"Mom you need to come get me." Rory insisted into her cell phone.

"Hun there's an hour left of school. Can't you stick it out? This is a really bad say at the Inn; Michel made an old woman cry and now Sookie is hitting him with a spoon."

"Mom, I wouldn't ask if it weren't important." There was a long pause at the far end of the line.

"I'm on my way."

-

"You are one lucky little devil."

"Lane?" Rory asked her friend, sitting in the back of Lorelai's jeep. "What are you doing here?"

"Your mom picked me up. She told the principal that my mom had died."

"I'm not so sure you can keep that one a secret, Mom." Rory rubbed the last traces of tears from her face.

"Yeah, but the principal won't mind. He's always has a lil thing for me."

"Lorelai the principal is a girl." Lane said.

"Gee, then who the heck have I been talking to?"

Rory smiled. It was a great escape from her problems, so she let her two best friends fill her head with silliness.

When they reached Stars Hollow Lorelai dropped the girls off at Lukes.

"I wasn't kidding about the Inn, otherwise I'd stay. I had to tie up Sookie with a spoon, and the crying lady thinks I went to make her tea."

"For 45 minutes?" Lane asked.

"She's old, I'll just tell her she already drank it and forgot."

"Good luck, Mom," Rory said, and followed Lane into the diner.

"So tell me, my genius friend, why you look like someone put you through the wash and hung you out to dry."

"Do I look that bad?" Rory winced.

"No changing the subject! Spill."

Rory recounted the tale of Tristan, of Dean, and of the day's battles. Lane oohed and ahhed, but when Rory finished she was shaking her head in disdain.

"Ror, you are an idiot." Rory scoffed.

"Wha--!"

"You obviously like him."

"Yeah..."

"And he obviously likes you."

"Well yeah..."

"And Dean is a jealous, inconsiderate fool who has somehow gotten into your head, despite the fact that you and him should have been over ages before you did."

"So?"

"So, have you heard the new Ima Robot single?"

"What?"

"It rocks pretty hard, even if technically I suppose it's trashy techno punk."

"Lane."

"Look Rory, the answer to your whole boy problem is so simple it's ridiculous. Sleep on it, I'm sure you'll get it."

"Boy problem? Who is it? If it's Dean I swear I'll kill him," Luke came over to the counter.

"No Luke, not that kind of problem." Lane expounded.

"Do I want to know?" he asked, raising one eyebrow.

"Luke can we have two coffees please?" Rory asked sweetly. Luke rolled his eyes, shaking his head in disapproval even as he poured the cups.

"It's bad enough when your mother drinks this, but you're way too young."

"Thanks Luke," Lane smiled, and he walked away muttering about the evils of caffeine.