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Rory slipped the straps of her dress up and over her shoulders and Emily stepped over to zip her up and hook the little clasp at the back of the dress. She rested her hands on her granddaughter's shoulders.
"You look lovely, Rory. Logan's not going to know what hit him," she said as she brushed a piece of hair out of Rory's eyes. Rory smiled and reached up to cover one of Emily's hands with her own. The two of them, Honor, Lane, and Paris had spent the morning getting pampered at the spa before having their hair and makeup done. Louise, Madeline, Olivia and Lucy had been invited but the four of them hadn't been able to make it due to previous commitments. Rory's hair had been swept into an elegant updo with a few tendrils framing her face. On her feet were silver heels encrusted with small crystals. Her makeup was light and natural and her jewelry was simple.
"Thank you, Grandma, and thank you for organizing this party for us on such short notice," Rory said as the laughter of Richard, Logan, Honor, Josh, and the boys came up the stairs. Emily squeezed her shoulders.
"Of course, sweetie. We couldn't let you and Logan go without a party. The guests will be arriving soon. Shall we go down?" Emily asked. Rory nodded excitedly and hooked her arm through her grandmother's arm before the two of them left the room.
Logan was standing in the foyer with Richard, Finn, Colin, Robert, and Honor and Josh when he heard footsteps on the stairs and turned his attention to the stairwell. Emily came down first and smiled at her husband as she came to his side. A moment later, Rory appeared on the landing, and all of the oxygen left Logan's lungs as he saw his fiancée. Rory was dressed in a midnight-blue floor-length dress with spaghetti straps. Looking closer, he saw there was a thin ribbon at her waist that was the same colour as the dress. A slit down the right side of her dress showed her right leg from mid-thigh to ankle. Logan's mouth was dry as Rory picked up her skirt and walked down the stairs towards him. A throat clearing from Honor broke Logan out of his trance and he stepped forward to offer Rory his hand for the last few stairs. Rory slid her hand into his and looked into his eyes as she stepped onto the main floor.
"Hey," she said softly. Logan swallowed hard a few times.
"Hi," he managed to squeak out. Behind him, Honor and Emily exchanged a smile. They'd both known from the moment Rory had tried the dress on in the store that it would be the dress for tonight. If this was Logan's reaction to Rory in her dress for their engagement party, then they could only imagine what his reaction would be to her in her wedding dress. Richard motioned for the rest of the group to follow him and Emily into the sitting room, leaving Rory and Logan alone. Rory grinned at her fiancé and squeezed his hand.
"I think this is the first time I've ever seen you speechless," she said. Logan cleared his throat and wet his lips to speak.
"Rory, you-you look amazing. No, not amazing. I mean you do look amazing, but that doesn't seem like the right word for how beautiful you look tonight. I think my heart stopped when you came down the stairs," Logan said, finally recovering his powers of speech. Rory blushed and smiled shyly at him.
"Thanks, Logan. You look very handsome," she said as she took in the black suit Logan was wearing. A white dress shirt and silver tie completed his look. Logan lifted the hand he was holding to kiss it before the two of them made their way into the sitting room where the rest of their family was waiting. No sooner had Logan and Rory sat down than the doorbell rang and they heard the maid answer it.
"Here we go," Rory said to Logan as Lane, Zach, and Luke walked into the room, closely followed by Paris, Doyle, and the girls. Rory had to smile as she watched her grandmother jump up and begin handing out drinks, Emily was loving every moment of this. Then again, Emily loved being the hostess so Rory shouldn't have been surprised. Little did Rory know what the evening had in store for her.
Half an hour later, the party was in full swing. Rory had greeted the D.A.R. ladies who were all enraptured with her ring and had answered dozens of questions. She'd retold the story of how Logan proposed to her so many times she was sure she would be able to do it in her sleep. As another group of the D.A.R. ladies walked away, Rory made her way over to where Paris, Lane, Honor, Madeline, Louise, Olivia and Lucy were standing.
