A?N—I made up the name of the paper mentioned b/c I'm to lazy to look up a
real Connecticut newspaper.
*Rory's Apartment hours later. Lane is there, sitting on the couch reading a magazine, while Rory sits on the floor flipping aimlessly through the channels, waiting for the phone to ring.
After ten minutes of dead silence, Lane breaks the silence.
"So what are you going to say if he calls you?"
"I don't think he's going to call, must I make you read the damn letter over again."
"No thank you, but really Rory, have you thought about that?"
"I don't know, I don't even know how I feel about him. Is it possible to miss someone who brings out the worst in you?"
Lane stairs firmly at her friend, "Come on, the worst? I wouldn't go that far."
"Well then Lane what does he do to me? He'll be the most wonderful caring person one minute and then he'll be tearing you down the next? What is that?"
"I think that's called making you work for his affection. I mean, he's not like the other people you've dated. Dean had a perfect record, never did anything wrong, and then there was Tom, the nice bookstore clerk…who had dinner with his entire extended family every Sunday? Jess, on the other hand has never had a close relationship with anybody, so it's got to be hard for him to understand how to have one. I mean who knows the last time Jess even spoke to his mother. The only relative he speaks to is Luke—
"Luke! That's it…Luke, might know where Jess is…I mean that would make sense right?" Rory doesn't wait for an answer; she scrambles to the phone and dials the diner.
"Luke's Diner." The gruff voice of Luke answers the phone.
"Luke? It's Rory."
A confused sounding voice replies, "Oh hi, is everything ok?"
"Uh yea, why?"
"I don't know, I just don't remember you ever calling here before."\
"Oh well, actually I was wondering if you had heard from Jess?"
"No…should I have?"
"Well, no he just left me a message that he was going away but he didn't leave a number."
"Well, I'm sorry, I haven't heard from him since last week."
"Alright, well please if he calls you let him know I was looking for him."
"Ok, I'll do that. Goodbye."
"Bye, Luke."
*Luke's diner
Luke hangs up the phone.
"Thanks, Luke."
"Look, I don't know what you did, and I don't think I want to, but that girl seemed really upset."
"Yea, well that's what happens when people spend too much time around me." Jess sighs.
"So, are you staying over?"
"No, I just needed to get away for a little while, I'll be leaving soon."
*3 weeks later—a Saturday afternoon
Lane's house—Rory and Lane are eating Chinese food
"So you seemed to get along well with Matt last night." Lane says pryingly to friend.
"Yea, he seems like a nice guy." Rory replies drifting off a bit.
Lane puts down her fork. "Oh my God, not this again."
"What, Lane?"
"That look, the he's not Jess so it doesn't matter look. It's been almost a month Rory and you haven't heard from him once."
"I know…but—
"Rory, I understand, but you have to at least try and enjoy life. You can't let this whole thing dictate your life."
"I know."
"So what do you say, Me, You, Ryan, and Matt go out tonight?"
Rory looks dejectedly at Lane. "Ok, but no more bowling, lets go to some place that we don't have to change our shows."
"I know! Let's go to that club downtown…what's the name of it… Jacques'."
"Oh yea. That place looks like fun."
*9:00pm Jacques' club
*The two couples are sitting around a small table
"See, Ror, I told you this place would be fun."
"It really is nice, and the music doesn't suck."
"Speaking of that, how about a dance pretty lady?" Jack intercepts
"Sure." Jack leads Lane out on the dance floor, leaving Rory and Matt to talk.
"So, Lane was telling me you're the editor of the Harvard University paper. "
"Huh? Oh yea, I've always loved writing, since I was a little kid."
"Really? Me too, for me it's not a chore going to work, because I love what I do."
"What do you do?"
"I have a column in the Gazette actually, I write the Java Talk."
"You're kidding, I read that column every Saturday morning. It's great. My mom saves every one of your columns, she says you're the only writer who knows anything about anything." Rory gushes and then blushes turning towards the figures dancing nearby.
"What do you say? Feel like busting a move?"
""Uh, yea you know what. Ok." The two head towards the dance floor; Rory walks slowly shedding the guilt of the last few weeks as she follows Matt onto the floor.
As they dance, a waitress passes by heading for a table in the back.
"Here again I see."
"Yea well, this is the quietest place I know."
"Funny, seems to me a guy like you would be jumping 'round a place like this."
The customer's eyes glaze slightly as his thoughts wonder momentarily. "You ok, Sweet cheeks?"
"Wh-uh yea. Sorry, my mind was somewhere else."
"Hey, it's alright. You know I get off in ten minutes, maybe we could do something then."
The young man processes the offer in his mind but declines. "No, not to night…(squinting at the name tag on the women's shirt) Kylie; I really should try and finish this up."
"I've been meaning to ask you that, for weeks now I've served you drinks at this table every night, and it's always the same thing, all you do is sit here with paper s all over the place drinking Smirnoff's and staring into to space, so what is all this stuff.?"
"Just ideas, memories, hopes, you know it's my life…put down on paper."
"Wow."
"I've kind of hit a road block though, I don't know how to end it all. So you know what I'm going just pay for my drink and leave...do you take credit cards?" He takes out his visa a card and holds it out for the waitress. She takes it from him and looks down at the card.
