Disc: I don't own GG, nor do I make money from fan fics.
AN: I've been writing this for a while, and decided to post it here. Just so you know, I don't update this fic very often because it's tough to write. However, I do have most of the story planned out, so don't worry, I will eventually finish every single chapter of it. (It looks like a 30 chapter story, give or take.) Anyways, please let me know what you think about this.
Rory held her daughter tightly. Her daughter and her unborn baby were all she had left of her husband. The innocent little two- year old shifted slightly in her arms, as she sucked her thumb in her sleep.
Mary Lorelai DuGrey had stopped sucking her thumb well over a year ago. Then everything collapsed. The habit was picked back up.
It had been ten days now. Ten days since Rory had received a phone call, telling her to go to the hospital. Ten days since her husband, Tristan, was pronounced dead. A drunk driver had hit the drivers side of Tristan's car, causing the car flip, with Tristan stuck struggling for his life.
It was twelve days ago that Rory took the home pregnancy test, and found out that she was, indeed pregnant again. Tristan had been ecstatic when he found out. He loved Rory and Mary, and couldn't wait to add another addition to their little family. Now he would never see their second child be born.
"Let me put her to bed." A voice broke into Rory's thoughts, as tears ran down her face.
"Finn?" Rory questioned, blinking up, looking utterly lost.
"Yes love, I used my key. I'll put Mary to bed. I'll be right back." He gently lifted the angelic figure out of her mother's arms, and walked up the stairs, placing her in her bed.
He tucked her under the covers, and placed her favorite stuffed animal in her arms. It was a little teddy bear from Build A Bear that Tristan had made for her, before she was even born. It was a simple caramel color, nothing too elaborate for a baby. She loved it dearly.
Finn kissed the top of her head and started back down the stairs, to the living room where Rory was sitting, trapped in her own private hell.
He sat down beside her on the couch, and wrapped his arms around his best friend. And he just let her cry.
-GG-
Lorelai walked into the house, smiling sadly at the pair sitting on the couch. Her daughter sniffled softly.
"Hey Finn. How has she been holding up?" She asked, wishing she could do anything to take the pain away from her daughter.
Finn shook his head. "She tries to keep it together for Mary. But I don't know… She needs someone to stay with her, someone she can depend on."
Lorelai nodded. "Steph and Colin are coming over in a while. They want to talk about how to help Rory and Mary, and the baby. Maybe figure things out for them a bit. Hopefully Rory will be asleep still… she doesn't need to be involved in this talk."
Finn agreed. "Let's get her to bed now then." He suggested, knowing that even though she was awake, she wasn't there with them. She was walking through sweet memories of her husband. It took loud noises or gentle shaking to get her to snap out of it.
He helped her up the stairs, and laid her on her bed. She was still in her pajamas. Everyday, as soon as she got out of the shower, she would put on another pair of pajamas. It wasn't as if she went anywhere. She just wanted to stay in her pajamas and Tristan's over sized Yale hoodie.
When he walked into the kitchen, Lorelai was making coffee. He had drunk copious amounts of coffee in the last ten days. The moment he found out a drunk driver killed his best friend, he knew he would never touch another drop of alcohol.
A gentle rapping on the front door had Lorelai walking over to open it. "Hey guys, come on in." She greeted, moving away from the door as Colin and Stephanie entered.
They all walked into the kitchen, where the coffee was now ready. After pouring them each a mug, they sat down. None of them knew where to start.
After a few minutes of silence, sipping, and stirring, Stephanie started talking. "We need to be here for Rory. She needs us now more than she ever has before. The thing is, we all have lives away from Hartford, so we can't all be here all the time."
Lorelai nodded. This was her problem. She wanted nothing more than to move in with her daughter and granddaughter, but she had a business to run. She had already been off for ten days, and was planning to take four more off. But she had to get back.
"I could." Came Finn's quiet reply. Everyone turned to look at him.
"You two are living in Boston now. You both have very demanding careers. You can't very well be here twenty-four seven." He said, nodding at the couple in front of him. He continued, turning to Lorelai, "And you also have a life forty five minutes away. And a demanding job, and relationship. Not to mention that you live in New York."
Lorelai placed her head in her hands. When she and Chris got back together, she sold her inn. Instead, she over saw a large hotel inn New York. It was great money, and Chris had moved there with Gigi several months before she made the move. She had created a life for herself away from Rory, and at that moment, she regretted it. A mother was supposed to be able to be there for her daughter in times such as these.
"But, that's asking a lot of you, Finn. She's pregnant, there's so much-" Lorelai started to say, shaking her head at the Australian man in front of her.
"It's what friends do. Tristan was my best friend. Rory is one of my best friends. I'm the one that works in Hartford. Mary calls me Uncle Finn. I can be here. It's not like I have dire commitments elsewhere."
The other three slowly nodded, seeing this as the solution to the problem.
-GG-
Rory lay in her and her husband's bed. It wasn't supposed to be like this. She wasn't supposed to be a twenty four year old widow. That wasn't how it went. She and Tristan were supposed to live happily, for the next sixty years, and watch their kids have kids.
Three years ago, she had just broken up with Logan. She ran into Tristan DuGrey on campus, getting coffee. He had transferred to Yale from Harvard. They quickly became friends, and it was only natural that they became more than that.
A few months into their relationship, Rory had gotten pregnant. She had been terrified. They were so careful, but apparently not careful enough. She remembered the day she told him…
She walked into his apartment with the key he gave her. He hated it when she knocked. She went to his bedroom, where she found him writing a paper.
"Hey." He said, smiling, as he saw her walk in.
She was so nervous. There was no point in beating around the bush. "We need to talk."
"What's wrong?" Worry began to etch onto his face as she sat down beside him, biting her lip.
"I'm… well, you see…" She put her face in her hands. How could she tell him this? He was going to be so angry.
"Rory?" This time there was a slightly panicked edge to his voice.
She looked up at him. "I'm pregnant."
He blinked. And opened his mouth. And then he did something she didn't expect. He smiled. He stood up, walked over to his dresser, opened the top drawer, and took out a small box.
He turned, faced her, and got on his knees in front of her. "Rory, I bought this after our first date together a couple months ago. I loved you when I was sixteen, and I love you even more now. I wasn't planning on giving this to you for a while, probably a couple years, but I guess now is perfect timing. Please marry me."
Rory was stunned. He wasn't angry. He didn't hate her. He wasn't running as quickly as he possibly could in the opposite direction. She threw her arms around him. This would work. It would all be ok.
She opened her eyes, sobbing. Sleep was no relief. There was no comfort. Only memories haunting her.