"Are you back together?" Liz asked.
"No."
"Are you getting back together?"
"That's up to Rory." Jess replied. "I'm not going to complicate her life anyone than necessary."
"That's very responsible."
"I'm not Jimmy." Jess stated.
"Good." Liz said. "I guess congratulations."
"Er… thanks."
"Jess." TJ slapped him on the back as he walked up.
"TJ." Jess said through gritted teeth.
"What are you doing here?"
"Jess came to tell us some news." Liz said.
"What kind of news?" TJ inquired.
"He's going to be a father."
"What!" TJ exclaimed.
"You're going to be a step-grandfather." Jess supplied.
TJ turned white and fell to the floor.
"TJ!" Liz exclaimed as she crouched down next to him and tried to wake him up. Jess was doing his best not to laugh. "TJ!"
"Is everything okay?" Rory asked having returned with a toffee (caramel) apple and a bottle of water.
"TJ decided to take the news lying down." Jess replied. "Can I borrow that?" He asked indicating the bottle of water.
"Sure." Rory handed it to him.
"I'll buy you another one." Jess walked around the booth. "Liz step back." She was still trying to wake him. When Liz pulled back, Jess poured the bottle of water in TJ's face.
He spluttered awake.
"Nice fall?" Jess asked. "Very manly. Goes with the tights."
"Jess, be nice." Rory warned.
"Fine. Let me help you up." Jess held out his hand to help TJ up.
"You're a good influence on him." Liz said.
"Well I was the only person in town willing to look past the fact that he wanted to be the town hooligan and get to know the real Jess." Rory replied. "Or the only person he let get to know the real Jess."
"Rory." Jess said in a tone that let her know he rather she not mention it.
"What other than the fact that you managed to annoy my boyfriend into dumping me and your tendency to run away you're not as bad as everyone makes out." Rory winked at him.
"You know what I like you." Liz said.
"Thank you." Rory smiled.
"By the way congratulations."
"Thank you again."
"How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine." TJ replied.
"I meant Rory." Liz pointed out.
"Today is the first day in about two months I haven't felt nauseous." Rory told her.
"You're lucky I was nauseous the whole time I was pregnant. But it's labour that is the really bad part. Get drugs, lots of them."
"Mom's been waking me up for as long as I can remember at the time on my birthday I was born to tell me about how it happened and how long and painful it was."
"Still get the drugs." Liz advised.
"Liz." Jess said.
"How long are you here?" Liz asked.
"Just tonight." Rory replied. "We have to go back tomorrow, and stop off in Boston so I can tell my Dad. I have to be back at Yale in a couple of days."
Rory's cell phone rang.
"Excuse me a second." She handed Jess her toffee apple and stepped off the side to answer it. "Hello."
"Hello kid. How's it going?"
"Mom?"
"Who else do you think it would be? Did you find Liz yet?"
"Yes." Rory replied. She could hear Luke telling Lorelai to get off the phone or take it outside. "Mom, are you in the diner?"
"You think being the girlfriend I'd get special dispensation." Loreali remarked.
"Mom, let me talk to him I may have some information that may cheer him up."
"She wants to talk to you." Rory heard her tell Luke.
"Rory?" Luke questioned. "Is everything okay?"
"TJ passed out."
"What?"
"When Liz or Jess told him he passed out cold on the floor for a few minutes, Jess had to pour a bottle of water in his face to wake him up."
"Please tell me you had a camera."
"Unfortunately not, but I'm sure Jess will be more than willing to describe it in graphic detail when we get back."
"Coffee on the house." Luke declared as he handed the phone back to Lorelai.
TBC