Imagine Me Without You (Chapter 4)

Title: Imagine Me Without You (Chapter 4)
Author: gigi
Rating: PG...for now
Summary: you have to read to find that out. The title of this series was inspired by Jaci Velasquez's
ballad "Imagine Me Without You"
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except for MY story line.
E-mail: gigi@xquisite.net
Etc.: I respect "constructive" criticism. Sorry for the lack of updates. I'm reviewing for all my finals and well, professors frown upon those who fall behind. That would be me :) I'll be back soon. Please comment! :D

Chatper 4: Running Late

Trstan slammed the snooze button for the millionth time as the alarm clock sounded off "womp-womp-womp". He dared not peek at the hour but he slowly unraveled a lid to take a peek anyways.

6:58 a.m. on a Monday morning.

He had thirty-two minutes and counting before he would make his entrance back to Chilton. Oddly enough, he was excited to return. Not because his entourage would be there ready to throw themseleve at him but because he would finally get to see Rory Gilmore. For a moment as he lay there, he closed his eyes and a smirk smeared his face. In his arms he tightly hugged the plush pillow, his heart beating quite fast. He arose from the bed to open the curtains, letting the morning rays in.

"It's a new day" he softly said, looking out the window.

Thirty-minutes. It was more than enough time to get ready and enter the front corridors of Chilton.
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On the other side of town, Rory Gilmore woke up in fret.

"MOM! MOM! Oh my God! MOM!", screaming at Lorelai in her bed.

Lorelai heard Rory's whimpers and still remained in bed with the sheets over her head. The whining was sure to get ugly. Her eyes still shut, Rory ripped the covers on top of her. She shuddered to the quick movement and forced her eyes to squint at a panicking daughter.

"MOM! Hello? MOM! Hello?!?! Gosh, MOM!"

"Ok, Ror, I'm squinting. I'm squinting! I'M SQUINTING! AH! Squiiiiiinting! AHH!"

She knew she was mocking her and refuted that she would stop whining. Lorelai sat up and wrapped
"Mom! I woke up late! Moooooooom!"

Lorelai snapped her eyes at the cross-eyed pig clock, Bacon, which hung right out the doorway in the hallway. It was already 7:02. Twenty-eight minutes before a full-day of curriculum at Chilton was about to start. Lorelai sensed the deja vu coming on and waved the hysterical one to go get ready. Rory ran out the room, into the bathroom, stripped, and hopped into the shower. Lorelai herself hopped out of the bed and pulled her hair back into a simple ponytail. She walked out the door and waved at Bacon.

"It's baaaaaaaaaaaaacon!" as she mocked the cute little thing. She heard the shower knob slump and knew Rory was done with her shower. Wow, only three minutes. After quick shuffling and drying, Rory ran out the front door buttoning her white longsleeve shirt, only to come back. Lorelai stood at the front door with the car keys in her left and Rory's ton-o-books of a bag on the right, which Rory quickly scooped into her arms. Lorelai patted her daughter's head and scooted her out the door. Rory ran fairly fast to the family jeep and hopped in. She fastened the belt, started the ignition, and put the vehicle into drive.

It was a cool morning but beautiful indeed. She peered at her rear view mirrors and then at the clock. 7:22. There was no way she would make it on time time Chilton and she was sure to get detention from Mrs. Ellen, her AP English teacher. Chilton was strict on tardiness. Everybody knew that.

She reached the four-way stop at Stars Hollow High and saw a familiar face cross her path. Dean walked across the street with his arm around a tall, blonde. She was a ditz for sure and Rory felt bad that even the ditz fell for his act. He smirked at his ex, only to be exchanged a cold-icy glare. Gripping the steering wheel, Rory released the brake and skidded straight ahead. After all the morning rush, she wasn't panicked about getting to school in time. She knew that she'd be there in time for second period, so she enjoyed the ride while she could, coffee-colored hair flying all over the place.
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He slipped on the too-familiar Chilton jacket and peered at the long vertical mirror. He was adjusted the tie and curiously looked at his blonde hair, making sure it looked just right. He smiled, for only a moment, when a pang of sadness melted his heart.
What if Rory doesn't remember me? *silly fool, of course she remembers you* What if she didn't miss me? *boy-oh-boy I missed her* What if she doesn't want to see me? So many what-if's...

He ignored the hurt feeling and stood straight in front of the mirror. He smoothed the jacket and picked up his binder, the same binder he had used before he left for military school. Quietly, he walked out and closed the bedroom door behind him and strode down the hallway. Before he could jog down the stairway, he turned to see his father clearing a cough.

