AN: 'phew' I finally finished this chapter. Sorry that it took me sooo long. I'd love to use the excuse that I was too busy with school and private life and what not. In a way I really was but the main reasons for the lack of updates are laziness and writer's block. yep, so sorry about that.
I have the story almost finished and I should post the last chapter in a few days.
I want to thank everyone who reviewed on the first chapter and also all those who gave me feedback on my other stories these past two, three months. Thanks a lot.
Here's a warning for you, a FLUFF-WARNING. Lots of mushiness between Luke and Lorelai, especially in the first part of the chapter.
Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter.
Lorelai sat at the counter drinking a cup of peppermint tea. The last week of September was unusually hot and Lorelai prayed that it would stay warm over the weekend. She really didn't need it to rain on her wedding day. Since she recovered from the cold she found herself drinking more tea than her essence of life, coffee. Luke was quietly wiping the counter, enjoying the afternoon lull before the dinner rush. Lorelai stared at him, wondering what he was thinking about. She put a hand on his and stopped his movements, making him look up at her.
"Hey." – She smiled warmly. – "You seem lost in thought. What are you thinking about?" – Luke leaned in closer to her, resting his elbows on the counter.
"I was thinking about this one special girl." – He said in a husky voice and she knew that he was flirting with her. He only talked in that husky and sexy voice when he was flirting. Lorelai perked up a bit, because it was rare that he flirted with her in public. Putting her almost empty cup aside, she leaned in closer to him too.
"What girl?" – She asked.
"A really gorgeous one. She'll be Mrs. Danes in three days."
"Lucky girl." – Lorelai said with a sexy smirk on her lips and Luke moved closer to her. Before pressing his lips to hers for a chaste kiss he whispered: "I'm the lucky one."
After they pulled apart Lorelai told him between giggles – "you're Lucky Luke." – Luke didn't really know how to respond to that so he just kissed her again. The bell over the door announced new customers and Luke took the notepad and walked over to take their orders.
When he came back he refilled Lorelai's cup.
"I've been wanting to ask you something." – She said.
"Okay, what's up?"
"Well the wedding is in three days and I realized that we haven't talked about our bachelor parties. We girls are going to some club in Hartford. What have you planned for yours?"
"Nothing."
"What? Why? You have to have a party. It's a rule."
"Who says that?"
"Me of course." – Lorelai said matter of factly.
"I don't like those parties. The last one I went to ended in a fist fight." – he said, referring to TJ's party.
"That shouldn't stop you. You don't have to go to a bar or strip club. Ooh, ooh…" – Lorelai said excitedly when an idea crossed her mind. – "…You can have a stripper come her and…"
"No." – Luke interrupted her but it was in vain.
"…she could jump out of a cake."
"Lorelai." – He said in a warning voice..
"Do you think there a different kinds of those fake cakes? Like a carrot cake or tofu cake? You know, something healthful for diabetics and healthy food eaters. Imagine a woman jumping out of a jumbo plastic carrot cake. How does it sound?" – Lorelai asked and he just shook his head at her.How she comes up with crazy ideas like 'jumbo plastic carrot cake' he'll never know.
"No party, no stripper, no jumbo cake."
"Come on! It's your last chance to look at other women. After Saturday you'll only be allowed to focus your eyes on me." – Lorelai told him.
"I thought it was clear that my eyes have been focused only on you for years." – Luke whispered flirtatiously.
"How do you do it?" – She asked him and he was lost for a second, not knowing what she was talking about.
"How do I do what?" – Luke asked.
"Just when I think I can't love you more, you do or say something that makes me fall in love with you all over again." – Lorelai said, her voice full of adoration for him. Luke was surprised by this admission and he looked down at her hand that was resting on top of his. From time to time her thumb would graze his hand and every time she did it, it would send shivers down his spine. That sensation was there nine years ago when their fingers had touched for the briefest of moments as she had handed him the horoscope and it was still there.
"I could ask you the same thing." – He finally said. Lorelai smiled at him even brighter than before.
"And the circle never ends." – She said, letting him know that he has again said something that made her love him more.
"Thank God." – Was his reply before he pecked her on the lips.
"Okay, now enough of this mushiness or I might start to believe we're in the twilight zone." – Lorelai said. – "Don't think that I've forgotten our other talk. Again I ask, what kind of bachelor party do you want?" – Luke groaned frustrated.
"Lorelai…"
"Listen Mister. If you continue to be so stubborn, I'm gonna go over to that table…" – She pointed to a table that was occupied by Miss Patty. – "…and tell her that you are a total sap. I'm gonna tell her all the little romantic things you've done for me and before the day ends the whole town will know it. The way I know Patty she'll exaggerate quite a bit. Your rep will be destroyed. Everyone will know that you're a softie, no one is gonna believe your grumpy exterior anymore. No one is gonna be afraid of you anymore. Just imagine Kirk coming in here everyday, staying the whole day, calling you buddy and giving you hugs on every holiday. You'll go daily through hell and just because you refused to have a bachelor party." – When Lorelai ended her little speech Luke was just looking at her with raised eyebrows.
