Title: Lies

Summary: Rory meets Tristan again at a party. They really hit it off. But what is Tristan hiding from her?

Disclaimer: I own Graham. Which isn't such a bad thing, trust me.

A/N: Sorry that this update took so long. My wrist still hurts plus I've been moving in with my boyfriend, which thus took up a lot of my time.

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The phone rang. She did not want to answer. Yet she did. She needed to hear it from him. Because it would be him on the other side of the line. Of course it would be. He had a gift for calling when she was down. Vulnerable. Was that how she ended up here? Heartbroken? Deceived?

"Rory Gilmore."

"Hey sweetheart. I just called to see how you were doing. I miss you."

She wanted to desperately for it to be true. Tears filled her eyes, clouded her sight, as she clung to the phone. She needed to hear him say it, no matter how much it would hurt her. She needed to know the truth. Didn't he at least owe her that?

"I miss you too Tristan."

She swallowed something and took a deep breath.

"In fact, I missed you so much that I called your place to see how you were doing."

It was strange how casual and steady her voice sounded. She was shaking. Cold. Miserable.

"You did? Layla didn't tell me. Figures. She always tries to sabotage my life."

"Really?"

Rory noticed that her voice sounded sarcastic. She tried to change it, not wanting Tristan to notice that something was wrong until the very end. She needed to be in control. She needed to hear him trying to lie his way out of this. She needed to stay strong so she wouldn't fall for his sweet words again.

"So, did you tell her yet?"

She started again, her voice light and chipper. So fake that he should notice. If he knew her, he would know. He would realise. But he didn't.

"Tell her what, baby?"

Rory managed a tinkling laugh before going for the kill.

"That you're divorcing her for me, of course. We're getting married after all, aren't we? Did you forget about that, silly?"

"Mary, what are you talking about?"

"You know I'm not the type for casual sex Tris...you know that I'd want a ring and the fairytale life. You should have known, at least."

"Rory...I..."

She listened to him quietly, knowing that he was probably sweating and wondering how the hell he would make this right again.

"Oh, I forgot, of course you can't divorce her. Because you need the money from her dad's company."

"Right! You're right! Maybe if..."

She interrupted him.

"Only...there's one thing I don't understand. If Layla's dad is loaded, then why did Layla marry you for your money? She'd have more than enough to provide for herself wouldn't she?"

"I..."

"Oh, Tristan, don't lie to me! Just tell me the truth for once. I'm so fed up with your lies. I..."

Oh dammit, now she started crying. She didn't want to cry. She didn't want him to hear her cry. He wasn't worth it. She needed to stay strong and tell him to fuck off and leave her alone. Yet part of her wanted him to tell her that she had it all wrong. That he really loved her. That he wanted her and that everything he had told her was the truth.

"Rory..."

His voice sounded gentle and sad. She knew. She knew that he was about to ruin everything there was between them. That he was about to tell the truth, finally, but suddenly she did not want to hear the truth anymore. She did not want her fairytale happy ending to be ruined. She did not want to end up alone.

"Don't"

She managed to choke out between sobs.

"Don't be sweet Tristan. Don't ruin things even more. I want so desperately to believe you. But I know you're lying to me. I know you love Layla. Why didn't I see it?"

"Don't blame yourself, Mare..."

"You're right. I should blame you. But I can't. I love you. I love you so much."

She was crying openly now, not having the strength to hold back anymore. Why didn't he say something? Why didn't he make everything okay again? Why couldn't he give her something? Something she could hold on to. Something that would say to her "everything will be okay". You won't get your heart broken again. You will know love. You will end up living happily ever after.

He did give her something. The dialing tone. He hung up. He ended their relationship with something other than lies. Silence. And oddly enough, it comforted her. He had finally been honest. He had finally decided to do something for her benefit instead of his own.

Rory stood up and walked outside. She saw snow dancing in the wind. She needed coffee.

THE END

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