Hi all! Sorry for the delay again. These one's sort of just pop into my head at the most random times. Like this one did on my drive to work this morning. This takes place during the Spring episode. After Lorelai goes to therapy and Emily decides to stop going. What happens after she starts to talk to Claudia about Luke. Changes certain aspects of the rest of the Revival but it was just something that popped in my head.
I loved the Revival as it was. I really truly did. So just remember that this was just something that popped into my head. Thanks!
"Come in!"
"Sorry, I'm late. These drive-through coffee places? Love the concept. But Heather and I? We're gonna need to rehearse the cup pass a couple more times." Lorelai mumbled, she glanced around then said, "Oh, my mom's late, too?"
Claudia smiled and said, "I haven't heard from her."
"Really?" She reached for her phone and said, "She doesn't usually pick up the phone when she's driving, but"
"Hello?" Emily answered.
Surprised, Lorelai said, "Oh, Mom, are you on your way?"
"No, I'm at home." Emily said in a bored voice.
Lorelai frowned in confusion, "It's Tuesday."
Emily sighed, "I know what day it is."
Still confused Lorelai pushed on and rambled as she did when she was nervous, "Well Claudia and I are here. Just the two of us. The couch cushions are fluffed. The candle's lit."
"I'm quitting." Emily interrupted.
Lorelai scoffed, "What?"
"I'm done. I'm not coming anymore." Emily answered simply.
"Why?" Lorelai asked in frustration.
"We've had six sessions, and you are no different." Emily mumbled.
Lorelai's mouth hung open, "What?"
"And that woman isn't helping." Emily pushed on.
Lorelai's head was spinning as she tried to keep up, "Who, Claudia?"
"She's a dolt. I don't need to pay someone not to agree with me." Emily huffed.
Lorelai sighed, "But-"
Emily ignored her and said, "I'm not coming. Sorry you made the trip. Goodbye."
Lorelai dropped the phone and looked over at Claudia in disbelief, "She quit."
"I'm sorry." Claudia responded, not all that surprised by the news.
"She started this whole damn thing." Lorelai said angrily.
Claudia shrugged, "It happens."
"I just…" Lorelai paused, "With no notice?"
"It's not unusual." Claudia reassured her.
"She said I was no different. Me. This wasn't for me. This was for her." Lorelai huffed and sat down on the couch
"People have expectations when they come here. Very often, the reality is different." Claudia said with a smile.
What sort of transformation did she expect? I come in here Lorelai Gilmore, and two months later, I walk out Queen Latifah?" Lorelai grumbled.
Claudia laughed, "Probably not Queen Latifah."
"Oh, she is amazing. She smoked me out, got me here "I'm no different. " Different? She doesn't even know who I am." Lorelai argued.
Claudia raised an eyebrow, "Are you - ?"
"Am I Staying?" Lorelai asked, "Oh. No, I've got a million things to do."
Claudia nodded, "Oh, okay."
Lorelai frowned, "I mean, I should just go, right?"
Claudia smiled; she could tell Lorelai had things she wanted to say, "Well, the hour's paid for. Anything you want to talk about?"
"Uh, no. No, nothing. Wait, my mother's crazy. Okay, now nothing." She paused and then continued, "I don't know. It's been weird lately."
Claudia settled into her seat and asked, "How so?"
"Uh, this whole thing was supposed to be grief therapy. You know, my mother's grief therapy, because of Dad. Because of Dad dying I get it. It was a stunner. It was a stunner for all of us." Lorelai whispered.
"Yeah, she talked about it." Claudia answered with a slow nod.
Words started to spill from Lorelai's mouth before she could stop them, "It was just so fast. I was at the inn, working on the books a little, using the calculator on my phone and it rang. And it was Mom with the news. He was in the ICU. Heart attack. Big one. And we hung up. And my phone went back to being a calculator. It just seemed so unreal. You can't plan for these things. And he never got out of the ICU. He was conscious at times, but in and out. And he was angry. He was really angry. He couldn't believe it. He's Richard Gilmore. This is not how Richard Gilmore goes down. You know what his last words were?"
"No." She answered sympathetically.
