Author's Note: Thanks for sticking with this story as we get to the home stretch. Reviews are appreciated and encouraged:)

Chapter 20
"Peaches and Lies"

"So you know what I love the most about you living here?" Lorelai asked she entered the kitchen and smelled a delicious breakfast awaiting her.

"The house always smells of bacon?" Luke asked as he slipped pancakes on a plate before setting it down on the kitchen table.

"Close," Lorelai dismissed his answer. "No, really, I love that I wake up with absolutely no covers because they're all on your side of the bed. The least you could do is cover me up when you leave." Lorelai picked a piece of bacon off her plate and bite into it carelessly with a grin.

"I steal the covers?" Luke asked aghast. "Please, I start the night with half a sheet, which is eventually pulled completely off me until you decide that you're too cold and then I get all the bedding heaped on me until you get hot again."

Luke was starting to get in serious rant mode until her saw Lorelai grinning happily while he went on. "You're mocking me?" he said.

"Not at all," she said leaning over and giving him a peck on the cheek.

It had been about three weeks since Luke got completely settled in at Lorelai's and even he had to admit that things seemed to be going quite well. He thought melding their lives would be difficult, but it was almost effortless. Yes, there was The Great Plate Debate when he moved his kitchen supplies in—Lorelai couldn't bear to part with Charlie's Angels and Luke refused to eat dinner off the face of a 70's bombshell—but other than that, things seemed to be going very smoothly.

Luke was surprised by how easy living together seemed to be. In fact, he had begun to seriously think about making their union legal, but he knew that could never happen while Rory and Lorelai were estranged. He wouldn't feel right about proposing to Lorelai when her daughter, and best friend, wasn't in the picture. He knew he had to bide his time although he was getting a little impatient.

"So, I saw Rory yesterday," Lorelai said casually as she took a bite of bacon.

"You saw Rory?" Luke asked surprised. "Why didn't you say anything last night?"

"It was late when you got in," Lorelai said simply.

"I wasn't ready to share it last night," Luke heard her reply. He knew her too well. Although Lorelai seemed like a whirling dervish of change, she, in fact, didn't take well to change and always needed time to process what was happening.

"So, how was she?"

"She was on the side of the road picking up trash in Manning Park," Lorelai reminded him.

"Aside from that, is she doing okay? Did she give any thought to school?"

"It doesn't seem like it."

"So it didn't go well?" Luke asked hoping that they had made some sort of inroads.

"Well it didn't end in shouting and tears so I guess we could chalk this one up in the positive column," Lorelai said. "But I don't think she wants anything to do with going back to school."

Luke nodded. "She didn't seem open to it at all?"

"Not really," Lorelai said stabbing at her pancakes. "I invited her to the peach festival."

"That was nice," Luke said taking a seat next to her at the table. "Do you think she'll come?"

"I honestly have no idea," Lorelai replied suddenly pushing her plate forward.

Luke really didn't know what to say anymore. He kept reassuring Lorelai that things would get better, but that was only because he couldn't honestly comprehend it getting much worse between them. Luke was unaccustomed to seeing Lorelai and Rory at odds like this. He, above all people, knew that Lorelai could be stubborn and hold a grudge, but he never imagined that it would affect her relationship with Rory. He also knew that Rory dropping out of school and turning to Emily and Richard for help had crushed Lorelai more than she cared to admit. He just didn't know what to do or say to make things better.

"Well," Lorelai sighed as she stood up and squeezed his hand. "I have to get going. We've got that historical society coming to the inn today. Will you be home later or are you closing?"

"I told Caesar he could have the night off so I'll be home late," Luke replied.

"Okay, well I'll see you later then," Lorelai said walking out of the kitchen.

Luke surveyed the half-eaten breakfast he'd made her and sighed. He had tried, in vain it seemed, to get Rory and Lorelai talking again. It wasn't until that moment that he realized he had no control and no say over what happened next between them. He only had control over one aspect of his life and as soon as Lorelai left for work he was going to take charge of it the best way he knew how.

