Chapter 14- Guilty Pleasures

It was late September, and everything was changing in that sleepy little town. The leaves were turning, the town was a flutter of activities, the firelight festival, then the Cider festival, and all the others that came between. The Gilmore/Danes family was starting to find it's rhythm. It had been a little odd in the weeks after Luke and Lorelai got back from the honeymoon.
The girls still had plenty of mother, daughter time and Luke started coming to Friday dinners. On Tuesdays when Rory didn't have class until the evening, Lorelai would go to see her, or sometimes she would come back to Stars Hallow. That was there time. The no boys allowed time. It was on one of there famous Tuesdays that the subject of Rorys 21st birthday came up.

"So." Lorelai said taking a sip of coffee.

"I already don't like the sounds of this." Rory said.

"Someone has a birthday coming up." Lorelai said smiling. "Yeah, that." Rory said. "Why aren't you excited?" Lorelai asked.
"I am, I am." She said. "You don't sound it."

"Sorry I just have a lot on my mind today mom. I am really excited, what did you have planned?" Rory asked.

"Is everything ok hun? Did you and Logan have a fight? Or...Paris? Did she do something...are you sick of living with her? I mean...I know it's a big apartment but you guys have lived together a long time now." Lorelai said. "No...mom, it isn't that. Logan is great, Paris is fine...I...uh..." Rory didn't know how to tell her mom this. "What, what is it honey?" Lorelai asked concerned. "I think I might be...pregnant." Rory said. Lorelai sat back like a ton of bricks just fell on her. Don't yell she thought...don't be like Emily. "Uh...well...honey, I mean are you sure. Have you taken a test or..." Lorelai said. "No...but...I mean I am late, and I haven't been feeling well. I am too afraid to find out." Rory said. "Well uh, you and I are going to find out...you can't keep stressing about this, with out knowing." Lorelai said. "What am I going to do?" Rory said. "How can I tell grandma."

"Rory, there isn't anything to tell yet. We need to know, if you are or not." Lorelai said.

"Lets go." An hour later they were sitting in Rorys bathroom waiting. "How about now?" Rory asked.

"A couple more minute hon." Lorelai said. So may thoughts were in her head...this wasn't supposed to happen. But then again, neither was Rory and that turned out ok, right? Please, please don't let it be positive. Lorelai thought. Lorelai picked up the test and looked down at it.

"Well hon, welcome to the ranks of guilty women everywhere...it's negative." She said.

Rory let out a sigh. "But...I...and..."

"You were just working yourself up kid. We have all done it...it is more a sub conscious thing I think...we think we are being bad...so we make ourselves think that we have consequences."

"Wow...so...that is...great news." Rory said.

"Yeah lets keep it that way. I am way to young to be a grandma." Lorelai teased. "You've got a deal. I don't know why I thought that. I mean we are always safe...and..." Rory said. "Spare mommy the details. Now...lets talk about your party!" Lorelai said.

Desperate for a change of subject. She had just gotten a small taste of how her mother must have felt back then...and had a flash back to the time when Rory was 8 that Lorelai had her own scare. She never told Rory or Chris about it, because it turned out to be a false alarm...but she remembered it to this day. She and Chris had one of their secret hook ups and about a month later Lorelai had the feelings.

It turned out that she was just feeling a little guilt like her daughter was today...but it scared her.

They didn't talk about it again. Lorelai gave a quick, b safe, mother speech before she left... she refused to preach to her daughter. She was a woman now, Lorelai had to let her make her own mistakes.

Lorelai returned that night and found Luke out in the garage.

"What are you doing out here?" She asked.

"Huh?" Luke said hiding something behind him as quick as he could. "What is that?" Lorelai asked. "What is what?" "What ever you just threw under that tarp there?" Lorelai said. "Nothing...hey I thought you weren't going to be home until later." Luke said trying to change the subject. "Well I got done early at the Inn and I thought I could either find more work or come home to my husband who is hiding something like a crazy man."

"All right. You win." Luke said. He removed the tarp and showed her the crib that he was building.

"Luke it's beautiful."

"Yeah well it was going to be a surprise...but...I guess not." Luke said.

"Honey it's amazing." She said hugging him. "I was hopping you were gonna say that." He said. "Listen I know, this is happening, the way we thought it would but, it's going to happen. We just need to be persistent, and follow the schedule and..."

"No...Lorelai...I don't want to follow the schedule anymore...it isn't right. This is gonna happen I know that and you know that, and the doctors seem to know that...I don't want to be like robots anymore. I want to make love to my wife because I want to...not because it is time to."

Luke said. Lorelai looked at him, she kissed him softly. And whispered in his ear.

"Do you want to now?" She asked. "Here, now?" He said. "Why not...you wanted spontaneous didn't you?" She said knowing full well that now was a good time according to the schedule...infact that was the reason she was out there, she was actually going to tell him that...it was clear to her now that telling him would only ruin the moment, so she didn't. And so they made love on that old dirty tarp in that musty old garage.