Through Your Eyes #1: People Change
By: Apolla
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, settings, etc. Oh, but I do own Milo (sucks for you!).
Pairings: Literati and Java Junkie. I'm sorry, I didn't know there were any other options :p
Setting: This story starts about one month after That'll Do, Pig.
Don't Worry: Allow me to put your fears to rest. No matter what happens along the way, in the end, Rory & Jess and Luke & Lorelai will be together.
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"Zis ees impossible. I refuse to talk with zees people."
"Michel. You are paid to talk to these people," Lorelai told him, exasperated.
Michel stood back, looking from them to Lorelai with his arms crossed and his face in an expression of disgust. "No. I do not think so."
"Michel, you will talk to these people. I am leaving now."
Lorelai turned around and stalked into the kitchen. "Hey honey, what's the matter?" Sookie asked.
"Nothing. Just Michel."
Lorelai plopped down on a stool as Sookie bustled about the kitchen. "Whatcha makin'?" she asked.
"Hmm? Oh, you know. Cheese soufflé, blueberry pie, potato soup, salmon - "
"Sounds great."
"Yeah, well. What's the matter?" Sookie asked, a concerned look on her face.
"Nothing," Lorelai said.
"Oh, come on. It's me!"
"Rory invited Jess to movie night."
"Oh."
"And, you know, I told her I'd be nice. I keep telling myself that I should like him. I mean, Rory and Luke do, and they're two of my best friends in the world. But I just don't trust him."
"Well, he hasn't given you reason to," Sookie told her, stirring the soup.
"Exactly!" Lorelai said, gesturing wildly with her hands. "He has caused so many problems for Rory, and now I should just forget all that? And he's been so disrespectful to me in the past! But Rory actually likes him."
"Well, honey, she does seem to care about him. A lot."
"Yeah, yeah, I know."
Lorelai sighed, and Sookie looked at her sympathetically. "Maybe he'll surprise you tonight. Maybe you'll have fun."
"Yeah, right. I don't know what Rory sees in him. She keeps insisting that there's this oh-so-secret, sweet side of him that I don't know," Lorelai said with a slight frown.
"Maybe there is."
"Maybe," Lorelai said doubtfully.
"I'm sure it will all work out," Sookie said, patting her shoulder and then hurrying to check the oven.
"I asked Luke to come," Lorelai said suddenly.
Sookie froze for a moment, then closed the oven. "Oh."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
"No, that 'oh' had a specific meaning."
"Honey, please. You're driving yourself crazy."
"Well, I couldn't stand the idea of Rory leaving to go to the bathroom or something and me being stuck alone with Jess," Lorelai explained.
"Oh. Sure," Sookie said, stirring the soup again.
"Because that could be disastrous."
"Right," Sookie agreed.
"I mean, what if he made one of those smart-ass remarks to me? I couldn't be held accountable for my actions."
"Uh-huh."
"Okay, stop agreeing with me. Just say what you want to say."
"I don't want to say anything."
"Sookie!"
"Don't you have to be picking up the movies?" Sookie asked.
She tasted the soup. "It needs more pepper!" she cried.
"Well, I guess I'll be going."
"Okay," Sookie said, adding more pepper to the soup.
"See ya."
"'Bye, sweetie."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Honey, I'm home!" Lorelai called.
"I'm in my room!" Rory yelled back.
Lorelai threw her jacket, purse, and car keys onto the kitchen table, and put the movies on top of the TV before going upstairs. "I'm going to change," she called to Rory, going in to her room.
"Okay!" Rory called back.
Lorelai looked through her closet. What to wear, what to wear…….ah, well, it didn't matter. It was just Luke and Jess.
But still. You don't want to look like a slob, Lorelai told herself. Hmm…..okay, jeans, those are a must……..ugh, where the hell is my red shirt?
Lorelai picked up a low-cut, black V-neck shirt. Definitely not it. She could imagine leaning over to grab some food and giving Luke or Jess a show. She giggled. Okay, it would be fun to see the expression on their faces, but no, I don't think so.
