A Fond Farewell to a Friend

Author's note: Thanks for all of your reviews on the first part. I hope that you all enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! And I want to give a huge thanks to my lovely beta xphilehb.

And a reminder that all chapters of this fic are stand alone.

………………………………………………………………………..

Luke was in the middle of the lunch rush when he saw Rory enter the diner. He quickly distributed the plates he was carrying to their rightful places before turning his attention to the child. She was sitting patiently at the counter, wearing a pair of feathered angel's wings.

He wasn't surprised to see her come in without her mother. Rory would often come in while she waited for her mother to finish whatever it was she happened to be doing. She would sit at the counter quietly, patiently awaiting her mother's arrival. He couldn't say the same thing about the child's mother. If the situation was reversed, and Lorelai was the one waiting, patient was definitely not a word he would use to describe her. She would constantly try to distract him from his work, attempting to make him her playmate until her daughter walked through the doors.

Walking up to Rory, he asked her if she wanted anything while she waited for Lorelai.

Rory shook her head. "No thanks, Luke."

Despite her response, Luke placed a doughnut on a plate and put it in front of Rory. "I've never seen you turn one of those down before."

Rory took a small bite and smiled at him. She watched as he cleared off some tables and delivered more plates. She had completely polished off her snack when Luke returned to her, setting a glass of milk down in front of her. "Thanks, Luke," she said, taking a sip.

He gave her a smile and turned to go to the kitchen to finish up more orders.

"Hey, Luke?" Rory called after him.

He turned back to face her. "What can I get you?" he asked kindly.

"I actually had something to ask you," she told him.

"This sounds serious," he noted, walking around to the other side of the counter and taking a seat beside her. "What is it?"

"My pet caterpillar died."

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said sincerely.

"Well, he wasn't really my pet, but I would come outside to talk to him everyday," she clarified.

"So he was more than a pet. He was your friend," Luke stated.

Rory's bright blue eyes gazed up at him, and she smiled. "And he was a good friend."

"I bet he was."

"Mom's helping me put together a little funeral for him. Will you come?" Rory asked, looking at him with hopeful eyes.

"I wouldn't miss it."

"It's going to be in our backyard today at four o'clock," she informed him.

"I'll be there."

Hopping off her stool, she said, "I'll see you later, Luke."

"Bye, Rory."

……………………………….

Luke arrived at the Gilmores' a little before four. He found Lorelai already outside, struggling to dig a hole with a shovel. He placed the few items he brought with him on her back porch before making his way over to Lorelai. "Hey," he greeted her, taking the shovel from her hands. If there was one thing the Gilmore girls weren't good at, it was manual labor.

"The shovel appears to be winning this battle," she joked.

"I got it," he assured her, pushing the shovel easily into the ground.

"You make it look so easy," she observed. "Why, Rory and I need a strong man like you around the house," she cooed with a southern bell accent. "You are just so manly. Show me some of your manly wiles."

"Will you cut it out?" he warned, threatening to throw the shovel down.

She put her hands on his shoulders and batted her eyes. "But Rory is counting on this."

"You're pulling the Rory card."

"It was either that or the pout. They both seem to get the job done. And this actually is for Rory," she reminded him.

Rory came out of the house, munching on the last of her peanut butter sandwich. "Luke!" she called. "I'm glad you could make it."

"I told you I would be here." He pointed to the items he had left on the porch. "I made a little box for the caterpillar, and I brought some cookies. I thought we could have a little reception afterwards."

A huge grin spread across Rory's face. She raced off the porch towards Luke and wrapped her arms around him. "Thanks, Luke."

At first he was taken aback, but then he pulled her into his embrace and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "A good friend like him deserves a decent farewell," Luke stated.

"I'm going to put him in his box," she notified her mom and Luke.

Lorelai watched as her daughter gently scooped the caterpillar into his coffin. "You didn't have to do that."

Luke shrugged. "It was no big deal."

"You always do that."

"Do what?"

"Act like what you do is no big deal. Well, it is, Luke." She motioned towards her daughter. "You just made a young girl's day by making a coffin for her caterpillar. Not very many people would do that."

"I wanted to," he stated simply.

Many Stars Hollow residents attended the funeral. They paid their respects to Rory's friend and listened to the child give him a loving eulogy. Afterwards, Lane and Rory passed out the cookies Luke had made.

Luke stayed long after the funeral ended, listening to Rory tell him stories about her former friend. Then, he helped her make a little tombstone to mark the caterpillar's resting place.

While Rory finished decorating the caterpillar's grave, Lorelai came over to stand beside Luke. She slipped her arm through his. "She really likes you," Lorelai told him, glancing up at him. When her eyes met his, she gave him a smile.

"She's a good kid," he replied.

Rory bounced back over to the two adults. "Mom, can Luke stay for dinner?"

"It's fine by me," Lorelai consented. "But you might want to inform him that dinner will consist of stale Pop-Tarts."

Luke kneeled down towards Rory. "How about I make you girls dinner?"

Rory looked up at her mother. "Is that okay, Mom?"

Lorelai nodded. "I never say 'no' to food."

"Or coffee," Luke added. He looped his arm through Rory's. "Now, what should we have?"

Lorelai watched on as Rory listed off suggestions for dinner as she and Luke walked up the stairs to the porch. Normally, Lorelai would freak out at the prospect of Rory becoming attached to a man, but something told her that Luke was someone she could count on.

He wasn't going anywhere. If Lorelai wasn't mistaken, he was becoming rather attached himself.

Fin.

Please review! I love reviews! More to come soon.