A/N- Hey, everybody! Thank you so much for all of your great reviews... They make me blush :)... but seriously, I'm really glad you like it, so I'm forging ahead... hope you like this new chapter...
A/N 2- Questions are answered here- Chris will make an appearance- very soon, as a matter of fact. As will Jess... The rest of it wasn't so much questions as reading my mind... Seriously, sometimes I think I should leave the story-writing to you guys, because you either know my ideas beforehand or you give me great ones! Thanks so much!
Age Four
She sighed as she read the date. September 23rd. She couldn't believe that the day had finally come for her boys to grow up. The next morning, they would be off to kindergarten, and she would start work at the Newport group with her father. All Newport kids go to kindergarten. And they're the youngest in their class. They won't be five until next month. She reminded herself. If they don't go they'll be outcasts. I'm not going to lose them. I'm going to pick them up tomorrow at 3:30, everything will be fine, they'll come home, play a game, have dinner, and go to sleep safe and sound in their rooms. She knew she was convincing herself rather than the boys as she crossed off the day on her calendar.
The next morning, she felt herself moving, bouncing on top of the bed. She blinked sleepily at the clock that shone 6:37 maliciously. She groaned as she propped herself on her elbows, coming face-to-face with Seth and Ryan, jumping excitedly on the bed.
"Mommy, Daddy! Wake up!" Ryan's voice shook from his bouncing on the bed.
"It's time to go to school!" Seth added, jumping next to his brother. Kirsten and Sandy looked at each other, deciding it was best to get up now and get ready to go. They pulled the blankets off of themselves, and stood up, Sandy taking Ryan in his arms, and Kirsten catching Seth, who launched off the bed into her arms. They escorted the boys to their room (no matter how independent they wanted to be, they still couldn't deal with sleeping in a separate room from their brother), and allowed them to pick out their outfits. Kirsten and Sandy leaned against the dresser, Kirsten becoming teary-eyed as she watched her two babies get ready for their first day of school. Sandy, noticing her fogginess, squeezed her encouragingly and kissed her temple.
"Ok, boys. Do you have clothes picked out?"
"Yeah, daddy," Ryan answered absent-mindedly, shoving the unwanted t-shirts back into his drawer.
"Oh, Ry, don't shove the shirts in there like that! They'll get all wrinkled!" Kirsten laughed; she couldn't be mad at the boys now.
"Mommy, daddy, I picked out my outfit," Seth announced, pulling out a new Power Rangers shirt and a pair of jeans. His parents gave him the ok as Ryan pulled out his own outfit,
"Me too!" Kirsten and Sandy approved of his navy polo shirt and khaki pants and both boys proceeded to get dressed.
"Ok, I'm going to go..." Kirsten started, but Seth interrupted, anticipating what she was going to say,
"Mommy, could you let daddy cook breakfast today?"
"What?"
"Yeah, mommy. It's our first day of school. We don't want cereal," Ryan added.
"Boys, it just so happens that I was going to cook you waffles with strawberries and powdered sugar."
"Yeah, but you always try to cook us that, then you get frustrated and give up," Seth pointed out.
"And I don't want Cap'n Crunch today," Continued Ryan. Kirsten laughed in disbelief; Sandy laughed in amusement.
"I was going to say I'm going to go take a shower. But maybe now I WILL cook breakfast. Just to make sure you guys have cereal!" Both boys knew she was kidding, and they giggled in reaction, "Oh, you think it's funny, do you?" She laughed and captured them both in her arms, tickling them until their cheeks were red and tear-stained from laughter, then kissing them each on the cheek, allowing them to finish getting ready.
An hour later, stomachs were full, bodies were clothed, teeth were brushed, and the Cohen family was out the door. Kirsten and Sandy took their own cars to the kindergarten to drop off the boys, so they could each go to their respective jobs after leaving the boys at school.
Upon arriving at the school, the family congregated in the auditorium, as the letters they'd received instructed (each boy got individual letters, prompting Sandy to go on a rant about the wastefulness of modern society), and settled into a corner, huddled away from the Newpsies. They tried in vain to calm the hysterical boys from a fear that had set in in the car ride over; it seemed it became all too real for them.
"You'll make new friends!"
"I don't want to!"
"You'll play on the playground!"
"That's a dumb playground!"
"You have each other." The boys took solace in the fact that they had one another, as did Sandy and Kirsten; they knew each other better than most brothers, and the idea of being together calmed them down slightly. Suddenly, there was a tapping over the loudspeaker.
"Hello, parents and children, and welcome to the prestigious Harbor elementary school," A few people clapped, but Sandy and Kirsten were too preoccupied with the clinging Seth and Ryan to be polite and clap for unnecessary reasons. Dr. Larson, the principal, continued, "I recognize some of you from the Harbor Honeys Preschool. Hello, Summer! Hello, Luke! Hello, Marissa!" The woman paused, and, with less vigor in her voice, added, "Why, yes. Hello, Holly... Now, today is the first day for kindergarteners..." The woman continued for another five minutes, and Kirsten and Sandy fussed over the boys, showing them toys and snacks they'd placed in their bookbags, slowly getting the boys to whimper rather than sob. Suddenly, they heard Dr. Larson finish, "Now, if you'd all take your children to the lines, we will tell them their room assignments."
Sandy and Kirsten led Ryan and Seth to their line, with a folder at the end labeled "Last Names A-K". They stood directly behind Jimmy and Marissa Cooper, only able to engage in a quick conversation with him, as he was busily attempting to get Marissa to show any emotion about leaving Julie, rather than total indifference. They heard a stern-looking woman announce,
"Cooper, Marissa Ashley. Mrs. VanCamp's class. Room A-1." Watching Jimmy lead Marissa away, the Cohens collectively inhaled and stepped forward towards the stern-looking woman.
