PAIRING: R/J

SUMMARY: The story starts with the episode 'Help wanted'. The fight between Rory and Lorelai doesn't end well, Rory realises that she loves Jess etc.

SPOILERS: None that I know of

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own anything

RATING: R

A/N: Okay, I know nothing about the wedding culture in the US, I don't know when rehearsal dinners are held, etc., since we don't have those kinds of things here. Hope this doesn't seem too strange...

Also, I REALLY don't mind when you point out the mistakes I've made. I usually notice them myself after I've already posted the chapter, but not always. I'm just often in such a hurry that I don't really have time to look the text through properly and search for errors (and I'm incredibly lazy). I'm sorry about that… Also, it's always nice to hear that you think the language is pretty much okay. So, my first language is Finnish, since I'm from Finland (Finland is in Scandinavia, people don't usually know that…). But I'm pretty much bilingual, I speak Finnish and Swedish as my first languages. 

This chapter is a lot longer than the last one, I got a bit carried away at one point..;)

The Day After Tomorrow

Chapter Twelve

*Jess's bedroom*

The door to Jess's room had been half open and now someone opened the door properly and appeared in the doorway.

"Rory?" Jess said and the look on his face was a mix of nervousness and horror. He had been completely unprepared to see her.

Luke stared at her and then turned to see Jess whose eyes were fixed on her intensely.

"I'm gonna go down and… Yea" Luke said and quickly went past Rory closing the apartment door behind him

Rory was still standing by the door.

"I'm sorry I came in like this, but I really needed to see you"

Jess nodded slightly and sat down on the bedside again.

"Did you hear what… I talked about with Luke?"

Rory nodded and stepped inside the room. She took a seat on the chair Luke had just sat on and looked at Jess warily.

"I'm sorry" she whispered barely audibly. "I know I've probably screwed things up completely, but… I just want to be with you"

Jess lifted his gaze to her, she seemed to be on the verge of tears, and it made his heart break.

"Even though you heard what I just said?"

Rory nodded and went to him quietly. She sat down next to him and looked at him feeling incredibly helpless. 

"I love you, Jess. I don't want you to change just because my life would be easier if you went to college"

He looked at her, and took a deep breath. Rory put her hand on his thigh cautiously and looked at him waiting for an answer. She got it when Jess suddenly pulled her against himself. She wrapped her arms around him tightly and buried her head on his shoulder. God, she had missed him.

"I'm sorry, too" he whispered into her ear

"I know" she replied. "I've been such an idiot"

"So have I"

"I know" she said again and was glad to hear him chuckle

He held her tightly and after some tears had ran down her cheeks, she sniffled quietly and he pulled a bit further away from her. The look on his face made Rory smile. His eyes were smiling at her, the expression on his face was kind, it was soft in a way that Rory would have thought to be completely unsuitable for him. But it wasn't.

"What do you say if I walk you home? We could talk, and I think Luke wants to get to bed"

"Sounds good" she said and looked at him relieved.

Jess took her hand when they got up and went downstairs. They found Luke wiping the counter and seeing them holding hands, he smiled.

"I'm gonna walk her home" Jess said and Luke nodded slightly. "And yea, I'll be back here in an hour" he added the usual thing Luke had to say when he headed for Rory's. But this time Luke surprised him

"Take your time" he said and both Rory and Jess turned to look at him amazed.

Luke blushed and looked at them annoyed.

"Go on. Good night, Rory"

"Good night, Luke" she replied when Jess pulled her out of the door.

Rory looked at Jess when they walked hand in hand. She was so happy that she had finally got together the courage to come and see him. For a week she had been completely mixed up, she hadn't felt like herself. She had been going through an emotional roller coaster with Jess, she had been, and she was, so crazy about him. She had had an immense fear of losing him and then everything that had happened with her mom had just been too much. She was still not talking to Lorelai, but now she was with Jess again and he looked at her thoughtfully as they walked through the silent town.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked and pulled her slightly closer to him.

Rory looked at him and for a while she wondered where she should begin.

