Maggie sat in the gazebo, cross-legged on the bench. Her sketchpad was on her lap and she was drawing Jess
as he read.
"Hey," she called softly to him. "Turn toward me a little so I can see more of your face?"
Jess looked up and smiled at her, then turned a bit. She could see his eyes light on something in the distance and
his face fell.
"What?" Maggie turned to see what had upset him. Just people...
"She's baaack," Jess sang.
"Huh?"
"Rory Gilmore, town princess."
Maggie turned again, saw Rory, then looked back at Jess. "I didn't know she'd gone."
"Yeah, she won vice-president of her snooty private school class and went to this workshop in Washington DC. Guess
she's home now. Not that she would have come to see me." Maggie heard the edge in Jess's voice.
"There's a story in there somewhere."
"Not really." He turned back to look at Maggie. "We were friends, I thought. Her mom and my uncle are really close.
She kissed me once, but then she just...it just didn't seem to make any difference. Guess I just wasn't good enough
for the town princess. That was back in May; I haven't talked to her since. Last I knew she's still with that
Dean guy. The one with all the hair."
"You're still hung up on her, though." Maggie smiled at him.
Jess realized he was talking to his girlfriend and looked worried. "Megs, I..."
"Hey, it's okay. I've got one of those too." Jess raised an eyebrow. "His name was Brian. He was in my sculpture
class." She set down her pad and leaned her head back. "So beautiful; he looks like that guy, the lead singer for
Train. We hung out for awhile, I thought we were having fun, but then one day he shows up arm-in-arm with this
red-headed violinist."
"Bitch," Jess said, smiling, and she grinned at him.
"Turns out their grandmothers are both in the same social society or something. I think his family freaked about
him hanging around a motherless girl from a small town who always had paint on her face."
Jess leaned over to rub a charcoal smear off her nose, showing her the mark and chuckling. "I think it's sexy when
you have paint on your face."
"You think it's sexy when I have paint anywhere on me." She grabbed his shirt and pulled him down onto the gazebo
bench, kissing him and laughing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rory's face twisted when the girl in the gazebo tackled Jess. Her eyes filled with tears, and she turned away,
crashing into her mother.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, tears. Why are there tears?" Lorelai pulled Rory's face up to look at her. "What's wrong?"
Rory looked back towards the gazebo, where Jess had regained the upper hand and had Maggie on his lap, still kissing
her.
"OK, I see Kirk juggling, and I see...oh. I see Jess kissing Maggie. Rory, sweetie? Why does that bother you enough
to make you cry?"
"It's not that, it's just...oh Mom. Jess and I aren't friends anymore, and I wish we were, and it just makes me
really sad."
"What did he do? You could get Dean to kick his ass."
Rory smiled. "Not for this. Jess didn't do anything, Mom. I did."
"What do you mean, you did? You don't do things to your friends. You're perfect. Completely honest. The nicest
person I know."
"Yeah, well, not anymore."
Lorelai realized how serious her daughter was being. Rory really did believe she'd done something to Jess that
had cost them their friendship. She sat down on a bench and pulled Rory down next to her. "Rory, honey, what
happened? You gotta tell me; I can't help you if you don't tell me."
"Nobody can help me with this one, Mom. You remember back at Sookie and Jackson's wedding, the day Jess came back?"
"Yeah." Lorelai's voice was sad. That hadn't been a good day for her either.
"I saw Jess before the wedding," Rory confessed. Her mother looked surprised. "And I was just so glad he was back,
so I kissed him."
"You kissed him?" Now Lorelai looked stunned. "Wow."
"Yeah." Rory made a frustrated sobbing noise. "Mom, how could I have done something like that? I love Dean. And
even if I didn't, I'm still involved with Dean. It was just a completely duplicitious thing to do!"
"Rory, why did you kiss him?"
"I don't know! I wasn't thinking; it wasn't like I just thought it out and decided that the best possible thing I
could do at that precise moment was grab Jess and make out with him. I didn't think; I just did it! It just felt
completely like the right thing to do, until it was over and I totally panicked and ran off."
"Have you talked with him about it?"
"NO! I can't talk to him about it; I can't explain why I did it. What would I say to him? I couldn't say anything
without hurting his feelings. I haven't talked to him at all since the wedding, and I think that's probably hurt
his feelings too. Plus I haven't told Dean either; I haven't told anyone but you."
"This is why you were avoiding Luke's."
"Yeah." Rory nodded her head. "Mom, I don't know what I'm feeling. I know it was wrong to kiss Jess, and I feel
really bad about doing it, and I don't want to break up with Dean--I love Dean--but, oh Mom." Rory sobbed and
looked over toward the gazebo. "I can't stand it when he kisses her." Rory bent over and buried her head in
her arms. "I'm so mixed up."
"Rory, sweetie. It wasn't wrong to kiss Jess. It's wrong to go on lying to yourself and to everyone else, especially
Dean, about how you feel about Jess."
"But I love Dean. He's so good to me. He treats me so well. I can't not love Dean! I can't be in love with Jess! I
just can't!" Rory sobbed again, tears pouring down her face.
