Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls. Darn!

Authors note: This is written as thoughts inside the heads of Lorelei and Rory. The first part is Rory and the second is Lorelei. R&R if you wish. Let me know what you think and if I should quit writting and keep my day job, if I should continue on with this idea, or if you have ideas I will be willing to listen (Maybe if they are good.)

Life After Ever

My mother had a certain aura and grace about her that was one of a kind. She had the ability to fit in with any crowd. She was definitely a one of a kind person. Me on the other hand, I was her only with a little more smarts, but it was only because she would encourage. I was her child.

It had been five years, since I dropped out of Yale, and basically cut my mother out of my life. This was my first time back in Stars Hollow and I felt extremely weird. Nothing had changed, everything still moved at the same pace. My mother was still the queen of the town. I wanted to surprise her, so I silently pulled up to the house of my childhood that we lovingly called The Crap Shack. Almost all the lights were on in the house, which was odd my mother would never do that so that she could save money. In the driveway was my mother's old Jeep and some sort of new SUV. I guessed that Luke finally got rid of his truck. My mother probably had a hand in what he got.

I silently went up the stairs. I didn't need to be too quiet; there was some music and lots of noise coming out of the house. It looked like an inviting house. To know what I was going to be facing I decided to just peek in the window. Just to see why all the noise, and I was surprised to see my mother sitting on the stairs watching a little child with wild brown hair and Luke acting and dancing. It looked like they were reenacting some crazy story. My mother was sitting there with this grin on her face as she laughed occasionally at the two actors. She finally got it all. She was happier than I had ever seen her. She never constantly grinned like she did at that time, not with Max, Jason, or my dad. This was only something I saw when she was with Luke and after five years I was amazed it was still there. That is when I realized that I might not ever fit into her life again. Sure I was her first kid and I would always have a special place in her heart, but I would never make her as happy as she was in those few short minutes I watched her silently from a window. I was hurt. My life had come so close to being over, and as far as I was concerned had been over, but hers was still going and going strong. "Time to go," I said silently to myself as I turned to leave vowing silently in my head to never come back. When I looked up she was staring at me her eyes glued on me the ear to ear grin had been reduced to a simple smile. She got up and started to move towards the door. Luke and the child still going on with their game, but I did see the glance shared between the two. I quickly realized that I needed to leave because I did not want to confront her. I was scared so I walked down the stairs.

When I had reached the bottom, she walked out the door. "Rory?" She asked knowing full well that it was me. "Yeah, mom it is me." I said when I turned around I did not realize the tears streaming down my face. I had waited weeks to talk to her, weeks to tell her what was going on in my life, weeks to tell her how sorry I was. The only reason it was weeks is because I was to afraid; afraid of confrontation, afraid of what I might see, and especially afraid of not fitting in. Once my mother saw the tears streaming down my face I saw her eyes fill with compassion and she walked over and wrapped her arms around. In that embrace I felt and let myself finally release emotions that I had been holding in for a month. It was what I needed my mom. She didn't question why or what, she just let me cry, and for the first time in several years I felt safe.

The night Rory came home I had happily been watching Gracie and Luke reenact their adventures of the day. They had gone to the Firelight festival together. It was Gracie's first one, and I had been at the inn working. I was going to get off in time to go to the festival, but in the end we got home at the same time. Gracie's first Firelight was supposed to be last year, but when she came down with the measles both Luke and I decided to stay home with her instead. We got her over to the apartment above the dinner and watched the festival from the window. I thought to myself the whole time, "Here I am watching this festival with a man whom I am head over heels in love with, and my beautiful 2 year old daughter. I just wish Rory was here as well." The whole night I wondered in my head where Rory was and what was she doing at that moment. So, I was listening to Luke and Gracie tell me there wild adventure, with Luke everything had become an adventure. I out the window when I thought I heard a noise. It wasn't loud, but very odd.

That is when I saw her looking in the window with that look on her face. She was longing to be inside and yet felt like an outsider. It amazed me, the fact that after years of no contact I could still read her like a book and know everything. She was hurt. I was not for sure if it was by what she saw or something else. No contact and after five years she was back in my life. My baby girl was home. I could tell she was looking at Gracie wondering who had taken her spot as the center of my world. As I got up to go talk to her leaving Luke and Gracie to their crazy game, Luke noticed something was wrong and gave me a look that said, "What is going on?" I mouth to him that it was ok, and he and Gracie kept playing. It was amazing that our marriage had these moment where Luke and I could not say a word and yet speak volumes to each other.

When I finally got outside, she was at the bottom of the stairs and all I could get out was, "Rory?" I wasn't questioning weather not it was her. I was just surprised. "Yeah, Mom it is me," was all she could get out she turned around crying. I just wanted to hold her, after five years she was home. "Wow, kid, what is going on?" She just kept crying. "Ok, let it go. Mommy is here. Don't worry anymore." I started to sing the song Luke would sing to Grace after a nightmare; when she would run into our room crying. "Cry if you want to, I won't tell you not to, I won't try to cheer you up, I'll just be here if you want me to be near." After a while she stopped and looked at me. "Mom, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin your evening. Go have fun with your family." "Oh kid, when will you learn that you are apart of my family. You always have been and always will be," I looked at Rory and realized she was wondering about the little girl. "Her name is Grace, we call her Gracie. Would you like to meet her?" "I don't know, Mom. Maybe we could just go some where and talk first? Maybe Weston's, if it's still there?" "Yeah cause when I think talking I think of Weston's. Sure let me tell Luke where I will be." I ran inside real quick and told Luke what was going on I was back outside with Rory pretty quickly. We headed over to Weston's I should have known it would be closed due to the festival. Rory stayed pretty quiet as we walked. I told her about the wedding, about Gracie, about my life, and about Stars Hollow. Finally we got to the lake and sat down on the bridge. She asked what we were doing; I told her that it is one place I can find Luke when he needs to think. I thought it might help with the reunion of us.

"Rory, what is going on? I haven't gotten a word from you in five years. I didn't know if you were alive or hurt or anything. Then suddenly you are on my front porch staring in, and I was tempted to call the cops because you looked like a stalker. Even though no one would have answered you know what I am saying." Man even after a weird separation I still had the ability to babble on and on.

"Mom," Rory said in her serious "this may hurt one of us" voice, "Over the last five years, I got married to Logan. We had a child we named him William Richard Huntzburger. Well Logan was on his way home one night, was killed by a drunk driver."

"Oh, Rory I am so sorry." I said. "Wait there is more to the story." At this point I began praying to God that this story would soon be happy, but I could tell in her eyes that there was a lot more there. "After Logan died I thought my world was over. I moved Will and I across the continent. So I would not face the memories of Logan. Then one day Will developed a cough, after a while I took him to the doctor and he had a tumor in his lungs. Will didn't make it to his 2nd birthday and died about 3 months ago." At this point Rory had tears streaming down her face. Lorelei just held her kid wondering why she hadn't gone to find her or called her. Rory continued, "I had to leave Washington. I couldn't stand the way people were treating me. Everyone had this look of pity on there face. I miss Logan and Will. Then one day I was out driving and came across an inn. I needed to come home, Mom. I need you. I miss you. I love you so much." "Oh kid, you have no idea. I am sorry. I know where you can stay." I stood and Rory followed. We walked till we were standing in front of Luke's. "I would love for you to stay at our house, but we don't have room. You could sleep on the couch, but you may want your own space instead of your little sister running around you screaming at the top of her lungs at 8 in the morning." "Yeah that sounds great. I mean the staying at Luke's old place."