Grandma and Grandpa drive Marty and I home after another long day at Mom's house. Every day seems so draining to me, I'd be surprised if I couldn't fall asleep before my head hit the pillow. As Marty helps me out of the car, Grandma touches my arm through her window.
"Rest, Dear. Take this time and rest. We'll pick you up to go to the funeral tomorrow. Until then, don't think about anything but yourself and that baby," she insists. I nod, squeezing her hand to let her know I've heard.
She's right. A few times, I almost forgot I was pregnant, until another wave of nausea hits me.
"Grandma, I know she's glad you've been there," I tell her. I know it's not my job to bring peace between my grandparents and my mother, but I do it anyway. Gladly, most of the time. If only they would just tell each other this.
"Thank you, Rory. We'll see you tomorrow," she answers and they drive off. I watch the disappearing taillights for a second. My grandparents are a foreign entity to my mother. She doesn't understand how much they love her. If they were truly disappointed in everything she did, they wouldn't have come to Stars Hallow, they wouldn't do everything they could to keep her in their lives.
Marty takes my arm and leads me into our house. As we walk inside, he pulls me to him and I collapse in his arms. I'm so tired. I'm so thankful for Marty. Without him, I don't think I'd be making it through.
"Did I ever tell you how much I love you?" I ask. I feel Marty smile and kiss my neck.
"I think you have, but I don't mind hearing it again." I lean back, my arms still wrapped around his neck
"You're my rock Marty. I'm not strong and I wouldn't get through this without you," I say.
"Rory, you can do anything,' he responds, playing lightly with my hair. I smile. He's so wonderful. I can't believe it took me four years to notice it, but Marty is the love of my life.
I broke up with Logan for the 3rd and final time in October of my senior year of college at Yale. He wasn't right for me and it took a lot for me to realize why. I thought he was wonderful. He was always around. He took me places I never dreamed. He told me I could be a risk taker, I could be adventurous. He tried to teach me I could be careless. Logan was careless in many ways.
Logan wasn't on good terms with his parents. He was on the bad side of the police as well as most of the professors at Yale. Most students at Yale hated him, except ones that were rich like him and felt they could do as they pleased. And he didn't care.
But what finally convinced me to break up with him the last time, was then I realized he was being a jerk to my mother. Logan and I finally found a time to have dinner with my mom and Luke at their house. They had gotten married a few months before and my mom was already expecting the twins. It took so long after I reconciled with my mom to get us all together because Logan kept changing his schedule or faking sick. I don't think he ever planned on seeing my mother outside of my grandparents's house. I finally told him, that we do it on my terms or it's over and that's what finally made him agree to go. Boy was that stupid. Logan treated my mom and Luke like they were crap, like they were beneath him and should be bowing down to him. He was cold and tried to get me to leave less than an hour after we got there. He knew that my mom was my best friend, the most important person in my life, and he was hurting her and she didn't need to take that. I didn't need to take it. So I ended it.
But I didn't get together with Marty right away. Marty and I had been friends since the beginning. He had once told me during our sophomore year that he had feelings for me but I soon forgot. He was so good to me after Logan and we were close like we had been before Logan. During finals week before graduation, I took Marty with me to Stars Hallow. I was dropping some things off at home so that I didn't have a lot to take home on the last day. Marty had always wanted to see the Stars Hallow that I talked about so much so I invited him. He loved it. He seemed so fascinated by the town, by Taylor, by Kirk, by the Spring festival that was going on and everything else about the town. And then he came to my house. Marty had already met Mom a few times but it was this time that really made an impression. He was so friendly and open with my mom and Luke and treated them like friends he hadn't seen in awhile. He held my sister and brother and I could tell he enjoyed his time.
When he dropped me off that night, I thanked him for being so kind and good to me. It was then I knew and I kissed him. I think I surprised him a little but he seemed happy about it. We started dating the next week and within a few years we married. I couldn't be happier. Well, before a few days ago.
"Bed?" Marty asks. I blink a few times to remember where I am and then I smile.
"Perfect," I say. He picks me up and carries me to bed. I'm so glad because I think I'm too tired to have walked up the stairs. As I lay there, curling up to fall asleep, I realize I'm lucky. I'm lucky to have Marty, who loves me and everything about my life. But today, I know that I'm lucky to have had Luke, who treated me like the daughter he never had (at least until April). Luke, who loved me long before either of us realize it. And though I'll miss him, I know that he knows I love him like the father I never really had.
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