A.N: well, I know that it took me a while to update but that doesn't matter right now since here's the seventh chapter. As usual, I don't own the characters we all know and love from the TV series. But I do own the plot and the rest of the characters that I came up with. I don't know when I'll update the next time but I hope it won't take as long as it took with this one. I guess that all that's left is to tell you that I loved your reviews and that I hope you'd send me more (It does motivate me and bring a smile to my face…) Thank you so much to all of those who took the time to let me know what they think!!! Enjoy…

Don't judge a book by its cover

Chapter 7:

The movie was over for a long time now and the three of us were now sitting in Josh' living room, trying to find a place for me to stay while I'm around, "Well, maybe you should talk to Lorelai…" Josh suggested after we've covered many other options.

I looked at Josh, frustrated, "And say what?"

"That you came back for Rory without your parents' permission." He answered.

"Do you really think that she'd help me if I tell her that I don't want Rory to know about it?"

"She run's an inn, after all…" Jane pointed out.

"I don't think that I can afford a room for more than a couple of days."

"I'm sure she'd love to help." She said with a smile.

"But I'm not sure that I really want to get her into this. Think about it, why would she want to help me? It could get her into trouble."

"It's for Rory's sake." Josh said.

"I'm not so sure about that one anymore…" I murmured in thought.

"I'm tired." Jane said, yawning.

"Maybe we should just call it for the night." I said, turning to look at her tired face.

"I'll take you home." Josh said quietly while getting up from where he was seated and helping her to her feet with a faint smile.

"Thank you." She said, smiling back.

"I'm gonna go to bed now, too much love for me to bare…"

"You wouldn't have said that if it were you and Rory doing the same…" Josh said with a smirk.

"Thank you for making me think about her again." I said, sarcastically.

"No problem," he smiled, "anytime…"

"I'm going to sleep now."

"I'll see you tomorrow, right?" Jane asked.

"I have to pick up Rory after school so I guess I'll see you then."

"Another trip?" She asked, smiling softly.

"Another romantic trip?" Josh asked with a smile of his own.

"Making her fall on her butt won't help." Jane said, smiling a little wider, "At least that's the impression I got when I heard about your first trip from her."

"I was thinking more along the lines of helping her forget for a while but you know, maybe I'm looking at it the wrong way…"

"Well, since I have no idea what's the matter with her yet I guess I'll just have to trust your judgment." Jane said quietly.

"Look, I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? I'm really tired, it's been a long day and it's gonna be an even longer one tomorrow…" I said.

"I'll wake you up at six A.M. tomorrow, okay?" Josh asked.

"Have a good night." I said quietly, smiling their way.

"You too." Jane said. And with that they both left the living room, heading outside to Josh' car. I sat down on the couch thinking about all that's happened that day. About a minute after they left the house I heard Josh' car driving away.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Why aren't you asleep yet?" Josh' voice interrupted my thoughts. I was sitting on my bed with a book in hand, but the book was long forgotten, I couldn't concentrate. I was staring into space, I'm not really sure why but I just couldn't sleep.

"I can't sleep."

"Have you decided what you're going to do yet?" He asked me as he walked into the room.

"I'll probably end up calling Lorelai."

"I think that that's the best thing to do for now."

"Yeah, I guess so. I just can't think of anything else to do."

"Yeah…" he said understandingly.

"What time is it?" I asked, not sure how long I've been sitting in the same position.

He looked at his watch for a second, "Four." His eyes turned to me, "Why do you ask?" he moved to a chair that was standing near my bed and sat down.

"I think I'm just gonna stay up till six, I don't see any reason to go to sleep right now. Plus, I don't think that I can fall asleep even if I wanted to."

"Yeah, well, I have school tomorrow so going to sleep would probably be a good idea. After all, I do have to stay awake in class or Jane would kill me."

I smiled, "I miss Chilton." I said thoughtfully.

"You mean, you miss the female population of Chilton, right?"

"No, that's not it. I guess I just miss the whole Chilton experience."

"Having arguments with Rory by her locker…" he gave me a knowing smile.

"Banters." I corrected him, "And yes, I miss that a lot."

