A/N- Thanks for the reviews! I 3 you guys! I have a cold and you all made me feel that much better! You rock!
A/N 2- Questions! I got a lot of comments on the way that the kids talk. I was basing it off of the ten-year-olds that I'm a camp counselor for in the summer. There actually are ten-year-olds who talk like that. They're more my friends than my campers. Haha I 3 them. Also, as to Jess's explanation- he's been the parent his whole life. In my mind, he's very mature for his age, since he's had to take care of his mom. Yeah, similar to Ryan when he came to the Cohens' at first. In addition, Seth is going to be Lane's Dave. I think they'd be way too cute together- with the music obsession and whatnot. By the way, if my cousin's review confused you all, our other cousin got bit by a pony and we were writing a poem for her. And she did indeed get her lip caught in a PushPop. She then threw it across the room. My poor bedroom. Also, the last chapter took place about six months after Rory broke her arm. That's in the past. Everything is basically one chapter a year until they hit 16. Then, it'll be way more per year.
Dedicated- to Ally because she understood when I was angry and my angriest music to listen to was Rooney, blasted really loud. And because she got her lip caught in a Push Pop.
Disclaimer- Same as always. Own nothing, except a few tank tops and some jeans. Plus a few pairs of pink flip-flops.
The Past Becomes Present
Kirsten unlocked the front door to her house, juggling groceries on one knee and pushing the door open with her opposite side hand. The boys were out at play practice with Rory, Lane, and Jess, and she had decided to take the time to do things it was difficult to do while bringing her sons around town. She hit the play button on the blinking answering machine and began to move busily about the kitchen.
"Message one," said the mechanical woman's voice.
"Hey, Kirsten, Sandy, it's Lorelai. I was wondering if you could take Rory and Jess home from play practice today. Rory's sick of her playroom at the diner and Jess never liked it and they'd much rather hang out with Seth and Ryan and I have business class tonight. Well, my pager's on. Let me know if it's ok. Talk to you later. Bye." Kirsten nodded; of course it was fine that Rory and Jess come back to her house. At this point, she didn't even know why she, Sandy, and the Danes even asked. It wound up happening inevitably- not that she minded. She was glad that the boys had good friends who she knew wouldn't get them into trouble- her mischievous boys did that for themselves enough. It was never anything serious, and it was often funny, but occasionally it was better that they just come home and play on the computer.
"Message two," the mechanical voice again.
"Hey, family! It's Hailey! I was just calling up to check on my sister and brother-in-law and make sure my nephews aren't out partying at all hours of the night. Gimme a call back. Love y'all!" Kirsten's sister always made her laugh. Even though she had no idea where she was half the time, she loved her dearly.
"Message three," mechanical voice woman almost had infliction in her monotone.
"Hey, Cohens, it's Jimmy and co.," Kirsten's head shot up at the sound of her old friend's voice, "We were just wondering how you were. We miss you. Also, we're gonna be in your part of the world in a few days. We have a party in Hartford to go to for work, we thought maybe we'd stop by and see you guys- Marissa wants to see the boys. So, gimme a call back. You know the number. Bye." Kirsten smiled to herself. She hadn't seen Jimmy in over three or four years- since the last time they'd gone back to California to visit her father. They had quickly decided it was too painful and settled for phone calls instead. Finishing putting away the groceries, she pulled out her address book, quickly dialing the numbers to Jimmy's house in California. The phone rang a few times before there was a clicking on the other end,
"Hello?" asked a man's voice. Jimmy's. Kirsten was silently relieved that it hadn't been Julie who had picked up.
"Jimmy Cooper, what are you thinking calling me up in the middle of the day like this? My husband is going to get suspicious." On the other end, Jimmy smiled. He couldn't remember Kirsten ever being happy enough to make a joke like that.
"Kirsten! How are you? You sound great!"
"I am. I am great. How are you?"
"Can't complain. The boys?"
"Ummm... mischievous. But good."
"Mischievous? Sounds like they take after their mom. What have they done?"
"Well, let's see. They've distracted the guy who runs the town meeting and told him that they changed the meeting place so they could run it. They climbed the tree at their friend Lane's house to help her escape from a Korean Lunar New Year party. Her mother found them and told us that we should've had daughters- no good comes from sons. They've orchestrated reenactments of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in the town square."
"No!"
"I kid you not. Standing in the middle of the gazebo yelling 'There's no earthly way of knowing which direction we are going' for a good half hour, throwing candy bars to people passing by."
"By themselves?"
"No. They got their friends Rory and Jess to help them. Their friend Lane watched from the side and organized it. Her mother would kill her if she was any part of that."
"And their parents didn't mind?"
"Rory and Jess are cousins. Jess lives with Rory's parents. And Rory's dad owns the diner across from the gazebo, so it gave him extra business that day. Rory's mom, Lorelai, one of my good friends, helped organize it."
"Do they get in trouble?"
