He felt his whole body tense up, his muscles bunch and his jaw clench. He glanced briefly at Paris seated on the stool, looking at his mother surprised. Then he looked back at his mother and set his mouth in a grim line and acknowledged her with a short nod. "Liz."
She winced fleetingly, before smiling widely. "I guess I should have called. I didn't know Luke closed up this early."
You don't know anything about Luke. Or me, he thought bitterly but kept that thought inside. "Things change."
She cleared her throat and her smile wavered a bit, as she tugged on the hem of her jacket, in a nervous habit.
She was out of place, awkward. Her leather jacket was worn out, thin gold hoops dangled from her ears and her faded jeans were torn at the knees. In the dimness, he could see that she looked exhausted, make-up smeared and mascara smudged around the corner of her eyes. He hated that something that felt suspiciously like worry, stirred in him.
Finally, Liz's gaze fell on Paris and she managed a smile as she walked forward, extending a hand. "I'm Liz Mariano."
The blonde slid off the stool and accepted Liz's hand in a firm shake. "Paris Gellar. It's nice to meet you. I'm Jess' friend."
Friend. That was a good word. Indefinite. Safe.
"Nice to meet you too," his mother answered uncertain.
He cleared his throat and made his way around the counter, hoping to keep the introductions short and painless. The three of them stood there, not knowing what to say as they shifted their weight around and glanced listlessly in space.
"I should go," Paris said finally. "It's late and my nanny might send out a search party."
"I'll walk you to your car," Jess offered, relieved he was getting an outlet.
Before Liz could say anything, he was ushering Paris out of the diner and crossing the street to where her car was parked. She turned to him once they were there, placing a hand on the hood. "Are you okay?"
"What? Oh yeah, fine."
"You look pale," she stated unconvinced.
"I'm fine," he replied firmly. "I'm sorry you have to leave."
She smiled softly, making his blood hum. "I can sense a big melodramatic moment a mile away. You, your mother - major stuff. I completely get that. You don't need me hanging around. Besides, Emmanuelle really will send out a search party."
"Okay," he accepted, pocketing his hands. "I'm really glad you came."
"So am I."
Because he wanted to, he leaned forward to kiss her even though he knew that Miss Patty's dance studio was at a vantage point and that she could see them if she looked out. Paris' fingers curled around the back of his neck as she kissed him back, but she pulled away before he could deepen it.
Then, she was driving away. Letting out a sigh, he pocketed his hands and turned towards the diner. His mother was in town. She looked upset. This can't be good.
"So, Paris lives in Stars Hollow?" Liz asked when he stepped back into the diner. She had seated herself on the stool Paris had vacated and had turned on all the lights.
He knew she was stalling and making small talk and had no problem with it. "Hartford."
She pursed her lips a little. "Expensive."
"Yeah well, she's rich," he replied with an evasive shrug. "She can afford expensive. But you're not here to talk about Paris, are you?"
She sighed. "Of course not."
He looked at her expectantly. "Then why are you here?"
"I can't come and see my kid?" she asked defensively, crossing her arms over her chest and regarding him with a cocked eyebrow.
He scoffed. "It's been two years since you sent me away, Ma."
"I didn't 'send you away'," she huffed and slid off the stool. He looked away from her, too angry to say anything and heard her take in a breath. "Jess, I'm not here to argue with you."
"Whatever you say."
She tilted her head to the side and placed her hands on her hips. "I've had a long trip, my muscles are cramped and I'm tired. All I want to do is take a shower and go to bed. I can tell that you've had a long day too. So can we please do this later?"
"I'd be happy if we never did this at all, Ma."
Then, before anyone of then could say anything else hurtful and angry, the door opened and Luke stalked in. By the look on his Uncle's face, he knew that Luke had a terrible night as well. Join the club. "Jess, why the hell do you have all the lights on?"
"Hello Lucas," Liz greeted, a small smile on her face.
Jess saw Luke's eyes dart to his sister in surprise. After a minute, he dug his hands in the pockets of his trousers, looking uncomfortable. "Elizabeth. How are you?"
"I'll be okay if I have a place to sleep tonight," she responded with a shrug.
Luke sighed. "Of course you do. Jess'll sleep on the couch."
"Great." Jess shot his uncle a look. Then he sighed, walked over to his mother and pulled her bag out of her hand. "This way, Liz."
Later that night, Jess was staring at the ceiling in the darkened living room. Luke had grunted a few words about a rough evening and disappeared into his room only to come out for a glass of water. His mother took a shower, wished him goodnight and closed his bedroom door behind her.
Annoyed, he turned on the couch and punched the pillow under his head. He was going to have to get used to it. Who knew how long his mother's reasons for being in Stars Hollow lasted?
When he heard the creaking of floorboards he lifted his head slightly, and saw his mother creep out of his room. Quickly, he closed his eyes and feigned sleep. He heard the shuffling of her feet, the click of the light switch in the kitchen and the sound of running water. A few moments later, she was padding across the floor again and he pried his eyes open a little, to see her at the end of the couch. In the darkness she didn't see him and moved closer.
