A/N: An entire chapter without Lora… I haven't been updating a lot recently, but I just haven't got much time. Thanks for all the reviews, ook diegenen in het Nederlands. We're a few weeks later I guess…

"Let's turn around and go back home." Jess turned to his wife when the light jumped on red.

Rory rolled her eyes. "It's not like it's your high school reunion, what's the big deal, those people don't even know you."

"Exactly my point, why should I go, I have nothing in common with those people." Jess really was not looking forward to spending an entire evening surrounded by 'upper-class' people, they attended too much of those parties already.

"Jess, give up. We're almost there" They had been driving for two hours and this conversation was starting to get on her nerves.

The light jumped on green again. Unfortunately for Jess, Rory was driving tonight, which meant that he couldn't just turn around and drive back to New York.

The still impressive Chilton building came into view when they turned a corner. Rory parked her car on the parking lot where she once had found a brand new car as a gift from her grandfather. They obviously weren't the first ones there. An impressive collections of very expensive cars was already parked there.

"Welcome to society." Jess mumbled under his breath as they got out of the car.
"Ready?" Jess frowned at his wife, was she kidding?

"Let's go." She continued and pushed him into the building.

The reunion was held in the assembly hall and before they could enter, they had to get a little name tag at the door. Rory opened her mouth to say her name, she hadn't even looked at the person sitting at the table yet, but she was interrupted.

"Rory?" Surprised to hear a familiar voice she looked at the man sitting at the name tag table.

"Max, hi." Her old teacher and almost stepfather had aged, but he was still the man she remembered.

"How are you?" He enquired.

"Great. This is Jess, I don't know if you remember him, Luke's nephew."

Max smiled and shook the mans hand. "I've read his books."

There were people waiting behind them to get inside as well. "Well, we can catch up later, I'll just give you these now."

"See you around." Rory smiled and took the name tags from him and gave Jess one.

"Are we really wearing those?" He didn't get a verbal answer, but Rory just took his tag again and pinned it on his vest and then pinned her own on her dress.

He rolled his eyes and looked around. He hated these kinds of parties. A huge banner was hanging on the stage saying: "Welcome class of 2003" And under that was a huge panel with their yearbook pictures. Maybe he should have a look at that later.

"If it isn't our Mary." Rory sighed, she had hoped that that name would've disappeared. She smiled at the blonde handsome man that was standing before them.

"Tristan, hi."

"You look great." Was he flirting with her, or just being polite?

"Thank you. This is my husband Jess." It was only the right thing to do, introduce your husband, this was a reunion after all.

"You didn't marry bagboy after all, did you?" Jess smirked, he had always had a bit of sympathy for this guy, annoying Dean so much.

"I heard you married Madeline?" Rory shifted the conversation.

"Yeah, she's somewhere around, she and Louise were trying to find out who the successful person at the party is. Apparently they made a list of that when they were still here, trying to forsee the future." Rory grinned at his explanation, they obviously hadn't changed at all.

"How in heaven's name did you end up at Harvard?" Rory had been wanting to ask him the question ever since Paris had told her.

"My dad hates lawyers." A mischievous grin appeared on Tristan's lips, he was still the same boy. Her mother had been right again.

"I was expecting to meet you there, you know."

Rory shrugged. "I suddenly decided to go to Yale. Majored in journalism."

Tristan nodded. "I know, the cards next to the year book pictures said so." He nudged to the stage.

Apparently the school had hired waiters and one came to them with a tray filled with champagne and orange juice. "Drinks?"

All three of them gratefully took a glass of champagne and the waiter disappeared again.

"Oh my god, are you Jess Mariano?" Jess turned to look at a red-haired woman that he had never seen before. He looked at Rory, but she just shrugged.

"I'm sorry, I'm a big fan, could I have your autograph." Rory bit her lip as she watched her husband signing a napkin, this was just too funny.

