It's Right There

by CoffeeDrinker

[Complete] Luke/Lorelai. She looked him in the eye, she saw something there, and she realized she felt the same way. (Update: As of 10/31/14, the story is back to its original M-rated version)

6. Parts 29 to 33

"It's Right There - parts 29 - 33"

PART 29

That night after dinner, Lorelai and Rory walked into the diner. The only other customer was standing at the counter, waiting for Luke to hand him his change. As the customer walked past them out the door, Lorelai and Rory smiled knowingly at each other and walked over to Luke.

Lorelai leaned across the counter and kissed him on the cheek. "Hey." She sat down on a stool and Rory sat next to her.

Luke smiled. "What's up? How was dinner?" He set two empty mugs in front of them.

Lorelai nodded. "Good, it was good." She turned to Rory. "Wouldn't you say it was good, hon?"

"It was good," Rory agreed.

Lorelai glanced around the empty diner. "Where's Jess? Is he at work?"

"Nah, he's upstairs," Luke replied. "Why?" He turned around and grabbed the coffeepot.

"Go get him," Lorelai said.

"Yeah, get him down here right away," Rory added.

Luke looked at them warily as he poured their coffee. "What's this about? What did he do?"

"We need to talk to him about something important," Lorelai said seriously. "Go get him."

Luke set the pot back on the coffee maker, then folded his arms across his chest. "No, not until you tell me what this is about," he replied sternly.

Both girls sipped their coffee and stared at him silently.

Luke dropped his arms and shrugged. "You're not gonna tell me, are you?"

"Nope," Rory replied, shaking her head.

Luke sighed. "Fine," he grumbled, walking toward the staircase.

As he walked upstairs, Lorelai and Rory looked at each other and giggled. They both stood up quickly. "I'll lock the door and clear the counter," Rory said.

"And I'll go get the supplies," Lorelai said, walking around the counter into the kitchen.

Luke came down a minute later with Jess reluctantly following behind him. "Now what is so damn import - " Luke started. His eyes fell upon the completely empty counter, and he looked at Rory questioningly. "What are you doing?"

Lorelai walked out of the kitchen announcing, "I could only find those frozen mini bagel things, but I think they might - " She saw Luke and Jess and smiled at them. "Oh, hey. Ready for bagel hockey?" she asked, waving the frozen bagel in the air.

They looked at each other and groaned. "This is what was so important?" Luke asked, rolling his eyes. "Bagel hockey?"

"I'm going back upstairs," Jess said, turning around.

Lorelai hurried over to him and grabbed his sleeve. "No, no, no, please! We need another person. Come on, it'll be fun."

"Yeah, trust me," Rory said, smiling. "You can be on my Mom's team. Luke, come over here with me. Mom, do you have the wooden spoons?"

Lorelai held them up. "Got 'em." She handed two to Luke and pushed him toward the other end of the counter. "Here, go over to Rory's side, she'll tell you how to play. We have to plan our strategy," she said, gesturing to Jess.

Jess took a step back. "Hey, I never said I was playing this stupid game."

Lorelai gasped. "It's not stupid and you're playing. I think you can give your eyes a little break from reading to play with us. And plus, if you go back upstairs, we'll just follow you and bang on the door until you come down."

Jess rolled his eyes and sighed. "Fine, we'll play up to ten, that's it," he said, grabbing one of the wooden spoons. "What do we do?"

She glanced over at Rory and Luke, who were talking quietly. Lorelai lowered her voice. "Okay, the purpose of the game is to use your spoon to hit the bagel between the other team's salt and pepper shakers."

"So it's just like regular hockey?" Jess asked.

Lorelai shrugged. "I don't know, is that how regular hockey is?"

Jess rolled his eyes and nodded. "Uh, yeah, pretty much."

"Okay then, yes, it's like regular hockey. Now, I think Luke's gonna be goalie first, so that leaves Rory as the forward and she's pretty good. You know, she gets that from me," Lorelai added. "So listen, I'll go up against her while you stay in goal, but you have to watch out for her fakes. Sometimes she'll pretend that she hurt her thumb and try to get the other team to act all concerned and then try to sneak it past the goalie. She got that from me, also," Lorelai said, smiling and nodding.

Jess rolled his eyes. "You must be very proud." He shrugged. "Can we just play?"

Lorelai walked toward the center of the counter and set a bagel down. "Are you ready? Let's go," she said, slapping her hands on the counter.

They both turned around and nodded. "We're ready," Rory said, walking toward the center of the counter. She turned back to Luke and wagged a finger at him. "And no letting her score just because she's your girlfriend."

Luke smiled. "I won't."

"Hello, I don't need him to let me score," Lorelai scoffed. "Have you forgotten how incredibly good I am?"

Rory rolled her eyes. "Nice humility you have there."

Almost forty-five minutes later, with the score tied nine to nine, Rory and Luke switched places so that Rory was goalie.

"Here, let me be forward again," Jess said to Lorelai. "You be goalie."

Lorelai reluctantly agreed. "Okay, but remember, Luke cheats."

Luke laughed. "Right - you're the one who cheats with your annoying distractions. Does 'Luke, I think your kitchen's on fire - really, I mean it, I'm not lying!' ring a bell?"

"No idea what you're talking about." Lorelai smiled at him as she switched places with Jess. She drummed her wooden spoon on the counter loudly. "Okay, go!"

Luke and Jess battled it out with their spoons in the center of the counter for several seconds before Luke finally pushed the bagel around Jess' spoon and headed toward Lorelai. "Jess, stop him!" Lorelai urged.

Luke swung his spoon like a golf club and sent the bagel flying toward the goal. Lorelai ducked as it came toward her head. "Agh, geez!" It flew over her and landed on the floor behind her.

"Goal," Luke said. "That's ten, we win."

"Yes!" Rory said.

Lorelai stood up quickly. "That doesn't count!" she said, shaking her head.

"No way, that totally counts, it was between the goal posts," Rory insisted.

"Why the heck did you duck?" Jess asked with a laugh. "It's just a bagel, and it's not even frozen anymore - it's all soft and mushy."

Lorelai scoffed. "Yes, well, when it's flinging at your head, it's a lot scarier than it looks." She dropped her spoon on the counter and frowned. "Luke, I can't believe you carelessly tried to embed a bagel in this pretty little face," she said, running her hands over her cheeks.

Luke smiled and shrugged. "Sorry, had to do it for the sake of the team. You know how it is."

Rory smiled. "He's quite a team player," she said, patting him on the back.

Lorelai walked over to a table and sat down. "Okay, well, winners buy the losers a snack. I'll take some pie."

Luke smiled. "And if you had won?"

"Then the losers would buy the winners a snack," Lorelai said. "Either way, it would end with me eating some free pie."

Luke rolled his eyes and walked over to get her a piece. "Rory, you too?"

"Yes, please," she said, walking over to sit with Lorelai.

"All right, this was. . . interesting, but I've got things to do," Jess said, gesturing toward the stairway.

"Thanks for playing," Lorelai said. "You might wanna be more aggressive next time."

"Yeah, I'll work on that," he replied. He walked past the counter and went upstairs.

Lorelai smiled at Rory. "That was fun."

"Yeah, it's always fun watching you lose," Rory said, smiling.

Lorelai playfully smacked her on the shoulder. "Hey, do not take comfort in your mother's unhappiness," she warned.

Luke brought them their pie and sat down with them.

"What, we're supposed to eat this without coffee?" Lorelai asked.

Luke sighed loudly and stood up.

Lorelai smiled up at him. "Thank you."

He walked over to the counter and returned with their coffee.

"Thanks, Luke," Rory said, taking a sip. "You know, I think Jess had fun."

Luke nodded. "Yeah, I think he did, too."

Lorelai smiled. "How could he not have? Bagel hockey is the happiest game on earth."

"Much like Disneyworld," Rory added.

"Exactly," Lorelai said, shoving a piece of pie in her mouth. She finished chewing and said, "How's he doing with work?"

Luke nodded. "Good. I talked to Andrew tonight about it, actually. He said he had doubts about hiring him, but that he's been doing fine."

Lorelai smiled. "Good." She turned to Rory. "Rory, how many days?"

Rory thought for a moment. "Um, four weeks from today." She smiled. "Wow, it's coming up soon."

Lorelai smiled at Luke. "Twenty-eight days."

"Yeah, so that only gives you twenty-eight days to make room for us," Luke pointed out. "You better get started. Knowing you, it'll take that long just to do the bathroom."

Lorelai ate the last piece of her pie and pushed the plate away. She leaned back in her chair. "Maybe you could just put your stuff on top of my stuff, and that way no physical act of cleaning would have to be done."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I don't think so."

Lorelai wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, I hate cleaning."

"This is true," Rory added. "One time I gave her a choice of drinking a concoction of milk, Coke, and pickle juice, or cleaning the living room, and she drank the whole glass in like five seconds."

Lorelai smiled proudly. "Tasted pretty gross, but I did it."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Geez."

"But she does like washing dishes," Rory said, "so at least she does something."

"Since when you guys even use dishes?" Luke asked. "You always eat out."

Lorelai smiled. "See, that's why I like washing dishes. It only has to be done like three times a month."

Luke nodded knowingly. "So it's the 'cleaning on an everyday basis' part that you don't like."

"Right," she replied. "And since I've seen your apartment and it's even more cluttered than ours, I think when you move in we might finally have a chance at winning the Stars Hollow Messiest House Contest."

"There is no Stars Hollow Messiest House Contest," Luke informed her.

"Yeah, well, now that we know we'd win, we should get Taylor to invent one," Lorelai said. "Don't you think? Oh my God, and the prize could be something like maid service for a whole year!" she said excitedly.

Luke and Rory looked at each other. "She's your mother," Luke reminded her.

"Not by choice. However, you chose her to be your girlfriend," Rory pointed out. "So that means you voluntarily endure her insanity, whereas I'm forced to."

Luke sighed. "I know, I know." He shook his head disappointingly.

Lorelai gasped. "Hi, I'm not Helen Keller - I can hear you talking about me."

Rory put her fork down on her plate. "I'm done, Helen. You ready to go?"

"Yup." Lorelai took one last sip of coffee and stood up.

Luke stood up and kissed her. "I'll see you tomorrow. Bye Rory, good game."

Rory smiled. "Yup. Bye."

"Good game, blah blah blah," Lorelai mocked. "You win one time and you think you're champions of the world." She made a face.

Rory laughed. She grabbed Lorelai's hand and pulled her toward the door. "Come on, sore loser."

A few nights later, Lorelai and Rory sat on the couch watching television. Lorelai turned to Rory. "I dare you to find one person on television. . . wait, no - I'm starting over. I dare you to find one person in this entire universe that is more annoying than Carrot Top. I bet you can't do it."

Rory laughed. "I'm not taking that bet. If I have to see one more Call ATT commercial, I will seriously consider duck taping myself to some train tracks."

"Ugh, same here," Lorelai said, shaking her head. "I just don't get it - I mean, do they really think that people will see that obnoxious man and say, 'Oh, I wanna be just like him, I should use this service' - hello!" Lorelai slapped herself on the forehead. "You're supposed to make people enjoy your commercials, not annoy the hell out of them to the point where they consider giving up television just so they won't have to see them anymore!"

Rory let out a small laugh. "Are you okay?"

Lorelai shrugged. "Yeah, why?"

"You seem. . . cranky about something," Rory said.

"Nope, I'm fine," Lorelai said.

"Just a personal vendetta against Carrot Top?" Rory asked.

"Yup, and I'm getting a little tired of ALF, too," Lorelai said. "You know, my television viewing would be a lot more enjoyable if we could just eliminate all those stupid phone commercials altogether."

Rory gasped. "Even Alyssa Milano's?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Yes, she's no sweet and innocent Samantha Micelli anymore, let me tell you."

"No, she's not," Rory agreed.

They watched tv for a few minutes before Lorelai admitted, "Okay, I'm a little cranky about something."

Rory looked at her. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Luke and I are kinda fighting," Lorelai said.

Rory's eyes widened. "Really? What did you do?"

Lorelai snickered. "Why do you assume I did something?"

Rory tilted her head and smirked. "What did you do?"

Lorelai wrinkled her nose. "I was bugging him," she mumbled.

Rory narrowed her eyes. "So? You always bug him."

"I know, but this time it was different," Lorelai said. "See, I stopped in the diner after work to see him and he wasn't there, so I walked out of the diner to come home, and he was walking down the sidewalk toward the diner, so I waited for him and asked him where he was." Lorelai paused.

Rory stared at her expectantly. "And. . . where was he?"

"Well, he just shrugged and said 'nowhere,' so, of course, I persistently annoyed him with questions," Lorelai said.

"Of course," Rory said knowingly. "So did you get it out of him?"

Lorelai shook his head. "He wouldn't say, so after another minute of me bugging him he just sighed really loud and said he didn't want to talk about it and went inside."

Rory grimaced. "Ooh, did he yell?"

"No, but I could tell he was mad," Lorelai said with a sigh. "What should I do?"

"You should. . . call him and apologize for being annoying?" Rory suggested.

Lorelai bit her lip. "I was sorta waiting for him to call me so that way I'd know he wasn't too mad."

"Well, maybe he's waiting for you to call him because he thinks you're mad at him for not telling you," Rory pointed out.

"Huh, good point," Lorelai said. She took a deep breath. "All right, I'll call him." She stood up and grabbed the phone, then took it out onto the front porch. She sat down on the front steps and dialed the diner.

"Luke's," Jess answered.

"Jess, hey," Lorelai said. "Uh, is Luke around?"

"Nope," he replied.

"No? Is he upstairs?" Lorelai asked.

"No, he went for a walk or something," Jess replied. "Told me to come down and help Caesar close up."

"Okay, um. . .thanks," Lorelai said. She hung up the phone and dropped it on her lap, then stared straight ahead. She jumped when she saw movement at the end of the driveway, then realized it was Luke walking toward her in the darkness. She stood up and walked toward him.

They met in the center of the lawn and hugged. "I'm sorry for. . .bugging you and everything," she muttered softly, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Forget it," he replied. He pulled back and looked down at her bare feet. "Go get some shoes on."

"Uh. . .why?" she asked suspiciously.

"We're going for walk," he said.

"A walk?" she asked, surprised. "Now? It's like ten at night."

"I know, but I wanna show you something," he replied. "Please?"

Lorelai shrugged. "Okay." She paused and looked at him curiously. "Wait, is this one of those things where you're pretending that you're not mad at me to get me to go with you somewhere but when we get there you're gonna strangle me and throw my body in a lake?"

Luke smiled. "No, only your mind thinks in that twisted kind of way."

Lorelai smiled and kissed him. "Be right back." She walked into the house and tossed the phone on the couch. "Luke's here. We're going for a quick walk," she told Rory as she ran up the stairs. She returned a minute later with her shoes on.

"You do realize that it's almost ten, right?" Rory asked.

"Uh huh, he wants to show me something," Lorelai said with a shrug. "Be back in a bit."

Rory shrugged. "Okay, but I want details of this late night excursion." She paused. "You know, if they're not . . . gross."

Lorelai smiled. "Okay. See you later." She walked out the front door and over to Luke. "I'm ready."

He took her hand and led her across the yard and down the street. They walked silently for several minutes, occasionally swatting away mosquitoes. Lorelai wanted to ask him where they were going, but instead decided to wait until they got there.

When Luke led her into the cemetery, Lorelai's eyes widened. "Okay, this is too much like a bad horror movie. What the heck are we doing here?" she asked, squeezing his hand tighter.

"You'll see," he said. He led her through the cemetery and stopped in front of a headstone. He pointed to it. "Look at what it says."

She kneeled down. It took her a minute to read the name in the darkness, but she finally saw it and stood back up. "It's your dad's," she said quietly.

"Yeah, look at the birth date," he said.

Lorelai kneeled back down and read, "May twenty-first." She stood back up. "That's today." She laced her fingers through his. "Okay, so why are we - " She paused a moment, then asked, "Wait, is this where you came earlier?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah. I come a couple times throughout the year, his birthday being one of 'em. You know, just to pay my respects and what not," he said with a shrug.

Lorelai swallowed hard. "That's really nice," she said softly.

"Yeah, well. . . sorry I didn't wanna talk about it before," Luke said.

"No, I had no right bugging you like that, it's none of my business where you go," Lorelai said, shaking her head. "I'm not one of those women who needs to know where her boyfriend is at all times, I swear."

"I know," he replied. "But this is something that you should know about. I mean, it's something that I do once in awhile and . . . you know, I want you to know these things about me."

Lorelai smiled and kissed him, then hugged him tightly. As they pulled back from each other, Luke wrapped an arm around her shoulder and walked her out of the cemetery and back to her house.

The following Saturday, Luke knocked on Lorelai's front door. "Come in!" she called. Luke pushed open the door and walked into the front hall. Lorelai and Rory sat on the floor in the middle of the hallway. They were surrounded by boxes as they tried to clean out the closet.

"How's it coming along?" Luke asked.