"Here she is! The lady of the evening!" Honor cheered before handing Rory a glass of champagne, which Rory accepted gratefully. She took a couple of sips to moisten her throat, which had grown hoarse from all the talking.
"Remind me to make sure the bartender for the wedding has an en masse of water bottles," Rory said, half-joking. Her girlfriends laughed.
"Well, you'll mostly be dancing at the wedding, so you might want to bring a pair of flats to the reception. Bring them to the venue the day before the wedding and put them under your chair at the head table," Lucy suggested.
"Good idea, Lucy. I can't believe a year from now Logan and I will be saying 'I do.' It is unreal to think about it," Rory said as Logan and the boys joined them.
"Ah, yes, the wedding. But before we get to that, there's the bachelor weekend to think of and plan!" Finn exclaimed a little loudly, causing Colin and Robert to shush him. "I will not be shushed when we have to come up with an epic boys' weekend for Logan's bachelor party. Maybe base jumping, we never got to go after Logan went, since we had to get him medical attention," Finn said. The smile slid off of Rory's face as she gripped her glass hard and glared at Finn. She had never completely forgiven Finn or Colin for that stunt in Costa Rica. Logan saw the look on her face and spoke.
"We're not going base jumping again Finn. Once was more than enough for me, and whatever we do end up doing, all of us will be sober," Logan said firmly. He knew his accident had scared Rory half to death, he remembered the nightmares she'd had after he had come home from the hospital. He had had nightmares from that experience too, but while he had come to, paralyzed with terror, Rory's had been much more severe. She would shake uncontrollably before waking up gasping for breath or sobbing or screaming, sometimes all three at once. After one particularly bad nightmare that had ended with both of them on the couch with warm tea, Logan had asked Rory what she saw in her nightmares. Rory had wrapped her arms around her legs and hugged her knees to her chest before telling him that it was always the same dream; that she was there at the cliff and she saw him jump and no matter how loudly she called out to him, he couldn't hear her, and she was forced to watch every time as he jumped off the cliff and fumbled to pull his pack open. Logan had felt sick after hearing her describe that, and he had vowed to himself that very night he would never do anything that risky again unless he was stone-cold sober and had a trained professional with him at all times. Logan was broken out of his memory by Rory touching him on the arm.
"Logan, Nick, Philip, Bobbi and Hugo just came in, we should go say hello," she said. Logan nodded before turning his attention to the rest of the group.
"We'll catch up with you in a bit. I'll keep an eye on Mom, Dad, and Grandpa," Honor said. Her parents and grandfather had arrived shortly after the D.A.R. ladies, and while they were interacting with the other guests, they had yet to make a move to talk to Logan and Rory. Logan nodded in thanks as Rory took his hand and laced their fingers together before they walked over to Logan's former coworkers and Hugo. Out of the corner of her eye, Rory saw her mother and hoped that Lorelai wouldn't make a scene. She hadn't wanted to invite her mother to the engagement party tonight but she couldn't exactly invite her father and not invite Lorelai.
"There's the happy couple! Congratulations you two!" Philip exclaimed as he shook hands with Logan before hugging Rory and giving her two air kisses. Bobbi was next to greet Rory.
"Congratulations, sweetheart! You must be over the moon, let's see your ring!" Bobbi exclaimed. Rory held out her hand and Bobbi took her hand to examine the ring closer. "Oh, it's stunning, absolutely gorgeous!" Bobbi gushed. Nick, Philip, and Hugo took their turns examining the ring.
"You did good, Huntzberger! Have you two set a wedding date yet?" Nick asked. Logan shook his head as he wrapped an arm around Rory's waist.
"No, not yet, but we're leaning towards a spring/summer wedding next year. Rory's grandparents have been wonderful in helping us organize everything for the move to Palo Alto and we'll be flying back at the end of the summer to begin meeting with wedding planners with Emily," Logan explained.
"Ah yes, they're the ones hosting this party, aren't they? Any chance we could meet the host and hostess?" Hugo asked. Rory nodded as she looked around the party and spotted her grandparents standing a few feet away talking to one of Richard's business acquaintances. Emily caught her eye and Rory gestured for them to come over. Rory watched as her grandparents excused themselves and made their way towards the group.
