The Road Less Traveled
SPOILERS - None.
SUMMARY - Same as the other chapters, PG-13
DISCLAIMER - They own it all - the WB and Amy Sherman-Palladino
A/N: JessnRory2003 - thank you for your insight on the eppy that I recapped in Jess's journal - sorry for the timeline inconsistencies! And yes, ASP tends to confuse days/weeks/months sometimes (i.e., we went from Thanksgiving to the winter carnival which takes place after Christmas and New Year's, but didn't get to see either of them)...but we forgive her! (that is, we will if she brings Jess back in S4, that is!)
A/N2: Sorry for the tease, but I originally thought that I might bring Brenda back into the picture, leaving threatening (and wacko) messages on their answering machine - stuff like 'how could you do this to me, I thought we had something, etc., etc.' and maybe threaten to do something to Rory - like 'I know where she works and if she's out of the picture we can be together, etc.' - but I just didn't want to go there.
************************************
Chapter Twenty-Four
Tuesday morning brought the same routine - a quick breakfast and then Rory leaves for work. I've never been a big fan of routines, but I think this is one routine I could get used to. I checked my email and made some notes regarding what Bill wanted me to specifically cover. At least he didn't restrict me too much, so I could find a different angle for this story. I showered and packed up my journal and notepad in my briefcase and headed out into town. Rory told me where to find the metro station and I took it into downtown D.C. Just getting there and experiencing a city is usually my favorite way to write about it - just talk to people (yeah, me, talk to strangers) and find out where the locals go. That's the best way to find the hidden restaurants off of the beaten path - as well as art galleries and clubs that cater to the eclectic instead of the mainstream. Bill likes that angle and I like going off the beaten path, so it works out great. I spent the entire day wandering through D.C., ducking into shops and restaurants, checking out bookstores and galleries, making notes as I went along. I found what looked like an awesome restaurant and made dinner reservations for me and Rory at 7:30. I was on the train at 5:30 and called Rory on her cellphone to let her know about the reservation and that we'd be heading into the city. I was walking from the train station when a car slowed down next to me. "Hey baby, want a ride?" I heard a female voice ask. I was about to turn and tell her to fuck off when I realized it was Rory in her Prius faking her voice. "Nice scowl! Close to my withering stare!" she laughed. Another moment in time that I still need to write about.
"Sure, baby, but do you think you can afford me?" I winked as I got into the car.
"Do you take credit cards?" she grinned back.
"I'll take whatever I can get," I said and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.
"So, how's my husband today?" she said sweetly.
"Good, I found some great places, an awesome bookstore near the restaurant that we have GOT to check out tonight," I smiled. It was so easy to be with her again.
"Sounds great," she said as we pulled into the apartment complex. We went inside and changed our clothes. I put on a suit and she changed into a pretty black cocktail dress. She put her hair up in a messy bun and put on some dangly earrings.
"You look good enough to eat," I said, snaking my arms around her as she touched up her makeup in the bathroom. She made a face at me in the mirror as I ran my hands up to cover her breasts.
"Jess," she warned. "If you start this we are never going to get out of here, and we'll miss our reservation, and you won't be able to write up this restaurant, and you'll loose your job, and we'll go hungry, and..."
"Okay, okay, I got the message!" I laughed and kiss the back of her neck. "Let's go."
We drove there and had a fantastic meal. We walked over to the bookstore and wandered among the shelves, choosing a few titles. As we checked out, the shop owner recognized me. "You're Jess Mariano, aren't you? Would you autograph my book?" he asked, pulling out a copy from under the shelf with a bookmark in it. I signed it for him and Rory looked at me proudly.
"Stop," I warned as she grinned at me while we drove home.
"Why? I think it's great that you're recognized," she smiled.
"I don't. I'd prefer to be anonymous, it was my editor's idea to put my picture on the dust jacket. I hated having to sit for it."
"It's a great picture, you photograph well! Oh, we have to figure out which of our wedding pictures we want to have copies of, we should do that when we get home. Mom and Luke want wallet-size pictures, I know you probably don't want to....but,"
"Actually, I would like a wallet photo," I said awkwardly pulling out my wallet. "I think this one needs to be updated," I said as I pulled out a folded, faded photo and handed it to Rory. It was the one of us on the porch swing, the same picture that she had on her dresser. The only photo ever taken of the two of us that I know of.
