CHAPTER 3

"Mom, what am I supposed to wear to this event?" Rory asked as she walked arm in arm with her mother in the mall.

"You can't go wrong with black," Lorelai indicated. "But I think, color is in. Maybe we should get you something in lilac, or yellow."

"Yellow? Mom, I will look jaundiced!" Rory cried.

"My, what big words do we use!" Lorelai teased.

"Mom, be serious," Rory told her mother.

"Well let's see what this Mecca of clothing can offer us. And I mean, search well. Mom coughed up some money to dress you like a lady," Lorelai said.

"She did?" Rory asked.

Lorelai beamed a smile at her daughter.

"Let the sound of consumerism ring," Rory said smiling back at her mom.

Wednesday came too soon for Rory. She was excited to get on the train but she was also heartbroken to leave her mother once again. Rory felt a pang of regret when she witnessed her mother handle herself at the inn with such efficiency without her help. She felt like she was growing apart from her. Rory had to learn how to adapt and let go. She hoped the distraction of the week's events would help her refocus and regroup.

"Promise me that you'll call when you get there," Lorelai told Rory.

"I will," Rory said. "Are you sure you're fine with me going away?"

"I'm never fine when you're away. I mean, it's sad that you've been on summer break for almost a month and we've not even spent quality time together," Lorelai said as she fiddled with the imaginary lint stuck on Rory's knapsack strap.

"We'll always have Europe," Rory said as she tried to reassure her mother.

"And New York is your apple. Take care of yourself and don't let Johnny sweep you off of your feet, Baby," Lorelai warned.

"I promise not to Dirty Dance," Rory assured her.

"Don't turn down offers from rich kids. You have to eventually take care of your aging mother," Lorelai reminded her.

"I'm glad to know that my mom's ready to use me as a bargaining chip to get herself a house at the Hamptons," Rory said kissing her mother goodbye.

"Try Jamaica, baby. Jamaica!" Lorelai called out after her.

Rory boarded the train and took a last look at her mother. She saw one rolling tear on her mother's cheek. Rory looked away to stop herself from crying, too.

"You coming with me?" Graham asked as he ran a comb through his hair for the hundredth time.

"Nope," Graham's cousin responded without looking up from the magazine he was reading.

"Come on. It will be fun," Graham coaxed.

"And be a third wheel? Nope," he said, flipping to the next page.

"You know, you've been a sorry excuse for a guy since your arrival. You're mopey and weepy and girly," Graham teased.

"Ha, I see how you are. Delude yourself, Graham, and I will prove you wrong when you bring in that girl tonight," he challenged as he fingered through the magazine's leaves.

"Fine by me. I don't think she'll be your type though," Graham indicated.

"My type? What's my type?" he interrogated.

"The fun, naughty kind. This girl's by the book, if you know what I mean," Graham informed.

"The nice ones are the one you have to be careful of. They are more dangerous than those who act naughty," the blonde said.

"Well then, I will leave that to you. I need to know how to get out of second base first before I get anywhere... especially with this girl," Graham admitted.

The blonde just laughed.

Rory got off the train depot without any hassle. After her bags have been unloaded, she spotted Graham walking toward her general direction.

"Hello, stranger," he greeted.

"Well, hello to you, too," Rory responded as she turned to receive the kiss on the cheek he offered.

"Did you have a nice trip?" he asked.

"I'm done reading 'Don Quixote'. It's one less book I have to read during my stay," Rory said.

"Oh my God! You thing we're going to be that boring? I'm hurt!" Graham pretended to be offended.

"It's an old habit. Nothing to be slighted about," Rory said smiling.

"Where's your stuff?" Graham asked.

"This is it," she pointed to her small suitcase and her loaded knapsack.

"Are you sure you're a girl?" he asked. "Because I don't see a makeup bag or matching suitcases."

"I travel light other than the books," Rory said.

"I see," he said as he picked up her suitcase. "Well, the chariot awaits us!"

"So, how did you do on your finals?" Rory asked as they drove away from the depot.

