A/N: Hello everyone! I'm back! I am so sorry for how long it took me to post this chapter! Last week, I was on a family vacation, and this week I started college, so life has been a little busy! Fear not, though! I will not leave you hanging! No shade to anyone, but, to me, there are too many unfinished FFs on this site, and I do not plan to have one of them! I will continue to work on this story, no matter how long it takes me! Anyway, this is my new chapter, and I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 32: This is the One

The sun was barely over the horizon before Saturday, otherwise known as house hunting day, began in the Gilmore "household".

"Mommy get up," Rory exclaimed cheerily as she jumped on a sleeping Lorelai.

Reaching for Rory, still half asleep, Lorelai questioned, "Mmmm… what's the matter?"

"It's time to get ready to go look at houses! Come on! Come on! Come on!" Hopping over the edge of the bed, Rory began pacing the floor, waiting for her mother to join her.

Sleepily grabbing the alarm clock, Lorelai barely made out the numbers "6:30." "Rory, "It's 6:30… 6:30 on a Saturday morning. We aren't supposed to go look at houses until 9."

"We have to get a head start! Please get up, Mommy!"

Finally sitting up, Lorelai looked at her excited daughter. "Rory… my heart… my love. It is Saturday. We do not get up early on Saturdays. Saturday is the day of rest."

Cocking her head to the side, Rory questioned, "Isn't that Sunday?"

"Ughhh, why are you so smart… Fine, Saturday is the day of pre-rest. We still have plenty of time to sleep. Get back in bed."

"But I'm not tired. I'm too excited! Up please!"

Reaching out for her, Lorelai pulled Rory to her. Placing her on the other side of the bed, Lorelai spoke softly, "Then be excited in bed. You can lay next to Mommy and think of all that you want in the house, but let me sleep just a little longer."

"Okay… but do you want your room to be yellow, or white, or pick, or gray, or…"

Cutting her off, she answered, "Shhhh. Rory, you pick whatever color you want. I'll love anything you choose. Just please, please, let me enjoy a little more sleep." Pulling her close, Rory's head ended up resting on Lorelai's shoulder where she immediately snuggled into her. Lorelai fell quickly back to sleep, but wide-eyed Rory continued to dream of every possibility for their new home.

Later that morning, Lorelai walked tiredly into the diner, with an eager Rory in tow.

"Come on, Mommy! We need to hurry up and eat!"

"Easy there, hon," Lorelai answered, as she sat down in a chair slowly. Groaning and dropping her head tiredly to the table, she continued, "I can't believe I scheduled to meet a realtor at 9 am. What possessed me to do that?"

"If you wouldn't mind removing your head from my table, that would be great," Luke started as he approached the table, "It's unsanitary."

"Well, aren't you just Mr. Rainbows and Sunshine this morning."

"Says the woman who groaned and complained loud enough for the other side of town to hear…What can I get for ya? We have 45 minutes until we need to leave, so don't take too long to decide."

"Daddy Luke," Rory spoke up, "Can I have some chocolate chip pancakes with whipped cream and chocolate milk?"

"How about I make the chocolate chip pancakes without whipped cream and you drink water, instead?"

Lifting her head from the table with a frown, Lorelai watched her boyfriend try to negotiate with her daughter.

"What about the pancakes without whipped cream but with apple juice. Water is gross. It doesn't taste like anything," Rory retorted, extending her hand.

Taking her hand and shaking on the deal, Luke answered with a grin, "I think you've got a deal, kid." Turning to Lorelai, he noticed the frown on her face. "Careful… People say your face will get stuck like that if it stays that way long enough."

"Who said you could negotiate your healthiness into my kid's diet?"

"Well, someone's got to do it if she wants a fighting chance in life. Now what about you? I've got plenty of apple juice to offer to you too."

"You know better than to even imply that," she answered with a glare. Dropping her head back to the table, she continued, "I'm too tired to think since little miss priss over here decided to wake me up at the crack of dawn, and I couldn't get back to sleep for long. Just bring me whatever you want, but make sure it includes coffee."