"Well, my mom the pack rat doesn't want to throw any of her old jackets away so it's a lot harder than I thought it would be," Rory said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, jackets may not seem very important right now because it's summer, but when the fall comes you'll thank me that we have so many choices," Lorelai said.

"Yes, okay, but we don't have to leave them in here all summer," Rory said. "At least pack the heavier ones up and put them in the attic until the fall."

Lorelai sighed. "Fine, fine, I'll put some of them away," she grumbled. She stood up and took a bunch of jackets out of the closet, then tossed them on the floor. "Luke, can you shove them into one of those boxes over there?" she asked, pointing toward the living room.

Luke walked over to the boxes. He picked them all up, looking for an empty one. "These all have stuff in them."

"Yeah, but they're all going up to the attic, too, so it doesn't matter. Just put the coats on top of the other stuff," Lorelai said.

As Lorelai went back to sorting through things with Rory, Luke picked up one of the boxes and walked over to the coats. He sat down on the ground and opened the box, then rummaged through the contents. "What is all this?"

Lorelai and Rory both looked up. "What?" Lorelai asked. Her eyes widened slightly and she glanced quickly at Rory. Rory looked over at the box, then looked back to Lorelai. Lorelai nodded toward the kitchen and Rory stood up and walked away.

Lorelai walked over and sat down next to him. She cleared her throat. "Oh, that's just. . . my Max box."

"Max box?" Luke repeated.

"Yeah, you know, just some stuff from our relationship. . ." Lorelai's voice trailed off.

"That you're gonna save in the attic?" Luke asked.

Lorelai bit her lip and nodded slowly. "Uh, is that okay - I mean, do you want me to not save them? I can just throw it out if you - "

Luke shook his head. "No, no, that's fine. Do what you want with them."

"I mean, I obviously have some bad memories of what happened with him. . . but some of the stuff was good. I just thought that someday I might. . . I don't know, wanna go through this stuff." Lorelai paused. "Are you sure you don't care?"

"Yup, I'm sure," Luke replied. "I actually have some stuff. . . you know, that I wanted to save. . .some little things. . .I didn't know if you'd get upset or. . . " His voice trailed off.

"Like. . . Rachel stuff?" Lorelai asked.

Luke nodded. "Yeah, just . . . you know, some small things."

Lorelai smiled. "We can put it up there with the Max box and then they can talk to each other and maybe they'll hit it off and start dating and then have little box children."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I don't want to shatter your hopes but I don't think inanimate objects can have kids."

Lorelai let out a fake gasp. "What? You're kidding!"

Luke smiled and kissed her. Lorelai pushed the box out of the way, then crawled onto his lap and kissed him again. He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer as her fingers gently squeezed the back of his neck. Lorelai pulled back from the kiss and smiled at him. "Rory!" she called. "You can come back now."

Lorelai kissed him one more time before she stood up and walked back to the closet. Rory walked out of her bedroom. "Uh, everything okay?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yup, it's fine," Lorelai said. She pointed to a box. "Um, empty that box for Luke to put the jackets in, okay?"

"Okay," Rory replied, turning around.

A few hours later, they had cleaned both the hall closet and Lorelai's bedroom closet, and Luke had just taken several boxes into the attic. They walked back into her bedroom and glanced around. "Okay, so where am I gonna put my dressers?" he asked.

Lorelai gestured to the wall opposite the closet. "Right along there. There's plenty of room."

Luke tilted his head and eyed up the space. "I don't know. Do you have a tape measure?"

"Uh, I have one that I use for sewing," Lorelai said. "Will that work?"

Luke shrugged. "I guess so. Where is it?"

"Downstairs. I'll get it," Lorelai replied. She walked out of the room and returned a minute later with the tape measure. She handed it to Luke and he measured the wall as Lorelai watched from the bed.

When he finished, he handed the tape measure to her and said, "Okay, I think they'll be fine but I'm gonna measure them first just in case. No point in carrying 'em up here just to find out that they don't fit."

Lorelai stood up and glanced at the clock. "Are you going back to work? Maybe Rory and I will come get some dinner."

Luke nodded. "Yeah, I'm gonna head back there now."

"Okay," she replied. "I'll meet you downstairs, I'm just gonna change and do my hair."

Luke nodded and walked downstairs. Rory was sitting on the couch reading. She looked up and smiled. "Hey, where's Mom?"

"Oh, she's just getting dressed," Luke replied, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Rory's eyes widened with embarrassment and she quickly glanced back down at her book, mumbling, "Oh, sorry."

Luke's face reddened. "No, she's not. . .we didn't just. . .we weren't. . ." he stammered embarrassingly. "Oh my God," he muttered, shaking his head toward the floor.

Rory shook her head and waved him off. "No need to explain, Luke. I'm a big girl, I get it."

"No, really - we're gonna go to the diner for dinner and she didn't wanna wear the clothes she was cleaning in," Luke explained quickly. "I don't mean she's getting dressed, like getting dressed. . . " His voice trailed off as Lorelai came down the stairs.

"You guys ready to go?" Lorelai asked. She glanced back and forth between them and noticed their discomfort. "What's going on?"

Rory stood up quickly. "Nothing." She walked toward the front door and stepped out onto the porch.

Lorelai glanced at Luke. "What's up? And don't say nothing because she just tried that and I didn't buy it."

Luke sighed. "She asked where you were and I told her you were getting dressed and she thinks we just. . .uh, you know, " Luke said, swallowing hard.

Lorelai laughed. "Oh my God, that poor child! You haven't even moved in yet and you've already contaminated her mind with dirty thoughts about us." Lorelai walked toward the front door calling, "Rory!" Luke followed behind her with an embarrassed look on his face.

On Tuesday afternoon, Lorelai and Sookie walked into the diner and sat down at a table. Luke delivered two plates to a nearby table, then walked over to them. "Hey, what'll you have?" he asked quickly.

"In a hurry?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah, Caesar had to leave early today so I'm short a man," he explained. "What'll you have?"

"Do you need some help?" Lorelai asked. "I've never waitressed before, but I used to watch It's A Living so I'm pretty sure that I know how it's done."

"Nah, I'm okay," Luke replied, waving her off.

Lorelai stood up. "No, seriously, Sookie and I can help with the lunch rush, right Sook?"

"Absolutely," she replied, standing up.

"No, you really don't have to," Luke replied.

They ignored him and walked over to the counter. Lorelai grabbed the coffeepot. "I'll be in charge of coffee."

"And I can help in the kitchen," Sookie said. "I don't know if anyone's told you this, Luke, but sometimes I cook things."

"Oh really?" Luke asked, pretending to be surprised. "Didn't know that. Huh." He rolled his eyes. "Go sit down at your table, I can handle this."

"Come on, Luke, please let us help," Lorelai said, pouting. "Look, I'm pouting. You know you can't resist it. It's drawing you in. It's making you smile. Uh, what's that - is that a hint of a smile forming on your lips? I think it is!"

Luke smiled and rolled his eyes. "Fine, here." He handed her his order pad. "You take the orders, Sookie and I will be cooking in the kitchen."

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at them. "That sounds a little dirty. I've got my eye on you two," she said sternly. Sookie giggled and followed Luke into the kitchen.

An hour later, Sookie and Lorelai walked out of the diner. "Oh my God, that was so fun!" Lorelai gushed.

Sookie nodded in agreement. "It definitely was." She laughed. "What was up with that freaky order you sent in for the peanut butter and tuna sandwich? That was grossing me out."

Lorelai laughed. "I know! The guy ordered it and I made him repeat it like fifty times. I was like, 'Are you sure you said peanut butter and tuna?' and he was all, 'Yes, that's what I said' and I was all, 'Wait, are you absolutely sure you said tuna and you're maybe not confusing it with this new product called jelly?,' and he was like, 'No, I want a peanut butter and tuna sandwich." Lorelai made a gagging sound.

Sookie made a face. "Ugh, I had to practically close my eyes when I was making it." As they walked a little more toward the inn, Sookie remarked, "Luke looks really good."

Lorelai gasped. "I knew it! You were hitting on him in the kitchen, weren't you?"

"Yes, honey, we're having a secret affair." Sookie rolled her eyes. "No, I mean, he just looks a little thinner. Not that he wasn't thin before, but he looks thinner now."

Lorelai smiled. "Yeah, I've noticed that, too. He's been working out and I can definitely feel the difference in weight when he's lying on top of me when we - "

"Okay, okay!" Sookie interrupted with a laugh. "Let's leave out the visuals, thank you."

Lorelai laughed. "Okay, sorry."

"I like the new plaid-less look, but it'll take some getting used to," Sookie remarked.

"Yeah, he put them all away for the summer," Lorelai said. "Now he's going for just a plain t-shirt look."

"Yeah, I never knew he was so muscular," Sookie said.

Lorelai looked at her and laughed. "Okay, now I seriously have concerns about you trying to steal him from me."

Sookie smiled. "Hey, I'm just saying he looks good - take it as a compliment."

"Okay, taking it as a compliment, thank you," Lorelai replied. They walked a little more. "So what time should Rory and I come over tonight?"

Sookie thought for a moment. "I don't know, like six-ish?"

"Sounds good," Lorelai said.

"Your dress is almost done," Sookie said.

"I know!" Lorelai said excitedly. "I can't wait to see it all finished. And we can finally get a little more going on Rory's. Getting away from studying for a little while will be good for her - she's starting to stress over her finals."

"Oh yeah?" Sookie asked. "We should have a party or something on her last day. When is it?"

"Seventeen days," Lorelai replied quickly.

Sookie laughed. "Man, look at you, Mrs. Countdown Lady."

Lorelai shrugged. "I'm excited, what can I say?"

"About Rory finishing up this very difficult school year and finally being able to breathe and relax and take some time for herself, or about what's gonna happen the day after?" Sookie asked teasingly.

Lorelai smiled. "Am I a bad mom if I choose option number two?"

"Yes," Sookie replied.

"Okay, then, call me a bad mom." Lorelai laughed.

Sookie smiled. "You've been getting the house all ready?"

"Yup, we've been getting rid of stuff and making room and I'm pretty sure the attic's gonna cave in from all the junk we've been putting up there," Lorelai said. "Ooh, and I have to make some spare keys for him and Jess." She checked her watch. "Do we have time to stop by the hardware store?"

Sookie checked her watch. "Yeah, it only takes a second to make 'em."

"Okay, let me make sure I have some money." Lorelai rummaged through her purse and found a five-dollar bill. "Okay, all set, let's go." Lorelai and Sookie walked down the sidewalk toward the hardware store. They went inside, then emerged several minutes later and continued walking back to the inn.

PART 30

That night, Lorelai and Rory walked to the diner after they left Sookie's house. Jess was sitting at one end of the counter eating a burger as Luke refilled the coffee cups at several tables. He glanced over to see who had entered. Lorelai smiled at him as she and Rory walked to the counter and sat down. Rory started talking to Jess as Lorelai waited for Luke. He finished pouring the coffee and walked over to her. "Hey."

"Hi." Lorelai smiled. "How's it going?"

Luke shrugged. "Ah, you know. . .not much going on." He held up the coffeepot. "Coffee?"

"Yeah, two to go," Lorelai replied. "Ooh, and I have something for you." She started rummaging in her purse.

"Oh yeah?" he asked, raising his eyebrows curiously. He poured two take-out cups and set them on the counter.

Lorelai finally found the two sets of spare keys and she pulled them out. She smiled and held them up for him to see. "Your very own deluxe set of keys."

Luke smiled. "Oh, good, thanks."

"Okay, let me tell you what they're for." Lorelai set the smaller set aside and held the other one up. She fanned out the keys and went through them one by one. "Okay, so these three are for the main doors: this is for the front door, this is for the side door and this is for the back door." She paused a moment and looked at the three keys questioningly, then wrinkled her nose and shrugged. "I think. I can't really tell."

Luke laughed. "Great, thanks, you're a big help."

Lorelai shrugged. "Well, it's not my fault. These look different than mine because they're brand new and shiny and they all look the same, whereas mine are all worn and I'm used to how they look so I can just tell which door they go to."

"I get it," Luke said. "We'll figure out which is which later. What are the other ones?"

Lorelai pointed to another key. "Okay, this one is for the fireproof safe I have in my closet. You know, it has important papers in it like birth certificates, the deed to the house, a list of all the coffee shops in the continental United States. . . stuff like that."

Luke smiled. "Got it."

"And this one is for the padlock on the shed." Lorelai paused and shrugged casually. "We never lock it anyway so you probably don't need an extra key for it, but if God forbid someone accidentally does lock it and the lawnmower gets stuck inside and starts screaming for help when I'm not home, you'll be able to rescue him. Oh, and this last one's for the Jeep." She smiled and handed the set of keys to him. "There you go, all yours."

Luke smiled and took them from her. "Thanks."

Lorelai picked up the other set and turned toward Jess. "Jess?"

Rory and Jess stopped talking and turned to Lorelai. "Yeah?" he replied.

Lorelai held out the keys. "Here, these are for you."

Jess reached past Rory and took them. "What are they?"

"They're keys to our house," Rory said.

Jess looked down at them and raised his eyebrows. "Oh."

"Yeah," Lorelai said. "One of them is for the front door and the other's for the back door. You know, for when you guys move in."

"Thanks," he said, putting them in his pocket.

"Yeah, so that means you don't use them until you are actually living there," Luke warned. "Understand?"

Jess nodded as he took a bite of his burger. "Uh huh," he mumbled.

"Ready to go?" Lorelai asked Rory.

"Yup," she replied, picking up one of the takeout cups.

Lorelai turned to Luke. "So, in return, I would like a complete set of keys to the diner."

Luke laughed. "Right, and then my coffee supply starts mysteriously shrinking overnight. I don't think so."

Lorelai gasped. "Luke, I'm offended that you think that I would steal from this fine establishment! I would merely use those keys in case of an emergency. . . like what if one night you're sleepwalking and somehow wind up locked in the storage room and I have to come let you out? Don't you think it's a good idea to be prepared for a situation like that?"

"I don't sleepwalk," Luke replied.

"Nice try, Mom," Rory said, patting her on the back. "Let's go."

Lorelai frowned. "Should I even bother going into more scenarios or are you dead set on this?"

"Dead set," he replied with a smile.

Lorelai sighed. "Fine." She leaned across the counter and kissed him on the cheek. "Bye."

"See you tomorrow," Luke replied.

On Saturday night, Luke walked up to Lorelai's front door and rang the doorbell. Lorelai answered it, then smiled and put her hands on her hips. "Luke, I told you to stop doing that."

"Doing what?" Luke asked, confused. He thought for a moment, then grimaced slightly. "Oh, right, I forgot."

"Try it again," Lorelai instructed. She shut the door and walked into the kitchen.

A few seconds later, the front door opened and Luke walked into the house. He stopped in the hallway and called, "All right, I did it. Where are you?"

Lorelai smiled. "In the kitchen."

Luke walked into the kitchen and shrugged. "Happy?"

"Yup." Lorelai walked over and kissed him. "See, this is all part of the transition process, Luke. We start with something small, like you walking in instead of ringing the doorbell, and pretty soon it'll feel so much like home that you'll be lounging around on the couch in your underwear eating carrot sticks and watching football."

Luke laughed. "Okay, that's one scenario I can guarantee will never, ever happen," he said, shaking his head. He put his hands on her waist and pulled her close to him.

Lorelai smiled and draped her arms over his shoulders. "Good, 'cause now that I think of it, it might scare Rory a little."

"Speaking of Rory, is she here?" Luke asked.

"Nope, she's with Dean," Lorelai replied. "She probably won't be home 'til eleven or so." She batted her eyelashes at him. "Any ideas on what we should do?"

Luke smiled and kissed her. "Um, we could change all the light bulbs." He kissed her again.

"Or we could alphabetize all of Rory's books," Lorelai suggested.

"Mm, now there's something that'll keep us busy for awhile," Luke said, kissing her again.

"Mmhmm," she murmured through the kiss.

"Any other ideas?" he asked as he kissed down to her neck.

"Well, uh, I could teach you how to play Miss Marry Mack," Lorelai muttered, leaning her head back. "That's always fun." She moaned softly as Luke began sucking on her neck. A few seconds later, she grabbed his hand and led him to the couch.

Later that night, they wandered into the kitchen. Lorelai walked over to the sink and turned around. "Okay, time for a comprehensive tour. Let me tell you where everything is. This is the sink."

"Yes, it is," he agreed.

She pointed to a cabinet below the sink. "That's where we keep the cleaning stuff - you know, dishwashing liquid, soap, stuff like that." She pointed to the upper cabinets. "That one's plates and bowls, that one's mugs and glasses, and that one's a bunch of storage containers."

Luke nodded. "Okay, got it."

Lorelai led him around the kitchen, showing him the contents of the other drawers and cabinets. She finished up by pulling open the refrigerator. "And this is the very large and spacious refrigerator which is currently being used to hold coffee beans, soda, bottled water, leftover takeout containers, a stick of butter, and beer." She shut the door. "I really need to go shopping," she informed him.

"I see that," he said with a laugh. He glanced around. "What's in that thing over there?" he asked, pointing to the large cabinet in the corner.

