A/N: Just when I thought I was going to get off with a simple thank you to the reviewers, it occurs to me that I have not put the appropriate disclaimer with the story. Well, from here on out, let it be known that I do not own these characters or this world. They belong to ASP. The the sequence of events I have presented, however, is mine.

And then it occured to me that there was a discontinuity involving the back of the kitchen. We'll just say that the sink is in a different place than the grill, where Ceasar would be, and he would just ignore the shouting if he did hear it (he didn't).Lastly, chapter 2 is not updating correctly so there are a few typos (classes, not glasses), but that should be fixed soon. Now, thank you reviewers! Much love.

-----------

Lane's words had an impact. His breath slackened. His vision wobbled. His blood ran cold and his heart skipped a beat. Jess swallowed hard and felt himself torn between uncontrollable laughter and giving into increasing nausea, both probable results of the decreasing amount of oxygen his system was receiving. Rory Gilmore stole a boat, he told himself. Rory Gilmore broke up a marriage, he repeated inside his head. These statements were shocking when they grounded themselves in truth. But it was Rory Gilmore had sex with Dean that finally drove him to the point of vomitting in a nearby trashcan.

Jess scowled, staring into the trashcan at what he had purged and tried unsuccessfully to spit the taste out of his mouth and the thought from his brain. He closed his eyes tightly and slid down onto the cold tile floor and leaned against the tall trashcan behind him. If a thought had drifted to Lane, he would have assured himself that she didn't have the courage to face him again.

This crumbling man slouched sloppily against a dirty trash can scrubbed his face raw with his dry, calloused hands. He shook his head violently in an attempt to clear his vision. He tried to convince himself that this hurt he was feeling was irrational. That he had moved on. That he had been happy without her. Successful without her. He had matured, lived and loved without her.

The sting was something Jess didn't comprehend consciously. His brain had not made the connection. Lane had been told about the affair. It hadn't happened in any recent timeframe, not as recent as the boat anyway. And Rory had done something stupid because of him. Lane had put the onus on responsibility on him. Lane had ranted about how he shouted things at her and ran off. She didn't mention his crazy proposal, but did she need to? Wouldn't that have been implied? The second worst of all his sins regarding Rory?

And then it clicked. It clicked and Jess gagged. Rory's reaction...it wasn't enough for her to reject him. He'll admit he deserved that, but this kind of vindictiveness? Was he delusional in thinking it might have been done to hurt him? He had imposed so much on her, and she had given him so much...Of course she would lash out! It wouldn't have been enough to say 'no.' She wanted to affirm it loudly and clearly.

Then, laughing ensued. Jess laughed at himself. He laughed Rory. He laughed at Rory, at the town, at the situation, at the his ridiculousness. There was no accounting for the time that had passed between his last visit and Rory's affair with Dean. Even if it had happened, they weren't together, so he had no right to be jealous, or nauseated. He had moved on too! Granted, his choice of partner was unattatched and therefore indicative of his intellect, but what's that kind of detail to someone with a sense of royal entitlement like Rory?

It was during this fit of hysterics that Lane finally ventured to wander back in, her eyes barely peaking over the top of the end of the dinner rush's mess. She stumbled over to the sink and dumped them all into the sink with glorious apathy. The resulting splash of dirty, food-dissolved water landed on the both of them, as Jess was just close enough to the sink, but Lane definitely took the brunt of the blow for her indifference. This pushed Jess into laughter that could warrant an insane asylum, and Lane, despite her previous mortification seemed unafraid to comment on his rudeness.

"Oh yea, it's real funny to you because you're not soaking in Kirk's dissolved toast!"

Jess only kept laughing, falling forward in an attempt to catch his breath as he wheezed out, "Dinner dishes! It's probably a patty melt!" He picked a piece of hamburger off of his shirt and rubbed into between his fingers to emphasize his point, tears welling up in his eyes.

"You should have your own act," Lane sneered, using superhuman will not to deliver some sort of physical pain his direction.

Finally, Jess managed to reign in his laughter and looked up at Lane with dizzy eyes. "Isn't it funny, Lane? The less you care, the bigger the...splash-back." The story of my life, he thought bitterly, cracking a wicked grin that betrayed his inner dialogue and stumbling to his feet, balancing himself with a hand on Lane's shoulder. He hesitated a moment, contemplating his next move as Lane tried to evade this unfamiliar gesture, but he held firm. You don't want to know. You don't want to know. You don't want to know. You don't want to..."When?"

"When what?" Lane snapped, finally succeeding in removing Jess' hand.

"When did she sleep with Dean? Was it right after I left?"

Lane started to back away, her voice softening, "I shouldn't have brought it up. I shouldn't have told you."

Jess grabbed her arm and pulled her back, gently, but firmly. "Lane. Tell me."

Lane wiped a wet lock from her forehead and bit the inside of her cheek. Breathing in deeply, she spilt it out quickly, like ripping off a bandaid, "TwodaysafteryouleftattheInnopening." She took in another breath, and the qualified it, "Although we all should have seen it coming. Dean and Lindsey were not exactly getting along and Rory was so vunerable because of you.They spent some time together. He rescued her from an awful night of bar hopping. Then you showed up the last time... It all collided in the worst way. She's hurt all of us, Jess, but I think it was just her way of getting over you...There was never a way for you to have found out to hurt for it."

Jess dropped her arm, giving a half-smile. "I was going to get married," he confesses. "I've been over Rory a long time. Long enough, anyway." Without another word, Jess abandoned the dirty kitchen and Lane, leaving them each alone with their thoughts.