A/N: Things will get better soon don't worry.
Chapter 18
Lonely hearts
~~~
``` Things haven't been the same lately
And it seems like you're already gone
Can you tell me when it all changed
How did it all go wrong?
I look into your eyes and I see you slipping away
The pain is killing me, we can't let it end this way
Please don't day goodbye
This love is far from over
All we have to do is try
There's not a day that passes by
I'm not thankful you're in my life
It's not too late for you and I
Don't make me lose my mind
Take my hand we'll work it out
Just please don't say goodbye
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Jess come on. Talk to me please."
But he still sat unmoving, staring but not really seeing.
Skye had never seen him this low. Not in all the time she knew him, not even when he went through all the drama with his mom and her latest boyfriend.
It had been two weeks since that night and he still hadn't told her what was going on.
He preferred to sit in silence in the dark as they had done every night for the past fortnight.
She had wandered if she was being of any help to him after the first night but he'd told her he needed her and that he didn't want to be alone.
And so she'd stayed and came to meet him every night so that she could witness him torment himself with memories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The lack of caffeine was beginning to take its toll but she wasn't gonna give in now. Not when she'd stayed away for two weeks.
The longest two weeks of her life, the most painful two weeks of her life.
She couldn't stop the memories from that night flooding her dreams, they were everywhere taunting her, never letting her forget.
And she so desperately wanted, needed to forget because it was ruining her life.
She couldn't go the diner for fear of seeing him; she couldn't go the Inn for fear of seeing her.
She was interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Come in." she answered listlessly.
Her mom and Lane stuck their heads in and she sighed, a small sad sigh. Here comes another round of interrogation.
"Rory when are you going to get out of bed?" her mom asked.
"When I feel like it."
"We need some light in here," she said drawing open the curtains, "you're not going all Vampira on me are you?"
"No mom."
"Good. So what do you say you get up and the three of us go cruise the malls in Hartford."
"I don't feel like doing anything."
"Come on Ror, shopping? It's cathartic come on."
You wanna push me in the lake? It's cathartic I hear. -
Rory winced as she remembered. It had been the start for the two of them and now they were avoiding each other like the plague.
"Ror?" Lane asked.
"Fine," she said throwing her covers off her, "if it will get you two to leave me alone then I'll go."
"Yay, it's always so much fun when the parties involved are so darn enthusiastic." Lorelai drawled.
But Rory truly wasn't in the mood for Gilmore chatter; in fact she wasn't in the mood for any chatter. She just wanted to crawl back into bed and forget the rest of world existed.
But the look on her mom and Lane's faces drove that thought out of her head.
She had to admit she did feel a bit better after her shower, who knew maybe she'd be able to fill up on some caffeine while they shopped. It wouldn't be Luke's coffee but at this point she'd drink her mom's rather than go there.
Half an hour later they were on their way, the drive filled with not so much merriment as Rory rebuffed any attempts at small talk.
She hadn't told them the exact details of what happened that night and she knew they were dying to know. Two weeks was a long time to wait, maybe it was time to get it all in the open.
"We kissed that morning."
They were having burgers and coffee at one of the fast food outlets when Rory dropped her news.
"What?" Lorelai and Lane gawked at her.
"Jess and I, we kissed the morning of the Ball." She said again, her heart pounding at the memory.
"And you're only telling us this now because?" Lane asked.
"Because it meant nothing."
"If it meant nothing to you, you wouldn't have been moping around for the past two weeks." Lorelai reasoned.
"I never said it meant nothing to me, it meant nothing to - "
"You cannot be serious." Lane said. "Are you telling me that it meant absolutely nothing to Jess?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying Lane."
"Why? Any idiot can see the guys crazy about you."
"Well then we must all be idiots then 'cause he's with Skye."
Lorelai almost choked on her coffee.
"What? That's absurd!"
"Is it?"
"Hello?" Lorelai said waving her hand in front of Rory's face.
"Think about it." She said to both of them.
"I have and it stills sounds ridiculous." Lane said.
"Hear hear." Lorelai agreed.
"You know what never mind."
"Wait Rory, we're sorry okay. Just tell us what's going on."
"We know you bailed the Ball 'cause you thought you saw something between them. But what?"
"They have matching tattoos."
"Come again?" her mom asked.
"You know the tattoos you were admiring when she got here? Well turns out you could've taken a peek at Jess' 'cause they're exactly the same."
"Wow."
"Yeah."
"So what do they mean?"
Rory felt the pain of that night all over again but she didn't realise it had transferred onto her face.
Lorelai and Lane shared a worried glance.
"Um, they're the symbols for trust and love." She bit out.
"Oh honey."
"But I'm fine with it. Really I am." She said. "There's more."
"Spill."
"He's J Mari."
Now it was Lane's turn to choke.
"Excuse me?" she asked in disbelief.
