A/N: Thank you all for your amazing reviews and comments about this story! This is my first ever fan fiction story and the first story that I have written in years. Your reviews have kept me motivated to write, even if I don't post updates often... I think I am my own worst critic and often take forever to post because something doesn't turn out exactly the way that I want it to. I have been sitting on this update for a few months and finally decided to post it. I hope you all enjoy it. I don't think this story will be much longer and I already know how I want it to end.
The news of Rory and Logan's affair broke the day after Rory hit 38 weeks. Soon the couple were bombarded by press and bodyguards had to be hired for the pair. Mitchum was right and even though Lorelai went to the reporter, told him that she made everything up, he had kept researching and had enough to publish a story. The reporter had managed to get a few pictures of Rory and Logan while they were out in Hartford and it was obvious from the photos that Rory was very pregnant, and they were together since he was holding her hand, or she was leaning into him. Rory and Logan had released a statement saying that they would not address any of the rumors, she was approaching the end of her pregnancy and they wanted to enjoy this time and not be surrounded by the negativity and gossip.
Reporters had descended on Stars Hollow but the residents knew nothing about Rory's pregnancy since they were all under the impression that she was in London. In a strange twist, the normally talkative group remained mum and refused to tell the reporters anything about Rory or her childhood. The townspeople all had questions for Lorelai but since she had made herself scarce, they were unable to talk to her since she avoided town and when they tried to visit her at work Michael would kick them out.
Luke had returned to Stars Hollow but had made himself scarce. Everyone noticed he seemed more withdrawn than normal, and he had moved back into the apartment over the diner. April had come to visit for a few days and that seemed to make him happy but once she had left, he seemed melancholy as he avoided people more than normal and refused to talk to anyone other than taking food orders.
Lane, Zach and the twins made a point to check on him at least once a day. The couple were questioned by the townspeople, but they only said it was a private family matter and they would not tell anyone what had happened. It was Rory's story to tell, and they would not betray her confidence.
Lorelai often sat alone in her house or locked in her office at the Inn. She knew the town had questions, but she didn't want to answer them. After Luke and Emily's visit, she had done a lot of thinking, but she wasn't willing to concede that she had gone too far, she was just looking out for her daughter, but she knew that in order to save her business, to keep her friends in the town she would need to come up with a sympathetic story and fast. She knew she had to handle this situation carefully, one thing that painted Rory or Logan in the wrong would probably bring down the wrath of Luke and Lane. The day of the town meeting came, and Lorelai headed to it with a plan in place on how to gain the towns sympathy but that went to hell when a process server met her outside the dance studio and served her with her divorce papers. With so many in the town seeing her she had no choice but to go in and face everyone.
The meeting started but Taylor, noticing Lorelai focused on her. "The first order of business is the pregnancy of Rory Gilmore. Lorelai since you are here what can you tell us."
"Umm… well," Lorelai stammered, and she felt everyone's eyes on her. "She's pregnant and Logan Huntzberger is the father."
"Isn't he the boy she dated in college?" Ms. Patty asked. "The boy you hated?"
"He is her college boyfriend," Lorelai stated.
"The one you hated?" Babette pressed.
"He was young, and umm… I didn't hate him. I just didn't think he was right for Rory," she sighed.
"But now he has gotten her pregnant!" Taylor exclaimed. "How could you have let this happen?"
"I didn't let anything happen," Lorelai tried to defend, and she felt the control she had on her anger slipping.
"But you're her mother," Taylor continued. "Surely you could have done something."
"Yeah sweets," Babette chimed in. "I remember you saying how you were so happy she listened to you and said no when he proposed."
"See," Taylor exclaimed in triumph, "you did it once you should have done it again. But you let her run around the world, never staying in this town. If you would have made her stay, then this would have never happened…"
Lorelai cut him off, before she knew it words were out of her mouth… "Don't you think I tried to stop her! I made sure she didn't have a job when she graduated! I convinced her not to marry that worthless ass but no, she got a job and ran into him again and no matter what I did to keep them apart she still was seeing him! I tried to convince her to not tell him she was pregnant, but she ran to him and no matter what I do she never listens to me. Her entire life she has done what I have told her to do but now she is sucked in and destroying her life and…" she trailed off when she heard someone clear their throat and her eyes locked with a glaring Luke. When she looked away, she saw the irate look on Lane's face followed by the shocked looks on the rest of the town.
"Sugar what do you mean you made sure she didn't get a job?" Babette asked.
"What do you mean you told her not to tell the father," Mrs. Patty stated shocked
"Umm… well… uh," Lorelai stammered.
"Why don't you tell them the whole truth Lorelai," Luke stated as he studied the woman.
Lorelai was trapped, she knew she was trapped and there was no way out of this situation. She could see the disbelief, the question on the people's faces and she knew there was no way out of this, especially not with Luke and Lane there.
