Disclaimer: Gilmore Girls is the creation of Amy Sherman-Palladino.
Author's Note: Google "Maldiscontent" and "Inside the Monkey Habitat" for the floorplan and seating arrangement.
Chapter 27: The Truth about the Oasis
Hartford, Connecticut, 42 North Main, Saturday, May 20, 2017, 1:15 pm EST
"Come on, Ace. Frank's meeting us in the front of the building."
Standing with Colin and Finn in the foyer of Unit 24, Logan met his friends' eyes before turning his glance to Rory. He watched as Rory hurried towards them from the dining area.
"Coming. Can't find my sweater."
"Your stepdad hung it up," offered Colin. He pointed to the hooks outside the pool room.
"Oh. Hm. He is getting more fastidious as he gets older. Mom's right."
The three men watched as Rory grabbed her sweater from the hook and put it on.
"Colin. Finn." Rory looked at the two men, as she lifted her hair up from underneath her sweater. "You guys'll be here when we get back?"
"Where would we go, love?"
"Yeah. Between the case of scotch that was delivered and all this food, there's really no reason for us to leave this apartment."
"Possibly ever."
"Well, not ever. Maybe for a couple of weeks."
Rory smiled. "Okay. See you guys later."
"Later."
"Kiss Lo-," At Rory's evil eye, Finn amended his statement. "Kiss Lucas for us."
Smiling, Rory nodded. Waving to their two friends as she walked, Rory made her way to the elevator. Logan gave Colin and Finn what he hoped was a sufficient non-verbal 'Behave' warning before he turned around and followed Rory to the elevator.
"What now, Buttercup?" Logan cringed at Finn's question to Colin and further shuddered internally as he heard the door to his apartment close. He prayed they would be on good behavior. Over the time he and Rory had left in Hartford - however long Lucas had remaining in the NICU - Logan had been counting on using that time to prove to Rory his place could be their place. He'd spared no expense on the design of the apartment.
If Colin and Finn destroyed the place before he'd even had a chance to make good on trying the strategy, he'd kill them.
Maybe he should get Robert out there. As irritating as Robert could be, he served as a calming force to Colin. A fact which annoyed Finn no end. As he needed sobriety to best needle Robert, Finn tended to drink at a slightly slower pace with Robert around.
"When are Luke and Lorelai coming back?"
"Tonight. Late. They'll go with us tomorrow morning. I think mom might hang out a bit tomorrow but Luke was gonna head back to Stars Hollow. There's a lot of construction stuff going on now and she wants Luke to check in on at the annex."
"Ah. The annex. Where is it?"
"Right in the center of town. By Doose's. And the diner."
As the elevator doors opened, Logan and Rory stepped out to the building's lobby. Walking beside her, Logan placed a gentle guiding hand on her back as they made their way from the elevator bank to the main building entrance. Logan observed Rory as she took in the luxurious decor.
"This place is really nice. Like a modern European hotel."
"Good eye, Ace. The company is European. They have a thing for details." Logan glanced toward the front desk. "Speaking of details..."
John the doorman from earlier stood with another uniformed doorman.
"John. This is Ms. Gilmore."
"From Unit 25. Nice to meet you Ms. Gilmore."
"Nice to meet you."
"This is Peter." John introduced Logan and Rory to the other doorman.
"Hi Peter. Logan Huntzberger. Rory Gilmore. We've got the two penthouse units and rooftop."
"A pleasure to meet you both."
"Ms. Gilmore and I are going out for the afternoon. John, you have my cell. I need you to check in on my guests -"
"What kind of trouble are you expecting them to get into?"
"You'd be surprised, Ace. I probably shouldn't have had a full case of scotch delivered." Logan had been pulling his wallet out of his pocket. "Remind them they can watch television. All the porn they want. No deliveries but food. No live animals. Especially pigs. ID any new arrivals to 24. No ladies lacking last names. Or lacking articles of clothing."
"Yes, sir." John nodded as he accepted the hundred dollar bill.
"Thank you." Peter smiled at the tip. "I have some magazines in my car that might keep them busy."
"Perfect. If they start tossing watermelons over the balcony, feel free to bust out the magazines."
A short while later, Logan and Rory settled into the limo for the drive to the hospital.
Since finding out about the oasis - nearly an hour and a half earlier - Logan's mind had oscillated on whether or not he ought to regard the revelation as a big deal.
Several times he'd reminded himself that he and Rory had only been back in each other's lives a few days. Yes, they now shared a child. Yes, they'd now be tied to each other for the next eighteen years - despite themselves, despite 'Vegas,' despite 'no strings attached.' But their relationship was still far from defined.
As for the Oasis...
It continued to bother him. His concerns about the house obviously wouldn't be going away on their own. He didn't want it marring their visit with Lucas. They would have to talk about it. Sooner. Not later.
