Author: Indian Summer
Title: Drain the Glass
Rating: PG-13, for now
Chapter Title: Semper In Perpetuum
Summary: When Rory Gilmore's broke, she's desperate enough to do anything- even be the nanny to the family of her roommate. But it's the blonde boy she runs into there that makes the story interesting…
Chapter Summary: Valentine's Day.
Disclaimer: Don't own Gilmore Girls, obviously. Um, own Jordan and the rest of the Danvers, as well as Sinclair, Amelie, Corina, and Julianna. Also don't own Procol Harum's One Eye on the Future, One Eye on the Past. Basically, I own nothing except my mind's eye. Yes, scary thought. ;)
Author's Note: I just realized some of the earlier chapters lost their format. When I have time to go back and fix this, I will. Thanks to my newer readers who struggled through them to read them, and had the confidence to do so. You're all awesome.
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Rory swore under her breath as she stood on the fronts steps to the Ashford mansion, wishing she hadn't agreed to her mother's harebrained plan. Being set up, on Valentine's Day, no less, was humiliating.
She looked nervously toward the driveway and saw a man arguing with the guards. She narrowed her eyes and studied him. It looked like it could Noel. If so, a few years had been remarkably kind to him.
"It's okay! Let him through!" she called, descending the steps to meet him half way.
Noel smiled as she approached, and Rory found his grin to be contagious. She smiled back as she took in his features. His hair was a short dark brown, completely unstyled and natural, and his eyes were a warm chocolate. He wore a charcoal suit and had a bouquet of yellow roses in his hand.
"Hi," Rory said as she reached him.
"Hey," Noel answered, standing there staring at her for a minute, before thrusting the flowers into her hands. "These are for you. I thought red would be a bit too... much for a first date."
Rory glanced down at the roses, each one flawless. "They're gorgeous. Thank you. It's perfect."
Noel grinned in response, shifting from one foot to another. "Would you like to leave now, or...?" he asked, glancing at her shyly.
Rory nodded and linked her arm through his, leading him back down the driveway. "I'm sorry that you had to pick me up here. The guards can be a little tense sometimes."
Noel shrugged. "It's okay." He glanced over at her and caught her eye, his smile bearing perfectly white teeth. "You look... exquisite."
Rory couldn't help but smile at the way he complimented her, almost embarrassed yet completely earnest.
Everything Tristan DuGrey was not, she thought huffily as they passed by the gates. Tonight would be wonderful.
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For their first date, Tristan had reserved a table in a small dining room of Costa del Sol, and he and Amelie had sat in a corner of the room, gazing at each other and out the large arched window as snow fell outside.
The restaurant hadn't changed much, and had retained it's personable wait staff even as it became well known. Everything down to the green trim on the eggshell-white walls had remained constant, so it seemed fitting that Tristan take Amelie to the place where there relationship had begun for Valentine's Day.
As they were led into the same private dining room they'd nervously entered years earlier, Tristan felt much more calm. He squeezed Amelie's hand as they approached their table, and pulled out her chair for her before she sat down.
Amelie let out a little squeal as she noticed the arched window and realized it was the same table, and furthermore, they could view the snow that had started to fall earlier that day.
The ground was blanketed in a thin layer of snow, and the trees and rooftops were splattered with white, but Tristan only glanced briefly out the window before returning his gaze to his fiancée. "You look gorgeous," he breathed, and she did. Her chestnut hair was pulled back in a simple twist and she wore a little more makeup than usual- a little blusher, mascara, and lipstick- but her dress was what caught his eye. With its scooped neck, the simple black gown showed off her figure wonderfully, and showcased the golden lavaliere necklace he'd given her a year earlier.
Amelie flushed, always modest, and offered him a small smile. "Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself."
As the waiter handed him his menu, Tristan smiled back at Amelie. So far, this evening wasn't off to a bad start.
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Happy to have brought along her red cashmere scarf, hat, and gloves, Rory wished she'd chosen more practical shoes as she followed Noel along a busy Hartford street, aware restaurants were becoming fewer and farther between.