"Grandma, Grandpa, I'd like you to meet Nick, Bobbi, and Philip, they worked with Logan, and this is Hugo, he owns the online magazine I was telling you about," Rory quickly made the introductions.
"Lovely to meet you all, I'm so glad you could attend," Emily said graciously.
"Lovely to meet you too, thank you so much for the invite into your home. This is a wonderful party," Bobbi replied. Emily smiled at her, charmed.
"Well, thank you, Bobbi. Have you all had a drink, there's a bar right over there," Emily said. The four of them nodded before Hugo spoke.
"Where are you thinking of applying in Palo Alto, Rory?" he asked. Rory took a sip of her champagne before she answered.
"I'll probably apply to all the newspapers in the city. I can't thank you enough for publishing some of my pieces in your magazine, Hugo. It's been a huge confidence booster for me," Rory said. Hugo nodded as he picked up a cracker with caviar from a passing waiter's tray.
"Of course. You're a great writer, Rory, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I'm sorry I don't have any full-time positions at the moment, but you never know, somewhere down the road that will happen and if it does, you've got a job waiting for you," Hugo said. Rory grinned at him and nodded.
"Well, thank you, that means a lot. It's always nice to hear when people appreciate your work, and I enjoy writing pieces for your magazine," she said.
"Maybe when you get to San Francisco and are settled you'll find something that will inspire a piece of writing and you can send it to me," Hugo said.
"That would be great, thank you," Rory said, a warm feeling overtaking her. It was nice to know that while she hadn't had any job offers yet, Hugo still wanted her to write pieces for him. Philip looked around and noticed people were waiting to talk to Rory and Logan.
"We should stop monopolizing you, we'll try to catch up later in the evening, but if that doesn't happen, congratulations again and let us know when you're back on this side of the country," he said.
"Yes, and let us know about the wedding and how all the planning is going," Bobbi chimed in. Logan and Rory nodded and after saying goodbye to the foursome, Logan turned to Rory.
"Are you still intimidated by Bobbi?" he asked. Rory made a so-so motion with her hand.
"I am and I'm not. I think the part of me who was intimidated by her is slowly disappearing the more I talk to her and spend more time with her. She's a wonderful person, Logan, she is. I think, maybe, I think I was intimidated by her confidence and also by her looks the first couple of times I met her. I could put something on I felt like a million bucks in at home, and then when I was standing next to Bobbi, I felt like the small-town girl I've always been. She looks like a supermodel and I-I don't," Rory admitted, completely forgetting her grandparents were standing beside her and Logan and listening to every word she said. Rory hated how insecure she sounded, she'd never felt this way around Steph or Rosemary or Juliet or even Madeline and Louise, so why did she feel insecure around Bobbi? Logan smiled and took her hands.
"Rory, I'll let you in on a little secret. I was a little intimidated by Bobbi when I first met her. She seemed so sure of herself, and there were times I felt like she could see right through me. But the more time I spent with her I realized that behind her chic appearance is a warm, lovely person. The first thing she said to me back in London after meeting you was "Rory is such a charming, lovely woman. I would love to get to know her better." She wants to be your friend, Rory," Logan said sincerely. Rory smiled and nodded.
"Well, maybe I'll ask Bobbi if she'd like to go to lunch or something before we leave for Palo Alto. How long do you think she and Nick and Philip are here for?" she asked.
"I don't know. I know they had business here for Dad as well as coming for our engagement party," Logan looked over Rory's shoulder and spotted Bobbi, Nick and Philip chatting with their group of friends. Examining the group more closely he spotted Hugo in deep conversation with Josh. "She's over there with the gang right now, why don't we head over there, Ace?" Logan suggested. Rory nodded and was about to turn around to walk back over to their group of friends when she spotted her father. She opened her mouth to tell Logan Chris was approaching and that they should say hello when she spotted the two people behind him. Rory's eyes widened in shock as the warm feeling she'd had a few moments previously evaporated and was replaced by a cold, empty feeling in her stomach. She turned to her grandmother, who was chatting with one of the D.A.R. ladies and gently touched Emily's arm to get her attention. Emily glanced over at Rory and noticed the stricken expression on her granddaughter's face.
