"Mom!" Rory called as she shoved open the inn's kitchen door. "Mom, are you here?"

"I'm here sweetie," Lorelai called back, coming out if the pantry where she and Sookie had been doing inventory. When she saw the look on her daughter's face, the tears ready to fall down her cheeks, she asked, "Honey, what's wrong?"

Rory didn't say anything. She just put her arms around her mother and hugged her tightly, burying her head in her shoulder as she tried to calm down.

"Baby, what happened?" Lorelai asked again, stroking her hair gently. "You were all excited to see Jess this morning and now you're all sad and mopey. Did you guys have a fight?"

"No," Rory replied glumly. "Things with Jess are perfect, wonderful. Couldn't be better."

"Then what is it?"

"Dean," she replied sadly.

"What did he do now?" Lorelai asked, sick and tired of this boy. Her voice was angry with a hint of frustration, but in her heart she was scared. She wondered what Dean could have done to her daughter to make her sad like this.

"It was just something he said," Rory replied. "He saw Jess and me kissing by the bridge and then pretty much called me a tramp."

"What?!" Lorelai demanded. Everything in her right then screamed at her to stay away from sharp objects. "What exactly did he say?"

"He said Jess was using me and I was making it easy for him," Rory replied. "And I don't believe that, but it just hurts that he could say something like that."

"Wait 'til I get my hands on that kid," Lorelai said lividly. "He has no right saying anything about you and Jess, never mind something like that!"

"Mom, calm down," Rory said making her sit down on a stool. "You can't get over-excited. It's not good for you right now."

"I want to kill that kid," she said in a falsely sugary voice. "Would that make me over-excited?"

"Yes," Rory replied, smoothing her mother's hair back. "Now take it easy. Dean will get whatever's coming to him eventually, but I'd rather not have my mother go to prison."

"No fun," Lorelai pouted, resting back on the stool.

"That's what I hear," Rory chuckled. Then after a few moments, "You want to go out, catch a sale or something?"

"I wish I could, hon," Lorelai replied, "but I have to help Sookie with inventory right now and then I'm going to catch up on the books. I need to make sure everything's done so I can take next week off."

"Okay," Rory relented. "Just don't push yourself too hard."

"Promise," Lorelai assured her.

"Is there anything I can do here?" Rory asked.

"Not right now, sweets," Lorelai told her. "If you come back after lunch, I'll have some filing for you to do, but I have it pretty much covered for now."

"Okay," Rory sighed. "I'll gonna see if Lane is busy."

"Okay, see ya later, babe."

"He actually said that?" Lane asked, her eyes wide.

"Yeah," Rory replied. "I don't understand what's happened to him. I mean, I understand him being upset with me, but he's never been mean."

They were sitting in Lane's closet, as usual, listening to Lifehouse and rearranging Lane's CD collection. It was more of a distraction than a necessity. Rory wanted something to focus on other than the conversation.

"And he was spying on you?" Lane asked.

"I don't know; I think so," Rory said quietly. "I mean, it's not like he visits the bridge on a daily basis. He didn't seem to be in any hurry to get somewhere. And he came along right after Jess left. He couldn't have just passed because Jess would have seen him and I don't think Jess would have left me there with him. I don't think he trusts him that much."

"He's getting creepy," Lane admitted. "I mean, I hate to say it, but he's acting way too out-of-character lately. I think you should be careful."

"That's what my mom told me yesterday," Rory said.

"Have you told her about this?" Lane asked.

"Not about the spying thing, but I told her what he said," Rory replied. "She completely freaked out."

"Understandable," Lane said.

"I had to make her sit down," Rory said worriedly. "I was afraid she was going to over-exert herself."

"That's not good," Lane grimaced. "Not only should she be resting . . ."

"Which I told her," Rory cut in.

". . . but that means the whole town will know about this by tomorrow," Lane finished.

"What do you mean?" Rory asked, her eyes panicked.

"What does Lorelai do when she's upset?" Lane asked her.

"Gets coffee."

"Where?"

