Previously, on Cardigans and Cookbooks...
With her black beaded purse hanging from her shoulder and a stack of boxed leftovers tipping precariously in her hands, Lorelai slowly made her way to the jeep. "Curse you, Jimmy Choo." She muttered, attempting to keep her balance on the muddy path.
"Need a hand?" A familiar voice asked.
She nearly dropped the boxes in her arms. "Jason!"
He stepped out from behind the Jeep, his hands stuffed in his suit pockets. "I've been looking all over the grounds for you. That chef friend of yours kicked me out of the lobby after I finished dessert. Then I saw your car, and..."
"Ahhh. Remind me to thank Sookie later." With pursed lips, she continued to the Jeep, intent on making it without spilling any food.
"Here, let me help you–"
"No, I've got it–"
And of course, the four giant boxes, full of leftover chicken, potatoes, salad, and dessert tumbled to the gravel driveway.
"Oh, geez...I'm sorry, Lorelai, I didn't..."
"It's okay. It's just food, not a Jennifer Lopez engagement." Sighing, she bent down and began to attempt a cleanup to salvage the food that hadn't taken a dust bath.
"Good. I need to talk to you."
"Good. I need you to go." She replied, refusing to look at him.
"Lorelai, listen. You're throwing this away. We are perfect together; you know it and I know it. Don't let your pride get in the way of us. I know your track record with guys, Lore, but this is different. You're not thinking straight now. Just sleep on it and–"
Finally, she stood up, the mess on the driveway forgotten. "Are you saying I don't know what I want, Jason?"
He backed off. "Well..."
"That's what it sounded like to me. And I'm sorry if you think differently, but I knew what I was doing three weeks ago and I know what I'm doing now. Goodbye, Jason." With that, she gathered the crushed cardboard in her hands and walked around the side of the inn to dispose of it.
"What is this about, Lorelai?" He followed her. "Is this about the diner man?"
"None of your business." She spat, slamming the dumpster lid down.
"It is! Oh, God!" He gave a forced laugh as he followed her back to her car. "Honestly. Lorelai Gilmore, I've questioned your judgement at times, but this takes the cake. Do you know what a mistake you're making? I can offer you so much more, financial security, places in Paris, LA, anywhere you like." Glimpsing the look on her face, he switched tactics. "This guy is obsessed with you! He doesn't care about you, he's a stalker. Come on, Lore..."
At this, she rounded on him, eyes blazing. "Well, you two would get along fine then, wouldn't you?! You're the one going around, telling people we're still together! Jason Stiles, I have been very, very patient with you tonight. I have a migraine, my inn is opening, my feet hurt like hell, and I have a situation at home that I cannot even begin to comprehend. I broke this off a while ago, and though it's possible we could've worked it out then, I know now that I made the right decision. Now please, go."
"You'll be sorry later, Lorelai. Think about it. And hey, even if you need to have a fling with this guy, I don't mind. Just get it out of your system and call me in a week or two. I'll be waiting."
And Luke, naturally, chose that exact moment to open the door of the Dragonfly. Immediately, Lorelai could tell he had heard the conversation from his set jawline and his terse expression; still, he kept his temper in check, for which she was grateful. "Lorelai. Uhm. Am I interrupting anything?"
They spoke at the same time.
"No, Jason was just leaving."
"Actually, yes, you did." Jason quickly wrapped his arm around Lorelai's waist, keeping her in place. "We're still finishing up our discussion."
Pushing him away, she started toward the inn once more. "There's nothing left to discuss, Jason–"
"Lorelai–"
"Lorelai? Does he need help finding his way out of here?" Luke inquired.
"Clever, diner man." Jason sneered. "Lorelai can take care of herself."
"I know that very well, thank you. I think the question is, can you?" He replied coolly, taking a few menacing steps toward Jason.
"We'll find out soon enough, won't we?" Jason shot back, rolling up his jacket sleeves. Lorelai half-expected them to bare their teeth and growl before she cut in abruptly.
"Both of you! Stop it! This is not Fight Club, this is not the WWF, and this is not Act Like A Caveman day. Luke, I appreciate it, but I can handle this. Go back inside, I'll tell you everything later, okay?"
After a moment's consideration, Luke nodded, letting his gaze linger on Lorelai's face before ducking back inside the Dragonfly.
After a moment of silence, Lorelai let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "Okay, you know what I said earlier? Forget it. This situation has officially been promoted to a whole new level of 'what the hell?'. Forget Bennifer, this is Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman. Drew Barrymore and Tom Green. Dare I say it, this might even merit a Angelina Jolie and Billy Bob Thor..."
"What do you see in this guy, anyway?" Jason demanded.
Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, thinking words that weren't too appropriate to verbalize. She opted for the 'nice' over the 'honest' route. "Jason. I am tired and an emotional wreck right now. If you claim to care for me in any way, you will leave in the three-point-two seconds before I spontaneously combust."
