A/N- Seriously. Still love the reviews... nothing has changed... oh yeah, except for the fact that between this one and the copy of the story I have posted on the OC page (same story, just posted in two different places) I have 100 reviews for this story! You guys rock my socks! Ahhh!

A/N 2- Ok, question time... First off, the title of the story is derived from a song from the OC mix 2 (ps can't wait till April 5th when Mix 4 comes out), which I'm obsessed with and listen to daily. It's just a nice song- the lyrics go "Hello Sunshine, come into my life. In honesty, it's been a while since we've had reason left to smile..." at the beginning some of them were miserable. Now they're happy. The title is less applicable in some senses now and more applicable in other senses now. Sunshine is happy, this story is happy (I read angst. I don't write it well.), so therefore Hello Sunshine... lol... Also, Jess comes back in a few years to live with the Daneses. But first, I want to establish the RoryRyanSethLane relationships. Then I'll bring Jess into the picture. Also, I'm going to have their high school education be the same as it was for Rory. Stars Hollow High at first, then all of them at Chilton. Yeah... so that was a really long A/N... sorry...

A/N 3- Also, to those of you who are saying you watch one show and not the other but you like the characters in my story, make sure you watch both shows! They are awesome and amazing and awesomely amazing!

Disclaimer: Still 16, Still don't want to own anything...

Nothing A Best Friend Wouldn't Do

Rory glanced over at her two friends standing next to her, their knuckles white from the tightness of their grasp on their bookbags. She sighed and turned to Lane; they had all been taken to school together after momentary begging to which their parents easily gave in. In the six months that the Cohens had lived in Stars Hollow, Rory, Lane, Seth, and Ryan had spent practically every day together and their families had dinner together at least once a week. The previous week's dinner had been especially interesting.

The Cohens arrived at the Danes' house at 6:00, Kirsten carrying a store-bought cake in a large plastic bag. They knocked slightly before opening the door- there was no need to wait for Luke, Lorelai, and Rory to come and open the door anymore.

"Anyone home?" Sandy called as the boys pushed through the door and ran towards the kitchen and Rory's room.

"Kitchen!" Lorelai called back. They followed their children into the Danes' spacious kitchen and found Luke hunched over the stove, Lorelai hovering next to him. "Please, Luke?" She begged anxiously.

"No!" He responded gruffly, not bothering to look at his pleading wife.

"Luke, c'mon! I really want to. I promise nothing bad will happen." Luke glanced at Lorelai,

"Last time you said that I wound up at the hospital with my hands burnt. No!" Kirsten laughed and Sandy was intrigued,

"What is it now?" Luke looked at his best friend (aside from his wife, of course) and gave an exasperated sigh; at least he had Sandy to understand.

"She wants to cook."

"Again!" Lorelai pouted falsely at her friend and husband while Sandy continued, "I thought we've discussed this. The women in these families cannot cook. Luke and I cook; you guys are dangerous in the kitchen."

"Hey!" Kirsten moved and stood next to Lorelai, emulating her best friend's pout.

"You know what?" Lorelai crossed her arms over her chest.

"What?" Luke asked; he loved his wife, but there was no way he would endanger his family and friends by letting her cook.

"We like the kids better than you," Lorelai stated simply, sticking her tongue out at the men.

"We're going to be with them," Kirsten finished the thought, linking arms with Lorelai and marching towards Rory's room.

Lorelai and Kirsten opened the door to find the kids all sitting around, Rory and Seth sitting on the bed, Lane on the toy chest at the foot of the bed (she had been playing with Rory all day), and Ryan sitting on his hands on Rory's desk chair, facing his friends and brother.

"Hey, guys," Lorelai said quickly, leaning on the doorway.

"What are you doing?" Kirsten asked, waving to Lane and Rory in greeting.

"Talking," Seth said quickly, stealing a glance at Rory, who quickly returned the look and then stared quickly, pointedly at Lane, then Ryan. They had come to a child's unspoken agreement- they needed the adults out of the room right then. Rory got up; it was her job to talk to the adults.

"Ok, well, thanks for stopping by. We'll see you at dinner. Have fun with Daddy and Sandy," she tried to usher them out the door.