"They get a scolding, but it's funny and it doesn't hurt their grades and nothing's hurt or broken, so it's not such a big deal. Boys will be boys." Jimmy laughed heartily,
"Did they have parts or were they just singing?"
"Ryan was Wonka, Seth was Charlie Bucket, Jess was Grandpa Joe, and Rory was an Oompa-Loompa and Violet."
"Poor kid."
"It was her pick. Apparently, her and Lorelai have some kind of joke with the Oompa-Loompas. Something about Lorelai having a crush on them."
"Sounds a bit odd..."
"Welcome to Stars Hollow... Speaking of which, what's this I hear about you being in the neighborhood later this week?"
"Oh, yeah... we'll be in town on business and I have a party to go to in Hartford. I wondered if you guys would be around to have dinner with me, Julie, and the girls on Friday."
"Well, we usually have dinner with Luke and Lorelai, but we could miss just this week."
"Great. We'll see you Friday around... threeish?"
"Sounds great. You have our address?"
"We've gotten letters."
"See you then."
"Sandy will be thrilled."
"Bye."
"Bye."
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Rory grunted as she slung her bookbag over her shoulder. She glanced at Seth, who was having the same problem that she was, and Jess and Ryan, who threw their bookbags over their backs easily. She pulled at her earring and readjusted it, throwing one of her pigtail braids behind her shoulder.
"Is there any chance we're going to be ready for the show by next week?" Hastily, Ryan shook his head,
"Not a chance."
"No way," echoed Seth.
"The four of us are the only ones who know our lines. Glinda kept saying, 'I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too!'" Jess sniggered.
"Well, at least she remembers that line. 'And your little... kitten? goldfish?... line!'" Rory mimicked Lindsay Lister, who was playing the Wicked Witch of the West. Their drama class was putting on a production of The Wizard of Oz the following weekend, and they had auditioned nearly a month before for parts. Jess had been cast as the Tinman, Seth as the Cowardly Lion, Ryan as the Scarecrow, and Rory was a natural fit for Dorothy. It only made sense to the teachers to have four of the five best friends in the school play the parts of the four main characters. However, Lane was prohibited from performing in the play by her mother due to its "Wiccan undertones", and was forced to do an alternate project.
"Yeah, but Rory, how many times have you seen that movie?"
"Seven times."
"In the past three months," Jess retorted at his cousin. In the seven months that he had been living with his aunt and uncle, Jess had managed to stay out of any major trouble. Sure, he had gotten grounded two or three times for not working up to his potential in school, and had lost his temper once or twice, but he had avoided any major fights with the adults and the other kids at school (he made sure to steer clear of Dean), and managed to keep his grades above C+s (Though Luke and Lorelai hardly allowed that to suffice; they knew he could manage an A-average, given proper motivation).
"Fine. Mom and I have seen it two-hundred and forty-five times. Our tape broke from watching it too much. Dad has a habit of leaving the house as soon as mom says 'Auntie Em! Auntie Em! A twister! A twister!' You happy now?"
"Very."
"I still don't know why they picked me to be Dorothy. I can't sing."
"I know. They're such idiots," Seth teased.
"Yeah, they must have had earplugs in when you auditioned," Jess mocked.
"Hey, hey, no. I think Rory sings pretty well! Don't tease, guys. That's not nice. Rory sings fine." Rory gave Ryan a withering "thank you" look and stuck her tongue out at the two curly-haired boys. Again, she smiled at her blonde friend, who smiled back, and felt her stomach flip a little bit. She was about to wink when she restrained herself. Woah, there, Danes. That's just Ryan. Just your friend Ryan. It's not like he's Nick Carter or Justin Timberlake or anything... Note to self... Never say that out loud in front of mom. The mocking will never end.
They turned onto Kelly Road and Ryan and Seth veered off first to their house. Before Jess and Rory got a chance to proceed to theirs, Kirsten called out the door,
"Rory! Jess! Your mom's got class and your dad's at the diner! They figured you'd rather come hang out with Ryan and Seth today instead of going up to the playroom."
"Yes!" Jess whispered exasperatedly. He hated being in the playroom at the diner. It was simply too small for him. He turned and ran towards his friends' house, Rory trailing after. He shot an appreciative smile at the blonde woman, "Thanks, Kirsten."
"No problem, honey. You guys hungry? It takes a lot finding the Wizard." The kids all laughed. Despite himself, Jess couldn't help but like the adults in Stars Hollow... well, most of them anyway. His aunt and uncle took care of him, the Cohens were incredibly nice, Kirk was insane, and was like watching a one-man carnival in the street, and Fran Weston often gave him free cake for being "a nice young boy and helping her sweep the porch". The only one he disliked was Taylor, though he found his arguments with his uncle hilarious. Once all the kids were settled with Oreos and milk in the kitchen, Kirsten asked them her typical, "How was school?" All of the kids mumbled some variation of,
"Fine" or "Ok" before Kirsten turned to Seth and Ryan, knowing this conversation wasn't going to go any further,
"Oh, Seth, Ryan, guess who's coming to visit?"