"Luke's."

"Who does she complain to about everything?"

"Luke."

Lane paused dramatically, looking her friend in the eyes, "Is she ever quiet with Luke?"

"No," Rory said, her eyes widening and her voice filled with dread.

"And when Lorelai is loud at Luke's . . ."

". . . Everyone hears about it," Rory finished, putting her head in her hands.

"Including Jess," Lane reminded her.

Rory's head shot up. "Oh no," she said standing up. "I need to use your phone."

Lane handed her the cordless, and she punched in her mom's cell phone number.

"Hello?" Lorelai answered.

"Mom," Rory said quickly, "where are you?"

"Still at the inn," Lorelai replied. "Why, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Rory sighed with relief. "Just . . . please don't tell anyone about what I told you, okay? About what Dean said."

"Yeah, sure," she said. "Wouldn't dream of it. Is that all?"

"Yeah," Rory replied. "I just don't want Jess to hear about it. I don't know what he'd do."

"Are you going to tell him?" Lorelai asked.

"No," Rory replied quickly, "Why would I?"

"Well," Lorelai replied, "seeing how he's your boyfriend, he might like to know if you're being harassed."

"I don't want him to know," Rory said adamantly. Then as an afterthought, "Besides, there's nothing to worry about. This thing with Dean will blow over."

"Okay, okay," Lorelai relented. "It was just a suggestion. But listen, sweetie, I gotta go. The books are calling me."

"Okay mom," Rory replied. "I'll be by after lunch to help out."

"See ya then," Rory could hear the smile in her mom's voice over the phone. "Bye sweets."

"Bye mom."

"I'm safe," Rory sighed to Lane as she hung up the phone. "She's still at the inn."

"Three cheers," Lane smiled, and they went back to sorting CDs. "So when do I get to meet the famous Jess?"

"I was going to bring him by this morning," Rory replied, "but your mom was standing on the porch looking at us like she wanted to break into sermon."

"Yikes," Lane grimaced.

"Yeah," Rory agreed. "So we just kept moving and avoided eye contact."

"Good idea," Lane said. "So then, when do I get to meet him?"

"If you come by the diner . . . pretty much anytime . . . he'll be there," she replied. "Luke's already got him working."

"Slave driver," Lane commented.

"That's Luke," she concurred.

"Maybe you can borrow his whip some time," Lane said chuckling.

Rory's chin dropped in astonishment. "Lane Kim, that did not just come out of your mouth," she almost yelled.

"Just lightening the mood a little," Lane laughed, and Rory just turned her eyes to the CDs, trying to control the blush creeping into cheeks.

"So that was one cheeseburger, no lettuce, light tomato, extra pickles," Jess read the order back to Kirk.

"That is correct," Kirk replied. "And a glass of goat's milk."

"Goat's milk?" Jess asked raising an eyebrow. "Because soda was so last season."

"Mother has me on a strict goat's milk diet," Kirk explained as if it was common knowledge.

"The best I can give you is regular," Jess told him.

"Just give me a coke," Kirk said. "As long as I'm going bad, I might as well go really bad."

"Good plan," Jess said dryly, walking back to put in the order.

Since there were so few people there, he figured he could take a few minutes to get a book from the apartment. Calling to Caesar that he'd be back in a second, he climbed the stairs. Mulling through the stack of books he had brought with him, he grabbed Howl, the copy she had given him after he'd started writing in the margins. He flipped through the pages, his eyes tracing over the words that he himself had written there, mostly about her.

He smiled, thinking of the huge cosmic soap opera he seemed to be trapped in. Who'd have thought that he could fall for a girl, lose her, and then find her again in the most unlikely of places all in one summer? Maybe someone up there liked him after all.

As he headed back down the stairs, something caught his attention, a snip of a conversation. He pulled back the curtain just enough to see who was talking, making sure they didn't see him. Kirk was talking to a short, dumpy woman with curly blond hair and a high, scratchy voice. They were using semi-hushed voices, and the conversation was apparently about him. Sitting on the bottom step, he listened.