"Child's name?" She demanded.
"Cohen. Seth and Ryan." She glanced up at the boys, Ryan clinging tighter to his father. After rummaging through the files for a moment, she pulled out two folders, one which read "Cohen R", the other "Cohen S", with a room number and teacher name stamped on each.
"Cohen, Ryan Nicholas, Mrs. VanCamp, Room A-1." Kirsten bent to Seth and Ryan's eye level, reasoning with them,
"You hear that, boys, you're in Maris..." The stern-looking woman, however, promptly cut her off,
"Cohen, Seth Ezekiel, Miss King, Room A-3." Confused, Kirsten stood and turned to the woman,
"Excuse me?"
"Cohen, Seth Ezekiel, Miss King, Room A-3," The woman repeated impatiently.
"I'm sorry, I thought you said room A-1?" Kirsten questioned, peering at the folders.
"I did. One of your sons goes to room A-1. The other goes to room A-3." Kirsten was livid,
"What! You split up my boys! I need you to put Seth and Ryan in the same class. Move some other kids around. Put some kid who doesn't have a brother into a different class. I just need my boys together!"
The stern-looking woman quickly raised her hand, looking over the files sitting below her pointed nose. Seth and Ryan, who had understood the situation the minute the woman had said Seth was in room A-3, were crying hysterically, clinging to each other for all they were worth. Suddenly, a pleasant-looking woman appeared at their sides.
"Can I help you, ma'am?" The woman pulled the Cohens off to the side.
"Yes, I'm Kirsten Cohen. This is my husband, Sandy. I think there's been some mistake. Our sons aren't in the same class."
"Yes, ma'am. That's our policy at Harbor."
"Your policy?" Kirsten was incredulous, and she spun her head to glance at Sandy, who was tenderly comforting the boys.
"Yes, Mrs. Cohen. It is our policy to separate siblings from each other." Kirsten sat in stunned silence as the woman continued, "It's difficult for twins to separate, I know. They've been together since before they were born," Sandy and Kirsten looked at each other, deciding wordlessly to leave it alone as the woman rambled on, "We here at Harbor elementary feel it is best to set the children in an unfamiliar environment, make them socialize with other children. It's good preparation for the real world. Now, your boys..." She paused, waiting for Kirsten to fill in the blanks.
"Seth and Ryan."
"Seth and Ryan, who, I must tell you, are very handsome little boys, will be asked to go to their classes. If we have any problems throughout the day, we will call you or your contacts for discussion. Any questions?" Kirsten began to protest, but Sandy stood up, lifting the boys with him,
"No. Thank you very much for your time." The woman nodded politely and stalked away towards a little girl who had huddled herself under a table.
"Sandy! What are you thinking!"
"Maybe she's right. They do need to socialize with other kids. They need to learn there's other kids in the world."
"You think we should prepare them for the real world, too? They're four! Maybe they should teach them to add before they teach them to get a job, a house, and 4 kids each!"
"Honey, you know what I mean. You don't want the boys to grow up thinking they're each other's only source of friendship, do you? They're still best friends, they're still brothers; nothing changes that. It's just they'll have other friends now, if only for during the day. They come here, see these kids, go home, play together, eat dinner together, go to sleep in the same bedroom, wake up across the room from each other, have breakfast together. That's one out of a lot of things that does not involve them being together." Kirsten sighed, resigning to the idea,
"Fine." She took Seth out of Sandy's arms and the four Cohens walked to hallway between the two classrooms and put down the boys, bending down to their eye level.
"Ok, boys, you're going to go into your classes now. You excited to make new friends?" Sandy tried sounding cheerful.
"No, daddy! Don't leave us!" Seth cried, tears beginning to flow freely again.
"We'll be back later to get you, pal."
"Mommy, is it cuz we weren't listening the other day? We'll listen! We'll be good boys, we promise!" Ryan cried as fiercely as Seth had, his nose running, his eyes red.
"No, no, baby. Mommy's not mad at you!"
"Then why are you leaving us all alone?"
"I'm not, sweetheart. I'll be back later, and you can come home, and we can get Chinese food. How does that sound?"
"I don't want Chinese food, mommy! I wanna go home and spend the day with you!"
"Me too!" Kirsten began to soften and pulled the boys into a hug. Sandy noticed her weakened resolve and whispered to her,
"Don't give in. If they don't go now, they can be scarred for life." Kirsten wiped her tears dry and kissed both boys on top of their heads.
"Boys, I want to spend time with you, too."
"Then let us go home! We'll listen, we promise!"
"It's not that easy, sweetheart. Daddy and I have to go to our jobs. And you guys have to go to school. School is your job, ok? It'll be fun. Now, what Daddy and I want you to do is have fun, because the more fun you have, the faster time passes. Then, before you know it, I'll be here to pick you up, and we can go home, and we can play a game and watch a movie, and we can all eat dinner together. Ok?" Both boys nodded, defeated, but continued to cry and reached forward to hug their parents.
They dropped off Ryan first, as he would have Marissa to stay with, and would be a good role model for Seth. They put him down in his classroom near his teacher, who stated simply,
"Oh, someone has first day jitters! I'm Mrs. VanCamp, your teacher. What's your name?"
"Ry...an... Cohen." He managed to sniffle out.
