AN: Here's another chapter for all of you! I realized I forgot to announce the answer for my question at the end of Chapter 10, the answer was Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I wrote truly, I heard scrumptious.
I added a poll on my profile for this story so if you could vote in it, I'd appreciate it!
On with the show!
Rory's first day at work was hectic, to say the least. Her morning started with a meeting with Josh, most of it was basic new employee paperwork but they also discussed how opinions should be run.
"I'm not expecting this to become the New York Times, but I do want this paper to be able to compete as a reliable news source and not be a laughing stock of the news paper world."
"Understood, but I doubt it will become that."
"We had massive gaps in our paper that I kept having to fill with advertisements and out of context photos because your predecessor was incompetent to say the least."
Rory nodded in agreement. "I was going over your previous issues and noticed some issues that should be easy enough to fix. Simple editing and increase in content should deal with the issue. How much space are we supposed to fill?"
"Theoretically you're supposed to have seven to ten articles each one five hundred to a thousand words. The rest should be filled with letters to the editor and columns submitted from outside sources. The issue is that we haven't had submissions in quite a few years."
"What if I write a few bigger pieces, two to three thousand words, until we can get into a better rhythm. I can see if Charlotte has been banking stories away, or some had been rejected by the last guy that we can tweak to make work. Also, do you have anyone else on staff who might be willing to help us out for a bit and write a few pieces?"
"What do you mean?"
"Maybe if someone was writing a big investigative piece but has hit a wall, and needs to just get their juices flowing and would write a short piece for us?"
"That's not a bad idea. I'll send out a mass email and see if anyone would help you out. Anything else?"
"Yeah, do you have anyone on the books from the presidential campaign?"
"Yeah, they're still on until the inauguration."
"Could we borrow one, until we sort ourselves out."
"I'll do you one better, if you like them, and our cashflow increases, you can keep them."
"Perfect!"
"Politics will need them occasionally until the end of January."
"That will work. Also, have you got the office into the 21st century?"
"Just about. We were going to work with the computer that was in there, but we realized it's an old MS-DOS computer and that wasn't going to work, so we had to get you a new one." Rory sorted thinking about the old computer at the Stars Hollow Gazette. At Josh's strange look she told him to continue, knowing it would take to long to explain "Anyway, it's being set up as we speak."
"Thank you, Josh. It must be awkward to have a new employee starting just before Christmas. How would you like me to introduce myself to the staff, should I send out a mass email or will there be a meeting?"
"Most already know that we replaced crazy Sal and that you were starting today so it won't be a surprise to anyone. You can send out an email if you like but there will be a department head meeting, this includes you, at 1 o'clock on Thursday. Normally they're at 8 am Wednesday morning but I thought it would be a good idea to give you a chance to get your feet wet before parading you around."
Rory chuckled having a feeling that no matter what Josh did, she'd probably be on display quite a bit in the next while. Especially once people realized that not only was she pregnant, but that the father was the new owner of their paper. "I appreciate that. For my first piece, I was thinking that I'd write about our president-elect. I have quite a bit to say and it will easily fill the space. Oddly enough nothing was printed in opinions about the incumbent."
"Rory, you don't have to run every idea you have for a piece by me. If you could shoot me an email just giving me a heads up about the potential content, I'll appreciate it. As long as you're not planning on bypassing me and me finding out what you wrote on in the paper I'll be thrilled."
"I think I can manage that."
"Good, now head up to your office. Your staff is eagerly awaiting your arrival."
"Thanks, chief."
The two shook hands and Josh laughed as Rory practically skipped from his office.
Rory was sitting in her new office with Charlotte going over the pieces that they could run in the upcoming issue.
"This is everything you have banked?" Rory said astonished at the number of stories that Charlotte had written but were never published.
Charlotte nodded, "Yes. Sal would get cranky if I wrote to much. He would run my pieces about once a month, more if someone got on his case."
"Charlotte, that fantastic, we have enough here to last us for a week or two, and that's without us writing anything new. Is there any chance you know where the old editorial submissions ended up?"