"Well, now you have the phone to do the same thing."

I smiled at the thought of one of our many banters.

"Just say something…"

"You keep forgetting who we're talking about here. We're talking about Rory Gilmore, and if I want something to happen I have to give it time, I have to let her take the first step or else I'd ruin things between us again."

"Still doesn't have a clue?" Josh asked, smiling at his own rhetorical question.

"None whatsoever." I smiled back.

"Just another thing that gets under your skin, right?"

I chuckled, "Obliviousness, I just love how she's unaware to everything that's going on around her."

"You're completely hooked."

"I can't help it."

"You've changed a lot since you first met her." he suddenly turned serious.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." I agreed.

"Jane says that you're more grown up now."

"Dealing with Rory sort of grows you up."

"I bet."

"I guess that it's because she's like a little girl in a way. And I feel the constant need to take care of her. The thing is, she really hates being taken care of."

"And she doesn't know that there's no other way." Josh said understandingly.

I smiled to myself, "That's Rory."

"And you just love playing the knight in shining armor…"

"I can't help it."

"I don't think that any guy can." He said.

"True."

"And how are you going to know that she's ready?"

"She'll tell me in one way or another."

"What do you mean?"

"Like I already said, I'm going to let her make the first move."

"Because-"

"Because she knows what I want." I cut him off.

"I'm not so sure about that."

"She's naïve, not dumb. And besides, I've kissed her a few times and I think that she's somehow realized that it wasn't a mistake. And if she hasn't gotten it by now I'm sure that someday she will."

"Maybe…"

"But I think that on some level she knows."

"Let's hope so."

"I just hope that she'd want the same someday."

"And what is she doesn't?" he asked.

"Then I'll be her friend."

"You're a guy…"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, what I mean is that someday you won't be able to just be her friend anymore."

"I'm strong." I reasoned.

"We both know that it's not going to help you in that case."

"Why don't you just shut up and go to sleep already? You have school in a few hours." I saw that he was about to say something in response so I just got up and pushed him in the door's direction. With one last smile I pushed him outside the room and shut the door in his face.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"So, I guess I'll see you later at Chilton, right?" Josh asked. It was now around 6:20 A.M and we were both sitting in the kitchen, just finishing up on our breakfast.

I smiled and got up from my seat, "Yeah, I'll be there to pick up Rory later in the afternoon." I flashed another smile in Josh' direction and picked up my bag from the floor, "Tell Rory that we're going on a trip no matter what." I said as I leaned on the doorframe and looked in his direction.

"I will." He said with a smile.

"Okay then, I guess it's time for me to leave, now that everything's settled."

"I'll walk you to the door." Josh said, about to get up.

"Don't worry, I can open the door on my own." I pushed myself off the kitchen's doorframe; "I'll see you later." As I saw his smile I turned to walk out of the house. I walked down the hall and let myself out, making sure to shut the door behind me. As I got into my car I couldn't help but feel that the day was about to be a very long one.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I was standing at the lobby of the 'Independence inn' for about twenty minutes before she finally appeared, "Hey." I said to Lorelai as I spotted her walking to the front desk, close to where I stood, without noticing my being there.

She looked at me surprised, "What are you doing here?"

"I had a fight with my parents and I thought that it would be a good idea if I stayed out of their way for a few days. Just so that they could calm down, you know." I felt uncomfortable asking her that but there was no other way, "But the thing is, I don't have a place to stay. So I was kind of wondering if you had a free, spare room around here just for a few days."

She smiled at me and I relaxed just a little, "Let me see." She walked behind the frond desk and approached the computer to check the inn's guest list.

"How's Rory?" I asked.

"A little better." she said, without taking her eyes off the computer screen.

I smiled, "That's good."

"So how did you get your parents to let you come back?" she inquired.

"Um…" I said nervously, "I told them that I had a friend in need."

"That you do." She smiled as her eyes finally turned to look at me, "Okay, I found you a room for three days."

"That'll do."

"So, what happened?" she asked as she walked from behind the front desk and signaled me to follow her lead.

"I just don't get along with them, that's all."