"Last Tuesday Lane heard my mom talking on the phone. Mom had told my grandma that we were having sex. And she said that since sex was all you wanted, you'd get bored with me soon and you'd dump me even sooner than they had hoped"

Rory's words made Jess fill up with anger and confusion. How could Lorelai say something like that to her? He didn't care about himself or what she thought of him, but to tell Rory that he was going to leave her any day… Rory pulled him out of his thoughts when she continued

"I didn't know what to do. I was angry because she went through my room, and said all those things about you. She's just… She won't even hear what I have to say, she's so caught up in her hate towards you. The only thing on her mind is getting rid of you"

"Do you think it's because of what happened to her at your age?" Jess asked Rory quietly. "I mean, I guess there's nothing I can do to change the way she feels about me?"

Rory shook her head and said that she really didn't know if anything would help the situation.

"I know she's worried about me getting pregnant, but she didn't really even seem to care that we're having sex. I think she just fears that you'll change me, or take me away from her. I don't know"

Jess looked at her serious face, and he felt he had to ask her a question, just for his own peace of mind.

"You didn't believe her, did you?"

Rory looked at him. His hair and his eyes were so dark.

"No, I didn't believe her. It's just… I love you so much, that I'm afraid it's too much" Rory finally said almost silently.

Jess's face was serious when he looked at Rory, who had turned her gaze away from him.

"You make me really happy. And it scares me, cause I don't really know what… Things are gonna change when we get out of high school and I know it's a year before that happens, but it's scary. I can't imagine being without you, and I don't want to cling on to you, either. I just…"

"Rory" Jess whispered and made her look at him. "I was afraid to come to you because I was starting to realise that I don't know what's gonna happen in the future. I can't imagine being without you, either, but I really don't know what I want to do after high school"

Rory looked at him and nodded.

"We just have to think that we're gonna be together for a year at least, and very possibly even more. And you're not clinging on to me, you don't have too strong feelings for me. I'm just amazed that you actually do have those feelings…"

"Oh shut up!" Rory said and smiled widely. "You're just trying make me say nice things about you"

"It was that obvious?" Jess asked seriously and then smirked when Rory slapped him gently.

"I love you, Jess" she said and cuddled a bit closer to him when they reached her house and sneaked quietly to her room through the window which Rory had left unlocked when she left.

Jess helped her inside and when she went to check if her mom was already home from work, he sat down a chair beside her desk.

"She'd left a message on the answering machine that she'll stay the night at the inn" Rory said when she appeared in the doorway.

Jess looked at her and couldn't help but smile. Her brown hair was loose on her shoulders, and she had taken off her jacket, and was now wearing only a tank top and jeans. Rory walked to him realising just how much she had really missed him. She sat on his lap so that her legs were dangling on his sides and their chests were against each other.

Her hands were around his neck and they looked at each other for a while, just trying to realise that they were together again, after what had seemed like an eternity. Jess cupped her face in his hands, his hold on her was firm but gentle. He pulled her slightly closer to him, and just as their lips brushed, Rory thought that life really couldn't get any better than this.

Their tongues collided and as the kiss continued his hands moved down her sides to her waist and then under her tank top. His touch made Rory jump and when they both needed air Rory began to place kisses on his neck at the same time putting her hands under his shirt. She could hear Jess breathing harder and it made her smile. She loved the way she could make him feel, seeing and hearing his reactions to her, made his feelings even more evident to her. And she needed to know how much he really cared about her and wanted her. 

Jess lifted his hands up and then cupped her other breast gently. He heard Rory gasp quietly and then licked her ear making her shiver on his lap. Rory buried her head on his neck and enjoyed the feelings he aroused in her. Her hands stroked Jess's back tenderly as he continued licking her ear and then moving down to kiss her neck and bare shoulders. Jess rubbed Rory's breast gently and Rory claimed his mouth again, kissing him hard. He cradled her head in his hands and their tongues duelled when Jess suddenly placed his hands on her hips and pulled them against him. His tongue met his movements and when Rory felt his erection against her, she kissed him with probably more passion than ever before and lifted herself so that she was moving against him. Jess let out a moan and pulled her more strongly toward himself.

