Fool for Love
by
javakamp
Chapter 22: Fast Food Coffee Sucks
Lorelai sat in her jeep drinking a horrible cup of coffee that she had picked up in a fast food drive through. She was parked on an upper middle class residential street, in a suburb of New Haven. As she sat there trying to steel herself for what she had come to do, her cell phone began to ring. She reached over to the passenger seat, and picked up the phone. She glanced at the display noting that the time was 8:53, and the call was from the Inn.
She pressed the talk button, put the phone to her ear, and said, "Hello."
"Hi sweetie," Lorelai heard Sookie's voice answer. "You wanted me to call?"
"Hi Sookie. Yeah I wanted to let you know that I wasn't going to be in today."
"Is everything okay, Lorelai?"
Lorelai paused before she answered, trying to keep her voice under control. She did a passable job when she answered, "Not so much."
"What's the matter hon?"
In her mirror, Lorelai noticed a school bus turn onto the street behind her heading in her direction. She steadied her voice and said, "I'll be fine, I'll explain everything to you later"
Lorelai missed Sookie's response, when her attention was drawn to the front door opening on the house she was watching, and two boys and a blond woman stepped out. "Listen Sookie, I've got to go, but I wanted let you know that I wouldn't be there today, and to tell you if you need extra help for the Rotary luncheon today, just let Michel know. He has the number of the temp agency."
The bus pulled to a stop at the house that the two boys had come out of, as Sookie answered, "Okay, I'll do that." Lorelai watched the boys wave to the woman then run for the bus, as Sookie asked, "Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'll be fine Sookie. I'll explain everything later, but I gotta go now. Bye."
As the boys got on the bus, and it drove off, Lorelai heard a reluctant, "Bye," from Sookie. As she watched the woman reach into her purse and take out some keys, she turned off the phone. She took a deep breath, grabbed her purse and got out of the jeep.
Lorelai trotted towards the woman, she called "Excuse me, Mrs. Fletcher. Could I speak with you a moment?"
"Sure," the woman replied, as she stood next to her car and waited for Lorelai to approach.
Once Lorelai was near enough to speak in normal tones, she said, "Thanks, Mrs. Fletcher." As Lorelai paused for breath, she noted that Rebecca Fletcher was an attractive blond that stood about an inch shorter that her. Lorelai smiled and plunged ahead, "My name is, Lorelai Gilmore. I realize that you don't know me, but I felt we needed to talk.
Lorelai paused for a beat, then said, "You see… What I mean… I…"
A flash of recognition crossed Rebecca's face and she said matter of fatally, "You're the woman who's been sleeping with my husband."
Stunned, Lorelai looked at the woman, unsure what to say. Finally, she managed a nod.
Rebecca smiled sadly, then reached into her purse and pulled out a cell phone. "Just let me cancel my appointment, and we can go inside and talk."
Lorelai sat across the kitchen table from Rebecca Fletcher, as the blond woman said, "Colin and I met during my sophomore year in College. He was a year ahead of me. We got married the summer after I graduated." Rebecca looked Lorelai straight in the eyes and said, "I caught him in bed with another woman three months before that."
"No," Lorelai replied, not sure what else to say.
Rebecca nodded, "I told him I was going to Cancun with friends for spring break. Instead, I showed up at his place to surprise him. Surprise. That was the first time I caught him fooling around on me."
Lorelai swallowed and ask weakly, "The first time?"
Rebecca nodded and said, "I should have turned around and never seen him again. But I was young, and stupid, and he said he loved me and it would never happen again. And I wanted to believe him." Rebecca sighed.
Lorelai looked at the cup of coffee in front of her and said, "We've all been guilty of that."
"You know what they say, fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me."
"Twice?"
Rebecca shook her head, "Four times that I know of."
"Oh, god. That must've hurt so bad?"
"And you make five."
Lorelai leaned over her coffee cup, looked Rebecca in the eye, and said, "I just want you to know that I am so very, very sorry. If I would have known he was married, I would have never gone out with Colin." Lorelai sat up. "I feel like such a fool. I just find is so hard to believe that he would lie to me like that."
Rebecca shook her head. "I don't. I mean he lied to me for fifteen years, and I'm his wife, and the mother of his children. It's not so hard to imagine that he would lie to his mistress."
Lorelai flinched at Rebecca's reference. Rebecca noticed her reaction and said, "I'm sorry, that was unkind of me."
Lorelai shook her head and replied, "NO, no. I deserve that, and probably worse. I'm the other woman. The Husband stealer. The spouse thief person."
Rebecca smiled at Lorelai's self-abasing humor, and asked, "How did you find out?"
