Upon reaching the airport, they settled in for the ½ hour wait. Rory relaxed in her seat. Steven was staring around the airport, and Rory pulled out her laptop and several papers from her bag and began to type.
"What are you typing?" Steven asked.
"My book. Remember I told you about my book about growing up in my house. I asked Jinx, Meg, and Jack to write a section about specific things. Jinx did holidays, Meg did meals, and Jack did vacations. They already gave me their parts, now I just have to do the rest of the book." She said nonchalantly.
"Can I read it?"
"Sure. I'm almost done, actually, but I am working on Jinx's part about holidays. I've already done Meg's part about meals. I am the only writer in my family." Rory said with a laugh.
Steven smiled and reached for the papers in her hand. She handed them over and studied his reactions as he began to read.
'Ever since I was a little girl, we've been eating at Luke's diner. Luke is my father, so you might not find this odd, but the odd part is we NEVER ate at home. Daddy worked all day so he wasn't home to cook, and the only member of my family who inherited Daddy's culinary skills was Jack, who helped Daddy in the diner when he wasn't in school. Most mornings, Jack and Daddy would wake up early and go to the diner. Therefore, on most mornings my sisters and I ate pop tarts on our way out the door. Mom knew how to work the toaster.
For lunch, I ALWAYS bought food at the cafeteria. Daddy made sure there was always food in the house, but the best I could make was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Rory tells me that when she was little, before Mom and Dad got married, there was never food in the house so they HAD to eat at Luke's. I guess I'm lucky for that or else my parents may have never gotten together.
Dinner was always an experience. Daddy always gave Mom trouble about her coffee intake, and as my sisters and brother and I inherited her habits, he gave us trouble too. So most of our meals were spent arguing with Daddy about getting our coffee.
Our mom and dad always made sure we had food in our bellies. No matter what, no matter where we ate or what it was, all the Danes kids were always full.
-Meghan Gilmore Danes'
"Wow, that's good." Steven said when he finished reading.
Rory looked up from the screen and smiled. "Meg has great ideas; she just can't always get them out on paper. I just changed some structure."
He smiled and let her get back to work. She packed up her laptop when they boarded. The two spent the next few hours talking and finally they landed in Chicago. A cab took them to Chicago Memorial.
"You know, I could take you home. My home, I mean. You don't have to waste your time stuck in the hospital." Steven stopped and turned around when they reached the doors of the hospital.
"Don't worry about it, I have my work. It'll keep me busy for hours." Rory insisted, pushing him into the hospital. He inquired at the front desk and then led them to the elevator.
"I'll wait here." Rory said upon reaching the 8th floor waiting room. They stood in the hall outside the room. "Come back whenever you're done. If you want to stay all night, don't worry about it. I am completely fine."
"Are you sure?" He asked earnestly.
"I didn't come to be a nuisance, Steven."
"You came because I asked you to." He said smugly, warmly wrapping her in a hug.
"It's fine. Go be with your family." She leaned up and chastely kissed his cheek. As she pulled back, she heard a voice call out.
"Stevie!" Rory looked up and saw a young girl with long wild chocolate brown hair streaming out behind her.
"Brooke! How's Dad?" Steven said, catching her in his arms.
"Not good, Steve. He doesn't have much longer. The doctors aren't sure he'll last through the night." She said, close to tears. Finally, she noticed Rory. "Who is she?"
"Brooke, you remember Tristan right?"
The girl nodded her head.
"Well this is Tristan's sister-in-law, Rory. Tristan married her sister, Jinx, and when I heard I was coming back here, I asked her to accompany me on the trip."
"Oh." She said, sizing them up.
"Well, we better go see Dad. You sure you'll be ok here, Rory?"
"Go, Steven."
Rory settled into the waiting room, continuing to write. By the time she was there for four hours, she had written several chapters. Rory glanced at the clock and saw that it read 7 am. She glanced out the window and to her surprise, the sun was rising. She then fell asleep stretched out on a couch and a few hours later she was nudged awake by Steven. He sat on the edge of the sofa and Rory leaned up on her elbow.
"Will you come with me?" He asked.
"Where?" She asked groggily, wiping sleep out of her eyes.
"To the room. He's dying." He said, his eyes clouding over with tears.
"Of course I'll go." She said, standing with him
They hurried down the hall to a room on the left. Rory peeked into the dark, eerily silent room. A man with gray hair was asleep in the bed and looked very pale. An older woman sat on one side of the bed, holding a rosary and his hand. Tears streamed down her cheeks and her lips were moving quickly, though no sound came out.
'She must be praying the rosary.' Rory thought to herself.
A younger woman, presumably Steven's sister Beth, sat on the other side of the bed. Brooke sat behind her, leaning on the older girl's back, and both sisters clutched the other hand and cried silently. A young man who looked a lot like Steven sat rubbing the older woman's back.
Rory hesitated by the door, but Steven pulled her in. He sat in a chair at the foot of the bed and rested his free hand on the blanket. Rory rested a hand on his back, keeping him aware of her presence. Steven put his head down on the bed, face first, and stayed eerily still.
Suddenly, the machine that had been giving off a steady beep beep began to wail. Steven's head shot up and everyone tensed. A nurse rushed into the room and began checking things. Finally, she turned off the machine emitting the noise.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Cashen."
Rory hung onto Steven's arm as they walked away from the grave. She had wanted to hang at the back of the crowd, but he insisted she stay with him.
Apparently Steven's father was a very popular man. He had been a doctor, and he must have healed a ton of people because the large church was filled to capacity. He would really be missed.
They then returned to Steven's family's house where she had been staying for several days and where a wake was held.
Finally, several days after the funeral, everyone went home. The house was empty except for the Cashen family and Rory.
"Steven." Rory said, looking up at him. The two sat on the sofa in the living room, not really paying attention to the turned on TV. He looked down at her.
"I'm leaving this evening, Steven. I've stayed too long and it's time for me to let your family mourn alone and in peace." Rory said, looking into his big sad eyes.
"Rory, you are welcome here as long as you would like to stay. You haven't overstayed your welcome!" He insisted, his arm tightening around her shoulders, as if, if he held on tightly enough, she wouldn't leave.
"Either way, it's time for me to go. I've been here for a week and my parents really want me home. You and your family need to mourn and I'm just in the way." Rory looked down at her hands and then back up at his face. "Could you take me to the airport?"
He nodded his head. "Of course I will. You came to Chicago with me, Rory. The very least I can do is drive you to the airport. I wish I could head back to Hartford with you, but my family really needs me right now."
"Oh, of course." Rory said, nodding emphatically.
"What time?"
"4."
"Alright." He said, wrapping her in his arms. He slowly lowered his face to hers and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. She smiled on the inside as she kissed back.
Rory and Steven stood outside the airport. Her flight would take off in 10 minutes, and it was time to say goodbye.
She turned and looked up into his green eyes. She glanced down at her hands and then back up at his face. "Steven, please come back. Take your time here, but please come back. I've caught a refrigerator, and I'm not willing to let go." She suddenly leaned forward and kissed him passionately. Just as suddenly, she pulled away and walked through the security gates.
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