"Nice to see you, what a surprise," she shakily said to April, who by now had come up to her father. Lorelai couldn't help but notice how close she stood to Luke, how natural the two looked standing next to each other.
"Dad, are we checked in? Freddy wants to go over the…"
"Check-in. Correct." With her customary aplomb, Lorelai quickly recovered and moved around to the other side of the reception desk. She briefly fiddled with the still-somewhat-unfamiliar computer system, and then asked, "Name?"
Luke looked at her, mouth open.
"Oh. Right. Of course I know your name. Danes."
It should have, would have been mine too, she sorrowfully thought.
"So…" she managed a smile in April's direction, "your roommates are Laura, Hannah and…"
"Marie, right?" April supplied.
"Right." Lorelai programmed two keycards and handed them to Luke and April.
"And Luke…it looks like you have a roommate too."
I wish it were me, she thought.
"Hannah's Dad, they're the only two dads on the trip." April sure seemed helpful.
As she finalized the registration, Lorelai couldn't help but notice that when he wasn't paying attention to April, that Luke's eyes were probing in her direction.
"Enjoy your stay…of…three days," she added. Three days.
Luke just stood there. Watching her. April was rummaging through some brochures.
"In rooms 201 and 207," Lorelai added.
And still Luke just stood there.
"Dad!" April piped up. "Freddy?"
"Right."
And just like that, they were gone.
------
Lorelai, on the other hand, was still there. Where was the reception clerk? Going back into her office, she first stopped to get a glass of water, and then went to her desk to do some serious thinking. It was then that she suddenly remembered: Anna.
The reason she was at this beautiful resort in the first place.
The first thought that she had was that Anna would now make good on her threats to harm Luke's reputation, and to keep him from his kid. But technically, it was Luke who had come to her new home; she had stayed away from him. To make matters worse, there was no way that Anna could not find out: April had seen them embrace.
Lorelai would do anything for Luke, and she had done just that, even though being apart from him was killing her. And she could tell from his demeanor, words, and appearance, that he'd fared no better. Maybe she should just tell him where she'd gone when she'd left him. What she'd done with Christopher. That would certainly kill any residual feelings Luke might still have for her.
But just thinking about that was next to impossible. Maybe--maybe she should just tell Luke everything. What Anna had done. Her threats, what she planned to do if Lorelai didn't comply. But how could she? No one would believe her.
Just the though made Lorelai angry. Though she believed that Anna deserved to set the parameters for interaction with her kid, Luke had rights. Rights he needed to pursue, she thought.
Did she even have the right to suggest that he solidify his relationship with April now that they were no longer engaged? Technically, no, she thought. But there was no question in her mind that Luke had a right to his kid, and a right to a personal life of his choice. But then her conscience chimed in again, rendering a harsh judgment against her: what gave her the right? And how would Luke ever trust her again once he knew what she had done?
But she had done it for him. Lorelai wiped the tears from her face, softly swore and started making a list.
Should she go to him? Leave a message in his room? Have him meet her in her office, or come to her small off-site hotel suite? All tough questions, and there were no easy answers. Any activity Luke undertook away from the kids he was chaperoning would surely draw the attention of the other chaperones and the teachers.
But she needed to see him, alone. The damage as far as Anna was concerned had been done, she rationalized.
Would Anna make good on her threats once she found out? Probably. Otherwise, why else had she fled so far away? But Luke needed to take action. The status quo, it was clear, was already enough to destroy them.
------
Lorelai ended up going home.
For some reason, once there, she chose not to have her usual junk food and alcohol dinner. Clutching the list she'd made in the office, she sat down in front of the television. She alternated between obsessively reading the list, dozing off, and idly flipping through the channels, until finally, she slipped into a fitful sleep.
Hours later, it seemed, Lorelai awoke to a loud pounding on the door, with an even louder voice calling her name.
Luke!
She hurried to the door, peeking through the peephole to see that it was indeed Luke. Shaking, she quietly let him in and watched as he surveyed her small suite.
"How did you find where I live?" she inquired, as with a sad sigh, she preceded him the short distance to the living area.
"Your boss was quite forthcoming once I told her all about your mulling of Mike Armstrong's offer last year…" Luke supplied, staring at her with a haunted look on his face.
"Sit?" Lorelai motioned to one of the chairs at the small table.
As he took a seat, Luke pulled out a piece of paper from his jacket pocket.
