Author's Note: All characters are owned by Amy Sherman-Palladino and the
WB. Watch the Frog. Thanks for the feedback on the last story. I love me
some Luke and Lorelai and I'm glad there are others who do as well! This
story basically picks up where the last one finished.
It was the morning after Liz's wedding and Lorelai was hoping to catch up on some sleep when she was removed from her peaceful slumber by the sound of her ringing cell phone. "Damn Beyonce," she thought as she mentally cursed herself for changing her ring tone to one of Destiny's Child's repetitive songs. She fumbled out of bed and sat up while reaching for the cell phone on her bedside table.
"Hello?" she said groggily.
"Hey Mom," Rory said all too chipper.
"Rory?" Lorelai asked, still hazy from her abrupt wake up. "Why are calling so early?" she whined. "You're in college, don't all-night keggers make you sleepy?" She rolled onto her back and pulled the comforter back over her body.
"Keggers are on Friday night at Yale. Saturday is bar night, which basically ends at 2 a.m.," Rory responded matter-of-factly. "Besides it's actually not that early and I had a frantic message from a crazy lady last night. If I remember correctly the woman in the message said something about dating Luke. Any ideas on who could have left a message like that for me?" Rory teased.
"Didn't your mother teach you it's not nice to tease your elders?" Lorelai said sitting up on the bed.
"Mom—Luke, details please," Rory demanded.
"Oh hun, I don't even know where to start," Lorelai sighed. "You know I was going to his sister's wedding with him. Well he told me I looked beautiful, which was kind of weird because it's Luke and he doesn't say that kind of stuff. So then he was being all nice, not that he isn't normally, but it was kind of 'date' nice. He gave me his arm, got me drinks and get this—he asked me to dance!" Lorelai exclaimed.
"Luke danced?" Rory repeated incredulously.
"I know can you believe it? But that isn't the weirdest part. The weird part is that he was really good at it! It's like if Miss Patty retired tomorrow we could change the name to Luke's School of Dance."
"Wow. That is pretty amazing," Rory replied. "But, I believe your message said something about dating?" Rory continued to prod knowing full well that when it came to Luke, Lorelai didn't give her feelings up easily. Coercion was usually the best way to get any details.
"Well, so he walked me home and he said we should do it again sometime and I'm thinking we should go to a wedding again and he's thinking he should come over and make me dinner Wednesday night!"
"What did you say?"
"I didn't really know what to say so I just said yes. He tricked me. He knows I can't turn down the offer of a free meal," Lorelai sighed. She got out of bed and started to pace the floor.
"He didn't trick you, you said yes," Rory wisely replied. "But maybe he didn't mean it like a date."
"Oh I'm pretty sure he meant it like a date. He kissed me goodnight," Lorelai said.
"You kissed Luke!" Rory exclaimed. "I can't believe this."
"Hun, it wasn't, I didn't kiss--," but Rory continued to talk and didn't hear a word of Lorelai's protests. "I can't believe you finally started to see what everyone has seen for years. I can't believe Luke got up enough courage to do something like that!" Rory finally finished.
"Rory, he kissed me on the cheek and what are you talking about I finally see what everyone else has for years?" Lorelai asked her daughter. She was pacing more vigorously now. She knew full well what Rory was saying. The whole town, Miss Patty, Sookie, Rory, hell, even her mother, had told her Luke had feelings for her. For some reason she always filed that bit of information in the back of her head and never really paid it much attention because it was Luke. Luke her friend, Luke her coffee man, not Luke her boyfriend.
"C'mon Mom, you know exactly what I'm talking about. He likes you and you like him. Luke has had a crush on you for years. I think I first noticed it when I was 14! I think it's great that you two are finally starting to admit what's been going on," Rory finished.
"Rory, I didn't say I like Luke. I mean we had a good time. We always have good time. He's my friend Luke," Lorelai added emphasis to the word friend. "And nothing has been going on."
"Mom, it's okay if you like Luke," Rory counseled. "At least now you two can move forward and be happy. And there has always been something going on with you and Luke. Why do you give each other such a hard time? Why does he always drop everything to help you? Why did you get so upset when you found out he was moving to Litchfield?"
