Rory had posted a calendar in her room counting down the days to Christmas.
She had finally finished her last final, and she was packing to go home.
Four weeks. She was so happy to finally be in college, with its super-long
vacations. She would be home for four long weeks. She was playing The Clash
on her stereo as she packed. Lexie had left that morning, and Rory was
going to leave as soon as she had everything packed.
Suddenly, the ringing of her phone interrupted the packing process. She turned down her music and walked over to the phone.
"Hello?"
"Rory?"
"Sebastian? Hey. . . I thought you had already gone back to Seattle?"
"My plane got grounded."
"Oh no! Why?"
"Have you looked out the window recently?" Sebastian asked, a smile in his voice.
"No, why?" Rory looked out the window. "Oh my God! It's snowing! It's snowing, it's snowing!"
"Yeah, and it's supposed to be like this all weekend. I can't leave until Monday."
"Oh. That sucks."
"I know. I'm gonna be in my dorm all by myself."
"You want to come back to Stars Hollow with me for the weekend? You can stay with us until you can fly out."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah, I'm sure it's no problem. My mom loves having guests."
"You're sure I'm not intruding? What if your mom didn't make enough dinner?"
"Lorelai? Cook? Don't make me laugh. Luke does all the cooking. Or Pete. Or Al."
"I'm not even going to ask."
"Why don't you pack your stuff and meet me here in an hour? Is that enough time?"
"Plenty."
"Great. See you then." Rory hung the phone up and then picked it back up to call home.
"Who's there and what do you want?"
"Mom?"
"Baby! Do you see the snow?"
"I do indeed."
"Isn't it pretty? So why are you calling me when you're supposed to be on your way here? Oh no! Can you not get home because of the snow?"
"No, I'm OK. They've pretty much cleared the roads. I'll just drive carefully. The problem is, my friend Sebastian, you remember I was telling you about him?"
"Yeah, what about him?"
"His plane is grounded, and I told him he could stay with us."
"Sure. No problem."
"Awesome. It was so funny. He asked me if you had cooked enough for him."
Both girls laughed. "All right, baby. I'll see if I can cook enough for your friend for dinner."
"Mom. . . don't go near the kitchen."
"OK, I'll tell Luke to cook enough for your friend."
"Luke's tonight?"
"Yeah, unless you wanted something else?"
"No, that's fine. Why don't we just meet you there? I'll call you when I'm ten minutes away."
"See you then, baby."
"OK, bye Mom."
"Bye." Rory hung up and threw her phone onto her bed. She turned the Clash back up and resumed her packing.
An hour later, she was downstairs waiting for Sebastian with her bags. She saw him walk up, covered in snow, and went out to meet him in the parking lot. They got into Rory's car.
"You're sure this is OK?" Sebastian asked.
"Sure, why wouldn't it be?"
"You do have enough room for me, right?"
"Yeah, Mom just got a pull-out couch in the living room. It's all fine."
"Good."
"How was your last final?" Rory asked.
"It was fine. They were all OK I think. Harder than high school, of course, but they were fine. How were yours?"
"Same. My British Lit. final was a little hard, but that's a great class."
"Yeah? I took American Lit. this term."
"I was thinking about taking that, but I wasn't sure about the teacher."
"O'Connell's OK once you get used to him. He takes a while to warm up to you, but after that, he's great."
They continued talking until they reached the outskirts of Stars Hollow. Rory dialed her mom. "Hello?"
"Hey Mom. We just saw Taylor's pride and joy."
"The town sign? Great, I'll meet you at Luke's in ten."
"See you then."
"Bye sweetie."
Rory hung up and continued driving until they reached Luke's. She pulled into a spot in the front and got out.
"William's Hardware?" Sebastian asked.
"Long story. Don't ask. This is Luke's."
"Diner?"
"Yup." She pushed the door to the diner and a small bell rang. Sebastian watched as a man standing behind the counter in a baseball cap and flannel shirt looked up. "Rory!"
"Hey Luke!"
"We missed you here. You don't visit enough." He came out from behind the counter and the two shared an awkward hug.
