A/N: Okay, so, I know i'm a completely horrible person. I haven't updated in forever and I should be tied to a tree and deprived of ever seeing Jess again. But if I'm tied to a tree I can't type, now can I? So let's not do that plan. I would love to say I have a very good excuse, and, actually, I do have a pretty good excuse, and it isn't even a good excuse forever. Here's why I haven't updated since people used their feet to make cars go. My writing has changed (improved, I hope) so when I look back at this it scares me. So I avoided it. Then I felt guilty and the guilt made me not update. Then I started writing an update and we got a new computer and my story went bye bye. Then I started to update (or form ideas to update) and my dad got cancer. We were going through the cancer thing and he got surgery that we thought would get rid of it, but instead it spread. He passed away in April, and so much has been going on that even if I would have had time to update I wouldn't have.
But things are getting back to normal, I have a new Green Day CD, I went to New York for my birthday in May and Jin's coming to see me, so everything's floating smoothly back on track. And then I was cleaning out my e-mail account and I found some reviews that I never realized I had because of all the spam I didn't read, and I felt guilty. The review happened to be Always Trust Your Instincts and this story just flashed in my mind the other day, so fate seemed to be telling me to write it, and anyone who has seen Serendipity understands the importance of listening to fate mock solemn nod
So, yes, i'm a horrible, horrible updater, and i'm sorry. It's just that the whole thing with Rory and Dea (with the floppy hair) also stole my inspiration. Ew. But I'm back and better than ever! Or if not, at least i'm back. cheeky grin Sorry I took so long, and I realize everyone has probably forgotten me, and if you see this and have forgotten the story I do not expect you to read the previous chapters, because it's really not my best work, although it is better than the butchering of the sprinkler scene that I did in one of my other stories. Sigh. i'm seriously considering rewriting that chapter and accidentally drowning Dean. )
But yeah, I've also stopped watching Gilmore Girls completely, because the new Rory annoys me. So... But I have made it so that inspires me more. I'll write back when Rory and Jess were together, Rory and lorelai were friends, and the Gilmore world continued to spin on its axis. Also, I've decided to finally explain how Jess got where he is in this chapter, because I'm older and more creative now, so I can come up with something. Grin
So... here it is...And if I'm really bad at writing Rory it's because I'm out of practice, although if it just isn't recent Rory... that's because I haven't watched the show since the season four season finale. By the way, I hope nothing at all reminds you of the season four finale. It was so traumatizing that I've mentally blocked it out. Okay, not really, but I really did try to fill that part of my brain, and the finale is just a vague hazy image of... well, I won't describe the scene. you've all seen it. Or, if you haven't, you're lucky. And I don't remember how old Lily is, so...
-recap- It was storming and Jess came over to keep Rory company. When he left she asked why he left, and he said because he didn't know how to tell her he loved her. Then he left. Rory turned around and, like the horror movie character that he is, there stood David (Rory's future husband rolls around laughing).
The next day things between Rory and David were beyond tense. Rory had tried to talk to David the night before but he had just said, "Go to sleep, Rory." Lorelai had remarked on the tension, but instead of telling her why Rory just let her continue to think it was because of movie night and dinner with the grandparents. Rory, meanwhile, was all tied in knots. She knew that David had a reasonable reason to be mad at her, and she knew she didn't want him to be mad at her. She was marrying him. But everytime she thought about marrying David or why they needed to patch things up it seemed to be because her mom or grandparents would want her to. She had to take a pause when she realized that she never thought of her feelings for David. After all, he was never even around. Marriage to him would be more of a name thing. Although she would keep the Gilmore because of the magazine... So it wouldn't even be a name thing. But they would move in together. She wasn't sure why that didn't seem more excited. Probably because David hated her shaggy white couch, but she loved her shaggy white couch, so if they moved in together they would move into his place, and he wouldn't want her shaggy white couch. Vaguely she realized that she couldn't reject a marriage over a pice of furniture. And she liked David's mother. She was a very elegant woman, her reddish hair always perfect, she was always dressed nice, and she had the cutest little Maltese dog that Rory had ever seen. She was considering breeding her, and she said that she would give David and Rory one of the puppies.
Rory frowned, realizing she couldn't decide whether to marry someone or not based on puppies and couches.
"Hey," Lorelai said, entering the kitchen. Then she frowned. "What are you doing?"
Rory looked down at the strainer in the sink. "Cooking."
Lorelai just stared. "Uh... why?"
