(3 Weeks Later)
Lorelai took a deep breath and walked into the doctor's office.
"May I help you?" A friendly woman asked when she spotted Lorelai walking towards her desk.
"My name is Lorelai Gilmore. My mother used to work here."
"Oh, yes…" The woman replied sympathetically. "Joan…" she gazed down at the floor. "I'm sorry to hear about that. She was a wonderful woman."
"Thank you." Lorelai replied blankly. "I was hoping I could pick up her paycheck today. I wouldn't normally ask such a thing, but well… we could really use the money."
The woman bit her bottom lip. "Well, seeing as how you're her daughter, I suppose I could give it to you. I'm not sure about you getting it cashed at a bank though."
"I'll find a way." Lorelai smiled.
"I hope you do, honey." The woman smiled too as she handed Lorelai the check. "May God bless you."
"Thanks."
Lorelai turned and walked out of the doctor's office. Luke was standing outside holding Rory in his arms.
"Got it." Lorelai replied as she closed the door behind her.
"That's great." Luke handed Rory back to Lorelai. "Do you think the bank will let you cash it?"
"They should. I just have to show them her death certificate… they should already have me on file somewhere as her daughter."
"Well, everyone in Stars Hollow knows you're her daughter." Luke paused. "I wish you would let me help you more."
They continued to walk down the street. "Luke, you help so much already."
"But you're living alone in that apartment and you have Rory now. Lorelai, I know you can't keep paying all these bills."
"I'll find a way, Luke." Lorelai replied as she continued to be optimistic. "I'm going to get a job with you at Taylor's. He already said he'd hire me fulltime as a cashier."
"You're still going to need more money. Believe me, I know…" Luke huffed. "I work fulltime and I barely earn enough to keep me and Liz going. Luckily for us, Dad owned the house we live in, there's no rent to pay, but just keeping up with the bills is a lot."
"Well, if I have to I'll move to a smaller, cheaper apartment." Lorelai countered.
"Or, you could move in with me."
Lorelai abruptly stopped. "Luke…" she scoffed.
"What?" He asked. "It's not such a bad idea. I've been thinking about it for the last couple of weeks actually."
"No way." Lorelai began walking again.
"Why not?' Luke followed after her.
"Because…"
"Oh, well when you put it that way how can I possibly argue with you?" Luke countered. "Come on, Lorelai, two incomes are much better than one, besides… You know how I feel about you."
"Luke, it's not about our feelings for each other." Lorelai quickly answered. "I don't want to be some live in girlfriend."
"You won't be! Lorelai, I want to be a part of your life; a part of Rory's life. You said yourself you wanted her to have a male role model."
"And what are we going to do Luke? Work at Taylor's for the rest of or lives for 5.88 an hour? Never graduate high school? Never even attend college?" Lorelai's optimistic attitude was quickly vanishing. "I don't want that type of life… not for me… not for Rory."
Luke quickly stepped in front of Lorelai… "You can go back to high school." He looked her dead in the eye. "You can go to college if you want, if you'll just let me help you. I'm going to fix up my dad's old hardware store. I won't be working at Taylor's much longer."
Lorelai glanced down at the baby in her arms. It wasn't just Lorelai now, there were two Gilmores that needed taken care of. Thinking back to the apartment and the bills, Lorelai knew it would be a tough battle. A battle that she may not be able to win. If she accepted Luke's offer, then she'd be depending on a man and that was something she had never found appealing, but there were many more things to consider now.
"I'll think about it." Lorelai replied.
"Good. That's all I ask… is that you think about it."
Luke stepped out from in front of her, and they continued walking till they reached the bank.
After several minutes of negotiating they finally found a way for Lorelai to cash her mother's check. It was only $743.00 but it would be enough to pay the bills and the rent for one more month with a little left over for food and living supplies. Lorelai had never actually realized what a tight squeeze Joan made each month with bills and rent. Joan had never once complained about not having enough money. If she had, Lorelai would have offered to get a job instantly.
"You want to come over for a while?" Luke asked. "I could make us some dinner."
"Sure." Lorelai replied. "God knows, you're much better at cooking than I am."
Luke, Lorelai, and Rory entered into an empty house. Luke called for his younger sister several times but never received an answer.
"Where the hell did she go? She knows she's not supposed to take off without telling me first."
"Luke." Lorelai replied as she picked up a note from the kitchen table. "She's gone."
"What?" Luke asked as he took the note from Lorelai.
Dear Big Brother:
I know you're doing the best you can, and I admire you for that. I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye, but I knew you would try to stop me if you saw me leave. Don't worry about me, Jimmy and I are in love and we're going to make things work. Believe me, this is what is best for the both of us. I'll be in touch soon.
Love,
Liz
Luke folded the letter neatly and laid it back on the table. "I knew she would run away."
"She'll be okay." Lorelai reassured.
"Yeah." Luke nodded.
"Hey, if you don't feel like making dinner, I understand. I can grab something on the way home and Rory has plenty of formula."
"No…" Luke shook his head. "No, we're still having dinner. This doesn't change anything."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive. What will it be? Spaghetti? Meatloaf? You name it… anything you want."
"What about a cheese burger?" Lorelai asked. "Can you make a cheeseburger?"
"Psht, can I make a cheeseburger?" Luke smiled. "I can make the best cheeseburger you've ever eaten in your life."
"Oh really?" Lorelai's face lit up. "Well, maybe you should open a diner instead of a hardware store, since you're such a fantastic cook."
Luke stared at Lorelai for a moment. "You know… maybe I should."