He was lying on Luke's couch, with his face buried in a book.
"Don't you own any nice clothing?!" Rory called from his bedroom.
"They're in there somewhere."
"Along with Jimmy Hoffa?"
He smirked. "You've found me out." He sat up and sighed. "Why do you get to pick out my clothes?"
"I don't, I just wanna see what you have."
"You doubt that I own decent clothing," he nodded.
"Do not!" Rory cried. "But how many pairs of jeans do you need?"
He smirked again and shook his head. He slowly got to his feet, trying hard to keep most of his weight off of his still bandaged leg. He limped into his bedroom and stood behind Rory. "Still no luck?"
She shook her head. "It is. It's like searching for Jimmy Hoffa. Where are they?"
He dug through his closet and pulled to the back where a few hangers were. He pulled out a pair of nice, black slacks and an off-white button- down shirt that looked as if it would hug his frame.
She blinked, and stepped into the closet. "What the hell, Jess?"
He watched her with a raised eyebrow. "I could ask you the same thing? What are you doing in my closet?"
"Looking for the drag dresses."
He fished into the small, stuffed closet, and found her arm and dragged her out. "Well, I don't want you to see them. They need dry cleaning."
"So, are you going to be nice to grandmother this time?"
"I was nice the last time," he replied. "You were the one who made me look like a creep."
She sighed. "Right. Football, not Dean. Sorry."
They stood in silence.
"Hey, Rory?"
"What?"
"You wanna know how I got that black eye?"
"Yes. Because you don't play football."
"You're right. I don't."
She gave him a sideways glance. "So, how?"
Nefarious swan."
She blinked.
"I got beaked."
She tried her best to comprehend this.
"I was walking, and this... swan... it..."
She tried to hold back laughter.
He glared.
She cracked into laughter.
He glared more.
She laughed harder, and dropped to the floor.
*****
Rory came rushing down the stairs into the diner, where Luke was taking Kirk's order. Jess rushed as best he could down after her, and put a hand to his chest at the bottom of the stairs.
"Luke?"
"What?"
"Is it true?"
Luke blinked and turned to Rory. "Is what true?"
She giggled. "The swan?"
Luke looked back at Jess who was glaring at no one in particular. Just the world. "Yup. The swan story is the complete truth. You shoulda seen him. He was freaking out."
Rory snorted loudly, and grabbed onto the counter to keep herself from hitting the diner floor.
Luke just shook his head. "You should both get ready. I've horror stories about punctuality at that place."
"I bet it's haunted," Jess added.
"By who?" Rory asked with a raised eyebrow.
"All those maids my mother winds up killing instead of firing," Lorelei chimed in as she walked up to the counter. "Three coffees."
"Three?"
"Three."
Luke shook his head and repeated. "Three?"
"I'm spending the evening with my mother, my daughter and my daughter's hoodlum boyfriend."
"I prefer the term 'hooligan,'" Jess told her.
"You're Italian, not Irish," Luke told him. He turned to Lorelei. "Compromise and call him a thug."
Rory shrugged. "You can always call him Holden."
Luke and Lorelei gave her a bewildered look.
"Holden? Caulfield? Salinger?"
"I get it," Jess offered.
Rory sighed. "Well, that's something..."
"I'm still angry at you, though," Jess told her.
She couldn't help snickering. "A swan. I can't believe it."
"A swan?" Lorelei asked. "What about a swan?"
Jess mumbled something.
"Oh, no," Lorelei said, dead serious. "You weren't brutally attacked by the evil swan, were you?"
Jess gave her a blank look.
"You were! Or, you poor thing! That mean thing is still alive, I can't believe it!"
Rory was bewildered. "Mom?"
Lorelei relayed the tale of her encounter with the evil swan, and the entire diner stared at her.
She looked upon Jess with sympathy. "That swan is so evil. If you weren't Jess, I'd hug you."
*****
They arrived in Hartford ten minutes late, due to the fact that Jess had problems putting his pants on over the slightly bulky bandage dressings on his leg, and traffic was outrageous.
Emily opened the door and hugged Lorelei and Rory. She gave Jess a polite smile he knew was only partially fake, and told him she was glad that he was making a recovery, noting bitterly that she hadn't heard that he was out of his coma until very recently, while shooting a Lorelei what passed for a glare in polite circles.
Dinner was...
The food was nice.