"He's Luke's nephew," Kirk was saying. "He got into town yesterday."

"And he's already with Rory?" the woman asked.

"Affirmative," Kirk replied. "And apparently they were seen kissing by the bridge this morning."

Jess was utterly shocked by this. Rory had said that the town looked after her, but what did they have, security cameras in the bushes?

"Who saw them?" Blondie asked.

"A none-too-happy Dean," Kirk told her. "I heard Rory and Lorelai talking about it when I made a delivery to the inn this morning. Apparently he said something to her."

"Said what?" she asked, riveted to her seat.

"I couldn't really hear," he replied, "but she sounded upset. Something about being fast."

Jess felt his face burning, his entire body tensing as anger spread through him. He had never liked this Dean guy, but this was too much. Why hadn't Rory told him that Dean was bothering her?

"Poor sweetie," Blondie said sympathetically. "Who knows about this?"

"No one," Kirk replied. "Just you, me, and a few other people I passed on the way here."

"Luke's going to blow a gasket," she said. "You remember what he did when they broke up last time?"

"The headlock?" Kirk said. "Oh yeah. I'm selling copies of it on e-bay."

"Ooh, can I get one?" she asked eagerly.

"Twelve fifty," he replied. "I'll cut out the shipping and handling since I don't have to mail it."

"Forget it," Blondie replied with some annoyance. Then, "Hey, does the little hottie know about this?"

"Not yet," Kirk said. "But I'm not gonna be the one to tell him."

"I hope he doesn't pull a Luke," she said. "Rory was embarrassed enough the last time." Pause. "Though I would pay to see those two boys go at it. My money's on the new guy. He looks like he could hold his own."

"I'll start the pool," Kirk replied.

"So what happened at the town meeting last night," she asked. "Morey and I missed it."

"Well . . ."

Jess tuned them out after that. He really didn't care about the stupid town meeting or what this crazy Taylor guy was planning next. The only thing he was really thinking about was what Dean had said to Rory.

'Who the hell does he think he is?' he asked himself. 'Just because Rory doesn't want him anymore, he thinks he has the right to call her fast?' He wanted nothing more right then than to hit something, particularly Dean's face. He didn't want to jump to any conclusions without talking to her, but he knew this was going to bug him all day.

Shoving the book in his back pocket, he attempted to compose himself. Then, pulling back the curtain to the diner, he went to refill coffees.

Rory pushed open the door to the diner, cringing at the sharp ring of the bell above her head. She already had a headache. Closing her eyes, she sighed deeply before continuing to the counter. Slumping down on a stool, she lay her forehead on its cool surface and wished for the day to be over.

"Morning sunshine," she heard a familiar sarcastic voice, but didn't have the energy to lift her head.

"Coffee," she moaned. "I need the strongest coffee you have. Just pour the caffeine straight into a glass. Or better yet, put it in an IV."

"Something wrong?" he asked putting a cup of coffee in front of her. There was something in his voice, something she couldn't quite identify, but she really didn't like it. It was almost suspicious.

"Crappy day," she replied, choosing to ignore the weird feeling. "Michel decided that he was deathly ill this afternoon, so I ended up answering phones while filing and working the desk for eight hours. Then Rune decided that he was going to be a pain in my side and do all his handyman hammering right in my ear, giving me the hugest migraine in the western hemisphere. Then, on top of everything, Mom's acting weird and I'm worried."

"You need pie," Jess said sympathetically, sliding a piece in front of her as she took a sip of her coffee.

"You know me too well," she smiled a little, taking a bite. "Mm, cherry."

"So is that all that's bugging you?" he asked, a fair attempt at casual.

"Isn't that enough?" she asked. She got the feeling he already knew what she had left out.

"It's plenty," he replied, his voice quiet and serious. "I was just wondering about something I heard this morning."

Rory hung her head, her breath coming in a long, slow sigh. "I told Mom not to tell anyone," she said quietly, her voice barely audible.

"She didn't," he told her. "Kirk heard you two talking at the inn."