"Wait, Rory, we want to stay and talk to you guys," Lorelai said, gently swatting away her daughter's hand.

"No, no. It's ok. We're fine in here. Go help Daddy and Sandy."

"They're not letting us cook," explained Kirsten, prompting a celebratory "Yes!" from Seth and Ryan and a giggle from Lane. Rory grasped for a way to get the adults out of the room before blurting out,

"Mommy, Daddy's calling you!" She was exhausted from her attempts at getting her mother to understand.

"I didn't hear him."

"I did!" She looked at her friends, pleading with them to help her with her eyes. They quickly got the point and began to shout,

"Yeah, yeah!"

"Luke's calling you!"

"Kirsten, Sandy's calling you, too!" Kirsten and Lorelai got the not-so-subtle hint and reluctantly turned to leave,

"Ok, well, if you guys need anything..."

"You know where to find us," Kirsten finished her friend's thought.

"Yeah, yeah. We know where you are. Bye!" Rory shut the door behind her mother and Kirsten and turned back to her friends, collapsing against the door while rolling her eyes exaggeratedly.

Once they were sure their parents were out of the room and no longer listening to their conversation, the kids again began to discuss what they had been previously.

"So, what did he say, exactly?" Rory asked Ryan curiously.

"He just started teasing me... I don't know why. He said I was a girl because I play with you and Lane."

"So do I," mentioned Seth, pointing to himself to emphasize the point.

"Yeah, but you aren't in our class."

"Neither is Lane."

"But he can't pick on you if he doesn't know you. And he doesn't pick on girls."

"True." Lane spoke up,

"So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know. I don't want to tell my teacher, because I don't want to be a snitch. And I don't want to tell my mommy, because I don't want to be a crybaby," He paused and considered, "I think I can deal with it. It's not so bad."

"Who is this kid again?" Seth asked curiously.

"Dean... something... something like Jungle or... Beach or... Forrest or..."

"Ry, I think that's it," Rory noted.

"Forrest?"

"Forrestor."

"Maybe," He shrugged, turning slowly to the window and quietly asking, "What should I do if he doesn't stop?" The rest of the children looked nervously at one another; Ryan hated confrontation, and they all knew it well. Seth decided to try and convince his brother,

"Ry, I think you should tell mommy and daddy. They can help..." Ryan interrupted his brother with a vehement head shake,

"No. Mommy will get all worried and daddy will call the school. I can do this myself."

"Fine, fine," Seth held his hands up in defense before hearing his father's voice,

"Kids! Dinner!"

They slowly and cautiously got up and strode into the kitchen, allowing Ryan to go first. Each grabbing a plate, they helped themselves to mountains of food and made their way into the den, attempting to ignore the conversation they'd just had and the nagging fear in the backs of their minds.

Once everyone was settled on the couches and the floor of the Daneses' den, the adults turned on a not-too-distracting movie for the kids.

"So, guys, how's school?"

Rory, Seth, and Lane all glanced skeptically at Ryan; Ryan suddenly began to pick at his spaghetti.

Kirsten, noticing the children's reactions, turned to her son,

"Ry, what's going on?" Still staring at his spaghetti, he hastily answered,

"Nothing."

"Then why did Seth, Rory, and Lane all look at you when I asked how school was?" Ryan shot his friends a dirty glare and then, again, looked back at his spaghetti. He was a horrible liar, and he knew it.

"I'm fine, really. Everything's ok."

"Ryan Nicholas, don't lie to me."

"I'm not!" He looked her directly in the eye. She knew something was bothering him, but decided to drop it and ask him again later, privately. Worse comes to worse She thought I'll ask Seth. Poor kid can never keep a secret.

The rest of the night had gone without incident, and the Cohen clan had returned home at ten at night, a sleeping Seth and Ryan in their arms. Sandy and Kirsten brought the boys up to their bedrooms, which were next to one another, with a door connecting the two, and tucked them in, returning to their bedroom five minutes later.

Once she had changed into pajamas, Kirsten pulled out the box of Oreos that she kept stashed in her night table drawer; she knew if she kept them in the boys' reach, they'd be devoured in mere minutes, so she gave them two cookies from the "Cookie Cave" (as Seth had titled it). She set them on the bed and sat down, bouncing a bit when Sandy plopped down beside her.

