She woke up the next morning around 7:30am and rolled over to find an empty space next to her. Getting up, she looked out the window and his car was gone. She felt a mild sense of disappointment overcome her but she quickly realized that he had a job to attend to. And so did she. Shit. I'm late. She didn't have a boss watching over her but she'd called a staff meeting for 8:00 and it was probably implied that she'd be there. She climbed the stairs and threw on a blouse and skirt, slipping into a pair of pumps that she'd tossed into the corner of her room behind the door, and grabbed her keys. She descended the stairs 3 minutes later, simultaneously running a brush through her curls, and made her way into the kitchen. She started brewing a pot of coffee, grabbed 2 packs of Poptarts from the cupboard, and ran outside to start the car, hoping to save as much time as possible. Running back in, she retrieved a travel mug from the dishwasher, I think this load is clean, and filled the cup to the brim. A minute and thirty seconds later, she was on the road.
She passed through the town square on her way to work, as she had done every day since she and Rory had moved into their house. Glancing to her right, she saw Luke through his front window, diligently taking breakfast orders. She felt an aching to be with him, a longing to be in the safety of his strong arms as she had last night. More than anything, she wanted to give him the first date he'd been waiting so long for. Tonight, she thought. Pulling out her cell phone, she dialed Rory's phone number.
"Hey mom, what's up?"
"I'm kicking you out," Lorelai said bluntly.
"You're what?"
"I need you to sleep over a friend's house or something tonight."
Rory took a few seconds to catch her mother's drift before responding.
"Ah. Gotcha. I'll call Lane," she said.
"Thank you. I love you. Come by the Inn after school and I'll give you cash for both of you to blow."
"Mom, you know Mrs. Kim won't let us out of her sight," Rory sighed.
"Why don't the two of you just stay the night at the Inn? We have a bunch of open rooms tonight. Just have her tell Mrs. Kim she's sleeping over our house."
"And what if she comes over and Lane and I aren't there?"
"I'll tell her I sent the two of you to grab something from my office and that you'll be back in a few minutes. Just keep your phone on, okay?" Lorelai said, desperate to come up with a solution to make her night with Luke perfect.
"Okay. Sounds good, mom. I have to get to class so I'll talk to you later."
"Study hard kid. I love you."
"I love you too, mom. Bye."
She arrived at the Inn with 5 minutes to spare and shuffled into the kitchen to find Sookie prepping for lunch.
"Hey, Sook," she said, walking up beside her.
"Oh! Hey, honey! How are ya?" she asked, setting down her whisk and turning her attention to the door.
"I'm good, thanks. Hey listen, I have a favor to ask you."
"Sure!" Sookie said. "What's up?"
"Okay well I guess I haven't really told you yet so I should probably start with that…" she trailed off.
"Haven't told me what?" Sookie asked, intrigued.
"Well that night I went on that double date with you and Jackson and his stupid cousin, I wound up hanging out with Luke after Rune stormed out. And we got to talking and laughing and all of a sudden…he um…he asked me out."
She was interrupted by a series of gasps and squeals, followed by Sookie wrapping her arms around her, pulling her in for a hug.
"Anyway," Lorelai resumed when they pulled apart, "the accident happened the next day and everything has been so delayed now. We tried to go out for dinner last night but I got super nervous and freaked out and so he just took me home."
"Lorelai-"
"Ah-ba-ba-ba-ba," she said, holding her hand up. "I'm telling you all of this because I want to try it again tonight. But I want to plan it this time. He put so much work into last night and I totally crapped on the whole evening. So that's where you come in. I was hoping I could have you make us a nice romantic dinner that I can take home for us tonight."
Sookie clasped her hands together, a single loud clap resounding throughout the kitchen. She wordlessly walked around to the cupboards and the refrigerator, loading her arms with spices, vegetables, fruits, flour, sugar, salt, raw meats, pans, bowls, spoons, spatulas, and anything else she could think of. Lorelai watched in amusement, confident that her best friend had the food aspect of tonight under control, though that was the least of her worries.
Michel erupted through the swinging door, interrupting them both. "It is 8:02 and we are out here waiting for the meeting that you called," he said in his thick French accent.
"Sorry, Michel," Lorelai said, turning to him. "Sookie, you can stay in here and work on the project I gave you."
"She gets to skip the meeting?" he whined.
"Yes."
Sookie stuck her tongue out at Michel as she resumed her whisking. He rolled his eyes, released a sigh of frustration, and turned on his heels to return to the meeting area.
"Let me know if you need anything, Sook."
"I will," she replied.
Lorelai nodded and began making her way to the door, stopping in her tracks at the sound of Sookie's voice.
"Hey, Sweetie?"
"Yeah?" Lorelai responded, turning around to face her again.
"This is good."
She could only smile, thinking about the life with him that she'd been envisioning ever since the night she agreed to go out with him. He'd been so patient, so gentle, so…Luke.