"Hey Rory, where's my purple shirt?" Lorelai yelled.
"Under your black pants!" she yelled back.
"Black pants……black pants……." Lorelai looked around her room, talking to herself out loud.
She saw a pair of black pants in a corner and threw them to the side, finding a purple shirt underneath. "Aha! I have found you!" she told the purple shirt.
She pulled it on, brushed her teeth and hair, then went downstairs to find Rory. "Um, nice outfit," Lorelai said, walking in to Rory's room.
"What's wrong with it?" Rory asked, looking down at herself self-consciously.
"Nothing."
"Mom, tell me! Is there something on the back of my pants or something?"
"No."
"Then what?"
Rory stood in front of her mirror, looking at herself from all angles. "Rory, sweetie, calm down," Lorelai said. "I've just…….never seen you wear that shirt before."
Rory was wearing tight blue jeans and a dark blue low-cut top. "It's yours," she told Lorelai.
"Oh. I thought it looked familiar."
Rory put on some lip gloss, then turned around to see Lorelai still staring at her. "What?" she asked, exasperated. "Just say whatever it is that you want to say!"
"Nothing, it's just……….you really like him, don't you."
It was a statement, not a question. "Yes. I've told you this before."
"Yeah, but……..this is different."
"How is this different?"
Lorelai looked at her sadly. "You're getting all dressed up for him."
"I'm wearing jeans. How is that getting dressed up?"
"You're brushing your hair for the millionth time and you're wearing lip gloss, something you almost never do……….especially on movie night," Lorelai told her.
"So?"
"You didn't do this when Dean came over for movie night."
"Yes I did."
"You didn't go this far."
"How is this going far?" Rory asked, pointing her brush at Lorelai's face.
Lorelai sat down on Rory's bed. "You're wearing lip gloss."
"So?" Rory asked, her voice quieter.
Lorelai patted a spot on the bed next to her, and Rory sat down. "Tell Mommy what's going on."
Rory looked at the wall, then at her hands. "I think I'm in love with Jess," she blurted out.
Lorelai was taken aback. "Oh. Um, okay. You think?"
Rory hesitated, thinking. "No. I am."
"Oh."
"What's that for?"
"What's what for?"
"That 'oh'. It meant something."
"No it didn't," Lorelai said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and avoiding Rory's gaze.
"Yes it did, and I'm going to find out eventually, so you might as well just tell me."
"Has Paris been teaching you interrogation skills?"
"Nice try. Now tell."
"I just……….realized something."
"What?"
"This……..you and Jess……it's different than you and Dean."
Lorelai met Rory's eyes, and could see she was thinking about this. "Yeah," Rory said slowly. "It is."
"So, um……..have you told Jess?"
"No!" Rory exclaimed quickly, jumping up from where she had been sitting on the bed.
"Don't bite my head off!" Lorelai said, attempting to speak jokingly.
"Sorry. No. I'm not telling him."
"You're not telling him……..ever?" Lorelai asked hopefully.
"I don't know. Not for a while."
"Why?"
"Remember when Dean told me, and I wasn't ready, and then everything we had got messed up?" Rory asked, starting to pace back and forth.
Lorelai nodded. "Yeah."
"Well, I don't want that to happen with me and Jess."
"Honey, I'm sure he feels the same about you," Lorelai said, trying her best to sound convincing.
I don't think he's ever loved anybody, Lorelai thought secretly to herself.
"Mom!" Rory stopped pacing and stood facing Lorelai with her hands on her hips.
"What?" Lorelai asked guiltily.
"You're lying! You don't think he loves me!"
"I didn't say that!" Lorelai protested feebly.
"I saw it in your face!"
"Honey - okay, listen, I don't want to fight with you about Jess, okay?"
She paused and waited for Rory to nod. When she did, Lorelai continued. "Jess - well, he doesn't exactly open up to people. I don't know if he can…….I'm sure he cares very deeply for you, in his own way."
