AN: to js: of course they both already have accountants and advisors. What I meant here is that they need to start talking about combining their funds - have overviews of what either one has before they get married etc.
Chapter 181
May 25th, 2007
"I just couldn't answer him. You know, I just kept saying - 'I don't know. I'll have to think about it.'" Rory described. "It was awful! He was obviously disappointed and upset," Rory continued, feeling already incredibly guilty for her indecisiveness when Logan had asked her to marry him. She felt it should've been an easy answer - she loved him. They'd talked about someday traveling the world together, changing the journalism imperium around, working and playing hard, they'd even talked about what kind of lives they wanted to have, they'd even talked about kids - even if as something in the very distant future. The topic of living together was already a default in their plans. So why was this so different?
She and her mother were sitting in the horse carriage, going around the block, Rory having felt very similar to the knight she'd stolen the yacht - a carpeting being pulled from under her. Thankfully, they hadn't needed to steal the carriage.
"You know he made all these plans about the house we would live in and the avocado tree in our backyard," Rory continued, feeling confused how suddenly all the vague plans and dreams they'd had, and shared, had suddenly become so concrete after Logan had come back from California. Sure, they'd both also been busy, and she'd been preoccupied with her applications and worrying about her future - so maybe that was why they hadn't talked that deeply. It was the best she could come up with. But it didn't diminish her doubts and the guilt she felt.
"Well, you do like guacamole," Lorelai noted. Light jokes were not what Rory needed at that point.
"I just had to explain to him how out of the blue this is. I mean this is seriously out of the blue - out of the deepest, darkest, naviest blue! And why are you so calm, by the way?" Rory exclaimed.
"Oh, well…," Lorelai began, feeling relief and heaviness at the same time. "He asked my permission a couple days ago," Lorelai confessed.
"What!? You knew!?" Rory exclaimed in disbelief.
"I was dying to tell you," Lorelai said, apologetically.
"Oh man! You are a good secret keeper;" Rory reflected.
"Not really - I told Sookie. I told your dad. Paul Anka and I discussed it at length," Lorelai tried to joke, hoping Rory wouldn't ask what exactly had any of those discussions involved. The one with Paul Anka had even involved a lot of 'What the fuck-s!' and 'Really-s?' both at Logan showing up in the first place and only then towards his attentions. In her mind her baby girl had just hatched, and was just learning to fly - she was nowhere ready in her mind. But on Lorelai's defense she did not want to influence her decision - she knew this needed to be Rory's decision or she'd resent her for life.
"So what do you think I should do?" Rory asked, hopefully. She knew her mother always had an opinion, and she was dying to hear it.
"Oh, honey, I think it's your decision," Lorelai said, really not wanting to answer her.
"I know. But tell me what you think I should do," Rory begged.
"Well, I think you should take a few days. You know - let the shock wear off," Lorelai added, and this she could say honestly. In her mind the fact that Rory hadn't replied straight away said something, but Rory needed to come to a conclusion on her own on this.
"You're really not gonna give me your opinion?" Rory asked, sounding disappointed.
"Only you know what you want," Lorelai said, shifting the weight of the question onto Rory. She thought she was doing the right thing by staying out of it, but what she didn't know was that her not saying anything actually said plenty, even if Rory didn't interpret it as such right at that minute. But the lack of assurance was enough.
"Yeah," Rory sighed. "I love him. I do. I mean, things have been really amazing lately. But, on the other hand, we are so young. I'm only 22. On the other hand, what does age matter when you're in love? On the other hand, what's the rush?" Rory discussed, her mind already feeling fried.
"Well, you're like a circus freak with all the hands," Lorelai replied, trying to lighten the mood. Maybe sleeping on it would be the solution. She knew her daughter when she was confused and not thinking straight anymore. These past few days, and many to come before her graduation were busy and hectic enough. There was so much to do, decisions to make - and this was just one really big one on top of everything else. She didn't blame her for being confused.
"Won't you just tell me what to do?" Rory pleaded again.
"Honey, I'm sorry;" Lorelai said.
"Oh! Okay. You don't have to say anything. Just blink one eye if you think I should do it," Rory tried to get her to say something. But she knew this was getting ridiculous already. She wasn't 5. She knew her mother was trying desperately to stay out of it. And it was now beginning to sink in that her mother must have doubts herself.
"No!" Lorelai objected.
"'Cause you don't?" Rory suggested, already reading that from her lack of words.
"'Cause I won't," Lorelai replied plainly.
"This is like the bird-versus-turtle Halloween costume all over again," Rory said, turning this into a joke. An escape mechanism.
