"Rory!" Lorelai called. "Rory, where are you? Mommy is having a mid-life
crisis here, if you don't answer me, I'm going to pull out all my hair, and
I'm having a good hair day so we don't want that. . . . Rory?"
"Mom?" Lorelai heard a muffled response.
Lorelai sighed. "Marco!"
"Polo!" came from the distance. Lorelai followed the sound upstairs. "Marco!"
". . . Polo!"
Lorelai continued her trek up the stairs until she noticed Rory digging through the linen closet. "Hey babe, what are you doing?"
Rory emerged from the closet with an armful of bed sheets. She dropped them on the carpet in front of her and grinned triumphantly. She rubbed her hands together and blew a strand of hair away from her face. "It's been getting pretty warm out lately so I thought I would dig out the lighter bed sheets so I don't sweat profusely through the night."
Lorelai nodded her head slowly. "I see, and you just got a sudden impulse to change our bed linen?"
"Yeah, basically. So what was this I heard about a mid-life crisis? Did Mr. Christie stop making those Chip's Ahoy rainbow cookies?" She asked, a concerned expression on her face.
"Um, no! If they stopped making the fun rainbow cookies I would have killed myself by now. No, no, no, this problem is far less urgent than that one would be."
Rory shrugged her shoulders. ". . . so?"
Lorelai bit her lip. "Luke is going to ask Nicole to marry him."
Rory clapped her hands together. "Oh, that's so great!" After seeing Lorelai's eyes narrow, she gulped. "Isn't it?"
Lorelai sighed. "I don't know. I should be so happy for him. I mean, it's Luke! Luke is my best friend; I want him to be happy. . ."
Rory nodded, understanding. "You want him to be happy, but just not with Nicole."
"What are you getting at?"
"You want to marry Luke!"
"What? No I don't!"
"You want to marry Luke and have little Luke babies!"
"Rory, stop that!"
"And they will wear little flannel shirts and be addicted to coffee!" Rory laughed.
"Demon child!" Lorelai backed away from her, holding her index fingers in the shape of a cross. "Evil, evil, evil! I can no longer call you my daughter!"
"Mom, calm down! It was a joke. But I think I know why you are getting so worked up about this."
Lorelai narrowed her eyes. "Alright, I'll listen to you, but you have to promise not to start talking about flannel babies again."
"I promise." She held up her hand. "Scouts honor."
"You were never a girl scout. . ."
"Umm, okay. . . coffee addicts honor."
Lorelai nodded, accepting that. "Alright, continue."
Rory walked into Lorelai's bedroom and sat herself down on her bed, getting comfortable. She motioned for Lorelai to sit beside her.
"Okay, I think that subconsciously---,"
"Wait, you lost me after 'I think'."
Rory smacked her arm lightly. "Hey, be serious. This is your future we're talking about here."
"Oh, my future? Are you, like, a fortune teller? Can you tell me if I'm going to win the lottery or become the Queen of Canada?"
"Mom, Canada doesn't have a Queen."
"All the more reason for me to become the Queen of Canada; I bet they need one." Lorelai wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.
"Okay, totally irrelevant to the situation at hand here."
"And what is the situation at hand?" Lorelai questioned. "That you're in love with Luke but you just don't realize it yet."
"Well you're in love with Tristan, but you haven't realized that either. What do you think about that?"
"This conversation is not about Tristan and me!"
"So. . . there's a 'Tristan and me?' What did you two do while I was gone?"
"Nothing, we just talked, decided to be friendly towards each other, and then he left."
Lorelai giggled. "Dirty."
"How was that possibly dirty?"
Lorelai shrugged, poking Rory's arm. "I don't know, it wasn't really, but you weren't giving me anything, and I had to incorporate dirty in there somewhere because you were alone in this house with a boy."
Rory rolled her eyes. "This is also irrelevant to the topic at hand. No more avoiding the subject, Mom!"
Lorelai grumbled a response along the lines of 'Fine, but no coffee for you tomorrow. . . demon child,' and sighed.
"Okay, so Luke is thinking of asking Nicole to marry him."
Lorelai nodded.
"And how do you feel about that?"
"I don't know. I spit out my coffee! I would never spit out my coffee."
Rory gave her a strange look. "So he told you he was going to marry Nicole, and you spit on him?"
"I didn't spit ON him.I spit on his nice, clean counter."
Rory laughed. "Okay, so you must have been pretty upset if you spit out your coffee. Do you think you are upset because you have developed subconscious feelings for Luke over the years?"
Lorelai bit her lip. "Maybe. . . but I don't want to ruin his relationship with Nicole. He seems to like her so much."
"Mom. . . he has been in love with you for years. Can't you see it? It's in his eyes, you can just tell." Rory smiled gently at her mother as she tried to protest. "It's true. I think you need to talk to Luke. If you don't tell him soon, it will be too late."
"Too late? That sounds ominous."
Rory smiled. "It is! Now, go to Luke's! Tell him you're madly in love with him and you want to have his flannel babies!"
"Hey! You promised!"
Rory grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I couldn't help it."
Lorelai shrugged. "Oh well, I'll forgive you this time. I'm not going to go to Luke's tonight; I'm too exhausted from this conversation. I'll go over in the morning before I head to the Inn and try to tell him, but it isn't going to be fun or easy. . ."
"Well honey, life ain't easy."
"I can't believe you just quoted a Cleopatra song. I told you that you were a demon child. . ." Lorelai shook her head, disappointed. "Have I taught you nothing?"
Rory laughed and hoisted herself off the bed. She tossed a rolled up pair of socks at her mother and headed towards the doorway, singing "Lorelai loves Luuuke, Lorelai loves Luuuke. . ."
