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.
Ohhhh! Lookie here! ChocolateHore actually updated! I can't believe it!
Hehe, sorry if this update took a bit longer than normal, but I've had things to do for school and movies to watch. Heeehee. I was actually going to post chapter three a couple of days ago, but after reading it over, I realized it was kind of short, and since my beloved readers like long chapters, I decided to write more . See? That's how much I love you all.
And by the way, from some of your reviews, it looks like you didn't quite get the last part in Chapter 1. When Luke sneezed in the middle of night, it wasn't because he was sick or anything. You know how people say that when you sneeze or bite your tongue, someone's talking about you? Well, that's what I was getting at. Before that scene with Luke in his apartment, Lorelai and Rory were kind of discussing Luke. I'm sorry if I confused anybody, I guess I should've made it a bit clearer.
As for the timeline, like I said above, I didn't really intend for it to be a specific time, except for the fact that Rory was already at Yale. But if you really want to have a time, it would probably be where epona9009 thought it was. Around the time after Luke got divorced with Nicole. And don't worry, I guarantee that Nicole won't be featured in this fic. Although, she might be mentioned a couple of times…I'm not quite sure yet
Anyway, ON WITH THE CHAPTER! And remember to review after you're done!
Chapter 3: "Hmm…it seems like the gods were at work here."
"Wow…"
"I know."
"That's a lot of…"
"Yep."
"How are we suppose to…"
"Dunno."
"Is there really…"
"Yep. 55 boxes of them."
"And there's really…"
"Yep," Lorelai nodded, shoving a couple of boxes off the couch so she and Rory could sit down, "100 lilies, 78 sunflowers, 45 daises and 2 roses."
"Only two…"
"Yep."
"But why only…"
"Two roses are suppose to be more romantic," Lorelai replied, rolling her eyes.
"Any chance for me to actually finish a sentence witho - " Rory started.
"Nope," her mother grinned, ripping open one of the 55 boxes of chocolate lying all around the house, "I think I'm on a roll! A couple more years of doing this and I can go for the Guinness Book of World Records!"
"Mom…" Rory warned.
"Fine, fine, fine," Lorelai sighed, "but if I don't make it in the that book before I die, and you're getting constantly haunted by my spirit, don't tell me to stop because you deserve every bit of the haunting."
"I'll take that chance," Rory said, picking up a sunflower, "Wilber really sent you all these?"
"Nooo, of course not. You mother just decided that she suddenly wanted to buy tons of expensive chocolate and flowers, because she's just so darn pretty."
"Oh, well that explains everything," Rory laughed.
"This isn't funny, Rory," Lorelai sighed, plopping a chocolate in her mouth, "this chocolate might be really addictive, but all these flowers are creeping me out. I swear that every time I go to bed, they're talking amongst themselves, plotting up ways to slowly devour our house."
"Well, as long as they don't take the TV."
"Rory!"
"Alright, alright," Rory said, wiping the smile off her face and turning to Lorelai on the couch, "I'm serious now."
"Wilber's never going to give up until I say yes!" the older woman moaned, throwing her hands up in the air, "then when I finally do and we got to the stupid ball, he's going to make me drink a cupful of red liquid. When I ask what it is, he's going to say it's just red wine, when in reality, it's blood! He'll bite me and use his weirdo psychic powers to make me believe that I'm madly in love with him."
"Well look on the bright side, you'll have a pretty cape because you're Count Dracula's wife."
Lorelai stuffed a chocolate in her daughter's mouth, "Haven't you heard the saying, if you have nothing good to say, say nothing at all?"
"I have, but my wonderful mother has always taught me otherwise," Rory said, her words muffled, "Oh…this is good chocolate…"
"And you know what's worst of all? He's been sending me the exact same thing for 3 days straight! In the morning, there would always be chocolate. In the afternoon, he'll send me flowers. Then at night, more flowers! At least the body guard thing was creative!"
"Yah! How dare he not send you useless gifts!" Rory looked around the room, "so when are you going to call Wilber?"
"Huh?"
"You know…call Wilber and tell him that you don't want to go with him."
Lorelai pulled a blank look and stuffed another chocolate in her mouth, "why would I do that?"
"So he won't send you anymore of this…?" Rory motioned towards the piles of flowers and chocolate everywhere.
"But I like opening gifts!"
"You always know what it is," Rory pointed out.
