Disclaimer : I still own nothing (though I did buy the Gilmore Girls
soundtrack the other day and now "Where you lead." is all I ever listen
to). All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino (who is a goddess, of
course) and all those other people.
Lorelai tried to fall asleep. She was tried. She was exhausted, actually. Knowing Rory wasn't downstairs was painful, and all she wanted to do was go to sleep so that she wouldn't feel anything.
Then there was the added fact of Luke. And the date. Her and Luke's date. She groaned into the pillow, her cheeks blazing. 'I need medication.'
Her first night without Rory. Well, without Rory living with her. Sighing, Lorelai threw the covers back and trudged downstairs into her daughter's room. She hit the lights and squinted as the brightness pierced her sight. Biting her finger, she scanned the room for anything that reminded her of Rory that she could cuddle. Something with Rory's scent. Essence of Rory. She giggled.
She grabbed a blue sweater out of Rory's dresser and made her way upstairs. Lorelai crawled back into bed and, feeling slightly psychotic, hugged the sweater, and inhaled. Yeah, it smelled like Rory.
Why was the house so damn quiet? How had she never noticed how quiet the house was at night? Quiet is annoying, she concluded. It's boring. Nothing's happening, just . hey! This was her sweater!
(Saturday morning, 10:30. The diner.)
"Hey." Lorelai greeted as she plopped down at the counter.
"Morning." Luke flipped a mug over and poured her coffee. "What artery- clogging entrée would you like this morning?"
"Pralines and cream." She answered in a southern accent.
"Sorry, Miss O'Hara, we're in New England." He rolled his eyes.
"Why, I've never heard such an outrageous thing, Ashley! Off with your head!" She continued her twang.
"Don't call me Ashley."
"Mabel?"
"Hurry up, crazy lady, sane people need food too."
"French toast." Lorelai turned to the empty seat next to her. "Wow. My first breakfast without Rory."
"You've had many breakfasts without Rory."
"You know what I mean. Last night was weird."
"Without Rory."
"Yeah. Very quiet. Annoyingly so. I decided that quiet is extremely annoying." She explained.
"Really."
"Mm. More so than Dawson." Luke raised his eyebrows.
"That's pretty annoying."
"I slept with her sweater." Lorelai admitted placidly.
"Her sweater?"
"I needed something that reminded me of her."
"It'll get easier." He stood there.
"Luke?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm really hungry." She stared at her order on the pad in his hand.
"Be right back." Luke entered the kitchen and gave Caesar Lorelai's order. He grabbed a few plates and, balancing them on his hands and arm, walked out. He set the food down at the table that had ordered it and went around the diner refilling coffee.
"So.." Lorelai began.
"So."
"Do you still want to.Are you still up for.when are we going to uh.get together?" She settled.
"Oh. Right."
"Yeah. I just didn't want it to be awkward. Well, it is, but I didn't want to be awkward for any more time than it has to be. 'Cause then it'd just be hanging there, like the ice salesman after the ice melted." Luke looked at her.
"Well when do you want to hang out?" He returned uncomfortably, shifting his weight.
"Is it a 'hanging out'? Or is it something else?"
"Like?"
"Like a - like a date?" He couldn't believe he was having this conversation. It was too much. Boy, was it hot in there. They looked at each other and shook their heads. "No. Ok. Well, it could be a gathering of friends. A friendly gathering, if you will."
"I think it has to be more than two people for a gathering."
"Well what do you want it to be?"
"How about a um, pre-date?" Luke suggested as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"A pre-date. That works. We could have dinner at my place. You would, of course, bring the dinner."
"Of course."
"On?"
"Tuesday? I can get Caesar and Jess to both work. It's not like Tuesday is that busy anyway."
"Tuesday. Dinner at my place."
"Ok."
"Ok." A bell rang from inside the kitchen.
"That's your French toast." Luke told her and retreated to the kitchen.
"Don't forget the powdered sugar, Mabel!"
(20 minutes later, outside the diner.)
Lorelai closed the diner door behind her and headed across the street. She and Luke had a pre-date. She needed to talk to Sookie. "Sookie?" She called as she entered the house.