"I know what you mean." She laughed, "But at least you can't get pregnant."

"But I can get someone pregnant."

"Right." She chuckled.

"Can I ask you to do one more thing for me?"

"That depends." She smiled again.

"Well, come to think of it, it's to not do something…"

"What?" she looked confused.

"Is it possible that you won't tell Rory that I'm staying here?"

"Why don't you want her to know?"

"She's got enough on her mind for now." I reasoned.

She thought about it for a moment, "Okay, I guess I can do that."

"Thank you."

"No problem." She came to a halt in front of a door and turned to look at me, "Okay, young man. This is your room." She handed me the key with a smile, "Enjoy your staying at the independence inn."

I chuckled, "I will." I unlocked the door and opened it, "Thank you very much."

She glanced at her watch, "I have to go, I have a bus pulling up in ten minutes or so." And with that she was gone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"You're late." She said as I pulled my car in front of her.

"I know that, Rory. My dad wanted me to help him with something."

"You're late."

"I thought you'd be happy about it."

"Why?" she opened the door and took a seat in the passenger's seat."

"Because you don't want to go on another trip."

"I could use some fresh air."

"What's the sudden change?" I inquired.

"Paris."

"What did she do this time?" I asked knowingly.

"I'm covering the tagging of the new library books."

"Sounds like tons of fun to me."

"That's exactly what I said."

"Why can't she just let go?" I asked.

"Because it's fun to see me in pain."

"True." I couldn't help but agree.

"Hey!"

"But it still doesn't give her the right to abuse you."

"Nicely put." She gave me a smile.

"Did you bring comfortable shoes with you?"

"Yeah."

"Then you can change on the way, while I'm driving."

"Do you have any good music?"

"Well, I have Michelle Branch."

"Good" She gave me a smile

"Put your seat belt on."

"So, what did you do all day long?" she asked as she put her seat belt on.

I started the engine and backed out of the parking lot so that our afternoon together could start, "Oh, you know, I watched TV and read something, nothing too big."

"What'd you read?"

I smirked, "The latest Seventeen issue."

"And now the truth…"

"What, don't you believe me?"

"Okay, I have that issue at home, who's on the cover?"

"I don't know her name."

"Then what does she look like?"

"I don't know. She's pretty though."

"Tristan…" she said, annoyance evident in her voice.

"Fine, I read 'The Partner'. It's by John Grisham."

"Oh, I don't really like his writing. I mean, he's not one of my favorite authors."

"I never said he was, or should be."

"I hope it's not going to be too hard."

"What?" I asked confused.

"Whatever torture you're making me go through today." She explained.

"I won't let you fall on your butt this time, if that's what you're worried about."

"And I hope that there's a reward at the end"

"What do you mean?"

"An amazing view, just like last time."

"It's a promise."

She smiled, "That's good."

"So, when you leave Paris out of it, how was your day?"

"Pretty good. Chilton teaches a lot."

"That's the purpose of school…"

"Well, this school gets special points- golden ones."

"For being educational?"

"Yes."

"For doing what it's meant to do in the first place?"

"Yes." She said again with a smile.

"Only you could think that way."

"Just another reason to love me…" She grinned at me.

"Ego check, Miss Gilmore."

"Look who's talking!"

"But I have any reason to have an ego."

"Because you're a guy. I know."

"No." I chuckled, "Because I'm completely hot, and you know it."

"And delusional."

"Well, you can't fool me, but you can sure try fooling yourself."

"Oh, Mr. Dugrey, you're so funny."

"Well, Miss Gilmore, that's one of the many reasons you're in love with me..."

"I think you're confused. It's you who's in love with me."

"Denial won't help."

"No, you know what? I'm sorry, you're not in love with me, you're head over heels and completely in love with yourself."

I smirked, "What's not to love?"

"Ego check, Mr. Dugrey."

"Don't tell me that you think that my ego isn't justified…"

"It's way too big and you know it. All I'm gonna say is that you don't look too bad."

I couldn't help but smile, "Okay…"

"What?!"

"You think I'm hot."

"I also think that you're a jerk."