Lorelai frowned. "Demon!"
"Mom?" Lorelai heard a muffled response.
Lorelai sighed. "Marco!"
"Polo!" came from the distance. Lorelai followed the sound upstairs. "Marco!"
". . . Polo!"
Lorelai continued her trek up the stairs until she noticed Rory digging through the linen closet. "Hey babe, what are you doing?"
Rory emerged from the closet with an armful of bed sheets. She dropped them on the carpet in front of her and grinned triumphantly. She rubbed her hands together and blew a strand of hair away from her face. "It's been getting pretty warm out lately so I thought I would dig out the lighter bed sheets so I don't sweat profusely through the night."
Lorelai nodded her head slowly. "I see, and you just got a sudden impulse to change our bed linen?"
"Yeah, basically. So what was this I heard about a mid-life crisis? Did Mr. Christie stop making those Chip's Ahoy rainbow cookies?" She asked, a concerned expression on her face.
"Um, no! If they stopped making the fun rainbow cookies I would have killed myself by now. No, no, no, this problem is far less urgent than that one would be."
Rory shrugged her shoulders. ". . . so?"
Lorelai bit her lip. "Luke is going to ask Nicole to marry him."
Rory clapped her hands together. "Oh, that's so great!" After seeing Lorelai's eyes narrow, she gulped. "Isn't it?"
Lorelai sighed. "I don't know. I should be so happy for him. I mean, it's Luke! Luke is my best friend; I want him to be happy. . ."
Rory nodded, understanding. "You want him to be happy, but just not with Nicole."
"What are you getting at?"
"You want to marry Luke!"
"What? No I don't!"
"You want to marry Luke and have little Luke babies!"
"Rory, stop that!"
"And they will wear little flannel shirts and be addicted to coffee!" Rory laughed.
"Demon child!" Lorelai backed away from her, holding her index fingers in the shape of a cross. "Evil, evil, evil! I can no longer call you my daughter!"
"Mom, calm down! It was a joke. But I think I know why you are getting so worked up about this."
Lorelai narrowed her eyes. "Alright, I'll listen to you, but you have to promise not to start talking about flannel babies again."
"I promise." She held up her hand. "Scouts honor."
"You were never a girl scout. . ."
"Umm, okay. . . coffee addicts honor."
Lorelai nodded, accepting that. "Alright, continue."
Rory walked into Lorelai's bedroom and sat herself down on her bed, getting comfortable. She motioned for Lorelai to sit beside her.
"Okay, I think that subconsciously---,"
"Wait, you lost me after 'I think'."
Rory smacked her arm lightly. "Hey, be serious. This is your future we're talking about here."
"Oh, my future? Are you, like, a fortune teller? Can you tell me if I'm going to win the lottery or become the Queen of Canada?"
"Mom, Canada doesn't have a Queen."
"All the more reason for me to become the Queen of Canada; I bet they need one." Lorelai wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.
"Okay, totally irrelevant to the situation at hand here."
"And what is the situation at hand?" Lorelai questioned. "That you're in love with Luke but you just don't realize it yet."
"Well you're in love with Tristan, but you haven't realized that either. What do you think about that?"
"This conversation is not about Tristan and me!"
"So. . . there's a 'Tristan and me?' What did you two do while I was gone?"
"Nothing, we just talked, decided to be friendly towards each other, and then he left."
Lorelai giggled. "Dirty."
"How was that possibly dirty?"
Lorelai shrugged, poking Rory's arm. "I don't know, it wasn't really, but you weren't giving me anything, and I had to incorporate dirty in there somewhere because you were alone in this house with a boy."
Rory rolled her eyes. "This is also irrelevant to the topic at hand. No more avoiding the subject, Mom!"
Lorelai grumbled a response along the lines of 'Fine, but no coffee for you tomorrow. . . demon child,' and sighed.
"Okay, so Luke is thinking of asking Nicole to marry him."
Lorelai nodded.
"And how do you feel about that?"
"I don't know. I spit out my coffee! I would never spit out my coffee."
Rory gave her a strange look. "So he told you he was going to marry Nicole, and you spit on him?"
"I didn't spit ON him.I spit on his nice, clean counter."
Rory laughed. "Okay, so you must have been pretty upset if you spit out your coffee. Do you think you are upset because you have developed subconscious feelings for Luke over the years?"
Lorelai bit her lip. "Maybe. . . but I don't want to ruin his relationship with Nicole. He seems to like her so much."
"Mom. . . he has been in love with you for years. Can't you see it? It's in his eyes, you can just tell." Rory smiled gently at her mother as she tried to protest. "It's true. I think you need to talk to Luke. If you don't tell him soon, it will be too late."
"Too late? That sounds ominous."
Rory smiled. "It is! Now, go to Luke's! Tell him you're madly in love with him and you want to have his flannel babies!"
"Hey! You promised!"
Rory grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I couldn't help it."
Lorelai shrugged. "Oh well, I'll forgive you this time. I'm not going to go to Luke's tonight; I'm too exhausted from this conversation. I'll go over in the morning before I head to the Inn and try to tell him, but it isn't going to be fun or easy. . ."
"Well honey, life ain't easy."
"I can't believe you just quoted a Cleopatra song. I told you that you were a demon child. . ." Lorelai shook her head, disappointed. "Have I taught you nothing?"
Rory laughed and hoisted herself off the bed. She tossed a rolled up pair of socks at her mother and headed towards the doorway, singing "Lorelai loves Luuuke, Lorelai loves Luuuke. . ."
Lorelai frowned. "Demon!"
