Lorelai walked briskly into the field yielding a very old wooden bat that
she had dug up out of her garden shed. Luke was leaning against the
bleachers, and she almost missed him as she glanced around the field.
"Top of the morning to you!" Lorelai saluted.
"It's the afternoon," he replied nonchalantly. "And WHAT are you wearing?" he asked, gawking at her outfit.
"Oh, I thought this was the team uniform." She gestured to her green and blue stripped flannel shirt and backwards baseball cap, and smiled eagerly at him. He just shook his head, a smile dancing on his lips.
"So, let's get started! But first....did you bring coffee?"
"It would've been dangerous not to," he pointed to a paper cup sitting on the bleachers beside him. She gave him a swift hug, but then pulled away embarrassedly and reached for the cup. She took a sip, just as refreshing as always.
"Are you ready to play?"
"Yup, I've got my cracked lump of wood, my pants hitched up high, all I need now is the piece of straw to chew on and I'll be set."
"Ok. What do you want to learn first?"
"Anything."
"Good...." He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.
"What's that?"
"A diagram of the field," he muttered, as a touch of pink heated his cheeks.
"You drew me a diagram." She said flattered.
"Well, some people are visual learners. I didn't know if you'd want to walk around and stuff, looking at the different plates, so I just drew a picture."
"Could you draw me a picture of Johnny Depp for next week?"
It was a question that didn't anticipate a response so Luke let it slide, as he motioned Lorelai over to look at the diagram. They sat down together on the first bleacher, and he pointed to a small square in the middle and at the left hand side of the page.
"This is first base."
"First base. First base. Now I think I might need a memory aid for that one. You know, maybe a little acronym to remember it with or a saying....first base...f.b......free beer! Wow! I'm really getting good at that guy thing."
He chuckled at her sarcasm.
"This is second base," he said, pointing to a square to the right of the one that he had just introduced.
"Second base! That'll be even harder to remember....Luke, I don't need a "baseball for dummies lecture", I know the bases."
"Well, you said "anything", so I was starting from ABC."
"Can I try batting?"
"Fine.....but don't blame me if that old thing cracks right down the middle."
"If it cracks right down the middle, then I'll have two, now let's get batting!"
"Ok, I'll pitch to you, you show me how you think it's done."
"Yes sir." Lorelai picked up the bat, and turned to her side, holding the bat up in position. Luke pitched the ball and she swung at it but missed miserably. The ball fell to the ground beside her.
"Yeah. So. I think I need so me help with that."
"Yup. Just a little." He made his way over to her. "First of all, you need to be standing in the right space. See that hole over there?" he motioned to a little indent in the surface of the field about a foot away, "That's where your back foot goes."
"Why?"
"I don't know, because that's where everyone puts their back foot."
"But why in a hole?"
"So if they get bored they can keep digging until they hit China."
"Mr. Danes, you're not doing your job properly, I might just have to tell the principal that-"
"You should go on a coffee diet."
"Not in your lifetime."
"So, your back foot goes in that hole and you stand sideways like the way you were, here show me how you stood again."
She demonstrated for him and he nodded.
"That's better. Next time when I pitch it though lift your front foot up for momentum, keep your eye on the ball and really swing the stick."
"Glad we're getting into the specifics." She replied sarcastically. Luke backed up ball in hand and pitched her slow ball. She swung the stick, but it would've been apparent to even the least athletic person in the entire world that she did it entirely wrong.
Luke chuckled lightly to himself. She looked ridiculous, yet had an air about her as if to say that she had been doing this all of her life. That was one of the things that he found intriguing about her, her confidence was always there, even in the most trivial situations.
"You're hitting it all wrong."
"Ok then! Mr. Five star pitcher, you show me."
He glanced at her exasperatedly but then sighed and strode back to her side. She was still standing in ready stance, so he inched in beside her, and took a hold of the bat below her hands.
"Ok," he murmured, "I'm going to swing it and you just feel the motion."
