Hey, I know that it's been a long time since I updated, and I feel horrible about it. But I finally sat down and told myself to write... and what came out wasn't complete crap. I'm so excited; I'm now hoping that my writers block is gone.
Anyway, I have to send an unbelievably huge thank you to my two stand in betas Kirsten and Kellie. You two absolutely rock!
Now, since I wrote this while I had writers block, it isn't the best, but I think that it's pretty good.
I hope you enjoy.
Jayde
Chapter 4: Haunting Memories
"So, how long do you think you can stall the vultures?"
"Lorelai, honey, the press are already beating down my door wanting to know where you've run off to."
"Well, I hope that you can do your job properly, and keep them away from Stars Hollow. I won't be very pleased with you if I suddenly have twenty reporters camped out on my front lawn." Rory smiled as she stood in front of the busy diner, cell phone in one hand, cigarette in the other.
"Honey, you know that I can only do so much. But, if you really want a cover, what do you think of rehab?"
She shook her head. "Rehab? You really think that me being in rehab is the best cover story? You know what? Why don't you just say that I've been shipped off to the fat farm while you're at it? God, Stella, why don't you just say that I'm on an impromptu vacation, or something?"
"That could work." Her publicist's laughing voice came through clearly.
"I think I'm just going to fire you one of these days and get a real publicist. One who won't try to drag my name through the mud at every turn."
"You know you love me."
"Ah, sadly, I do. I'll talk to you soon, and give you a nice update. I'll let you know if I should be bitten by a shark or something."
"So you want to be somewhere by an ocean. Check."
"I'll talk to you soon, Stel. Kisses." Rory laughed as she closed her phone and turned around. She frowned slightly as she looked in the window of the diner, where the customers were suddenly turning away from the window. Shaking her head, she rolled her eyes, and took one last drag from her almost full cigarette before making a show of stubbing it out and then throwing it into the trash can at the side of the road. She smiled brightly at the glaring Taylor as he buzzed by on his electric wheelchair.
Walking in to the suddenly active diner, she headed over to an empty stool at the end of the counter. Looking around, she spotted Luke in the far corner of the diner, where he was mopping up the floor from an apparent spill.
Frowning, Rory stood there and weighed her options. With a grin, she walked behind the counter, and grabbed herself a large mug. She put it down at her seat, and then headed over to the coffee pots. She took one pot in each hand, and sniffed at the brew in each. Screwing up her face as she pulled away from the first pot, she put it back (with a muttering of the hateful word, 'decaf') and then sighed as she inhaled the aroma of the second pot.
After filling her mug, she turned a smile on the watching customers. "Refill?"
There was a clamor to finish the last remains of coffee, then the holding out of newly empty mugs. Laughing under her breath, Rory started to serve.
"So, what do I hear about you being a barmaid?" Lorelai asked later that day, as she and Rory walked through the Dragonfly.
"Come on, Mom. It wasn't that big of a deal."
"Ha! Not ten minutes after you started serving coffee, I got a call from Miss Patty who was just so excited about you helping Luke out because he was so busy. About how you were serving the customers, and how you were taking orders—"
"I was not! I served a few cups of coffee, and then Luke banished me from behind the counter."
"And why exactly were you behind the counter in the first place?" Lorelai grinned as she walked through the lobby to the main desk, scanning the room for anything amiss.
"I needed coffee. Luke was busy, so I got it myself."
"Ah, you are so a mommy's girl."
Though it was said in an offhand manner, Rory still felt a pang of guilt. She knew that even if her mother didn't say it – no, because her mother didn't say it, Rory's absence from her life had hurt. And she was just now realizing how much her absence in her mother's life had hurt her as well. With a forced smile, Rory spoke, "Yep, a mommy's girl; that's me."
Rory sighed and swirled the wine around her glass as she looked at the busy dining room of the Dragonfly Inn. No one had really seen her yet; they'd noticed that she was there, but no one had realized who she was. She was trying to keep it that way. The last thing that she needed was a tourist calling the closest news station.
After watching the bustling activity for another minute, she turned and headed back into the almost controlled chaos of the Inn's kitchen, smiling as she saw the still overenthusiastic Sookie calling out orders, and the rest of the staff trying to clean up after her. The faint familiarity of the scene made her want to cry, knowing that she didn't know how to act around everyone who used to be like family to her. Hell, she didn't really know how to act around people who were family to her.