"So….?"
"It takes out all the fun of opening things if there's no surprise."
"The chocolate is like heaven stuffed in a box," Lorelai pouted.
"You have 55 boxes of them!"
"Actually only 54 now…"
"…you have tons to spare!"
"But what if they run out one day and I'm addicted? Then you'll see me twitching from my chocolate-withdrawal!"
"Like those crack addicts?" Rory raised any eyebrow.
"Exactly!" Lorelai looked at the chocolate in dismay, "I knew I never should've started."
"Mom…you have to call him."
"But me and chocolate have a terrific relationship!"
"Mom…"
"…my precioussss…don't worry, precious…I won't be letting the evil child take you away…"
"Fine, don't call him," Rory shrugged, plucking another chocolate from the box.
"…my precio - what?"
"Don't call him," Rory repeated.
"But it would be totally irresponsible!" Lorelai exclaimed, turning fully around to face her daughter.
"Yah, I know."
"And it'll also be super mean!"
"Uhuh."
"And I mean, seriously mean! I'll be like the Grinch except not green and way better looking in a Santa suit."
"Yep."
"Who are you, and what have you done with my daughter?" Lorelai pointed accusingly at Rory, "You're trying to pull the whole reverse psychology stuff, aren't you?"
"Nope."
"There's a catch or something, isn't there?"
"Nope," Rory said simply.
"When did you stop using tons of words in one little sentence, and become Luke?"
"There's no catch, mom…"
"Alright…"
"…of course, I demand to be the bridesmaid at you and Wilber's wedding…"
"AHA!"
"Aha what? I'm just telling the truth," Rory laughed, "but then again, won't all of the dresses be black?"
"Fine…I'll call him tomorrow," Lorelai scowled.
"Now, that's a good girl," Rory grinned, pinching her mom's cheeks.
"You're evil."
"I get it all from my insane mother," she cooed, reaching for another chocolate.
"And to think that I cared and nurtured you for all these years," Lorelai scowled, "I hate Fridays."
"Now that you mention it, shouldn't we be getting to grandma's?"
"Yah…"
"…Then why aren't we?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Lorelai shook her head sadly, "I can't believe you forgot our plan."
"Our plan…?"
"You know, the one we made over the phone."
"You mean the one where we show up fashionably late to grandma's, and when we do arrive, we'll be wearing our Batman and Robin costumes?"
"Uhuh," Lorelai nodded, "you forgot about the part where we climb up the roof and start singing part of a Metallic song every time your grandparents say they're disappointed in me."
"Then we'll be singing all night and lose our wonderful voices."
"One tiny flaw in our plan."
"Our plan? I never agreed to this."
Lorelai put on a shocked look, "you did too!"
"When someone starts commenting on how insane the idea is, it usually means that they disagree with what's being said."
"Ah, but the key word in what you just said is usually."
"We won't fit in the costumes anyway," Rory pointed out.
"Hey! Speak for yourself! I haven't gotten any fatter since the Halloween we wore them!"
"Mom, I was 4."
"Uh, so…?"
"That means I was really young."
"The point would be…?"
"I was short and puny."
"So you saying I gave you bad genes?"
"I wouldn't fit in the costume."
"Ehh, well that's just another minor flaw," Lorelai shrugged, waving it off, "I'll put on the batman costume, and you can put on a pair of glasses and say you're a mutant from the X-men."
"But the whole Batman and Robin combo is totally ruined without Robin."
"See? That's something you should've brought up while we were planning this clever scheme."
"I thought you were just joking around."
"I was."
"What?"
"Huh?"
"You were just joking around?"
"About what?"
"The scheme."
"Huh?"
"Oh, I give up," Rory muttered, rolling her eyes.
Lorelai patted her daughter's arm sympathetically, "Don't worry, Rory, you'll get better at the whole Messing with People's Minds technique."
"I only hope so," Rory said with a loud sniff.
------------------------------------
"Lorelai Gilmore! I can't believe you!" That was the first thing Lorelai and Rory heard as the door to the Gilmore House swung open.
"Good evening to you too, mom."
"Of all the rude things you've done, this is the worst yet!" Emily barked, as the two took off their jackets.
"You sure, mom? Because I think the drunken outburst of 1995 was really the worst I've done in your presence."
"I have no time of your little sense of humour, Lorelai," Emily dragged them to the living room, "Get me the phone, Tara!"
