CHAPTER 45: Damn the Oven and the Trash

"Is Bono the only tape you brought?" Luke groaned as the tape turned over for the second time that weekend trip. "I might go insane if I hear his songs one more time."

As he expected, Lorelai gasped dramatically. "Are you saying you're tired of Bono?" Turning to Rory, she placed a hand over her heart. "Sweets, I can't believe what I am hearing. Luke doesn't like Bono."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I never said I didn't like him but hearing the same ten songs over and over this whole trip makes me want to jump off a bridge."

"It's his new album! We have to break it in. Everyone knows you have to play new albums over and over on repeat until you get tired of them. That's when it's finally broken in."

"Yeah, well, I'm already tired of it."

"And I'm already not." At his side eye, she laughed. "Fine, Rory and I will finish breaking it in later this week. Do you have any requests for a replacement?"

"Anything but this."

"Seriously?" At his nod, it was her turn to roll her eyes and she turned to the back seat. "Rory, since your Daddy up here doesn't want to cooperate and give a suggestion, would you like to choose?"

"Pick the Bangles!" She exclaimed, a wide smile coming to play on her face

"Oooo, yes!" Lorelai agreed as Luke groaned. Turning to him with an arched brow, she eyed him up and down. "Do you have a problem with the Bangles, babe?"

"I dont have a problem with the Bangles. I have a problem with you and the Bangles." He emphasized and pointed at her. "You play it so loud the whole state can hear it." He grumbled.

"Well, you should have thought about that before you didn't give me a suggestion." Grabbing it from the floor board, she dug through her purse for the tape. "Aha!" Sticking it halfway in the tape player, she turned back to Rory with a wide grin. "Alright, hon, count us in..."

"1,2,3,4!" Rory yelled as the music blasted loudly through the speakers, and both girls immediately began to sing

Cringing at the sound, Luke shook his head. "This is going to be a long ride," He mumbled quietly.

As he suspected, Lorelai and Rory's loud singing lasted the whole tape. The final song ended as they approached Hartford, about 45 minutes out from the house.

Quickly, he turned the volume nob all the way down before they could start the tape over, causing both girls to release a loud and dramatic, "Hey!"

Frowning at him, Lorelai complained, "We weren't done."

Running a hand across his forehead, he tried to ignore the pain of the headache that, for the last hour, was still going strong. "You two have been talking and singing and dancing and heaven knows what else the whole ride back. Can I please just have a few minutes of quiet until we get home."

"You do realize who you're talking to, right?"

"Yes, I do. I'm talking to Loudmouth and Loudmouth Junior." He deadpanned.

Not offended, she answered him wearing a sassy grin. "Actually, I would be Loudmouth Jr. and Rory would be Loudmouth the third. My grandmother would be Loudmouth the first."

"Lorelai..."

Laughing softly, she reached over the center console and squeezed his thigh. "Fine. I can tell by the bulging vein on your forehead that you've had enough." Turning back, she looked at Rory with a smile. "Is that voice of yours sore yet, sweets?"

"A little." She answered her, clearing her throat for emphasis. "Are we gonna be quiet for Daddy now? I can rest my voice."

"I think we should, but it might be a little hard. We are master-talkers, after all. Do you think we can do it?"

Tapped her chin before nodding, Rory shrugged. "We can try."

"Alright, let's do that." Turning back to Luke, Lorelai patted his knee. "You hear that, babe? We're gonna try to be quiet just for you."

"Who knew that after all this time, all I had to do was ask." He smirked, reaching down for her hand. "Thank you."

Much to his surprise, the silence actually lasted for five minutes, but around that time he felt Lorelai begin to move under his hand. Quickly, he took his gaze over to her and then the back to the road. Even a quick glance showed him her spastic movements and mischievous grin. "You're singing their songs in your head, aren't you?"

Acting out the motion of zipping her mouth shut, she pretended to throw away the key but kept dancing.

Shaking his head, Luke chuckled "As long as it's in your head and not coming from the speakers."

In a move that did surprise him, both Lorelai and Rory ended up falling asleep. The silence that he had been asking for was only slightly interrupted by Lorelai's soft snores. Before long, Lorelai stirred as he began driving the winding roads of Stars Hollow

Squeezing his hand that was still holding hers when she finally came to, she spoke hoarsely. "How's the silence?"

"Strange." He answered with a grin.

"I can make it loud again if you want." She spoke a little clearer as she gained back her voice. Shifting sides, she moved from leaning on the door to leaning her head on his shoulder. "I've got a lot more tapes where that came from."

"I think you can save those for another day."

"I dont know... You look like you would be a huge fan of Bowie." Lorelai smiled as she began to hum the tune of one of his songs.

"Lorelai," Luke chuckled, trying to ignore her.

"Ooo, or maybe another song of Bono's." Getting a little louder, she began humming a different song.

"Hey, Lorelai?"

Amidst her hums, the different sound to his voice didn't register. Feeling the Jeep stop, she didn't think anything of it and continued to tease him. "No, definitely Queen." She laughed and changed songs again, but not humming loud enough to disturb Rory who was still asleep in the back seat.

"Lorelai," He spoke a lot sterner.

Something in his voice finally registered with her. When she looked at where he was looking, she figured out that that something was shock. Her jaw dropping, a quiet "Chris..." escaped her lips.

"Did you know he was coming," He asked carefully, not taking his eyes off the porch couch where the man in question was sitting.

"Do you really think that I wouldn't tell you if I did?" She countered him harshly. At the quick shake of his head, she continued. "I wish he would call before he just shows up so we could be prepared for these things... so Rory could be prepared for these things."

"So, what do we do?"

Thinking on it for a second, Lorelai bit her lip and released a sigh. "Okay... We can leave the bags in the car since there isn't anything in them that will ruin. You grab Rory, and if she's stays asleep, take her inside and lay her down. I'll talk to Chris."

"And if Rory wakes up?"

Looking over up him, she shrugged. "I don't know how she'll react to seeing Chris, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens..." Casting her eyes to the back seat, she looked at her sleeping daughter before questioning, "Are you ready? He always seems to cause trouble when he comes back, and I have a feeling this time wont be any different."

"I guess I'm as ready as I can be," he grumbled, eying the man who was now obviously staring at them. Reaching for the door handle, he got out of the Jeep and immediately went to the back seat, not giving Chris the time of day. Meanwhile, Lorelai slid out of her side and walked up to the porch.