After placing their order and tending to other customers, Luke returned to the table, placing Rory's breakfast in front of her and a bowl of shredded wheat in front of Lorelai.

With a horrified look on her face, Lorelai exclaimed, "What on God's green earth is that?"

Feigning innocence, Luke answered calmly, "You said to bring whatever I want, so I brought you some shredded wheat."

"Luke," she whined in response, "I meant bring me whatever you want within the realm of what I usually want! I can't eat this!"

"But it's strawberry… It's still sweet."

"And if you ever want me to be sweet again, you'll bring me something else," Lorelai answered with a huff.

With a chuckle escaping his lips, Luke turned back to the kitchen and walked over to the order window. Grabbing another stack of pancakes with bacon and sausage, he placed the new meal in front of her. "Is this better? This is what I actually had made for you."

Scowling, she spoke annoyed, "That was cruel."

"But so worth it," Luke smiled, placing a quick kiss to her forehead, "Now hurry up and eat so we can get going."

"So, what did you think?"

"I don't know," Lorelai answered unconvincingly as she walked arm in arm with Luke down the porch of house number four. "It's nice, I guess… but…"

"But it's not the one?"

Nodding her head against his shoulder, she responded sadly, "Yeah, it's not the one."

"What about you, Rory?"

Stopping in front of them, Rory retained the same slumped posture as her mother. "It was okay… but I want mommy to have her own room, and this one only had one room."

As they continued their conversation, the realtor approached, noticing the beaten looks on the faces of the girls. "So, I'm guessing this house is a no as well?"

"Yeah," Lorelai sighed, running her fingers through her hair, "I'm sorry, Ann. I know house hunting usually isn't this complicated, but I just haven't found the house that speaks to me, you know?"

"Oh, don't worry about it, Lorelai," she reassured with a smile, "If we don't find one today, we can look at a more properties some other time. I do have one more house to show you today, thought. It's just off Maple on the other side of town."

Packing up into the truck, all of its riders hoped and prayed that this next house would work. As they pulled up to the house and walked up the drive, Lorelai took Luke's hand and squeezed it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a wide grin on both of the Gilmore faces.

Walking up to them, Ann immediately noticed the change in demeanor. "Is this one a contender, then?"

Turning to her happily, Lorelai answered excitedly, "This one looks really great! I hope the inside looks as good as the outside!" Looking to her side, Lorelai bent down to Rory. "And what do you think, hon?"

"This looks perfect! It looks almost like what I dreamed this morning!"

"Well this sounds like it may work," Ann agreed. Unlocking the door, she continued, "Why don't you guys take a look inside, and I'll be in in a few."

Standing in the foyer, Rory let out an excited gasp. "Mommy, can I look around all by myself?"

"Sure. Just holler at us if you need anything." Patting Rory on her back, Lorelai sent her on her way. Meanwhile, she reached behind her and grabbed Luke's hand, pulling him into the living room with her. "Ooh! Look, Luke! Hardwoods." Turning around quickly, she questioned, "Do you think they are okay, or do they need repairing?"

Bending down and running his hand along the boards, he examined the old wood. "They don't look to be in that bad of shape. I could always strip, re-stain, and seal them, if you wanted me to, but they honestly are fine as they are."

Unexpectedly, a giggle escaped Lorelai's lips. Looking up at her with confusion written on his face, Luke asked curiously, "What?"

"Strip… dirty," she answered with a grin.

Rolling his eyes, he stood up quickly. "Why do I even try," he groaned. Ushering her towards the stairs he added grumpily, "Moving on."

Finally reaching the upstairs hallway, they entered the only bedroom on the level.

"So… I'm guessing this would be my room, and the bathroom next to it is mine as well."

Looking around, Luke added a casual, "I'd say so, since the room next to this is too small to be a bedroom, and the bathroom downstairs will most likely be used by Rory."

