She had cried for at least five minutes. She wasn't sure why no one had
come out of the inn to see why the horn was going off, but no one had. She
dried her eyes with the heel of her hand and then started up the car. She
drove to the house. The old house. Because she now knew two things about
it: her mother still lived there, and she currently was not there. Those
were good things. She walked up to the front door and searched around for
the turtle with the key, half expecting not to find it. Nothing else in
this town was the same, why should this be?
But there it was, just as it had always been. When she saw it, picked it up, she almost started crying again, but she had no tears left. She just pulled the key out and opened the front door, as she had so many times before.
It was exactly the same. It looked the same, it smelled the same. She took a deep breath, and it was as if she had three times as much space for air as she usually did. She wandered into the kitchen, the living room, up to her mother's room: it was all the same. Then she walked to the door that had once been so familiar, and stood in front of it. She reached for the knob, paused a moment, and then turned it. The door opened easily, and Rory looked around.
'Wow, it's as if time has frozen in this room.'
'It must be weird for you to be in this room now.'
Rory sat on her bed and replayed that conversation between her mother and herself so many years ago. She knew exactly how her mother had felt then. . . except. . .
'It was weird for me to be in this room then.'
That part was completely untrue for Rory. So why had she left? She could barely remember. It had been a myriad of reasons, and at the same time, no reason at all. She didn't like revisiting those last few weeks. She had known already that she was leaving, but no one else had. Especially not Lorelai.
**Flashback**
"Another graduation!" Lorelai screeched, laughing as she pinned the hem of the dress she was making for Rory.
"Another?" Rory asked, laughing. "What do you mean?"
"It seems only yesterday that you were graduating from Chilton. . ."
"Yeah. . . I guess. . ."
"So, have you decided what you're going to do? Are you staying at Yale?"
No. "I haven't decided, really. I know I'm taking at least the next semester off. I think I'm going to do a six month internship in New York."
"You think?"
"Well, it's that one I applied for and I was accepted, but I have yet to inform them whether I'm taking it or not."
"God, you sound like a business letter. You'll do fine in New York."
"So you think I should go?" Rory asked.
"Yes," Lorelai said with her trademark smile, "I think you should go."
***
It had been then that Rory had decided, definitely, that she was leaving. Then six months had lead to a position at the Times. One year, she had decided, and then she would go back to Yale. But four months into what had seemed like a temporary job to gain connections and experience had sprouted a promotion at the four month point. She hadn't gone back to Yale.
That had been one of the hardest things to tell Lorelai. In the beginning, Rory called every day, sometimes more, to tell her what was going on at her job. Every detail from her promotions to the fact that the new cups at the water cooler were smaller, and you had to take two to get the same amount as you got with one of the old ones.
Time passed, and as the internship came to a close, Rory was having a hard time bringing up the fact that she had taken the position, or even that the position had been offered at all. Finally, Lorelai asked when Rory was coming back for the spring semester, and Rory had told her about the job.
Lorelai had been elated of course, characteristic of her, and had insisted on coming to New York to visit and to buy a corporal wardrobe. When Lorelai had showed up, it was as if nothing had changed.
But slowly, things had changed. Rory had less and less time available. She hadn't been to Stars Hollow in almost a year, since her graduation from Yale. Lorelai had come to New York for Christmas, but she demanded that Rory come back for the summer. It took three weeks for Rory to tell her that she couldn't afford to take a break, she was competing for another promotion.
So Lorelai had come down again and camped out in Rory's apartment for the month of July. Rory worked almost all the time, and Lorelai shopped. The few days when Rory could afford to take time off, it was as if they were back in Stars Hollow, the indefeatable mother-daughter duo again, but the days when Rory came back from the Times late and she just wanted to eat dinner and go to bed, it was as if Lorelai was her small child. Rory finally realized what it must have been like for Lorelai at 22 with a six year old child.
At the end of July, Lorelai went back to Stars Hollow, and Rory stayed in New York, working. She got the promotion. She was climbing the Times ladder faster than almost anyone before her. She hadn't known she would be this good at journalism, but she was.
However, she realized as she climbed higher and higher that the more she worked, the less she had time for anything else. She barely dated, she called Lorelai less and less, and she never went to Stars Hollow. After a while, it seemed normal, more normal than her easy-going life in Connecticut had ever seemed, or so she felt now. She was running, running, running, but she didn't feel the need to stop and take a break. So she didn't.
