~I had a horrible New Year's day. I managed to get another ex-boyfriend, get drunk, and dirty --- in that order! I woke up the next day with mascara streamed down my cheeks, a huge hangover and lying in a huge comfortable bed. So I just want to dedicate this chapter to my best friend Daniel for always being there for me! (Thank god for him, he brought me home, tucked me into his bed and slept on the floor so that I wouldn't think I actually slept with my best friend. bleurgh! My parents would have killed me if they saw me drunk out of my mind.) I just hope you guys had a better New Year's! ~
Grazie così tanto. Thank you so much, your reviews cheered me up!: *KrystalKat390, *Phoebe (blushhh, thanks for the compliment), *girldevil , *hasapi (thanks for all those wonderful ideas, I'll probably be using the pseudonym one), *sugar sweet, *swim6516, *kilina, *dodgerluv (thanx 4 ur idea), *adriannawolf (I meant closed the oven door, sorry about that), *Katie (thank ya for ur flatter), *hana, *Nick, *twinkletoes, *Mysticgrl, *Melissa, *Melissa Larkin, *Jade, *kylie, *deena, *jj, *farah k., *Seehoo, *Molly, *hannah, *alexis, *shadowcat (I might just make that happen in the last chapter or so), and *3 nameless reviewers.
Chapter 4: Until I can stand on my own two feet
Great. You're just the luckiest girl in the world, aren't you? Two bombshells in the past half an hour. What did you ever do to deserve that? Rory walked out of her meeting with the manager, and looked around for Jess. Where could he be? She walked to the end of the hallway, but didn't see him. She walked back, and that was when she saw someone watching her intently behind his dark glasses and hat. Jess. She made her way towards him, and sat down in the seat next to him.
"Jess?" she asked. What is he doing dressed up like that? He looks like he's trying to hide away from something. Oh well, who am I to question his fashion sense?
Jess nodded. "How did your meeting go?"
Rory sighed. "I'm not sure. Good news or bad news first?"
Jess thought for a while. "Bad news."
"The owner of the apartment I was supposed to live in isn't co-operating. That means that I don't have a place to stay."
"You can always crash over at my place. I have an apartment that is too big for me alone." Smart move, Mariano. Now you get to see her every day, which will torture you even more.
Rory frowned. "I would be meddling. You have your own life to lead, I would just be interfering with your lifestyle."
Jess shrugged, and said quietly. "I don't mind, besides I could use the company." You would love having her there, so you can keep out an eye for her. So that you can see that no one hurts her. So that maybe she might fall in love with you...
Rory sighed again. "Just for a while, maybe. Until I can stand on my own two feet again."
Jess smiled at her. "Come on, let's go for coffee."
They made their way back towards his car, and he drove to a coffee shop. Rory ordered her usual three cups of coffee at once, and then they went to his apartment.
~***~
Rory called Lorelai.
"Hello, mother dearest," said Rory.
She heard a scream on the other end of the line. "Babe!! How are you? Where are you? Did you see Jess? What happened? Did you see any weird dancer guys in the middle of New York?"
"What?!!"
"You know, the ones that dance and dance and people look at them and give them money."
Rory laughed. "Whatever, mom."
"How's your job?"
"It's great, I'm co-editor temporarily and I am also going to be one of the highest paid reporter there. I'll be earning about $45,000 annually."
"Hmm, that's wonderful honey. So, tell your beloved mother what else happened!"
"Nothing much," said Rory.
Lorelai laughed. "So, you saw Jess huh?"
Rory was surprised. "How did you know?"
"Babe, call it mother's intuition. What happened?"
"He took me back to his apartment."
Lorelai paused. "Are you telling me that my dearest daughter just had sex? Was it good?"
"Noooooo, you got it all wrong."
"Explain then."
"I lost my luggage, I sat on this bench which actually belongs to him. That was where he found me. He took me shopping in the biggest and I'm guessing the most expensive shop ever because I haven't got any clothes and any money either, he gave me the biggest soft toy I've ever seen in my life. I have to stay in his apartment because the owner of the apartment I was supposed to move in is being a cow. He cooks as well, and he's a great hair-dresser!"
Lorelai was shocked. "Are you sure this is the same Jess we're talking about? Because the Jess I'm talking about would never have done any of that."