"Excuse me, Nancy. Rory, what is it? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Emily said worriedly. Emily hoped Lorelai wasn't going to cause a scene on tonight of all nights. Emily had had second thoughts about inviting her after the way she'd treated Rory at her graduation, but social appearances had to be kept up.
"Grandma, did you invite Francine and Straub Hayden?" Rory asked in a panicky voice.
"What?! My heavens, no, your grandfather and I haven't had anything to do with them since that disastrous evening we had them here with you and your mother," Emily said.
"Oh. Well, they're here. They're with Dad, and they're coming over with him," Rory squeaked out. Logan watched and listened in bafflement, what could have happened between Rory and her paternal grandparents to make her react this way to seeing them? Emily whispered to Richard that the Haydens were approaching, but there was no way to pretend they hadn't seen them and slip away, plus they weren't going to leave Rory to face them alone. Not after last time. Rory plastered a smile on her face as her father came to a stop in front of her, his parents just behind him.
"Hey kiddo, you look stunning!" Chris said as he embraced Rory. Rory hugged him back as she watched her paternal grandparents over his shoulder. Chris let go of her and looked behind him. Before he could say anything, however, Francine spoke.
"Rory, dear, you look so lovely. Your grandfather and I saw your engagement announcement in the paper, and when your father told us tonight was your engagement party, we thought we would come along," Francine said, as though the last seven years and that awful night had never happened. Rory drew herself up to her full height and squared her shoulders. Across the room, Paris noticed who was talking to Rory and Logan and immediately felt worried for her friend. She remembered an evening from a couple of years ago where, after too much wine, Rory had told her the story of her disastrous meeting with the Haydens. She would keep her distance for now, but if it looked like Rory needed her, she would go over there.
Rory locked eyes with her paternal grandmother, her grip tightening on her glass as her whole body tensed, like a lion preparing to spring. "And why did you think coming here tonight, without an invitation, would be a good idea, Mrs. Hayden?" she asked coldly. Francine and Straub's smiles faltered, they had thought Rory would welcome them with open arms, but now they weren't so sure. It was Straub who answered.
"We came because we're your grandparents, and why we didn't receive an invitation to our oldest grandchild's engagement party I don't know but we do have a right to be here young lady," he said. Rory snorted. Around them, the party guests noticed the confrontation, Mitchum, Shira, and Elias were among them. Was it possible Rory had been telling the truth?
"No, you don't have a right to be here, Mr. Hayden. You didn't receive an invitation for tonight's event because you chose not to be in my life when I was sixteen, remember? If I remember correctly, you didn't want me at all, did you?" Rory said.
"Rory, please. Your grandfather and I want to be in your life," Francine pleaded. Rory shook her head.
"Mrs. Hayden, if the only reason you want to be in my life is that you saw the announcement for our engagement, that's a pretty poor reason. Do you honestly think that what you said to and about me after I left the room that night didn't impact me, didn't affect me? Because it did," a cold, bitter laugh escaped Rory at the shocked looks on her paternal grandparents' faces, "What? You thought because I left the room, I couldn't hear the things you were saying about me, about my mother? Mr. Hayden, you never once called me by my name, it was always "young lady," or "that girl," or "that baby." You never cared about me!" Rory's voice rose and she didn't try to lower it. The entire party was paying attention to the scene in front of them now, but Rory didn't care. The Haydens had come here expecting to be welcomed back into her life as though nothing had happened, but Rory wasn't that sixteen-year-old girl anymore who was desperate for everyone to like her. She wasn't about to let them off the hook and act as nothing had happened, social graces and social appearances be damned. Paris tapped Lane on the hand and gestured with her chin.