"Ow, nails mom!" Lorelai squealed, turning to Rory, "after years of this torment, you'll think that I'll be use to it…"
"Sit," Emily ordered. The two reluctantly sat on the coach.
"Shouldn't we get a treat or something?" she whispered to Rory. The younger Lorelai pushed back the smile that threatened to spread across her face.
"Here's the phone, Mrs. Gilmore," a maid said timidly, handing Emily the phone.
"Finally! Now shoo, and go back into the kitchen," Emily commanded, waving her off.
"Wow! You think the maid will get a treat for fetching?" Lorelai whispered with mock shock.
"Here," Emily shoved the phone into Lorelai's hands.
"Uh, you want me to do a trick or something?"
"No! I want you to call Wilber."
"So we can hang up and giggle like teenagers? What for, mom?"
"To give you the chance to say yes to his invitation."
"You mean to the party?"
"No, Lorelai, to his poetry reading," Emily rolled her eyes, "of course to the party."
"Mom! I don't want to go with him!"
"And why not, Lorelai?" Emily questioned, pointing a finger at her, "Do you have something important to do on the day of the party, Lorelai?"
"Well, I - " Lorelai started.
"Of course, you don't! Usually, you spend your Sunday nights locked up in that sad excuse of a house of yours, and watching inappropriate movies!"
"Hey!" Lorelai protested, "Pink Nights is a great movie!"
"Instead of going to a charitable party and making your mother happy, you choose to watch a movie on a young boy being pursued by three girls?"
"Hey, how did you know that it was about…"
"I know you detest the very sight of me, but can't you at least do one thing for the woman that gave birth to you?"
"That and one of the many things you've made me do because of that very fact," Lorelai mumbled so that only Rory heard.
"What?"
"Never mind, mom," Lorelai sighed, "it's not that I don't want to go to the charitable ball, I just don't want to go with Wilber."
"Wilber is a terrific and successful young man, Lorelai! Just because he's not a filthy, diner owner doesn't mean you won't have a good time with him."
"That so calls for a dirty," Rory thought to herself, forcing back a laugh. She chose not to say it out loud though, because with every passing word, her mom seemed to get angrier and angrier.
"Me and Luke are just friends, mom! How many times have I told you that?" Lorelai growled angrily. Why does she bring this up every single time?
"Then why won't you go with Wilber?"
"Because!"
"Because isn't an answer, Lorelai."
"Because I just don't want to!"
"And why not?" Emily questioned, "Are you dating someone else?"
"No, but I - "
"Then why not!"
"Because he has creepy teeth and his name is identical to the pig's in Charlotte's Web!" Lorelai rambled, "AND he sent me weird bodyguards, because I made one little reference to Hostage! I make MILLIONS of references a day! What if he gets a gift for every single reference I make?"
"Knowing you, you'll find it amusing."
"And you're right!" Lorelai fumed, "but just because I would find it amusing, doesn't mean the words HE WANTS TO SUCK YOUR BLOOD won't keep flashing in my mind every time I think of him!"
"Lorelai Gilmore! I can't believe you'll make such a silly excuse just because you don't want to go a charitable event that I donated to!"
"I have no problem with going, mom. It's just the thought of going with Wilber that freaks me out!"
"Then do you have another date for the party?" Emily asked, "because if you don't, you'll just be spending the night sitting at the table all by yourself. Everyone attending has a date."
"I'll find someone else to go with me then."
"In less than two days, Lorelai?" Emily said, raising an eyebrow.
"I'll find a way," Lorelai scowled.
"You expect me to believe that you'll find a date in less than two days? I really don't know what's the matter with going with Wilber. He's a great man."
"Than you can divorce dad and marry him if you want."
"Lorelai!"
"Mom," the brunette whined, "he has weird teeth."
"And you have a weird personality. It's a perfect match."
Lorelai turned to Rory and mouthed a 'help me.'
"Uh…he is creepy," Rory said, "and it's weird for a girl to call a guy on the phone first, isn't it grandma?"
"Well, I'll call him for you if you want, Lorelai."
"Thanks a lot," Lorelai hissed to Rory.
"I was on the spot!" Rory whispered back.
"I'm picking up the phone," Emily said in a sing-song voice, "I'm dialling the number, Lorelai…"
"No! Wait! I already have a date!" Lorelai blurted out in defence. It seemed to work though, because Emily dropped the phone in surprise.