Everything tonight will be perfect. Everything.
After the meeting, she grabbed her keys and headed toward Hartford. She needed supplies. And shopping in Stars Hollow was the last thing she needed.
Why go to one store when you can go to them all? The mall.
Her first stop was Bath & Body Works.
Step 1. Smell desirable. Right? Shit I have no idea what I'm doing. I've never done this...at least not in my house.
After testing several body sprays, she decided on a musky vanilla scent, confident in its powers of seduction.
This stuff turned me on and I'm in a store and there's no one around me so I mean it'll work with him too…I hope.
Shit, she thought, suddenly remembering that her entire bedroom set was in her living room. She fished through her purse, pulling out her phone and dialed Jackson's number.
"Hello?" his voice came from the other end.
"Jackson! Hi! It's Lorelai."
"Hey, Lorelai. How's it going?"
"Fine, thanks! How are you?" she asked, anxious to cut to the chase.
"Oh, you know, just planting, sowing, harvesting, and delivering crops to my girlfriend. She complains. I look cute. I buy her dinner. All is forgiven."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she said, now really needing to speed things up. "Hey listen, I was wondering if I could ask you a favor."
"Sure, what's up?" he inquired.
"Well, ever since the accident, my bedroom set has been in the living room. Luke brought it down from my room but I was hoping to get it back upstairs. He's done so much to help me out over the past several weeks, so I would feel bad asking him for this too. I was wondering if you would mind moving my stuff back up? I'll pay you."
"Sure!" he said. "I can come over right now, if you'd like!"
"Actually, I'm not home right now," she replied.
"Well is the key still in the turtle on your porch?"
"How do you know about the turtle?" she gasped.
"The whole town knows about the turtle."
"I can't keep anything private around you people," she said, suddenly overcome with a sense of worry about being discreet, for both her sake and Luke's. "Go on over, the key is in the turtle."
"I'm on my way!"
"Hey, Jackson! One more thing."
"Yes?"
"Can you not mention this to Luke?" she pleaded. "He'll just get mad that I asked someone else and then claim it wouldn't have been a big deal to have him do it. I'd rather save myself the argument."
"Will do…or I guess won't do. I won't mention it," he said.
"Thank you!"
"You're welcome! Talk to you later! Bye!"
"Bye, Jackson," she said, snapping her phone shut and turning her attention to a candle store that was across the way.
She walked into the store and was immediately greeted by a cheery associate, whom she immediately recognized.
"Hi, there! I do believe we've met before!" the girl said.
She was suddenly overcome with a sense of embarrassment.
"Ashley, right?" she asked, trying her best to make eye contact with the waitress she'd met the night before.
"Yes! How are you?"
"Better than I was last night," Lorelai said with a nervous laugh.
"Don't worry, I get it. Nerves get the best of us sometimes."
Ashley put her arm around Lorelai's shoulder and guided her to a section of random candles.
"My boss is over there and she's not too keen on us talking to customers about personal matters so I'm gonna pretend like I'm talking to you about these candles while I'm actually telling you that the man I saw you with last night was looking at you like the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. And I'm only 23. I'm just out of college, trying to find a decent job, but making ends meet. I know nothing about love or dating or anything like that. But his eyes? The way he ran out after you? I don't think I've ever seen that level of caring before. And I know I'm a baby in terms of adulthood. I'm new to everything and I know nothing. I have no place giving you any advice but I'm going to be stupid and do it anyway. Don't let your nerves get the best of you. Don't let him get away."
She smiled back at the young girl, her eyes beginning to water.
"I think you're wiser than you think you are, kid. Thank you."
"So," Ashley said, her voice becoming louder. "Over here we have our fruity scents, we've got pine, mint, cinnamon, vanilla, lavender, etcetera. All of our products are grouped by scents, but there are several different items."
Ashley went on to point out the variety of oil diffusers, candles that ranged in various sizes, and room fresheners, among other things.
"Are you looking for anything specific?" she asked.
"I need those little ones. Tea lights, I think they're called? Vanilla would probably be best. And I need a lot of them," Lorelai replied with a wink.
A smile of pride stretched across the young girl's face and she guided Lorelai to the vanilla section, retrieving a clear plastic box that contained 30 tea light candles.
"Do you think this will be enough?" she asked.
"Yes," Lorelai smiled. "This will be perfect."
Ashley walked her toward the front of the store, making her way behind the counter to ring her up.
"Okay, that'll be $10.99," she said.
Lorelai leaned in, lowering her voice to a whisper. "The price sticker says $21.98."
"I'm giving you my 50% employee discount…as long as you promise to go through with it this time. And come back out for dinner once the nerves have all settled to let me know how it went."
She smiled back at the sweet, young girl. "Deal."
Ten minutes later, she was walking aimlessly past stores with a soft pretzel in one hand and an extra large ICEE in the other. She tried to compile a list of the things she needed in her mind.
Dinner. Check.
Candles. Check.
