After it Fades
Chapter Seven: 21 is the Loneliest Number
Disclaimer: I don't own the show or the characters, they belong to the wonderful creators of Gilmore Girls.
Summary: My version of what happens after the screen fades to black…
A/N: The first part is in Lorelai's point of view and the second is in Rory's point of view.
Please review, this is pretty long and I think I deserve a pretty little review.
"You can pull link sausages out of me if you want…" He told me in the car. We were driving home from Rory's party. Rory and I were finally talking and even though it was one of the most awkward conversations I've ever had with her, I was still happy to be there talking with her. She seemed happy for me, really happy. Maybe it's because even she can see that this time is different. People have been asking me a lot lately, if I'm going to leave Luke at the altar or take a trip to Harvard two weeks before the wedding. They can't see how different this time is but Rory can. She was there the last time. Last time, I wouldn't give Max a key. Luke doesn't even need a key. Last time, I made a little room in my closet but, I'm making my entire room bigger for Luke. Last time, I had to think a lot before saying yes to Max. This time, I asked Luke to marry me. Rory saw it all, even if she didn't really know all the differences, she could see it. That made me so happy, that she still knew me and she just knew. I hated the awkwardness of the conversation, but just standing there with her was good.
Then, the rest of the world appeared again and she had to run off to be in it, leaving me behind. I watched her blow out her candles with a huge crowd of people around her. She was surrounded by a million people, Logan, my mother, hundred of DAR ladies, Paris, Doyle, Lane, Zach, millions of rich, important people that she had probably never met before. It was supposed to be me standing beside her, but there wasn't any room for me… not anymore.
He knew how upset I was. I thought I was doing an OK job of hiding it, but it's Luke, and Luke can always see right through me. He always knows how I'm feeling. Sometimes that scares me, the fact that he knows me so well… but it doesn't scare me tonight. Tonight it relieved me a little bit. I was a little relieved that I didn't have to pretend, that I could just act how I was feeling… that he would comfort me. He always knows exactly what to do or say to make me feel better and that has always amazed me. Even when I'm feeling so bad, he can always make me feel so much better. He knows me. He knows what will cheer me up…he knows all the big things about me, but he also knows all of the small things.
It's always amazed me how much he knows about me and how, even knowing all of it, he still wants to marry me.
He put his hand on my shoulder and rubbed it a little bit. How does he always know?
I scooted closer to him and he put his arm around me. I love how safe I always feel when he holds me. I feel like I could stay like this forever, just in his arms.
"You don't have to." I told him. His grip loosened and then I realized he was probably thinking. He probably thought I meant he didn't have to hold me. I took his hand that was still draping over my shoulder and held it. "I mean the sausage thing." I told him, looking into his eyes for the first time since we left Rory's party. I love his eyes. They always look so caring, so safe, so loving.
He glanced down at me a few times, and then back at the road. When we stopped at the red light, he looked down at me again.
"You don't have to." I repeated. "I know you don't want to." I said.
"I want to." He argued. I smiled at him. We both knew how much he hated the idea of putting on a Halloween skit all night. "Really, I'll do it." He told me. I knew he would do it for me, he'd do anything for me, but he shouldn't have to. He does so much already, he shouldn't have to do these things he hates.
I used to wonder why he did all those things for me, all those things that he hated doing. When we were just friends, everyone told me he did stuff like that so I would notice him. After I noticed him, people told me he did those things so I would know he loved me. After I knew he loved me, someone told me that he did that stuff so I would love him. When I told him I loved him, people said it was so I wouldn't change my mind…
That last one bothered me a little bit. Well actually, it bothered me a lot. He didn't really think I would change my mind, did he? He didn't think that I would only stay if he let me pull sausages out of him or let me keep my house, or take care of my dog, did he? He knew this was different…he knew it was so different, didn't he?
Maybe not…
"Luke, it's OK. Let's do something else." I told him.
"But, you wanted to do this." he said.
"But, you don't." I said.
"Yes I do." He told me.
"I want to do something we both want." I told him. Then, he gave me this adorable, little smile. Maybe he thought the only way we'd spend Halloween together is if we did the sausage thing. Maybe that's why he said he'd do it.