They were moving against each other more rapidly and Rory's lips wandered off his and met his neck leaving wet and passionate kisses along it. Once she had again wrapped her arms around him, he surprised her by cupping her hips and standing up. Rory wrapped her legs around his waist until he laid her on the bed. For a minute he just looked at her. She was lying there, she looked beautiful, her lips swollen, her skin smooth and soft. Jess thought it to be rather disturbing that he was thinking about her this way, it actually made him smile that he seemed to be turning into a romantic. Jess removed his shirt and then leaned down on her carefully, soon feeling her fingers on his bare chest. He placed a kiss on her lips, then moving down to kiss her chest, and rolling her top upwards a bit to gain access to her abdomen. His hands followed the same route, stopping at her waist when he gently sucked on the soft skin of the side of her waist. At the same time, he let his hands go to the buttons of her jeans, and her fingers were soon tangled in his hair. Jess smiled, he couldn't stop himself, he loved it when Rory played with his hair, her touch seemed so delicate and caring.

When Jess had unbuttoned Rory's jeans, she lifted her hips automatically to help him slide them off her. Jess threw them on the floor and then stood up to remove his own pants. Rory looked at him and giggled feeling like a little girl. Again, she was nervous and anxious at the same time.  When Jess sat down beside her in his boxers, he took her hand and lifted it up to his lips. His eyes never left hers when he placed light kisses on her fingers, then on the palm of her hand. Rory looked at him with adoring eyes, Jess loved seeing that look in her eyes, he knew that she had forgotten all the troubles in her life and it was because of him. Then again, all the troubles in her life had basically initiated from him, he thought, but that thought was soon out of his mind, when Rory sat up to pull off her tank top. Jess's fingers entwined with hers when he leaned towards her, and looked at her rather mischievously when he lowered his mouth to her breasts. Rory squeezed his hand tighter and closed her eyes when his lips made contact with the sensitive skin. Taking his time, he licked her nipples and then left a line of kisses on her skin moving upwards to kiss her neck. Suddenly his lips pulled away and Rory opened his eyes to see him positioning himself on top of her better. She lifted her hands to his waist and smiling she slid her hand under the fabric of his boxers tracing her fingernail slowly on his buttock. Jess looked at her taking a deep breath, and when he leaned to kiss her, she managed to roll them over ending up on top of him.

*1am*

Jess's head rested on Rory's bare abdomen. He was lying on his stomach, sideways on the bed. His fingers gently stroking the skin of her chest. Rory's eyes were closed, and her fingers were entwined in his hair.

"I feel like I'm alive"

Rory opened her eyes and looked at Jess silently. He wasn't looking at her, he was just staring at his hand which was still stroking her skin softly.

"You know how sometimes you feel like you' re not really you, you're just watching from the outside and seeing yourself do stuff you seem to have no control over… In New York I was just doing things and… There was no one there that I…" Jess didn't really know what he was trying to say. Well, he did, but he didn't know how to say it. "The first time I saw you, you made me feel things I'd never felt before. Whenever I just talked to you, you made me feel strange and really… alive"

There was a silence, during which Rory stared at Jess whose face seemed sad.

"I don't know if you understand what I mean…"

Rory lifted her hand from his hair and touched his cheek so that he had to look at her. She had tears in her eyes when their eyes connected. Jess lifted his head from her stomach and shifted himself so that he could wrap his hands around her. He laid his head next to her on the pillow, and pressed his lips on her cheek softly, while holding her tightly in between his arms.

"I know what you mean" she said quietly and pulled him closer to her. 

Jess wasn't the kind of person who opened up to people often, not even to Rory. Therefore, she knew to appreciate his words even more, actually she was pretty sure no one had ever said anything like that to her before. She took a deep breath and he pulled slightly further away. He looked at her, still resting his hand on her abdomen and caressing her skin gently.

"Are you cold?" he asked and then sat up to pull a blanket to cover them.

Rory cuddled closer to him again, and enjoyed the feeling of his warm body against hers. 

"You know, for the past week, every night I laid here thinking that I should come to you. At first I was so mixed up I didn't know what I'd say to you, and then I was afraid that maybe you didn't want to see me"

"Because I hadn't come to you?"

