4: Could This Be...

Rory stepped up to the podium and mentally set aside her pervious conversation with her mother. The crowd was settling down again, and everyone looked at her expectantly.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she began, smiling. "Before I say anything else, I want to add my congratulations again. To Lorelai and Luke!"

Everyone applauded.

"Mom, you deserve to be happy – and be able to get your daily doses of coffee. Luke, you've always been there for my Mom and for me, and I'm really glad to be able to call you Step-Dad." She smiled again, hoping this sounded right. The paper in front of her, containing her speech, suddenly didn't seem important anymore. "I can't even begin to say how wonderful it is to speak at this wedding. It's been years in the making," she chuckled, causing the guests to laugh, "but it's finally a reality. Sometimes, words don't suffice, and so I'll leave you by saying, just look at the two of them, and congratulate them. Thank you."

She folded the superfluous piece of paper and stepped down to be hugged by Lorelai and Luke.

"By the way," Sookie came over to them, and handed them a postcard. "This just arrived for you two."

Luke and Lorelai both peered at it. It was from Rachel, and said, 'Congratulations! Luke, it took you less than a decade – glad you listened when I said don't wait too long. Glad to hear the news!'

"She knew, too?" Lorelai said. "What took me so long?"

They laughed.

"Okay, it's time for me to throw the flowers!" Lorelai called out.

"It's great that this is my wedding – I can determine when to do these things," she told Rory conspiratorially. "Hey, you have to get in with that crowd to," Lorelai chided her daughter and pushed her toward the group of women.

Rory stood next to Lane, who grinned at her. "Rory, I think it's only fair that you catch it."

"No, Lane, I think you should catch it – a New York wedding of a rock and roll couple would be great," Rory laughed, while Lane looked a bit embarrassed.

"Ready? I'm going to throw it now. 3, 2, 1!" Lorelai threw the flowers backward and they landed with a resounding thud at Rory's feet. She blushed, and the people around her applauded. Jess was off to the side, and saw her bend to pick them up. What was this, Stars Hollow, match-making heaven? This was why he kept himself away from the crowd, they were now all applauding wildly while Lorelai hugged her daughter.

"I'm glad you caught it, otherwise I would have had to have thrown it a second time," Lorelai laughed.

"Mom, I think you can only throw it once," Rory said, still feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"Not when I make the rules," Lorelai grinned.

She made her way back over to stand next to Luke and thought that this might be the moment to tell him the news.

"Luke?" she began. He looked at her. "Remember that dream I told you about, where I was pregnant with twins, and you were the father?"

"Yeah," he replied. Of course he remembered.

"Well," she pointed at her stomach, "say hello to Sid and Nancy."

"What!?"

----------

Rory was just about to reach for a coffee refill when she heard Miss Patty chatting in the background. The mention of the name "Jess" made her stop in mid-motion and listen.

"He just went over to Luke and Lorelai – looked like he was interrupting something – and said he'd better head back now," Miss Patty was telling Babette.

Rory spun around and saw Jess walking toward his car. Before her brain could react, her legs were moving and she was starting to run toward him. She didn't notice all the guests start to stare at the spectacle in front of them.

She reached him at his car. "Jess!"

He turned around.

"Wait!" She made eye contact with him. "This is going to sound crazy, but... I love you."

He looked at her. "No, you don't. Rory, this is crazy."

She shook her head. "I do."

"Don't tell me you've been reading self-help books," he groaned.

"What? No. I mean, it's been a while. I can't expect you to still like me. Especially not after I told you to essentially go away. I don't know, maybe it's the atmosphere here, with all the wedding celebrations, the couples, love songs," she gestured vaguely toward the music area, "like in some movie, where, as a big finale, all signs point to one person..."

"Rory –"Jess tried to intervene.

"Reality isn't like a book. There's no real clearly defined beginning and end. The characters probably wouldn't go off on some rambling tangent like I am right now," she kept going. "But I just had to tell you, because you told me once and I never replied."

He was quiet for a few seconds, although to her, they felt like ages. "I don't like you," he finally said. She felt like she was being run over by a truck and she vaguely heard audible gasps from the onlookers behind her.

"I love you," he continued. Stunned, she stared at him. Had her mind been playing tricks on her, or had he really just said that? As if reading her mind, he nodded.

"So... maybe you could... stay for a while longer?" she asked timidly.

He turned around, and she heard the crowd behind her mumble. In fact, she could have sworn she heard her mother saying, "Is he just going to leave, that little jerk?!" Jess locked the car door and turned back to her.

"Okay," was his calm reply. He wasn't really calm, but he was doing a good job of convincing those who watched them that he was.

"I'd try to kiss you, but I seem to remember some kind of rule about that sort of display in public," he smirked at Rory.

She broke into a smile and stepped toward him like she had done at another wedding in a previous year. And while they tried their hand at kissing again, Lorelai shook her head, and told Luke, "Did they have to make it so suspenseful? I wonder if Sid and Nancy will be old enough to take part in the ceremony. Because it's a good thing she caught that bouquet – I get the feeling we may just have another Gilmore wedding in the near future."

- THE END -