A/N: Again, thanks to all of you who reviewed!!! For those of you who were wondering, this WILL be the last prologue, so after this chapter the actual story will finally begin. Sorry for the delay. Oh, and just to warn you, the upcoming chapters may take a while to get posted; we have finals next week, and it's just a little hectic. So just bear with me…
Oh, and I'd appreciate at least 10 reviews, but if I don't get them, I'll post the next chapter anyway…Happy reading!!!
-Love Always,
-Ivy
After All These YearsPrologue: Everything Comes Together
*8 months later – April after Rory and Tristan's freshman year in college*
Tristan DuGrey walked leisurely out of his bathroom into his spacious bedroom, his hair dripping wet, and clad only in a towel which hung loosely at his waist. As he picked up another towel and began to slowly dry his hair, he wondered what the hell he was going to do with himself all day. He had come home from Harvard a few days ago for Spring Break, and had basically spent most of his time just hanging around his house, as much as he normally despised that setting. Rory had been busy, and as for his other so-called "friends", well, he really didn't give a damn whether he saw them or not.
Rory. Even just the mere thought of her brought a genuine smile to Tristan's face. They were closer than ever. He had been there for her through all the stages of her pregnancy. The gloom that followed Jess's leaving, the morning sickness, her depression at having to take 2nd semester off, her joy at seeing the first ultrasounds of her child…he'd seen all of it. He had promised to be there for her, and wasn't about to let her down…not after what she'd experienced with Jess. And now…now he was more in love with her than ever. But he knew she'd need time. That was okay; he'd wait till the end of the earth for her, and then some.
Tristan's gaze landed on a picture of himself and Rory, making his smile grow brighter. It had been taken three months earlier, in January, when Rory had been six months pregnant and growing large. He could remember it like it was yesterday…
*Flashback*
Tristan had been over at Rory's house watching "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" with her and Lorelai when he noticed that Rory's gaze had drifted from the dancing Oompa-Loompas to the snow falling outside the window. Before he knew it, she had dragged him off the couch, forced his jacket on him, and led him outside.
"Come on, Tristan!" Rory laughed.
"But it's cold out here, Ror…" Tristan griped.
"Oh come on, all you have to do is sit…Pwetty pwweasse… For me?" Rory turned on the charm, using the Bambi eyes and everything.
"Fine…"
"Thank you!!!" Rory practically sang, taking Tristan's hand and leading him out to the porch swing in her front yard.
They sat on the swing for a while, just watching the snow fall. As Tristan glanced over at Rory, he couldn't believe the beauty he saw in front of him. There Rory sat, her eyes sparkling, and her tongue stuck out, trying in vain to catch a snowflake with it.
He leaned over so that his head was even with the bulge of her stomach and whispered, "Yes, your mom IS crazy, but it's okay, we've been finding her help-" Rory cut him off by pushing him headfirst into the snow.
After recovering from the shock, Tristan got up and shook himself off before resuming his former place on the swing, his face red from the cold and his hair a mess. Soon, he turned to Rory, his eyes twinkling… "Oh, it's on now Gilmore!!!"
With that, he lunged at Rory, tickling her at her sides, making her squeal with laughter. He stopped only when she finally collapsed onto his lap, laughing so hard that she was practically in tears. She looked up at Tristan, "Someday when you least expect it, DuGrey…I'll get you back…"
"I'm counting on it, Mary." Tristan whispered, taken aback by the sheer beauty of the moment.
*End Flashback*
That was when the picture had been taken; with Rory's head in Tristan's lap, her staring up at him, her eyes sparkling and full of laughter, and with Tristan gazing down at Rory, an adoring look upon his face.
That was when he had known…
That was when he had known without a doubt that he was hopelessly in love with Lorelai Leigh Gilmore.
*RING…. *
Tristan's thoughts were broken as he heard his cell phone ringing. Startled, he walked over to his bed where he had left it and answered, "Yeah?"
"Tristan! Oh, good, you're home. Listen…Rory – hospital – in labor! Come soon!!!"
"Lorelai?" Tristan questioned, but the other end had already gone dead.
