Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews so far! They keep me motivated! Here's the next chapter, which is longer than the other ones. There are some small hints about what drove Luke and Lorelai apart. In upcoming chapters, Rory and Jess will also become extremely important. Enjoy!
The Best of What's Around
Chapter 3: Turtle Doves and Twinkle Lights
Two years earlier…
Emptied bags and decorations surrounded the spot where Lorelai sat on the floor. She tied off the purple balloon she had just finished blowing up and held it up in front of her to make sure it was the proper size. Satisfied, she threw it up into the air and hit it so that it flew behind the couch and out of her way. After rooting through another bag at her side, she stood up and began unrolling the giant 'Congratulations Graduate!' banner she had bought at Partyland. She taped one side of it to the staircase and moved to tape the other side to the wall. She stood back and admired her work, before one side began to peel off of the wall. She scrambled to catch it as the other side came unstuck as well. She struggled to hoist it back onto the wall, but only succeeded in entangling herself within the tape and paper.
She heard a knock at the door. "I'll… be… right… there!" she called out as she attempted to free herself from the octopus-like tentacles of the banner. "Come in!" she yelled out again, in frustration. "Bring the jaws of life if at all possible."
"Lorelai?" Luke asked tentatively as he entered the house.
Lorelai managed to maneuver herself so that she was facing the door. "Luke?"
Luke struggled to contain his laughter at the sight of Lorelai trapped within a massive, rolled up banner that made her look like a pig-in-a-blanket. "You okay there?"
"Oh, yes. Everything's fine. Just… a tiny situation… that is completely… under control," she muttered as she continued to struggle.
Luke took two large steps over the decorations on the floor and reached her. He took one end of the banner and began to pull the paper off of Lorelai. Finally getting the whole thing off of her, he threw it onto the couch. "Better?"
"Yes, thank you." Lorelai gave a deep sigh of relief while readjusting her light blue shirt that had become hiked up during her struggle.
Luke tried not to stare, without much success. When Lorelai looked up and caught his eye, he averted his gaze while she smiled shyly.
"So, why'd you come by? It's not an everyday occurrence. Not that I'm not grateful, I'd probably still be trapped in the Venus flytrap poster over there if it weren't for you," she said quickly.
Luke adjusted his backwards baseball cap slightly. "Well, when you were at the diner earlier, you mentioned that you had a lot to do to get ready for Rory's graduation party tomorrow. So, I thought I'd see if you needed any help." He paused. "Where is Rory, anyway? Shouldn't she be the one saving you from deadly paper products?"
"She's out gallivanting with that nephew of yours. Shouldn't you know that?" Lorelai asked as she poked him in the arm.
"Most of my conversations with Jess consist of one or two word sentences. You know, 'You leaving?' 'Yeah' 'Coming back?' 'Yeah' 'When?' 'Later.' And then he's out the door."
Lorelai laughed. "You are his guardian, you know. You have a right to ask where he's going."
Luke shrugged. They looked at each other for a moment in silence. "So… you want some help?" he asked awkwardly. "I brought coffee."
Lorelai's face lit up. "You just said the magic word! Hand it over!"
"And you obviously have forgotten the magic word." He waved the thermos he had been carrying over his head and behind his back.
"Lukey, I need coffee!"
"Calling me 'Lukey' is definitely not the way to get what you want."
"You'd never deny me what I wanted."
He tried to ignore the double meaning behind her words. "Wanna make a bet?"
"Don't make me resort to desperate measures," she replied mischievously.
He raised his eyebrows in a silent challenge.
She lunged for the coffee behind his back. He spun around, avoiding her attempts to grab the thermos from him. Thwarted in her initial effort, she made a second pass. Luke sidestepped her, but tripped over some of the decorations on the floor. He fell onto the couch, Lorelai quickly following suit. She found herself lying on top of him, breathing hard. Their faces were just an inch apart. She stared into his eyes for several long moments, startled by the emotions present there. There was an intensity to them mixed with… something else that she couldn't identify.
"Coffee?" she asked softly.
He watched her lips in fascination as they formed the word he had heard her speak so many times before. He admired the small 'v' in the center of her top lip and the way she nervously wet her bottom lip. "You still didn't say the magic word."
"Please?" she whispered. She wasn't sure what was happening. It was strange, and different, but she wasn't sure she wanted it to stop.
He stared at her. She was so close. He was all too aware of the feel of her body pressed fully against his. The way it seemed to fit as if they were created to lie just like this. All he would have to do was pick his head up slightly and their lips would touch. But, he froze. Remembering the thermos of coffee still in his hand, he brought it between them. "Here. See how easy that was?" he murmured.
