A Second Chance
Chapter One: The Funeral
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, or any of that crap. I do own the plot… give me some credit.
A/N: So I had this crazy idea when watching the movie Ghost. This story. This isn't really a spoof off of Ghost or anything like that though, when an idea gets in my head, and forms, it changes, it can get pretty out of control. There are some similarities to the movie I suppose, but it's pretty different. I'll stop babbling now and get on with the story… or another author's note works too.
A/N2: Okay, so this chapter may seem a little bit intense, what with Luke dying, but believe me, this is written by a diehard JavaJunkie fan. Luke and Lorelai are going to end up together in the end. I'm not going to say much more than that, because it would totally give away the ending, but just have confidence. And NOW we'll get on with the story!
XOxoXOxoXOxoXO
"We are here today to mourn the loss of one Luke Danes," The reverend said, standing in front of a smooth, rosewood coffin, "Luke was a great guy, and I'm sure everyone here will miss him terribly," He continued. Lorelai Gilmore stood, staring in disbelief at the coffin in front of her. Tears were flowing down her face, and she was gripping her daughter's hand in her own.
"You didn't even know him," Lorelai said softly, staring at the man before her. He stopped talking, looking at her calmly. He had obviously dealt with people like her before and he had a somewhat bored expression on his face.
"You have no idea who he is! You have no right to say what a great guy he was, you never even knew who he was!" Lorelai yelled, her voice shaky, and gaining confidence with each word. She suddenly stopped, breaking into a fresh set of sobs upon hearing the past tense verb she had used. Rory stood next to her mother, rubbing her back soothingly until the cries passed.
When Lorelai calmed down, the reverend began speaking again, giving Luke a final blessing. He stopped talking and everyone stood in silence, saying a final prayer.
Lorelai took a step forward, looking at the casket. It certainly was easier to focus on the intricate woodwork than it was to think of what she was really doing there. She took the flower she was holding, a single red rose, and placed it on the coffin. She stood silently for a few seconds before speaking up.
"Good bye Luke," she said, ever so softly.
Rory stood, watching her mother, when she heard a voice answer her.
"Good bye Lorelai," Rory looked up. She glanced over to the source of the voice, disbelief in her mind.
"Luke?" Rory whispered, looking to the right of the coffin. She squinted her eyes, and saw the faint outline of Luke Danes, leaning against a tree. The Luke phantom looked right at Rory, wide-eyed that she was also looking at him.
They stood, sapphire eyes on sapphire eyes, until Rory shook her head and closed her eyes. The past few days had been extremely stressful on everyone. Since finding out Luke had been murdered, Rory had been trying to remain strong for her mom, when she needed it most. The funeral was not the right time to finally crack under the pressure.
She opened her eyes, looking at the tree again. Luke was gone, much to her relief. It just wasn't normal to see someone at their own funeral, no matter which way you slice it.
Lorelai walked backward, away from the coffin, her eyes brimming with fresh tears. She looked over at Rory, and took her hand, smiling weakly. Rory smiled reassuringly back at her mother, squeezing her hand.
The casket was lowered, and both Gilmore girls looked at the coffin, neither one believing it was really happening. Lorelai's lips parted, and she spoke to him one last time.
"I love you Luke," She whispered ever so quietly. Rory barely even heard her. Rory didn't expect Luke to answer her again, but sure enough she heard the same voice float through her ears again.
"I love you, too Lorelai," Luke's voice said. Rory's head shot up once again, looking over at the tree. There was Luke again, in the same position, with the same expression on his face. Rory stared at him again, but this time it took him a little while to realize that she was looking at him. When he finally looked over, Rory glanced over at her mom, to see if Lorelai could see what it was she saw.
Lorelai was staring straight at the coffin, a stony expression on her face. As the casket hit the bottom of the hole, both Lorelai and Rory shed new tears as the thud echoed across the cemetery.
Rory looked back over to the tree, to find it empty. Rory put it down to stress. That was the only explanation she could think of. She hadn't taken a large amount of cough syrup recently, and there was no way that actually had just happened, so there was no other way to think of it.
After a few moments, Lorelai, Rory, and everyone else was clearing out, headed back to the Gilmore house for the reception.
