The third time is charm
I feel like I'm missing something.
Rory texted Lorelai, before immediately going through the papers in her file again. In a rinse-repeat loop, she has already checked five times to make sure everything was in order. Unfortunately, the sight of her résumé, two recommendation letters and a later issue of The Atlantic with one of her stories on the cover was not enough to calm her nerves.
Seconds after Rory closed the folder, the young journalist started the process once more. Keeping her hands busy was definitely better than the alternative, which was nervously fidgeting on her chair as long as she waited for the interview with the editor of Patch website.
Her mother finally texted back:
Are you wearing panties?
YES! WHAT KIND OF QUESTION IS THAT?
What's with all the yelling!? Given your past history, it doesn't hurt checking...
Ha-ha! Not helping. You're distracting me.
Oh, rats! You got me. ;D
Rory cracked a smile, feeling a little less tense for a moment. She's been on edge since she sent the email with a sample of her work two weeks ago. The journalist spent days basically sitting by the phone, anxiously picking up at the first ring and being disappointed many times by the voice on the other end of the line. It was a torture waiting for a callback.
Even when a date was finally set for the meeting in the beginning of February, it didn't get any easier. The girl couldn't help but wonder if the appointment was going to be postponed over and over again, just like Conde Nast did last year. So, all things considered, Rory woke up the day of the interview barely holding it together. And now it was difficult to remain calm in that quiet room. The girl was once more a bundle of nerves when her phone chimed.
Luckily, Lorelai decided to drive her daughter to the meeting in Hartford for moral support. So, she was well aware of Rory's state of mind and carried on with the chit chat to distract the journalist:
Do you have any gum?
Why on earth would I need gum NOW?
Well, as explained by Chandler Bing, gum is perfection. I find candy a great ice-breaker. You could offer the guy who is going to interview you.
Oh, God! You're right.
The young Gilmore checked her purse and replied.
I don't have any.
She sent another message, already starting to panic.
Could you run to the store on the corner and get some for me?
If you go fast I think you'd come back before they call me in.
Rory texted one sentence after another, giving no space for Lorelai's response.
The young Gilmore only stopped typing because her worst fears hit her at once. Does that mean I'm unprepared again? My past work is probably on the editor's desk already, but I didn't consider writing anything new on spec to bring today and impress this guy. She continued the self punishment in silence, her eyes now glazing over the phone screen. The decision to hire me is entirely on him and I showed up empty-handed for another job interview. What's wrong with me? I'm going to blow this just like I did with Sandee Says...
Deeply absorbed in doubt, Rory started to hyperventilate. That's when the celphone she was holding buzzed with a new message alert and snapped her out of the inner meltdown before she completely lost it.
Sitting in the car, Lorelai seized the opportunity of the brief pause in Rory's desperate rambling texts to organized her thoughts and type quickly the encouraging words the young Gilmore needed:
RORY, CHILL! (uppercase intended so you can literally hear me screaming from the parking lot)
I'm messing around. Stop obsessing about gum or whatever. You got this!
Put your fierce Beyoncé face on and go run the world, girl!
The three messages were short and simple, but they were effective to get Rory out of her head. A spark of joy lightened her face as she was reading. Only her mother would quote Beyonce in a motivational speech. In fact, she was surprised the woman didn't call and force her into shouting the chorus out aloud to make the point more clear (and also guarantee a few laughs). The girl was chuckling softly about the crazy idea when a middle aged man opened the door and called her name.
Shall we start, Miss Gilmore?
-o-
It's been almost an hour since Lorelai sent the last texts to Rory. Not that she's been counting. A few moments after the phone got silent again, she picked her favorite playlist, turned up the radio and started to sing along. The woman was now so committed to her live performance of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun that she didn't notice Rory approaching the jeep.
Lorelai only realized the girl was watching her outside the car when she heard a tap on the window.
"Oh, hello Miss Daisy! How did it go?" She joked and unlocked the doors, turning the music down.
"I think you've noticed I was freaking out..."
"Yeah. I got the memo."
