A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed. This chapter is short, but I am putting the next chapter up right away. Chapter 9 is rated R but if you would rather skip it, you won't miss anything. I made it that way on purpose so that you could skip it and still continue with the story. Anyway, enjoy chapter 8 and please review.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of this (tear), they all belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino (a brilliant writer), the WB and Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions, I think.

Chapter 8

Luke was the first to wake up the next morning. As he slowly became conscious he realized that Lorelai was still in his arms and he was surprised. They always fell asleep holding each other but sometime during the night they retreated to their own sides of the bed. He always wished that they could wake up in each others arms but they never did, until now. He looked down at Lorelai lying on his shoulder and noticed how peaceful she looked in her slumber. He remembered how tortured she had been the night before and how sad she would be again as soon as she woke up. He leaned down and gently kissed the top of her forehead, then he slowly disengaged himself from her, being careful not to wake her up.

He had a quick shower and went downstairs to put the coffee on and make her, her favorite breakfast, pancakes with chocolate chips and bacon, sausage and eggs. He made sure to check on her frequently, to make sure she was still sleeping and not having to face the day by herself.

He had everything ready. He had the meat cooked and the coffee was ready and he just had to throw the pancakes and the eggs on once she was awake. He checked again to make sure she was still asleep and he walked slowly down the stairs, trying to think of something he could do to make Rory realize that she and her mother needed each other. Ever since he had known them they were a duo. He had always marveled at the relationship that they shared. Their minds worked the same way. Their mannerisms were the same. They shared the same likes and dislikes and if you looked into their eyes, they even sparkled with the same mischievousness behind them. They needed each other in a way he had never seen two people need each other before and he was going to get them back together if it was the last thing he did.

He walked into the kitchen and absently picked up the mail he had left there the day before. He moved it to the side of the table so that he would have room to set his and Lorelai's plates down when they were ready to eat their breakfast. As he set the mail down on the corner, some of it slipped off the table and fell to the floor. "Damn it." He muttered under his breath, not really mad that it had fallen, but mad at the situation Rory had left them in. "Can't she see that we love her so much? Can't she see that we only want her to be happy?" He spoke a little too loud and admonished himself as he bent over to pick up the mail. He was so caught up in his anguish that he didn't notice an envelope poking out of the pile without a stamp on it. He just shoved it back into the middle and placed it on the table.

As he turned around to go check on Lorelai again, he was surprised to see her walk slowly down the stairs. She was still in just the t-shirt and her underwear from the night before. She didn't look like she had washed or anything, but just woken up and walked down the stairs. She didn't say anything she just walked into his arms and he held her tight as she put her arms around his waist and her head against his chest. He held her like that for a long time, sensing that she needed his strength, but eventually without moving he said quietly. "I have coffee ready." He felt her nod her head against his chest but she still didn't move. "And breakfast." He continued not wanting to be the one who moved first.

"Thanks." She said quietly and turned in his arms so that they could walk together to get the coffee. He poured her a large cup and they went and sat on the couch. She leaned against him and he held her, never wanting to let her go. They sat quietly, each lost in their own thoughts, until he couldn't take it anymore. "Lorelai." He put his hand under her chin and forced her gaze up to meet his. "We will get her back." His voice sounded as determined as he felt.

"How?" Lorelai asked as tears welled up in her eyes and overflowed onto her cheeks.

"I don't know." He answered truthfully. "But we will think of something." He wiped away the tears on her cheeks with his thumbs as he held her head in his hands. "We just have to get over the shock of this. A day or two at the most and we will think of something. We have to clear our heads. We have to regain our perspective." He knew he was rambling but he had to convince her. "We had a few other ideas." He remembered the day they had developed this plan in his apartment. "There's Paris, we could call her." And then another idea came to him, but he didn't tell Lorelai, he wasn't sure she would approve, but he did and he thought it just might work. "We will think of something and we will get her back. We just have to stay positive and move forward."

"Okay." She said, sounding a little stronger and she hugged him tightly, wondering what she ever did without him, and knowing that he was the only thing keeping her going.

"That's my girl." He said pulling her up and kissing her quickly before leading her into the kitchen. "And now it is time for breakfast." He sat her down at the table and went to the stove to put the pancakes and the eggs on. "More coffee." He said, filling her cup once he had everything cooking. "You do know that that stuff will rot your insides, don't you." He smiled a little bit as he turned around to see her reaction once he finished his sentence.

"I still have not seen the charts on that." She said, taking her queue from him and playing along.

"Ah, the charts, the charts." He smiled now, excited that she was at least making the effort. "I'm saving them for a special occasion."

"A special occasion eh." She stood up and walked towards him. "What kind of special occasion?" She was almost upon him. She had this glint in her eye and he knew something was going to happen to him but when she reached out and began to tickle him she still caught him off guard.

"No, no, no." He laughed, his secret out. He hadn't had time to steel himself not to laugh.

"I knew it." She squealed. "I knew you were ticklish." She avoided his hands desperately trying to capture her own and stop the torture. Eventually he grabbed her and wrapped her up in his arms and kissed her passionately. She smiled through their kiss until his tongue met hers and she forgot everything except the electricity pulsing through her body with his every movement.

A/N: Please review, and remember chapter 9 is rated R, skip it if you like, Chapter 10 should be up tomorrow. Thanks.