"Because I learned how to make this really good... pasta thing... with chicken... I don't know, I forgot what it's called, but it's really good. I just thought I'd try to make some."
Lorelai tilted her head sympathetically. "Are things really bad between you and David?"
"I don't really want to talk about that right now," Rory stated as she poured the nodles into another bowl.
Lorelai sighed. "I guess movie night wasn't such a good idea."
"He loved me," Rory blurted.
Lorelai frowned. "Well, honey, I'm sure David still loves you, he's just mad at you. Fights happen."
"No, not David, Jess. Jess loved me. That's why he left. He loved me and instead of telling me he left, and he told me last night and that's why David hates me."
"Whoa, back up." Lorelai shook her head. "What are you talking about? When did Jess say this?"
"Last night."
"Whoa, okay..."
"And he left and David was standing right there. I don't know what I want anymore." Rory shook her head. "What am I doing? I can't cook. I wasted noodles. I just did an article about the starving children in Africa and here I am wasting noodles."
"Rory, honey, it's just a box of noodles."
"The children in Africa would not feel that way."
"Well, we'll give them to Sookie and they will not be wasted."
"Really? Good," Rory said. "I need to.. get some air or.. something."
"Okay," Lorelai said with a nod.
Rory pushed her hair behind her ear and walked out of the kitchen and out of the house.
Rory was walking toward the Dragonfly, trying to keep her distance. She drifted away by the footbridge, then she decided to go to the Dragonfly to check on the horses. She finally ran out of excuses to be near the Dragonfly, so she went back to the footbridge and stayed there. She was there for about 20 minutes before Jess finally came there.
"Hey," he said, sitting down beside her.
She smiled slightly and looked over at him. "Hey."
"Bring a picnic basket?" he asked with a smile.
She shook her head. "No. I was attempting to cook before I left, but then I remembered that I can't cook. I've tried to make it three times, and the first time I burned the noodles because I was making notes and forgot about them, then I cooked them too long and they were mushy, and the third time I undercooked them. After that I vowed to never attempt to cook noodles again."
He nodded. "Seems like a wise decision."
"I thought so."
He nodded. There was a small silence, and then he said, "I need to get back to California."
She was surprised that she felt a pull in her heart when he said that. "Right. You have... things waiting for you there."
He nodded. "Yeah."
"Work... girlfriend."
"No, no girlfriend, but lots of work. The CEO position has a lot of responsibilites. Who knew?" he asked jokingly.
"How did you get to be a CEO? I have to admit I never expected it. You didn't even want to go to college."
He sighed. "Long story."
"I have some time."
"Well, I went to California," he began.
"I remember," she murmured, looking out at the water.
He nodded. "Right. Well, I went there, I met my dad, and I stayed with him for a couple weeks until I got a job. I actually got a job at a bookstore, and the owner of the little bookstore was named Carl. He was old and he loved books as much as I do. So I mostly worked with him or alone. Well, I learned that Carl was only keeping the bookstore open because it had been his dad's and he didn't want it to close down. He had this really successful company and he was always working on stuff from there, papers, contracts, phone calls, and he would do all of that at the bookstore. He was never at the office. There wasn't a ton of business at the bookstore, so I would be doing nothing, and sometimes when he would bring the stuff he'd tell me what he was doing and I'd stick my nose in it. The longer I worked there the more I got into it and he told me I should take some college classes. I figured it couldn't hurt, so I started taking some classes. I ended up getting my bachelor's degree and I kept working at the bookstore. But then Carl died about a year and a half ago. He didn't have any kids because his wife couldn't have children, and even when she died he couldn't remarry because he was too much in love with her. He didn't really have any family left, just a niece in Montana. So, much to everyone's surprise, he left the company in my hands, he just asked that I keep the bookstore open."
Rory gaped at him. "Wow. That's... a very unique story."
He shrugged and smirked. "I'm a very unique man, what did you expect?"
"I'm sorry about Carl."
He sighed. "Yeah, so was I. He played the role of father better than my real one."
"You went from working at a bookstore to owning your own company?"
He gave her a lopsided grin. "Rags to riches, right? I don't know. Carl seemed to think there was something good in me," he said with a shrug.
"Of course there is," she replied. "Wasn't it a lot to handle though?"
He nodded. "Yeah. The first few months I have to admit I wasn't all that grateful for it. I mean, I did most of it with him, but on a small scale. Taking over the whole business... I didn't sleep for two weeks."
"I'll bet," she said sympathetically. "So, the company's in California?"
"One of the offices. My sister won't let me leave without her, and I don't have any reason to move, so..."
