Rory drove straight to the interstate and due north. She didn't know where she was going, or even why, all she knew was that she had to leave, had to get away and clear her head. As she clutched the steering wheel, the absence of her golden engagement ring made her heart ache. How could she do that to Jess? How could she have doubted their love, their commitment to each other? Easy, the same ways that she always let her father influence her life. She was way too vulnerable to Christopher's approval. Lorelai and Emily couldn't impact her that way, neither could Richard or Luke, but Christopher had a hold over her, and it was time that stopped.

Since she was a little girl, Rory had wanted her father in her life, really in her life, but that had never been. She realized it, she realized it when she asked her grandfather to give her away and dance a special dance at her wedding to Jess. But still, she let him sway her, let him influence her into hurting Jess so badly…she could only imagine the pain he must be in right now.

Tears started to blur Rory's vision and she pulled her car off the road into a Wendy's off of I11. Wiping the tears with her hand and opening her umbrella to keep out the rain, she went inside. She knew she had to go back, to apologize to Jess, to beg his forgiveness, but first, first she needed time to think and to figure out what she wanted to say.

Not long after Rory started to drive away, the skies opened and it began to rain. Jess just sat on the porch, staring at the ring in his hand. He couldn't believe Rory had broken things off with him. He loved her, he did everything he could to show her that he loved her, and still she left him sitting there alone, in the rain and the cold.

He watched the road waiting for her to come home. He thought she'd get part of the way to wherever she was going then turn around and come home, sit on his lap like she'd been doing lately and they would talk out her fears and doubts. As the clock ticked on though, it seemed a lot less likely that would happen.

About an hour later, Jess saw a pair of headlights pull into the driveway only when he looked at the car it wasn't Rory's tiny Pruis or even Luke's truck, which would be welcomed at this point. Instead it was a black Mercedes, and the person driving it was none other than Emily Gilmore.

She got out of the car and took a large garment bag from the back seat and started for the house. "Jess, what in the name of Heaven are you doing outside? It's pouring out!"

"Thanks for the weather report, Dave Price," Jess grumbled.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Pardon me for being concerned."

"I'm sorry," Jess apologized. "Would you like to come in?"

"Yes, is Rory home?" Emily asked.

"Uh, no, she's uh…" Jess started to move into the house when he reached for the door he dropped the ring that he'd been playing with. It made a small sound as it hit the porch. Emily leaned over and picked it up.

"Jess? Is this Rory's ring?" Emily asked and studied the boy's face. He looked like death.

Emily was not a fan of Jess and she was not a fan of this marriage, but he did make her granddaughter happy. Rory's engagement ring, pathetic though it was, should be on her finger, not on the porch.

"Yes," he answered. "We hit kind of a snag."

"A snag?" Emily echoed placing the ring on the desk near the door.

"Rory sort of…her Dad came by and she told him about the wedding. When I got back from class they were having this huge fight and I asked him to leave. When he left, Rory wigged…"Jess was cut off.

"Wigged?" Emily echoed.

"It's sort of a slang for panicked," Jess explained. "She started saying that maybe her Dad was right and that maybe you were right…"

"Maybe I was right…?" Emily asked.

"Yeah, she thinks were are too young and that we won't last," Jess spouted. "Which is ridiculous, because we made it through the worst three months…the rest is cake." He said as he shivered.

Emily noticed this, "Jess, you are soaked through the skin. Go and change. I'll make us some coffee. Where does Lorelai keep it?"

"In the second cabinet to the left of the sink, but I don't really feel like company," Jess told her reaching around to rub his sore back.

"I know that, but you don't have a choice…I came to see Rory, she's not here, so I'll wait for her," Emily said. "How do you take your coffee?"

"I don't drink coffee, but next to the filters is a box of Mint tea," Jess sighed. "I'll be a minute."

Rory ordered a triple burger meal with Biggie fries and sat down at a table in the back. She really wasn't hungry, but eating was the thing to do when one had to make an important decision, or do some homework, or pretty much anything in the Gilmore world. Thus, she took a big bite of her burger. Jess loved Wendy's burgers, he sat it was second only to a Luke burger. She sighed, "Jess."

The man who was sitting at the table next to her replied, "No, the name's Raul. But I'm guessing that this Jess is the one causing the problem."

"No," Rory replied. "This is anything but his fault. I've just got a problem."

"Well, they say the best way to solve a problem is to confide in a perfect stranger," Raul smiled. "Now, I made not be perfect, but I am a stranger."

Rory smiled, "Well, it's not really a problem; it's more of a family situation."

"Well, Cain and Abel started as a family situation."

Rory studied her burger, "It's kind of personal."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Raul replied, his Latin accent making the word sound more meaningful than it should have from a stranger mouth. That prompted Rory to speak.

"Well, you see, it all started back in May when my ex-boyfriend Jess came to my dorm at Yale to ask me to move away with him. Of course, I said no, I mean he'd left without a word before he may again right? So, he left and it was raining really hard and he was pretty upset. There was an accident right after he left, and it crippled him, he may never walk again and he'll never be in top shape again if he does. So, we got back together and cleared up our issues," Rory stopped for a breath.

"Well, I don't see a problem yet," Raul smiled; knowing from the fresh tears shining in her eyes there was more to come.

