Thank you to one and all for your highly motivating and encouraging reviews! Now, prepare yourselves to be enthralled by the next compelling chapter! This one's a real dandy!
So the town of Star's Hollow had managed to cram themselves into the small hospital room. These were very tight quarters and left little to the imagination.
Kirk spoke first, he usually did. "Luke, I'm so sorry. It's all my fault. I did this to you and I'll never forgive myself!"
Luke hadn't a clue what Kirk was talking about, "What's all your fault?"
"You chased me into the rose bushes and then you carried me back to the Inn. And then you chased me again because I was going to tell everyone about the kiss…and that's when you fell!"
Everyone's face bore the same expression: puzzlement and intrigue. Everyone's face that is, but Lorelai's. She looked rather ill in fact.
Luke was overwhelmed by all this information, "Are you talking about the Dragonfly? Lorelai, is the Dragonfly finished? What were we doing there? And what's this about a kiss?"
"Kirk, I always knew you had a thing for Luke!" Babette teased.
"What? No! I never kissed Luke! Really, I didn't – I swear!" Who was he trying to convince?
All eyes moved to Lorelai as she struggled to explain the situation, "Well, uh – yes the Inn is finished Luke, and we were all there for the 'test run' this weekend." Lorelai ignored the part about the kiss, hoping that the others had forgotten. Fat chance!
"Congratulations Lorelai, I knew you could do it!" Luke smiled contentedly at the businesswoman extraordinaire.
"I couldn't have done it without you!" Lorelai returned with an equally content smile.
"Aren't we forgetting something here?" Patty exclaimed. "What about the kiss? Who kissed whom? I want some answers!"
"I NEVER kissed Luke!" Kirk shouted.
"We know Kirk!" Everyone echoed.
"Who kissed Luke then?" Patty demanded.
The room grew silent for a moment, and once more, Lorelai received the bulk of attention.
"Are you people seriously going to believe a word that comes out of this man's mouth?" Lorelai was undoubtedly referring to Kirk.
"I NEVER kissed him!" Kirk repeated.
"I know Kirk! You were delirious. You probably dreamt the whole thing up!" Lorelai quipped.
"Does this look like a dream to you?" Kirk unceremoniously slid down his trousers to reveal his battle-scarred bottom.
"Aaaaagh!" was the resounding response.
"Kirk, for the love of god, put your pants back on!" Jackson piped. Welcome to the story Mr. Melville.
Kirk did as he was told. Poor guy. Both Lorelai and Sookie knew he was speaking the truth. Thank heavens the chef was keeping quiet though…so far.
"Look, I think everyone needs to give Luke some space. He's just suffered a severe head injury. It's not fair to bombard him like this." Finally, Morey saved the day.
"Morey's right! How about you all go back to that nice little waiting room…maybe Judy will be there!" Lorelai shot that last remark in Kirk's direction with a mischievous wink.
Everyone seemed to agree. Luke agreed wholeheartedly. Kirk however, was not so enthusiastic about the idea.
A few minutes later, after warm wishes and kind good-byes, the Stars Hollow gang made their exit. Sookie and Jackson stayed behind with Lorelai.
"I'll be right back. I'm just going to make a quick phone call," Lorelai advised the much smaller audience.
"Take your time," Luke answered.
"We'll keep an eye on him," Sookie wittily remarked.
Lorelai took a deep breath as she dialled the familiar, yet estranged numbers of the Gilmore household. She had to at least tell Rory where she was. Whether Rory gave a damn, was another story. Their current relationship was rocky at best. The road to healing would surely prove to be a long and arduous one.
Meanwhile:
Sookie and Jackson were sharing some of the details from the previous evening with Luke.
"Oh Luke, the Dragonfly looks so great and the 'test run' was a huge success…that is of course, until your little mishap." Sookie attempted to lighten the mood. "Lorelai was on cloud nine though…well except with the whole blow-out with her parents, and Jason…but she was thrilled about the kiss…oh crap!" Sookie spilled the beans.
Luke and Jackson shared a stunned expression.
"Uh, Sookie?" asked Luke.
"Yes Luke," Sookie nervously replied.
"What kiss?" Luke privately wondered why everyone seemed to be hiding something from him.
"Did I say kiss? Cause I meant to say dish…Lorelai was thrilled with the dish I prepared for dinner. Kiss, dish – it all sounds the same!" Clever Sookie.
"Sookie, is there something you're not telling me? Luke wasn't taking the bait.
"No, of course not heh, heh." She was becoming an exquisite shade of red.
"Sookie?" Luke continued to press.
"Please don't ask me Luke…it isn't my place to say…me and my big mouth!" Sookie felt positively dreadful.
And, as if on cue, Lorelai re-entered the room, eager to join in the conversation, "So, whatcha talking about?"
"I have to go. I'm going now. Come on Jackson, let's go. We're going." Sookie was exceedingly antsy.
"Was it something I said?" Lorelai asked amusedly.
"No, no – I just…we need to put money in the parking meter. Yes, that's it." Sookie's behaviour was rather peculiar, even for her.
"Oh, ok hon. We'll be here." Lorelai played along.
"Bye Luke, Bye Lorelai," Jackson spoke for the both of them. He was as determined as anyone to get some answers from his eccentric wife.
"Bye guys," Luke and Lorelai responded. Now that they were alone once more, Luke had some questions of his own.
As Sookie and Jackson made their way down the hall, reacquainting themselves with the waiting room, they noticed a new face had emerged.
"Jason!" Sookie unexpectedly shouted, "What are you doing here?"
Why not toss another one in to the mix eh?
So ends yet another chapter. If ya'll are good I'll update again real soon!
Remember to REVIEW!