A/N: Sorry for the wait. I had a bit of writer's block and when I finally got the idea together, I went to Mexico for a week. So, here's the new chapter, finally. I hope it's not too cheesy towards the end. I started school, so I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up. I have the next part written, but I need to type it and edit it a bit. Anyways, on to the story. R/R.
Rory had been walking around the streets of New Haven for over an hour. She finally decided to take a break and headed to her favorite coffee shop. The coffee was nothing like Luke's but it was good enough to satisfy her coffee needs. She sat at her usual table and stared out the window as the people on the street hurried along the sidewalk. She had spent a good part of the day, out on the streets looking for someone she wasn't even sure was there. As she drank her coffee, she thought about how ridiculous the whole idea had been. If it was anyone else, running around looking for someone that probably was never there, she'd call them crazy. Rory had went to the same spot where she'd seen him and walked around the block a few times. She even went into stores and looked around in hopes that he might be there. It was all crazy. 'I'm so stupid, what was I thinking? Like Jess is really here in New Haven. I'm seriously losing it.' She sighed and drank the rest of her coffee. After paying the cashier, she decided to head back to her dorm and not think about what she had done that day. She was going to forget about it all and just call it a day.
As Rory entered her room, she had the strangest feeling that there was somewhere else she had to be. She brushed the feeling aside and set her keys on her desk. Next to the phone was a note left by her roommate, Angie. She picked it up, and was confused by what it said. Rory called Angie's cell to find out if it the note was meant for her.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Angie. It's Rory."
"Oh, hey Rory. What's up?"
"I just got home. I saw the note you left me, but I'm a little confused. Who's Josh and why does he want to meet me at the park across from the coffee house?"
"He said that he needed to talk to you. Something about some unfinished issues. I can't remember exactly. But he said that if you don't show up, he'd understand and wouldn't bother you anymore."
"I don't know anybody named Josh. Did he say anything else?"
"Uh, let me think." Angie paused then quickly added, "Oh! I'm so stupid, it wasn't Josh. His name was Jess. I must've been thinking about the kid from Sarah's party. Sorry about that."
Rory's mouth opened, and she couldn't say anything. Jess had called her, and he wanted to meet. She wasn't going crazy, it really was him that she saw earlier. She was relieved that she wasn't just chasing a shadow, but he was really in New Haven. She hadn't been running around for nothing. Then again, if she hadn't been out looking for him, she could've spoken to him when he had called. Now she wished she hadn't run out so quickly. Angie's voice pulled her away from her thoughts.
"Rory? Hello. So, who's Jess? Are you going to go meet him?"
"Oh, sorry Angie. He's this guy I know from Stars Hollow."
"The one in the picture?" Angie cut in.
"Yeah, the one in the picture. I don't know. I think I will go meet him."
"Then you better hurry up. It's already a quarter to five."
"What? Oh no, I'll talk to you later. Bye Angie."
"See ya later."
Rory hung up the phone barely even listening to Angie's last sentence. It would take her at least ten minutes to get to the park. She still needed to make herself decent. She went straight to her mirror, reapplied her make-up and brushed her hair. She gave herself a quick look over, and once she was satisfied, she rushed out the door. There was absolutely no way she was going to miss seeing him this time.
After a brisk walk, Rory was at the park. She had practically ran the whole way there, she felt as if she had been running all day. 'After today, I've done enough running to last me two weeks.' She glanced at her watch and cursed silently to herself. It was ten after five. She'd been wandering around the park looking for him but she still hadn't found him. Taking in a deep breath to calm herself, she continued along the path of benches. 'Please still be there, please still be there.'
There had been so many chances for her to see him, or talk to him today. She wouldn't be able to bare it if she missed him again. These past months had been hard on her. She tried moving on and dating other guys. It didn't work, all she could do was compare them to Jess. His eyes, his smile, the way she loved talking to him about books, or just being with him. Not a single person had come close. All this time, she had wished for a second chance with him. And here it was, just beyond her reach. She was so close to him, she was scared of losing him again. Her eyes became glossy, and she felt a tear escape. 'No, not now. Please, not now.' As she wiped her cheek, she looked up and saw him. He was walking away, his head down, obviously disappointed.
--
Jess was leaving the park. It was ten after five, and Rory still hadn't shown up. He could've stayed there all night waiting for her, but it would hurt too much. Rory wasn't coming, and it crushed him. She didn't want to see him again, let alone be with him. All these thoughts raced through his mind making him feel lost. He cursed himself for coming here.
--
A slow smile came across Rory's face. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in. Her first instinct was to yell his name. Instead, she ran to him. He was fifty feet away, so it didn't take long until she was a step behind him. 'Good thing he's walking slow.' Before she could reach out. He had already stopped.