On the drive there, Rory could not stop thinking about what she had seen during the funeral. Even though she convinced herself it was not real, she was still unnerved by it. She wondered if her mother had seen what she had seen, but judging by the way Lorelai had told off the reverend, she would have reacted if she had seen Luke.
Rory decided against telling her mom what had happened. She didn't want to talk about Luke any more than was necessary. Rory felt extremely bad for her mother. She knew that Lorelai was in love with Luke, and Lorelai deserved more than anyone to just settle down and be happy. Rory loved him too actually, and was devastated by his death as well.
When they reached the house, Rory helped her mom out of the car and they walked up to the door together in silence.
"How are you doing Mom?" Rory asked as they walked into the house. Lorelai looked at her daughter and forced a smile.
"I'm fine. Now come on, we have to stay strong until at least the reception is over. We have company coming; we should set up tables for Sookie to put the food on when she gets here. Thank God we know a gourmet chef, huh?" Lorelai said, trying to keep her voice steady. Rory nodded, understanding that her mother needed to stay stable while there were guests around.
They brought out a few tables and set them up, and when Sookie arrived, Rory and Sookie put the food out while Lorelai searched for cups in the kitchen.
"Hey Rory, how's your mom?" Sookie said softly as Lorelai disappeared into the kitchen. Rory sighed.
"It's been hard, on both of us. But I think she'll hold up until the reception is over. She wants to stay strong for everyone. That's just the way she is. But it kills me to see her like this," Rory said. She glanced into the kitchen to make sure her mom was not listening to them talk about her. Sookie nodded sympathetically. Lorelai then came bustling into the room, holding her treasures above her head.
"I found a whole stash of plastic cups in the cabinet next to the stove!" Lorelai said, trying to be her usual bouncy self. Rory forced a smile.
"That's good," she said, taking the cups from her mother. Lorelai took Sookie upstairs for a minute, and Rory was left standing in the family room alone. She looked down into one of the cups and saw the face of Luke Danes staring back at her again. She quickly looked over her shoulder and saw him standing there.
"Ahhh! Luke?" Rory exclaimed, thoroughly startled. Luke looked at her.
"You can see me? Can you hear this Rory?" Luke said. Rory stood petrified, staring at him.
"Get away from me! I know you aren't really there, just leave," she sighed, "Way too much stress," Rory muttered, closing her eyes and massaging her temples. She opened her eyes and saw Luke was gone. She breathed a sigh of relief as she turned around, only to find Luke standing in front of their TV. She jumped, startled by him again.
"I remember this room. Your mother and I watched some movie here. Casablanca or something," Luke said. Rory looked at him, not believing that Luke Danes was standing in front of her.
"Please go away," Rory said, closing her eyes tightly again and trying to will the image away. Just then the doorbell rang, and Lorelai's voice floated down the staircase.
"I'll get that Rory," she said, her voice shaky. Soon Lorelai was walking down the stairs, wiping tears from her eyes. Rory looked over to Luke and saw that he was slowly fading.
"Lorelai…" he said, walking toward her, and fading as he went. His voice was getting softer and softer until he had disappeared completely. Rory stood stock still. Lorelai had definitely not seen or heard any of that, and yet it had seemed so real.
Lorelai opened the door, and Miss Patty walked slowly into the room, wearing an all black outfit, and looking close to tears. She walked over to Rory and pulled her into a hug, seeing the expression on her face.
Rory found comfort in Miss Patty's arms, and began to cry. She cried for Luke being gone, for her mother being so depressed, and that she was losing her mind by hallucinations. As the evening went on, everyone ate food, talked about what a wonderful person Luke had been, and mourned the loss of a great man.
The whole night Rory kept getting the feeling that she was being watched, followed, but couldn't bring up the nerve to look over her shoulder, for fear she would see Luke again. She really couldn't deal with that right now.
XOxoXOxoXOxoXO
Okay, so what do you think? Tell me if you liked it! List at least one specific thing you liked in the review please. I'll try to update soon, I have almost the whole second chapter written, so I'll try my best to get it up soon. Also, I'm sorry if the chapter was a little bit too short, but I just wanted to get the story started. Tell me if you wanna see what happens next! REVIEW Y'ALL!
Go, Go, Go,
Click the button that says Go!
Then you'll see, see, see
Just how fast updates can be!