"If they haven't been tossed, they're probably buried in one of the old filing cabinets." Charlotte gestured to the mess behind Rory. While the technology problem had been dealt with before Rory started, the office was still in a state from Sal.
"Go and write another piece, while all of this is good, we can't survive on banked pieces for long. While you do that, I'll see if I can find some editorials and get to work on my own pieces."
Charlotte looked stunned when she realized what Rory was telling her. "You are going to write for the paper?"
"Yes I am. That's one of the reasons that I wanted to take this job." Rory neglected to mention how her career had stagnated. "For now it's just the two of us and in order for this to work we both need to pull our weight."
Charlotte smirked at Rory, "Nice pep talk."
"Thanks. My first big piece is going to be on our President- Elect."
"Pulling out the big guns already, huh."
"I'm thinking it's necessary."
"Honest question, and no offence but I did a little research on you after we met the other day."
"That is what any good reporter would do, and I'd do the same thing. What is you question, Charlotte?"
"Do you really want to start off on a big piece on Donald Trump? From my research it looked like you had not had anything published majorly since your piece on Naomi Shropshire in Time Magazine, and that was over a year ago. Do you think it might be a good idea to write on something lower profile just to make sure you get the rust off?"
Rory examined Charlotte for a minute and took in what she said. She knew that what Charlotte was saying was essentially true. While she had written it had been drafts of her book and that was not the same as writing a piece for a daily newspaper with a larger readership then the entire population of Stars Hollow. Rory also knew that when she charged into things without fully thinking them through, they tended to go up in flames and she refused to have this be another item on her long list of disasters. "Charlotte that's a good idea. I am still going to write about Trump, because we haven't written anything yet, but I'll write something else first." Rory took a breath and quickly scratched down a few ideas for other stories she could write, as Charlotte was turning to leave Rory stopped her. "I know that Sal wasn't well liked around here but often when a long standing staff member leaves a paper there is a short piece written up about them, their achievements, how long they've been working here, that type of thing."
Charlotte groaned at the implication. "Do you think that's necessary?"
"I do, unfortunately. When Mitchum Huntzberger died his son took out a whole page in the New York Times to announce his death and say what a good man and business tycoon he was. Now between you and me, he was not like that at all but there is a certain part we need to play. Plus, we're in the public eye and we can't make a bigger fool of ourselves then we already are."
Charlotte sighed in agreement before nodding her head. "Alright, but you should clear that with Josh."
"I'll do that." With that Charlotte left Rory's office, leaving her to the mess that Sal left behind for her to clean up.
"Ace? You here?" It was Thursday and the week had flown by in a haze of meetings, editing, cleaning up her office, and most importantly writing. Rory had been in heaven and she was thrilled to be back in the newsroom.
"Back here." Logan followed her voice to the back of the apartment and found her on the floor in the mostly empty smaller bedroom.
"Hey. What are you doing?" Rory looked up at him and smiled, which prompted him to sit down next to her.
"I was just thinking."
"That makes me nervous." Rory shoved Logan's shoulder before leaning against him.
"There's going to be a baby sleeping in here in six months." Rory said serenely.
"Yeah, I know." Rory glanced around the room thinking about the things she would need to get and where it would go. "Rory?"
"Yeah?" Rory said distractedly.
"Will you go to dinner with me, tomorrow night?"
Rory turned and stared at Logan for a second. "What?" Rory said with a chuckle.
"I asked if you would go out with me tomorrow." Rory gaped at him for a minute stunned. They hadn't been on a real date in probably a year, if she really thought about it, they might not have really gone out since college. Once she got over her shock, she smiled at him and nodded. "I'd love to."
Logan grinned and pulled her into his side before dropping a kiss on the top of her head. "Ok, great! Tomorrow at 7:30 and don't back out or else I'll end up sitting at home watching An Affair to Remember and eating ice cream."
Rory laughed at the odd statement. "I haven't heard a line like that since Yale, when you used it on me." Rory laughed some more but couldn't help but feel excited about the prospect of dinner. "7:30 it is."
"Great! Now, dinner?"
Rory scoffed in confusion. "You already asked me to dinner."
