Disclaimer: If I owned it, do you seriously think that I'll be sitting here and writing fan fiction?
Summary: Set before Luke and Lorelai get together. When a creepy guy goes after Lorelai, will Luke be the one to save her? Or is she destined to date a guy worthy of becoming Dracula's successor? Has nothing to do with real vampires or an alternate reality and etc. Java Junkie.
Note: No specific time period, but Rory is already at Yale.
Thanks to EVERYONE that reviewed! Flying kisses to all of you! And for those who find such intimacy disgusting: COOKIES FOR ALL WHO REVIEWED! Those reviews just made my day! - Special shout outs to those who gave me such a looooong reviews, like epona9009. You rock! Keep those reviews coming!
Anyway, I'll say more at the end of this chapter. I could say it here, but them I'll be prolonging your reading time, and I'm not that evil. So here it is:
Chapter 2 - "Not Ted Willis, but BRUCE Willis!"
"You have no idea how hurt I was, Luke. I mean, I totally trusted him, and with the investment I placed," Lorelai shook her head sadly, "I lost everything. Now, I don't know who I can trust. How could he betray me like that?"
Luke rolled his eyes.
"I mean seriously, he took everything I owned, including my self-esteem. I couldn't even kill him to get revenge, 'cause then I'll end up in jail and in one of those electric chairs," she shivered, "oh god…imagine the damage it can do to my hair…"
"Are we still talking about the same thing?" he said gruffly, refilling her coffee.
"Of course! Pay attention, Luke! When a friend is asking for you to lend an ear to listen to her problems, the least you can do is pretend to listen."
"Oh I'm pretending alright…"
"Lukeeee," she whined.
"With how much you've been borrowing this ear, I should make you pay for rent."
Lorelai faked a shocked gasp. "I thought that of all people, you wouldn't be one of those people that worshipped money and willingly gave up friendship just to obtain it!"
"Oh geez, Lorelai. You lost at Monopoly, it's not that big of a deal."
"Well, obviously you haven't been listening, Luke Danes. It's more the principle of the matter."
"Andrew wouldn't loan you money when you lost all yours buying that stupid lot. It's just a game, Lorelai."
"Just a game. HA! Just a game." Lorelai repeated, turning to the guy beside her, "did you hear this guy? Just a game. HA!"
"Um…"
"You don't have to answer her," Luke told the man, "she's insane. We're taking her back to the insanity ward anytime now."
"Monopoly isn't just a game. It shows us what the 'trustworthy' people in our lives would really do when something goes wrong! Now I know that if I'm ever in financial trouble because I bought Vermonti Avenue, I can't trust Andrew to help me! No siree! He'll just ignore me and laugh, as he watches me go directly to jail! Do not pass GO, do not collect $200." She turned to the man beside her, "Don't you agree with me, mister?"
"Um…"
"Don't even bother answering her," Luke warned, handing the man his food. He looked up briefly as the bell hanging above the door rang, and nodded as Rory came in.
"Sludge of death?"
"Yep," Rory nodded, slipping into the seat beside her mother, noticing the pouty look her mother had on, "She still bummed about the monopoly thing?"
"Uhuh."
"The deceit! All this time, me and Andrew's relationship has been built on lies! I can't believe this!"
Rory rolled her eyes, "You aren't allowed to loan money to all players in Monopoly anyway, mom."
"How do you know?" Lorelai sniffed.
"Uh…unlike some people, I actually read the rule books, instead of making up rules to board games."
"Hey! I thought my rule on singing a song from the Sound of Music every time you rolled a three, was a good idea!"
"Yah, and I'm sure that everybody appreciated it when you knocked all the game pieces down while you started dancing and singing around."
"Songs from the Sound of Music are too festive and happy-go-lucky to not be danced to," Lorelai explained.
"Well, as long as you have a logical explanation…"
"So, what you up to today, kid? Plans to take over the world? Dominate all human kind…?"
"Going back to school, the holidays are almost up and I'm going to start preparing," Rory replied, taking a sip of coffee before sliding out of her seat.