"Cold turkey." – Was all he said.
"What? Cold turkey?" – Lorelai asked, not understanding what he meant by that.
"That's how you are going to feel when I cut you off coffee."
"You wouldn't dare!" – Lorelai gasped.
"Oh, I would."
"My threat was funny, yours horrid." – Lorelai said and pouted at him.
"Listen, you know I don't like these things. You go and have a great party. I'll just have some beers and watch tv and on the next day you'll see me under the chuppah."
"I wish you'd have a bachelor party."
"What have you planned for your bachelorette party?" – Luke asked, hoping it would distract her from him.
"Nothing in particular. Ladies night out. Rory and Lane know this one club in Hartford and we decided to go there. Dance, drink and just have fun."
"That sounds good. You go and enjoy yourself."
"I think I shouldn't have a party either."
"Lorelai…"
"No, listen. It's a pointless party. It's not like I will never again have the chance to hang out with the girls. Besides it was probably a man who came up with this whole bachelor party thing just to have an excuse to have naked girls around him."
"But you're looking forward to going out."
"The only thing I'm looking forward is to marry you. I have an idea. Let us have a party of our own. Just you and I. We'll stay at home, have dinner and entertain ourselves."
"What about the other day when you had this freak out about tradition and made me promise that I won't sleep at home the night before the wedding."
"First of all, it wasn't a freak out. Secondly, I thought we spend the evening with each other and then you leave before midnight. Just like Cinderella."
"But you…" – Luke tried to protest again but she cut him off in the middle of the sentence.
"Say yes, damn it!" – Luke raised his eyebrows at her, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Okay." – He gave in and Lorelai smiled at him.
"Good. Now that we have cleared this up, can I have a cup of coffee. I'm getting tired of tea." – Lorelai said and pushed the cup of tea towards Luke.
"I was wondering when your old habits would kick in again." – Luke said and took the coffee pot to pour her coffee.
"Not soon enough. I've recovered from the cold days ago and this is the first time I really craved coffee." – Lorelai told him and took a large gulp. Luke shook his head in disbelief.
"Don't drink it that fast. You're lucky that the coffee wasn't that hot or else you could have burned your tongue."
"It would have been worth it." – Lorelai said and took another sip.
"You do know that your're crazy?"
"Yep. Now give me another cup but make it to go." – Luke did as asked and handed her the cup of coffee.
"Kiss." – Lorelai said and they both leaned over the counter and met in the middle for a quick peck on the lips. – "Bye doll" were Lorelai's last words before she left the diner in a hurry to get to the inn in time for a staff meeting.
Luke watched her walk away and waited to go to the storage room until he saw her drive off.
Once in the storage room, he pulled out his cell phone and called a familiar number.
A few rings later he heard a cheerful "hello" on the other end of the line.
"Hey, Rory."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
It was Friday afternoon, the day before Luke's and Lorelai's wedding.
Lorelai was at home in their bedroom, standing in front of a full length mirror, admiring her wedding dress. She came home early from work to finish packing for their honeymoon but that was forgotten once she had seen her wedding dress in the back of her closet. There were two good reasons why she shouldn't put the dress one. Number one was, Luke could come home earlier and see her in it. Reason number two was that that kind of behavior always reminded Lorelai of Emily and the story of her mother's own wedding. Lorelai vehemently refused to have anything in common with her mother.
She tried to forget the dress and fought the desire to put it on but in the end Lorelai had lost the battle. Looking down at her dress again, she knew that in this case she was already behaving very much like Emily.
Like Emily, Lorelai couldn't resist but put the dress on and get lost in daydreams about her and her future husband. The only comfort was that there were two differences in her and her mother's behavior.
Lorelai didn't sneak around because she was afraid her mother would catch her with the dress on and Lorelai didn't try her dress on every night of the week before the wedding. In truth Lorelai has put on her dress three or four times a week ever since she brought it home. That was almost two months ago. Thankfully Luke never walked in on her but Rory did. Lorelai had explained to her daughter that she had just tried the dress on to see if she had maybe gained some weight. That had worked the first time Rory came home to find her mom in the dress but it didn't work the other four times. Rory, however had a blast teasing Lorelai about it. She especially loved the look on her mom's face whenever she'd call her Emily.
Lorelai sat down on her side of the bed and took off her shoes and veil. On her nightstand, next to the alarm clock Lorelai caught sight of her notebook and she opened it. Inside she found a very long list of things she had to do before the wedding. All things, except for packing for the honeymoon, were crossed out. The planning of the wedding wasn't as stressful as Lorelai thought it would be. Except for two Sookie-freak-outs and the few calls from Emily to annoy her with ideas or to criticize some of Lorelai's decisions, everything ran smoothly.
Everything was so perfect that sometimes Lorelai thought that something bad was bound to happen. She still can remember the night when she told Luke about it.