"Damn that gossip train," she said, refusing to look up at him.

"Why didn't you tell me Dean was giving you a hard time?" he asked, desperate to understand why she would keep it from him.

"I didn't want you to freak out," she told him. "I don't want you getting into any fights your first week in town just because he wants to be a jerk."

"I don't like how he's messing with you," he said, his fists clenching.

"I'm fine," she told him, looking straight into his eyes. "See, no permanent scars. I don't need you to fight this battle for me."

He held her stare for a moment before looking away, frustrated. "Fine," he said finally. "I'll stay out of his way if he stays out of mine. But I want to know if he keeps this up."

"I'll keep you informed," she promised. "And don't worry, I know what he said was crap."

"What exactly did he say?" he asked, and her eyes snapped onto his.

"I thought you said . . ."

"Kirk didn't hear what you said he said," Jess explained. "Just something about you being fast."

"Yeah, that was it," Rory said looking down as she sipped her coffee.

"That wasn't it," he called her on her fib. "What did he say?"

Rory waited a moment, knowing that she was probably making this worse. But she also knew she couldn't lie to him. He would know it if she did anyway. "He said you're using me and that I'm making it easy for you," she replied finally. "He said he never knew I was that kind of girl. And as I said, I already know that it's crap."

"I so hate that guy," Jess said, his jaw clenching and unclenching. "Are you sure I can't just . . ."

"No," she cut in. "I will handle Dean. You handle getting me another cup of coffee."

He sighed, surrender in his voice. "As you wish," he said finally, grabbing the coffeepot and filling her up. "So what are you doing for the rest of the night?"

"Don't know," she said. "Mom is staying at the inn for another couple of hours, so I'm eating dinner here. After that, it's up for grabs."

"How is she doing?" he asked her, knowing that it was killing her.

"I honestly don't know," Rory sighed, her voice just above a whisper. She bit her bottom lip, obviously upset. "She's working so much lately, trying to get everything ready. She tries to hide it, but she's tired, and I think she's in pain. I see her wincing every once in a while when she thinks no one is looking. I hate that she's trying to hide it from me. I need to know this kind of stuff."

"If something was seriously wrong, she'd tell you," he assured her, cupping her cheek in his hand. "You guys can't keep anything from each other for too long."

"I know," she said quietly, holding his hand to her cheek. "I just can't stand this entire thing. She's hurting, and I can't do anything about it."

"I know, baby," he said, rounding the counter to put his arms around her. "I know."

She leaned her head against his shoulder, breathing him in and feeling comforted. He could always do this to her. She just hated that he had to so often.

"Okay, I really have to stop with the self-pity," she said sitting up straight. "It's getting to a point of ridiculous."

"Rory," he said looking at her with some concern, "your mom is sick. You don't have to be together all the time. You're allowed and even encouraged to get upset, yell, scream, cry, and whatever else makes you feel better."

She smiled half-heartedly at him, knowing he was right but not allowing herself to get emotional again. "Thanks," was all she said. She felt like she'd been saying that non-stop since they'd met.

"Don't mention it," he said, lifting her chin and giving her a short kiss on the mouth. "You wanna go for another walk?"

"Don't you have to work?" she asked.

"Have you looked around?" he asked, and she turned around to see the almost empty diner.

"Good point," she smiled. "After you close up, we'll see about that walk." Then she resumed eating her pie, which she'd forgotten and abandoned halfway through the conversation.

About ten minutes later, Rory watched the last of the diner patrons walk out, smiling and chatting as they went. She smiled a bittersweet smile, letting her eyes rest on Jess as he flipped the sign and began to wipe down the tables. They were going to go out in a few minutes, so he didn't bother locking the door.

"Do you want any help?" she asked.

"Grab a rag," he said motioning towards a pile of them on a table. "If you want, you can do the counter."

"Sure," she replied picking up a rag and beginning to wipe down the counter.

