Luke sighed and picked up the receiver, tucking it into his neck as he
dialed the number.
" Please don't be home, please don't be home. Just be the answering machine so I can tell myself that I at least tried to do something about this." Luke mumbled to himself.
"Hello?" Lorelai picked up the phone.
"Uh...Hey."
"Hey."
"Hey."
"Hey.....who is this?" Lorelai asked warily.
"Oh....Uh, it's Luke...you said to call if...." He trailed off.
"Oh." Lorelai said, a little surprised.
"I'm sorry. Never mind." Luke mumbled, and was about to hang up.
"No! Luke! Don't be. It's just......you called." Lorelai said in a bemused voice.
"Uh....yeah."
"You called." She insisted, like Luke should be getting from it.
"Did you not want me to call?" He mumbled.
"No! It's just...I didn't think you would actually....call." She sounded confused, but happy.
"Well, I guess I did."
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
"Nothing."
"You called to talk about nothing?"
"I guess so." Luke shrugged.
"So it's one of those phone calls." Lorelai was smiling knowingly.
"What kind of phone calls?"
"The please-just-talk-to-me-for-a-while-so-that-I-don't-have-to-think-about- what-I'm- thinking-about-for-a-little-while kind of phone call." She nodded.
"No." Luke stubbornly refused.
"It is. Well, what to talk about....Can I ask you questions. Oh! We can play the find out about you game. I'll ask a question and then you can ask a question and then I'll ask a question until one of us is forced to blurt out embarrassing and personal things!" Lorelai said giddily, but Luke frowned,
"This sounds like a bad first date."
"It'll be good one." She interjected.
"I don't want to play."
"What if I ask?" Lorelai suggested.
"I guess."
"No, you answer."
"Lorelai."
"Hey, you called me. Okay. Favourite guilt food."
"Come on."
"Mine's peanut butter on Oreo cookies, dipped in chocolate sauce."
"That's disgusting."
"Ugh...It's amazing. Me and Rory discovered it when she was in fifth grade and she ripped her favourite skirt on the slide at school. Come on Luke."
"Jello."
"You've-always-got-room-for-Bill- Cosby-endorsing Jello?"
"Yeah. I had it when I was in the hospital when I got my tonsils out."
" That's not much guilt. There isn't even any fat in it. What flavour?"
"Lime."
"Exotic." Lorelai could practically hear Luke rolling his eyes. "Alright...... How about favourite sport?"
"You're unusually nice today."
"You were unusually sad."
"Baseball."
"Not running?"
"I don't like to think about that much."
"You should start again."
"I think I might be a little bit old for that."
"It'd be fun!"
"I'd rather not."
"Come on Luke. It's not his fault that he died. He loved you. He probably actually wanted to live to see you run, and get married and have kids. I don't think he really chose to die when you were just a kid."
"I don't think that anyone'll live long enough to see me have kids." Luke gave a little bitter laugh.
"Awww...Don't be so negative Lucas. Some nice woman will come around and pop out your offspring."
"Romantic. Don't call me Lucas."
"Why not?"
"Because."
"Why not?"
"Because."
"Why not?"
"Lorelai."
"Why not?"
"Because that's what me mom used to call me when I was a kid alright?" Luke sighed.
"Oh.....I'm sorry Luke. Looks like I really know how you push all your repressed and scarring memories buttons tonight." Lorelai said awkwardly.
"It's alright. I just don't like it when you say it because it hurts. And then Taylor does it, and well, I'll be damned if he has the right to have anything to do with the way I remember my mom."
"And I do?"
"You remind me of her." Lorelai smiled at the soft tone in Luke's voice.
"Good, cause if Taylor did I'd be a little worried.....and a little curious." Lorelai became relieved as she heard Luke give a little laugh. "Alright, since we're on names track star, what's with Butch?" Luke sighed.
"It's stupid."
"It's funny."
"My track coach had problems."
"What KIND of problems."
"Writing and remembering."
"This sounds like an interesting story."
"Not really."
"Come oooooon."
"First year of high school, all he could ever remember was that my last name was something about a group of people from a European country."
"Danes? As in people from Denmark?"
"Yeah."
"What does that have to do with Butch and bad writing?"
"He could never remember Denmark."
"What did he remember?"
"Holland."
"Isn't that vierd?"
"Lorelai."
"So he called you Dutch?"
"For 3 months. Then at the first track meet of the year he wrote my name down, and the D ended up looking like a B so...."
"So you ran as Luke Butch?"
"Yeah."
"Cool."
"No, not cool. All the guys thought it was hilarious, and I got called Butch for the next four years."
"That's funny."
"Not when it's you."
"It is when it's you."
"Not funny."
"A little."
"I hated my track coach."
"Did they yell 'Run Butch run'?"
"Next question please."
"See, you do like this game. And I've got a good one this time." Lorelai smiled mischievously. She heard Luke cough awkwardly and smiled. " Ready?"
