He backed up as her words washed over him. His world changed suddenly—he felt as if he was speeding ahead into a life filled with happiness for moments before being snagged on some cosmic twig and hurled back into a harsh present. When he focused his clouded eyes back on her face, he saw the source of all his frayed emotions.

"I didn't mean to blurt it out like that," she said softly, taking a calm step toward him.

He backed up yet again. "You're staying in London?" he asked in disbelief.

"No! I mean, maybe, but nothing's decided yet," she shook her head.

He nodded and stayed still as she moved closer to him again. She crossed her arms and ran one hand absently down the front of her shirt, her hand coming to rest over her heart. "What did—why did you think I was pregnant?"

"How could I not? God, Rory, you were going on about this being your problem, but mine too, and how hard it was to tell me—what the hell was I supposed to think?"

"But we're careful," she reasoned.

"A lot of people are careful, Rory. Nothing's perfect."

She was sure his last comment held a double meaning. "I know that."

"How can you stay in London, after everything we've been talking about?"

"How can I not stay in London? Tristan, they're offering me a paid internship and way more responsibility. This is huge—I came here to find out if I had what it takes to make it, and they're telling me I can, offering me everything I've wanted. How can you not want me to take it?" her voice rose as her tirade continued, despite her not wanting this to escalate into a shouting match.

"Don't put words in my mouth, Rory. You tell me nothing about this, and when I have questions, you accuse me of not wanting you to live out your dreams? That's rich," he volleyed the shouting back at her now.

"God, can we stop? Just stop yelling and talk to me!"

He crossed his arms protectively and nodded. "Fine. How long have you been considering this?"

"Three days," she said quietly.

"Okay, so you've had three days to make up your mind and I've had thirty seconds to process the fact that you're staying in London for how much longer?"

"The rest of the school year."

He nodded. He held in any comment, which made her only more guilty and uncomfortable. He had many talents when it came to arguing and alienation of affection. It pained him to apply them to her as much as it hurt her to feel the impacts.

"And I'm not definitely taking it. I wanted to know what you thought about the possibility of my staying."

"Sure," he replied flippantly.

"Tristan, don't," she urged.

"Don't what? You just said yourself that you have to take this. It's all you've ever wanted," he said pointedly.

"Stop," she said, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks at any moment. He had a vindictive way of speaking that made her ache all over. "That's not true. I haven't decided anything. I can't, not without you."

"If that were true, you'd have told me three days ago."

She fell silent, knowing that there was some truth to his statement, but not what he thought. It was true that she should have told him three days ago. Part of her had wanted to make the decision on her own, but as the days passed, it became more than clear that her whereabouts were now more than where she hangs her hat. Where she lived was contingent on where he was going to be, and it would affect both of them.

"Do you want me to take this internship, yes or no?" she asked boldly, trying to dismiss his prior comments.

But he wouldn't let it go. "It doesn't matter what I want you to do."

"Yes, it does!"

"No, it doesn't. Because when it comes down to it, you're going to put your work ahead of everything else. You did the same thing with Logan, didn't you?"

"What?" she asked, truly shocked that this was the tactic he was taking.

"Because it's either that or you ran from him when it got too serious, and blamed your ambitions instead of confronting what you were really feeling."

"How dare you?" she glared at him, her stare turning icy. "Don't make this into something it's not. If you want to break this off, fine, but don't make it seem like I'm doing this to run away from our relationship!"

"I want to break this off?" he boomed. "Where you here five minutes ago, when I said I wanted to marry you?"

"You thought I was pregnant! You were covering your ass!"

"You've got everything all figured out, don't you? How convenient, you don't have to face any of your real feelings; you just get to blame whatever is most expedient."

"Oh, so, you're saying you really want to marry me?" she scoffed.

He moved in and pulled her against him roughly, kissing her with all the anger and frustration he had in his body. It took her a moment to react to his motions, but soon her arms were around his neck as he lifted her up off the ground. He continued to be aggressive, not allowing her thought or breath or escape. He held her captive, and wasn't going to let her run away from him in any way. He heard his grandfather's words, to make sure she could never doubt his feelings for her. And if there was one thing he was going to make sure of, she was not going to be able to hide from him. It was unacceptable after all they've gone through together up to this point.

When he pulled back slowly, still holding her up off the ground as she strained on tip-toe with closed eyes and her head bent in to him, he tightened his grip on her.

"Oh," she breathed.

He waited for her to open her eyes, glad to have some time to collect his thoughts. He knew he didn't help matters during their exchanges when his temper flared and sent both of them spiraling into the depths of their defenses. She looked at him, and he could see her disbelief at his readiness for her to answer this unasked question.