'Oh God… It's coming!!' was Tristan's last thought before he started to run frantically around his room, trying to get ready.
*******************
*1/2 Hour Later*
Tristan ran through the revolving doors of the Hartford Memorial Hospital, stopping to catch his breath only when he had finally reached the nurse's center.
"Where- could – I- find – Rory- Gilmore?" he panted, trying unsuccessfully to string a sentence together.
"I'm sorry, sir, we need more information." The nurse replied, looking bored.
"Lorelai- Lorelai Leigh Gilmore, 18, In Labor…" Tristan finally managed to spit out.
"Are you a relation to the patient?"
Tristan shook his head.
"I'm sorry, sir, only family is allowed to see the patient." The nurse turned to leave.
"Listen, lady…my best friend is in there giving birth to a child whose father ran out on it. She needs me! Now, either you can tell me where she is, or I can pull my little rich-brat trick and tell my grandfather, who happens to be one of the founders of this hospital, about your hospital's failure to let me see the one person who matters the most to me!!!"
"Sir-" the nurse began, a look of terror upon her face.
"Tristan!"
Tristan turned, only to see Lane running down the corridor towards him.
"Where is she?" Tristan asked, frantically.
"Down here. Come on!" Lane led the way, practically dragging Tristan along with her.
"How is she?"
"Doing okay. She's only in the early stages, but she's a little freaked out. Her mom's in with her right now, and I've been in there a lot; but she's been asking for you." Lane babbled.
By this time, they were standing outside of Rory's room. Looking in, Tristan could see a frazzled-looking Lorelai trying to calm down an extremely scared Rory.
"Ahem."
Tristan whipped around to see Luke standing right behind him. "How'd you get there?" He asked, a little freaked out.
"Never mind that," Luke replied, "Although I am the one who drove those two here. Anyway, what I was GOING to say was that you should probably be going in there soon. She thought you weren't coming."
Tristan looked baffled. "How could she have thought I wasn't coming? I told her I'd be here-"
Luke cut the younger boy off. "Tristan, she's in labor, her moods aren't exactly normal. Now go."
A little nervous, Tristan tentatively opened the door to Rory's room. The instant he was in Lorelai practically crushed him in a bear hug.
"It's about time you got here, Evil One." Lorelai cried, then turned back to her daughter, "I'll be back in a minute, okay, Ror? Mommy needs coffee." With that, she exited into the hallway, looking as if she might have broken down in tears.
Tristan took a seat next to Rory, looking down at her. "Hey…how you doing, hon?"
Rory looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. "I almost thought you weren't coming…"
"I told you I'd be here, didn't I?" Tristan replied.
"Yeah, but…"
"But what, Mar?"
"Well, Jess said he'd be back, too…. And look what happened there." Rory stated, looking as if the words cost her.
Tristan leaned down, smoothing her hair and pulling her into a hug. "I'm not Jess, Ror. I'll always be here for you, remember that, okay? Always…"
"Okay, Tris…" Rory said, smiling a little.
Tristan smiled and kissed the side of Rory's head. "Now there's the Mary I know and love to annoy."
"Funny, DuGrey."
"I thought so… Now how are you feeling?"
"I hurt all over…." Rory moaned.
"Hey, Tris?" she began again.
"Yeah, Ror?"
"Would you- would you mind being here when I actually give birth? I need somebody to hold my hand…" Rory asked, her eyes pleading with Tristan.
Tristan was shocked. "Sure, Ror."
"Thanks, Tris."
"Anytime, Mar. But you're gonna owe me…"
"Oh, yeah? And exactly what am I going to owe you?"
"Oh, I'm sure I could think of a few things…" Tristan joked, watching Rory blush.
He heard a knock on the door, and looked up to see Luke entering the room.
"Hey Tristan, could I have a few moments alone with Rory please?" Luke asked gruffly.
"Sure." He kissed Rory's cheek, a silent promise that he'd be back, and walked out of the room.
Luke looked around the room, looking uncomfortable…
"Luke?" Rory questioned. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah…" Luke replied tightly. "Listen, Ror, while I was packing up some of Jess's stuff, I found an envelope that he had left for me…Inside it was just a note to me, explaining a few things; but there was also something he told me to give you on the day of the birth of you child. So, um…this is for you." Luke said, producing an envelope from behind his back and handing it to Rory.