"What's the matter?" He asked, pulling apart the Oreo in his hand. He had noticed she had been acting funny since dinner.

"I'm just... worried about Ryan..." Sandy's gaze became confused,

"Why?"

"Didn't you see at dinner? All the kids gave him that look when I asked them how school was."

"Which look?"

"The 'there's something wrong that you don't want your parents to know, because you know how they'll react and what'll happen' look."

"That's a very verbose look."

"Sandy," She reprimanded, her eyes wandering to a photo of her and Ryan on the dresser.

"I'm sorry," He paused, deciding what to say to comfort his wife, "He's fine. If he has a problem and he needs our help, he'll let us know. He's a smart kid. They both are." Kirsten sighed,

"It's just... he has that tendency to keep all of his emotions all bottled up, and I'm afraid that one day, it'll just explode."

"He'll be fine. Don't worry."

"You know I'm going to..."

"Yeah, well, I can dream, can't I?"

Back at school on Monday, Rory couldn't help but feel nervous for her friend. The new boy, Dean, didn't make fun of her (because she was a girl), and didn't make fun of Seth (because, as Ryan had stated, he didn't know him). Ryan was in this alone, and he refused anyone's help.

After dropping off Seth and Lane in Ms. Adams' class, Kirsten and Lorelai (Sandy had to get to work in Hartford (at the Connecticut DA's office- he had been transferred from California) and Luke had to open the diner), Kirsten and Lorelai took Ryan and Rory into their classroom next door.

As Rory and Ryan said goodbye to their mothers and began to find their seats, Kirsten stopped her son,

"Ry, sweetie, come here. Let me talk to you," Ryan looked skeptically at his mother and then longingly at his seat, but he obeyed and returned to Kirsten; he knew this wasn't a conversation he was going to want to have.

"What's wrong, mommy?"

"Are you sure you're going to be ok, baby?"

"Yeah, mommy. I'll be fine. Why?"

"You just seemed... distracted this weekend. You promise me everything's ok?"

"Yeah, mommy." He quickly crossed his fingers behind his back.

"Ok, well, if you need anything, you tell the teacher or you call me. I love you."

"You too." She kissed his forehead and followed Lorelai out of the school.

As they stepped into the brisk December air, Lorelai glanced, worried, at her best friend,

"You still worried about Ryan?" Kirsten nodded and tightened her coat around her body,

"He's just... so quiet. Around strangers, I mean, and school is new for him. He has Rory and Lane but... what if there's something that's bothering him. He probably wouldn't tell anyone."

"Ryan's a great kid. If he's having a problem, he's dealing with it in his own way. He'll come to you eventually. Don't worry." Kirsten smiled weakly at her friend,

"Thanks."

"No problem. So, look... I was thinking about taking Rory shopping this weekend. Any interest in joining us?"

"Sure. Ryan and Seth have been asking to play baseball with Luke and Sandy for a while anyway." They walked the rest of the way back to the inn, where Kirsten said goodbye and left to go to her work at an architect's office.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rory and Ryan stood, facing Seth and Lane on the playground.

"Red Rover, Red Rover, we call Ryan right over!" Seth and Lane called joyfully in unison. Ryan ran at them with full force and broke their hands apart easily. He jogged back to Rory and whispered in her ear. Together, they yelled,

"Red Rover, Red Rover, we call Seth right over!" Seth let go of Lane's hand and gave himself a little energy boost before lunging himself at his brother and friend. He unsuccessfully tried to break apart their arms before standing up and taking Rory's left hand (Ryan had the right). Lane looked next to her and laughed loudly,

"We need to get more friends into our group." Realizing that she was laughing about the fact that the game was now over, they all began to giggle with her.

"What do you guys wanna do now?"

"Swings!" Ryan called while Lane and Seth yelled,

"Monkey bars!"

"I actually wanna go on the monkey bars, too," Rory added, "You gonna come with us?" Ryan shook his head,

"No. I'll meet you guys later. I feel like swinging. I'll go by myself."

"Ok, bye, Ry."

"Bye, guys. See you later."