"I smell trouble," she said. Lane nodded, reading between the subtext and she and Paris started in the direction of the confrontation. Logan had a hand on his fiancée's back as he tried to calm her down. Rory took a couple of deep breaths before speaking again.
"You never cared about me, and you didn't want me! Mrs. Hayden, I know that you suggested to Grandma and Grandpa that they send my mother away when she was pregnant with me so you wouldn't have to deal with the scandal, while Mr. Hayden suggested my mother have an abortion!" Rory exploded. Gasps echoed around the room. Rory and Logan's group of friends froze in shock and horror, Paris' face was an unreadable mask. Rory hadn't told her that part of the story, and for the first time, Paris wondered how many other pieces of Rory's life story she didn't know. Logan felt cold all over as he thought of the possibility of Rory never coming into existence.
"Rory," he said softly. Rory ignored him as she focused on the grandparents who would never know her.
"If you honestly believe I can welcome you into my life with open arms after the horrible things you said about me before I even came into existence, about my mother, you're wrong! We're not going to pretend we're all one big happy family because you've never been part of my family and you're never going to be! It made getting tickets for my graduation from Yale a lot easier because I didn't have to worry about leaving anyone out. You had no right to be here tonight, you won't be invited to my wedding, and you'll never know your great-grandchildren, not from me anyway. I heard someone say once if you're not part of someone's struggle, then you don't deserve to be part of their success either. It's too late for you to be part of my life. Now if you'll excuse me, I need some air," Rory said. She quickly walked away from Logan, Emily and Richard, her father, and the Haydens and fumbled the door open to the patio. Lorelai saw her chance and she hurried after Rory. Paris noticed Lorelai going after Rory and she gestured to Lane and the other girls and they made their way to the door, with Bobbi following, her heart breaking for Rory and insides boiling at what she'd just heard. Logan turned to the Haydens as Finn, Colin, and Robert came to stand beside him, with Doyle, Zach, Josh, and Hugo and Logan's former coworkers just behind.
"I hope you regret your choice of coming here tonight, because you have no one to blame but yourselves for what Rory just said to you. You decided not to be part of her life when she was a teenager and you have to live with that now, you can't just come in and out of her life as you please whenever you want," Logan said. Richard spoke for the first time since the Haydens had approached.
"Get the hell out of my house, Straub and Francine. You have no right to be here and you certainly had no right to come here and say what you did to Rory. Logan, perhaps you and your friends would escort them out," Richard said.
"With pleasure, sir," Logan said. Francine and Straub looked at the angry faces of the men behind Logan and knew it was pointless to argue.
Rory paced along the deck of the pool as she tried to get her breathing under control. Her hands trembled as she came to a stop beside the pool and she squeezed them together to try and stop their shaking. She dimly heard the deck door open and close, and then there were footsteps coming towards her.
Lorelai sniffed as she looked at her daughter. "Look at you, you look like everything I raised you not to be. Expensive dress, expensive shoes, you probably went to the spa and salon for them to make you look like the perfect society princess. And with Logan's money you'll have no shortage of fancy clothes and jewelry," Lorelai said mockingly. Rory clenched her jaw, she'd had all the confrontation she could handle for the evening, but she wasn't about to let her mother's taunts go unheard.
"You're right. I did go to the spa and salon this morning with Grandma and Honor, and I went shopping with them for my dress and shoes and we had a wonderful time. You say I look like everything you raised me not to be, but guess what Mom, I am part of this world. This is my world and I would have grown up in it had you not acted like a proud teenager and run away. As for Logan, what is your problem with him exactly?"
"My problem with Logan is he's a spoiled trust-fund kid who has had everything just handed to him. He's everything he is, Rory, because of his daddy's money. He's unreliable, just like your father, and you will end up divorced within a year of getting married," Lorelai said, hoping she would sway her daughter to listen to her. Rory shook her head.