"Santa!" Seth joked excitedly, prompting Ryan to hit his brother in the arm,
"No, you idiot."
"Ryan!"
"Sorry, Seth... Is it... Aunt Hailey?"
"No, but she did call." Both boys sighed sadly; they loved having their Aunt Hailey around.
"How about..." Sudden terrified realization dawned on Ryan's face. Seth, sensing his brother's sudden horror, glanced at Ryan, who gave him only a nod to encourage his thought process. Suddenly, Seth comprehended and both boys groaned.
"What, boys?"
"Mom, it's not... The Nana, is it?" It wasn't that the boys disliked their grandmother- she was just difficult to deal with sometimes.
"What? No, no, boys. It's not the Nana."
"Or..." Kirsten cut her son off,
"No, it's not Grandpa Caleb either." Both boys heaved sighs of relief. Jess looked at them curiously, whispering to Rory,
"Did he just know what Ryan was thinking?" Rory nodded. No matter how long he lived there, Jess didn't think he'd ever adjust to the Cohen boys' odd psychic connection.
"Then who is it, mom?" Seth finally asked, nearly whining.
"Jimmy and Julie are bringing the girls down. They have a party to go to in Hartford or something for Jimmy's work and they're gonna stop by on Friday."
"They're bringing Marissa?" Ryan asked, somewhat interested. Though he and Marissa had been inseparable as toddlers and young children, he hadn't spoken to her since his most recent visit to California at age eight. At eleven, he could only remember that she was blonde, and that her mother had a habit of looking down her nose at him while she talked.
"Yeah, they're bringing Marissa. You guys haven't seen her in a while."
"Not since California part two," Seth commented.
"Who's Marissa?" Rory asked. For some reason, she felt an odd pang behind her stomach.
"Marissa is..." Ryan began, but Seth cut him off,
"Ryan's ex-girlfriend."
"Ex-girlfriend?"
"Ryan and Marissa were boyfriend and girlfriend in Kindergarten. Then we moved away."
"Oh... You think you guys would still be together if you hadn't moved here?" Rory asked, trying desperately to hide the fear in her voice. Her fears were somewhat allayed, however, when Ryan snickered,
"We were five. I hugged her and we thought we were married. There's no way we'd still be together." Rory smiled, though for some reason, her best friend's words resounded in her head, We were married. We were married. The pang behind her stomach seemed to make its presence known. What is this? I remember having this feeling... maybe twice. Once when I was five and saw Dad talking to another little girl, and I was afraid he'd call her princess. The other time, I was eight, and Mom was playing with someone else's kid while I did my homework... Am I jealous? She shook the thought out of her head and was shaken from her reverie by Ryan's voice,
"Rory! You coming? We're gonna go start the stories we have to do for English homework." Rory grinned at the boys and nodded, still pushing away thoughts of jealousy.
As the boys and Rory made their way into the den, Kirsten couldn't help but notice Rory's gaze. She recognized that look. And she could tell what the future held.
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Caesar moved purposefully around the diner as Luke cooked in the back.
"Tuna melt on Rye, no mayo, and a diet Coke," he announced, placing the plate down in front of a woman who wore a black baseball cap, blonde curls spilling out from underneath.
"Thank you," she said quietly. Luke took no notice of the woman as the phone rang,
"Luke's."
"Hey, honey," came a sultry voice from the other time, "I got a call about you needing a call girl tonight?"
"Hi, what's going on?" He knew it was Lorelai.
"Hey, how'd you know I wasn't really a call girl?"
"Call it a hunch. I repeat, what's going on?"
"Nothing. My class just let out, but I have to stop and talk to my dad about insurance things for the inn, so I'll be home around sevenish. And Rory and Jess are at Sandy and Kirsten's with the boys. Could you pick them up around fiveish?"
"Fiveish?"
"Finkel."
"Yes. And I've told you not to make that joke anymore."
"You brought it on yourself."
"Probably."
"Ok, I should go. I'm at the haunted house. I love you."
"You too. Bye."
"Bye." He hung up and continued to cook.
Five minutes later, the bell rang and Luke glanced up to watch the back of the blonde woman's head leave the diner. There was something familiar about this woman. He only saw the back of her head, but there was something he recognized about her.
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The woman sat quietly, listening intently to Luke's conversation.
"Hi, what's going on?... Call it a hunch. I repeat, what's going on?... Fiveish?... Yes. And I've told you not to make that joke anymore... Probably... You too. Bye." Nothing intriguing about that conversation. The diner still looked the same, Stars Hollow still looked the same, even Kirk, try as he might to age, still looked the same. The only thing that looked different was Luke. He looked more mature, but happier. He was smiling. He looked as though he had responsibilities, though he didn't mind.
