Lorelai stood at the front door of her parents' house, nervously twisting the hem of her jacket between her fingers, trying to work up the courage to ring the doorbell. This is stupid. I've done this a million times before. Heck, I've done it a million times before facing two Gilmores. One can't be all that bad, right? OK, deep breath. Just lift up your hand, Lorelai, and push the damn button. PUSH IT. She pushed.

The door was opened, for a change, by Richard Gilmore himself. He seemed surprised to see his daughter standing in front of him, looking extremely ill at ease. "Lorelai? Well, this is a surprise! Come in, come in." He ushered his daughter in and took her coat. While he went to put it away, Lorelai cast a quick glance around the foyer. At first sight, everything seemed to be as immaculate as usual, but Lorelai detected spots of dust that would never have formed under Emily's careful watch. The house also smelt of take-out food, a smell that Lorelai knew all too well. Far from being amused, Lorelai only felt a twinge of sadness.

Richard returned and led her to his study, offering her a drink. "I must say, Lorelai, this is quite unexpected. It isn't often that there's an occasion that brings you here aside from dinner." Despite his articulation, Richard too looked slightly uncomfortable.

Lorelai realized how rare it was for her to actually talk to her father and not be in a fight. As Richard fixed her iced tea, she sadly thought about the uneasiness in this room, as if she were an acquaintance. I'm the only daughter. Aren't I supposed to be the apple of Dad's eye or something? The fact was, she had never actually been close to her father. When was the last time that they had had a conversation about something other than business and Rory, just enjoying the others' company? Although the wounds inflicted twenty years ago had healed, they still twinged on occasion, reminding her of the bridge between her and her parents, the bridge that would never seem to break down. If it weren't for Rory, would they actually have a reason to be together?

Richard interrupted her musings when he handed her a glass of tea, which she accepted with a quiet expression of thanks. After a few moments of silence, Lorelai asked, "Uh, Dad, I won't stay for long. I just came by to… apologize." Richard remained speechless. "I mean, I should have come sooner, or at least telephoned you, or something, but what with the inn going haywire and the staff not listening to any of us, plus I didn't really know how to word it. So, I guess I'll stop beating around the bush, then." Lorelai took a deep breath. "I'm sorry that I forced you and Mom together during the test run. I know that I shouldn't meddle in your affairs, and it was probably totally thoughtless. I guess I must have acted out of desperation, right Dad?"

Richard took a moment before replying in a neutral tone, "That's quite all right, Lorelai."

Lorelai was extremely confused, yet not surprised. It wasn't like her father to give in so easily, but the manner in which he'd accepted her apology was nothing less than what she would have expected. Still, Richard knew that Lorelai did not concede defeat easily, so why was he not more surprised? And they were broaching dangerous territory – relationships were somewhat of a touchy subject in the Gilmore house. Lorelai pressed on. "It's just hard for a kid to see her parents, whom she thought would stay together forever, to be in such a bitter fight. What was I supposed to do?"

Now Lorelai could see the first glimpses of anger cross her father's face. "First of all, Lorelai, what happens between your mother and me stays between your mother and me. Second of all, I would hardly call you a kid. You're thirty-six years old, for heavens' sake! And thirdly, as harsh as it may sound, you're hardly one to talk about presenting a good example of family."

Lorelai gasped in hurt and amazement. All she could do was to stare at her father, open-mouthed. Finally, she spoke, "Dad, whatever you said, I'm going to pretend that…"

"Oh, for heavens' sake, Lorelai, you're never one to pretend, so do not start now!"

