Moments
Authors Note: Well here it is chapter two, please review. That rhymed. I am awesome. No seriously, reviews make me happy. That's really all I have to say. Oh wait fun really weird fact about this chapter. I threw in the Erik Estrada reference as a shout out to my mother who dumped him many many years ago to be with the man that would be my father. That is a true story. Erik Estrada was almost my daddy. Wow, that was extra random but I wanted to share. I feel closer to you all for it, ha ha. So anyway, on with the show…
Premise: A lovely little Luke and Lorelai story thatstarts right after Dean Interrupts the pair eating in the gazebo in A Tisket A Tasket and goes from there….
Chapter 2 "One Day At A Time"
"Luuuke!" Lorelai whaled as she made her way into the empty dinner.
"Jesus Lorelai, care to turn the volume down a notch okay there Skid Row." Luke quickly responded from where he was standing behind the counter.
Lorelai made her way over to him and dramatically plopped down the basket she was still carrying on to the floor.
"Did you just make a Skid Row reference?" Lorelai questioned with a shake of her head.
"Anyway, I will be as loud as I want to be. You Mr. Jokey Pants Mc Gee just left me. You just flat left me out there to clean up our mess. I had to touch your carrots. I am not happy!" Lorelai pouted. She looked around the diner and saw that she was alone with Luke. "There isn't anyone in this whole place, Luke. That just makes me having to clean up all ALONE even better. Knowing you have all of these invisible customers to get back to, serving them their invisible coffees and what not."
Luke realized that Lorelai was right. He was in such a hurry to hightail it out of there and get away from the things that kept flying out of his mouth that he had left his mess for Lorelai to clean up. Man, he felt like an ass. He knew of only one way to make things better.
"Yeah, sorry that kind of sucked me. I didn't know this place would die off so quickly. How about free pie on top of that coffee we already talked about." Luke offered.
"Deal," Lorelai immediately responded. "It is lucky for you that I am super hungry right now."
"We just ate, Lorelai. You consumed an enormous amount of food." Luke noted.
"Do you want me to unforgive you?" Lorelai threatened.
"No, no one huge piece of free pie coming right up." Luke quickly returned.
It was amazing to Lorelai how quickly she and Luke slipped into familiar patterns. They were back at the diner which was comfortable territory for the both of them. With the simple location change it seemed like all the awkwardness of their little almost picnic had vanished. Well, that wasn't entirely true. She was still thinking about it and her heart was still beating pretty rapidly, but she had on a good game face. She didn't know what was going on in Luke's head but he looked as calm and collected as always.
Lorelai heard the scrape of a plate sliding towards her and looked down. In front of her was a huge piece of chocolate pie and a steaming cup of hot coffee. She couldn't help but grin madly at the magic before her. Cleaning up their quasi picnic mess had totally been worth it. "Chocolate pie! I could just kiss you."
Okay, maybe she didn't have her game face on. Had she just said she could kiss him? It was just an expression right. It didn't mean she really wanted to kiss Luke. Except maybe she kind of did and not really because of the pie. No, no, no she was just thinking crazy because she had pie in front of her. She had smelt the chocolate pie and it clearly was making her high. It was the only explanation she was willing to accept for telling Luke out loud that she wanted to kiss him. It was then that Lorelai noticed the shocked but amused look on Luke's face. As she looked at him she could feel her cheeks flush with embarrassment.
"I mean I just really really love chocolate pie." Lorelai tried to explain.
"Right…." Luke said with a smirk.
Lorelai became instantly irritated by the arrogance in Luke's smile and response. He had said plenty of weird things during their lunch and maybe it was time for her to remind him of that.
"It's kind of like how you care so much about all those defenseless animals." Lorelai returned a bit sarcastically.
Luke's heart constricted in his chest, damn it he knew she hadn't bought the animal thing. How was he going to get himself out of this one?
"I have other customers." Luke said gruffly before walking away from Lorelai.
Lorelai turned around and looked at Luke with an amused expression on her face. "Uh, Luke no you don't."