She leaned over to get a better glimpse of his left hand, but it was hidden behind the barrier. With realism, she shook the thought out of her head. Luke Danes? Get married? Not a chance. He hates marriage. And kids. Jam-hands. Soulmates. He doesn't believe in that stuff.
Quietly, she got up and left. She'd try and talk to him later in the week.
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At five, Luke called to Caesar,
"I'm going! I'll be back to close up!"
"Ok, boss!"
With dinner in hand (spaghetti with meatballs for himself and Lorelai, and burgers and fries for the kids), he set off to pick up Rory and Jess. He glanced at the picture of Rory on Christmas, wearing both a blue-and-white bow and a red-and-green bow on her head to help Seth and Ryan celebrate their holiday, Chrismukkah. He was consumed in his thoughts. Look at her. She's eleven already. Soon she'll be going to high school, driving, dating boys. Lord no. No boys. My little girl is not ready to like boys. I'm not ready to share her yet. I can't believe how fast she's growing up. I swear, yesterday, she was climbing onto my lap to watch Cinderella. At this rate, she'll be a teenager within days. Am I ready for her to be a teenager?
Opening the Cohens' door, he yelled,
"Hello? Where is everybody?"
"Hey, Luke!"
"Hey, Kirsten!"
"Rory, Jess, it's time to go!" Kirsten rounded the corner.
"Hey, did they behave?"
"Please. Maybe they can teach my boys a thing or two. I think Seth and Ryan are planning another prank."
"Well, that would mean that my little joke coordinator is in on it too."
"I'm sorry that my boys are a bad influence on your kid."
"Please. She's her mother's daughter. The boys just give her a harmless outlet." Kirsten smiled as Luke's kids approached the front door. Luke, noticing that Rory looked distraught, engulfed her in a hug hello. Though it may not have been obvious to other people, he was her daddy, and he could tell when something was off. As he ruffled Jess's hair, he looked Rory in the eye,
"Ror? Are you ok?"
"What?... Yeah... Yeah... I'm fine."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah, dad. I'm fine."
"If you're fine, then why were you acting so funny all afternoon?" asked Jess as he threw his backpack over his shoulder. Rory shot him a death glare and he backed away, wandering ahead towards the house, bidding Kirsten a "Thank You" and "Goodbye".
"You were acting funny? What does Jess mean you were acting funny?"
"It's nothing, dad. Really."
"Rory, if something's the matter, you need to tell me."
"Nothing's the matter!"
"Rory, I don't appreciate you lying to me."
"I'm not lying to you! Gosh, dad, just leave me alone!" And with a final huff, she stormed off towards the house.
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That night, once the kids were asleep, around ten o'clock, Luke and Lorelai sat on the couch together, watching TV. Unexpectedly, Luke pulled his arm from its position around Lorelai's shoulders, grabbing the remote and muting the tv.
"Have you noticed anything weird going on with Rory lately?"
"How so?"
"Did she seem like she's been acting funny? Less Rory, more... cranky?"
"She did seem a little bit distracted at dinner. But I thought that was because she was mad at you. You weren't exactly acting yourself either, but that's because you hate when she's mad at you."
"No, it's just... I think something's bothering her, and I can't put my finger on what it is."
"I'm sure she's fine."
"Watch her tomorrow. Keep an eye on her. See if she's acting any differently."
"I just... I hate spying on her. My parents did that to me and it made me run away. I trust that she'll come to us if she has a problem." Luke sighed,
"Just making sure."
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Three o'clock on the dot on Friday afternoon, the Cohens heard a knock on the door. Both Sandy and Kirsten had taken the day off of work to get the house ready for company. Kirsten threw the door open to find Jimmy Cooper, in all his glory, standing proudly with two blonde little girls, one around eleven, the other about six, and his wife, Julie, standing snobbishly behind them, examining her nails.
"Jimmy!" Kirsten threw her arms around her old friend as Sandy walked up behind them.
"Jimbo! Julie! How are you?"
"We're good." Kirsten nodded politely at Julie and turned her attention to the girls,
"Caitlin, look how big you are!"
"Mommy says I'm self-sufficient, but Grandma says it's like I'm not even there."
"Well, isn't that... unique. Marissa! Look at you! A woman already!"
"Hi, Mrs. Cohen. It's nice to see you, too. Where are the boys?" Kirsten laughed at the little girl's eagerness before responding,
"They have play practice today. They'll be home by three-thirty."
"Ok."
The Coopers followed Sandy and Kirsten into their spacious-for-Stars-Hollow home, into the kitchen.
"My, isn't it... cozy," Julie snidely remarked.
"Well, Stars Hollow is cozy, Jules," Sandy chided.
"It's a very quaint place to live."
"Just wait until we take you to meet Kirk. Then you won't say it's quaint. Crazy. Terrifying. Utterly confusing. But not quaint."