"Ace?" Rory heard Logan's voice faintly. "Are you okay?"

Rory threw back the covers of her bed and stared blankly around the room. She was in the pool house still dressed in her clothes from the previous day. She blinked a few times to clear her head and she began to remember returning home from her community service and going straight to sleep. It was more of attempt to hide from her realization about school than anything else. If she was unconscious then she wouldn't have to face reality.

"I've been trying to call you all night," Logan said perching on her bed. "Are you sick?"

"No," Rory said clearing her throat.

"What's wrong then?"

"Nothing," Rory said sitting up. "I came home and went to sleep."

"I don't buy it," Logan insisted. "What's wrong? You don't look so good."

"Well thank you so much," Rory said tossing her legs out from under the covers. She walked over to her desk and picked up a clip and she quickly pulled her hair back before rubbing her face.

Logan followed her and placed his hands on her arms. "What's wrong?" he asked again.

"Nothing is wrong. I was tired, that's it," Rory replied irritated. She wasn't yet sure what she thought about school. The realization that she might be making a mistake hit her hard, but she wasn't ready to talk about it. She wanted some time to think about things herself before she voiced her concerns to anyone.

"You were just tired so you came home at 7 o'clock and slept until," he checked his watch, "one o'clock the next day?" he said unconvinced.

"Community service is a lot more work than you'd think," Rory replied as she walked out of the room and over to the kitchen.

"Rory," Logan said warningly.

"Logan," she replied.

"Fine," he said. "You're fine? I'm fine. But if you decide you want to talk about whatever it is that's bothering you, you let me know"

"I will," Rory lied as she started the coffee pot. "So you were looking for me?"

"I haven't seen you in a while," he said. "I thought we needed some quality time. What are you up to today?"

"Uh, well I have community service in about two hours," Rory said.

"Again? Everyday is community service day," Logan whined.

"I've got 500 hours to complete by November. But, I guess you wouldn't know what that's about because you've never had to worry about being punished for your antics," Rory snapped at him immediately regretting it.

"Hey I told you to use my lawyer, but you refused. Don't blame your community service on me," Logan defended himself.

"I'm not," Rory sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just not in the greatest of moods."

"Is this because of your mother? You mentioned that you saw on the side of the road yesterday during our brief conversation."

"No. I mean, seeing her didn't help things, but I'm not mad about anything," Rory insisted. "I'm just really busy with work and community service and the way things are with my Mom. Maybe it's all catching up to me."

"Maybe," Logan replied unconvinced. "So when are we going out to celebrate your freedom from school?"

"Uh, what?" Rory tried not to let her tone sound irritated or upset and she wasn't sure if she succeeded.

"Well school starts in about two weeks," Logan began. "I thought you might want to celebrate your freedom from academia. It'll be the first time since Kindergarten that you don't have to worry about going back to school, at least for a semester anyway."

"What does that mean?" Rory questioned him.

"Well, you said you were taking some time off from Yale," Logan explained as he sank into the couch. "Taking time off in college is a minimum of a semester. Just think, sixteen weeks to do what you want, when you want with no deadlines to worry about."

Rory thought about what he'd said and that sick feeling washed over again. The realization of taking time off had finally hit her. Everyone else would be going back to school and where would Rory be? Cleaning a park? Filing briefs in a law firm? Suddenly the notion seemed far less romantic than it originally had when she declared time off was what she needed.

"Yeah," she forced a smile.

"So, tonight is out, what about this weekend?" Logan continued the conversation slightly oblivious to Rory's expression.

"Actually, my Mom was telling me about the Stars Hollow Peach Festival," Rory said walking over to the couch and taking a seat next to him. "I was thinking maybe we could go check it out."

"A Peach Festival? Like peach cobbler, the Peach Queen and peach punch?" Logan asked.