"I meant what does the baby want for dinner tonight." Logan said with a chuckle.
"The baby's cold so she would like soup."
"Soup it is." Logan came over and helped Rory off the floor once he realized she was having trouble standing. Logan chuckled, but didn't comment thinking it might backfire. "You know it could be a boy."
"It'll be a girl, Gilmore's always have daughters."
"Except your Grandpa, and great-grandpa."
"There are still more girls then boys."
Logan smiled as Rory settled in at the barstool across from him. "I'll prepare for Lorelai the fourth then."
An odd look crossed Rory's face that made Logan stop what he was doing and focus on her. "Ace? What is it?"
"Oh, nothing," Rory said dismissively.
"Rory." Logan said forcefully. "C'mon, don't do that. What's wrong?"
Rory sighed knowing that she needed to tell Logan what she was thinking, but since she hadn't fully come to terms with it herself, she wasn't sure what to say about it. "I don't want to name her Lorelai." Rory blurted out finally.
Logan was stunned, he was almost positive that their daughter would be the latest Lorelai and to hear Rory say otherwise was shocking. "Really?"
"Yeah, I love that my mom named me after her, but I always felt that I was the second act and that I needed to make up for my moms failings."
"Rory,"
"No, I know, but I just want our daughter to have her own identity and be allowed to make her own mistakes." Rory looked at him with those big bambi eyes as if she were pleading with him for something. "I do want that to be her middle name." Rory almost demanded. Logan shook his head as he realized she was able to shift in the span of two seconds.
"Then if it's a boy, we can use my name." Logan smirked.
"Deal!" After a mock handshake, the two sat down to eat.
When Rory got home from work, she kicked off her shoes haphazardly in the entryway and slumped down onto the couch exhausted. Her car had stalled on her way home from work, luckily, she had enough warning that she was able to pull over but it wouldn't start again no matter how much she tried. Once she had gotten her car towed she was unable to hail a cab, so she ended up having walk the rest of the way home.
She had been sitting on the couch, mindlessly flipping through the television channels when a note was slipped under her front door. Rory was unimpressed at the prospect of moving for her spot on the sofa, but she had a not so sneaking suspicion that the strange note came from Logan. Sure enough, once she willed herself to get off the couch and read the note she was proven right.
Ace,
There's new event integrity sitting on your bed. Put it on and be outside your building and ready to go by 6:30. No blind fold necessary. Be ready to spend time outside.
In Omnia Paratus
Rory couldn't help but laugh at the odd note that was so reminiscent of the first brigade event she attended back at Yale. Despite herself, she let out a little squeal as she hurried to the bedroom to see what Logan had got her, her earlier exhaustion forgotten. She quickly found the box and pulled out a knee length mineral blue dress, with embroidered flowers and short caped sleeves. The dress reminded her of the dress she wore at the same brigade event and Rory knew that Logan would have done that on purpose. Though she was more then a little surprised not to find a ball gown in the dress box but was thrilled with the simple elegance of the dress instead of the over-dramatic flare that Logan normally went for.
At exactly 6:30 Rory was standing outside her building when a black SUV pulled up in front of her. Logan quickly hoped out of the vehicle and came over to greet her with a kiss on the cheek; he backed away and took in her appearance.
"You look amazing, Ace," Logan said with a grin.
"Well I wouldn't want to ruin the integrity of the event," Rory replied with a sly grin. "What exactly is this event anyway?" Even though she knew what his response would be, Rory had to ask.
"C'mon Ace, you know I can't tell." Logan joked as he helped her into the back of the SUV. Rory glanced at the driver just to see how far Logan was going with recreating the brigade event. She was relieved to see that Finn wasn't in the drivers seat but was no even more curious then she was before.
"Looking for Finn?"
"Yeah, I thought you were going all out?" Rory joked as the car pulled away from the curb and headed towards Manhattan.
"I'm hurt, Ace. Truly." Rory just shook her head at his dramatics as he continued. "No, just dinner then a little surprise for you afterwards."
"Can I have a hint?" She begged, trying to use the innocent look that can turn him into putty.