Lorelai thought about what Rory said. Could she be right? Could Lorelai have been in denial about this for so long? She and Luke always gave each other a hard time. She had to admit that she kind of looked forward to seeing him and giving him a hard time. And she had to admit she was very upset when she heard Luke say he was moving. The thought of him being so far away scared her.
"Mom? Are you still there? You're not mad are you?" Rory asked tentatively.
"No, I'm still here. I'm not mad," Lorelai responded to distracted by her own thoughts to even wonder how Rory knew she didn't want Luke to move to Litchfield with Nicole. "Hun, I have to go I slept way too late and I have tons of Dragonfly stuff to get done. Thanks for the talk though. I'll call you later okay?"
"Okay, I'm sorry if I upset you," Rory said feeling guilty.
"No sweetie I'm not upset, I just have to think, about a lot of stuff. I promise. I'll talk to you later."
"Okay, have good day. Bye," Rory said and hung up the phone. Maybe her mother hadn't really admitted her feelings for Luke yet. But Rory had a feeling it would only be a matter of time before she did.
***
Lorelai hung up the phone and threw it in the middle of her bed. She glanced at the clock and couldn't believe how late she had slept. Once she had finally fallen asleep she slept like a rock, but it took her ages to stop her mind from turning the night's events over and over in her head. She had finally come to the realization shortly before she drifted to the land of the unconscious that Luke obviously had feelings for her. She just didn't know how she felt about him. She knew she counted on him and liked being with him, but she couldn't decide if she wanted to be with him in the way he wanted her. Hearing Rory lay it all out on the line made her wonder. Rory said she knew Lorelai had feelings for Luke. Even Emily had pointed it out years ago that she liked that Luke looked at her like, what had she compared it to, a porterhouse steak? It didn't really matter. Deep down Lorelai knew things had changed. It was the way Luke held her and the way he looked into her eyes tonight that was different. Hell, it was in the way he kissed her goodnight. Granted it was very chaste and innocent, but Luke and Lorelai were not the kissing type of friends. Lorelai could never understand people who walked into a room and kissed and hugged everyone there. It didn't make sense. It was little too much invasion into her personal space. She sighed as she rummaged through her closet to find something to wear. She had to get to the Dragonfly to finish some last minute touches to the inn before the big opening. She knew she would have to think while she worked at the inn.
Across town Luke was in an extraordinary mood. Kirk changed his order three times Sunday morning and Luke didn't even look at him like he was going to toss him out of the diner. Everyone noticed his mood and after seeing him and Lorelai dance at the wedding everyone was pretty sure they knew why.
"Hi Luke," said Miss Patty sauntering up to the counter.
"Good Morning Patty. What can I get you today?" Luke said in an unusually upbeat tone.
"Oh just some scrambled eggs and an orange juice," she replied. "How are you today honey? You seem like you're in a good mood," Patty fished.
"Well it's not everyday your sister gets married Patty. I'd have to say yesterday was a very good day," Luke replied, not giving Patty an inch.
Not one to be dissuaded Patty replied, "So do you know if we'll be seeing Lorelai in today Luke? You were the last one to see her, was it a late night?"
"I don't know Patty she has a lot of work to do at the inn, but I'm sure she'll turn up sometime today. She usually does," he said as he turned into the kitchen to grab Taylor's order. Luke knew the town was full of gossip and that word traveled fast, but he could hardly believe Miss Patty was already questioning him about Lorelai and they hadn't even gone on a proper date yet. Hell, he hadn't even given her a real kiss yet!
Miss Patty took the moment that Luke had his back turned to turn her head to Babette and Morey and shake her head. It was obviously that Luke wasn't about to give up any information on what was going on between him and Lorelai. They would simply wait it out, or track down Lorelai and get to the bottom of this intriguing romantic tale.