"God, it was so stupid. I was talking myself down because I didn't write a story on spec to bring. Then I totally forgot that I did come up with many ideas to pitch today. I studied the website soup to nuts these past weeks to think about topics that would be interesting. To keep me sane while I waited for the call, I even made a list and organized the stories from the most compelling one to the last."
"Of course you did." Lorelai highlighted with a proud nod. She was happy to see Rory acting more like her true self again. Even if there was a bit of performance anxiety in the beginning.
"I don't know why I blanked. It was some kind of temporary amnesia. Thanks for shaking me out of it."
"Hey, don't thank me. Thank Beyoncé." Her mother waved.
"I wish you could've been there. I was on fire," Rory continued with euphoria. "I talked about immigrants like Mrs Kim who chose to build a life as the only foreigner in a small town in the US, instead of blending in with other immigrants in a big city like New York. Then I went straight on for the gay parade project which almost accidently outed the town ruler. I was almost telling about the secret bar to make parallel with the speakeasies in Manhattan, but I decided to hold that one until I could check if Taylor reads Patch. I don't want to spoil Stars Hollow's best kept secret."
"You'd surely have a new story to sell about the day a town prodigy was chased down the streets by middle aged ladies looking for a place to get drunk."
"That would certainly be a great follow-up." Rory smiled.
"So..." Lorelai raised her eyebrows. She wanted to play it cool and let Rory talk, but the suspense about the outcome of the interview was almost killing her.
"Oh, sorry. I got carried away," the girl shook her head to focus. "He loved the ideas. I got the job. I signed the contract, we shook hands and I have to submit my first story by the end of the week. I'll cover the greater Hartford area. It's going to be challenging because I need to find new stories to publish every week, but I'm very excited. They'll give me press credentials."
"Well, in this case, us girls should follow the advice of the legendary Cindy Loper and have some fun. Up for celebration?"
"Sure. How could I go against a woman who managed to win a Grammy, an Emmy and a Tony Award whilst rocking any existing hair color?"
"Good, I'll buy you a drink."
"I have to admit this is way less fun when there's no booze or coffee involved..." The young Gilmore whined.
"But there can be gallons of hot cocoa with tons of marshmallows and cake. I already scanned the block and I found a mouthwatering bakery down the street."
"You had me at hot cocoa."
Mother and daughter walked along the street to get some well deserved comfort food. They were a few steps from the bakery, but a bookshop next door drew Rory's attention. There were many books displayed by the window, including the latest edition of the classic What to Expect When You're Expecting.
After a moment looking at the window, the young journalist suddenly made a little detour and entered the bookshop.
"Oh, no! Not another book about pregnancy." Lorelai protested and crossed her arms, not following her daughter inside to make a stand.
Although it was tempting, Rory ignored the long line of shelves full of stories. She entered the place because one specific book caught her eye. It was also placed among the new releases of the year, but it was nothing like the one Lorelai assumed. The girl went straight to the attendant and asked for the title, leaving the store right after completely satisfied with her latest acquisition in a bag.
A∕N: First, I need to tell you this was initially part of a really bigger chapter. But, after much consideration, I decided to split the chapter in two. I believe it's going work better for the storyline. But why am I telling this? Because I'm going to update again this week and post chapter 16 on Wednesday (good news!). I just need a break to give it a final read, okay?
Second, for anyone who is not John Green, it is challenging to write characters exchanging text messages. I hope I did it right.
Third, I need to confess I was glad to write Rory like this. Yeah, she freaked out a bit (she always does), but she was ready this time. There was even a list (YEY!). Now, until chapter 20, things will be alligning for the arrival of the baby (SPOILER!).
What do you guys think of Rory's interview? And what about the book she bought in the end? Does anyone have a guess? And the baby: boy or girl? Please review and let me know your opinion =D
At last, I'd like to say "Hi" for the new followers and also thank everyone who's been supporting this story. I know I'm not going for a conventional direction and it means a lot to see people marking it as favourite or sending a message to discuss a little about the characters.