Pairing - Tristan and Rory...

Disclaimer - I wish I owned them, but unfortunately I don't. They belong to Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions and Hofflund/Polone in association with Warner Bros. Television. I'm merely borrowing them. Although I would love to steal Tristan away...

Feedback - Weird... I've been getting exactly 16 reviews for every chapter... C'mon, give me 17 for this one! *hehe*

A/N - Wow, I actually finished this chapter quicker than I thought. You could attribute it to the pile of snow outside, which makes it virtually impossible to go anywhere.

Chapter Four - I Believe in You

He found her still in the library. She was standing beside the fireplace, a glass of brandy in her hand. Her eyes were focused on the fire, watching it crackle. She didn't even notice that he was watching her, until he cleared his throat. She looked up with a start.

"Evelyn already left," Rory said, her voice quiet. Her eyes turned downwards again, focusing on the fire. He took a closer look at her. She seemed saddened, and Tristan knew why. He almost didn't want to go through with his plan, but then again, he didn't know what else he could do.

"Actually I was looking for you," he replied. He watched as Rory looked up curiously. "I need a favor." She let out a short, bitter laugh.

"Of course. Only Tristan DuGrey would be a complete asshole one second, then ask for a favor the next," she said sarcastically, as she took a swig of the brandy. Tristan walked over to her, and took the glass away from her.

"How much have you drank?" he asked, as Rory attempted to grab the glass back.

"Does it matter?" she challenged.

"This isn't you," Tristan said, as he dumped the remainder of the glass into the fire, which roared to life. Rory watched the flames crackle loudly, before she focused on Tristan again.

"So what's this favor you need?" she asked, with a sigh.

Tristan hesitated. Don't do it, a small voice in the back of his head told him. It's only going to hurt her. He was shocked at this admission. He didn't realize that after everything, hurting her was still the last thing he wanted to do.

"Never mind," Tristan quickly said. "It's nothing." He never realized that after all this time, he stopped being angry at her. Tristan turned around to leave the library, when he heard her voice.

"Tristan."

He stopped walking, and forced himself to face her again.

"Just tell me," she said, her voice softening up.

He was weak. He was never able to refuse any of her requests. Well, except for her 'no' to PJ Harvey, but that was a different story. Tristan sighed.

"My father hates Evelyn," he said. Rory shot him a quizzical look. "He hates her family," he explained.

"So how does that concern me? You said you needed a favor..." Rory asked, still confused.

"He likes your family," Tristan replied. "And guess who he wants me to start dating?" he said, his voice trailing off as Rory began to piece things together.

"Oh," she said, a small frown forming on her face. Her eyes dropped down, as they began to focus on the finely woven rug.

"Yeah, oh," Tristan agreed. They were both silent for a moment, before Tristan spoke again. "It was just a stupid idea... I never would've expected you to want to be my girlfriend, much less my pretend girlfriend."

"You never know," Rory silently murmured under her breath.

"It was just a stupid idea," Tristan repeated. "The way things are between us... It'd just complicate things." Rory nodded. "So yeah, don't worry about it. I'll figure something else out," he said, as he turned around again, on his way to the door.

* * *

Don't let him walk away, the voice in Rory's mind shouted at her, as she watched Tristan's retreating back. If he walks out, he might as well be walking out of your life for good. He was two steps away from the door. Rory knew that if walked out, she might never get the opportunity to be close to him again.

You stuck to the road well taken, just because you were just so damn scared to take the road less traveled.

She knew that pretending to be Tristan's girlfriend would hurt her. She knew that she was gambling with her heart. But she couldn't let go of him so easily. It was time to take the road less traveled. Rory closed her eyes tightly, and uttered the words she was dreading to say.

"I'll do it."

Tristan whipped around, surprised.

"You're kidding, right?" he asked.

"No," Rory said slowly. "I'll do it."

"And you're sure it's not the alcohol talking?" he asked, with a skeptical look.

"Well maybe a little bit," Rory admitted. "But I'll still do it."

She watched as Tristan's face lit up with a smile. His smile faded slightly when he noticed the subdued expression on his face, but he couldn't mask his gratitude.

"Thank you," he said quietly, before leaving the library.

"You're welcome," Rory said, her voice echoing in the empty room.

She knew her motives weren't pure. But she knew that it was also time to fight for what she wanted.

* * *

"I'm sorry."

Tristan didn't know what else to say. Here he was, telling his girlfriend that he loved, that he had to pretend to be dating another girl - one that he used to be in love with before - because his father hated the said girlfriend. It was a sticky situation. But as Tristan watched Evelyn closely, he began to realize that she didn't look mad at all. Instead, she looked relieved.

"You don't have to be," she said softy.

The two were lying back in Tristan's bed, his arms wrapped around her. These were the moments Tristan cherished. The ones where they could just be alone, doing nothing at all, and just enjoying the feel of being close to one another. It was the only time when Tristan truly felt loved.

"If it wasn't for my father, then I wouldn't have to do this," he said frustrated. "I hate that we can't be like this all the time."

"I do too," Evelyn said soothingly, as she broke out of Tristan's warm embrace so that she could face him. "But it's our only option. My father would kill me if he found out I was dating you," she admitted. "Or worse yet, he'd pressure me into using you for corporate espionage purposes."

They were both silent, as they contemplated how their relationship was going to change over the next few weeks.

"But you do trust me, right?" Tristan asked softly. He looked into Evelyn's hazel eyes, wondering if she had any doubts in her mind.

"Is there any reason I shouldn't?" she asked, as she leaned over to place a soft kiss on Tristan's cheeks. She re-positioned herself so that she was back into his arms, feeling the faint beat of his heart on her back.

Tristan hesitated slightly. Ever since he came to the realization that his feelings for Rory changed, he'd been wondering that himself. He loved Evelyn with all his heart, but he knew that there was always going to be a part of him that would feel something for Rory. She was the first girl he loved, and she'll always have that place in his heart. And now that they were going to go through with this plan... Pretending that they were boyfriend/girlfriend... In such close proximities... He snapped out of his daydreaming stupor.

"No reason at all," he whispered, wishing that he had as much faith in himself that Evelyn did.