AN: To everyone who comments: you guys rock to the max. I've gotten such amazing comments that I want to write more and more. Sorry for not listing everyone by name but I'm always afraid of leaving someone out. If you would like to volunteer something for the story then feel free to comment that.
"In your dreams, Tristan."
"Every night, Rory. But if you don't want me then what's with the clothes?"
"I figured I'd make you more comfortable. I'll be more like the girls you're used to taking out."
There was no comeback for that. In fact, Tristan was left completely speechless and upset that Rory though that. It didn't come to him that maybe Taryn had done something to his innocent Mary. After their date he was going to take her somewhere they could talk…where he could tell her anything she wanted to know.
"So are you ready to go?"
"Yep."
"You might want to grab a coat," Tristan said looking out the window at the cool September afternoon in Connecticut.
"I'll be fine."
And with that the two left on their date. Tristan asked if he could pick her up from her grandparents and take her out again afterwards. Rory simply responded that it would depend on how their date went. He took her to a little coffeehouse because that was one ploy to get her that she would look over.
"I guess you do know me too well," Rory laughed when she saw the location.
"A Gilmore will never be separated from her coffee."
Rory smiled at Tristan's response. Maybe this date won't be as bad as I thought. They sat at the coffee shop for a couple of house just talking and truly enjoying themselves. Rory completely forgot what about her plans to manipulate Tristan into thinking he won. She was finally seeing him as an okay guy, there was a lot more to Tristan DuGrey than met the eye. The subject of high school and what went on between them was never really mentioned.
Tristan looked at the clock and saw that it said 6:25 and suggested to Rory they leave because they were a half hour out of Hartford. Before leaving Rory excused herself to the bathroom so she could change into something more conservative before heading to the grandparents.
Richard and Emily had sorted out a lot of their differences and Emily had moved back into the house. She had her own bedroom and the two didn't speak much, but they were at least moving forward. When Rory arrived at the elder Gilmore home, Lorelai was already there with a huge grin.
"Mom? What's going on?"
"I have big news to announce tonight. I wanted to tell you sooner, but I didn't want to over the phone."
"Tell me now."
"No, you have to wait."
The girls sat in the living room while Emily fixed drinks…it was a normal Friday night dinner as the ones going on for the past four years.
"So, Rory," Emily asked, "how's that boy, Tristan?"
"He actually dropped me off here from our date and he's picking me up to take me out again. Things are going pretty well, I think."
"Good, it's about time you dated the right kind of boy," Emily added.
Lorelai didn't let the comments against her daughter's judgment effect her and Rory took note of that. The news she had must've been huge.
"And Lorelai, how's your Inn?"
"Great, mom. Sookie and the kitchen staff have been getting amazing reviews and Michel is becoming almost friendly."
Dinner was served and the four sat at the dining room table at an awkward silence. Emily noticed a big smile on her daughter's face and decided to break the silence by asking her for a reason.
"Do I need a reason to be happy?"
Rory looked at her mother anxiously wanting to know what happened.
"Lorelai…" Richard just stared at her.
"Okay, I have big news. I wanted to wait until later, but if you must know…"
"MOM!"
"Luke asked me to marry him. And I said yes."
Rory got up and ran over to hug her mother. Everyone in Stars Hollow and even Emily and Richard knew the two were very much in love for longer than either of them knew. That's why none of their relationships worked out…Rachel told Luke when she broke up with him that it was because of Lorelai. Jason though, still hadn't gotten the hint. For months he'd been calling Lorelai only to be blown off time and again. Emily and Richard both congratulated their daughter and accepted that no definite plans were being made. Although Emily would've much rather seen Lorelai married to Christopher, she knew that wasn't going to happen.
The rest of the dinner turned into a conversation about the wedding and Luke and Lorelai. Rory almost didn't want to go out with Tristan so that she could spend more time with her mother. She knew that Lorelai was going back to celebrate with Luke…he'd only proposed to her the night before. Lorelai wanted to make sure she was right by his side when the diner closed. It was a good thing Rory wasn't living in the house at that time.
At 9:30, after dessert was finished at the Gilmore house, the doorbell rang. Emily answered it to see a blonde young man standing at the door. She'd seen him at social functions in the past and assumed that he was Tristan DuGrey.