"J Mari?" Lorelai asked a bit puzzled.
"The songwriter." Rory said.
"You're telling me that Jess, Luke's nephew Jess wrote songs with Skye. Songs that were actually recorded and became hits?"
"Uh-huh."
Rory didn't understand the rush of pride she felt at her mom's words but she managed to quell most of it.
"Get out!"
"Mom!"
"I'm sorry, its just too much for me too handle you know. James Dean wannabe is actually sensitive and lyrical and stuff."
"He sure is multifarious." Lane commented.
Yeah, a multifarious prevaricator.
So why did Rory feel like she had to find reasons to resent him?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"She thinks there's something going on with us." Jess said suddenly breaking the ritual silence and brooding.
"Define something Jess." Skye told him.
He turned to look at her, her eyes standing out in stark relief against the darkness.
"Something as in we're seeing each other and she's just a pawn in some twisted game. Sum it up enough for you?"
"But that's crazy!"
"I know. Not that I wouldn't but you - " he finished embarrassed.
"It's okay Jess, I know what you're trying to say." She smiled.
"Yeah."
"So let me get this straight. I come into town and she acts funny but then everything is sorted out and now all of a sudden she's thinking this? What happened? I thought things were going great for you."
"I thought so too." He sighed. "At the dance when you sang I felt so connected to her and then all hell broke lose and - "
"Now you're stuck in a position you're not sure how you got in?"
"Actually I know what made her bolt but I still think she's overreacting."
"So share please."
"The tattoos happened."
"Are you serious? I thought you'd explained that to her."
"Well see it's kinda hard to explain when you're being accused of all sorts of things and you're not able to get a word in."
"That bad huh?"
"It gets worse."
"Oh boy."
"Because we were already arguing when she figured it out she went off even more."
"J Mari?"
"Yup. So now she sees that as another betrayal. Even though under other circumstances I'm quite positive she wouldn't have reacted so violently."
"Jess I'm sorry."
"I know, me too Skye."
"Have you tried talking to her lately?"
"I can't. You know I haven't even seen her since then."
"I would suggest me trying to talk to her but I don't think that's gonna help things at all."
"I miss her Skye." He said softly into the night.
He felt her arm wrap around him and he lay his head on her shoulder. He knew that she was always gonna be there but at that one infinitesimal moment he'd never felt so lonely.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: The song is called "Don't say Goodbye' and it belongs to me Oh yeah, I forgot again 'Crushing On you' belongs to too.
Chapter 18
Lonely hearts
~~~
``` Things haven't been the same lately
And it seems like you're already gone
Can you tell me when it all changed
How did it all go wrong?
I look into your eyes and I see you slipping away
The pain is killing me, we can't let it end this way
Please don't day goodbye
This love is far from over
All we have to do is try
There's not a day that passes by
I'm not thankful you're in my life
It's not too late for you and I
Don't make me lose my mind
Take my hand we'll work it out
Just please don't say goodbye
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Jess come on. Talk to me please."
But he still sat unmoving, staring but not really seeing.
Skye had never seen him this low. Not in all the time she knew him, not even when he went through all the drama with his mom and her latest boyfriend.
It had been two weeks since that night and he still hadn't told her what was going on.
He preferred to sit in silence in the dark as they had done every night for the past fortnight.
She had wandered if she was being of any help to him after the first night but he'd told her he needed her and that he didn't want to be alone.
And so she'd stayed and came to meet him every night so that she could witness him torment himself with memories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The lack of caffeine was beginning to take its toll but she wasn't gonna give in now. Not when she'd stayed away for two weeks.
The longest two weeks of her life, the most painful two weeks of her life.
She couldn't stop the memories from that night flooding her dreams, they were everywhere taunting her, never letting her forget.
And she so desperately wanted, needed to forget because it was ruining her life.
She couldn't go the diner for fear of seeing him; she couldn't go the Inn for fear of seeing her.
She was interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Come in." she answered listlessly.
Her mom and Lane stuck their heads in and she sighed, a small sad sigh. Here comes another round of interrogation.
"Rory when are you going to get out of bed?" her mom asked.
"When I feel like it."
"We need some light in here," she said drawing open the curtains, "you're not going all Vampira on me are you?"
"No mom."
"Good. So what do you say you get up and the three of us go cruise the malls in Hartford."
"I don't feel like doing anything."
"Come on Ror, shopping? It's cathartic come on."
You wanna push me in the lake? It's cathartic I hear. -
Rory winced as she remembered. It had been the start for the two of them and now they were avoiding each other like the plague.
"Ror?" Lane asked.
"Fine," she said throwing her covers off her, "if it will get you two to leave me alone then I'll go."
"Yay, it's always so much fun when the parties involved are so darn enthusiastic." Lorelai drawled.
