Disclaimer, rating and information about spoilers can be found in the first chapter.
Part Seven: Loyal in Your Shadow
Rory was in a sticky situation. A situation she would have never have thought she would never, ever, had been in, and thus, she was sort of at a loss as to how to proceed. Love triangles belonged in Aaron Spelling dramas, not her summer vacation. The closest thing to a love triangle Rory had experienced, so far, (although, she certainly hoped it wouldn't become a habit) was the whole debacle with Tristan and Paris. But, she reasoned, that hardly counted, did it? Rory had never shown any romantic interest in Tristan, and he had never pursued her beyond his metaphorical sand flinging. Furthermore, Tristan had never indicated that he had any remotely non-platonic feelings for Paris. That wasn't a triangle so much as an abstract stick figure construed as a triangle in Paris's over excitable head.
Also, Rory had never imagined that she would be competing with Lane (although, was that really an appropriate word? Competing implied conscious effort by both parties and Lane was blissfully unaware, in Korea, far, far away) for the affection of a guy.
This was partly due to the fact that before now, it hadn't even really been a possibility. The two people in her life she was closest to were her mother and Lane. Obviously, she and her mother had never been interested in the same guy. They watched Jerry Springer to mock, not to learn. And she and Lane had always had very different tastes. Lane had 'discovered' the other sex a good two years before Rory. Whenever Lane had gone on and on about the physical attributes of her various crushes Rory had listened, somewhat disinterestedly, and when Lane was done, steered the conversation to something else.
When it came to real life crushes, they had never, not even once, been fixated on the same person. Generally, Lane lusted after the more obvious targets. Mike, the captain of the football team (total Neanderthal, but with the most amazing green eyes), Grant, the confident, funny guy who made everyone laugh, Jared, the ultra popular senior class vice president… and so on and so forth. Lane's crushes were fleeting. They changed from month to month, from week to week, sometimes.
Rory had always seen beyond the outward shininess of Lane's lust objects. Mike went through the cheerleaders like her mother went through Vogue, Grant was funny, yes, but more often than not (when authority figures were absent) in a heartless way, and Jared took great pleasure in tormenting the freshmen. At the time, Rory had never bothered to point out flaws such as these to Lane, though. She felt like she was missing something. Lane saw something, and from the talk at school, others saw something in boys such as these, why didn't she?
Later, just a few months ago, shortly after Lane began seeing Dave, they had seen Jared at a store in Hartford. They hadn't talked to him but the sighting had led to reminiscing and Rory had wondered, out loud, in a mostly rhetorical fashion, how Lane could have possibly liked those that she did, given there less than attractive personalities.
Lane had smiled at her, in that vaguely patronizing way people like Paris and Madeline and Louise did sometimes, a way that made her feel like she was naïve, in some way and said, "That's the point of a crush, though, isn't it? You never even have to have a meaningful conversation with them, but your heart beats come faster when they walk by. You know nothing about them, but you imagine that you do. It's exhilarating, isn't it?"
Rory, never having experienced something like what Lane was describing, didn't reply. She was grateful, however, that Lane didn't comment on the less than charming personality Jess displayed around those who were not she.
Rory had always operated differently than Lane. Her crushes (crush, really, because didn't it cease to be a crush when he later became your boyfriend?) had been enduring and few in number. They also tended to be on the less obvious boys. There was Riley, the quiet boy who was always in her advanced English classes. The teachers often read his work aloud, they never said it was his, but Rory could tell. He began to shift uncomfortable and flushed ever so slightly. He was an amazing writer.
Then there was Dean, the mysterious new boy from Chicago, who showed an interest in her first. And then Jess, also a mysterious new boy (but a well read, more jaded, prickly one) this time from New York, who also showed an interest (however masked it had been) in her first.
Hmm. Funny how she had never noticed that little pattern before.
Lane had never really understood what Rory had seen in either boy. She hadn't minded Dean, only thought him a little boring and bland. But he'd been nice, and had treated Rory well, so she had commented little. Privately, Lane couldn't help but hope Rory would spice things up a little.
Jess was not what she had had in mind. Recognizing the way Rory felt about him, Lane had tried very hard to like him. Tried, and failed. As a result, they had not talked about Jess much. Lane avoided the subject because sometimes, she really wanted to smack Rory, for taking Jess's sometimes inconsiderateness without standing up for herself. When Rory had explained that Jess really was different when they were alone Lane had done her very best to believe it. Still, the fact that Rory was upset over some Jess related thing almost as much as she was happy, did not help Lane to give Jess the benefit of the doubt.
Still, it was seriously doubtful that Lane would be happy that Dave Rygalski was the brand new spice in Rory's love life.
Even though Lane recognized, as Rory had, that the possibility of the two of them wanting the same thing, boyfriend wise, was slim to none, she had, nonetheless, made Rory promise no male, no matter how good looking, or smart, or perfect, would ever come between them. Rory had thought the promise silly, but Lane had been so solemn she had sworn anyway.
She didn't think it was silly now.
They had been fourteen (well, Lane had been. Rory, having been born in October, was nearly so) at the time and just about to start at Stars Hollow High. It had been a summer in Stars Hollow, a summer almost exactly like all the others they had spent before. Lane spent most days helping her mother in the shop, the rest with Rory listening to illicitly obtained music they had only recently discovered and talking about things of almost no importance. Mama Kim was still strict, but not as strict as she would become, perhaps due to the fact that Lane was practically still a child. It was before Chilton. Before Dean and Henry and Jess and the great Harvard vs. Yale debate. Before Lane decided that she didn't just want to listen to music she wanted to make it. All that had happened made the four years seem longer than it technically was.
Just now, Rory wished she had paid a little more attention to Lane back then. Maybe they could have drawn out a procedure as to what to do should they both fall for the same person. Then, maybe, Rory would have some idea as to what she should do. Should they not tell Lane, pretend nothing ever happened? Should they be honest, but have Rory back away gracefully, on the principle that Lane saw him first (although, technically, Rory had heard him first, on her answering machine, did that count?). Should Lane be the one to back away, since both she and Rory knew she planned on letting Dave go come September, anyway (of this Dave was unaware, did that affect anything?). Should they both let him go? Should he get to choose? Rory desperately needed some aspirin.
The only thing that looked to be a certainty was that Rory's friendship with Lane would never be the same again. And that thought was almost too depressing to bear.