Arielle
By: Alyson Tierney
Disclaimer: I do not own Lorelai or Rory Gilmore, or any other character associated with Gilmore Girls the way it is seen on television. Those characters and other related things and ideas belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB Network. However, I do own Alicia and Arielle, since I made them up.
Author's Note: This story idea is taken from the book "Baby" by Patricia MacLachlan, so I'd like to thank her for the terrific story idea, and I hope I did it justice in this story. It takes place this Christmas, and is an idea I've been working on for awhile. I hope you like this, and have a very good holiday season. The next chapter will be available soon, but if you guys want to check out my story "Gunshots and Secrets" you can access it on my profile. I want to thank everyone for being so nice and reviewing a lot, especially those of you who took the time to comment on certain aspects of the story.
CHAPTER SIX
Rory, Lane, and Alicia hung out together at Lane's apartment, watching movies and eating junk food. Rory noticed that Alicia was kind of quiet when Lane and Rory had been talking about Arielle, but otherwise was her normal chatty self. They relaxed in each other's company, talking and laughing about what was going on in the world.
Rory noticed the sun was sinking down low, and it was getting dark, so she excused herself to go home for dinner. Alicia offered to walk with her, so the two friends said goodbye to Lane, and headed down the street towards the town square.
"You excited for Christmas?" Alicia asked Rory as they walked.
"Yeah, I am, actually. My grandparents' dinner is always interesting, and Mom and I have our own ritual on Christmas morning, which is really fun. I don't know how long Arielle's staying, but having her will make it interesting, also." Rory smiled at Alicia.
"How is Arielle doing?" Alicia asked, "I love babies."
Rory smiled, "She's great, actually. She cries a lot at night, but she seems perfectly content when she's being fed. Mom cuddles her really close, kind of like I imagine she cuddled me when I was a baby."
"Cuddling is fun." Alicia smiled, a slightly wistful look on her face. "You should try running water in the bathtub or sink. Some babies really like that sound because it reminds them of the sounds in the womb of blood going from the mom to her baby."
"That's a good idea. Mom tried the dryer, because it really worked when I was little, but that seemed to make her shriek louder." Rory informed her friend.
"That's because she…some babies don't like it. It scares them, I think." Alicia said, "Some babies seem to like the lighter sounds."
Rory nodded, "Thanks, Alicia."
"Well, this is my stop." Alicia stopped on the sidewalk, and held out her arms for a hug, "We'll talk later, hun?"
Rory smiled and hugged her back, "Absolutely. Have a good night!" Rory watched as Alicia walked down the street, and then turned and continued down the sidewalk that led to her street. Suddenly she stopped, as realization struck her. Oh, my God. She remembered seeing Alicia with a stroller, remembered how vague she was when Rory asked her about it…how quiet she'd been when Rory had been telling Lane how Arielle was. How Arielle had just appeared on the steps an hour after saying goodbye to Alicia. And now, Alicia had slipped and said 'That's because she…' and quickly corrected herself to speaking in general terms. Oh, my God. Alicia is Arielle's mother. Rory hesitated, about to call back to Alicia, but then she stopped, deciding a confrontation wouldn't be wise. She'd go home and tell her mom her suspicions.
Rory began to run all the way back to her house. She ran up the road, and noticed that the mailbox flag was up. She sighed, the mail was usually delivered a few hours ago, Arielle must be demanding a lot of attention at the moment. She opened the box, sorting through the letters, but there was nothing but bills and Christmas cards from people they barely knew. Rory reached out with her left hand to close the mailbox and suddenly felt a sharp pain. She jerked her hand back, and let out a cry of pain, "Ow!"
Rory drew her hands to her face, and realized she'd pinched the index finger of her left hand in the door of the mailbox. Tears filled her eyes, as she curled her fingers, making sure nothing was broken. They bent easily, she just felt pain when she touched her finger. Bringing the finger to her mouth, she kissed it, and went inside in search of her mother.
She laid the mail on the table inside the door, and then peeked into the kitchen, planning on showing her mom her finger so Lorelai could kiss it and make it all better. Lorelai was seated facing away from Rory, feeding a fussy Arielle. Rory backed through the foyer and went to the stairs, and heard Lorelai call out, "Is that you, babe?"
"Yeah. I just need to go to the bathroom." Rory called back, trying to keep the tears out of her voice. She realized she was much too old to cry and need her mother, but she still did cry and need her mother. She'd never had a very high pain tolerance, and this was no exception, but Arielle demanded so much attention while she was eating, Rory didn't want to disturb her. Again, she almost wished it was just her and Lorelai, and longed for Arielle's mom to decide she wanted Arielle back.