"You do? But you just said you didn't."
"I lied."
"Alright then. Who is it?"
"It's…um…Luke!" Lorelai stated the first person that came to mind. Her eyes widened as she realized what she said.
"The diner man?"
"Um…yah." Too late to take it back, Lorelai. Just ride it out and you can make up some excuse at the party…
"Really?" Emily raised an eyebrow, "I thought he and you are just friends."
"When I lie, I lie in twos."
"Then why didn't you tell Wilber when he sent you the bodyguards?"
"I love chocolate," Lorelai stated simply.
"The diner man is really going with you?"
"What is this? 20 questions?" Lorelai rolled her eyes, "It's LUKE. And yes, he's really going with me."
"Well, then I'm looking forward to seeing him," Emily replied pleasantly.
"Really?"
"Of course. But if I don't see him, I'll be sure to tell Wilber that you're alone and in a great need of a dance."
Lorelai forced a smile on her face, "He'll be there. So you can tell Wilber that I have someone to dance with." Lorelai! What are you saying? Lorelai thought to herself, you and Luke aren't exactly in terrific terms right now, especially since the thing that happened the other night…ARGH! It's all mom's fault! Oh how I despise her…
As these thoughts flitted around in Lorelai's brain, Rory looked at her mom with a knowing smile.
----------------------------------
"I'll see you on Sunday, Lorelai," Emily smiled, opening the door to let the two out, "and tell Luke I'm looking foreword to see him."
"Don't worry mom," Lorelai replied, walking out the door as quickly as possible, "I will." Once the door closed, Lorelai groaned, "Is it just me, or was your grandmother directing a Martha Stewart smile at me really scary?
"It's not just you," Rory paused, watching her mother head for her car. "So…you're going to the party with Luke, huh?"
Lorelai froze. "Uh, yah, well about that…"
"Are you going to actually ask him to go with you, or are you just going to tie him up and make him watch one of Kirk's movies until he gives in?"
"Well actually, I was planning to tie him up and torture him by burning all his baseball caps and flannels until he gives in," Lorelai sighed, "I don't even know why I said he was going with me."
"You don't?" Rory grinned, "Weird…because I think I know why."
"Me and Luke are just friends, Rory."
"Oh? But I thought you lied about that."
"You know, it's not nice to tease the person that gave birth to you."
"But seriously, mom. Knowing grandma, if you don't get Luke to go with you, you'll have to suffer through a lot of dances with Wilber."
"But I can't just ask him!"
"And why not?" Rory asked.
"Because…it's weird…"
"And…?"
"And something happened."
"Aw man, don't tell me you two are fighting again," Rory groaned.
"We're not exactly fighting…"
"Not exactly fighting? What's that suppose to mean?"
"I don't know really, I mean, when I left the diner, we weren't shouting anymore…"
"There was shouting? Over what?"
"Just stuff…"
"What stuff?"
"When did you become to nosey?"
"I just don't want to my spend days at home eating stale pop tarts and drinking bad milk, like the last time you two fought."
"Well, sorry if our quarrels get in the way of your eating habits," Lorelai sniffed, "it's not like I want us to fight."
"Aw, I know mom, especially since you two are so…" Rory trailed off.
"So what?" Lorelai said, daring her daughter to say it.
"Uh…you know, so close, since he's your best male friend."
"Yah," Lorelai said softly, "he is my best male friend." Lorelai drifted off in her own thoughts. He's my best friend…I can't let anything come between that. I can't lose him…
"Um…so anyway," Rory said after a while, clearing her throat loudly, "I want to get this straight. Are you two fighting, or not?"
"Actually, now that you bring it up, I don't even know whether we're fighting."
"Huh? You've got to elaborate, mom."
"It's complicated."
"Mom," she whined.
"Do you really want to stand in front of your grandmother's house and talk about this in the cold? Because I really don't." It came out a bit harsher than she intended.
"Fine," Rory said, sensing that her mom didn't want to talk about it, "but promise that you'll tell me next time, okay?"
"No guarantees," Lorelai said quickly before slipping in to her car.
"Mom! Remember to ask him!" Rory shouted.
"Bye," she mouthed, shoving the key into the ignition and backing out onto the road. As she drove down the street, thoughts kept running through her head. All of them summing up to basically one thing: I can't lose Luke…
-----------------------------
"Go in, Lorelai," the brunette said out loud to herself for the hundredth time, "get out of the damn car and just go in." She didn't budge.
