A Different Path
Chapter 12: Scratch my Belly
Disclaimer: It's still not mine :)
Summary: 'He'd slip some extra lettuce in her burger and she'd pretend not to notice.'… A story about Luke and Lorelai.
A/N: Well, I guess you could call this another filler chapter. I mean, sort of… Eh, I don't know. A lot of it is just flashbacks… Whatever, please review. You know you want to
There's about 4 chapters left in this story, unless I stretch it out and make it 5, but yeah, you get the point.
And check out my new story: Kiss with Open Eyes - a new chapter should be up today or tomorrow.
I don't have time to write my, big, long thanks to everyone like I usually do, so I'm sorry. But thank you, thank you, thank you!
Thank you! Thank you. X a million.
And anyways…
It had been three weeks. Three beautiful, amazing, happy weeks. Three weeks of falling asleep together, every night. Three weeks of waking up, beside each other, every morning. Three weeks of her stealing his pillows in the middle of the night. Three weeks of his light snoring, singing her to sleep. Three weeks of getting up, just before the alarm clock and watching her sleep. Three weeks of going to bed early on delivery days and watching him sleep. Three weeks of him trying to slip some extra lettuce, in her burger. Three weeks of her pretending not to notice. Three weeks of her sitting on the stool, right beside the register, and babbling on about nothing, while he looked over receipts. Three weeks of him listening to every word. Three weeks of sneaking glances at each other, and smiling when they were caught. Three weeks of sitting together on the couch, and neither of them paying attention to the movie that was playing in the background. Three weeks of lying on his chest and listening to his heart beat. Three weeks of her head resting on his chest, and him breathing in the scent of her hair. Three weeks of her house smelling like homemade food. Three weeks of his sheets smelling just like her perfume. Three weeks of holding hands when they walked down the street. Three weeks of kissing each other in public. Three weeks of her always trying to look extra nice, just for him. Three weeks of him using the soap that she loved the smell of. Three weeks of him dropping by the Inn and bringing her lunch. Three weeks of her going by the diner, every free moment she had. Three weeks of them being together. Three beautiful, amazing, happy weeks.
She rolled over when the sunlight woke her up. She smiled when she saw him. She did this every morning. She would see him lying there, beside her, and she couldn't help but smile. He was there with her, and it made her so happy.
Caesar was opening the diner today, so Luke got to sleep in for once. She didn't want to wake him up, so she tried not to move around too much when she got out of bed.
She tiptoed out of the bedroom and went downstairs. She sat down on the couch for a moment, but got bored very quickly. She got up and moved quietly into the kitchen, and then into Rory's room.
She went to her dresser, opened the first drawer on the left, and found what she was looking for.
She put them there because she didn't want Luke to find them. She didn't want to explain them to him; she didn't want to see his face when she told him what it was and what it meant. She didn't want to see the completely surprised, freaked out, look he would have on his face, when she explained one of the items to him. So, she just put them down here, in Rory's drawer. She would use them if she ever had the chance, but if not, they would stay.
She picked both of them up and sat in Rory's chair that was in the corner, as she remembered exactly where she got them.
Luke went to go take orders from the group of people that walked in the diner and sat at the table in the corner. She sat in her seat, the one right next to the register, and continued sipping her coffee.
"Lorelai." She knew instantly who was behind her. She knew the voice, although it did sound a little different. She couldn't put a finger one it, but something was different.
Lorelai spun around on her chair, to face her this time.
"Mom." She stated.
"I got your message." Emily told her.
"Um… Oh, good." Lorelai said, looking down at her coffee cup.
"Could we talk outside? It's loud in here." She said.
"OK, sure." Lorelai nodded, and got off the stool after putting her coffee down on the counter.
They walked outside until they were standing right outside the gazebo, where there was not a lot of people.
"So, Mom, how are you?" Lorelai asked, trying to make small talk.
"I'm fine, Lorelai, how are you?" Emily said.
"Good." Lorelai nodded.
"That's good." Emily said.
Something was definitely different about her. She just didn't know exactly what it was. What was she doing here, anyway? Did she come to apologize? Where's my video camera when I need it goddamnit.
"So, um, is that all?" Lorelai asked uneasily.
"No." Emily said. "I have something for you." She said.
"What?" Lorelai asked.
"Two things." Emily stated as held up the bag Lorelai hadn't noticed she had been holding. She looked in it quickly and began to pull out a small, yellow, baby blanket.
She held it out to Lorelai, and Lorelai took it. Before she had the chance to say anything, Emily spoke.
"Your Aunt Hopey gave this blanket to you when you were a few weeks old. You loved it… You wouldn't go to sleep without it. You wouldn't touch any of the other blankets I had bought for you, you only wanted this one…" Emily said.
Lorelai smiled as he mother continued.
"I washed it, it's clean don't worry. I just thought…that… the baby would like it, too. You don't have to use it, I just-"
"Thanks Mom." Lorelai said, interrupting her.
