A/N: Time to go back to school! :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 3

The time passed too quickly, in a haze of books, movies, and making out. Rory had a lot of fun and actually didn't mind so much when it was time for school to start up again. It wasn't as if she was really losing anything. Jess was going to be right there with her five days a week, plus she would see Paris and her other friends. Senior Year wasn't looking half so tough as Rory thought it might. In fact, she was glad to be getting back to Chilton, as weird as that might seem.

"Ooh, lookin' good, Max Fischer!" said Lorelai, catching Rory's attention.

She looked up from her breakfast to see Jess who had appeared from behind the curtain in his Chilton uniform. Most guys looked average to awful in the outfit, Jess always made it look so good.

"Thanks," Jess dead-panned, rolling his eyes at Lorelai before turning to Luke. "Tell me again why you paid money to have me go back to this place?"

"Because the education is good and because I, stupidly, thought you might want to be spending as much time as possible with your girlfriend and your adopted sister. So sorry if I got that wrong," said Luke with a look.

"Whatever," Jess muttered as he joined Lorelai and Rory at their table. "At least I'm not alone at the freak show."

"I think you look great," his girlfriend assured him, sparing him a kiss. "You want?" she offered him her last pancake in an attempt to make him happy.

Jess shook his head. "I know better than to take food from a Gilmore."

"A wise man," said Lorelai, nodding her head. "And they say feeding Gremlins after midnight is dangerous. They have no idea how bad things can be when a Gilmore misses out on a meal! Okay, kids," she said then, gulping down the last of her coffee. "Have a good day in school. I'm out!" she was off like a shot, kissing Rory on the top of her head as she passed by. Jess gave a slight wave as Rory told her mom to have a good day too.

With breakfast finally done, Rory said they should probably get going as they didn't want to miss their bus.

"Have a great first day back!" Luke called to them as they left. "And Jess? Stay out of trouble."

"Yes, Uncle Luke," he intoned like a good boy before following Rory outside. "Not that I'm not grateful to the guy, but he does know I'm almost eighteen, right?"

"I would hope so since your birthday is next week," said Rory, smiling as his arm slipped around her shoulder's whilst they walked along. "So, did you get the required reading finished?"

"Some of it." Jess shrugged. "I got a little distracted from the Shakespeare."

"Jess!"

"The Sun Also Rises was just sitting there and you know I have a weakness. A re-read appealed way more than 'to be or not to be'."

"That's Hamlet," Rory noted as they sat down together on the bench at the bus stop. "You were supposed to be reading 'Much Ado About Nothing'."

"Yeah, and last weekend we were supposed to watch the movie, but something else was distracting me then," said Jess with a smirk.

Rory coloured at his comment, knowing it was less of a what and more of a who that had spoilt Jess' concentration that day. She hadn't meant for it to happen, but for some reason her boyfriend was looking particularly attractive that day and she couldn't help herself.

"Next time we watch movies for school, we invite Paris," she said definitely.

"As much as I love her, she's definitely a passion killer." Jess nodded, getting a sock in the arm from Rory for his trouble. "Ow!"

"Don't be mean," she told him, though she failed to hold in the laughter that came as a result of his joke.

The bus arrived and they boarded, continuing talk of books and the like all the way to school. No sooner had they arrived at Chilton than Paris was upon them. Though Rory was sure she had missed having their constant company these past couple of weeks, she seemed oddly eager even for Paris.

"Save me. Please," she urged them desperately.

"Hey, sis. Forget to take your Ritalin this morning?" asked Jess with evident amusement - she did not smile.

"Laugh it up, Chuckles! I have been back in this school for fully ten minutes and already I feel as if my head is going to explode. Tiffani and Bambi are in full 'I Know Who You Did Last Summer' mode and if I have to hear one more story about making out on the beach, I won't be responsible for my actions!" she complained. "Don't they know this is Senior year? This is the final chance before college, the last hurdle, the end of the line. We do not have time for this crap!"

"Paris, breathe," Rory advised. "I'm sure Madeline and Louise didn't mean any harm. You know that boys and parties rank so much higher for them than education ever could. It never bothered you quite this much before."

Paris took a deep breath in and let it out as instructed. It helped a little. Honestly, she wasn't sure why it was bugging her so much to hear her friends talk conquests either, unless she was jealous. Not that she needed to be, she had her first real date in Washington and she could have proudly told Madeline and Louise all about it, and yet she didn't, she couldn't. Somehow she knew they wouldn't get it.

"It's just first day back stress, I guess," she sighed. "Between The Franklin, Student Council, and applying to Harvard, we're going to be busy, Gilmore. Too busy for a whole lot of fraternising," she said pointedly.

"I think she's looking at me," said Jess in full dead-pan mode.

"Quite possibly." Rory nodded from beneath his arm. "But Paris, I am not giving up my boyfriend just because we have a lot to achieve this year. We'll find a balance, it'll be fine."

"Of course if Jess would be of some help, maybe at The Franklin this year?"

"Nope," he told Paris without hesitation.

