A/N: Aren't you excited that I updated so quickly? I hope so! I worked very hard. If you guys have any suggestions, that would be great. I don't really need them, but it's always nice to know what you want. You could very well change my plan!
Enjoy!
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Chapter Three: Burn
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…You frustrate me
"Now you know how I feel," Luke grumbled. His glance fell on her hand on his leg. It made him nervous.
Lorelai watched him, missing the banter already. "Are you sure I called you?"
Luke gave her an annoyed look. "I've already told you: yes. I swear you called me. I wouldn't have gotten up at this time if you hadn't."
He had a point.
"Well, it's not the coffee, no matter how high your hopes are."
He smiled at her. "Damn."
Lorelai felt oddly at ease, and it was unusual, especially after her nightmare. She and Luke talked a bit more and then she nodded off to sleep while he told her about his last fishing trip. Luke himself watched her for a while, savoring the chance to study her without anyone there to see. It wasn't long before he too had fallen asleep.
O O O
Something was burning. Something was burning badly. Luke awoke to a charred scent hanging in the air. He smelled it long before he opened his eyes and it was almost choking. When his eyes finally snapped open, he had started to worry. That was not a good smell. He often smelled it when something was smoldering in the kitchen at the diner. What met his eyes was smoke, dark and grey. It was billowing freely outwards from the kitchen.
He didn't need anything more to wake him up.
He jumped to his feet immediately, looking around himself. Lorelai was no longer next to him. He tried to call out for her, but the smoke clogged his throat and he had to swallow many times before he felt he could speak. He covered his mouth with his hand.
"Lorelai?" He moved towards the archway. "Lorelai!"
He stormed into the kitchen and found her standing three feet from a blazing oven. She just sat there, and it was almost like she was in a trance. Somehow, the smoke didn't waft around her. Luke rushed to her side and grabbed her shoulders. When he shook her, she didn't respond in any way, shape, or form.
"Lorelai. Lorelai, what's the matter with you?" He shook her more violently and still, no response. He seized her hand and yanked, trying to pull her out of the room. She barely budged. "Lorelai, don't make this hard."
Still, she just stood there.
Then she spoke, "Wow."
That's all.
Luke stared at her and then without another thought, bent, andhauled her over his shoulder so that her top half was hanging down his back and her butt was in his face. Not that he minded.
And still no response from the woman in his arms.
He carried her outside to the front yard and set her down. He didn't mean to, but he noticed the way her body slid against his and he couldn't stop himself from getting a little heated.
There was crackling noise from inside that snapped Luke back into focus. He made sure Lorelai was alright before rushing over to Babbette's house. She took a long time to answer and when she did, she was not happy.
"Luke? What the hell are you doin' up at this hour? I'm sorry, hon, I love ya ta death, but this is just crazy!"
"Babbette, there's a fire at Lorelai's house. I need you to call the fire department."
Babbette was instantly eager to help. "You bet, sugar. I'll get them on the line ASAP!" She turned and slammed the door and he could hear her yelling for Morey to get up.
Luke made his way back toward Lorelai and right when he was next to her, she looked right at him and fainted. He, being a gentleman, caught her and held her. He scooped her into his arms, damsel-in-distress style. He carried her over to his truck and somehow managed to open the door and set her inside.
He was worried about her. Something was wrong,
She didn't wake up until the fire engines were roaring down the street and had practically parked themselves in her driveway. Luke was leaning against the bed of the truck, watching the firemen do their job. She sat up with a gasp, waking suddenly. Her arm shot out and she snatched at his arm, making him jump.
"Luke!"
He was at her side in an instant. "What's the matter? Are you okay?"
She stared at him and her for a few moments her eyes were full of shock. Then she relaxed. She didn't let go of his jacket. "I'm…I'm fine."
"What happened?"
"I was dreaming. It was…terrifying. It was just like the first…"
Luke reached forward andtitledher face so she would look him in the eye. "Tell me. About the first one, too."
"I woke up terrified. I was in my bed and I heard this creaking. Then I heard a crash outside the door and the handle started to jiggle. It swung open and I just screamed. I don't even know what was behind the door. I just remember it opening and being horrified."
Luke nodded, encouraging her.
"That's when I woke up and you were at my door. Then, just now, it started the same way… A creak, a crash, the handle jiggling… this time though, the jiggling stopped and I heard knocking on the front door. So I got up and opened the door and went downstairs and when I got to the foyer, there wasn't a door. It was just a wall. I went into the kitchen and the door of the oven started shaking and I started getting scared so I ran over and turnedit on so that whatever was inside would burn."
Her eyes were glassy as she gazed at him. "I was so scared Luke."
He wasn't expecting her to lean forward and hug him, but that's exactly what she did. He hugged her back. Shewas shaking.
"Hey," he murmured into her hair, "it's okay. I'm here, alright? It was just a dream."
"It seemed so real."
"I know."
They held each other for a while until Lorelai noticed where they were and what was going on.
"What happened?" She hopped from the truck and walked slowly towards her house. She spun back to Luke and demanded again, "What happened!"
"You set your oven on fire, Lorelai."
She looked stunned. "I…what?"
"You were sleep walking again. Doing stuff in your sleep."
She twisted back and let out a little gasp of breath. "I can't believe…how could I…?"
Luke came up and stood behind her, silent support.
A few minutes later, a fireman gave them the details, and informed her that she could not go in for a couple days. He said that they could leave and thathis menwould start taking care of the situation.
Lorelai was immobile, stationed exactly where she was. Luke turned her away and led her to his truck.
"You can stay at my place, okay?"
She was surprised by the offer. "Thanks… but, I mean, I have the Inn---"
"Well, I don't want you going there and ruining anything. The stuff in my apartment is expendable. Plus, I'll be right there if you need me."
She looked close to tears as they stood next to the passenger seat. "Thank you Luke. You're a life saver."
And then she hugged him again, hard.
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To Be Continued
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Not my best by fr, but good enough. New chapter up soon, hopefully. I have an idea as to where to go with this.