He watched her, making sure she didn't see him doing so. He liked how delicately she wiped the beat up old rag across the surface of the counter. She was always so gentle with things, like she didn't want to disturb anything around her. She didn't want to shake the boat. It was strange to him. He was used to trying to capsize it.

They finished cleaning up in complete silence, not needing to bridge the silence. Rory thought about this, about how she never felt obligated to talk when he was around. She remembered babbling incoherently when she had first met Dean, knowing even then that she was acting like an idiot. But with Jess, there was no need to fill that void because even that was comforting.

"Ready to go?" he asked as he threw the wet rag into the sink and washed his hands. "I dunno where we're going, but you wanna go anyway?"

"Sounds good," she said coming up next to her to wash her hands as well. They smelled of bleach. "Stars Hollow is beautiful at night. The stars are amazing to look at."

"Better than the cliff?" he asked, drying his hands.

She smiled, remembering that night. "Nothing could be better than the cliff," she replied, "but this is a close second."

Locking the door behind them, they started their aimless walk around the practically deserted town. It was only ten, but most residents stayed in at night. Jess just couldn't get used to it.

"So besides hearing about that thing with Dean, how was your day?" Rory asked.

"Not bad," he replied, "Mostly it was me taking orders and everyone else digging into my personal life."

"Who?" Rory asked, trying to suppress a chuckle.

"Mostly that Miss Patty woman," he said, "And then there was this woman with blond hair. I didn't get her name, but she seemed very interested."

"Babette?" she asked.

"Sure," he replied dryly. "She seemed like she could have been a Babette. I personally thought she should be a Blondie or a Candy."

"She's my next door neighbor," she chuckled. "She and Miss Patty are the town gossips."

"Swell," he said sarcastically. "And how long is this public interrogation going to last?"

"Not too much longer," she assured him. "After the picnic basket auction next Saturday, they'll probably find a new topic."

"Picnic basket auction?" he gave her a sideways glance.

"It's a town tradition," she explained. "Every year, the girls buy picnic baskets and fill them with homemade food. Then, the guys bid on the baskets and have a picnic with the girl whose basket they get."

"Sounds neurotic," he told her. "Why can't people just make their own picnics and eat them without having to pay money for the privilege?"

"Because then it wouldn't be for charity," she said. "It's going to the 'Save the Bridge' fund. You know, the bridge we went to this morning."

"Now that's a place worth saving," he said squeezing his arm tighter around her waist.

"You like the bridge?" she asked leaning her head on his shoulder.

"It's quiet there," he explained. "It's like the exact opposite of New York, but it's nice. And it's where I first saw you after I got into town. It's a landmark."

"That it is," she agreed smiling. "I say we officially name it the Rory and Dodger Bridge."

"How about we just call it ours and leave it at that?" he chuckled.

"Fine," she pretended to pout, and then cracked a smile involuntarily. "But you know how I like to name things. Ooh, how about we name it Julius?"

"No," he said. "We are not naming the bridge. If you want to name it, that's fine, but leave me out of the insanity."

"No fun," she pouted. "Fine, I'll call it Julius. It seems like a good name for a bridge."

"Glad you think so," he said and shook his head. Then after a minute, "So where are we going?"

"I dunno," she replied looking up at where they were. She hadn't really been paying attention. "How about the gazebo?" she suggested.

"As you wish," he said, and they walked up the steps and sat on a bench.

"You seem to be developing a Wesley complex," she told him.

"Good movie," he said, not commenting on her statement. "We should have that at our next movie night."

"Noted," she said resolutely. "So what book do you have on you?" she asked.

"Poe," he replied pulling a fairly thick paperback out of his back pocket. "Short stories."

"Ooh, 'Hop-Frog,'" Rory said, her eyes widening. "Fairly disturbing and yet appealing."

"I was in a weird mood this afternoon," he told her. "I reread Howl again this morning, but then I switched to this after . . ."

"After you heard," she finished for him, her voice falling. "Dean put you in a Poe mood?"

"I was getting ideas of how he should die," Jess joked. "I personally like 'The Cask of Amontillado.' Long and agonizing."