Emily looked up at her with question.
"Thank you." Lorelai repeated.
Emily softened, and she smiled at her daughter. "You're welcome." She told her. They shared a small, little, moment, but then Emily realized she had more thing for her.
"One more thing." She said, as she begun digging through her purse. She finally found what she was looking for and pulled out a long, black, velvet box.
"Here, open it." Emily said as she handed it to her.
She wanted to speak. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't get any words out.
"Open it." Emily repeated.
Lorelai nodded and slowly opened the box. Inside was a beautiful necklace. It was simple, but still completely gorgeous.
"Mom…" She practically whispered.
"My great grandmother bought this necklace… and when my grandmother got married, she borrowed it for her wedding. And when my mother was getting married, she borrowed it from my grandmother… and my mother let me borrow it on my wedding day… and I want you to know that you can borrow it for yours." Emily said.
Lorelai looked down at the necklace, and then back at her mother.
"But Luke and I aren't getting married." She said, handing it back to her.
Emily pushed away her hand, letting her keep the box. "You will." She said simply.
Lorelai looked up at her, and thought about asking questions or arguing, but when she saw the expression on her mother's face, she smiled.
"But why are you giving it to me now?" She asked after a minute or two.
"I just wanted to make sure you got it, Lorelai." She said.
"OK." Lorelai said, nodding and still looking down at the necklace she was holding.
"I really am sorry, Lorelai." Emily said after a moment.
Lorelai looked up at her and nodded.
"I'd really like if you and Luke would come with Rory to Friday night dinners…" She told her.
"Luke?" Lorelai asked.
"Luke." Emily nodded.
"OK." Lorelai said.
"7 o'clock." Emily said.
"I remember." Lorelai said with a small laugh.
"Alright, I'll see you on Friday."
"OK… and Mom?"
"Yes?" She asked, turning around to face her again.
"Thank you… Really… Thank you." She said, holding up the box and the blanket.
"You're welcome." She said.
After Emily left, Lorelai stuck her head in Luke's and told him she'd be back in a little while. She walked home and put her mother's presents in Rory's drawer.
Luke had agreed to go to Friday Night Dinner with her, and everything went well.
"Hi Mom." Lorelai greeted her mother as she handed her coat to the maid.
"Lorelai." She said with a nod.
"Hello Luke." She said, turning her attention to him.
"Hi Mrs. Gilmore." He said, greeting her. She shot him a look, and he corrected himself. "Emily." He said with a small laugh.
"Better." She said.
"Where's Rory?" Lorelai asked.
"She called a few minutes ago and said she was stuck in traffic. Why don't we have some drinks while we wait for her?" Emily said, leading her guests into the living room.
"Beer, Luke?" Emily asked, only this time, she didn't say it so negatively.
"Thanks." Luke said with a nod.
Emily went into the other room to get the beer, leaving the couple alone.
"Was it just me or-" Luke started.
"No, I actually think she wasn't trying to insult you." Lorelai said, staring at the door her mother had walked through.
Luke put his hand on her thigh and squeezed it a little. She looked over to him, smiled, and kissed him, right before Emily came in the room again.
Emily handed Luke the beer. "Thank you, Emily." Luke said, before taking a sip.
"Can I just smell it?" Lorelai begged.
Luke rolled his eyes, and put the beer under her nose. She took a big sniff, and then sighed in satisfaction.
"Only 6 and a half more months." She said, patting her stomach. "The second this thing comes out I'm going to run out of the hospital room, find the nearest gas station and buy a 6 pack of beer and a very big bottle of Jack Daniels." Lorelai said.
Luke was about to say something back, but they both got distracted when they heard the sound of a someone opening a beer. They both looked over to where Emily Gilmore, was sitting on the couch, taking a sip of a beer.
"Oh my God. I need a camera." Lorelai stated with her eyes wide.
"What are you talking about Lorelai?" Emily asked.
"Mom. Where did you learn how to open a beer bottle?" Lorelai asked.
"Lorelai…" She said, rolling her eyes.
"Does Dad know about this?" She asked.
"Yes." She said, still rolling her eyes.
"Dad knows about this?" Lorelai asked, still completely shocked.
"Why are you so shocked? I've drunken beer before." Emily said.
"When?" Lorelai asked.
"Oh, let me go check my calendar… What? You think I write these things down?" Emily asked.
Lorelai smiled, and looked over to Luke and then back to her mother. "I cannot believe it." She said.
"Luke is having one, why can't I?" Emily asked.
"Mom. You hate beer."
"I do not." Emily said.
"Yes you do."
"Lorelai." She said, starting to get annoyed.
"I can't believe this… You're drinking beer. What's next? Are you going to make a bowl of popcorn, turn on the game and start scratching your belly?" Lorelai said.
"How do you deal with her?" Emily asked Luke.
"Coffee usually shuts her up." Luke said with a shrug.
"Does not." Lorelai said.