"Well I'm here now. For a month!"
"That's great!"
By now, there was a large crowd around Rory. Rory didn't have a huge amount of friends at school, she was rather shy, so Sebastian was surprised when a large woman with dyed red hair who Rory addressed as Miss Patty, a blonde woman and her extremely tall husband who Rory called Babette and Morey, a slight Korean girl in glasses, Lane, and a man who Rory called Kirk all swarmed her when she had entered. They all talked at once, but instead of looking shy and surprised as she usually did around crowds, Rory just looked extremely happy.
"Lane! Oh my God, I've missed you! How long are you back for?"
"Three weeks, almost the same as you!"
"And how many of those do you have to be in Church?"
"Plan to be or am supposed to be?"
Rory just laughed and hugged her.
"Hey sugar!" the blonde woman said.
"Babette! How are you?" Rory reached out to give her a hug.
"Morey."
"Rory."
"Don't be offended, sugar. Morey decided that hugging ruins his street cred. Now he just does a secret handshake."
Rory reached out for the man's hand and followed his lead as they went through an extremely complicated handshake.
"Kirk," Rory said in greeting. "How's CatKirk?"
"Oh, he's fine. We built him his own wing of the house last month. I just slide his food through a door and then lock it."
"Interesting. . ."
"Hey doll!"
"Miss Patty! How are you?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine doll. . . although I'd be much happier if you'd introduce me to your gentleman friend." Miss Patty looked over to Sebastian.
"Oh! Sebastian, I'm so sorry. I'm being rude."
"Don't worry about it."
"Everyone, this is Sebastian. Sebastian, this is Luke, Babette, Morey, Kirk, Lane, and Miss Patty."
"Oh, nice to meet you all."
"Where would you like to sit, Rory?" Luke asked.
"Oh, We'll sit at the counter."
"Are you expecting Lor-" The bell above the door suddenly rang.
"Where's my baby?" Rory and Sebastian turned around to see a woman who looked remarkably like Rory.
"Mom!"
"Mom?" Sebastian said, quietly to himself.
Rory jumped out of her seat and ran to greet Lorelai. The two hugged and screamed and jumped up and down.
"It's been too long since I've seen you! I'm having Rory withdrawal!"
"You came up to visit me last week."
"So? That's way too long." They walked to the counter, arm in arm and sat down, Rory between Sebastian and Lorelai.
"Is this your friend?" Lorelai asked.
"Yes, Mom, this is Sebastian."
"Hey Sebastian, I'm Lorelai, but you can call me Your Highness."
"She's joking," Rory said.
"I figured," Sebastian said. "It's nice to meet you."
"Luke?" Lorelai called. "I've been here for ten seconds, and I still don't have coffee." Lorelai picked up the large mug in front of her and shoved it towards Luke. He rolled his eyes and filled it for her. She pulled it back towards her and drank, draining the entire mug. Sebastian sipped his mug and found that the coffee was extremely hot and strong.
He looked to Rory, who had done the exact same thing as her mother. "How is that possible?" he asked.
"What?" Rory and Lorelai asked, simultaneously.
"How can you drain those mugs so fast? It's insanely hot."
Rory and Lorelai just shrugged and demanded burgers of Luke. Luke looked to Sebastian. "I've known them for years, and I still haven't figured it out." He gave Sebastian one of his few smiles. "What can I get for you?"
"Uh, I'll have what they're having."
"Sure thing." Luke wrote the order out and passed it back to the kitchen. Lorelai and Rory were talking to each other a mile a minute, but Sebastian didn't mind. When they finished their meals, they all stood.
"So Mom, how about Sebastian and I take my car back and we'll meet you back at the house?"
"Sounds good." Rory got her coat. Sebastian pulled out his wallet.
"Oh, no. Don't be silly!" Lorelai said.
"Please let me help out. It's the least I can do in return for your hospitality."
Rory and Lorelai laughed. "What?" Sebastian asked.
"We aren't paying," Rory said. "Night Luke!"
"Night!" Rory and Sebastian walked out of the diner to Rory's car.