"But it still doesn't change the fact that you think I'm hot."

"Now I understand why girls keep saying that guys never grow up."

"It's just a part of my childish charm…" I winked at her.

"You're impossible."

"And you just love it."

"Right…"

"Just like you love me…"

"Asshole." With that she took one shoe out of her bag and threw it at me.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Okay, I'm gonna fall now." She grabbed a branch with one of her hands, hoping that it would keep her from falling.

"Why can't you just ask me to help you for once?"

"Well, are you going to help me?!"

I reached out a hand to help her, "Give me your hand."

She took the offered hand and gave me a grateful smile, "So, what are we going to do later?"

"Coffee, I guess."

"Coffee's good." She tripped again, almost falling to the ground.

"But I really think that you should concentrate on not falling at the moment."

"Right." she steadied herself, "That's a good idea."

"Yeah, I know." I started laughing.

"What?" she looked at me strangely.

"Nothing." I said, still laughing.

"Tristan…" she said warningly.

"Well, the fact that you keep falling is pretty funny."

"I already told you that I'm not that good at sports and all those things."

"Don't I know it?!"

"You're the one who insisted on doing this."

"Well, I needed some entertainment…" I smiled.

"My shoes can cause pain if I really want them to…" She warned.

"But if you hurt me you're going to be on this mountain for a long time since, apparently, no one has ever taught you how to walk."

"But I'll still have the pleasure of hurting you, and I'll cherish it forever…"

"I'm taking you down with me if you do anything."

"Oh, you wouldn't…"

"I don't think that you'd want to give it a try."

She smirked at me, "And maybe I would…"

"Miss Gilmore, you're smirking."

"I am?" she looked surprised.

"Yes, you are."

She stopped walking, looking content; "Huh…"

"What?"

"I've always wanted to know how to smirk."

"Why?"

"It's such a cool thing."

"Well," I wasn't sure what I should say; "now you know how to smirk."

She smiled at me, "I learned from the best."

"But I was born with it, I can't help it."

"That's not an excuse."

"Hey, you're the one who has always wanted to know how to smirk."

"True."

"Just another thing that you just love about me."

"No, I actually hate it when you smirk. I just think that it's a cool thing."

"When I do it…" I smirked again, knowing exactly what was coming.

"No! I just think that it's cool when I do it, you immature little boy."

"So, I've noticed that it's hard for you to walk and talk at the same time but if you keep stopping every second we're gonna be here till we're about twenty."

"Very funny. Is it far?"

"No, I think you can handle it."

"Don't even say it."

"Say what?"

"That I should shut up and that way it'll be much faster."

"I don't have to, you just said it."

"Not funny."

"I think it is."

"Just shut up and lead the way."

"Follow me." I resumed walking.

"That's the whole point of saying 'lead the way' if you haven't gotten it by now."

"The longer we stand here and argue over it, the longer it takes us to finish the whole walking part of the day."

"Why, because you can't do two things at once? I mean, after all, you are a guy." She gave me an innocent smile, going right back to the same argument we had a moment ago without even realizing she did so.

I smiled, "As you can clearly see, I can laugh at you while helping you every time you fall. If you ask me, you're the one who can't do two things at once."

"What do you mean by that?!"

"Well, Rory, what I mean by saying that is that you can't even walk and breath at the same time and that's why you keep falling. So don't tell me that I'm the incapable one between us…" I couldn't help but smirk at her.

"You're just like a dog, you're trained to do this."

"And you can't even do that…"

"You think that you're so funny, don't you?"

"Who, me?" I gave her an innocent smile, "No, just amusing."

"I didn't find what you have to say funny."

"And the only reason for that is that you just can't laugh at yourself…"

"You can be so annoying sometimes."

"I mean, it's not your fault that you don't have a sense of humor…"

"Not." She pushed me lightly, "Funny."

"Then please, enlighten me, what is funny?"

"I could come up with a few ideas."

"Such as?"

"Well…" she came closer to me, pressing her body against mine and inching closer to my mouth with hers, her lips brushing mine as she spoke quietly, "This is funny."