"But you actually know how to string two sentences of the written word together without me standing over you, and-"

"Paris, no," he said definitely and clearly so she could not be mistaken in what he was saying. "Now, you may want to look the other way, just saying," he warned her before spinning Rory around by the straps of her back pack and kissing her firmly on the lips.

The bell rang overhead and the couple parted, with Jess giving a salute of a wave to the girls before heading to class. Rory was smiling, she couldn't help it. Paris was not so much.

"C'mon, grumpy girl," Rory encouraged her. "Step one of all the crazy that Senior Year has planned for us is getting to class on time."

Paris sighed and followed her. What choice did she have?

"Well, aren't you just the guy that everybody is talking about?" said Louise as she and Madeline took a seat at the lunch table.

Jess glanced up from his tray and shrugged his shoulders. "Huh," he said, as if he had no idea he had caused a stir.

"Don't act dumb," said Paris to his left. "You know a whole bunch of girls just swooned when you walked into math class this morning."

"Can you blame them?" asked Madeline with a glint in her eyes.

Jess looked back at his lunch. It seemed a whole lot safer, at least until Rory got here. It wasn't that he minded the attention. If girls liked him, that wasn't a bad thing, but after the way Rory reacted to his talking with Shane, he kind of didn't want to tempt fate. Besides, encouraging the Banger Sisters in any way was not on his itinerary at all!

"So, since we're close friends of your former-sister, you can give us the 411, right?" asked Louise, picking at her salad. "Have you really been taken in by your rich uncle who's paying for you to come here? Or is it the other rumour, the one where you conned Headmaster Charleston into letting you back in by holding some terrible secret over his head?"

Rory arrived at the table just in time to hear the options that Jess was being given. She laughed at the idea of anyone having blackmail material over the Headmaster, and at the picture in her head of Luke as Daddy Warbucks or similar. Jess smiled also.

"Curiosity killed the cat," he told the girls.

"Satisfaction brought him back," retorted Louise. "And I don't give in until I'm completely satisfied," she said, with a look on her face that was way too dirty for the Chilton cafeteria.

"There's no big secret or scandal." Rory rolled her eyes. "Luke, who is Jess' uncle, but is not rich, at least not blue-blood high society rich, has let him live with him and is paying for his education."

"Hmm. Disappointing," said Louise sadly.

"Extremely," added Madeline, visibly deflating. "Ooh, look!" she said then, pointed excitedly across the room.

The next minute she and Louise were gone, trays and all, leaving Jess, Rory, and Paris to wonder what the hell just happened. Not that it really mattered. Honestly, it was probably better that they weren't centre of attention. None of them were fans of such a thing, well, Paris was sometimes but only when the reason was academic and looked good on her college application.

"My, my, aren't we popular with the ladies?" she said, looking to Jess. "First the blonde at the Stars Hollow carnival, now Madeline and Louise. Plus a certain red-head we all know and loathe has been making eyes any chance she gets."

"Red-head?" asked Rory with a frown.

Jess shook his head at her, since he had no idea who Paris was talking about either.

"Oh come on, you are not that dumb!" said Paris, looking between them. "Glance towards The Puffs table, I dare you!"

Rory and Jess both swivelled to see and lo and behold Francie did seem to be staring, though she made a point of looking away when she saw she had their attention. Jess smirked, he couldn't help it, but Rory did not look amused.

"What?" he asked when she frowned hard at him. "It's not my fault if she's staring. Besides, she could be looking at you. She did want you in her little club once upon a time."

"True," Rory conceded. "And I guess even if she did like you, that's not your fault."

"Exactly," he agreed. "Hey, you have your share of admirers, and I'm not going nuts about it. I still have to put up with Forester making eyes at you any time we go past Doose's Market."

"Dean does not make eyes at me."

"Yes, he does," said Paris, even though her eyes never left her book. "I know I don't spend as much time in your quaint little town as the two of you, but I've seen it, at least twice since we've been back."

Rory shook her head, eyes wide. She really hadn't noticed.

"So, on to more important topics," said Paris then, reaching the bottom of her page and closing the book on the marker. "We're fast headed towards the time to apply for college. Obviously, I'm going all out for Harvard, with the usual backups, since Chilton insists - Princeton, Yale, even Stanford. I'm assuming Rory will be doing the same, so that just leaves you, Jess."

"Pass," he said, shoving chips in his mouth.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Paris, let it go," Rory advised. "Jess doesn't want to go to college and that is his choice. Don't push."

"Don't push? Are you kidding?" she argued.

The next minute, Jess was up from his seat and walking away, promising Rory he would catch her later.

"Don't walk away from me, Mariano!" Paris yelled after him, to no avail. "Can you believe that?"

"I did try to warn you," said Rory with a sigh. "I know you want what's best for Jess, I do too, but he's decided he really doesn't want to do the further education thing. I'd love for him to change his mind, but it's his choice. We don't get to make it for him."

"Maybe you don't," said Paris. "But trust me, I will get through to him. Just give me time to think of a plan," she said with determination.

Rory put her head in her hands and let out a long breath. This morning had gone so well, she had been feeling so positive about Senior Year. Now it seemed as if trouble was imminent, one way or another, and that didn't thrill her at all.

To Be Continued...