"Hey, Lor. Long time no see," Chris spoke oddly cheerfully as he rose from his spot to greet her.

"Hey Chris," She gave into his hug awkwardly while making sure hands stayed in appropriate places.

"Are you coming in from out of town?"

"Uh, yeah, we were up in Boston for the weekend."

"Boston? No way! That's where I've been. You should have called, and we could have met up!" As Chris ended his sentence, Luke appeared at the bottom of the porch. Lorelai could practically feel his eyes rolling at his comment as he walked up.

"Well, I'd have to have a number to reach you with and the last one was disconnected... and the forward number for that number was also disconnected." She answered, her arms crossing in front of her chest.

Running a hand across the back of his neck, he shrugged. "Yeah, sorry about that…Hey, Rory!" He called as Luke reached the top of the steps.

"She's asleep," He answered curtly, showing Rory's asleep face to them before going inside.

As soon as Luke closed the door, Chris smirked. "Well, he's just a ray of sunshine. Quite the guy you've got there."

Ignoring him, she leaned back against the rail and crossed her arms. "What are you doing here, Chris."

"I came to see my daughter. You remember she is my daughter, right?"

Rolling her eyes, she waved a careless hand. "Don't patronize me. You and I both know I have the right to be suspicious."

"Suspicious of what? I made time for my kid. Isn't that what you want?" He countered her.

"You've not been by in almost a year, and now, all of a sudden, you've made time and you're here to see Rory? Forgive me if I'm not buying it."

"I'm in Hartford for business, and I decided to stop by."

Eyeing him once over deprecatingly, Lorelai stated, "So business brought you here."

"Don't look at me like that. So what, business brought me here, I'm still here, right?"

"If that is the reasoning that floats your boat, then sure. Coming here for business instead of solely for Rory is perfectly fine." She said sarcastically. Out of the corner of her eye, Lorelai could see ruffling of Babette's blinds. Not wanting to give any more info to the neighborhood news than she already had, even though she knew she would regret it, she spoke up anyway. "So, are you here to stand on the porch all day, or did you want to come inside. Rory shouldn't be out for too much longer."

"I get to come inside?" Chris smirked. "You just finished interrogating me and you're throwing invisible darts at me from your eyes, but you're inviting me in?"

"Hey, I may think you're a jackass sometimes," She shrugged, unconsciously wearing a smirk that matched his. "But you're here for Rory, so you might as well stay and visit for a while until she wakes up, right? Unless you're lying and you're really here for another reason." She shrugged.

Not responding, he just gestured to the door

As she led him inside, Lorelai clearly heard noise from the kitchen and knew Luke was obviously stress reorganizing. Judging by the sounds, he was going through the fridge and, more importantly, trying to find something to occupy his time so he didn't have to be around the man who was now oddly close behind her. Uncomfortable with the distance, she took a seat in the lone seat across from couch, forcing distance between them.

"So, business, huh? Did God himself call you back here, because normally you avoid Hartford like the plague."

"My dad would like to think he's God," Chris answered with an eyeroll. "Apparently Dad has an opening that he would like me to fill for the next few weeks. I didn't want to come, but Mom made it known that I had no choice."

"Ah, yes, the power of the Hayden matriarch. Almost as strong as that of Emily Gilmore...And I'm sure that staying at the Hayden compound is going to be a great experience."

Avoiding her eyes, Chris looked down at the floor.

Knowing by his love movement that he was hiding something, she pressed further. "You are staying there, right?"

Looking back up at her slowly, Chris leaned forward. "You know, it would be a lot easier to balance work and this place if I could stay close by here instead."

"Chris," She sighed.

"Come on, Lor. You know what it's like in that house. I'm not saying I want to stay for free, but if you could work your Gilmore magic and get me in somewhere I would be forever in your debt."

In reality, she didn't really want him at the inn, but, even more so, she didn't want him hovering around their house. "Fine, I'll work you in a room at the inn, but you don't get to bother me while I'm there."

"Bother you?" He scoffed with a laugh. At her knowing look he raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, I'll keep things strictly business. So, deal?"

"Deal."

As they chatted, neither of them noticed conversation going on in kitchen until Rory walked out, rubbing her eyes and speaking. "But, Daddy, Who's here? I-" She froze at the sight of Chris on the couch. "Dad?"

"Hey, kiddo! Long time no see." Standing up, he stepped towards her with arms open.

Not surprising to Lorelai, Rory didn't speak. She could see the wheels turning in her head. It was clear she wasn't sure how to respond to him. "Hi." She spoke up warily but gave him a cautious hug anyway.

Out of nowhere, the phone began to rang loudly. The interruption, however, was welcomed by Lorelai, as it cut short the slightly awkward conversation. Staring at the phone, Lorelai let it ring and the voicemail played loudly through the house.

"Hey, Luke. It's Mateo. I'm not sure if you are back in town yet, but I just wanted to let you know as soon as possible that something is wrong with the oven. I'm pretty sure it's the thermostat, but I don't have time to take a look for sure with the rush going on. Anyway, I just wanted to keep you updated."

Having heard the voicemail from the kitchen, Luke sighed as he walked into the living room. "I swear, I hate that damn oven sometimes." He complained, looking at Lorelai as he grabbed the phone.

"Just the oven, or the damn oven." She smiled at his responding eyeroll.

"The damn oven. I'll be back…"

With Luke out of the room and taking care of the message, Chris continued as though nothing interrupted them. "You're getting big, Rory. How did you get so tall?"

"I don't know." Rory shrugged, looking over at Lorelai for reassurance. Seeing her mother nod, she explained further. "Mommy says it's because I have so much smartness that my body has to grow to fit it, but Daddy says it's because I eat a healthier than mommy."

Chris's tensing at Rory referring to Luke as Daddy didn't go unnoticed by Lorelai and couldn't help but smirk.

"I think your mom's right, because you're growing like a weed." He answered, completely trying to ignore the mention of Luke. "You're in, what, the first grade, now?"

"I'm almost in second grade."

"Man, kid, you're making me feel old." Turning to Lorelai, he eyed her once over. "How about you? Feeling like you belong in a nursing home yet?"

Rolling her eyes, she scoffed. "Uh, not hardly."' Standing up from her seat, she took a step closer to him and narrowed her eyes. "But, you know, you might need to take a closer look at the back of your head, because some gray hairs might be growing in."

"Oh please, you know if anyone is gonna have grays it's you." He laughed and pointed at her. "Huh, is that one I see right there?"