"Oh, forgot about that, sorry," she said, walking over to it. She opened the doors and gestured to the shelves. "As you can see, this cabinet contains a random selection of things. Dish towels, serving bowls, food, more cleaning supplies. . . lots of stuff. It's basically like the junk drawer I showed you except it's the junk cabinet."

Luke smiled and nodded. "Okay, got it."

Lorelai pointed to the bottom shelf. "And if you suddenly find the power of the Gilmore women unconquerable and need to escape the realities of life. . .well, that's where we keep the hard liquor."

Luke smiled. "Good to know."

Lorelai smiled and shut the doors. She put her hands on her waist and shrugged. "I think that's basically it. Any questions?"

Luke shrugged. "Nope, not really." He glanced around for a moment. "Actually, yeah."

"What?" she asked. She walked over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water.

Luke sat down at the table. "What do you wanna do about paying for stuff?"

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at him. "What do you mean?" She walked over and handed him the water, then sat down next to him.

Luke shrugged. "I mean, like shopping and paying bills and stuff like that - what do you wanna do about it? I mean, I guess we could each have our own separate money and each pay half of everything but. . . I don't know if I like that." He opened the water and took a sip.

"Oh," Lorelai said. She bit her lip and thought for a minute. "I don't know." She took the water and drank some, then said, "I don't really like the separate money idea either. It'll be like we're platonic roommates or something, you know? Not two people starting a life together."

Luke nodded in agreement. "So, we should just combine all the money?"

Lorelai smiled. "Yeah, we'll get a joint checking account. I mean, we're already at the same bank anyway, I'm sure it won't be much trouble to transfer everything. I'll look into it this week."

Luke smiled. "Good."

"Ooh, and we can pick out new checks. Have you seen those new ones with the little puppies on them?" Lorelai asked excitedly.

Luke rolled his eyes. "We are not getting puppies on our checks."

Lorelai frowned. "Well, what do *you* want - baseballs or something?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"No, we'll just get plain ones," he said.

Lorelai made a face. "Bor - ing," she sang. "Luke, if you're paying bills and you have to write out a really big check to pay off a credit card or something and you have boring checks, the combination of the large payment you owe and the sad checks might make you become really depressed and suicidal. However, if you have cute, furry puppies on your checks, you'll be so happy looking at them that you won't realize that you're thousands of dollars in debt and, hence, you won't become depressed. Therefore, picking out the right pictures on your checks can save your life. Understand?"

Luke exhaled loudly. "Plain checks are fine," he said firmly.

Lorelai gasped. "Did you not just hear my checkbook rant?"

"Yes, I heard the checkbook rant, I just don't think that a piece of paper that doesn't have a puppy on it is gonna make me kill myself," Luke replied.

Lorelai frowned. "But it might, Luke, and I'm trying to save you here!" She paused a moment. "Look, I'll go through the choices and find one with a little subtle design that's not too boring, but it'll still be plain enough to make you happy, okay?" She smiled at him hopefully.

Luke rolled his eyes and sighed. "Fine."

Lorelai smiled and clapped her hands together excitedly. "Yay! Thank you."

"You know, the stupidest things make you happy," Luke remarked.

Lorelai laughed. "I know. You should see me when free samples of cereal come in the mail. It's like Christmas." She stood up from the table. "You wanna watch a movie or something?"

He nodded and stood up. "Sure."

"Mmkay, go pick something out," she said. "I'm gonna make some popcorn."

"Okay." Luke walked into the living room and searched through the video collection. He finally picked one out and put it in the VCR.

A few minutes later, Lorelai walked in and sat next to him on the couch. "What'd you pick?"

"Taxi Driver," he replied.

"Ooh, good choice," Lorelai replied, nodding impressively at his selection. "And because you're letting me pick out the checks, I promise I'll try to keep the movie commentary down to a minimum."

Luke smiled. "I appreciate that."

A few days later, Lorelai walked into the kitchen of the inn carrying an empty box. "Hey Sookie."

Sookie looked up from the cake she had been decorating. "Hey. Found another one?"

"Yup, I'm just gonna put it with the others," Lorelai said. She walked out the back door and nestled the box into the stack on the back porch. She walked back inside and over to Sookie. "He's gonna come pick them up, then we're going out for lunch."

"Has he started packing already?" Sookie asked.

Lorelai nodded. "I was over last night helping him while Jess was at work." She picked up a spoon, dipped it into the bowl of frosting, and licked it. "Mm, that's good."

Sookie smirked. "You two were alone in that apartment all night just packing?"

"Yup," Lorelai replied. She paused a moment, then smiled. "Well, you know, in between making out and stuff."

Sookie giggled. "Thought so. You guys are like teenagers."

Lorelai smiled. "Well, you know, a wise man once said. . . have sex as often as you can."

Sookie laughed. "Interesting. I've never heard that before."

Lorelai nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, trust me, that guy said it. . . that really famous guy."

"Hugh Grant?" Sookie suggested.

Lorelai laughed. "No, but I think he's one of the most loyal supporters."

Sookie smiled and spread a layer of frosting on the cake. "Okay, so tell me. . . comparing Chris, Max, and Luke. . ."

Lorelai laughed and exclaimed, "Sookie!"

"What, I'm just curious," Sookie said with a laugh. "They all seem like. . .very able men."

"They definitely are all able," Lorelai agreed.

"So?" Sookie asked. "Who's the best?"

Lorelai scoffed. "No contest - Luke, by far. And not just by a little far, I'm talking about a large distance. You know, like a 'from here to Japan' kind of far."

"Really?" Sookie asked, smiling. "Or are you just saying that because you're with him now and you feel like you have to say that?"

"No, Sookie, I'm not just saying it," Lorelai insisted. "I'm being totally honest. The others were definitely good, but Luke's just. . .wow." She stared into space for a few seconds, smiling to herself.

Sookie giggled and snapped her fingers in front of Lorelai's face. "Honey, come back down to Earth."

Lorelai shook her head slightly and blinked several times. "Sorry, the mental images took over my body."

Sookie smiled. "So, okay, you say that Luke's better, but does that also mean he's. . . well, let's just say, if there was a contest between them involving tape measures. . ."

Lorelai smiled slyly and nodded. "Oh yeah, Luke would take home the prize."

Sookie giggled. "Man, he'd kill you if he knew you were talking about this."

Lorelai smiled. "I know, but hey, if he didn't want me bragging to my friends then he shouldn't be so good."

"Yeah, it's all his fault," Sookie agreed.

Michel walked into the kitchen. "You told me to tell you when your mother arrived," he grumbled. "She has arrived."

"Oh, thanks," Lorelai replied. As Michel left the kitchen, Lorelai turned to Sookie and made a face. "Ugh, and now starts the longest thirty minutes of my life."

"I forget, what's your mother doing here?" Sookie asked.

"She wants to look around and make sure everything's suitable for her DAR meeting next week," Lorelai said, rolling her eyes. "Remember, she's coming back later this week to taste the soups?"

"Oh, right, right, right," Sookie said, nodding. "I remember now."

Lorelai exhaled loudly as she walked toward the door to the lobby. "Wish me luck that I don't end up locking her in one of the maid's closets."

Sookie smiled. "Good luck."

Lorelai walked into the lobby. Emily was waiting by the front desk, looking annoyed. As she saw Lorelai approaching, she checked her watch. "You told me to be here at 11:30, I was here at 11:30. It's now 11:35. This is the kind of businessperson you are, showing up late for meetings with people? That does not reflect very well on you or your establishment."

Lorelai took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Let me show you to the meeting area, Mom." Emily followed Lorelai through the lobby and into the dining room.

Twenty minutes later, they walked back into the lobby and over to the front desk. Lorelai looked through her calendar. "So, Mom, when can you come back? Thursday, same time?"

"Yes, Thursday's fine," Emily replied. "Although perhaps I should come at 11:35 this time."

"Oh my God," Lorelai muttered under her breath. She made a note on her calendar, then said, "Okay, Mom, I'll see you on -. " Her voice trailed off as she glanced past Emily and saw Luke walk through the door. She smiled and muttered "Excuse me, Mom" as she started walking toward him.

"Where are you going?" Emily exclaimed. "You don't just walk away when you're talking to - " Emily's voice faded as Lorelai got further away.

Lorelai walked up to Luke and kissed him. "Hi."

"Hey." Luke glanced toward the front desk. "Is that your mother staring at us?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes and looked over toward Emily. "Yes. Come say hello." She grabbed his hand and led him to the front desk.

"Emily, good to see you again," Luke greeted her.

"Yes, same here," she replied, smiling. "How's everything?"

Luke shrugged. "Can't complain. How about yourself?"

"Very well, thank you," Emily replied.

Lorelai cleared her throat. "Uh, Luke, the boxes are out back. You can go through the kitchen. I'll meet you out there in a second."

"Okay. Bye," he said to Emily.

"Goodbye," she replied.

As he walked away and disappeared through the kitchen door, Lorelai turned to Emily. "So, um, I'll see you on Thursday, then."

"Boxes? He came to pick up boxes?" Emily asked.

"Yup, boxes," Lorelai replied. "So, Thursday, then." Lorelai started leading Emily toward the front door.

"Boxes for what?" Emily pried.

Lorelai sighed. "For him to pack his stuff in so he can bring it to my house," she replied quickly. She pulled open the front door. "See you on Thursday."

"He's moving in already?" Emily asked, raising her eyebrows.

"In eleven more days," Lorelai replied.

"You're really going through with all this," Emily said in a surprised tone.

Lorelai narrowed her eyebrows. "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked defensively.

Emily shrugged. "Just that. . ."

"You didn't think I would go through with it?" Lorelai asked. "That maybe I'd call it off like I did with the wedding?"

"No, that's not what - ", Emily started.

"Didn't think your daughter was really ready to commit to something this big?" Lorelai suggested.

"Well, it's not as if you have the best track record in that department," Emily pointed out.

"Yeah, well, push the old track record aside, there's a new one now," Lorelai said. "I'll see you on Thursday, Mom." Lorelai walked away before Emily could say anything.

She walked through the lobby and into the kitchen. Luke was leaning against the counter talking to Sookie. She walked up to him and he wrapped an arm around her waist. "Sookie was just telling me why your mom's here," Luke said.

"How'd it go?" Sookie asked.

Lorelai rolled her eyes and sighed. "As expected."

Sookie frowned. "Aw. Well, it's lunch time now, so go relax and get the frustration out of your system."

"Good idea. You wanna come to lunch with us?" she asked.

"No thanks, you guys go and have fun," Sookie said.

Lorelai smiled. "Okay. I'll see you later." She and Luke walked out the back door and picked up the boxes. They tossed them in the back of Luke's truck, then drove away.

On Thursday afternoon, Lorelai walked into the diner and glanced around for Luke. Not seeing him, she sat at the counter and tapped her fingernails impatiently as she waited for him. Finally, he walked down from the stairway. Surprised to see her, he smiled and walked over to her. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Lorelai smiled and pulled a piece of paper out of her purse. She waved it in front of him. "This, my friend, is the moment you've been waiting for." Luke raised his eyebrows curiously and waited for her to continue. She put the piece of paper on the table and pointed to something. "These are our new checks," she said proudly.

Luke looked down at the paper, which contained several rows of checks in various designs. He picked it up and looked at the one Lorelai had chosen.

His mouth dropped open and he lowered the paper to glare at her. "Kittens? I told you no puppies so you switched to kittens? Lorelai!"

Lorelai giggled and raised her hands defensively. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding! Geez, don't go getting all pyscho mad at me." She grabbed the paper and pointed to another one. "It's this one, you big baby."

Luke picked it up and looked at the picture. "Clouds?"

"Yup."

Luke shrugged. "Okay, not too bad. At least it's not an animal."

Lorelai smiled. "See? And you doubted me. You should know better by now not to doubt me since I always come through."

Luke rolled his eyes and handed her the paper. "When are they coming in?"

"They should be here by next week," she replied.

Luke nodded. "You want coffee?" he asked, turning around to get the pot.

"Hm, can I get a soda?

Luke stood still for a second, then turned around slowly. "What?"

"Soda, I'll have a soda," she repeated.

Luke blinked a few times. "Soda?"

"Yeah, it's cold, carbonated, comes in bottles, you've probably seen it before," she explained, smiling.

Luke smiled. "Yes, I've heard of it, but you rarely order that and if you do, it's usually with a meal."

"Yeah, well, it's kind of hot out today. I need something cooler than coffee and I highly doubt that you can provide me with an iced cappuccino," Lorelai said.

"I highly doubt it, too," he replied. He got her a soda and placed it in front of her. "So you saw your mom today?"

Lorelai groaned. "Yes. My God, that woman is more neurotic than those terrorist guys in Toy Soldiers. You know how they lined up the kids like every half-hour to count them? Nope, that wouldn't be stringent enough for Emily Gilmore. She'd be lining them up every two minutes."

"So, uh. . .bad afternoon?" he asked.

"Yeah, but we got everything set up for her meeting, so she's happy," Lorelai said.

"Good, good," he nodded. He glanced past her and noticed a customer waving for his attention. "I'll be right back." He grabbed his order pad and walked over to the table. A few seconds later, he took the order into the kitchen, then returned to the counter. "So, this Saturday. . ."

"Yup, we'll work on Jess' room," she finished. "I feel bad that it's so small, though. He's gonna hate it."

Luke shrugged. "He probably won't be in there too long. He's been doing really good lately with work and school and stuff."

Lorelai smiled. "That's good."

"Yeah, so. . .you know, it'll probably only be two weeks," Luke said. "I think he's gonna meet his two month minimum and then he'll be out."

"But even after he leaves, we should keep it ready for him. . .just in case he sorta falls out of this responsibility charm you put on him," Lorelai said.

"Yeah, but I don't think he will - especially after he spends two weeks in that room," Luke said. "There's no way he'll risk losing his own place for that little room he has to share with the washer and dryer."

"True, good point," Lorelai said. She finished her soda and stood up. "Okay, I gotta get home. I'm gonna help Rory start studying for exams. I'll call you later."

"Okay." Luke leaned across the counter and kissed her. "Bye."

On Saturday morning, Luke walked into Lorelai's house. Rory, who was sitting at the kitchen table eating cereal, heard the front door open and called, "Hello?"

Luke shut the door and stepped into the hallway. "Uh, it's just me."

"Oh, Luke, hey," Rory said, smiling. "Come in. Mom just finished eating, now she's in the shower."

Luke walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. "So. . ." He tapped his hands on the table.

"So. . ." Rory said. "Uh, do you want some cereal or something?" She gestured to her bowl.

Luke waved her off. "Oh, no thanks, I'm good."

"Okay." She ate a spoonful, then asked, "So you guys are gonna work on the junk-slash-laundry room today?"

"Yup," he replied. "What about you? Oh, you have studying to do, right?"

Rory nodded. "Yeah, I'm gonna go to the library. I've got exams all this week. It's gonna be tough."

Luke smiled. "I'm sure you'll do fine."

"I hope so," she replied. "I mean, I've been doing well throughout the year and finals are just basically all that stuff all over again, so it shouldn't really be that hard. I mean, sometimes all the math equations can get confusing while you're studying, but usually when I'm in the actual exam, I realize that they're not really that hard and I can - " She suddenly stopped talking and rolled her eyes. "And you probably don't care about this at all, I'm sorry."

Luke raised his eyebrows and nodded. "No, I do, keep talking."

"Really?" she asked, slightly surprised.

"Absolutely," he replied, leaning back in his chair. "Talk away."

Twenty minutes later, Lorelai walked down the steps pulling her still-wet hair back into a ponytail. She smiled to herself as she walked toward the kitchen and saw Luke and Rory laughing about something. "Hey, what's going on?" she asked, smiling. She stood behind Luke and put her hands on his shoulders.

"Hey Mom," Rory said.

Luke craned his neck up to look at her and she kissed him. He smiled and said, "I was just telling Rory about when you were coming out of the restaurant the other day and almost knocked over that old lady with the walker."

Lorelai scoffed and nodded at Rory. "Yeah, and then I tried to be nice and apologize but she started screaming at me like a maniac! Good thing Luke was there to hold me back or I would've started a fist fight with that little witch."

Rory laughed. "I bet she warned all of her friends at the geriatric center about you."

"Good, maybe now they'll stay outta my way." Lorelai sat down at the table and sighed loudly. "I don't feel like cleaning today."

"We have to," Luke said. "And we have to get started soon so I can be back at the diner for lunch." He stood up.

"Aw, man, I just sat down," Lorelai whined.

"Fine, I'll go get started without you," Luke told her. "But my style of cleaning is a little different than yours."

Lorelai jumped up. "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

Rory laughed. "What's your style of cleaning?" she asked Luke.

"He throws everything away," Lorelai answered for him. "If he doesn't know what it is, he just throws it away. If he doesn't know where to put it, he just throws it away. If he knows what it is and knows where to put it but he thinks we don't need it, he just throws it away."

"Ah, so he's the exact opposite of you, the queen of the pack rats," Rory said knowingly.