"You're wrong on so many levels. Yes, he does have money, but he walked away from the family company to try and make it on his own. Logan is more than his family name and his money, he's so much more than that. He's kind and loving and sweet and he cares about the people around him. He's not like Dad, not even a little bit! When Grandpa had his second heart attack, who was it that dropped everything and came to the hospital to be there for us? Logan and Luke. Logan and I won't end up divorced because we are not you and Dad! If you think we're going to get divorced, why did you come here tonight?" Rory snapped.
"I came here because I still think you're making a big mistake! There was a town meeting after you ran off and the town is talking about your engagement and the fact that there was no mention of Stars Hollow in your engagement announcement. You're hurting the people who love you Rory, you're hurting the only family you'll ever need," Lorelai said, hoping her guilt trip would work.
"If you think I'm making a mistake, then don't bother coming to the wedding! As for Stars Hollow, I'm happy to be away from there, away from people who have no concept of boundaries, and while we're on the subject, what do you think they would say if they knew you'd lied to them about Logan and him trying to get tickets for Luke and Lane? You should know, Lorelai, that the truth always comes out. It may not come from me, since I won't be living here anymore, but some people know the truth," Rory said firmly. She turned and started to walk away but Lorelai grabbed her arm.
"Don't you walk away from me, we are not done here!" Lorelai exclaimed.
"Oh, I think you are," Paris said. She and the other girls had been present for the whole confrontation, and as she'd listened to Lorelai berate, blame and taunt Rory, Paris wondered how she'd ever seen this woman as a second mother. Lorelai let go of Rory and spun around. Honor's eyes were blazing in anger from the comments she'd heard about her brother.
"Paris, Lane, come on! You must see how big of a mistake Rory is making! Paris, talk to her, you've always been able to talk sense into her," Lorelai said, trying to get some allies. Paris and Lane shook their heads.
"Rory and Logan love each other, Lorelai. There must be something wrong with your eyes if you can't see that, so I'd get them checked if I were you. Then again, that would be a waste of money, optometrists don't offer diagnoses for stupidity and jealousy," Paris said. Madeline and Louise smirked, Paris had always been able to deliver a good smackdown, and after hearing all of the things Lorelai had said and done to Rory over the last few days, they didn't have any sympathy towards Lorelai.
"I think you need to leave Lorelai. Between you and the Haydens, I think this evening has been ruined enough, and the only way it can be salvaged is if the three of you leave," Lane said. The other girls nodded in agreement. Lorelai stared at Lane and Paris in shock, she'd been sure they would be on her side, but judging from the cold looks she was receiving from them and the other women present, she was done here. She turned back to Rory, who pointed towards the house.
"I've heard more than enough from you, go," she said. Lorelai swallowed her anger and walked towards the house, she would leave for tonight but there was still time to talk to Rory and stop her from making the biggest mistake of her life. As the door closed behind Lorelai, Rory sighed and walked towards her friends. "Thank you for stepping in and for coming out after her, I don't know what would have happened if it had been just the two of us out here the whole time," she said.
"No problem, Rory. Now, there's still some of the evening left to enjoy, so I suggest we all go back inside and enjoy the wonderful soiree you, Logan, and your grandparents planned. Oh, and me," Honor added as an afterthought. That broke the tension as the girls laughed and headed back inside. Rory found herself walking beside Bobbi and remembered her conversation with Logan.
"Bobbi, when do you have to fly back to London?" she asked.
"The day after tomorrow, Nick and Philip and I have a few things to do for Mitchum and then have to head back on the red-eye on Sunday," Bobbi replied.
"Would you like to go to lunch before you leave? Logan and I aren't leaving for Palo Alto until Tuesday," Rory offered. Bobbi beamed as they walked back into the party.
"Sure, that sounds lovely! I'll give you my number before the end of the night, now I think I see a certain worried fiancé looking for you," Bobbi said, squeezing Rory's arm. Rory nodded and squeezed Bobbi's arm back before she walked towards Logan.
"Hey, everything okay?" she asked as soon as she was near him. Logan nodded as he took a big gulp of scotch before telling Rory what had happened after she'd left to go outside.