Emily's questionings were a little uncomfortable. Questions about school, employment, the future. His answers didn't really please the eldest Gilmore woman at the table, but he didn't let it bother him. She could go to hell if she didn't like who he was. The best he could do was to be as polite as humanly possible. Which for Jess, meant saying polite things, and then mumbling insults under his breath.
When dinner ended, and dessert had been served and eaten, they said their good-byes and took off down the road.
"Sorry about Grandma," Rory said to him quietly.
"Yes, because I blame you," he told her jokingly.
She smiled a little and rested her head against the back of her seat next to him. "All the questions."
He shrugged. "It doesn't matter what she thinks. Not to me."
She sighed. "It does to me, a little," Rory admitted.
He nodded and didn't say anything else.
*****
They pulled back into Stars Hollow, and Lorelei sighed. "Where am I dropping you off, Jess?"
"Here's good," he replied, as they came up on the diner.
Rory grabbed his hand before he could get out of the car. "You could come back to my place and hang out."
He shook his head. "No, thanks. I'll call you." He got out of the car and started to walk toward the diner.
Rory sighed. "Mom?"
"Get 'im," Lorelei replied.
Rory hopped out of the car and walked up to stand behind him. "Are you mad at me?"
"Nope."
"You're acting mad."
"Not mad."
"What's bothering you?"
He sighed and stopped trying to get the door open and turned to her. "You're not letting this go, are you?"
"Nope."
"Why do you care what your grandmother thinks?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. She's not someone I want to disappoint."
"Is being with me disappointing her?"
Rory didn't follow. "Jess... what are you talking about?"
He sighed and turned back to the door.
"Talk, Jess."
"She made me feel like scum tonight, okay?" he told her, turning back to her again. "And I don't care what she thinks; she can make me feel like scum, she's not the first person to do it. But if you care what she thinks- "
She surprised them both by cut him with her lips. She wasn't sure how comfortable she felt doing it out in the open, but that thought had to take a backseat to the fact that he obviously needed it.
After she pulled away, he stared at her.
"It matters what she thinks, because I want her to like you," Rory explained. "If she doesn't, it's gonna be hard, but it's not going to make me leave you."
He nodded and looked down.
"Come back to my house?" she asked, taking his hand.
He didn't reply for a moment.
"Jess?"
"Yeah," he told her. "Let's go."
"Don't you own any nice clothing?!" Rory called from his bedroom.
"They're in there somewhere."
"Along with Jimmy Hoffa?"
He smirked. "You've found me out." He sat up and sighed. "Why do you get to pick out my clothes?"
"I don't, I just wanna see what you have."
"You doubt that I own decent clothing," he nodded.
"Do not!" Rory cried. "But how many pairs of jeans do you need?"
He smirked again and shook his head. He slowly got to his feet, trying hard to keep most of his weight off of his still bandaged leg. He limped into his bedroom and stood behind Rory. "Still no luck?"
She shook her head. "It is. It's like searching for Jimmy Hoffa. Where are they?"
He dug through his closet and pulled to the back where a few hangers were. He pulled out a pair of nice, black slacks and an off-white button- down shirt that looked as if it would hug his frame.
She blinked, and stepped into the closet. "What the hell, Jess?"
He watched her with a raised eyebrow. "I could ask you the same thing? What are you doing in my closet?"
"Looking for the drag dresses."
He fished into the small, stuffed closet, and found her arm and dragged her out. "Well, I don't want you to see them. They need dry cleaning."
"So, are you going to be nice to grandmother this time?"
"I was nice the last time," he replied. "You were the one who made me look like a creep."
She sighed. "Right. Football, not Dean. Sorry."
They stood in silence.
"Hey, Rory?"
"What?"
"You wanna know how I got that black eye?"
"Yes. Because you don't play football."
"You're right. I don't."
She gave him a sideways glance. "So, how?"
Nefarious swan."
She blinked.
"I got beaked."
She tried her best to comprehend this.
"I was walking, and this... swan... it..."
She tried to hold back laughter.
He glared.
She cracked into laughter.
He glared more.
She laughed harder, and dropped to the floor.
*****
Rory came rushing down the stairs into the diner, where Luke was taking Kirk's order. Jess rushed as best he could down after her, and put a hand to his chest at the bottom of the stairs.
"Luke?"
"What?"
"Is it true?"
Luke blinked and turned to Rory. "Is what true?"
She giggled. "The swan?"
Luke looked back at Jess who was glaring at no one in particular. Just the world. "Yup. The swan story is the complete truth. You shoulda seen him. He was freaking out."