"Well, Ryan, is this your mommy?" He nodded, "And this is your daddy?" another nod, "And this is your... brother?" He looked up at her hopefully and nodded, "Is your brother starting school today, too?" Yes or no questions seemed to suffice, and Ryan nodded once more, "He's in Miss King's class, isn't he?"
"Yeah," He managed to finally regain his voice, "Can my brother be in my class?"
"I don't think so, Ryan. Your brother has to be in his class. You'll see him before lunch, at recess, okay? Now, say goodbye to mommy, daddy, and... what's your brother's name?"
"Seth," he sniffled out, attempting to prevent himself from crying again.
"Okay, say goodbye to Seth." He looked down at his shoes and put his arms in the air for his parents to hold him. Kirsten picked him up and held him to her, reminding herself that her boys weren't leaving her, and neither was her mother, attempting to allay the nagging reminder that her mother could leave her at any moment, too. The terror had been in the back of her mind since the previous week when it had finally hit her that her boys were starting school.
"Bye, mommy."
"Bye, baby. I'll be back at 3:30, ok?" He nodded against her shoulder, adding,
"Don't be late."
"I won't. I promise."
"I love you, mommy."
"I love you, too, sweetheart." She kissed his head and passed him to Sandy, who held him tightly and kissed his temple.
"Ok, buddy. I need you to show me what a big boy you can be. You need to be a big boy for mommy, ok?"
"Ok, daddy." He put Ryan down and looked him straight in the eye,
"You scared?" Ryan nodded, and Sandy smiled, "Ok, then you know what we have to do." Ryan grinned sheepishly, and suddenly said,
"1, 2, 3..." He and Sandy began to shake their entire bodies. Once they finished, Sandy laughed and pulled Ryan into another hug.
"Did you do a good job shaking your scares out? You got them all?" Ryan nodded and whispered,
"Thank you, daddy. I love you."
"Anytime, pal. I love you, too." Sandy gave Ryan a last squeeze, kissed the crown of his head, and pulled away, allowing Seth and Ryan to hug each other.
"I love you, brother."
"I love you, too, brother." Kirsten became teary-eyed yet again; Seth and Ryan only called each other "brother" when they were truly scared and afraid that they were going to lose each other.
"Sethie, Ry, remember you're going to see each other at recess."
"Yeah, mommy. I'll see you at recess, Ryan."
"I'll see you at recess, Seth... Hey, Seth? I'm in here if you need me." Seth smiled, mouthed something that Kirsten and Sandy couldn't comprehend, though Ryan began to laugh hysterically. Deciding that it was time to go, Sandy and Kirsten blew their blonde son a kiss, reminded him they'd be back later once more, and led Seth out of the room. Kirsten inhaled and wiped away a tear,
"One down, one to go."
They led Seth into the room next door, and brought him to a little girl who they'd met once or twice before at the Coopers' house.
"Hi, you're Summer, right?" Sandy asked the little girl, who glanced up at him, gave him a half-smile, nodding, and looked back at the Play-doh she was busy with, "I'm Sandy Cohen. This is Kirsten. Do you remember Seth? You met him and his brother, Ryan, at Marissa's house once." She nodded again and suddenly cleared her things off of a seat next to her, an obvious invitation from 4-year-old to 4-year-old to sit and join her.
"Ok, buddy. You going to be ok?" Seth, surprisingly, smiled at his father,
"Yeah, daddy. I'll be ok."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah. I have Summer. And Ryan was a big boy- I can be a big boy, too." His smile still held a bit of fear, so Sandy asked him one more question,
"You wanna shake them out?" Seth looked at the floor, smiled nervously, and nodded,
"1,2,3..." He and Sandy began to shake themselves much as Sandy and Ryan had earlier, and both laughed when they were finished.
"Thank you, daddy."
"Hey, there's no one I'd rather shake my scares out with than you and your brother."
"I know, daddy. I love you."
"I love you, too, son." Kirsten, who was shocked by her son's bravery, allowed tears comprised of pride and worry to roll down her cheeks.
"Seth, baby, I'll be back..." Seth interrupted her,
"At 3:30. I got it, mommy. I know. Don't be worried. If Ryan can do it, so can I." She smiled through the tears and held him close to her,
"I love you, honey."
"I love you, too, mommy. I'll see you later."
"I'll see you later. Bye, baby." As they walked away, Kirsten and Sandy heard Summer's small voice ask,
"What did you and your daddy just do? When you shook, I mean."
"We were shaking our scares out."
"That's weird."
"I don't think so."
"Ew!" A pause, then a peace offering, "Wanna share my blue Play-doh?"
What seemed like ten hours later, Kirsten glanced at the clock in her new office for the 67th time- 12:23 pm. The hours had crept by, and she lifted her favorite picture of the boys- one where the boys had just gotten out of the bath. Both were wrapped in oversized towels, grinning feverishly next to the sink and mirror. Seth's normally bouncy brown curls looked almost black, matted to his head, and Ryan's usually bright blonde hair covered his eyebrows and crept towards his eyes, looking a bit darker from the water saturating it. She silently inhaled and sat back in her chair. This will get better. There's no way it can't.
When her phone rang, the first time that day, five minutes later, she hastily picked it up, startled by the noise.
"Hello?" She asked, fumbling to regain thought.
"Hello, Mrs. Cohen? This is Linda Mason, one of the assistant principals at Harbor Elementary School."
"Yes, yes. Is something the matter with Seth or Ryan?"
"Well, we had somewhat of an incident..." Kirsten interrupted with a quick,
"I'll be there shortly."
Fifteen minutes later, Kirsten streamed into the main office of Harbor Elementary.