Lorelai shook her head sadly, "You've learned nothing from me."
"Bye, mom," Rory gave her a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek, "And try not to stalk and murder Andrew without me."
"I'll try, but I have no guarantees. And remember, if you're going to do anything extremely dangerous and stupid, call mommy. She wants to come along too."
"Well, I don't know. Bringing you along might ruin my rep," Rory laughed, giving her one last hug, "I'll see you on Friday night?"
"If I'm not in jail," Lorelai said seriously, "Bye, hun!"
"Bye mom!" Rory said with a last wave before leaving. Lorelai sighed, took a sip of coffee, and turned over to the man on the other side of her. She eyed the pancakes lying on his plate.
"Is that good?" she asked.
"Um…yah…"
"Oh goodie! 'Cause from my angle, it looked delicious. But you never know, just because something looks good, doesn't mean it tastes good. I learned that the hard way."
"I see…."
"Luke!" Lorelai suddenly yelled, "I want pancakes!"
Not hearing an answer, Lorelai frowned and turned around on her stool to look around the diner. "Hey, where's Luke?" She asked out loud.
"He's outside with some chick," Patty said, beckoning for her to come over. Frowning, Lorelai got closer, and saw Luke with a pretty redhead.
"Who's she?" Lorelai asked, her frown deepening every second.
"I don't know, honey, but she sure is pretty," Patty said, wiggling her eyebrows, "Luke's new girlfriend maybe?"
Lorelai's eyes flared and she bit her lip as she saw Luke laugh at something the women said. Girlfriend? Luke had a new girlfriend?
"Ooooh, they look very cute together, don't they? Imagine their children! Blue eyes and flowing red hair," Patty went on, watching the mix of emotions that swam across the brunette's face.
"She's like a twig though, and what's with the green sparkly plants and freakishly long red hair? Who does she think she is? Ariel?" Lorelai breathed deeply, and almost choked when Luke leaned over and hugged her. He never hugged me like that…he never smiles like that when he sees me either…
"Is somebody jealous?" Patty grinned.
"What? Jealous? Me? HA! Noooo, 'course not!" Lorelai forced a laugh, "I'm just mad Luke didn't tell me…"
"You can lie to me, honey, but you can't lie to yourself."
Lorelai opened her mouth to protest, but found she couldn't think of a comeback. Am I jealous? No! Of course not! Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous. Yes, that's right. Now just repeat that a couple hundred times…Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous. Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous. Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous…why is he still out there with her…NO! Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts! Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous, Lorelai Gilmore doesn't get jealous…
Lorelai snapped out of her thoughts what she saw Luke waving goodbye to the mermaid-wannabe, and head back into the diner. She quickly slid back into her seat and took a huge gulp of coffee.
"Oh crap!" She jumped up and fanned her tongue. "Ahh! Hot! Hot!"
"What the hell are you doing?" a gruff voice said from behind her. Lorelai rolled her eyes and turned to look at Luke.
"The newest dance craze," she said sarcastically, "what do you think I'm doing? I burned my tongue."
"From what?"
"The sludge of death."
"The coffee?"
"Nooooo, the poison you leave lying on your counter."
"What?"
"YES! I burned my tongue with the coffee!"
"Then why didn't you just say so?" Luke frowned, clearly confused.
"It's called sarcasm, something that you've used countless times before, Mr. Danes." It came out much harsher than she intended it to.
"Sorry then," Luke said, taken back, "You okay?"
"Yah," Lorelai mumbled, taking another sip of coffee.
"You sure? Because you don't look okay."
"Well thanks, that's a great pickup line, of course I'll marry you."
"I didn't mean it like that, Lorelai, you know that," Luke leaned in closer to her and said quietly, "You know, if there's anything wrong, you can always tell me."
For some reason, Luke's genuine concern and kind tone, only flared up Lorelai's anger.