It was a warm August night as Luke and Lorelai lay in their bed, holding each other and enjoying the fresh breeze that would come in through the open windows. Lorelai's head was resting on his abdomen and Luke was lazily playing with her hair.
"Luke?" – She whispered.
"Yeah?"
"Are you afraid?"
"Afraid of what?" – He asked her, curious about her question.
"The wedding." – Lorelai said. Luke's only response was the intake of a deep breath that took too long to be exhaled. Her question caused panic to rise inside of him but before he could answer her, Lorelai sat up and started to rant.
"Today I was in my office when I realized that I was really enjoying planning the wedding and that's a first. I always thought that I'd be close to a breakdown but nothing. Isn't that crazy? Then I thought what if this is the calm before the storm? What if now everything is perfect but the wedding turns into a catastrophe? I don't want our wedding to be a catastrophe. What if my mother does something evil again or what if it rains. Oh my God, what if Kirk falls into our cake. What if…?" – With every 'what if' Lorelai's voice raised and took on a more panicky tone. Luke had to stop her.
"Lorelai calm down." – He said and sat up in bed too. Lorelai looked at him and tried to control her mini freak out. – "Is this what you are worrying about?" – Luke asked her and she nodded. To her surprise he laughed.
"This is not funny Luke."
"Oh, it is. When you asked me if I was afraid because of the wedding……Lorelai,…you……I thought…" – he couldn't bring out the words. He thought she had changed her mind about them. Slowly Lorelai understood what he was trying to tell her and her face softened.
"Oh, Luke…no. Of course I wasn't thinking that. No way. I phrased the question wrong. I'm such an idiot…"
"No, you are not. It was just a wrong choice of words." – Luke said and smiled at her.
"Yeah, it was. Come here." – Lorelai said, took his face in her hands and kissed him. Luke rested his back against the headboard, pulled Lorelai with him until she was sitting in his lap, straddling him with her legs. Once they were out of breath they broke off the kiss and Lorelai put her head on his shoulder. Luke hugged her to him and planted a kiss on her temple.
"You shouldn't worry too much. Everything is going to be fine."
"How do you know?" – Came her muffled question.
"I just know. Whatever happens at our wedding it won't change a thing. You and I are getting married and nothing is going to stop us.
First of all, the only thing your mother is going to do will be to enjoy the party. I mean, Emily will never stop wondering why you want to be my wife but…"
"Luke…" – Lorelai raised her head and looked at him.
"…but…" – Luke repeated not letting her interrupt him. – "…she's not stupid. She knows that if she tried something again, you'd never forgive her and she couldn't live with that. I actually think that she's looking forward to our wedding."
"Really?" – Lorelai asked him with raised eyebrows.
"Sure. Once we're married she can proudly tell all her friends that her daughter is no longer a spinster." – Luke said and tried to keep a straight face. Lorelai gasped in fake shock and punched his shoulder rather hard. Luke started to laugh while he rubbed the spot on his shoulder she hit.
"Sorry. Do you prefer 'couch potato girl'?"
"Luke Danes! Are you mocking me? I'm deeply hurt." – Lorelai pouted at him and tried to get up but he stopped her. He pulled her back to him and placed a lingering kiss on her lips.
When the kiss ended she rested her forehead on his.
"Listen…" – Luke said as he rubbed her arms up and down. – "…If it rains than we'll have our wedding inside the inn and we just have to keep Kirk away from our cake. If he still manages to land with his face in it, then we will have some memorable pictures to show our grandchildren." – Lorelai smiled warmly and kissed him on the cheek.
"Yeah, you're right."
"Of course I am."
"So cocky tonight, aren't we?" – She said and leaned in to place another kiss on his lips. He returned the kiss eagerly and soon she was lying on her back with Luke on top of her and his hands were wandering all over her body.
The slamming of the front door pulled Lorelai out of the pleasant memory. Slightly panicked, she looked over at a clock. 'It can't be him.' – She thought. She heard steps coming upstairs and she ran over to the door and closed it. With her face pressed against the door, she said: "You said you'd be here at seven. You're too early, I still have eight minutes."
"It's me, mom."
"Rory?"
"Who else calls you 'mom'? Can I come in?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because." – Rory rolled her eyes at her mom's answer but smiled when realization hit her. "Mom? Are you wearing your wedding dress again?"
"No." – Came Lorelai's hesitant answer. Rory just smiled broader.
"Yes, you are. Now that I know it you can open the door." – A few seconds later Lorelai opened the door slowly, looking sheepishly at her daughter.
"Hi."
"Hi Monica." – Rory said bemused.
"If I'm Monica then you have to be Phoebe. Where's your dress?" – Lorelai said.
"You really want me to be Phoebe? In that episode she was pregnant."
"Then forget it. What are you doing here?"
"I'm glad to see you too, mother." – Rory said and Lorelai rolled her eyes.
"I just meant that you wanted to stay at Lane's tonight. Help me with the dress." – Lorelai said and turned her back to Rory. Rory helped her out of the dress and Lorelai put on a pair of jeans and a shirt.
