*Disclaimer: I don't own the series Gilmore Girls or the original characters. All I own is my imagination and the plot.
*A/N: Hey! :-) I'll just save the chitchat for the end of this chapter. All I have to say is enjoy this chapter! :-)
*~*~*:-)*~*~*Bye, smile :-)
Rory stirred when her consciousness became aware of the sun's rays that were recklessly thrown upon her face and soon her eyelashes began to flutter, as the rays drove away her passiveness. Although her face was warmed by the sun, the rest of her body felt uncomfortably cold, as a result from the body warmth that didn't seem to be there this morning. She missed the feeling of satisfaction that it always gave her. She stretched out her arm and reached for Joey's side of the bed, just to make sure that he was indeed not lying beside her.
Rory turned her head to look at the sheets, which weren't even so much as wrinkled. She sat up straight while the reality of this particular morning left its marks on her memory. Her hands ran through her tousled hair, as she took a few minutes to fully awake, forcing her eyes to meet the brightness of the morning sun, which was clearly visible through the large window in front of her. There were no curtains hanging in front of it, to shade her from the light. Joey liked to awake to the streams of the sun and see her lying in a pool of light. He would trace the rays, the sun threw on her sleeping figure, with his fingers until she would open up her eyes and look at him. And at night, right before they would go to sleep, when the sun's rays had been replaced by the dim and silvery glow of the moon, he would smile at her and call her his moon bathing beauty, which sounded corny, but made her blush nonetheless.
Last night she hadn't fallen asleep to those words and this morning, there had been no fingers lingering on her skin. No smile to greet her and no pair of dark eyes, which still amazed her with their darkness and beauty, to stare at her intently. And it made her feel rejected. Joey hadn't even slept in the same bed as her, although she didn't want to believe that. He could have made the bed, before he wandered off into the kitchen. But she had to see it for herself, so she got out off bed and left the room, which lead her to the living room.
Her eyes immediately flew over to the couch they had spent so many nights on. It was large and made of a soft fabric, resembling the fur of a teddy bear Rory used to have when she was younger. They bought it because it was a comfortable couch. Comfortable enough to sleep on..... Rory's eyes glazed over with sadness, when she saw the pile of blankets and the large pillow lying on the other end. He hadn't even bothered to get rid of the evidence. She blinked away upcoming tears before she
headed for the kitchen, pausing in the door frame as she looked at the sight before her.
Joey was sitting at the table, his plate with breakfast in his hands, while one of his medical magazines was sprawled out in front of him. He was so caught up in it that he didn't even notice Rory standing there, as she silently observed him. The aroma of eggs and bacon still hung in the kitchen, which lead her eyes to wander over to the other side of the table. She held back a silent gasp of surprise when she saw the plate, which had been solemnly placed there. Tinfoil had been neatly placed over it, to keep it warm until her arrival. This particular sight caused tears to spill into her eyes.
He cared enough not to forget about her during breakfast, but he couldn't bear to sleep in the same bed as her. And to be truthful she couldn't blame him. She had fallen asleep with Jess on her mind, which made her feel even more horrible and guilty then she already did. A sob escaped from between her lips, although it was partially muffled by her hand, which she clasped in front of her mouth. Joey's head flew up at the sound, his eyes mimicking this movement, as he quickly searched for her crying figure.
''Ror,'' he said, his tone affectionate with worry, as he put his plate down on top of his magazine.
''What's wrong?'' he asked, foolishly forgetful in Rory's eyes.
He got up from where he was sitting and waited for a few more seconds before repeating his question. ''What's wrong, Rory?'' His eyes stood serious as they studied her broken expression.
Rory removed her hand from her mouth, but kept on crying, although she did this silently. The wet streaks on her face were the only evidence.
''You made breakfast,'' she managed to utter, as her eyes found the with tinfoil covered plate. Joey followed her gaze, although he didn't immediately understand.
''Yeah, bacon and eggs. I always make breakfast, don't I?'' Joey gently asked, unsure of how to handle this situation.
Rory nodded. ''You do, but I didn't expect you to, not today.''
''Why?'' Joey asked, confused by Rory's answer. ''Rory, you're not making a lot of sense. What's wrong?''
He took a few more careful steps towards her. His eyes remained locked with hers, as he kept approaching her. When he could almost reach out and grab her, she took an abrupt step back, which he mimicked and lead them both back into the living room. That was when Joey caught the pile of blankets, he had slept under, from the corner of his eyes. He quickly moved his eyes to the couch, before focusing them back on Rory's broken expression.
''I slept on the couch,'' he stated, understanding the tears that stained her face.
''You slept on the couch,'' Rory softly repeated, as she lowered her eyes, wondering if she was reading too much into his decision.
Joey sighed, which caused Rory's eyes to fly back up to his face. ''Ror, it's nothing.''
''Nothing?'' she asked indignantly, her eyes filled with a variety of emotions. ''You slept on the couch, which means that you didn't want feel like you could spent the night in bed, with me.''
''I came home late last night. Too late to risk and wake you.''