When she remained, silent Lane spoke up. "Why don't you tell everyone how you didn't want Logan and Rory together, so you worked with his mom to make sure she didn't get a job offer after college. Or how you manipulated her so she said no to Logan and made her so afraid of disappointing you that when they ran into each other years later she couldn't tell him what she wanted because she was afraid of disappointing you. You could tell them about the book she wanted to write and how you tried to convince her not to do it." Lane turned to look at the town. "That is only a part of what Lorelai has done to try and control Rory and she lied to everyone when she said Rory had a job in London. She kicked Rory out of the house when she told Lorelai that she was pregnant."
The town started whispering amongst themselves and with tears streaming down her face Lorelai spoke up. "She is my daughter I was just trying to protect her, tried to make sure she made the right decisions. She didn't need him… Everything I did was because I love her…"
The town had heard enough, and they silently stood and started trickling out of the building. When it was almost empty Luke took a step towards her. "I hope that trying to control Rory was worth it," he stated and then turned to walk about of the studio not stopping when Lorelai called after him.
"You did that to your own daughter?" Mrs. Patty asked and just shook her head.
"You don't have kids, you don't understand!" Lorelai cried out.
"Your right I don't have kids. But we all know Rory and we all saw her grow up and to think… to think that you tried to hurt her so badly makes me…" she didn't even finish her sentence as she walked out, leaving Lorelai alone to sink down into a chair.
Odette hung up the phone with her father and stared at it in disbelief for a few moments as she tried to process the conversation. Somehow the press had gotten ahold of the information that Logan and Rory had been seeing each other during the entire engagement and she was right back in the news. Her father had questioned her on if she had gone to the press, but Odette assured him that she had not spoken to anyone. He advised her to stay silent, she was away from Paris, and she just needed to stay away until everything died down again. Quickly she typed Logan Huntzberger into the internet search and the articles started piling in. It seemed the press was on the right track that Logan and Rory had been seeing each other for years, that the broken engagement story was a sham to cover the truth and that the pregnancy was the real reason for the break-up. Not a single thing written was a lie but none of these reporters could ever know how true they really were. As she read one article she scrolled down and saw a few pictures of the pair. One was as they were standing looking at something, his arm was wrapped around her waist, and she was leaned against him, but it was the look in his eyes that caused her breath to hitch, everything she needed to know about how he felt was in the tilt of his head as he looked at her. The next photo was of them at some restaurant and their hands were linked across the table and both had large smiles on their faces. As she studied them, she felt another wave of regret at the fact that she had tried to keep these two apart. With a feeling of determination, she decided to ignore her father's advice and called an old friend.
Logan sat in the study and read through some of the documents his father had sent him about an internet publication they were looking to acquire. No matter how much he tried he couldn't focus. His thoughts were on Rory and the entire situation that they currently found themselves in. She was trying to stay strong, but he knew that she was still having a hard time dealing with her mother's betrayal and because of it she was worried that she would not be a good mother. They had discussed her fears in their group therapy sessions, and he knew she spoke with her own therapist about it. Everyone had no doubt that she would be an amazing mother, she was caring and loving but this situation had caused her to question so much. With a sigh he pulled the engagement ring he had bought out of his briefcase and studied the stunning diamond and questioned again when he would be able to put it on her finger. He had planned on doing it before the baby was born but with everything that had happened, he had doubts and his previous proposal was on a loop in his mind. While he knew everything was different now, he had no doubt she would say yes… well he had no doubt until she started questioning if she would be a good mother. With a sigh he flipped the box shut and slipped it back into his briefcase. Closing his eyes for a moment he tried to get his mind in the right space for him to be able to work. Before he could he heard Rory yell for him and he was out of his chair and sprinting into the parlor where he found Rory leaning over the couch, short of breath and a look of pain on her face.
"I think it's time," she muttered as she held her stomach.
Quickly he ran towards her, "you got this," he murmured as Livy ran into the room.
"I already called Frank," she told the couple. "He is pulling the car around right now."
"Thank you," Logan told the woman as they helped Rory towards the door. The SUV was waiting, and Logan helped her inside. As soon as they got settled Frank pulled away from the house. Logan held her hand and breathed with her as they made their way to the hospital, he whispered to her about how amazing she was, how much he loved her and just held her close to him. Before they knew it, they had arrived and Logan was grateful when he saw a nurse out front with a wheelchair.
"Livy called," the nurse told them as Logan stepped out of the car. "She told us you were on your way."
"I think we owe her a raise," Logan joked as he helped settle Rory into the chair and grab the hospital bag from Frank.
"I agree," she sighed, thankful to be at the hospital.
"As soon as we get settled, I will message everyone else," he told her as they walked toward the elevator.