Smacking his shoulder, she shook her head. "Shut up, you liar. You know the Gilmore genes are pretty much gray resistant. Even Dad hasn't started graying yet."

"There's a first time for everything..."

Coming back into the room, Luke sat the phone down and looked immediately at Lorelai, his eyes skipping completely over Chris. "So, I thought we were going to have more time here but I've got to head over to the diner."

"Okay, that's fine." She agreed. "We can have just as much fun there as we can here, right Rory?"

The perkiness that left Rory when she saw Chris reappeared when she heard the word diner. "Mhmmm! Mommy, we can play bagel hockey!"

"Oooo, good idea!" Turning back to Luke, she smiled. "Just say when and we'll be ready."

With everyone seeming to have forgotten the guest in the room Chris cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well, I guess I'm going to get going to where I'm staying, then." Taking steps towards the foyer, he stopped just inside before turning back around. "Hey, Lor, is dinner still being served? I haven't eaten yet."

Sighing immediately, she was well aware of what he was doing. On one hand, she didn't really want Chris at the diner, but what would it look like if she sent him away so quick? Shooting Luke a look of warning before speaking, she answered, "No... But we haven't eaten either. Rory and I were gonna eat at the diner when Luke went to check in. But since we're going soon, you can join us there once you drop your stuff off at the inn."

"Sure. Sounds good. I'll go drop my stuff off and meet you there. It's in the middle of the town, right?"

"Yep. It's pretty hard to miss."

"Alright. I'll see you guys there."

As soon as the door closed behind him, silence filled the house. For all of them, it was pretty much the first time ever it was so quiet that you could hear a pen drop.

Unsurprisingly, Luke was first to make a move. Deciding not to voice his displeasure of the man in front of Rory and knowing they might also need a minute mother to daughter, he just turned and walked up the stairs.

Accepting his decision to leave the room, Lorelai turned to see Rory, who was tense again.

"You okay, hon?"

As soon as Luke turned the corner at the top of the stairs, Rory spoke up quietly. "Dad is here."

Sighing, she wore a sad smile. "He is."

"But why?" She questioned earnestly. "I asked him to come a long time ago, but he never called back." She frowned.

Trying her best not to sway her opinion, but also wanting to be honest, Lorelai answered, "I know this is hard for you to understand. Sometimes your dad is hard to reach, so he doesn't always know you called until a long time later."

"But why doesn't he call me? He knows our phone number."

"I'm not sure sweets."

"He doesn't like me." Rory spoke, not as a question, but a plain statement

Swallowing roughly, Lorelai fought to think of the right to say, as Rory's words broke her heart to hear. "Come here, Rory." Squatting down, she waved her over. "I don't know why your dad does what he does, but I promise you, it has nothing to do with you. You did nothing wrong, and it's not because he doesn't like you. Let's just give him a chance this time, and we'll see what happens."

Seeing that she still wasn't reassured, she took hands in hers. "I know it makes you sad that he doesn't call. But he's the one who is really missing out. He's missing out on the chance to know a very special little girl." Squeezing her hands, Lorelai added with a small smile, "You are a very special little girl and you're my best friend, Rory."

Smiling brightly immediately, Rory squeezed her back. "You're my best friend too, Mommy."

"That's what I like to hear." Pecking her cheek, she looked at her directly and spoke strongly. "I love you Rory, and don't you ever forget it."

"I love you too."

"Okay… Are you good now? 'Cause if you're not, we can talk more."

"I'm good."

"Alright." Standing up, Lorelai clapped her hands as she reached her full height. "So, since you didn't get much reading other than your baseball book done this weekend, did you want to grab one before we go to the diner."

"Mhmmm! I'll go grab it."

"Alright, I'll be upstairs getting Luke, and I'll meet you back in here. Capisce?"

Nodding, Rory took off in the direction of her room. "Capisce."

Upstairs, Luke was still brooding over Chris's appearance. As Lorelai opened their bedroom door, he was ready to speak, but the frustration drained out of him when she lost her "strong mother" facade and immediately came over to him and hung her head on his shoulder. "She thinks it is her fault."

His hands immediately came up to stroke up and down her back. "Thinks what is her fault?"

"That Chris doesn't come around. That he doesn't call. All of it." As she spoke, the frustration seeped out of her voice. "I mean, Gosh, Luke, Rory just stood down there and remembered that her father never really returned her call or called her on his own, questioned if it was her fault, and said that it was because Chris didn't like her. I feel so damn guilty, and it's not even my fault, but, obviously Chris doesn't feel any guilt about it or he wouldn't be able to live with himself under the weight of it all."

His hands freezing, he leaned back to look at her face. "She thinks that it's her fault?"

"She did. Until I told her it wasn't, but it's not up to me if she believes what I say or not."

He didn't even try to hide his anger. "I hate that guy. If I could beat the living hell out of him I would."

Sighing, she looked at him sadly. "I hate that he's here. We had such a good weekend, and now he is ruining it."

"I won't let him."

"That's my super-protective man." She pecked his cheek, running a hand down his arm and pulling it to her front to lace her fingers through his. "As long as he's honest about seeing Rory, then I think we'll be okay. If it's like the past, he'll be here tonight and be gone by Tuesday. I hate it for Rory, but I think she is starting to get used to it by now."

"She shouldn't have to get used to it."

"No, she shouldn't, but she is. And the sooner that it doesn't weigh on her and make her feel guilty that Chris doesn't come around or comes around and leaves quickly, the better."

"You're right... Whatever makes it easier for her."

"Speaking of easy, this dinner definitely isn't gonna be that." She rolled her eyes. "You saw how awkward it was for her... now imagine how awkward it's gonna be for all of us in public."

"Do you think I can burn his order? Just to make the night a little more fun."

Laughing at him, she smiled but shook her head. "As funny as that would be, we have to play nice. I don't need to give him any more ammo to disappear. That's why I've been so nice to him so far. Right now, he can't blame me if he's not around, but if we're completely awful to him, then he will say that we stop him from coming."

"I know."

"So, at least try to he civil." At his frown, she continued. "Notice I said civil, not nice. I don't expect you to treat him like he's the best thing in the world, but at least try to make the daggers your shooting at him with your eyes a little less obvious."

Not even putting up a fight, he gave a begrudging, "Fine."