"Where are we going?" she asked as she struggled to keep up with him, looking around in confusion.
Noel, suddenly realizing he'd been walking to face for Rory, slowed down and smiled at her. "I was going to just take you to dinner, but I realized it was Valentine's Day, and you would deserve something better than just sitting in a fancy restaurant."
Rory glanced down at her hands, embarrassed by the flattery. "So what are we..."
"We're almost there," Noel interrupted, reaching for her hand and pulling her down a side street.
Rory frowned as the crowd started to disappear, thoroughly confused as to where they were going. "Isn't this a dead end?"
Noel nodded as they turned the corner and Rory paused.
In front of a building stood a horse drawn sleigh, made of rich mahogany wood and seats of black velvet. Attached to the sleigh was a single horse, sable in color and with a silky mane.
"Oh, wow," Rory breathed, breaking into a stride as she approached the sleigh. "How'd you know there'd be snow?"
"I didn't," Noel said, his brow furrowed.
Rory came to a stop, looking back over at him, hurt flooding her features. "This wasn't my grandmother's idea, was it?"
Noel shook his head quickly. "No. I don't think Emily knows."
Rory smiled, reaching out to pat the horse. "Then lets enjoy it."
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"It feels like we haven't had a decent conversation in weeks," Amelie murmured, picking at her salad.
Tristan nodded, reaching across the table to grasp Amelie's hand in his. "I've missed talking to you," he admitted, squeezing her hand. "I've just been so busy lately."
Amelie let out a sigh. "I have, too. The wedding planner is on me about all these little details that I couldn't care less about. I just want to be with you."
"What have you been discussing? I'm sorry I wasn't at the last meeting to help you out."
"Centerpieces now. She wants this elaborate design with flowers and glass and candles and I... I don't know. I've never been good with this stuff."
"It will all come together," Tristan assured her.
"I have a fitting for my gown at your house on Friday, so you can't be home," Amelie told him. "They have to take in some seams."
"How's that coming along?" Tristan asked, not all that interested.
Amelie shrugged. "It's coming, I guess. If I had it my way, we'd have a private ceremony on a beach where I didn't even have to wear shoes."
"That's a nice dream," Tristan responded, wishing he could give Amelie what she wanted.
"A dream, yeah. But it can't be reality."
Tristan considered this for a moment. "What if we had a small wedding ceremony before the big one," he started slowly, "And just had the big one for everyone else?"
Amelie's eyes were aglow with hope for a moment, but it passed too quickly, and she shook her head. "We can't, Tristan. Our families would be so upset, and we don't have the time to plan a second ceremony now."
"That's the beauty of it, Amelie," Tristan said excitedly. "There's no planning necessary. Just you, me, a weekend away on the beach, and a justice of the peace."
"Tristan..."
"I'm serious, Amelie. We could do it as soon as you like."
As Amelie looked at him speculatively, Tristan furrowed his brow. Why was he suddenly pushing for this?
For Amelie, he told himself.
For Amelie.
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"It's a Percheron," Noel was telling Rory, gesturing to the horse. "Their origin is in France, and they used to be used to bring knights into battle."
"Do you ride?" Rory asked good-naturedly, surprised by how easy she found it to talk with Noel.
Noel shook his head. "My sister did. Riding was her life."
Rory frowned at his tone. "Did she- was she- Why'd she stop riding?"
Noel seemed to catch on to what she was thinking and frowned. "No, she's okay. She stopped because she has diabetes, and it got pretty out of control. Our mom gave her an ultimatum."
"Oh. How old's your sister?"
"Seventeen. And a holy terror." Noel smiled over at her. "What were you like at seventeen? I met you were mostly the same. Serious, nice, beautiful..."
Rory bit her lip. "I was... a mess," she admitted slowly. "Hindsight's always 20/20, you know?"
"I have a hard time picturing you as a mess."
Rory shrugged. "I was. I was going out this guy who... well, he was basically a drop out. He'd go to school maybe once a week, he'd steal gnomes, he'd-" She trailed off as Noel started chuckling. "What's so funny?"
