Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Gilmore Girls although I enjoy watching the show very much.

Luke parked the truck and pulled on the emergency brake. Shifting sideways he checked out the driver's side window to get his bearings, then grabbed the brown paper bag on the seat beside him and opened the door. It was dark already; it was getting dark so early now. He followed the cobblestone walkway to the dormitory and reached for the slip of paper in his pocket. He double-checked the number he had quickly copied from Lane's address book, and then walked up to the door.

Now that he was standing here he felt nervous. The whole drive out he had rehearsed what he wanted to say, but he still didn't have any tactic settled on. Every line of reasoning he tried to follow just seemed to head in a direction where he really didn't want to go. He backed away from the door and leaned sideways against the billboard beside her room. He briefly scanned over the papers advertising various functions around campus: lots of mixers and parties, a few lectures, a few 'for sale' notices. He briefly envied her this time in her life. So much was ahead of her – there was so much to learn, so much to look forward too. He wanted to be part of it, so he screwed up his courage and went back to stand in front of the door.

Before he could knock it was yanked open and he briefly had time to register that she was turned away from him calling over her shoulder: "I'll be right back Paris, do you want the double espresso?" Then she collided into him. He clumsily caught her as she lost her balance and looked up. There was an awkward pause.

"Luke? Um, what are you doing here? Is everything OK?" She sounded surprised.

"Oh sure, sure," he answered awkwardly. He cursed internally as his mind went blank and he couldn't think of one of his important, rehearsed lines. Oh heck, they weren't working for him anyway. She stared at him and her look of surprise was replaced with a blank, shuttered look.

"Well," she said, "as you can see I was just on my way out so..." He was surprised at how cold she sounded. He saw a thin familiar-looking blonde girl peek out of a door.

"Rory! Oh good you haven't left. I was thinking about the class list and...," she trailed off and looked at Luke curiously. "Oh sorry, hey don't I know you? Aren't you someone from Stars Hollow? I'm thinking scandal; I'm thinking truckers, drugs, prostitution..."

"Paris! This is Luke, he runs the diner in Stars Hollow!" Rory interrupted her as Luke started to frown.

"What does he want?" Paris asked.

"I don't know," Rory countered and turned to Luke, "what do you want?"

"I just wanted, I mean, I wanted to talk. Or see how you were doing or something like that," he started sheepishly then remembered the paper bag he was holding. Well, it was in more of a death grip now. "I was in the neighbourhood and I brought you some of those triple-chocolate brownies you like so much," he offered tentatively as he held out the bag.

Paris ran out of the bedroom and took the bag out of his hand. "Yummy!" she exclaimed as she reached into the bag to grab one. She bit a corner off.

"Holy cow are these excellent! I can feel the sugar and chocolate enter my bloodstream! Have you ever though of marketing these? Seriously, these would be great for late night studying. Wow, you could make a fortune."

She took another bite and chewed it as she looked over at Rory and Luke curiously. Luke was looking at his feet and shuffling a bit, and Rory looked carefully blank.

"Hey," Paris said cheerfully, "you know what would go perfect with these brownies? A double espresso! Wasn't someone just on her way to get one?" She looked back and forth at Luke and Rory who still hadn't changed position. "Rooorrryyy!" she drawled as she nudged Rory in the arm, "coffee?"

"Oh yeah, sorry Paris. Sorry Luke, I can't chat, I was just running out. Thanks for the brownies; I guess I'll see you later." She dismissed him.

She turned to Paris, "don't eat them all before I get back!" she forced out.

She went to brush past Luke who was still in the doorway, but as she went by he touched her arm briefly. She pulled it away. "Rory? Here, I'll walk with you."

She passed by him walked briskly down the same walkway he had just come up.

"Rory...". She turned and looked at him. He'd never seen that look on her face before. He'd seen something like it on Lorelai once, but that was a time he didn't really like to remember.

"Luke, I have to go and I don't really want to talk. Thanks again for the brownies. Say 'hi' to mom – I assume she sent you here."

"No, no, she didn't," he replied as she looked at him in disbelief. "Actually she hasn't talked about it, but I had to come and see you. Rory, you have to let me apologize. Please just let me say sorry, OK? Then I'll go."

"OK, fine, I let you say sorry and now you can go. Bye." She turned to walk away again and he followed her.

"Wait, wait. There's more. I wanted to explain," he started and she stopped and turned around again.

She was blinking hard and her voice was a bit unsteady as she said, "What Luke, do you have more to add to your opinion that you expressed so freely the other night? How else have I disappointed you? How low am I in your esteem? Is this what you need to say? Well, don't bother – I already heard all of it, and probably more, from Mom and believe me you two are really bad in stereo." Her voice cracked and she turned around again and started to walk off.

"Rory, I'm so sorry." He continued after her, "I shouldn't have ever said those things. I don't know what came over me. I don't have the right to talk to you that way, and you have to believe me when I tell you that I was in the wrong." She kept walking.

"Rory, stop a minute, let me tell you," she paused, but didn't turn this time. "Rory," he sighed and ran his hand through his hair, "I'm not really good at this kind of thing. I want to say something to make it better between us again, but I thought all the way here what that would be and I still don't know. I still thought I should come and try." She shifted her feet.

"What you said about my disappointment in you, well, that's not true. I'm so proud of you. I always have been. Geez, I don't know another single kid that's as level-headed as you are."

He faltered a bit wondering where this sappy stuff was coming from, but she was still standing there so he thought he'd better push on, "I guess you're one of the people I care about most and I was worried I came across really judgmental." He looked at her back, "Can we, uh, I mean, is there a way to make this right? What can I do to make it better? Can I do something to set it right?"

She turned and looked at him and surreptitiously wiped her eye. "Did you mean what you said Luke? Are you saying that you didn't mean what you said?"

"Uh, well, I should have never said anything at all. I don't have that right. That's not the point..."

"Oh, I think it is exactly the point Luke," she snapped, and then she stopped and continued more quietly, "I really want to know. Did you mean what you said?"

Oh god, he was really wishing he were at home now. He thought he was making some headway and now he was really in shit. 'What do I do now,' he thought, 'if I lie she'll see through it. But I don't want to tell her the truth.' He hesitated too long.

"Luke? I guess that means you did mean it, right?"

"Look Rory, it's more complicated than that. I don't know how to explain all this in a simple way. Look, you know about me and Nicole, I mean you were around for that, but, well, did Lorelai ever tell you anything?"

She looked at him curiously, "No, what do you mean? I know Mom wasn't happy about the whole marriage thing, but she didn't really talk about it to me. I don't want to sound rude but are you changing the subject? You still didn't answer me."

"I'm trying," he protested. Then he sighed. "Honestly, this is really hard. I feel like if I tell you some things you might understand why I acted the way I did, but, Geez, it's a subject I feel really uncomfortable talking about."

"You seemed OK the other night when you were talking about subjects that make me uncomfortable ..."

He looked around awkwardly, "Look, is there some place to sit down? Some place where there's beer, preferably."

She took a little pity on him. "I can get you a seat at a really good coffee place," she offered and started walking again, but this time a little more slowly so he could walk with her.

TBC