"Exactly," Lorelai said. "It's my opinion that he has secret aspirations to be a garbage man."

Luke rolled his eyes. "See you later, Rory. Good luck with studying."

Rory smiled. "Thanks."

Luke and Lorelai walked upstairs into the small room next to Lorelai's bedroom. Luke put his hands on his waist and glanced around. Lorelai stood behind him and said, "Looks fine to me, I'm gonna go watch tv."

She started to turn around and Luke quickly reached out and grabbed her arm. "Get back here."

Lorelai smiled. "All right, all right. What do you wanna do?"

"Okay, first, we go through all those boxes and see what we can throw away, then we try to compact all the boxes and put them up in the attic," Luke said.

"Luke, no! We are going to be sleeping one day and be woken up by the ceiling falling in on us because we are putting too much stuff up there!" Lorelai complained.

Luke sighed and turned around. He put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her sternly. "Lorelai, I've told you this a thousand times - it's not going to collapse." He pointed to the ceiling. "Those beams up there in the attic are supporting the roof of this house, do you understand that?"

"Yes," she mumbled, folding her arms across her chest.

"Okay, that means that they're pretty damn strong, and putting a couple boxes of clothes and junk up there is not going to make them suddenly give out," he said.

"You don't know that for a fact," Lorelai said. "Maybe those beams aren't as strong as they look."

"I was walking on them last week," Luke reminded her. "I wouldn't have gone up there if I didn't think they could hold me."

"Yeah, well, you just. . .maybe they're. . .we should. . ." she stammered.

Luke smirked. "Okay, now that you've officially ran out of complaints, I'm closing this conversation."

Lorelai huffed. "Okay, okay, fine. But if it does collapse. . ."

"Then it's totally my fault and I will personally rebuild it myself, okay?" Luke asked, rolling his eyes. "Does that make you feel better?"

Lorelai grinned. "Yes, thank you." She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

Luke pressed her up against the doorframe and eagerly kissed her back. A few seconds later, he pulled away from her and said, "Okay, come on, let's get this room done."

Lorelai brought her hands to his face and stroked his sideburns. "Maybe we should reward ourselves for our hard work."

Luke narrowed his eyes. "Meaning?"

Lorelai smiled. "Meaning that when we're done with this room today, we move on to my room."

"What? But your room doesn't need to be - " Luke started. He paused, then smiled. "Oh, I get it. Good reward system."

Lorelai smiled. "If that isn't an incentive to clean, I don't know what is."

Luke and Lorelai went through the room, moving some of the more necessary items to other rooms and putting the less-used items into storage boxes. When all of the junk had been sorted, Luke carried the boxes to the attic. When he returned, he and Lorelai stood in the center of the room, looking around. "It doesn't look so small when all the junk's out of here," Lorelai remarked.

"Yeah, it's not so bad," Luke said. He looked at the washer and dryer. "If something does go wrong and he ends up being here longer than two weeks, we'll have to figure out something with those."

"Like what?" Lorelai asked.

"Well, like, we could take a section of the back porch and close it off, then move the washer and dryer down there," Luke said. "It wouldn't be hard to do. We'd just have to put up some walls and pop on a door, simple as that. You know, it might be good to build some shelves in here for Jess' stuff instead of lugging over a dresser. And you know, the upstairs bathroom could probably use some new shelving, too. I noticed you don't have much in there. And maybe - "

Lorelai laughed and held up her hands. "Okay, okay, calm down! Once you get into that 'I'm a handy builder' mode, it's hard to get you out."

Luke smiled. "Sorry. We'll just stick to shelves for Jess right now."

"Sounds good," she replied. She glanced around the room. "So, this room. . . done for today?" she asked hopefully.

Luke nodded and checked his watch. "We've got twenty minutes before I have to be at the diner."

"Okay, then we'll have to skip the foreplay," Lorelai said. She grabbed his hand and led him to her bedroom, slamming the door behind them.

Not long after, the bedroom door opened. Lorelai walked out and Luke followed behind her, tucking his shirt into his jeans. They walked down the stairs and over to the front door. Lorelai leaned against it, smiling. She grabbed his collar and pulled him close, kissing him hungrily. He pulled back from her. "I really have to go."

She frowned. "You'd rather spend time with red meat than me?"

"No, but I have to," he replied. "But, you know, if I asked you that same question, I have a feeling you'd probably hesitate before you answered."

Lorelai smiled. "I'll think about it and get back to you."

Luke smiled and kissed her. "Bye."

"Bye." Lorelai moved aside and pulled open the door, then watched as he stepped out onto the porch and walked across the yard.

PART 31

On Tuesday afternoon, Lorelai called Luke from the inn. "Luke's", he answered.

"Oh my God, please come rescue me and take me to a far away land where parents do not exist," Lorelai begged.

Luke laughed. "How're things with your mom's meeting?"

"Oh, they're just peachy," Lorelai replied with a sigh. "I swear, if that woman complains about one more thing, we may have to call a doctor to remove my foot from her - "

"Lorelai!" Luke interrupted with a laugh. "Come on, it can't be that bad."

"Oh, trust me, it's that bad," Lorelai said. "And if you thought *she* was annoying, just try to picture a dozen other women just like her all in the same room."

"Geez," Luke said. "Well, it's almost over, right?"

Lorelai sighed. "Yeah, shouldn't be too much longer."

"Good," he said. "Are you coming by after work?"

"I can't," Lorelai said. "I'm helping Sookie stuff and stamp her wedding invitations, then I'm helping Rory study."

"Well, aren't you helpful," Luke said. "So I won't see you tonight?"

"Probably not," Lorelai replied. "Think you'll survive without me?"

"I'll try," he said. "I went over this morning and put up the shelves in Jess' room."

"Oh, good," Lorelai said. "Has he been packing?"

"Yeah, but he said he's not bringing much," Luke replied. "Just some clothes, some books, his CD player. . . little things. He's leaving everything else here."

"Guess he's planning on moving back there pretty soon," Lorelai said.

"Yeah, that, and he'll probably spend most of his time here and then just come to your house at night to sleep," Luke said. "Seems kind of useless to even make him move out for two weeks but. . .you know, I want to maintain the rules."

"Yeah, good idea. I'd probably do the same thing," Lorelai remarked.

"Yeah," Luke replied. "I'm just gonna leave all the diner stuff there. The safe, bank records, files, all that stuff. I think before the two weeks are up, I'm gonna maybe build a little room for it either upstairs in the corner of the apartment or maybe in the back of the storage room."

Lorelai smiled. "Here we go with the building again. If you didn't own a diner, would you have become a carpenter?"

"I don't know," Luke said. "It's more like a hobby than something I'd want to do full time, but. . . I don't know, maybe. It's fun."

Lorelai gasped. "Fun? Wow, Luke, you just said the magic f-word," Lorelai pointed out.

Luke paused a moment. "Okay, I know you pretty damn well - well enough to know that you're setting me up for some sort of dirty remark and I'm not falling for it."

Lorelai smiled. "Aw, come on, please! This is where you're supposed to say, 'Yeah, well, I like the magic f-word once in awhile.' Come on, say it!"

"No way," he replied with a laugh. "I'm hanging up now."

Lorelai smiled. "Fine, ruin my moment."

"Sorry. Bye."

"Bye."

On Saturday morning, Lorelai pushed open the door to Rory's room. Seeing that Rory was still asleep, Lorelai ran over and jumped onto the bed next to her. "Get up!" she said, patting Rory on the back.

Rory groaned loudly. "Mom!" she grumbled. "Get out."

"Rory, come on, it's moving day!" Lorelai said. "We have to get to the diner and help."

Rory lifted her head and squinted to look at her clock. "Mom, it's only eight. We have all day."

"Rory, first we have to move the boxes and furniture over here, and then we have to unload everything and put it all away," Lorelai explained. "Do you have any idea how long that takes?"

"No," Rory mumbled. "How long?"

"I don't know. You're the smart one, I was hoping you could give me a rough estimate."

Rory buried her face in the pillow. "Goodbye."

Lorelai tapped her on the back and sang, "Get up my dear, have no fear, your mom is here, she'll . . . uh, drink a beer."

Rory lifted her head and made a face. "There is a reason that you're not a professional singer."

"Yes, and it's because I couldn't think up a good name for my band," Lorelai said. She climbed off the bed and walked to the door. "Now get up or I'm coming back in ten minutes to sing Kokomo at the top of my lungs. Here's a little teaser. . . Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty Mama. . ." As Rory pulled her pillow over her head, Lorelai pulled the door shut and walked into the kitchen.

An hour later, when Lorelai and Rory pulled up to the diner, there were already boxes loaded into the back of Luke's truck. Jess walked out of the diner and latched the door so it stayed open. "Hey," he said. "You might wanna stand back."

Lorelai and Rory peeked into the diner. The tables had been pushed aside so a pathway was formed in the middle, and Luke and Jackson were carrying one of Luke's dressers toward the door. Kirk walked with them, directing them so they wouldn't hit anything.

"Now, it's gonna be a tight fit so watch your fingers as you go through the door," Kirk said, stepping outside. "And don't forget to watch the steps."

Lorelai winced as Luke backed out of the diner and almost missed the first step. "Ah, be careful!" she said worriedly.

"I'm fine," he said. They brought it out onto the sidewalk and Luke said, "Okay, let's set it down for a minute." They placed it on the sidewalk, and Luke walked over to Lorelai. "Hey."

"Hi, can we help?" she asked, putting her arm around Rory.

"Yeah, you can go up and get all the drawers that go with this. They're all empty and stacked near the door. You can put them in your trunk," Luke said, pointing to the Jeep.

"Okay. Come on, hon," Lorelai said, grabbing Rory's hand. As she walked past Jackson, she patted him on the back and said, "Hey Jackson, thanks for helping today."

"Glad to," he replied.

They walked into the diner as they heard Luke say, "Okay, ready to put it on the back of the truck? Jess, Kirk, we're gonna need your help here. Everyone grab one side and. . ." Luke's voice trailed off as Lorelai and Rory made their way through the diner and up the stairway to Luke's apartment.

"Wow," Rory said, her eyes widening as she saw all the boxes. "All this is coming to our house?"

"Yup," Lorelai replied. "It looks like a lot because it's all in boxes, but most of it's stuff from his drawers, so it's not like it's gonna take up a lot of space or anything."

Rory nodded. She glanced around and pointed to the stack of empty drawers. "There they are." They each picked up two of them and carried them downstairs.

As they walked outside, Lorelai saw Miss Patty and Babette standing nearby, watching the men as they secured the dresser to the truck. Lorelai and Rory put the drawers in the Jeep, then walked over to them. "Hey," Lorelai said, shoving her hands in her pockets.

"Hey dolls," Babette said. "You just missed a good show."

Miss Patty smiled. "Oh, yes, it was quite entertaining watching them get that bureau up the little ramp."

"I'm sure it was," Lorelai said.

Miss Patty smirked. "You know, you've got yourself quite a strong man, there, dear."

"Uh, yes, I do," she agreed.

Miss Patty glanced over toward Luke and muttered, "Quite a set of biceps he's got there. I bet his thighs are just as muscular as those arms." She bit her bottom lip and raised her eyebrows.

Lorelai's eyes widened and she grabbed Rory's hand. "Let's go." She pulled Rory toward the side of the diner. "Geez, you would think I would know by now not to let you come in contact with Patty."

"That conversation was definitely heading in a place I didn't want to visit," Rory said.

They leaned against the window and waited for the guys to finish with the dresser. When they climbed off the truck, Lorelai walked up to Luke and patted him on the back. "Hon, stay away from Patty. She's picturing you naked again," she whispered.

Luke rolled his eyes and blushed slightly as he glanced in Patty's direction. "Thanks for the tip. Hey, how'd you convince Kirk to help out?" Luke asked quietly.

Lorelai shrugged. "I offered him a lap dance but he said he'd be willing to do it for a box of Equal."

Luke narrowed his eyes. "Box of Equal?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I didn't ask why, I just turned it over to him."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Weird. Okay, let's go." Luke took her hand and led her back into the diner and upstairs to the apartment. Rory, Kirk, Jess, and Jackson followed behind them.

As the other men walked over to the second dresser, Luke stood with Rory and Lorelai at the door. "Okay, how much room do you have left in your trunk? Can you fit the rest of the drawers in there?"

Lorelai thought for a moment. "Um, I think we can probably fit like three more."

Luke nodded. "Okay, carry them all down, fit whatever you can in your trunk, then put the rest in the passenger seat of the truck."

"Okay," Lorelai said. Luke walked over to the dresser as Lorelai and Rory carried the drawers down and loaded them into the vehicles. They leaned against the Jeep and waited for the guys to bring down the dresser.

After they had loaded it into the truck next to the first one, they secured it with rope and shut the back of the truck. "Okay, this one's full," Luke announced, tapping the side of the truck. "Jackson, I'll move it and then you can pull your truck up and we'll load as many boxes as we can into it."

"Okay," Jackson replied, pulling his keys out of his pocket.

Luke walked over to Lorelai. "Okay, I need you to take the Jeep home and unload everything, then bring it back so we can load some boxes into it."

Lorelai saluted him. "Aye aye, captain."

Luke started to walk away, then he turned around and said, "And make sure your bedroom is clean because the guys will all be in there."

Lorelai raised her eyebrows and smiled. "Hmm, sounds kinky."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Just make sure there's nothing embarrassing showing."

"So I should take down the framed nude pictures of us that I just hung up on the wall?" Lorelai asked.

Luke rolled his eyes and pointed toward the Jeep. "Just go."

Later that morning, all of the boxes and furniture had been transported to Lorelai's house. Several boxes were stacked in the yard and on the porch, and some were strewn throughout the living room and kitchen. One of the dressers was already in place in Lorelai's room, and as Lorelai and Rory lounged on the couch, the men struggled to bring the second one up the staircase.

Lorelai turned to Rory. "You know, it's times like this when I'm glad I'm a weak, fragile woman in a town of strong men."

Rory nodded in agreement. She glanced around the room and her eyes fell on the twin bed mattress leaning against the side door. "Are you sure that bed's gonna fit in Jess' room?"

"Uh huh," Lorelai nodded. "Luke measured it. Trust me, he's got everything all planned out. He's like the love child of Bob Vila and Martha Stewart, I swear to God."

Rory smiled. "Yeah, I can see that. He has a good mixture of masculine and feminine talents."

"I know, right? The man is organized, handy, a great builder, a good cook - it's really the only explanation," she replied with a shrug.

"And we're none of those things, so it's a good thing he's here," Rory added.

Lorelai smiled and nodded, then glanced toward the staircase. "It sounds like they finally made it into the bedroom, so I guess they're almost done. Then we have to unload all the boxes."

Rory made a face. "Oh boy, fun times."

"You don't have to help if you don't want to," Lorelai said with a shrug. "I'm certainly not gonna make you spend your Saturday unpacking boxes. You can hang out with Lane or something. When's Dean coming back from Chicago?"

"Wednesday," Rory replied. She glanced toward the stairway as Jess, Luke, Jackson, and Kirk walked down.

Lorelai stood up. "Hey. Everything all right?"

Luke nodded. "Yup, it's all set."

The phone rang. As everyone else walked to the kitchen, Lorelai walked over to the desk and answered it. "Hello?"

"Lor," Christopher replied. "What's up?"

"Chris, hi," Lorelai replied. "Uh, just. . .moving day."

"Oh, right, right," he replied. "I forgot that was today. Getting a lot done?"

"Yup. How's everything with you?"

"Good, good," he replied. "Is my offspring there?"

"Yes, she is. Hold on a sec." Lorelai walked the phone into the crowded kitchen and waved it toward Rory. "It's your dad."

Rory smiled and took the phone into her bedroom. Jess was sitting at the table drinking a soda as Jackson and Kirk were getting ready to step out the back door. "Thanks for all your help, guys," Lorelai called after them. They nodded toward her and Luke closed the door. He leaned against it and let out an exhausted sigh.

Lorelai smiled as she walked over to him and he wrapped his arms around her waist. They kissed before she rested her chin on his shoulder and hugged him. She closed her eyes as his hands moved slowly up and down her spine.

A few seconds later, Rory cleared her throat. "Uh, mom?"

Lorelai opened her eyes and turned around. "What, hon?"

Rory stood in her bedroom doorway cupping one hand over the phone receiver. "Dad wants to talk to you about me coming to visit him this summer," she said. "Uh, is now a bad time?"

Lorelai walked over to her and gestured for the phone. "No, I'll talk to him." Lorelai took the phone and walked into the living room.

As Lorelai hung up the phone with Christopher, she walked back into the kitchen. Luke, Jess and Rory sat at the table talking. "Hey, you guys hungry for lunch?" Lorelai asked.

"Starved," Rory said.

"I could eat," Jess replied with a shrug.

"Pizza?" Lorelai suggested. They agreed, and Lorelai ordered it. As she hung up the phone, Rory asked, "So, what did Dad say?"

"Uh, he said that he wants you to come visit," Lorelai said. She walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a can of soda.