"My boys, Seth and Ryan Cohen. Are they in here?" The receptionist rudely glared at Kirsten, then pointed to a room labeled "Kindergarten Office." Absently thanking the unconcerned woman, Kirsten walked briskly into the small, undecorated room. She found Seth and Ryan seated next to each other, dwarfed by oversized adult chairs. Ryan sat, occasionally sniffling, and Seth stared at his new Power Rangers shoes as she came up from behind them, throwing her arms around them. Startled, they both looked up into her concerned blue eyes.
"Mommy!" Ryan called as she knelt down in front of them, checking their faces for signs of hurt and wiping their cheeks dry from tears.
"Are you ok?" Both boys nodded and she continued, "Did you get hurt?" Two simultaneous head shakes prompted a third question, "Then what happened?" Suddenly, both boys became innately interested in their shoes, neither meeting Kirsten's gaze. Her only reaction she received was another sniffle from Ryan. Suddenly, the woman who had explained the reason the boys were split strode into the room.
"Ah, Mrs. Cohen. It's nice to see you again. Sorry it couldn't be under better circumstances."
"Ah, yes. Nice to see you, too. I'm sorry, I don't believe I caught your name before."
"I'm Ms. Henderson. Please, take a seat." Kirsten sat in a chair between Ryan and Seth and waited for Ms. Henderson to begin speaking again. "So, Mrs. Cohen, we seem to have had a problem with your boys."
"Yes, I've heard. What happened?"
"Well, it seems that Ryan went to speak to Seth, and Seth was with a group of friends. Apparently, they've formed some sort of a club, which Ryan was not allowed to join for some non-understandable reason. Seth said some rude things to his brother, I believe along the lines of name-calling, and Ryan was later found by his teacher, crying by the swings. When she asked him what had happened, he told her that his brother no longer loved him." Kirsten noticed how rehearsed that had sounded, but decided to look at Seth skeptically, rather than Ms. Henderson, who continued to talk, "Now, I believe, if it is possible, that it may be a good idea to allow the boys to go home now to give them time to cool off. Then, tomorrow, we can try again." Kirsten nodded, stood, thanked the woman for her time, and led the boys out of the room.
Upon arriving at home, Kirsten bid Seth and Ryan to the den to watch a video, and went to call her office, letting them know she wouldn't be in for the rest of the day. It wasn't the best way to end her first day, but her father would understand. She went to check on the boys, and found only Ryan sitting on the couch. Seth, she realized, hadn't said a word the entire car ride home, and must've banished himself to his room. She went upstairs to check on him, told him that she loved him, but that he'd have to talk to his daddy when he got home. She reminded him that he was welcome to join Ryan watching TV, but he merely shook his head and turned towards the wall, saddened by the day's events. She turned silently and went downstairs to spend time with Ryan, sitting on the couch and watching TV with him.
Kirsten looked at her watch as she heard the door open, and stood from her place in the kitchen, where she had been reading a magazine, to greet Sandy. She had called him earlier to inform him of the situation at hand, so he greeted her with a,
"How are they?"
"Seth's been up in his room all afternoon- he doesn't want to come down. Ryan's been quieter than usual, but he's still around- he's playing with his Power Rangers action figures."
"Alright, I'm going to go talk to Seth. I'll be back." First, however, he stopped for a pit stop with Ryan.
"Hey, buddy, how are you?"
"I'm ok, daddy."
"You're not sad?"
"A little."
"How come, pal?"
"Because Seth doesn't love me anymore."
"Oh, buddy-boy, of course Seth still loves you! Don't say that!" Ryan gave him a patronizing smile and said, with doubt in his voice,
"Ok, daddy."
"Pal, he's your brother. He could never not love you, ok? I'm going to go talk to him now, alright?" Ryan nodded, stood up, kissed his father on the cheek, and wandered into the kitchen, quietly announcing that he was hungry. Sandy climbed the stairs and entered Seth and Ryan's room, finding Seth laying on his back on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Hey, buddy."
"Hi, daddy." Seth didn't meet Sandy's gaze, and Sandy chose to get straight to the point.
"So, what happened today in school?"
"Did mommy tell you?"
"Yeah."
"Then why do you want me to tell you?"
"Because I want to hear your side of the story." Seth exhaled loudly, then allowed the words to spill out of his mouth.
"Well, I was trying to do what you wanted me to do- make friends. So, I was talking to that girl Summer, and this boy, Luke, who was her friend, walked up to her and started talking to her and me. So I started to play with them. Then, at recess, we were in our club- it was the Power Rangers club, and since I had Power Rangers on my shirt, I was in the club. Ryan came up to me to play, and Luke told me that Ryan couldn't be in the club because he wasn't wearing anything with the Power Rangers on them. All of us were wearing it, even Summer- she was wearing the pink ranger, and it would've messed us up. So I told Ryan he couldn't play with me and then Luke told me to call Ryan a doody-head or I wouldn't be his friend anymore, so I called Ryan a doody-head so they would still be my friends." At this point, Seth was out of breath, as was Sandy from simply listening to him. Wow. He thought Kindergarten is way more technical nowadays.
"Seth, pal," He paused to find the right words, "I'm glad that you're making new friends. And I know you want to play with them. That's fine. But you can't cut Ryan out of the loop. You're a great kid. You're funny, you're sweet, you'd make a great friend for anybody. You'll have hundreds of friends throughout the rest of your life. But Ryan is your only brother. He'll be your brother and your best friend for the rest of your life. As much as you like your new friends, none of them will take care of you the way Ryan does. And right now, your brother is downstairs thinking you don't love him anymore."
"That's not true!" Seth defended himself.