She worked her way up the ladder even faster, and in three years, she was one of the top editors at the Times. She could barely believe it when she pushed the door with her name emblazoned on in gold to reveal the mahogany desk with a black plaque reading "Rory Gilmore, Associate Editor" on it. At 25, she was one of the youngest associate editors ever. As a girl, she had never thought that she would like power this much, but she loved it.
Weeks passed. Lorelai would come to New York on all the major holidays, but Rory didn't go to Stars Hollow. It seemed normal now. One would think that someone who had once been so attached to her hometown would want to visit it any chance she could, but she felt removed from Stars Hollow now. It was much more normal and convenient for Lorelai to come down.
On Rory's 26th birthday, Lorelai came to New York. They met for dinner after Rory finished work, and they talked incessantly. Rory thought that it was normal, until their meals came.
**Flashback**
"So, you know, there's a huge festival coming up in Stars Hollow," Lorelai said.
"Oh yeah? What is it this time?"
"Um, a celebration of the essence of Stars Hollow. Taylor's really going all out. He even got Luke to put up a poster in the diner."
"Wow, is that even possible?"
"Apparently so." Lorelai paused. "It's in two weeks." She paused again. "I was thinking you could come up."
"I have to work."
"You know," she continued as if Rory had not spoken, "everyone really misses you. They haven't seen you in a while."
"Yeah, well, I've been busy." Rory looked at her plate.
"Busy for five years?"
"This is a crucial time in my job, OK? I'm one of the youngest associate editors ever." Rory said, her voice slightly raised, finally looking up from her plate.
"Yeah. . . so. . ."
"So? So everyone's looking at me to mess up! Five years isn't that much. In a little while, I'll finally have my place set. Two more years, tops, and no one will be able to take anything from me!"
"What is wrong with you?"
"What?" Rory asked, astonished.
"You've changed, Rory Gilmore. You are not the same person anymore. You are not the girl I raised, and you are definitely not the best friend I grew up with."
"You don't like it? You don't like the new me?" Rory asked, flustered.
"No, I don't," Lorelai answered definitively.
"Then why are you still here?" Rory said angrily.
"I don't know." Lorelai grabbed her purse and walked out of the restaurant, taking one last look at her daugher with sad blue eyes, the exact color of tears.
"Happy Birthday, to you. Happy Birthday, to you. Happy Birthday, dear Rory. Happy Birthday, to you." The waiters sang, carrying out a huge chocolate cake, chocolate icing and all, with "Happy 26th Rory" written in coffee beans.
***
But there it was, just as it had always been. When she saw it, picked it up, she almost started crying again, but she had no tears left. She just pulled the key out and opened the front door, as she had so many times before.
It was exactly the same. It looked the same, it smelled the same. She took a deep breath, and it was as if she had three times as much space for air as she usually did. She wandered into the kitchen, the living room, up to her mother's room: it was all the same. Then she walked to the door that had once been so familiar, and stood in front of it. She reached for the knob, paused a moment, and then turned it. The door opened easily, and Rory looked around.
'Wow, it's as if time has frozen in this room.'
'It must be weird for you to be in this room now.'
Rory sat on her bed and replayed that conversation between her mother and herself so many years ago. She knew exactly how her mother had felt then. . . except. . .
'It was weird for me to be in this room then.'
That part was completely untrue for Rory. So why had she left? She could barely remember. It had been a myriad of reasons, and at the same time, no reason at all. She didn't like revisiting those last few weeks. She had known already that she was leaving, but no one else had. Especially not Lorelai.
**Flashback**
"Another graduation!" Lorelai screeched, laughing as she pinned the hem of the dress she was making for Rory.
"Another?" Rory asked, laughing. "What do you mean?"
"It seems only yesterday that you were graduating from Chilton. . ."
"Yeah. . . I guess. . ."
"So, have you decided what you're going to do? Are you staying at Yale?"
No. "I haven't decided, really. I know I'm taking at least the next semester off. I think I'm going to do a six month internship in New York."
"You think?"
"Well, it's that one I applied for and I was accepted, but I have yet to inform them whether I'm taking it or not."
"God, you sound like a business letter. You'll do fine in New York."
"So you think I should go?" Rory asked.
"Yes," Lorelai said with her trademark smile, "I think you should go."
***
It had been then that Rory had decided, definitely, that she was leaving. Then six months had lead to a position at the Times. One year, she had decided, and then she would go back to Yale. But four months into what had seemed like a temporary job to gain connections and experience had sprouted a promotion at the four month point. She hadn't gone back to Yale.
