A/n: Thanks so much for all the concern over my finals. i took two today and i think i did alright. but don't worry, tests won't stop me from writing my beloved fanfics. oh, and for all those who wanted to know, this is a trory. all my stuff is trorys, always, no exceptions. but for my dean fans, there will be plenty of dean in the beginning of this one.
Disclaimer: I still don't own Gilmore girls.
Chapter Four: Are you Joseph?
"I wonder why Mom wanted to see us here today," Lorelai said for the hundredth time as they entered the Hartford Hilton.
"Well, the last time you saw her was the other night, and she was really mad about the whole room situation between her and Grandpa," Rory offered.
"But that has nothing to do with seeing us today."
"She probably wants to yell at you more."
"But why did she tell us both to come?"
"Sometimes its just impossible to figure Grandma out."
"God, she's like a patronus or something, always turning into something I hate."
"A patronus?"
"Yes, a patronus."
"Have you been reading Harry Potter?" Rory asked her mother sternly.
She nodded guiltily.
"Mom! Last time you read Harry Potter you had nightmares for a week."
"That was the fifth book!" Lorelai protested. "I re-read the third one to prepare myself for the movie."
"Honest?"
"Honest."
They arrived at front desk.
"Yes, hi. What room is Mrs. Emily Gilmore staying in please?" Lorelai asked the man.
"Well, Mrs. Gilmore is currently in both suites 915 A and 924 B."
"Excuse me?" Lorelai asked.
"She is using 915 A during the day because she says she enjoys the view. But she sleeps in 924 B because the boy in room 916 A is apparently too noisy for her liking. Let's see here, it is seven o'clock, so she could be in either room."
Lorelai and Rory walked towards the elevators.
"Two rooms, eh?" Lorelai said finally. "Man that woman is amazing."
"And fussy."
"Most people are satisfied with one suite."
"Only two will do for Grandma. I wonder if Grandma confronted the boy about his noisiness."
The elevator doors opened, and they heard the distinct sound of Emily yelling, followed by a young man's voice.
"I think we have the answer to your question," Lorelai said.
They walked briskly down the hallway towards the noise. They stopped outside of room 916, the door wide open, revealing Emily arguing with a tall blonde boy whose back was to the door.
"Uh, excuse me," Lorelai said loudly, knocking on the open door.
"Lorelai, Rory, you're early," Emily said.
The boy jumped and turned around, his surprised expression softening when he saw her standing in the doorway.
"No, we're actually late. But then again it must be very easy to lose track of time when you're yelling loud enough for the whole floor to hear."
"He started it," Emily protested, "with his loud music. And I have to say, it was much louder than my tone."
Tristan didn't respond to her accusation. He was still staring at Rory, who in turn was staring right back at him.
"Hi Mary," he said.
A soft smile grew across her lips. "Hey."
"Did all that loud music make you deaf boy? Her name's Rory. Rory, with an R." Emily said, speaking in an intentionally loud voice to get her point across.
"He knows my name," Rory said, her smile growing wider. "Oh my gosh. How have you been?" She stepped forward and gave him a hug.
A very surprised Tristan wrapped his arms around her timidly. "Good, good. And yourself?"
"I'm fine," she answered, pulling away.
"So you two know each other?" Emily asked, catching on.
"Wait a minute. Mary, Bible Boy. Ah, it's all so clear. You're Joseph, right?"
"Tristan actually. Tristan Dugrey."
" I don't think Tristan is a name in the Bible."
He looked confused. "I didn't say it was."
"Then why do we call you Bible Boy if your name's not in the Bible?"
Tristan turned to Rory, completely confused.
"Because he calls me Mary," Rory said, explaining to her mother.
"So he's not your Joseph?"
"Definitely not my Joseph," Rory confirmed.
"You two know each other?" Emily repeated.
"We went to Chilton together," Rory answered, smiling again at Tristan. "Doesn't that seem so long ago?"
"Ages," he agreed.
"So Mom, how about you tell me why you called me here, and we can let these two catch up," Lorelai said, dragging Emily out of the room towards her own suite.
"Here, come in and sit down," Tristan said, ushering Rory out of the foyer and into the spacious sitting room, closing the door behind them.
Rory walked in and sat down on the couch while Tristan went to the mini bar and pulled out two water bottles. She noted how he directly avoided the alcohol bottles. Probably because he still thought of her as a true 'Mary,' a complete goody-two-shoes. She smiled to herself about the irony that the day after her title of Mary expired he popped back into her life.
Tristan sat down on the other end of the couch and tossed her the water bottle. She caught it and settled back on the cushions, surprised at how comfortable she felt around him. Two years ago she would probably be pacing in circles around the room, full of mixed emotions and flustered feelings. Now she was completely relaxed, as if all the anxiousness of the previous years had never been a factor in their relationship.
"Did you end up getting in to Harvard?" Tristan asked, opening his water.
Rory smiled, pleased that he had remembered. "Yah, actually. But I decided to go to Yale."
"Yale, wow. I thought you had your heart set on Harvard."
"I did, but things change. Where are you going to school?"
"Well, I did my freshman year at UC Berkley in Northern California. But I just found out today that my dad had everything transfered and now I'm enrolled for my sophomore year at Harvard."
"Wow, he did it without you even knowing?"
"That's what my father does. Have you seen anyone from Chilton recently?" he asked, changing the topic.
"Do you remember Paris Gellar?"
"How can anyone forget?" He joked, remembering the loud, opinionated blonde.
"She's my roommate at school," Rory answered, knowing Tristan would find that piece of information amusing.
"Gellar? No way. That has to be awful."
"It was for a while. But now we kind of understand each other. She's really not all that bad."
"Do you remember when she brought her cousin to the dance? Has the poor girl gotten a boyfriend yet?"
"She's dating a professor right now. Crap, that's probably something I shouldn't have told you."
Tristan shook his head. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. A professor, eh? How old, thirties, forties?"
"Sixties," Rory answered. She felt bad talking about her friend like that, but at the same time it felt nice to finally have someone to talk about the situation with.
"Sixties? No way. Does he have kids?"
Rory nodded "Old enough to be her father. But they don't know of course. They think that he's still-"
"Rory! I'm done. Wanna go?" Lorelai called from the door.
"That was fast," Tristan said dismally.
"Here, take my number," Rory said. "We should hang out sometime, if you're going to be around."
"I'm here all summer," he said, pulling out his cell phone.
She took it and programmed her number in it.
"Call me this week. We'll have lunch or something."
"That sounds good," he said, smiling. "Bye Mare."
"Bye." She left the room, closing the door behind her. Tristan settled back against the pillows, completely happy that Emily had come in to yell at him about the stereo. After all, now he was going to have lunch with Rory.