Noticing his critical look of the room, Lorelai began chewing her lower lip and asked him carefully, "I think I like this a lot, but what's your opinion, you know, in terms of renovations and stuff?"

"Well," Luke began as he walked to the center of the room. Quickly, he started scanning every corner of the room. Satisfied with his inspection, he pointed out his findings. "The baseboards could use a new paint job, and there's a hole over there and over there that need to be fixed. You will probably have to replace the closet doors eventually… These are actually pretty minor jobs, so I don't think it's too bad."

Amazed that someone who was normally so short with words was so detailed in his quick assessment, Lorelai could only form enough thought to ask, "And you can do that?"

Shrugging, Luke answered calmly "If you want me to, yeah."

After finishing the tour of the upstairs, the couple made their way back downstairs and into the kitchen.

"I've got to say, babe, I'm loving these yellow walls!"

"Yeah, except for the holes in them," Luke responded from the doorway.

Turning to him with a concerned look, Lorelai asked quickly, "Are the holes really that bad? Could you not fix them? Is that a deal breaker?"

Sensing the really liked the house, Luke knew not to worry her over something so easily fixed, so he quickly reassured her. "No… It may take a few hours to fix all of the ones scattered around the house, but it's not bad. I have some tools and stuff left over from my Dad's store, and the rest I can get from a buddy in Woodbridge."

"You're okay to do that? This along with the upstairs and all the painting sounds like a lot of work. I don't want you to overwork yourself because of me. You're my boyfriend, not my slave… at least not in that way," she spoke, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at the end.

Shrugging, he tried to ignore her innuendo, but answered honestly. "It's not a lot of work for me, and it's better than letting someone else scam you out of money by overcharging you."

"But maybe we could find someone we know who won't charge a lot so you don't have to work so hard." Shifting her gaze to the floor, she shuffled her feet and added tentatively, "I don't want to take advantage of you."

At her hesitance, Luke walked over behind her and began running his hands up and down her shoulders. "Lorelai, do you really want this house?"

Turning in his arms, she looked up at him with the first genuine smile he had seen since they began house hunting. "Well, I have to see what Rory thinks, but I'm pretty sure this is the house I want. I mean, it's not the most extravagant, but I don't want or need extravagant. Just look at it; it's got great potential. I could really see Rory growing up here, us having movie marathons right out there, or you cooking dinner in this kitchen and me bugging you about it, you know?"

Seeing the genuine excitement in her eyes, he answered, "Alright, then I'll do the work. If you get the house, we can fix what I mentioned today, and if something else comes up after you move, we'll go from there."

"Are you sure, because I could…"

With his lips, Luke cut her off quickly before she could question further. "Lorelai, I'm sure. If this is the house, get it."

"Okay… If I get the house, I'll let you do the work, but on one condition."

"And that is?"

"The one household job I can do is paint, so when you're doing anything that requires a paint brush, you have to let me know so I can share the load."

Glad it wasn't another one of her crazy schemes, he answered with a nod, "I can do that."

Wrapping her arms around his waist, Lorelai squeezed tightly and spoke appreciatively, "Thanks, babe." Bringing his lips to hers, she gave him a sweet kiss. Before he could pull away, she took it deeper. Finally allowing him to break apart for air, she looked up at him with a mischievous smile. "And that was a preview of how I'll thank you thoroughly once you're done."

A chuckle escaped Luke's lips as he playfully swatted at her bottom. "Okay, I look forward to it… Now behave. Do you want to go talk to Rory?"

"Yeah, come on… I think she's in there."

Walking into the large bedroom just off the kitchen, they found Rory standing in the middle of the room in a trance. The silence of the room was broken as Lorelai broke Rory's daydream, asking, "So sweets, what do you think?"

Turning around to see them, Rory threw her arms out and exclaimed, "It's the best house ever!"

"So you like it, then? This is the one we like?"

"I think it's perfect! This room is so big." Turning to Luke, Rory walked over to him, and continued hopefully, "Do you think there's room for book shelves?"

