A/N: Quick note: I normally would be posting the next chapter on Sunday, but it might be late this time. I'm going to be at a family function that's going to keep me busy all weekend. If it doesn't get posted Sunday, it WILL be posted Monday. Thanks for understanding! Have a great day, lovelies!

Chapter 17

A couple weeks later, Rory was sitting in her room, doing her best to get a little ahead on her reading. Her phone rang next to her on her bedside table and she picked it up eagerly, smiling as she saw Jess's name flash across the screen.

"Page 138" she answered.

"What?"

"I was reading until you called but I don't have anything to act as a bookmark near me. So, page 138."

"Ah, makes sense."

"Hi, by the way. What's up?" she asked brightly.

"I don't wanna go," Jess said resolutely.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Jess, we've been over this. It's their wedding shower, you're the best man. You have to be there."

"But it's at your grandparents' house, Rory. Your grandparents hate me. Plus, I've heard both you and Lorelai mock these things plenty. It's going to be hours of mind-numbing conversation and weird food and lame jazz playing in the background. And don't even get me started on how completely unnecessary a wedding shower is!"

"I think it's too late for that," Rory mumbled amusedly as Jess continued to speak.

"It's just another excuse to make people pretend to care about when the 'big day' is and what your plans are for the future and to make them buy you presents when the reception is already that thing. It's redundant! You can't even make the argument that it's to have a party before the wedding because bachelor and bachelorette parties already exist! And then throw in the high-society element and it's just another time to cram a bunch of rich, privileged jerks in a stuffy room to talk down to you about crap like politics while they not-so-secretly judge you for every decision you have or haven't made in your life. These parties, if you could even call them parties, are just competitions to see who's the biggest socialite."

Rory stayed quiet a second to give him a chance to breathe before asking, "Are you done?"

"This time, yes," he replied gruffly.

"That was a very good rant, Luke would be proud," she teased.

"Keep up the Luke comparisons and there's more rants in your future," he threatened.

"You're just proving my point!"

"Rory," he said warningly, though she could hear a small smirk in his voice.

"Seriously, this is too easy! We've become my mother and your uncle!"

"Okay, seriously, now you made it weird. Stop? Please?"

"You're right, weird now, I'm done," Rory said, wrinkling her nose.

"Thank you." Jess paused. "Don't make me go," he practically begged.

"I'm not the one making you go!" she said, laughing. "Also, my grandparents don't hate you." Rory could almost hear Jess's eyes rolling. "They don't!"

"Well, I'm sure as hell not their favorite person in the world."

"Okay, they don't necessarily like you, but they don't hate you."

"I met your grandmother with a black eye and left before the main course was served and I met your grandfather when I was moving you out of their house. I didn't exactly make great first impressions on either of them."

"Well, now's your chance! Plus, there were extenuating circumstances to both of those interactions that they weren't aware of. Grandpa was my fault, and we can blame the swan for the black eye."

"Like your grandmother would believe me when I told her I was beaked."

"Well, as funny as it is, it's the truth. She'd have to believe you eventually," Rory replied, swallowing her laughter.

"Don't start on that again, that damn bird could have blinded me."

"Of course it could have," Rory assured, still stifling the giggles that always accompanied the thought of a swan hitting Jess with its beak. She heard Jess sigh heavily, sobering her when she remembered how stressful this really was for him. "Jess?"

"What?" Jess grumbled.

"This party might suck, but—"

"Will suck, you mean," he interrupted.

"But," she continued, "it's a few hours of all the lameness and insufferableness that you mentioned earlier to do your duty as Luke's best man, and then" she paused, "I will make it up to you," she finished in a sultry tone.

Jess sighed. "Fine. But there will be alcohol at this thing, right?"

"There has to be, otherwise I don't think I would survive."

Jess took a deep breath. "So, I'll see you Saturday?"

"See you Saturday!"

"That's one upside to this, I guess…" Jess muttered, bringing a smile to Rory's face. "Page 138," he reminded her.

Rory paused for a second, brow furrowed in confusion. "Oh!" she realized. "Bless you!"

