Whenever Rory heard Lorelai talk about her pregnancy growing up, it always seemed sort of endless. A nine-month slog culminating with Lorelai pelting nurses with ice chips during an early morning in October. For Rory, the entire business felt remarkably quick. Two months turned into six, without her really noticing except for her growing belly and the increasing frequency of doctor visits. The little shrimp – both Rory and Logan decided against learning the gender, and the nickname stuck after Rory felt a particularly strong kick while eating shrimp fried rice – just kept growing, with little to no input from its mother. So long as she ate, drank and slept appropriately, the shrimp did its thing, passing each checkup with flying colors.

Rory only wished her book could develop as seamlessly. She couldn't focus. Whenever she tried to write she became restless, as if the very act of sitting down to write made her want to do literally anything else. And so, she did. She went through her bedroom and put together piles of books to donate to the library. She rearranged Lorelai's kitchen.

"Why are the pop tarts in the microwave?" Lorelai asked.

Rory winced, having no memory of putting them there. "It's close to the toaster?"

"Okay, sure," Lorelai said slowly, playing along. "You want to talk about why you're rearranging the entire house? Because, your organization makes sense to literally no one but you."

Rory didn't answer her because she didn't have an answer. Well, she did. She was avoiding writing, but that would necessarily lead to an exploration of why she couldn't write, and there was the rub.

"I think I'm just getting nervous," Rory said.

"Well, that's pretty normal. But, you have nothing to worry about. I mean, with my genes and your freaky love of lists?"

Rory smiled slightly. "I guess you're right."

"Of course, I am. I'm your mother." Rory rolled her eyes. "And if my mother drilled anything into me, it's that mothers are always right. Of course, in her case, she exclusively meant herself. But I think, in this particular moment, I can extend it to me, too."

"Oh really?"

"Now, come on, it's time to go."

"Go where?" Rory asked, already thinking about getting her hands on the bathroom vanity.

"Luke's for lunch, remember?"

"I don't know," Rory said, leaning back in her chair and resting her hands on her belly. Sometimes it made the baby start to move, but all remained calm beneath her palms. "Do you think you can just bring me back a burger and fries?"

"No," Lorelai said immediately, drawing a confused look from her daughter. "I mean, come on, you know a Luke's burger is so much better when it's actually eaten at Luke's."

Rory narrowed her eyes. "What are you trying to keep from me right now?"

"Nothing! It's just, I'd hate for you to have a boring, subpar burger here, when you could eat at Luke's and have a really…" Lorelai floundered, looking for a way to end the largely meaningless sentence,"…not subpar burger." Rory gave her a look and she sighed and said, "Okay, fine, we're throwing you a surprise baby shower at Luke's."

"You are?" Rory asked, suddenly finding herself weepy.

"Yes, so move your little butt and let's get going!"

Fighting back tears, Rory stood up and said, "Thank you for still calling it little."

"Anything for you, kid."

Luke's Diner was decorated with multi-colored streamers, collections of helium-filled balloons on each table. The counter was filled so completely with presents that Babette needed to pull over a table to put hers and Maury's on. Rory walked in behind her mom and felt a sudden ache for Logan. He should be at something like this. She knew the odds were slim to none, though. He had an important meeting with investors the next day, which didn't leave much room for transatlantic flights.

"I can't believe you did all this for me," Rory said, grinning up at her mother.

"Did you expect anything less, sugar?" Babette said, coming over and giving her a tight squeeze. "Look at you. You're as big as a house!"

"Thank you?" Rory said.

"Rory, you are absolutely glowing," Ms. Patti said, holding up a glass of something that looked remarkably similar to Founder's Day punch. "If only they bottled that glow."

"Well, Patti, there is a way," Lorelai said. "You just need a man and, let me guess, some old Frank Sinatra?"

Ms. Patti let out a low laugh, her eyes sparkling, and said, "Dim the lights, and you're right on the money, dear."

"I knew it!"

Luke joined his wife and said, "You knew what?"

"Patti's setting-the-mood music is Frank Sinatra."

Luke blinked rapidly. "Oh good. I'm so glad I know that now." He turned his attention to Rory and asked, "So, were you surprised?"

Lorelai nodded exaggeratedly behind Luke, and Rory said, "Yeah, I was totally surprised. You could have knocked me over with a feather, I was so surprised!"

Lorelai deflated at the last part, knowing the ruse was up, and Luke looked back at her and said, "You told her, didn't you?"

"She didn't mean to!" Rory said quickly as Lorelai told him, "I tried, but you know I can't keep a secret!"

Rory went to second her mother on that point, when she became distracted by the front door opening, Logan Huntzberger walking into the crowded diner. She smiled slightly, surprise evident on her face, and as she hurried over to him, Luke said, "I guess you didn't tell her everything."

Lorelai, who still had not entirely warmed up to the father of her grandson, said, "I guess that part must have slipped my mind."

Luke watched Rory and Logan hug and said, "He's a part of our life, Lor, whether we like it or not."

Lorelai linked her arm with his. "I know."

Rory stayed in the hug for a moment too long, letting herself lean into the feel of his arms around her waist and the achingly familiar smell of his cologne. As her pregnancy progressed, his absences had become increasing difficult for her. She told herself it would change after the baby was born, routinely ignoring her logical side that argued, no, it would not. She pulled away, grinning up at him as she said, "What are you doing here? You have that meeting tomorrow."