"Get the hell away from me. " Aimed at the nurses, not not us. It was actually pretty funny. And then just like that. I didn't get that moment, you know? That Lifetime movie moment, "I love you, Lorelai. " "I love you too, Dad. " Mom didn't get it either." She paused and whispered, "Fifty years. They were married 50 years." She paused again, "That thing she said last week, about me and Luke. About us being partners, because we're not married." She huffed, "Like we're a comedy team…"
Claudia responded, "Feels like it struck a chord."
Lorelai laughed sadly, "My mother strikes more chords than Esa-Pekka Salonen."
Claudia nodded and continued, "Hmm. Lorelai you should know many people have full, lasting emotional relationships without being married."
Lorelai sat up a little straighter, "I know."
"Do you want to be married?" Claudia asked curiously.
Lorelai frowned, "I've been married." She paused and smiled sadly, "You didn't know that. To Rory's father. It was brief. We have had a long, complicated relationship. And it didn't end badly. It just ended because it shouldn't have happened." Her eyes welled up with tears as she whispered, "It was supposed to be Luke. It was always supposed to be Luke."
"If it was always supposed to be Luke…?" Claudia questioned.
"Then why aren't we married?" Lorelai finished for her.
Claudia nodded, "Why?"
"I just don't do things like my mother." She said defensively, "Dinner the other night…"
"What happened?" Claudia asked.
Lorelai responded simply, "She attacked Luke."
"How?" She asked.
"With a bag of money." Lorelai said.
"I don't get it." Claudia said trying to keep up.
Lorelai sighed and said, "It was money my father put aside for Luke to spend on something Luke doesn't want. That my father can still hover like that." She paused and thought for a moment before saying, "We're happy." Another pause, "He's very happy." She waited a moment and then said simply, "Luke and I are happy."
Lorelai drove home in a bit of a daze. She couldn't believe her Mother had quit therapy.
Well...yes technically she could believe it. And she did believe it. What she didn't believe was that after her Mother had left she had stayed. Lorelai had stayed. She talked about things. She let them come flying out of her mouth. Things about her Mother. Things about her Father, Rory too. And even...even Luke.
Stopping at a red light, she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. Why was it so hard to talk about Luke? He was her partner. He was her guy. Wasn't he? Just because they weren't married after all this time didn't mean anything.
Right?
She sighed and pulled onto her street and up behind Luke's truck.
Everything about their relationship was so familiar. And she loved that. She loved him. She was happy. She really was. She couldn't imagine her life without him. And after everything that had happened when April showed up and then her nightmare with Christopher...she was just damn glad that Luke even looked at her again let alone gave her a second chance.
But why was it that after all this time they were still in the same spot? Yes Luke lived with her. He moved in soon after they got back together. And it hadn't been easy. The first few months were hard. Really hard.
There was yelling. There were tears. There were times when they both ran out screaming saying it wasn't worth it. And yet...they always came back. Maybe a few hours later, sometimes only minutes after but they always did come back. It was like after all their time apart they couldn't stand the idea of letting any more time pass.
And yet time had passed. Years had passed and here they were. Happy and in love yes...but still just together. They weren't married. They never had their own kids. And that was okay...it was. If this was what she had with him for the rest of her life, she would be okay with it. Because he was Luke. He was her Luke. Her everything.
But did he know that?
Sighing, she pulled the key out of the ignition and climbed out of the Jeep. Grabbing her bag, she closed the door behind her and walked up the front steps to go inside. She could hear Luke rummaging around in the kitchen. She threw her keys on the little table beside the door and walked towards the sound. She smiled when she saw Paul Anka sitting at Luke's feet begging for whatever it was that he was cooking.
"It's too hot Paul Anka." Luke said with a sigh, "I can't-" He sighed again when Paul Anka whimpered and Lorelai's smile grew, "I'm not blowing on it like Lorelai does. You're a dog. Not a child." Paul Anka whimpered again and he frowned, "Fine." He lifted the meat out of the pan and said sternly, "If you tell anyone about this we're getting a cat."
"No we aren't." Lorelai said with a smile from her spot by the counter.
Luke jumped and sighed, "Geez Lorelai. Way to give me a heart attack."
She smiled and dropped her bag down, "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."
"S'okay." He said with a shrug, as he turned off the burner, "How did it go today?"
She frowned a little and then walked over to sit at the table. Luke watched her carefully and noticed how defeated she looked. He couldn't imagine that therapy in general was fun, let alone therapy with Emily Gilmore. Despite how he felt about the woman, he knew that Lorelai's relationship with her was even more complicated than he would ever understand. When she didn't respond he began to worry.