Both adults laughed at the inclusion of another task. "I think so, Rory… Just tell me where you want them, and I'll add them to my to-do list."

Hugging his leg tightly, Rory gave Luke a bright smile. "Thanks, Daddy Luke!"

A few moments later, Ann reappeared in the room. Taking in the happiness in the room, she grinned, "So, is this a yes then? Do you want to put an offer in on this house?"

Taking one of Rory's and one of Luke's hands in hers, Lorelai answered happily, "Definitely."

"Alright! I'll go back to my office and have the papers drawn up, and we will go from there."

Two weeks later, the day Lorelai had been waiting years for finally arrived. Reaching the inn at 8 am sharp, Luke knocked on the door of the shed and was met with a way too awake Lorelai.

"Good morning babe," she spoke happily taking the to-go cup of coffee from his hand. Leaning in for a quick kiss, she pulled back with a smile. "Are you ready to be a knight and shining armor and help your damsels move to their new castle?"

Looking at her curiously, Luke took in her enthusiastic demeanor. "Don't get me wrong… I like seeing you awake before noon, but isn't it a little early for you to be this awake?"

Not taking the time to respond, Lorelai grabbed his arm and pulled him through the doorway and into the living room. Finally reaching the small pile of boxes in the middle of the room she turned to him and gestured widely. "It's moving day, and I'm actually done packing! How could I not be excited and ready to go?"

"I get the excitement… but are you sure none of this morning happiness has to do with a certain caffeinated beverage that I said I would supply?"

"Wellllll," she drew out the word teasingly. "Sookie may or may not have given me a cup of coffee."

"So along with the one I just gave you, you've only had two," he questioned, eyeing her curiously.

"Yep! I've only had two cups of coffee this morning!" Whispering just loud enough for him to hear, Lorelai added quietly, "But I also had two mugs full… not cups."

"Sometimes I don't even understand how you're still alive," Luke grumbled in response. Taking in the look of the shed, he quickly realized one thing was missing. "I know you don't have a lot of stiff to take from here, but don't you think you're forgetting one important thing?"

Looking around, Lorelai saw everything that was her's and Rory's already packed up. Turning back to him with a curious look, she questioned, "Uh… no. Why?"

"So a certain five year old about yea big, with bright blue eyes and her mother's pout isn't supposed to be here?"

"Oh… no. She will be thought. Even though I still have the job here, Rory says that since she won't be living on site anymore, she has to say an official goodbye to everyone. Mia is helping her make the rounds… Uh, speaking of Rory, can I talk to you about something?"

"Yeah, okay," he answered hesitantly, not sure as to where the conversation was headed, "What's up?"

Suddenly shy, Lorelai began picking at a stray string on her shirt. "So, uh, while Rory and I were packing last night, she mentioned something that I think we need to talk about."

"Okay…" Still perplexed by her vague statements, he continued, "And what is that thing?"

"Um, you know how you are one of Rory's favorite people in the world? Well, of course you do, but anyway, since you are, she spends a lot of time talking about you, and last night was no different. Rory, being Rory, started talking about you fixing the house up and all that stuff, and she naturally came to the conclusion that you were spending a lot of time at a house that wasn't yours… So then she proceeded to get around to the wild idea that since you were spending so much time getting the house ready, that you must be getting it the way you want it because you are… moving in… with us," Lorelai faltered off, completing her rambling.

Seeing his slightly wide-eyed look, she continued quickly, "Now, don't worry. I told her that it was, in fact, just you and me moving in to the house, but then she asked me if you would be spending the night sometimes since we have more space because that is what "a girl she played with at the inn" says couples do…. And when she said that, I realized that we hadn't talked about it and that we probably should."

A/N: Sorry for the slight cliff hanger! This chapter grew to be sooooo long that I had to split it into two, and this was the best place to do it! Now I'll just let all of you wonder how Luke is going to take this discussion... :)