"Rory, I'm so sorry the Haydens said those awful things to and about you. Why did you never tell me?" Logan asked. Rory smiled sadly.
"It's not something I like to think about, and what they said left a huge psychological scar on me. I think that's where part of my want and need to be liked by everyone comes from, because they didn't like me and they didn't want me. Something to work through when I go to therapy I guess," Rory said. Logan stepped toward her and wrapped an arm around her waist. He was about to say more when Chris walked over to them.
"Rory, I'm sorry. I thought if Grandma and Grandpa came tonight it would help build a bridge between the three of you," Chris said. He started to say more but Rory held up her hand.
"They're not my grandparents. Just because we share DNA doesn't mean they get to call themselves Nana and Papa to me. You didn't stand up for me, Dad, again. That's the second time I've met them and just like last time, you didn't stand up for me or even think that them being here would make me uncomfortable. I don't know what fairytale they thought they were living in, but there is no fairytale ending where the three of us magically get along and they're included in my life. That's not happening and it will never happen," Rory said. Chris looked at her sadly.
"Rory, I'm sorry. I knew this was your engagement party and when they called me asking about you and the party tonight I thought it should be a family thing," Chris tried to explain.
"You're not getting it. They're not my family, and they never will be. Between you and Mom and your parents, you've managed to take what should have been some of the happiest days and nights of my life and turn them into something awful. Just promise me something. With Gigi, promise me you won't let your parents do to her what they did to me," Rory said before she took Logan's hand and walked away, leaving her father to stare after her.
Thank you all for the follows, favourites, and reviews! You guys are phenomenal!
Chapter 10 Reviews:
Jumpingaces: Thank you! Rory going to therapy is an idea I've had swimming around in my head since before I started writing this story, and it felt good to finally get it out on paper. It is hard to take the initiative to seek help for your mental health, something I have had first-hand experience with, but when you do it feels like a weight has lifted off your shoulders. Was the confrontation with the Haydens what you were expecting? I agree that the moment where Francine and Straub were mean to her is something that always stuck with her. I've read stories where she does have a relationship with them, but I decided not to go that route. Hope you enjoyed Chapter 11 and thank you for your continued support :)
YaleAceBella12: More is on the way!
Red Lighting: Thank you! I had a lot of fun writing Chapter 10 and am enjoying deepening the bonds between Rory and her grandparents as well as the one between her, Logan, Honor, and Josh. Was the showdown between Rory and the Haydens what you were expecting?
52shari: Thanks! Rory realizing she needs to see a therapist was, I feel, a huge moment of self-awareness. It is a big step to take, but it's a step in the right direction. The night at the Huntzbergers was an easy one to write, I went back and watched the scene where Logan brings Rory home for the first time to get a feel for that scene. Rory standing up to Shira and Elias was immensely satisfying to write, I honestly believe if she hadn't been so taken aback by their awful words that night she would have stood up for herself. HA! Mitchum didn't see the verbal barrage from his daughter coming his way. I have plans on how to increase the bonding moments between the Huntzberger siblings and Josh and Rory. Francine definitely should have treated Rory better and acknowledged her, because not doing so blew up in her face in this chapter. Glad you enjoyed Chapter 10 and I hope you liked Chapter 11.
Bseriel: The more times I write Rory standing up for herself, the more I enjoy writing her with a backbone! It is empowering to stand up for yourself and empowering to write characters who stand up for themselves and others. I loved writing Logan defending her, we all know he is the first to defend Rory if anyone talks badly about her. I think Rory going to therapy will help her so much and I agree with you about Logan and Rory going together. There is nothing they won't be able to get through together because going to therapy will widen their communication waves, though they've already begun to make progress with that.
Roganjalex: I can't say for sure if Francine and Straub will make another appearance in this story. I knew from the beginning Rory would tell them what she thought of them and take them to task over how they treated her when she was sixteen. I think their shock at the end of Chapter 10 and their meeting with Rory in this chapter showed them just how badly they messed up.
