Disclaimer: I don't own the series 'Gilmore Girls' or the original characters. All I own is my imagination and the plot.

A/N: I don't know what to say, it's been a while since I've updated, let alone, wrote a story that had the TV-show 'Gilmore Girls' as its focus, but inspiration happened to strike unexpectedly and this (Literati) one piece is the result of that. I'll leave the rest of my thoughts for later, so please skim through those after. Thank you. :)

Fairytale Gone Wrong

''Where's my happily every after?''

There she sat, in the spotlight of the moon, her eyes hidden from him, covered by her undone curls, though he didn't have to see them to know that they were the same light shade as the blue shirt she was wearing. Her layered skirts were now a mess of white where she was in the middle of, her legs tucked underneath, her shoes with the high heels and silver straps also hidden from his sight.

More silver glimmered in the grass beyond her, something she had cast from her earlier, something she had worn close to her heart before her moment of weakness and would after, even though it didn't look right on her; she'd never worn any jewelry when she had been with him and he preferred her without. He wasn't one for things that didn't carry any meaning but their price tags, and she never had been the person to trade in love for tangible things, not when she had been with him anyway. With them it had been about the things that they couldn't put their finger on, though he always knew that, in the end, he would be no competition for him, the one everyone did approve of and did find good enough for her, and he hadn't put up a fight when that day came; it was all her anyway.

If she'd rather be with him, out of all people, then he wouldn't do a thing to stop it because he knew that, no matter what, he would always have her in the end. She didn't love him; she only thought she did, at least, at first. Now she just stayed with him because it was the right thing to do and she didn't know any better but to believe that that was the right reason to stay with someone. He couldn't even blame her for doing so; she was brought up as a goody-two-shoes who always chose to have the sunny side up when it came to everything in her too perfect life, while he had grown up to be somewhat of an anarchist who preferred everything in his already messed up life even more shaken and stirred. He liked unpredictability and the chaos it often ensued while she would have nothing of it and always tried to level him out just a little when really she liked him just the way he was.

He still loved her and always would love her, even from afar if necessary, although he fed on moments like these. On moments where she had a temporary breakdown and didn't know what to do, but come to him, needing his shoulder to cry on and needing to know that he was still there. He stepped out from beneath the draping shadows of the lonely weeping willow he had been watching her from and flicked the burning cigarette to the ground, smoking the one bad habit he had picked up after they had announced their engagement. He came to a stop right in front of her, though he could still see the necklace out of the corner of his eye. He didn't say anything, knowing that she would speak before he would get the chance to come up with the right thing to say, something he had never been good at, not even when they were still together. The good thing was that she didn't cry, she hardly did, although he could always tell when she was close to tears, like now.

''You're here,'' she said, sounding surprised to him when she was trying to keep her tone of voice undefined. It still surprised him how she sometimes fought so hard to keep him at a distance when everything about her told him otherwise.

''I'm always here, aren't I?'' He sounded like he had lost patience with her a long time ago, but she knew that it wasn't her that he had lost patience with, but with him.

''He told me he loved me,'' she abruptly started the story, pausing to look up at him, the dark eyes and hair a comfort. ''He's lying, Jess. He's always lying. It doesn't mean anything when he says it.'' Her eyes went back down, the next words harder to get out. ''Just like it doesn't mean anything when I say it.''

It hurt him that she would tell such a tremendous lie to keep him happy and them in place, together where they didn't belong. It hurt even more that she clung to his sweet nothings, because that was really what his 'I love you's' were, lies he fed her to keep her in place and by his side, knowing how it would look if she left him before the wedding had even taken place. He had power over her when he could never control her. ''I love you,'' he blurted out to her; she had made him careless with his emotions.

She shook her head. ''It doesn't mean anything when you say it either. You don't love me,'' she wrongfully accused him and not letting him get a word in just yet. ''If you did, you would have fought for me. You let him have me.''

''It was your decision,'' he calmly said to her.

''You don't love me,'' she repeated, aware of how it would upset him and maybe even anger him when she didn't like him that way, though he held back, having had expected her to say something like that. ''You chose to stay with him, Rory,'' he set her straight. ''You chose their expectations above your own happiness and you cared too much about what they thought. You still do.''

''I don't,'' she stubbornly fought him.

''Then leave him. You fight, and show people that you no longer care, show me that you no longer care.''

She shook her head side to side, dismantling her curls even further, a gesture that reminded him of how easily he could run his fingers through her hair before. ''I can't,'' she voiced. ''I'm supposed to get married to him; I'm expected to get married to him.''

''He'll cheat on you,'' he gave it a desperate try.

It made her look at him again. ''What?''

''He doesn't love you. He only stays with you for the same reason you've stayed with him for so long.'' He took a short breather to let it sink in. ''It's what they want you to do, Rory. This town isn't good for you, it never has been. It keeps you small.''

''I don't know what to do, Jess.'' Tears sprung to her eyes, tears that slid down her cheek when she raised her eyes to his. ''Help me, please?''

He crouched down in front of her. ''I don't know what to do.'' He touched her face with the back of his hand. ''I would take you away from here if I thought it would change anything, but they'll convince you to come back, he'll convince you to come back.''

She shook her head. ''I don't love him. I love you. I want to be with you, like before...'' she sniffed, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand before going on, ''Before he decided to take me back. It wasn't what I wanted, but... I'm not strong enough, Jess. I never was.''

''You have to be,'' he told her. ''You have to stand up for yourself and tell them, tell him what you want.''

She nodded and slid her fingers between his. ''I will.''

He shook his head with a sad smile. ''No. No, you won't.''

''But I want to.''

He gently squeezed her hand. ''I know you do.''

''Then why can't I just leave him? Why do I care so much?''

''Because somewhere you know that he's right for you,'' he said, touching her face again with his free hand. ''At least more right than I am.''

''But he isn't the one.''

He smiled and brought her hands up to his mouth, kissing them.

She fought back a smile. ''I have to go. He's here.''

Jess looked over her shoulder and looked at him, briefly, not knowing if he could control himself if he looked any longer. ''I know.''

''He treats me well,'' she told him. ''But he isn't you. Maybe-''

He silenced her by placing the tips of his fingers against her lips, not wanting her to lie to him again. ''Don't.'' He removed his fingers.

''I miss you.''

He got to his feet and snatched up the necklace. ''It can be fixed,'' he referred to the lock, wishing he hadn't heard her. He handed the necklace to her, their fingers touching.

''I'm sorry for not being more like you want me to be.''

''I don't want you to be any way, Rory. I just want you to be happy.''

''Yeah, well'' she began, looking down at the necklace, ''maybe someday.''

He didn't say anything, not wanting to risk an 'I told you so'. He knew that she would never be be happy with him, not when her heart wasn't in it. He helped her to her feet; it would be a few days until he would be able to look at her from up-close again. ''I'm here if you need me, okay?''

''Yeah, I know.''

She was already walking away from him, necklace in hand, looking at him one last time before slipping her hand in Dean's.

Review please? (: Now, what I wanted to say earlier is the story itself is based on the title and that I was going for a modern fairytale kinda vibe or at least something in that direction and I hope my imaginary lead you somewhat toward it. I know that it might come over as dramatic, but it was also supposed to have somewhat of a tragic feel to it because Jess and Rory are the two star crossed lovers that were torn apart by the town. Anyway, feel free to disregard any of that; I just hope that you enjoyed reading it and let me know what you thought. Keep in mind that I stopped following the show somewhere along the 4th season, so I apologize if the characters were a bit out of it. :)