A/N- Glad you guys are still enjoying. Hope you like this chapter and getting in Jess' head a little bit more. Enjoy the quick relative calm before things start exploding again, and definitely keep your eyes out for what's coming tomorrow. As always, read, review, recommend if you're so inclined. I don't own Gilmore Girls or any of its characters or concepts.
Chapter 26
Three days later, just as he was closing up, Jess' phone started to ring. He groaned, turning the key in the lock before answering.
"What?"
"And hello to you too," Luke teased. Jess sighed.
"What do you want? Isn't it past your bedtime?"
"Geesh, can't a guy call his nephew without the third degree?"
"Sorry," Jess sunk into a chair next to one of the shelves, "Rough day?"
"Work?"
"Of course. No one seems to understand the concept of a deadline."
"Can I get that in writing? With your signature?"
"Alright, you can go now," Jess warned, forcing himself to get out of the chair and start walking upstairs, "So what's your real reason for calling?"
"Just…wanted to be sure that you were okay."
"Luke, she went insane on your fiancée, not me. And I thought we were done with this topic."
"You're still angry with her, aren't you?"
"Is that a trick question?" Jess slammed the apartment door shut behind him, "Because even you didn't seem very zen about the whole deal."
"Yeah, but I was confused. Concerned. Like you said, she went after Lorelai. I have to be protective," Luke answered, "What do you have to be angry about?"
"She was out of line."
"You agreed with what a lot of she said."
"Who wouldn't?"
"Jess…"
"Fine," he mumbled, laying back on the bed, sighing deeply, "It's really juvenile."
"Like I haven't had to deal with that from you before," Luke grumbled, "Come on."
"She slept with that pathetic jackass. Him, of all people. And when he was married. And given my special aptitude for dates and times, it hasn't taken a lot to make the educated assumption that he was the first."
"Well…"
"And there's my confirmation," Jess snapped, "God, fuck this. It's not even really a jealous type thing, though I am more than vaguely disgusted that she could do something like that with someone like him. It's more about her. And that I didn't know, and that I still don't."
"You could fix that," Luke offered quietly, "She said she didn't want Lorelai around. She might still talk to you."
"The space thing seemed pretty universal," Jess shook his head, sinking deeper into the mattress, "And plus, it's not my responsibility. I stand by what I said. She's making her own choices, and as stupid as I may think they are, I have no right to impose my opinion or unsolicited assistance. And I'm too angry to even think about it for more than ten minutes without having to fucking destroy a manuscript."
"It's okay for you to be jealous that she slept with…"
"I am, but it's not that. It's that she's gotten so screwed up and I missed it, I don't know shit, and she didn't let me be a part of it. I should have been there, I should have been a part of it."
"Of her screwing up?" Luke asked, confused. Jess sighed.
"Never mind, my skills of articulation are failing me tonight. Thanks for checking in, I'm alright. How's Lorelai?"
"Hasn't heard from Rory, hasn't reached out. I've only had to stop her four times. But she's worried," Luke answered, "And flustered. She ordered purple feathers for a wedding at the inn."
"And?" Jess knew that Lorelai's decorative tastes could be questionable at times, being familiar with the infamous monkey lamp.
"They were supposed to be purple flowers."
"Ah."
"Yeah. Not good."
"Nope."
"And I can't do anything about it!" Luke complained. Jess could hear him pacing. "I just want to help her, but I can't do a goddamned thing. Do you know how much it messed things up last time?"
"Last time what?" Jess asked, confused.
"Last time she and Lorelai weren't speaking. We got engaged but we couldn't set a wedding date until they made up. And the day they did was when I found out about April, and why I didn't tell her, and…"
"Whoa…slow down," Jess sat down, trying to keep up, "Alright, so basically you're implying that the Rory/Lorelai fallout directly screwed over your first engagement with her? That's insane."
"It's Lorelai," Luke said plainly. Jess sighed.
"You have a point. But I'm sure there were other issues there that the situation just exacerbated."
"Come again?"
"Ugh," Jess groaned in frustration, "Look, I get why you're worried. But you and Lorelai are stronger now. Way better off. Plus you haven't mentioned a wedding date in ages so at least Rory can't screw that up."
"Always helpful," Luke retorted, "It's not like we aren't going to do it."
"Then care to explain why you haven't asked her yet?"
"Since when are you so interested in Lorelai and I getting married?"
"Well, since I was seventeen and figured out you were in love with her. But now more so, because I can deal with her for more than twenty minutes at a time."
"How flattering. I'm sure she'd be touched."
"She should be." Jess' phone beeped through.
"Call waiting. Gotta make sure this isn't Matt. Just…do your best with it, okay? And this isn't gonna fuck things up. You guys are fine, better than fine." Jess said quickly.
"Thanks," Luke said, "And if you ever…"
"I will." With that, Jess hung up and connected to the other call.
"Hello?"
"Jess?"
"Rory?"
"Yeah."
"Where are you?"
"New York. Jess…can you…please." Her voice was weak and uncertain. The clear sense of desperation in her tone broke him instantly.
"2 hours. Text me the address."
"Thank you," she choked out. He could tell she'd been crying. He sighed.
"Don't yet. Be there soon." Jess hung up the phone, grabbed his duffel bag and threw in enough clothes for a couple of days, a bag of good coffee, and most importantly three books. He slung the strap over his shoulder and sighed, closing up the apartment and walking out of Truncheon. He would call Matt and Chris from the road.
"Matt?"
"What now, you asshole…" he heard Matt groan, rolling over. Jess sighed. Clearly he'd been asleep.
"Can't handle your liquor anymore?"
"Fuck you. Do you have a reason for bothering me at this ungodly hour?"
"I'm out for the weekend."
"Well that whole prideful not interfering crap didn't last long."
"We can have that argument later," Jess retorted, "Now get your hungover ass back to sleep. I should be back before Monday but I'll keep you posted.
"Whatever floats your boat," Matt quipped, and Jess rolled his eyes and hung up.
He thought about calling Luke. He thought about it every twenty minutes. But eventually he decided to blast the Clash to drown out those thoughts, refusing to violate Rory's privacy when clearly she was not in the mood to have everyone involved in her life.
Jess forced himself not to think about what he was doing or why he was doing it or what could possibly come of it. None of that mattered. She needed him to go. He was going to go. There was never even a question of it. The second she was ready to have him a part of whatever was getting to her so badly, he was going to be in that hellfire with her, even with no obligation or reason to do so. They both knew that was the case.
Sighing at the insanity of the last twelve hours, Jess turned up the music just as the song was about to change. When it did, he looked incredulously at the radio and bit back laughter at many ways that fate seemed to be screwing with him.
"When they kick out your front door
How you gonna come?
With your hands on your head
Or on the trigger of your gun?"