"Wow, you've had that in your wallet all this time?" she said quietly, tears welling up in her eyes. I reached over and held her hand.
"I never stopped loving you, Rory, I never stopped holding on to the hope that we'd be together again, so I kept the photo to look at now and again to remind me of why I was working and trying to become worthy of you," I glanced over at her. She squeezed my hand and leaned over to kiss my cheek.
"You're the best husband ever, you know that?" she smiled.
"I do now," I smirked back.
Rory came home a few days after I moved in, telling me that her grandparents had seen the wedding announcement in the paper, and although they were 'understandably upset' that they were not told about the wedding, they insisted that we come to Hartford one weekend soon for a 'proper reception'. She had also called her father in Boston to let him know and he sent a generous check as a wedding gift, enough to pay for a used Nissan Sentra for me to drive.
The next two weeks flew by. My story was complete, the angle being off-the- beaten-path restaurants and shopping in the city. Bill loved it. He felt terrible, but sent me on a two-week trip to Vancouver as soon as the story was finished. I was home for a week then off to Kansas City. Bill was being kind, giving me a week between trips, but I could tell that it was taking a toll on Rory. And on me, too. I missed her more and more with every trip. We talked every night, and made sure that we made the most of the weeks when I was home.
In early September we went to Hartford for our 'proper' reception, which Emily and Richard orchestrated. Lorelai looked as though it was the Spanish Inquisition, but overall the affair was pretty low-key and we all survived relatively unscathed. Luke spent most of the afternoon trying to dodge the photographer, who was told to get as many photos as possible of both he and Lorelai as well as Rory and I. Rory, being the good sport and having a soft spot for her grandparents, obliged their wishes and we posed for an endless stream of photos. The evening ended when Richard invited Rory and I into his study and presented us with a check. A check that would cover the cost of a small house in the area where we were living in Virginia. Rory's eyes lit up and I tried to protest and return the check, but Richard insisted that we take it. I was glad that Lorelai wasn't there, or there would have surely been a fight about it.
When we got home to our apartment, Rory set out with a realtor to find our house while I hit the road again. She found a cute little place a few miles from Alexandria and we bought it, moving in the first week in October.
We drove to Stars Hollow the last weekend in October to visit Luke and Lorelai and to attend the Stars Hollow halloween festival. We stayed at Lorelai's new inn, and after having a great dinner (courtesy of Sookie) at Luke and Lorelai's, Rory led me to our old spot, the bridge. It was a chilly evening, but she was determined to go there and talk. We sat and a wave of memories washed over both of us. We sat quietly for a while, my arm snugly around her as she cuddled into me.
"Jess?" she said picking her head up to look at me.
"Huh?" I responded, breaking out of my thought pattern.
"I've got something to tell you," she said seriously.
I laughed, "Wow, why so serious? You're not sick of me and leaving me, are you? Is it Brian?" I joked.
She laughed softly. "No, not even close. Since you've been travelling and all, I wanted to wait until we were here, at our spot, to tell you something I learned a few weeks ago," she started.
"What?" I asked, peaking my curiosity.
"Jess...um, we're having a baby. I'm pregnant," she said, her eyes lighting up, searching mine for a reaction.
I wasn't sure how to react. This was the last thought in my head. I've been thinking that I need to get off the road, I need to talk to Bill about either getting reassigned to another desk or maybe looking for a job at the Washington Post or something. But this just confirmed that I will have to stop travelling now. My wife is going to have a baby, I'm going to be a father! And there is no way I'm not going to be their for my child, like my dad was.
I took her hands in mine. "I can't believe it! Oh, Rory, this is so great, this is the best thing I've ever heard, oh my god, I'm going to be a dad! I love you so much!" I said kissing her hard and hugging her. She giggled.
"I'm going to be a mommy, can you believe it?" she smiled.
"You're going to be a great mom, Rory. And I'm going to be a great dad. I'm going to go to New York to talk with Bill right away. I'm getting off the road. I want to be home. With you, with our baby. I'm not going to be a part-time father, I want to be there," I said to her and she hugged me again.
"I'm so glad to hear that, Jess, I miss you so much when you're gone. I mean, I know it's your job and all, and that you love your job, but I hate being apart from you, I love you so much," she said with a tear escaping her eye.