Since Richard's death, something in this woman he loved had changed. He knew that was normal. It was to be expected. He more than anyone knew the pain of losing a parent. He imagined the loss of a parent that you had a difficult relationship with was even harder. Wiping his hands on a towel, Luke walked over and sat beside her.
"Hey…" He whispered softly, "What's up?"
She fidgeted for a moment before asking, "Can we go for a drive?"
He sat up a little straighter, "A drive?" She nodded slowly but didn't say anything, "Um...okay. Sure. To where?"
She shrugged a little, "Honestly? Anywhere. I don't care. I just...I need to get out of the house for a bit. I need some air."
Luke looked back at the stove, not that he cared much about the food at this point. Clearly she was struggling with something and he would do whatever it took to help her through it. In the course of their relationship he had often struggled with how he should or could help her in these types of situations. But he hoped he would do anything she asked him to do.
Standing up he put his hand out and said, "Let's go."
She let out a little sigh of relief and let him pull her up onto her feet. She smiled when he stepped all the way into her and pressed a kiss to her lips. He gave her hand a squeeze and double-checked the stove before pulling her back towards the front door. He grabbed his keys and his jacket before leading her out onto the porch. He held the door of the truck open for her as he had done so many times before and she climbed into the passenger side.
Luke walked around to the driver side door and climbed in beside her. He pulled out of the driveway and made his way towards town with her sitting quietly beside him. He figured he'd drive until she told him she was ready to talk or go home. Whatever she needed. He was there.
He glanced at her occasionally and saw that she was resting her arm on the windowsill. She glanced out the glass, he couldn't see her face but saw a slight reflection staring back at him. She wasn't crying which was a good sign. But she did look sad. Needing to feel something, he reached across the seat and took her hand in his.
She turned and gave him a little smile, which prompted him to lift her hand to his lips. He pressed a kiss to her knuckles and she sighed, resting her head against the back of the seat before resting their hands in her lap. She put her other hand over his and traced little patterns along his rough skin as she looked back out the window.
Content with the contact for now, Luke focused on driving to let her have her moment to think.
They drove and drove as the sun began to sink further down. The trees passed by in a blur but still Lorelai didn't say much. Luke often needed her to speak first in order to know what to say. He wasn't good with words. She generally took care of that part of their relationship for them.
Except for during that dark time when he had pushed her away and she had been broken. Something about her demeanor made him think about that time. He shivered slightly and hoped she would say something soon.
Finally, Lorelai spotted a little park and pointed to it, "Pull over."
He was surprised at first when he heard her voice after such a long silence. But he did as she asked and pulled into a dirt parking lot. He waited after he parked the car; she offered him a small smile before climbing out of the truck. Luke followed suit and joined her at the front of the truck. She slipped her hand into his and began to walk along the grass leading towards a small pond to their left.
They walked quietly, content with being together. He wanted answers. He needed them really. But he knew better than to push her. So...he waited.
He waited like had had done for so long.
For so many years he had waited for the right time to make a move. Always worrying that it would blow up in his face. And in some ways it did...but they had found their way back to each other. Somehow or another they figured it out. Despite how hard it was. Despite how painful it had been...they had made it work. And they were here now.
As they approached the edge of the pond, Lorelai faltered slightly. She looked out at the setting sun over the water and whispered, "Are you happy?"
Her statement confused him; he turned his head towards her and asked, "What?"
She frowned, kicked at the dirt at her feet and then turned back to him, "Are you happy?" She asked again in an even softer voice, "With...with your life? With our life?"
Luke took his hand from hers and nervously shoved both of his hands in his pockets, "Of course I am." She nodded slowly and looked back at the water, when she didn't say anything he got nervous and the words burst from his mouth before he had time to think, "Are you unhappy?"
She turned her head again with wide eyes, "Oh! No! No. No Luke. That's not-" She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Man...I really do need therapy after all."
Luke frowned, and shifted his weight from foot to foot, "Lorelai what is going-"
"My Mom quit therapy." She answered quickly, he gave her a strange look, "She didn't show up to our appointment today. It was weird. And I was going to leave...but then I didn't. And I…" She sighed and grimaced slightly, "I just blabbed and blabbed to Claudia about everything." She laughed a little, "About nothing too." She sighed and looked down, "It all just came flying out like it had been trapped in there for so long."