If he were really asleep, he wouldn't have felt her lightly ruffle his hair. For effect he stirred and she retracted. A few minutes later, the door clicked shut again and he opened his eyes.
He needed a cigarette.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
When Paris stepped out of the bathroom, she stopped short upon seeing Louise and Madeline, standing near her bed with confused expressions. She caught sight of Jess' black shirt in the brunette's hand and cursed inwardly.
"Paris, darling, what's this?" Louise asked as her perfect brow arched inquisitively.
"A shirt."
"Very droll," she replied with a small smirk. "It's not yours."
Paris sighed, trying to feign nonchalance as long as she could. "Really? And how would you know?"
"Because black isn't your color. And I know a guy's shirt when I see one." She brought the shirt close to her nose. "Besides, this smells like a mixture of cigarettes, sweat and…very cheap aftershave."
Oh boy did she know. She had spent most of the night wrapped up in, unable to sleep as she thought about Jess and the intoxicating way he smelled. She looked at her friends and then lifted her shoulder in a careless shrug. "It belongs to Jess."
Madeline smiled brightly and clapped her hands together. "I knew it! Where is he? Where are you hiding him?"
"What?" she asked shocked, as Madeline scampered across the room, flinging open the closet door. "Madeline - "
"You know," Louise drawled as she crossed her legs and leaned on to an elbow on the bed, reminding Paris of a cat, stretching. "I didn't know you had it in you, darling. I mean really, Paris, risking a scandal as big as this? I can't say I'm not proud."
"Scandal? What are you talking about?" Paris demanded as she stalked over and pulled Madeline out of her closet. "Both of you are certifiable."
"Say what you must," Louise smirked and Madeline giggled. "But we're not the ones hiding a boy in our room when Mother dearest can walk in any time and throw a hissy fit."
"I'm not hiding a boy in my room," Paris said, laughing at the absurdity. She realized how it must've seemed to her friends' when they saw Jess' shirt on her bed as she walked out of the bathroom. "I went to visit him last night. He offered me his shirt and I forgot to give it back."
"Were you cold?" Madeline asked, scrunching up her nose. "You must've been if he had to take off his shirt for you."
Paris sighed and rubbed her temple. "I helped him clean his Uncle's diner. He didn't want my dress to get dirty."
Louise made a disgusted face. "You cleaned a diner? Wow, you really must like this guy."
Not liking the turn the conversation was about to take, Paris shook her head slightly. "What are the two of you doing here anyway?"
Madeline pulled out the chair from Paris' desk and looked at her funny. "The physics exam on Monday. You scheduled a study session for us."
She nodded and pulled her shoulder bag out from under her bed. "Right. I forgot."
"Of course you did," Louise said with a grin. "After all, you've been dreaming of a half-naked man doing manual labor. I'm surprised you even know your name."
Paris shot her a look even though that particular description of her dream was fairly accurate. "He was wearing a T-shirt underneath."
An hour later, the three girls were immersed in physics problems when Paris's private line jarred them out of their studies. Louise, being the most grateful that a distraction had finally come reached over the bed and picked it up off Paris' side table.
"Paris Gellar's room. Home of scandal and sexual fantasies," she stated saucily into the phone, smirking at Paris' scowl. Madeline giggled. "Oh hey Rory. Yeah she's here. Hold on a second. She's putting back her sex to - "
Paris cut her off as she snatched the receiver out of Louise hand. "Hello?"
"Hey Paris," the other girl greeted brightly. "That was so not what I needed to hear."
"Don't mind her, all the peroxide has gotten to Louise's brain," Paris sniped and the blonde in question shot her a withering glare. "So what's going on?"
"Oh not much. I just wanted to see what you were doing today. I needed to get my mind off of…stuff."
She smiled knowingly. "Welcome to the club. We're just studying for physics."
"Yeah, I tried that," Rory answered sounding flustered. "It didn't help much. Hey, you met Jess's mom last night, didn't you?"
"Yeah I did. Briefly. I could sense the tension."
"Oh yeah. It's thick. Seems like everyone in Stars Hollow is upset. Lane and I are stealing Jess for lunch upon his request," she explained. "He's doing the whole avoiding thing. That's not healthy."
"Please," Paris scoffed. "This coming from you?"
"It's his mother."
"Exactly."
The brunette sighed in defeat. "Whatever."
They spoke idly for a few minutes before they hung up. Madeline looked up from her book and smiled again. "Did I tell you about my party?"
"What party?"
"My annual my-parents-are-away party!" she emphasized, looking hurt that Paris didn't remember.
"To call it annual, you have to throw it every year," Paris explained. "You parent's didn't go anywhere last year."
"Together, anyways." Louise chimed in.
Madeline rolled her eyes. "Anyway, you're coming right? It's this coming Friday. I want to invite Jess."
"I don't know. He might not want to come," Paris stated remembering how he had bolted out of her house after their first date.
"Ask him," the brunette prodded.
"Fine," she stated and returned to her books. The prospect of actually having a date to a Chilton party was one she was beginning to warm up to. She tried to picture Jess at the party, surrounded by "preppy" teens and then smiled brightly. "I'll ask. Just make sure there's no French soda."