I know he knows this is different… I just wish he knew how different it was. I wish he'd know how much I love spending time with him, too. I wish he knew how sure I was of this, how I wasn't going to change my mind. I was he knew that I was more afraid he would change his mind, then he probably was of me changing my mind…
The light turned green and we began driving again. But, before he pulled into town he nodded his head and said, "OK." …Maybe he was finally beginning to understand. Maybe he was finally figuring it all out, right now. Maybe now he was seeing how different things really were.
I smiled and put my head back down on his shoulder.
"Maybe, instead of just handing caramel apples on a tree, we do some bobbing for caramel apples thing." I told him.
"I think the caramel would get soggy." He said.
"We'll…I have a lot of sausage from the other idea…How about bobbing for sausage?"
"I think that'd be a big hit with the kids." He told me sarcastically.
"Some kids like sausage." I said.
"Mhm." He said.
Wanna know what Kirk is doing?" I grinned.
"No." He replied.
"Yessss you do." I sang.
"Fine." Luke gave in.
"He's putting a candy bowl on his porch and then...he's going to hook up a camera so..." I paused for dramatic effect, "he can catch all the bad kids who take handfuls of candy when people leave their candy bowl on their porch." I grinned anticipating his response.
"Only Kirk..." Luke said shaking his head, with a small smile on his face. "Only in this stupid town…"
I laughed at the funny Luke face he was making.
"Well, I guess we could just hand out candy." I told him.
"I like that idea." He told me.
"I thought you would."
"Maybe we could just put the candy bowl outside, Kirk-style, and then watch a movie or two?" He said as he pulled into the driveway, got out, and opened the door for me.
"Awww… you do love me." I told him as he greeted me at the door. He looked up, into my eyes and gave me a reassuring look, then leaned in and gave me a sweet kiss.
"Now I'll just have to figure out what to do with all that extra sausage..." I said as we walked up to the house.
He laughed as he put his hand on the small of my back and walked into the house with me. I greeted Paul Anka and then sat down on our bed, which was still downstairs due to construction, and kicked off my shoes.
"Maybe I can sell them to Kirk...I don't know, I could tell him that they are Madonna's favorite kind of sausage and she always ate them before shows… or they are going extinct in Africa and he could make fortunes off them someday, or...hmmm...I'll work on it." I said.
He sat beside me and put his hand on my knee and looked at me again - in that way that made me melt. That concerned, caring, looking deep into your soul, Joey + Dawson, Jack + Sally, I wish I could get you a Big Bird band aid and make it all better, kissing in the rain, type of look.
"You OK?" He asked softly.
I nodded. "I'm good."
He still stared into my eyes, trying to figure out if, I was lying or not. I gave him a reassuring smile and he started playing with my hair.
"Nightmare Before Christmas." I blurted out.
"What?"
"That's #1 on our Halloween Special Movie Night…It's a classic…There's singing and everything…best G rated movie you'll ever see." I told him.
"Sounds good." He said
"And…It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown… Beetlejuice, Bride of Frankenstein…and ooh, Pyscho… and of course Dracula." I babbled on. "I should make a list."
"Now, we could watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show, but watching it on video isn't even half as good as the real thing… That can be on the maybe list." I said. "A Nightmare on Elm Street… Dead of Night…the complete 102 minute version, of course."
"You're not serious." Luke said.
"Who knew there were so many great Halloween movies…" I told him. "I can't pick just two."
"Flip a coin." He said.
"You can't be serious!"
"We'll talk about it later." He said.
"Yes, we will!" I said stubbornly.
He laughed and pulled me into a hug, kissing me on the top of my head.
"Did you talk to her?" I asked him, not realizing how random that was. Luckily, he's caught up to my random way of thinking and he understood.
He nodded.
"What'd she say?" I asked.
"She told me they had beer, that her drink was disgusting and uhh… she introduced me as her step-father-to-be." He told me. The way his tone of voice was, I could tell he was a little unsure about that last part. It was as if he was afraid that it would freak me out. But it didn't, not at all.
I looked at him with a nice smile. "She did?" I asked him.
He nodded. I could see how happy he was. He wasn't smiling, but he was glowing like those glow-in-the-dark necklaces that look so cool when you break them and pour the liquid on your clothes.
"Well, it's true." I told him.
He nodded slightly, still looking directly into my eyes. That used to freak me out- when guys did that. It was like they could see inside me, see what I was thinking and everything. Maybe that's stupid, but it always made me uncomfortable. But not with Luke… not at all.
"She looked good." I said.