"Remind me never to make you mad," she said sardonically. Then, "Read me some."

"You want me to read you Edgar Allan Poe?" he asked.

"Please," she said. "I'm in the mood for something creepy."

"As you . . . I mean, sure," he said opening the book to the first story and beginning to read.

Rory smiled, knowing what he had been about to say. She liked the little phrase. It was a sign of affection without being any physical motion. It was just another of those little inside jokes between them.

As Jess continued to read to her, she leaned her head on his shoulder. She loved being here with him. She loved that he was here to be with. She loved everything about this situation. Everything except . . .

"Well isn't this nice," she heard a voice behind them. "It's a regular Belle and Shawn moment."

Rory felt Jess tighten his grip around her shoulder, telling her that though he was refusing to look up at Dean, he was about ready to haul off and deck him.

"What do you want?" she asked as Dean walked out in front of them, ascending the steps in a slow, deliberate stride.

"Not much," he said nonchalantly. "I was just out for a stroll and came upon what looked to be a very cozy moment. Does your mother know you're out this late, Rory?"

"Go away, Dean," she said in response, her voice dripping with disgust. "You're not wanted here."

"Or anywhere else in town, it seems," he replied evenly. "I can't believe you narced on me for telling you the simple truth. Just because you don't want to see that you're being played . . ."

Jess was up at that moment, instantly stepping in front of Rory as if he could protect her from words.

"I think you should leave now," he said in a deep growl. It was the same voice Rory had heard when she had been attacked in New York: low and dangerous.

"I'm not going anywhere," Dean replied stepping up in front of Jess, standing a few inches taller. "No matter how many of the people in this town treat me like a criminal."

"Jess, let's just go," Rory said from behind him, but he refused to back down.

"If the shoe fits . . ." Jess said, his voice light though his eyes were still narrowed. "Isn't stalking illegal, Dean? I could have sworn it was."

"I'm not stalking anyone," Dean said. "Just looking out for a friend."

"No one here is your friend," Jess told him. "So why don't you go home and dig up the buried remains of your life."

He turned back to where Rory had been watching the two with wide eyes. She could see the tension between them like steam. She wouldn't have been surprised to see smoke shooting from their ears.

"And why don't you go back where you came from and leave the rest of us alone?" Dean shot back. "Oh wait, you weren't wanted there either."

Jess turned back, ready to fight, but Rory put a hand on his shoulder, holding him back gently.

"Let's go, Jess," she said, her tone soft but firm. "I think I should be getting home before my mom does. I don't want her to worry."

Jess heaved a sigh, wishing so much that he could hit this jerk, but he knew that Rory didn't want that. She didn't want him to fight; therefore, he had to contain his need for bloodshed. So he took a step back and began to walk down the steps on the other side of the gazebo.

"A little wrapped, are we?" Dean called after him.

"You just wish it was still you," Jess called back, continuing their stride toward the Gilmore residence as he wrapped his arm protectively around her waist.

When they reached her steps, Rory turned to him, her eyes sad. "Thank you," she said quietly.

"For what?" he asked, brushing the hair out of her face.

"For not fighting him," she replied. "It's what he wanted. He wanted to make you lose it so he could have an excuse."

"Have I mentioned how much I hate him?" he said, his voice rising just a little.

"A few times," she said. "But this will blow over. He just needs a little while to realize that he's being completely insane."

"That doesn't make me feel any better," he told her tiredly. His voice was softer, more concerned than angry. "I don't trust him, Rory. I keep wondering if he would hurt you while I'm not there."

"I'll be fine," she assured him, taking his face in her hands. "Remember, this is the town that has 24/7 Rory cameras."

"Just be careful," he said. "Lock your door and everything. You never know."

"Yes Mom," she teased him. Then, more serious, "I'll be careful."

"Thank you," he said kissing her softly. "So I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Bright and early for coffee," she replied kissing him back. "Goodnight."

"'Night Rory," Jess said just before she shut the door. Then softly, "Sweet dreams."