Lorelai closed her eyes and shook her head, "My mother spotted you in Colin in a restaurant a couple of weeks ago, and…"
Rebecca nodded and said, "Red hair, in her fifties, a little pushy."
"That would be my mom. Emily the Hun."
Rebecca smiled, and said, "I'm amazed that you are handling this so well."
Lorelai shook her head and said, "That's only on the outside. On the inside I'm about a half step from total wreck."
Rebecca nodded and said, "Multiply that by fifteen and you might know how I feel. I should have done something long ago."
"I can see why you might have been reluctant," Lorelai said. "I mean there are the kids," Lorelai pointed at the expensive house they were in, "And he seems to be a good provider."
Rebecca smiled sadly and said, "The first seven years were married he couldn't hold down a job. He kept bouncing from job to job, till my father got him a job at one of his companies, where he is more or less adequate."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I've got an appointment tomorrow with my attorney, to start divorce proceedings. What about you, are you going to continue to see him."
Lorelai shook her emphatically and said, "I have no desire to be in the same state with him."
They sat in silence for a moment. Eventually Lorelai reached down and picked up her purse. She removed a large brown envelope and placed it on the table. "If you're going to see your attorney, you might find this useful."
Rebecca opened the envelope and flipped through the pages and photographs, of the report that Emily had provided. As the other woman paged through the report, Lorelai said, "And if you need me to testify, I will. It's the least I could do."
"That's a very brave offer," Rebecca said as she stood and walked out of the room. She returned s moment later carrying a briefcase. She opened the case and removed a brown accordion folder about four inches thick, with an elastic band holding it closed. "I wouldn't be surprised if you took back your offer after I show you this."
A cold chill swept up Lorelai's spine as Rebecca continued, "As you can see my detectives have been working longer than yours." Rebecca pushed the folder towards Lorelai, and sadly said, "And I'm sorry to tell you that they were quite a bit more through."
Lorelai paled as she looked at Rebecca, and asked, "You mean?"
Rebecca nodded, "Yours is the PG-13 version. Mine is more, NC-17."
This morning as she drove to New Haven, Lorelai had imagined that the pain and embarrassment that she had felt could get no worse. As she reached for the folder, she realized that those emotions had just been doubled, and that king sized portions of shame and humiliation had been piled on top. As she opened the file, she felt the first tears run down her cheeks.
by
javakamp
Chapter 22: Fast Food Coffee Sucks
Lorelai sat in her jeep drinking a horrible cup of coffee that she had picked up in a fast food drive through. She was parked on an upper middle class residential street, in a suburb of New Haven. As she sat there trying to steel herself for what she had come to do, her cell phone began to ring. She reached over to the passenger seat, and picked up the phone. She glanced at the display noting that the time was 8:53, and the call was from the Inn.
She pressed the talk button, put the phone to her ear, and said, "Hello."
"Hi sweetie," Lorelai heard Sookie's voice answer. "You wanted me to call?"
"Hi Sookie. Yeah I wanted to let you know that I wasn't going to be in today."
"Is everything okay, Lorelai?"
Lorelai paused before she answered, trying to keep her voice under control. She did a passable job when she answered, "Not so much."
"What's the matter hon?"
In her mirror, Lorelai noticed a school bus turn onto the street behind her heading in her direction. She steadied her voice and said, "I'll be fine, I'll explain everything to you later"
Lorelai missed Sookie's response, when her attention was drawn to the front door opening on the house she was watching, and two boys and a blond woman stepped out. "Listen Sookie, I've got to go, but I wanted let you know that I wouldn't be there today, and to tell you if you need extra help for the Rotary luncheon today, just let Michel know. He has the number of the temp agency."
The bus pulled to a stop at the house that the two boys had come out of, as Sookie answered, "Okay, I'll do that." Lorelai watched the boys wave to the woman then run for the bus, as Sookie asked, "Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'll be fine Sookie. I'll explain everything later, but I gotta go now. Bye."
As the boys got on the bus, and it drove off, Lorelai heard a reluctant, "Bye," from Sookie. As she watched the woman reach into her purse and take out some keys, she turned off the phone. She took a deep breath, grabbed her purse and got out of the jeep.
Lorelai trotted towards the woman, she called "Excuse me, Mrs. Fletcher. Could I speak with you a moment?"
"Sure," the woman replied, as she stood next to her car and waited for Lorelai to approach.
Once Lorelai was near enough to speak in normal tones, she said, "Thanks, Mrs. Fletcher." As Lorelai paused for breath, she noted that Rebecca Fletcher was an attractive blond that stood about an inch shorter that her. Lorelai smiled and plunged ahead, "My name is, Lorelai Gilmore. I realize that you don't know me, but I felt we needed to talk.