"Ace, let me have some secrets please!" Logan cried knowing that he'd tell her anything if she kept that up. "Fine, I'll give you a hint!" Rory just smiled expectantly. "It's something you've always wanted to do."
"Well, I've already been to Fes, and I've got things to do, so can we avoid the surprise overnighter this time?"
"We aren't going to Fes, and there won't be an impromptu trip; but that's all I'm going to say!"
Rory pretended to pout for a minute but then changed the subject.
Half an hour later they pulled up in front of a small restaurant in Greenwich Village. As Logan led her inside she looked around, amazed at this romantic little restaurant hidden away in a old carriage house. They were quickly seated at a secluded table in the corner next to a roaring fireplace and next to a window overlooking the back garden that Rory imagined would be beautiful during the summer.
The evening went on in a lovely manner and the two were able to relax and talk and flirt in a way they hadn't really been able to since they were in college. Sure, they talked and flirted while they were in 'Vegas' but it wasn't the same.
"How was your first week at the Post? I want to know everything." Rory had told Logan about the highlights of a couple of days, but he really wanted to know whatever she had left out in her excited retelling.
"It went really well! Josh and I talked, and we've got a plan to sort the department out, Charlotte talked some sense into me which I appreciated." Logan's eyebrows shot up in confusion at how one of her journalists counteracted her, if something like that had happened to his father the poor employee would have been fired before he finished his sentence. "Well, I was planning on writing on Donald Trump for my first piece, but Charlotte thought that might not be a good idea."
Logan hesitated for a moment before speaking, "She does have a point. You're a brilliant writer and I wouldn't have put you up for this position if I didn't think you'd be great at it, but you have been out of the game for a while and Donald Trump is a huge story. I'm not sure if starting out with that would be the best idea."
"I agree with you. I can't charge into this and taking a minute to get my feet wet is the best thing to do." Rory smiled sweetly at him, trying to ease his anxiety. They had argued and debated in the past, but Logan hadn't tried to talk her off a cliff before and she knew he was uneasy about it. "Charlotte said something similar to me, and I very quickly realized that she was right. This story is to big to not do properly so I was thinking about what else I could write about first and I came up with two options. I know that when a long time staff member of a publication leaves it is tradition to write a farewell piece, and I thought I would write Sal's."
"I hate that we have to do that, the man was a menace and completely useless."
"Is Charlotte your relative too, I swear I had the same conversation with her." Rory said with a chuckle.
"I don't think so." Logan scoffed. "What was your other idea?"
"A piece on Gene Wilder."
Logan grinned at the idea. "That's a fantastic idea. He meant so much to so many people and it would be the perfect piece to introduce you to readers." He said excitedly.
"Right! The man might not have been a national icon, but he was loved by many. He meant so much to my mom and I and it would be a good way to stretch my writing skills but still writing something important."
"This is important and good ol' Sal missed it. I'm glad you'll be writing it, you'll give the piece that special Gilmore flare."
"Nothing less will do for Willy Wonka." They both started laughing at that last statement before delving into a long conversation about Logan running HPG by trial by fire.
A while later the conversation turned back to Rory's new job. "So, other then Charlotte straitening you out, what else happened at the Post?"
"Well, Josh is letting me borrow one of the campaign reporters until we sort ourselves out. He's contracted through the inauguration so we won't be spending any money keeping him around, and if everything works out, we might even be allowed to keep him. He seems like a smart kid and I hope it all works out and he can stick around for a while. Oh!" Rory suddenly yelped, "That reminds me, Josh asked that when we go public that we let him print the exclusive in the Post."
Logan laughed at the tangent and how Josh managed to weasel that little tidbit out of her. "I think we can manage that. We'll probably have to print one the next day in the Times, so we still have some control over the whole thing." Rory nodded in agreement, she understood that their relationship was going to be news and that she would have to deal with this for a long time. She hoped that the majority of the hoopla would die down by the time their kid was born, or at least old enough to understand what was happening.