"Can I have your autograph as well?" Now it was Jess's turn to smile, there was just something embarrassing about all of this. Rory signed the napkin.

"My name is Helen, we had algebra together."

"Right Helen, nice to see you again." Rory shook the woman's hand and the woman left of again.

"Was there a Helen in our year?" Rory asked Tristan.

"Never heard of her." He answered after taking a sip from his champagne.

"Rory, Jess, Tristan!" They turned around to face Paris, who had just entered.

"I was wondering where you were staying." Rory remarked. Since Paris had moved back to New York they saw each other regularly.

"Work wouldn't let me go." Paris explained.

"Where's Thomas?" Jess asked, even though he still couldn't stand the man at all.

"He left this morning for Europe on business."

"Tris, who are your friends?" Madeline gave her husband a kiss on his cheek.

"Have you forgotten us already, Madeline?" Rory grinned as she turned to face her old friend.

"Rory, Paris, I hadn't recognized you guys." Paris rolled her eyes.

"Louise! Get over here." The black-haired woman joined them as well.

"Maybe we should let them catch up." Tristan said to Jess, who nodded and turned to Rory.

"I'll see you around." He whispered in his wife's ear.

"He's cute." Louise remarked when the men had left.

Rory frowned. "Don't you recognize him, it's Jess."

"The Jess you dated in High School?" Madeline sounded surprised.

"The one and only."

"So, you guys have kids?" Rory had to get the conversation going, although she already regretted saying it, it probably meant she'd have to talk about her child as well.

Madeline nodded. "Tristan and I have two; Mary and Nathan." Rory couldn't help but chuckle, her eyes met Paris's who understood what she meant. Of all names in the world, Tristan had chosen to name his daughter Mary, probably as a joke.

"How old are they?" Paris wasn't very good at this kind of small talk, but it seemed like a logical question.

"Thirteen and ten." Madeline answered as she took another glass of champagne from one of the waiters.

"What about you Louise?" Rory asked, even though she hadn't seen her with a man yet, that didn't mean a lot.

"I have a little boy, Joseph, he's four." Rory sighed, if only Lora was still four years old, life was so much easier back then. "What about you guys?" Louise asked.

Rory looked at Paris, who shook her head. "Actually, our kids are dating."

Madeline's eyes widened, now the conversation was getting interesting. Rory felt Paris giving her a nudge. "Don't worry, I won't tell them." She whispered in her friends' ear

"My daughter is named Lora, and Paris's son is Jeff, they're sixteen." Rory explained. Paris let out a sigh of relief.

"Wait a minute." Madeline looked as if she was trying to remember something. "Are your kids in York Prep?"

Paris stared at her in horror.

"Yeah." Rory answered calmly.

"Mary just started there."

"Do you live in Manhattan?" Rory frowned, how come she'd never seen them around there before then, if their kids were in the same school.

"We moved two months ago. Tristan got a better job offer and we left Hartford." Madeline cleared it up.

"Mary came home a couple of days ago and told me she'd met a very friendly eleventh-grader called Lora, who was pregnant." Paris couldn't believe it, this was just great, now all Hartford would probably know as well.

"That would be my daughter." Rory didn't see the point in lying.

"So, how far along is she?" Louise was very pleased about all this, this was by far the best gossip she'd heard in ages.

"Six months." Paris confessed.

"I'm happy I won't have to worry about that for a while." Louise sighed as she thought of her little Joseph, not even in kindergarten yet.

"She follows in her grandmother's footsteps, huh." Madeline commented. Rory really didn't want everyone in Hartford to know and she really didn't feel like talking to them anymore.

Rory glanced around the room in search of Jess and tried to make him understand that she wanted to get away of the conversation. Her husband knew what she meant and came to the rescue.

"Sorry ladies, I'm going to have to steal my wife for a moment." He lead Rory away from them. Rory took her cell phone and called Paris's number, to rescue her friend as well. This was quite the night.