"Good boy" Lorelai smiled, putting a lingering kiss his lips. Tugging on his arm, she wrapped it securely around her waist. "Now come on. Let's go get this over with, and if we play nice, maybe we can reward ourselves for our good behavior later."

After making a quick stop by the hardware store for the part, the trio entered the diner. With Luke quickly confirming their orders while they walked into the room, he disappeared into the kitchen leaving them to find a table. Picking one by the front windows, Rory walked up to the tables edge and froze.

"Everything okay, sweets?"

"Where do I sit?" She questioned, looking at Lorelai curiously

"Where do you want to sit?" She questioned back, wanting her to make the decision herself. Watching her eyes dart back and forth between the two sides of the table, she placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I won't be upset if you don't sit by me, hon. But it's also okay if you don't want to sit by your dad...Whatever makes you comfortable."

Setting her book down on the side where Lorelai had sat her purse, Rory looked at her mother and spoke confidently. "I want to sit by you."

"Then that's where you'll sit."

Not long after settling in, the bells rang announcing Chris's arrival. Sitting down across from them, he immediately picked up a menu

"So, what's good here."

"Well, I'm a fan of everything, but I'm probably a little biased." Lorelai answered, automatically. "Although the salads aren't really my thing."

"I never would have guessed." Chris smirked, perusing the menu. "How's the Reuben?"

"Amazing, but since I already ordered for us, you don't have to worry about it..."

"You ordered for me?"

"Yep. You can't come to Luke's without trying the burger, so I figured you needed to start with that…Speaking of our order." Looking over at the kitchen, she heard some unfamiliar clanking that definitely didn't sound like cooking. "I'll be back."

Walking up to the counter, she called a loud, "Hey, Luke?"

She heard the sound of him slamming something before he came out. "Yeah?" He questioned, irritation seeping out of his voice.

"From your tone, I'm assuming you haven't started our dinner yet." She grinned.

"No. I wanted to, but I was trying to fix the oven first! But for some reason, I can't get the damn thermostat to work."

Her smile quickly turning into a mischievous smirk, she teased him. "The damn thermostat in the damn oven or just the thermostat in the oven?"

"Are you being cute?"

"Sorry, go on." She answered quickly.

"So, it looks like I got the right thermostat, but now I can't figure out how to replace the damn thing."

"So, it is a damn thermostat."

"I don't have time for this." Dropping the rag he wiped his hands with back on the counter, he walked back into kitchen.

"Come on you can do this!" She reassured him as he roared at the machine. "Step at a time here. You pulled the knob off each gas tap on the range, right?"

"Uh, yeah. So?" He yelled back, his voice muffled.

"Then you removed the four screws securing the face panel, then you removed the panel.

"Yeah, I did that."

"Hmm. Then you disconnected the oven and gas supply pipe from the outlet of the thermostat?"

"This is where I got stuck."

Nodding, Lorelai thought on it for a second before prodding. "Did you release the oven sensor retaining clips from the oven lining?"

"No. No, I didn't." The kitchen went quiet for he called loudly, "Okay! Got it!"

"Now just pull the sensor out, you should be rolling now."

Coming out from the kitchen, he threw his arms out in amazement. "So how, how?"

"How what?"

"How do you know this?"

Shrugging, she smiled as she explained. "Well, when we were first dating I couldn't get to sleep at night here because you went to sleep so outrageously early, so I read your oven manual. I probably read the thing 10 times. I have it memorized by now."

"You're kidding."

"Well, it was either that or the broiler manual, and the oven won, 'cause it's shiny and pretty."

Shaking his head, Luke stepped towards her with a grin. "You never cease to amaze me."

"And I never will." Leaning forward, she put her chin onto her palm. "So, does that mean you can cook now?"

"As soon as I reattach everything else, yes."

Batting her eyes flirtatiously, she continued. "So, you're gonna bring me and Rory milkshakes with our meal too because we had to wait so long?"

The grin disappearing from his face, Luke rolled his eyes. "You've barely been waiting 10 minutes."

"True, but it's ten minutes longer than usual. Face it, babe, you owe us."

"Fine." He pointed. "But you're both getting vanilla. Heaven knows you both had plenty of sugar this weekend, and I'm not giving you any M&M's or crap like that to add to it."

Holding out her hand, she forced him to shake "Deal."

After planting a quick kiss to his lips, she left the counter for the table. As she stepped up, she found Chris and Rory both staring out the window. "Wow, I can hardly hear anything because of all the silence over here... have both of you gone mute?"

Turning back to her, Chris shrugged. "I may have insulted her by saying that there are groups better than the Bangles."

Sitting back down in her seat quickly, she gasped dramatically and placed a hand over her heart. "Christopher Hayden, did I not teach you anything in all the years I've known you?"

Shrugging, he answered, "What can I say? I guess my taste in music has gotten better, and your taste is still stuck in high school."

"Excuse me, but Rory and I have exquisite taste in music. Isn't that right, sweets?"

"Mhmm." Rory agreed with a huge nod. "Our music is better than yours, dad."

"That's the truth." Lorelai smiled, holding up her hand to her with a bright smile. "High five, hon."

After their hands collided, Christopher shook his head. "Fine, I'll let you have music, but please tell me you don't watch the same movies. I don't know how you handle watching Casa Blanca more than once a year."

Both of them gasped, and Rory frowned. "Casa Blanca is a good movie!" She protested.

"Man, Lor, you really have brain washed this kid." He shook his head. "How does she feel about Billy Jack."

Smiling, Lorelai leaned back in her seat. "Even she knows you can't see a Billy Jack movie too many times."

"Come on." Chris groaned, rolling his eyes. "You've got to expose her to more of the good stuff!"

"We watch the good stuff. Go look in our cabinets in our den. They're filled with the good stuff... It sounds to me that you've just lost your sense since you stopped hanging out with me."

"Well, maybe we'll have to change that." He answered confidently.

Narrowing her eyes at him, she didn't have time to question his meaning before Luke appeared at the table with drinks for them.

"The burgers are cooking. You didn't say whether you wanted fries or onion rings."

Arching her brow, Lorelai questioned him. "You have to ask."

"You're not getting both."

"Come on, Luke." She smiled. "You know you want to."

Immediately turning on her doe eyes, Rory pled. "Please Daddy?"

The cringe Luke saw from Chris almost made his normal grumpy demeanor crack, but he kept face. "Please, what, Rory?"

"Pretty please, Daddy with vegetables on top!"

