Disclaimer: Not mine. Not now, not ever.

A/N: Yup, the last chapter is upon us. Thank you so much for sticking with me through all of this and I really hope you all enjoyed this story. The response I got was so amazing, and I really appreciated it. Enjoy the final chapter, and the epilogue will be up right after it. I love you all!

Diez y Ocho

Jess looked up at the sound of a knock on his door. "Who is it?" He called, not moving from his position on the sofa.

"Luke!" His uncle's voice barked from the other side of the door.

Jess rolled his eyes. Of course. It had been a few days since his blowup at Rory. He knew it was only a matter a time before the Gilmore Girls sent him to knock some sense into his nephew.

"Just a second." Jess said, tossing his book aside and swinging his legs over the couch. He walked over to the door and opened it, immediately taking a step back so Luke couldn't hit him.

Luke made no angry advance towards his nephew. He held up a paper bag and it clanked as he did so, revealing that its contents were probably alcoholic. "I brought beer." Luke said, looking uncomfortable.

Jess smirked and waved his uncle into the apartment. "As long as it doesn't come with a complimentary ass-kicking, come on in."

Luke stepped in and looked around the apartment. He'd only been there once before. He walked over to the small kitchen and put the beer on the counter. He took off his heavy jacket and hung it on a hook near the door. He opened the bag and pulled out a six-pack. He handed his nephew a beer and took one for himself.

Jess sat down on a stool at the counter and gestured to one for Luke. Luke sat down and took a sip of his beer. "I told Lorelai I was coming up here to knock some sense in you…literally. It seemed like a good idea at the time, while Rory was crying in the kitchen. Rory crying is enough to make me do crazy things."

Jess raised his bottle to that. "Hey, try seeing her in a ruined wedding dress. You'll throw everything away for her."

Luke nodded. "There's just something about seeing her cry that makes you want to…"

"Save her and fix everything?" Jess asked, knowing he was right. "I get it, man."

Luke smirked. "But then I was on the train up here and I was thinking and I figured, 'hey, Jess loves her. This has to be hard for him too,' And Rory, she's got her mom. I thought maybe you could use a friend."

Jess smirked at the affection in Luke's voice. "Thanks." He said appreciatively. "I'm not gonna lie, Luke. It sucks."

"What the Hell happened?" Luke asked, leaning forward. "Rory showed up on our doorstep a week ago. Lorelai said that you and Rory were over, but Rory was so upset. Then things were getting better. Lorelai comes to the diner and tells me Rory was talking about going back to school. Then we get home and Rory's crying in the kitchen. She just keeps crying, and she won't tell anyone what happened. Lorelai's going crazy and Rory's crying and as far as Lorelai knows, the last thing Rory did was call you."

Jess's eyes were soft with pride. "She's going back to school?" He asked, feeling excited and proud and touched. He knew it was because of him, at least in part.

Luke sighed. "The most talking I ever do at once and he focuses on that." He said to himself with a shake of his head.

"Sorry, Luke." Jess said. "I didn't mean to hurt her."

"Yeah?" Luke asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No." Jess said honestly. "I wanted to hurt her like she hurt me. I wanted to tear her down and destroy her."

"Oh." Luke said. "Well, good job."

"It was stupid." Jess admitted. "But no one ever accused me of otherwise."

"So…you do love her?" Luke asked, becoming more confused.

Jess nodded. "Yup."

"Huh." Luke said, taking a long sip of his beer. "Well that's complicated."

"Not really." Jess said, finishing his and putting the empty bottle down. "We're both proud and stupid. Pretty simple, actually."

"Still," Luke continued, "I've never seen two people emotionally pummel each other like you guys do, yet still claim to be in love."

"Well, when you have a skill…" Jess trailed off, shaking his head. "I don't know how to explain it. She was my friend then she was my girlfriend then I ran away then she wouldn't run away with me then I didn't see her for five years then she was my editor then she was my roommate then she was my best friend and now I'm in love with her. Really, what's complicated about that?"

Luke smirked, "My mistake. Are you gonna…you know."

"Fix it?" Jess asked.

"Yeah." Luke responded, putting down his empty bottle and picking up another one.

"I want to." Jess said. "But I can't say I'm sorry. I just can't. She said some things to me, and…I can't say I'm sorry."

"I get that I guess." Luke said, not sure he did get it entirely. "What are you going to do?"

Jess responded, "Lily and Jimmy and Sasha are coming to New York for Christmas. After that though…I might try something."

"But if it doesn't work? If she needs to hear you apologize and you can't?" Luke asked.

Jess raised his beer bottle and said, "Tortured, loveless assholes make the best writers."