"Tell him, not me."
"Ok... Daddy?"
"Yeah, Seth?"
"I'm sorry..."
"Again, wrong person to tell."
They found Ryan in the kitchen, and Kirsten and Sandy stood in the corner, listening to the boys' conversation.
"Ryan?" Seth was nervous and not hiding it well.
"Yeah..."He couldn't bring himself to look Seth in the eye.
"Ry... I'm sorry," Ryan glanced up quickly, then back down at the cookie sitting in front of him. Seth continued, "You're my brother, and I just... I knew you'd love me either way. But Luke and Summer and... Holly, I guess... nobody likes her... I don't know why she's in our group... She's really annoying... She picks her nose..."
"Seth!" Sometimes it took Ryan to get Seth on track.
"Right, right. Sorry. So, I was just... you had Marissa and I didn't have any friends in my class and I really just wanted someone to play with at school... And I was scared Luke wouldn't be my friend if I wasn't mean to you. But I'm sorry. You're my brother and I love you and I don't ever wanna make you sad. Are you mad at me?" Ryan shook his head.
"No... I just thought you didn't want to be my brother anymore."
"No way! I have way more fun with you than I ever could with Summer or Luke!" Ryan smiled.
"Want a piece of my cookie?" Seth nodded, prompting Ryan to break the cookie in half.
That night, as Kirsten and Sandy walked past the boys' room fifteen minutes after putting them to bed, they heard them talking and decided to listen to the conversation.
"Ry, I'm sorry about today."
"It's ok... So, what's Luke really like?"
"Kinda mean. Wears a sweater-vest, which is weird. Definitely not as much fun as you."
"And Marissa's not as much fun as you."
"Night, Ryan."
"Night, Seth."
The next morning, Seth and Ryan woke bright and early. As they said goodbye to each other at school, tugging on their matching blue-and-green striped shirts, they hugged and whispered,
"See you at recess."
Lorelai stood next to Rory, admiring her daughter and herself in the mirror. They were at their old home in the Independence Inn, Rory in her flower girl's dress and Lorelai in her wedding dress. It was Luke and Lorelai's wedding day, and none of the members of the Danes-Gilmore family could contain their excitement. Rory had been bouncing around for the past week, telling all of her classmates in her kindergarten class that her mommy and daddy were getting married, prompting confused "But mommies and daddies are already married, aren't they?" from her classmates. Lorelai and Sookie had spent the week giddily making wedding preparations, having daily discussions about the menu in the kitchen now being run by Sookie.
"So, what's it like?"
"What's what like?"
"Everything... what's it like?"
"Sook, I need more details."
"Motherhood. Being in love. Getting married. Living with a man."
"Well, it's all weird. Motherhood is difficult. But I love Rory more than anything. Honestly, it's weird to have someone you'd literally do anything and everything for, even if it's just to make sure she's happy. And being in love is... great. It's just... every time I see him, my stomach just flips. I love him so much. And a lot of people say we're too young to be in love and getting married. But I've met these people. They were together for two and a half years, had no kids, didn't sleep in the same room, and broke up. They know love better than me? I don't think so. Getting married is bizarre. That's the only way to put it. And living with a man is... fun. He always makes me food and I love going to sleep next to him every night. I love that he's the last thing that I see every night. And in the morning, even if he has to get up and work in the diner, I can look right over and just... see the notes he leaves for me and the picture of the two of us."
"You know what's weird?"
"Us?"
"That too. Have you ever spoken to the other people our age?"
"Not so often."
"It's just- I speak to other people our age, and they talk about their best friend and how they went to a kegger last weekend and got drunk and slept with, like, five different guys, and how this weekend they're going to the library to study together. Then they ask me about my best friend and I'm like, well she spent the weekend with her 4-year-old- she was sick with a cold, and then she spent the rest of the time making wedding preparations. Then, to top it all off, she went home and spent a quiet night watching TV with her fiancee." Lorelai merely smiled in response and whispered,
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
She adjusted her wedding dress and admired it in the mirror. She had found the perfect dress; it was white (she decided nothing in her life was traditional, so why should tradition prevent her from wearing the dress she wanted?), strapless, with beading along the upper half. The bottom of the dress was soft, straight, and to the floor, with minimal train. It was truly beautiful. Lorelai's hair was simple- the way she loved to wear it. She had had a hair dresser pull her hair into a half ponytail, then curl her hair in a mixture of tight and loose curls. The final touch was a spray of light sparkles, that shone brightly when she moved her head.
She admired Rory's dress in the mirror. The wedding party was dressed in pale pink with black accents, and Rory looked like a princess in her outfit for the wedding. Her dress was pink and sleeveless, with a black sash and pink flower wrapped around her waist. Her hair was pulled into a french braid, with pink rosettes intertwined in her straight brown hair. Lorelai had even allowed her a touch of neutral-colored makeup because it was "a special day".
The bridal party consisted of Maid of Honor Sookie, flower girl Rory, bridesmaids Mia, Maisy (a friend of Luke's parents), and Liz (Luke's sister), ring bearer Jess (Luke's nephew), Best Man Buddy (another friend of Luke's parents, who was married to Maisy), and groomsmen Andrew, Morey, and Kirk (all townspeople Lorelai had convinced Luke to allow to join the wedding). She adored these people and this town- they had taken her under her wing when she'd run away from home, and helped take care of her and Rory when her mother didn't.