Ryan turned and made his way to the swing set, his friends and brother walking the other way, towards the jungle gym. He got up on the swing and began to pump his legs. Before long, he heard a taunting voice from behind him,

"Ryan, why aren't you wearing a dress?" He craned his neck to find Dean standing next to the swing set.

"Dean, leave me alone."

"I can't leave you alone. You're a girl, and girls need help getting off the swings. So I have to wait for you to be done."

"That doesn't make any sense. Rory and Lane always get off the swing by themselves. You're just trying to be mean."

"No, I'm right. You're just too dumb to know it because you play with girls!" At this point, Ryan had slowed down the swing and slid off, making strides towards his brother and friends at the monkey bars, intentionally not looking Dean in the eye.

"I'm not dumb!" Ryan would never fight back or call this kid names; he had been raised to never be cruel.

"You are, too. And you're a girl. And nobody likes you cuz you hang out with girls! You dumb baby girl! You're so..." Dean was cut off mid-taunt by Ryan's blonde head coming into contact with his stomach. Ryan pushed Dean to the ground and they began to wrestle. Ryan managed to keep a firm hold over Dean; Dean was a little bit taller than Ryan, but Ryan had been raised with a brother the same age, and they wrestled occasionally.

The boys wrestled and swung fists at each other for a full thirty seconds before Ryan, who was sitting on top of Dean's stomach, felt a pair of strong hands wrap around his stomach. He and Dean, who were both swinging blindly, had been picked up by two of the playground aides, Jackson and Kirk.

"Boys, inside! Now!" The principal's voice boomed at the two second-graders as Ryan began to stop flailing, though Dean continued to thrash violently.

"Kirk, are you alright?" The principal asked, watching with concern as the twenty-three year old held a tissue over his bleeding nose; he had gotten hit by one of Dean's flying fists and knocked to the ground as a result.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Mr. Wallace. Just gimme a minute. I bruise easily, but I heal quickly too. I'm like Play-doh. You can mold me all you want but then I can go right back to place."

Mr. Wallace looked at the boy and couldn't help but remember the time when he was still a teacher and Kirk had been a student at Stars Hollow Elementary. He wondered to himself if, had Kirk never been hit in the head by 64 basketballs over the course of one year, he'd be so abnormal. He hurriedly pushed the idea to the back of the mind and turned back to the second-graders in front of him.

"Now, Mr. Cohen. Mr. Forrestor. What do you two have to say for yourselves?" Dean said nothing; he only glared at Ryan, who sat stoically, staring at his shoes.

"I'm sorry," Ryan said quietly; he knew his parents wouldn't be happy about this.

"Mr. Cohen, would you care to explain your actions?" Ryan sighed, determined not to let himself cry in front of Dean.

"Dean was... teasing me. And I got mad, cuz he's been making fun of me for a few days and I didn't tell anyone cuz I didn't wanna be a snitch. And then, I just couldn't take it anymore so I hit him."

"Mr. Forrestor, is this true?"

"Yeah. I called Ryan a girl cuz he is a girl. Then he hit me." The principal nodded and sat slowly in his overstuffed desk chair.

"Boys, you both know how serious of an offense this is," they both nodded, "We will be calling your parents." Ryan looked up at him with pleading eyes,

"My daddy's gonna be really mad."

"Well, maybe you should think about that before you fight next time."

Thirty minutes later, Kirsten was at the elementary school, seated next to Ryan, while Dean's mother was seated next to him. The principal was explaining the consequences of the boys' actions,

"We request that you take the boys home now and give them some time to think before they come back tomorrow. And every day for the rest of the week, the boys will have in-for-recess," both boys groaned; in for recess was the equivalent of detention at Stars Hollow Elementary, "Now, I suggest that you boys go home and think about what you did. I do not hope to have to deal with you in this manner ever again." Both boys nodded and Dean stood up, beating a hasty retreat out the door. Ryan, however, stood slowly, inhaling deeply.

"Mr. Wallace?"

"Yes, Ryan?"

"I'm sorry." The man felt bad for disciplining the child and bent down to his level to look him in the eye,

"Ryan, you're a good boy. You've never gotten in trouble in school and you're a very good student. I don't expect to deal with you fighting ever again."

