*Disclaimer: I don't own the series Gilmore Girls or the characters. All I own is my imagination and the plot.

*A/N: Hey!!! I know I kind of left you guys hanging in the last chapter, with the last sentence and all, but at least you guys didn't have to wait too long. This chapter might not be exactly what you were expecting, but then again it's my creation, so I get to choose how it ends. Mean huh ? This is not the ending however. There will be one more chapter. And I've got some NEWS! But I'll tell you all about it in the next chapter. Thanks again for the reviews! They inspire me to write cliffhangers and unexpecting chapters! :-) Please review this chapter and tell me what ya think.

*~*~*:-)*~*~*Bye, smile :-)

For a minute neither one of them said anything. Rory listened to Jess' steady breathing, wondering if she did the right thing. Did she choose the right time and place ? No, but then again what was the right time and place ? She had wanted to tell him on the beach, but for some unknown reason her lips had trouble forming the words. So, she figured that now would be the perfect time to tell him, since they were alone and he was on top of her.........? What was she thinking ?! Could she be more heartless ? She was startled when Jess finally broke the killing silence between them.

J: ''What ?''

Rory ignored the knot in her stomach, that was getting tighter by the minute, making it harder for her to breath, and slowly forced herself to meet his gaze.

R: ''I think.........we should break up.''

J: ''Why ?''

Jess' voice was soft and his eyes remained unreadable, but Rory knew that underneath the surface flames were brewing, burning his skin. And soon the smoke would find it's way out.

R: ''We're too different.''

J: ''Different ?''

Rory was aware that he was still on top of her and he was getting heavier by the minute.

R: ''Yeah, besides I'm going to college.''

J: ''That's what this is about ? I'm not good enough for you ?!''

Rory cringed as he raised his voice. He had raised his voice before, but this time it was different. This time she knew that it was her fault and that he had every right to be mad at her.

R: ''Of course you're good enough for me. I just don't want you to feel tied up with me. I want you to date other girls.''

J: ''I don't wanna date other girls.''

Rory say the pleading look in his eyes. Jess, the independent rebel with his I-don't-give-a-damn-attitude finally seemed to have found his cause. And now he was on the verge of losing it. Rory fought her urge to cry and looked into Jess' eyes again, trying to ignore the pain that was clearly visible in his atramentous eyes.

R: ''Jess, long distance relationships almost never work.''

J: ''Almost never. Let us be the exception.''

He looked into her eyes, trying to find a reason why she would be doing this. Suddenly he figured that he should probably try to find a reason why she wouldn't be doing this. All the times he snapped at her, forgot to call her, didn't wanna hang out with her friends. And the fact that he didn't tell her about his dad. But she said she understood. And he knew that she hadn't been lying to him, she never did. Then why..........

J: ''You wanna break up, so you can date other people in college ?''

R: ''What ? Jess.............no. I.........I just.............''

J: ''You just what ?!''

Rory didn't say anything, but just looked at him. Why didn't he understand ? She couldn't do this anymore. She was sick of trying to figure him out. Now he was hot and then he was cold. She didn't wanna read his mind anymore and ask a zillion questions before he finally told her something. She loved him, but it was time to let him go. They both had their own lives now. He had a family, one that genuinely seemed to care for him.

R: ''Get off me.......please.''

He was almost crushing her and she didn't like being so close to him when he was mad. She tried to push him away, but he didn't move, not an inch. Instead he looked at her, his eyes narrowed and darker than usual.

J: ''Do you like playing games Rory ?''

R: ''What ?''

J: ''Do you like playing games ?''

R: ''I.....I don't understand.''

J: ''Drop the whole innocent act. First you're practically all over me and now you want me to get off of you ?''

R: ''I didn't mean..........I...............''

J: ''Having trouble finding the right words ?''

Suddenly Rory got mad. He made it sound as if she meant to hurt him.

R: ''I hate you when you're like this. You won't even listen to me. You just get mad and assume that I wanted to hurt you. I didn't ! Okay Jess ? I didn't and I'm sorry. Now, get off me.''

Jess locked eyes with her, openly affected by her words. He nodded and got off of her. He got up and ran his hands through his hair. Rory sat up straight, relieved that she could move again. She knew that Jess would never hurt her, but she felt safer now that he wasn't on top of her anymore. Finally he stopped and looked at her.