"Ready?"

Fumbling with the edges of his binder, he looked at his father and nodded modestly. He was no longer angry with his father for sending him away to military school but grateful. He realized that he would no longer take for granted what he had been given in life.

"Alright then. Tristan?"

"Yeah?"

"Try not to burn down the school or anything."

He wasn't sure how to take it but the smirk on his father's face let him know that he was trying to make a joke. Tristan returned the smirk with that family-trademark and replied, "Not today anyways. See you later Dad." And with that he jogged down the stairs and out the door. He approached his 2001 silver BMW M3, which hadn't been driven in months. Surprisingly, there was a full tank of gas left. With no hesitation, he slipped into the driver's seat and started the ignition. As he adjusted the rear view mirrors, he noticed that it was now 7:31. He was late. Being late one minute meant he was tardy. And being tardy meant detention.

Tristan sped off the Dugrey property and was on his way to Chilton. Something that never changed was his tardiness and being late was another of his famous trademarks. He figured since he wasn't going to make it to first period, he could at least enjoy his time joyriding in his car and be in time for second period. The beats of Garbage rang in his ears, as he bobbed his head to song.
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Time sped fastly, as it had shown on the Chilton clock tower. It chimed 8:00 a.m. and without realization, both Rory and Tristan parked their vehicles in the Chilton student lot (on opposite ends of course). Both turned off their ignitions and sat in a comforting silence, admiring the morning dew and warmth. Killing time had its rewards.

Rory sat in her comfort when she realized that she may have forgotten some of her books in her locker. She squinced at the thought and didn't want to step out of the jeep right then. After a little hesitation, she picked up the bag pack that lay on the passenger seat and slipped it onto her frail shoulders. Her hair was still a bit damp and she whisked away a strand behind her ear. She shut the door and quickly walked into the school corridors before anyone could spot her in the parking lot.
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Tristan propped himself in his seat and looked at his rear view mirror, where he spotted a girl walking into the corridors. He gripped his hand around the mirror and thought to himself, "Geeze...everyone's running late today." He sighed and told himself to do the same. It was only 8:10, although he had thought more time had gone by than that. He checked himself once more in his mirror and unlocked his door. Stepping out with his folder in hand, he looked around. No one else was out there, except two gargoyles, for some odd reason, which he never noticed before. They held an eery-presence but wiggled the feeling out. He shut the door and walked moderately to the corridor.
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"Damn, you would've thought after spending thousands that they would've given you a decent locker. But no, by chance, you get the same locker AND it STILL doesn't work."

Rory silently cursed the wretched locker as she stood alone in the hallway. She was sure that there was still a good 20 minutes before class would start. Twnety minutes was more than enough time to catch up on something because there was always something to read or do. It was Chilton after all.

Her locker was kept clean and simple, mainly used for storing her books. She eyed the stack closely, searching for what books she would need that day. After landing on a decision, she carefully plucked out her AP English text and a copy of George Orwell's "1984".
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He was amazed and didn't know why. It had always just been Chilton to him, a school, nothing more than a school. He rounded the hallways filled with its filthy-rich lockers, when he felt that if he were going to make a right turn at the corner, he would know that he were not alone. He feared that it would have been someone on the administration. After all, it was his first day back and being out in the hall with no pass and not showing up for the first class of the day, would've been a bad impression on his part. So, on instinct, he waited for the click of heels or keys. The sound of heels clicking on the linoleum or dangling keys meant it was a custodian or an authority figure. Of all people, he knew.

When no sound was made, he slowly peeked behind the wall, when he saw the most beautious thing standing there in the morning light, standing all alone and zipping up her bag. "Perfect..." he softly whispered to himself.

Rory Gilmore.

His heart was pounding a 100 beats a minute and thousands of thoughts entered his mind. He turned around and leaned against the lockers. He tugged at his jacket and rubbed the back of his neck with anticipation. He didn't want to startle her but he didn't want to say something stupid. So he stepped out into the same hallway as she stood in and casually leaned himself against another wall of lockers, with the binder tucked under his arm. He knew just what to say.

"Mary...did you lose your way?"