"Yes she did." He said.
I sighed and I felt him pull me closer. My head rested on his shoulder, right under his chin as he ran his hand up and down my back.
He did always know how to make me feel better…
I stared down at the necklace, still in my hand.
It was so beautiful, so elegant, very vintage… and it was his mothers.
He probably has no idea how much this means to me. I mean, it's his mothers necklace…and he gave it to me? Maybe it wasn't supposed to mean anything. Maybe he just found it and was like 'whatever, I'll give it to Rory.' But, it meant something didn't it? It means that I'm special to him, right? That I'm important…that he thought of me…I mean something? I called him my step-father-to-be. I was a little surprised when the words came out of my mouth, but it's true, he is. Him and my mother are getting married. It's not the fact that he will soon be in my family, that upsets me…that's not it at all. It's just the fact that I'm missing it all. I'm missing their relationship, the one my mother has waited for forever. The one I hoped she would get… I'm missing all of it and when I called him my step-father-to-be, it sort of hit me. Then, with my Mom telling me about the construction and the dog…So much has changed. It's like she has a new life, and I'm not part of it…
She left before I could even say goodbye. She didn't sing Happy Birthday to me… She didn't eat cake, she didn't even say goodbye… It just wasn't exactly how I thought my 21st birthday would be. It was supposed to be her and me… My mom and I… with 21 things, playing 21. She was supposed to be beside me, not millions of crazy DAR ladies.
"Rory!" I heard my grandmother yell. I was sitting on the couch, in the living room while the maids were cleaning up around me. I wanted to help them, but it'd probably give my grandmother a heart attack.
"What is it?" I asked sweetly.
"You have to open your presents." She told me. Presents, wonderful…
I walked over to the 'present mountain' as Luke referred to it as earlier. I expected that inside all of those boxes would be a bunch of useless things from many rich, people that I don't really care about. I mean, what would you get a girl whose grandparents would buy her anything? Of course, there were gifts I was looking forward to… a gift from Lane and Zach, Paris and Doyle, and…my mothers.
"Where did you get that?" She gasped when she saw the necklace I was holding in my hand.
I smiled at her, "Luke". I told her simply.
The face she made was a true Kodak-moment. "Luke?" She asked again.
"Yes." I told her.
She took it out of my hands and examined it closer; probably making sure it was real.
"Well, I suppose everyone has to have some good qualities…" She said as she handed the necklace back to me. I knew she was impressed with the necklace. I also knew she hated that it was so impressive. It had always been obvious that she didn't like Luke. She probably never would, no matter how many times my mom or I tell her how great he is… tell her how he's always been there and how he's a really good man, it wouldn't matter, she'd still hate him. No matter how amazing he truly is… She took every chance she got to say something bad about him, but she knew she was stuck here. The necklace was beautiful and she hated that.
I took the necklace and put it around my neck, glancing in the mirror to see how it looked. It looked good.
"Lucile, we're going to need you to keep track of who brought what." My grandmother instructed one of the maids.
The maid nodded and got her paper and pencil ready.
"Go ahead." My grandmother instructed me.
I sat down in the chair near my pile of presents and picked a random one off the top. I tore off the wrapping paper and inside was a glass bird. It was the type that always made rainbows on the ceiling… but still, a glass bird? Can you say random?
I opened about 25 more presents. I got about 8 bottles of wine, 2 bottles of scotch, and 1 bottle of Bailey's, a pair of expensive hair clips that were covered in jewels, a small jewelry box, a set of expensive pens, and tickets to a play. Some of the DAR ladies bought me joke gifts such as a gift certificate to Friendly's for Buffalo wings, Dirty Dancing on DVD, a dirty T-shirt, a large set of brightly colored toe socks, and many other crazy things like that. Crazy Ladies… Little did they know that those gifts would get a lot more usage than they thought.
