A/N: OMGoodness, I updated! And, no, it's not an April Fools joke. I thought I would post what I could right now rather than leave you all hanging. I'm so sorry for taking so long. Stupid school work. Sometimes I wish I could blow it all off just so I can write, but can't really do that when you're on scholarship. Sigh…Anyway, I deeply apologize for the lack of LL action in the last chapter. I hardly ever write Lorelai and Rory stuff so I thought I would give it a whirl. I usually don't have trouble writing Lorelai, but I find Rory really hard for some reason. I guess I am definitely more of a Lorelai. So, I dedicate this chapter, and pretty much the rest of the story to Lolabelle26. You pretty much all owe her for this chapter, she was kicking my butt in gear the whole time.

Chapter 5: A Little Discovery, A Little Fried Death

February 12th, 2002

Sherry, for some reason that was beyond Lorelai, HAD to find Rory before she and Christopher left. But, bonding-mode Sherry was the last thing on her mind. The events of last night and this morning were weighing heavy on her mind. There was the fact that her mother basically accused her of ruining the perfect family picture by wasting so much time. Then, Rory confessed that she used to envision her and Christopher getting back together in the sense that all kids want their estranged parents to work it out. Luke had picked up on her mood the minute she walked in and was still eyeballing her suspiciously from his spot behind the counter. Luke knew her too well sometimes. It was nice that he wanted to cheer her up by playing bagel hockey. But between Emily's blowout and this precise moment, she had a revelation. A light bulb literally turned on in her head. Christopher took the seat across from her, and Lorelai felt the need to tell him exactly what was on her mind. Chris would understand. He knew her. They both needed to be released from this invisible bond that held them together.

"So, quaint evening of theater last night," Christopher began.

"Ah yes, the Gilmore family players rival the Barrymores for their sophisticated, dramatic productions."

"I never thought she'd freak over Rory not being there like that. I never wanted to put you in that position." Ah, little do you know…

"Oh, you couldn't have known."

"I mean, Rory's missed the occasional dinner before." Can't you see? That's not the point, hon.

"Yeah, well, this was compounded by other things."

"What other things?"

"You should know as well as I that when it comes to Emily Gilmore, it's never simple."

"Got it. Ah, looks like they found each other. You know, Sherry had a really good time last night. I hope Rory did too."

"Yeah, she seemed to."

"Good, good." Here's my chance. It's now or never.

"So Chris, before you go, um, I have something I wanna say to you."

"Uh oh." Yeah, Christopher knows me a little too well. He scooted his chair back and looked into her eyes.

"It's not an uh oh."

"Okay, what?"

"Well, I, um, I kind of realized something with you and Sherry visiting and God help me, because of something my mother said to me."

"Wow, inspiration can come from the unlikeliest sources." Don't I know it…Lorelai sucked in a breath.

"I was just thinking, you know, all these years, no matter what my relationship status has been, whether I've been dating or hibernating or whatever, I think I've always had you in the back of my mind - you know, the prospect of us being together. But this prospect was sort of indefinitely on hold while you, you know, found yourself and, uh, got your personal life together so that you could really be there for me and especially for Rory. But you and I have been so linked in my mind that I think I have unconsciously sabotaged every decent relationship I've had, including the one with Max, because I was waiting for you, and I shouldn't have been. And now that I see that, and I see you settling down with Sherry, I think I can move beyond it." Christopher paused.

"Good, I'm really glad this is good for you Lorelai," he said dryly.

"It is… Chris?

"How dare you put that on me?" Whoa, what does he mean by that?

"I'm just thanking you."

"Well, don't."

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? Dammit Lorelai, you're dumping fifteen years of unhappiness on me? Fifteen years of not having healthy, lasting relationships on me? You're blaming me for breaking up with Max and not marrying him? That's all MY fault?"

"No, I just - ." Okay, this was completely blown out of proportion.

"I did nothing to deserve that."

"I'm not saying that you did."

"You're as good as saying it."

"No, I'm not."

"Then what did you expect to come from this divine revelation that you've been so kind to share with me? Did you want me to apologize to you for ruining your life or comfort you and say 'there, there, everything's gonna be all right' so you can feel okay? Forget it!"