She took the coffee and scooted off him. Luke sat up slightly as well and adjusted his askew baseball hat. She tried not to focus on what just almost happened. She laughed nervously to ease the tension in the room. "Yup, it was very easy. I always knew I was a linebacker in a previous life. Sorry about the tackle."
He looked at her blankly for a second before smiling slightly. "It's okay, I think I'll survive. Should we start decorating?"
"Sure. But first, I think we should get you out of that."
"What?" Luke spit out in confusion.
She mentally kicked herself when she realized what she'd said. Trying to keep a straight face, she pointed to his back. "You landed on the Flytrap poster."
He smiled sheepishly as he stood up and turned around so that Lorelai could remove the banner. She found herself checking out his ass, causing her to break out in a fit of giggles. What was happening to her? This was Luke.
"I'm glad you find this so amusing," he muttered.
"Oh, you have no idea." She tossed the banner aside. "Come on, we've got work to do."
***
Lorelai ran her hands through her hair. She had been sitting at her desk staring at Luke's wedding invitation for the last two hours. She seemed to be no closer to making a decision. On the one hand, she hated the way she had left things with Luke. She had tried to forget him by making a new life for herself and even finding a small deli in the city that made a cup of coffee that rivaled the perfection of his. But, there was a voice in her subconscious that nagged at her in her dreams that demanded a resolution to the conflict between her and her once-best friend. On the other hand, she was afraid of going back to Stars Hollow. Afraid of what being in that place would do to her, afraid of the feelings it might stir up again. She was a woman in desperate need of a sign.
The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. "Hello?"
"Lorelai?"
She paused. "Mom?"
"Yes, Lorelai, your mother. I can understand your confusion, since it's been so long since I've spoken to anything that wasn't your answering machine or your assistant."
"It's not like I'm Richard Gere, Mom."
"What are you talking about?"
Uh oh. Emily was using the 'I have the most negligent daughter in all of creation' voice. "You know how it is, Mom. Work is hectic, especially this time of year…"
"So hectic that it is simply impossible to engage in such a time consuming activity as picking up a phone and dialing a few numbers. In fact, I must be interrupting something extremely important as we speak. I am so sorry for the inconvenience, Lorelai."
Lorelai grimaced and pushed aside the sheet of paper she had been doodling on. "No, now's a great time. I was actually just about to call you."
"I'm sure you were," Emily replied skeptically.
"Is there anything in particular I can do for you, Mom?"
"Did you get the Christmas card I sent you and Rory?"
Lorelai slapped her hand to her forehead. With the drama Luke's wedding invitation had caused, she had completely forgotten to even look through the rest of the mail from the day before. She began rooting around on her desk. "Oh yeah, sure. I have it right here," she lied as she continued to search.
"Oh, good. So, what do you say?"
"What do I say?" she asked in distraction.
"The note I included with the card, Lorelai. What do you say?"
"Oh… right. I say… yeah, sure." She finally located the red envelope underneath a pile of reports from the hotel.
"Wonderful! I'll be expecting you and Rory on December 20th, then."
"Huh?"
Emily sounded particularly pleased with herself. "It'll be lovely to have you and Rory staying in the house for the holidays for once. Just imagine, spending two weeks with my girls. It's the best present I could ask for."
Lorelai tore the card open and began furiously scanning the note Emily had included. 'You and Rory'...'been so long since we've seen you'…'spend the holidays with your father and I'… 'December 20th until January 3rd.' Oh no.
"Mom, actually, I don't think…"
"Lovely talking to you, Lorelai. I'll call some time this week to finalize our plans. Goodbye." Emily hung up.
Lorelai's jaw dropped as she took the phone from her ear and stared at it in amazement. She would never understand how her mother did it. A master, she was. She began to run through the list of possible excuses she could use to get out of spending two weeks with her parents in her childhood prison that passed itself off as a home. A terminal illness cropping up in less than a week? Unlikely. Planning an elaborate kidnapping plot to whisk she and Rory out of the country? Expensive. She sighed in frustration. Emily would no doubt try to shoot holes in any excuse she could come up with, especially after she had already agreed.
Lorelai's eye caught the invitation sitting on her desk again. She had asked for a sign. And now, she had been roped into spending the holidays in Connecticut. Maybe Emily Gilmore, as unlikely as it was, was her sign.
Taking a pen, Lorelai wrote several determined strokes on the reply card and stuffed it into the envelope. She picked up the phone again and dialed Rory's cell phone number.
"Hello?" Rory answered.
"You'll never even believe where we're going to be spending the holidays."
***
Two years earlier…
Lorelai was planted firmly on the couch, watching reruns of The Brady Bunch. The house was fully decorated for the party the following day. The Bradys were just about to launch into another musical number when she heard the door open. She absently checked the clock. 11:25. Home five minutes before curfew. Gotta love that girl.
