AN- Okay, there is lots of Amber and Jess fluff in this chapter. I find it cute…

Chapter 3

Amber watched in amusement as her father argued on his cell phone, with Sarah, his agent. He paced around the bedroom, almost yelling, with frantic hand motions. Amber could only hear one side of the conversation and seen situations like this arise many times before, but it was still funny. Jess hung up his phone and growled.

"Anything wrong, Dad?" asked Amber trying not to laugh.

"Yes, Sarah decided she wanted to come to Star's Hollow. She wants to see it and be here to make sure the book launch goes exactly as planned and is going to stay at the inn, this inn."

Amber nodded "Doesn't sound that bad," she said teasingly, knowing how much her father was annoyed by his agent.

"And apparently," added Jess, "we're having brunch with her tomorrow, at Luke's. Doesn't that sound fun."

"For me," said Amber coolly. Jess sighed and collapsed on his bed.

"My life is hell," he muttered

"If you hate Sarah so much, why don't you fire her and get a different agent."

"Well, for one, you just can't fire an agent, you have contract with them. Two, you just can't fire Sarah. And, three, she's actually good at what she does…"

"Then you should just get over yourself and start getting along with her and stop complaining."

Jess glared at his daughter, "Are you lecturing me? I thought I was the parent."

"Some would beg to differ."

Jess tossed the remote towards her, "Why don't you watch TV like a normal kid."

Amber rolled her eyes and began flipping threw the channels, giving her father a few moments of silence, before she decided there was nothing good on and turned it off.

"Is it diner time yet?"

Jess gave her a look, "I swear kid, you are always hungry." She just shrugged. He looked at his watch, "In about a half an hour the inn will be serving. How many square meals do you eat a day."

"On a poor day, about five, but if I'm really hungry, I can go up to eight."

Jess threw a pillow across the room at her, it hit her square in the face. She fell backward on the bed before picking it up and throwing it back at him. That was a start of a long and dangerous pillow fight that almost broke two lamps, a hanging picture, the television, and a mirror, all which were miraculously rescued at the last second.

Amber dived behind one of the beds as a pillow came flying by. "Missed me!" she shouted. She grabbed another pillow off the floor and threw it back, which Jess swiftly dodged and hit the wall by the door…where Lorelai stood.

A few minutes earlier…

Lorelai checked the clock on the wall as the inn's dining room was filling up. They were going to be late for diner, not that there was an official starting time, but…She sighed as she scanned the room again, definitely no Jess or Amber in the crowd. She couldn't believe that she was actually worrying if Jess missed diner or not, but he did have that daughter now, she was probably just worrying for her niece.

She ran a hand through her hair as she sighed again. What if they didn't know the diner time? It was the hostess-y thing to do. She went up the stairs to inform them.

Lorelai knocked on their door. No one answered. She he rustling beyond it, so put her ear to the door. She heard bangs, laughs, yells, and some not so pleasant crashes that made Lorelai expect broken things.

She knocked again and again there was no answer. She exhale noisily and opened the door and entered, just a pillow, smacking the wall, nearly missed her.

Jess and Amber stopped and stared. "Ooops… ," whispered Amber.

"Hello," said Lorelai slowly, observing the room. Pillows were strewn sporadically about it, chairs were knocked on their sides, blankets were pulled half off the beds, pictures hung lopsidedly on the walls, and various items throughout the room were askew.

"Nothing's broken, I swear," said Jess quickly, judging Lorelai's look.

"Um, I just came to say that diner is going on right now," said Lorelai, stunned at what she saw, pointing over her shoulder out into the hall as she spoke.

"Finally!" exclaimed Amber as she swiftly hoped over a bed and ran half way out the door. "Coming Dad?" she asked turning around."

"I'll be their in a sec," Jess answered her. She shrugged and continued her sprint downstairs.

"We really didn't break anything," commented Jess to Lorelai, who was still standing in silence, "I mean there were some close calls, but…"
"I'm sorry, I was just contemplating what natural disaster passed through this room to cause this," said Lorelai, waving her hand at the room, humorously.

"Um…, we got into a pillow fight," said Jess, looking away from her, almost embarrassed. A slow smile lit up the woman's face.

"What?" asked Jess, catching her expression.

"I never thought I would see the day that Jess Mariano, Stars Hollow's own hoodlum was caught in the middle of a pillow fight."

"You didn't exactly catch me in the middle of a pillow fight. It was sort of the end, and more of a pillow throw…," Lorelai gave Jess a look as to say, 'Are you this desperate to save your reputation that you're attempting to ramble your way out of a pillow fight?'

"Exactly," ended Jess lamely.

"This is so going on the Star's Hollow web page."

Jess brushed past her on his way to the hallway, "I'm going to dinner. Close the door, will you?"

Lorelai made a face at him, even though it was completely juvenile and he wasn't their, before she left the room and closed the door, almost hoping that he had left the key inside.

Later that night…

The room was dark. Amber crept slowly out of her bed and to next her father's. She peered over the edge cautiously. Jess was sleeping peacefully in a white t-shirt and flannel pajama pants.

She clung tightly to a brown teddy bear, which she had since she was a baby that she didn't tell people about because she thought it was juvenile. Dressed in comfy sweats, her reached out and tapped her father on the shoulder.

"Dad," she whispered as he groaned awake.

"…What time is it?" he asked, half asleep.

Amber shrugged.

"What's the matter?" asked Jess around a yawn.

"I had a nightmare, and I know I'm nine and everything, but can I sleep with you?"

"We're already in the same room," stated Jess tiredly.

"Please," Amber said with wide eyes.

Jess observed his daughter's expression. She was so young and innocent. He held back a smile. She was growing up so fast, how could deny her what may be the last chance of her having a bad dream and asking to sleep with him.

"Sure, kid, climb on up," he said, holding up the blanket for her to get in.

She instantly hopped into his bed and slide under the covers next to him. "Thanks," she said looking up at his face.

"No problem, kiddo," he answered, putting a comforting arm around her. She closed her eyes, snuggled into his chest and fell asleep.

Jess wasn't so lucky. He was awake now, and couldn't go to sleep, not that he minded. He watched his daughter as she breathed slowly, peacefully. She looked like an angel. Maybe that was just his father-complex talking, but she was indeed his angel.

She was his reason to get up in the morning. She taught him to love, without knowing it, unconditionally. Even though at first she might have been considered a mistake or a burden, now, he could not imagine a life without her.

He gently stroked her face as he tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. He did not know were he would be without her, whether he would he dead on a street corner or in jail or still job and home hopping very few months. Amber had unknowingly and perfectly changed him, made him responsible.

He never knew what love meant, until he held her in his arms…

The next morning…

Lorelai walked quietly up the stairs of the Dragonfly Inn, a worn, over-stuffed leather wallet in one hand. It was Jess's. The cleaning crew had found it last night, apparently he had dropped it in the dining room.

She knocked lightly on their bedroom door. No answer. She tried again a little louder. Still no answer. She sighed and pulled out her master set of keys and unlocked the door and sneaked into the room.

What she found surprised her slightly or at least it was not something she expected to see. There, in one bed, were Jess and Amber, asleep, in each others arms, with a teddy bear between them. It was a scene that would have been cute no matter who the father and daughter pair was, but made so much more dramatic by who it was.

It was Jess, monosyllable prank-pulling, school-skipping Jess, who had broken Lorelai's own baby's heart several times, and his daughter, cuddled up with each other in bed.

Lorelai set the wallet down on one of the tables and snuck quickly and silently out again, closing the door lightly behind her. Though Lorelai considered it a crazy thought, maybe Jess was different, maybe he had changed…just maybe.