GGRoganTroryCory2017: I'm glad you have enjoyed the last few chapters, I always enjoy reading your reviews! I loved writing her realization that she needs to go to therapy and begin healing herself after the confrontations with her mother and the town. When I first started watching the show I thought it was sweet that everybody cared about each other so much and then as I continued through the seasons I realized the total lack of boundaries and respect for other people's privacy was something I had a problem with. I think Rory talking to Emily and Logan and having people who listen to her is going to do wonders for her self-esteem and help her grow more into herself. Honor and Logan standing up to Mitchum, grandfather, and Shira was great to write and Honor putting her parents and grandfather in their place was very satisfying. Shira does think too much about herself and that's why her kids don't like her!
December Jeffries2: Shira's lack of class and her nastiness towards Rory made me mad too! She is a massive hypocrite and I believe her hypocrisy stems from jealousy. Rory is everything Shira is not and while Rory genuinely belongs to that world because of her bloodlines and lineage, Shira, as you said, got pregnant to belong. I did consider the Haydens finally accepting Rory as their grandchild and her building a relationship with them, but there is too much bad blood and rough water under the bridge for that to happen. It never sat well with me that Francine and Straub were so rude to Rory and that she was never given a chance in the show to confront them and tell them how they made her feel. Maybe with therapy, she will be able to forgive them, but any chance they had of having a relationship with her is long gone. Ooh, Shira made me mad when she said that, but Rory had her laugh on her over that one in this chapter. Shira and Elias do need to be knocked off their pedestals a little I think. As for Rory's grandparents banding together, I think we all know Emily can deliver a smackdown with class. A lot of people seem to think it's a good idea for Rory to go to therapy, which I'm glad to see. I felt as though they made a mockery of going to counselling in the show, which is not cool! Hopefully, with the therapist's help, Rory will be able to begin to repair the damage to her life caused by Lorelai. Aww, that gives me warm fuzzies! Emily giving Rory the tiara she wore on her wedding day was an idea I've had since the beginning. Honor is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to her brother, and I enjoyed writing her telling off the elder Huntzbergers for how they treated Rory and Logan, I wish she'd done it in the show! I think Mitchum is coming around to accepting Rory and the idea of her being his daughter-in-law. Now to get Shira and Elias on the same page. I have always believed that as well, how could he not respect her for doing that? I was in shock for the first few seconds of her tirade and then I was cheering for her to the end. It did take guts for Rory to tell Mitchum what she thought of him, I'm willing to bet she's one of the few people he's come across who had the balls to do that. I think Rory was intimidated to stand up for Mitchum for herself because she was afraid of a similar reaction she got when standing up to Lorelai. If someone tries to stand up for themselves and they are shut down enough times, eventually they get the idea in their heads they can't stand up for themselves. I think the reason she didn't hesitate in standing up to Mitchum for Logan was that Logan brings her out of her shell and gives her strength and unconditional love. Her love for him and anger at his family not being there is what gave her the balls to say what she did to Mitchum.
Clg1978: Glad you enjoyed it! As for Lorelai, I didn't feel like going back to Stars Hollow for this chapter, so I decided to write her reaction here.
Rori Potter: Oh I would say Francine and Straub realized the colossal mistake they've made after Rory's speech to them in this chapter, and now they're paying the price. Glad you enjoyed chapter 10 and I hope you enjoyed Chapter 11!
Debbie Azzopardi Cooke: I'm happy you enjoyed Chapter 10 and hope you liked Chapter 11! I enjoy reading your reviews so thank you for taking the time to read my work and leave your thoughts! :)
Angel: Rory and Lorelai's relationship is a toxic one, there is no question about it! Hope you enjoyed Chapter 11
That's it for this week guys, I hope you all have a wonderful day/night/week wherever in the world you are! One quick thing before I sign off: work and life are starting to get busy for me, I will do my best to keep updating every Monday but it may not always happen, but I promise there will be updates once a week. As always, thanks for reading and reviewing, I love reading your thoughts and responding to each one! Stay safe and stay healthy! Till next time, xoxoxoxoxo