Rory snorted loudly, and grabbed onto the counter to keep herself from hitting the diner floor.
Luke just shook his head. "You should both get ready. I've horror stories about punctuality at that place."
"I bet it's haunted," Jess added.
"By who?" Rory asked with a raised eyebrow.
"All those maids my mother winds up killing instead of firing," Lorelei chimed in as she walked up to the counter. "Three coffees."
"Three?"
"Three."
Luke shook his head and repeated. "Three?"
"I'm spending the evening with my mother, my daughter and my daughter's hoodlum boyfriend."
"I prefer the term 'hooligan,'" Jess told her.
"You're Italian, not Irish," Luke told him. He turned to Lorelei. "Compromise and call him a thug."
Rory shrugged. "You can always call him Holden."
Luke and Lorelei gave her a bewildered look.
"Holden? Caulfield? Salinger?"
"I get it," Jess offered.
Rory sighed. "Well, that's something..."
"I'm still angry at you, though," Jess told her.
She couldn't help snickering. "A swan. I can't believe it."
"A swan?" Lorelei asked. "What about a swan?"
Jess mumbled something.
"Oh, no," Lorelei said, dead serious. "You weren't brutally attacked by the evil swan, were you?"
Jess gave her a blank look.
"You were! Or, you poor thing! That mean thing is still alive, I can't believe it!"
Rory was bewildered. "Mom?"
Lorelei relayed the tale of her encounter with the evil swan, and the entire diner stared at her.
She looked upon Jess with sympathy. "That swan is so evil. If you weren't Jess, I'd hug you."
*****
They arrived in Hartford ten minutes late, due to the fact that Jess had problems putting his pants on over the slightly bulky bandage dressings on his leg, and traffic was outrageous.
Emily opened the door and hugged Lorelei and Rory. She gave Jess a polite smile he knew was only partially fake, and told him she was glad that he was making a recovery, noting bitterly that she hadn't heard that he was out of his coma until very recently, while shooting a Lorelei what passed for a glare in polite circles.
Dinner was...
The food was nice.
Emily's questionings were a little uncomfortable. Questions about school, employment, the future. His answers didn't really please the eldest Gilmore woman at the table, but he didn't let it bother him. She could go to hell if she didn't like who he was. The best he could do was to be as polite as humanly possible. Which for Jess, meant saying polite things, and then mumbling insults under his breath.
When dinner ended, and dessert had been served and eaten, they said their good-byes and took off down the road.
"Sorry about Grandma," Rory said to him quietly.
"Yes, because I blame you," he told her jokingly.
She smiled a little and rested her head against the back of her seat next to him. "All the questions."
He shrugged. "It doesn't matter what she thinks. Not to me."
She sighed. "It does to me, a little," Rory admitted.
He nodded and didn't say anything else.
*****
They pulled back into Stars Hollow, and Lorelei sighed. "Where am I dropping you off, Jess?"
"Here's good," he replied, as they came up on the diner.
Rory grabbed his hand before he could get out of the car. "You could come back to my place and hang out."
He shook his head. "No, thanks. I'll call you." He got out of the car and started to walk toward the diner.
Rory sighed. "Mom?"
"Get 'im," Lorelei replied.
Rory hopped out of the car and walked up to stand behind him. "Are you mad at me?"
"Nope."
"You're acting mad."
"Not mad."
"What's bothering you?"
He sighed and stopped trying to get the door open and turned to her. "You're not letting this go, are you?"
"Nope."
"Why do you care what your grandmother thinks?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. She's not someone I want to disappoint."
"Is being with me disappointing her?"
Rory didn't follow. "Jess... what are you talking about?"
He sighed and turned back to the door.
"Talk, Jess."
"She made me feel like scum tonight, okay?" he told her, turning back to her again. "And I don't care what she thinks; she can make me feel like scum, she's not the first person to do it. But if you care what she thinks- "
She surprised them both by cut him with her lips. She wasn't sure how comfortable she felt doing it out in the open, but that thought had to take a backseat to the fact that he obviously needed it.
After she pulled away, he stared at her.
"It matters what she thinks, because I want her to like you," Rory explained. "If she doesn't, it's gonna be hard, but it's not going to make me leave you."
He nodded and looked down.
"Come back to my house?" she asked, taking his hand.
He didn't reply for a moment.
"Jess?"
"Yeah," he told her. "Let's go."