Lorelai rose in fury. "Well, if it's one thing I've learnt from you today, it's how not to accept an apology. Dad, do you have any idea how difficult it was for me to back down? No-" as Richard started to interrupt her, "please, just listen to what I have to say, whether you like it or not." She took a deep breath before continuing, pacing the floor of her father's study in earnest, "I may not have been the perfect daughter, but you and Mom are the perfect couple, as trite as it may sound. You've always been in sync with each other – Lord knows how many times I've wished that it weren't the case whenever we argued – but that's the truth. She's done nothing but dote on you, and you on her. My God, things were going great between the two of you. I don't care what it was that you disagreed over, whether it was some stupid lunch with Pennilyn Lott or Jason's lawsuit, or whatever crap you want to use to explain it away. You two have survived so much – me disappointing you, the mess I made when I came to your door four years ago, begging for money, again, that really doesn't matter. What matters is, how can you let this happen, Dad?"

Richard rose and faced his daughter. "Lorelai, I'll say it again, it is none of your business!"

"Dad, I didn't come here to fight with you, as crazy an idea as it may seem. I came because I'm truly concerned about what's going to happen, despite your fixed belief that I don't give a shit about what happens in our household, aside from wanting to take your money and blow it on trivial things like your only grandchild's education. Speaking of which, don't think for a minute that Rory hasn't caught on yet. If you don't consider me a compelling enough reason to get together with Mom, what about Rory?"

Richard looked furious. "Dad, don't bother showing me the door. I can see myself out." Lorelai grabbed her purse and walked purposefully towards the door. As she reached for the door, she turned around and said more softly, "Dad, do you know how hard it was on Mom when Grandma died? You were grieving, of course, but did you know that Mom found the letter that Grandma wrote you, begging you to leave her at the altar? All this after forty years of trying to please your mother, in vain, just so that you would be happy. I'm willing to bet my new inn that that's something that's led to this rift between you and Mom. Before you do anything else, just think about that." Having said that, Lorelai pulled open the door, ready to walk out.

"Lorelai, wait."

Lorelai turned and saw her father's face, now devoid of all anger, but filled with confusion. "Emily found the letter?"

Lorelai swallowed. "Yes, in one of Grandma's filing cabinets, while she was taking inventory."

Richard still wore that bemused expression on his face. Lorelai cautiously waited, unsure how to proceed from there. "Lorelai, please sit down." Lorelai walked slowly back to the couch and sat down, waiting for Richard to continue. "Lorelai… Emily never mentioned this to me. Do you know anything more?" Even though Lorelai was mindful of the tension in the room, she couldn't avoid the plea in her father's voice. "No, Dad, there's nothing really more to say, except… when I disappointed you and Mom, I was too proud to come back and reconcile for a long time. Mom, however, refused to give up, hoping that she and Grandma would eventually see eye-to-eye on things. Guess that never happened, right." Shrugging wistfully, Lorelai sighed.

Lorelai and Richard looked at each other for some moments. Finally, Richard broke the silence. "Lorelai, I still stand by what I said – this is between me and your mother." This time, Richard interrupted Lorelai, as she started to speak. "I do, however, owe you an apology." He sighed. "I'm not saying that what you did at the inn was totally justified, but I can see why you did it. It was wrong of me to attack you in the way that I did."

Lorelai let a small smile creep up on her face. "Thanks, Dad."

Richard chuckled. "Well, I hope I can accept an apology like that next time." They smiled at each other shyly. Finally, Lorelai spoke, "Uh, I guess I'd better go."

Richard stopped her again. "Wait, Lorelai, if you're not too busy, perhaps you could stay for lunch?"

Lorelai hesitated, before shaking her head slightly. "No, sorry, Dad. I have to get back to the Inn. How about meeting me for dinner at the Dragonfly tonight? Say, around seven?"

"That would be lovely, Lorelai. I'll see you at seven, then."

Walking back to her jeep, Lorelai couldn't shake the bemused expression off her face. On the one hand, she appreciated her father trying to build back their broken relationship; on the other hand, it was disconcerting to resolve their fight, or at least call a truce, so quickly. No Gilmore clash had lasted any less than a week. The times, they are a-changing. Lorelai mused.