"Ok." She responded. He took the bat back a bit and then swung it forward and she felt the ease with which the bat moved, and knew that this was the right way to swing.
"It's not that hard." Luke coaxed and suddenly she was intensely aware of how close he was to her.
"No," she replied hoarsely. She felt the sweat dampening her hands as her grip tightened on the bat and she rejoiced in the moment of intimacy they were sharing. She could feel him pressing lightly up against her and as he swayed the bat gently once again, she leaned just a little closer into him. Her pulse was racing, unknown to Luke. She recoiled bitterly to any notion that he could be feeling the same things as her.
"That's right." He said feeling obligated to fill up the silence, though wanting so badly to say something other then what he did.
He swung the bat one more time just to insure that she could feel the movement. He really didn't want to move away from her but if he didn't soon, he would let the cat out of the closet. Each second was passing like hours. He drunk in the smell of her perfume and almost let go of the bat and wrapped his arms around her. But the moment passed. And soon they were just two people, who had been holding a bat for an elongated amount of time, with no explicable reason as to why.
"Uh, that's good. Gotcha, It's all making sense to me now."
"Oh right." He let go of the bat and moved away from her, staring at the ground.
"So, batting, got that down now I think."
"Yup. You seemed to be catching on to the batting part."
"Well, what else was there to catch onto?"
"Oh, I don't know. Uh- did you see? I brought coffee."
"I had some already."
"Oh, right. So, is there anything else that you want to go over today?"
"No. I think that that's good. I'm set. Ready to kick your ass in that bet. Hey, what do I get if I win anyways?"
"A lifetime supply of tofu."
"Uh. You're sick." She said. "But do you know what I could do with? A lifetime supply of danishes."
"Hey, I think I have some stale ones in the back, if you want to come over, you know a little post game snack."
"Aw mom, you're the best!
"Jeesh." Luke rolled his eyes, picked up the ball, and deposited it in his pocket.
"Luke, I think that I'm actually going to get going home, I left Rory reading up in her room and I have to get that kid out into some sunlight before they fire Casper and give her the job."
"Ok, when can you next do this?"
"Um- well, I'm working long hours at the inn, the rest of this week, but I'll google "baseball" and read up for the game on Sunday. See ya!"
"Bye." Luke replied as he headed towards the diner. He was mildly concerned about her lack of interest in feasting on danishes, but he was still too confused about the batting incident to give it that much thought.
Once Luke's back was turned, Lorelai hurried away in the other direction. What had that been about? She wasn't really the type of person to read too much into stuff like this, after all Luke was a man of mystery, but the desire that had struck her while he stood behind her was just to big a thing to overlook. She and Luke had had moments like this before, but she'd always denied any ideas that she could be attracted to him and said that the awkward situations were just twists of fate. Lost deep in thought and confusion, Lorelai walked straight into Miss Patty as she out skirted the field heading for home.
"Oh. Hello there dear. How did your lesson with Luke go?"
"You know about that?"
"Oh yes, it's all over town."
"Patty! This is nothing even remotely interesting, Luke's just teaching me the basics so I can help out the team that's all."
"Oh, but it is interesting." Her eyes shone with excitement and an all too familiar look that Lorelai knew to be her accusatory expression.
"You two were quite close quarters there a second ago, I suppose that was just him showing you how to swing the bat?"
"Yes. It was. Now if you'll excuse me Patty, I have to get going, Rory's waiting for me at home, but it was nice talking to you."
"You too dear. Oh! And remember the town summer dance is in three weeks at my dace studio. I'm sure that some young handsome diner owners are anticipating an invitation."
"Bye Patty." Lorelai turned around and strolled away as casually as possible. She'd always been a little astounded by Miss Patty's nerve, and the town's tendency to see things that she herself couldn't quite grasp.
!!!!!
AN: Hey! I 'm pretty sure that I know where I'm going with this, but still, your reviews would be really appreciated! Also, just a note for the next chapter, in this story Rachel has already come to Stars Hollow and left just the way she did in Season 1.