"More because I treated you so… the way I did. If you had acted like I was acting, I wouldn't have been able to take it"

"I'm sorry I didn't ask you to talk to me, but… I was afraid that maybe your mom had convinced you of… something. And I was afraid I'd end up hurting you if I leave next year. I don't really know when I would have come to you, I think I would have at some point, since Lane was so good at making me see things in a new way"

"Lane?" Rory asked him curiously and after Jess had explained how Lane had come to see him, Rory smiled widely. "She's an incredible friend" she sighed and then after a moment's silence she added, "I just hope you know how sorry I am for the past week"

Jess nodded seriously and kissed her softly. Then the look on his face turned to a playful one.

"But if you want me to really forgive you, you're gonna have to work for it" he said lifting his eyebrow

"I was working pretty hard a while ago" she said and blushed slightly

"Sorry, you need to work even harder" his voice was determined

"Don't you have to go soon?" Rory looked at him and smiled.

"Take your time, my dear uncle said to me" Jess smirked and pinned her to the bed.

"In that case, I'm willing to do all I can for your forgiveness" Rory said pulling him into a deep kiss

*Luke's, Friday 10am*

Lorelai was sitting by the counter, she had a coffee mug in her hand and as soon as it was empty she passed it to Luke. He refilled it and gave it back to her, at the same time giving her a nervous look. 

"You have the rehearsal dinner tonight?" Luke asked and Lorelai nodded

Sookie was getting married the next day, it seemed the wedding had come out of nowhere even though they had been planning it for ages.

"Aren't you coming tonight?" Lorelai asked surprised.

"No, I need to stay here and close up. But I'll be at the wedding tomorrow, Jess promised to take care of things here during the ceremony"

"He can't be here tonight?"

"I didn't ask him. He's worked a lot lately, so I thought he deserved a night off"

"Well, it's not like he'll have anything to do, Rory will be at the dinner"

Luke looked at her. He couldn't understand it, it was like Lorelai didn't even realise that she herself was responsible for the break-up with her daughter. He felt so bad seeing Lorelai and Rory drifting apart, although it seemed they had already drifted apart. He knew they were both hurting, and he knew Jess wasn't happy to be the reason for the break-up. But still, most of all, Luke felt bad about seeing Lorelai like this. She wasn't the same person she had been before. It seemed her hate toward Jess had consumed her completely, she didn't laugh and joke anymore, she just seemed to be waiting. She was waiting for things to get back to the way they had been before. She didn't seem to be able to understand that things would never be like that again.   

"So, you and Rory haven't made up yet? I thought that since you're both bridesmaids…"

Lorelai shook his head and looked at Luke observantly. She knew how Luke felt about Jess and she knew he was happy to see him together with Rory.

"I haven't even seen her much for the past weeks. She's with Jess or Lane mostly, she usually tells me where she's going, but that's all she's said to me lately. Last Friday dinner, she didn't say a word to anyone except my dad"

Things weren't making sense right now, no one was making sense right now. Luke saw someone waving his or her hand by the window, wanting to make an order. He couldn't do anything about it now. He just stared at Lorelai, and when she turned her gaze to him, she was startled. Luke's eyes were filled with confusion and sadness.

"When we made up and talked about Rory and Jess I thought things were getting better. What happened?"

Lorelai didn't know. She had meant what she said to Luke then, she had wanted to make things better and she had intended to try. But then she had gone away for the weekend and when she came back, she had felt that Rory was somehow further away from her. She knew more had happened between her and Jess than she had admitted, and she had panicked. Lorelai had searched Rory's room, looking for the one thing she found, condoms. Rory had taken this huge step without talking to her, after being with Jess for such a short time and. Lorelai had hated Jess right from the start, his cocky and careless attitude, and his lack of respect for others. And now things were so different, and Lorelai hated it. Rory didn't talk to her anymore, they weren't best friends anymore.

"I don't know" was the only way she could answer Luke.

"I do" he said and nodded to a customer still waving his hand. "Who has changed more, you or Rory?" he said and walked away from Lorelai.

A/N: And one more thing, it's nice to see that some people have reviewed this story right from the beginning. Thank you..:) And thanks to everyone who has reviewed. Hope you still have the energy to send me feedback about these last chapters (the next one might be the last..). The last chapter should be up in a week.