"As long as the Post gets the first print, I don't mind." Rory took a bite of her food before continuing her story. "Anyway, I met more of the staff at the editor meeting on Wednesday and they practically threw me a parade for taking over for Sal. The old goat thought that he was Editor-in-Chief and tried to tell the other editors what to do. You can imagine how well that what over." Logan nodded imagining how his uncle would have demanded things be done, no matter what anyone said to him.
"All in all, my week went really well except it ended horribly."
Logan's attention snapped back to Rory at that. With concern in his voice he asked, "What happened?" He was a little worried that someone had made some rude comments about their relationship, unfortunately the truth wasn't much better. "My car broke down on my way home, and I was unable to get a cab, so I ended up having to walk the last 10 blocks of my commute."
"What?!" Logan bellowed, bringing quite a bit of attention on to them. All the attention had made Rory startle and she tried to calm Logan down.
"It's fine, I got it towed and it was a nice enough day for a walk. It wasn't that bad in the end."
Logan took a deep breathe knowing that he shouldn't fly off the handle completely. "Will you please consider getting a new car?" Logan said once he could speak calmly.
"I've already looked into it actually. I think I'm also going to trade up, go for something higher-end this time. Also, something a little larger, not too overboard but an SUV for sure." Logan was stunned at this, he honestly thought he was going to have to beg her to even consider getting something larger than her little Prius.
"What were you looking at?"
"Well, I was originally looking at a Lincoln MKC, an Infiniti QX60 and a Range Rover." Logan scrunched up his face at the mention of the Range Rover. "The pro/con list wasn't kind to the Range Rover, but I decided to also look at a Lexus RX L."
"Those are all good ones. You did like my Porsche though." Logan teased.
"I wouldn't be caught dead driving a Porsche and you know it."
An hour later the two were back in the SUV and heading further north into Manhattan. "What happened to my surprise mister?"
"Ok, close your eyes." Rory closed her eyes and felt the car slow to a stop. She heard Logan slide out of the car after planting a quick kiss on her lips. Her door opened and Logan led her from the car and over a few steps. "Ok," He whispered in her ear. "Open your eyes." Rory opened her eyes to see a beautiful horse drawn carriage. "I know that the last time we were next to a horse drawn carriage wasn't the best time, but I was thinking we could indulge in what we missed out on last time."
Rory spun around and kissed Logan right there in the middle of 5th avenue. The kiss was full of love, promise and more then a little passion, and Rory didn't care that hundreds of people were watching her thoroughly kiss her boyfriend. When they finally parted Rory grinned up at Logan, who had an equally smug and dazed look on his face, before speaking. "Thank you for this. When I took that carriage around campus with my mom, I kept wishing that it was you there with me. I realized that I should've pushed for us to talk."
"That's ok. I have a feeling that I might have jumped out of the carriage. We weren't ready and you would have stood by that, I wouldn't have agreed no matter what you said." Logan rubbed Rory's arms as she started to shiver. "Hopefully, this ride will be memorable for a different reason."
Rory laughed lightly before climbing into the carriage. They were quiet most of the ride, just taking in the scenery of Central Park and enjoying each others company. Rory was growing increasingly tired and laid her head against Logan's shoulder which prompted him to put his arm around her and pull her closer.
"Huntzberger." Rory suddenly stated dreamily.
"What?" Logan said confused.
"No," Rory chuckled. "I want the baby's last name to be Huntzberger." Logan pulled away so he was able to look directly at Rory as she spoke. "I always thought that my kids would be Gilmore's, but I want us to be a family and having them be a Huntzberger would be perfect." Logan was stunned by the revelation but before he could say anything Rory spoke again. "I do want Gilmore in there somewhere, I still haven't decided if I'm changing my name when we get married."
Logan frowned a little at the thought, "You want hyphenated Gilmore-Huntzberger's?"
"No, I thought about it but it's just not right. I thought we could do what my mom did with Hayden in my name."
"So, they'd have two middle names?" Rory nodded as Logan gave it a thought. "That's a good idea, it keeps your name in there, but it eliminates the confusion that would come with hyphenating." Rory was thrilled that Logan was coming around. "Also, it makes filling out forms much easier. Rory nodded in agreement. One of her reasons for not wanting to hyphenate the last name was that an old friend from grade school had a hyphenated name that was so long he couldn't fit the whole name onto official forms.