"Really? Well, there IS something wrong!" Lorelai said loudly, standing up, "In a proper establishment such as this, I expect that when I want to order something, someone will be there to take my order and serve me my food! But noooooo, there's no one here to write my request down. Why? Because the owner of this stupid diner is outside flirting with some redhead instead of doing his job like he's suppose to!"
"What? I wasn't - "
"When people sit down in this diner, have money to pay and are hungry, they expect to be able to eat! Why open the doors for business when you're not actually going to do your job?" Lorelai voice got louder and louder with every word.
"Now wait a minute - "
"…At least inform people when you're going to go and make-out with some girl! Because at least then, us customers will know when to leave so they can go to another place to eat. Now, we're not only starving, but we're also wasting our valuable time!"
"I wasn't making out with a girl!" Luke protested, starting to get angry. Why the hell was she being like this?
"Fine! Declaring your love then! Accurate enough for you?"
"Who…"
"That Ariel look alike! The one you were all giggly and lovey-dovey over!"
"Sarah?"
"YES! Whatever her name is! Because you two lovebirds were acting so Romeo and Juliet, I didn't get my pancakes!" Lorelai shouted, "I wanted pancakes! You should - "
"That was my damn cousin, Lorelai!" Luke bellowed, slamming his fist on the counter, "So for god's sake, shut up and listen!"
By that time, everybody in the entire diner was dead quiet and listening to their "conversation." Lorelai's jaw dropped open.
"Your cousin?" she repeated.
"Yes! She was in town doing something and since we haven't seen each other in ages, she decided to come see me!" Luke growled, "Sorry if reuniting with a family member got in the way of you getting pancakes!"
Lorelai winced, feeling horribly stupid. Witty remark! This is the time for a witty remark!
"Well, you sure you're not into your cousin?" Lorelai winced again. Stupid remark! Stupid remark!
Luke looked at her in disbelief, "You can't be serious! You start yelling at me like I murdered your parents…"
"I won't be too upset about that…"
"…and took your whole entire coffee supply or something - "
It was at that moment that her cell phone chose to ring. Lorelai took it out of her purse and smiled weakly at Luke.
"Sorry, but I got to take this. It's Michel and I told him to call me if there's anything…"
"OUT!"
Lorelai snapped open her cell phone and quickly dashed out of the diner. Just before the door closed, she heard Luke bark, "What the hell are you looking at? EAT! Or do all of you have complaints too!"
Argh! You're an idiot Lorelai! Now he's all peeved and everything. Oh gosh…what if he get so mad that he won't let me come in and won't serve me coffee! Ahh! Then who am I going to go to for my little drug? Weston's? But the coffee is so much better at Luke's…ARGH! I'm such an idiot! Why did I do that though? Am I really jealous…? But I couldn't be! He's just a friend! A nice, supportive, very good-looking friend…but that doesn't mean I like him! Maybe I'm just addicted to pancakes and my hunger just got me going all crazy…Yah, that's it…hmm…by the way, I still didn't get my pancakes…
"Lorelai! Hello! You talk to me now! I know you're there!" a French-accented voice exclaimed from her phone, shaking Lorelai from her thoughts.
"I'm not hot for him, I'm hot for pancakes!" she exclaimed without thinking.
"Well, that's good to know. But oh, wait…I don't really care," Michel said dryly.
"Nice to see that you're your cheery old self."
"You have a package."
"Then sign for it."
"I can't."
"Then do the hokey-pokey and spin yourself around…"
"Lorelai…" Michel warned.
"What do you mean you can't?"
"The stupid guys won't let me!" Michel exclaimed irritably, "I told them over and over that you won't be here till later, but them stupid muscle men don't listen!"
"Hey! Orders are orders!" Lorelai heard someone in the background yell.
"Well, if orders told you to dance around like a ditzy cheerleader, would you?" Michel yelled away from the phone, and then returning back to Lorelai, "Imbeciles. Every single one of them has brains the size of peas."
"A perfect match for you then, huh?"
"What?"
"Never mind," Lorelai said quickly, "I'll come over as fast as I can."
"Lorelai, come now!"