"It's Jess." Rory sighed.
"Honey, you knew that you never got over him."
"Mum, that is so not true!"
Lorelai didn't say anything. She knew that it was true. So did Rory. In her mind, Jess was always the guy for her. She was never able to keep a stable relationship with any guy for so long, because the truth was that he wasn't Jess.
"I have to go now, Rory. You can take out some money from your account, and I think you should tell Jess what you feel. I'll see you later, babe," said Lorelai.
"Bye, mom."
~***~
They were in the middle of watching the rerun of Friends, Season 7, when Jess suddenly remembered something. He switched off the television, and turned to face Rory.
"You didn't tell me the good news."
Rory turned to face him as well, so that they were looking at each other. "Oh. I'm going to be the co-editor temporarily plus a reporter, because their current editor retired recently."
Jess grinned. "That's great news."
Rory shrugged. "It is. I'm not sure if I can handle it."
"Of course you can."
Rory nodded. "I hope so."
A silence fell on them.
Rory spoke up.
"Why did you leave?" she asked quietly.
Jess was not prepared for that question. What do I tell her? I was the big town's rebel, and she was the small town's princess. It could never have worked out, me and her, and that was crushing me so bad. The accident didn't help much, either. I left because I couldn't kiss her whenever I felt like it. I left because she could never be mine. I left because I didn't want to see her hurt. I left because she was with Dean. Basically, I left because I love her too much, and I just wasn't good enough for her. But, you're not brave enough to tell her that, are you?
He shrugged. "It was all getting to me."
Rory placed a hand on his shoulder. "I never blamed you for the accident."
Jess looked into her eyes. "I know you didn't. But everyone else did."
Rory said quietly," You should have stayed."
Jess gave a twisted smile. "Everyone there hates me. They wanted to purge themselves of the sight of me. I just wasn't wanted there."
"I don't hate you." Rory, just say it. You practically love him, for heaven's sake.
"I know you don't."
Rory hugged her knees. "I still think you should have stayed."
"No one needed me," said Jess. That's the truth, isn't it Mariano?
Rory smiled at him reluctantly. "I needed you."
Jess looked at her, but didn't say a word. Instead, he took her hand, and rubbed circles into her palm with his thumb.
Rory beamed. Then, she asked Jess the question that was bugging her since the beginning of the day.
"Jess, where do you get all the money from?"
Jess looked at her weirdly, and stopped what he was doing momentarily. "What do you mean?"
~***~
"I mean, what do you work as. You have got to earn a lot of money to own an apartment such as this, and take me shopping and all. I look around me, at what you've created around you and you're so well-off, and I'm just wandering whether you're obtaining all this money legally because I wouldn't want you to be going against the law," Rory paused. "And I hope to god that you're not some crime lord or something. You're not, right?"
Jess's heart dropped to his stomach, and he felt like someone had socked him a big one. She still thinks you haven't changed that much, Mariano. To her you'll always be the dumb-shit, f*cked up person that she met 7 years ago. No matter how much you try, she'll never like you. She even thinks you're some crime lord, for heaven's sake. She'll never realise that everything you've created was for her. This heaven on earth you've built, it was all because of her, wasn't it? Admit it, Mariano. You've been crazy for this girl ever since you've seen her. Don't try lying to yourself, you know it's true. You even wrote a book about her.
He stood up from the couch, and went to the bookshelf. He took a book out, titled 'About a Girl - by Dodger M'. He went back to the couch, and handed her the book.
"Rory, I'm an author," he said quietly, his face devoid of any emotion, and walked off to the direction of his room.
REVIEW PLEASE!! IT WILL BRIGHTEN UP MY DAY, AND YOU CAN TELL ME IF YOU LIKE THE DIRECTION IN WHICH THE FIC IS GOING. I'VE GOT SOME TRICKS UP MY SLEEVE, THAT WILL BE SO ANGST-Y!! HOPEFULLY, ANYWAY, IF I PLAY MY CARDS RIGHT! ;)
OOH AND ALSO, BECAUSE I'M NOT FROM NEW YORK, AND MY FIC IS CENTRED AROUND NEW YORK (SMART MOVE, DUMBASS, HEHEH), CAN ANYONE TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT NEW YORK? I'D SURE APPRECIATE IT!!