Rory rolled her eyes. "I know that part - what else?"

Lorelai shrugged. "We were just running through some dates. He was thinking that maybe you could go up for a few days in July, then maybe again for a few days in August. What do you think?"

"Sounds good," Rory said, nodding.

"Okay. Well, he's gonna check to see when he can take off from work and stuff. We're gonna talk about it again next week." Lorelai opened her soda and took a long sip.

"Okay," Rory replied. She stood up from the table. "Call me when the pizza's here." She walked into her bedroom and shut the door.

Luke sighed. "We gotta start working on those boxes. Jess, you have to unload your stuff."

"I know, I know," he replied. "I'll do it later." He stood up and walked into the living room.

Lorelai set her soda on the table and slipped her hands into her pockets. "You wanna go work on the bedroom while we're waiting for the pizza?"

Luke nodded and stood up. "Yeah, might as well."

Later that afternoon, Luke and Lorelai unloaded the last of Luke's clothes into his dressers. Lorelai groaned and fell back on the bed. "God, I never realized how exhausting and boring unpacking is."

"Yeah, well, it's almost over, don't worry." Luke carried the empty boxes into the hallway and set them by the stairway. He walked back in and closed the door behind him.

"I physically cannot go through another box today," Lorelai said. "Can we finish the rest tomorrow?"

"Yeah, we'll do it tomorrow," Luke replied. "I have to get to the diner anyway."

Luke walked over to his dresser and pulled out a t-shirt, then took his cap off and tossed it on the bed. Lorelai rolled onto her side and watched him as he changed his shirt. He dropped the dirty one into the laundry basket near the foot of the bed, ran his fingers through his hair, then replaced the cap on his head. "Listen, come by the diner later tonight and we'll go to the market," Luke said.

"For what?" Lorelai asked.

Luke let out a small laugh. "For what? Lorelai, there's practically no food in this house. We're gonna stock it up."

Lorelai sat up. "Stock it up?" she asked excitedly. "Like buy lots and lots of food?"

"Yup," he replied. "And not just junk food either. We're gonna buy normal, everyday food."

Lorelai frowned. "Luke, the proportion of people in this house who like junk food to those who do not like junk food is three to one. That's seventy-five percent, which means that at least seventy-five percent of the grocery purchases should be junk food."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I don't think that's exactly how it works, but nice try." He walked over to the door and into the hallway. He stopped at the doorway to Jess' room, where Jess was unpacking. "Everything okay? You need anything?" Luke asked.

Jess set his CD player on a shelf, then turned around. "Yeah, like twenty more feet of space. I feel like I'm in a freaking closet."

Luke shrugged. "Sorry, but if you keep up your end of the deal, you won't be here too long." Jess nodded and went back to unpacking. Luke walked down the stairs and Lorelai followed him.

Rory and Lane were sitting on the couch, the CD player and stacks of CDs sat in front of them on the coffee table. Luke smiled at them and walked into the kitchen as Lorelai sat in the armchair. "Hey guys."

"Hey Mom," Rory replied. "What's up?"

"Nothing much, we just finished unpacking his clothes," Lorelai replied.

"Sounds fun," Lane remarked.

Lorelai groaned. "Oh yeah, tons. Ooh, Luke and I are gonna hit the market later. He apparently wants to keep food in the house at all times," Lorelai said with a shrug. "I don't know what that's all about."

Rory raised her eyebrows. "Really? Wow, that'll take some getting used to."

Lorelai smiled. "I know." Luke walked back into the living room. "You leaving now?" she asked, standing up and walking over to him.

He nodded. "Yup. Bye Lane, see you later Rory."

"Bye Luke," Rory said.

"Bye," Lane replied.

Lorelai and Luke walked to the front door and out onto the porch. They saw the stacks of boxes on the porch - most of them empty but some still waiting to be unpacked. Lorelai groaned. "Geez, I forgot about these."

Luke shrugged. "These won't take long. Most of this stuff can get thrown into the shed."

"Good," she said, "because we're running out of room in the house." She ran her hands over his arms. "But I'm sure if that ever does happen, my strong little handyman here can build me a new one, huh?"

Luke smiled. "That's right."

Lorelai smiled and kissed him. "Bye."

"See you later," he replied.

Later that night, Lorelai walked into the diner and scanned it for Luke. She spotted him wiping the table in the corner and she walked up behind him. "Hey, you ready to go?" she asked, tapping him on the shoulder.

Surprised, Luke turned around. "Oh, hey." He checked his watch. "Uh, yeah, let me just tell Caesar I'm leaving for a little while."

Lorelai smiled. "I'll wait out front." She walked out the door and leaned against the front window with her arms folded across her chest.

A minute later, Luke walked out. "Okay, ready," he said. He pointed toward the market. "I parked the truck over there earlier so we wouldn't have to carry the bags too far."

Lorelai smiled. "Good thinking." They started walking toward the market. Lorelai pulled a folded up piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to him. "Rory and I started a general list of things we wanted."

Luke groaned. "Oh geez, can't wait to see this." He read over the list silently, then stopped walking and looked at her. "You've got to be kidding me."

Lorelai smiled and shrugged innocently. "What?"

"This is all junk, Lorelai," Luke said. "There's not one normal food product on this list . . . and not one thing that's not completely unhealthy."

"Uh huh!" Lorelai exclaimed. "Cheese puffs."

Luke rolled his eyes. "How are cheese puffs healthy?"

Lorelai scoffed. "Hello, cheese contains milk which helps us grow strong, hence the cheese puffs are healthy. There, ha." She smiled proudly.

"Yeah, well, I think the preservatives and other crap they add to those things negates any and all healthiness that might have once been contained in that cheese," Luke said. He looked at the list and shook his head. "I can't believe this is what you guys have been living on for years," he muttered.

Lorelai smirked. "Impressed that I've been able to maintain this figure?"

"No, I'm impressed that you've managed to stay alive this long with all the crap that's been building up on your arteries - which, by the way, will ultimately lead to the failure of your heart," he said, nodding knowingly. He shook his finger at her. "Trust me, one day this will all catch up to you."

She playfully pushed his hand away. "Yes, and until that day arrives, I say let us eat cake."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Fine, kill yourself."

Lorelai grinned. "I will, thank you." She laced her fingers through his and they walked to the market.

An hour later, they walked through the front door, each of them carrying several bags. Rory was in the kitchen pouring herself a drink, and her eyes widened at the amount of bags. "Oh my God," she said with a laugh.

Lorelai smiled as she set her bags on the table. "And there are like four more bags in the truck." She walked over to Rory. "Can you go help Luke with 'em? I'll hold this for you and make sure nobody drinks it." Lorelai took Rory's cup and drank some.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Thanks." She followed Luke out front and they brought in the last of the bags. They squeezed them onto the table with the other bags, then Rory walked over to claim her drink. Lorelai handed Rory the empty cup and Rory exclaimed, "Mom, that was the last of the iced tea!"

Lorelai smiled and walked to the table. "Aha, but you'll soon forget how rude that was of me when you see all the great stuff we bought. . . including. . . " She reached into a bag and pulled out a canister. "Tada! More iced tea mix."

Rory smiled. "Okay, you're forgiven. What else did you get?"

"'What didn't we get' would be a more appropriate question," Luke said, rolling his eyes. He started unloading a bag.

Lorelai giggled. "Oh my God, we got so much good stuff. Cookies, chips, soda, ice cream, whipped cream, Pop Tarts, cookie dough. . .you name it."

"Geez, he let you buy all that?" Rory asked, surprised. "What did you do, blindfold him and sneak the stuff into the basket?"

"Trust me, she probably would've tried that if I'd argued," Luke said.

Lorelai smiled as she set the iced tea mix on the table. "He let me buy it because he finds me overwhelmingly adorable."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Or maybe it's because you'd never in a million years let me tell you what to eat so I didn't even bother to try."

"That too," Lorelai shrugged. She reached into one of the bags and pulled out a package of raw chicken. "Ooh, Rory, look at this. You know how when we go to your grandparents' house, we have regular, normal meals?"

Rory nodded. "Uh huh."

Lorelai held up the chicken. "Well, we actually bought the types of food that will enable us to have full complete meals right here in this very house. . .you know, with side dishes and stuff. Food that you have to use the oven and stove to cook as opposed to the microwave or toaster."

Rory's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yup, hold this." She handed the package to Rory, then rummaged in the bag and pulled out a jar. "You put this stuff on it." She showed Rory the bottle of marinade.

Rory raised her eyebrows. "Looks good. Uh, do we know how to cook stuff like that?"

Lorelai smiled and gestured dramatically toward Luke. "I give you our very own Julia Child."

Luke groaned. "Please - if you're gonna compare me to a chef, at least make it a man," he said.

"A male chef. . .hmm, let me think. Uh, Graham Kerr? Bobby Flay?" Lorelai suggested. "Ooh, Emeril?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "You know what, Julia's fine." He stacked several boxes of cereal in a cabinet.

Moments later, Jess walked through the front door and came into the kitchen. He grabbed a soda from the fridge, popped it open, and drank half of it. As Luke crumbled a bag and threw it away, he nodded toward Jess. "Hey."

"Hey." Jess glanced at the girls, who were staring intently at the package of chicken and the marinade. "What are they doing?"

Lorelai showed him the package. "We have chicken."

"Yeah, real chicken that you have to cook in the oven," Rory said, her eyes widening with excitement.

Lorelai held up the bottle of marinade. "And marinade to pour on it," she added excitedly.

Jess glanced questioningly at Luke, who rolled his eyes and shrugged. Jess raised his eyebrows. "Okay, carry on." He walked over to the table and glanced in some of the bags.

Luke walked over to him. "You hungry? We just bought a ton of food."

Jess reached into a bag and grabbed a small bag of chips. "I'll take these." He walked out of the kitchen and went up to his room.

Luke unloaded another bag, then said, "Okay, I gotta get back to the diner and help close up. You think you two can put the chicken down long enough to finish putting this stuff away?" He gestured to the bags.

Lorelai groaned. "You're leaving us with all the hard work?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know opening cabinets is tough but I have a feeling you'll be able to handle it. See you guys later."

"Bye," Lorelai muttered. As Luke walked out the back door, Lorelai draped her arm across Rory's shoulder. "Okay, kid, where do we start?"

Rory glanced at all the bags. "Hmm, let's split it up. I'll do the junk food, you do the normal food," she said.

Lorelai sighed. "Deal."

Almost an hour later, Luke walked through the front door. He dropped his keys on the hall table and walked into the living room. Lorelai was sitting on the couch watching television, and she smiled up at him. "Hey."

He sat down next to her. "Hey." He leaned his head against the back of the couch and closed his eyes.

Lorelai turned off the television. "Tired?" she asked, rubbing his knee.

He opened his eyes and looked at her. "A little bit." He exhaled slowly. "You know, it was a little strange tonight."

"What was?" she asked.

"Well, I mean, closing up the diner and then. . .not going upstairs," Luke explained. "It was weird to have to walk outside and drive home."

Lorelai smiled. "A bad weird?"

"Is there such thing as a good weird?" Luke asked.

"I'm not sure, I think so."

"It wasn't bad, it was just. . .different," Luke said with a shrug.

Lorelai moved onto his lap, placing a knee on either side of his legs. "Did you hate having to do it so much that you wanna run upstairs, pack everything up, and move back to your apartment so you can be closer to work?"

Luke smiled. "No."

"Good." Lorelai leaned forward and kissed him. She pulled back slightly, leaving her face just inches from his. "Hey?"

He put his hands on her waist. "Yeah?"

Lorelai smiled. "We're living together now."

Luke smiled. "I know." She leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder. He hugged her tightly, nuzzling his nose against her neck. He kissed it softly and smiled to himself. "I know."

Later that night, as they climbed up the steps for bed, they heard music coming from Jess' bedroom. Luke groaned. "I'll tell him to turn it down." He started to walk toward the room but Lorelai grabbed his hand.

"Wait, wait, wait," Lorelai said quickly. She pulled him into their bedroom and shut the door.

"Geez, what is it?" Luke asked.

Lorelai ran her hand over his chest. "Don't you wanna celebrate our first night together?" She kissed his neck just below his ear.

Luke shrugged. "Yeah, what's your point?"

"That the walls are thin, Luke," Lorelai pointed out. "We might as well take advantage of the noise."

Luke thought it over for a moment. "Huh, good point," he muttered.

Lorelai giggled and tapped herself on the head. "See, I'm always thinking. You can tell him to turn it down when we're done." She reached around Luke and locked the door, then smiled up at him. "Now, do you wanna be the superhero, or the poor helpless victim that the superhero saves and then takes advantage of?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Just get on the bed."

Lorelai smiled. "Yes, sir."

Later that night, Lorelai finished brushing her teeth and walked back to the bedroom, and she shut and locked the door. Luke was already in bed, leaning against the headboard and tapping his hands aimlessly on his stomach. He stopped tapping as Lorelai dropped her robe and tossed it on the chair. He watched her as she pulled a pajama top out of her dresser and slipped it on. She pulled her hair out of the collar and buttoned the bottom three buttons, then turned off the light and climbed into bed. She pulled the covers up over her, then turned to him and smiled. "Night."

Luke smiled. "Night." He leaned over and kissed her, then turned over on his side. Lorelai rolled onto her stomach and closed her eyes.

The next morning, the blaring alarm woke Lorelai out of a sound sleep at six o'clock. "What the hell?" she mumbled groggily.

Luke reached over her to turn it off. "Shh, go back to sleep," he whispered.

"Isn't it Sunday?" she mumbled. "Who uses an alarm on a Sunday?"

Luke yawned loudly. "Someone who runs a diner that's open seven days a week."

Lorelai groaned into her pillow. "So this is gonna happen every Sunday?" she whined.

"And Saturday," he added.

Lorelai groaned even louder. "Great," she muttered. She turned over onto her back and sighed. "Maybe we should rethink this whole living together arrangement."

Luke let out a small laugh. "Oh, nice, thanks."

Lorelai laughed. "Kidding." As Luke stood up and stretched, Lorelai turned onto her side and watched him. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Yup, perfect," he replied. "You?"

"Mmhmm," Lorelai nodded.

Luke walked to his dresser and pulled out some clothes. He walked over to the foot of the bed and said, "I'm gonna go take a shower."

"Okay," she replied through a yawn. "I'm gonna try to go back to sleep."

"Okay." Luke watched as she rolled onto her back and closed her eyes.

A few seconds later, with her eyes still closed, Lorelai laughed. "Okay, I can feel you looking at me. What is it?"

"Nothing," he replied quickly.

Lorelai opened her eyes and smiled at him. "Luke, what is it?" she repeated. He smiled at her for a few seconds before he crawled onto the bed and lay on top of her. He kissed her cheek, then whispered something into her ear. As he pulled back, she smiled up at him. "I love you, too."

He smiled and climbed off the bed. As he walked toward the door, she suddenly sat up. "Wait, it's our first day waking up together as official shacker-uppers."

Luke turned to her and laughed. "Shacker-uppers? Is that the technical term?"

Lorelai smiled and slowly climbed out of bed. She walked over to her chair and grabbed her robe, then walked back to him. "Yes, it is, and the first rule of the shacking-up handbook is the obligatory shower together that happens on the first day you wake up as shacker-uppers."

"Oh yeah?" Luke asked.

Lorelai smiled. "Yup. Now, of course, in most normal houses, it doesn't happen at this insane hour on a Sunday, but dare to be different, right?"

Luke smiled. "Right." Luke opened the bedroom door and they walked to the bathroom.

Thirty minutes later, the bathroom door opened and they both walked out; Luke was fully dressed, Lorelai was in her robe. They walked to their bedroom and Lorelai collapsed on the bed. Luke sat on the edge of it and pulled his shoes on, then walked over to his dresser. He stuck his wallet in his back pocket and fastened his watch on, then picked up his baseball cap and placed it on his slightly damp hair.

He walked over to Lorelai. "Okay, I'm leaving. You coming in for breakfast?"

She shrugged. "Not sure yet. I'll probably be in sometime today, though."

"Okay." Luke leaned down and kissed her. "Bye."

"Bye." Lorelai closed her eyes and pulled the covers over herself as Luke walked out of the bedroom and pulled the door shut behind him.

PART 32

A few hours later, Lorelai walked into the kitchen and knocked on Rory's bedroom door. "Rory!" she called. When there was no answer, she pushed open the door and peeked inside. Seeing that Rory wasn't in there, she closed the door and walked over to the coffee maker, which someone had left on to keep the coffee hot for her. Next to it sat a note from Rory saying she had gone to Lane's. Lorelai poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table.

She rested her elbows on the table and closed her eyes, still not completely awake yet. When she heard footsteps rumbling down the staircase, she opened her eyes, and moments later saw Jess walking down the hallway. He stopped at the entryway to the kitchen when he saw Lorelai at the table. "Oh," he said, burying his hands in his pockets. "I didn't think anyone else was here."

Lorelai shrugged. "I'm the only one." Jess nodded and shifted his feet, and there was an awkward pause before Lorelai asked, "So. . . did you sleep okay?"