"What?" I had to hold my every fiber in order to stay standing and keep my hands from moving and crushing her body against mine, ending my misery at that.

She pulled away and sent a smile my way, "The look on your face is just priceless."

I shook myself mentally, "What look?"

"The one you had just a moment ago." Her smile grew wider.

"And what's your point exactly, in this whole thing?" my mind was still a bit shaken from what she'd just done.

"Well, my point is that this was funny."

"I bet." It was said mostly to myself but she heard it anyway.

"Just showing you that I do have a sense of humor…"

"We should keep on going." I said, averting my eyes away from her before turning completely the other way and starting to walk again, wanting to disappear. I guess that in a way she was only trying to make fun of me but instead she nearly killed me. She was this close and I couldn't do anything about it, I couldn't act at all in fear that it would jeopardize our friendship. If I didn't know any better I'd say that she knew exactly how it would affect me.

"Wait, are you mad at me or something?" she asked after a moment.

"No. I just need to move."

"Okay." an awkward silence fell between us.

"I'm sorry." She finally said after we've been walking for about five minutes in complete silence.

"There's nothing to be sorry about." I said as I came to a halt, looking at the view in front of me. I turned to look at her, noticing that she was distracted by something and hence, not realizing that she was facing, yet again, a beautiful view, "Rory…" I called her name quietly.

"What?" her eyes turned to look at me.

"We're here."

Her eyes turned to the ground for a moment before she looked up again to see the view in front of her eyes, "It's amazing." She smiled lightly at what she'd seen.

"I know." I said, trying to figure out what was bothering her. When all she did was stare ahead at the view I finally gave up and found a rock to sit on.

We stayed that way for about ten minutes, neither of us saying a word. Finally she turned to look at me, "Are you okay?" I could see concern in her eyes.

"I'm fine, don't worry about it."

"Whenever someone says that he's fine he's far from being fine so don't just give me some polite answer. Tell me the truth."

"I'm okay. Everything's just great."

"What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing." I lied.

"Who is it?" she asked, reading my responses like an open book.

"No one." I was getting frustrated, "What's with the third degree?"

"Why can't you just tell me who she is?"

"What?" I acted as though I was dumb.

She walked over to where I was sitting and took seat right next to me, "You look pained." She commented.

"Rory, really, I'm fine." I wasn't in the mood to dwell on it at the moment.

"Why won't you talk to me?" she asked exasperated.

"I am talking to you. Just not about this…"

"You know everything there is to know about me but for some reason you just refuse to let me in."

"Don't do this…"

"Maybe I can help."

"Nothing can help, just drop it."

"Just give it a try. You can't lose anything, right?" she insisted.

"Rory…"

"Is it because you don't trust me?"

"Rory, I'm not a girl, I'm not supposed to share my feelings." I said lamely, knowing that it wouldn't do any good.

"What's the point of being friends if I can't help?" she asked, frustrated.

"Like I've already said, no one can help so don't feel bad about it."

"I can't help it."

"I trust you, okay?"

"Then tell me."

"Rory…"

"I want to help."

"Rory." This conversation was exasperating.

"Just give it a try."

"No." I said firmly.

"Why not?"

"Rory, I can't tell you." It felt as if I was talking to a five-year-old.

"Fine. I don't want to know." she got up and started walking away.

"That's the wrong way." I said.

"I don't care." She didn't stop walking,

"Just let me help you find the right way." I got up from the rock I was sitting on.

"Aren't you afraid I'm gonna stab you in the back?" she turned to look at me.

"Why are you being this way?"

"Because you don't have to be worried, I lost my knife about a week ago."

"Just stop."

"And I left my sword and gun at home…"

"Fine, I give up. What do you want to know?" she was so frustrating.

"What happened?"

We made eye contact for a moment, "Nothing."

"And now the truth…"

I was quiet for a moment, "I saw her." it came out in a shaky voice.

"Who?" I looked at her for a moment, "Right, sorry. I know who."

"Yeah…"

"Well, actually, uh… technically I don't know who."

"You said you wanted to help, right?"

"Yes, I did."

"Then just drop the subject."

"Why?"