Rory nodded and quickly wiped away the remains of her tears, before crossing her arms in a defensive manner. ''You didn't want to wake me....... That's not a good enough reason. You were mad.''
''Yes, I was mad,'' Joey admitted. ''But can you really blame me? I mean, we just had an argument and the first thing you do is call him.''
''Jess.''
''I don't think mentioning his name is going to help the situation,'' Joey warned.
''Joey, he's a friend.''
''Just a friend?''
''Yes!'' Rory said. ''We used to be able to talk to each other about anything.''
''But we were having an argument about him! Did you tell him that too?!''
Rory shook her head. ''That argument was between us, and no one else, I get that. Don't you think I get that? And I want to solve it, because I don't like fighting.''
''Me neither.''
''So, do you think that maybe you could live with the fact that he's my friend and that
we will occasionally talk to each other?'' Rory asked, while she held Joey's gaze.
Joey let out a shaky breath, before he nodded. ''I think I can live with that, but I want to meet him.''
''You already did,'' Rory pointed out.
''I know, but we didn't get a chance to talk. You haven't visited Stars Hollow in a while and you're mom is always begging us to drop by, so why don't we? You'll get to see your mom again and I get a chance to know Jess.''
''Jess isn't the easiest person to talk to,'' Rory said, as she uncrossed her arms and lowered them, signaling that this argument was almost coming to an end. ''He isn't very talkative, I don't think you'll like him.''
Joey took another step towards her and closed the remaining distance between them. He circled his arms around her waist and brought his head closer to hers, until their noses were almost touching.
''Let me find that out for myself. I don't have to like him, he's your friend.''
Finally a smile broke through on Rory's face. ''Are you sure?''
''Definitely.''
''So, this fight is over?''
Joey nodded and lightly kissed her on the lips.
''Come on, let's take a shower.''
*~*~*
After Rory and Joey spent an hour in the shower, Joey left for work, while Rory, who had a much more flexible work schedule, put on her most comfortable outfit and sat down on the couch to make an important phone call. She tucked her legs underneath her and took a sip of coffee, while dialling the number of her mom's cell phone, calculating that she would be at Luke's right now. When it took her mother a few rings to answer, Rory knew that she was right. Luke was probably forcing Lorelai to go outside, before answering her phone.
''This better be good, I left my coffee all alone with a grumpy old man.''
Rory smiled at the way her mom answered her phone. You never knew what she was going to say next. ''Luke's not old.''
''He wears the baseball cap to hide his bald spots.''
''But a cap makes him look younger,'' Rory said, playing along with her mom.
''You've noticed that too?''
Rory smiled. ''When are you going to ask him out?''
''When are you and Joey coming to visit me?'' Lorelai countered. ''Cause I'm not as young as I used to be and one of these days might be my last.''
''Then you're in luck. See, me and Joey were thinking of spending this weekend in Stars Hollow.''
''You know, joking around like that might give me a heart attack.''
''Mom.........''
''I can feel one coming right now,'' Lorelai continued.
''I hope you're leaving us a lot of money.''
''How about I leave you the house instead?'' Lorelai asked.
''So, can we stay there or do we need to find a hotel?''
''If you wanna spent a lot of money on a bed a million of strangers have slept in before and coffee that has been standing on the shelves for ages, yeah.''
''Good,'' Rory said. ''Then we'll be there Friday.''
''Right on time for dinner with the grandparents.''
''I thought we didn't do that anymore?'' Rory asked.
''I promised my mom that we would try and make it if you and Joey ever were in town. I could have said no, but she was practically begging me and who am I to break tradition, right?''
Rory rolled her eyes. ''Right. It'll be good to see them again though.''
''Great, you mention that it's great to see them, but not me. Nice, I understand though. I am, after all, just your mother. No, you don't have to say a thing, I get it. You don't love me anymore.''
''You should have become an actress,'' Rory said.
Lorelai sighed, faking wistfulness ''Nah, that wasn't written in the stars for me.''
''I'll see you Friday.''
''Don't go, don't leave me, for parting is such sweet sorrow.''
''Bye,'' Rory said, before hanging up.
She put the phone down and wrapped her hands around her coffee cup, as a satisfied smile took over her, although the worry was hiding just beneath the surface.
*~*~*
Lorelai flipped her cell phone closed with one movement, before turning around and entering the diner with a content grin, sharing her joy with everyone else. Her smile seemed to be contagious as everyone copied it for a brief second, remembering an old memory or a joke that had already been told. The two men behind the counter, however, remained untouched by her smile. One simply not caring and the other pretending not to care or notice, because that would give away his facade.
''Guess who just called?!'' Lorelai said cheerfully, maybe a little too cheerful, because both Luke and Jess looked up from what they were doing.
Luke glared at her. ''The last time you said that you didn't mean that as just a rhetorical question. You made me guess until you got bored.''
Lorelai rolled her eyes as she sat down on one of the stools. ''I had three days off in a row and there's only so much I can do in those days. Come on, guess.''
''Emily,'' Luke said, while he handed Ceaser another order.
''Close. It was Rory.''