"No. Thank you." Kirsten led her son out the door and to the car. She sighed and looked down at her son, disappointment and regret evident in her eyes,

"Has he been bothering you?" Ryan nodded, "Is that why everybody was looking at you at Rory's house on Friday?" Ryan gave a smaller nod, "That's what you couldn't tell me about?" Ryan gave an even smaller nod, and then Kirsten saw him begin to shake. Ryan looked up at her for the first time since that morning, before the incident. As tears flowed over his eyelids, he said shakily,

"I'm sorry, mommy. I should've told you, but I didn't want you to worry, and I didn't want daddy to call the school, and I didn't want to be a snitch, and I thought I could deal with it on my own..." He let his voice trail off as he began to cry harder, unable to control his sobs.

"Ry, baby, it's ok about that..." She pulled him into her arms and kissed his head.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived home; they had sat, holding each other, for a full ten minutes.

"Ryan, go to your room. I'll call you when lunch is ready."

"Yes, mommy," He went to go up the stairs, but paused and reconsidered. Wordlessly, he ran to his mother and wrapped his small arms around her waist, "I love you, mommy."

"I love you, too, baby. Now go upstairs," He obeyed and Kirsten went to the kitchen, picking up the phone and dialing the familiar number.

"Independence Inn, Lorelai speaking."

"Lorelai, hey. It's Kirsten."

"Hey, what's up?"

"Could you do me a favor?"

"Sure. Name it."

"When you go pick up Rory from school today, could you possibly pick up Seth also?"

"Sure. No Ryan?"

"No, no. We had an... incident. I'll tell you about it later."

"All right. They'll be at the diner with Luke later. Talk to you later."

"Yeah, see you later." She hung up and sighed before dialing another number she had come to know well.

"DA's office, how can I help you?"

"Hi, can I speak to Sandy Cohen, please? This is his wife."

"Sure, just hold on one moment." As the overly-pleasant hold music came through the earpiece, she found her mind wandering to her son sitting silently, ashamed, upstairs. He's normally such a good kid. He's not violent. Sure, sometimes he and Seth will fight one another, but it's to be expected of brothers who are the same age. What can I even do about this?

She was jolted back to reality by the sound of her husband's voice,

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Hey, what's going on?"

"Ryan got sent home from school today."

"Is he sick?"

"No. He got into a fight."

"A fight? Like a physical punching hitting fight? Our Ryan?"

"Yeah. Remember the two little boys who live down the hall from us? The blonde one."

"With who?" Sandy was incredulous; his sweet little boy never fought with anyone. He hated confrontation, and his father knew it all too well.

"Some kid... Dean something or other. Dean was teasing him for being friends with Rory and Lane and calling him a girl and one thing led to another and... Ryan hit him."

"Wow," Sandy was floored, "So... did Ryan at least win?"

"Sandy!"

"What! I just need to know if my son is a strong, good fighter! It's a man thing." Kirsten started to laugh,

"Actually, the Dean kid is, like, half a foot taller than him and Ryan still pinned him down and, had they not been separated, Ryan easily would've won."

"You just made my day and broke my day all in one conversation."

"Ok, I'm going to go talk to our little delinquent. Seth's going home with Lorelai today. He'll be at the diner."

"I was planning on picking up dinner from there anyway. I'll pick him up around five."

"Ok. Love you."

"You too. Bye."

"Bye."

A few hours later, she was laying upstairs in her bed, watching TV. Ryan had refused to leave his room the entire afternoon; he was ashamed of himself. She wondered if that was punishment enough. She heard the front door open and heard the cheerful voices of her husband and other son deep in conversation.

"No, daddy, I'm telling you- X-Men is way better than Captain Planet."

"Captain Planet wants to save the environment."

"But X-Men want to save the world."

"Seth, you live in a very small world."

"I'm not that tall yet. I get it. Gosh, you don't have to bring it up all the time." Kirsten laughed to herself as she sat up; her son and husband were almost too alike sometimes. She made her way downstairs and found Seth and Sandy setting the kitchen table.

"Hey, guys."

"Hey, mommy."

"Hey, honey." She gave Sandy a kiss on the lips and Seth a kiss on the forehead,

"Seth, did you have fun with Rory?"

"Yeah. Lane had to go home early, so it was just us. We colored and then we watched some TV and then we watched her daddy fight with Taylor. It was kinda funny."