"You've been sitting here for an hour, Lorelai! Go in!" Once again, she didn't move. After Friday Night dinner, Lorelai had drove back to Stars Hollow and towards Luke's Diner at record speed, determined to make up with Luke. And of course (because she had so much time alone in the car to expand on the idea), that led to her thinking about "making out" with Luke. Then that led to a bunch of un-pure thoughts that Lorelai was sure she shouldn't be having about her best friend. So for the past hour, she had been sitting in her car, trying to convince herself to take her hands off the steering wheel, open the door and go into Luke's diner.
"Alright, Lorelai. You're going to go in the diner in 3 seconds…1, 2, 3." Her hands let go of the steering wheel and settled on her lap.
"Okay," she muttered to herself, "that's a step towards the right direction. Now just open the door." Her foot turned towards the door.
Fifteen minutes later, Lorelai was officially outside of her car, teeth chattering as the cold wind blew past her. She had parked a good block away from the diner, just far enough for her to see that the lights in the diner were still on, but far enough so that Luke couldn't see her car. She braced herself against the wind and started her long journey towards the diner.
--------------------------
Luke hated Friday nights. Come to think of it, he hated all the weeknights, especially after 9:30 pm and all the residents of Stars Hollow were at home with their families. Even Kirk had someone to go home to - yes, it was his mother, but at least there was someone. And these thoughts just reminded Luke of how lonely he really was. Jess might've been a handful and difficult to take care of, but it filled a void in Luke's life. He was family, and in a way, someone to come home to. No one liked to be alone, no matter how use to it they might be.
That's why Luke hated an empty diner at night. It was a constant reminder that in the end, he'll have to climb up the stairs to an empty home. Luke gazed around the diner as he wringed out the rag and started to clean up the counter. Of course, not having an annoying Stars Hollow resident constantly jabbering in his ear also gave him the time to think about Lorelai.
She hadn't come into the diner for days now, and no matter how much he would deny it, he missed her. His diner wasn't his diner unless she was there to beg him for coffee and pig out in front of him. Like a fool, every time the little bell rang, he would look up, praying that it was her. It never was. You'll think that after two days of doing this, he would've stopped.
On a night like this, he would always leave at least a cupful of coffee just for her, just in case she came. Over the years, it had become a habit, just a part of his regular routine. Even when they were fighting (like they were now), he would continue to do it. And every single time, he would scold himself for being so stupid. She wasn't going to come, so what's the point? But never less, he would repeat the same thing every night.
"Why do you care?"
Her words kept repeating over and over in his head. Of course he cared. Hell, he thought cared too much. And he knew perfectly well why he cared so much. Sometimes, he wished that he really did think of her only as a friend. He wished he didn't feel that ache in his heart every time he saw her with someone else. He wished he didn't long to hold her every time she was sad, or think she was beautiful every time she smiled. But most of all, he wished he could hate her and despise her with all his heart, without feeling empty. He wanted to deny his feelings, but why the hell did she have to be so…her?
Oh great, he groaned to himself, he was thinking sappy. He hated being sappy, even if it was just in his thoughts. Even if she wasn't here, Lorelai was making him do stupid things.
"Oh, even better," he muttered to himself, looking out the window, "it's raining." And sure enough, droplets of water were falling from the sky, falling heavier and heavier with every passing moment.
Letting out a deep breath, he scrubbed the counter as hard as he could, fighting off the images of Lorelai.
---------------------------------
Lorelai felt the first drop of cold liquid drop onto her head and shuddered. It was raining…this was either a sign from the Heavens, telling her to go in as fast as possible, or a sign telling her to run back to her car and forget about the whole thing. She slipped out her cell phone and dialled a number, shivering as she pressed it to her ear.
"It raining!" Lorelai moaned into the phone as soon as someone picked up.
"What?"
"I'm 2 steps away from Luke's. It's raining and I forgot my coat in the car, which looks miles away from where I'm standing!"
"Mom?"
"Yes! Who else would it be?"
"Sorry, my mistake," Rory said dryly, "I should've known the insane woman was my mother."
"Rory! It's cold and - oh my god!" Lorelai suddenly squealed.
"You saw a flying monkey?"
"I'm wearing white!"