"I just said I was going to," Lorelai said innocently.
"Yes, I know, I heard," Michel said, "but your 'I'm-coming-here' usually means 'I'm- going-to-grab-a-doughnut-do-some-errands-and-then-drive-around-the-tow-doing-God-knows-what-just-to-annoy-Michel'!"
"Wow, boy do you know me well. Have you been stalking me?"
"Lorelai! God help me, if you don't get here in less than 15 minutes, I will single-handedly murder those two idiotic muscle men…"
"You have fun doing that now."
"…and then, I'll pour all your coffee down the sink…"
"No!" Lorelai gasped into the phone.
"…but I'll do it slowly, so when you rush into the kitchen, you'll watch the last bits of your precious coffee disappear without being able to do anything!"
"You're evil!"
"Fifteen minutes, Lorelai," Michel warned, before hanging up.
Lorelai closed her phone and looked longingly back into the diner, watching as the diner man grumpily shouted at someone for wanting mayonnaise on their burger.
"If you want mayonnaise, then you pay extra! Mayonnaise costs money too!"
Then with one last sigh, she walked towards her jeep. I'll apologize later, when's he's less angry…
----------------------------------------
"I'm here, I'm here," Lorelai exclaimed, walking up the steps to the Inn, "So where's the - OH MY GOD!" Lorelai froze at the entrance of the Dragonfly Inn, eyes wide and jaw dropped open.
"Yes, I know," Michel said, rolling his eyes, "that thing has been staring at me all morning long, along with those two cheerleading body guards."
"Hey! Just because we'll be willing to follow orders like that if needed, doesn't mean we're actually cheerleaders," one of the men said, then he turned and nodded at Lorelai, "I presume you're Ms. Gilmore.
"Um…yes," Lorelai blinked, looking at the two tux-clad men in front of her and most importantly, a huge cardboard cutout of Bruce Willis they were standing in front of. "Excuse me, but who sent thi - oh gosh," Lorelai said smacking her forehead, "I should've known."
"Known what?" Michel frowned.
"That's Bruce Willis," Lorelai stated, pointing at the life-size cut out.
"Well, I know that. Despite what you and Sookie think, my whole life doesn't only revolve around dogs, you know…"
"Oh shush Michel, we all know it does. But that's not the point," Lorelai said, "THAT'S Bruce Willis."
"Yes, you have established that."
"It's BRUCE Willis," Lorelai repeated, emphasizing the Bruce, "Not Ted Willis, but BRUCE Willis."
"Is it just me, or is she repeating herself?" Michel said impatiently, "Get to the point, Lorelai."
"It's Bruce Willis from Hostage."
"…"
"From Hostage, you know, the movie - "
"I know the movie! But what is this suppose to mean?"
"Oh never mind," Lorelai said, waving it off, "you won't get it anyway."
"But I - " Michel stopped himself in mid-sentence and sighed, "another useless morning. My, what a wonderful life I have." He turned and headed for the kitchen.
"Ms. Gilmore?" one of the men said, tapping her shoulder.
"Just call me Lorelai," she said, taking the clipboard from his hands and signing the paper, "you can go now. I'll take that…thing."
"We can't leave, Ms. Gilmore, we've been hired for the day."
"What?"
"Mr. Wilber Conner has hired us to protect you for the day."
"Wilber Conner," she growled under her breath.
"And he requested that we give you this letter," the other body guard added, handing her an envelop. Lorelai impatiently opened the note and read:
Lorelai,
It's been at least two weeks since I've seen you, and I must say that without your presence, life is very dull. I miss you incredibly. I can still remember the dress you wore, and the tone of your voice in our lengthy conversations. I'm disappointed that you haven't accepted my invitation yet, but I'm sure my little gift will encourage you to say yes. These two bodyguards have been hired for the day to serve, and protect you. I don't want my dance partner to turn into a Hostage before the day of the party.
Wilber Conner
Lorelai reread the letter again. Lengthy conversations? What lengthy conversations? If he was talking about her little rant that day, it was more of her talking away like a maniac.
