Chapter 2: Do You Know?

When Rory and Paige finally calmed down they walked down stairs to the diner, they were going to go back to Lorelai and Luke's house. They sat in silence as they drove. Rory hated the silence so did Paige. There was still more they had to talk about but not right now. Too much to soon is never good. So they sat there in silence. Until Paige asked her mom a question "do you know were… were he is?"

Her mom just stared straight and parked the car in the driveway not saying a word.

Paige asked her again her voice a little shaken "do you know?"

"No…Uh… I think Luke… might know…why do you want to know?" Rory said trying to keep calm.

"I don't know, just curious," she said but deep down she wanted to meet him but she never would admit it out loud to her mom.

"Do you want to meet him?" she asked finally looking at her daughter.

Paige didn't say anything all she did was shrug

"Don't just shrug at me. Give me a straight answer," she said with concern because she remembers that Jess just shrug at everything. She was turning into her father.

"Maybe" Paige admitted, "Do you think I should?"

"I am not even sure if we can contact him, and it is your decision not mine to make" as Rory said that she got out of the car and new thoughts raced in her mine. Should Paige? Will she? Could I handle seeing him again, I can't even say his name with out chocking up. Then the thought she had next was most frightening, she hasn't thought of it since Paige was born, she needed to talk to him. She needed to talk to Jess. As these terrifying thoughts ran trough her head she made the most crazy and irrational choice that she could ever make. She would call him later tonight.

The rest of the day was quite, Rory didn't come out of her room she was thinking of what to say to Jess. What could she say? Why did she want to talk to him, the man that a banned her and her daughter? None of this was making since to her, but she needed to do it…

Paige just kept reading "howl" paying more attention to the notes in the margins then the actual story. She was thinking her father wrote them and how much they sounded like something she would say. Also if it would be a good idea to meet him, the man banned her and her mother, or to just stay clear. Would it hurt her mom too much, would it end up hurting her…

There were so many thoughts going on under that roof because of one single solitary person… Jess.

When Rory finally was out of her room it was about 7 o'clock at night and she found her daughter asleep on the couch. Rory left a note on the book that Paige had been reading that simply said

Went to Luke's, needed coffee be back as soon as I can

Love you,

Mom

When Rory got to the diner she went up to sit at the counter to wait for Luke because he was at another table waiting on Kirk. Rory smiled and shook her head did he ever leave she thought. When Luke came around the counter he looked at Rory curiously because she was avoiding his eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked because he knew something was wrong "coffee" he said holding up the pot. That was the only way to get a Gilmore girl to talk.

As he pored her some coffee she said quietly "Do you have his number?" when she said this it took all her strength not to swell up.

Luke just looked at her and said "whose?" Rory silently looked down at her cup, Luke got what or more accurately whom she meant, "oh… you mean Him… I haven't spoke to him in… wow since he was here 3 years ago wanting to see Paige and…well you"

"He was here and you didn't tell me," she said getting angry at Luke, then realized he did it out of love for her and Paige to protect them. Then she asked again "do you?"

"I have the one he gave me the last time he was here he gave me his phone number, but it might not work." He stopped knowing that she didn't care. He sat down the coffee pot went into the back and came out with a piece of paper, written in Jess's handwriting.

Paige woke up about a half an hour after her mom left for Luke's. She found the note on her book. When she gets up off the couch she yells "Mom…Grandma…Luke…anyone here?"

When she said this she heard something up stairs then a loud "I'm here sweetie" it was from her grandma

Paige started up stairs when she heard someone coming in at the door. It was her mother, she had a very determined face on, and she looked like she was going to do something she would regret at a later time.

"Hello?" Lorelai said coming down the stairs "oh, hi! I didn't know you were here." she said happily, directing the statement at Rory

"I just got here, I went to Luke's for some good coffee" Rory said not looking at her mother and holding the paper with Jess's number on it

Paige was first to notice the paper in her mom's hand "Hey what's that?" pointing at the paper.

"Nothing" Rory said a little to quickly and shoved it into her pocket.

Breaking the silence Lorelai blurted out " I'm hungry, lets go to Luke's" then looking at Rory and Paige still in silence.

"Uh… I think I will stay here I am not hungry, and it has been a long day" Rory said but she lied a little because she was starving. "You guys go I am going to stay and read ok" she pointed the last comment at Paige. Paige nodded her head kissed her mom and headed out the door.

Lorelai lingered to talk to Rory. When Paige left the room she asked, "Did you tell her?"