Bed in my bedroom. Check.
Champagne. I think I have some…
Pill...um…
She reached into her purse, retrieving her pill dispenser, relieved when she found today's spot empty.
Pill. Check.
Lingerie…should I get a new set? Probably. I've slept with someone in everything I already own.
She looked across the way to see Victoria's Secret.
More like Lorelai Victoria's secret.
She chose six sets off the racks, then locked herself in a fitting room.
Too Slutty.
Too Preppy.
Did a nun make this?
Holy wedgie.
I can't breathe.
Perfect.
She took a baby blue padded teddy and a matching thong, all trimmed with lace, up to the counter and checked out. Looking at her wrist, she realized the time.
5:00. Damnit.
She speed-walked out of the building and toward her car, pressing the panic button on her keys when she couldn't find her Jeep in the crowded parking lot. The horn resounded loudly, leading her straight to the driver side door. It wasn't long until she was back to the highway and on her way home.
It suddenly occurred to her that she hadn't even invited Luke over yet. She rummaged through her purse with her right hand while steering the wheel with her left, pulling out her cell phone and dialing his number.
"Lukes," his voice came from the other end.
"Hey. It's me."
"Hi. What's up?"
"I'm sorry are you guys busy? I can call back in a while."
"No," he said, making his way toward the back room. "I have a minute."
"Okay good! So I was wondering if you were free tonight."
"Sure, did you want to go back to the restaurant?" he asked.
"Actually, I was thinking you could come over."
"Alright, that sounds fine. I'll bring dinner?"
"No, that's okay," she argued. "I'll order food."
"Isn't the guy supposed to pay on the first date?" he pried.
"Yeah, unless the girl freaks out on the first date and bails. Then she pays."
"Ah," he replied in amusement.
"So…seven sound good?"
"I'll be there," he said.
"Perfect. See you then."
"See you then."
She hung up the phone and was pulling into her driveway 20 minutes later. Sookie's car was out front so she assumed she'd brought the food over. She walked through the front door and was immediately greeted by the delicious aroma of meat. She walked into the kitchen to find Sookie tossing a ceasar salad in a large bowl and then turned her head to see two large steaks searing in a skillet on her stovetop. Her kitchen table was set with shiny silver cutlery, sparkling white plates, and two champagne glasses, a bottle of the beverage sitting in an ice bucket in the middle.
"Ah-em," she cleared her throat and Sookie turned around.
"Hey, honey!"
"Sookie, what is all this?" she breathed out in wonder.
"Your dinner, Madame," she said, gesturing around the room with her hand.
"This is beautiful. Thank you."
"My pleasure, sweetie. There are roasted potatoes in the oven so they'll stay warm and there is tiramisu on the bottom shelf in the refrigerator for dessert."
"You are the best, Sook," she said, embracing her.
"What can I say?" she smiled back.
Lorelai reached into her purse, pulling cash from her wallet.
"How much do I owe you?" she asked.
"Nothing," Sookie replied, shoving her hand away.
"Sook…"
"I'm serious, honey! I don't need anything. Just all the dirty details tomorrow morning," she winked, playfully nudging her best friend's side.
"You got it," Lorelai smiled.
"Alright. Well I think my work here is done. You kids have a fantastic time tonight!" She smirked.
"We will. Thanks again."
"You're welcome, sweetie. Anytime."
It was now six o'clock and Lorelai realized she was nowhere near ready. She went upstairs to her room, taking her box of tealights with her and placing them strategically around the bed and on her dressers and night stands. She'd stopped by the florist on her way back into town and picked up a bag of rose petals, which she scattered around the room and on the bed as well. She sprayed the pillows and linens with vanilla-scented fabric refresher and then walked into the bathroom to get herself ready. After a 5-minute speed shower, she dried her hair, opting for her natural curls. She applied light makeup, accentuating her best features. She walked back into her room, wearing her robe, and went into her closet where she found a red, long-sleeved wrap-around dress. She fetched a push-up bra and panties from her drawer, then returning to the bathroom to place the Victoria's Secret bag on the counter for later. She put on the dress and paired it with a set of shiny, sequined sandals and the silver diamond earrings that Rory had given her last Mother's Day. Finally, she spritzed the vanilla-scented body spray on herself and turned toward the door. She stopped briefly to look at the clock on her night stand. 6:45. He would be arriving in 15 minutes. She had just enough time to dish out the food, close the curtains, dim the lighting around the house, and put a romantic vinyl on the record player.
She scurried throughout the kitchen and living room, placing finishing touches on even the smallest details and stopped to catch her breath when his knock sounded on the door.
She smiled, feeling confident and excited. She walked to the front of the house and opened the door to find a handsome man—her handsome man—standing on the other side, grinning at her.
"Hi," he breathed, wondering how she managed to look even more beautiful than she had the night before.
"Hi," she said back, her eyes locked with his and her heartbeat growing faster by the millisecond.