AN: sorry the last chapter was short. I had to write it out long hand, and
it was several pages, so I thought it seemed like a good length. Until I
typed it out, then it was all in a neat little package—argh! So yeah.
Sorry. To the famous question: How do I do this so quickly? I have no idea.
I'm an insomniac, and I write when I'm bored. OH, and I realized I'm not
doing disclaimers. Well, duh, I don't own Gilmore Girls. I have no money.
Meanwhile in Chapel Hill
"Hey, man, we're going down to play ultimate, you coming?"
"Yeah, I'll be there in like ten, okay?"
"Cool. See you down there!"
Tristan walked into his dorm room and threw his bag onto his bed and walked over to his dresser to find clothes he didn't mind if he ruined playing ultimate Frisbee. He really liked the weather in North Carolina, as it was usually warm enough to be outside most of the year. As he was changing, he heard his computer telling him he had new email. He walked over and brought the main screen up.
TO: tdugrey1@unc.edu
FROM: rgilmor@yale.edu
SUBJ: Saturday
Tristan,
Yeah, actually that day works out well for me. I'll be in Hartford that day anyway. What time?
Rory
His heart skipped a beat. 'She said yes?' He was elated. He couldn't believe his good luck, her emailing him out of the blue like that, but now he was going to get to see her again. It had been two years, two long years. Sure, he'd gotten updates from Paris on how Rory was doing, but he knew it was a bit of a sore spot for Paris. She had some sick competition going on with Rory in her mind back then, and Tristan had gotten in the middle of it at Chilton. He wasn't about to risk Paris getting pissed and not talking about Rory any more, so he played it nonchalant. Well, as nonchalant as he could get when thinking about Rory.
He needed to calm down. This wasn't a big deal, it wasn't a date. Just two old friends catching up. He hoped she'd see he'd matured a bit. He wasn't going to steal her books and torment her anymore—let's face it, he might as well have pulled her hair and made her eat paste the way they used to bicker. The worst that happens is they have coffee and nothing else happens. At least he would get to see her.
Yale, Two weeks later
"So you're going home for the whole weekend?"
"Yeah, I have dinner with the grandparents tonight, then tomorrow I'm meeting Tristan followed by more social obligations with the grandparents. They insist on showing off their Yale girl, as they keep putting it. Mom got out of it, somehow. I must learn her ways."
"Well, at least you'll have Tristan etched on your brain." Paris smiled knowingly at Rory.
"Will you stop? It's coffee, you know, one of the main meals of the day?"
"Only in your universe, Gilmore."
"So, what are you up to this weekend?"
"Funny you should ask."
"Why is that funny? We were talking about our weekend plans."
"Well, Asher invited me to a conference in New York."
Rory's face fell a little and grabbed her roommate's shoulders.
"Tell me you aren't going with him! You broke up! You told me you didn't call him back!"
"I lied, okay? I called him back and told him we couldn't get back together. But that we could be friends."
"Bad, bad idea."
"What do you mean?"
"Paris, it's physically impossible to just be friends with someone you had such intense feelings about."
"You're wrong!"
"I'm not wrong! You don't see me chatting it up with Jess do you? Or Dean? No! You have to stay away from that kind of stimulus. You have to keep that stuff in the past. Otherwise, you don't move forward."
Paris just shook her head defiantly. "I'm just going along for the conference. With a friend. Whom I have a lot in common with. It's going to be fine."
"Whatever. I said what I thought. Don't cry to me when it blows up in your face."
"Nice, very supportive. Guess I won't help you out with the Tristan thing."
"Why do I need help with the Tristan thing?"
"Well, you claim it's just a platonic thing, right?"
"IT IS!"
"It so is NOT!"
"Paris!"
"Rory!"
Both girls looked at each other for a long beat. Finally Paris blinked.
"Hah! I win!"
"Win what?"
"The staring contest."
"You're impossible."
"I learn from the best. Now come on, what are you dying to say about Tristan?"
"No, no, no. Go on thinking you guys are going to be just friends. It'll be entertaining to hear about later, really."
"You're impossible. Have a nice weekend. Don't forget those condoms!"
