Pairing: Tristan and Rory
Author's Note: Tristan never did become friends with the Duncan group or been sent away from Chilton. This is an alternate universe, and don't expect perfect grammatical essay or realistic happenings.
Summary: Tristan became a well-known bachelor in New York, CEO of his own firm, Dugray Corp. The story of how and when he fell in love with Rory Gilmore. Talking about his pain to 20/20 anchor, Barbara Walters, for the first time in ten years.
"Welcome back. I'm Barbara Walters, and today's guest is Tristan Dugray of Dugray Corp. Today is the first time in ten years that Tristan Dugray talks to the public about his personal life. This is a special occasion; today is also the death of his wife that marks ten years." She turned her face away from the camera and turned her attention back to Tristan.
"Before we end our segment, tell us, what makes Lorelai, Rory, so special to you. What qualities - anything that made you fall in love with her? Are these the qualities the ones you look for in an ideal woman, and what are they?" She asked. This was the million dollar question: Could other girls make Tristan fall in love with them?
"Ror, I swear, all that caffeine will cause you to have osteoporosis before you're thirty." Tristan leaned closer and lightly kissed her moist lips. She tasted of coffee and chocolate muffin.
"Well then, I have another ten years, huh?" She teased. She wrapped her arms around him, still keeping her lips in close distance.
He leaned in more to kiss her once more, "Hmmm"
"If you want chocolate muffin and coffee, there are some at Starbucks, there is no need to steal from me!" She joked.
"Yeah, but they don't sell Rory favored coffee and muffins, do they?" He smiled at her lovingly. He loved that she had a sense of humor, her love for sweets and coffee.
"I know I'm special and all, but you are rubbing off all that good stuff I happened to digest." She teased back.
"Let me compare." He drank the rest of her coffee and tossed the empty cup to the nearest trash can, ignoring Rory's attempt at the sad puppy look and leaned to kiss her deeply.
"She is...ahem...she was my best friend. She had this quirky obsession to coffee and sweets. She's not a traditional debutante, and didn't mind harmless jokes, and always enjoyed a good laugh. She thinks she's a simple girl, but she's more than that - much more." Tristan started.
Tristan saw his girlfriend waiting for him at Barons and Nobel, flipping through a book, immersed and captivated by the words written. She looked so beautiful there, her hair in her eyes; her top teeth slightly biting on her lower lip. A smile crossed over his features, to those who looked, and there was only utter, true adoration in his eyes. He quietly walked behind Rory and wrapped his arms around her. He lowered his head in the curve of her neck and kissed it.
She jumped slightly, surprised to be disturbed, but quickly relaxed, "My boyfriend is coming soon." She mocked.
"I hope he doesn't mind sharing you." He quipped.
"Hmmm, probably would. Then again, I wouldn't want to be shared - he's my world." She turned serious, and turned around and placed one palm on his cheek, and kissed him on his lips. "Happy twenty-first birthday, Tristan."
""Where's my gift?" He joked. He already had everything he needed in his arms.
"It's a surprise. C'mon hottie of the year." She made a reference of 'hottie of the year' but what the People's magazine labeled him; and walked out of the store laughing.
"Don't hold that against me!" He called after her. He was laughing that she didn't take the title seriously like some of the others did.
That birthday, Rory had made him a scrape book. She had it custom-made with hard cover with leather binding to it. The title read, Story of Tristan and Rory, when he opened it there were photos of him, Rory and both of them together. She had submitted photos of their relationship over the years, and the publishing company had made few pages of collages of them. In other pages it was individual pictures with a little story that Rory had written. The scrape book had total of twenty-one pages, to represent each year of his life. One of the picture was of them at the Philharmonics concert when he had proposed to Rory few months before: The day Tristan asked me to marry him, is the day I realized there is no one earth that can make me feel so good everyday. I can't wait to be reborn, because the day we marry, is the day I start over. The next page, which was the last page, was of them hugging; Tristan holding Rory is his arms behind her, his chin on her shoulder, both smiling at the camera: This is the beginning of our life - I can't wait to experience it all. I love you, Tristan.
"Rory is so thoughtful: on my twenty-first birthday, she had gone to a publishing company to produce a scrape book of me, her and of us together. It had twenty-one pages; few were collages, and mostly individual photos over the years of our relationship. I didn't need more cars, watches or trips to the Caribbean Island - She gave me something more precious. It had heart, compassion and love." Tristan was so lost in thoughts of the past. The female audience sighed in giddiness, that a man, so gorgeous, intelligent and wealthy had a romantic side to him.