"Long-teeth fool," Lorelai mumbled frustrated, and tearing up the note, "oh no! I just shouldn't have done that!"
"Yah," one of the bodyguards said, nodding, "love notes should always be cherished and remembered."
"No, it's no that…I could've showed it to Rory so both of us could've been grossed out about it."
The two bodyguards remained quiet at that and just glanced at each other.
"Oh well. I'll just have to commit the entire message to memory until I can tell Rory," she said, turning to the two men, "as for you two, you can leave. Take the day off! Go out and hire a hooker or something."
"We can't, Ms. Gilmore. Orders are orders."
"If you don't tell Wilber, and I won't tell Wilber, then who would know?"
"Orders are orders."
Lorelai sighed, "but won't you two want to just relax for the day?"
"No," both said shortly.
"Fine! Stay then!" she said frustrated again, "Do you two have names by any chance, or are they too FBI-ish to be told to others?" Both of them looked exactly the same; from the way they dressed, to the colour of their hair, and even to the colour of the shoelaces on their shoes. The only slight difference was the colour of their eyes.
"Call him X," the blue-eyed one said, pointing at his partner, "and call me Y."
"You can be serious," Lorelai said under her breath, "Fine! Brown eyed guy is X, and blue-eyed guy is Y. I got it, now don't you two have something to do…?"
"Protect you."
"Ok…fine. Are you two going to follow me everywhere?"
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"Am I allowed to go to the kitchen?"
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"How about the washroom?"
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"You're not going to follow me in and watch me as I go though, right?"
"No, Ms. Gilmore."
"Well, that's good. Because if you did, then I'll have to slap you and call the real FBI or something."
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"Any chance for you to just call me Lorelai?"
"No, Ms. Gilmore. We should always address our superiors with the respect they deserve."
"Fine then, have it your way," Lorelai sighed again, admitting defeat. She made her way to the kitchen, trying to ignore the two buffoons following behind.
"Hey Sookie," she said when she entered, spotting her friend immediately.
"Hey Lorelai…who they hell are they?" the chef asked, automatically spotting the two men. They were looking suspiciously around, poking at the pots and pans, and glaring at everyone that walked even a metre radius of Lorelai.
"Dumber and Dumberer," she said dryly, "they're my bodyguards."
"Wow," Sookie said impressed, "how very Queen Elizabeth of you."
"Yah," Lorelai sighed, watching as the two apes checked everywhere for potential bomb areas.
-------------------------
"…and then, they practically killed Taylor when he tried to tap my shoulder. Not that it wasn't funny to see him trip on the carpet."
"They really dived and tackled ten people today?"
"Yah, I kept count. Those two should really go for football," Lorelai said, talking to her daughter on the phone, "and get this, I can be shot forty different ways by driving alone in my jeep."
"What?"
"X and Y politely informed a me of that when I wanted to drive home alone today."
"Forty? Oh wow…this whole time, you've been living on the edge!"
"I know," Lorelai nodded, even though Rory couldn't see her on the other line, "I feel so totally James Bond."
"So how you going to get home then? The bodyguards going to get a helicopter?"
"They offered, but then they remembered the hundred different ways someone could die while travelling in the air. So they decided to drive me home together in their bullet-proof car."
"Ooooh! The ones that the Pope travels in?"
"Um…more like the ones that the President travels in," Lorelai observed, sitting back and pressing a button on the panel in front of her, "Ooooh, get this! I'm watching the news, drinking a martini, AND getting my feet massaged all at the same time."
"Wow, you're for real? You really have bodyguards?"
"Yes, Rory. Weren't you there when I said 'Rory, mommy has two ape-like bodyguards'?"
"Yah, but I thought you were joking."
"Hey! Why would I say I had bodyguards when I didn't?"
"Hmm, I don't know," Rory pretended to ponder into the phone, "Why would mommy say she had a rock band standing in front of her house three years ago?"