Lorelai wrapped her arms around her daughter and stroked her hair until she was tired of crying and ready to go home.
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as he read.
"Hey," she called softly to him. "Turn toward me a little so I can see more of your face?"
Jess looked up and smiled at her, then turned a bit. She could see his eyes light on something in the distance and
his face fell.
"What?" Maggie turned to see what had upset him. Just people...
"She's baaack," Jess sang.
"Huh?"
"Rory Gilmore, town princess."
Maggie turned again, saw Rory, then looked back at Jess. "I didn't know she'd gone."
"Yeah, she won vice-president of her snooty private school class and went to this workshop in Washington DC. Guess
she's home now. Not that she would have come to see me." Maggie heard the edge in Jess's voice.
"There's a story in there somewhere."
"Not really." He turned back to look at Maggie. "We were friends, I thought. Her mom and my uncle are really close.
She kissed me once, but then she just...it just didn't seem to make any difference. Guess I just wasn't good enough
for the town princess. That was back in May; I haven't talked to her since. Last I knew she's still with that
Dean guy. The one with all the hair."
"You're still hung up on her, though." Maggie smiled at him.
Jess realized he was talking to his girlfriend and looked worried. "Megs, I..."
"Hey, it's okay. I've got one of those too." Jess raised an eyebrow. "His name was Brian. He was in my sculpture
class." She set down her pad and leaned her head back. "So beautiful; he looks like that guy, the lead singer for
Train. We hung out for awhile, I thought we were having fun, but then one day he shows up arm-in-arm with this
red-headed violinist."
"Bitch," Jess said, smiling, and she grinned at him.
"Turns out their grandmothers are both in the same social society or something. I think his family freaked about
him hanging around a motherless girl from a small town who always had paint on her face."
Jess leaned over to rub a charcoal smear off her nose, showing her the mark and chuckling. "I think it's sexy when
you have paint on your face."
"You think it's sexy when I have paint anywhere on me." She grabbed his shirt and pulled him down onto the gazebo
bench, kissing him and laughing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rory's face twisted when the girl in the gazebo tackled Jess. Her eyes filled with tears, and she turned away,
crashing into her mother.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, tears. Why are there tears?" Lorelai pulled Rory's face up to look at her. "What's wrong?"
Rory looked back towards the gazebo, where Jess had regained the upper hand and had Maggie on his lap, still kissing
her.
"OK, I see Kirk juggling, and I see...oh. I see Jess kissing Maggie. Rory, sweetie? Why does that bother you enough
to make you cry?"
"It's not that, it's just...oh Mom. Jess and I aren't friends anymore, and I wish we were, and it just makes me
really sad."
"What did he do? You could get Dean to kick his ass."
Rory smiled. "Not for this. Jess didn't do anything, Mom. I did."
"What do you mean, you did? You don't do things to your friends. You're perfect. Completely honest. The nicest
person I know."
"Yeah, well, not anymore."
Lorelai realized how serious her daughter was being. Rory really did believe she'd done something to Jess that
had cost them their friendship. She sat down on a bench and pulled Rory down next to her. "Rory, honey, what
happened? You gotta tell me; I can't help you if you don't tell me."
"Nobody can help me with this one, Mom. You remember back at Sookie and Jackson's wedding, the day Jess came back?"
"Yeah." Lorelai's voice was sad. That hadn't been a good day for her either.
"I saw Jess before the wedding," Rory confessed. Her mother looked surprised. "And I was just so glad he was back,
so I kissed him."
"You kissed him?" Now Lorelai looked stunned. "Wow."
"Yeah." Rory made a frustrated sobbing noise. "Mom, how could I have done something like that? I love Dean. And
even if I didn't, I'm still involved with Dean. It was just a completely duplicitious thing to do!"
"Rory, why did you kiss him?"
"I don't know! I wasn't thinking; it wasn't like I just thought it out and decided that the best possible thing I
could do at that precise moment was grab Jess and make out with him. I didn't think; I just did it! It just felt
completely like the right thing to do, until it was over and I totally panicked and ran off."
"Have you talked with him about it?"
"NO! I can't talk to him about it; I can't explain why I did it. What would I say to him? I couldn't say anything
without hurting his feelings. I haven't talked to him at all since the wedding, and I think that's probably hurt
his feelings too. Plus I haven't told Dean either; I haven't told anyone but you."
"This is why you were avoiding Luke's."
"Yeah." Rory nodded her head. "Mom, I don't know what I'm feeling. I know it was wrong to kiss Jess, and I feel
really bad about doing it, and I don't want to break up with Dean--I love Dean--but, oh Mom." Rory sobbed and
looked over toward the gazebo. "I can't stand it when he kisses her." Rory bent over and buried her head in
her arms. "I'm so mixed up."
"Rory, sweetie. It wasn't wrong to kiss Jess. It's wrong to go on lying to yourself and to everyone else, especially
Dean, about how you feel about Jess."
"But I love Dean. He's so good to me. He treats me so well. I can't not love Dean! I can't be in love with Jess! I
just can't!" Rory sobbed again, tears pouring down her face.
Lorelai wrapped her arms around her daughter and stroked her hair until she was tired of crying and ready to go home.
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