"I just came to take some stuff." – Lorelai was about to ask her another question but was distracted by a thud.
"What was that?" – Lorelai asked and Rory shrugged.
"I don't know. I think it came from downstairs. Should we go look?"
"What if it's some psychopath? Did you close the front door?"
"First of all, yes, I did close the door. Secondly, this is Stars Hollow. No psychopath. Of course Luke wouldn't agree with that statement but you know what I mean. Let's just see what it was." – Rory said and walked out of the bedroom with Lorelai following her.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Meanwhile at the diner Luke was wiping the tables clean. He was lost in thought about Lorelai, that he slightly jumped at the knock on the diner's door. He looked up and saw his nephew standing outside. Luke walked over and unlocked the door.
"Jess."
"Uncle Luke." – Jess said and the two men smiled slightly at each other before Luke stepped aside to let Jess walk in.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm your best man, remember?"
"I know that. I just didn't expect you before tomorrow. The wedding in in the afternoon and I thought you'd come last minute."
"That was my original plan but a certain person called and threated me." – Jess told him and dropped his duffel bag on the floor before he took a seat at the counter.
"You usually don't care about threats." – Luke said and went behind the counter.
"Usually not but this certain person called me by my full name." – Luke laughed and shook his head at Jess.
"The powers of a mother. Anyway, why did she tell you to come?"
"Because she didn't want you to be alone tonight. She said some other stuff but I didn't listen. What I gathered was that Lorelai is having a party and you are alone and that I better move my ass."
"I see. How did Liz know that I wasn't having a bachelor party?"
"Apparently because you didn't invite TJ."
"Well that's not an argument."
"That's what I told her but Liz is Liz. Besides Rory told her." – Jess said.
"Rory?" – Luke asked surprised.
"Yeah, but why, how or when I don't know. Maybe Liz mentioned it but like I said, I didn't listen." – Jess explained nonchalantly. Luke regarded his nephew closely. He mentally slapped himself when the thought crossed his mind that Jess was maybe uncomfortable being so close to Rory. Why he hadn't thought about that sooner, Luke didn't know. Now that he thought more about it he remembered the phone call with Jess when he had told him about the wedding. Jess had seemed a bit hesitant about the best man thing but Luke hadn't understood his reason back then.
"I'm sorry." – Luke said.
"For what?"
"Rory. I didn't think. I'd understand if you want to change your mind. You don't have to be my best man if you're still thinking about her."
"There's nothing to be sorry about. I'm okay." – Jess said but Luke looked unconvinced. – "Seriously, everything is fine. Things have changed, we are grown-ups now. I'll see her tomorrow, right?"
"Unless you lose your eyesight." – Luke said and Jess just gave him an annoyed look.
"So, I'll see her but I don't have to talk with her or anything. I moved on and she probably moved on too. I promise I won't make a scene or something."
"You better not or Lorelai is going to kill you." – Luke said and Jess just nodded, thinking it was time for a subject change.
"So, you finally got yourself a Gilmore girl. I can't believe you're marrying. I always thought you're going to stay a bachelor for life."
"Hey, I was married before."
"That didn't count." – Jess told him and Luke rolled his eyes.
"Are you hungry?" – Luke asked him, changing the topic.
"Nope."
"Okay, I have to finish cleaning up." – Luke said and Jess got up to help him. A few silent minutes later Jess reluctantly started to talk.
"Luke?"
"Yeah?"
"I wanted to ask you if……if it is okay if I bring someone to the wedding?" – Jess asked, not looking at Luke.
"Uhmmm…."
"I just thought, since you're going to be very busy tomorrow and I'll be avoiding Liz and TJ just like the rest of the guests are going to avoid me,….I thought that maybe I could bring a friend with me." – Jess said, still not looking at Luke.
Luke was surprised to hear him ask that and soon a smirk appeared on his lips.
"A friend? Someone special? Maybe a lady friend?"
"Ladyfriend? Who the hell says 'lady friend' anymore?"
"Don't change the subject. So, you want to bring a friend."
"That's what I said."
"Does that friend have a name."
"Yeah."
"Jess."
"What?"
"Are you going to tell me the name?"
"Not if you continue to play this game."
"I'm not playing a game. I just want to know who you're bringing to the wedding. I'd hate to see some fat guy with the name Buck who has tattoos and drives a Harley come to our wedding. You know that Lorelai would insist to drive on the Harley to our honeymoon." – Jess rolled his eyes very much in the same manner Luke always does.
"Firstly, didn't you tell me that you're spending your honeymoon on Hawaii? You see, you don't drive to Hawaii. Secondly, it's not a guy. It's a fat lady with tattoos. Her friends call her Large Marge and she drives a '74 Norton Commando." – Jess deadpanned.
"Jess." – Luke looked at him with raised eyebrows.
"Fine. Her name is Chloe and yes, we are together. Happy now?"