It was never you. Rory's eyes welled up with tears as she tried to read on the couch. It was the only thing she heard anymore, no matter who was talking or what was happening. All she could hear was Jess's voice repeating it was never you.

What did he mean? She knew exactly what he meant. That the only time he'd been honest with her was that day at the coffee shop when he told her he'd never loved her when they were younger. He didn't love her now and he didn't love her then. It was never you.

And now Luke had gone to New York to talk to him. Rory was impatiently awaiting his return. She was desperate to know what news he brought, what Jess had told him. She wanted to know if maybe he'd changed his mind, if he had just been angry. If he was going to confess his true feelings to anyone, it was going to be to Luke. He'd called a few hours ago to say he was on his way back. Now Rory was waiting for him, harboring a ridiculous hope that maybe he'd even bring Jess back with him. It was never you.

The door opened and Rory sat up on the couch. Luke walked in, carrying a cardboard box.

"What's that?" Rory asked, not bothering to hide her curiosity. It was never you.

Luke hesitated, but brought the box over to her and set it down next to the sofa. Rory sat up and looked into it eagerly. Her face fell as she saw what was inside it. It was never you.

"He gave me your books." Luke said.

Rory nodded. "So I see." She said quietly. It was never you.

"I'll, uh, put them in you room." Luke said, bending over to lift the box.

"No, Luke." Rory said. It was never you. "Will you sit with me? I want to talk to you."

Luke looked around uncomfortably, as if looking for anything else to be doing besides talking to Rory. "OK.' He said, sitting stiffly next to her.

Rory smiled, but it was mirthless. "Relax, Luke." It was never you. "I'm not talking to you as Jess's uncle or mom's husband. I'm asking as a friend, as…well, the most reliable father I've ever had."

Luke smiled softly, trying not to let the emotion he felt by that statement show. "You know you're like my own daughter, Rory." He said, cursing how ridiculous and awkward the statement sounded.

"How do I get over him?" Rory asked, eyes filling up with tears. It was never you.

Luke immediately stiffened again. "I-I don't know." He stammered uncomfortably.

"You love mom, right?" Rory asked, knowing the answer to the question. Everyone in Stars Hollow knew the answer to that question. It was never you.

"Rory," Luke said. He paused, looking like he had a great, profound answer to that question that would put all other quotes about love to rest. "More than anything."

"Does it ever hurt so much that you feel like your heart is going to collapse from all the pressure?" Rory demanded. It was never you.

Luke nodded, "Yup."

"Do you ever say things you want to take back because you're afraid or stupid or angry or all of the above?" It was never you.

Luke nodded again. "Yeah."

"Does it make you hate yourself because you'll never be good enough?" It was never you.

Luke nodded and added a sigh this time. "Yeah, been there."

Rory's tears spilled from her closed eyes. "Have you ever fucked up so bad it felt like you destroyed everything?" It was never you.

Luke's eyes widened. He'd never ever heard Rory swear like that before. "Yeah." He said honestly.

Rory looked up at him with sad eyes. "But it's still love?" It was never you.

Luke sighed and put an arm around Rory in an awkward yet comforting hug. "For me and your mom, yeah. E-everybody's different, Rory. You can't judge your relationship by ours."

"I love him, Luke." Rory said, her voice mangled by her tears. It was never you.

"I know." Luke said, trying to let his desire to comfort Rory overpower how uncomfortable he felt.

"Why doesn't it matter?" It was never you.

"I-I can't answer that." Luke said.

Rory broke down into full-on sobs, crying against Luke's flannel shirt. It was never you.

Luke sighed and shook his head. Jess needed to fix this, and he needed to fix it soon. He didn't know how much more empathy he had in his system, but he was positive it wouldn't be enough if things didn't change soon.


"Rory, what are you doing, babe?" Lorelai asked, walking into the living room.

"Staring blankly out the window." Rory responded blandly.

Lorelai sighed. "I was really hoping Christmas was going to make you feel better."

Rory sighed. "It was nice, and William was so cute with his presents. So was Luke. You were selfish and whiny as always."

Lorelai pouted. "I like presents!"

Rory smiled sadly. "But Christmas is over now. I'm- I'm just tired all the time. And now that my two weeks are up and I can't start classes yet, I just have a lot of time to think."

Lorelai winced. "Thinking is not your friend right now."

"No." Rory agreed. "I just…I don't know what else I can do."

"How about that walk you took before?" Lorelai asked, sitting down at the table. "Bring about anything interesting?"

Rory sighed and shook her head. "No."

"Well, something interesting happened while you were gone." Lorelai said hesitantly.

"Yeah?" Rory asked, completely uninterested.

