RATING: R for sexual situations and will be constant throughout the story.
SPOILERS: All of the first season. Yes, Tristan and Rory were in that Shakespeare play together but no, he did not get sent to military school. My Tristan is too smart for that. :o)
NOTES: Big thanks goes out to my beta'ers Jewls13 and Julie and of course to everyone who feedbacked. Believe me, it's what keeps me writing!
AUTHOR NOTE #2: I feel extremely silly. Yes, I do. Earlier I had defended my decision to have Tristan going to therapy because somebody pointed out that the scene basically revealed nothing we already knew and was a 'filler.' But I had defended my decision because I had major plans for a related plotline and it needed an intro… unfortunately, when reviewing my subplots (believe me, we're only a quarter of the way through) I decided not to follow that story line or else I may NEVER end this story. So don't think I'm crazy if I don't end up pursuing that angle. ::ducks her head:: Jennie
DEVIOUS SCHEMES
Whether she just got more sleep or she simply was feeling better, Chilton didn't see as dark and opposing as it did before. Today it was back to being a normal school.
She made it to her locker and was twisting in her combination when she sensed somebody behind her.
"Good morning, Rory." Tristan's voice was soft and his breath warm against her ear and by the time she turned around, he was halfway down the hall.
Rory found herself watching him stroll down the hall and she smiled.
*****
The next two months flew by too quickly for Tristan.
His and Rory's tentative friendship began as a way to ease his pain and maybe subconsciously he hoped that it could eventually lead to something more but instead it simply became a really good friendship. He never would have thought it possible but he seriously thought that in most senses it was better than a relationship. Besides, Rory wasn't ready nor was she interested in anything more from him, THAT he was sure of.
He chuckled as he remembered the last conversation he had had with his brother.
**flashback**
"So wait, let me get this straight. You and she are friends and nothing more?" Travis asked skeptically.
Tristan sighed. "Men and women can be friends. It is possible."
"Oh, I know for a fact it is. It's just you and women being friends that I question."
"You can be a real bastard sometimes, you know that, right?"
"Yeah, yeah. Gotta go little brother. Big date with Kristen. It's our two year anniversary. God, can you believe it? Two years… anyway, call me next week sometime and give me an update on this whole friends thing. I'll be surprised if you two haven't kissed yet. You ARE a DuGrey, you know."
**end flashback**
He was definitely proving Travis wrong.
The song he had been listening to came to an end yet he had no recollection of hearing any of it. Amused, he shut off his car, grabbed his backpack and stepped outside only to be tackled against the side of his car.
"What the—" he started as two arms circled him from behind.
"Tristan!" Rory giggled, loosening her grip so that he could turn around and face her but she tightened her hold almost immediately after. "I got in! I got in!"
"Rory, you're making me dizzy and—" He gasped for air. "You're cutting off my air supply."
She took his face between her hands and flashed him a brilliant smile, her ice blue eyes dancing. "Harvard. I'm in." He had to admit, in that moment he did want to lean in and close the small gap between them, to gently press his lips to hers as he did that night…
He held in his smile as he pulled away from her, needing space or else he was going to go crazy. "God, is that all?"
"You are incorrigible." She picked up her bag and began to walk away but she quickly turned back. "Here I am, all excited about getting into the college of my dreams and you have to be a butt hole and ruin it for me." She turned again, her humor evident, and began towards the school. She was too cute.
"Well, it's good to know that I'll have company." He leaned back against his car and crossed his arms and waited, smug smile in place.
"No," she groaned and stopped but did not look at him. "Not you too." Her head dropped and he thought he saw a slight smile on her face.
Tristan's smile grew wider. "Why do you think Paris wanted to go there in the first place?" Quickly, he caught up to her.
"Um, because her family goes back generations there." She looked at him with her innocent, wide eyes and he felt his heart warm. Yes, Harvard was going to be fun, especially if his dad followed through with his promise.
"Well, yeah, if you want to get technical." He leaned in close and mock whispered, "But secretly it's because of me."
She giggled and her cheeks flushed slightly. "Your ego gets bigger everyday, doesn't it?"
Sighing, Tristan grabbed her hand forcing her to stop walking. "I'm glad that you'll be there with me," he admitted honestly.
She took a deep breath and looked up into his eyes, tiny drops of rain splashing on her nose. It was funny but he didn't even notice that it was raining until now. "You know, so am I," she said, squeezing his hand.
He mentally did a little dance. Outwardly, he allowed a small smile at her confession. "Well, Ms. Harvard, let's get you inside so that you can unload your backpack before class."