Opening his mouth, then closing it again, he nodded. Still, he leaned in for a kiss (Lorelai turned her head so that his lips met her cheek), then stalked off, the gravel crunching beneath his shoes. She watched him go, feeling completely drained.
"Hey, Universe. Wanna throw something else at me? Now's the time. Especially since I don't have enough to deal with as it is." Lorelai muttered sarcastically before heading inside.
"Hey. How're you doing?" Luke asked sympathetically as Lorelai trudged in.
"Just dandy. On our next date, we should really consider a ride on the Hindenburg. A cruise on the Titanic, maybe. Oh, oh, better yet? A Perry Como concert." She collapsed next to him on the antique loveseat.
"Uh..." He was at a loss as to how to react.
Almost immediately, she stood back up again and began pacing in front of the fire. "Or perhaps we should just fling ourselves off the nearest building rooftop. Saves money. Although the rooftops in Stars Hollow aren't quite as dramatic as the ones in larger cities, so for full effect, we might want to go to New York. Though, now that I think about it..." She babbled on, her voice growing increasingly hysterical, as it always did when she was upset.
"Lorelai?" Luke looked fearful for her sanity.
"...since gas costs about fifty dollars a gallon nowadays and God knows, neither your truck or my jeep is particularly economic, we should borrow someone's car. Then we could do the whole jumping-off thing properly. A couple of megaphones, police barriers..."
"Lorelai." Luke said a little more forcefully, standing up as well. "Listen to me..."
"...a crowd gathered at the bottom, maybe a helicopter or a nice big fire truck..."
"Lorelai!" He snapped, catching her wrist and turning her to face him. In the dying firelight, he could see tears glittering in her eyes. "Lorelai, what's going on?"
"Oh, nothing." She waved a dismissive hand. "My life is in shambles, how 'bout you?"
"Because of him? He's not worth it, you know that."
"Oh, no, no, no, no. Not just because of him." She gave a weak laugh, a single tear dropping off her eyelashes and onto her cheek. "In fact, this whole mess with him is probably the least life-shambling of my problems right now."
He permitted himself no more than a raised eyebrow at her invented adjective. "Okay. Well, maybe if you talk about the most, um, life-shambling problem, you'll feel better." He suggested, pulling her onto the couch and rubbing her shoulders.
Suppressing hiccups, Lorelai shook her head. "I can't talk about it. I'm sorry. It's about Rory."
"Oh. I see." He wasn't sure how he felt about being excluded. A sudden thought slammed into his brain, sending adrenaline pumping through his body. "Does this have anything to do with Jess?"
"No, no, no. Definitely no." She assured him, her tears beginning to flow freely now. "I just don't know what to do now. I've always been the messed-up one."
"You're not messed up." Luke said quietly, taking her face in his hands and wiping away her tears with his thumbs.
Lorelai closed her eyes, moisture still leaking out. "Yes, I am. I'm always a wreck, and you and Rory, you guys are always the one stuck with me, and..."
"Shhhhh." He soothed, drawing her into a tight hug. "It'll be okay, whatever it is."
"No, it won't." She argued, sniffling into his brown sweater.
"Hey." Luke whispered. "It will. Shut up."
"Nuh-uh..." She was interrupted as Luke leaned down to kiss her softly. As they parted, Lorelai couldn't help but smile through her tears.
"What?" He asked, smiling slightly himself.
"Do that again. I think I believed you for a second."
After a restless nap, full of fitful dreams and ending with Rory waking up in a cold sweat, she paced the length of the hallway with a backpack full of clothes and books. The sensible, practical part of her brain screamed, What about Yale? What about Mom?, but she chose to ignore it. It was the sensible, practical Rory that had landed in this mess, after all.
I just have to get away for a little while, she promised herself. I'll be back as soon as I figure everything out.
She didn't know where she was going. Lane's apartment was crowded enough as it is, and she knew though her best friend loved her, she wouldn't be able to listen without smothering her. Going to Grandma and Grandpa's was out of the question, as the stress of the separation was probably enough for them to deal with.
Besides, at either of those places, Lorelai was sure to find out and demand she come home. Rory loved her mother more than life itself, but what she needed more than ever was to be separated. They'd spent so much time being the Gilmores that Rory wasn't sure who she was now. It frightened her and energized her all at once.
She needed anonymity. She needed to escape from Stars Hollow.
Still, as she looked back at the empty house, tears ran down her cheeks. Swallowing hard, she turned and ran down the dark, deserted street before she could change her mind.
A/N: No, this isn't a plot contrivance. I swear. It's what I think Rory would do. Yes, there's the whole Europe thing, but I doubt she'd want to visit the Louvre after all this stuff happened. Thank you for your feedback, and keep 'em coming!