"Chris, wait!"

"Look, if there's anything else you feel bad about in your life that you wanna dump on my doorstep, just leave a note!" He pulled back from the table and threw open the diner door. Lorelai felt helpless. She didn't mean for Chris to take her words and blow them completely out of context. She felt her eyes drift to the counter. Lorelai briefly caught Luke's eyes, but he awkwardly looked down. He probably heard every word. Damn. She then shifted her gaze out the window. Christopher was hugging Rory goodbye. They never were the perfect family picture, but maybe her mother was right for a change; it was something she used to want.

DING

Lorelai surveyed the diner as she walked in at 6:30. Completely empty. It must be one of those weird lulls that Luke was talking about last week. Very unusual for dinner time, though.

"Luke?" she called out into the seemingly vast emptiness. It was silent for a moment. Slightly creepy.

"Lorelai?" Luke called back from somewhere in the distance.

"Yeah, it's me. Where is everyone?" Lorelai set her purse and coat down on one of the stools. In the quiet, she heard a soft hum that would normally have been missed in the presence of other diners. Luke emerged from behind the curtain, wiping his hands on a rag.

"Probably out to dinner."

"What are you up to?" she took a seat. Luke went behind the counter.

"Just doing some cleaning in the storeroom."

"Ah. Messy?"

"Nah, just something that needed to be done."

"You're bored out of your mind, aren't you?"

"Completely. I was thinking about closing early."

"Well, lucky I came along. I can entertain you."

"Dirty," Luke muttered with a slight smirk on his lips. He didn't call her on her dirty comments often, but it was generally quite funny when he did,

"Wow, you're right. That definitely qualified for a dirty."

"Coffee?"

"You have to ask?" Luke turned around to start up the coffee maker. That's when Lorelai caught sight of her heart, which was still securely pinned to Luke's back. Oh my God, he has no idea. It's been on his back all day! That is…hilarious! She could feel a chuckle start to churn in her gut. It tickled as it made its way up to her throat. She did try to suppress a laugh, for Luke's sake. She really did. But, like a beaver dam against a flooded river, she burst, giggling uncontrollably. Luke whipped around at this, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion. He had a sinking feeling that she was laughing at him.

"What?"

"Hmmm," Lorelai said with closed lips before she started laughing again,"…it's…ha, nothing!"

"It's something."

"Okay," Lorelai said, taking in a deep breath, attempting to regain her lost composure. "Okay, don't get mad, but…please remember it's a joke…and sometimes I'm funny, right?"

"Just get on with it."

"Okay…so remember I was a little dark this morning."

"A little?"

"Alright, a lot dark. And, my mood still hasn't improved much. Anyway, in an effort to cheer myself up, I kinda sorta…pinned my heart on you when you weren't looking."

"You what?" Luke wore an expression of utter confusion.

"I…" Lorelai didn't finish. Luke was already reaching around and feeling his back. When he found the heart, he gave it a tug. He rolled his eyes and gave her an annoyed stare.

"Jeez, how long has that been there?"

"Since breakfast."

"Lorelai!"

"I thought you would notice sooner," Lorelai spouted out in her defense. He groaned softly, and reached back around to the pinned heart. With his fingers, he clumsily attempted to undo the safety pin. After several failed tries at odd angles, Luke gave into his frustrations and gave the heart a hefty pull. Lorelai raised her eyebrows. She heard it rip slightly. "Hey! You're going to rip a hole in our shirt! Let me see it." For the second time that day, Lorelai carefully (yet, gracefully) rested her knees on the counter. Luke turned around with a sigh and Lorelai undid the safety pin. Without incident, she made it back onto the stool. Luke was still giving her a menacing stare.

"No coffee now," came his grumpy voice.

"Aw, Luke, I just meant it as a joke. I'm sorry. I didn't think my heart would make you so angry."

"It didn't."

"Really?" she asked, not believing him.

"It's just…" he began. "Jeez, you should've told me…I have to get a kiss from Patty now."

"Ha! I forgot about that!"

"Sure you did," he deadpanned.