Rory and Jess pulled up to the Gilmore mansion that Saturday and parked in the driveway behind Luke's truck. Much to Jess's chagrin, the four of them were required to arrive before the party guests in order to attend some kind of pseudo-Friday-Night-Dinner.

As they sat in the parked car, Rory glanced at Jess, who was sitting in the passenger seat and staring at the house in what looked like a combination of fear and nausea. She reached over and stroked his face.

"A few hours of small talk in which I will do my best not to leave your side, then it's back to my apartment where I will help you forget this party ever happened."

Jess gulped, still not taking his eyes off the house.

"Hey, look at me."

Jess reluctantly tore his gaze away from the house and met her eyes.

"You okay?" she asked hesitantly. "I mean, I know you're stressed, but you look like you're either going to pass out, throw up, or both. In which case, please opt to throw up in Grandma's hydrangeas and not in my car," she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Jess looked immune to Rory's jokes, still slightly pale with anxiety. He turned his head to look at the house again. "I have to apologize to them."

"What?"

"Your grandparents. I have to apologize to them. For how I acted the first times I met them. I need to make a better impression."

Rory shook her head, exasperated. "Jess, you do not have to apologize to them. Like I said before, there were extenuating circumstances—"

"That they weren't aware of, I know." He turned to face her. "But that's just it, Rory. They didn't deserve the attitude I gave them. Well…" he reconsidered. "Mostly they didn't. But if I ever want them to see me as something other than the first impression I gave them, I need to apologize."

Rory tilted her head in wondering. "Why is this so important to you?" she asked quietly.

Jess shook his head. "It's this thing Luke told me once, right before the dinner with your grandma actually. I was being a jerk about it, and he said something about how 'when you date a girl like Rory, you date her whole family.'"

Rory wrinkled her nose. "That's an unpleasant mental image."

Jess chuckled. "He meant that your family and their opinions mean a lot to you. I know things between you and your grandparents are a little different now, but I also know that they still mean the world to you. Now, I plan on sticking around for a long time, and I just think it'd be easier if your grandparents didn't hate me."

"They don't hate—"

"Fine! If they liked me more. That better?"

"Yes," she replied. "And if it means that much to you, then do it. Apologize. Grandpa will probably accept an apology quicker than Grandma, if either of them accepts it at all, but it's a start."

"Thank you." He turned his attention back to the house and took a breath. "Sooner we go in, sooner we'll get to leave, right?"

Rory nodded.

"Then let's get this over with," Jess sighed, getting out of the car.

He and Rory walked towards the front door, Jess's nerves growing with each step, until Rory wrapped her hands around his bicep and pulled him close to her.

"Two things before we go in," she said, speaking quietly so no one would sense their presence through the door. "One: that suit is doing amazing things for your ass."

Jess's head spun in her direction and he stared at her in amused shock, a pink tinge on his face. He wasn't used to Rory being so brazen and he felt his stomach flutter at her comment.

"Two: everything's going to be fine. We're going to survive tonight, I promise," she finished, smiling.

Jess smiled and kissed Rory softly. "Thank you," he whispered.

"Anytime," she whispered back, returning his smile. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Jess said, ringing the doorbell.

The maid answered the door and she ushered them in and took their coats, something Jess would never be entirely comfortable with. He felt all his nerves settle back in his stomach like a weight as he spotted Rory's grandparents approaching.

"Rory, hello dear!" Emily said cheerily as she entered the foyer and spotted them, Richard trailing closely behind her. Jess hung back behind Rory a bit, avoiding immediate confrontation. "Richard, look, Rory's here!"

"Well, hello Rory! My, don't you look lovely," Richard beamed.

"Thank you, Grandpa. Are mom and Luke here? I thought I saw Luke's truck outside."

"Yes, they're just in the living room getting drinks. Shall we?" she gestured out of the foyer and led them away. Jess followed the group numbly. Either they hadn't noticed he was there, or they were pretending he didn't exist. He couldn't decide which one he'd prefer.