"Rory, I want you to understand something, and I want you to let me finish before you say anything, okay?"

She nodded, too stunned to speak at any rate.

"I didn't decide that I wanted to marry you when I thought you were trying to tell me you were pregnant," he admitted as he ran a hand through his hair. He'd let go of her as he started his speech, but she hadn't backed away from him at all. It was all she could do just to remain standing at all, let alone move in any direction.

"You aren't the only one that has been holding back information. I didn't want to push the topic, because I know you aren't ready for that, but all I can think about lately is keeping you in my life after all this is over. And I realized that if I'm not content with the nights that we have to spend apart now, just knowing you're two hundred feet away, then I'm not going to be content if we're back home in different states, having to wait weeks to see each other. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized this was real, and I want this to last."

She nodded slightly, but said nothing as he looked like he was going to continue.

"And I know we fight, and we both have this nasty habit of feeling like we should deal with out problems alone, but here's what I think. Maybe we're not ready to get married now—you need to get used to the idea that what's mine is yours and I have to learn that screaming at you probably isn't in my best interest if I want you to stick around and tell me things," he smirked, causing her to smile as well. "But I want you to know that these things will only happen if we're together, making them happen. And it's what I want. I do want to marry you, more than anything."

"So," she began, but he pressed a finger to her lips. He wasn't finished.

"So," he teased, "I think you should take this internship, assuming you want to, and I will be wherever it is you are. I will make it happen. And when we're ready, I'm going to propose to you," he whispered the last part, causing her to blush.

"Can I speak now?"

He nodded his consent.

"You're really willing to stay in London if I do?"

"I don't have any other choice," he nodded, smiling at her as she searched his eyes for any shred of doubt.

"Yes, you do. I don't want to make you do anything that you don't--," she began.

"You can try all you want; you're not getting a fight out of me on this. This is what I want. I want you. Plain and simple."

Her mind reeled from the sudden clarity his declaration provided her. She went from grappling with impossibilities of this choice to feeling a decision sweep over her. "I'm still not going to use your credit cards," she countered.

He held up his hands in defeat. "I should be relieved to find a woman who isn't out to spend my fortune, right?"

"Guess you just don't know when you have a good thing," she agreed.

"I'm starting to figure it out."

She leaned up to kiss him again, contentment flooding over her. She leaned against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her, his head rested on top of hers.

"There is one thing you haven't factored into your plan, though, I'm afraid," she said after a moment of letting the fact that this man wanted to marry her wash over her. With all her quirks and flaws and everything, he wanted all she entailed.

"What's that?"

"You have to win my mother over, first."

Tristan made a noise of displeasure. "Just your mother?"

"Well, then there's her boyfriend. He's been in fist fights with two of my three ex-boyfriends—though he did try valiantly to maintain his perfect record. Mom headed him off at the pass the last time. Threw him out of the room, in fact. Oh, and my dad, you'll have to meet him. And my grandparents," she ticked off.

"Is that all?" he asked, his tone wavering between amusement and uncertainty.

"You'll have to pass the Stars Hollow survival test. That should wait until after the holidays, though. Patty and Babette's hands get harder to dodge, the more alcohol they consume."

"You know what? Staying here is sounding better and better."

"What about Christmas?" she giggled.

"Who's going to like me the most?"

"My grandparents," she answered easily.

"We start with them. We can stay in Hartford for the majority of the time."

"Not if you want to stay on my mother's good side. We have to start with her. If she likes you, she can make everything else very easy to handle."

"See, you've got it easy. All you had to do was meet my grandfather and he's completely won over already."

She kissed him again. "I inherited that skill from my mother."

"Sounds like I seriously need to meet this woman," he concluded.

"All in good time. Right now I think it's time you take me upstairs and warm me up," she hinted, brushing her cold nose against him as she pulled herself in closer to his warm frame.

"My pleasure," he answered, steering her back up toward the main entrance of the now mostly darkened house. While their words were binding enough, it wasn't a satisfactory approach for either to completely seal this new level they'd achieved in their fragile yet unbreakable relationship.

XXXX

"My little girl is getting married!"

Rory held the phone out from her ear, fearful of more shouting from her mother's overly hormonal mouth. She might go deaf at this rate if she didn't take such precautions.

"You never listen. That isn't what I said. I said we talked about it."

"So, you don't want to marry him?"

"He didn't ask me to, thus making it hard to say yes."

"But . . . I'm confused."

"Not the first time."

"You called me to tell me what exactly?"

"That I told my supervisor today that I will take the internship. And that Tristan is going to stay over here with me, and that we've discussed getting married at some point in the future."

"But not in the near future?"

"I didn't say that."

"GAH! What are you saying?"