Tristan was waiting at the aisle for Rory to come down to marry him. When the music started, Rory appeared in a strapless two piece gown, with a sequenced top, and flowing satin white gown. She had a veil over her face, with her rich coffee colored hair up in curls. She looked like an angel that graced the earth. She had literally had his heart stop beating, and robbed him of his very air with her beauty. The ceremony went through in a daze, he was so happy to be finally marrying Rory after so many years. The end came near:
"I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." The priest said.
Tristan leaned close and whispered, "I love you," and kissed her.
When they finished kissing as for the first time as husband and wife, Rory reciprocated, "I love you, more." She smiled and both turned towards the congregation and walked down out of the church.
"Rory had natural beauty that surpassed all of my previous expectations. On our wedding day, she was so beautiful, so angelic - it seemed so surreal. If there was no pictures of our wedding, no evidence, I wouldn't believed that I married her." He smiled wistfully.
"Tristan, I'm never having kids again! It HURTS! I hate you. Never again!" She cried. She was in her eighteenth hour with their first child. She was screaming, and it had killed him to see her in so much pain.
"Sir, don't worry, she doesn't mean it. She won't remember saying this after she has the baby out of her stomach" the nurse gave a little humor laugh.
"I heard that! I want coffee. My fortified source of strength!" Rory was delirious from the excruciating pain.
"Rory, honey, just one more push. I'll get you all the coffee you want. But there is something a bit more important: Our son wants to come out, and I see his head. So one more push, for me, please?" Tristan wiped her sweating forehead with a damp, cool cloth.
"For you. You owe me big time, buster." She grunted and finally pushed. At the next moment, a healthy, loud cry came out, and Shane Nicholas Dugray was born.
"She told me that no more kids when she was giving birth to our first child, Shane. But she loves kids, and the nurse told me, that she won't remember anything she would have said to me in the moment of pain. The nurse was right, she wanted three more kids, and when I teased her about what she said in the delivery room, she denied all accusations." Tristan smiled at the memory. They did not have more children as they planned because soon after, she was diagnosed with the inoperable cancer.
"Tristan, you have to face facts." Rory sat with him, discussing their future. A future without Rory.
"No. There has to be another way. Rory, another opinion wouldn't kill you...bad joke." A silence hung the room. He went through his hair, ruffling it with his hand. Tristan had refused to accept the fact that Rory was to die within the six month timeline.
"Dr. Levingstein already got several opinions with the best doctors around, and they all came to the same conclusion. Just accept the fact that I will die, and we must plan our family's future!" Rory cried out.
"How can you say that so easily. Dying? Leaving me?!" Tristan had tears coming down his face. He turned away, facing the window which had the view of Central Park.
"Because I love you." Rory said. She broke down, sitting on their bed, they had shared so many love, laughter, and now pain.
"When we got married, I planned us to be living together till we were in our nineties, not in your twenties. I...I don't want to watch you die - and die in pain. It's not easy to see you go. You're my life. Its a cruel joke that God is playing on me. I wish it was all a bad dream, and I'll wake up with you in my arms and you'll say go back to bed, it's just a bad dream." Tristan turned back to Rory and sat down holding her hands and staring into her eyes.
She touched his hair, and kissed him. "It's not easy for me. Look what all I have to lose. I don't want to go; I want us to grow old, still love each other, see our children grow older, get married, see our grandchildren. But that isn't going to happen for me. I want them to grow up, happy and fulfilled. I have to try and be strong for all of us. I love you that much."
"I love you, too. It hurts, you know? It hurts to breathe, and I don't know what I'll do without you." Tristan kissed her and held her close for his dear life. He wished that the power of his love, the hold of his arms around her could prevent her from leaving him. If only that was true.
"Bravery and courage is admirable qualities in anyone. Rory didn't give up, but rather let nature take its course. She fought to stay alive long as possible, and showed the strength of a warrior, and died with grace. Rory is my ideal woman, the woman I fell in love with when I was sixteen, and till the day I die. She is the very air I breathe, and the essence of all who I am. She is my one true love and passion. There is no one more loving, passionate, kind, brave and courageous than Rory. That is why I fell in love with her." Tristan ended.
The 20/20 show ended with a closing on Tristan's face, so lost in thought with so much love on his face; that Barbara Walters, in the first time in her career did not have a concluding statement to end the show.
TBC. There is one or two more chapters left I think. I haven't written it out yet, but I have some general idea. I hope this wasn't too confusing, and that you enjoyed it. It was like all this idea came to me, and I had to just write it out, and so there were no proof readings, and there is a lot more mistakes than usual. So bear with me. Please review, I appreciate it: you know who you are. :) Please, since this is my last fanfiction for Gilmore Girls, I would like to end in a high note. Lots of reviews please!