I wiped away the tear with my thumb, stroking her face. "I miss you when I'm gone too, I've been thinking about this for a while, but now....now it's going to happen. I feel terrible that I burdened you with most of the work to get into our house and I know you're busy at work and all. Oh, Rory, I'm very, very happy, you need to know this. Now, let's get you and our baby out of the cold and tell you mother and Luke. I bet they are going to freak when they hear this!" I said getting up and pulling her into a hug. "Wait! When? When is the baby due?" I asked.
"The doctor said I was about 8 weeks along, so it looks like some time in May. I'm guessing it was after the party at my grandparent's house," she blushed a little.
I laughed. "It was that 'thank god this day is finally over' and 'look at the size of that check' sex huh? I think we may not want to tell our kid about that," and she chuckled.
"Probably not," she said and snuggled closer as we walked through Stars Hollow.
We walked into Luke and Lorelai's house, hand-in-hand, both beaming with smiles. They were snuggled on the couch watching TV and looked at us strangely. "Did you guys do something dirty? You look awful guilty of something," Lorelai said, exchanging glances with Luke.
I looked at Rory, nodding for her to tell them. "Well, mom, Luke, um, well..." she nervously looked at me.
"We're going to have a baby," I said, wrapping my arm protectively around Rory.
Lorelai screamed, jumping up and pulling both me and Rory into a hug. Luke stood up and smiled, nervously trying to join the group hug. "I'm going to be a grandmother!" she yelled, a rush of panic washing over her face. "Ew!" she added. Luke narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh! And Luke, you're going to be a grandfather and a grand-uncle!" she said back to him. His face fell a little.
"Oh geez, I'm going to be a grandfather? I'm not even a dad yet!" he laughed.
"Well, buster, we better get moving on that, then!" Lorelai teased.
"Ew, gross," Rory smirked.
"When?" Lorelai asked.
"The doctor says she thinks some time in early May," Rory beamed. It was at that moment I noticed that she was glowing a little. I'm surprised I didn't notice it, or maybe she was trying to hide it from me until she was ready to tell me. Christ, I was traveling so much I hardly got to notice anything.
~~~~~~~~~~
Timing is everything, that's what Bill used to always say to me. And he was right. At my next opportunity I met with Bill and explained my situation. He made a couple phone calls and was able to wrangle me an interview at the Washington Post. It seems they were looking for a literature reviewer and I was immediately their top choice for the position. I took it and was able to finally plant my feet firmly at home.
My beautiful daughter, Emily Elizabeth Mariano, was born on May 15. My Emmy was a daddy's girl from the first moment I held her in my arms. When Rory went back to work I raised her full-time, while I worked at home. We've talking about having another child, but decided to wait a little while. Our love for each other has never failed us - we've both had our frustrations with each other, but have always been able to work them out.
Emmy's birth was followed four months later by the birth of her uncle, William Richard Danes. To have both Lorelai and Rory fat and pregnant at the same time was a test of both Luke and my own patience. Luke and I became closer friends, being able to commissurate in our misery.
While Rory was on maternity leave she finished her section of the book, and we were able to combine both stories together into a novel, "Meet Me At The Bridge". After it was written, we both hesitated, knowing that publishing this book would mean that our life story would be out there for the world to read. But we felt it was a story that needed to be told, and published it a year later. We watched as it climbed the NYT fiction best-seller list, revelling that the critics loved how open and revealing the story had been. The hardest part of the story to write for me was about California. That had been the most difficult part of my life, and it took a long time to finally put a pen to paper to reveal it to Rory.
Lane and Dave were married and their new band cut a record, thanks to a positive review from Brian. Their first single was a huge hit, a love song that Lane had written for Dave when they first started dating.
Brian found his Rory, believe it or not in Bill's assistant Heather. She was right before his eyes and they finally found each other. Now she has an excuse to not work late nights anymore. They got married three years after Emmy was born, and Brian and Heather asked if Emmy could be the flower girl.
It just goes to show that sometimes, things really do work out in the end. I thought my life was going to be a pointless series of one-night stands and running away from my life, but here I am with the love of my life and a little angel daughter in a cute home in Virginia with a steady job. If I had just gone back to New York that fateful night that I sat in the airport bar instead of diverting to Stars Hollow, my life wouldn't be perfect like it is. So I guess I have to say that Stars Hollow isn't such a bad place afterall.
THE END!!!!