Lorelai had invited her parents to the wedding, but was unsure of whether they would actually show up. They had never RSVPed, and were appalled when they discovered that Lorelai had chosen to walk alone down the aisle, towards Rory and Luke, who would be standing next to one another, as a symbol of her independence and her views of her new life. She smiled sadly at Rory, who enthusiastically smiled back. Quickly, Rory told her mother,
"Mommy... I'm happy you and Daddy are getting married."
"Me too, kid... Me too."
Two hours later, Lorelai's ecstatic smile spread across her face as she heard her wedding song play. As "My Girl" began to play through the band's loudspeakers in the backyard of the inn on the beautiful September day (no one, except Luke, Lorelai, and Rory knew the significance of the song, and that was ok with them), Lorelai squealed to herself, and strode forward towards the two people she loved most in the world.
As she slowly glided past, she heard an assortment of "Look how beautiful she looks!" and "Is that not the most gorgeous dress you've ever seen?", along with a few "She deserves this. Have you ever seen three people so singularly happy to be a family in your life before?". She couldn't help but squeal again as she came closer and closer to Luke and Rory, who was clutching her father's hand excitedly.
"Hi," Lorelai whispered simply to Luke when she arrived at the front of the aisle.
"You look... nice."
"I think I'll wear this more often," She looked down at Rory, who asked innocently,
"Almost married, mommy?"
"Almost married, baby," She bent down and kissed Rory's cheek, "I love you, sweets."
"I love you, mommy." Luke followed suit and kissed Rory's other cheek.
"I love you, princess."
"I love you, daddy." Rory turned and stood next to Sookie, as she had been instructed to do, and Luke and Lorelai turned around, facing the town's minister.
"We are here today, to join in the holy matrimony of Lucas Danes and Lorelai Gilmore. And, if I must say so myself, what took so long?" The whole town laughed and nodded in agreement, and Miss Patty shouted out "Amen!". The minister continued, "Now, I have known Luke since he was a baby. He grew up a family-oriented boy. He was respectful of his parents, always tried to help out around the store, did generally well in school, but he was never truly happy. Then, one day, Lorelai came to town. She was a spunky seventeen-year-old with a one-year old daughter- the cutest little girl I'd ever seen in my life. She did what it took to take care of herself and Rory, and Luke liked that. Soon, the two began dating, and Luke... Luke was happy. Luke was smiling. He allowed himself to show his emotions, his feelings. He smiled. He laughed. He even kissed Lorelai when she came to the diner (something we all know he never did with his high school girlfriend, Rachel). These two are perfect for each other. They are unique, yet they balance each other perfectly. Now, Luke and Lorelai have chosen to recite their own vows. Lorelai?" Lorelai wiped the tears from her cheek and smiled up at the man she loved, slowly beginning,
" Two years ago- almost three, actually, I walked into a diner and begged a man for coffee. A random man, who wasn't so random. There was something about him that I was drawn to, and he came over and served me and my little girl. We began to talk and soon we became friends, but there was always that feeling of attraction and true love lying in the background. Then, one day, he finally asked me out,"
"Amen!" Interrupted Miss Patty again, echoed by Babette's,
"Finally!" Lorelai laughed, looked at the crazy townspeople she had come to regard as a large, institutionalized family, and continued,
"And the date... was one of the best things I'd ever done. Seriously, below Rory, it's the best thing I've ever done. And we began to fall in love. Luke, I've never known a love such as great as yours. You take care of me and Rory. You feed us, you keep us warm, you keep us from going insane. You really love her and, hopefully, me, and for that, I am eternally grateful. There is no one else I'd rather spend the rest of my life with. I promise to try and eat healthier, try and drink coffee less..."
"Who are you trying to kid?" Luke joked, and wiped away a tear from Lorelai's cheek. She giggled and, through the happy tears, finished,
"And I will try... to make you as happy... as you make me. I love you and I'm so happy I get to spend the rest of my life with you." Luke smiled and squeezed her hand, and encouraging reminder that he couldn't wait for forever also. Slowly, as everyone watching on wiped the tears from their eyes, the minister choked out,
"Luke?" Luke inhaled deeply and prepared himself for the barrage of emotions that was about to pour out of his heart.
"Growing up," he began, "I was never around much outwardly-expressed love. My mother told me she loved me, but before I knew it, she was gone... Then, my father raised me, but he was never an overly-emotional man, and he withdrew even further after my mother passed away. Then, when I was around eighteen, my father was taken from me, too. I, myself, began to withdraw. I spent all my time working, I never made time for a girlfriend- I knew that when I met someone special enough, I would know it and I would wind up with her. And then, one day, a crazy woman- a girl, really, she was maybe just eighteen- anyway, she comes into my diner and I was instantly drawn to her. Looking back on it, I knew she was the one from the first time I saw her. And then, six months later, I asked her out on a date. I already had a connection with Rory, and I knew Lorelai most likely wouldn't have reservations about dating me rather than someone else. I only hoped she felt the same way about me that I did about her. We began dating and we became more and more like family; they were like the family I lost when I was so young. I was happy again, and that was saying something. Lorelai, you make me happier than anything else in the entire world. Everything- from going to sleep next to you at night, to waking up next to you in the morning, to taking care of Rory with you every day- is what makes my life great. I love you and Rory more than I've ever loved anything or anybody. I'm can't wait to spend tomorrow and forever with you and your perfect imperfections. So, I guess what I mean to say is, I love you." Lorelai smiled at him and wiped away her own tears before wiping at his; they squeezed each other's hands, then waited for the party to calm down before the minister began again,
"Lorelai, repeat after me. I, Lorelai Victoria Gilmore..."
"I, Lorelai Victoria Gilmore..."
"Take you, Lucas Andrew Danes to be my lawfully wedded husband..."