"Oh my gosh. You don't think Jess can love me!"
"No, I - that's not what I meant - " Lorelai argued weakly.
"Yes it is! I can't believe this."
"Rory, I don't want to fight with you!" Lorelai said, getting up from the bed.
"You're wrong. You don't know him like I do."
"You're right, I don't," Lorelai agreed.
"He's different with me."
"Honey, I'm sorry," Lorelai said, putting a hand on her arm.
She led her back to the bed, and they both sat down again. "You're right, I don't know Jess very well at all. But he pushes everyone away. I've never even had the opportunity. I don't even think Luke knows him that well."
"I know," Rory said quietly.
Lorelai studied her daughter carefully for a moment. There was something in her tone………"Oh my God," Lorelai said. "You like it!"
"What?" Rory asked, looking guilty.
Lorelai turned and looked Rory straight in the eye. "You like that he only lets his guard down around you!"
"No I don't," Rory said, avoiding Lorelai's eyes.
Rory got up and went to her dresser, picking up a random bottle of nail polish and examining it closely. "Yes you do!" Lorelai said triumphantly, coming up behind her and grabbing the nail polish from her.
Lorelai put the nail polish back on the dresser. "You like it that you're the only person he's open with!"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Suddenly the doorbell rang. "Mom. Not a word," Rory said, turning pleading eyes on her.
Lorelai walked out of Rory's room, Rory closely following, and the two started walking towards the door.
"You like it!" Lorelai sang loudly.
"I do not!"
"You like it!"
"I do not!"
Lorelai opened the door. "Hey Beavis. Hey Butthead," she greeted Luke and Jess.
"Lorelai. You always know just what to say to make a person feel special," Jess told her sarcastically.
"Why, thank you, flannel junior."
"I'm not wearing flannel."
"Yes, but Luke is."
"So?"
"So that makes you flannel junior."
"Oh, well, with logic like that……"
"Hey," Rory said, interrupting Lorelai and Jess' conversation.
"What were you two arguing about?" Luke asked as he and Jess came in and Lorelai closed the door behind them.
Lorelai giggled, and Rory gave her mother a death glare. "Nothing," Rory said quickly.
"Okay," Luke said, obviously not believing her.
Lorelai and Luke started walking in to the living room, but Rory and Jess held back. "Hey Dodger," Rory said with a small smile.
Jess smirked. "Hey Princess."
Rory scowled at him, pretending she didn't like the nickname. "I know you like it," Jess told her.
"Do not."
"Do too."
"Do not."
"Do not."
"Do too - hey!" Rory said, realizing that Jess had tricked her.
He laughed, smiling a genuine smile. Rory smiled up at him, her eyes bright and happy. She wrapped her arms loosely around his neck and kissed him. Jess responded eagerly, running his hands up and down Rory's back. He felt Rory's tongue run along his bottom lip, and he opened his mouth, crushing it with his. He pulled Rory's body up against his, needing to be able to feel her. She complied, pressing herself to him.
Finally they broke apart, needing to breathe. Rory moved to step back, but Jess held her tight against him. "What was that for?" he whispered in her ear, her face on his shoulder.
She squeezed her arms around him, giving him a hug, then stepped back. "For giving me a real smile."
Jess marveled at how such trivial things made her happy. He knew then that he loved her, without a doubt. He didn't say anything to her about it, though. He was afraid that she didn't feel the same, and he didn't want to ruin what they had by saying something stupid.
"I wanted to ask you something," Rory began slowly.
"HEY! QUIT MAKING OUT AND GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE!" Lorelai yelled from the living room.
"Just a minute!" Rory yelled back.
She looked back at Jess, then at her hands. "Um, okay, well, you remember earlier today?"
"Yeah."
"At Luke's………you know, before I met Maggie?"
"Yeah."
"Well - I know you said you don't mind, but I still want to tell you - "
"I know."
"See, I ran into - you what?" Rory stopped, surprised, and looked at him with her big blue eyes.