Rolling her eyes, Lorelai put her face in her hands. "I still can't believe you've convinced her to say that."

"You have your influence, I have mine." Luke countered her with a smirk.

Not wanting to hear Rory call him "Daddy" again or hear and his influence, Chris interrupted abruptly. "I'll take whatever they have."

Raising his eyebrows at Lorelai, Luke rolled his eyes as he lowered them and walked away.

Trying to hold in a laugh, Lorelai looked down at the floor to gather herself. No doubt was she going to hear about what Luke wanted to say in response once Chris left for the night.

Not catching her almost laugh, Chris started again. "So, Lor, we covered music and movies. Do we need to go over your TV tastes too?"

The following day, everyone had recovered from Chris's surprise visit. With Chris unable to spend the day with her "because of meetings," Lorelai dropped Rory off at school before heading in to the inn the next morning. Like any other day, she worked a fast-paced morning, but by early afternoon, things calmed down, leaving her to her own devices. Feeling her growling stomach, she knew her lunch break was coming soon, and she knew just where she wanted to go.

"Luke's" The man himself barked into the phone.

"How's the damn oven doing?"

Not batting an eye at her comment, Luke stepped into the kitchen for more privacy. "The damn oven is just fine. Right now I'm trying to fix the damn toaster. It's like this whole place fell apart while I was gone."

"So you're having a pretty rough day, huh?" She answered sympathetically.

"You could say that."

"Well what do you say to your favorite company in within the next hour? Would that make your day better?"

"I guess, but I thought Rory was at school today." He teased.

Hearing her scoff, Luke knew a pout had immediately formed on her face.

"Rude! And to think, I was going to help you stock the storage room today."

"Uh huh. And how were you going to do that?"

Twirling hair around her finger, she leaned forward onto the desk. "Well, I was going to announce to the rest of the diner that you were gonna be restocking, but I was gonna distract you from doing just that, but now, I don't think you deserve my distraction."

"You know, I've been having some issues with the water temperature and the water heater is upstairs in the apartment. You could always distract me up there."

Feigning innocence, she spoke in a deep drawl. "Why Mister Danes, are you implying what I think you are?"

"You can come in for lunch and find out."

"I think I just might."

"So, an hour?"

"Yep, I'll see you in about an hour. Bye babe."

Satisfied with her plans, a bright smile spanned across Lorelai's face as she went back to work. Organizing the mail that had just been delivered, she hummed quietly to herself in anticipation for the next hour to end quickly.

Her happy moment by herself, though, was soon interrupted by someone clearing their throat. Turning around immediately, she frowned at the smirking man standing across from her. "Didn't we have an agreement of no bothering…" Gesturing between them, she continued, "I think we did, and I believe this is considered bothering me."

"So I'm not even allowed to talk to you at all… Wow, harsh." Tapping the stack of mail still on the front part of the desk, Chris nudged it towards her. "No wonder they pay you the big bucks here. I don't know how you deal with such a difficult task like letter sorting,"

"I know. Organizing them A-Z is such a chore." Picking up the envelopes, she flipped through them as she questioned him. "So, aren't you supposed to be in Hartford by now? I thought you weren't going to be around for the afternoon."

"Dad cancelled the early meetings, so I'll go later tonight to work with him." Taking a step forward, he leaned an arm on the desk and pressed. "So, since I'm free, would you happen to be free? Lunch is calling my name, and I'm pretty sure it wants you to come with me."

"Awe, well I hate to disappoint, but I already have lunch plans" She smiled, slipping the remaining letters into their corresponding piles and boxes. "But if you get back in early enough, I'm sure Rory would enjoy having you over for dinner."

"Okay… Sure. I'll let you know." Chris answered, though, from what she heard, the honesty in his comment was definitely lacking.

"Well, I've got to get back to work. Now I have to do the devastatingly hard task of sorting reservation receipts."

After watching Chris retreat up the stairs, Lorelai looked at the stack of receipts in front of her. Not wanting to wait for him to come back down and try to guilt her into joining him again, she felt the sudden desire to take her lunch break a little early. Getting approval from Mia, she found herself bounding contently to the jeep to go see her man at the diner.

As the bells above the door announced her entrance, she was immediately met with Luke looking at her curiously from Gossip Central's table. "That was a quick hour."

"That's because it was 10 minutes." Walking up to him, she smiled as her arm came to rest around his waist. Placing a short peck on his lips, she turned to the two ladies in front of her. "Hello, ladies. Any breaking news I haven't heard today?"

Taking a sip from the cup Luke had just sat down in front of her, Patty shook her head. "Not that you don't already know, dear, but rumor has it that you had a visitor when you two arrived back home last night."

"Rumor has it or Babette saw it." Lorelai smirked. At the women's sly smiles, she nodded. "That's what I thought… Well, to keep the rumor mill in check, I can tell you that Christopher is in town, but I don't know for how long."

"And Rory is taking everything alright?" Babette asked. At Lorelai's nod, she continued. "That's one hell of a kid you've got there. So mature and so smart for her age."

"Don't I know it." Squeezing Luke closer to her, Lorelai had to hide a smile at his clear discomfort of their contact in front of the women. "So, ladies, I hope you don't mind, but I'm gonna steal Luke from you for a bit."

"I hope it's longer than a bit. Heaven knows he'll want more time than that," Patty laughed, nudging Babette in the side.

At Luke's groan, all three ladies laughed. Shaking her head at them, Lorelai pointed teasingly, "Always going into the gutter, Patty. I'm just here to keep him company while he fixes the water heater, nothing more."

"Uh huh, and I'm the Queen of England."

Extending out her hand, she grabbed Patty's to shake it and smiled. "It's nice to meet you Queen Elizabeth. Now if you'll excuse us, we have important matters to attend to." Taking Luke's hand, she pulled him towards the stairs.

Around thirty minutes later, Patty and Babette still sat at their table, slowly but surely enjoying their food. As they watched the happenings outside the window, they were surprised to see a young figure walk by and make his way into the diner.

Standing in the middle of the room, they watched as his eyes roamed, clearly looking for someone, and they knew without a doubt that that someone was Lorelai.

Playing innocent, Patty waved him over. "You're obviously not from around here, dear. Are you looking for someone?" She questioned coquettishly, eyeing him up and down.

"I was supposed to be meeting someone here, Lorelai," Chris admitted, obviously not knowing who he was dealing with. "I cancelled a meeting earlier and she said that she was coming here for lunch, so I thought I'd surprise her here."