"Geesh, I think I'm glad I'll be way over here, with the safety of the Atlantic between us until way after that kid has released its grip on your sanity."

"Rory, just because the doctor told me I shouldn't fly doesn't mean I won't come over there and--," she warned.

She sighed. "I thought you might like to meet him before I agreed to marry him."

"You do love me!" she squealed.

"A little."

"Ooh, do I get to threaten his perfect body should her ever deign to make you cry?"

"No."

"Can I make him my errand boy until I'm properly satisfied with his abilities to take care of you?"

"Nope."

"What can I do?"

"Stay home when I take him to meet the grandparents. That would be a great help."

Lorelai huffed. "Can't I even make the kid baby-sit to see how good of a father he'd make to my prospective grandchildren?"

Rory thought for a moment. This pause was partially for her, partially to make her mother squirm. "I suppose that's not such a horrible idea."

Tristan moaned. "Exactly what are you promising my services for?"

"He's right there!" Lorelai exclaimed again at eardrum shattering decibels.

"So?"

"So? This is girl talk time, no boys allowed in the vicinity!"

"Oh, like you've never talked to me with Luke sitting right there!"

"Never!"

"Liar! Besides, it's late here and we're getting ready to go to bed."

"Put him on the phone!" Lorelai commanded.

"What? No, no way."

"Lorelai Leigh Gilmore, I am your mother, and when I tell you to do something, you are to do it!"

Rory rolled her eyes. Her attention was obtained by the full use of her name, but she wasn't prepared to hand the phone over just yet. Tristan was watching her quite preoccupied with her conversation, having forgotten about his book long ago.

"Mom," she protested.

"I'll be nice," she said sweetly, though her tone worried Rory more than comforted her.

"Fine. But if he blushes or cringes or--," Rory began.

"I just said I'd be nice."

"That's what I'm afraid of. Hang on," she said, putting the phone to her chest, she turned slightly to look at Tristan.

"I'm sorry."

"She wants to talk to me?" he smirked.

"Only respond to yes or no questions and remember, she's a few months pregnant."

"I know, she doesn't mean any of the threats she makes to my person."

"Oh, no. She does."

"Great," he said, taking the phone from her hands.

"Hello?" he inquired pleasantly.

"Tristan. I've heard so much about you."

"And I you."

"So, let's get down to it, shall we?"

"Uh, sure?" he widened his eyes at Rory, who began to reach for the phone, but he leaned out of her grasp.

"I have to say, when Rory first told me about you, I was afraid you were going to take her down the same path she just went down, well, you know about Logan," she sighed.

"Look, I," he started, but he soon found out where Rory got her skills of cutting him off mid-thought.

"But from what she's said, you are willing to give her everything she wants, not what you want for her. So, we've got some serious business to discuss."

"Okay," he said, still not quite sure where she was going with this.

"I want to plan a party for her, over the Christmas break. And I want your help," she confided.

"Ah, now that I can do," he smiled at his girlfriend as she now crawled on top of him to up her efforts to get her phone back.

"It's my phone!" she complained, but he just patted her head as he listened to Lorelai.

"My pleasure," he said into the phone. "Uh, I think I better give you back to Rory, or else she might pull a muscle trying to rip the phone out of my hand."

"I don't appreciate the two of you conspiring," she informed them both.

"Oops, Luke's home. I should go."

"Is this payback for my agreeing with Luke over the years?"

"Bye, honey!"

Rory shut her phone and glared at Tristan. He just smiled at her before reaching to turn off her bedside light. "Hey, you put me on the phone. It's not my fault it went well."

"I'm glad it went well; I just want to know what you were talking about," she explained.

"I'm beat. We should really get some sleep," he informed her, pulling her in close in efforts to silence her as she moved to snuggle down under the covers with him.

"But, I," she protested, cut off by a lingering goodnight kiss.

He was becoming an expert at making her forget the world and focus on what was going on in this instant. And in this instant, everything was perfect. All the aspects of her life were broadening—a new sibling on the way, a new career step planned out, Tristan in her life. And a promise of so much more. She'd come to England to refocus and get away from her life, much as he had. What they had found was their way together and through to somewhere much better, to a place where the happiness they obtained was due to their being there to aid the other. There was no doubt in either of their minds that this was exactly where they were meant to be.

AN: Okay. You're thinking that sounded like the end of this story, right? Well, then you're very smart cookies. I am going to add one more chapter, and epilogue of sorts. Thanks for all of you who have been so wonderful to review this story so regularly. And if I had a prize to give for longest review EVER, it would have to go to Katherine, who left the world's longest review for this story last time. I don't have a reward, save for my undying gratitude and love.