"No, seriously. I was just feeling blue about this whole Valentine's thing, and I didn't want to wear the heart. Since you didn't want to wear the heart more than I did, it became a game to me, and I thought secretly pinning it to you would cheer me up. Then you didn't notice, so it became more fun…"

"Well, I hoped it worked." To Lorelai's surprise, Luke then slid over a mug and proceeded to fill it.

"Peace offering?"

"More like a way to get out of your crazy antics. I've seen you without coffee. I'm a little afraid of what you will do to me without caffeine in my system."

"I'll take it! Coffee is coffee, my friend."

"Besides, you'll probably nag and annoy me to no end until I gave you some."

"Aw, Luke, I think you have the hots for me," she blurted out before she even realized what she said. Definitely an 'open mouth, insert foot' moment. Poor guy…you probably just made him very uncomfortable. Hell, I'm uncomfortable. Luke does not a thing for you, just like you don't have a thing for him. Well, okay, I did admit that I may have feelings for him once. But, that was to Emily, and I was probably just trying to get her off my back. Right? Crap, you've been silent too long. Say something!

"Jeez," Luke growled, managing something out before Lorelai had a chance to respond. Maybe he didn't notice…Luke picked up the rag and started to rub the counter on the other side of Lorelai's stool. She was silent again. "You want dinner?" he asked after a few moments of cleaning and her quiet sipping.

"Sure," Lorelai answered. She hadn't eaten much all day. She wasn't hungry for breakfast and couldn't stand to stay in the kitchen long enough to get something from Sookie. The only thing she remembered having was wrapped candies from the front desk and the disgusting pink hearts that she forced herself to eat. "Can I get a burger and chili fries?"

"Do I have much of a choice?"

"No way, Jose."

"Then, you bet." Luke walked to the kitchen, leaving Lorelai alone with her thoughts. She was definitely all alone. Sure, Luke was there, but he was making her dinner and generally wasn't chatty while manning the grill. She never realized how much she depended on the diner crowd, especially tonight when she was Rory-less. On any other day, Lorelai could chat with Babette, freak out Kirk, listen to the latest gossip from Miss Patty, argue with Taylor, talk shop with Andrew, and banter with Luke. Now, she could only do one of those things. She felt pathetic. Dark mood was back in full force. Desperate times called for desperate measures, however. Would he…no…well, maybe…

"Hey, I have a crazy idea," she called out to Luke above the hiss of the grill. He poked his head out of the window, spatula in hand.

"Never comforting words coming out of your mouth."

"Usually true, but I think you might actually go for this one."

"Okay, shoot."

"Do you want to have dinner with me?" she shot out quickly, not sure why she was holding her breath in anticipation. It wouldn't be such a big deal if Luke said no, right? Of course, why would he say no?

"Really?" He seemed surprised.

"Yeah. I mean, why should we both eat alone tonight? Besides, it was nice the other day at the picnic and we don't do enough friend-ish things together."

"Okay."

"Yea! I do believe you just made my day, Luke Danes."

"Glad to be of service," he stated with a slight smirk, "Your burger will be done soon. Do you want a beer?"

"Such service! How could I say no?"

"Should I take that as a yes?"

"Yes." She smiled sweetly. Luke disappeared from the window.

As Luke busied himself in the kitchen, Lorelai took the opportunity to take in the view of the town from his window. The carnival was in full swing, red, pink, and white decorations adorning every lamppost and building door. Well, every door except for Luke's. The white twinkle lights of the gazebo were enhanced by the addition of red, heart-shaped lights and paper lanterns. As much as Lorelai hated admitting it, the town looked pretty. She admired every ounce of work that was put into it. And, hey, at least she wasn't almost murdered by a papier-mâché star, like last year's Firelight Festival.

Lorelai was glad Luke agreed to eat dinner with her. He was always helping out, whether it was trying to lend a sympathetic ear or fixing things so she wouldn't be murdered by her house one day. She liked that quality of Luke's. He was always there.