"Well, she was here earlier," Babette informed him. "She and Luke went upstairs about half an hour ago and they haven't come down since. I heard they were doing somethin' with water heater, but it's been a while." Seeing the realization of what was really happening upstairs appear in his eyes, she smirked. "I'm sure they'll be down soon, though. She usually sits at the counter for lunch if you want to wait for her there."

As soon as she finished her sentence, the curtain in front of the stairs flipped open, and Lorelai walked out with a wide smile. Tugging at a shirt that looked conveniently different than the one she had on early, she winked at the two older ladies when they caught her eye.

Finally noticing Chris's presence in front of the table, her smile faded a little as she stepped over towards him. "Oh, hey Chris… I thought you were getting lunch and then heading to Hartford for the night."

"I was… But this is the only restaurant I know of in town, so I didn't know where else to go," He explained as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

Knowing that he could have eaten at the inn, and knowing that he knew it too, Lorelai nodded unconvinced. Well aware of what he was about to ask, she went ahead and bit the bullet. "Uh huh… well, I guess since you're here you can join me."

"That would be great, Lor, thanks." He smiled, stepping with her towards the counter.

Taking their seats, he grabbed the menu and gave it a once over. "So, whats good here for lunch?"

"We were just here last night, and I gave you the rundown. Surely your memory doesn't suck that bad."

"What's good for lunch isn't always good for dinner." He answered knowingly. "The cooks are different, so I didn't know if the one today is better than the one last night."

Ignoring his obvious underhanded jab at Luke's cooking last night, Lorelai shook her head. "Nope, it all tastes the same no matter when you get it. It's not like our parents houses where they change cooks every day."

"Or every meal." He laughed. Setting the menu down, he turned back to her and cocked his head. "Hey, do you remember that year at the vineyard when your mother fired the breakfast, lunch, and dinner chefs right after each meal claiming that she needed variety."

Her eyes widening at the memory, she laughed as her jaw dropped. "Oh, my gosh, yes! The vineyard disaster of 1980! Mom was in fine form that year." Pointing at him, she smirked. "You know, if I remember right, that was also the year you pushed me into the pool fully clothed. I'm sure your parents loved footing that dry cleaning bill."

Rolling his eyes, he shook his head. "Oh, please, you and I both know that you slipped in and blamed it on me!"

"I did not!"

"Did too!" He laughed along with her

Appearing out from behind the curtain, Luke walked in the dining room to see Lorelai's hand on Chris shoulder and both of them laughing. The smile left over from the events earlier immediately faded.

Grumbling under his breath, he walked over and interrupted. "Did you order with Caesar, or do I need to make it?" He asked plainly

Ending her laughing, she quickly caught her breath and took hand off Chris's shoulder. "Um, no, I didn't talk to Caesar. You know what I want though."

"It's Monday so chicken tenders and fries?"

"Yep. Thanks, babe."

To no one's surprise, Luke walked away without even regarding Chris or taking his order.

"Well, I guess I'm not eating lunch today." He deadpanned, looking at Lorelai knowingly.

Rolling her eyes, she waved him off. "He probably thought you already ordered."

"I didn't, and he didn't even ask."

"He normally doesn't have to. Caesar knows to take orders while Luke's not here. If you had come in while he was down here, he would have," she defended him, her attitude quickly turning from happy to defensive.

"Well, he asked you."

"Yes, but I'm special." She grinned, watching as Luke slid a coffee cup over to her. "See." Jilting her chin at the cup, she picked it up and hummed as she took a long sip, "I didn't even have to ask for coffee. I'm special."

"Yeah, in one way or another," He answered, making her jaw drop.

"How rude!"

Luke's blood boiled as he watched Lorelai and Chris chat out of the corner of his eye. From what he heard, the guy was supposed to be in Hartford today. At least that's what he had said last night when he claimed he couldn't spend the afternoon with Rory, yet there he was sitting at the counter instead.

After overhearing their conversation about him not ordering, he knew he was going to have to take Chris's order at some point, but catering to him for the second time in 24 hours was the last thing he wanted to do. Making his mind up quickly, he stepped into the kitchen to make Lorelai's lunch, sending Caesar out to deal with the order.

Completing Lorelai's order, he took hers out to her and proceeded to do the rounds of the room. Stopping by the older ladies' table once again, he pulled out his order pad and wrote out their tickets. "Either of you need anything else?"

Eyeing the couple sitting across the room, Patty jilted her chin at them. "I'd like to know how you're doing with that."

"I'm fine." He answered quickly, not willing to discuss his personal business.

"I'm glad you are," Babette added. "Because I know I'd be pissed if Morey's ex showed up and then cancelled her work for the day to follow him around town."

Mid-pen stroke, Luke looked back up. "He cancelled his meeting?"

Shrugging, she took a nonchalant drink of her coffee. "I'm just tellin' ya what he said… Patty heard it too."

At Patty's not of agreement, his blood began to boil. "Of course, he did." He grumbled, finishing up their bills. Tearing the paper off harshly, he sat it on the table. "Coffee's on the house. Stay as long as you want."

As he headed back over to the register, he took a few payments before he looked up to see Lorelai coming towards him as Chris walked the other direction towards the restroom.

Smiling as she approached, she dropped her purse on the counter and slid onto the stool in front of him. Immediately noting his scowl, she tilted her head to the side. "Everything okay?"

"I'm fine." He lied.

"Well, I thought I'd let you know that the food you made me was great, Luke. Some of your best work..." Reaching out, she took his hand from the counter and grinned mischievously. "Although, what you did earlier, that was your best work."

Rolling his eyes, Luke lowered his voice. "We're in the diner." He scolded her.

Shrugging, she looked quickly around them. "I know, but no one's listening to us. But if they are, they are about to find out what a talented maker-outer you are."

"Lorelai..." He groaned.

Squeezing his hand, she reassured him with a smile. "Relax, no one started choking or laughing, so I don't think anyone is listening."

"Yeah, well, let's not chance it..." Turning around, he grabbed the fresh pot of coffee and turned back to her. "Do you need a cup to go?"

"Hmmm, say that slower and with your pants off." At his glare, she nodded. "Yes, I would. I need to restore my energy to make it through the rest of the work day." She winked.

Knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere with her, he made it for her quickly and handed it to her.

Lifting it, she took a sip and hummed happily. "Mmmm, thanks, doll." Leaning forward, he met her halfway for a kiss. "I'll see you later."