Her eyes widened. "You have a sister?"
"Well, a step-sister. Her name's Lily, she's Jimmy's step daughter. I have a brother, too. Half brother. When Jimmy and Sasha finally got married they had one. I don't think either one of them really want me to leave," he said.
She smiled. "That's so cute. I never pictured you as a brother."
"I didn't either, but I didn't see myself as a businessman either. I guess life really does hold a lot of surprises, doesn't it?"
Her smile turned into a small frown. "Yeah."
"So, what about you?"
"What about me?" she asked.
"What have you been up to?"
"Well... nothing quite so unique. Um, I have a half sister now, but I never see her, and I have Will. Uh, I went to Yale and got a job at a magazine, and while it isn't the New York Times I do get get to write about sort of important... news type... stuff."
He nodded. "You got engaged."
"Yeah... Well, I was. I don't know... Stars Hollow seemed to destroy our relationship actually."
"So the town is good for something then?"
She raised her eyebrows. "You helped. You had to make me feel all friendly to you and not hate you and then last night... and David was standing in the hallway watching me, and, well, you're smart, take a guess at how that made him feel."
He grimaced. "Oops."
"Yeah, so... I have a really tiny apartment in New York, and some people probably wouldn't love it, but I have the most comfortable couch."
"I haven't found one of those yet," he remarked.
"My couch is heaven," she said with a nod. "It's big and soft and you can just curl up with a blanket and a book and..." She smiled. "It's perfect."
"Does it swallow the living room?"
"Completely. You can barely walk in it."
He nodded. "My mom had one of those. Then again I guess the small spaces in New York probably have something to do with that."
"Yeah. My one friend is an art dealer and her apartment is big enough for a couch and a coffee table."
"Wow, a nice one then?"
Rory smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Have you been back to New York?"
"Yeah. I have a place there, but... I mostly stay in California because I run the LA offices."
"Have you seen your mom?"
"No. Luke told me she has some new boyfriend or something though."
Rory nodded. "T.J. is his name. I got to meet her."
"Really?"
She smiled and nodded. "But that was kind of awkward. It was worth it to see Luke stammer, but the whole, 'Yeah, this is Jess' ex-girlfriend' thing..."
"Uncomfortable?"
"Very. But we got over it and then everything was... nice." She frowned slightly. "So, what's your place in New York like?"
"Big for New York. It's three bedrooms, but the second bedroom is more like a library with a bed in the middle. I was telling Lily about it, and she wanted to go with me and see it, but I haven't been back since."
"Really? Was it Carl's or...?"
"Yeah," he said with a nod.
"Oh." She folded her hands in her lap and looked out at the water.
He took a breath and leaned back. "Read any good books lately?"
She smiled and leaned back. "Yeah. I was reading some Ayn Rand on the way here."
"I'm sorry, you must not have heard me right, I said good books."
"Oh, I forgot to tell you."
"What?"
"I need you to make me more notes."
"What?"
"Somebody stole my copy of September Blackberries, the one you made notes in after Howl, and I bought another one, but obviously there aren't any notes in it."
"I thought I vandalized your book."
She smiled. "Maybe, but I'm used to my vandalized books and I can't read Free Creatures without your notes." She shrugged. "It just isn't a complete reading experience."
"Okay, I'll just move back my telephone conference in London and make notes in your book."
She blushed. "I meant when you have time."
"I'm just joking with you. London can wait, Michael McClure obviously can't."
She smiled. "Obviously not."
Jess frowned and wiped a drop of water off his face. "Uh oh."
"What?"
"I think we're about to get wet."
"Oh no, I didn't bring my umbrella."
"Come on, we better get out of here."
The rain started coming instantly and it was pouring.
"Aw, man," Rory said. "See, this happened to me my first day in New York and I always carried an umbrella with me, but I didn't-" She stopped talking and looked up at Jess as he held his jacket over her head. "What are you doing?"
"Keeping you dry. Walk faster."
She smiled. "Why, is the rain messing with your hair?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to get wet? Because I could move this jacket."
She scowled at him and grabbed the jacket. "Don't even think about it, mister."
They got to the inn because it was closer, and Jess was drenched while Rory was mysteriously dry except for a few wet pieces of hair.
"Aw, " Rory said. "The drowned look is very nice on you."
"Yes, and the dry brat look works for you."
She smiled. "I may be a brat, but I'm dry and you're not."