"Wow, Grandma, the place looks… great!" Rory examined the room in a state of shock and mild horror at the décor. Her eyes fell on Luke, who looked like he was about to have a stroke, and Lorelai, who already had her patented "It's Taking Everything In Me Not To Kill My Mother Right Now" false smile plastered on her face. The room was cleared of its usual furniture and decorated in an array of white flowers, ribbons, and lace. There was two chairs in front of the fireplace that had an eerie resemblance to thrones, presumably meant for the bride and groom. Though tasteful in Emily's mind, it was gaudy and overdone to everyone else.

"Yes, I thought we'd go with the white theme to follow the wedding dress. Though, heaven knows Lorelai's dress probably shouldn't be white…"

"Mom…" Lorelai warned through her tight grin.

"Grandma, Grandpa," Rory interjected, hoping to avoid an Emily and Lorelai blow out this early in the evening. "You both remember my boyfriend Jess." She gestured to Jess who looked as deer-in-the-headlights as she'd ever seen him.

"Yes. Hello, Jess," Emily said in a forcedly polite tone.

"Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore," Jess greeted, reaching out to shake Richard's hand. When the action wasn't reciprocated, he lowered his hand back to his side awkwardly. "Um… I was wondering if I could speak to you both. Privately. It won't take long."

Emily looked flustered if only for a moment before Richard responded. "Well, yes, sure," he stuttered. "Here, we'll go to my study, follow me." And he led the three out of the room.

Lorelai quickly walked over to Rory, Luke trailing behind her. "What the hell was that?" she hissed.

"Jess wants to… apologize to them. For how he acted when he met them, both times," she replied distractedly, attention focused on the now-closed door of her grandfather's study.

"Wow," Lorelai exclaimed. "I'll admit, I'm impressed." She, too, turned her attention to the door.

Luke said nothing, only standing behind Lorelai and Rory, watching the door, and wearing a proud grin.

Jess walked into the study behind Richard, only pausing briefly to gape at the walls lined with books, many of which he could tell were first edition classics. He closed the door behind him and turned to face Richard and Emily, who, he discovered, were staring at him with something akin to disdain.

He took a breath and spoke. "Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore, I wanted to apologize for my behavior during the times when I met each of you."

They only offered silence in return, which did not help ease his nerves.

"Mrs. Gilmore, when I was younger, and I met you at dinner that night, I was incredibly rude."

"You had a black eye. You fought with my granddaughter in front of me. You complained about the raisins in the salad. You left early. Trust me, I remember."

He swallowed thickly, trying to remind himself to keep breathing and to stay focused. "Yes. I'm sorry for all of those things. I… had a lot going on then. Things are different now. I'm a published author and help run a publishing house in Philadelphia." It took everything in him not to cringe and shudder. He hated talking himself up like this, but he was desperate to prove himself to them. He turned his attention to Richard. "Mr. Gilmore, I also want to apologize for my… abruptness when I met you, as informal and unofficial as it was."

"You should learn not to speak to strangers like that, young man," Richard replied sternly.

Jess shifted uncomfortably. "Yes… sir." He looked down at his shoes and sighed before meeting their glares and continuing. "I know it's going to take a lot for you to trust me. I know it's going to take a lot of work on my side of things. But I want you to know that I am fully dedicated to Rory and am willing to go to the ends of the earth for her. She… she means everything to me, and I refuse to give that up. So, I'm sorry for how I treated you before. I hope you can consider accepting my apology. Thanks for hearing me out." As he finished, he was left in silence, so he turned around to leave. But, before he could open the door, he was interrupted by Richard.

"Wait just a minute, young man. Remind me of your full name."

Jess turned back around to face Richard. "Jess Mariano, sir."

"Did you say you were an author?"

He cleared his throat. "Um, yes."

"Would I have read any of your work?"

"No, probably not. I just released my first novel."

"What's it called?"

Jess eyed Richard curiously. "The Subsect…"

"I see. And you work at a publishing house?"

"Yes, sir."

"And you make a living there?"

Jess nodded.

"Enough to support yourself and to put aside for your future?"

"Um, I think so."

"Enough to eventually support a family?"

Ah, now Jess could see where this was going. He stood up a little straighter. "Yes, sir."