Rory nodded and said, " Yes…I am just afraid she is going to want to meet him, see him."

"I know sweetie, you just have to do what is best for her. Despite your feelings, well we best be off so I think you just need to think." She said what Rory has been thinking. When Lorelai said it she walked past her daughter and out the door with some parting words "it is his loss" she smiled and walked out.

When the door closed behind her mother she walked into the kitchen and took the small piece of paper out of her pocket and put it on the table. Rory grabbed the phone and sat down with the phone in hand staring at the paper in the other. In her head she was telling herself, pushing herself. She slowly dialed the numbers on the paper.

555-2180

It rung once and then she quickly hung up. What was she doing? Her heart was beating so fast. She tried again.

555-2180

The phone rang about 4 times before the answering machine picked up and the voice on the machine his voice broke her heart.

Jess was listening to the phone ring over and over. He was getting frustrated; he slammed down his pencil and walked over to the phone as the answer machine picked up. When he started to walk back to his desk and the book he was working on the message picked up and he sighed.

"You have reached Jess Mariano, I am screening my calls, so if you must leave a massage"

Beep!

He doesn't hear anything and as he sat down at his desk he heard crying on the other line then hears and someone say

"Jess"

His heart was in his throat. It was her. The way she said his name he always loved. He hadn't her say it since he had last time he talked to her in Stars Hollow, 10 years ago, and that time she was screaming at him. Though he still loved it. When Jess was in Stars Hollow he wanted to see Paige, but Rory did let him. To Rory he lost that privilege, that right to see her daughter when he left.

When he picked up the phone he nervously said "Hello" then he got up the courage to say "Rory… is that you?"

He heard crying in the background. It hurt him to here that, it broke his heart into a million pieces.

"Why?" her voice shook. Rory had so much she wanted to say, but all she could say is 'why?' Why did she want to call him in the first place? She new it would just end badly. So before he could respond she hung up. She didn't need to talk to him in 13 years why did she need to talk to him now?

The phone rang and Rory new who it was she picked it up but did not say a word

"Why…" Jess said in his normal tone " Because…I …I didn't want to end up disappoint you more then I had. You would've…I would've end up resenting you and myself. And it would have never of worked out." He stopped wanting Rory to say something anything, but she kept quite. So Jess kept going. "I still love you… and Paige" that broke his heart to say it and hers to hear it. At that moment the door opened and in walked Lorelai, Luke, and Paige.

Oh no Rory's heart started to seed up again how was she going to tell her family that she was talking to the man that took off on her and her daughter. As Paige walked in she was happy, she most likely went to the bookstore after diner. "Hey" she yelled at her mother with glee. Then she saw her mom's face and her happiness disappeared.

"Was that Paige?" Jess said when he heard the 'hey'

Rory still did not say anything; she just looked at her daughter

"Rory you have to say something… does she even know about me?" Jess asked demandingly.

Rory said as her word shook "y…yes she does I just told her today."

By this time everyone was standing in the kitchen looking at her. They all new who she was talking to, but none of them could figure out why. Rory herself didn't even know.

They all were in silence, even Jess, knowing that everyone must be there looking at Rory. All of them wanted to say something, but no one knew exactly what.

The silence was suddenly broken when Jess started to snicker.

"Oh my god!" Rory said to herself. Then into the phone "you'll never change, will you?"

Paige looked at her mom with confusion from what she said. At that moment was the first time that it hit her…her father, her father was at the other end of the phone. Her mom was talking, talking to her father, the man who left her mom when Paige was born. Then at the next second she thought, was this the first time she has talked to him since he left? Had her mom been lying to her for 13 years about not talking to her father? Paige stated to get mad at her mom, she started to get scared if all that was true then what else had her mom lied about.

As the thoughts came into her mind she started to flip out, but didn't show it. Back on the phone Jess asked "Would I be able to see her now?" he asked so carefully.

Rory was still looking at Paige and quietly muttered to Paige and Jess "It is up to her"

"Will you asked her for me?" as worry slipped in to his voice.

Tears started to form in her eyes again. You had no right to ask that, no right! She wanted to yell in the phone, but all she said was. "Hold on I will asked her" She put the phone down she adverted her eyes from her daughter and asked, "Do you want to meet him, see him?"

Paige nodded her head yes very slowly before she softly saying "yes" her voice shaking.

Rory then picked up the phone again and said "yes…" "Ok… I will tell her…" "Goodbye" and hung up the phone.

Rory then looked at her daughter in her eye and said something she wished she would never had to "He will be here tomorrow"