"I'm going to change, I will be right back," he said, grabbing some clothes out of his suitcase and walking into the bathroom. Rory just smiled and shook her head, pulling her hair back off her neck. She sat down on Jess' bed and bounced slightly. "The bed's comfortable," she called.
"I know," he called back.
She climbed up on the bed more and laid down, looking up at the ceiling. "My bed isn't this comfortable. Is your bed this comfortable?"
"I have a comfortable bed, yes. If you're ever in California give me a call and you can try it out."
"Punk," she called back.
"Thank you," he replied.
She smiled and looked over at the black T-shirt on the pillow. She peeked to make sure he wasn't coming and then she picked it up and smelled it, breathing in his scent. She sighed and fell back on the pillow. She never smelled David's clothes. She didn't care about David's scent. It was a cologne scent, that bought from a bottle scent. Jess didn't have a bottled scent, his scent belonged to him and him alone.
"You don't wear cologne, do you?" she called to the bathroom.
"No. Should I?"
"No, I was just asking."
"No. I tried once, but Lily thought it was stupid and told me never to do it again, and Lily took after her mom in that she always knows best."
"You're close to her, huh?"
He opened the bathroom door and came out, running his fingers through his damp hair. "Yeah. She's cool. You tend to forget she's young."
"How old is she?"
"She's 17 now. Boys are starting to acknowledge her, and I admit that I don't really like it."
Rory smiled. "Chill out, she's 17. I was 17 when I dated you."
"Exaclty," he said. "Obviously 17- and 18-year-old boys are up to no good."
"They're not all like you."
"Well, they're either like me or Dean, and I would send her to a secluded island before I would let her date one of them. I think I'm judging the one kid unfairly because he reminds me so much of Dean. He has really floppy hair and he's as dumb as a post. The other one has an eyebrow piercing and a tattoo, and I just don't think he's quite right for Lily."
She grinned. "That is so cute. you're protective."
He shot her a look. "I'm attatched to the kid, I just don't want to see her with a loser or an idiot."
"So, who gets the Jess Mariano stamp of approval?"
He shrugged. "Haven't met him yet, but he's not in California."
"So she can never date or get married?"
"Nope. She can read. Reading is good."
"Get real, Jess. She's going to date someone, probably the one with the tattoo, they will date, fall in love, have fun, break up and she'll marry someone else."
"Like us?"
Suddenly the light mood left. "Well... They're not us, so I'm sure that will... turn out better."
"Like maybe he won't be an idiot and leave?"
She nodded. "Yeah, maybe. Or if he thinks about leaving maybe he'll at least tell her why first so she can tell him she feels the same way. Maybe if he doesn't leave without a single word it would turn out better."
"Seems like a stupid thing to do, doesn't it?"
"Very stupid. She would just be left wondering why he left the way he did, why he left at all, why he didn't just tell her how he felt instead of writing her a letter and going to the other side of the country."
"Maybe he wanted to and he chickened out," Jess said quietly.
She looked over at him. "Oh... It just didn't seem like something he would do."
"He was afraid. He had never felt anything like that before. Love can be... scary, especially when you don't have any experience with it."
She glanced at her hands. "I guess that's true."
He nodded. "He would take it back if he could."
"Then he wouldn't be a successful CEO," she pointed out.
"He would still take it back," Jess stated.
Rory folded her arms across her chest and looked at the floor. "So would she," she said quietly.
She turned her head to look at him, and since he was also looking at her they seemed to get a lot closer. She leaned in unconsciously and he leaned in to meet her, cupping her face in his hands and he leaned in and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned back, pulling him on top of her. Rory's hands wandered down to the hem of his T-shirt and she pulled it up, and he helped her get it off. She kissed his neck and then met his lips again. Next he went for her shirt, then she started working on the slacks he had put on.
"You really should have worn sweat pants," she muttered.
"I'll remember that," he said.
She finally got them undone and she smiled up at him. He smiled back and crushed his lips to hers.
Rory drew idle circels on Jess' chest. "The sheets are nice, too."
"I like the sheets," he said
She glanced up at him. "I think I'm not a good person."
He frowned. "Why?"
"Because I should feel guilty right now, and I don't, and obviously any good person would feel guilty."
"You should not feel guilty," he said.
"I'm in a relationship with someone who isn't you, yet here I am, in bed with you."
"You're not married."
"I know, but we were heading there." She looked back down at his chest and continued to trace circles with her finger.
"By the way, this has nothing really to do with what you were saying, but it is sort of important."
"What?" she asked, glancing up at him.
"Are you on birth control?"
She blushed and looked down again, shaking her head. "No."