"That was just a little fib…"
"…and then, when me and Lane came running all the way to the house to see the 'rock band', all we see is the infamous Lorelai Gilmore, standing on the lawn and giggling at us."
"I was young and foolish back then, but now I've grown into a mature, young woman."
"Tell that to your Don't be Jealous 'Cause I'm Hotter Than You shirt."
"OH! And did I tell you about the Bruce Willis cut-out he sent me?"
"What?"
"Wilber Conner, the creepy vampire guy we met at your grandmother's house…"
"Now she's MY grandmother…"
"…sent me a life-size, cardboard cut out of Bruce Willis from Hostage."
"Oh…my…gosh…" Rory exclaimed, bursting into laughter, "you can't be serious."
"I'm being more serious that I've ever been in my life."
"A cardboard cut out?" Rory giggled, "as in like the ones that we see standing outside of movies?"
"Exactly like that."
"Does he even know how creepy that is?" Rory started laughing even harder, "Oh gosh! I have a mental image of you bumping into that thing now."
"Apparently not. We're talking about the guy that won't bother getting braces because he doesn't know how creepy his teeth are."
"You really should tell him that Hostage isn't your favourite movie, mom," Rory giggled again, "once you two get together, you won't want him buying you Hostage cardboard cut-outs for your anniversary."
"Rory!" Lorelai exclaimed, "that's not funny!"
"Hahaha, I'm just joking, mom," Rory said, her laughter starting to die down.
"Now enough about me, what's been going on back at Yale, babe?" Lorelai asked, putting her feet up on the unoccupied leather seat beside her. Ahhh, the joys of riding in the backseat alone…
"Nothing, Paris is going crazy, everyone's screaming about wanting to switch rooms again, and I threatened to jump off a building."
"Ahh, so regular day?"
"Yep."
Lorelai looked out the window to see them passing by Luke's Diner. She could still see the lights on and Luke cleaning the counter.
"Hey, Rory?" she said into the phone, still eyeing the diner.
"Yah?"
"I got to go. I call you back tonight, okay?"
"Alright. Bye mom."
"Bye."
Lorelai hung up and bit her lip, still wondering whether she should go. What you did was mean, Lorelai. The best you could do is apologize.
Yah, but it isn't your fault that he led you to thinking that he was flirting outside with a girl, another little voice in her said.
But even if he was, why would it matter? It's not like you're going out with him or anything. He should be able to flirt with anyone he wants to flirt with.
But he's my Luke, the second voice said timidly, my Luke.
Your Luke? Do you LIKE him, Lorelai Gilmore? Do you have feelings for your best friend?
Lorelai jolted herself out of her thoughts when she saw that they were way past the diner.
"Hey, X and Y?" she said, pressing the intercom button.
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore?" X (or Y) responded, his voice blaring out from the intercom.
"Stop by Luke's Diner, I want some coffee."
"But we just passed it."
"Then go back."
"It would be dangerous to eat at such a quiet place, Ms. Gilmore," he replied.
"How dangerous could it be? If anyone tries to attack me, then you can just tackle them or something."
"It's best to avoid things like this instead of walking straight into them, Ms. Gilmore."
"But I'm hungry! And caffeine-less!"
"Isn't there food and coffee at your house, Ms. Gilmore?"
Lorelai's anger began to flare up again.
"Okay, that's it!" she said lowly into the intercom, "Weren't you two hired to serve and protect me?"
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"And I'm emphasizing on the SERVE part."
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"That means obeying my commands and wants, without any complaints, right?" She said, and adding a "dirty!" as an afterthought.
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore."
"Well, Ms. Gilmore wants to go to Luke's Diner, NOW! And if you don't take Ms. Gilmore to the diner, then Ms. Gilmore would just have to jump out of this moving car and walk there herself. Then, if Ms. Gilmore is murdered or something, it would be all be X and Y's fault. I think that Mr. Wilber Conner wouldn't really be too happy at that, would he, boys?" Lorelai paused in her little threat, "So now, are you going to take me to the diner?"
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore, right away," they replied with a defeated sigh. The car turned around and headed back for Luke's Diner.