"Kind of," Rory said feeling somewhat nostalgic for Stars Hollow. "Except Taylor has all these weird contests like bobbing for peaches, pin the peach on the tree, it's quite a spectacle."

"It sounds like it," Logan agreed. He really had no interest in attending a peach festival. He was more in the mood for a bar or a club, but he saw how Rory's face seemed to soften when she talked about the festival and he relented. "Okay Ace, let's go."

"Really?" Rory asked.

"Sure," Logan said. "Although bobbing for peaches sounds disgusting I don't think I can say I've seen it all until I go to the Stars Hollow Peach Festival."

"Oh, believe me, Kirk singing the Ode to Peaches is worth it," Rory snickered.

"Seriously?" Logan asked wide-eyed.

"Last year it was an operetta, but there's been talk of him remixing the tune to progressive rock."

"That I have to hear," Logan replied. After a moment he added, "You know you'll probably run into your Mom there."

"Maybe," Rory sighed. "I don't think it'll be so bad though."

"Okay. If you're game then so am I," Logan said.

"You won't be sorry," Rory smiled in reply.

Lorelai returned home to find an empty house. She knew that Luke said he'd be home late, but she somehow felt like the house was a lot lonelier without him there. She had gotten used to his presence in the house over the last few weeks and she was unaccustomed to returning home to a quiet house.

She tossed her purse on the coffee table and sunk into the couch as she turned on the television. She flipped the channels quickly and with no particular television program in mind when she came across The Godfather on one of the movie channels. She hadn't watched the movie since Rory was home for a long weekend in the spring. Like a car accident that she couldn't quite tear her eyes from, she continued to watch the film. The emotions of Rory's absence seemed fresher than before and Lorelai found herself crying in parts where she normally laughed.

She made it through the end of the movie and blew her nose quickly as she heard Luke's key jingle in the door. She sniffed and rubbed her eyes quickly hoping that the tear stains were almost dry.

"Hey, you're still up," Luke said as he walked into the living room. He hadn't expected her to be up and he hung back toward the wall slightly.

"Yeah," Lorelai replied turning to see him. "I got sucked into a movie."

"Not the Life of Brian again?" Luke asked. Lorelai had been on a Monty Python bender as of late and he was beginning to think it was an addiction.

"No," she chuckled. "The Godfather."

"Why is it that when I'm forced to watch a movie on TV with you it's always something weird like Harold and Maude, but when you're alone, it's The Godfather?"

"You're just lucky I guess," Lorelai said noticing that Luke was keeping his distance from the couch. "So are you holding up that wall or what?"

Luke shifted slighted and took a second to think before joining Lorelai on the couch.

"Gee, thanks for making it look like I didn't have to twist your arm to get you over here," Lorelai said suddenly feeling a chilly reception.

"I didn't mean to make it seem like that," Luke said giving her a light peck on the cheek. "I was debating on whether going straight to bed was a better option-"

"Than spending a few moments with your beloved fiancée?" Lorelai cut him off pretending to be offended.

"Basically, yes," Luke replied playfully.

"Thanks," Lorelai said wryly.

"You're welcome," Luke replied.

"So you're tired?" Lorelai clarified.

"Actually yeah. It's been a slightly exhausting day," Luke replied.

"Well go to bed," Lorelai insisted. "We can catch up tomorrow. You are coming home early tomorrow right?"

"Your wish is my command," Luke said standing quickly. "You coming up?"

"In a few minutes," Lorelai replied. "I just like knowing you're here."

"And I'm not going anywhere," he said as he kissed her forehead gently. "Good night."

"Good night," Lorelai replied.

Luke made his way up the steps and rested his hand over the front pocket of his jeans. He felt the small square box in his pocket and made a mental note to leave it at the diner. He was glad Lorelai hadn't noticed it and he was grateful that she let him leave so quickly. Hiding the engagement ring he purchased that afternoon might prove to be tougher than he thought.

TBC