"Since you preregistered all we need to do is get you to the room," the nurse told them as the elevator doors closed. "Your room is ready, and the doctor should be in to check on you soon. And if you need anything at all my name is Jen and I or one of the other nurses can help you."
"Thank you…" Rory started but trailed off as another contraction hit.
Jen looked at her sympathetically. "Do you still want the epidural?"
"Yes!" Rory gasped and Logan had to bite back a chuckle. "I see that smirk," she told him with a slight glare.
"No smirk, promise," he told her and squeezed her hand. "Just think pretty soon Richard will be here."
"Yeah," she breathed out as the elevator doors opened and Jen pushed her towards the room. It wasn't long until they were settled, and the doctor came in. She was only 3 cm dilated so there was time, the doctor suggested she wait a bit for the epidural and so she did. Logan messaged everyone and he knew soon they would have visitors, so they enjoyed the calm before the storm.
"I love you," he told her as he looked into her eyes. "I love you more than I ever thought possible, and I know I am going to love our son," he trailed off as he felt the tears gather as he saw her in the hospital bed. "The last time I saw you in the hospital I swore I would never leave you and today I am changing that promise a bit," he saw a brief flash of worry in her eyes, so he quickly continued. "I promise I will never leave you; I will never leave our child… I love you so much and I… I can't imagine my life without the family that you are giving me."
"I love you to," she breathed out and gently cupped his face. "I can't imagine my life without you and Richard in it either… I love you Logan, so much."
He leaned down and gently pressed his lips to hers, the kiss was filled with promise, filled with hope. "I am so lucky," he whispered against her lips.
"We both are," she told him and pressed her lips to his. They sat like that for minutes and he held her hand as contractions hit, he talked her through them and helped her with her breathing. Soon Christopher arrived and Logan left the room to give them a few minutes alone.
"How are you kiddo?" he asked.
She let out a small laugh. "As good as can be expected," she replied and grimaced as another contraction hit. When she felt the pain subside, she looked at him. "I know I don't tell you often enough but thank you. Thank you for helping me through all of this, thank you for being there."
"You don't need to thank me for anything," he replied and squeezed her hand. "We have moved past all of that, and I am grateful for that and that we have the relationship we have now."
"You are going to be an amazing grandpa," she told him with a smile.
Soon the doctor came back in with Logan and progress was checked. Rory was progressing quickly, so the anesthesiologist was called and as they waited Mitchum and Honor stopped by to visit and Logan gave her updates on everyone else's status. Much to the relief of the doctors and nurses they only had to deal with Paris via phone since she had a full day of patients. The epidural was administered after two hours in the hospital, and she was already 6 cm. After hour three everyone noticed that Rory was struggling to stay awake, so the visitors all left the room and Logan promised to give them updates. Logan watched as Rory slept and he let himself cry, he was so thankful for this, for her giving him another chance, she was giving him a son that they would welcome soon. As he watched her, he could see the life he wanted, another child, a girl that looked like her, summers in Martha's Vineyard, baseball games and dance lessons. He had never pictured himself as a father and throughout this he still questioned if he could be a good one, but he looked at the relationship he had with his father now… he knew that he would do everything possible to be the type of father this child deserved, be the type of man Rory needed.
Labor went quick for Rory after she started pushing and she was thankful it only lasted for around 45 minutes. At 8:18 on 18 June, Richard Hayden Huntzberger was born and both mom and dad were amazed at his blue eyes and blonde hair. He immediately took to breastfeeding and Rory teased Logan about having to share them now, he didn't care and watched in amazement as the love of his life nursed his son and he felt a wave of overwhelming love looking at them. They took an hour to themselves as they admired their son, both feeling a type of love they never knew existed. Family and friends visited but they didn't stay long knowing it was late and that Rory was exhausted. Everyone instantly fell in love with the little boy and as they looked at Rory and Logan, they knew that this was the start of an amazing chapter for them.
The days flew by with getting released from the hospital and settled back into the house. Rory was amazing and was up with Richie feeding him throughout the night and sleeping when he did. Logan helped as much as he could by changing diapers, making sure Rory ate, rocking Richie when he was fussy… the two fell into parenthood. Logan loved the way Rory would focus on their son, the look of love that would shine in her eyes, the look of wonder. Rory would watch as Logan would stare in amazement at Richie, like he was the entire world. Family and friends stopped by, usually not trying to stay long, but they would all hold Richie and they all came with more presents. The gift from Honor surprised them the most, it was right after Richie was born and Rory was sitting in the hospital bed with Logan beside her, they were both focused on the bundle in Rory's arms, and you could see the love, it was an amazing first photo of the family and seeing it Rory promptly broke down into tears, which caused Honor to cry. Logan watched in shock for a few moments not knowing what to do, Livy had heard the crying so came in and smiled at the scene and laughed at Logan's face, "hormone's" she told him, and he had to laugh.