"And…it totally clashes with your shoes?"
"And it's getting wet because of the rain!"
"Ohhhh, that is bad," Rory held back a giggle.
"That's it, I'm not going in," Lorelai scowled, shivering in the cold.
"No! Go in, mom! You'll catch hypothermia like this."
"…I'll just walk back to my car and leave."
"Knowing you, you probably parked your car blocks away so Luke wouldn't see you. You'll catch a cold before you reach your car."
"Oh gosh! Ahh! A raindrop just ran down my shirt!"
"Go in, mom!" Rory ordered.
"No!"
"Go in!"
"My shirt's practically see-through!" Lorelai whined, "I can't go in like this!"
"Didn't you wear something underneath?"
"No," Lorelai moaned, shivering as the rain started coming down faster.
Rory giggled, "Hmm…it seems like the gods were at work here."
"Rory!"
"I mean, come on, mom. Of all days for you to wear a white shirt and nothing underneath except your bra…wait, you do have your - "
"Of course I'm wearing it," the brunette hissed into the phone. Through the rain, she could see Luke cleaning the counter, staring intently at it as if lost in thought. And he does that so well…
"Ohhh, maybe if you're lucky, he'll come out and sweep you into your arms to heat you up," Rory continued to giggle.
"Rory! When did you become so like Emily Gilmore?"
"Mom, everyone in Stars Hollow knows that Luke has a thing for you."
"Oh my god," Lorelai rolled her eyes, "don't start saying that stuff again…"
"Fine, I won't," Rory said, "but you have to go in."
"But my shirt! It looks like some picture from Playboy!"
"Well, then at least you won't have to spend a lot of time trying to convince Luke to go to the party with you."
"Rory!" Lorelai gasped, "When did you get so dirty?
"
"Nothing dirty was intended…" Rory replied, innocently, "I'm just saying…"
"I always knew Yale was a dirty school…"
"Mom…you're changing the subject again."
"…I mean, naked boys lying around in the hallway…"
"Go in NOW."
"…I should've listened to Mrs. Kim this whole time and made you live like Lane…"
"And have me sneak CDs into underneath the floorboards, join a rock band and move out of the house because I want to pursue my dream?"
"Okay, scratch that idea…even though the thought of you becoming a part of a rock band is totally cool…"
"You do know that you're standing outside in the pouring rain and talking to your daughter on the phone, when you can be inside Luke's Diner and drinking a hot, steaming cup of coffee, right?"
"Well, what can I say? I love my daughter a whole lot."
"Mom, I'm serious. Go in!"
"And I thought I was the mother in our relationship…"
"Go in!"
"Fine, fine," Lorelai sighed, "but if he kicks me out because he thinks I'm dressed too pornographic for his diner, I'm blaming you."
"Go in already!" Rory commanded, "just think about going out with Wilber."
Lorelai shivered, "That's enough motivation for me. Bye hun!"
"Bye mom. And remember to ask Luke about the party thing, 'cause if you don't, you really will be going out with Wilber."
Lorelai flipped closed her phone and looked up into the diner again. With a deep breath, she pulled open the doors and walked bravely in.
---------------------------------------
Luke looked up as he heard the tiny bell ring, and froze. It was Lorelai. He blinked, dropping the rag onto the counter and nervously adjusted his cap. Then he noticed the state she was in. Her clothes and hair was drenched from the rain…and oh god, her shirt…
"Hi," she said nervously, wrapping her arms around herself to keep from shivering.
"Hi," he said, automatically grabbing a cup and pouring her some coffee.
"You're an angel," she smiled, taking a seat at the counter and taking a sip of her coffee. Lorelai felt a whole weight being lifted from her shoulders. It was going well.
Meanwhile, Luke was trying to stop his eyes from wandering and was trying really hard to keep them focused on anything else but Lorelai. Days of not seeing her, and she finally comes in like that? Luke groaned inwardly, life just wasn't fair. Suddenly, he noticed that Lorelai was shivering from the cold. He mentally kicked himself. There he was, being a pervert while Lorelai was probably in the danger of catching a cold.
"Oh crap, you're freezing."
"No, not really…"
"Hold on," he said, leaving the counter and running up the stairs. He opened the door to his apartment quickly, picked up the first piece of clothing he saw, and a small portable heater.
"Snoopy?" Lorelai said, raising an eyebrow as she saw the bright coloured flannel jacket.