Not so much being startled, she was perplexed by the voice and the title "Mary". She stood there staring straight at the inside of her locker and mouthed without sound "Mary...did you lose your way?" And it hit her. Only one could ever say the word "Mary" in such a way it sent shivers down her spine. Revelations crossed her mind and her heart was beating like a drum. She turned and saw the person who made her feel this way. She slowly turned her head to the right and saw Tristan Dugrey leaning on a locker. She couldn't help it as her eyes twinkled and a kool-aid grin washed against her face.

He smiled back at the precious thing. Tristan tried to control himself by clasping his clammy hands but it was no use.

Without question, without hesitation, Rory dropped her bag pack and ran down the hall, jumping into Tristan's arms. Both giggled with glee, seeing that Rory's legs were wrapped around Tristan's waiste and her arms around his neck. She nuzzled her face into the curve of his neck, her warm skin penetrating his. He held her close, tightly in his arms. It was something that he had always wanted to do, something he always wanted. The embrace was warm and it sent tingles throughout each other's bodies, as both smiled. Neither one wanted to release each other but they knew that they had to, at least for now anyways.

"Oh my God Tristan, I can't believe you're here! I mean, well, I do but, you're here! Does everyone know you're here?! OH MY GOD! Gosh, how have you been? How was military school?! Oh, so many people ask about you...:"

As she rambled on, Tristan just stood there aloof, smiling at the vibrant thing. God she was still beautiful, beautifuller if there was ever such a word. He would answer all her questions if that's what she wanted but in the meantime, he stared at her. She was so happy, it made him stiffle a giggle. Rory then realized she had been rambling and she stopped.

"What's so funny Dugrey?"

"Well Mary, it's nice to see you again. Quite a welcome you just gave me there. Lots of questions, too." He smirked and noticed that furious blush cover her innocent snow-kissed face. There was an awkward moment between the two, as she stared at her shoes and he slipped his hands into his pockets, rolling back-and-forth on his heels. But both were excited, overjoyed really. To break the silence, the passing period bell rang. Both were startled by the sound when Rory jumped.

She ran back to her locker and slam the door shut. In one swift movement, she scooped up her bag pack and ran back into Tristan's direction. People were rumbling through the classrooms and Rory decided she had to act quick. Tristan stared down at her with confusion as she ran torwards him and clasped his hand into hers. Both were running out of the hallway and at the entrance of the doorway, Rory sputtered a question.

"Yours or mine?"

He looked at her breathlessly as she looked back up at him. "What?!"

"Yours or mine?!" He didn't know what she was talking about and he knew that they couldn't waste time. He said "Mine". With a simple nod, Rory once again took his hand into hers as they ran the lot and to his BMW. Both opened their according door and slipped in as fast as they could. Rory and Tristan threw her bag pack and his folder over their seats and buckled up. Their hearts were still beating quite fast as Tristan started the ignition. He backed out of his space and drove out of the lot.

The two were quiet for a moment, seeing that both the beauty and the prince's faces were flushed with a tint of rosy pink and red from the cold morning air. Tristan decided to break the silence.

"Mary, I never knew you were so, so, so..."

'Invigorating?!" The word caused the two to burst in laughter, as Tristan drove on, not sure of where they were headed to.

"Well whatever it is, I liked it! I liked it a lot! Maybe you should lose your way all the time! What was all that about?!"

She calmed down and shyly looked out the window for a moment. Instead of going to second period, she was in a car with Tristan Dugrey. Where they were going was unsure of at the moment but she was glad to be where she was, she thought.

And so was he. He didn't understand what all that was about back there but he sure did like it. It was a welcome he didn't expect and from all people. She had started him off to a good day and it didn't start in school. It was with her.

"So Mary, what WAS all that about?" he questioned once again, interrupting her thoughts.

"What can I say. I felt like going out to have coffee." It was all she said and it stifled once again another laugh out of him. She smiled with her blues back into his and he smiled straight ahead. He was sure that other drivers were looking at him like a mad man, smiling like a mad man. But who cares, Rory was at his side. Rory remained quiet for the rest of the ride, so did Tristan, although both had content expressions on their faces. Every now and then, they exchanged looks of happiness.

"Well Mary, whatever it is, you are one chick who's down with the radness!"

Mary at first was irritable to her. It wasn't remotely close to her name. But now that he was back with her, she didn't care. She didn't know why she was feeling so happy, maybe things were doing to change. Rory, Mary...it didn't matter. It was fitting to her and she took a secret liking to it.

Tristan and Rory drove on and found themselves approaching the Hartford Shopping Gallary. Both didn't know what would happen next but they were more than anxious to find out.
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END CHAPTER 4