--
Without thinking, Jess stopped. She was there. He could feel it. He didn't want to turn around though. If she wasn't behind him, he wasn't sure if he could bare it. Before he could make up his mind, he felt it. Her hand was on his shoulder. A wave of relief flushed through his body. He closed his eyes and smiled. He slowly turned his body to face her. She was smiling. Her smile always had a strange effect on her, it made him melt.
--
Rory stared at Jess standing before her. His eyes were the locked with hers and they each were smiling, not knowing what to say or do next. They stood still for a moment, in silence, taking in the sight that was before them. Jess took Rory's hand in his and held on tight. They both looked down at their now intertwined hands and then looked back at each other. They smiled again. All their worries, fears and doubts had disappeared once they were holding each other like that. It was a simple gesture, but it made everything feel right again. Finally breaking the silence, Jess spoke.
"Hey."
"Hey," Rory replied, "I wasn't sure you'd still be here."
"I wasn't sure you'd come."
"Sorry I took so long, I got the message a bit late."
"You're here now. That's all that matters." Jess, still holding Rory's hand, led her to the bench he had been sitting at earlier.
"I'm glad you called me. I thought I was going crazy earlier. I kept seeing you everywhere."
Jess let out a small laugh, "Yeah, I saw you earlier today, too. I didn't mean for you to see me. I wasn't even going to call, but I had to. I knew you saw me, and I knew that it'd drive you crazy not knowing. So, I figured, I might as well. After all, you were practically chasing me down the street. Poor lady, never saw you coming."
Rory blushed, "You saw that? I didn't even realize I was walking that fast. I just.. I had to know if it was you or not. I feel bad now. I hope I didn't bump into her too hard."
"I'm sure she's fine. I did see her later on though. She was hobbling along the street screaming something about crazy kids, and how she'd get you." Jess teased, resulting in a smack on his arm from Rory.
"Stop it. You're not helping." There was a brief pause where they simply looked at each other for a quick second. Rory's glance went to her hands, which now lay in her lap. Jess had his hands shoved in his pockets. For the first time since seeing each other again, there was a awkwardness that seemed so unnatural for them. "Hey," Jess looked up at Rory, "How'd you get my number anyway?"
"Luke. I called him right after I got away from you." Rory gave him a mean look, but it quickly became a smile again. "I asked him if he had your number, and of course, he started to interrogate me. I told him that I was in New Haven, and needed to talk to you. He kinda hesitated to give it to me, I think your mom might've been in the diner or something."
"I'm glad he gave you my number. And I'm glad you called. We do need to talk."
"You said that already," Rory blushed again, "You're right. We need to talk." Another silence fell over them. Neither of them knew what to say first. So much had happened since he had left Stars Hollow. Where were they supposed to go from here. Rory didn't even know if Jess would be around much longer. He could be leaving her again tomorrow. The last thing she wanted was to get back with him just to have him leave her again. There was no way she'd go through that heart ache again.
Jess broke the silence again, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left the way I did, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about everything. I'm sorry for hurting you. I'm sorry for being such a horrible boyfriend. I'm.." Rory cut him off, pressing her finger to his lips and turning his head to face hers.
"Shh. Jess, I know you're sorry. If you weren't.. you wouldn't be here right now." She wanted so badly to kiss him, and to just make all the bad memories go away. But, there was no erasing the past.
"Rory. How could I ever make it up to you? I wish I could go back and change everything. You were the one good thing that ever happened to me, and I pushed you away from me."
"I know. I just.. don't want to think about that right now. All I want from you, is to sit with me here, and keep me company. Is that okay?"
"Yeah, I can do that."
"Good." Rory smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Tomorrow, we'll have plenty of time to talk about all this. We'll figure out where we stand then. I'm not saying I want to get back with you right now. It still hurts, and I'm scared of losing you all over again."
"That won't happen. I promise."
"Jess, don't make promises you can't keep."
"Ror, I promise, I won't ever make the mistake of pushing you away again."
"You remember those words." She looked up and gave him a threatening look.
"I will." He smiled at her, and she rested her head back on his shoulder.
"Oh no. I have to call my mom."
"Now? I thought you'd at least wait until you got home to call and tell her about seeing me again."
"No, it's not that. I was supposed to go home and see her tomorrow."
"So, you're not going now?"
"Nope, we have a lunch date tomorrow." She smiled at him.
"Ah. Of course. I hope she doesn't go crazy about you canceling on her to be with me."
"Yeah, that wouldn't be good. I'll just tell her I have a study group meeting I can't get out of."
"Rory Gilmore, you're going to lie to your mother for a boy?"
"Shush. If you'd like, I'll just go back to Stars Hollow tomorrow, and you can have lunch by yourself."
"Shutting up now."
"Thank you."
"Oh, one last thing, just tell her you're staying longer next weekend because of Thanksgiving. I'm sure that'll calm her down a bit."