"In the kitchen." She shut the door and walked into the kitchen. "Hey, how are you?"
"I'm ok, I think." Lorelai sat down and Sookie followed suit.
"So what's up?"
"I was just over at the diner - ok, actually, it started last night -."
"What did?"
"You'll see."
"Ah. Right, go on." Sookie turned to the counter and set a large bowl of oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough on the table between her and Lorelai. They both grabbed large wooden spoons from the canister at the center of the table.
"So, anyway, last night after I left New Haven, I went into Luke's for some coffee, and I started crying. Of course, Luke was twitching with discomfort."
"Well of course. Crying around Luke makes him as uncomfortable as Jackson in tight pants." Sookie said, swallowing some cookie dough. Lorelai giggled.
"Or as uncomfortable as Christina Aguilera with clothes on."
"As uncomfortable as Michel around swans."
"As - ok, back to the story."
"Right."
"So I'm crying and Luke offers to hug me."
"Whoa."
"I know, right? So we hug and then this couple walks by holding hands, and we're both like, 'Dude', and then all of a sudden, we're doing something sometime." She raised her eyebrows with emphasis.
"Wow."
"So I go in this morning and we're joking around like usual, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the offer just hanging there."
"Like the salesman without the ice." Sookie put in.
"Exactly. So I finally was like 'So when should we go this?'"
"And?"
"And we're having dinner at my place on Tuesday. But it's not a date."
"What is it? A 'hanging out'?" She suggested.
"No, it's a pre-date. I don't think dinner is a 'hanging out'."
"Right. And Luke agreed to this?"
"It was Luke's idea."
"Oh. Well."
"Well what?"
"Well Luke finally got the courage to do something." Sookie commented gently as Lorelai shoved cookie dough into her mouth.
"Sookie." She groaned.
"Lorelai, I'm serious. How many people have said something to you about this?" She thought for a minute.
"You, Rory, my mother, Babette, Miss Patty, Max, Christopher.Rachel, kind of." She counted on her fingers.
"Have you honestly never thought about Luke that way?" Sookie questioned. Lorelai lowered her gaze and poked the remaining dough with her spoon.
"But he's Luke."
"Yeah, hunny. He's Luke." She said softly.
Lorelai tried to fall asleep. She was tried. She was exhausted, actually. Knowing Rory wasn't downstairs was painful, and all she wanted to do was go to sleep so that she wouldn't feel anything.
Then there was the added fact of Luke. And the date. Her and Luke's date. She groaned into the pillow, her cheeks blazing. 'I need medication.'
Her first night without Rory. Well, without Rory living with her. Sighing, Lorelai threw the covers back and trudged downstairs into her daughter's room. She hit the lights and squinted as the brightness pierced her sight. Biting her finger, she scanned the room for anything that reminded her of Rory that she could cuddle. Something with Rory's scent. Essence of Rory. She giggled.
She grabbed a blue sweater out of Rory's dresser and made her way upstairs. Lorelai crawled back into bed and, feeling slightly psychotic, hugged the sweater, and inhaled. Yeah, it smelled like Rory.
Why was the house so damn quiet? How had she never noticed how quiet the house was at night? Quiet is annoying, she concluded. It's boring. Nothing's happening, just . hey! This was her sweater!
(Saturday morning, 10:30. The diner.)
"Hey." Lorelai greeted as she plopped down at the counter.
"Morning." Luke flipped a mug over and poured her coffee. "What artery- clogging entrée would you like this morning?"
"Pralines and cream." She answered in a southern accent.
"Sorry, Miss O'Hara, we're in New England." He rolled his eyes.
"Why, I've never heard such an outrageous thing, Ashley! Off with your head!" She continued her twang.
"Don't call me Ashley."
"Mabel?"
"Hurry up, crazy lady, sane people need food too."
"French toast." Lorelai turned to the empty seat next to her. "Wow. My first breakfast without Rory."
"You've had many breakfasts without Rory."
"You know what I mean. Last night was weird."
"Without Rory."
"Yeah. Very quiet. Annoyingly so. I decided that quiet is extremely annoying." She explained.
"Really."
"Mm. More so than Dawson." Luke raised his eyebrows.