"Hello Mrs. Gilmore, I'm Tristan DuGrey…you might know my grandfather, Janlan."
"Why yes, I do. Come on in Tristan, Rory's in the living room."
"Thank you."
Tristan saw Rory sitting on the couch in the outfit she left him in. She looked beautiful when she was dressed modestly. He thought about the way she was dressed when he picked her up. It hadn't effected the rest of the date but he didn't feel she was the same girl at first glance. Rory didn't wear slutty clothes, she wasn't one of those girls…he couldn't deny she looked hot, but that wasn't the Rory he loved.
Richard and Lorelai both greeted Tristan and asked where he was taking Rory. He responded that he didn't want her to know but he promised to take good care of her. Lorelai gave Tristan a look that he interpreted as "keep your hands off my baby." After about 5 minutes, Rory was ready to leave.
"Sorry for all the questions…and look from my mom."
"Don't worry about it, Mare."
"If I'm going to date you, you're going to have to learn my name."
"Noted…Rory."
"Thank you."
With that the two were in Tristan's car and on the way to his "secret location." The arrived at a beach not unlike the one he'd taken her to a week earlier. She was in a better mood this time because the two had been getting along pretty well. Tristan turned to Rory and told her that he wanted to learn more about her and he was willing to tell more about himself.
"What do you want to know?"
"Tell me about Jess…all I know is you dated him after Dean…"
"Jess is Luke's nephew and the entire town hated him because he was seen as trouble. Sure, he got in trouble around town, told off my mother…"
"You dated someone who told off Lorelai?"
"I fell for him. He was more intellectual than any other guy I'd met; we'd talk for hours about books. He even called me a book tease once…but I was still with Dean when I started to fall for Jess. Our town had a 24 hour dance marathon and Jess was there making out with some girl and staring at me. Dean noticed that I was watching Jess and broke up with me right there nice and loud. It was pretty bad, but then Jess followed me to the bridge where I was crying."
"He really cared about you, didn't he?"
"Around the time of graduation my cell phone kept ringing, but the person would hang up. I knew it was Jess so right after graduation I decided to talk…"
"Jess, is that you? Jess, I'm pretty sure it's you and I'm pretty sure you've been calling and not saying anything but wanna say something. Hello? You're not going to talk? Fine, I'll talk. You didn't handle things right at all. You could've talked to me. You could've told me that you were having trouble in school and weren't going to graduate, and that your dad had been there, but you didn't. And you ended up not taking me to my prom and not coming to my graduation and leaving again without saying goodbye again, and that's fine, I get it, but that's it for me. I'm going to Europe tomorrow and I'm going to Yale and I'm moving on. And I'm not going to pine. I hope you didn't think I was going to pine, okay? I think. . .I think I may have loved you, but I just need to let it go. So, that's it, I guess. Um, I hope you're good. I want you to be good, and, um, okay, so, goodbye. That word sounds really lame and stupid right now, but there it is. Goodbye."
Rory remembered every word she spoke to Jess that night. She knew he heard; that's why he came back. That's why he had to tell her that he loved her…but it was too late. Tristan watched as tears formed in Rory's eyes.
"Now…Jess is like my brother. He's going to be my step cousin soon anyway because Mom and Luke are getting married. I don't know, Tristan, he was just so amazing to me while we were together."
"Everyone has someone in their life. They fall in love, they get hurt, and the lucky ones like you…they move on."
"I guess you're right. If Dean never came back into the picture then maybe Jess and I could've happened again…I don't know."
"How did Dean come back…if you don't mind me asking?"
Rory didn't know whether or not she could trust him. This was the same Tristan DuGrey as had harassed her in Chilton…but something seemed different. Maybe military school really did change him; all Rory knew was that she was seeing him in a new light.
"After Dean got married I didn't see him very much…until he was working on building the Dragonfly…my mom and Sookie's Inn. We started talking again and Lindsay told him that she didn't want us talking. After a little time that we were still sneaking around as friends we almost kissed. Then the night of the opening," Rory started crying, remembering her mistake, "we…"
She didn't have to say another word. Tristan knew exactly what happened. This was his Mary…not a Mary anymore.