***
Lorelai walked into the kitchen of the Dragonfly after doing some last minute painting in the dining room. Even with the money Luke had loaned her she still had to take some of the easier tasks upon herself in order to save money. She brushed a piece of hair out of her face and flopped down on a stool when she heard the back door open. She turned to see Sookie walk in with a large box. Lorelai jumped off the stool to help her with the box she was carrying.
"Hey Sook, what are you doing here today?" Lorelai asked as they both struggled to heave the box onto the counter.
"Well we open next weekend and I was up all night thinking about the kitchen and then I thought of all the things I still needed and I realized I better get over here today because we open next weekend!" Sookie babbled excitedly. "What are you doing here?"
"The baseboards in the dining room needed another coat of paint," Lorelai replied.
"You should have told me," Sookie lightly hit Lorelai's shoulder as if to scold her. "I would have come to help out."
"Don't worry about it," Lorelai replied taking her seat back on the stool. "I am completely finished. I don't think I have to worry about any other Ms. Fix It things around here for awhile."
"That's great sweetie," Sookie replied unpacking the large box she brought in. Now Lorelai knew why it was so heavy. Sookie had packed a plethora of kitchen supplies including more pans, serving platters, basically everything but the kitchen sink. "Oh, so how was the wedding last night? Was it romantic? It looked romantic when Jackson and I were driving back into town."
"Yeah, it was really nice. The lights were beautiful. Liz and T.J. really love each other," Lorelai said rather evasively.
"Did Luke make you sit through the whole reception?"
"Actually, no," Lorelai said as she got up to rinse out her coffee mug. "He actually asked me to dance."
"Luke danced with you?" Sookie asked excitedly.
"Yep. We danced and he walked me home and he kissed me on the cheek and I think I have an honest to goodness real date with him Wednesday," Lorelai said.
"What?!" Sookie could barely hold back her excitement. "He asked you out? You're going out with Luke? He kissed you! Oh my gosh I have to sit down," Sookie said moving around the counter to sit in the chair Lorelai had recently vacated. Lorelai proceeded to fill Sookie in on the details of the wedding.
"So, sweetie the only real question left is are you excited about this?" Sookie asked when she was finished.
"Sookie I wish I knew," Lorelai sighed as she leaned on the counter. "I love Luke because he's Luke. I mean Rory, you and Luke are permanent fixtures in my life. But what if Luke and I do this thing and it doesn't work?"
"Why wouldn't it work?" Sookie asked innocently.
"For a million reasons Sookie. What if it didn't work for a million reasons? Then I'd have to cross Luke off my list of permanent people."
"But that isn't the question Lorelai," Sookie answered.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean the question isn't what would happen if it didn't work. The question is do you feel that way about Luke? Does it make you happy to see him? Do you light up when he walks in a room? If not, then you need to let him down easy because he definitely feels that way about you."
"Thanks Sook, no pressure there," Lorelai sighed.
"Oh honey, that isn't how I meant it. I'm not helping here," Sookie said as she stood up and walked around the counter to stand next to Lorelai. She placed her hand supportively on her shoulder. "Look Lorelai the whole town has seen Luke form this massive crush on you. However, Stars Hollow is divided as to how you feel about Luke. Many of us are in the camp that you do love him, but you just haven't realized it yet. The other half of us thinking you don't love him that way because you should have realized it by now."
"What camp are you in Sookie?"
Sookie just smiled and went back to unpacking her box of kitchen equipment.
"C'mon Sookie tell me," Lorelai said slightly agitated.
"Lorelai, it doesn't matter what I think. The only thing that matters is how you feel when you're with Luke, or how you feel when you're not. How did you feel when you thought Luke was moving?"
"Horrible," Lorelai finally admitted to someone other than herself. "But Sookie, I thought my parents were perfect for each other. A match made in trust fund heaven and look what's happened to them? I don't have the best track record in relationships. I don't think I can take the chance on screwing things up so completely with Luke."
"Well take this for what it's worth, but I think the fact that you are even thinking about the possibility of messing things up with Luke says a lot," Sookie said.
"Why is that?"
"Well, you've thought about it long enough to entertain the possibility of being with him long enough to screw it up," Sookie stated pointedly.