"Jess asked me to marry him the other day and I said I would. I love him so much and we're perfect for each other, but my Grandma says he's not good enough and we're too young and my Dad…my Dad who was never really in my life at all except to promise something and leave…he said…and I listened…I caved as I always did and I got scared and ran. I left the ring and I…"Rory broke down in sobs.

Raul waited until she composed herself recalling his family's opposition to his marriage, "Family is a very important thing, your mother and father are here to guide you, to help you find your way, but when one or both."

Rory protested, "My Mom was always terrific, so was Luke…"

"Luke?" Raul inquired.

"He's my Mom's fiancé now, and Jess' uncle and like a father to me, when Christopher, my real father was off in California doing God knows what…they always tried to teach me how to do the right thing, but still I always let my Dad run my life as soon as he shows up I just…" She trailed off and looked over at her wise burger companion, blue eyes meeting soulful brown ones. "He has talking eyes," Rory thought. "Just like Jess."

"Well, Rory," he paused. "That's all right, isn't it?" When she nodded he continued, "It seems to me you want your father's approval very much, but I think you cannot make decisions on unreliable sources. You know if you've made a good decision when once its made you feel great about it. A bad decision is usually the opposite, it usually is influenced and the results make us hurt deeply and question often. Consider that," he suggested.

Emily finished making the tea and Jess put on some dry clothes. He reentered the kitchen and spoke, "If you don't mind, Mrs. Gilmore I'm going to…" he paused. "Stretch out on the sofa, my…it's more comfortable."

"By all means," Emily replied. "I'll be ready in a minute."

Jess transferred himself to the sofa and put Lorelai's afghan over his legs. Emily brought his tea and sat across from him. "Rory says sometimes your legs cause you some pain."

"Some," Jess replied. "It's more my back than my legs and that last surgery helped but if I stay in one place too long…I was trying to get this laser surgery, but the bas…doctor turned me down," Jess explained.

"Mr. Gilmore told me about another doctor who might…"

"Yeah," Jess replied. "I have an appointment with him day after tomorrow. We'll see. I want more than anything to dance with Rory at our wedding, to stand under that chuppah when she comes down…but I suppose that's not in the cards."

"Why? You can't just quit because one doctor said no…Richard says…" Jess interrupted again her again, his voice tight with emotion.

"I know, Mrs. Gilmore. Richard said it to me too, if its fixable that's all your doctor requires as criteria," Jess sighed. "I mean because of what happened here with Rory's Dad."

Emily nodded quietly before Jess spoke again, "If you don't mind Mrs. Gilmore I'm not feeling well and I'd like to be alone."

"I understand," Emily said and rose from her seat. "Let Lorelai and Rory know I was by tonight."

"I will," he sighed. "Thank you for the tea."

Emily put on her coat on and opened the door. "Jess, for some reason unbeknownst to me, but very clear to her my granddaughter loves you. She'll be back, I'm certain of it."

Jess nodded but only said, "Good night."

Rory left the Wendy's Raul's last words still echoing in her head as she drove back to Stars Hollow. When she sat with Jess on the bridge, she had no doubts. Now that she left him, she was full of doubts. She considered this until the only doubt left was whether Jess would forgive her for her foolishness.

It was past one in the morning when Rory finally got home. Luke's truck was still gone, indicating the pair was still out more than likely spending the night in private somewhere romantic.

Rory went inside quietly. Jess would probably be in bed, Rory thought so she was surprised when she saw his chair near the sofa.

He was lying on his back, eyes closed in sleep, chest moving evenly as he breathes. Rory knelt beside him and smooth an unruly lock of hair off his forehead. Perched on his thumb she saw her ring and slowly removed it, placing it on the proper finger.

This caused Jess to stir and open his eyes. He licked his lips and opened his mouth to speak but Rory beat him to it, "I'm sorry."

"Ssh," Jess whispered and sat up. "Let's go to bed."

"I love you," Rory sighed, pulling him to her.

"I know," Jess whispered. "Let's go to bed. We've got a wedding to plan."

"Yeah?" Rory asked, eyes shining.

"Yeah," he replied and gave her a gentle kiss.

Two weeks later, Rory sat beside Jess' again, this time though he was in a hospital bed waiting for the nurses to come and take him for the surgery that may give Jess at least partial use of his legs back. Both were understandably nervous, but both understood this was his last chance.

Luke and Lorelai were all ready in the surgical waiting room after wishing Jess luck. Rory waited with him now quietly holding Jess' hand, until the nurses came to prep him.

"Are you nervous?" she asked, using her thumb to massage the tender skin on his knuckles.

"A little bit. I really want this to work, Rory. I really want to dance our first dance and be a real…"

Rory silenced him with her lips. Jess had said so many times in the last two weeks that he wanted to be a "real husband" to her. Rory knew what her meant and all ready told him it would work out. "Ssh. I told you none of that matters to me. I love you, I want to be your wife. No conditions." She ran her hand down her smooth cheek. He pressed his face into it and repeated, "No conditions."

A/N: So far the voting on the wedding song shows that Collide is winning. It is in the running with Ring of Fire and Why Can't I? based on reviews and offlist e-mails. Thanks for reading and reviewing.