"Not bad," he replied.

"Good." Lorelai nodded and took a sip of her coffee. She set the cup back down and asked, "Uh, did you eat breakfast?"

"Nah, I just got up." Jess walked to the refrigerator and pulled it open.

"Yeah, me too." Lorelai stood up and walked over to a cabinet. She pulled it open and grabbed a box of cereal. "Hey, can you grab me the milk?"

She grabbed a bowl from a nearby cabinet as Jess glanced at the box of cereal she was holding. "Yeah, can you get me a bowl?"

Lorelai, who had just shut the cabinet door, said, "Oh. . .yeah." She opened it back up and grabbed another bowl.

After opening three drawers unsuccessfully, Jess finally found the silverware drawer and grabbed two spoons. They brought everything to the table and poured themselves bowls of cereals. Lorelai sat back down in her seat and Jess slid into the chair across from her.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, then Lorelai poured herself a second bowl and glanced at Jess. "You want more?" she asked, holding up the box.

He shook his head. "Not yet. Not everyone inhales their food like you do."

Lorelai set the box back down and smirked. "You're just jealous," she said knowingly.

"Jealous of your ability to eat fast?" Jess asked, rolling his eyes. "Wow, you're right - you got me."

"I knew it," she said with a shrug. "Everyone aspires to be like me."

"Yeah, we get tons of people coming into the bookstore looking for the "How to Be Like Lorelai Gilmore" manual. We just can't seem to keep 'em on the shelves," Jess said.

Lorelai smiled. "See, I knew it would be a big seller one of these days."

Jess smirked and glanced down at his bowl.

Lorelai took a sip of her coffee and stared at him for a second. "So . . .do you really hate it here?"

Jess looked up. "What?"

"Here, Stars Hollow - do you hate it?" Lorelai asked.

Jess shrugged and aimlessly stirred his cereal around in his bowl.

Lorelai shoved a spoonful in her mouth and watched him. "So. . . what does that mean?" she asked.

Jess didn't look up. "Take it however you want."

"I'd take it as a no," Lorelai replied. When Jess didn't reply, Lorelai cleared her throat. "So, uh, work's okay?"

"Yup," he replied. He reached for the cereal box and poured himself a second bowl.

"Good, good," Lorelai said, nodding. "So - "

Jess looked up and interrupted, "Look, for some reason, you think you have to make conversation with me, so let me just set you straight and tell you that you really don't have to. I'm perfectly fine eating in silence."

Lorelai scoffed. "I'm not doing it because I think I have to. Unlike you, I hate eating in silence and since you're the only one here, you get to be the recipient of all my annoying questions and babble."

"Well, maybe you should just pretend no one's here because I'm not really in a small talking mood this morning," Jess said.

Lorelai narrowed her eyes. "You really want me to pretend you're not here?"

Jess nodded.

Lorelai nodded. "Okay, no problem. . . la la la. . . pretending you're not here now." She ate a few bites of her cereal, then picked up her spoon and said, "So Spoony, what are you doing today?" She paused and brought it to her ear. "Oh really, you're going to the movies with Forky? That sounds like fun. What are you gonna see?"

Jess slowly lifted his head up and stared at her.

She continued, "Ooh, yeah, if you enjoy the Scooby Doo cartoon on television, I think you'll like the movie." She put her spoon down and picked up her mug. "And Mugsy, what are you doing today? Are you gonna - "

"What the heck are you doing?" Jess interrupted.

Lorelai put down her mug and shrugged. "Pretending that no one's here."

Jess raised his eyebrows and gave her a strange look. "When no one's here, you talk to the objects around you?" Lorelai smiled and nodded, and Jess shook his head slightly toward the table. "Oh geez," he muttered.

Lorelai giggled. "Now, if the person who's not sitting across from me is finished, I'll continue with my conversation." She picked up the cereal box. "Toucan Sam, how are you feeling this morning?" She paused a moment, then gasped and frowned. "A touch under the weather? Aw, I'm so sorry to hear that. Try not to get Tony the Tiger sick, okay? He has big plans with Mrs. Butterworth later. Yes, I know she's married. . .believe me, I told him to stay away from her, but you know how Tony gets sometimes." Jess let out a small laugh and continued eating his cereal.

A few hours later, Lorelai and Sookie walked into the diner and sat down at the counter. They talked for a few minutes until Luke walked out of the kitchen carrying several plates. He smiled as he walked past them and delivered the plates to a table, then returned to the counter and stood in front of them. "Hey."

"Hey Luke," Sookie said. "Heard you have a death wish."

"What?" he asked with a confused look.

She gestured toward Lorelai. "You plan on waking her up every weekend at six? That's a huge argument waiting to happen."

Lorelai smiled. "Don't worry - after a few weeks, he'll see the crankiness building up and figure out some way to correct this little problem. Like, he could possibly get an alarm installed inside of his head so that only he can hear it."

Luke rolled his eyes. "It might be a tad easier to just arrange for someone else to open up for me on the weekends."

"Hmm, that's probably safer than the brain surgery I suggested," Lorelai said, nodding.

"I'll see what I can do," Luke said. He pulled his pad out of his waistband. "You eating?"

"Yes," Sookie replied. "BLT."

"Burger," Lorelai replied.

Luke rolled his eyes as he wrote it down. "Right. Coming up. Drinks?"

"Water for me," Sookie replied.

"Coffee," Lorelai said.

Luke brought them their drinks, then walked into the kitchen. Sookie and Lorelai talked for a few minutes until Taylor walked over and set a piece of paper down on the counter. "Afternoon, ladies," Taylor said.

Surprised, they looked up. "Oh, hey Taylor," Lorelai said.

Sookie picked up the paper. "What's this?"

"Well, there's been some concern from the Stars Hollow Community Council that we don't have enough summer festivals," Taylor said.

Lorelai's mouth dropped open slightly. "Not enough festivals?"

"That's right, so this is a flyer explaining that tonight at the town meeting there will be a vote on what kind of new festival we should institute," Taylor explained. "Any suggestions?"

"Ooh, I'm all for some sort of festival where hot shirtless guys massage all the women for free," Lorelai said excitedly.

Taylor rolled his eyes. "I don't think so. We're looking for suggestions that have to do with summer, such as my proposal - a summer fruit and vegetable festival."

Lorelai groaned. "Ugh, a whole festival devoted to healthy food? Puh- lease."

Taylor frowned. "And I suppose you have a better suggestion?"

"Yes, I do. The First Annual Stars Hollow Chocolate Festival," she said proudly.

"A chocolate festival?" Taylor asked, wrinkling his forehead. "Um, I don't know if that's quite what we're looking for."

"Why not? You wanted to do a healthy festival, why can't there be an unhealthy festival?" Lorelai asked.

Luke walked out of the kitchen and glanced curiously at them. "What's going on? What are those?" he asked, pointing to the stack of flyers on the counter.

"Flyers for the town meeting tonight," Taylor said. "Which, by the way, starts at seven instead of the usual eight o'clock starting time. Make a note so you're not late."

"You know I don't allow flyers in here, Taylor," Luke said sternly. "Get 'em outta here."

"Luke, we need to inform the residents that there will be a vote at the meeting tonight, and that they should come with suggestions for the new festival," Taylor explained.

"New festival? My God, you really think this town needs another stupid festival?" Luke exclaimed.

Lorelai put her hand over Luke's mouth. "Shh, I'm in the middle of something here." She turned to Taylor. "So, what's wrong with my idea?"

Luke pushed her hand away. "What idea?"

"Shh!" she said, waving him off. Luke rolled his eyes and walked away. Lorelai repeated, "What's wrong with it, Taylor?"

"Well, I just don't think the town will find a chocolate festival to be a good representation of summer," Taylor said.

Lorelai gasped. "Oh my God, you couldn't be more wrong. I'm suggesting it at the meeting tonight, I bet people will love it."

Taylor shrugged. "Okay, you can suggest it, but I don't know if the townspeople will go for it." He picked up his stack of flyers and walked away.

Lorelai turned to Sookie and smiled. "Oh my God, a chocolate festival! This is gonna be so fun!"

"Well, you haven't gotten it approved yet, hon," she pointed out.

Lorelai smirked. "No, but everyone loves chocolate."

Luke walked out of the kitchen and set their plates in front of them. "I don't," he said.

Lorelai smiled. "That's because you're weird."

"Thank you," Luke replied. "Now what was all that talk with Taylor about?"

"I'm suggesting that the next town function be a festival dedicated to chocolate," Lorelai said as she ate a fry.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Right, because the Annual Stars Hollow Summer Barbecue isn't unhealthy enough, we need to have a completely new festival that's even worse."

"Oh, come on, it'll be so great! Brownies, cakes, cookies, pudding, cupcakes, chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate candy. . .there's so many different things people can bring," Lorelai said excitedly. "It'll be so fun."

"Yeah, for you," Luke said dryly. "What part of it is fun for me?"

Lorelai smiled and leaned forward on the counter. "The part that directly follows this sentence - 'Luke, I had too much chocolate and now I can't fall asleep, what should we do all night?'"

Luke's face tightened and he gave an embarrassed glance toward Sookie. He shifted his feet uncomfortably. "Yeah, well, have fun - I'm certainly not going."

"Sure you are," Lorelai replied.

"Uh, no, I'm pretty sure I'm not," Luke said.

Lorelai sighed. "You'll still make something chocolate to contribute, won't you? Please, please, please!" She tilted her head to the side and pouted.

Luke rolled his eyes. "If I have time."

"Thank you." Lorelai smiled. She took a bite of her burger and chewed it slowly. When she was finished, she said, "You know, you still have boxes to unpack."

Luke nodded. "I know, we'll get to them later. What are you guys doing after lunch?"

"We're going shopping and then we're gonna pick up someone's wedding dress," Lorelai said, smiling toward Sookie.

Sookie giggled excitedly. "I can't wait to see it again!"

Luke smiled and nodded. "Sounds good." He exhaled loudly and gestured over his shoulder. "Okay, I gotta get back in the kitchen."

Lorelai took a bite of her burger, then nodded. "See you later," she mumbled through her mouthful of food.

"Bye." Luke nodded toward Sookie before he turned around and walked into the kitchen.

Later that afternoon, Lorelai and Sookie walked into Lorelai's house. Lorelai was carrying several shopping bags and Sookie was carrying her wedding dress in a closed garment bag. They brought everything upstairs to Lorelai's bedroom, and Lorelai tossed the bags on the bed, then made room for the dress in her closet. As Sookie hung up the dress, she said, "I really appreciate you letting me keep it here."

"Aw, it's no trouble." Lorelai smiled and walked over to her mirror. She ran her brush through her hair, then said, "Okay, ready to go to your house?"

Sookie and Lorelai walked down the steps and out the front door. As they walked toward the Jeep, Lorelai said, "You know what, I don't think we got the mail yesterday."

"You were probably too busy with moving and stuff," Sookie said.

"Yeah, let me get it now," Lorelai said. She walked to the mailbox and opened it up. She pulled out a few bills, a magazine, and a small package, then Sookie followed her as she brought the mail into the house and set it on the kitchen table.

Lorelai picked up the small package. "Oh, I think these are our new checks," she said. She ripped off the letter attached to the front and opened it. She read through it silently, her eyes widening slightly when she got to the bottom of the page.

Sookie noticed the change in Lorelai's expression. "What's wrong?"

Lorelai lowered the paper and said, "Oh my God." She stared straight ahead for a moment, then brought the paper back up to her face and read it again. "Oh my God," she repeated. She lowered the paper and smiled at Sookie.

"What is it?" Sookie asked.

"Our new account balance," Lorelai said. "You know, they combined mine and Luke's accounts so it's all one big account now."

"And?" Sookie prompted.

Lorelai laughed slightly. "Uh, well, it's a lot more than I thought it was gonna be."

"A lot more?" Sookie asked. "Like how much more?"

"Um, like four times more," Lorelai said as she stared at the number on the paper. "Oh my God."

Sookie giggled. "Too bad you didn't find that out 'til after we went shopping."

Lorelai's eyes widened. "Sookie, I can't believe he had that much money in his account."

"Honey, the guy has a successful business, he rarely goes shopping or buys anything for himself - it makes sense that it would add up after awhile," Sookie deduced.

Lorelai slowly nodded in agreement, though her face still showed signs of shock. She smiled at the paper and shook her head slightly. "Wow."

Sookie took the letter from her and shoved it back into the envelope, then dropped it on the table. "Okay, before you decide to exploit your newfound riches by running out to buy a car, let's go finish Rory's dress." Lorelai nodded aimlessly as Sookie grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the front door.

That night, after Taylor had officially ended the town meeting, Lorelai stood up and clapped excitedly. She tapped Luke on the shoulder. "I told you! I knew they would go for a chocolate festival!"

Luke stood up. "No, remember what the committee said - it's a general dessert festival, not just a chocolate one. You have to include other non- chocolate products for those people who might be allergic to chocolate."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, blah, blah, blah. Chocolate will definitely be the predominant flavor, so I'm still calling it the chocolate festival." She turned to Rory. "Does your mom come up with the best ideas or what?"

Rory smiled. "Yes, she does. I can't believe they scheduled it for this weekend though - that doesn't give people much time to make stuff."

"Oh, it'll be plenty of time," Lorelai said. "It doesn't take long to make stuff."

Rory rolled her eyes. "How would you know? You never make stuff."

Lorelai wrinkled her nose. "Huh, that's true." She turned to Luke. "Does it take long to make stuff?"

Luke shook his head. "Nope."

"See?" Lorelai said to Rory. "It doesn't take long to make stuff."

"Okay, you've now said the phrase 'make stuff' enough times to officially wear it out for the rest of the year," Luke pointed out. "Can we go home now?"

Lorelai frowned. "Yeah, let's go home and *make stuff*," she said, emphasizing the phrase loudly. Rory laughed as they walked out of the dance studio and headed back to their house.

When they arrived home, they found Jess on the couch watching television, his feet resting comfortably on the coffee table. Lorelai stood at the entryway to the living room and gasped. "What do you think you're doing?" she asked loudly.

Startled, Jess jumped and quickly removed his feet from the table. He turned and saw Lorelai glaring at him. "Geez, sorry," he mumbled.

Lorelai dropped her purse on the floor and exclaimed, "I can't believe you're watching The Princess Bride without us!" She ran over to the couch and sat down. "Rory, come on!"

"Ooh!" Rory exclaimed. She walked over and sat down next to Lorelai, and they stared intently at the screen. Jess glanced at them with an amused look before he brought his gaze back to the television. A few seconds later, the three of them almost simultaneously put their feet up on the coffee table.

Luke stood near the staircase watching them. He shook his head slightly, then cleared his throat. "Lorelai?"

"Shhh!" she hushed him loudly and waved him off. "Our favorite line's coming up." A few seconds later, Lorelai and Rory recited with the television, "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." They giggled and continued watching the movie.

Luke rolled his eyes and exhaled loudly. "Okay, I'm gonna start unpacking the rest of the boxes. . .by myself. . .with no help."

"Okay, have fun," Lorelai replied distractedly, her eyes glued to the television set. Luke walked out onto the front porch and started going through one of the boxes.

A few minutes later, Lorelai walked out onto the porch. "Hey."

"Tore yourself away from the movie long enough to help?" Luke asked.

She smiled. "Yup, wasn't that nice of me?"

"Extremely," Luke said. He stood up and carried a box toward the shed, and Lorelai followed him.

"What's in the box?" Lorelai asked. Luke walked into the shed and Lorelai leaned against the doorframe.

"Uh, just some extra tools and stuff," Luke answered as he set the box down. He walked back across the lawn to the front porch, and Lorelai followed him. As he started going through another box, he suddenly looked up at her. "Uh, were you gonna actually help or did you just come out here for moral support?"

Lorelai smiled. "Moral support."

Luke rolled his eyes and went back to rummaging through the box. "Oh, this box goes in our bedroom."

"What is it?" Lorelai asked.

"Some free weights and stuff," Luke replied as he picked up the box. "Can you get the door?"

Lorelai pulled open the front door and they walked inside. As Luke started carrying the box upstairs, Lorelai detoured to the kitchen where she grabbed the box of checks and the accompanying letter, then walked up to her bedroom.

Luke was kneeling next to his dressers unloading his weights as Lorelai walked in and sat on the edge of the bed. "Hey, uh, our new checks came in."

"Oh yeah?" he replied, not looking up. "Took 'em long enough. They were supposed to be here last week."

"Yeah, well, it probably just took them awhile to move your million dollars worth of funds into a new account," Lorelai said.

Luke stopped and looked up. "What are you talking about?"

Lorelai pulled out the letter and held it out to him. "I'm talking about this."

He stood up and sat next to her on the bed before he took the letter and read through it. When he finished, he shrugged and handed it back to her. "What about it?"

Lorelai's eyes widened. "What about it? Luke, what. . .why. . .how do you have this much money in your account?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me?"

Lorelai looked down at the paper. "Man, this totally explains the big expensive weekend getaway and the offer to pay for Chilton and - ."