The two relaxed into one another again after their discussion and enjoyed what was left of their ride.
The next day Rory was sitting at her desk writing more of her book, thinking that it would probably be left unpublished. She had finished her piece on Gene Wilder that morning, Charlotte, and Logan had been right about needing a buffer piece to stretch her journalistic legs and Gene Wilder had been the perfect piece to do it. It was a subject she was passionate about, but it wasn't as high profile as Donald Trump. Once she had finished stretching her legs, she decided to tackle her book again. It had morphed from almost a fairy tale about a fantastical childhood to one where Rory was trying to sort out some of her problems that she had picked up from Lorelai. She was drawn out of her musings when her cell phone suddenly rang.
Rory looked at the caller ID, not recognizing the number right away she hesitated to answer but seeing it was from Connecticut made her answer. "Hello?"
"Rory! It's Steph!"
"Stephanie, hi! I'm glad you called!"
"Me too. Now when we went to lunch last week you said that you'd go shopping with me, and I was wondering if you were free today?"
Rory looked around at the stack of paper on her desk and when she realized most of her work was related to her book, she decided that it might be good to go out with Steph. She hadn't seen her in ages, and it would be nice to get together with her again.
"You know what, I am free."
Stephanie let out a little squeal before she spoke again. "Perfect! I'm just getting to the city so is there anywhere specific you want to go?"
Rory thought about it for a minute and knowing that Steph would be up for a full day of shopping she made a request. "I was planning on trading in my Prius, so how would you feel about test driving some cars with me?"
"You're trading in your Prius? I can't believe it! What made you decide to put old reliable out to pasture finally?"
"It was a couple of things, but Logan pointed out that I'd be driving around more then I was in the last year or so, and I really should have a vehicle from this decade at least."
"He's right, especially since you have extra cargo you need something safer than a car you've driven for close to fifteen years."
"It hasn't been that long, but you are right. I'll be driving back and forth from Connecticut a lot, and that's two hours on the interstate, and in 6 months I'll be driving with a baby in the backseat and they need something better than my 2003 Toyota. Plus, I'll be going back and forth from work and who knows where else. It was fine when I didn't use it very much, but now I need an upgrade."
"An upgrade huh?"
Rory shook her head at Steph's prodding. "Yeah, I can afford it and I've decided I want an SUV."
"Sounds good. Though after the test drives, we are going to Bloomingdale's and Saks Fifth Avenue because I'm getting you out of those Target jeans."
"Hey! They're comfortable."
"True, but you're going to need maternity clothes and god knows what else, and when I called, I meant a shopping spree through midtown, not cars. So, we'll do your thing, then we'll do mine."
Rory rolled her eyes at the dramatics but grinned. She always liked Steph and felt bad that they lost touch after college, so she was looking forward to spending time with one of her friends again. "Ok, one lap through Bloomingdale's."
"It's going to be a hell of a lap! I'll pick you up in an hour, ok?"
"Ok, do you need my address?"
"Nope, I got it from Logan, and I must say girl you picked a beautiful area."
"Thanks, I'm pleased with it. I'll give you the ten cent tour when you get here."
Rory heard a giggle come through the line before Steph spoke again, "Can't wait, I'll see you soon, bye!" Steph hung up before Rory had a chance to reply, which made her laugh at absurdity of the whole thing, but she couldn't deny that she loved it.
Rory checked the time and decided that she'd have something to eat then change into something more appropriate for Bloomindale's. She quickly sent off a text to Logan, wanting to make sure that he didn't arrive at an empty apartment and panicked.
Rory - Steph called; she has hijacked me into going shopping with her.
Logan - Good luck, I'll rescue you if you ask nicely.
Rory - No need, I do need some new clothes, plus I've convinced her to test drive some cars in exchange for me spending HOURS at Bloomingdale's.
Logan - That's a good idea. Are you just looking?
