Ok, not exactly the Christmas chapter, but close. I wrote this very fast, so sorry for the faults!

Chapter 23: Shirley

Two weeks later the whole family sat in the car in front of the Gilmore mansion.

"Ok, kids listen: Today your grandparents will be very different people. They will be on the edge and stressed. So please, no yelling, no running, no fighting, no crying and please don´t touch anything. We will stay as long as we have to and then I promise you that I will get you out of there as soon as I can. Okay?" Lorelai finished her speech and although they had no idea what their mother was talking about, all three nodded.

Luke took her hand and squeezed it for some seconds. Lorelai was extremely nervous about this evening. It was the first pre-Christmas dinner as a married couple and with kids. After Will had been born she had been too sick before Christmas to go to the dinner. It later had turned out that she had been pregnant again. A year later the twins had both been sick. And taking sick six month old babies to a dinner had been out of the question. And last year they simply had been too stressed to go anywhere. But this year Lorelai had decided that they would go. She had dragged Luke and the kids along to the mall and forced them to buy new clothes and shoes. And while Luke had hated every second of it, she was very content with the outcome.

But now she was nervous that her parents or the guests wouldn´t like what she chose, that they still wouldn´t accept Luke or that the kids wouldn´t behave. She wanted to show them that she made it. That she finally succeeded in building a real life and a real family. Something even they had to respect. She was no longer Richard´s and Emily´s rebellious daughter, who had gotten herself pregnant and from then on had been a constant disappointment to her parents.

She took a deep breath and looked at Luke again before she opened the door and stepped out. She let out William and Sara and took them by the hand, then rang the bell. A maid opened the door and William made a confused "huh", because in general when they would visit his grandparents would open the door by themselves.

Lorelai handed her the coats and then took Luke´s hand before they walked in the living-room.

"There you are!" Emily smiled when she saw them.

"´ma look!" Sara smiled and twirled around to show Emily the dress.

"Sara!" Lorelai hissed, but Emily smiled and then told them how nice they looked tonight. Richard also came over and picked up the twins and told William to follow him before Lorelai could protest. Emily handed her and Luke some drinks and then excused herself.

Lorelai looked around and stepped from one foot to the other nervously. Luke watched her for some minutes, then took her hands and led her into the empty piano room and closed the door. He took her hands in his.

"Lorelai what´s wrong? Why are you so nervous about this stupid party, dinner, whatever?" he asked her.

"Because" she just said.

"Because what?" he pressed.

"Because I want them to like you and the kids, I want them to respect me and accept that I achieved something. They should see that I did it: I succeeded in my life and I want them to know it! I want these women out there to be envious about my husband and my kids. Those who talked behind my back and insulted me when I was pregnant with Rory. Some of them are here tonight." she told Luke. He needed some seconds to think about it.

"Then lets go out there and show them!" Luke then smiled and lead her out. When they walked back in the living room she kissed his cheek and said "Thank you!".

Laila saw them and came over.

"Daddy, hungry!" she said and held up her arms. Luke picked her up.

"Do you know what you want to eat?" he asked her.

"Noooo!" she shook her head.

"Then let´s go over there and look what they have. But first we will look for William and Sara, they be hungry, too. Lorelai you also want something?"

"No, I think I will grab us some drinks first. Beer?"

"Sure" he said and walked off to find his other kids.

"Well Lorelai isn´t it nice to finally meet you again!" a female voice said and Lorelai turned around.

"Oh, Shirley, hi!" Lorelai tried to smile back.

""You´re looking good. How are you? Tell me what are you doing now? The last time I heard from you was at school when Anne told me that you ran away with your baby!" Shirley still smiled one of those fake smiles.

"Im good, excellent to be honest. And Rory, my daughter is going to Yale, you know. And I have my own Inn."

"Yale, that´s great. Just sad that you never went to College. But it doesn´t seem to be important anymore, those days. Are you married? I´m sorry I ask you all those questions, but I´m just so curious!"

"Yes, I´m married. And you?"

"That´s great! It´s certainly not easy to find a husband when you already have a child. Not that I can speak out of experience, I don´t have children. My husband and I are traveling so much, we just don´t have time for children. Is your husband here tonight?"

"Yes, Luke is here tonight."

"Of course I´m here tonight!" Luke´s voice appeared. He walked towards them with William on his hand and then slung his other arm around Lorelai´s waist.

"Well, hello, Luke! I´m so pleased to meet you! I´m Shirley, I was one of Lorelai´s best friends at school." she said and then kissed him first on his left, then on his right cheek. Luke looked at Lorelai and saw that Shirley never was one of her friends.

"Hello. Nice to meet you!" he just said back.

"And this is our son William" Lorelai told Shirley.

"Oh, he is gorgeous! He looks like his father! Such a handsome boy!" Shirley smiled at Luke and touched his arm. Lorelai shot her an angry look, but she ignored it.

"Luke, tell me, what is your profession? And do you go to a fitness club? There is this new one here in Hartford, an excellent one. Maybe I could show you and introduce you to some of my friends!" she smiled.

"Thank you, Shirley, was it? But I don´t like fitness clubs. I´d rather stay at home and spend my time with my beautiful wife and our kids!" he told her and kissed Lorelai on the cheek.

"Kids? You have more children than this handsome boy?" Shirley wasn´t willing to give up.

Just then Sara and Laila ran toward their parents.

"Mommy, Daddy look!" Sara yelled and smiled while Laila held out an apple tard for Lorelai.

"What did I tell you? No running and no yelling?" Lorelai said but smiled and picked up Laila.

"But moooomy, look!" Sara said again and Laila gave her the desert.

"Well thank you my sweeties!" Lorelai said and took it from Laila.

"´ma!" Laila smiled.

"Grandma gave you this, how nice of her!" she smiled and took a bite.

"Mmmmh, Luke you have to try this. This is heaven my friend" she said and held it in front of Luke. He took a bite and nodded.

"Not bad"

"Not bad? Have you lost your mind. This is the only reason I love this party so much!" she told him. Luke rolled his eyes and picked up Sara who had been tugging on his slacks the whole time.

"You annoying little monster! Why are you tugging on my trousers the whole time?" he kissed her forehead.

"Arm daddy!" she grinned and lay her head down on his shoulder.

"So these two young ladies are also yours Luke?" Shirley tried it again.

"Yes, these two are also our kids. This is Sara and this is Laila."

"Wow, how many kids do you have Lorelai? I mean you started early, so how many more are there?" Lorelai looked at Shirley like she would attack her any second.

"You know, after Rory Lorelai decided to wait to have more children. So she first build her own Inn, bought a house and a car, send Rory to Chilton and Yale before we decided to have more kids. And now with these three everything is just perfect. And what have you done? Are you working? Are you married and how many ids do you have?" Luke jumped in.
"How nice! Shirley smiled.

"I have to excuse myself now, I have to find my husband!"

"By Shirley!" Lorelai grinned. Then she turned around and faced Luke, then kissed him. They pulled apart before William could erupt in his usual "eeeewww!"- choir.

"What a way to start this evening! Thank you!" she smiled at Luke.

"And now I´m hungry, let´s grab something to eat!"

TBC