"Does it matter."
" No, not really."
" Please don't be home, please don't be home. Just be the answering machine so I can tell myself that I at least tried to do something about this." Luke mumbled to himself.
"Hello?" Lorelai picked up the phone.
"Uh...Hey."
"Hey."
"Hey."
"Hey.....who is this?" Lorelai asked warily.
"Oh....Uh, it's Luke...you said to call if...." He trailed off.
"Oh." Lorelai said, a little surprised.
"I'm sorry. Never mind." Luke mumbled, and was about to hang up.
"No! Luke! Don't be. It's just......you called." Lorelai said in a bemused voice.
"Uh....yeah."
"You called." She insisted, like Luke should be getting from it.
"Did you not want me to call?" He mumbled.
"No! It's just...I didn't think you would actually....call." She sounded confused, but happy.
"Well, I guess I did."
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
"Nothing."
"You called to talk about nothing?"
"I guess so." Luke shrugged.
"So it's one of those phone calls." Lorelai was smiling knowingly.
"What kind of phone calls?"
"The please-just-talk-to-me-for-a-while-so-that-I-don't-have-to-think-about- what-I'm- thinking-about-for-a-little-while kind of phone call." She nodded.
"No." Luke stubbornly refused.
"It is. Well, what to talk about....Can I ask you questions. Oh! We can play the find out about you game. I'll ask a question and then you can ask a question and then I'll ask a question until one of us is forced to blurt out embarrassing and personal things!" Lorelai said giddily, but Luke frowned,
"This sounds like a bad first date."
"It'll be good one." She interjected.
"I don't want to play."
"What if I ask?" Lorelai suggested.
"I guess."
"No, you answer."
"Lorelai."
"Hey, you called me. Okay. Favourite guilt food."
"Come on."
"Mine's peanut butter on Oreo cookies, dipped in chocolate sauce."
"That's disgusting."
"Ugh...It's amazing. Me and Rory discovered it when she was in fifth grade and she ripped her favourite skirt on the slide at school. Come on Luke."
"Jello."
"You've-always-got-room-for-Bill- Cosby-endorsing Jello?"
"Yeah. I had it when I was in the hospital when I got my tonsils out."
" That's not much guilt. There isn't even any fat in it. What flavour?"
"Lime."
"Exotic." Lorelai could practically hear Luke rolling his eyes. "Alright...... How about favourite sport?"
"You're unusually nice today."
"You were unusually sad."
"Baseball."
"Not running?"
"I don't like to think about that much."
"You should start again."
"I think I might be a little bit old for that."
"It'd be fun!"
"I'd rather not."
"Come on Luke. It's not his fault that he died. He loved you. He probably actually wanted to live to see you run, and get married and have kids. I don't think he really chose to die when you were just a kid."
"I don't think that anyone'll live long enough to see me have kids." Luke gave a little bitter laugh.
"Awww...Don't be so negative Lucas. Some nice woman will come around and pop out your offspring."
"Romantic. Don't call me Lucas."
"Why not?"
"Because."
"Why not?"
"Because."
"Why not?"
"Lorelai."
"Why not?"
"Because that's what me mom used to call me when I was a kid alright?" Luke sighed.
"Oh.....I'm sorry Luke. Looks like I really know how you push all your repressed and scarring memories buttons tonight." Lorelai said awkwardly.
"It's alright. I just don't like it when you say it because it hurts. And then Taylor does it, and well, I'll be damned if he has the right to have anything to do with the way I remember my mom."
"And I do?"
"You remind me of her." Lorelai smiled at the soft tone in Luke's voice.
"Good, cause if Taylor did I'd be a little worried.....and a little curious." Lorelai became relieved as she heard Luke give a little laugh. "Alright, since we're on names track star, what's with Butch?" Luke sighed.
"It's stupid."
"It's funny."
"My track coach had problems."
"What KIND of problems."
"Writing and remembering."
"This sounds like an interesting story."
"Not really."
"Come oooooon."
"First year of high school, all he could ever remember was that my last name was something about a group of people from a European country."
"Danes? As in people from Denmark?"
"Yeah."
"What does that have to do with Butch and bad writing?"
"He could never remember Denmark."
"What did he remember?"
"Holland."
"Isn't that vierd?"
"Lorelai."
"So he called you Dutch?"
"For 3 months. Then at the first track meet of the year he wrote my name down, and the D ended up looking like a B so...."
"So you ran as Luke Butch?"
"Yeah."
"Cool."
"No, not cool. All the guys thought it was hilarious, and I got called Butch for the next four years."
"That's funny."
"Not when it's you."
"It is when it's you."
"Not funny."
"A little."
"I hated my track coach."
"Did they yell 'Run Butch run'?"
"Next question please."
"See, you do like this game. And I've got a good one this time." Lorelai smiled mischievously. She heard Luke cough awkwardly and smiled. " Ready?"
"Does it matter."
" No, not really."