Part Two:

Chapter 6

The bus ride from New York gave Jess time to contemplate his girlfriend. Everything about her made sense, now. She'd lived all her life thinking one thing, then been told she wasn't who and what she thought she was after losing her parents. No wonder she'd cut herself off from everything. He might have done the same thing.

But he was also really proud of her. Since he'd known her, she'd come back to life, and become a wonderful person in the process. She wasn't forgetting what had happened to her, or how much pain she'd felt. But she wasn't letting it drag her down anymore, and had found her won strength through getting past all that.

The bus lurched to a stop, dragging him out of his reverie. He looked around and spotted a sign—so small he almost missed it—said it was established in the 1700's, and had less than ten thousand people. This isn't even a one-horse town, he thought. But he'd promised Lorelai that he was going to give the town and his uncle a fair chance. And he never broke a promise once it was given, which was why he generally avoided making them.

He shouldered his sack and stepped down off the bus, the only person to do so. There was a man standing waiting that had the same eyes as his mother—and he'd been told—himself. "Luke?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow at the man who wore jeans, a flannel shirt and a backwards baseball hat.

"Jess?" the man asked right back. Jess nodded. "Okay. Welcome to Stars Hollow," he said, and gestured around. "This is it," he said ruefully, then turned and began walking. Jess looked around doubtfully for a moment, then followed. His uncle led him into a diner with a few people scattered around at tables, most drinking coffee, or finishing sandwiches. "This…" Luke said, standing in the center and again making a wide-sweeping gesture. "This is my diner. If you want, you can work here after school for something to do. There's not a lot to do here, and you just might get that bored."

"Good to know," Jess said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of his voice, and not quite failing.

"Yeah," his uncle said. "Uh, upstairs is where I live…we live." He headed up the stairs, and Jess obediently trailed after him. There was a door with "William's Hardware" emblazoned on it. His mother had briefly told him that his grandfather had run the hardware store for most of her life, and when he died, her brother took it over and turned it into a diner, but left the sign up. Strong family ties from that side. He wondered what had gone wrong with his mother.

Luke was inside all ready, and he went in. There was one bed, a table and chairs, a kitchenette, a dresser, a closet, and a blow-up mattress. That was all there was to the "apartment". Good grief, Jess thought. Even mom's and my place was better than this. He kept his thoughts from his face, and instead looked at his uncle.

"Uh," Luke said, obviously completely out of his element. "You can take the bed. The mattress is mine, until I can find a real bed for you."

Jess nodded. "Got it," he said. They stood in uncomfortable silence until Jess jerked a thumb at the door. "Uh, you can head on down to work," he told his uncle. "I'll just…unpack."

"Yeah, okay," Luke said, and clapped his hands, then looked as if he didn't know why he'd done it. "I'll…uh, do that. Let me know when you leave. There's absolutely no way you can get lost in Stars Hollow. You take three lefts and you're back in the center of town." Jess nodded and watched his uncle leave.

Shaking his head, he unzipped his bag and began pulling out the clothes he'd packed, putting them in the closet. Since most of his stuff was going to be shipped by his mother in a little while—Liz had refused to name any specific date—putting everything away didn't really take very long. He shrugged and headed down the stairs to the diner where he very probably would be working soon.

"I'm headed out," he told his uncle.

"Okay," Luke answered, not looking away from his order pad. Jess waited for a moment, expecting him to say something else, like, "Be back in an hour," or "before dark." But nothing came. So he left the diner. He stepped out into the sunshine, and squinted until his eyes adjusted.

He wanted to do a double take when he saw a mother-daughter team dressed identically. He'd never known that people actually did that. There were town decorations, he noted in horrified awe, kids playing in the park, and people strolling along an avenue. "So," he murmured to himself. "This is perfection. I always wondered what it would look like." Everyone looked so happy, which was just what he told Lorelai that night on the phone.

"Like, Prozac happy, or actually happy?" she asked, sounding as if she were choking on laughter.

"A mixture of both, if that's possible," Jess said, and laid back on the bed, propping one of his arms behind his head. "I mean, these people were smiling all the time. I swear, I thought someone was going to break into song at any second and lead everybody in a dance number."

"So it's not bad, it's just so saccharine that you want to gag," Lorelai said, obviously smiling. "I'm glad you're giving the place a chance, Jess."

"I am," he said.

"You are?" she asked, sounding skeptical.

"Yeah," he told her, ignoring her skepticism. "I figure there'll be a lot of story fodder here. You know how all small towns are basically soap operas underneath the surface. I bet I find an amazing story idea within the week."

"What are we betting?"

"You coming down during the holiday break?"

"Hmm," she said. "I'll have to talk to Larry and Janet, but I don't think they'll be too set against it."

"I can't wait," Jess said. Luke came into the apartment and stopped short when he saw Jess talking on the phone. Jess held up one finger. Luke ignored the signal to wait.

"Who're you talking to?" he demanded.

"My girlfriend," Jess said, holding the receiver below his chin.

"In New York?"