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Ryan, Seth, Rory, and Jess walked home together, Rory in full makeup for the play; the first of their dress rehearsals had been that afternoon. Through the stroll, they giggled together, their usual eleven-year-old banter and jokes presiding. Once they had reached the Cohens', Rory turned to her two friends,
"What are you guys doing tonight? Wanna come over and watch Wizard of Oz for inspiration?" Jess groaned; he could tell what his night was most likely going to consist of.
"As great as that sounds, Rory," Seth started.
"We have company," Ryan finished, grateful, for once, that he did indeed have company other than the Danes family.
"Oh... right... well, we're going home... if you guys want to stop by later to hang out or something..."
"We'll try our best." Seth and Ryan turned to enter their house as Jess and Rory continued the short walk home. After three minutes of complete silence, Jess spoke up,
"What was that all about?"
"What was what all about?"
"You were upset when Ryan said he couldn't hang out."
"I was not."
"Yeah, you were."
"No, as my dad would say, I was a little disappointed. And it wasn't just Ryan. Seth, too." Jess nodded smugly, prompting Rory to reach forward to push him. He ran ahead, opening the door to the house using the key from under the turtle before his cousin got a chance.
It was going to be a long night.
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Seth and Ryan tip-toed into the house. As much as they wanted to please their parents, they really didn't want to face the "dragon lady" quite yet. Though they attempted to slide past their parents and make it up to their bedrooms, they had no such luck and were soon greeted with a chorus of,
"Ryan! Seth! Come say hello!" from their parents. They sighed and glanced at each other- an entire conversation without any words necessary about how, on second thought, they'd both rather be watching The Wizard of Oz with Rory that night. They begrudgingly turned, dropping their bookbags by the stairs and wandered slowly towards the kitchen.
"Hey, everybody," Ryan mumbled with a false smile as Seth waved a polite "hello".
"Oh, wow! Those are the boys! Look at them!" Jimmy exclaimed, "Last time I saw you guys, you were as tall as Caitlin. Look how big you guys are!"
"Yeah, well, four years will do that to you," Seth mumbled under his breath. Everyone chose to ignore him (except Ryan, who stifled a laugh), as Jimmy began again,
"Let me guess who's who. Seth," He pointed at Seth, "And Ryan," He pointed at Ryan. The boys looked at each other. They both knew what the other was thinking
Well, that was difficult to figure out. Blonde hair, blue eyes, shorter. Could that be Ryan? Brown hair, brown eyes, taller. Maybe it's Seth!
I definitely don't remember Jimmy being this weird. I wonder if he's trying to make himself look cooler in front of Mom.
"Boys, you didn't say hi to Marissa yet," Kirsten reminded them, awakening them from their silent conversation.
"Hi Marissa," both boys said quietly. Marissa responded enthusiastically,
"Hi, Seth! Hi, Ryan! How are you guys? How have you been? Let's go do something! Where are your rooms? Do you still share a room like you did when you lived in Newport? C'mon, let's go!" She began to pull them out of the room as Ryan and Seth sent their parents glares. Sandy and Kirsten merely stifled chuckles; the boys had a very low tolerance for over-eagerness.
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Upstairs, Marissa had settled herself in Ryan's room, sorting through his sports awards,
"MVP of the year? Most Home Runs? Best Catcher? Wow, Ryan, these are amazing!" As much as she was annoying him, Ryan couldn't help but like Marissa at least a little bit. They had, for that matter, been good friends as little kids.
"Well, it's nothing compared to my 'Eager Participant' medal I got in first grade," Seth joked.
"Yeah, well, you were proud of it," Ryan smirked at his brother.
"Hey, pal, a ribbon's a ribbon."
"Seth, it's ok. Your CD and book collections are really cool."
"See, Nicky? My room's cooler than yours."
"Don't call me 'Nicky'," Ryan growled, giving Seth a threatening look.
"Why not? It's part of your name."
"Fine, Ezekiel, your CDs are cool."
"Hey, no fair! Your middle name's better than mine." The boys both noticed Marissa's infectious laughter at the same time.
"What's so funny?"
"You two. Caitlin's too little to joke around with like you guys do. I wish I could talk to her like that."
"It gets annoying sometimes," Ryan grinned mischievously.
"Yeah, but you know there's no one else in the world you'd rather hang out with more than me."
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Rory was sitting placidly on her bed, her copy of Of Mice and Men resting in her lap. She heard a knock on the front door and, while wondering who it could possibly be, heard Jess's voice echo up the stairs,
"Rory, can you get it?"
"Yeah, I'm going!" She pulled the door open slowly. "Ry? Why did you knock?"
"Marissa's mom told me to be polite and knock," He pointed at Julie, who was standing, watching the scene taking place, on the Cohens' porch, "Rory, this is Marissa." He pointed to the girl standing confidently behind him.
"Hi, nice to meet you," Marissa greeted perkily.
"You too," Rory noted the sheepishness in her voice and silently scolded it for seemingly coming out on its own, "You guys want to come in? Hang out? Where's Seth?"