"I'll go get the coffee." Emily said, with a laugh, as she put her beer on the table, and left the room to go get coffee.
"I'm here!" They heard Rory's voice from the foyer a moment later.
"What'd I miss?" Rory asked as she walked in the room.
"See that beer over there." Lorelai said, pointing to the beer across the table.
"Yeah." Rory said.
"Guess whose beer that is."
"Luke's?" Rory asked. Luke held up his beer to show her that he already had one.
"I don't know." Rory shrugged.
"My mother's!" Lorelai said.
"Whoa." Rory said.
"I know!" Lorelai said.
"She must really be sorry." Rory said looking at Luke, and than back at Lorelai.
"I guess so." Lorelai said, sitting back in her seat.
She looked down at the baby blanket and the long velvet box in her hands, smiled and put them back in Rory's drawer.
"And then what happened?" Rory asked.
"Well, then Susanna goes upstairs to look for Daisy because she had been up there for a very long time and she feels bad about that stuff Lisa said to her." Lorelai said.
"Yeah…" Rory said.
"So, she goes into her room and she's not there!" Lorelai says dramatically.
"So? Where is she?" Rory asked.
"Well…" Lorelai says, pausing for dramatic effect.
"Then, she opens the bathroom door and there she is."
"In the bathroom?"
"Hanging from the shower curtain." Lorelai said.
"Daisy hung herself?" Rory asked with a gasp.
"Yup and Susanna got to keep her cat." Lorelai said. "Polly loved Daisy's cat… everyone at the mental hospital loved Daisy's cat."
"Is Polly the one with the scared face?" Rory asked.
"Yup… I can't believe you haven't seen Girl, Interrupted, Rory." Lorelai said.
"Movie night?"
"Definitely, put it on the list!" Lorelai said.
"Kay." Rory said. There was a small pause, but Rory spoke up.
"So, Mom, how are you?" She asked.
"Good." She said, stretching out the word.
"How is Luke?"
"Good." She said, stretching it out just as she did before.
"That's good." Rory said.
"Mhm." Lorelai agreed.
"You still haven't told the town?" Rory asked.
"Nope." Lorelai responded.
"You're almost 10 weeks pregnant… You're going to start showing soon." Rory said.
"Don't remind me." Lorelai said.
"You'll have to tell them sometime... They'll figure it out and they'll be more upset that you didn't tell them, and then they'll just bug you more about it, then if you had just told them." Rory said.
"Yeah, yeah." Lorelai said, rolling her eyes.
"Who knows, anyway?" Rory asked.
"Me, Luke, you, Sookie and Liz." Lorelai said.
"How'd Liz take it?"
"She jumped up and down a lot, and then she hugged me… she's got a pretty good grip, that one… Then I told her she might break the baby if she didn't let go… and then she finally let go… but then she started squealing and jumping some more... and hugged Luke instead because he doesn't have a baby inside him to break." Lorelai said.
Rory laughed.
"Then Luke 'accidentally' stepped on TJ's etch-a-sketch and he started crying, so Liz had to go take of that and we ran out the door." Lorelai said.
"Oh, TJ." Rory said.
"Mhm." Lorelai said.
"I'm going to take a lot of pictures…" Lorelai said, thinking out loud.
"Pictures of what?" Rory asked.
"Of me… You see, honey… I'll be fat and swollen and I'll starting peeing a little when I laugh too hard… that kind of stuff isn't the most attractive thing in the world." Lorelai said.
"I bet." Rory said.
"So, at least I'll have pictures to remind Luke what he's sticking around for." Lorelai said.
Rory rolled her eyes.
"I better make sure I get a few good ones of me naked." Lorelai said.
"Oh my God. I'm hanging up now."
"Rory..." Lorelai said, still laughing.
"Nope, I'm hanging up, bye." She said, before a click.
"Hey Mister." She greeted Luke as she walked in the diner.
"Hey." He said as he walked behind the counter.
She starting walking in the diner, about to kick someone's ass for sitting in her seat at the counter.
But, then she turned around and Lorelai realized just who it was.
The red hair that was always that Pantene-commercial type of shiny, the skinny waist, the green eyes that people would pay money for, the camera bag on her shoulder.
Rachel.
Yup, Rachel…
I know, it's unoriginal, and probably overdone. I know that believe me. I was trying to think of any other way I could do this, cuz I hate doing overdone things like this…but I have an idea, and I need a Rachel-like person to do it… Ugh, you won't be able to understand this unless you're me… which you're not, so I'll stop trying to explain.
Don't worry, I'll try and make it good.
I know this a little shorter than usual… But it was 10 pages on Word… 10 pages and then 2 lines on the 11th page… So, technically that means it's 11 pages. So, yeah this was long, just not as long as usual. Plus, it always looks longer cuz I always write that big long thank you in the begginning.
Sorry again about the long, long wait, but really, it wasn't my fault.
Please, please review.