Rory – If I see something I like I'm going to buy. My car is clearly ready to be put out to pasture and we're supposed to go up to Nantucket next week and my Prius just won't make it.
Logan – We could take the jet again
Rory – No! Do you have any idea how my mom would react to THAT! Also, do you not remember the hassle involved trying to get to the house from the airport? And that was on a slow day!
Logan – You're right. I don't need to anger Lorelai anymore then I already have.
Rory – She doesn't hate you.
Logan – I'd beg to differ.
Rory – Yeah, ok, but we're driving to Nantucket
Logan – Yes dear.
Rory – Haha, I'll see you later. What time do you think you'll be back?
Logan – 5 at the latest. I wish I didn't need to have meetings on Saturday but sometimes I can't help it. The owner of the New York Times waits for no man, even the newspaper king.
Rory – That's ok. With Christmas next week I'm not that surprised.
Logan – Lucky for us all his grand-daughter is in a Christmas pageant this afternoon and he said he would leave me stranded in Times Square before missing it. So, I'll be back at a reasonable time.
Logan – Can't wait to be running off to Christmas pageants, or risk facing my wife's wrath in five years.
Rory – Me neither.
Logan – See you tonight, love you.
Rory – Love you too.
Rory wasn't one for using many emoji's, she normally preferred to type everything out but she knew that Logan wouldn't care if she tossed a bunch if emoji's into their texts. Rory noticed the time and quickly ran off to get ready to go shopping with Steph.
At 5:30 Logan came home to find Rory sitting on the couch in front of the TV, with CNN on low while she had wrote on pieces of paper. Rory glanced up when she heard the door close and smiled when she saw him, "Hey, how was your day?"
Logan went into the kitchen and started the kettle for a cup of tea. "It was good." He shouted from the kitchen, though wasn't really necessary in her apartment. "Once he realized I wasn't planning on buying him out he was much nicer to me. It was nice. We had a nice chat about the news industry and how we thought it was going to go. He gave me some good pointers for how to run a paper that dear old dad never thought to mention, and I've got a better idea on how to move forward." Logan came over with two cups of tea and placed them on the coffee table before sitting down next to a captivated Rory to keep talking. "I had a decent idea of what to do short term and to keep the company afloat, but I didn't know what to do long term. Arthur Jones has been at this a long time and had some invaluable information." Logan looked at Rory who looked amazed. "What?"
"I can't believe that you had a meeting with Arthur Jones. You live an amazing life Huntzberger."
"That one you can be amazed by, but please don't do that every time I have a meeting with someone who's book is on your bookshelf." Logan begged.
Rory laughed at his pout, "I make no promises."
Logan just groaned before changing the subject, "How was your day?"
"Good, I finished my first Op-Ed, I reframed my book though I'm not sure I'm going to publish it, I bought a car and I watched Steph almost become the owner of Bloomingdale's." Logan looked at Rory stunned while she just grinned at him.
"You bought a new car?"
"Yeah, I ended up getting the Infiniti. It's a little larger then I thought I'd go for but I liked the entertainment system in the back for when the kids got a little older, it has good mileage and they gave me $1200 for my Prius. It has all the bells and whistles, safety features for days and I love the colour, it's a beautiful coffee colour and the inside is creamy with wood trim. I wouldn't believe I just spent over $65,000 on a car if I hadn't been there." Logan's jaw dropped when he heard about the price. "Was that too much? Grandpa bought my Prius and I don't really know how much is reasonable to spend on a luxury car without going overboard." Rory said with an edge in her voice.
"No! It's fine," Logan said quickly trying to calm her down. "My old Porsche was over 200,000. Yours was totally reasonable considering the super fancy package you went for."
Rory blushed in embarrassment before speaking. "It'll be good in the long term."
"You're right. Plus, it'll keep Uncle Finn occupied when we return him to Connecticut after he drops by unannounced." Rory groaned as Logan laughed.
Rory put the pages she was reading on the coffee table, and Logan got a glimpse, when he noticed the title, he got curious. "Hey, what's that?"
"Oh," Rory perked up at the mention of her writing. "It's my piece on Gene Wilder. Will you read it and tell me what you think?"