"Oh, you're right. I forgot about that. Sounds like a plan. I'll call her later. I'm too comfortable right now." Rory added, causing Jess to smile and hold her closer.
Rory had been walking around the streets of New Haven for over an hour. She finally decided to take a break and headed to her favorite coffee shop. The coffee was nothing like Luke's but it was good enough to satisfy her coffee needs. She sat at her usual table and stared out the window as the people on the street hurried along the sidewalk. She had spent a good part of the day, out on the streets looking for someone she wasn't even sure was there. As she drank her coffee, she thought about how ridiculous the whole idea had been. If it was anyone else, running around looking for someone that probably was never there, she'd call them crazy. Rory had went to the same spot where she'd seen him and walked around the block a few times. She even went into stores and looked around in hopes that he might be there. It was all crazy. 'I'm so stupid, what was I thinking? Like Jess is really here in New Haven. I'm seriously losing it.' She sighed and drank the rest of her coffee. After paying the cashier, she decided to head back to her dorm and not think about what she had done that day. She was going to forget about it all and just call it a day.
As Rory entered her room, she had the strangest feeling that there was somewhere else she had to be. She brushed the feeling aside and set her keys on her desk. Next to the phone was a note left by her roommate, Angie. She picked it up, and was confused by what it said. Rory called Angie's cell to find out if it the note was meant for her.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Angie. It's Rory."
"Oh, hey Rory. What's up?"
"I just got home. I saw the note you left me, but I'm a little confused. Who's Josh and why does he want to meet me at the park across from the coffee house?"
"He said that he needed to talk to you. Something about some unfinished issues. I can't remember exactly. But he said that if you don't show up, he'd understand and wouldn't bother you anymore."
"I don't know anybody named Josh. Did he say anything else?"
"Uh, let me think." Angie paused then quickly added, "Oh! I'm so stupid, it wasn't Josh. His name was Jess. I must've been thinking about the kid from Sarah's party. Sorry about that."
Rory's mouth opened, and she couldn't say anything. Jess had called her, and he wanted to meet. She wasn't going crazy, it really was him that she saw earlier. She was relieved that she wasn't just chasing a shadow, but he was really in New Haven. She hadn't been running around for nothing. Then again, if she hadn't been out looking for him, she could've spoken to him when he had called. Now she wished she hadn't run out so quickly. Angie's voice pulled her away from her thoughts.
"Rory? Hello. So, who's Jess? Are you going to go meet him?"
"Oh, sorry Angie. He's this guy I know from Stars Hollow."
"The one in the picture?" Angie cut in.
"Yeah, the one in the picture. I don't know. I think I will go meet him."
"Then you better hurry up. It's already a quarter to five."
"What? Oh no, I'll talk to you later. Bye Angie."
"See ya later."
Rory hung up the phone barely even listening to Angie's last sentence. It would take her at least ten minutes to get to the park. She still needed to make herself decent. She went straight to her mirror, reapplied her make-up and brushed her hair. She gave herself a quick look over, and once she was satisfied, she rushed out the door. There was absolutely no way she was going to miss seeing him this time.
After a brisk walk, Rory was at the park. She had practically ran the whole way there, she felt as if she had been running all day. 'After today, I've done enough running to last me two weeks.' She glanced at her watch and cursed silently to herself. It was ten after five. She'd been wandering around the park looking for him but she still hadn't found him. Taking in a deep breath to calm herself, she continued along the path of benches. 'Please still be there, please still be there.'
There had been so many chances for her to see him, or talk to him today. She wouldn't be able to bare it if she missed him again. These past months had been hard on her. She tried moving on and dating other guys. It didn't work, all she could do was compare them to Jess. His eyes, his smile, the way she loved talking to him about books, or just being with him. Not a single person had come close. All this time, she had wished for a second chance with him. And here it was, just beyond her reach. She was so close to him, she was scared of losing him again. Her eyes became glossy, and she felt a tear escape. 'No, not now. Please, not now.' As she wiped her cheek, she looked up and saw him. He was walking away, his head down, obviously disappointed.
--
Jess was leaving the park. It was ten after five, and Rory still hadn't shown up. He could've stayed there all night waiting for her, but it would hurt too much. Rory wasn't coming, and it crushed him. She didn't want to see him again, let alone be with him. All these thoughts raced through his mind making him feel lost. He cursed himself for coming here.
--
A slow smile came across Rory's face. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in. Her first instinct was to yell his name. Instead, she ran to him. He was fifty feet away, so it didn't take long until she was a step behind him. 'Good thing he's walking slow.' Before she could reach out. He had already stopped.
--
Without thinking, Jess stopped. She was there. He could feel it. He didn't want to turn around though. If she wasn't behind him, he wasn't sure if he could bare it. Before he could make up his mind, he felt it. Her hand was on his shoulder. A wave of relief flushed through his body. He closed his eyes and smiled. He slowly turned his body to face her. She was smiling. Her smile always had a strange effect on her, it made him melt.