"Me and Luke, huh?" Lorelai responded with a slight hint of a smile in her tone.
"Luke and Lorelai," Sookie affirmed with a smile.
***
TBC
It was the morning after Liz's wedding and Lorelai was hoping to catch up on some sleep when she was removed from her peaceful slumber by the sound of her ringing cell phone. "Damn Beyonce," she thought as she mentally cursed herself for changing her ring tone to one of Destiny's Child's repetitive songs. She fumbled out of bed and sat up while reaching for the cell phone on her bedside table.
"Hello?" she said groggily.
"Hey Mom," Rory said all too chipper.
"Rory?" Lorelai asked, still hazy from her abrupt wake up. "Why are calling so early?" she whined. "You're in college, don't all-night keggers make you sleepy?" She rolled onto her back and pulled the comforter back over her body.
"Keggers are on Friday night at Yale. Saturday is bar night, which basically ends at 2 a.m.," Rory responded matter-of-factly. "Besides it's actually not that early and I had a frantic message from a crazy lady last night. If I remember correctly the woman in the message said something about dating Luke. Any ideas on who could have left a message like that for me?" Rory teased.
"Didn't your mother teach you it's not nice to tease your elders?" Lorelai said sitting up on the bed.
"Mom—Luke, details please," Rory demanded.
"Oh hun, I don't even know where to start," Lorelai sighed. "You know I was going to his sister's wedding with him. Well he told me I looked beautiful, which was kind of weird because it's Luke and he doesn't say that kind of stuff. So then he was being all nice, not that he isn't normally, but it was kind of 'date' nice. He gave me his arm, got me drinks and get this—he asked me to dance!" Lorelai exclaimed.
"Luke danced?" Rory repeated incredulously.
"I know can you believe it? But that isn't the weirdest part. The weird part is that he was really good at it! It's like if Miss Patty retired tomorrow we could change the name to Luke's School of Dance."
"Wow. That is pretty amazing," Rory replied. "But, I believe your message said something about dating?" Rory continued to prod knowing full well that when it came to Luke, Lorelai didn't give her feelings up easily. Coercion was usually the best way to get any details.
"Well, so he walked me home and he said we should do it again sometime and I'm thinking we should go to a wedding again and he's thinking he should come over and make me dinner Wednesday night!"
"What did you say?"
"I didn't really know what to say so I just said yes. He tricked me. He knows I can't turn down the offer of a free meal," Lorelai sighed. She got out of bed and started to pace the floor.
"He didn't trick you, you said yes," Rory wisely replied. "But maybe he didn't mean it like a date."
"Oh I'm pretty sure he meant it like a date. He kissed me goodnight," Lorelai said.
"You kissed Luke!" Rory exclaimed. "I can't believe this."
"Hun, it wasn't, I didn't kiss--," but Rory continued to talk and didn't hear a word of Lorelai's protests. "I can't believe you finally started to see what everyone has seen for years. I can't believe Luke got up enough courage to do something like that!" Rory finally finished.
"Rory, he kissed me on the cheek and what are you talking about I finally see what everyone else has for years?" Lorelai asked her daughter. She was pacing more vigorously now. She knew full well what Rory was saying. The whole town, Miss Patty, Sookie, Rory, hell, even her mother, had told her Luke had feelings for her. For some reason she always filed that bit of information in the back of her head and never really paid it much attention because it was Luke. Luke her friend, Luke her coffee man, not Luke her boyfriend.
"C'mon Mom, you know exactly what I'm talking about. He likes you and you like him. Luke has had a crush on you for years. I think I first noticed it when I was 14! I think it's great that you two are finally starting to admit what's been going on," Rory finished.
"Rory, I didn't say I like Luke. I mean we had a good time. We always have good time. He's my friend Luke," Lorelai added emphasis to the word friend. "And nothing has been going on."
"Mom, it's okay if you like Luke," Rory counseled. "At least now you two can move forward and be happy. And there has always been something going on with you and Luke. Why do you give each other such a hard time? Why does he always drop everything to help you? Why did you get so upset when you found out he was moving to Litchfield?"