Slowly, Rory took it, holding it carefully, as if managing a bomb. She looked up at Luke with a million questions in her eyes, but he just nodded. Little by little, she began to open the envelope, until finally she drew a piece of paper out of it.
Rory drew in her breath quickly. "Luke…Luke this is a check for five thousand dollars!!"
Luke nodded, tears in his eyes. "Yeah…I'm pretty sure it was money that was supposed to go towards college. He wanted to do something for you, Rory. He wanted to help out as much as he could financially…so he gave you what he had… Listen, I'll be out in the hall if you need me, okay?"
"Luke?" Rory called before he left.
Luke turned around and walked back over to her bedside. "Yeah?"
Rory sat up and pulled him into a hug. "Thank you for being here, Luke…" she whispered before releasing him.
"Anytime, kid, anytime…"
After Luke left, Rory sat, alone, staring at the piece of paper in front of her. A check for $5,000. It was all there, written in Jess's scrawled handwriting. He had even written something in the memo – "Birthday". He wanted to help out as much as he could… Luke had said.
But why…why couldn't he have just helped by being around?
Rory sighed…Even when he wasn't around, Jess just had to make his presence known. "Oh, Jess…"
*******************
*3 hours later*
Three hours had passed, but Rory's baby had yet to be born. By this time, quite the crowd had collected outside her delivery room. Emily and Richard, Christopher and Luke (who were eyeing each other lethally across the hallway), Lane, and even Dean had come; all waiting for the baby to finally be born.
The only two people who had been allowed inside were Lorelai and Tristan, although that may not have been such a good thing…
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Rory screamed in pain, gripping Tristan's hand so hard that his knuckles were turning white.
"It's okay, honey. Breathe, breathe…." Lorelai tried to coach.
But Rory was not to be consoled. "WHERE THE HELL IS HE?!?" she screamed, loud enough for the crowd in the hall to hear.
"Who?" Tristan questioned.
"JESS!!!!!" Rory screamed back, as if it were obvious.
Tristan looked a little hurt. "Oh…" he replied. "You want him here to take my place?" he asked, hatred penetrating his voice.
"NO YOU IDIOT!!! I WANT HIM HERE SO I CAN BASH HIS HEAD IN!!!" Rory shrieked back.
"That's my girl" Lorelai laughed.
"Okay, Rory, I need one last push out of you, okay? On the count of three…One…two…three…" the doctor guided.
"Come on, Ror, you can do it." Tristan directed, trying to ease Rory's pain in any way possible.
At those words, Lorelai looked over at the boy so fervently holding her daughter's hand, and could see the blatant love and adoration for her written in his eyes.
But her musings were cut short by a wail coming from the newborn baby.
"You did it, hon!" she screeched, enveloping Rory in a hug, listening to the crowd in the hallway cheer.
Tristan gazed at the newborn, already falling in love with it.
"Boy or girl?" Rory questioned breathlessly.
"Girl." the doctor replied.
Rory's relief was obvious. Her eyes shining she asked, "Could I hold her now?"
"Of course."
The crowd from the hall, started to filter into the room, the first being Christopher.
"Hey, hon!" he greeted.
"Hi, Daddy." Rory replied, not tearing her eyes away from her daughter, whom she had already fallen hopelessly in love with.
"Hey, Ror?" Tristan tried to get her attention.
"Yeah?" Rory looked up at him, her eyes shining.
"What are you going to name her?"
"Well…Lorelai?" Rory said meekly, and then shook her head. "Yes, Lorelai…Can't break tradition now can I?" she said, looking up at her mom, who was clapping her hands and dancing around in little circles.
"Yes, Lorelai…Lorelai…Lorelai Christine. Maybe I could nickname her…Rae."
"I like it, babe." Christopher chimed in.
"Yeah, me too." Rory whispered…
******
Tristan gazed down at Rory and Rae, seeing the perfect picture. Rory looked so…happy. Yes…he thought happily. Everything's finally coming together now…