"I saw you. When you came in."
"Oh. I thought maybe you had."
"You did?"
"You were acting kinda strange.'
"Was I?"
"Yeah."
"Huh."
"Are you mad?"
"No."
"Were you mad?"
"No."
"Oh."
She stopped, looking around uncomfortably. Jess remembered that he had said he would be more open with her. "Maybe I was a little annoyed," Jess said.
Rory looked at him. "Oh."
"Not at you. Just - just him in general."
"Oh."
"I know I said it doesn't bother me………"
"But it does?" Rory asked, biting her lower lip.
Jess shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just so used to hating him."
"It's my fault. I mean, I was shopping at Doose's, because my mom wanted me to get some junk food, and I ran into him there, and I had a lot of bags to carry, so he helped me carry them home, and then he asked if I wanted to get a coffee, and I said I was going to stop by the diner before I went to Lane's, and he said he'd go with me, and I should have said no, but I didn't want to sound mean, so I said okay, and - "
"It's not your fault."
Rory stopped. "Yes it is."
"No it's not. Anyway, it's done."
"Yeah. It's done," Rory repeated.
"So, what movies did your mom pick out?"
Rory looked at him in surprise. "I can't believe I forgot to ask her."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Luke and Lorelai walked into the living room, then noticed that Rory and Jess weren't following. "I'll drag him in here if I have to," Luke told Lorelai.
"Oh, leave them," Lorelai said, waving a hand.
"How are you so calm about this when you don't even like Jess?"
"Because I trust Rory."
"Oh. Right."
Lorelai walked into the kitchen. "So, what do you want to eat?"
"I've seen what kind of food you have."
"Oh no you haven't!"
Lorelai whipped open the refrigerator. "Look at this!" she crowed.
She pulled out a bag of carrots. "We have health food!"
"One bag of carrots?"
"Geez, Bugs, don't get crazy on me. Want a PopTart?"
"No, carrots are fine."
"Good. Here."
She threw him the bag and he caught it. "Nice catch," Lorelai complimented him.
"Thanks."
Lorelai leaned against the counter, opening a bag of chips. "So what have you been up to? I feel like I haven't talked to you in a while."
"I saw you this morning."
"Oh yeah. That seems like a long time ago."
"Bad day?"
Lorelai shrugged. "Long day."
They stood in silence for a moment, until Lorelai spoke up. "Any more about our mystery lady?"
"I didn't talk to her much today," Luke said. "But Jess and Rory did."
"Rory met her?" Lorelai asked.
She pouted. "I'm the only one who didn't meet her!"
She pointed a finger accusingly at Luke. "And you're the one who said she disappeared whenever we came in. Obviously you were wrong."
"Yeah," Luke agreed. "Maybe it's just you."
"Hey!"
"What movies did you get?" Luke asked, changing the subject.
Lorelai grinned. "Come and see."
"Oh no."
Luke and Lorelai walked back into the living room. "HEY! QUIT MAKING OUT AND GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE!" Lorelai yelled to Rory and Jess.
"Just a minute!" Rory called back.
Lorelai turned to Luke and wiggled her eyebrows. "They've been there an awfully long time."
"Want me to - "
"Geez, Luke, relax!"
"I am relaxed," he told Lorelai, uncrossing his arms.
"Are not."
"Are too."
"Are not."
"I am not having this argument with you."
Lorelai stuck out her tongue at him. "'Cuz you know I'd win."
Suddenly, Lorelai grabbed his hat. "No hats in my house, Lukey," she told him.
"Give me my hat."
"Nu-uh," Lorelai said, shaking her head.
Luke reached forward to grab it, but Lorelai danced out of his reach. "You can't get it, you can't get it," she sang.
"Give me my hat!"
"AH!" Lorelai screamed.
She ran into the kitchen and Luke chased her. Lorelai found herself in a corner with Luke advancing on her. She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Lukey, don't be mean," she told him.