Woo hoo!! So? Did I wrap up all the loose ends??? What did you guys think?
A/N: JessnRory2003 - thank you for your insight on the eppy that I recapped in Jess's journal - sorry for the timeline inconsistencies! And yes, ASP tends to confuse days/weeks/months sometimes (i.e., we went from Thanksgiving to the winter carnival which takes place after Christmas and New Year's, but didn't get to see either of them)...but we forgive her! (that is, we will if she brings Jess back in S4, that is!)
A/N2: Sorry for the tease, but I originally thought that I might bring Brenda back into the picture, leaving threatening (and wacko) messages on their answering machine - stuff like 'how could you do this to me, I thought we had something, etc., etc.' and maybe threaten to do something to Rory - like 'I know where she works and if she's out of the picture we can be together, etc.' - but I just didn't want to go there.
************************************
Chapter Twenty-Four
Tuesday morning brought the same routine - a quick breakfast and then Rory leaves for work. I've never been a big fan of routines, but I think this is one routine I could get used to. I checked my email and made some notes regarding what Bill wanted me to specifically cover. At least he didn't restrict me too much, so I could find a different angle for this story. I showered and packed up my journal and notepad in my briefcase and headed out into town. Rory told me where to find the metro station and I took it into downtown D.C. Just getting there and experiencing a city is usually my favorite way to write about it - just talk to people (yeah, me, talk to strangers) and find out where the locals go. That's the best way to find the hidden restaurants off of the beaten path - as well as art galleries and clubs that cater to the eclectic instead of the mainstream. Bill likes that angle and I like going off the beaten path, so it works out great. I spent the entire day wandering through D.C., ducking into shops and restaurants, checking out bookstores and galleries, making notes as I went along. I found what looked like an awesome restaurant and made dinner reservations for me and Rory at 7:30. I was on the train at 5:30 and called Rory on her cellphone to let her know about the reservation and that we'd be heading into the city. I was walking from the train station when a car slowed down next to me. "Hey baby, want a ride?" I heard a female voice ask. I was about to turn and tell her to fuck off when I realized it was Rory in her Prius faking her voice. "Nice scowl! Close to my withering stare!" she laughed. Another moment in time that I still need to write about.
"Sure, baby, but do you think you can afford me?" I winked as I got into the car.
"Do you take credit cards?" she grinned back.
"I'll take whatever I can get," I said and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.
"So, how's my husband today?" she said sweetly.
"Good, I found some great places, an awesome bookstore near the restaurant that we have GOT to check out tonight," I smiled. It was so easy to be with her again.
"Sounds great," she said as we pulled into the apartment complex. We went inside and changed our clothes. I put on a suit and she changed into a pretty black cocktail dress. She put her hair up in a messy bun and put on some dangly earrings.
"You look good enough to eat," I said, snaking my arms around her as she touched up her makeup in the bathroom. She made a face at me in the mirror as I ran my hands up to cover her breasts.
"Jess," she warned. "If you start this we are never going to get out of here, and we'll miss our reservation, and you won't be able to write up this restaurant, and you'll loose your job, and we'll go hungry, and..."
"Okay, okay, I got the message!" I laughed and kiss the back of her neck. "Let's go."
We drove there and had a fantastic meal. We walked over to the bookstore and wandered among the shelves, choosing a few titles. As we checked out, the shop owner recognized me. "You're Jess Mariano, aren't you? Would you autograph my book?" he asked, pulling out a copy from under the shelf with a bookmark in it. I signed it for him and Rory looked at me proudly.
"Stop," I warned as she grinned at me while we drove home.
"Why? I think it's great that you're recognized," she smiled.
"I don't. I'd prefer to be anonymous, it was my editor's idea to put my picture on the dust jacket. I hated having to sit for it."
"It's a great picture, you photograph well! Oh, we have to figure out which of our wedding pictures we want to have copies of, we should do that when we get home. Mom and Luke want wallet-size pictures, I know you probably don't want to....but,"
"Actually, I would like a wallet photo," I said awkwardly pulling out my wallet. "I think this one needs to be updated," I said as I pulled out a folded, faded photo and handed it to Rory. It was the one of us on the porch swing, the same picture that she had on her dresser. The only photo ever taken of the two of us that I know of.
"Wow, you've had that in your wallet all this time?" she said quietly, tears welling up in her eyes. I reached over and held her hand.