Rory entered the living room and whistled as she looked around the room. "I'm impressed. This place looks great. I thought for sure we'd be up till the wee hours of the morning decorating. How did you get all of this done?"
"The house elves did it!"
"No more Harry Potter after 10P.M. for you. It gives you hallucinations."
"Luke actually came by," Lorelai said nonchalantly.
"Luke?"
"Yeah."
"Luke of Luke's Diner?" Rory asked in bewilderment.
"One and the same."
"Luke came over to our house late at night to help you decorate for a party? With streamers and sparkle balloons?"
"Yup."
Rory joined her mother on the couch. "Wow. This goes against everything I have been taught to believe in. Hold me."
When she got no reply from her mother after several seconds of silence, Rory looked closely at her. Lorelai had a faraway look in her eyes. "What happened?"
Lorelai snapped out of her recollection of the night's events. "Huh?"
"You're acting weird. Did something happen?"
"Happen? Nothing happened," Lorelai said quickly.
Rory recognized when her mother was avoiding the truth. "Did something happen with Luke?"
"What? Luke?" She scoffed. "Nothing happened with Luke, why would anything happen with Luke?"
"Thou doth protest too much, mother dearest. Spill!"
A resigned expression fell over Lorelai's face. "Well, nothing actually happened. But, I think something may have almost happened."
"What?"
"I think Luke almost kissed me."
Rory's mouth dropped open. "Oh my god. Wow."
"And the weird part? I think I wanted him to."
Rory thought for a few moments. "This is a good thing."
"You think so?" she asked slowly.
"Definitely."
"So, what do I do?"
"I say you go for it, Gilmore!" Rory exclaimed
Lorelai considered her words. "I think I just might…"
***
A few days later…
Luke was clearing out the sink at the diner when he heard the door open. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at the flash of dark hair and dimpled grin that greeted him. He turned around fully and rested his hands on the counter.
"Hey."
Maddie walked up and leaned forward, planting a quick but firm kiss on his lips. "Hey yourself, handsome." She took a seat at the counter in front of the register.
"Taking a break?"
"Yeah, I have David watching the coffee shop. I was just suddenly struck by the overwhelming urge to come and visit my incredibly wonderful fiancée."
"Lucky me," Luke said, a grin tugging at his mouth.
Maddie had moved to Stars Hollow eighteen months earlier. She had bought the empty store across the street from Luke's and turned it into a fancy coffee shop complete with fireplaces, squashy chairs, and live music. They were initially enemies, competing for each other's customers. But, from the beginning, there was an undeniable chemistry between them. After a particularly heated argument over advertising coffee prices, Luke had summoned up the courage to ask her out. The rest, as they say, was history. They still joked about the adversarial nature of their meeting.
They stayed at the counter, quietly chatting for several minutes, until Luke's eye caught something over Maddie's shoulder. "Oh no," he muttered.
"What?" she asked curiously, glancing behind her. Taylor was striding towards the diner with a determined look plastered on his face, papers in hand. "Ooh, look out, Luke, he's doing the 'I'm planning something festive' walk."
"Luke! Just the man I wanted to see," Taylor called out as he entered the diner.
"Taylor, the man I never want to see," Luke deadpanned.
"Now, there's no need for hostility. I'm here on official S.H.F.O.L.B.C. business."
"Huh?"
"Stars Hollow's Furtherance of Local Businesses Committee, of course."
"Oh, of course. What do you want, Taylor?" Luke demanded.
"Well, with your impending wedding ceremony taking place at the gazebo in the town square, I am here with a proposal from several local businesses."
"Proposal? For what?"
"Sponsorship deals."
"WHAT?" Luke roared.
"Well, Luke, this is one of the biggest events the town has seen in a long time. Many out of town guests will be visiting and it is a unique opportunity to promote Stars Hollow." Taylor looked down at the clipboard in his hands. "Now, I've only put out a preliminary inquiry, but I've already received several offers. Larry at the pet store is willing to donate a pair of turtle doves named in yours and Maddie's honors to be released during the ceremony. And Harvey the Twinkle Light Man from the Twinkle Light store has offered to donate several yards worth of twinkle lights to be strung around the town square…"
"I thought the Twinkle Light guy retired!"
"That was Harry, the original Twinkle Light Man. His cousin, Harvey, decided to take over the business, making him the new Twinkle Light Man. Really Luke, do you even bother reading the Stars Hollow Gazette?"
"I must have missed that issue."
"In any case," Taylor continued, "all the merchants ask in return for their generous donations is some mention in the wedding program. And perhaps a few signs posted at each table during the reception."
Luke moved around the counter and Taylor backed up a few steps. "Now listen here, Taylor. There are going to be no sponsorships at this wedding."
"But Luke…" Taylor interjected.