"Yeah." Lorelai said, sliding a folded piece of paper across the table. "Jess called. Fortunately Luke answered, or I would have verbally decapitated him. He left a message. I didn't read it though. Again, lack of verbal decapitation."

"You don't even know why you're mad at him." Rory said, quietly.

"I've never needed a reason before." Lorelai said with a shrug. "I also don't know why you haven't ripped this message from my hands to read it."

Rory took the message with shaky fingers. "I don't know what it says. As long as it's folded, there's a chance it's good."

"There's also a chance that it says 'Rory, my head exploded.' You're not going to know until you open it." Lorelai quipped.

Rory opened the folded paper and let out a choked sound resembling a laugh.

"What does it say?" Lorelai asked, intrigued.

Rory handed it over to her mother, still making the sound that was almost a laugh. Lorelai looked at the piece of paper, which said in her husband's scrawled handwriting, Rory, call Jess.

Lorelai shook her head. "Ladies and gentlemen, my husband the causer of unnecessary panic. Are you going to call him?"

Rory shrugged. "I don't know." Even as she said it, she turned her body to look at the phone.

Lorelai smirked. "Yeah, sure. I'm gonna go upstairs and play with my son. He's far less complicated." She stood and touched Rory's arm with a gentle smile before walking out of the room.

Rory stood on weak legs and went to pick up the phone. She did, and collapsed back down into her chair. She didn't trust herself to be standing while she did this.

"This is it." Rory said unconvincingly. "Whatever he says, this conversation is closure." She slowly dialed the number.

"Hello?" Jess's voice answered. Rory smiled softly to herself, taking gratification in the fact that his 'hello' sounded as miserable as she felt.

"You called." Rory said, trying to maintain dignity by sounding cool and collected.

Jess was silent for a moment. "Yeah, I did."

"Did you find something else of mine?" Rory asked, trying to sound bored; trying not to sound as if this phone call was what she'd been waiting for since their last conversation. "Or did you call to apologize."

She expected an indignant laugh or sarcastic remark, and braced herself for the blow it would bring.

"I can't say I'm sorry, Rory." He said quietly. "I can't and I won't."

Rory was taken aback by the raw honesty in his voice. "I don't know what we have to talk about then." She said, lowering her eyes to the table and staring at it blankly. This was it. This was really the end.

"Lily was here for Christmas." Jess said, leaving Rory puzzled at his logic leap. "There's something she wanted me to give you."

"O-oh." Rory said sadly. "That was nice of her."

"I just wanted to know if I should send it to Stars Hollow or to your apartment." Jess finished, using a very formal tone.

Rory was quiet for a long moment, causing Jess to prompt her for a response. "Rory? Are you there?"

"Yeah." Rory said, shaking her head tiredly. "Just send it to my apartment. That'll be fine. Bye Jess." She let all the disappointment that he'd ever caused her hang on those two words as she hung up the phone. She set it down on the table and just stared at it for a while.


In New York, on the other end of what Rory thought was a dead connection, Jess had a strange smile on his face as Lily gave him the thumbs up sign. He put the phone down and looked up at her.

"Nice." His stepsister said. "Something Lily wants me to give you.'" She mimicked with a roll of her eyes.

"Well, you do." Jess said innocently. "Don't you?"

"Yes." Lily said, smacking Jess on the arm. "I can't believe you messed this up to begin with. Not since Heathcliff has a man enjoyed torture so much."

Jess rolled his eyes at the literary reference. Lily could, and did, compare everything to a book. "I didn't know what else to say. I needed to know where to send it without letting her know it was from me."

Lily shrugged. "Hey, it's your master plan." She sighed. "It is sweet though. I never knew you were such a romantic."

Jess blushed and mumbled, "Shut up."

Lily giggled at him. "Look at you. You're in love. So Mr. Rochester with your plans. Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre, not Wide Sargasso Sea." Lily elaborated.

"What is it with you and the Bronte sisters today?" Jess asked, not as annoyed as he pretended.

Lily shrugged. "Writing a paper on them. Do you think it'll work, Jess?"

Jess sighed and shrugged. He ran a hand through his messy hair and said, "No idea, Water Lily. Absolutely no idea. It's the best I've got though."

Lily smiled sympathetically at her brother. "You know, if you didn't mess up so bad in the first place-"

"Don't, Lily." Jess said with sigh. "Just don't. I know."

Lily smirked and looked at her watch. "I've gotta meet mom and Jimmy back at the hotel." She stood and brushed off the front of her long, flowing purple skirt. She pushed her glasses up on her nose as she waited patiently for Jess to stand and say goodbye.

Jess stood and hugged Lily affectionately. He pulled away and tucked a piece of long blonde hair beyond his sister's ear. "Thanks for the support, Lily. It's been good having you here."