"I never stopped loving you, Rory, I never stopped holding on to the hope that we'd be together again, so I kept the photo to look at now and again to remind me of why I was working and trying to become worthy of you," I glanced over at her. She squeezed my hand and leaned over to kiss my cheek.
"You're the best husband ever, you know that?" she smiled.
"I do now," I smirked back.
Rory came home a few days after I moved in, telling me that her grandparents had seen the wedding announcement in the paper, and although they were 'understandably upset' that they were not told about the wedding, they insisted that we come to Hartford one weekend soon for a 'proper reception'. She had also called her father in Boston to let him know and he sent a generous check as a wedding gift, enough to pay for a used Nissan Sentra for me to drive.
The next two weeks flew by. My story was complete, the angle being off-the- beaten-path restaurants and shopping in the city. Bill loved it. He felt terrible, but sent me on a two-week trip to Vancouver as soon as the story was finished. I was home for a week then off to Kansas City. Bill was being kind, giving me a week between trips, but I could tell that it was taking a toll on Rory. And on me, too. I missed her more and more with every trip. We talked every night, and made sure that we made the most of the weeks when I was home.
In early September we went to Hartford for our 'proper' reception, which Emily and Richard orchestrated. Lorelai looked as though it was the Spanish Inquisition, but overall the affair was pretty low-key and we all survived relatively unscathed. Luke spent most of the afternoon trying to dodge the photographer, who was told to get as many photos as possible of both he and Lorelai as well as Rory and I. Rory, being the good sport and having a soft spot for her grandparents, obliged their wishes and we posed for an endless stream of photos. The evening ended when Richard invited Rory and I into his study and presented us with a check. A check that would cover the cost of a small house in the area where we were living in Virginia. Rory's eyes lit up and I tried to protest and return the check, but Richard insisted that we take it. I was glad that Lorelai wasn't there, or there would have surely been a fight about it.
When we got home to our apartment, Rory set out with a realtor to find our house while I hit the road again. She found a cute little place a few miles from Alexandria and we bought it, moving in the first week in October.
We drove to Stars Hollow the last weekend in October to visit Luke and Lorelai and to attend the Stars Hollow halloween festival. We stayed at Lorelai's new inn, and after having a great dinner (courtesy of Sookie) at Luke and Lorelai's, Rory led me to our old spot, the bridge. It was a chilly evening, but she was determined to go there and talk. We sat and a wave of memories washed over both of us. We sat quietly for a while, my arm snugly around her as she cuddled into me.
"Jess?" she said picking her head up to look at me.
"Huh?" I responded, breaking out of my thought pattern.
"I've got something to tell you," she said seriously.
I laughed, "Wow, why so serious? You're not sick of me and leaving me, are you? Is it Brian?" I joked.
She laughed softly. "No, not even close. Since you've been travelling and all, I wanted to wait until we were here, at our spot, to tell you something I learned a few weeks ago," she started.
"What?" I asked, peaking my curiosity.
"Jess...um, we're having a baby. I'm pregnant," she said, her eyes lighting up, searching mine for a reaction.
I wasn't sure how to react. This was the last thought in my head. I've been thinking that I need to get off the road, I need to talk to Bill about either getting reassigned to another desk or maybe looking for a job at the Washington Post or something. But this just confirmed that I will have to stop travelling now. My wife is going to have a baby, I'm going to be a father! And there is no way I'm not going to be their for my child, like my dad was.
I took her hands in mine. "I can't believe it! Oh, Rory, this is so great, this is the best thing I've ever heard, oh my god, I'm going to be a dad! I love you so much!" I said kissing her hard and hugging her. She giggled.
"I'm going to be a mommy, can you believe it?" she smiled.
"You're going to be a great mom, Rory. And I'm going to be a great dad. I'm going to go to New York to talk with Bill right away. I'm getting off the road. I want to be home. With you, with our baby. I'm not going to be a part-time father, I want to be there," I said to her and she hugged me again.
"I'm so glad to hear that, Jess, I miss you so much when you're gone. I mean, I know it's your job and all, and that you love your job, but I hate being apart from you, I love you so much," she said with a tear escaping her eye.