"No! No pairs of turtle doves. Not a single twinkle light from Harry or Harvey, or whoever the hell in their family is the Twinkle Light Man this week. Is that understood?"
"It wouldn't kill you to become a little more involved in the betterment of Stars Hollow. I would think that with your impending marriage, you might have a slightly better temperament," he said, pointing back at Maddie.
"Taylor, I am warning you."
He threw up his hands in exasperation. "I'm going! I'll just leave this here in case you change your mind and want to look over the proposals," he said as he placed the clipboard on a nearby table and hurried out of the diner.
Luke picked up the clipboard, opened the door, and threw it at Taylor's retreating form. "You forgot this!" he yelled. He slammed the door and returned to his place behind the register.
Maddie, who had watched the entire scene with amusement, struggled to contain her laughter as Luke continued to steam, furiously wiping down the counter. "Have I mentioned how cute it is when you fight with Taylor?"
"Oh yeah, real cute. Can you even believe that guy? He's got some nerve, trying to sell sponsorships for a wedding."
Maddie moved to stand next to him behind the counter. She raised her hand and traced the line of his jaw to the collar of his blue flannel shirt. "Have I also mentioned that seeing you get all testosterone-y like that is a major turn-on?" she asked, batting her eyelashes up at him.
Luke grunted slightly. "Is that so, huh?"
"Oh yeah. As a matter of fact, I'm gonna be thinking about that little scene with Taylor for the rest of the night until I get back here later after I close up and can do something about it," she winked.
"I'll… be looking forward to it," Luke stammered, glancing around to make sure no one was overhearing their private conversation.
Maddie gave him another, longer kiss. "I've got to get back to the shop. Until later," she said seductively.
Luke took a long, deep breath and enjoyed the pleasant view provided to him by Maddie's retreat.
The bell above the door jingled as Maddie walked out and Kirk walked in. He wore a U.S. Postal Service uniform and began rooting through his mailbag as he approached the counter.
"Luke, this wedding has tripled the amount of mail I usually have to deliver. The bag is heavy, Mother is afraid I'm going to throw out my back."
"You're a mailman now too?" Luke asked skeptically.
"Only on Tuesdays."
"Huh, right. Can I have my mail now, Kirk?"
"I think I need a glass of water first. The physical exertion of carrying all of these extra letters has taken its toll. I'm afraid I cannot go on."
Luke shook his head and turned around to get Kirk some water. He plunked it on the counter. "Mail, Kirk. Now."
Kirk began gulping his water and did not put it down until three-fourths of the glass was empty. He took a bundle of envelopes from his bag. "Here are your reply cards."
"Thanks, Kirk. Now out."
"But, my water…"
"Out!"
"See you next Tuesday, Luke."
"You come in here every day."
"But, that is as civilian Kirk. On Tuesdays, I am here in an official capacity as a servant of the U.S. Postal Service."
"Out, Kirk," Luke said slowly.
"Going." Kirk ducked out of the door.
Luke ran his hands over his baseball hat and grabbed his pile of mail. "Caesar, I'll be upstairs!" he called out.
Luke took the stairs two at a time until he reached his apartment. He opened the door and sat down at his desk. Ever since Jess had moved out, he had turned his side of the room into a makeshift office that Jess could still live in whenever he came back for the holidays. He began to sort through the reply cards he had received, checking off the names of the attendees against the list he had made when mailing the invitations. He had almost reached the end of the pile when he came upon it. The envelope looked like all of the others, but the handwriting in the upper left hand corner caught his eye immediately. Lorelai Gilmore. His eyes studied the return address, analyzing the curves of her 'L's and how the dot on her 'i's always seemed to stray a few letters over. He'd recognize it anywhere. He turned the envelope over and paused for a moment before ripping it open.
He pulled out the reply card and closed his eyes briefly before opening them again and reading:
Lorelai Gilmore
(X) will be attending
( ) will not be attending
He let out the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. She was coming. She was actually going to attend his wedding. When he had invited her, he hadn't exactly known why he was doing it, only that it seemed like the right thing to do. And now, she was actually coming. He would see her again, after two long years without her in his life. He shook his head. He couldn't focus on that right now.
His eyes continued to trail down her reply card. He stopped when he reached the dinner choice for the reception:
Please choose one of the following:
( ) Chicken
( ) Pasta
Lorelai had chosen neither of the options. Beneath the 'Pasta' choice, she had written in her own preference:
(X) Burger
Luke grinned despite himself. He put down the reply card and checked off Lorelai's name on the guest list. He wasn't sure how he was going to deal with her yet, but a part of him had missed her.
***
Next chapter: Lorelai remembers her confrontation with Luke two years earlier. Peter questions Lorelai's trip to Stars Hollow after hearing her and Rory discussing Luke and Maddie.
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Thanks!