She held the hat behind her back, and Luke put one arm on the wall, blocking her in. With his other arm he tried to reach behind her and grab his hat. Lorelai yanked it away but overbalanced and started to fall. She fell into Luke, who grabbed her.
Lorelai looked up at Luke, whose face was inches away from hers. His arms felt good around her. No! No, this is Luke! Dirty thoughts, bad! she scolded herself.
Both Luke and Lorelai were breathing fast, when suddenly Rory called from the living room. "Hey, are you guys getting food?"
"Yeah!" Lorelai called, stepping away from Luke.
She tossed Luke his hat, then grabbed a bag of cookies and a bag of chips. "Here's your carrots, Bugs," she told Luke, throwing the bag at him.
"Thanks."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rory and Jess looked up as Luke and Lorelai came back into the living room, Lorelai carrying bags of junk food and Luke holding a bag of carrots. "Carrots?" Jess asked.
"Hey, I went shopping for tonight. I bought him a bag of carrots," Rory said.
"Ah."
"I was thinking ahead."
"Do they teach you that at your fancy school?" Jess asked with a smirk.
Rory and Jess were sitting on the couch, Jess with his arm around Rory. "Okay, something's gotta change, because I can not be next to this," Lorelai told them.
Rory and Jess both got up and followed Lorelai to the TV. "What movies did you get, Mom?" Rory asked apprehensively.
Lorelai grinned wickedly. "Clueless."
"No," Jess said.
"Cruel Intentions."
"No," Luke said.
"Charlie's Angels."
"NO!" Luke and Jess exclaimed in unison.
"Oh, come on, I could show you my moves!" Lorelai said, doing a karate kick in the air.
"What's wrong with Charlie's Angels?" Rory asked Jess.
"Tell me you did not just ask me that."
"Come on, guys are supposed to like it. Girls in tight outfits kicking butt."
"Well, when you put it that way…………" Jess trailed off with a smirk.
Rory poked him in the ribs. "Ow!" he said in mock-hurt.
"Yay!" Lorelai cheered.
She turned to Luke. "Please, Lukey?"
"No."
"But everyone else wants to."
"I don't."
Lorelai stuck her lower lip out as far as it could go. "Luuuuuukey," she pouted.
"Fine," Luke said, sitting down on the couch. "Just don't call me that anymore."
"But you know you like it."
Luke rolled his eyes as Lorelai put in the movie. Jess sat on the opposite side of the couch from Luke, and Rory sat between his legs. Lorelai sat on the floor next to Rory, ripping open a bag of cookies.
"I get to be Natalie," Lorelai announced.
"Who?" Luke asked.
"Cameron Diaz," Rory explained.
Lorelai grinned. "That makes you Dylan."
"How does that make me Dylan?" Rory asked.
Lorelai wiggled her eyebrows. "Because Dylan always falls for the bad guy."
"I'm hurt. Are you calling me the bad guy?" Jess asked from his spot on the couch.
Lorelai looked up at him. "Yes."
Jess shrugged. "Okay."
"That just leaves you, Luke," Rory told him.
"I'm not anybody."
"Hmm, Luke could be…….." Lorelai trailed off.
"CHARLIE!" Lorelai and Rory exclaimed in unison.
"No," Luke told them.
"Yes," Lorelai answered.
"No."
"Yes."
"Mom, the movie's starting!" Rory said, putting an end to their squabble.
"Yay!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"That guy is ugly," Lorelai told Rory.
"Yeah, he is. Look at his hair!"
"His hair? Let's not even go there. I was just talking about his face!"
They were about halfway through the movie, and when they weren't imitating the fights on TV, Lorelai and Rory were judging the guys in the movie or critiquing the girls' outfits. Why did I ever agree to this? Luke asked himself.
"Lukey! It's your part!" Lorelai told him.
"Lorelai, I am NOT going to say Charlie's lines."
"Oh, come on!"
"No."
"You're no fun."
Lorelai turned back to watching the television. "Oh my God, look at those outfits," Lorelai told Rory.