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"Michel, I don't care what you say, you do not tell guests to get their own towels!"

Lorelai glared at her manager. Michel was being as irritating as he usually was. Normally, she could talk him down into an apologetic state (or, at least, a more apologetic state), but today he was being unusually stubborn and so… French!

"Well, Lorelai, you can hardly blame me. This woman was extremely odious, not to mention horrifyingly slothful. The towels were in a lovely fluffy pile, all ready to be put painstakingly by us slaves into the cupboards… Lord knows why I am working here; I never had to bear such disgraceful…"

Lorelai winced, feeling a migraine coming on. "You know what, Michel? Save it. If you want to keep your job, I suggest you apologize to her, IN PERSON, and offer her a complimentary breakfast-in-bed, hand-delivered by you at a time of her choosing, and paid for by you. Tu comprends?"

Michel glared at Lorelai. Finally, he said in a huff, "Fine, I will do as you ask. But I have one simple request – kindly refrain from massacring my beautiful mother tongue." With a sniff, he returned to doing the accounts.

Lorelai groaned and stormed into the kitchen. "Coffee!"

Sookie looked up and grimaced sympathetically. "Oh, Michel being a pest again?"

"Replace 'pest' with vindictive little as…"

Sookie cut in hastily. "Here, drink this." She held out a mug of steaming Colombian Roast, which Lorelai grabbed eagerly and guzzled down. When she was finished, she set down the mug and sighed. "You, Sookie, are my new hero. My savior. My raison d'etre. My one true hold on reality. My… well, I love ya, hon."

"Okay…" Sookie eyed her friend with a confused look on her face, which melted into concern, when her inquisitive gaze landed on the dark circles under Lorelai's eyes. "So, Lorelai, how much sleep have you been getting?"

Lorelai squirmed under Sookie's piercing gaze. "Did I mention I like your coffee?" "LORELAI!" "Okay, okay, so Sleeping Beauty's not exactly my role model of choice nowadays, but I'm fine. You're the pregnant one, so how about I phone Jackson up and give him the third degree on your REM patterns?"

Sookie knew that there was more to the story, but that Lorelai wasn't willing to share. Accepting the situation, she asked, "So, how's Rory doing?"

Sookie was startled to see Lorelai redden. "Uh, well, I guess she's doing OK."

"You guess?"

"Well, we haven't really been in touch these past couple of weeks, you know, with the time zones and all…"

"I'm sorry, are you the real Lorelai Gilmore? Because the Lorelai I know would not let a minute go by without a scheduled update from Rory. Honey, is everything okay?"

"Yes, everything's fine! Honestly, Sookie, you're reading way too much into it. I gotta tell ya, your hormones are shooting off in all the wrong directions here."

Sookie would have continued playing Twenty Questions but… "Oh crap, not the pasta sauce!" She rushed over and started flapping around anxiously, yelling at everyone in the room, including the unfortunate trainee who'd nearly cut his finger off at Sookie's outburst. "People, are you trying to see me get bad reviews? Do you want me fired? I'll have you know that a produce guy's salary isn't going to support a family of four…!"

Lorelai slipped out as Sookie became otherwise preoccupied, grateful for the interruption. She didn't want to keep anything from Sookie, but she wasn't ready to talk. Argh! Lorelai groaned as the melange of emotions – confusion, sadness, disappointment, joy, worry, anger, giddiness, to name a few – washed over her. Not this again! She'd successfully kept her mind off of Luke and Rory, but no. It just had to come back and bite her in the ass, didn't it? Now all she had to do was to start her period to ice that cake. Perfect!

Lorelai sat down in her chair and banged her head against her desk, willing her thoughts to go away. So caught up was she that she didn't hear the knocking on the door. Willing her emotions gone, she yelled out, "Go away!" just as the door opened.

"Uh, sorry, is this a bad time?"

Lorelai sighed in frustration and looked up. She froze. "Dean."