DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything to do with Gilmore Girls or the song "What's Up Lonely?" by Kelly Clarkson. I am simply borrowing them for a little while.
Whew! I am relieved about the last chapter. I wasn't feeling too confident in it, but all your reviews were so great and encouraging. So, thank you, thank you, thank you! You guys are definitely keeping me motivated. Now, on with the story…
Tristan and Rory had two very different weekends. Rory's was spent eating as much junk food as humanly possible, watching lots of movies and a shopping trip courtesy of Lorelai. Tristan ended up going to the party with Jenna, because there was no way he would spend the whole weekend sitting around his house moping about some girl. He of course drank too much and treated his date like crap. So, basically it was just an ordinary weekend. The drinking helped him not think about the last party he had been at. Nothing could compare to dancing with Rory, so he didn't even want to bother trying.
On Monday morning, Rory was sitting on the bus convincing herself she was over everything that had happened. At least that's what she had told Lorelai all weekend, which of course they both knew was a lie. Well, even if I'm not over it, I can still pretend everything is normal, Rory thought. So far, she had made it to her locker and her seat in first period without incident. Then, Tristan walked in and took his seat behind her.
In any other situation, Tristan would laugh at Rory's attempt at normalcy. This wasn't the first time she had acted as if he didn't exist, but he knew this was different. He could see the difference in her eyes; they went from annoyed amusement to hurt anger. He expected her change in attitude of course, but it still bothered him to know that if he tried teasing her today, she would probably turn around and slap him.
"Ms. Gilmore? Excuse me, Ms. Gilmore… Do you know the answer or not?" The teacher prodded Rory out of her thoughts.
"I'm sorry, what was the question?" Rory asked sheepishly. She heard Paris snicker in the corner and raise her hand. She was called upon and then sat back with a victorious grin after giving the correct answer. Now Rory really wanted to kill Tristan; that was the first time she had ever spaced out in front of a teacher. She waited for his sarcastic comment to come from behind her, but it never came.
She spent the rest of the class trying desperately to pay attention and get called on again. Even Tristan had provided a correct answer during class, and she was beginning to really lose it. The bell rang, finally putting her out of her misery. She got up and gathered her things as quickly as possible and made her way to her locker. She sighed loudly when she saw Paris coming up to her side. "Well, Gilmore, nice job today. Really."
Rory gave her a fake smile and said, "Gee, thanks Paris. We can't all not have a life like you and spend every second of every day studying." Tristan, who was standing a few feet away, heard her comment and couldn't help but laugh. He was shocked that she said it, but it was great to see Paris get put in her place. Paris' face grew angry and she said, "Oh, I see. Things didn't work out between you and the Playboy over there and you're taking it out on me."
"I don't know what the hell you're talking about Paris." Rory said overconfidently. She was really starting to get nervous at the crowd that had started to gather around them. It didn't help that she could see Tristan standing in the corner with a strange smirk on his face.
Paris smiled and said, "We all saw you at the party last week. And on Friday after school? Come on, Gilmore."
Tristan was about to speak up, but was stopped when Rory did first. "Oh, right. I might have been stupid enough to spend time with Tristan, but at least I didn't get drunk and make an ass out of myself in front of some guy and dragged out of there by MY mother."
Paris faltered for a second and then said, "Hmm… I don't think so cupcake. You definitely did make an ass out of yourself in front of some guy. That guy being Tristan who you were stupid enough to think liked you."
Rory frowned and said, "You know what, Paris? You're right, I already said I was stupid. You'd think you of all people could understand that."
Paris pretended to be confused and said, "What are you talking about?"
"Who was 'stupid' enough to have a crush on Tristan and go out with him?" Rory said, smiling at Paris' horrified face.
The crowd was now turned to Tristan, who looked guilty and unsure of what to do. He had two girls fighting about him. He could care less about Paris' feelings; all he cared about was what this was doing to Rory. Finally, he stepped forward and between the two girls. "Okay guys, I think we're done here. Rory, why don't you just go to the library or something?"