"Because it hurts to talk about it, Rory." I made eye contact again, sending her a pleading look.

"Fine." She said quietly, giving me a reassuring smile.

"Thank you." I felt relief take all over me.

She smiled my way, "So, which way is the right one?"

"Well, since you were going the wrong way to one side, another one would bring death a bit closer because you could fall and die and the third is a bit tough to climb since it's too vertical I think that you're left with just one choice. And you just can't go wrong again…" I smirked, enjoying myself.

"Hilarious."

"Do you want to maybe lead the way this time?"

She gave me an incredulous look, "No!"

"Where you lead, I will follow anywhere that you tell me to…" I started singing.

"Just start moving." she said annoyed.

"If you need, you need me to be with you I will follow where you lead…" I kept on going, ignoring the look I was getting.

"I'm warning you…"

"I'm so scared."

"Stop smirking, you asshole."

"You're so cute when you're mad."

"I think jumping off the cliff would be a great idea right now."

I smiled, "Oh, come on, Rory, you know that you just love it when I teas you."

She stared at me for a moment, "Fine." She finally said, "Think whatever you want to think. Let's just go and get some coffee before I go mental and choke you to death."

"Oh, I can actually help you with that one." I sent a smile her way as I took my bag off my shoulders. With another smile I took a blue thermos out of my back pack and handed it to her, "Here."

She snatched it out of my hands and opened the cap. Smelling what was inside it she gave me a wide smile, "Some days I just love you."

I smiled at her words.

"What?" she looked at me strangely.

"Nothing." I said, still smiling.

"Hey, did you bring cups with you by any chance?"

"Yes, I did." I reached for my bag again and took out of it two cups.

"See? That's the reason I love you. You think about everything."

I chuckled, "Well, I always love you. And I don't need a reason for that."

"Yeah, well, you're dumb." She started laughing, "Do you want some?" she asked, referring to the coffee in her hands.

"Sure."

"I love coffee." she said it as if it were a novelty to me.

"I know." I smiled, "That's why I brought it."

"That's a very nice thing of you to do." She said as she poured the steaming liquid into the two cups and handed one to me.

"Well, what can I say? I'm a nice person." I took the cup from her hand.

She took a sip, "Very modest, too."

"That too."

"So, what exactly are we going to do when we're done doing this?" she inquired.

"Get off the mountain."

She smiled, "And then?"

"That's up to you, Missy…"

"How about Luke's?"

"Fine with me."

"And then a relaxing evening in front of the TV…"

"A movie night again?"

"What do you mean, 'again'?"

"I'm starting to think that every night is a movie night…"

"Well, you don't have to stay."

"What did you have in mind though?"

"I don't know. We could rent something nice."

"I'm picking the movie this time."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to watch another 'Pretty Woman' movie-like."

"Oh, come on, just admit it. You love that movie."

"It's like a Disney movie."

"Are you saying that you don't like Disney movies?" she looked at me, amazement in her big, blue eyes.

"No. I never said that."

"Then what are you saying?"

"That they should have made it an animation movie."

"But then Julia Roberts would have been out of work…"

"I already told you that I hate her."

"Then what do you want to watch, 'Bring it on'? I mean, it's a movie with cheerleaders so you'd have to love a movie like that…"

"It's another one of those cheesy movies for teenagers. I'd rather not watch it again because one time was more enough."

"Hey! You just said that you like Disney movies." She said, finally realizing so.

"Yes. I guess I did say so."

"Then let's watch a Disney movie." She smiled.

"Stop saying that word all the time."

"What, Disney?"

"You're such a little girl…"

"Because I want to watch a Disney movie?"

"I really want to push you now."

"But then you won't be able to watch a Disney movie with me…"

"You just love getting on my nerves, don't you?"

"Who, me?"

"So what do you want to watch?"

"Aladdin." She said with a smile.

"I was sort of thinking about 'Beauty and the Beast'. They actually have a new edition to that movie. Something about a new featured musical sequence in there or something, that they cut from the first edition."

"I love that movie."

"Yeah, well, I love Belle. She's so naïve…"

She rolled her eyes, "Suits you…"

"So I guess that means that we're renting it."