"Yeah well I wish I did." Luke said keeping up his gruff attitude. Maybe if he was surly enough she would lose her train of thought.
"You are so weird. Oh, I am sorry. Should I stop talking to you? Am I getting in the way of you helping out all the imaginary customers? I have it on good authority imaginary Kirk would like some invisible toast, and some make believe jelly, with a big glass of pretend milk." Lorelai said pleased to have turned the tables on Luke.
"Eat your pie, Lorelai," was Luke's only response. "I need to unload some shipments. Yell if anyone comes in."
"So you are just going to leave me out here all alone." Lorelai whined. She stuck her lower lip out in an exaggerated pout.
"You really need me here to watch you eat your pie?" Luke asked.
"Yes, I do. You can unload your shipments after I leave." Lorelai paused. "Wow, I think I have to give myself a dirty on that one."
"You could say the same thing about what you just said." Luke said with an uncharacteristic laugh.
"What do you mean?" Lorelai asked trying her best at innocence.
"I meant what you just said was probably worse then what you first said." Luke answered.
"And what did I just say?" Lorelai coaxed.
"Give yourself a dirty." Luke said not fully thinking about what he was saying.
Lorelai began to hysterically laugh.
"I… can't believe... I got… you to say… it!" Lorelai said between fits of laughter.
"Oh Jeez, seriously Lorelai you are like a twelve year old." Luke said clearly embarrassed.
"And you just made my day. Now if only I could get Scott Baio to fall in love with me all my 12 year old dreams would come true." Lorelai said with a dreamy smile.
As Lorelai spoke Luke walked around the counter and took a seat next to her.
"What are you doing?" Lorelai immediately asked.
"Well, you insist I keep you company out here. So I decided I might as well sit down."
"Oh okay. It's just a little weird." Lorelai said turning to face him as she stuck another bite of pie in her mouth.
"Why is that?" Luke asked.
"It's a whole other Luke perspective. Usually I see you across the counter, or I am sitting at a table and you are standing up taking my order. I don't think I have ever sat next to you in the diner before."
"What about on Thanksgiving?" Luke wondered.
"Oh I guess you are right. That is different though it's a holiday." Lorelai explained.
"Would you like me to get up? Would that make things less weird?" Luke asked as he began to slowly leave the stool he was occupying.
Lorelai instinctively put her hand over the hand Luke had resting on the counter.
"No, don't leave. It might be weird but it's nice." Lorelai said sincerely.
Luke did as he was told and stayed seated.
"So you were a Scott Baio girl, huh? Liz always had a thing for that guy from that one show. You know where they were CHP officers or whatever. Used to make me watch it with her every week..." Luke tried his best at nonchalance.
However, the truth was Lorelai's hand was still on his and he was pretty sure he was three seconds away from a heart attack. Luke had this irrational fear that Lorelai might notice the quickening pace of his heart. He worried that maybe she could hear the thump that was reverberating in his ears. He feared that she would instantly know that her soft hand was the cause of it all.
"Ah CHIPS and Erik Estrada! That's great. He is no Scott Baio though. I really preferred his boyish good looks. So what about you, Luke? Who was your television crush?" Lorelai asked with a smile.
"Didn't have one," Luke answered quickly.
"You are so lying. Hmm… Let me guess… What would Luke find sexy?" Lorelai pondered with a finger to her lips.
"Well, it has already been established that you liked Star Trek…" Lorelai began to laugh. "So maybe I can infer something from that."
"Lorelai…" Luke said in a warning tone.
"Okay, okay fine. Got it! You totally had the hots for Lynda Carter. The skimpy American flag leotard, the gold cuffs…. Wonder Woman!" Lorelai sang.
"Nope, it wasn't Wonder Woman." Luke replied.
"So you admit it was someone!" Lorelai announced triumphantly.
"Tell me Luke, please…" Lorelai said with doe eyes. "Was it Marsha or were you more of Jan guy?"
Luke just shook his head in response.
"Fine, just let me think for a minute." Lorelai returned. "I will figure this out."