Wow, Lorelai thought to herself with a smile, and leaning back, Living with my mom for sixteen years actually taught me something useful.
---------------------------------
"We're closing in ten minutes, so make your order quick or leave," Luke greeted without looking up from his cash register as he heard the little bell ring. Lorelai let out a deep breath and tried to fight away the nervous butterflies in her stomach.
"And I thought our little friendship meant something to you," she said with a smile. Luke looked up instantly as he heard her voice, accidentally catching her eye. They looked at each other for a couple of seconds before Lorelai looked shyly away. She went over to the counter and took a seat. "Coffee please?"
For once, Luke didn't argue and placed a cup in front of her.
"You'll have to wait a minute though, the last patch just finished, so I'll have to make a new one."
"Okay. That lovely paradise is all worth the wait."
"That 'lovely paradise' will be the death of you," he said with a slight smile.
"Well, then at least I had a good life," she smiled too. Good, our little routine is back. Not as great as before, but close enough.
"So, who the hell are those two," he asked, motioning to the two poking around behind her. X was standing by the door, staring intently at Luke with a glare, and Y was looking under all the chairs and tables.
"My two bodyguards," Lorelai stated, sounding like it was the most ordinary thing in the world.
"When did you become Brittany Spears?" He glared back at X, "and why the hell is he staring at me like that.
"Oh, X?" she said, turning around to look at her bodyguard, "I think he's picturing you naked."
"Oh geez, be serious, Lorelai."
"…well, it's that or he's trying to imagine all the way of killing you if you ever attacked me."
"That's reassuring."
"I got a life-size cardboard cut-out of Bruce Willis too, you want to see it?"
Luke cocked up an eyebrow, "I think I'll pass. Where are you getting this stuff?"
"Santa really loves me."
"Uhuh."
"Alright, alright, this guy I met at Friday night dinner sent me all this stuff," she said, rolling her eyes, "He's trying to get me to go to this fundraising party thing with him, and since I foolishly mentioned the movie Hostage, he sent all this stuff to 'persuade' me to go."
"Oh," Luke said in a level-voice, turning around to check on the coffee, "so you going?" He fought to keep his voice calm and sound like he didn't care. Who am I to care whether she goes or not, anyway? I'm not her mom, or her boyfriend…she doesn't have to ask my permission.
Lorelai was a bit hurt from his uncaring tone of voice. He doesn't care whether I go or not. But why should he? He's just my friend and coffee supplier…but he should at least sound like he's interested.
"I don't know. He's really creepy…" Lorelai paused, "but maybe I should give him a chance…" Of course, she was lying. She never even considered about giving him a chance. I just want to see if Luke really does care…
"Here's your coffee," Luke said coldly, slamming a cup of coffee in front of her. Some of the brown liquid spilled over the edge. Lorelai jumped up as some of it splashed on her shirt.
X and Y immediately rushed over to her.
"You alright, Ms. Gilmore?" X asked, while Y cracked his knuckles dangerously in front of Luke.
"Yah, I'm fine," she said, trying to see what Luke was thinking, but he was avoiding her eyes, "Can you two drive back to the Inn to get my cardboard cut-out, I left it there by accident."
"But we shouldn't just leave you…"
"Please," she said, her voice stating clearly that she didn't want to hear any complaints.
"Yes, Ms. Gilmore." They nodded and left, but not before leaving an emergency beeper with her. "You press that, and we'll be here before you can say 'help me.'"
When they were gone, she turned back to Luke and found him busily counting the money in his cash register.
"Luke?" she said timidly, walking towards him.
"What?" he replied, gruffly, still not looking up at her.
"Are you mad?" Silence. "Because I'm sorry…"
"Sorry for what?" he suddenly barked, "there's nothing to be sorry for. You're just being you."
"What the hell is that suppose to mean?" Lorelai exclaimed, hurt by his tone.