Lorelai paused for a beat, then said, "You see… What I mean… I…"
A flash of recognition crossed Rebecca's face and she said matter of fatally, "You're the woman who's been sleeping with my husband."
Stunned, Lorelai looked at the woman, unsure what to say. Finally, she managed a nod.
Rebecca smiled sadly, then reached into her purse and pulled out a cell phone. "Just let me cancel my appointment, and we can go inside and talk."
Lorelai sat across the kitchen table from Rebecca Fletcher, as the blond woman said, "Colin and I met during my sophomore year in College. He was a year ahead of me. We got married the summer after I graduated." Rebecca looked Lorelai straight in the eyes and said, "I caught him in bed with another woman three months before that."
"No," Lorelai replied, not sure what else to say.
Rebecca nodded, "I told him I was going to Cancun with friends for spring break. Instead, I showed up at his place to surprise him. Surprise. That was the first time I caught him fooling around on me."
Lorelai swallowed and ask weakly, "The first time?"
Rebecca nodded and said, "I should have turned around and never seen him again. But I was young, and stupid, and he said he loved me and it would never happen again. And I wanted to believe him." Rebecca sighed.
Lorelai looked at the cup of coffee in front of her and said, "We've all been guilty of that."
"You know what they say, fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me."
"Twice?"
Rebecca shook her head, "Four times that I know of."
"Oh, god. That must've hurt so bad?"
"And you make five."
Lorelai leaned over her coffee cup, looked Rebecca in the eye, and said, "I just want you to know that I am so very, very sorry. If I would have known he was married, I would have never gone out with Colin." Lorelai sat up. "I feel like such a fool. I just find is so hard to believe that he would lie to me like that."
Rebecca shook her head. "I don't. I mean he lied to me for fifteen years, and I'm his wife, and the mother of his children. It's not so hard to imagine that he would lie to his mistress."
Lorelai flinched at Rebecca's reference. Rebecca noticed her reaction and said, "I'm sorry, that was unkind of me."
Lorelai shook her head and replied, "NO, no. I deserve that, and probably worse. I'm the other woman. The Husband stealer. The spouse thief person."
Rebecca smiled at Lorelai's self-abasing humor, and asked, "How did you find out?"
Lorelai closed her eyes and shook her head, "My mother spotted you in Colin in a restaurant a couple of weeks ago, and…"
Rebecca nodded and said, "Red hair, in her fifties, a little pushy."
"That would be my mom. Emily the Hun."
Rebecca smiled, and said, "I'm amazed that you are handling this so well."
Lorelai shook her head and said, "That's only on the outside. On the inside I'm about a half step from total wreck."
Rebecca nodded and said, "Multiply that by fifteen and you might know how I feel. I should have done something long ago."
"I can see why you might have been reluctant," Lorelai said. "I mean there are the kids," Lorelai pointed at the expensive house they were in, "And he seems to be a good provider."
Rebecca smiled sadly and said, "The first seven years were married he couldn't hold down a job. He kept bouncing from job to job, till my father got him a job at one of his companies, where he is more or less adequate."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I've got an appointment tomorrow with my attorney, to start divorce proceedings. What about you, are you going to continue to see him."
Lorelai shook her emphatically and said, "I have no desire to be in the same state with him."
They sat in silence for a moment. Eventually Lorelai reached down and picked up her purse. She removed a large brown envelope and placed it on the table. "If you're going to see your attorney, you might find this useful."
Rebecca opened the envelope and flipped through the pages and photographs, of the report that Emily had provided. As the other woman paged through the report, Lorelai said, "And if you need me to testify, I will. It's the least I could do."
"That's a very brave offer," Rebecca said as she stood and walked out of the room. She returned s moment later carrying a briefcase. She opened the case and removed a brown accordion folder about four inches thick, with an elastic band holding it closed. "I wouldn't be surprised if you took back your offer after I show you this."
A cold chill swept up Lorelai's spine as Rebecca continued, "As you can see my detectives have been working longer than yours." Rebecca pushed the folder towards Lorelai, and sadly said, "And I'm sorry to tell you that they were quite a bit more through."
Lorelai paled as she looked at Rebecca, and asked, "You mean?"
Rebecca nodded, "Yours is the PG-13 version. Mine is more, NC-17."
This morning as she drove to New Haven, Lorelai had imagined that the pain and embarrassment that she had felt could get no worse. As she reached for the folder, she realized that those emotions had just been doubled, and that king sized portions of shame and humiliation had been piled on top. As she opened the file, she felt the first tears run down her cheeks.