That had been one of the hardest things to tell Lorelai. In the beginning, Rory called every day, sometimes more, to tell her what was going on at her job. Every detail from her promotions to the fact that the new cups at the water cooler were smaller, and you had to take two to get the same amount as you got with one of the old ones.
Time passed, and as the internship came to a close, Rory was having a hard time bringing up the fact that she had taken the position, or even that the position had been offered at all. Finally, Lorelai asked when Rory was coming back for the spring semester, and Rory had told her about the job.
Lorelai had been elated of course, characteristic of her, and had insisted on coming to New York to visit and to buy a corporal wardrobe. When Lorelai had showed up, it was as if nothing had changed.
But slowly, things had changed. Rory had less and less time available. She hadn't been to Stars Hollow in almost a year, since her graduation from Yale. Lorelai had come to New York for Christmas, but she demanded that Rory come back for the summer. It took three weeks for Rory to tell her that she couldn't afford to take a break, she was competing for another promotion.
So Lorelai had come down again and camped out in Rory's apartment for the month of July. Rory worked almost all the time, and Lorelai shopped. The few days when Rory could afford to take time off, it was as if they were back in Stars Hollow, the indefeatable mother-daughter duo again, but the days when Rory came back from the Times late and she just wanted to eat dinner and go to bed, it was as if Lorelai was her small child. Rory finally realized what it must have been like for Lorelai at 22 with a six year old child.
At the end of July, Lorelai went back to Stars Hollow, and Rory stayed in New York, working. She got the promotion. She was climbing the Times ladder faster than almost anyone before her. She hadn't known she would be this good at journalism, but she was.
However, she realized as she climbed higher and higher that the more she worked, the less she had time for anything else. She barely dated, she called Lorelai less and less, and she never went to Stars Hollow. After a while, it seemed normal, more normal than her easy-going life in Connecticut had ever seemed, or so she felt now. She was running, running, running, but she didn't feel the need to stop and take a break. So she didn't.
She worked her way up the ladder even faster, and in three years, she was one of the top editors at the Times. She could barely believe it when she pushed the door with her name emblazoned on in gold to reveal the mahogany desk with a black plaque reading "Rory Gilmore, Associate Editor" on it. At 25, she was one of the youngest associate editors ever. As a girl, she had never thought that she would like power this much, but she loved it.
Weeks passed. Lorelai would come to New York on all the major holidays, but Rory didn't go to Stars Hollow. It seemed normal now. One would think that someone who had once been so attached to her hometown would want to visit it any chance she could, but she felt removed from Stars Hollow now. It was much more normal and convenient for Lorelai to come down.
On Rory's 26th birthday, Lorelai came to New York. They met for dinner after Rory finished work, and they talked incessantly. Rory thought that it was normal, until their meals came.
**Flashback**
"So, you know, there's a huge festival coming up in Stars Hollow," Lorelai said.
"Oh yeah? What is it this time?"
"Um, a celebration of the essence of Stars Hollow. Taylor's really going all out. He even got Luke to put up a poster in the diner."
"Wow, is that even possible?"
"Apparently so." Lorelai paused. "It's in two weeks." She paused again. "I was thinking you could come up."
"I have to work."
"You know," she continued as if Rory had not spoken, "everyone really misses you. They haven't seen you in a while."
"Yeah, well, I've been busy." Rory looked at her plate.
"Busy for five years?"
"This is a crucial time in my job, OK? I'm one of the youngest associate editors ever." Rory said, her voice slightly raised, finally looking up from her plate.
"Yeah. . . so. . ."
"So? So everyone's looking at me to mess up! Five years isn't that much. In a little while, I'll finally have my place set. Two more years, tops, and no one will be able to take anything from me!"
"What is wrong with you?"
"What?" Rory asked, astonished.
"You've changed, Rory Gilmore. You are not the same person anymore. You are not the girl I raised, and you are definitely not the best friend I grew up with."
"You don't like it? You don't like the new me?" Rory asked, flustered.
"No, I don't," Lorelai answered definitively.
"Then why are you still here?" Rory said angrily.
"I don't know." Lorelai grabbed her purse and walked out of the restaurant, taking one last look at her daugher with sad blue eyes, the exact color of tears.
"Happy Birthday, to you. Happy Birthday, to you. Happy Birthday, dear Rory. Happy Birthday, to you." The waiters sang, carrying out a huge chocolate cake, chocolate icing and all, with "Happy 26th Rory" written in coffee beans.
***