"Why?" he asked, the haunted look becoming more pronounced, waving the document at her.
It was the restraining order.
"It wasn't my…"
"Why?" he persisted. "What did I do to you to deserve this?" Luke's voice, painful beyond imagination, cracked.
"Don't you need to be with the kids?" Lorelai whispered.
"Never mind them. I'm here now. They're studying." His eyes were probing hers. "Why, Lorelai?" he reiterated, then balled up the papers and threw them across the room. "Forget about this," he emphasized as he tossed the balled-up papers. "Why did you leave me?"
Lorelai was crying. "Not my idea…"
"Was it Emily?" he asked, voice steely. "Did she make you…?"
"No. No!"
"Then who?"
"I can't tell you right now. Oh Luke," she quietly said through her soft crying, "I am so sorry. For everything."
"Why didn't you let me know? One phone call, Lorelai, one phone call…" His voice was raspy as he continued, "I looked and looked for you…"
"Luke?" she sighed softly, reaching out to gently touch the hair peeking out from his forehead from underneath his ball cap. "I didn't want to…"
At her touch, his eyes closed, and she saw him start to visibly tremble. Without thinking, out of pure instinct, she leaned forward and put her arms around him. Luke immediately wrapped himself around her and Lorelai began to cry more vehemently, while Luke continued to tremble.
Unsure of what else to do, but needing to do something, Luke pulled her onto his lap and ran his fingers through her hair as she continued to hold onto him.
When it finally seemed like she was done, Luke took her face in his hands and asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"
Lorelai stood her ground. "I don't think I can tell you."
For a second, Luke considered her words. Then he continued, "Lorelai, we were engaged. I still love you, and even if I didn't, we'd be friends. You should never feel that you can't tell me something. Please. Please tell me what happened."
"I slept with Christopher."
There, she'd said it. Maybe he'd go away now and she wouldn't have to tell him about Anna.
She waited for the anticipated expression of disgust and revulsion.
"I know," he calmly told her.
"What?" she exclaimed in shock.
"When I couldn't find you, I finally was able to persuade Rory to talk to me. And he…Christopher…he showed up at her apartment. And proceeded to inform me that you were with him."
"I thought it was all over," she told him. "Between us…all over…"
"But why did you end it in the first place? Please. Tell me."
He looked at her with love and trust, just like before, she thought. And she realized that it must have meant something that of all the hotels in the country, in the whole U S of A, he'd shown up at hers. Maybe, like the snow, that was a sign.
Lorelai took a deep breath, and buried her face in the crook of his neck, her lips mere millimeters from his ear.
And so she told him. In a halting, guilt-wracked voice, she told him about how Anna had forced her into leaving him.
When she was done, Lorelai lifted her head and moved backward, so that she could better see his beloved face. She noticed, however, that he was staring at the ground.
Luke looked wounded, but mercifully, did question her.
If only he were just physically wounded, Lorelai thought with a pang. A flesh wound would be so much easier to deal with. She'd simply get her first aid kit and patch him up.
"It's getting late, and I need to go," Luke finally spoke.
Lorelai nodded, silently, and began to slide off his lap. She thought about kissing him on the cheek, then thought better of it, as she rose, and he stood up to leave.
It was too soon.
The wounds were too fresh.
-----
The next morning, Lorelai woke up with a start: she had overslept. She almost panicked when she saw the time on the suite's alarm clock. She would definitely be late for work. And then she remembered Luke, and how she'd told him about what Anna had caused her to do.
She needed to talk with him.
Before showering, she called Trish at her home. "Hey Trish, Lorelai here." Trish was not in, so Lorelai left a message.
"Listen, I'm fine. But I need some time off. A day or two." She paused. "A friend suddenly showed up."
Lorelai cringed. That sounded so melodramatic to her. Mysterious friends showing up.
Lorelai hung up the phone, then readied herself for the day. A day which had to include Luke in it, someway, somehow.
-----
Arriving at the hotel an hour later, Lorelai discreetly checked the competition schedule to find out when Luke would have a break. As she made a mental note of the times, she suddenly felt as if a ghost was blowing across the nape of her neck.
Startled, she turned around to see Luke standing right behind her, with a sad expression on his face. Immediately, she thought of everything that she had told him the previous night, but forced herself to act normal in case any of the kids or other chaperones were in the area.
"Hey."
TBC...