Time to man up.
"So, Rory. You feel like telling me about the Oasis?"
Rory glanced at him silently, a tight smile on her lips.
Watching her, Logan attempted to read her. Was she weighing her options? Turning away from him, Rory stared forward, looking blindly at the partition that separated them from Frank. When she finally spoke, her words came out slowly at first but gradually increased in speed.
"The Oasis. It's right around the corner from Mom and Luke's. A two-story Colonial with a finished basement and partial attic. Four bedrooms but lots of space. It has a huge yard and really nice garden out front. The inside's tacky as hell but I figured I'd have work done on any place I bought so why shy away from tiki bars and rattan furniture when everything else is perfect?"
Tiki bars? Rattan furniture?
"Taylor Doose - who you've met - owns it. He's been renting it 'as is' since he bought it from Dwight. It has good bones as they say. I love that it's got a huge yard. There's a big tree for a swing. A few of them, actually. There's just a ton of space for a little boy to run around."
Done speaking, Rory shifted her gaze to Logan. Logan noted she was deliberately keeping her face impassive. Definitely on the defensive.
"I just always liked the house. And you have to understand. I was planning on being here. For a while at least. I didn't hear from you. I thought it was just gonna be Lucas and me."
As Logan watched, he noticed Rory's eyes starting to well up.
"I was counting on a year of Lorelai training to help me get used to it. You know?"
"Used to what, Ace?"
"To being a mom."
"You don't need any training, Ace. You know how to take care of people." Grabbing a handkerchief from his jacket's interior pocket, he offered it to her. "Remember how you took care of me? After Costa Rica?"
"Logan, it's not the same thing," she replied, accepting his proffered handkerchief which she promptly used to swipe at the errant tears that continued to form and fall. "Aside from the first day- when you were unconscious- you could always say what it was that was bothering you. 'I'm bored.' 'My leg itches.' 'Paris is staring at me.'" She laughed. "But Lucas...Lucas is a mystery. And he's gonna be a mystery for a while."
"I don't think he'll nearly be the mystery you think he'll be."
"No? Why do you say that?"
"Here's why: We established he seems to share some of my proclivities, right?"
"I did call him your mini-me the other day, didn't I?"
"Yes, you did." Sighing Logan studied Rory's face. "That being said, I think the kid adores you. He's thrilled just to be in your arms. He's smart, too. Smart enough to know he should trust you. He'll be wrapped around your finger in no time. You have nothing to worry about, Ace."
"I'm not so sure about that." She shook her head at Logan's assertion. "It'll probably be the other way around. I'll be totally wrapped around his finger. God. What if I spoil him? I need my mom and Luke around to make sure I don't spoil him."
"You're not gonna spoil him." At Rory's pointed look, Logan felt a wave of equal parts happiness and irritation; her words were unsaid, but he knew exactly what she was thinking. "I won't spoil him either. We'll figure it out. Chores for his allowance."
"Anyway, being there I'd have built-in babysitters. I was still gonna have to find a nanny so I can write during the day." Rory sniffled. "This whole thing -the idea of doing it alone - it's freaked me out a bit. But knowing I'd be there. With Mom and Luke around. Has made it less scary."
The car came a halt in front of St. Joseph's hospital building. Logan hit the intercom.
"Frank. We're gonna sit a couple of minutes."
"Very good, sir."
Logan sat back. "I get all that. I do." Logan sighed heavily. "But why didn't you tell me?"
"I just -" Rory swallowed. "I was afraid you'd try to talk me out of it. You'd see it as something permanent. Something that wouldn't work with your vision." Rory dabbed her face again with the handkerchief. "Here I am. Crying again. I'm sorry. I am. It was so close -"
"What was?"
"My pro/con list. I wanted to tell you. I know we have to be honest. And you've been just -really on about everything since you got here. Believe me. I know that and I'm grateful. But I wanted to stick with the plan to buy the Oasis and I didn't want you to talk me out of it. And I didn't want to fight. The whole thing had been on track. If the inspector hadn't broken his arm tripping over Petal. If Taylor hadn't decided to go spend a week traveling with his crazy composer friend Nat. If Lucas hadn't made his early play for emancipation. I would've had the closing already. The house would've been mine. It would've all been fait accompli."
Logan sighed, a sardonic smile on his face. Colin and Finn were both right. What were the odds? Unexpectedly, he had a tag-team of Rory whispering savants. Who could've known?
There was a second surprise associated with the revelation: As with the matter of Rory failing to give him the heads up on the baby, Logan found that he understood this too.
Rory was right. If she'd told him right off the bat, he would've taken the perspective that her buying a house on her own was a chess move that put his queen at risk. He would've pushed her to drop the plans. He would've pushed her instead to get a place with him. Or agree to allow him to buy her a place. Even if it was in Stars Hollow. Even if it was the same damn house.