"And do you intend on Rory being a part of this family?"

Jess paused, just briefly. "Yes, sir, I do."

Richard eyed Jess suspiciously.

"If you're asking what my intentions are with her, I plan on staying for as long as she'll keep me."

"How eloquently put…" Emily mumbled.

"I mean that. I'm not leaving. She's the one I see my future with, no matter what." He felt his courage build, finally getting somewhere with at least one of them.

"And what of her plans to become a journalist?"

"I plan on supporting her in whatever she ends up doing after graduating. She's… she's absolutely amazing, sir. She's the smartest, most talented person I know. There's no way in hell I'll let myself be the one to keep her from achieving whatever she plans to do. Wherever she ends up, I'll follow."

Richard folded his arms across his chest and paused, continuing to size Jess up. Jess simply stood, making eye contact with Richard until he spoke.

"Alright."

Jess froze. "Excuse me?"

"I can't give you my full trust yet, but Mr. Mariano… you're well on your way to receiving my blessing."

Jess let out a relieved sigh as Emily objected.

"Thank you, sir. I greatly appreciate it." He reached out to shake Richard's hand. This time, Richard reciprocated fondly as Emily stormed out of the study. Clearly, Jess was going to have to work a little harder to earn her trust.

"Now, Jess. I couldn't help but notice your admiration at the books I have in here."

Jess flushed, quickly becoming embarrassed. "Oh, I'm sorry, I just—"

Richard chuckled. "Don't apologize, an appreciation of literature is a healthy thing to have. Can I ask who your favorite author is?"

Jess eyed Richard curiously. "I'd have to say Ernest Hemmingway, as much as Rory hates that he's my favorite."

Richard chuckled. He actually chuckled. Jess, though still on high guard, felt himself relax a little.

"As yes, my granddaughter and I have had many a heated discussion on our differing opinions on Hemmingway's works." Richard walked to a shelf and scanned it before apparently finding what he was looking for. "Here we are. Now, I don't share this with just anyone… but are you interested in seeing some first editions? Perhaps The Old Man and the Sea?" Richard asked with a twinkle in his eye.

Jess's jaw dropped. It took everything in him to contain his excitement. He cleared his throat. "Um, yes, please, very much."

It seemed as though he and Richard were well on their way to steady ground, bonding over their love for the writings of Hemmingway and their adoration of Rory.

The party went off without much of a hitch. Emily remained in a bad mood for the rest of the evening, painting on a fake smile that disappeared when she wasn't entertaining guests. But Luke and Lorelai were thoroughly celebrated, and Jess survived the monotonous small talk about politics and gossip, much thanks to Rory and Lane, both of whom faithfully stuck by his side the entire evening. Following every conversation that was laced with sickly sweet smiles and shallow topics, the three would wander off to mock the exchange in hushed whispers and laughter. It was Jess's saving grace.

After a few hours, the guests left and all that remained were the Gilmore four plus Luke and Jess.

"Thank you so much for this party, mom," Lorelai said, barely having to fake her gratitude. As much as it was very much not her thing and as reluctant as she had been to let her mother throw a wedding shower, it had been a success and Lorelai appreciated Emily's efforts.

"Yes, thank you Mrs. Gilmore," Luke followed up.

"Luke, how many times do I have to tell you to call me 'Emily'?" Emily asked, exasperated.

"Sorry. Emily," Luke corrected himself, looking a little scared.

Rory and Jess had begun to inch their way towards the door, hoping for a quick and easy escape while the others made small talk. Thankfully, it seemed they were going to be granted their wish, as Luke and Lorelai started to make their way in the same direction. The four said their goodbyes at the door and stepped outside, all taking a simultaneous breath of fresh air.

"Oh, my God. Did you see how snippy my mother was all night?" Lorelai asked as they meandered to their cars. "Jess, what on earth happened in that study?"

Jess just shrugged. "I apologized, tried to get on their good sides."

"And that made my mother act like she'd sat on a bee three hours?"

Rory shot her mother a confused look. "'Sat on a bee'?"

"It's late, I'm tired, it's the first thing I thought of that could make someone grumpy."