"Okay, stop," Luke interrupted, holding up his hand. "What's the problem here?"

Lorelai shook her head. "There's no problem. . .it's not a problem. I'm just not used to looking at my account balance and seeing that I could easily go and buy out the women's department of Bloomingdale's."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Okay, first of all, you're completely exaggerating, and second of all, just because the money's there doesn't mean you have to go out and spend it. That's why the money's there in the first place - because I don't run out and spend it the minute I make it. I know how to manage it and build it up - and hopefully that's not gonna all come to a crashing halt now that you have access to it, right?"

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Right, right, sure. Don't worry about me." She stood up. "Now I have to go call out of work tomorrow so I can drive to New York and hit Saks and Tiffany's."

Luke stood up and put his hands on her shoulders. "Okay, maybe a joint checking account wasn't the best idea we ever had."

Lorelai smiled and kissed him. "No, no, I promise I won't go crazy."

"Good." Luke kneeled back down and continued unloading his weights.

Lorelai picked up the box of checks and opened it. "Ooh, the clouds look really pretty. Look at 'em."

"Okay, before I look, you will take back the word pretty," Luke said. "I refuse to have pretty checks."

Lorelai laughed. "Sorry - these checks look so manly," she said in a deep voice.

She held out the checkbook toward him and he turned to look at them. He stared at the pattern for a minute, then narrowed his eyes. "You know, that cloud pattern looks familiar. Don't you have - " his voice trailed off as Lorelai dropped the checkbook on the bed and unzipped her denim shorts. She pulled them down slightly, revealing the cloud pattern on her underwear. Luke smiled. "Okay, I know what I'll be thinking about when I'm paying bills from now on."

Lorelai giggled and pulled her shorts back up. "I know. That was going to be my argument if you had originally disagreed with my cloud choice. . .but you didn't."

"Yeah, well, I must've subconsciously recognized the design and decided to just go along with it," Luke said. He turned back to his box and took out the last dumbbell. He stood up and said, "Okay, let's go finish those boxes. Maybe you can actually help this time instead of just watching?"

Lorelai shrugged. "We'll see."

A few days later, Luke walked through the front door just as Lorelai and Rory were getting ready to walk out. Luke dropped his keys on the table by the door and said, "Hey."

"Hey Luke," Rory said.

"Hi," Lorelai said, kissing him on the cheek. "Girls' night out, bye!" She and Rory rushed past him out the front door.

Luke followed them out the door and stood on the porch. They were already halfway across the yard. "Where you going?" he called.

Lorelai turned around while she continued walking backward toward the Jeep. "We're not sure yet. We're gonna drive around the nearby towns until we see something to do. See you later!" She and Rory climbed into the Jeep and drove away.

Luke walked back into the house and into the kitchen where Jess was staring into the refrigerator. "Hey," Luke said.

Jess turned and looked at him. "Hey."

"Not working tonight?" Luke asked.

"Nope, got the afternoon shift this week," Jess replied. He shut the refrigerator, then walked over to a cabinet and pulled it open. He pulled out a package of Pop Tarts, then walked over to the toaster and put them in. He leaned against the counter and folded his arms across his chest as he waited for them.

Luke walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water. He took a long sip, then leaned against the fridge and said, "So. . . you liking it here so far? I mean, this house?"

Jess shrugged. "It's not so bad."

"Yeah, it's nice having more than one room to hang out in, huh?"

"Guess so."

"And you and Lorelai are. . .getting along, right?" Luke asked.

"Oh, yeah, we even exchanged friendship bracelets," he replied.

"Jess," Luke said sternly. "Come on, just give me a few minutes of normal talking, okay?"

Jess sighed and pursed his lips. "Yes, we're getting along."

"Good," Luke replied. "Good."

As Lorelai drove toward the highway, she gave a quick glance toward Rory and said, "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did," Rory replied.

"Ha, you're funny," Lorelai said, rolling her eyes. "Serious question?"

"Yeah, sure," Rory replied. "What is it?"

"How are you adjusting to having the guys there? I mean, are you okay with everything?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine with it," Rory said.

"Rory," Lorelai said, narrowing her eyes at her. "Don't tell me what you think I wanna hear. I want an honest answer."

"I swear I'm not lying," Rory insisted. "I'm perfectly fine with everything. I mean, it's still a little weird to wake up and. . .you know, see a guy sitting at the kitchen table, but it's not a bad weird."

"Good weird?" Lorelai suggested.

"Is there such a thing?" Rory asked.

"Luke and I decided yes," Lorelai replied.

"Okay, well, then it's a good weird," Rory said. "It's just different. It'll take some getting used to."

"But you like it so far?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah, it's cool having more people around," Rory said. "And as long as we maintain the 'males and females have separate laundry' rule, I'll be fine. I'd rather Luke wasn't the one washing my intimate apparel, thank you."

Lorelai laughed. "Don't worry - I think the feeling's mutual."

Rory smiled. "What about you? Are you liking it so far?"

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "I love it."

"Even having to share your bed?" Rory asked.

"Especially. . .having to share my bed," Lorelai said, raising her eyebrows and smiling slyly.

Rory wrinkled her nose. "Knew I shouldn't have gone in that direction."

Lorelai smiled. "Sorry. But yeah, it's been really fun so far. And the fact that Luke can make us breakfast in the morning is just icing on the cake."

Rory smiled. "Yeah, it was weird waking up to the smell of food yesterday."

"But it was great," Lorelai said. They were quiet for a moment before she turned to Rory and said, "Another serious question?"

Rory nodded. "What?"

Lorelai looked at Rory seriously for a moment, then asked, "Do I have something in my teeth?" She clenched her teeth together and grinned at Rory.

Rory laughed and shook her head. "No, you're good."

Lorelai turned back to the road. "Okay, thanks."

Rory turned the radio on and switched quickly through the stations until she finally found a song she liked. She blasted the volume, then yelled over the noise, "Where are we going?"

"I don't know!" Lorelai yelled back with a shrug.

Slightly before eleven, Lorelai and Rory pulled up to their house and walked quietly inside. "Night Mom," Rory whispered, kissing her on the cheek.

"Night hon," Lorelai replied. Rory walked to her bedroom and Lorelai walked upstairs to hers. She quietly pushed open the door to her bedroom, trying hard not to wake Luke. However, when she walked in, she saw that he was still awake, lying in bed watching the small television that sat on her dresser.

Luke smiled up at her. "Hey." He picked up the remote and turned off the television, then sat up in the bed.

"Hey." Lorelai smiled at him as she shut the door. She tossed her purse in the bottom of the closet, then sat down on the bed next to him. He pressed his lips against hers, starting a deep, passionate kiss that didn't end until she had to break for air. As she pulled back from him, she panted for a few seconds to catch her breath, then smiled and said, "I'd ask why you were still up, but I think I just found out."

Luke smirked. "Yeah, well, I haven't seen you all day." He leaned forward and kissed her again. As he pulled back from her, he ran his hands down her arms and asked, "Where did you guys go?"

"Danbury," Lorelai replied, climbing off the bed. She pulled off her shirt and tossed it on the floor.

Luke's eyes widened. "Danbury? What did you do there?"

She kicked off her sandals, then unzipped her shorts and slid them off. She smiled and said, "Auditioned for a play."

Luke laughed. "What?"

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "We drove past this little theater and there was a sign out front that said they were holding open auditions. So, first, I spent a few minutes trying to convince Rory to do it with me, then, after bribing her with ten bucks, we went in and gave them fake names and addresses, then did a scene from The Wizard of Oz."

Luke laughed. "Which scene?"

"Duh, the scene where Dorothy meets Glinda the good witch," she said as if it was obvious.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Oh, of course, I should've known." He smiled and shook his head slightly. "I can't believe you. You know you're crazy, don't you?"

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Yes, I do. And then we went out for dinner, and then we were walking around and we found this old movie theater and they were having a Marlon Brando marathon, so we caught some of that, and then we got ice cream and came home." She smiled. "Oh God, Luke, we had so much fun."

"Sounds like it," Luke smiled.

Lorelai pulled the clip out of her hair and set it on her dresser. "What did you do?"

"Uh, nothing much. I ate dinner, lifted some weights, watched a little tv," Luke replied.

"Aw, sounds like I had more fun than you," Lorelai said. She undid her bra and dropped it to the floor, then sauntered over to him. She pushed him down on the bed and climbed on top of him, straddling his waist. "I'll try to make it up to you."

Luke smiled and ran his hands over her thighs. "I'd appreciate that."

Later that night, Lorelai rolled off of him and fell onto her back on the bed. Her chest heaved up and down as she tried to catch her breath. A few seconds later, she climbed off the bed, pulled on her robe, and walked into the bathroom. When she returned to the bedroom a few minutes later, she locked the door, tossed her robe aside and climbed back under the covers. She snuggled up against him and rested her head on his chest, and he wrapped his arm around her. "So, let me ask again, how was your night?" Lorelai asked. "Fun?"

"Yes, I'd have to say that I did have some of the, uh, magic f-word," Luke replied.

Lorelai laughed and lifted her head up to look at him. "Wow, look at you going for the double meaning there."

Luke smiled and kissed her. "Night."

"Night." Lorelai rested her head back against his chest and closed her eyes.

PART 33

The next night after work, Lorelai walked into the diner. Rory was already waiting at a table, and Lorelai walked over and sat down. "Hey."

"Hey," Rory replied. She stared at Lorelai curiously for a moment, then asked, "Are you okay?"

Lorelai hung her purse on the back of her chair and shrugged. "Yeah, just tired."

"Aw, you need coffee," Rory said.

"Or a shot of vodka," Lorelai replied.

Rory rolled her eyes. "I don't think they serve it here."

"Yeah, well, I'll suggest it to Luke later. I'm sure it'd be a big seller," Lorelai said. "How much time do you have? When's Dean coming home?"

"He said he'd be home around 5:30," Rory said. She checked her watch. "So fifteen minutes."

Lorelai nodded and glanced toward the counter, impatiently waiting for someone to wait on her. "Geez, the one day I'm craving coffee there's no one around."

Rory laughed. "The one day you're craving coffee? Don't get me started on how incredibly inconsistent with the truth that sentence is."

"Shush you," Lorelai frowned. Lorelai noticed a bag sitting on the floor next to Rory's chair. "What's that?"

Rory picked it up. "Oh, I stopped at the bookstore before I came here. Picked up some things for me and a welcome home book for Dean."

"Oh, boyfriends love that. Nothing says 'welcome home, I missed you' like a good novel," Lorelai said, nodding knowingly.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Yes, he will love it, but I kinda spent the money I had planned to use for dinner, so. . .can I borrow some so I don't have to walk back home?"

Lorelai grimaced slightly. "Ooh, I don't know if I have much on me. Let me check." She set her purse on the table in front of her and started rummaging through it. She pulled out a few wrinkled dollars. "Sorry, this is all I have." She glanced up as Luke walked over with two cups of coffee. "Ooh, but maybe Luke has some."

"Some what?" he asked, setting the coffee cups down. He leaned down and kissed Lorelai on the cheek. "Hey."

"Hi," she replied. She took a long sip of coffee, then gestured toward Rory. "Rory needs some money for dinner with Dean and I'm all out."

Rory's eyes widened. "No, no, that's okay. I can just stop home and get some more."

Luke pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. "How much do you need?"

"No, it's fine," Rory insisted. "I can just go home real quick."

"It's a waste to go home to get something that I have right here," Luke said.

"Rory, whether you get it from me or Luke, it's all the same money," Lorelai said with a shrug.

Luke nodded and pulled out a twenty. "Here," he said, holding it out to Rory.

Rory bit her lip momentarily. "Are you sure?"

"Honey, you have five seconds to take it before I claim it for myself," Lorelai said with a laugh.

Rory took the money and smiled. "Thanks Luke."

"No problem," he said, sliding his wallet back into his pocket. "So you're going out to eat, huh? Does that mean you're not ordering?"

"Nope, not tonight," Rory replied.

Luke nodded and turned to Lorelai. "So that means you're eating alone. You want a burger?"

"No. . . actually, I think I'm gonna go home and order a pizza," Lorelai said.

"You're not eating either? So the point of you two meeting here at dinner time was. . ." Luke prompted.

"Coffee fix," Rory informed him, and Lorelai nodded in agreement.

"Right, okay. . .so, I guess I'll see you at home," Luke said.

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Bye."

"Bye Luke," Rory said. She waved the twenty-dollar bill and said, "Thanks for this."

Luke nodded. "You're welcome." He turned and walked back toward the kitchen.

A few hours later, Luke came home and found Lorelai curled up in the corner of the couch reading a book. He dropped his keys on the hall table, then walked over to her. "Hey."

Lorelai looked up from the book. "Hey." He was carrying a takeout cup from the diner. "Ooh, is that for me?" she asked hopefully.

Luke held it out toward her. "Yeah."

Lorelai smiled and took it from him. "Thanks." She took a long sip and moaned happily. "Mmm, that's good."

Luke sat down next to her. "What are you reading?"

Lorelai smiled. "Oh my God, only the greatest book in the history of the world." She showed him the cover.

"Motley Crue," Luke read. "Huh - so it's good?"

"It's excellent. You have to read it," Lorelai said. She glanced at the page number. "I'm on page 182, remember that." She shut the book and placed it on the coffee table, then stretched her legs out across his lap. He immediately started running his hands over them as she took another sip of coffee. She swallowed her mouthful, then set the cup on the coffee table. "How was work?"

"It was fine," Luke replied, keeping his gaze on her legs. "What did you do?"

"Not much," she replied with a shrug. "Ordered pizza, watched a little tv, read a little. Oh, and Chris called. We set up Rory's first visit."

"Oh yeah? When is it?" Luke asked.

"Next week," Lorelai said. "Saturday to Wednesday. He has some business trip on Thursday morning so he's gonna drop her off on Wednesday night on the way there."

Luke nodded. "Does he want us to drive her up on Saturday?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I offered, but he said he can come get her." Lorelai smiled. "You know what this means?"

"What?"

"We'll have the entire house to ourselves for a few days next week," Lorelai said. "I mean, it looks like Jess'll be moving back to the apartment, and Rory'll be in Boston. . ."

Luke smiled. "And the wheels are already turning in your head thinking up ideas about how to fill every second of that time, aren't they?"

Lorelai giggled. "Maybe."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I knew it. So what's the first thing that comes to mind?"

"Well, I was thinking we can do this whole sorta movie theme. Like, first, we can smuggle an endangered lizard into another state for the Mafia. Then we can rent a huge ship and you can run around yelling that you're the king of the world. Then - my personal favorite - we can reenact a scene from 9 ½ Weeks, and then maybe - " Lorelai stopped talking when she heard the front door open.

"I'm home!" Rory called as she closed the door behind her.

"Right here, hon," Lorelai said.

Rory walked into the living room, carrying her bag from the bookstore. "Hey."

"Hey. How was your night?" Lorelai asked.

Rory sat down in the armchair across from them. "Great. We went out for dinner and I gave him the book, which he loved," she said, making a face at Lorelai. "Then we went back to his house and watched a movie."

Lorelai smiled. "Watched a movie? Uh huh."

Rory rolled her eyes. "His parents were home."

"Well, that never stopped me," Lorelai said with a shrug. "You're living proof of that."

Rory glanced down at the coffee table. "Ooh, how's that Motley Crue book?"

Lorelai smiled. "Excellent! You can borrow it when I'm done."

"Cool. What page are you on?" Rory asked.

"Uh. . ." Lorelai glanced down at it questioningly, biting her lip. "Um. . ."

"One eighty-two," Luke finally answered for her.

Lorelai looked at him and smiled. "Thank you." She turned back to Rory. "One eighty-two. I'm almost halfway done"

Rory nodded. "Did Dad call?"

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Yup. You're going up there next Saturday and he's gonna bring you back on Wednesday."

Rory smiled. "Wow, that's so soon."

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah."

Rory paused a moment. "Are you. . .gonna be okay? I mean, five days. . ."

Lorelai waved her off. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I have my manly man here to smack me when I start getting weepy," she said, patting Luke on the shoulder.

Rory smiled and stood up. "Good, that's good." She started walking toward her bedroom, then said, "Oh." She turned around and dug into her pocket and pulled out some money. "Here's the change, Luke." She walked over and held it out to him. "Thanks."

He shook his head. "No, keep it. You've still got a couple inches of space in that room for another book or two."

"But I - " Rory started.

Luke held up his hand. "I mean it, just keep it, really."

Lorelai reached for it. "Hell, I'll keep it. Give it to me."

Rory pulled it away from her and smiled at Luke. "Thanks."

Luke nodded. "You're welcome."

Rory slipped the money back into her pocket. "Okay, I'll be in my room." She walked to her bedroom and closed the door behind her.

Luke stood up from the couch, and Lorelai grabbed his hand. "Where are you going? We're not done discussing the itinerary for the 'Luke and Lorelai will have the house to themselves for a long time and need fun things to do' extravaganza."

