It was nearly eleven when Colin dropped Logan off at the mausoleum that Logan not so affectionately called home. It had taken them over three hours to plant all of the clues. It would have probably only taken a little over two if Finn could have just kept his whiskey down. Alas Finn required them to stop almost every twenty minutes so that he could go relieve himself. He waved a somber goodbye to his friend and then backed out of the drive so that he could make it home before Finn tried to go out partying. Sometimes he felt like instead of keeping him young Finn was on the other hand making him feel really old.
Logan walked up to his house slowly. He didn't really want to go inside but knew that he had too. He at least had to say goodbye to his mother. He owed her that much. She may not have been the most affectionate woman in the world but he did know that she loved him. When he opened the door to the house he instantly recognized two voices his mother and her psychic. He said a silent thanks to God and then walked into the living room. "I don't want to interrupt you mother I just wanted to say goodbye. I'll be leaving in the morning. Rory is going to be the one who takes me to the airport." Logan didn't wait for her to reply knowing that she was so wrapped up in her psychic's phone reading that she didn't have the time or energy to focus on anything else. Quickly he went into his room so that he could avoid his grandfather who would soon be leaving his room so that he could get a night cap. It only took him a few minutes to find all of the things that he would need to make this night special for Rory. He wanted her to know that he loved her just as much if not more today than he did three years ago. After collecting all of the things that he would need he opened the doors to his balcony and made his quick escape.
Lorelai sat at her kitchen table smiling to herself. She was watching Logan climb out of his window. She knew that he would be heading for Rory's. Sometimes she wondered if she should be okay with him and Rory being together the way they were. Then she would look at a photo of them together and know that no matter even if Rory repeated Lorelai's mistake she would be able to hold her own because Logan would be there by her side. "Chris do you ever wonder what would have happened to us if I'd never accepted your proposal."
Christopher sat down at the table shaking his head slightly. "You would have been okay and more than likely to keep my mind off not having you I would have probably stayed as far away from you as possible. Of course I would show up sort of sporadically to let Rory know that I loved her and we would get together but then you'd push me away."
"Oh yeah?" Lorelai questioned after sitting back down at the table with a fresh cup of coffee.
"Yeah and one night I'd show up and would be drunk and would try to convince you that I still love you but of course you would have moved on with some other guy. Balding maybe but still decent shape and he would have some profession that speaks to you like he would own a coffee shop."
Lorelai scoffed. "What makes you think I want some almost balding coffee shop owner?"
"Well because you'd never have to worry about a meal ever again because he would keep you well stocked in bagels and coffee." Christopher joked.
Lorelai nodded sagely. "Oh but of course I would love him for his coffee."
"I would be heartbroken and would live out the rest of my days regretting most of the choices I made. See there is no way that I would ever be able to find a girl who likes Styx half as much as you do." Christopher whispered and then started to give his wife a kiss but then instead pulled his head back.
"What?" Lorelai asked with her eyes closed.
"Who the hell is climbing up our terrace?"
"What?" Lorelai asked as if she really didn't know.
"Lor how long has this been going on?" Christopher knew that Lorelai had to have known. There was that little glint in her eye that said she was aware of everything that went on. He for the most part was oblivious because he was either always on the phone or on the computer.
Lorelai took a deep breath. "Since like their freshmen year of high school. They don't do anything I'm almost sure of it. I asked Lorena if she noticed anything looking you know sloppy and she said no. I think they just spend time together."
Christopher started to say something in protest of these late night get togethers when Lorelai walked over to him and smiled coyly. "I think I'm in the mood for a power ballad."
Christopher wanted to go upstairs and to let it be known that he didn't like the fact that his one and only daughter was having her boyfriend come over at night, but knew that Lorelai wouldn't let him even if he tried so instead he followed her into the den. He figured that there were worse things in the world for Rory to do behind his back than have her boyfriend for what seemed like forever come over. Plus it was Logan. He wanted Rory to be with Logan. So this was a good thing. It was a step in the right direction. Christopher gave up on the whole thought all together and went back to focusing simply on Lorelai.
Rory pulled her car into the driveway of her large house and sighed. The night had gone smoothly but of course there had been quite a few times when Rory was nervous that everything would go downhill. Bryan Darwin was, but of course the caterer for the evening and was good friends with Amanda Foster. Rory thought she was going to die when she saw him sitting in the corner nursing a glass of wine. Stephanie on the other hand seemed to brighten up when she saw him. The rest of the evening of course consisted of Stephanie getting drunk with Bryan and remembering the good old days. Sometimes Rory wondered how Stephanie made such a good debutante when she could at times be just so unladylike. It had taken her twenty minutes to convince Stephanie that it was time to go home. By the time she got Stephanie home her friend was passed out. Rory smiled when she noticed that the light in her room was on. She had spent the whole evening wanting to be here with him. She knew that in the morning Stephanie would apologize for her behavior but it didn't make Rory feel any better about the situation. She needed to be with him right now more than ever.
Logan had just finished getting the room ready when Rory walked in. As usual he was taken aback by her beauty. She was standing in the doorway with her heels in her left hand. Her hair was slightly disheveled and you could tell that she had had a long evening but still she was gorgeous. There was nothing about her that wasn't beautiful. "Hey…" after he got done giving her a long kiss.
"I can't believe you did all this." She said as she walked further into the room. He had put in the c.d. that she had made him a while ago when they were still in high school. He had bought all of her favorite snacks. The best part though was that he had found the collection of videos that they had made starting with freshmen year. It was like a Logan and Rory smorgasbord. "Where did you find those tapes?"
