Chapter 3
As Marty led Rory into the coffeehouse, she was struck by how quiet and relaxing the environment was. It was full of people; everywhere she looked there was a couple talking or a group discussing something. It was definitely somewhere she could see herself coming to often.
"Marty, this place seems really nice. Thanks for bringing me. It's good to have a friend who appreciates this kinda stuff, too," she added, for her own benefit. She was feeling a little guilty about coming with him, but she felt that if she clarified the "just friends" issue, she would feel better about the night.
"Yea, no problem. I'm glad you could come."
"Hey, I'll be right back. I'm just gonna go get some coffee." She ordered and was pulling money out of her wallet when someone bumped into her, sending loose change flying. She was gathering the money when she sensed another person leaning down and helping her gather her change.
"Sorry about that," a very familiar voice said. She whirled around and saw Logan, with a slight smirk on his face.
"Logan! What are you doing here?" she asked in a hushed but intense tone.
"What? Is there a rule that says I can't come here?"
She shook her head. "No, but you knew I would be here with Marty. Why would you pick tonight to come?"
Logan answered, "Oh come on, Rory. You know very well why. And besides, I came with Finn and Colin. They've wanted to visit this place for a while, and they were free tonight."
"Well, don't think that since you came that I'm just going to leave Marty all alone. You're right, you can visit whatever place you want; just don't expect me to pay any attention to you." With that, she grabbed her coffee and headed back over to Marty.
"Having fun?" he asked her.
"Yea," she said, glancing over at three guys laughing in the corner. "This is really fun."
"Oh, hey, look. That guy on stage, the one with the guitar? He's new, but he's supposed to be really good." She turned her attention to the stage, where the guitarist had just begun to play. It was a slow song, one about being hurt by the one you love, and about watching them with someone else. She suddenly had a feeling of being watched, and she turned. She spotted Logan across the room, and their eyes met. He had an unfamiliar look on his face. She gave him a questioning look, but his gaze never faltered, his expression never changed. It wasn't his usual smirk. She didn't know what it was, but it made her nervous. He looked sad, and wistful, and she wasn't used to him like that. She held his gaze a moment more, and turned back to the performer.
Logan stared at Rory. He had caught her gaze earlier, and she'd looked scared at what she'd seen in his eyes. He hadn't expected her to even glance in his direction, so when she did, he had been unable to mask his expression. He longed for her to realize how much she truly meant to him, and yet all of his attempts to show her turned out miserably. He'd thought that if she saw him there tonight, she'd realize that he wasn't kidding around and that he was serious about her. And yet, it seemed as though everything he did backfired and had the opposite effect. He leaned over and whispered something to Finn, then turned and walked out of the coffeehouse.
After the song ended, Rory turned to look for Logan, and saw him disappearing out of the building. She had a fleeting feeling that she should go after him, but she suppressed it. After all, she thought to herself, I don't have any feelings for him. She thought that if she told herself that enough, she would convince herself that it was true. At the moment, however, it wasn't really working for her. She turned her attention back to Marty, and decided that for the rest of the night, she wasn't going to think about him. And things went according to plan, for the most part. She enjoyed herself for the rest of the night, and only as she was leaving did Logan's face once more appear in her mind. The look he had had on his face during that song, she just couldn't get over it. It had been so different from anything she had ever seen on him, and she felt a bit disconcerted that that look had been directed at her.