"My sister got it for me as a joke."
"Snoopy?" she repeated, giggling a little.
"Do you want the damn thing or not?" Luke growled. She nodded and he handed it over to her, careful to not his gaze slip. While Lorelai slipped it on, he plugged in the heater and placed it on the counter right next to Lorelai.
"What's that?" the brunette asked as Luke flipped it on.
"A heater." Luke didn't fail to notice that she didn't button up the shirt.
"Awww, it's so cute," she cooed, "it's like a baby heater."
"It might be small, but it packs a lot of power. It'll heat you up in no time."
There was silence for a while as the heater started up and Lorelai slowly sipped her coffee, feeling the warmth seep into her body.
"So…the rain sucks, huh?" Lorelai said randomly, looking up at Luke, "but then again, it does lead to snow, so it can't be that bad. Oh! Did I tell you how much I love snow yet? Because I love it a whole lot! I swear, if it was possible, I would marry it. But noooo, marrying an inanimate substance is looked down upon in our society."
"Uh…yah," Luke said dully. Oh, great job, Danes. You just killed the conversation.
There was another moment of awkward silence after that. Lorelai was desperately trying to think of conversation ideas that will eventually lead to the big question, while Luke was desperately trying not to notice the slight shape of the black, lace bra underneath her shirt. Stupid flannel doesn't cover up everything.
"You know," Lorelai said, breaking the silence, "I've always wondered why you didn't have one of those juke box thingies. All diners have them and - "
"Why are you here?" Luke interrupted. Lorelai looked up at him in surprise.
"What do you mean why?"
"We're suppose to be fighting. And when we're fighting, you usually avoid this diner like the plague," Luke said, his words barely registering in his brain. All he could think about was how beautiful she was right now, with a lock of wet hair falling in front of her dazzling blue eyes, and how much he wanted her out of the diner before he did anything incredibly stupid.
"Well sorry if I didn't get that little memo," she replied, obviously hurt by his words. Luke immediately felt bad for what he said.
"Oh geez, I'm sorry, Lorelai," he sighed, adjusting his cap again, "I shouldn't have said that…"
"Are fighting, Luke?" Lorelai asked, bowing her head a bit so that she wouldn't have to look at him in the face. "Because if we are, and you want me to go…"
"No!" he said sharply, "I mean no. Stay."
Lorelai looked up at him, meeting his eye, a dazzling smile spreading across her face. "That's good. Because I didn't know what I'll do without you."
There it is again, Luke thought, unable to tear his eyes away from hers, another moment. A perfect moment for me to finally tell her.
There it is again, Lorelai thought, unable to tear her eyes away from his, it's that feeling again. The more-than-just-a-friend feeling is back…
It was Lorelai that eventually broke the gaze. She had to look away before she gave into the urge to just lean over and kiss him. She looked down at the counter, as if it was the most fascinating thing in her life, and studied a ketchup stain. Well, obviously, Luke hasn't really been paying attention what it was doing before I came in, she thought to herself with amusement, oh ew, it's all crusty and everything too. Kinda reminds me of blood…
"Oh!" she suddenly exclaimed, remembering what her main mission to coming her was.
"What?" Luke asked, fixing his eyes on her face.
"Um…well, do you remember Wilber?"
Luke felt a pang in his chest. "You said yes to him?"
"What? Oh hell no," she waved it off, not noticing Luke's smile of relief, "You know how it was my mother that introduced us?"
"Yah…"
"So today at Friday night dinner, me and Rory came in and she was getting all grouchy at me because I didn't say yes to Wilber yet, since the party is only two days away. She even offered to call him for me, but of course I said no! I mean, getting your mother to say yes to a date for you? How un-cool is that? I remember when I was 14, my mother actually arranged a date for me with this guy without even telling me first. He wasn't half bad looking, but his fashion sense was so - "
"Lorelai," he interrupted, "what do you want?"
"Nothing, Luke," she fluttered her eyelashes innocently.
"So you're telling me about your arranged dates for nothing?"
"Yah. Honestly. Cross my heart and hope to die," she smiled mischievously, laying a hand across her heart, making a part of the flannel slip off her right shoulder.
Oh god, Luke thought. Her hand lead his eyes to something he really shouldn't be looking at.
"Uh…well, alright then," he shrugged, "then I'll be closing soon…"
"No!" Lorelai protested.