Lorelai thought about what Rory said. Could she be right? Could Lorelai have been in denial about this for so long? She and Luke always gave each other a hard time. She had to admit that she kind of looked forward to seeing him and giving him a hard time. And she had to admit she was very upset when she heard Luke say he was moving. The thought of him being so far away scared her.
"Mom? Are you still there? You're not mad are you?" Rory asked tentatively.
"No, I'm still here. I'm not mad," Lorelai responded to distracted by her own thoughts to even wonder how Rory knew she didn't want Luke to move to Litchfield with Nicole. "Hun, I have to go I slept way too late and I have tons of Dragonfly stuff to get done. Thanks for the talk though. I'll call you later okay?"
"Okay, I'm sorry if I upset you," Rory said feeling guilty.
"No sweetie I'm not upset, I just have to think, about a lot of stuff. I promise. I'll talk to you later."
"Okay, have good day. Bye," Rory said and hung up the phone. Maybe her mother hadn't really admitted her feelings for Luke yet. But Rory had a feeling it would only be a matter of time before she did.
***
Lorelai hung up the phone and threw it in the middle of her bed. She glanced at the clock and couldn't believe how late she had slept. Once she had finally fallen asleep she slept like a rock, but it took her ages to stop her mind from turning the night's events over and over in her head. She had finally come to the realization shortly before she drifted to the land of the unconscious that Luke obviously had feelings for her. She just didn't know how she felt about him. She knew she counted on him and liked being with him, but she couldn't decide if she wanted to be with him in the way he wanted her. Hearing Rory lay it all out on the line made her wonder. Rory said she knew Lorelai had feelings for Luke. Even Emily had pointed it out years ago that she liked that Luke looked at her like, what had she compared it to, a porterhouse steak? It didn't really matter. Deep down Lorelai knew things had changed. It was the way Luke held her and the way he looked into her eyes tonight that was different. Hell, it was in the way he kissed her goodnight. Granted it was very chaste and innocent, but Luke and Lorelai were not the kissing type of friends. Lorelai could never understand people who walked into a room and kissed and hugged everyone there. It didn't make sense. It was little too much invasion into her personal space. She sighed as she rummaged through her closet to find something to wear. She had to get to the Dragonfly to finish some last minute touches to the inn before the big opening. She knew she would have to think while she worked at the inn.
Across town Luke was in an extraordinary mood. Kirk changed his order three times Sunday morning and Luke didn't even look at him like he was going to toss him out of the diner. Everyone noticed his mood and after seeing him and Lorelai dance at the wedding everyone was pretty sure they knew why.
"Hi Luke," said Miss Patty sauntering up to the counter.
"Good Morning Patty. What can I get you today?" Luke said in an unusually upbeat tone.
"Oh just some scrambled eggs and an orange juice," she replied. "How are you today honey? You seem like you're in a good mood," Patty fished.
"Well it's not everyday your sister gets married Patty. I'd have to say yesterday was a very good day," Luke replied, not giving Patty an inch.
Not one to be dissuaded Patty replied, "So do you know if we'll be seeing Lorelai in today Luke? You were the last one to see her, was it a late night?"
"I don't know Patty she has a lot of work to do at the inn, but I'm sure she'll turn up sometime today. She usually does," he said as he turned into the kitchen to grab Taylor's order. Luke knew the town was full of gossip and that word traveled fast, but he could hardly believe Miss Patty was already questioning him about Lorelai and they hadn't even gone on a proper date yet. Hell, he hadn't even given her a real kiss yet!
Miss Patty took the moment that Luke had his back turned to turn her head to Babette and Morey and shake her head. It was obviously that Luke wasn't about to give up any information on what was going on between him and Lorelai. They would simply wait it out, or track down Lorelai and get to the bottom of this intriguing romantic tale.
***
Lorelai walked into the kitchen of the Dragonfly after doing some last minute painting in the dining room. Even with the money Luke had loaned her she still had to take some of the easier tasks upon herself in order to save money. She brushed a piece of hair out of her face and flopped down on a stool when she heard the back door open. She turned to see Sookie walk in with a large box. Lorelai jumped off the stool to help her with the box she was carrying.