"I'm gonna take a shower," Luke said, pulling his hand away. "Go find a pen and write down your ideas and show it to me later, during which time I'm sure ninety-five percent of them will be eliminated for being too ridiculous."

"So the 'ordering pizza and then answering the door naked just to see the look on the delivery guy's face' idea?" Lorelai asked.

Luke groaned and rolled his eyes. "Don't even bother writing it down."

Lorelai frowned and picked up her book from the coffee table. Luke started walking toward the stairs as Lorelai flipped open the book. Luke was halfway up the steps when Lorelai looked up and said, "Luke, what - "

"One eighty-two," he replied without stopping.

"Thank you."

That Friday night before dinner, Emily handed Lorelai and Rory their drinks, then sat across from them on the couch with Richard. "So, Rory, what have you been doing with all the free time you've had this week?" Emily asked.

"Oh, I've been helping Mom at the inn," Rory said.

"Well, that's good to hear," Richard said. "Instilling a sense of business at this age is a very wise move."

"Yes, but she's still a teenager," Emily said. "She shouldn't be working all the time."

"Oh, don't worry, I don't work all the time," Rory said.

"No, only a few hours a day," Lorelai said. "She's gotta earn a few bucks to support her addictions. Do you guys have any idea how much heroin costs these days?" Lorelai shook her head and sighed. "It's a sad, sad world when you can't even find a reasonable dealer anywhere. I tell ya, sometimes I just want to go into that business myself and - "

"Uh, Mom," Rory interrupted, patting Lorelai on the knee. She gestured to Emily and Richard. "The looks on their faces are telling me that they want you to stop talking."

"Thank you, Rory," Emily replied, rolling her eyes and taking a sip of wine.

"Well, as inane as that one-sided heroin conversation was, it does bring up a good subject," Richard said.

"That there's a huge market out there for would-be drug dealers?" Lorelai suggested.

Richard groaned. "No - going into business for myself."

"What?" Lorelai asked, surprised.

"Well, it's an idea that Emily and I have tossed around the past few days," Richard said.

Emily nodded. "Yes, I think it's a fabulous idea. He hates being retired and he doesn't want to go back to his old job, so the next viable solution was to start a whole new venture."

"Wow, that's cool, Grandpa," Rory said, smiling.

"Yeah, Dad - but what would you do?" Lorelai asked.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure yet," Richard said. "I have a bit more research to do, some options to explore, but it's definitely something that I can see happening very soon."

Emily smiled and patted Richard on the knee. "Yes, soon would be good."

Richard rolled his eyes and explained, "Uh, Emily's just a little tired of having me around the house."

Emily gasped. "That's not true - I just want you to be happy, and the sooner you start this new venture, the sooner you'll be happy, that's all."

Richard smirked and nodded. "Mmhmm." He took a sip of his drink and sat back against the couch.

"So, Lorelai, what's new with you?" Emily asked, changing the subject. "How's Luke?"

"Fine, I'm fine, he's fine," Lorelai replied, nodding. "We're all pretty much. . .you know. . .fine."

"Last week you mentioned that Saturday was the day he was moving in," Emily said. "So, I'm assuming he did, in fact, move in?"

"Yes, he did," Lorelai replied. "He and Jess have been living with us all week. It's like a big slumber party that never ends."

Emily shook her head slightly. "I'm still not sure about how I feel about all this. I still think it's way too soon for such a move."

Lorelai took a sip of her wine, then set her glass on the coffee table and sighed loudly. "Okay, I'm so tempted to just start singing a Ramones song at the top of my lungs right now because sedation would be the easiest way for me to deal with hearing you say that over and over. Instead, I'll just calmly remind you that it's not up to you, Mother - not even a teeny, tiny bit. The bottom line is that they're living with us, and Rory and I are both fine with it, so that's all that matters, okay?"

"Fine, fine," Emily said, shrugging nonchalantly. "I'm perfectly aware that our opinions don't matter to you."

"Yes, well, then why do you keep offering them?" Lorelai asked in an annoyed tone.

"Because I'm hoping that one day you will come to your senses and decide to listen to them," Emily retorted.

Lorelai scoffed. "Come to my senses?" She exhaled slowly and took a sip of her wine. "Geez, Mom, why can't you just. . . " Lorelai's voice trailed off and she mumbled, "Forget it. Let's go eat." She stood up and walked out of the living room.

Emily stood up and followed her into the dining room. "Why can't I what?" Emily asked. "Go on, we still have a few minutes before dinner for you to finish insulting me."

Lorelai stopped walking and slowly turned around. She took a few deep breaths to control herself, then said calmly, "Why can't you, for once in your life, just be happy for me? Instead of offering opinions and commenting on every little thing I do, why can't you just relax and trust my decisions? I'm not a little kid anymore, Mom."

"No, you're not, but Rory is," Emily replied.

"Rory," Lorelai said loudly, "is fine.

"Maybe she is now," Emily said. "But what happens when you and Luke discover that moving in so soon wasn't the best idea and he ends up moving out just as Rory was getting used to having a male figure around full time? What happens to her then?"

Lorelai pursed her lips and said sternly, "Drop it, Mom." Lorelai walked over to her usual seat and pulled out her chair.

Emily sighed loudly. "You just don't understand how it will affect her if this relationship doesn't work out. You didn't think about that, Lorelai. You never think."

Lorelai ignored her and yelled, "Dad, Rory, come in here before I grab this bowl of potatoes and throw it at something - or someone!" A few seconds later, Richard and Rory entered the dining room, and the four of them sat down at the table.

When Lorelai and Rory walked into their house later that evening, Jess and Luke were on the couch watching television. Luke looked toward the front door and said, "Hey."

Without looking at him, Lorelai muttered "Hey" and walked directly to the kitchen.

Rory walked into the living room and Luke asked quietly, "Rough night?"

Rory nodded. "Just a little."

Luke stood up and walked toward the kitchen. He paused at the doorway and watched as Lorelai poured coffee grounds into the coffee maker. Luke shoved his hands into his pockets and leaned against the wall. "You okay?"

"Dandy," she replied dryly. She placed the pot on the coffee maker, then put the bag of grounds in the refrigerator. When she shut the refrigerator door, she stood staring at it, her hand still clutching the handle.

Luke walked toward her, and when she felt him directly behind her, she turned around and hugged him. He ran his hands up and down her back and said, "What did she do this time?"

Lorelai pulled back from him and sighed. "One guess."

Luke rolled his eyes. "She pulled out the 'you're rushing into things' argument again?"

"Ding ding ding, you win the grand prize," Lorelai said, tapping him on the shoulder. She leaned forward and kissed him, then hugged him again, resting her head on his shoulder.

They were both silent for a moment before Luke said, "You know, that money in our checking account is both of ours."

Lorelai pulled back and narrowed her eyes at him. "So?"

Luke shrugged. "So we can afford to send Rory to Chilton ourselves now."

Lorelai shook her head. "Luke, no - I don't want you to spend your savings on that."

"I'm serious, I don't mind. I want to do it," Luke insisted.

Lorelai ran her fingers over his cheeks and smiled at him. "I know you do, and that's why you're gonna get lucky later tonight - but I still just. . .Chilton's a lot of money, and if we have to start mailing in those monthly payments - it's just gonna deplete all of that money you've saved up. We'll just let my parents finish up this next year and then we'll work out some sort of payment plan to pay them back that won't be quite as high as the Chilton payments."

Luke bit his lip with uncertainty. "So you're willing to go through another entire year of dinners - that's fifty-two more dinners, fifty-two more nights of you coming home all sad and grumpy."

"Yeah, but it's also fifty-two more nights of you cheering me up," she said, raising her eyebrows suggestively.

"I don't know," Luke said, shaking his head. "According to your mom, I probably won't be here that long."

Lorelai smiled and kissed him. As she slowly pulled her lips away from his, she said, "Wanna bet?"

"No, thanks," he replied with a laugh. "Betting with you is always a dangerous thing."

Lorelai smiled. "True - I think I've officially scared you from entering into another bet ever again."

"Yes, you have," he replied. He pointed to a box on the table. "There're your brownies for the festival tomorrow."

Lorelai gasped and smiled. "You made them?"

"Yup," Luke said.

"Thanks." Lorelai walked over to the coffee maker and poured herself a cup. "So, you're going tomorrow, right?" she asked casually.

Luke groaned. "No, for the hundredth time."

Lorelai wrinkled her nose. "Come on, you haven't changed your mind yet?"

"Nope. I don't participate in these stupid town festivals, you know that."

"Oh yeah? What about when you bid on my basket?" Lorelai pointed out. "Or when we went to the Founder's Day festival?"

"Those were different," Luke said.

"How so?"

"Because they. . .I didn't. . .you were. . ." Luke sighed. "They were just different."

Lorelai smiled. "Good argument there, Jack McCoy."

"I'm not going," Luke said. He turned and walked toward the living room, and Lorelai followed him.

The next morning, Lorelai woke up alone in the bed and groggily made her way to the bathroom to take a shower. After she was dressed, she walked downstairs and found Rory reading on the couch. "Hey Mom."

"Hey Sweets," Lorelai replied. "What time - " She paused a moment, then narrowed her eyes at a rumbling noise coming from outside. "What's that noise?"

"Luke's mowing the lawn," Rory replied, not looking up from her book.

Lorelai walked out the front door and stepped onto the porch. She smiled as she saw Luke, shirtless and sweaty, pushing the mower across the front lawn. As he reached the end of the yard, he turned the mower around and saw her standing on the porch. He smiled at her, then pushed the mower back in her direction. When he reached the porch, he turned the mower off and walked up to her. "Hey."

"Hi. Hot enough for you?" she asked, fanning herself with her hand. "It's only ten a.m. and it's already like a hundred degrees out here."

"Yeah, I know," Luke replied. He grabbed the towel that was hanging on the porch railing and he wiped his face with it. "It's supposed to get even hotter later so I thought I might as well get this done now. Then I'm gonna wash the cars before I go to the diner for the lunch shift."

Lorelai smiled. "Well, look at you with the whole day planned out."

Luke shrugged. "Just trying to be productive - which I'm sure is something you're not familiar with."

Lorelai scoffed. "Not true - I have a very productive plan for the day."

"Which is?" Luke prompted her.

"Chocolate festival."

"And?"

"And. . .well, that's pretty much it," she finished with a shrug.

Luke laughed. "Good plan."

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Thank you."

Luke gestured to the mower. "Okay, I'm gonna finish this up."

"Okay, I'm gonna go get some breakfast, then come out and watch you," Lorelai said.

"Watch me?"

"Yup."

"Starved for entertainment?"

"No, you know I love watching you be physical." She smiled and ran a finger over the curves of his chest. "Watching the sweat run down your body, watching the determined look on your face."

"I have a determined look when I'm pushing the mower?" Luke asked.

Lorelai smiled and nodded. "Mmhmm. Want me to videotape you so you can see it?"

"No, thanks."

"Ooh, no, that's a good idea!" she exclaimed excitedly. "We'll tape you being all hot and physical, and then I can watch it to help get me in the mood."

"That's the last thing you need help with," Luke replied with a laugh. "Why don't you videotape me saying that coffee is bad for you, then watch that over and over and see if that does anything for you?"

Lorelai thought it over for a second, then nodded and said, "See, that might work, but only if you say it while you're showering." Luke rolled his eyes and walked toward the mower. "Guess that's a no?" Lorelai called. Luke gave her a pointed look, then started the lawnmower. Lorelai smiled to herself and walked into the house.

When she walked back out twenty minutes later, Luke was pushing the mower back into the shed. She sat down on the bench and propped her legs up on the porch railing. A minute later, he walked toward the cars, a bucket filled with soapy water in one hand and the hose in the other. He stopped in front of her and said, "There are two sponges, you know."

"Good, you can be extra-productive and use both hands at the same time," she replied with a smile.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Come help."

Lorelai frowned. "But I just got comfortable."

"It'll go faster if you help," he said.

"Oh, that's okay, I don't mind if you take a long time," she replied, waving him off.

Luke sighed. He put down the bucket and the hose, then walked up onto the porch and over to her. Lorelai removed her feet from the railing and looked up at him curiously. He folded his arms across his chest, pursed his lips and gave her a stern look. A few seconds later, his face softened and he said, "Come on, don't make me pout."

Lorelai laughed. "Oh my God, you looked so serious!"

Luke smiled and held out his hand. "Come on."

Lorelai grabbed his hand and let him pull her up off the bench. "Okay, but only because I don't wanna see you pout." Luke smiled and he led her off the porch.

They brought the bucket and hose to the Jeep. Lorelai reached into the bucket and pulled out a soapy sponge, then started lathering up the hood. A few minutes later, she picked up the hose and rinsed off the front of the car. As she was about to put the hose down, she glanced at Luke, who was squatting down washing the back of the Jeep. She sprayed the hose up in the hair, letting it fall on him like rain. Luke jumped up and exclaimed, "What the hell?"

Lorelai giggled. "You looked like you could use some cooling off."

"Thanks for the gesture, but I'm fine," he replied.

"You sure?" Lorelai asked, spraying him again.

Luke's mouth dropped open slightly and he started walking toward her.

"Uh oh!" she cried. She dropped the hose on the ground and ran around the other side of the Jeep.

Luke picked up the hose and smiled. "Don't you know you're not supposed to drop the hose in this type of situation?"

Lorelai peeked from around the back of the Jeep. "I forgot." Luke walked toward her, smiling. She walked backward toward the house wagging a finger at him. "You wouldn't squirt little old me, would you?"

Luke shook his head. "No, I wasn't planning on it," he said, lowering the hose.

Lorelai smiled and relaxed. "Good."

"But since you did it to me, I think it's only fair that you get it back," Luke said, aiming the nozzle at her.

Lorelai gasped as the cold water hit her body and she threw her hands up over her face. "Luke! Oh my God!" she screamed.

He laughed and put the hose down. She removed her hands and looked down at her outfit, which was now dripping wet. "I was going to wear this to the festival," she whined.

"It'll dry," he replied, walking toward her. He eyed the white tank top that was now clinging tightly to her body, leaving little to the imagination about what was underneath. "Though I kind of prefer this way." He ran his fingers over the thin, soaked fabric that covered her chest.

Lorelai swallowed hard at the sensation and she groaned softly. She let him continue stroking her for a moment, then said, "Uh, Luke?"

"Huh?"

"Are you aware that Babette is standing on her front porch watching you fondle me?" she asked.

Luke's eyes widened and he quickly put his hands at his sides. He turned his head slowly toward Babette's house, then rolled his eyes when he didn't see anyone. He brought his gaze back to Lorelai. "Liar."

Lorelai laughed. "That's what you get." She leaned forward and kissed him, then pulled back and said, "Okay, I think five minutes of car washing is enough to chock this up as a productive day. I'm gonna go inside and watch television."

Luke grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the Jeep. "Come on, we're almost done."

A little while later, they walked through the back door into the kitchen. Lorelai pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and handed it to Luke, then pulled one out for herself.

"Thanks." Luke glanced at the clock on the microwave. "I have to get to the diner soon. You coming in for lunch?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah, I'll go with you." She took a sip of water. "So, I think that since you made me wash cars, which was something I didn't wanna do, you should do something that you don't wanna do and come to the festival with us. What do you say?" Lorelai asked hopefully.

"Um, I say no," he replied, taking a drink of water.

Lorelai frowned. "Please? I can beg. You want me to beg?"

"Yes." He folded his arms across his chest and looked at her expectantly.

"Please, please, please, come with us!" Lorelai begged annoyingly. "I'll be your best friend!"

"You are my best friend," he replied.

Lorelai's face softened and she smiled. "Aw, you've never said that before."

Luke shrugged. "You always have been."

Lorelai reached up and gently stroked his cheek. "Aw, I love when you switch into 'Sweet Luke' mode."

"I'm still not going to the festival," he said dryly.

Lorelai frowned. "And that was the end of 'Sweet Luke' mode. Tune in again next week for another installment."

Luke smiled and walked out of the kitchen. "Sorry, not going," he called.

Lorelai followed him into the living room. "Fine, fine, forget it." Rory was sitting on the couch, still reading. "Have you moved at all since this morning?" Lorelai asked her.

Rory looked up. "Yeah, I got a drink a little while ago."

Lorelai nodded. "Okay, just checking." She sat down next to her as Luke walked over to the desk and looked through some papers. "We're heading to the diner soon - wanna come?"

Rory nodded. "Sure. We can't eat too much, though - gotta save room for festival food."

"Ooh, good idea," Lorelai replied. "Luke won't come with us."

Luke groaned from behind them. "When are you gonna give up?"

"Never," Lorelai replied.

Luke sighed as he walked toward the steps. "I'm gonna take a quick shower." He disappeared up the staircase.

Lorelai frowned. "I'll get him to go."

Rory laughed. "To a festival dedicated to chocolate and junk food? No way. I bet you can't even get him to come out of the diner while the festival's going on."

Lorelai raised her eyebrows. "How much?"

"Five bucks," Rory replied.

Lorelai extended her hand. "Deal."

"Deal," Rory replied as they shook on it.