The press had gotten wind of Richie's birth and Mitchum had crafted a press release, it was basic and didn't provide much more than the bare minimum of details. It was four days after the birth and Logan was taking a few minutes to read it when his phone rang. "I'm looking at it right now," he sighed.
"You saw Odette's statement?" Mitchum questioned shocked that his son knew about it, he had just found out moments before.
"What?" Logan asked. "No, I was talking about the birth announcement. She released a statement?"
"Yeah, it was in a French tabloid. I just heard about it, and I am having it sent to both of us," Mitchum replied. "I don't know what it says, was just told it could be good."
"Fuck," Logan muttered fearing the worst.
Mitchum sighed, "let's just read it. No need to immediately start thinking the worst…"
"But it's her, I can't think any other way," Logan retorted.
"I know," Mitchum sighed. "I'll call you after I read it and you keep an eye on your email so you can see it when it comes in."
"Will do," Logan replied as he hung up and then opened his e-mail again. It took only a few minutes before the email came in and Logan's mouth dropped open in shock, he had to read it again before the words finally registered.
Rory walked into the study to let Logan know that lunch was ready, but she paused when she saw the look on his face. "Is everything okay?" she asked worriedly. He looked at her blankly before he gestured to the computer screen. Rory walked toward it and read a news article…
I was absolutely disgusted when I read the news articles regarding Logan Huntzberger and Rory Gilmore. What should have been a happy time in their life as they prepared for the birth of their first child was marred by lies and gossip. As Logan previously stated our engagement was broken off late last summer and we had delayed waiting to release that information. I have always known about Rory, I knew that they were friends when I first started dating him and even after we got engaged I knew about the friendship. I believe that nothing happened between the two of them while we were together, and it was not until we parted ways that they rekindled their romance. It didn't surprise me; I could always tell there was still love between the two of them, but they were both so hurt from past mistakes that they settled for friendship. Yes, Logan and I could have been happy, but I know what he has with Rory far exceeds what we felt for one another. I wish them many years of happiness, and I can only hope that one day I find the kind of love that they share.
When Rory finished reading the statement for the third time, she turned to look at Logan. "Did she just… is that real?" she questioned almost too afraid to believe it.
"Yeah," he breathed out as the phone started ringing. Noticing it was his father he answered and put it on speaker. "Rory is here with me… we just read the statement."
They heard Mitchum's sigh of relief through the phone. "I called Henri. He was just as surprised by the statement as us, he had told Odette to avoid the press, but she decided to do that. After he read it, he called her and she told him she needed to right some wrongs and this was the best first step."
"Wow," Logan sighed and ran his hand through his hair.
"Yeah," Mitchum replied. "So, we will go ahead and release the birth announcement and hopefully everything will calm down."
"I hope so," Logan replied and then men hung up.
"I just can't believe," Rory started and then trailed off. "After everything she did… why now?"
"I have no idea," he replied as he studied her. "Maybe she regrets what she did."
"Yeah, maybe," she stated as she looked at him. She wanted to add something about things calming down, but she didn't want to jinx anything.
Lorelai sat alone in her house with only Paul Anaka to keep her company. The town had pretty much shunned her, and she didn't know what to do. She had tried reaching out to Rory wanting to make amends, but her number had changed so she tried reaching out to Emily. She had seen the news and read Odette's statement, it seemed the woman was sticking with the story and allowing Rory and Logan to have their happily ever after. A few days after the statement she saw the birth announcement, Logan Elias Huntzberger and Lorelai 'Rory' Leigh Gilmore-Hayden welcomed their son, Richard Hayden Huntzberger. That announcement made her cry and start thinking about everything she had done over the years, she had missed her grandson's birth, she didn't know what he looked like, and she doubted she would ever meet him. She should have known that what she did wouldn't stay hidden forever and now she was paying the price. She would stay up late at night and look at Rory's old room, sleep in her bed and she had to admit that everything she had done to keep Logan and Rory apart wasn't worth it. If she had just accepted the relationship years ago everything would have been different. There were choices to make now, she didn't know if she could stay in this town but if she left where would she go. What if Rory one day reached out to her… she could hope.
Shira sat in the apartment and studied the two pieces of paper in front of her, Odette's statement and her grandson's birth announcement. Odette had taken the high road and instead of destroying Logan and Rory like she had hoped she would she had instead stood by what Logan had previously released and given the couple her best wishes for the future, nothing could be said now, or it would go against everything that the parties involved had released. Then she studied the birth announcement of the grandson she would never meet, and she wondered what he looked like. She was beat, there were no more moves, and she didn't have the slightest idea how to go forward.
Jess sat in his apartment and drowned his sorrows in a bottle of cheap whiskey. He saw the birth announcement and he felt bitter that Logan and Rory were announcing the birth of their child when it should have been him and Rory. One day she would realize she made a mistake he thought to himself as he poured another drink.