Returning to work, Luke grabbed a rag and began to wipe down the counter. Hearing footsteps coming his way, he looked up from the spot he had begun scrubbing to find Chris in front of him.

"That was a good meal. Give my complements to the cook."

Giving him a simple grunt of acknowledgement, he took his ticket from his hand.

Leaning forward onto the counter, Chris jilted his chin cockily. "You know, water heater problems can be tricky to work with. I guess that's what happened since you were upstairs a while."

Luke's head that was looking down at the keys on the register immediately flicked up, his eyes staring a hole through Chris. "Excuse me?"

Shrugging, he wore a cocky grin. "I'm just saying. From what I heard, you two were up there for a while. Doing anything else to with your time other than fixing what makes the business run is bad business practice."

"My business is doing just fine. Now would you care to pay for your meal, or are you going to stand there smirking like an idiot for the rest of the afternoon."

"Oh, I'll pay. I have plenty of funds to do so." He bragged, throwing out a $100 bill to pay his bill.

Punching in the bill, Luke grabbed the change and slid it to him unceremoniously. "Congratulations, you want a prize?"

"Nope, I've already got my eye on one. And it looks really nice." He answered suggestively

At this point, it was clear he wasn't even trying to be subtle. Referring to Lorelai as something to be won made Luke want to pummel the man into the ground. "Lorelai's not some cheap award to be won, she's more than that. So I suggest you change your way of referring to her before I throw your ass out on the street." He spat.

"Hey, man," Chris raised his hand in innocence. "You can do whatever you want, but that won't change the outcome of all this. Lorelai's meant for men who can perform grand gestures and who are good with words. All you've got is diner money and a few grunts. She may be wearing your ring now, but it won't be long before she wakes up and turns back to who she should rightly be with."

"You know, if you know what's good for you, you would get the hell out of here." He retorted, slamming the cash register drawer shut and gaining the attention of the rest of the diner that wasn't already eavesdropping.

"You obviously know I'm right if you're getting so angry about it." Wearing a cocky smirk, he dropped a few coins of change as a tip onto the counter. "Just think about it. You might want to save yourself some time and just move on. She and I are meant to be together, and, sometime soon, we will be."

"That would require you to stay around more than a few days, but everyone knows once you run out of money, you'll go running to your dad and disappear again." Shoving the coins back at him, Luke continued strongly. "By the way, stalking someone else's fiancée around town isn't a good idea. You might want to remember that."

At Chris's narrowed eyes, Luke gestured his head towards Patty and Babette. "For the record, word spreads fast around here, and word says you cancelled your meeting and showed up without Lorelai even knowing you were coming... Unless Rory's around, I don't think you'll set foot in this diner again."

Surrendering the last word, an action that came as a surprise to Luke, Chris turned and walked out the diner door and back towards the inn. Trying to rein in his anger, he started scrubbing at the non-existent stain on the counter, but it wasn't doing it for him.

Grabbing the coffee off the warmer forcefully, he began moving efficiently around the diner, trying to work it off.

"So, that's the other man," Babette spoke up while nudging Patty with her elbow as he made it to their table and refilled their cups.

"He's not the other man." Luke informed them bitterly, grabbing their empty plates.

"But he thinks he is." Patty countered him knowingly. "That boy wants Lorelai bad."

"But she doesn't want him."

"Oh, I'm not saying she does..." She answered, shaking her head. "But you know that Lorelai charm. She's a flirt and he's under her spell."

"You think she's flirting?"

Realizing what she said and hearing the well-hidden worry in his voice, Patty waved him off. "Oh, Luke. She's obviously not flirting with him intentionally. She wouldn't do that to you."

"Yeah," Babette backed her up. "But like Patty said, you know that charm Lorelai has. Sometimes it just pops out and she can't help it."

"Sure." Having collected everything, he eyed their table. "Can I get you guys anything else?"

"I think we're fine, dear, but we'll let you know if we think of somehin'."

Walking away, he took all of the dirty dishes back to the sink. Sending Caesar back out into the dining room, he mindlessly began working on the dishes. But while his hands moved, his mind was still stuck on the flirting comment. Knowing Lorelai, she was probably being her normal, friendly self, but the sight of her hands-on Chris flashed back through his mind as he scrubbed harshly at a plate. There was no doubt in his mind that Chris was there for Lorelai, but she was going to give him a chance for Rory. She's wouldn't give the time of day for herself… "Right?" He mumbled aloud.

After being able to think on the Chris situation for the remainder of the afternoon, to say Luke was in a bad mood was an understatement.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Chris's words and Gossip Central's indication of flirting had him worked up. Really worked up. Shutting the door forcefully behind him as he came in the house that night, he headed straight to the kitchen and started working on dinner for the night.

Though he wasn't paying attention enough to notice it, it wasn't long before the front door slam to announce Lorelai's arrival.

"Hey, babe." Walking into the kitchen, Lorelai tossed her bag down on the table before going over to him. Gripping his side, she leaned up for a kiss. To her surprise, he didn't turn his head for the kiss like normally did, forcing her lips to fall on his cheek.

Pulling back, she placed a concerned hand on his arm. "Are you okay?"

"Everything's fine," He said unconvincingly. "Just a crappy afternoon."

Her brows furrowed as she rubbed a hand down his back. "I thought we had a nice afternoon. What happened?"

"I had annoying customers after you left."

"That's nothing new. Was it Kirk?"

"No. It was some tourist, but I don't think the guy will be back again."

"Well, I guess that's good, then." Squeezing his side as she stepped away, Lorelai walked over to the fridge to get soda before sitting down. "How much longer do you think you have? I want to try to pick Rory up from the Kim's before dinner so she doesn't have to eat whatever weirdness Mrs. Kim has come up with this week."

"I don't know, Probably 30 minutes."

"Sounds good... And it's only the three of us tonight. Chris isn't coming tonight. He is spending the afternoon with Rory tomorrow."

Hiding his eyeroll by not turning towards her, Luke kept stirring at the pot on the stove. "As long as it's only Rory." He mumbled under his breath.

Mid-sip, Lorelai froze and sat her drink down on the table. "What?"

"Nothing." He answered plainly.

Arching a brow, she watched as he stood still. "If it was nothing, you would've said it louder."

Sighing, he stopped stirring and looked at her. "I said, as long as it's only Rory."