As long as he was the one to buy it.
Rory buying it without him shut him out of the process.
Not that her buying a house in which to raise their son was in any way unreasonable. He knew it was the most sensible thing in the world. Again, he didn't expect them to be homeless without him. He didn't expect Rory and Lucas to crowd into her childhood bedroom.
But, he reminded himself, he'd bought the Hartford apartment without a second thought. And certainly not with a word to Rory until it was a done deal. Now, he was convinced he ought to buy the Gilmores' apartment too. Zack hit the nail on the head. Ironically, Logan noted the man turned out to be 100% smarter than he looked. Why have neighbors if you didn't have to? They could combine the two units and have ample space to meet all their needs. Nursery. Nanny room. Guest bedrooms. Home offices.
How was what he'd done any different from what Rory was looking to do? There were absolutely no guarantees with them and she needed to live somewhere. Lucas needed to live somewhere. He needed somewhere to stay when in Connecticut. And, while visiting them in Stars Hollow, he certainly wasn't looking to stay with Luke and Lorelai. Nor was he looking forward to getting a guest room at the Dragonfly.
His mind came back to the Oasis.
"You keeping the name?"
"What?"
"The Oasis?"
"I've always liked it. But I'm open to suggestions."
It was on his lips to ask "Do I get a key?" but he bit back the question. Too soon. Too much continued to exist between them. Besides their most recent conversations about keys had been based on impossible dreams, and relinquished hopes, and, despite how different things were now, they still held a bittersweet taste that stung.
"You all set? You need any money?"
Rory shook her head dismissively. "No. My grandfather left me money. And, if that wasn't enough -and it is - both my grandmother and my dad are feverishly putting together trust funds for Lucas that I'm to be the trustee on. So I can always embezzle from him if I find myself unable to sustain my suburban mom lifestyle."
"Planning on building a Hummel empire?"
"Don't forget Swarovski." Sniffling, Rory continued to dab at her eyes. "I have to remember to carry crumpled tissues. Moms always carry crumpled tissues."
"I don't remember my mom carrying crumpled tissues."
"Your nanny?"
"Touché." Rory would definitely be a different kind of mom from Shira. Logan found himself oddly envious of his son. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For being my son's mother. The kid's gonna thank me some day. Believe me."
Logan watched as Rory blushed. His words seemed to have left her uncharacteristically speechless. He opted to direct the topic back to something safe.
"So, Ace. Is there a reason the tissues have to be crumpled? We could just buy you a packet of fresh, uncrumpled tissues."
"It's a mom thing," she nodded. "I don't really understand. I've seen Lane in action with the tissues. Sookie. I remember my mom. It's just how it has to be, Huntzberger. We can buy the uncrumpled package of tissues, but then we gotta do something to crumple them up and make them look used even if they're not. Speaking of 'used,' I'm sorry but I'm going to use your handkerchief in a way that will leave you really not wanting it back."
Grinning, Logan shot her a wink. "You sure?"
Rory chuckled at his risqué joke. "I am." Rory then blew her nose -loudly and decisively. And repeatedly. "See? You want it back?"
"No. That can be your mom tissue for the day."
Nodding she laughed. "Uh-huh. I thought so. Okay."
"Hey. Did I mention there's a laundry service at the building? They pick up and deliver."
"But there's machines," intoned Rory. She sounded slightly worried. "Off the foyer. By the coat closet."
"Yes. There's machines. Hey, knock yourself out if you want to do it yourself."
"I do. I had this mom daydream earlier when we were walking around my apartment. Lucas was home from the hospital. I'd just laid him down to sleep. And I was putting laundry in the wash. It was all his dirty baby clothes. So. Filthy with spittle but still with that fresh baby smell. Then I was going to sit in my office and write while I waited for the cycle to finish."
A simple yet enticingly tranquil vision of domesticity. Logan was half afraid to ask but he desperately wanted to know: where was he during Rory's daydream of the not-so-distant future?
"Can I ask you a question about this window into the future?"
"Sure. What? Where were you?"
"Ah. Am I that predictable?"
"Hm. You have a tendency to stay on point. You were in the next door apartment on the phone for work. But I knew you'd be by later."
Logan smiled. Not bad.
"Oh now. What's that smile for?"
"I like your daydream, Ace." Logan shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I could do better. But at least I was there."
Rory smiled wryly. "Oh. You were there all right. So I've totally ruined another handkerchief. I'm not feeding him until three but I'm sure he misses us. So let's go."
"Let's go."
AN: Thank you for reading and special thanks to the reviewers. You guys are like the folks cheering the runners on at a marathon. Not that there's anything athletic about writing. Suggestions for Stars Hollow related hijinks welcomed. Check my profile for a picture of Baby Lucas.