"Hey Sook, what are you doing here today?" Lorelai asked as they both struggled to heave the box onto the counter.
"Well we open next weekend and I was up all night thinking about the kitchen and then I thought of all the things I still needed and I realized I better get over here today because we open next weekend!" Sookie babbled excitedly. "What are you doing here?"
"The baseboards in the dining room needed another coat of paint," Lorelai replied.
"You should have told me," Sookie lightly hit Lorelai's shoulder as if to scold her. "I would have come to help out."
"Don't worry about it," Lorelai replied taking her seat back on the stool. "I am completely finished. I don't think I have to worry about any other Ms. Fix It things around here for awhile."
"That's great sweetie," Sookie replied unpacking the large box she brought in. Now Lorelai knew why it was so heavy. Sookie had packed a plethora of kitchen supplies including more pans, serving platters, basically everything but the kitchen sink. "Oh, so how was the wedding last night? Was it romantic? It looked romantic when Jackson and I were driving back into town."
"Yeah, it was really nice. The lights were beautiful. Liz and T.J. really love each other," Lorelai said rather evasively.
"Did Luke make you sit through the whole reception?"
"Actually, no," Lorelai said as she got up to rinse out her coffee mug. "He actually asked me to dance."
"Luke danced with you?" Sookie asked excitedly.
"Yep. We danced and he walked me home and he kissed me on the cheek and I think I have an honest to goodness real date with him Wednesday," Lorelai said.
"What?!" Sookie could barely hold back her excitement. "He asked you out? You're going out with Luke? He kissed you! Oh my gosh I have to sit down," Sookie said moving around the counter to sit in the chair Lorelai had recently vacated. Lorelai proceeded to fill Sookie in on the details of the wedding.
"So, sweetie the only real question left is are you excited about this?" Sookie asked when she was finished.
"Sookie I wish I knew," Lorelai sighed as she leaned on the counter. "I love Luke because he's Luke. I mean Rory, you and Luke are permanent fixtures in my life. But what if Luke and I do this thing and it doesn't work?"
"Why wouldn't it work?" Sookie asked innocently.
"For a million reasons Sookie. What if it didn't work for a million reasons? Then I'd have to cross Luke off my list of permanent people."
"But that isn't the question Lorelai," Sookie answered.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean the question isn't what would happen if it didn't work. The question is do you feel that way about Luke? Does it make you happy to see him? Do you light up when he walks in a room? If not, then you need to let him down easy because he definitely feels that way about you."
"Thanks Sook, no pressure there," Lorelai sighed.
"Oh honey, that isn't how I meant it. I'm not helping here," Sookie said as she stood up and walked around the counter to stand next to Lorelai. She placed her hand supportively on her shoulder. "Look Lorelai the whole town has seen Luke form this massive crush on you. However, Stars Hollow is divided as to how you feel about Luke. Many of us are in the camp that you do love him, but you just haven't realized it yet. The other half of us thinking you don't love him that way because you should have realized it by now."
"What camp are you in Sookie?"
Sookie just smiled and went back to unpacking her box of kitchen equipment.
"C'mon Sookie tell me," Lorelai said slightly agitated.
"Lorelai, it doesn't matter what I think. The only thing that matters is how you feel when you're with Luke, or how you feel when you're not. How did you feel when you thought Luke was moving?"
"Horrible," Lorelai finally admitted to someone other than herself. "But Sookie, I thought my parents were perfect for each other. A match made in trust fund heaven and look what's happened to them? I don't have the best track record in relationships. I don't think I can take the chance on screwing things up so completely with Luke."
"Well take this for what it's worth, but I think the fact that you are even thinking about the possibility of messing things up with Luke says a lot," Sookie said.
"Why is that?"
"Well, you've thought about it long enough to entertain the possibility of being with him long enough to screw it up," Sookie stated pointedly.
"Me and Luke, huh?" Lorelai responded with a slight hint of a smile in her tone.
"Luke and Lorelai," Sookie affirmed with a smile.
***
TBC