"Sure do. See you tomorrow Mr. Marino."
*Rory's Apartment hours later. Lane is there, sitting on the couch reading a magazine, while Rory sits on the floor flipping aimlessly through the channels, waiting for the phone to ring.
After ten minutes of dead silence, Lane breaks the silence.
"So what are you going to say if he calls you?"
"I don't think he's going to call, must I make you read the damn letter over again."
"No thank you, but really Rory, have you thought about that?"
"I don't know, I don't even know how I feel about him. Is it possible to miss someone who brings out the worst in you?"
Lane stairs firmly at her friend, "Come on, the worst? I wouldn't go that far."
"Well then Lane what does he do to me? He'll be the most wonderful caring person one minute and then he'll be tearing you down the next? What is that?"
"I think that's called making you work for his affection. I mean, he's not like the other people you've dated. Dean had a perfect record, never did anything wrong, and then there was Tom, the nice bookstore clerk…who had dinner with his entire extended family every Sunday? Jess, on the other hand has never had a close relationship with anybody, so it's got to be hard for him to understand how to have one. I mean who knows the last time Jess even spoke to his mother. The only relative he speaks to is Luke—
"Luke! That's it…Luke, might know where Jess is…I mean that would make sense right?" Rory doesn't wait for an answer; she scrambles to the phone and dials the diner.
"Luke's Diner." The gruff voice of Luke answers the phone.
"Luke? It's Rory."
A confused sounding voice replies, "Oh hi, is everything ok?"
"Uh yea, why?"
"I don't know, I just don't remember you ever calling here before."\
"Oh well, actually I was wondering if you had heard from Jess?"
"No…should I have?"
"Well, no he just left me a message that he was going away but he didn't leave a number."
"Well, I'm sorry, I haven't heard from him since last week."
"Alright, well please if he calls you let him know I was looking for him."
"Ok, I'll do that. Goodbye."
"Bye, Luke."
*Luke's diner
Luke hangs up the phone.
"Thanks, Luke."
"Look, I don't know what you did, and I don't think I want to, but that girl seemed really upset."
"Yea, well that's what happens when people spend too much time around me." Jess sighs.
"So, are you staying over?"
"No, I just needed to get away for a little while, I'll be leaving soon."
*3 weeks later—a Saturday afternoon
Lane's house—Rory and Lane are eating Chinese food
"So you seemed to get along well with Matt last night." Lane says pryingly to friend.
"Yea, he seems like a nice guy." Rory replies drifting off a bit.
Lane puts down her fork. "Oh my God, not this again."
"What, Lane?"
"That look, the he's not Jess so it doesn't matter look. It's been almost a month Rory and you haven't heard from him once."
"I know…but—
"Rory, I understand, but you have to at least try and enjoy life. You can't let this whole thing dictate your life."
"I know."
"So what do you say, Me, You, Ryan, and Matt go out tonight?"
Rory looks dejectedly at Lane. "Ok, but no more bowling, lets go to some place that we don't have to change our shows."
"I know! Let's go to that club downtown…what's the name of it… Jacques'."
"Oh yea. That place looks like fun."
*9:00pm Jacques' club
*The two couples are sitting around a small table
"See, Ror, I told you this place would be fun."
"It really is nice, and the music doesn't suck."
"Speaking of that, how about a dance pretty lady?" Jack intercepts
"Sure." Jack leads Lane out on the dance floor, leaving Rory and Matt to talk.
"So, Lane was telling me you're the editor of the Harvard University paper. "
"Huh? Oh yea, I've always loved writing, since I was a little kid."
"Really? Me too, for me it's not a chore going to work, because I love what I do."
"What do you do?"
"I have a column in the Gazette actually, I write the Java Talk."
"You're kidding, I read that column every Saturday morning. It's great. My mom saves every one of your columns, she says you're the only writer who knows anything about anything." Rory gushes and then blushes turning towards the figures dancing nearby.
"What do you say? Feel like busting a move?"
""Uh, yea you know what. Ok." The two head towards the dance floor; Rory walks slowly shedding the guilt of the last few weeks as she follows Matt onto the floor.
As they dance, a waitress passes by heading for a table in the back.
"Here again I see."
"Yea well, this is the quietest place I know."
"Funny, seems to me a guy like you would be jumping 'round a place like this."
The customer's eyes glaze slightly as his thoughts wonder momentarily. "You ok, Sweet cheeks?"
"Wh-uh yea. Sorry, my mind was somewhere else."
"Hey, it's alright. You know I get off in ten minutes, maybe we could do something then."
The young man processes the offer in his mind but declines. "No, not to night…(squinting at the name tag on the women's shirt) Kylie; I really should try and finish this up."
"I've been meaning to ask you that, for weeks now I've served you drinks at this table every night, and it's always the same thing, all you do is sit here with paper s all over the place drinking Smirnoff's and staring into to space, so what is all this stuff.?"
"Just ideas, memories, hopes, you know it's my life…put down on paper."
"Wow."
"I've kind of hit a road block though, I don't know how to end it all. So you know what I'm going just pay for my drink and leave...do you take credit cards?" He takes out his visa a card and holds it out for the waitress. She takes it from him and looks down at the card.
"Sure do. See you tomorrow Mr. Marino."