"Okay, but it's just a weird…"

Jess ushered Rory towards the car as Luke did the same with Lorelai.

"Okay, you're both tired, and if we don't leave now, you're going to debate this forever," Luke said.

"Agreed," Jess responded.

"Okay, but don't you agree 'sat on a bee' is a random thing to—"

"Goodnight, Rory and Jess!" Luke called.

"Oh! Night Luke, night Mom!" Rory called, getting into the passenger seat. She leaned her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. "Oh my God, I'm exhausted. I know I promised to make tonight up to you, but I had forgotten how dead you feel after one of these stupid high society parties."

Jess smirked, turning on the car. "No worries, you can keep your promise another time."

Rory opened her eyes and looked at Jess as he pulled out of the driveway. "Hey, what did happen when you all went into Grandpa's study."

Jess shrugged.

"Nope, you don't get to get away with just shrugging with me. We're adults in an adult relationship and adults communicate."

Jess snorted. "You sound like a self-help book."

Rory smirked. "From what I've heard, you're pretty familiar with those."

Jess rolled his eyes. "It was one book. Luke's the one that gave it to me!"

"But you still read it!"

"Yeah, and it led me to begging you to run away with me, with no plan and no money. Fat lot of good it did me."

Rory's jaw dropped slightly. "Those were connected? Oh my god! I can't believe that—" she stopped herself. "Wait, no, you can't distract me. Tell me what happened in Grandpa's study."

"But—" Jess started to object before Rory interrupted him.

"Out with it."

Jess sighed. "Well… we went in, I apologized, your grandmother didn't accept, your grandfather asked what my intentions were, I told him I was going to support you in your career, he said I was on my way to having his blessing, your grandmother stormed out, then your grandfather showed me some books." Jess told the story as nonchalantly as possible, grazing over the part about almost having Richard's blessing.

Rory looked at him, surprise overtaking her face. "He said you have his blessing?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"Hey, I said almost."

"But that means you told him something that indicated that there was something to give his blessing on," she said quietly.

Jess glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "I may have alluded to something in the future…"

Rory's eyes remained wide.

Jess cleared his throat. "Rory, I know we aren't there yet, between school and work it just wouldn't be the right time, but… I love you, and I've been thinking about it. Our future. I… I don't see it ending this time. I'm in this for the long run."

Rory smiled softly, tears beginning to gather in her eyes. "Me too." She leaned across the center console and kissed him on the cheek. "You know I really was teasing when we found out Lane was engaged, right?"

Jess smiled. "Yeah. But, it got me thinking. Not yet, but..."

"Someday," Rory finished for him.

"Yeah, someday," Jess said softly.

Rory closed the space between them and kissed him. "Thank you for everything you did tonight."

Jess smiled in response. "For you, anything."

Rory snickered. "So sappy."

Jess grimaced slightly. "Too sappy?"

Rory shook her head. "Nope. Just sappy enough." She paused. "Hey, what books did Grandpa show you?" Rory asked suddenly.

"Um, his first edition copies of some of Hemmingway's stuff," Jess muttered.

Rory's eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped. "Oh my god, Jess. You're in."

"What?" Jess asked, laughing at the expression on Rory's face.

"Jess!" she squealed.

Jess winced. "Jeez, tiny space, big sound."

"He showed you the first editions of your favorite author, Jess. He's never done that with anyone else I've dated. He likes you, Jess."

Jess felt a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "I don't see why, but alright."

"Oh, hush, you." Rory smiled. "I'm pretty impressed, you won Grandpa over in one conversation."

Jess snorted. "Barely. Plus, now there's your grandma to contend with."

"Oh, she'll probably never truly like you. But you can work towards a truce with her, Grandpa will probably put in a good word."

Jess shook his head ruefully. "I'll take a truce, that woman scares me."

"And everyone else mom and I have brought home," Rory said, closing her eyes and resting her head on the window. "I'm going to sleep the rest of the way, that way I have enough energy to thank you for tonight in more ways than one."

Jess laughed out loud and drove on, feeling more alive than he ever thought possible after an encounter with Emily and Richard Gilmore.