"Yeah, I guess we are."

"Then let's go."

"Lead the way…"

I smirked

"Don't you dare opening your mouth, I don't want to hear it."

"I was just going to say that-"

"Quiet." She cut me off, "I just want to get to your car."

"To the back seat, right?"

She came closer and smacked me in the head, "Asshole."

"I never imagined that you'd be like that. But I guess you shouldn't judge a book by its cover…" I smiled at the irony of my words while rubbing my head, Rory and her love of books, it was just too obvious to ignore.

"Jackass."

"Isn't that a cool show?"

"You probably went to the auditions."

"No, I was busy that day."

"That's just too bad…"

"Isn't it? You missed a chance to drool without me knowing about it." I smirked.

She ignored my last comment, "How can you even watch that show?"

"I love it when people do stupid things." I explained.

"So you tried it yourself?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The reason you were sent to military school."

"Oh… that."

"What did you think I was talking about?"

"Nothing in particular."

"So, why did you do it anyway?"

"I got bored."

"So you started doing stupid things?"

"It passed time along…"

"Right. That's the reason you did it." She said, not believing me.

"Okay, oh smart one, tell me then, why do you think I did it?"

"That subject you don't want to talk about."

"You couldn't be more wrong." We both knew that it was a lie.

"Tristan, don't forget that I know you pretty well by now."

"Well, you're human, people make mistakes."

"You're not supposed to lie to me."

"I'm not lying."

"Why is it that every time I try to seriously talk to you, you find a way to avoid answering any of my questions?" she asked, exasperated, "I don't get it."

"Fine. It wasn't all there was to it, but it had some affect on my actions."

"Was that so hard?"

"Well, since you don't want me to lie to you I'll just tell you the truth. Yes, it was very hard. One of the hardest things I ever had to do."

"If you tell me who she is I could find out what she thinks of you…"

"You just said it. This is a subject I don't want to talk about."

"See? What did I tell you?"

"Hey," I said, smiling, "You can see the car from here."

"Avoidance won't help."

"And you know this because as soon as you've realized that you didn't love Dean anymore you broke up with him."

"No. I know this because I avoided doing so, and then look what happened…"

"I can't learn from your mistakes, Rory."

"You can try."

"I don't want to."

"You're so stupid!"

"And you're so oblivious." I was so frustrated.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, Rory. Nothing."

"Tell me."

"Look, why don't I take you home so that we can watch the movie?"

"Tell me." she glared at me.

"You see? The car's right over there." I pointed to the car in sight.

"Tristan…" she kept insisting.

"Rory, drop it. I'm just going to take you home."

"You can't just say something and then refuse to explain yourself." She said angrily, "It's not something you do. You said it, so you can't run away from it now."

"I don't intend to."

"Then tell me."

"No."

She groaned, "I hate this."

"Hate what, Rory?"

"That you don't trust me even though you keep saying that you do."

"Why do you have to make it about you? You don't have anything to do with it."

"I care about you and I want to help. But I can't do that when I don't know what's wrong. When you won't tell me what's wrong…"

"Rory…" I said in frustration.

"I don't think that we're friends." I turned to look at her, waiting for an explanation, "When I don't want to talk about something you keep pushing it. But when I try to help you all you do is just push me away, and I don't know why."

"Then stop pushing." I resumed walking.

Another groan, "Just tell me."

"For the last time, Rory, I'm not telling you. So just drop it."

"I hate you."

"Yeah, well, why don't you hate me on the way to your house?" I said as we reached the car.

"Really can't stand you…"

"Get in the car, Rory."

"I'd rather walk."

"You know the drill, you can either do it yourself or I'll do it for you."

"Fine." She opened the door and got into the car, sitting in the passenger's seat and looking at me angrily.

"I got inside myself and turned to look at her, "Good choice."

She turned to look out the window, "Asshole."

"Yeah, yeah…" with one final look in her direction I started the engine.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

(Hey, sorry to bother you but I was hoping that you might want to help me and give me suggestions for a name to this fic, since I really hate its current name.)