*****
Rory took a sip out of the steaming mug on the table and stretched her aching back. She had set up 'camp' at a table close to the frosted window at Luke's so that if she got stuck on her research paper, she would have something to look at, but the weather had forced everyone inside leaving her with nobody to watch. Outside the snow was free falling onto the pavement. It fell onto the window and trickled down the glass. The wind was blowing at unimaginable speeds that made the trees outside whip around noisily.
Again, she glanced at her watch. Her mom was late. Nothing out of the ordinary but Rory was waiting to eat with her and if she didn't show up soon, her stomach was going to revolt. She flipped through the pages of one of the library books she was gathering material out of and found a blue flyer in it.
Rolling her eyes, she couldn't help but smile. Sometimes she thought that Tristan was even more stubborn than she was. How he had gotten it in her book without her noticing though, she had no clue. Setting it aside she picked up her pen, determined to actually get some work done.
"So, you done yet?" Jess asked, pulling out the chair next to her and sitting in it backwards.
"Now I know why home is designated my homework sanctuary. Between you and Luke, I haven't gotten anything productive done."
Jess almost looked pleased. "In that case, entertain me. I'm bored."
"Ugh. Why don't you work?" He gestured around them and she realized that they were alone in the diner. "Fine, how about I give you some pretty highlighters and you can color quietly while I read."
Jess clapped his hands in mock excitement. "Oh, goody. Can I, can I?" he said sarcastically. Ignoring the highlighters she offered him he instead picked up the flyer and opened it. "Prom, huh… you planning on going?" She could hear the disgust in his voice and knew that he suspected that she would go with Tristan.
"No, but Tristan keeps leaving these in my locker, on my desk in class, and in my backpack and now he's having random guys ask me to go with them. It's quite annoying."
"Don't give in until they begin to serenade you," her mom said from behind her dropping into the last available chair at the table.
"I'm not giving in at all. The last thing I want is to go to the Prom with a guy I don't know." Rory gave up on her work and quickly began to shove it all back into her backpack as Lorelai peeled off her jacket and wandered over to the counter.
She smacked her hand on it loudly. "Hey, Luke! Starving customers out here!" Lorelai turned back and regarded the two teens, a small twinkle in her eye. Rory instantly knew what she was thinking. "Why don't you take Jess?"
Jess' head snapped up. "What? No. Bad idea."
"Yeah, very bad. Tristan and Jess in the same room together. Bad." Rory's stomach growled loudly.
"Luke!" her mom called again. "Rory's stomach is cannibalizing itself!"
When there still wasn't an answer, she went behind the counter and poured herself some coffee. "Who is Tristan going with?"
Rory shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Probably some bimbo, I don't know. His choice in girls is not what I would call 'tasteful.'"
"Well, then that leaves only Jess—" She was interrupted by Luke's voice bellowing from the back room.
"Jess! What is this?!" Luke stormed into the room fuming. "I told you to restock that back shelf. That place can now officially be considered a disaster area."
"Hey, wanna know a good punishment?" Lorelai bounced up and down in excitement, a hard feat to accomplish in her heels. Luke eyed her wearily. "Make him go to the Prom with Rory."
He snorted. "Make him go to a party? What kind of punishment is that?"
"Think about it. He has to do his hair, dress up in a tuxedo and then come over to our house and deal with my mom fawning all over him and Rory. And best of all, she's gonna take millions of pictures that can be held to use later for mocking and blackmail." Luke seemed to be considering the proposal.
"Sounds good to me." He pointed at Jess. "YOU are going to the Prom."
Jumping up, Jess rushed over to the stock room. "I'll do it now, it's okay. I don't need to go to the dance," he stuttered. "Please," he begged, his eyes wide in panic.
"Too late," Lorelai said before turning her attention back to Luke. "Now that that's settled, we'll have two of the usual, and chop-chop."
Groaning, Luke went into the back, a whining Lorelai not far behind him. Jess staggered over and collapsed into the chair next to Rory's. "Why didn't you help me?" he asked, burying his head in his arms.
Rory shrugged. "I don't know. It might be fun. Besides, I need to torture you as much as possible now to make up for moving away to Harvard in five months."
"I hate you," he moaned.
"I can't wait to see you in a tux, Jess. In fact, I'm going to call my grandma now and tell her the good news." She reached into her mom's briefcase and fished around for her cell phone.
"You are a vindictive witch."
She flashed him a smile and pretended to dial.
She loved making him squirm.
*****
TBC…
If you have time, please review telling me if you liked it or not and why. I live off of feedback.