With that, Rory walked out of the dorm room and headed to her car. This was going to be an interesting weekend. She really didn't want to go to the dumb Hartford society thing her grandmother had roped her into saying yes to, especially because her mom wasn't going. She would have no partner in crime to make the night more interesting. Maybe she'd take Lane along. Lane never turned down free food. Well free food that Mrs. Kim didn't make.
Later the same night
Rory and Lorelai sat at Luke's drinking coffee after the latest Gilmore Friday night dinner. Rory wasn't saying much, and missing most of what Lorelai was saying. She was lost in thought, trying to figure out what she was going to wear tomorrow.
"Earth to Rory!" Lorelai waved her hand in front of Rory's face, speaking in a slow, deeper voice, like she was in slow motion.
"What? I'm sorry, Mom. What were you saying?"
"I was just telling you that Luke changed his menus back to the old style. Well, the updated look, but old choices."
"Yeah? You mean he took off the extra page of salads?"
"Hey, two salad choices are plenty. Who eats salad, anyway, other than Luke? And he cooks the food here, he isn't supposed to eat it."
"And who would you imagine prepares my food? Elves?"
Luke came up behind them with a coffee pot in his hands. His head was slightly cocked to one side looking at Lorelai.
"Well, actually with your health habits, I'd imagined you'd just gnaw on some bark and drink water right out of the spring."
"You're a laugh riot, really. Rory, would you like some more coffee?"
"What about me?"
"What about you?"
"I don't get coffee?"
"Why don't you go look for that natural spring of coffee outside? If that exists, I bet you'd be the one to find it."
Rory smiled as her mom jumped up and tried to tackle Luke for the coffee pot. She'd ask advice on what to wear tomorrow after they got home. This was too entertaining of a show. She really missed seeing those two bicker. This was home, she thought as she sipped her coffee.
After Luke begged Rory to take Lorelai home so he could close for the night, the two walked arm in arm towards home. It started lightly flurrying on them as they walked.
"So what should I wear tomorrow?"
"Oooh, on the big date?"
"It's not a date!"
"Uh-huh. Sure. Just don't forget your fancy-schmancy clothes for later."
"Right. Hey, how did you get out of that anyways?"
"Um, I can't divulge my secrets. Let's just say I have my ways."
"You must have freaked Grandma out good."
"Something I'll teach you when you turn 21. My gift to you."
"Meanwhile, I have to go. And I swear I'm only staying a half hour before I fake sick."
"That's my girl! So you can borrow some of my clothes for tomorrow's non- date date if you want."
"Thanks. And it's not a date!" Rory said as she walked back to her room. They had just reached the house, and she was exhausted. This week she'd had two big papers due and three tests. It's always nicer to come home after a stressful week. Of course the emails from Tristan she got every other day or so were nice. They we emailing each other pretty regularly. Mainly they worked out details of when and where to meet at first, but kept it up after that. She lay down and noticed her stomach was starting that flip-flop thing. She recognized it from the last time she saw him. When he said he wanted to kiss her. That's what her stomach had done. She closed her eyes and prayed for sleep to come fast.
Lorelai was already gone by the time Rory got up the next morning, but she left a note saying she's laid out a cute outfit on her bed, appropriate for a platonic outing with a snooty Hartford boy. Rory smiled and got ready to go meet Tristan.
Rory sat at the coffee house in Hartford, already on her second cup. She got there early to down some coffee, hopefully to stop her stomach from flipping around like it had been since last night. It wasn't working. She luckily had brought a book with her, and was reading it when someone slumped into a chair opposite from her and let out a deep breath.
"I'm so sorry I'm late. I was at the airport and there was snow in Hartford and we circled and circled, and whew. Catching my breath. I'm here. Sorry."
Rory looked up at this rambling man in front of her. She smiled, "And here I thought I was being stood up."
"Ten bucks says you didn't even know I was late 'cause you had your nose in a book. Nice to see some things don't change."
"Good to see you, too, Tristan."