"That's pretty annoying."
"I slept with her sweater." Lorelai admitted placidly.
"Her sweater?"
"I needed something that reminded me of her."
"It'll get easier." He stood there.
"Luke?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm really hungry." She stared at her order on the pad in his hand.
"Be right back." Luke entered the kitchen and gave Caesar Lorelai's order. He grabbed a few plates and, balancing them on his hands and arm, walked out. He set the food down at the table that had ordered it and went around the diner refilling coffee.
"So.." Lorelai began.
"So."
"Do you still want to.Are you still up for.when are we going to uh.get together?" She settled.
"Oh. Right."
"Yeah. I just didn't want it to be awkward. Well, it is, but I didn't want to be awkward for any more time than it has to be. 'Cause then it'd just be hanging there, like the ice salesman after the ice melted." Luke looked at her.
"Well when do you want to hang out?" He returned uncomfortably, shifting his weight.
"Is it a 'hanging out'? Or is it something else?"
"Like?"
"Like a - like a date?" He couldn't believe he was having this conversation. It was too much. Boy, was it hot in there. They looked at each other and shook their heads. "No. Ok. Well, it could be a gathering of friends. A friendly gathering, if you will."
"I think it has to be more than two people for a gathering."
"Well what do you want it to be?"
"How about a um, pre-date?" Luke suggested as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"A pre-date. That works. We could have dinner at my place. You would, of course, bring the dinner."
"Of course."
"On?"
"Tuesday? I can get Caesar and Jess to both work. It's not like Tuesday is that busy anyway."
"Tuesday. Dinner at my place."
"Ok."
"Ok." A bell rang from inside the kitchen.
"That's your French toast." Luke told her and retreated to the kitchen.
"Don't forget the powdered sugar, Mabel!"
(20 minutes later, outside the diner.)
Lorelai closed the diner door behind her and headed across the street. She and Luke had a pre-date. She needed to talk to Sookie. "Sookie?" She called as she entered the house.
"In the kitchen." She shut the door and walked into the kitchen. "Hey, how are you?"
"I'm ok, I think." Lorelai sat down and Sookie followed suit.
"So what's up?"
"I was just over at the diner - ok, actually, it started last night -."
"What did?"
"You'll see."
"Ah. Right, go on." Sookie turned to the counter and set a large bowl of oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough on the table between her and Lorelai. They both grabbed large wooden spoons from the canister at the center of the table.
"So, anyway, last night after I left New Haven, I went into Luke's for some coffee, and I started crying. Of course, Luke was twitching with discomfort."
"Well of course. Crying around Luke makes him as uncomfortable as Jackson in tight pants." Sookie said, swallowing some cookie dough. Lorelai giggled.
"Or as uncomfortable as Christina Aguilera with clothes on."
"As uncomfortable as Michel around swans."
"As - ok, back to the story."
"Right."
"So I'm crying and Luke offers to hug me."
"Whoa."
"I know, right? So we hug and then this couple walks by holding hands, and we're both like, 'Dude', and then all of a sudden, we're doing something sometime." She raised her eyebrows with emphasis.
"Wow."
"So I go in this morning and we're joking around like usual, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the offer just hanging there."
"Like the salesman without the ice." Sookie put in.
"Exactly. So I finally was like 'So when should we go this?'"
"And?"
"And we're having dinner at my place on Tuesday. But it's not a date."
"What is it? A 'hanging out'?" She suggested.
"No, it's a pre-date. I don't think dinner is a 'hanging out'."
"Right. And Luke agreed to this?"
"It was Luke's idea."
"Oh. Well."
"Well what?"
"Well Luke finally got the courage to do something." Sookie commented gently as Lorelai shoved cookie dough into her mouth.
"Sookie." She groaned.
"Lorelai, I'm serious. How many people have said something to you about this?" She thought for a minute.
"You, Rory, my mother, Babette, Miss Patty, Max, Christopher.Rachel, kind of." She counted on her fingers.
"Have you honestly never thought about Luke that way?" Sookie questioned. Lorelai lowered her gaze and poked the remaining dough with her spoon.
"But he's Luke."
"Yeah, hunny. He's Luke." She said softly.