"Taylor's silly, isn't he?"

"Yeah," the little boy giggled gleefully. His mother took his hand and led him to a chair by the kitchen table.

"Seth, can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Sure, mommy. What's up?"

"Did you see what happened with Ryan and Dean today?" Seth nodded, a look of dread overcoming his eyes.

"It was scary, mommy. Dean was being really mean to Ryan. He kept teasing him and calling him a girl and dumb and stupid and Ryan was just taking it for a little while. But I guess being teased all this time made him really mad, cuz then Ryan just got that look in his eye- you know, the one he gets if i poke him for too long or if I call him Nicky- and he just went to beat up Dean. And Dean tried to hit back, but Ryan was too strong for him... it wasn't Ryan's fault, mommy. Dean was asking for it."

"Thanks, sweetheart. Why don't you go watch tv for a little bit in Daddy and my room. We're going to go talk to Ryan."

"Ok, mommy." He slipped off the chair and ran up the stairs, Sandy and Kirsten straying behind.

"You ready to do this?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Seth's story checks out with Ryan's."

"At least he's not lying."

"No, instead he's beating kids up."

"Ehh... take what you can get." They turned in unison and made their way upstairs to Ryan's bedroom. They knocked gently before entering the small blue room.

"Ry?"

"Daddy?"

"Hey, buddy. What happened today?" Sandy asked as he and Kirsten sat down on Ryan's bed, next to him. Ryan sighed loudly,

"Dean's a jerk."

"Ryan Nicholas, language."

"Sorry... It's just... he was just... he called me a girl... for the past two weeks in school. And I just... couldn't listen to him be so mean to me anymore. So, I hit him. Cuz I didn't want to call him names... I'm sorry..."

"Ryan... we know you're sorry. We really do. But you cannot hit people. Ever. Hitting will never solve any problems, no matter how mad you get," Sandy reprimanded his son.

"I know, daddy," Ryan told him miserably.

"Ry, what I don't get is, if this kid was bothering you, why you didn't tell the teacher or me or daddy?" Ryan looked up sheepishly at his mother; he loved his father, but to be honest, he was more of a momma's boy than a daddy's boy.

"I didn't want you... to get worried... like I knew you would. And Daddy would've called the school. And the teacher would've said something to Dean and then I would be a snitch and a baby because I need my mommy and daddy and the teacher to protect me. I'm sorry."

"Ryan, stop apologizing so much. You don't need to be scared. If you're really that sorry, then just don't hit next time." Ryan nodded shyly and glanced up at his father,

"Daddy?"

"Yeah, pal?"

"What's my punishment?" Sandy looked at Kirsten and they reached an unspoken agreement.

"No punishment, buddy. I think you're sorry enough for what you've done and you're getting a big punishment at school. So we'll let this one slide, as long as it never happens again."

"It won't! I promise!"

The next day, after dropping off the children at school, Lorelai and Kirsten decided to call in late to work and go for a long walk.

"So, you never told me why Ryan was sent home early yesterday."

"Oh, right. He got into a fight with some kid at school."

"Really? Ryan Cohen? That Ryan?" Kirsten laughed at her friend's implication of her son's sweet nature and nodded,

"The kid was making fun of him and Ryan attacked him. It's apparently been going on for weeks."

"What were they fighting over?"

"Rory."

"Really? Rory? I thought that wasn't supposed to happen until they were, like, fifteen."

"Well, your daughter is very hypnotic."

"Don't tell my husband. He'll lock her up in her room until she's thirty... He's very protective of her."

"Really? I haven't noticed," Kirsten added a touch of sarcasm to her voice and Lorelai laughed in return,

"So, I could dress her up in boy clothes if you want. Make her less attractive."

"Nah, not necessary. Ryan and Seth love playing with her and Lane. It'd scare them if they changed to guys overnight."

"Duly noted."

"So... race you to the diner for breakfast?"

"Oh, you are on!" As the two grown women who were now best friends raced one another towards one of their husband's diner, Kirsten was reassured that it was going to be ok; She had her friends, husband, and two wonderful little boys. There would be some ups and downs, but that was life and she wouldn't have it any other way.