"That's what red eyes are for," he returned easily. "Come on, Ace, I couldn't miss our baby shower."

"Is it really ours if I'm the only one carrying the baby?" she asked, grinning when she watched his eyebrow arch.

"I'm sorry, was this an immaculate conception?"

She laughed, and then asked, "So, are you driving back to your parent's tonight?"

She noticed then that his side of the family didn't appear to have a presence at the shower, and he said, "No, I'm not. Your mom actually offered me your living room couch."

Rory was surprised and asked, "She did? Really?"

"I was as surprised as you."

"Well, I'm glad you're here," Rory said, feeling her mouth pull into a grin. She didn't know why the very sight of him made her giddy, but it did, and she decidedly blamed it on the fact she was carrying his child. As if to drive home the point, the baby began to kick, and Rory laughed, her hand automatically going up to her stomach.

"Is that…" Logan asked, eyes wide. For all the times he had visited, the baby rarely kicked. Over time, it had become somewhat of a running joke. Before he had to ask, Rory grabbed his hand and placed it on her belly.

"Do you feel it?"

Logan nodded, marveling at the way her stomach pressed up into his palm. Sure, he had felt babies kick before, but this was different. Rory still had her hand over his and when he glanced up at her, he curled his hand around hers and gave it a quick squeeze.

"Our little shrimp is a good kicker."

"Oh god, does that mean there's sports in our future?

Logan laughed. "It might."

"Can you imagine me as a sports mom?"

"You will have no idea what's going on. But, the snacks will be great."

Rory let out a deep breath, feeling the most relaxed that she had in weeks. "I'm really glad you're here."

He held her gaze, making her stomach twist. "So am I."

That night, Logan took up residence on the couch and after a few episodes of The Office, Rory went to her bedroom, surprisingly finding her writing unblocked. She wrote for hours, well past when she should have gone to sleep, but it was such a joy to feel her fingers tap around the keyboard again. It didn't take much guesswork to ascertain what had changed, but she tried not to focus on it. The fact that Logan's absences stopped her up creatively was a topic that required deeper examination, and right now she was too busy creating.

While Rory was not in a position to examine Logan's effect on her, Lorelai was. She couldn't sleep, and when she came downstairs for a glass of water, Logan was at the kitchen table with his own glass.

"I didn't wake you, did I?" he asked.

"No, I was already up," Lorelai said. She filled a glass of water from the tap and asked, "Trouble sleeping?"

"It's the jet lag," he said.

"Oh, sure. It's a big time difference between here and London, isn't it?"

Logan nodded. "Yeah, it is. But, I'll be in New York part-time after the baby is born."

"Right," Lorelai said. "But you'll mainly be in London, right? With your wife."

Logan bristled at her words, and said, "Yeah, I'll be in London with Odette." He paused before he said his next bit, weighing whether it was worth it. "Look, we've all known that since this all started. So, what are you getting at?"

"I know what it's like to have a kid grow up with a father who's only half in. Rory does, too. And let me tell you, it sucks."

"I'm not half in."

"I really want to believe that," Lorelai said. "Because when that baby comes, it's not easy. And as much as me and Luke will be there for her, she'll want you."

"And I'll be there."

"Okay," Lorelai said.

"Look, I know that our setup isn't exactly conventional. But, it's what we have, and I promise you that I will make it work." He paused and said, "She means too much to me not to."

Lorelai watched him in silence before she asked the question that had been bothering her for months. "Why don't you just call off the wedding?"

"Rory doesn't want that."

"Either way, you're marrying someone who you pretty clearly don't love." She waited for him to refute, and when he didn't, she said, "Why?"

Logan looked down at his glass of water. "Well, the one that I do already turned me down. So, why not?"

Rory listened from her bedroom. His proposal practically felt like another lifetime. She still remembered how the sun had felt unbearably hot that day, like it was burning her with its judgment. It hadn't been the right time. She was still certain of that. But, here she was, sitting on the floor of her childhood bedroom with her back pressed against her door, pregnant with his child, and the timing couldn't be more off. And yet, she knew it was right. She heard Lorelai go back upstairs, and then a few minutes later she heard the sound of a glass being put in the sink, and then Logan passing her bedroom on his way to the couch. She slowly stood and then opened the door, walking over to him.

"Are you okay?" he asked immediately, sitting up.

"I'm fine," she told him, sitting next to him.

"It's pretty late for you to be up," he said.

"You are too," she pointed out.

"Yeah, well I have jet lag. What's your excuse?"

"I was writing," she said. "You know, it's weird, for the last few weeks - pretty much since your last visit – I hadn't been able to write. I would just sit at my laptop staring at the screen. But tonight, I did. I wrote."

"Ace…"

"I don't work without you," Rory said, looking over at him. "Or at least not like I should. And maybe it'll be better when I'm not pumped full of hormones, but I also don't think that's all of it. Because that's how I felt before, too. Like everything was slightly off-center until I saw you."

"What are you saying?" he asked carefully.

"I don't want to do this alone. I want you here with me."

He felt as if he was teetering on top of splintering glass, one wrong word and the bottom would fall out, and he murmured, "Say it, Ace. Just say it."

His eyes were boring into hers, and he noticed hers widen slightly before she said, "I think my water just broke."

A/N: Why yes, I did updated after approximately two years with a cliffhanger. But, I can promise you a new chapter by the end of the weekend! So, if you are reading this, please let me know!