AN: Okay, in this story, for my purposes, Rory isn't going to be sneaking about meeting Dean in dark alleys (cause that's obviously SUCH a good idea.) And Jess doesn't come back to screw with her mind about loving her. I don't want to do the whole jealous boy thing. It's just Tristan. That's from the conversation Rory and Paris had earlier in this chapter.
Meanwhile in Chapel Hill
"Hey, man, we're going down to play ultimate, you coming?"
"Yeah, I'll be there in like ten, okay?"
"Cool. See you down there!"
Tristan walked into his dorm room and threw his bag onto his bed and walked over to his dresser to find clothes he didn't mind if he ruined playing ultimate Frisbee. He really liked the weather in North Carolina, as it was usually warm enough to be outside most of the year. As he was changing, he heard his computer telling him he had new email. He walked over and brought the main screen up.
TO: tdugrey1@unc.edu
FROM: rgilmor@yale.edu
SUBJ: Saturday
Tristan,
Yeah, actually that day works out well for me. I'll be in Hartford that day anyway. What time?
Rory
His heart skipped a beat. 'She said yes?' He was elated. He couldn't believe his good luck, her emailing him out of the blue like that, but now he was going to get to see her again. It had been two years, two long years. Sure, he'd gotten updates from Paris on how Rory was doing, but he knew it was a bit of a sore spot for Paris. She had some sick competition going on with Rory in her mind back then, and Tristan had gotten in the middle of it at Chilton. He wasn't about to risk Paris getting pissed and not talking about Rory any more, so he played it nonchalant. Well, as nonchalant as he could get when thinking about Rory.
He needed to calm down. This wasn't a big deal, it wasn't a date. Just two old friends catching up. He hoped she'd see he'd matured a bit. He wasn't going to steal her books and torment her anymore—let's face it, he might as well have pulled her hair and made her eat paste the way they used to bicker. The worst that happens is they have coffee and nothing else happens. At least he would get to see her.
Yale, Two weeks later
"So you're going home for the whole weekend?"
"Yeah, I have dinner with the grandparents tonight, then tomorrow I'm meeting Tristan followed by more social obligations with the grandparents. They insist on showing off their Yale girl, as they keep putting it. Mom got out of it, somehow. I must learn her ways."
"Well, at least you'll have Tristan etched on your brain." Paris smiled knowingly at Rory.
"Will you stop? It's coffee, you know, one of the main meals of the day?"
"Only in your universe, Gilmore."
"So, what are you up to this weekend?"
"Funny you should ask."
"Why is that funny? We were talking about our weekend plans."
"Well, Asher invited me to a conference in New York."
Rory's face fell a little and grabbed her roommate's shoulders.
"Tell me you aren't going with him! You broke up! You told me you didn't call him back!"
"I lied, okay? I called him back and told him we couldn't get back together. But that we could be friends."
"Bad, bad idea."
"What do you mean?"
"Paris, it's physically impossible to just be friends with someone you had such intense feelings about."
"You're wrong!"
"I'm not wrong! You don't see me chatting it up with Jess do you? Or Dean? No! You have to stay away from that kind of stimulus. You have to keep that stuff in the past. Otherwise, you don't move forward."
Paris just shook her head defiantly. "I'm just going along for the conference. With a friend. Whom I have a lot in common with. It's going to be fine."
"Whatever. I said what I thought. Don't cry to me when it blows up in your face."
"Nice, very supportive. Guess I won't help you out with the Tristan thing."
"Why do I need help with the Tristan thing?"
"Well, you claim it's just a platonic thing, right?"
"IT IS!"
"It so is NOT!"
"Paris!"
"Rory!"
Both girls looked at each other for a long beat. Finally Paris blinked.
"Hah! I win!"
"Win what?"
"The staring contest."
"You're impossible."
"I learn from the best. Now come on, what are you dying to say about Tristan?"
"No, no, no. Go on thinking you guys are going to be just friends. It'll be entertaining to hear about later, really."
"You're impossible. Have a nice weekend. Don't forget those condoms!"
With that, Rory walked out of the dorm room and headed to her car. This was going to be an interesting weekend. She really didn't want to go to the dumb Hartford society thing her grandmother had roped her into saying yes to, especially because her mom wasn't going. She would have no partner in crime to make the night more interesting. Maybe she'd take Lane along. Lane never turned down free food. Well free food that Mrs. Kim didn't make.