She began to people watch the town square, waving at some milling past the diner, trying to pick out her friends in the crowd. Taylor was yelling God knows what into a megaphone. Typical. Miss Patty was tallying the hearts of the men who came to her booth. She seemed to by standing unnecessarily close to most of them, with the exception of Kirk and Al. On the prowl for the newest husband, perhaps. She spotted Lane, scoping out the square with her binoculars from her bedroom window. Lane caught her in her lens and waved, and Lorelai returned with her slightly less enthusiastic wave. It was a little creepy that Lane had made great friends with her binoculars, but also amusing. Lorelai could see Sookie and Jackson, snuggled close on a bench. Jackson was whispering something in Sookie's ear that caused her to laugh. Lorelai found herself smiling, like she knew the joke too.

Lorelai didn't hear Luke come up behind her, but she felt a presence and it caused her to cock her head to the side. Luke walked up to her side and handed over an already open bottle of beer, which Lorelai accepted with a nod.

"Just waiting on your fried death," Luke murmured, taking a sip of his bottle.

"Why thank you. It's good to know I have options in my death. There's the ever popular liquid death. Then fried death. Let's not forget baked death and grilled death…"

"Junk is junk and it will all kill you one day."

"Just like drinking this beer will make you an alcoholic?" Lorelai questioned with a raised eyebrow. Luke shook his head in defeat, and gazed out the window with her. He allowed his eyes to follow her direction, watching the same people before letting out his "Crazy town," Lorelai smiled. Sure, Luke could be full of surprises, but he was also predictable like the smell of Old Spice. She had been waiting for that comment.

"Yeah, crazy, but a good crazy."

"There's such a thing?"

"Oh, definitely, but only in Stars Hollow."

"Ah." Luke took a sip of beer, then continued, "Mind if I ask you why you aren't joining in on the festivities?"

"I guess I just don't feel up to it, like the heart thing this morning. And, well look, it's all coupley out there."

"That's never stopped you before."

"Thanks for reminding me," she spouted out sarcastically, but in a joking manner, pointing the lip of her bottle toward him.

"That's not what I meant. I just thought that the couple atmosphere never bothered you."

"It doesn't, but it does."

"That makes absolutely no sense."

"I guess you just have to be in my head."

"Scary thought," Luke said with a small, lopsided grin.

"Shush, you!" Lorelai grinned back, taking a sip, "You know, I promised Rory that I would make an effort to get happy tonight. I changed out of the all black outfit, per her request. I ate the handful of white and purple candy hearts she gave me. Then I thought, 'Hey, what could cheer me up better than Luke's coffee and food" Probably nothing.' Then, the diner was empty and I made the mistake of looking out the window at all this and all those happy thoughts went down the metaphoric drain."

"I hear windows can be hazardous that way."

"More than you know." They silently stared out the window again. Maybe they were looking out the window for an exaggerated amount of time, but Lorelai still saw something different every time she looked. Once again, her eyes fell on Sookie and Jackson on the bench. "God, that must be nice," she muttered, then wondered if she had actually said her thoughts out loud.

"What?" Luke asked.

"That," she said, pointing in the direction of the happy couple, "I know I was complaining about the couple stuff, but they look so happy and in love."

"Yeah, they do," Luke agreed with a nod.

"Jeez, listen to me. I'm being such a downer. I'm sorry." Lorelai said, bushing stray hairs away from her face, attempting to hide the intense vulnerability that she felt.

"No problem. Let me get your fries. That'll cheer you up."

"Yes, fries sound good." Lorelai followed Luke back over to the counter, not giving the window a second glance. She was now, more than ever, determined to get out of her funk.

A/N: Okay, just so you know, this is not where I planned to leave this chapter. Believe you me, there was going to be a lot more sauce, if you catch my drift (know what I mean, know what I mean, say no more, say no more, nudge, nudge…sorry, I get carried away sometimes) . But, there was so much that needed to go on before the end of the story that I got a tad overwhelmed focusing on this chapter. So I give you the first half of the extremely long and eventful chapter that was completely out of my organizational structure. So, the good news…the last chapter is done, the next chapter is going to be where all the LL juicy stuff is going to come in and is partially done. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and please don't send me hate mail. That would imply that you knew where I live and that's a little freaky. Do you like it so far? Does my lack of updating make you want to stop reading? I'm sorry, but just so you know; I always finish my stories no matter how long it takes. You have my word as a sailor, or I guess not as a sailor b/c I don't have a sea-faring trade or a job for that matter. But, my word is gold. Please review. I love 'em lots and lots.