"Looks like she's finally gotten over Jess," Lorelai said to Luke. He nodded in agreement. Neither one had noticed the constant sadness behind Rory's eyes. She had gotten too good at hiding it for anyone to know it was there except for her.
Suddenly, the ringing of her phone interrupted the packing process. She turned down her music and walked over to the phone.
"Hello?"
"Rory?"
"Sebastian? Hey. . . I thought you had already gone back to Seattle?"
"My plane got grounded."
"Oh no! Why?"
"Have you looked out the window recently?" Sebastian asked, a smile in his voice.
"No, why?" Rory looked out the window. "Oh my God! It's snowing! It's snowing, it's snowing!"
"Yeah, and it's supposed to be like this all weekend. I can't leave until Monday."
"Oh. That sucks."
"I know. I'm gonna be in my dorm all by myself."
"You want to come back to Stars Hollow with me for the weekend? You can stay with us until you can fly out."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah, I'm sure it's no problem. My mom loves having guests."
"You're sure I'm not intruding? What if your mom didn't make enough dinner?"
"Lorelai? Cook? Don't make me laugh. Luke does all the cooking. Or Pete. Or Al."
"I'm not even going to ask."
"Why don't you pack your stuff and meet me here in an hour? Is that enough time?"
"Plenty."
"Great. See you then." Rory hung the phone up and then picked it back up to call home.
"Who's there and what do you want?"
"Mom?"
"Baby! Do you see the snow?"
"I do indeed."
"Isn't it pretty? So why are you calling me when you're supposed to be on your way here? Oh no! Can you not get home because of the snow?"
"No, I'm OK. They've pretty much cleared the roads. I'll just drive carefully. The problem is, my friend Sebastian, you remember I was telling you about him?"
"Yeah, what about him?"
"His plane is grounded, and I told him he could stay with us."
"Sure. No problem."
"Awesome. It was so funny. He asked me if you had cooked enough for him."
Both girls laughed. "All right, baby. I'll see if I can cook enough for your friend for dinner."
"Mom. . . don't go near the kitchen."
"OK, I'll tell Luke to cook enough for your friend."
"Luke's tonight?"
"Yeah, unless you wanted something else?"
"No, that's fine. Why don't we just meet you there? I'll call you when I'm ten minutes away."
"See you then, baby."
"OK, bye Mom."
"Bye." Rory hung up and threw her phone onto her bed. She turned the Clash back up and resumed her packing.
An hour later, she was downstairs waiting for Sebastian with her bags. She saw him walk up, covered in snow, and went out to meet him in the parking lot. They got into Rory's car.
"You're sure this is OK?" Sebastian asked.
"Sure, why wouldn't it be?"
"You do have enough room for me, right?"
"Yeah, Mom just got a pull-out couch in the living room. It's all fine."
"Good."
"How was your last final?" Rory asked.
"It was fine. They were all OK I think. Harder than high school, of course, but they were fine. How were yours?"
"Same. My British Lit. final was a little hard, but that's a great class."
"Yeah? I took American Lit. this term."
"I was thinking about taking that, but I wasn't sure about the teacher."
"O'Connell's OK once you get used to him. He takes a while to warm up to you, but after that, he's great."
They continued talking until they reached the outskirts of Stars Hollow. Rory dialed her mom. "Hello?"
"Hey Mom. We just saw Taylor's pride and joy."
"The town sign? Great, I'll meet you at Luke's in ten."
"See you then."
"Bye sweetie."
Rory hung up and continued driving until they reached Luke's. She pulled into a spot in the front and got out.
"William's Hardware?" Sebastian asked.
"Long story. Don't ask. This is Luke's."
"Diner?"
"Yup." She pushed the door to the diner and a small bell rang. Sebastian watched as a man standing behind the counter in a baseball cap and flannel shirt looked up. "Rory!"
"Hey Luke!"
"We missed you here. You don't visit enough." He came out from behind the counter and the two shared an awkward hug.
"Well I'm here now. For a month!"
"That's great!"