"Yes, if you wouldn't have confessed it I wouldn't have been able to sleep tonight." – Luke said sarcastically. – "To answer your question. Yes, you can bring Chloe to the wedding." – Luke said and Jess just nodded at him, feeling relieved that Luke didn't question him further.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
While Luke and Jess finished cleaning up the diner, Lorelai and Rory walked downstairs into the living room to find the source of the thud they've heard upstairs.
"Surprise!" – The room erupted with loud voices as everyone jumped out from their hidden places. Lorelai's hand flew to her mouth in surprise and she looked around her living room at the smiling faces. In the crowd Lorelai spotted Sookie, Babette, Mia – who came to town just for the wedding, Patty, Liz, Paris, Lane, Gypsy, her mother.
"Oh, my God. Are you trying to give me a heart attack? You know I can't die without being married." – Lorelai joked and they all laughed.
"Don't worry sugar. Now that we're finally at our destination, we're not going to allow something to happen." – Babette said.
"Your destination? Is that so?" – Lorelai asked with an raised eyebrow.
"Of course. So many years we waited, hoped, wished and prayed for your and Luke's wedding." – Patty said and everyone, except for Emily, laughed at her dramatization. Emily hasn't witnessed the 'dance' Luke and Lorelai had shared for years. She didn't know how long it took them or what it took them to be at this point in their lives.
"Well, I'm glad that we entertained you for so long." – Lorelai said. – "I don't want anyone to feel unloved, you all know how much I love you, but what are you doing here?"
"It's your bachelorette party, mom." – Rory said, who was standing behind Lorelai. Lorelai turned to her daughter.
"But honey, I told you that Luke and I decided to have a quiet evening by ourselves. The party was called off."
"I know that. But even before you phoned me to call off the party, Luke called. He told me that you're going to call it off and that I should play along. That way you could still have your party. He felt guilty that you didn't want a party because of him." – Lorelai was touched at Luke's gesture. 'God, do I love him' – she thought.
"That man is a God." – Patty chimmed in. – "Probably a Greek God with that muscular chest and those arms and…"
"Patty!" – Lorelai gasped playfully at Patty. – "No imaging my fiance in a toga."
"Oh, believe me honey I wasn't." – Patty winked slyly at Lorelai and then laughed that famous Patty-laugh.
"Oh, please. I don't want to hear you talk like that about my stepfather." – Rory said, covering her ears. Lorelai patted Rory's back lovingly while her guests chuckled and laughed.
"Okay, ladies. You just start the party, I'll be right back." – Lorelai said and walked out of the living room. She heard Babette ask her where she was going but didn't answer anything. Rory followed her out in the hallway.
"Mom? You are not mad, are you?"
"Of course not, hon." – Lorelai turned to her daughter. – "I just want to go and thank Luke and to see him, okay?"
"Okay, but hurry back and apologize to Luke for me." – Lorelai was almost out of the house but turned around to face Rory.
"Apologize for what?" – Rory looked at her apologetically.
"Well, you see…I thought how great it was of Luke to arrange this night for you and I felt kinda bad that he'd be alone."
"Yeah, keep talking."
"I went to see first Jackson and then Charles. I talked with them, told them all of this and they decided to hang out together with Luke tonight."
"Honey, that was sweet of you and I don't think that you need to apologize."
"There's more." – Rory said and didn't look at Lorelai. She was nervously playing with her hair and Lorelai wondered what else happened. – "Before I came here I was at Doose's and I met Charles there and we talked about him going to Luke's and Kirk heard us talk and then he told Taylor and Pete about it. They're all going to go to Luke's tonight. I couldn't stop them. " – They were silent for a moment before Lorelai burst out laughing.
"It's not funny. Poor Luke. He has to spend the night before his big day with people who he doesn't like. Maybe I should go with you and apologize myself and then I could tell all the other men that it was a misunderstanding and that they should go home. Then I'll come back and call this party off and then you and Luke can spend the night like you intended to. I'm sure everyone…"
"Rory, stop!" – Lorelai cried out stopping Rory's rant. – "First, take a deep breath." – Lorelai told her and waited for Rory to inhale and exhale before talking again. – "Luke is a big boy. He can take care of himself. You know how good he is at throwing out people who annoy him." – Rory smiled a bit at that. She witnessed more than once Luke throwing out people, especially Taylor and Kirk.
"Besides that…"- Lorelai continued. – "The way I know Luke, I'm sure he appreciates what you did for him even if it took an unexpected turn of events. Okay?"
"Okay." – Rory replied, feeling slightly relieved. – "Then give Luke a hug from me and tell him that I'm really sorry."
"Will do babe." – Lorelai smiled at Rory and then kissed her daughter on the cheek before walking down the stairs and across the town square to the diner.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Jess was sitting at the counter eating the last piece of peach pie while Luke was looking for something in the kitchen. A knock on the glass door startled Jess and he looked over to see who it was. A man whom Jess has never seen before waved at him.
"Luke, there's some guy knocking on the door." – Jess called out to Luke who emerged from the kitchen. His brows knitted in confusion when he saw Robert standing outside. Luke unlocked the door and let Robert in.