"Yeah, I'd love too."
Logan picked up the article and started to read.
Mr. Wonka's Last Note
By: Rory Gilmore
The first movie I ever remember watching was Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It is my moms favourite movie and it was a staple of my childhood. The first time I saw it the movie theatre in my hometown decided to play it one night and my mom took me to see it. We didn't see many movies when I was little and we rarely went to the theatre, even if the theatre was also a bookstore that only seated 20 people and was operated by the local entrepreneur with terrible ideas and worked 43 other jobs around town.
I remember sitting on the sofa, eating the snacks my mom had smuggled inside and I watched as Gene Wilder made his dramatic exit from the factory to the adoring crowds outside the gate. As I watched I felt what I imagined Charlie felt that day. I was handed a golden ticket and I went on a magical trip through the chocolate factory, Oompa Loompas, and all.
I often revisited the chocolate factory throughout my childhood and beyond. Gene Wilder was always this mythical figure that could make dreams come true. He taught me to dream, to be kind and not to be greedy. He also taught me the unfortunate habit of singing the Oompa Loompa song every time I started humming a tune.
My childhood was built around this movie. My mom and I would watch it almost once a week with a food spread that looked like it came right out of the chocolate factory. I always associated Willy Wonka with an easier time in my life, when all I had to worry about was learning to ride my bike, when my entire world was a block wide and my mom was the most important person in my life. As time marched on and my world expanded past the block where my childhood home still sits Gene Wilder would always be there, prepared to take me on an adventure through the chocolate factory.
When I learned that Gene Wilder died, I was going through a hard time in my life. I had made some bad decisions, my grandfather had recently died, and my career had stalled out, but watching Willy Wonka had made me feel better. Everything seemed less complicated when I watched it. When I learned that Willy Wonka himself, a man (fictional as he may be) who I always believed was invincible had died I couldn't believe. It had felt like my childhood had officially died then, that there was no room for happiness anymore. Later, when I learned that he was suffering from Alzheimer's and that Gene Wilder had purposely hidden this from the public I was even more upset, then I heard why. He didn't hide his disease out of shame or vanity, it was because he didn't want anyone to look at him and feel pity, he wanted to look at him and smile. I realized then that while my childhood may be over, my adventures in the chocolate factory go on and while Gene Wilder may be gone, Willy Wonka never would be. I can still close my eyes, make a wish and dream, I can be free in my imagination as long as I wish to be.
So, thank you, Mr. Wilder, for leading us on a wonderful adventure and giving so many children the courage to explore their Pure Imagination.
"Well? What do you think?" Rory asked nervously.
Logan put the pages down and looked at Rory, "It was great."
"Really?" Rory said relieved. "I wasn't sure if it was too much for my first piece, but I do know that these types of pieces require a certain type of self-reflection in the article. Do you think it's long enough? I know that Op-Ed's aren't very long but I still feel like I skimped out."
"No, it's great. It is a little on the short side, but I think for your first piece it's fine. You aren't going to overwhelm the readers right away, but it's long enough to show that it's worth reading. It'll also show the readers that the section has some new blood and making the section worth reading."
"That's what I was going for so I'm glad you like it." Rory said happily as she stood up and went into the kitchen and started pulling a few things out of the cupboard, startling Logan. Rory didn't cook and was confused to watch her move around the kitchen like she was going to cook something.
"Hey, Ace?"
"Yeah," Rory said distractedly.
"Whatcha doing?"
The tone of Logan's voice caught her attention and Rory glanced over at him. "I'll have you know that I am perfectly capable of making spaghetti thank you very much." Rory harrumphed as she pointedly went about making dinner.
Logan watched on amused thinking that he would happily watch her slam around the kitchen the rest of his life, he decided just to enjoy the moment and hoping that he had similar moments for the rest of his life.
AN: I have learned that writing an Op-Ed from someone else's perspective is remarkably difficult!
Again, if you could vote in my poll I'd appreciate it. Go to my profile page and right at the top of the page, it should have an option to vote in the poll.
Review if you please!