"Of course it's only Rory. Who else would be there?" As Luke ignored her question and started working again, Lorelai narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you implying that I would hang out with him."

"Would you?" He countered back.

"If Rory was there, probably. If not, no..."

"Then what was that show at lunch?"

Frustrated that he was getting worked up, she raised her voice to match his. "What show?"

"You with your hand on him." Sitting the spoon down, he turned to face her. "You two seemed pretty buddy-buddy this afternoon at the diner!"

"I was being friendly!" She exclaimed.

"Friendly enough to flirt with him and have your hands on him!" He yelled back.

"I'm sorry, when did this turn into a fight? Did I miss something," She questioned, throwing her hands out to the side. "For the record, my chat with Chris actually sarcastic teasing. I wasn't flirting! That's how we've always talked!"

"Well, it sounded conveniently similar to how you flirt with me!"

Gaping, she stood up from her chair and stepped towards him. "Are you serious right now? Where did all of this come from?"

"It doesn't matter!"

Unable to believe what she was hearing, she shook her head and questioned, "Are you really telling me that you think I was flirting with Chris?"

"Were you?"

"Of course not, because I actually have respect for our relationship! But even if I didn't, Chris would be the last person I would pursue! Yeah, he's Rory's father, but unless he has a life altering change to become everything he's not, I have no interest!"

"So you admit it then!" Pointing at her, he accused, "You would be with him if he was a better father!"

"I didn't say that! You're putting words in my mouth! I could never want Chris again because I have you!"

"But he's from your world! I'm not! You're meant for men who could perform grand gestures and who are good with words, and I am neither of those!" He yelled, reiterating Chris's words from earlier verbatim.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing right now! I don't need grand gestures, expensive gifts, or some other shitty thing society tells me I need! I don't need anything or anyone! I don't even need you! I've lived without you before and I could do it again, but I choose you, Luke! Despite the fact that I am self-sufficient, I choose you!" Walking over to him, she closed the distance between them completely and raised up to be eye level with him. "You see this ring right here," She spoke heatedly, pointing to her left hand. "This is the ring that you gave me. This means that I'm yours. Yours, Luke, not Chris's! I said yes to you, and not him, and until you get that through your thick head, there's nothing else I can say!"

As her yell died out, her heaving breaths filled room. Taking in Luke's face, she noticed his tightly set jaw, which enraged her even more.

"And you have nothing to say? Even after all that, you can't think of anything?" Lowering back down onto her flat feet, Lorelai just stared at him as he stared up at the ceiling. "You know what," She spoke lowly, anger still dripping from her voice, "Be silent. I don't give a damn, but let me tell you, you better figure out whether or not you're going to trust me soon, or I'll make the decision easy on you." Grabbing her purse from the table, she looked at him intensely. "I'm going to get Rory, and I'm walking. So you'll have plenty of time to think of something to say by the time I get back, because we are not done with this."

Dinner was tense to say the least. Not wanting to argue in front of Rory, Luke and Lorelai played nice for the rest of the night.

Insisting that he read to her before bed as per usual, Luke ended up with Rory downstairs, leaving Lorelai to her own devices upstairs.

Like Luke earlier in the day, as Lorelai sat on the bed all by herself, her thoughts quickly fell back to their fight, and she found herself even more worked up than before. As soon as Luke stepped into the room, he found her sitting at the foot of the bed with an angry look.

She didn't even give him time to close the door all the way before she began. "Okay, do you want to pick up where we left off, or are you gonna accuse me of sleeping with Chris too because I hugged him last night."

Though he had a feeling she would be starting right where they left off, Luke wasn't prepared for the anger that she clearly had. "Lorelai." He sighed.

"No, wait! I better make it clear that I have slept with him before! It was about 6 years ago, and I have proof of it downstairs!"

"Lorelai..." He tried harder.

"Don't you Lorelai me! You started this and we're gonna finish it!" She countered, pointing at him. "I understand you're mad at Chris, but what I don't understand is why you are mad at me and accusing me? It's not my fault he's here, and there's nothing I can do. He's Rory's father"

Not that it was hard, but her yelling got him worked back up. Raising his voice to hers, Luke retorted. "And I get that! But he's barely even acknowledged Rory's existence. He's spent, what, maybe 10 minutes with her at most since he got here?"

"And that's my fault, how?" She questioned.

"It's not! But that's not the point! You know who he's conveniently had the time to spend with though? You! When he came to see Rory last night, he spent more time talking to you than he did her, he's at the inn, and he magically appeared at the diner for lunch when he was supposed to be in Hartford working!"

Throwing her arms out to the side, Lorelai answered, "I know! I'm not blind! But what am I supposed to do about it! I already told you last night; I cant just send him away, because then he can come back and say that he tried and I wouldn't let him! I'm doing what I can here!"

"I know you are!" Pointing at her fiercely, Luke's jealousy reared its ugly head. "But he wants you, Lorelai, I know he does!"

"But I don't want him!"

Sighing heavily, he leaned back against the closed door. "Are you sure about that?"

Inhaling a sharp breath, she stared at him dumbfounded. "What the hell do you mean, am I sure? I don't want him!" At his silence, her voice broke a little as she reiterated, "Luke, I don't want him! If there's one thing you have to believe, that's it!"

Avoiding her eyes, his gaze fell to the floor.

The weight of his response, or the lack thereof, hit her like a truck. Trying to keep the anger that quickly turned to sadness in, she shook her head. "You know what? Fine. If you're gonna be like that, you can enjoy the rest of the night by yourself."

Moving out of the way, he let her leave the room. Turning the corner and going down the stairs, the tears that threatened in the room finally let loose and streamed down her face. The next few days were going to be harder than she thought.

A/N:

Alright guys, here's the situation. This chapter took me FOREVER to write! I can't tell you how many times I wrote and re-wrote this, and to be honest, I'm still not sure if I am super happy with it. I don't even want to look at it anymore because I keep changing things, so here it is. I hope you guys liked it.

Anyways, I'm sure you guys have noticed that I try to upload a new chapter every two weeks, and getting this chapter written took WAAYYYYY longer than that. For that, I am super sorry. On the bright side, though, I already have the next chapter almost completely written, so all it needs is a little tweaking. That being said, I am planning on uploading that one on the 20th of August, so you only have to wait FOUR days for the next one!

Once again, I am sooooo sorry for the long wait, but I will make up for it And, like always, if you have any suggestions or comments, put them in a review. I LOVE to hear your feedback!

XO S