Lorelai looked down and noticed that her hand was still on top of Luke's. She quickly removed her hand from on top of his and turned her attention towards her pie. How had she not noticed they had practically been holding hands for a good five minutes? It had just felt so comfortable and right, like it was the most natural thing in the world. Man, was that scary.
Lorelai tried to distract herself from thoughts of touching Luke by taking a really huge bite of her pie.
Luke saw the way that Lorelai had looked at their hands and then quickly removed her hand from on top of his. He assumed she hadn't realized what she was doing, and it appeared he was right. Luke was quickly growing frustrated with the entire Lorelai situation. Sometimes it seemed like maybe just maybe she liked him too. Then a second later she would seem so oblivious and not interested. She was the queen of the mixed message. Why couldn't he just get over it already?
"Valerie Bertinelli!" Lorelai suddenly yelled breaking the silence that had come over the diner.
"Who told you?" Luke exclaimed.
"Who told me, Luke? I had three wrong guesses before I got it. " Lorelai said. "It should have been my first guess. Wonder Woman was too flashy. You are a simple man with simple girl next door tastes!"
"I do not have girl next door tastes."
Lorelai said nothing. She did however begin to quietly hum the theme song to One Day at a Time.
Lorelai then turned to face Luke with a devious smile playing at her lips . She was dying to see how annoyed he was at her.
However, when Luke caught sight of Lorelai's face he burst into laughter.
"What?" Lorelai immediately asked. "What is so funny?"
"You have pie all over your face." Luke said through his laughter.
"What? Seriously, where is it?" Lorelai anxiously asked.
Lorelai began to take her tongue and lick around her mouth in order to remove any remnants of pie.
"You are completely missing it." Luke pronounced. His voice got just a touch bit huskier as her watched her tongue slide over her mouth.
"Well, help me out then." Lorelai said impatiently.
Lorelai didn't realize the full weight of her request until Luke slowly leaned in closer to her face. Lorelai began to feel like she was on fire as Luke got closer and closer to her. She felt her cheeks begin to flush in what she was sure was a deep red.
Luke lightly grazed his thumb over the corner of her mouth to remove the offending piece of pie. He was so close to her it was making her a little loopy. Without any real idea of consequences she began to slowly lean in to his touch. She was like a kitten when it was being petted brushing back against his hand. The feel of his hand on her face made it feel like tiny fireworks were going off in her stomach. She had never wanted a man to kiss her more in her life then she did at that very second. That particular thought was the only clear thing in Lorelai's head.
The sparkle of Lorelai's eyes was putting Luke into some trance like state. He kept his hand on her face and began to slowly inch his own face closer to Lorelai's. He was finally going to kiss her, consequences be damned. He was so close now that could feel her hot breath on his lips. Just a tiny movement forward and finally their lips would meet.
"No need for a menu Luke I know exactly what I want!" The sound of the bell accompanied by Kirk's voice made the pair jump apart. Luke quickly stood up and Lorelai almost toppled over on her stool. Kirk being Kirk was completely oblivious.
"I have had the strangest urge for toast and jelly with a big glass of milk!" Kirk announced happily has he took a seat on the opposite side of Lorelai.
Lorelai and Luke exchanged a 'did he really just say that' look at each other before glancing away shyly remembering what had just almost happened.
"Man this place is dead , " Kirk noted." Everyone must be out enjoying their baskets. I myself am enjoying the money I got from selling Jackson my basket. Speaking of my newly found riches make that two pieces of toast Luke. I am in the money today!"
"Coming right up, Kirk" Luke said extra gruffly. As her made his way around to the other side of the counter her couldn't help but take another look at Lorelai. Lorelai felt Luke's eyes on her. She looked back because it was the only thing she could get her body to do. She had never truly been in shock until that very moment. After a few deep breaths she took her eyes off of Luke's and found the ability to speak.
"I should go." Lorelai couldn't control the quivering sound in her voice. "Thanks for the pie."
She gave Luke one last glance before grabbing her purse and heading out the door of the diner.