"…and from the second I saw these two lovebirds together I knew, that they would spend the rest of their lives dedicated to each other. Rory and Derek, I wish you a lifetime of happiness."
The whole room claps. A few minor tears are shed and the couple is smiling. One is real, the other forced. Derek stands up, a full real smile on his face.
"Thank you all for coming, we appreciate your gracious blessings and of course your presents," he says with a smile as he raises his glass.
The audience chuckles and grins at his joke. Jess just scoffs.
"No really, in all seriousness, Rory and I really appreciate all of you coming and we hope you enjoy the wonderful meal. Thank You," he says.
He sits down and puts his arm around her chair. He whispers something into her ear. She chuckles. He can be funny sometimes. Jess sees this. He's huddled in a corner stuck at a table with two couples. One is a young obviously newlywed couple. They're fighting they won't even look at each other. Jess sees it as the future Mr. and Mrs. Derek Humphrey. The other couple is elderly, the woman has rank perfume and the man has a too obvious toupee.
Dinner is enjoyable but not memorable. Servers dance around, happily doing every ridiculous request made by the snobby dinner guests. Jess watches the couple out of contempt. She's doing her best to try and look thankful and happy. He realizes truly for the first time he really isn't good enough for her and even if he tries he would never be. He's disgusted with himself. He doesn't want this fucking champagne, he wants some hard liquor. He gets up, throwing his napkin onto the table. He reaches the bartender.
"A shot," he says gruffly, his eyes still on her.
"Of what, sir?" the bartender asks.
"Anything," he snaps.
The bartender nods, understanding.
He takes the drink and flips his head back as he pours the substance downs his throat. He brings his head back and places the glass on the table. The drink burns his throat. He's used to it. He likes it, it makes him feel good.
"Another sir?" the bartender asks.
Jess nods, still not taking his eyes off Rory. She eats her food quietly. Derek's off talking shop with his fellow colleagues but she is a Gilmore and everyone knows Gilmores need to eat. She wonders if he even bothered to show up. She feels a pair of eyes on her. She looks up and sees him looking intently back at her. He's learning over the bar, throwing back shots of God knows what. Their eyes fixate on each other and for a moment she forgets where she is. It's a challenge. The weaker one will look away first. Suddenly a hand grabs her waist and she looks behind her. Damn it, she thinks.
"You ok, baby," Derek asks.
Baby? Who was he trying to kid? She looks back over at the bar, but he's gone.
"I'm fine, I just think I need some fresh air," she tells him.
She moves out from in front of him and snakes her way through the tables and out the side door. She finds him out there. He's pulling out a cigarette.
"I thought you quit," she says.
He glances up at her.
"I did."
He puts the cigarette back into his pocket. It's no use, he has no lighter. He looks at her again. Her hair is pulled back into a bun, and her strapless dress hangs loosely off of her, hitting right above the knee. Her shoulders are bare, and he notices she has a lot more makeup on than usual. She's lost some weight. He wants to tell her to eat more, but he doesn't really have that authority anymore.
"Nice party," he says.
She's quiet. He really means it; she thinks it's just one of his smart ass remarks. She's only partly right.
"It's late. I should probably be going," he tells her.
She doesn't want him to leave. He's probably the only one who can make these social gatherings tolerable.
"Ok. I'll call a taxi for you," she says.
"Rory, don't worry about it. The restaurant will call one for me."
She grins slightly at her own naivety. She is still getting used to how this whole life works. Another sign.
"Alright, well I hope you get to the hotel safely," she says.
There's an underlying meaning in this response. He knows what it is.
"Me too."
x . . x
He hates the fact that the minibar doesn't have anything good. He hates that he has to sleep in a hotel that Derek, himself paid for. Jess cusses under his breath. Thinking about Derek will only make him drink more. He doesn't know why, but for some reason that night, he couldn't keep his eyes off of her. And that night as he fell sleep, he dreams of her.
He wakes up with a bad headache. In his head he tries to remember the date. Saturday or Sunday maybe. Sometime around there. He looks at the clock. It's Saturday at noon. What's on Saturday, he thinks to himself. There's something he just knows it. Bachelor Party…great. That's all he needs to see is Derek with more girls all over him.