J: ''Why ?''

His voice sounded calm now, like he actually wanted to listen to her without yelling. Rory took a deep breath and lowered her eyes.

R: ''Cause your life is here now. You're dad's here and they seem to care about you.''

J: ''They're okay, but my life isn't here. Not only anyway. Luke, he's in Stars Hollow and since he's my uncle, I'm pretty sure he's a part of my life.''

Rory knew that he was trying to find something that he could hold on to.

R: ''You never liked Stars Hollow Jess. You said so yourself.''

J: ''Maybe I lied.''

R: ''Maybe, but I know you and.............you're staying here. For a while at least.''

J: ''That's the only reason you have for breaking up with me ?''

R: ''No.''

J: ''Then what are the other ones ?''

He kneeled in front of Rory and caught her gaze with his. Rory sighed and wiped her hair away from her face, so he could look into her eyes. This way he could see for himself if she was sincere or not.

R: ''I don't want to fight with you anymore. And I don't want to push you anymore to tell me things. I know you said that I didn't push you, but I did. Trust me, I got that quality from my mom.''

J: ''So, if we're not boyfriend and girlfriend anymore............then what are we ?''

R: ''Friends. We were friends before and we'll be friends after. Right ?''

Jess sighed and ran one of his hands through his hair again. It made Rory smile, cause he always did that when he was nervous or thinking about something. At least they would still know these things about each other and at some point that was reassuring.

J: ''Friends. Can I ask you a question ?''

R: ''You already did, but yeah, sure.''

Jess smiled at her comment, knowing that he could never hate her. Not even when she broke his heart.

J: ''Why friends instead of........well, you know.''

R: ''Cause friendship is a lot more less complicated than a relationship. We don't have to fight about going places anymore. We won't be jealous, cause we won't be together anymore. And we won't have to tell each other things unless we want to.''

J: ''Is this what you want ?''

R: ''Yes. I want to be friends with you again. Talk about books, watch movies and I just want to be able to hang out with you. No strings attached.''

Jess had to admit that that didn't sound so bad. He could handle being friends with her again, right ? Sure it would be hard at first, but they would get there, eventually. And if it was something she really wanted, then who was he to deny it from her ?

J: ''Okay.''

He got up and nodded before he went to the door. Right before he left the room, he looked at her once more.

J: ''I hope you got your closure.''

And with that he left the room, silently closing the door behind him.

As soon as he was gone, tears started to fall. Rory didn't bother to wipe them away, she just let them slide down her cheeks. Soon all she could taste was salt and her vision got blurred, as if she was standing behind a waterfall, looking at the scenery on the other end of it. Finally she fell asleep, an expression of hurt on her face, but there wasn't a hint of regret.

After about an hour of fighting his emotions and trying to understand where Rory was coming from, Jess went to check up on her. He found her lying on her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest and the covers kicked to the side. He walked over to her and studied her as she lay there. He hair tucked behind her ears even though she was sleeping. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips, but faded when he saw her tear stained face. He squadded next to her. How could he be mad at her ? He tenderly put the covers over her.

Suddenly her eyelashes fluttered and Rory slowly opened her eyes. As soon as she recognized Jess, pain and misery clouded her eyes. Her heart started to ache as she met his eyes.

R: ''I'm sorry, I.............I didn't.............I never meant to hurt you.''

Jess reached out his hand and rested his fingers on her cheek before he started to wipe the remains of her tears away. How could he have ever thought that she would deliberately want to hurt him.

Rory took in his touch, cause she knew that it would probably the last time he would touch her......like this. His fingers were so rough, yet they caressed her skin soft. His movements were slow and gentle, never once breaking eye contact with her.

J: ''I know..............Go to sleep.''

Jess smiled at her, letting her know that it was okay and that he would still be here when she woke up. Jess removed his fingers from her face and wanted to drop his hand, but before he could, Rory took it and entwined her fingers with his. They were both afraid of letting go. Finally Rory fell into a peaceful sleep, their hands still entwined. And by the time Sasha and Jimmy came home, Jess was asleep too. His back leaning against the wall next to where Rory was sleeping, his hand still locked around Rory's.

*R*E*V*I*E*W*! Please ? :-) (Thanks again 4 all the reviews!)