"Actually they ended up with me at Stanford. They sort of helped me cope with everything while I was there." Logan explained as he led her over to the bed. "I think I have one you'll really like to see." He replied and then pressed play.
It was a warm summer night and everything was dark, but definitely not quiet. Everyone was sitting around a big bonfire making predictions about their lives and sharing a bottle of champagne that Stephanie had stolen from her brother's wedding reception.
Stephanie who was clearly the drunkest was attempting to hold the camera and drink champagne. When she was finished she passed the bottle to Colin and then asked in her best Barbara Walters voice "Where do you think we'll be in ten years."
"We'll I'll of course still be exotic and living my life just as my hero George Clooney does. The rest of you we'll you be boring and responsible." Finn replied and then took a big swig of the champagne."
Colin laughed when he noticed that it was his turn to speak. "I don't know. Hopefully we won't be like St. Elmo's Fire, because we all know which roles we would fit. Stephanie would be Jules because we all know she has a thing for extravagance. Finn would be Billy because he basically already is Billy minus you know the kids and the marriage. Rory, sweet Rory, would be Wendy, because even though our dear Rory is much prettier and more elegant looking she is definitely the only normal one in the bunch. I chalk it up to the fact that her parents weren't old enough to be her grandparents when they had her. That leaves Logan, he's a hard fit, but I would have to go with Kirby because he is good at love isn't he. Plus he has the spontaneity."
Stephanie scoffed at least that's what the noise she made sounded like. "You forgot to give yourself a character."
"Oh well I of course am Alec the closet Republican with an insatiable sexual appetite." Colin said as if that was the most obvious thing he ever had to make clear.
Logan laughed. "Oh yes I see it too. Seriously I can't say anything about you guys but Rory and I will be living happily ever after."
"Damn then I better can Hans, and tell him our date for tonight is off." Rory joked.
"Yeah I think that would be a good idea." Logan gave her a soft kiss.
Stephanie stood up. At first she wobbled a bit, but finally she regained her balance. "A simple toast to our lives as journalists, tax auditors, event planners, permanent bachelors, and adults."
When the video was over Rory looked over at Logan and smiled. "I'd forgotten all about that night. It seems like so long ago. All of us on that beach. Drunk off our asses. Talking about things we had no idea were coming so fast."
"Sometimes I wish we could go back to that time in our lives because at least then we still were innocent and naïve. We still thought that everything was going to be okay. That was the last summer that we able to be kids. After that we had to be responsible for things we knew nothing about." Logan admitted. "I think we understood one thing though. We understood that no matter what we would be together as a couple. We would love each other more than anything else in the world in ten years."
"Do you still think we're going to live happily ever after?" Rory questioned. She stared into his eyes as if she were actually reading his soul.
Logan smiled. "Of course we will. There are four things you can count on in life. Finn's always going to be somewhat drunk no matter what time of the day. Colin is always going to be into money the way most people are into say sports or hobbies. Stephanie will always have an eye for beauty. The most important thing to remember is that I'll always love you and I'll always want us to have a happily ever after."
Rory kissed Logan as if there were no tomorrow. She used the kiss to say things that she didn't think she could. She told him that she loved him more than she had ever loved anything in her entire life that included reading. She told him that she didn't know if she would be okay while he was waiting to see if his transfer would be accepted. She told him that deep down she still worried that he would leave her again for something else. She told him that she felt like her life was worth nothing if he wasn't in it. She told him that while he was gone she struggled everyday with the realization that she would never love again. she told him that she needed him in her life like she needed air.
Logan gently laid Rory down on the bed and then slowly began to undo the buttons on her blouse. He stopped in the middle of what he was doing and gave her a look that asked if this was okay. Her small smile let him know that she wanted it just as bad. As he continued to unbutton her blouse he wondered if this was the first time she had had sex since graduation night. It was the last time the two of them had been intimate. Of course he hadn't slept with anyone because he hadn't moved on with his life, but Rory had. So he wondered was she ever intimate like this with Dean. He decided that she probably wasn't only because Rory was so shy about everything but especially this. He doubted that she would do something this special with someone like Dean.
Rory woke up that next morning to a feeling of pure bliss. She felt as if last night had been one of the best nights of her life. In the time she had been gone she'd forgotten how much she'd missed being intimate with Logan. She looked at the clock and felt herself want to cry. She would need to wake him up soon so that he could get on his plane. She wanted to tell him not to go, but she knew that she couldn't do that.
It took them a half hour to get to the airport mostly because of morning traffic. Everyone was commuting back and forth from Boston. They stood together in the terminal not saying anything just holding each other for what seemed like forever. Rory felt herself want to cry when he finally pulled away. "I'll be back as soon as I can Rory. I swear. I won't stay a moment longer than I have to. I'm so sorry I ever decided to leave." Logan whispered in her ear before giving her a long and passionate kiss.
Rory couldn't say anything more than that she loved him too. She watched as he gave his ticket to the woman and then she watched him start to board the plane. Suddenly he dropped his one carry on bag and then ran over to where she was standing and gave her one more kiss. "One for the road." He explained and then he went back into the tunnel that would lead him to the plane.
Rory wiped the tears from her eyes and willed herself to be stronger. She turned around and started to leave, but not before she heard someone call her name. "Miss Hayden! Wait please!" Rory turned around and saw that a woman carrying a white envelope was chasing after her.
"Your boyfriend told me to give this to you. He said that you were not to read it until he was boarded on his plane." The woman explained and then left Rory standing there with the white envelope in her hand. She decided against reading the note here and instead shoved it in her purse. After getting in her car she knew that the only person who would should be present when she read this note was Stephanie.