"Oh, no. I just came because I forgot my script in your bookbag before when mine was too full... and Seth wanted me to make sure you weren't killing Jess with Toto."
"Hey, nobody has to watch who doesn't want to."
"You once made me sit through four Mary-Kate and Ashley movies in one day."
"We were eight and you were easy to force."
"Thanks a lot. I have to get back, though. We left Seth alone with the adults and... well, you know Seth."
"Yeah, I do. Hold on a sec." She ran to get the script from her bookbag and bid Ryan and Marissa goodbye. Watching as they returned, laughing, to the Cohens' next door, Rory felt the pang return with unprecedented fervor. She had no idea what to do. All she knew was that she had to get out of the house and away from Ryan Cohen as soon as possible, before something even more unknown happened to her.
"Jess, I'm going out for a walk! I'll be back later!"
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Luke, organizing the receipts behind the counter at the diner, was startled by a familiar woman's voice.
"Hey, Luke." His head shot up. No. It can't be. Not here. Not after all these years.
"Rachel?" He jammed his hands into his pockets, his usual stance of self-protection.
"How are you?" She asked as she made her way behind the counter, throwing her arms around him in a minorly seductive manner, "You look great!"
"I'm... I'm ok."
"So... how's life treating you?" He sighed and pulled himself away for her, seemingly grasping for the right words.
"Rachel... you can't do this!"
"Do what?"
"This! You can't just come back and expect it to be the same- for me to just fall all over you!"
"Luke, it's been so long! I figured you missed me!" He opened his mouth to protest but was distracted by the sound of a little girl's crying. He recognized that voice. He threw his head around to the window to find his daughter sitting on the sidewalk, slumped against the diner window, head in hands. All thoughts of Rachel flew out of his head as he ran out the door to comfort Rory.
"Rory?" She sniffled, "What happened, princess? Are you hurt? What's the matter?"
"Daddy... I really don't know..."
"You really don't know?"
"No, daddy. It's just... Ryan... and Marissa... and she's pretty... and nice... and... I don't even know what it is," she managed to cough out between sobs.
"Alright, sweetheart, come inside," for a moment, he saw the essence of the little daughter who had so quickly grown up in Rory's tear-flooded eyes, "Let's go inside. You want me to call Mom? This may be something she may be better at." She nodded as her father pulled her into a hug.
He helped Rory up and guided her into the diner, past Rachel, without remembering that she was there; his daughter was far more important. He led a still-crying Rory up the stairs and into her playroom, lying her on the couch, covering her with a blanket, and turning the TV on for her.
"You gonna be ok?" She nodded, "You want something to eat?"
"Pudding pie, please."
"Ok," he leaned forward and kissed her forehead.
"Dad?" she sniffled.
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
"You too."
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Inside, Rachel watched Luke intently. It's so like Luke to help other people in need. Though he hates kids. It's probably a friend's kid.
Logic told her that the little girl couldn't be Luke's. She had been around twelve years ago (which was her estimate as to the girl's age, give or take a year) , and had been with Luke, and for him to have been her father, he would've had to have cheated on her- and that was unlike Luke.
Luke led the girl behind the curtains and up the stairs. Rachel heard him speak to the kid, though she couldn't decipher what either was saying. Before she had a chance to become engrossed in her thoughts, she heard Luke's heavy footsteps descend down the stairs.
Rachel glanced up as Luke rushed past her, not giving her a second glance. As he took a piece of pie and put it on a plate, grabbing the phone, Rachel got his attention,
"That was really sweet, what you did for that little girl. I mean, I know you don't like..." Luke interrupted her,
"She's my daughter." Rachel was taken aback. Her fears were realized. Luke must've cheated on her. She decided, however, to stick around and get details.
"Oh... where's her mother?"
"Not here right now." He hastily dialed the phone, leaving Rachel alone with her thoughts for the moment. He's a single father? At least that's honorable... Wow... I guess he's always been capable. I guess he just stepped up to the plate. She listened to his conversation.
"Hey, it's me... Yeah... She's here... I don't know, I just saw her crying outside... Yeah, she said she wanted to talk to you... Ok... Yeah, you too... Bye..." Rachel wanted to talk... needed to talk,
"So, Luke, how old is she?"
"Rory? She's eleven."
"Rory?"
"She's named after her mother. It's short for Lorelai. Now, if you don't mind, I have to get back to my kid." He, again, rushed past her and up the stairs. Two minutes later, a thin brunette woman ran frantically through the door.
"Luke? Luke?"
"Can I help you?" Rachel asked. He's with his kid. Give him a minute, lady.
"Yeah, I'm looking for Luke Danes."
"He just ran upstairs for a minute."
"With Rory?"
"His kid?"
"Yeah."
"Yeah. He said he'll be..." She was again interrupted by Luke's footsteps.
"Hi," the brunette said eagerly.
"Hey. She's upstairs. She fell asleep, though."