"Well I didn't crack then, and I'm not gonna crack now. I just think you need to figure it out. And remember - that flying turtle bird was the most original costume in the third grade," she replied.
"Yeah," Rory sighed. "But this time I have to choose - turtle or bird?" she said, hoping the stupid analogy would somehow apply.
"Well, you're not in third grade anymore," Lorelai offered her a reality check.
"Yeah, I guess not," she relented and sighed deeply. This was so beyond turtle or bird.
May 14th, 2022
After an initial round of tentative congratulations, both Christopher and Rory being completely stunned by Gigi's and Eric's announcement, Christopher had swiftly played the dad card and taken Eric aside to his study to talk. While Gigi had objected with a embarrassed sounding 'Daadd...' groan, Eric, behaving like a perfect gentleman, had agreed and there they were now for the 36th minute in a row, behind closed doors. Frankly, Rory was glad they were - as she did believe Christopher needed to figure the guy out, more than the PI had managed. But since Em was busy watching Hilda, with Logan keeping her company, this also gave Rory a moment to have a word with Gigi.
Unfortunately, the first thirty minutes of this Gigi had gone on and on about how Eric had showed up at their brunch date with a big bouquet of roses, which she'd ended up forgetting at the Contessa later. She had a picture for proof, which she'd already shared all over her social media, along with the sparkling ring on her finger. Rory didn't know a lot about rings, but it certainly looked pricy enough. She'd retold Rory in vivid detail how he'd gone down on one knee and spent a good ten minutes talking about how much he loved her and knew it was meant to be. Every cell in Gigi's body oozed happiness, excitement and joy as she told the story. It was almost an envious sight - someone being so sure of themselves. Despite this Rory remained cautious.
"I hate to ask, but have you thought how's this going to work? With him in Boston and you at Yale, I mean," Rory tried putting it as nicely as she could. "I'd just hate to see you go down the same road one of my friends did when he got married straight out of high school, I think he did no more than a year at college," she added, trying to use an analogy, failing to mention that Dean had gone to technical school later on which hadn't been the worst thing in the world for him.
"Oh, I'm totally still going," Gigi replied quickly. "Or I might transfer, I don't know yet," she added with a shrug. "But I mean it's not that far. Or he'll look for a new job somewhere closer. It's just a couple of years," Gigi explained, like it was no big deal.
"Have you talked about it?" Rory asked, skeptically
"A little," Gigi replied, but Rory could tell she was becoming defensive already.
"But what's the rush? Why marriage, why not just be together?" Rory could no longer hold her tongue.
"I knew you'd hate it," Gigi replied, disappointedly. "I just hoped you could be happy for me, but I see that's not going to happen. Just because you couldn't commit, doesn't mean I'm like that," Gigi added, Rory's story quite freshly in her mind. They'd talked a lot more these past few months, about relationships among other things.
"You realize that you can't base your decisions based on the mistakes that I've made, right?" Rory said. It almost felt like Gigi was just trying to do the exact opposite to what she'd once done, proving that being the opposite to overly cautious would prove a better option.
"I am not!" Gigi huffed.
Rory hated to admit it but Gigi's recent behavior, the pregnancy included, wasn't exactly showing her from the side that held her best decision making skills. But she didn't say a word right this minute, watching her words.
"I love him!" Gigi added.
"I know," Rory said but meant something along the lines of "...I know you think you love him", unable to fully believe Gigi could indeed find the one this early in life.
"Then why can't you just be happy for me instead of thinking of all the practicalities? I know you and dad are pretty much counting on this to fail, but I don't want to think like that. I choose not to think like that," Gigi explained.
"Then…," Rory began, wanting to repeat her earlier thought and ask why they couldn't just be together. "But..," she began again, wanting to emphasize how Gigi had been seeing the guy just a couple of months. "Why…," she began for the third time, the statement 'why would someone his age want to be with some one your age' wanting to slip out. Thankfully it didn't. "Surely you see…," she began for the fourth time, aiming to suggest taking some precautions in terms of a prenup, but realized soon enough how offended she would've felt had someone suggested that to her. Hell - her and Logan were probably going to be advised to get one now too by both of their lawyers and financial advisors.
"I know what you're thinking - and I'm pretty sure dad's in there testing the waters in terms of a prenup as we speak. Worst case scenario he won't give me my trust fund until I'm older. But big deal - how much do I really need in college anyways? And isn't the most important thing that I'm happy?" Gigi said, sounding simultaneously like a teenager and someone decades older and wiser.