"Okay, babe." Lorelai called, as Rory headed up the stairs to the bathroom. Her finger was throbbing, becoming more painful, and she thought her fingernail was actually turning red. She opened the cabinet, and turned on the water. Gulping down some Ibuprofen, Rory then held her finger under the water. She started to cry softly, not hearing when Lorelai came upstairs to put Arielle to bed.
A soft knock came at the door, and Rory heard her mom's voice, "Rory? Babe, are you ok?" Rory didn't want to answer, she just held her finger under the faucet, and choked back tears. The door opened, and Lorelai rushed to Rory's side, "What happened, baby?"
"I…I smashed my finger in the mailbox." Rory sniffled, as Lorelai pulled her daughter into a hug.
Lorelai kissed Rory's forehead, and held her close, and then turned off the water, "Let me see, sweetie. Can you bend it?" Lorelai smiled as Rory wiggled her fingers, "Good, nothing's broken. It looks like you broke a vessel under the nail, though."
Rory looked worried, "Do I have to go to the hospital?" she asked, her voice quivering.
Lorelai shook her head, "No, Mommy can fix it. You did the same thing when you were little and closed your toy box on your finger."
Rory nodded, "Okay."
Lorelai pulled her close and kissed her forehead, "Come on downstairs and I'll fix you up." Lorelai said, pulling bandages and antibiotic ointment out of the cabinet. Rory followed her mom into the kitchen, and watched as she turned on one of the stove burners and rummaged in the junk drawer and got a paper clip and a pair of tweezers.
"Um…is this going to hurt?" Rory asked, a little nervously.
"Nope." Lorelai said, and then turned and faced her daughter, "Not at all, babe, I promise. Just have a seat at the table, and Mommy will fix you all up."
Rory sighed and had a seat at the table. She watched her mom heat up the paper clip and then got a tissue and placed it under Rory's finger. "What are you doing?" Rory asked.
"Well this paper clip is all nice and hot, and when we put it on your fingernail—which has no nerves just like your hair—it lets the blood out from under your fingernail, and you should feel all better." Lorelai explained through her motions. Rory watched as it was done in a flash, and immediately she felt relief, "That better, babe?" Lorelai asked.
Rory nodded, "Much. Thank you, Mommy."
Lorelai bandaged her daughter's finger and then leaned over and kissed her again, "You're welcome, baby. I'll get you some ice, and then make you some soup, okay? I do know how to make soup."
Rory smiled, "I know you do." Lorelai handed her some ice, which she placed on her finger, as she watched her mom open a can of soup and pour it into a pot on the stove.
"So, how are Lane and Alicia?" Lorelai asked, as she stirred the soup a little and then came to sit next to her daughter.
"Lane's fine. Oh, my God, I forgot to tell you. I was talking to Alicia, and I realized…I think she may be Arielle's mom." Rory said, watching her mom's face for a reaction.
Lorelai nodded slowly, "Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too."
Rory looked shocked, "You were?"
"Yeah." Lorelai said, "I didn't want to say anything, and I didn't want to confront her, at least not right away. But, yeah, that was my suspicion."
"So what are we going to do about it?" Rory asked, "I mean…Alicia was…is one of my best friends. Just because she was gone for five years…I still…"
"I know. It's hard to believe, isn't it? I think…all we can do now is give Alicia some time. Normally, I'd be Lorelai-esque and confront her right away…"
"That would be very Lorelai." Rory put in, smiling.
"But she obviously needs space and time and a chance to come up for air. Arielle's safe and happy, and she clearly trusts you enough to have you and your insane but pretty mother take care of her child for awhile. She will come through in her own time." Lorelai smiled reassuringly.
Rory nodded, "I'll just be there for her then." She smiled at her mom and then kissed the bandage around her finger, and then replaced the ice.
"Good idea." Lorelai said, "Is your finger hurting you?"
Rory shook her head, "Not much. But I think your soup is boiling."
"Oh!" Lorelai yelped and rushed over to the stove, as Rory started laughing. Her mom usually managed to ruin or alter every single food item she got her hands on. She smiled as her mom turned down the heat and stirred the soup, and thought about how much she, Lane, and Alicia had changed in five years. She picked up a small pink teddy bear Arielle had left on the table, and squeezed it to her chest. Rory couldn't imagine having a baby so young, yet she always admired her mom for being able to do it so well.