Being Alone.

What if naked guy outside Rory's room was none other than Tristan?? TRORY

Disclaimer: I do not own the Gilmore Girls show, or the people on it... trust me there would be a lot more Tristan if I did :) I don't own Disney movies (well, maybe on VHS) but I love them so you might find some quotes in this.

Author's Note: OK... I'm pretty sure I've bumped into this idea before... at least once, but I can't remember the actual story, so I'm just gonna say I'm sorry to whoever wrote it if mine happens to be like yours. I would also like to warn you that this is my first fan-fic ever. Enjoy!

Paring: Rory/Tristan

Rory was laughing so hard she thought she might get asked to leave the coffee shop. Tristan´s stories from military school were hilarious.

"I can not believe someone could ever think of you as gay material." she said still laughing

"Yeah well.... I think it was more like his wishes than what he really thought." He said pleased to see her having such a great time.

"So, Mary, we have discussed college, and family and my love life... or what others would like it to be. I guess that leaves us with you. How´s bagboy doing?"

"Married." At what seamed to be the same time Tristan choke on his muffin and looked at her hand.

"Not to me you silly. We broke up a couple of years ago."

"Oh... any significant others since then?" He asked making fun of her earlier word choice.

"Well... there was Jess, but, um.. it didn´t work out. And I´ve been on my own ever since." Although she didn´t say it, he could tell there was more to that. There was hurt in her eyes when she mentioned his name. He already hated this guy, and he hadn´t even heard the story.

"That´s great." He said with a grin

"What do you mean great?" She asked, panicked that he would find her pain amusing.

"I mean that now you are free to date me, so it all turns out for the best you see...." He said.

"Oh my God! The world makes sense again!" She said following along

"See... life IS beautiful."

"Ok, that´s enough." She said laughing. "We better get back. I still have a paper to work on"

After a small argument over who would pay for the coffee they went back to the dorms. Although she insisted that she was a big girl and could leave on her own, Tristan walked her to her door.

"Thanks for the coffee Tris."

"Thanks for the company." He said making her kind blush. "I had a great time."

"Me too, we should definitely do this again." She replied while looking for her keys in her back pocket still staring at his eyes.

He thought of that look as an invitation to something else, so he made an attempt to lean in and kiss her, but before it was even obvious, she had found her keys, turned around and opened her door.

"Thanks again. Goodnight Tristan." She said getting in.

"Goodnight Rory." He said to a close door.

---- - ---

A week later, Tristan was walking down the corridor when he spotted Paris coming out of a classroom ahead of him. He jogged up to her.

"Hello Paris. Do you mind if I walk with you for a while?" He asked as politely as he could.

"What is it that you need this time Tristan?"

"Who said anything about needing?"

"Well, Tristan, we´ve known each other since we were 5 and, even though there used to be a time when you actually enjoy spending time with me, it has been my experience that in the past 5 years the only reason you would be caught talking to me was that you needed something, so spill."

"Paris that is not true." He tried to explain.

"Tris, we both know it is, and I don´t blame you. There wasn´t a lot of people who would want to spend time with me back at Chilton, specially people who had other choices."

"It wasn´t like that..."

"Tristan, it took a whole lot of therapy and guidance for me to acknowledge and accept that, don´t humiliate my progress by underestimating my previous self. Now, back to what you wanted... I´m guessing it´s Rory related..."

"How did you..?"

"I´m not blind you know. You had a thing for her in high school and it was clear the other day that you are not over her yet." He was shocked at her intuition. It was useless trying to deny it so he just asked what he wanted to know.

"Ok. So, Rory and I went for coffee a couple of days ago. It was nice, we catch up on our lives and all and then I walked her back to your dorm. She said she had a good time and that we should do it again. Then she stared at me with those great blue eyes and.. I though I might kiss her..."

"Oh boy."

"Oh boy what?" Panicked Tristan

"Nothing... go on"

"Anyhow, of course she said goodnight, turned and left before I could do anything. Now she barely speaks to me... and every time we see each other she goes on and on about all of the work she has to do and how she doesn´t have time for anything, and that she never thought college would be this demanding, and then she is off."

"Well, she didn´t get to be Valedictorian at Chilton for nothing."

"I know that... it just seems like she is making an excuse not to go out with me again; before I´ve even asked." He said defeated.

"Has she told you about Jess?"

"Jess...? That´s her ex-boyfriend, isn´t it?"

"Yeah... did she mention why they´re not together anymore?"

"She said it didn´t work out, or something like that. She wasn´t particularly open about her love life."

"It didn´t just ´not work out´. He left. Things got a little bit complicated and one day, without a word, we packed up and left. He never called, he never wrote, he just disappeared."

"What an idiot."

"He really messed up Rory. She loved him, she kinda broke up with Dean for him, and then he was gone."

"I could kill that guy."

"You and I both. Bottom line Rory hasn´t dated since. Lorelai, Lane and I tried to encourage her to do so... but I´m not sure she is ready to trust someone again... get there in the open and risk being hurt again."

"And that´s why she is elusively turning me down."

"That would be my guess... of course it could always mean that she doesn´t like you and she is too nice to say..."

"When we went for coffee I would have said it was the first one... but it could have been my hopes talking, maybe there was no chemistry there... maybe I made it all up." He said, silently pleading her to tell him wrong.

"Some other time I would have said she is not interested. But with you, I´m not sure. You´ll have to wait and see... till then, you´ll have to settle with being friends."

"Friends... yeah, I can do that. I better... Paris, thank you, you are my new angel."

"I´m not doing it for you DuGray, call me crazy, but I think you might be good for her. Now, if you´ll excuse me. I´m gonna leave. Night."

"Night Paris, and thanks again."

In order to make her see he was not interested in her "that way", Tristan started dating again. He made sure she knew he had planes and things like that. Slowly, Rory began to open to the idea of them being friends again and eventually agreed to that second cup of coffee, and then a third and so on. Paris, Tristan and her spent a lot of time together. They even went out on double dates when Jamie came to visit, thought Rory would have died before calling it that way.