Rory laughed and said, "Right, like I'm going to listen to you, the person that caused all of this. You know you don't give a shit about me, so why don't you just find one of your little girlfriends and leave us alone."
Everyone in the crowd, including Paris, was shocked at Rory's outburst. No one at Chilton had every heard her speak that much, let alone swear.
Tristan lowered his voice and said, "You know that's not true Rory. Things got all messed up on Friday. I never wanted that to happen."
Rory, who looked to be on the verge of tears, whispered, "Well, it did." Then, she pushed her away through the crowd and out the front door. The warning bell rang, and the crowd dissipated, leaving just Paris and Tristan.
Tristan scowled at her and said, "Why do you have to be such a bitch to her all the time Paris? You know, I think she was your only real friend."
"Yeah, well, why do you have to be so careless? I think she is the only girl in this whole school that doesn't look at you and see dollar signs." Paris said, and then quickly made her way to class.
Tristan knew that Paris was right; Rory was the only girl that he could ever see himself really caring about. He had no idea what he was going to say, but he went out to the courtyard to try and find Rory.
Rory was sitting at a picnic table, praying that he wouldn't follow her. She sighed when she heard the door open and Tristan appeared. He wordlessly came and sat across from her, not wanting to anger her by sitting too close. Rory spoke first, "Why can't you just leave me alone?"
"Because… I care about you." Tristan said uncertainly.
"Oh yeah, I can tell." Rory said, masking her hurt with anger.
Tristan's face fell and he said, "Rory, you have to understand something about me. I'm not used to actually liking a girl. I don't know how to not be a jerk. With all the other girls, it was just some game."
Rory looked back up at him, staring him hard in the eyes. "That's the thing Tristan. How am I supposed to know that everything you are doing or saying isn't a lie?"
"Well, I'm not sure if you could ever know for sure, but I can tell you that I would never purposely do anything to hurt you." Tristan said, his voice sounding like something he had never heard before.
"But you've already hurt me. A couple of times actually."
"I know, and I've been wishing I could take those things back, but I can't. I just automatically put up this wall when I get close to caring about someone. I think I use it as a way to push people away so they don't hurt me."
Rory looked sad at his admission. She could almost see all the times he's been hurt in his eyes. She silently thanked her mom for getting her away from the society life; it really could mess with people. She got up and sat by him and said, "I'm sorry. I guess I never thought about why you are the way you are."
He laughed a little and said, "Gee, thanks."
"No, I didn't mean it like that. It's just now I can see why you are so defensive. My mom told me what it was like to grow up in your world. I guess I just always assumed it was rich kids complaining."
Tristan smiled and said, "Well... Sometimes it is. It's not always easy being this wealthy and good looking."
Rory laughed and said, "There you go again."
"Hey, I'm a sarcastic guy, what did you expect? Some crying about how daddy never loved me? Not gonna happen."
Rory was happy to see him acting like himself. She really enjoyed seeing his sense of humor when he wasn't using it to hurt her. She knew he was still covering for himself, but she could accept it as long as he told her the truth. "Okay, but you can tell me about it if you want. I'm a good listener."
Tristan smiled at how sweet and caring she was being. He knew that it would be safe to tell her things, and that's all he needed. He gently grabbed her face and turned her towards him. "Thanks, but for now I think I'd rather" He stopped and kissed her softly. She responded and they continued kissing passionately until they felt the need to breathe.
Rory smiled, her forehead resting against his. "I have a feeling you are pretty good at distraction. I might want to stay away from you."
He gave her one more kiss and said, "Nah, my kind of distraction is fun."
Well, that was a little bit longer than most. This wasn't planned, my fingers just kinda spit it out! I hope you all like it! It had drama and romance, both good things, right? Don't worry, this is definitely not over. Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!