Jess had to stifle a smile at the shocked tone in his voice. He nodded. "Hold on, Lor." He held his hand over the mouthpiece. "Look, I'll pay. I'll buy phone cards."

"With what money?"

"I'll find a part-time job," he said nonchalantly.

"Or you could work in the diner?" he asked, considering.

Jess thought it over for a second. "Why not?" he asked with the air of someone throwing care to the winds.

"All right," Luke said. "Uh…tell her 'hi' from Stars Hollow." Jess made a slight face, but shrugged and watched his uncle leave the apartment to give him privacy.

"Jess!" Lorelai said, sounding a little impatient.

"I'm back," he told her. "Sorry. My Uncle Luke says hi."

"Really? Well, tell him 'hi' back. What's he like?"

Jess thought about his answer. "I kinda feel sorry for the guy," he said. "I mean, yeah, he's lived in this tiny town for his whole life, but you should see his stuff. I mean, he's got about five shirts hanging in the closet. His entire wardrobe doesn't even fill up one medium-sized dresser. He's living in this apartment that used to be my grandfather's office above the diner he made out of a hardware store. I would feel sorry for the guy if I wasn't in the same boat."

Lorelai was quiet for a moment. "Is he happy there?" she asked.

Jess shrugged, even though she couldn't see it. "It seems so," he said. "And I guess he's pretty flexible. I mean, he gave me the bed."

"That was nice of him," Lorelai said. "Though I have to wonder what the alternative was to the bed."

"This blow-up mattress that he's got. Seriously, this apartment is tiny." Jess looked around, and tried to estimate square footage. "It's like if your living room and kitchen were all one room. That's the basic size of this place."

"Interesting," Lorelai said. "I can't wait to see it."

"Me neither," Jess said, his tone warming. "I miss you all ready," he told her. "You'd really like this place.."

"I miss you, too, Jess," she said. "School just won't be the same without you."

"Speaking of which, my first day at Stars Hollow High is tomorrow."

"And you sound so incredibly thrilled about it, too," she said. "Well, I need to get off the phone. Call me tomorrow and tell me all about your new classes."

"You'll get a full report. I love you."

"I love you," she said back, and hung up. Jess hung his head momentarily, wishing fervently that he was back in New York. You promised Lorelai you'd give this place a chance. So…go spend enough time in the actual town to give it that chance.

Heaving a huge sigh, Jess got up to head downstairs to the diner for his first day of work.


~*~

It wasn't so bad. He guessed. Though the six-languages of the Pledge of Allegiance was a little much, in his opinion: Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, and two Native American languages. Lorelai had a laugh riot about that one. Lorelai had laugh riots about a lot of things that first month and a half he was in Stars Hollow.

"Happy birthday," he said, smiling broadly into the receiver.

"Thanks," Lorelai said warmly. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too," Jess said, smile fading. "A lot. I just wish I could make a day trip up there, but I just can't." Time, money and school had conspired against him.

"I know," she soothed. "I understand. No worries. Oh," she added, voice fainter. "Thanks Janet. Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"I just got your present."

"Well, then, open it!"

"Impatient much?" The sound of ripping paper filtered through the phone line. She gasped. "Oh," she said. "You… What is it?"

"Open it."

She sighed. "Do you always have to be…so…cryptic? Jess, is this Stars Hollow?" she asked.

"Right in one." Jess was proud of his little bout of photography. "I took all those pictures to show I wasn't lying to you."

"Jess, this is…wow. It's such a beautiful little town. I can't wait until I can see it. I bet it's really beautiful covered in snow."

"Well, no snow yet," he said. "But there's bound to be some by the time you get here."

"I can only hope," she said, sounding as if she were counting down the days.

Then, a few days later, she started sounding…off. There was something wrong, but she wasn't telling him anything. He knew what it was, and he'd been afraid of this from the moment he stepped on the bus.

She'd met someone else. Someone not stuck in this stupid little town far away from her.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, three days after her birthday, his stomach clenching at the thought that she was going to break up with him at any second.

"Yeah," she said, and he could hear the lie in her voice. "Fine. Why do you ask?"

"You just sound…funny." He winced. That sounded so dumb.

"Actually, I've been sick for the last couple days. But I'm better now." Jess felt relief wash over him. If there was someone else, she'd tell him; she wouldn't just lead him on.

"I'm glad you're feeling better," he said. "Anything interesting happening at school?"

"Yeah," she said. "Tali met this really great guy about a month ago, and he just asked her to go steady. And he's totally gaga over her, so he's being just the biggest sweetheart. They do make me sick to my stomach occasionally. Mostly, though, they make me miss you." There was the distinct sound of sniffling in the background, and Jess felt concern springing to life again.

"Lorelai?" he asked her.

"I'm okay," she said. "Really. But…I can't come visit you over the holidays. I've… something's come up. I wish I could. Really, really wish I could, Jess, but…maybe some other time?"

"Did something happen to Larry or Janet?" he asked, sitting up straight on the bed.

"No, nothing like that. No emergencies. It's just…I can't make it. I'm sorry, Jess."