"Rob what are you doing here?"
"It's your last day as a bachelor. You gotta celebrate or mourn, whichever you prefer." – Robert said and grinned at his old friend.
"How did you know where to find me?" – Jess snorted at that and stated sarcastically – "What a shock that he found you at your own diner." – Luke gave him a look and Robert chuckled.
"Well, he's right. Besides that obvious fact your sister called me and told me that you'd be here." – Robert said.
"Seems as if Liz has been quite busy lately." – Luke remarked.
"Hope you don't mind my sudden visit. I have beer." – Robert said an held up the six pack.
"Good man." – Jess said and got up. He walked over to Rob and held out his hand. – "I'm Jess." – He introduced himself and Luke was yet again perplexed. Jess introducing himself voluntarily? And politely? Never thought I'll witness that. – Luke thought.
Robert shook Jess' hand. – "Here, take a beer."
"Thanks man." – Jess took a bottle but before he could open it Luke stopped him.
"Jess you know that I don't have a license for alcohol."
"B.Y.O.B." – The three man heard someone say and they all turned around to see Taylor standing in the still open door. Behind him Luke saw Jackson and Charles who were looking very apologetically at Luke.
"What's all this?" – Luke asked as the other men joined them in the diner.
"Your bachelor party." – Charles replied.
"Boy, uncle Luke you're getting senile. Robert just told you the same thing. You should feel lucky that Lorelai wants to marry you." – Luke growled at his nephew and Jess turned around to open his beer bottle.
Both Jackson and Charles put the six-packs they brought with them on a near-by table.
"We thought we could just drink a few beer and play poker and that's all. We were asked if we could surprise you with a bachelor party and here we are." – Charles explained.
"Liz called you too?" – Luke asked.
"Liz? No. Rory talked to us." – Charles said and pointed at Jackson and himself to emphasize the 'us'.
"Rory?" – Luke asked surprised.
"Yeah, she told us what you did for Lorelai's bachelortte party and she thought you should have nice evening too." – At that moment Kirk, Andrew and TJ came into the diner too and Luke raised his eyebrows at Charles. Charles mentioned to Luke to follow him and the two men stepped outside.
"Look, originally only Jackson and I were supposed to come but Kirk overheard a conversation and before we could stop him he told Taylor and then soon everyone else knew. Rory didn't mean the evening to turn out like this for you." – Luke sighed and looked inside the diner. Jackson and Andrew were already putting tables together for the poker game.
At that moment a car parked in front of the diner and Luke saw Buddy get out.
"Buddy, hey" – Luke and Buddy shook hands.
"Lucas, how are you son?"
"Good. I assume you're here for the party?"
"Of course. I just dropped Maisy at your house for Lorelai's party. Maggie and Bill are taking care of the restaurant tonight." – Buddy said referring to his daughter and son-in-law. Luke nodded and introduced Buddy and Charles to each other. Buddy was just telling Luke that it was Rory who came by the Tavern to tell them about the parties when they heard Lorelai call out Luke's name. They all turned at the sound of her voice and they saw her walk across the street towards them.
"Lorelai, is everything okay?" – Luke asked her when she was close enough to hear him.
"Everything is wonderful. Hi guys." – Lorelai greeted Buddy and Charles.
"Hey Lorelai."
"Hello Lorelai." – Charles and Buddy greeted her in return.
"Sorry to interrupt you but can I talk with Luke just for a moment?"
"Of course. He's all yours." – Charles said.
"Thank God." – Lorelai said, locking eyes with Luke. Charles and Buddy said their byes and walked away, leaving Luke and Lorelai alone.
The moment they were alone, Lorelai grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him to her for a chaste kiss. Luke's arms wrapped around her and he deepened the kiss. Lorelai's arms wandered around Luke's neck and and he tightened his arms around her. Some time later she slowly pulled away from him, looking into his eyes.
"Hi."
"Hi. I'm not complaining or anything but what brought this on?" – Luke asked her while still holding her close.
"Tomorrow you're getting so lucky mister."
"I already know that."
"No, I mean after the wedding."
"Well, I kinda hoped that I would."
"No, that's not what I meant. I mean beside the usual 'wedding-night-getting-lucky' you'll get extra lucky."
"Glad to hear it." – Luke said and pecked her on the lips but not really understanding what she was talking about.
"Thanks for the party."
"You're welcome. I hope you'll have fun."
"I will. How's your party?"
"Kirk and Taylor are there, what do you think?"
"Aww, come on give it a chance. Charles, Buddy and Robert are there too. Is that Jess I see?" – Lorelai asked him as she watched the men set things for the poker game in the diner.
"Yep, that's him. Liz called him and told him to come tonight. After Rory told her about your party she didn't want me to be alone tonight, so she called him."
"Well, that's so nice of her and of Jess too. I don't know how she persuaded him but it's nice that he came." – Luke looked at her surprised. That was probably the nicest thing she has ever said about Jess.
"Are you already drunk?" – He asked her.