"I don't have to retake Chemistry," Graham said chuckling. "I know I won't change my major to sciences soon," he said.

"Thank God for small favors, huh," Rory responded.

"Well, how did you do in your Philosophy finals?" Graham asked in return.

"I don't think I'm converting to Wicca by next semester," Rory responded demurely.

An amused smile crept on Graham's face. He looked at her shortly before he shifted his gaze back to the road. "You know, Rory, I think I'll try to make sure that I'll be in your class next semester."

Rory looked at him and smiled. "Why so?"

"Because you fascinate me," Graham responded.

Rory was surprised with Graham's response. Maybe her summer can be salvaged after all.

The drive through the Catskills was captivating. The foliage fascinated Rory. Even if the rest of the world was getting ready for summer, the trees seemed to be stuck in spring. Graham pointed out the numerous bed and breakfast places that preyed on tourists. Then he pointed out several parks and lakes he promised to take her while she stayed at the Sullivan's.

"How did we ever get ourselves into this?" Rory asked Graham. "One outing, a family affair... I feel like someone's conspiring to get us involved."

"Meddling mom and nosey grandmother?" Graham informed. "Hey, they need some form of entertainment other than gossiping and their boring affairs."

"If it weren't for them, I would've been a bored Saturday orphan," Rory said.

"Meddlers," Graham conspired.

"Yes, meddlers," Rory chuckled.

It was not long before they turned into a private driveway. Rory fell in love with the garden that blossomed with tulips and young rose buds. She gleamed as her eyes fell upon the house that appeared before them.

"Wow," Rory said tongue-tied.

"Home sweet home," Graham said as he pulled in front of the house.

The Victorian mansion was grand. The gray stone façade looked hand chiseled and impressive. The white columns glistened in the late sun's afterglow. She once thought her grandparents' home was remarkable. This abode made it feel like a storage room. Little by little, Rory felt small and humbled by Graham's family's wealth.

"Come, I'll show you where you're going to be staying," Graham invited.

As Graham took her suitcase from the bed of his customized Dodge Ram truck, Rory's cell phone rang.

"Hi, mom," Rory answered.

"Hey, peanut," Lorelai responded. "How's it going?"

"Mom, I think I should have chosen "Eat Me" rather than "Drink me.". I feel like a very small Alice right now," Rory whispered on her cell phone.

"Do you want me to come down with a mysterious illness to get you back home?" Lorelai asked in concern.

Rory looked around in the enormous porch. She saw Graham cock his head to the side to motion her towards the direction they were headed. Rory followed trying not to show her discomfort.

"Not yet. But make sure wherever you are, I can get a hold of you to come up with that mysterious illness," Rory continued on.

"Will do. Oh, and your grandma put some money in your account. She's really paying you well for this little social visit. I say you take advantage of it," Lorelai said, sympathetic to her daughter's dilemma.

Shortly after that, Rory hung up. She was reluctant to follow Graham through the vast door.

"Are you hungry? I know I'm famished," Graham said as he dropped his keys on a table.

"Sure. Whatever you want," Rory said distracted.

"So if I said I want pizza with anchovies and foie gras, you'd eat it?" Graham charmed her.

Rory laughed shaking her head. "I agreed with you that I was hungry. I didn't say I wanted to be poisoned," Rory said.

"That's what I want, a girl with an opinion," Graham said. "Tell you what, leave your bag here and go freshen up. There's this place down the street that serves burgers to die for."

"You sure I won't get lost walking through here?" Rory asked.

Graham laughed in amusement. "I know, this place is daunting but it isn't bad. There's a bathroom through the living room and on to the right. Can't miss it."

"So, do I get to see your naked pictures? You know, the diaper-"she got cut off.

Rory nodded and took a step back only to be encountered by a loud, resounding, "Ouch!"

"Oh my God. I'm so-," Rory said mid-sentence.

Her voice seems to be caught in her throat. A pair of cold, piercing blue eyes stared back at her.

Tristin DuGrey.