Later the same night
Rory and Lorelai sat at Luke's drinking coffee after the latest Gilmore Friday night dinner. Rory wasn't saying much, and missing most of what Lorelai was saying. She was lost in thought, trying to figure out what she was going to wear tomorrow.
"Earth to Rory!" Lorelai waved her hand in front of Rory's face, speaking in a slow, deeper voice, like she was in slow motion.
"What? I'm sorry, Mom. What were you saying?"
"I was just telling you that Luke changed his menus back to the old style. Well, the updated look, but old choices."
"Yeah? You mean he took off the extra page of salads?"
"Hey, two salad choices are plenty. Who eats salad, anyway, other than Luke? And he cooks the food here, he isn't supposed to eat it."
"And who would you imagine prepares my food? Elves?"
Luke came up behind them with a coffee pot in his hands. His head was slightly cocked to one side looking at Lorelai.
"Well, actually with your health habits, I'd imagined you'd just gnaw on some bark and drink water right out of the spring."
"You're a laugh riot, really. Rory, would you like some more coffee?"
"What about me?"
"What about you?"
"I don't get coffee?"
"Why don't you go look for that natural spring of coffee outside? If that exists, I bet you'd be the one to find it."
Rory smiled as her mom jumped up and tried to tackle Luke for the coffee pot. She'd ask advice on what to wear tomorrow after they got home. This was too entertaining of a show. She really missed seeing those two bicker. This was home, she thought as she sipped her coffee.
After Luke begged Rory to take Lorelai home so he could close for the night, the two walked arm in arm towards home. It started lightly flurrying on them as they walked.
"So what should I wear tomorrow?"
"Oooh, on the big date?"
"It's not a date!"
"Uh-huh. Sure. Just don't forget your fancy-schmancy clothes for later."
"Right. Hey, how did you get out of that anyways?"
"Um, I can't divulge my secrets. Let's just say I have my ways."
"You must have freaked Grandma out good."
"Something I'll teach you when you turn 21. My gift to you."
"Meanwhile, I have to go. And I swear I'm only staying a half hour before I fake sick."
"That's my girl! So you can borrow some of my clothes for tomorrow's non- date date if you want."
"Thanks. And it's not a date!" Rory said as she walked back to her room. They had just reached the house, and she was exhausted. This week she'd had two big papers due and three tests. It's always nicer to come home after a stressful week. Of course the emails from Tristan she got every other day or so were nice. They we emailing each other pretty regularly. Mainly they worked out details of when and where to meet at first, but kept it up after that. She lay down and noticed her stomach was starting that flip-flop thing. She recognized it from the last time she saw him. When he said he wanted to kiss her. That's what her stomach had done. She closed her eyes and prayed for sleep to come fast.
Lorelai was already gone by the time Rory got up the next morning, but she left a note saying she's laid out a cute outfit on her bed, appropriate for a platonic outing with a snooty Hartford boy. Rory smiled and got ready to go meet Tristan.
Rory sat at the coffee house in Hartford, already on her second cup. She got there early to down some coffee, hopefully to stop her stomach from flipping around like it had been since last night. It wasn't working. She luckily had brought a book with her, and was reading it when someone slumped into a chair opposite from her and let out a deep breath.
"I'm so sorry I'm late. I was at the airport and there was snow in Hartford and we circled and circled, and whew. Catching my breath. I'm here. Sorry."
Rory looked up at this rambling man in front of her. She smiled, "And here I thought I was being stood up."
"Ten bucks says you didn't even know I was late 'cause you had your nose in a book. Nice to see some things don't change."
"Good to see you, too, Tristan."
AN: Okay, in this story, for my purposes, Rory isn't going to be sneaking about meeting Dean in dark alleys (cause that's obviously SUCH a good idea.) And Jess doesn't come back to screw with her mind about loving her. I don't want to do the whole jealous boy thing. It's just Tristan. That's from the conversation Rory and Paris had earlier in this chapter.