''How is that close?'' Luke asked.
''Well, I'm Emily's daughter a.k.a devil's spawn and Rory's my daughter.''
Lorelai waited for Luke to make another remark, but all he did was raise an eyebrow.
''She and Joey are going to spent this weekend in Stars Hollow!'' Lorelai excitedly
spilled.
A small smile cracked through Luke's rough exterior at the sound of Rory's name. ''I think it's time she showed her face around here.''
While Lorelai kept talking about Rory and Joey's visit to Stars Hollow, Jess closed his book, slipped it into his back pocket and slipped out the door without anyone noticing, they were all too busy gossiping about Rory's arrival. His eyes remained cold and his expression hard, as he started to walk, planning on going to the bridge, but when he passed the gazebo he stopped. Next to the bridge this was a place he came often too, to read and look around the town without no one else noticing. It was also a place either he or Rory could go to when one of them was already at the bridge and they didn't want to talk. He remembered the first time they both realised that the gazebo was another place they were forced to share in the future.
*Flashback*
It was on a cold night when Jess had discovered that the gazebo was an excellent place to read, and more importantly be alone. The night sky was darker than usual and without any stars to light it up. His only companion was the full moon, that hung directly above him, looking out over the rest of the quiet town. Snow was trickling down, the small flakes adding themselves to the thick layer of snow that had already coloured the entire town a pure white. Because of this snow Jess could hear the footsteps approach him, crunching as they moved through the snow towards his hiding place. When the footsteps stopped, he brought his eyes up from his book, immediately recognising Rory's petite figure, which was wrapped up in a thick wool sweater on this particular night. Her eyes shone with surprise when she saw him.
''Sorry, I didn't realize anyone else would be out here.''
''I guess I'm the exception,'' Jess answered, searching for her eyes in the dark.
''What are you doing here anyway? It's cold,'' Rory pointed out, forgetting that she was the one who didn't bring a jacket to keep her warm.
''Says the girl without a jacket.''
''Jess, don't avoid the question. Come on, what are you doing here?''
Jess closed his book, before holding it up.
''Reading?'' Rory asked.
''Clever,'' Jess remarked, as he got up and walked down the few steps that would lead him to her.
Rory silently watched him and patiently waited for him to reach her, while he stuffed the book in his back pocket. Rory noticed that he was wearing fingerless gloves instead of normal ones.
''So, what are you doing here?'' Jess asked when he reached her.
Rory shrugged, feigning not to care, although her eyes were twinkling with the magic that this night was sure to bring. ''I came to watch the snow fall.''
''You must lead such a boring life,'' Jess said, although a light smirk was visible on his face.
''You don't have to go.''
''Nah, Luke doesn't know I'm gone, so I better get back,'' Jess explained, as he turned around and started to head for the diner. After only three steps something cold hit him in the head and he immediately responded by turning around and looking over at Rory, who was smiling at him.
''You don't like my company?'' she playfully asked.
Jess shook his head, as he approached her, giving in to her request. He stopped in front of her and met her eyes. Rory saw the amusement that was making his eyes seem even darker than usual, but didn't immediately understand the reason of it. But when a crooked smile appeared on his face, she knew that it was too late to run. Jess grabbed her arm and hooked his foot behind hers, which caused her to lose her balance and fall. Jess held her firmly so that she wouldn't fall too hard. When she was lying in the snow, he lowered himself on top of her, which caused Rory to smile. They both knew each other well enough to fool around like this. They trusted each other.
Rory gave Jess a rough push, which caused him to lose his balance, only briefly, because he stabilised himself by planting his free hand on her stomach. Rory squirmed under his touch, because his fingers were freezing and the coldness went right through her sweater.
''Your fingers are cold,'' she said.
''That snowball you threw at me was cold too,'' Jess pointed out, his hand still placed on her stomach. ''Apologize and then I'll get up.''
Rory playfully shook her head with a smile, but stopped when she felt Jess press his hand even closer onto her skin. ''Fine, I'm sorry.''
''That's all I ask,'' Jess said, as he removed his hand from Rory's stomach with one fast stroke of his hand, which caused Rory to shiver.
Jess got to his feet and held out his hand to help her up. Rory gratefully took it, but couldn't stop herself from grabbing a hand full of snow before letting herself be pulled up.
*End of Flashback*
Jess pulled out his book and sat down in the gazebo, knowing that he couldn't hide from Rory this weekend. Stars Hollow was simply too small to hide from anyone, although they had managed to avoid each other for a long time when they weren't speaking to each other. But he didn't want that part of history to repeat itself. He wouldn't avoid her, or her husband. But he didn't understand what made Rory change her mind about visiting Stars Hollow, cause last night she had told him that she wasn't ready to visit yet, not ready to see him yet. And now that she seemed to be, he wasn't sure if he was ready to see her again.
*R*V*I*E*W*! Please? :-) Okay, I didn't have a lot of time to write this chapter, so I apologize for it being not as good as the others or even bad. But I do hope that you enjoyed it and I really am grateful for the reviews I get. Thanks! :-)