--
Rory stared at Jess standing before her. His eyes were the locked with hers and they each were smiling, not knowing what to say or do next. They stood still for a moment, in silence, taking in the sight that was before them. Jess took Rory's hand in his and held on tight. They both looked down at their now intertwined hands and then looked back at each other. They smiled again. All their worries, fears and doubts had disappeared once they were holding each other like that. It was a simple gesture, but it made everything feel right again. Finally breaking the silence, Jess spoke.
"Hey."
"Hey," Rory replied, "I wasn't sure you'd still be here."
"I wasn't sure you'd come."
"Sorry I took so long, I got the message a bit late."
"You're here now. That's all that matters." Jess, still holding Rory's hand, led her to the bench he had been sitting at earlier.
"I'm glad you called me. I thought I was going crazy earlier. I kept seeing you everywhere."
Jess let out a small laugh, "Yeah, I saw you earlier today, too. I didn't mean for you to see me. I wasn't even going to call, but I had to. I knew you saw me, and I knew that it'd drive you crazy not knowing. So, I figured, I might as well. After all, you were practically chasing me down the street. Poor lady, never saw you coming."
Rory blushed, "You saw that? I didn't even realize I was walking that fast. I just.. I had to know if it was you or not. I feel bad now. I hope I didn't bump into her too hard."
"I'm sure she's fine. I did see her later on though. She was hobbling along the street screaming something about crazy kids, and how she'd get you." Jess teased, resulting in a smack on his arm from Rory.
"Stop it. You're not helping." There was a brief pause where they simply looked at each other for a quick second. Rory's glance went to her hands, which now lay in her lap. Jess had his hands shoved in his pockets. For the first time since seeing each other again, there was a awkwardness that seemed so unnatural for them. "Hey," Jess looked up at Rory, "How'd you get my number anyway?"
"Luke. I called him right after I got away from you." Rory gave him a mean look, but it quickly became a smile again. "I asked him if he had your number, and of course, he started to interrogate me. I told him that I was in New Haven, and needed to talk to you. He kinda hesitated to give it to me, I think your mom might've been in the diner or something."
"I'm glad he gave you my number. And I'm glad you called. We do need to talk."
"You said that already," Rory blushed again, "You're right. We need to talk." Another silence fell over them. Neither of them knew what to say first. So much had happened since he had left Stars Hollow. Where were they supposed to go from here. Rory didn't even know if Jess would be around much longer. He could be leaving her again tomorrow. The last thing she wanted was to get back with him just to have him leave her again. There was no way she'd go through that heart ache again.
Jess broke the silence again, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left the way I did, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about everything. I'm sorry for hurting you. I'm sorry for being such a horrible boyfriend. I'm.." Rory cut him off, pressing her finger to his lips and turning his head to face hers.
"Shh. Jess, I know you're sorry. If you weren't.. you wouldn't be here right now." She wanted so badly to kiss him, and to just make all the bad memories go away. But, there was no erasing the past.
"Rory. How could I ever make it up to you? I wish I could go back and change everything. You were the one good thing that ever happened to me, and I pushed you away from me."
"I know. I just.. don't want to think about that right now. All I want from you, is to sit with me here, and keep me company. Is that okay?"
"Yeah, I can do that."
"Good." Rory smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Tomorrow, we'll have plenty of time to talk about all this. We'll figure out where we stand then. I'm not saying I want to get back with you right now. It still hurts, and I'm scared of losing you all over again."
"That won't happen. I promise."
"Jess, don't make promises you can't keep."
"Ror, I promise, I won't ever make the mistake of pushing you away again."
"You remember those words." She looked up and gave him a threatening look.
"I will." He smiled at her, and she rested her head back on his shoulder.
"Oh no. I have to call my mom."
"Now? I thought you'd at least wait until you got home to call and tell her about seeing me again."
"No, it's not that. I was supposed to go home and see her tomorrow."
"So, you're not going now?"
"Nope, we have a lunch date tomorrow." She smiled at him.
"Ah. Of course. I hope she doesn't go crazy about you canceling on her to be with me."
"Yeah, that wouldn't be good. I'll just tell her I have a study group meeting I can't get out of."
"Rory Gilmore, you're going to lie to your mother for a boy?"
"Shush. If you'd like, I'll just go back to Stars Hollow tomorrow, and you can have lunch by yourself."
"Shutting up now."
"Thank you."
"Oh, one last thing, just tell her you're staying longer next weekend because of Thanksgiving. I'm sure that'll calm her down a bit."
"Oh, you're right. I forgot about that. Sounds like a plan. I'll call her later. I'm too comfortable right now." Rory added, causing Jess to smile and hold her closer.