"Huh," he said with a nod. "Well, I didn't either, so I may have taken a head start on getting those little Jesses to torture Lorelai."
Her eyes widened slightly and she touched her stomach with her free hand. She wasn't horrified by the thought as she should have been. In fact, judging by the little jump in her stomach, she wouldn't be at all opposed to it. Even if he was going back to California and she would have to do it alone.
"Well, that's okay," she said. "I mean, my mom raised me and she did fine. So it's not like I couldn't do it. If she could I could. So if that did happen it would be fine. My grandparents probably wouldn't be overly pleased, I don't think they really wanted me to follow in my mother's footsteps. But I am older, so maybe it wouldn't be a big deal. And my mom wouldn't love you, but she doesn't right now, so I'm sure she would get over it. But, yeah, so... no big deal," she rambled.
"Are you done?"
"With what?"
"The inane babbling?"
"Yes, I believe I am."
"Good. However, if you think I'm going to bow out peacefully you're out of your mind. If there is a little Jess in there," he said, patting her stomach, "he's as much mine as he is yours."
"You'll be in California, my job is in New York, how do we share, send it from one end of the country to the other every other week?"
"It would probably be easier if we were in the same place. The choice is yours. You can come to California or I could go to New York."
She stared at him. "What are you talking about?"
"One of us has to relocate. It would he too hard to have a relationship on opposite ends of the country. I have to make some calls if you want me to go to New York though, because I'd have to move the guy in New York to Californa, tie up loose ends, show his what to do, change some of my duties and phone numbers and things like that to New York... it would probably be easier if you moved."
"A relationship?"
"Yeah."
"You want to have a relationship?"
He raised his eyebrows. "Of course."
"Oh. Really?"
"Of course." He smirked. "After all, there might not be a little Jess in there, and never say that I give up so easily."
She smiled. "You would try to remedy that?"
"Of course," he said, kissing her briefly. "It might take a lot of trying..." he said, raising his eyebrows.
"A big sacrifice for you, I'm sure."
"Oh, huge. But I'm very dedicated to my cause."
She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck as he kissed her. Then he stoppped, said, "Oh," and pulled back.
"What are you doing?" she asked as he grabbed her hand.
"Taking this hideous thing off your hand," he said, pulling her ring off.
"I'm gonna need that back," she stated.
"To give back to him?" Jess said, to make sure.
She stifled a smile and looked up innocently. "I don't know. I might need a little convincing..."
He gave her one of his lopsided grin. "I'm very good at the convincing."
She smiled and pulled his face down to hers again, giving him another passionate kiss.
A/N: Okay, I have to say I seriously considered letting it hang at the scene where they were taking each other's clothes off. I really did. But that would be mean, and I was mean enough by waiting to update this long, so I threw in a little more Literatiness. I also considered dragging them getting together out and making her be "engaged" for a million and a half years, but that would also be mean, and rather nauseating, so instead I threw together a rain storm and some Lit chemistry (hopefully) and here we are. I dislike David entirely too much to let him have something Jess wants. I like for Jess to have what he wants. If I ruled the world Jess would be real and the king of it and he would have everything he wanted. He would be spoiled, but that's okay. He gorgeous, and why not spoiled the handsome one?
I had dreams about Milo and The WB all night last night. I saw his new Bedford Diaries image campaign thing but an extended version, and words kept going across the screen.. or my head... whatever. It was weird, but Milo was there, so I have no complaints! )
Anyhoo, I know I don't deserve it, but I would very much love the feedback, and if not for me, do it for Jess. points to Jess He wants you to review and tell me what you thought of this chapter. Really, he does. And I promise not to do the ridiculous updating thing. Like I said, Jin's coming to see me, so I won't be able to update then, but maybe I'll type up a chapter before she gets here, or at least some. If I finish then I can update while she's here, because obviously it only takes a minute to upload it to the site. Anyhoo, once again, sorry I took so long to update, but I finally threw Rory and Jess together, so that helps you forgive me, right? I hope I didn't rush it. I know this is the ninth chapter, but... yeah. Anyhoo, thanks so much to my faithful reviewers. It was, in the end, the terrible guilt of not updating that made me update. And I'm sorry I haven't finished any of my stories. I will finish this one soonish, I promise. It won't be another stupid year. I will update again. I'm already working on it. And I watched Here Comes the Son last night, so I'm still sort of in half Gilmore mood and I'll watch some more of my season two and three DVDs later and get more in the mood, and hopefully I'll write another chapter.