"Top of the morning to you!" Lorelai saluted.
"It's the afternoon," he replied nonchalantly. "And WHAT are you wearing?" he asked, gawking at her outfit.
"Oh, I thought this was the team uniform." She gestured to her green and blue stripped flannel shirt and backwards baseball cap, and smiled eagerly at him. He just shook his head, a smile dancing on his lips.
"So, let's get started! But first....did you bring coffee?"
"It would've been dangerous not to," he pointed to a paper cup sitting on the bleachers beside him. She gave him a swift hug, but then pulled away embarrassedly and reached for the cup. She took a sip, just as refreshing as always.
"Are you ready to play?"
"Yup, I've got my cracked lump of wood, my pants hitched up high, all I need now is the piece of straw to chew on and I'll be set."
"Ok. What do you want to learn first?"
"Anything."
"Good...." He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.
"What's that?"
"A diagram of the field," he muttered, as a touch of pink heated his cheeks.
"You drew me a diagram." She said flattered.
"Well, some people are visual learners. I didn't know if you'd want to walk around and stuff, looking at the different plates, so I just drew a picture."
"Could you draw me a picture of Johnny Depp for next week?"
It was a question that didn't anticipate a response so Luke let it slide, as he motioned Lorelai over to look at the diagram. They sat down together on the first bleacher, and he pointed to a small square in the middle and at the left hand side of the page.
"This is first base."
"First base. First base. Now I think I might need a memory aid for that one. You know, maybe a little acronym to remember it with or a saying....first base...f.b......free beer! Wow! I'm really getting good at that guy thing."
He chuckled at her sarcasm.
"This is second base," he said, pointing to a square to the right of the one that he had just introduced.
"Second base! That'll be even harder to remember....Luke, I don't need a "baseball for dummies lecture", I know the bases."
"Well, you said "anything", so I was starting from ABC."
"Can I try batting?"
"Fine.....but don't blame me if that old thing cracks right down the middle."
"If it cracks right down the middle, then I'll have two, now let's get batting!"
"Ok, I'll pitch to you, you show me how you think it's done."
"Yes sir." Lorelai picked up the bat, and turned to her side, holding the bat up in position. Luke pitched the ball and she swung at it but missed miserably. The ball fell to the ground beside her.
"Yeah. So. I think I need so me help with that."
"Yup. Just a little." He made his way over to her. "First of all, you need to be standing in the right space. See that hole over there?" he motioned to a little indent in the surface of the field about a foot away, "That's where your back foot goes."
"Why?"
"I don't know, because that's where everyone puts their back foot."
"But why in a hole?"
"So if they get bored they can keep digging until they hit China."
"Mr. Danes, you're not doing your job properly, I might just have to tell the principal that-"
"You should go on a coffee diet."
"Not in your lifetime."
"So, your back foot goes in that hole and you stand sideways like the way you were, here show me how you stood again."
She demonstrated for him and he nodded.
"That's better. Next time when I pitch it though lift your front foot up for momentum, keep your eye on the ball and really swing the stick."
"Glad we're getting into the specifics." She replied sarcastically. Luke backed up ball in hand and pitched her slow ball. She swung the stick, but it would've been apparent to even the least athletic person in the entire world that she did it entirely wrong.
Luke chuckled lightly to himself. She looked ridiculous, yet had an air about her as if to say that she had been doing this all of her life. That was one of the things that he found intriguing about her, her confidence was always there, even in the most trivial situations.
"You're hitting it all wrong."
"Ok then! Mr. Five star pitcher, you show me."
He glanced at her exasperatedly but then sighed and strode back to her side. She was still standing in ready stance, so he inched in beside her, and took a hold of the bat below her hands.
"Ok," he murmured, "I'm going to swing it and you just feel the motion."
"Ok." She responded. He took the bat back a bit and then swung it forward and she felt the ease with which the bat moved, and knew that this was the right way to swing.