Taking a deep breath, she smiled as she walked over to Sookie, pausing to set her wineglass with the rest of the china waiting to be washed. "Hey, Sookie. I'm gonna get out of here."
"Okay, Hon. Danny! Take the onions off the stove!" Turning back to Rory, the older woman smiled. "Don't be a stranger. You know what? I'm throwing you a party. A 'Welcome Home, Rory!' party, what do you think of that?"
"Well, I was just trying to stay under the radar—"
"Honey, that plan went out the window with you telling off Taylor. I heard about it not five minutes after it happened, so I'm sure that there isn't a soul in Stars Hollow who doesn't know that you're back in town."
Shaking her head, Rory grinned ruefully. "Hollywood gossip rags have nothing on the Stars Hollow rumor mill. I'd forgotten about it, actually."
"Well, it hasn't forgotten about you. I swear, you're mentioned at least once a week in it. You getting a new role; you getting a new boyfriend; you losing a new role to your new boyfriend's new girlfriend."
"Well, I've lived quite an exciting life that I didn't know about."
"I guess you have. About the party... did you develop a taste for escargot while you were in Hollywood?"
"I've been known for forcing myself to choke one or two down for propriety's sake. Could you keep the gathering... small, though, Sookie? I don't want too much attention drawn to the fact that I'm here. The last thing I need is a group of paparazzi camping out on Mom and Luke's front yard."
"Sure, small. I got it. It'll be so small that you'll have to get out a magnifying glass to find it. So, this Saturday night sound good? I'll even bring everything to Lorelai's; we can have the party there. Or no... We don't want to wake up Brandon. Well, I'll find somewhere to have it; don't you worry! I'm so glad to see you again!" And with that, Sookie gave Rory a quick hug, and then went back to calling out orders that had the kitchen staff racing to keep up with her.
Rory shook her head and walked to the door, stopping to grab her coat. Once outside, she stood on the porch that now circled the entire Inn, and sighed, watching her breath puff out and mist in the cold air. Idly taking out a cigarette and lighting it, she stood there for a few minutes, just looking at the sky. It was one thing that she couldn't do in LA. The smog and the bright city lights erased all but the brightest stars, and even those she could only see on a perfectly still night. It was a nice change to see the sky almost overflowing with bright, glistening stars. They cast a glow on the untouched snow, making it seem almost unnatural.
Shaking her head, she took one last drag from her cigarette and then put it out in one of the ashtrays that had been set out along the porch.
She found herself walking through the town again, not really paying attention to where she was walking. Again. Although she did make a conscious effort to avoid the bridge, she found herself wandering around almost everywhere else. She passed by the Diner, and debated with herself for a minute whether or not she should go in, but since she really didn't feel like reminiscing with the town about 'the old days', she walked on.
She passed Doose's Market, the gazebo, the dark bookstore, the post office, one of the many stores that sold ceramic unicorns, and still she walked. After passing Miss Patty's Dance Studio, and realizing that she was going in a circle, she stopped for a moment, looking across the street. Gypsy's. The gas station. Rory smiled slightly as she walked towards it, the memories of the place swamping her as she took out a cigarette and lit it, without giving much thought to her actions. She sighed wistfully as she recalled what was now the distant past.
"Those things can kill you, ya know."
She froze, thinking that her ears were playing tricks on her. That the familiarity of the place, and her memories were just coming back to haunt her. But hearing the crunch of snow under the feet of the person who came up behind her, she knew that it wasn't just her imagination. Bringing the cigarette back up to her lips, she took a slow, steadying drag, hoping that the acrid smoke filling her lungs would slow the beating of her heart, if only for a minute.
"I said that those things can kill you," Came the haunting voice again.
Without raising her head, she laughed slightly. "Not fast enough for my liking."
Rory said it quietly, but she knew that he heard her. But that 'Huh' that she was waiting for never came. After taking one last pull, she tossed the cigarette on the ground. Trying to steady herself, she exhaled slowly, and turned around, her gaze still lowered, as if looking up was the only thing between her and her past. Which really, it was. Finally mustering up enough courage, she slowly raised her face, and was confronted with the one thing that she had been both looking forward to and dreading since she made the trip back to Stars Hollow.
"Jess."
So?
I'm evil, aren't I?
J.