"He stole gnomes?" Noel said between laughs, shaking his head. "So is that a misdemeanor or a felony?"
"It's not funny," Rory grumbled, shaking her head.
"It kind of is," Noel said, still laughing.
Rory rolled her eyes and watched the city as it slowly passed by.
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The door to the Ashford mansion was slightly ajar when Tristan and Amelie returned home, and Tristan's heart started to race before he even stepped inside.
"Tristan!" he heard Emilie yell, and his heart dropped to the pit of his stomach.
"What's wrong, Emilie?" he called.
Normandy appeared at the foot of the stairs, her long brown hair pulled back in a low ponytail. She frowned at him. "Everything's fine, Tristan. You've been so overwrought lately, it was sure to affect your nerves sooner or later."
Tristan frowned. "Why was the door open?"
Emilie skipped down the stairs, having heard the question, a red-haired teen on her heels. The teen looked nervous and glanced back at the door. "I-uh, it must not have closed all the way when I came back inside from getting my stuff from my car. I didn't mean-"
"It's okay," Amelie assured her, laying a hand on Tristan's forearm.
"Who are you?" Tristan asked, still suspicious.
The girl bit her lip, looking at the door as if she wanted to flee. "I'm Stacey. I was babysitting Normandy and Emilie tonight."
Tristan's eyes narrowed as he stared down the girl. "Where's Rory?"
Stacey shrugged and Emilie rolled her eyes. "A boy picked her up earlier, Tristan," Emilie chirped, running over to her brother's side and wrapping her arms around his legs in a hug.
Tristan scooped up the little blonde girl and sighed. "Okay. I'm sorry, Stacey. I wasn't expecting you, and I thought something had happened to my sisters. How much do we owe you?"
Stacey shrugged. "I was here for four hours."
"Four hours? Okay." Tristan pulled out his wallet, having no idea how much he should pay the baby sitter. He removed a fifty and held it out to her. "Is this enough?"
Stacey nodded. "Thanks. I'm just going to go back upstairs and grab my bookbag."
Tristan watched her go, his frown returning.
Rory was out on a date and she still hadn't returned?
Tristan surreptitiously glanced at his watch, trying to assure himself that what he was feeling wasn't jealousy.
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It felt awfully old-fashioned as Noel walked her to the door of the Ashford mansion, but Rory loved it.
There was something romance-movie-perfect about the moment, and Rory had decided hours ago to just take it moment for moment and thrive in the perfection of the night.
But there was something too clichéd about ending the date on the front steps. She slowed down as she approached the house and tugged at Noel's hand. "Wait."
Noel paused, glancing over at her. "Is something wrong?" he asked nervously, looking around.
"No," Rory shook her head. "i just wanted to say goodnight."
"Oh." Noel glanced toward the door in confusion. "I thought..."
Rory cocked her head at him and smiled. "There's something a bit too... textbook about that scene." Rory paused, looking up at Noel. "I had an amazing time. Thank you."
"I had a good time, too. You're a very interesting woman, Rory." Noel stared at her for a moment before clearing his throat. "Um..."
Rory couldn't tear her gaze from his warm eyes. "Yeah. Goodnight."
"Yeah..."
Noel blinked and the spell was broken. Rory lurched forward, her target Noel's bottom lip, at the same moment Noel leaned in.
The result was Rory falling against Noel's chest and her lips coming into contact with his chin, as his lips landed on her nose.
They both pulled back laughing, Rory's face flushing in embarrassment. "I haven't had an experience like that since high school," she admitted, dissolving into a fit of laughter.
Noel cleared his throat between chuckles and shook his head. "Neither have... actually, I don't think that's ever happened."
Rory grew serious as she studied him. "So, what do we do?"
Noel shrugged. "We could try again. Or you could, you know, take it as a sign."
Rory shook her head, a small smile curving her lips. "I'm not superstitious."
Noel let out a deep breath and smiled. "Good. Neither am I."
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