"Good. Now that that's out of the way," she relaxed, "Hi," she leaned up and kissed him hello. Rachel's eyes went wide as she eyed the rings on the woman's left ring finger- one with diamonds, and the other obviously a wedding band, "What happened?"
"I don't know. Something about Ryan and... Marissa? Who's Marissa?"
"Isn't she that girl- her parents are visiting with Sandy and Kirsten?"
"Oh, that's right. Do you think Rory got in a fight with them?"
"No. I think she's jealous."
"Jealous?"
"I think she's jealous that Ryan's paying more attention to Marissa than to her."
"Ryan's not her boyfriend."
"Not in so many words. But you do realize that it's Ryan and Rory, Seth and Lane? Those are the 'it' couples of sixth grade?" Luke spat out a few incoherent sounds before instructing,
"Go upstairs. I can't talk about this." She giggled and climbed up the stairs.
"So that's your..."
"My wife? Yeah..."
"How long have you..."
"Seven years."
"Seven? I though you said your daughter was eleven?"
"Lorelai had Rory when she was sixteen. We met a few years later and got married."
"So, Rory's not really your daughter?" Luke glared at her,
"I adopted her officially when she was five. Either way, she's really my daughter."
"But, you're Luke Danes. You hate kids."
"Not my kid." A pause.
"So, there's no chance of us getting back together?" A shake of the head.
"Sorry."
"There's no seven-year itch?"
"Lorelai and Rory Danes leave no room for an itch."
"They took your name?"
"It's hyphenated, but they go by Danes."
"Ok..." another awkward pause, "So, I guess there's no more to say here... Do you mind if I just run upstairs and use your bathroom?" Luke nodded,
"You know where it is."
She ran up the stairs in a last-ditch attempt to see if this thing with his wife and daughter was for real. At the top of the stairs, she found the door to Luke's old "wallow room" wide open. She hesitated for a moment before going in there; she knew that Luke hated people going into that room, and that he had never let anyone touch any of his prized possessions in there; that was the room where he stored remnants of his parents. She had occasionally asked him to "focus on the future", but he had always scoffed, telling her that,
"When I have something to live for in the future, I'll change it." However, with the door ajar, she saw Lorelai, kneeling next to Rory. She glanced in before opening the door to Luke's apartment. The room was completely different. It had been painted a pale shade of purple, and there were childrens' drawings everywhere. Posters with Rory's name adorned the walls, along with pictures of Rory and various friends and family members. Rachel frowned; this was not at all the Luke that she knew. The Luke that she knew didn't hang pictures around the house; he had once gone so far to tell her,
"I know what you look like. I see you constantly. I don't need things on my wall to remind me who you are." She shrugged, though. I guess it's for his kid, so he did it.
As she slid into the office, she glanced at the walls. She gasped; the entire room was filled with photographs and sketchily-drawn children's art. There were pictures of Rory and Lorelai everywhere. At the park. Baby Rory. Grown-up Rory. Rory in costume. Rory on her father's shoulders. Rory with two little boys and another little girl that Rachel didn't recognize.
Where there weren't pictures of Rory, there were pictures of Lorelai. Wedding pictures. Lorelai and Luke kissing. Lorelai and Luke sitting, watching a movie. Lorelai and Luke with Rory. Lorelai and Luke with a couple that Rachel didn't recognize, who she could only assume were Rory's male friends' parents (due to some striking resemblances).
Framed crayon-drawn artwork covered other patches of nothingness. A picture of "My Family" by a four-year-old Rory Gilmore. Her mommy, her daddy, and her. An out-of-proportion self portrait by Rory Danes, age 7. And one that really caught Rachel's eye- a hand-made card that read, "To my daddy, the best one in the whole world. Love, Rory. Xes and Oes, your favorite princess. Father's day 1996."
Rachel made her way into the bathroom and looked herself into the mirror. Luke had grown up and left her behind, forcing her to stare at his happy, perfect family.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
An hour later, Rory had awoken from her nap, refreshed and feeling better. She kissed her father goodbye and walked with her mom towards Doose's for movie night snacks.
"Rory, what was the matter?" Her mother asked abruptly.
"Nothing."
"Nothing? Then what was that breakdown at the diner before?"
"It's... I don't really know."
"Was it over Ryan?" Rory stared at her shoes,
"Yeah... It's just... something about him being with Marissa really bothered me."
"You think that maybe... you're jealous?"
"Of what?"
"Marissa. Taking Ryan's attention."
"What?"
"You usually get all of Ryan's attention. Suddenly, Marissa has it. Are you... jealous, maybe?"
"Why would I be jealous of that?"
"Oh, I don't know... because you maybe... have a crush on Ryan?"
"I... what!"
"I don't know. He's your best friend. He's handsome. Is he... maybe... your first real crush? Other than Nick Carter? And Bryan Adams?"
"How did you know about those?"
"I've seen you kiss the posters."
"Hey, at least it's not an Oompa-Loompa."
"Now, now, don't turn on the mommy. Or I'll tell you all about my crush on your dad."