I opened Lane's gift next. Inside the box was a really great 21st birthday CD mix and a huge photo album. The album was great, it had a million pictures of us all over it, with stickers and glitter. She even wrote little comments next to many of the pictures. I started looking through the album, smiling more as I turned each page. The first page had pictures of us as newborns and then as the pages went on, we got older and older. The 2nd page had a picture of my teenage mother holding me when I was probably just a month old. Welcome to Stars Hollow- that was the next page- a huge picture of the welcome to Stars Hollow sign. And after that there were pictures of Lane and I in the sandbox, on the jungle gym, at town festivals, at Luke's, making snow angels, going to church with Mrs. Kim, hanging out at the Inn, and swimming at Larson's Dock. There was that traditional picture of the two of us at a birthday party, with our faces covered in frosting. There were pictures of us with just about every person living in Stars Hollow, and in almost every special place in Stars Hollow. There were pictures of my first days at Stars Hollow High, Chilton and Yale…my first driving lesson, my first dropped ice cream, my first cup of Luke's coffee, and my first night at our new house… Everything was in here… It was as if my whole life was in this book.
I was enjoying looking through it, but as the pages went on and I got older, I noticed that there were less and less pictures of Lane and I together. I wonder if she noticed that, too. I wonder what she thought about it… She was still my best friend, of course. But we were drifting apart…or maybe it's only me that's drifting. I'm the one who left home, I'm the one who isn't talking to her mother, I'm the one who isn't around anymore. I'm the one who's changed.
Boy, have I changed… I quit Yale, I dropped out of college, I spent a night in jail, I'm not talking to my mother, I'm missing out on her engagement, I'm planning DAR parties, and I'm living in my grandparent's pool house. I've changed, I know that… Maybe I just didn't know how much.
Just as I was deep in my thoughts, Hurricane Emily came barging in…
"Rory what is that?" Emily asked me pointing to the book I had in my hands, with a disgusted look on her face. I know she'd never appreciate a gift like this. She was never one of those people who said, handmade gifts were the best. She wasn't one of those people who would love getting a macaroni necklace or a finger-painting for Christmas. She went by the 'more they spend on you, the more they love you' motto.
"Lane's gift. I love it." I told her.
"Ah, the Asian friend." Emily said. I wanted to slap her, but of course, I wouldn't.
"Lane." I said.
Emily rolled her eyes and left the room again.
I watched her walk out of the room, and then my eyes landed on the many presents that were still left to open. I had never been this annoyed opening presents. I've never not wanted to open presents.
Paris' present was next. It was a pretty big package. Dirty. Ha-ha.
I started to tear the wrapping paper off.
Inside were a few things. I reached for a tape, first. When I looked at the label, I melted a little bit, and maybe a few tears threatened to fall. 'Graduation.'
I knew what she was doing; of course, I knew what she was doing. I was almost afraid to look at the rest of the items in the box, but… I did.
I reached for a huge envelope next. I picked it up and opened it. Inside there was a copy of my first article printed in the Chilton newspaper. I almost smiled at the memory of Paris giving me that really lame assignment and how I showed her up by making it amazing… Mmm… good times.
There was also a copy of my first article printed in the Yale newspaper. I skimmed it for a few seconds and then pulled out the rest of the things in the envelope. There was a few pictures from graduation, one of me giving my speech, one of me with my mom, Sookie, Jackson and Luke, one of me with my mom and Luke, one of me with my grandparents, and one of me with Paris. I looked so happy in them, so excited. I was excited. I mean, I had this whole future ahead of me… I had everything ahead of me… too bad I didn't know it would end up like this…
There were a few other articles of mine inside, along with some papers that had huge red A's on the right hand corner.
Then, I picked up the black t-shirt that was folded nicely in the box. 'Rory's going to Yale.' She must have gone to my mother for this… My Yale wall… I wonder if it's still there, if my mother took it down, and if she already turned my room into a doggy play house or something. I placed the black shirt beside me and reached for the next item.
I looked down at the piece of paper left in the box. I picked it up and I'm pretty sure my mouth dropped open. It was my pro- con list for Harvard, Yale and Princeton. I hadn't seen them in more than a year. I read each one more than once, remembering what I was thinking when I wrote down each item, and how I pulled all-nighters just trying to find things to make something be able to compete with Yale.
'Be close to Mom'
That was number one on my Yale list. After reading each list a few more times, I sighed and placed them on the ground. Then I looked inside the box and saw that nothing was left, so I put all of the stuff back and pushed the box aside.
Then I looked at the present mountain and focused my eyes of her present.
"Grandma, I'm going to finish the rest tomorrow, I'm really tired. Goodnight." I called to Emily.
"Night." She said.
I sighed, picked up Paris' box, Lane's photo album and CD, the dirty t-shirt, the Friendly's gift card and then my mother's present.
I walked into my room- or the room they say is my room because they found out I had sex.