"Nothing," he said slowly, taking a deep breath, "just go out with him…"
"What? I was actually apologizing for this morning…"
"Well, apology accepted. You can go drink your coffee and then leave now," he continued to sort the receipts, but could hardly pay attention to what he was doing. Why did she always do this to him?
"Luke, talking to me," she begged quietly, stepping up beside him, "don't be mad. Please talk to me." She placed a hand on his arm. Luke felt himself shudder at her touch, and looked up into her eyes. The genuine concern in her eyes started to flare his up anger. Genuine concern for a friend…
"What is there to talk about?" he growled, stepping away from her, "you wanted coffee, I gave it to you. You wanted me to forgive you, I did. What else do you want from me, Lorelai?"
"I just wanted to make sure we're okay," she said with a frown, "what's the matter with you, Luke?"
"What's the matter with ME?" he repeated in anger, "what's the matter with ME? I'm not the one that started screaming this morning because they didn't get their precious pancakes!"
"I said I was sorry!"
"Well, that just makes it all better," he snorted, taking the wet rag and rubbing the counter furiously.
"Well, I'm sorry if my apologizing and mending our friendship irritates you, Mr. Danes," she shouted, her eyes blazing with anger. Luke slammed the rag against the counter.
"You sure you should really be arguing with me here, Lorelai?" he barked, "shouldn't you be calling back your new boyfriend and talking about your party plans?"
"Oh, so that's what pissing you off, huh?" she threw her hands in the air, "me considering to go with Wilber to the ball."
"Wilber?"
"That's his name…"
"As in like Wilber the pig from Charlotte's Web?"
"Yah, what's the matter with that?" She glared at him, their eyes meeting.
"Nothing," he spat, "I hope you and Wilber have a jolly great time."
"Argh! Why are you so difficult!" she growled, her fire in her blue eyes still raging. Although they were fighting, Luke couldn't help but think that he had never seen her look more sexy. The thought both frightened and excited him.
"Why do you care?" she yelled, "why do you care whether I'm going with Wilber or not?"
"Because!" he shouted back just as loudly, "I care!"
"Why?"
Luke paused, not knowing what to say. Tell her, Danes, tell her why. Tell her everything…
"Well, then why did you care whether I was flirting with Sarah or not, this morning!" he countered.
"Because!" she stuttered, "I…I…just do!"
"Why?"
"I…just do," she said quietly, all remains of her anger gone. Luke felt his anger slowly disappear too as he watched Lorelai look down at her hands and repeat, "I just do."
Luke's voice softened. "Why do you care, Lorelai?" The brunette look up into Luke's eyes, feeling a strange wave of déjà vu. They've been through this at the church before…when they were trying to break the bells.
"I asked you first," she said softly, "why do you care?"
This is the time, Luke, he said to himself, this is when you tell her…
"I…" And just like last time, before he could even say anything, the two bodyguards burst through the door and destroyed the moment.
"Ms. Gilmore! You alright?" Y panted, "we rushed there and came back as quickly as possible!"
"Yah, I'm fine," she said quickly, grabbing her purse, "I should be going now," she said to Luke, avoiding his eyes.
"Yah." Make her stay, Danes! Make her stay!
"I still need to call Rory, and stuff," she said, heading for the door, "so I'll see you tomorrow?"
There was something about the hope in her voice that made Luke's throat feel all choked up, so he just nodded.
When the car drove away, Luke leaned against the counter and sighed heavily. He looked down and stared at the untouched cup of coffee…
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Oooooh! What's going to happen next? You want to know? Well, then review and I'll write the next chapter as soon as possible! I mean, come on, I live on reviews. Reviews to me, is like what coffee is to Lorelai. And we all know that Lorelai can't live without coffee!
Hmm…this chapter was a bit more dramatic than I intended it to be, but I hope everyone like it anyway. Even if you didn't and feel like swearing at me or something, the go ahead…in a review form!
Okay…I'm going to try my psychic powers….
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Alright, that's enough now, I'll see you in my next chapter!
Lots of Love,
ChocolateHore
P.S. Everyone like the new eps of Gilmore Girls?