"It's not that hard." Luke coaxed and suddenly she was intensely aware of how close he was to her.
"No," she replied hoarsely. She felt the sweat dampening her hands as her grip tightened on the bat and she rejoiced in the moment of intimacy they were sharing. She could feel him pressing lightly up against her and as he swayed the bat gently once again, she leaned just a little closer into him. Her pulse was racing, unknown to Luke. She recoiled bitterly to any notion that he could be feeling the same things as her.
"That's right." He said feeling obligated to fill up the silence, though wanting so badly to say something other then what he did.
He swung the bat one more time just to insure that she could feel the movement. He really didn't want to move away from her but if he didn't soon, he would let the cat out of the closet. Each second was passing like hours. He drunk in the smell of her perfume and almost let go of the bat and wrapped his arms around her. But the moment passed. And soon they were just two people, who had been holding a bat for an elongated amount of time, with no explicable reason as to why.
"Uh, that's good. Gotcha, It's all making sense to me now."
"Oh right." He let go of the bat and moved away from her, staring at the ground.
"So, batting, got that down now I think."
"Yup. You seemed to be catching on to the batting part."
"Well, what else was there to catch onto?"
"Oh, I don't know. Uh- did you see? I brought coffee."
"I had some already."
"Oh, right. So, is there anything else that you want to go over today?"
"No. I think that that's good. I'm set. Ready to kick your ass in that bet. Hey, what do I get if I win anyways?"
"A lifetime supply of tofu."
"Uh. You're sick." She said. "But do you know what I could do with? A lifetime supply of danishes."
"Hey, I think I have some stale ones in the back, if you want to come over, you know a little post game snack."
"Aw mom, you're the best!
"Jeesh." Luke rolled his eyes, picked up the ball, and deposited it in his pocket.
"Luke, I think that I'm actually going to get going home, I left Rory reading up in her room and I have to get that kid out into some sunlight before they fire Casper and give her the job."
"Ok, when can you next do this?"
"Um- well, I'm working long hours at the inn, the rest of this week, but I'll google "baseball" and read up for the game on Sunday. See ya!"
"Bye." Luke replied as he headed towards the diner. He was mildly concerned about her lack of interest in feasting on danishes, but he was still too confused about the batting incident to give it that much thought.
Once Luke's back was turned, Lorelai hurried away in the other direction. What had that been about? She wasn't really the type of person to read too much into stuff like this, after all Luke was a man of mystery, but the desire that had struck her while he stood behind her was just to big a thing to overlook. She and Luke had had moments like this before, but she'd always denied any ideas that she could be attracted to him and said that the awkward situations were just twists of fate. Lost deep in thought and confusion, Lorelai walked straight into Miss Patty as she out skirted the field heading for home.
"Oh. Hello there dear. How did your lesson with Luke go?"
"You know about that?"
"Oh yes, it's all over town."
"Patty! This is nothing even remotely interesting, Luke's just teaching me the basics so I can help out the team that's all."
"Oh, but it is interesting." Her eyes shone with excitement and an all too familiar look that Lorelai knew to be her accusatory expression.
"You two were quite close quarters there a second ago, I suppose that was just him showing you how to swing the bat?"
"Yes. It was. Now if you'll excuse me Patty, I have to get going, Rory's waiting for me at home, but it was nice talking to you."
"You too dear. Oh! And remember the town summer dance is in three weeks at my dace studio. I'm sure that some young handsome diner owners are anticipating an invitation."
"Bye Patty." Lorelai turned around and strolled away as casually as possible. She'd always been a little astounded by Miss Patty's nerve, and the town's tendency to see things that she herself couldn't quite grasp.
!!!!!
AN: Hey! I 'm pretty sure that I know where I'm going with this, but still, your reviews would be really appreciated! Also, just a note for the next chapter, in this story Rachel has already come to Stars Hollow and left just the way she did in Season 1.