"What? No. Why do you ask?"
"I just thought there's something wrong if you're talking about Jess and not calling him names." – Lorelai rolled her eyes at him.
"He seems to be doing really good now. He has a job and a better apartment and a girlfriend."
"How do you know about the girlfriend? He just told me tonight." – Luke asked curiously.
"Liz told me. Anyway, I'm not here to talk about Jess. I'm here to thank you and to deliver two messages."
"What messages?"
"First one is from Rory. She's really sorry that Kirk overheard her talk about tonight. It was an accident."
"That's fine. Tell her I'm not mad."
"Well, I already told her that." – Lorelai said and smiled at him. – "Second message is not really a message but I think you should know it anyway. Patty thinks of you as a God. A Greek God to be exact. She already imagined you with…actually without a toga on."
"Aww, jeez." – Luke said embarrassed and Lorelai giggled.
"Are you going to be okay?" – She asked him.
"Yeah." – Luke said and pecked her on the lips.
"Good." – Lorelai said and kissed him too.
"Aww, come on Danes! You'll survive one night without her!" – Luke and Lorelai heard someone yell and they turned around to see Charles with a grin on his face. The men in the diner were laughing and Luke rolled his eyes and yelled back at Charles that he'll be right there.
Charles went back to the diner and Lorelai kissed him one more time before she let go of him.
"I should go back. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Tomorrow."
"Love you."
"Love you too." – He told her and watched her walk away.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
It was almost one in the morning and Lorelai's party has ended. Everyone has left except for Patty, Babette, Paris and Emily.
Babette was sprawled on one couch in the living room, Patty on the other. Paris was staying in Rory's room and Emily was upstairs in the guest room. Lorelai looked once again around the living room before she walked upstairs too. She walked past the guest room and glanced inside to see if her mother was comfortable. Emily was already asleep and Lorelai smiled, when she remembered the amount of drinks her mother had.
Lorelai's smile slowly faded away when she remembered the things that happened after the vow renewal. The break up, the pain, the sleepless nights, then her and Luke's reconcilation, her mothers attempts to make up with her, the Friday night dinner that Lorelai attended which started to mend the Gilmores broken relationship.
What Lorelai remembers most is the dinner with her parents in her and Luke's home. After Luke and her got engaged, Luke suggested that she invites her parents for dinner and then tell them about it. Lorelai was against it but Luke convinced her in the end. He said that if she didn't tell her parents that it could cause another rift between them. After thinking about it a whole day, Lorelai had picked up the phone and called her parents.
As Lorelai stood in the door of the guest room, looking at the sleeping form she remembered how nervous she felt when she picked up the phone. She remembered how surprised Emily sounded when she heard her daughter's voice on the other end of line. She remembered the silence that followed Lorelai's invitation and the surprise in Emily's voice when she asked her if she was serious.
After Emily had agreed to the dinner, Lorelai walked into the kitchen and told Luke the news. Luke immediately started to plan the dinner and Lorelai thought it was funny how he reacted. She called him a Sookie clone which was rewarded with a frustrated sigh and an eye roll.
Four days and many recipes later the Gilmores had rang the bell of the Gilmore-Danes household.
Rory opened the front door to reveal her grandparents on the porch.
"Grandma, grandpa! Welcome to the casa Gilmore-Danes." – Rory said cheerfully.
"Gracias." – Richard replied with a smile and entered the house. Emily followed her husband in and Rory closed the door behind them.
"Hello Rory." – Emily said. –"Where's your mother?"
"I'm here." – Lorelai said as she walked out of the kitchen with Luke right behind her. – "Mom, dad." – Lorelai greeted them.
"Lorelai, Luke nice to see you again." – Richard said and shook hands with Luke.
"Emily, Richard, nice to see you too." – Luke said politely.
"This is for you." – Emily said and handed Lorelai a wrapped box. – "It's a housewarming gift."
"Thank you mom but it wasn't necessary." – As an awkward silence threated to fall upon the group Rory had an idea.
"Do you want to see house?" – She asked her grandparents.
"That would be nice, dear." – Emily replied.
"You go ahead, I have to check up on the dinner." – Luke said. – "When you have finished your tour come to the dining room." – With that Luke went back to the kitchen.
"I'll be right back. I just want to put this away." – Lorelai said, looking down at the box in her hands. She followed Luke into the kitchen while Rory led her grandparents into her favorite room in the house, the library.
"That went well." – Lorelai said, once they were back in the kitchen.
"Yep." – Luke said while arranging the lamb chops on a plate.
"Do you wanna bet how long it will take before a fight ensues?"
"Lorelai."
"Twenty minutes? Half an hour? Maybe…"
"Why are you thinking of the worst?You know that since you went back to the Friday night dinner that things between you guys have been good. Why should it be any different tonight?"
"Maybe that whole 'we're good' thing is just the calm before the storm."
"That's crazy. Just go out there and keep them company. The food will be ready in two minutes."
"Fine but if the night ends in disaster I'm putting the blame on you."