I placed everything that had been in my arms, on my bed and then I sat down.
I stared at her present for a long time before finally getting the courage to open it. I don't know why I was so stupid. Why was I flipping out about her present anyway? It would probably be something silly… a dirty poster, perhaps? One that would make my grandma crazy… or maybe just a movie…or some jewelry or something. It'd be simple, why was I making such a big deal about it?
I guess I was just a little scared- that it would be some thoughtless gift… Knowing that she didn't care- that would hurt.
I finally got the courage at about 2:30 AM. I slowly unwrapped the present- it was about the size of two shoeboxes…not like size mattered or anything. It's not the size of the ship, it's the motion in the ocean! Ha-Ha…Dirty, Lorelai moment… What can I say? I am my mother's kid…
I opened the cardboard box and inside were a ton of things- all wrapped up individually. I counted them in my head.
21. 21 things. She had bought me 21 things. She remembered. She remembered our plan…
I unwrapped each one, taking my time and not ripping the wrapping paper. That kind of thing had always driven my mother crazy…
A Pinocchio figurine, one of those ankle bracelets that you make wishes on, a snow globe, Superman boxers, a package of those glow-in-the-dark stars you stick to your ceiling, a birthday crown, a plastic, hot pink, martini glass, a Kermit the Frog night light, a mini pink flamingo that sang the Beach Boys, a mood ring, Cheetos flavored lip gloss, a fake feather pen, a box of very sparkly pencils, a inch worm beanie baby, a hot dog squeaky toy, a tiny miniature bottle of martini mix, a box of Flintstones vitamins, a box of dirty macaroni and cheese, a tootsie roll pop, a rubber ducky, a bad of coffee blend and a bracelet with neon, plastic beads.
At the bottom of the box there was an envelope taped down to it. I pulled it off and opened it.
Hey there birthday girl,
How are you liking your life so far? Yeah…insert the rest of the story here. I know I'll sound like some old lady, sitting in a rocking chair or some really old mom being like 'it was just yesterday'…but whatever. It does seem like just yesterday. I can't believe it's been 21 years, kid.
Here, I've gotten you 21 things, just like we planned… Well, not really but sorta… I put a lot of thought into each and every thing…
1. The wishlet: that's the ankle bracelet with the beads, a wishlet is what they are calling it these days. You know the story, when each bead falls out, your wish will come true. And well, you know how I hate the way you can only make one wish on your birthday… I mean, there are so many things you want to wish for and there just isn't enough birthdays in a person's life…So, now you'll get a few more wishes in…
2. The glow-in-the-dark stars: Put them on your ceiling, and at night, it'll be like your back in Stars Hollow, looking at the stars with me. Maybe this one is more for you then me because I'm sure you're probably not homesick…but I'd like to think you are…just a little bit. I'd like to think you miss me, you miss the town, you miss how beautiful the stars look on a clear night… And if you don't, they still glow-in-the-dark and that's pretty cool…
3. The snow globe: Because duh, snow… Just imagine your inside that little snow globe, only it's not a snow globe, it's Stars Hollow right after the first snow of the season. Imagine the snowman-making contest we would win, Kirk running his own sledding service, Luke making us an ice rink. Imagine us skating, making snow angels, hitting Luke repeatedly with snowballs until he gets mad and fights back… Plus, you know how I love snow globes…It's like the first snow of the season over and over…I'm waiting for a Disney movie to be made out of that one… The magical snow globe, the kids shake it and they magically get trapped inside…blah, blah, blah…someone falls in love with an elf or something…anyways…
3 &4. The martini glass and the martini mix: Well, duh. You're 21 now, kid. Go crazy, it's legal! …But still, no windows…
5. The macaroni and cheese: Because, if you do…go crazy that is, here is your lovely box of comfort food.
6. The crown: Duh. It's your birthday…I couldn't find one that was pink and fuzzy, but this is almost as cool. I'm sure my mother has probably bought you a diamond tiara that is worth more than every shoe in my closet put together plus every single flannel shirt Luke owns…but you can wear this one mud-wrestling.
The lip gloss: Because who the hell thought of the idea to make Cheetos flavored lip gloss?