Lily smiled brightly. "I'm glad I can be an accessory to your scheming. Besides, I like Rory. She complements you."

Jess smiled, but put his hand up when Lily opened her mouth to speak again. "Do not ruin that with a literary comparison, please."

Lily pouted, then kissed Jess on the cheek. "I'll see you soon, Big Brother." She said with a grin. Jess smiled and watched her walk out. Then he sat back down and stared at the object in question. It had to work. He had nothing else.


Rory put the last of her clothing in her dresser drawer and sat down on her bed. She looked around her with tired eyes. It had been so long since she had lived by herself in her own apartment. She didn't quite know what to do now. There were applications for Continuing Education classes that needed to be filled out, there were matters like bills that she needed to take care of, and there was the pesky matter of finding a job to sustain her until she got back on her feet as a journalist.

She didn't want to do any of it. Rory fell backwards onto her bed and stared up at the white ceiling, following the one crack in the plaster from one end to the other. What did she do now?

Now, she checked her mail. She had brought it all up with her, including the package from Jess, or from Lily, as the case happened to be. She hadn't opened any of it yet. She sat up on the bed and sighed.

Rory stood and walked out into the living room. She looked around. There were so few memories of Jess here, only one in fact. Rory smiled softly at the thought of Jess asking, no--telling, her to go live with him. He'd saved her from everything, including herself.

Rory lost her smile as she saw the package sitting on the table. It wasn't from him. Nothing would ever be from him again. She sat down at her kitchen table and slowly peeled away the brown paper packaging. She knew right away that it was a book. What else would Lily give someone as a Christmas present?

Rory looked at the front cover without much interest. Really, what did some book matter, even if it was a present from Lily? Nothing seemed to matter at all. Rory skimmed the cover tiredly. Battles Already Lost.

Rory tilted her head. Battles Already Lost? That was impossible. That was the title of…Rory looked down at the name printed at the bottom of the book Jess Mariano. Rory beamed a confused smile as she stared at it. His book. It was his book, and it was published under his real name. Rory's heart swelled with pride. It was his. It was what he'd been working for since he was a kid.

There was a bookmark several pages into the book. Rory removed it and looked at it. It was the picture of her in her wedding dress. Rory looked down at what it had been marking. It was the dedication page. This in itself surprised Rory. There had been no dedication when she'd been ready to send it to print. Rory looked at the words printed there, rereading the inscription several times in an attempt to understand them.

For Rory:

Because I lied. It's always been you.


A furious pounding at his door drew Jess from his bedroom. He'd been putting his laundry away when the loud pounding had caught his ear.

"Who is it?" He asked as he walked the small hallway, knowing fully well who it was.

"You know fully well who it is." Rory said, stopping her knocking.

Jess opened the door and stepped aside for Rory to come in. She just stood in the doorway, holding his book in her hands.

"Good." Jess said. "You got it."

"Yeah," Rory said, not breaking eye contact. "I got it. It wasn't from Lily."

"No." Jess agreed. "It wasn't."

"When?" Rory asked simply, still staring at him with big blue eyes.

Jess sighed and pretended to think about the answer to that question. "About 20 minutes after I hung up."

Rory's frown of concentration melted and mutated until it was a small smile. "I hurt you on purpose." She said honestly.

"Yeah." Jess said, leaning against the doorframe. "Ditto."

"It doesn't matter." Rory said dismissively, opening the book to the dedication page. "It wasn't real. This is real."

Jess smiled at her. She'd understood fully. Luke and Lily had both been understandably skeptical, but he knew Rory would understand the full weight of his gesture. He looked at her with soft, thoughtful eyes as he waited for her to make the final move. It was hers to make, and they both knew that.

Rory closed the book and took a step closer to Jess. "I love you." She said simply.

Jess smiled. "It's about time." He said, stepping aside and ushering Rory in. She took the step into the apartment and looked at him expectantly.

Jess gently took the book from Rory's hands and tossed it carelessly on the couch. He wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her towards him. His mouth crash-landed on hers violently. Rory smiled for a second before snaking her arms around him and returning the kiss with full force. Her tongue found its way inside his mouth and he pulled her even tighter to him.

After a few breathless moments, Jess pulled away from her mouth but kept their bodies pressed against each other. "I love you too." He whispered.

"Prove it." Rory demanded. Her hands hand found their way under the waistband of his jeans and were toying with his pelvic bones.

Jess groaned, then smirked. He pulled her to him again and began to unbutton her shirt. "As long as you don't run away afterwards." He murmured.

Rory smiled and guided his hands as they worked her shirt. "I'm not going anywhere." She reached behind her with her foot and used it to slam the door shut behind them.