"It's all right," he said soothingly. "As long as nothing's wrong." He stopped and swallowed hard, but kept his tone light. "Come on, Lor, you've got a life up there, right? It's not like I expect you to drop everything just cause I'm not there." His stomach began to clench again, and he told it to calm down.

"But—" Lorelai said, sounding a little scared. "But I love you."

"I love you, too," he told her. "But that doesn't mean that I believe your life will come to a screeching halt when I'm not there."

"Jess," she sighed. "You're right. I know that. So, I'll call you tomorrow?"

"How about I call you after closing," he said.

"Okay. I love you," she said again, sounding unusually adamant.

"Love you, too."

Jess continued to work at the diner and saved his money, though all he paid for was the phone cards he used to call New York. He continued to talk to Lorelai every day, sometimes for just a few minutes, sometimes over an hour. She never sounded quite right anymore. There was something wrong. It was like when they'd first met: she acted happy and carefree, but there was something blocking everything out. Something that she wouldn't tell him.

He brooded on that for a long time. Months. By the end of November, he still hadn't come up with any possibility other than that she'd met someone else. He no longer had any desire to go to New York, if that was going to be the straw that broke Lorelai's back and finally made her break up with him. Or worse, seeing her with someone else with his own eyes.

When he wasn't doing just enough homework to eke out a passing grade, he was working. By now, he knew the townspeople by heart, even though he didn't talk to them much. Then one day, a new face showed up at the diner.

Luke looked up when the bell rang over the door. When he smiled hugely, Jess blinked in shock for a long moment, then looked to see who had so profound an effect on his uncle. He saw an older, refined-looking woman surveying the diner with a fond smile.

"Mia!" Luke shouted as he rounded the counter. Since the diner was virtually empty, there wasn't anyone else to witness the strange behavior of his uncle, such as when Luke pulled the woman into his arms for a hug.

"Oh, Lucas," she said. "I've missed you! How've you been?"

"I'm just fine," Luke said, smiling down at her. He looked up and spotted Jess watching the scene with interest. "Mia, this is Jess." She moved to shake hands with him. "Liz's son," Luke added.

"Oh, is she here?" Mia asked eagerly. Both Jess and Luke avoided her gaze.

"Uh, no," Luke said. "She's in New York."

Mia looked back and forth between the two males for a long moment before murmuring, "I see. Well," she continued in brighter tones. "What's on the menu today?"

Luke joined Jess behind the counter. "Anything you want, we've got it," he told her.

"I just loved your turkeys," Mia said, sliding onto the stool. "If you have any leftover turkey sandwiches I'd take one of those."

"I'll get it," Jess said, speaking for the first time. "You catch up." He closed the notebook he'd been scribbling idly in and moved into the kitchen.

Luke said, "So what brings you to back to Stars Hollow?"

"Business and pleasure, both," Mia said. "So tell me; where is everyone?"

"Most people stay home the day after Thanksgiving, eating leftovers, recovering from the tryptophan overdoses, that kind of thing. How long are you staying?"

"I don't know," Mia said, then her smiled widened when Jess came out with a thick sandwich on a plate with fries. "You know, Jess," Mia said. "I've known your uncle and mother since they were babies. In fact, on a few memorable occasions I was their baby-sitter."

"Huh," Jess said, feigning disinterest. "Any good pranks I should be made aware of?"

"Well," Mia began. "There was that one involving an oven and—"

"Mia," Luke cut in hastily. "Please, just eat the sandwich." Mia and Jess shared a secret smile before Mia did as Luke commanded.

Silence descended while Mia ate. A few customers came in for coffee, but they were tourists, and didn't stay for a meal.

"So what brings you here?" Luke asked. "We don't hear anything about what goes on up at the Inn; that manager you hired is a recluse."

Jess snorted. "If that isn't the pot calling the kettle black." Luke glared at Jess momentarily.

Mia sighed fatalistically. "Well, I guess you'll find out soon enough. I'm selling the Inn."

"What?" Luke demanded. "Why?"

"Honestly, I think it's time for a change," Mia said. "I liked having a business that wasn't so…established. Something with some challenge to it."

"So you're going to open another one?" Mia nodded. "Where?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said. "I was hoping to do some traveling to find that out."

"So who's buying the Inn?" Luke demanded, sounding personally offended. "Some big chain that's gonna come in and suck all the originality out of Stars Hollow?"

Mia shook her head. "No. I've gotten several offers from chains, but no. There's a private buyer. She's run hotels and B&B's in the past and feels she's ready to own one. She's coming in sometime in the next month to look around the Inn and the town."

Luke was slightly mollified by that. "Well, good," he said brusquely. "At least we won't have a Holiday Inn looming over us."

"I would never sell to a Holiday Inn," Mia said, much affronted. "Especially since those casino/hotels are so hot these days."

Both Mia and Jess watched Luke sputter good-naturedly at that.


~*~

Author's Note: Again, thank you so much for not spoiling those who read reviews. And I love getting e-mails! Thanks, everybody!