The beanie baby: Well…did you know that they do not make a caterpillar beanie baby? Maybe this one is for me, too… You remember that day you found the dead caterpillar and you made sure he had a proper funeral? You had flowers and you made invitations. You asked the Reverend to be there and you even made him a little casket out of a cream cheese container. It's like my little, baby Rory memory…the one that is so incredibly adorable and you feel the need to tell all those other soccer moms who think their kids are so great, so you tell them this caterpillar story and be like 'ha-ha my kid rocks.' So, it's for you and me…to remember the cute, little Rory and one my many proud Mom stories. Just pretend it's a caterpillar, not an inch-worm.
The night light: I couldn't find a Minnie Mouse one, like the one you used to have… Whenever you thought monsters were around, you'd use your Minnie Mouse and they'd go away, same for when you were afraid of the thunderstorm…You thought it had this magical power and it would make all the bad things go away. It helped you face your fears…so maybe this one will do the same.
The feather pen: Because I still have this images in my head of you sitting at your desk, with books everywhere and one of those cool light things they have in the movies. You would be looking all smart, like you were writing a novel or figuring out the meaning of life…And when I image this, I'm not sure why but you always have a feather pen…
The mood ring: When you were 10 years old, we were at the supermarket and you begged me for one of those 50 cent mood rings they had at the register, but I couldn't buy you one. Then you cried all the way home because you just wanted that 50 cent mood ring…so, now you have it, sorry that it's 11 years late…
The flamingo: Well, isn't is obvious? It sings! C'mon! When we first moved into our house, you told me you wanted to get one of those pink flamingos for the front yard. Well, this one is too small for a front yard, but perfect size for a dresser…Plus, it sings the Beach Boys.
Tootsie Roll Pop: because your smart Yale brain has to be put to good use…how many licks does it take to get to the center?
Vitamins: Because you loved them when you were younger, but we could never afford them…I told you someday I'd buy them for you. Plus Luke wants us to be healthy.
Pencils: to keep the feather pen company…
Pinocchio: To remind you not to lie… Plus, that was the first movie we ever rented at the Stars Hollow video store.
The hot dog: because it's cool… it squeaks…
The rubber ducky: because rubber ducky, you're the one… plus I bet you need some company in those huge, fancy baths the maid makes for you. And it'll drive Emily crazy.
Coffee: Duh. It's Luke's special blend… I thought you might be in withdrawal, so I figured you might want this.
Bracelet: When I was 21 years old, you were 5 years old and for Christmas that year I got you this bead set. For weeks, you'd spend all your time doing arts and crafts and making necklaces and bracelets. When all of the beads were almost gone, you told me you were saving the rest for a very special person. Now, I thought you were going to give them to Matthew Bryant, this boy who lived on our street and you had this cute little crush on him. But, on my birthday you woke me up at midnight and said 'happy birthday Mommy! You're 21! And you're my special person' and you gave me this bracelet. You told me it had exactly 21 beads on it because I was 21 and you thought you were so clever to think of an idea like that. When most people turn 21, they go out and get so drunk, they can't stand…but I hung out with my daughter and she gave me a bracelet and I was just as happy. And, I know we said we'd go out and buy 21 things and this isn't bought… but we also said we'd play 21 and we'd drink martinis and then that thing with the 21 guys, so I figure its OK if I bend this one a little bit.
Happy Birthday, Kid.
I love you,
Mom.
Tears were falling down my face uncontrollably, now. I put the letter back into the envelope and looked at the items spread across my bed.
I picked up the stars, stood up on my bed and one by one, stuck the stars to my ceiling. I took the bracelet and put it around my wrist, the ring on my finger, the crown on my head, and the wishlet on my ankle. I shook the snow globe, then set it on my dresser along with the pen, pencils, rubber ducky, macaroni, martini glass and martini mix. I took the tootsie roll pop and began to suck on it.
Then I set Lane's photo album on my lap and popped in my graduation tape. I turned off the lights, glancing up at the glowing stars, and then I watched as I graduated…
…wondering just how things got so messed up.
I hope this was good... I didn't proof read it as many times as I usually do so hopefully it didn't suck.
This episode was the best so far this season. I loved when Luke played with Lorelai's hair, the whole 'aww luke will you marry me?' and the 'you can pull linked sasauges out of me if you want.' I also loved the 'It was like drinking a my little pony.' Hilarious. And finally, Rory and LOrelai talking! Wooo... And finally Rory is doing something interesting instead of just hanging out with DAR ladies. Thank God.
Anyway, please review.