"Take you, Lucas Andrew Danes to be my lawfully wedded husband..." She squealed again at the word husband, then waited for the minister to continue.
"To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do us part..."
"To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do us part..." Jess stepped up from his spot next to Buddy and handed the ring to Lorelai, who thanked him and slowly slid it onto Luke's left ring finger.
"Luke, you ready?" He grinned broadly and looked Lorelai deeply in the eyes,
"You bet."
"Repeat after me. I, Lucas Andrew Danes..."
"I, Lucas Andrew Danes..."
"Take you, Lorelai Victoria Gilmore to be my lawfully wedded wife..."
"Take you, Lorelai Victoria Gilmore to be my lawfully wedded wife..." He laughed to himself as she squealed again, and the minister continued,
"To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do us part..."
"To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do us part..." Jess stepped forward once more, and Luke took the ring, gently sliding it onto Lorelai's left ring finger.
"We're married!" She whispered.
"We're married..." He whispered back, grinning from ear to ear.
"Ladies and gentlemen," The minister started, "I now present to you, for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Luke Danes! Luke, you may now kiss your bride... I know you've been waiting." Luke grinned at the minister, then turned to Lorelai, pulling him towards her as tightly as he could, and they kissed passionately. Slowly, reluctantly, they pulled away, smiling at each other. Rory ran between them and grabbed each of their hands,
"We're married!" Rory exclaimed to her parents.
"Yeah, sweets. We are." And together, the Gilmore-Danes family made their way down the aisle and waited to enter the reception.
Later that day, Luke and Lorelai entered the party to a standing ovation. They ran towards Rory, who was standing alone in the middle of the dance floor, and Lorelai picked her up.
"Now, traditionally, the first dance is between husband and wife, but, as we all know, Lorelai and Luke never do anything traditionally. The first dance will be to Luke and Lorelai's song, "My Girl", and it will be a family dance, where they will be joined by their daughter Rory," announced Luke and Lorelai's friend, Jackson, who was playing DJ for the night.
"My Girl" began to play, and the family held each other close. They repeatedly told each other, "I love you", kissed one another, and moved back and forth to the music. They blocked out everyone and everything around them, and didn't hear the comments of "Have you ever seen such a perfect family before?" and "If that's not love in it's purest form, I don't know what is". While the newlyweds and their daughter didn't hear the comments, other people did.
Standing at the doorway, Christopher felt his rage engulf him. Who is this guy? Where does this guy get the nerve? Lorelai is mine. Rory is mine. I helped make her- I'm her father, not him. And he has the nerve to get married to Lorelai. And have a "family dance" with Lorelai and Rory. I hate this guy. He doesn't know what he's getting himself into. With that, he turned and disappeared into the inn, watching the goings-on in the wedding the whole time.
Luke and Lorelai made their rounds throughout the droves of people who had come to celebrate their day with them. They peeled in and out, letting Rory stay and play with her cousin, Jess, who she had come to adore as a good friend and wonderful playmate. Rory and Jess slid across the floor in their bare feet and socks, waving to their parents occasionally to show off their activities. Luke and Lorelai laughed and thanked everyone for coming, reacting to the comments on how lovely they looked, how beautiful the ceremony was, and how big Rory was getting. When they reached a table in the back corner of the party, Lorelai received a surprise.
"Mom! Dad!" She called, leading Luke to them, slightly hiding her surprise and happiness at seeing them there.
"Hello, Lorelai."
"Hi, dad."
"You look lovely today. Absolutely beautiful." Lorelai blushed and whispered,
"Thank you, daddy."
"The ceremony was beautiful. Those were some vows you two wrote." This time, Luke blushed,
"Thank you, sir. Every bit of it was true."
"Luke... I believe you love my daughter and granddaughter. And I trust you to take care of them."
"Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me."
"Please, call me Richard."
"Thank you, Richard." Lorelai noticed that her mother had remained sitting stoically at the table, not saying a word.
"Hi, mom."
"Hello, Lorelai. Beautiful dress."
"Thanks, mom."
"You shouldn't be wearing white."
"Thanks, mom. Speaking of which, have you seen Rory, your beautiful granddaughter who resulted from my choice to not wear a white dress?" Subtlety was not in the cards for Lorelai that day, and she quickly and pointedly lost patience with her mother.
"Yes, Lorelai, I have. She was playing with that little hooligan with the brown hair."
"Mom, that's my nephew, Jess. He's Rory's cousin."
"Yes, Lorelai. Whatever you say." Luke could sense that this conversation was going nowhere good, so he interrupted,
"Honey, I think it's time for the speeches. Nice to see you again, Emily, Richard."
"Nice to see you, Luke. Lorelai, you look radiant," Richard waved goodbye.
Luke and Lorelai took their seats at the table in the front, with Rory next to Lorelai. After Sookie and Buddy had made their speeches, Luke stood slowly, holding Lorelai's hand.
"Luke, what are you doing?"
"Surprising you." He kissed her quickly and took the microphone, leaving Lorelai shocked that her husband would speak publicly for her. Luke hit his glass a few times with his fork and began to speak,
"Attention everybody! As you all know, I'm not good with words, so I'm going to try to do this quickly. This has been the greatest day of my life, mostly because I get to spend it with Lorelai and Rory, the two people I love most in the world. I'd like to thank you all for making this day so special for all three of us. But mostly, I'd like to thank Lorelai and Rory for making the past three years the best three of my life. They enrich my world and I really don't know how to express it to them better than the way that I'm about to. Now, I know this isn't our wedding song, but I just thought it was fitting." Slowly, suddenly, the music to Maybe I'm Amazed by Paul McCartney began to play, and Luke turned to face Lorelai as her jaw opened in shock.
