Chapter 8: The Arrival of the Walking Bags

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Rory

Mom, Jess, and I sit around the living room, talking quietly. Around 2:30, out of the corner of my eye I notice both Brett and Susie stirring. I hold up my hand and silence Mom and Jess. They oblige, and I slowly walk over to the couch and sit between the two girls, waiting for them to wake fully. Susie does so first, and the second she sees me she climbs on my lap and gives me a hug.

"Hi, sissy!" she exclaims into my arm.

"Hi, Susie."

She giggles, and then moves herself around so she's facing Mom and Jess. She stares at the unknown man and then points.

"Who's that?"

"That is Jess. He's my--" Friend? Boyfriend? Friend? "--boyfriend," I finish. Jess smiles at me and I smile back. I glance at Mom, and for some reason she doesn't look all that shocked. I think I'm more shocked than she is.

"Daddy?" a tiny voice asks next to me. Brett seems very disoriented and scared, and it's very strange to think that she's the same mischievous little girl from before. "Daddy?" she practically wails.

Jess springs from his chair and wraps the four-year-old in his arms, shushing her. He rocks her from side-to-side gently and walks away from us, into the kitchen. Mom waits until he's out of sight, and then she rushes to the couch and sits next to me.

"He's changed," she says simply. Susie crawls into her lap.

"I know...but he's still Jess."

"He's not grunting slacker-boy Jess."

"No, he's not. I think taking care of a four-year-old at twenty-three will do that to you, though."

"You think that's hard, try taking care of a four-year-old at twenty."

"Thank God for Luke," I say, smiling at Mom.

"Yes, thank God for him. She's awfully nice like that."

Jess

As I'm slowly pacing around the kitchen, lulling Brett from wails to whimpers, the back door opens and Doose's Market bags with legs walk in.

"Luke?" I ask as the bags groan and head for a counter.

They stop. "God?"

I snort. "Lorelai's sure as hell rubbing off on you, isn't she?"

"Jess," he states, heaving the bags onto a counter. He turns. "What are you doing here?"

I shrug. "Came with Rory."

"Oh." He nods and starts unpacking. After a second, he turns back around, a shocked look on his face. "Ohh."

"Yeah," I nod and try to stifle a smile.

"Does Lorelai know?" he asks quietly, stepping closer to me and leaning in.

I shake my head. "She didn't know when I came in here, but she probably knows now."

"Ah." Luke nods and returns to putting groceries away. "You guys going to see Liz?" he asks without turning around.

"I wasn't planning on it."

"You should. She misses ya. Wishes you hadn't moved to Atlanta."

"Okay; we'll go see her."

"All of you? Or just you and Brett?"

"Luke, I--"

"You really should take her, Jess." Luke stops unpacking and turns to face me again, all serious. "She'd love it." He lets this sink in for a moment, and then nods and turns back around. "And, if you really wanted to be nice, you'd take Susie and make a day of it."

I pick a washcloth up from the sink and hurl it at Luke as I walk past him back into the living room.

~*~*~
Rory

"Say bye to Mommy, Suze," I command my little sister. She leans down to get enough leverage to swing her arms in a full body rocking wave, and then screams, "BYE!!!"

I laugh and herd her into her car seat in Jess' SUV. After a minute of fumbling, I get Susie strapped in next to Brett, and then climb into the passenger seat, next to Jess. He glances at me after I get in, and then glances at the girls in the backseat.

"You guys good?"

"Yes!" they chorus. Susie choruses a little softer, but she's already enamored with her older cousin. Second cousin? First once removed? Whatever. She's enamored with Brett.

"Ready?" Jess asks softly. I nod, and he starts the car. The Sex Pistols blast through the stereo and we pull out of my mother's driveway. For a day and night in New York City. With Jess.

It would be very romantic, if it weren't for the toddlers.

Jess

I offer to leave Rory and Susie at the hotel, but they refuse, and instead troupe up six flights with Brett and me to my mother's apartment. I don't understand, but Rory insists that she wants to meet Lizzie, and Susie goes where Rory does, so....

"Don't expect much," I mutter to Rory. Brett slaps my leg.

"Be nice to Gramma."

I ruffle her hair and ring the doorbell.

"I'll be there in a sec, Jimmy!" Lizzie's voice yells.

"Isn't Jimmy your dad's name?" Rory asks.

"Yeah." That's weird. I didn't realize my parents still spoke to each other. Sasha and Lizzie did all of the talking the two years between my move to California and Brett's and my move to Atlanta.

"Sorry, Jimmy, I--" Liz pulls the door open and stops. "Jess."

"Liz."

"Oh, Brett! You're so big!" Lizzie leans down and picks up Brett. She groans. "Oh, and so heavy!"

"Hi, I'm Rory, Jess' girlfriend," Rory announces.

"Oh, hi!" Liz shakes Rory's hand, and then notices the two-year-old draped on her leg. "Don't tell me you--"

Rory laughs. "Oh, no. This is my sister, Susannah."

"Oh, you're that Rory. Daughter of the one who tamed my baby brother."

"Yeah, I guess that's me."

"Well...come in, come in!"

We all walk in. Lizzie sets Brett down, who goes for her favorite chair. Susie follows her. Lizzie walks around the living room, straightening throw pillows here and there.

"I can't believe this is where you grew up," Rory whispers.

"It's not," I say flatly. "Lizzie's only gotten her act together in the past five years." Kinda like Jimmy, and me, I add silently.

"It's nice," Rory says, before walking over to the two girls. I make sure they're all fine before walking after my mother, who's heading into the kitchen.

"Lizzie, why'd you think I was Jimmy?"

"No reason," she says dismissively, opening the fridge. "I can't believe you didn't call! I'm not sure I have any food for toddlers."

"Liz," I say sharply, grabbing her arm as she starts toward a cabinet. "What is going on with you and Jimmy?"

"Nothing!" she practically yells, wrenching her arm from my grip. We glare at each other for a second, and then the doorbell rings. "Oh, no," she whispers, before bustling back to the front door.

I follow her, still staring after her. Rory, Brett, and Susie pull me down onto the couch with them, and I half-watch the girls and half-watch as my mother opens the door to reveal Jimmy.

But not just Jimmy.

Oh, no.

When my mother conspires, she conspires.

She's done it twice before: once to send me to Stars Hollow, and the second time she conspired with Sasha, to send Brett and me to Atlanta.

But this time...this time it's worse.

She's conspired with Jimmy.

And she and Jimmy have found Ivy.

Brett's mom.

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A/N: This was the closest thing I had to an idea after I made everything all perfect with Rory accepting Brett and Jess as her new family. They're an awkward family, and a new family, but they're practically a family. Now, unfortunately, Ivy has reentered the mix.

And now it's all up in the air.