"I thought you didn't want anything," Luke said with an amused smile.
"Well, I lied. Not the first time tonight anyway…"
"What do you want, Lorelai?"
"Luke, will you go out with me?"
There was silence, Luke stared at Lorelai, both surprised and shocked at what she said. Did she just…
Lorelai felt a blush rise up her cheeks.
"I mean, not go outas in go out," she stuttered, not seeing the flash of hurt and disappointment that flashed across Luke's face, "You see, I kinda told my mom that you were going with me so she would stop being on my case about the whole Wilber thing. And if she doesn't see you at the party with me, she'll make me dance with Wilber the whole night. And I really don't want to be anywhere near him."
"Okay…"
"Please Luke, I really - what?"
"I said okay."
"Really?'
"Yes."
"Are you drunk?"
"What? No."
"You sure you're not sick?"
"No, Lorelai."
"You sure an alien didn't take over your body or something?"
"For one thing, if I was taken over by an alien, do you think I would tell you?"
"No, not unless you think that I won't believe the truth even if you told me" Lorelai pointed out.
"What?"
"Never mind. Are you sure?"
"You know, you're really putting yourself down right now."
"Nooo, I'm putting you down."
"What? How?"
"Down the drain."
"What?"
"Never mind," Lorelai sighed, "you really do have a slow mind."
"That's it. Forget it."
"Forget what?"
"It."
"What it?"
"Never mind," Luke grinned, "you really do have a slow mind."
"Hey!" Lorelai protested, but never less, she gave him a dazzling smile. Good, they were back to normal…it's weird though, I've never seen Luke grin. I've seen him snort and snicker, but never quite smile like that. Lorelai chuckled to herself, I kinda like it…
"You know, people say that when you laugh to yourself, it means you're insane," Luke said.
"Well, brand me for life and call me crazy, baby, because I'm as insane as can be."
"I think it's all the coffee you drink. Coffee is like crack."
"And you're the coffee supplier."
"Yep," he smiled at her again. I've got to stop doing that, Luke thought to himself.
"Yep," she repeated, "and I'll never know what to do without you."
"Same here," he said softly.
Lorelai cocked her head to the side playfully, to the side to hide the fact that her heart was pounding in her chest, "You mean you won't know what to do without yourself? Wow, you're really self-absorbed."
"Aw, you know what I mean, Lorelai."
Lorelai smiled softly, "Yep…I think I do."
And the moment was back. We sure are having a lot of these, Luke thought bitterly to himself.
"Anyway," Lorelai said, "I've got to go. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Alright," Luke said curtly, beginning to close the binds.
"Oh and Luke?"
"Yah?"
"Thanks."
Luke nodded and gave her another grin.
Lorelai yanked open the door and remembered something.
"Luke?"
"No, I won't wear my Popeye tie to the party."
"No it's not that, even though that's a pretty good idea. I'm taking you shopping tomorrow so we can buy something to wear for Sunday."
"What?"
"Too bad, you said yes already so you can't go back on your word! Bye, Luke!" Lorelai said quickly, rushing out the door before he could protest. Once outside and securely in her car, was when she noticed that she was still wearing the snoopy flannel…
----------------------------------
And that's the end of another chapter. Hope all of you liked it, even if you didn't , review and tell me so! I live on reviews! I have no inspiration to write unless I get some reviews, so REVIEW! I'm so crazy about reviews, that I even made a review song:
The Review Song
(Sung to the tune of Mary had a little Lamb)
Everybody likes reviews,
Likes reviews,
Likes reviews,
Everybody like reviews,
Especially me.
Okay…so it's not going to win an awards any time soon, but I made it up on the spot, so give me so credit. I'll think of a better one next time, IF you people review!
Oh and by the way, those who review ROCK. Those who don't…aren't nice…pouts
OH! And before I go, did anyone else but me notice that Lorelai and Luke hardly even kiss anymore on the show? It's so weird. Like when they were first together, they always had those little moments where they kissed and stuff, but now…
You'd think that since they're engaged and all, they'll be doing a lot more of ahem, but noooo. And the "I love you" moment wasn't quite as sweet and "aww-worthy" as I thought it would be. Just my little opinion. What did you people think? Hm…wait a minute; reviewing is a PERFECT way for you people to tell me! REVIEW PLEASE!
Lots of Love,
ChocolateHore