By now, there was a large crowd around Rory. Rory didn't have a huge amount of friends at school, she was rather shy, so Sebastian was surprised when a large woman with dyed red hair who Rory addressed as Miss Patty, a blonde woman and her extremely tall husband who Rory called Babette and Morey, a slight Korean girl in glasses, Lane, and a man who Rory called Kirk all swarmed her when she had entered. They all talked at once, but instead of looking shy and surprised as she usually did around crowds, Rory just looked extremely happy.
"Lane! Oh my God, I've missed you! How long are you back for?"
"Three weeks, almost the same as you!"
"And how many of those do you have to be in Church?"
"Plan to be or am supposed to be?"
Rory just laughed and hugged her.
"Hey sugar!" the blonde woman said.
"Babette! How are you?" Rory reached out to give her a hug.
"Morey."
"Rory."
"Don't be offended, sugar. Morey decided that hugging ruins his street cred. Now he just does a secret handshake."
Rory reached out for the man's hand and followed his lead as they went through an extremely complicated handshake.
"Kirk," Rory said in greeting. "How's CatKirk?"
"Oh, he's fine. We built him his own wing of the house last month. I just slide his food through a door and then lock it."
"Interesting. . ."
"Hey doll!"
"Miss Patty! How are you?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine doll. . . although I'd be much happier if you'd introduce me to your gentleman friend." Miss Patty looked over to Sebastian.
"Oh! Sebastian, I'm so sorry. I'm being rude."
"Don't worry about it."
"Everyone, this is Sebastian. Sebastian, this is Luke, Babette, Morey, Kirk, Lane, and Miss Patty."
"Oh, nice to meet you all."
"Where would you like to sit, Rory?" Luke asked.
"Oh, We'll sit at the counter."
"Are you expecting Lor-" The bell above the door suddenly rang.
"Where's my baby?" Rory and Sebastian turned around to see a woman who looked remarkably like Rory.
"Mom!"
"Mom?" Sebastian said, quietly to himself.
Rory jumped out of her seat and ran to greet Lorelai. The two hugged and screamed and jumped up and down.
"It's been too long since I've seen you! I'm having Rory withdrawal!"
"You came up to visit me last week."
"So? That's way too long." They walked to the counter, arm in arm and sat down, Rory between Sebastian and Lorelai.
"Is this your friend?" Lorelai asked.
"Yes, Mom, this is Sebastian."
"Hey Sebastian, I'm Lorelai, but you can call me Your Highness."
"She's joking," Rory said.
"I figured," Sebastian said. "It's nice to meet you."
"Luke?" Lorelai called. "I've been here for ten seconds, and I still don't have coffee." Lorelai picked up the large mug in front of her and shoved it towards Luke. He rolled his eyes and filled it for her. She pulled it back towards her and drank, draining the entire mug. Sebastian sipped his mug and found that the coffee was extremely hot and strong.
He looked to Rory, who had done the exact same thing as her mother. "How is that possible?" he asked.
"What?" Rory and Lorelai asked, simultaneously.
"How can you drain those mugs so fast? It's insanely hot."
Rory and Lorelai just shrugged and demanded burgers of Luke. Luke looked to Sebastian. "I've known them for years, and I still haven't figured it out." He gave Sebastian one of his few smiles. "What can I get for you?"
"Uh, I'll have what they're having."
"Sure thing." Luke wrote the order out and passed it back to the kitchen. Lorelai and Rory were talking to each other a mile a minute, but Sebastian didn't mind. When they finished their meals, they all stood.
"So Mom, how about Sebastian and I take my car back and we'll meet you back at the house?"
"Sounds good." Rory got her coat. Sebastian pulled out his wallet.
"Oh, no. Don't be silly!" Lorelai said.
"Please let me help out. It's the least I can do in return for your hospitality."
Rory and Lorelai laughed. "What?" Sebastian asked.
"We aren't paying," Rory said. "Night Luke!"
"Night!" Rory and Sebastian walked out of the diner to Rory's car.
"Looks like she's finally gotten over Jess," Lorelai said to Luke. He nodded in agreement. Neither one had noticed the constant sadness behind Rory's eyes. She had gotten too good at hiding it for anyone to know it was there except for her.