"Please don't."
"He's very handsome, and nice..."
"Mom..."
"And he seems to like you..."
"Mom..."
"And he's a really good kis..."
"Mom!"
"Sorry, sorry. So, about you and Ryan. I realized it a while ago. And Lane likes Seth."
"How did you..."
"The mommy knows."
"Ok... maybe I like him... a little," she finally admitted it, for the first time even to herself, "But don't tell him."
"I won't."
"Or dad."
"I won't."
"And especially not Kirsten and Sandy."
"Fine, fine. I'm gonna go tell Jess!"
"Mom!"
"What? You never said no Jess! Or Seth! Or Patty!"
"Mom, no one except you and me can know. Kapische?"
"Yeah, yeah, Uncle Jesse."
"Good... now let's go get some Red Vines to drive Dad crazy."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The following Thursday night, the parents took their seats in the Stars Hollow Elementary School Multi-Purpose Room. The week had gone without major incident. The Coopers had come and gone (it almost seemed as though Caitlin hadn't been there at all), and Ryan and Rory got back to normal. Rory tried her best to make sure that nothing changed between herself and her best friend. Kirsten and Lorelai, both incredibly busy with work and a couple of growing children each, found very little time to sit and talk.
Luke, the self-appointed videographer, lef his wife and friends to the second row. His camera in hand, he waited for the lights to go off and the music to start while he listened to Lorelai and Kirsten talk,
"So, Rory told me what's been bothering her."
"What is it?"
"I promised I wouldn't tell. But it has to do with..." Kirsten understood immediately, and grinned broadly (she would call it idiotically), nodding. They glanced over at Seth and Lane, perusing a pile of CDs, talking animatedly about which Beatles LP was the best, "Looks like both of your boys are hot commodities." Kirsten laughed, and Sandy glanced over, merely shaking his head at the women's mindset. Luke, choosing to ignore the reference to his only child having a boyfriend, was thrilled when the lights turned off and he heard Rory's familiar voice,
"Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high. There's a land that I've heard of once in a lullaby..." They watched as the kids nailed their lines, the only mess-up being Kirk (dressed as the wizard), stepping on Seth's tail. Seth laughed it off and continued with his lines.
Watching Seth sing, "If I Were the King of the Forest" was truly the funniest moment of the day. He sang with great inflection, enunciating as in the movie, pretending to be a lion. Everyone laughed as he stood on his tip-toes and changed his height as he sang, "Not king," the tallest, "not duke," slightly shorter, "not queen," back to his regular height. Seth had a knack for comedy.
All of the adults cheered as the four linked arms and began to sing,
"We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz."
Luke felt himself beam with pride as Rory easily switched emotions from happiness, to excitement, to anger, to sorrow at the drop of a hat. Miss Patty was right. Rory was pretty good at acting.
When the final curtain call was called, the "Kelly Road Posse", more formally known around school as "Four of the Inseperable Five," all stepped forward to take a bow. Rory blushed as her father brought her flowers. As everyone cleared the stage, Ryan grabbed the mike, as he had been instructed to do by Taylor, and stated clearly,
"Please stay seated for one encore song," He replaced the mike and ran over to Rory, whispering, "It's go time," and giving Lane the signal. She nodded twice to imply that she understood, and the Kelly Road Posse stepped back onto the stage.
Taylor braced himself for the song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" to begin; the plan was for the four children to sing a harmony. He was taken aback, however, when a rap beat with no music began to play. Rory, Jess, Ryan, and Seth pulled oversized sunglasses out from behind their backs and put them on, then putting on do-rags. Seth stepped forward first,
"Yo yo... somewhere over the rainbow, fools..."
"Way up high, homie!" Ryan shrieked.
"There's a land that I've hizzeard of," Jess rapped.
"Once in a lulla-lulla-lullaby," Rory did her best to act like a rapper. Then their true song came through. They all began to rap together.
"We're the Kelly Road Posse and we're here to say, we're so cool- get out of our way. There's Jess, the bookworm, and trouble-maker, too. The new kid that just joined the crew. Then, Seth, the one, with music and books, who can make you laugh with a thousand looks," they paused as Seth began to make faces at the audience, "Then Lane, our behind-the-scenes girl, is sure to throw you for a whirl. Ryan, blondie, brother of Seth, playing sports is what he does the best," Ryan imitated sports movements as Taylor shook his head in defeat, "Last but not least is Rory Danes- she's sure to win at any game. CHEATER!" Rory laughed and stuck her tongue out at the crowd, "We live in Stars Hollow, it's mad cool yo. We go to the diner or the gazebo! We'll probably get in trouble for singing this song, but Taylor, don't you think this play's a little long?" They hit final poses as the crowd erupted in cheers, the Danes and Cohen families laughing and shaking their heads,
"We raised them?" Kirsten checked.
"We raised them," Lorelai confirmed.
"I guess it's back to normal now."
"Thank heavens."