He grabbed her hand and slowly pulled her up and out to the dance floor. She laid her head on his chest as he began to sing, and she wiped the tears from her eyes as she kissed his chest during the musical interlude, where they both told each other they loved the other, then spent a moment listening to each other breathe. It was contentment enough for them.
As Luke began again, Rory came and joined them, Luke lifting her on his hip.
They held each other tightly as the song came to an end, tears rolling down their faces.
"I love you," Luke whispered her ear.
"Like how much?" She joked.
"I just sang in front of a hundred people for you. That much." She smiled and kissed him sweetly.
"I love you that much, too." They heard Miss Patty excitedly tell Babette,
"I've been working on that with him for weeks! And I kept the secret! He owes me fifty dollars..."
After they sat down, many of the guests stood up and walked over to them,
"That was beautiful!"
"I wish my husband would do that for me!"
"He's really a completely different man with you, Lorelai. Completely different." They smiled and thanked their guests, and allowed Rory to go slide on the dance floor with Jess again.
Five minutes later, they heard Rory's agonized cries,
"Owww! Mommy! Daddy!" Luke and Lorelai jumped to Rory's aide, finding her sitting, clutching her knee, on the side of the dance floor.
"Rory, what happened?"
"Mommy, I was sliding and I fell and I got a boo-boo on my knee!"
"Let mommy and daddy see, baby." Rory pulled her dress up over her knee and Luke and Lorelai found it a bit cut up, but nothing too serious.
"Ok, you're going to be fine. Come, princess, daddy will get you cleaned up." Lorelai smiled as she watched Luke lift Rory while Rory giggled from a bounce he added for her. He took her off to the inn, where he washed off her knee, put on a Disney Princess Band-Aid he had put in the room designated to the wedding, and then turned, holding her hand, to lead her back into the reception.
Halfway back, however, they were stopped by a sudden tug on Rory's arm. They spun around to find Christopher clutching onto Rory's wrist.
"Chris..." Luke breathed, clutching Rory's hand tighter. She looked from Luke to Chris, from comfort to fear, from father to stranger.
"I'm sorry. Have we met?" Chris's arrogance made Luke angrier, and he resisted the urge to punch the guy and carry his daughter to safety. Instead, he responded through gritted teeth,
"No. Lucky you. But I've seen pictures and heard stories."
"All wonderful, I'm sure. Just let go of my kid so I can speak to her."
"Well, if I see your kid around anywhere, I'll let go of her and let her talk to you. But right now, my daughter and I are going inside to my wife and my family and friends."
"You ass!" Chris pushed Luke; Luke was furious- not so much because this guy had just pushed him, but more so because he had used that kind of language around Rory.
"Watch it!" Rory's eyes grew wide, and she quietly called,
"Daddy!"
"What, Rory?" Chris's eyes shot to the little girl, but found them not looking at him for sympathy; rather, they were watching Luke hopefully. They were the eyes of a little girl asking for her father's protection. It slowly dawned on Chris that they were not focused on him.
Chris grew angrier by the millisecond, and suddenly found himself screaming at Luke,
"You think you can steal my life! My girlfriend! My daughter! They're mine! They're supposed to be with me!"
"They don't BELONG to you! They don't belong to anyone! That's the problem with you, you don't realize that they need things also- you're not the only one! We're a family! We protect each other and take care of each other! You never offered that to either of them."
"Lorelai and I belong together!"
"Is that why you're telling me this at our wedding!" Chris suddenly pulled back his fist, and was about to swing when he felt a large, strong hand grab his own. He was swung around to face Richard, who threw him to the floor.
"Christopher, leave!" Christopher was utterly flustered,
"Richard... I..."
"I saw what you did! And I'd thank you not to manhandle my granddaughter like that!"
"Richard, she's my daughter!"
"Like hell, she is! This man has taken care of Rory in a way that you've never attempted to! Have you seen the way she looks at him! Lorelai never looked at me that way- never! This man is her father, and you are merely an unwelcome guest at a wedding celebration! Now leave, please!" Christopher stumbled to his feet, whispered a rushed "Sorry" and tripped over himself, running out the door.
Lorelai came up from behind them,
"I saw the whole thing! Are you two ok? Did he hurt you? Rory, how's your wrist? Luke, did you get hurt?"
"Lorelai, calm down. We're fine." He attempted to calm his crying wife and daughter, holding and rocking them both.
"His audacity! To come here and tell you that! I love you and so does Rory, you know that, right, Luke?"
"Of course, sweetheart. I know."
"Luke... I want you to adopt Rory."
"What?"
"Just to make it official... It's just... I've been thinking about it for a while now, and I think it's right. I mean, if something, G-d forbid, ever happens to me- you wouldn't get Rory. Chris would get her, because he has the parental rights. I need to know that she'll be safe and with you, Luke... I'm sure there's something we can work out, where we can show the judge he's neglectful- give him twice-yearly visits or something. And make sure she's yours legally, not just emotionally." He paused and kissed both of their heads,
"I'd love that." He slowly began to sing to them again, this time softly and privately, and this time to the tune of My Girl
Once she had calmed down, Rory looked up at Luke with questioning eyes,
"Daddy, who was that man?"
"Christopher, sweetheart. You remember him, don't you?" Rory shook her head no, then quickly added,
"I don't want to remember him." Luke smiled at his daughter, kissed her forehead again, then led her and Lorelai back into the reception to finish their almost-perfect wedding, and finally begin their lives together.