I wiped away the tear with my thumb, stroking her face. "I miss you when I'm gone too, I've been thinking about this for a while, but now....now it's going to happen. I feel terrible that I burdened you with most of the work to get into our house and I know you're busy at work and all. Oh, Rory, I'm very, very happy, you need to know this. Now, let's get you and our baby out of the cold and tell you mother and Luke. I bet they are going to freak when they hear this!" I said getting up and pulling her into a hug. "Wait! When? When is the baby due?" I asked.
"The doctor said I was about 8 weeks along, so it looks like some time in May. I'm guessing it was after the party at my grandparent's house," she blushed a little.
I laughed. "It was that 'thank god this day is finally over' and 'look at the size of that check' sex huh? I think we may not want to tell our kid about that," and she chuckled.
"Probably not," she said and snuggled closer as we walked through Stars Hollow.
We walked into Luke and Lorelai's house, hand-in-hand, both beaming with smiles. They were snuggled on the couch watching TV and looked at us strangely. "Did you guys do something dirty? You look awful guilty of something," Lorelai said, exchanging glances with Luke.
I looked at Rory, nodding for her to tell them. "Well, mom, Luke, um, well..." she nervously looked at me.
"We're going to have a baby," I said, wrapping my arm protectively around Rory.
Lorelai screamed, jumping up and pulling both me and Rory into a hug. Luke stood up and smiled, nervously trying to join the group hug. "I'm going to be a grandmother!" she yelled, a rush of panic washing over her face. "Ew!" she added. Luke narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh! And Luke, you're going to be a grandfather and a grand-uncle!" she said back to him. His face fell a little.
"Oh geez, I'm going to be a grandfather? I'm not even a dad yet!" he laughed.
"Well, buster, we better get moving on that, then!" Lorelai teased.
"Ew, gross," Rory smirked.
"When?" Lorelai asked.
"The doctor says she thinks some time in early May," Rory beamed. It was at that moment I noticed that she was glowing a little. I'm surprised I didn't notice it, or maybe she was trying to hide it from me until she was ready to tell me. Christ, I was traveling so much I hardly got to notice anything.
~~~~~~~~~~
Timing is everything, that's what Bill used to always say to me. And he was right. At my next opportunity I met with Bill and explained my situation. He made a couple phone calls and was able to wrangle me an interview at the Washington Post. It seems they were looking for a literature reviewer and I was immediately their top choice for the position. I took it and was able to finally plant my feet firmly at home.
My beautiful daughter, Emily Elizabeth Mariano, was born on May 15. My Emmy was a daddy's girl from the first moment I held her in my arms. When Rory went back to work I raised her full-time, while I worked at home. We've talking about having another child, but decided to wait a little while. Our love for each other has never failed us - we've both had our frustrations with each other, but have always been able to work them out.
Emmy's birth was followed four months later by the birth of her uncle, William Richard Danes. To have both Lorelai and Rory fat and pregnant at the same time was a test of both Luke and my own patience. Luke and I became closer friends, being able to commissurate in our misery.
While Rory was on maternity leave she finished her section of the book, and we were able to combine both stories together into a novel, "Meet Me At The Bridge". After it was written, we both hesitated, knowing that publishing this book would mean that our life story would be out there for the world to read. But we felt it was a story that needed to be told, and published it a year later. We watched as it climbed the NYT fiction best-seller list, revelling that the critics loved how open and revealing the story had been. The hardest part of the story to write for me was about California. That had been the most difficult part of my life, and it took a long time to finally put a pen to paper to reveal it to Rory.
Lane and Dave were married and their new band cut a record, thanks to a positive review from Brian. Their first single was a huge hit, a love song that Lane had written for Dave when they first started dating.
Brian found his Rory, believe it or not in Bill's assistant Heather. She was right before his eyes and they finally found each other. Now she has an excuse to not work late nights anymore. They got married three years after Emmy was born, and Brian and Heather asked if Emmy could be the flower girl.
It just goes to show that sometimes, things really do work out in the end. I thought my life was going to be a pointless series of one-night stands and running away from my life, but here I am with the love of my life and a little angel daughter in a cute home in Virginia with a steady job. If I had just gone back to New York that fateful night that I sat in the airport bar instead of diverting to Stars Hollow, my life wouldn't be perfect like it is. So I guess I have to say that Stars Hollow isn't such a bad place afterall.
THE END!!!!
Woo hoo!! So? Did I wrap up all the loose ends??? What did you guys think?