"Okay." – Luke shrugged his shoulders and Lorelai stuck her tongue out at him before walking out of the kitchen, leaving a smiling Luke behind.
A few minutes later the Gilmores entered the dining room and while Rory seated her grandparents, Lorelai went into the kitchen to tell Luke that they were ready.
Soon Lorelai and Luke entered the dining room bearing food.
"Honey, why don't you give your grandparents something to drink while Luke and I bring out our dinner." – Lorelai said to Rory before she disappeared in the kitchen again. Rory stood up and offered Richard and Emily drinks. When all their glasses were filled, Luke and Lorelai came back with more food and then they too sat down.
"This smells delicious." – Richard said as he looked at the various dishes.
"It tastes even better." – Lorelai said and smiled at Luke. – "Ahm…well, before we start to eat…" – Lorelai said nervously. – "There's something that we want to tell you."
"Now?" – Both Luke and Rory said at the same time.
"Yes, now. Mom, dad…" – Lorelai said and looked at her parents across the table. – "Luke and I are getting married." – She said and felt Luke's hand cover hers on top of the table.
The room fell silent after Lorelai's announcement and Lorelai squeezed Luke's hand.
"Well, that's wonderful news." – Richard said and Lorelai let out a breath that she wasn't even aware of holding.
"Congratulations." – Emily said and Lorelai and Luke thanked her.
"Oh, grandma you have to see mom's ring." – Rory said and grabbed for Lorelai's left hand.
"Whoa there kid. Mommy needs her hand so she can show off the ring."
"Sorry. I'm just so happy for you and ring is so beautiful."
"Yes, the ring is really beautiful." – Emily told them after she took a look at the ring. – "When did you get engaged?"
"Last week."
"At our prom." – Rory said before she took a sip of her water.
"Your prom?" – Emily asked curiously.
"Yes. You know that mom didn't go to her prom and I didn't go to my either. Last week Luke surprised us with our own prom at the inn. It was such a wonderful night."
"A really wonderful night." – Lorelai agreed with her daughter and looked at Luke whose face was red because of the talk.
"He bought us dresses and shoes and escorted us in a limousine."
"That's very nice of you Luke." – Richard told him.
"It was nothing, Lane and Logan helped me." – Luke said, getting uncomfortable with the conversation.
"After dinner I will show you some pictures." – Rory said and took another bite of her salad.
During the dinner they chatted mostly about Rory, Yale and unimportant things.
"The lamb chops taste wonderful. I'm glad that Lorelai is getting married to a man who can cook. If Lorelai is one bit like her mother than she'd probably starve to death if there wasn't someone to cook for her."
"Richard!"
"What? All I said was that your abilities as a cook weren't the reason why I married you." – Lorelai looked over to Rory and said – "I don't know if that deserves a dirty or not." – which made both Rory and Luke frown.
"Lorelai, really." – Emily said and Richard shook his head at his daughter.
"I just said that your mother has many other talents…" – Richard trailed off when his words sounded dirty even to him. Lorelai just grinned wider but was interrupted by Rory before she could say anything.
"So, what do you think about those Yankees?"
After dinner they had coffee and dessert in the living room where Rory showed them pictures from their prom night on the TV. The elder Gilmores left afterwards and Lorelai collapsed on one of the couches in the living room. She was glad that the night was over. Even though there were no incidents, the evening was exhausting for her because the whole time she was waiting for something to happen.
Luke went into the kitchen and came back with two beer for them, a coke for Rory and the gift that Emily brought. Lorelai opened the box, wondering what her mother had bought them. When she saw the item in the box her movements stopped. Leave it to Emily Gilmore to make her daughter speechless.
"Mom, what is it?" – Rory asked, surprised at Lorelai's reaction.
Slowly Lorelai pulled out a beautiful silver frame that held a picture which Lorelai hadn't seen in years. It was a picture of her and Rory. Rory was three years old and they were at Mia's for Christmas dinner. Lorelai was lying on her back in front of the Christmas tree and she was holding Rory up above her head, both of them laughing.
"Wow, I haven't seen this picture in a while."
"Me neither." – Lorelai said and then showed Luke the pictures.
"It's beautiful."
"Yeah. Rory did you give grandma this picture?"
"No."
"Hmm, I don't remember giving it to her but maybe I just forgot that I did." – Lorelai said and furrowed her brows in confusion. What she didn't know was that it was Mia who gave Emily the picture among many others.
"Mom." – Rory whispered and brought Lorelai back out of her memory.
"Hey kid."
"What are you doing?"
"I just wanted to check upon everyone and see if everything is okay." – Lorelai whispered back and then closed the door to the guest room. She then wrapped an arm around Rory's shoulders and they walked to Rory's room.
"So tomorrow. Well, it's actually today." – Rory said.
"Yeah, today." – Lorelai and Rory smiled at each other, thinking of the events that would take place later in the day.
TBC
AN2: If you have wondered who Robert is, he was mentioned in 'the summer festival' as Luke's friend from culinary school
Thanks for reading