But Rory truly wasn't in the mood for Gilmore chatter; in fact she wasn't in the mood for any chatter. She just wanted to crawl back into bed and forget the rest of world existed.
But the look on her mom and Lane's faces drove that thought out of her head.
She had to admit she did feel a bit better after her shower, who knew maybe she'd be able to fill up on some caffeine while they shopped. It wouldn't be Luke's coffee but at this point she'd drink her mom's rather than go there.
Half an hour later they were on their way, the drive filled with not so much merriment as Rory rebuffed any attempts at small talk.
She hadn't told them the exact details of what happened that night and she knew they were dying to know. Two weeks was a long time to wait, maybe it was time to get it all in the open.
"We kissed that morning."
They were having burgers and coffee at one of the fast food outlets when Rory dropped her news.
"What?" Lorelai and Lane gawked at her.
"Jess and I, we kissed the morning of the Ball." She said again, her heart pounding at the memory.
"And you're only telling us this now because?" Lane asked.
"Because it meant nothing."
"If it meant nothing to you, you wouldn't have been moping around for the past two weeks." Lorelai reasoned.
"I never said it meant nothing to me, it meant nothing to - "
"You cannot be serious." Lane said. "Are you telling me that it meant absolutely nothing to Jess?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying Lane."
"Why? Any idiot can see the guys crazy about you."
"Well then we must all be idiots then 'cause he's with Skye."
Lorelai almost choked on her coffee.
"What? That's absurd!"
"Is it?"
"Hello?" Lorelai said waving her hand in front of Rory's face.
"Think about it." She said to both of them.
"I have and it stills sounds ridiculous." Lane said.
"Hear hear." Lorelai agreed.
"You know what never mind."
"Wait Rory, we're sorry okay. Just tell us what's going on."
"We know you bailed the Ball 'cause you thought you saw something between them. But what?"
"They have matching tattoos."
"Come again?" her mom asked.
"You know the tattoos you were admiring when she got here? Well turns out you could've taken a peek at Jess' 'cause they're exactly the same."
"Wow."
"Yeah."
"So what do they mean?"
Rory felt the pain of that night all over again but she didn't realise it had transferred onto her face.
Lorelai and Lane shared a worried glance.
"Um, they're the symbols for trust and love." She bit out.
"Oh honey."
"But I'm fine with it. Really I am." She said. "There's more."
"Spill."
"He's J Mari."
Now it was Lane's turn to choke.
"Excuse me?" she asked in disbelief.
"J Mari?" Lorelai asked a bit puzzled.
"The songwriter." Rory said.
"You're telling me that Jess, Luke's nephew Jess wrote songs with Skye. Songs that were actually recorded and became hits?"
"Uh-huh."
Rory didn't understand the rush of pride she felt at her mom's words but she managed to quell most of it.
"Get out!"
"Mom!"
"I'm sorry, its just too much for me too handle you know. James Dean wannabe is actually sensitive and lyrical and stuff."
"He sure is multifarious." Lane commented.
Yeah, a multifarious prevaricator.
So why did Rory feel like she had to find reasons to resent him?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"She thinks there's something going on with us." Jess said suddenly breaking the ritual silence and brooding.
"Define something Jess." Skye told him.
He turned to look at her, her eyes standing out in stark relief against the darkness.
"Something as in we're seeing each other and she's just a pawn in some twisted game. Sum it up enough for you?"
"But that's crazy!"
"I know. Not that I wouldn't but you - " he finished embarrassed.
"It's okay Jess, I know what you're trying to say." She smiled.
"Yeah."
"So let me get this straight. I come into town and she acts funny but then everything is sorted out and now all of a sudden she's thinking this? What happened? I thought things were going great for you."
"I thought so too." He sighed. "At the dance when you sang I felt so connected to her and then all hell broke lose and - "
"Now you're stuck in a position you're not sure how you got in?"
"Actually I know what made her bolt but I still think she's overreacting."
"So share please."
"The tattoos happened."
"Are you serious? I thought you'd explained that to her."
"Well see it's kinda hard to explain when you're being accused of all sorts of things and you're not able to get a word in."
"That bad huh?"
"It gets worse."
"Oh boy."
"Because we were already arguing when she figured it out she went off even more."
"J Mari?"
"Yup. So now she sees that as another betrayal. Even though under other circumstances I'm quite positive she wouldn't have reacted so violently."
"Jess I'm sorry."
"I know, me too Skye."
"Have you tried talking to her lately?"
"I can't. You know I haven't even seen her since then."
"I would suggest me trying to talk to her but I don't think that's gonna help things at all."
"I miss her Skye." He said softly into the night.
He felt her arm wrap around him and he lay his head on her shoulder. He knew that she was always gonna be there but at that one infinitesimal moment he'd never felt so lonely.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: The song is called "Don't say Goodbye' and it belongs to me Oh yeah, I forgot again 'Crushing On you' belongs to too.