"Could they be any sluttier?" Rory asked.
"Yes," came Jess' reply.
"You are not allowed to critique outfits," Lorelai told him.
"Why?"
"Offspring?" Lorelai prompted, turning to Rory.
"Because you are a guy and therefore have no say," Rory recited.
Lorelai nodded. "Exactly."
Jess rolled his eyes. "I'm going to go get some water," Luke said.
"Me too."
Jess and Luke got up and went to the kitchen. "Why are we here?" Jess asked Luke as they stood around in the kitchen.
"We were stupid?"
"Huh."
"What?" Luke asked, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Nothing."
"Just tell me. Please, tell me anything to stop me from thinking about this movie."
Jess shrugged. "Okay. I came to see Rory. Why'd you come?"
"Lorelai asked me to."
"Uh-huh."
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You're impossible."
"Did you know you've said that five times already today?"
"Is it getting through to you?"
"No."
"Thought so."
They stood there in silence again. "Everyone knows," Jess said, breaking the silence.
"Everyone knows what?"
"That you like Lorelai."
"She's my friend."
"Uh-huh."
"She is!"
"Then how come when she says jump, you jump?"
Luke didn't reply. "I'm going back in," Jess said.
He turned and walked back to the living room, leaving Luke alone with his thoughts.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Looks like your plan didn't work," Jess said, coming in to the living room and plopping down on the couch next to Lorelai.
"Where's Luke?"
"Kitchen. Rory?"
"Bathroom."
"Huh."
They sat in silence. "What plan?" Lorelai finally asked him.
"Oh, you know. The one where you invite Luke to come so that even if Rory left, you still wouldn't be alone with me."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, come on, Natalie. I know I'm right."
Lorelai looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, maybe," she admitted. "Is there anything wrong with that? We don't exactly get along."
Jess shrugged. "Nope."
"Oh."
Jess didn't say anything, and there was silence for another moment before Lorelai started talking again. Jess suppressed a smirk; he knew she couldn't stay quiet for long.
"How come it doesn't bother you?" she asked him.
"What?" he asked, pretending he had no idea what she was talking about.
"How come it doesn't bother you that nobody except Rory and Luke likes you?" she asked bluntly.
Jess shrugged. "I don't need anybody else."
"Come on, everybody wants to be liked."
"No. Not everybody."
Lorelai sat cross-legged on the couch, facing Jess, who kept looking straight ahead. "So you really don't care if people like you."
"You get extra points for that one."
"You know, can you stop it, for just a minute? Can you behave like a normal human being for just one minute?"
"Okay."
"Okay?"
He nodded. "Okay."
Lorelai paused, looking at him, then jumped right in. "I'm not one to call my daughter a liar, but when it comes to you, I think she is. I think she lied to me, because I don't know what she sees in you."
Jess shrugged. "Me neither."
Lorelai looked taken aback. Was he admitting that he thought Rory was too good for him? "Oh."
"Hey, Mom, I'm back, start the movie up - " Rory stopped when she saw Lorelai and Jess on the couch.
She looked from one to the other as Luke walked in. "Is it over?" he asked.
"What were you two talking about?" Rory asked her mother and Jess.
"Nothing," Jess replied.
"I don't believe you, but okay."
"You two were talking?" Luke asked.
"Um, no. I was just talking to myself, like I always do. Ready for the movie, Charlie?" Lorelai said with a grin.
Lorelai put the movie in, and when she turned around to sit back down on the floor next to Rory, her gaze caught Jess'. They looked at each other for a moment, and Jess gave her a slight nod.
Lorelai didn't know what exactly had happened, but suddenly she was very curious about what Jess was really like.
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Author's Note: Review! Review, please, review! I'm so excited. I love writing this story, and I hope you guys like reading it! The only way I'll know if you do is if you review, so please review!
Coming in Chapter 5………Jess calls Rory to go on an actual date, and at Friday night dinner Lorelai tells her parents a lie that could blow up in her face!