He took a deep breath, "Maybe that's a good thing. Maybe you needed to get it all out."
She nodded slowly, "Yeah...maybe."
He waited for a moment before asking, "Stuff about your Mom?" She nodded, "And Dad?" She nodded again.
"And…" Her voice trailed off before she finished her sentence.
"And?" He asked curiously, "Rory?" She shrugged then gave him a meaningful look. He let out a little puff of air, "Us?"
Her face fell slightly, "Yes…"
Luke swallowed hard and looked out at the little pond, "Okay…"
She was quiet again, unsure of what to say or how to even start a conversation. She didn't want him to take anything personally. She didn't know how to go about this or what she even wanted to say.
When she didn't respond again, Luke began to panic. He kicked at the ground and then turned to her and spat out, "Did you drag me out here to end this?"
She sighed and looked down, "Luke no-"
"Because if you did...that's pretty shitty." He said in a frustrated voice, "Especially since I'd have to drive you back. Because we both know no matter how devastated or upset I was I'd never leave you out here. That's not who I am." He said pointing at his chest.
She smiled softly, "No. It isn't."
"I mean Jesus Lorelai." He rambled again, as if he hadn't heard her initial response, "After every thing we have been through. All the crap we had to endure...you want to do this now?"
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Luke sto-"
"I waited for 8 years." He said in a raw voice, "Eight damn years Lorelai."
She frowned, "I didn't ask you to wa-"
"No. Maybe you didn't. But you weren't ready." He shrugged, "And hell maybe I wasn't either but I still waited."
She sighed again, "Luke-"
"There was Max, and Rachel." He said with hands flailing, "And then I thought maybe there was a chance but you asked me to teach you to fish."
"What?" She asked trying to wrap her mind around what was going on.
"You named the damn fish in the kiddie pool and you told me you were going fishing with some guy." He said with a huff.
"I-" She was trying to remember, she sighed, "Oh. Right. Yeah. But what does that have to do with anything?"
"I asked out Nicole because of that." He said quickly, "I started dating her because I gave up on you."
She stepped back and gasped, "Excuse me?"
He sighed, "I realized that waiting around was stupid because you didn't want me. So I figured I'd try and move on. So I asked her out."
She frowned, "You asked her out because I asked you to teach me how to fish for some guy?"
"Yes." He said quickly, "It seemed like the right thing to do."
She frowned at him, "And did getting married while drunk on a cruise ship seem like the right thing to do too? You gonna blame that one on me as well?"
He huffed, "Lorelai-"
"I didn't force you to marry her. You could have said something if you were that hung up." She yelled back.
He frowned, "That's not-" He shook his head and came up with a quick retort, "Well you started dating the putz with the Mercedes."
She laughed, "Yeah. Because you were married."
Luke's eyes widened, "What?"
She shrugged, "Quid pro quo. You had her and I didn't want to be alone."
Luke huffed, "What is wrong with us?"
She smirked and looked down again, "I have no idea. But clearly a lot."
They were quiet again, trying to get back on the same page. Suddenly fear crept up into Luke's system again, "And then we finally did it."
She looked up at him, "Dirty."
He rolled his eyes, "Lorelai…"
She frowned and looked away, "Sorry…"
"We were together." He said ignoring her comment, "We figured it out and it was so good. Until…"
"Luke-" She said with a little rawness in her voice.
"And I know I screwed up too. I pushed you too it but damn it Lorelai." He said in anger, "I watched you marry Christopher. I had to sit back and watch all that unfold and it was the hardest damn thing I've ever done. It hurt like hell. Trying to fix it afterwards hurt even more." He said with a pained voice, "But I did it." He grabbed her hand and whispered, "We did it."
She sighed and looked directly into his eyes, "Luke-"
"And I know that I'm not the easiest guy to get along with. I'm grumpy and irrational and I don't always understand your movie references and I hate that you drink as much coffee as you do." He said with a huff, "But I will never ever leave you. I won't even think about leaving you! You and me...I never dreamed it could be this good. Even in all those 8 years of waiting I didn't think we'd be like this. But we are. We have this life. We've built this life despite everything that came our way. We did it. Doesn't that mean something to you?"
"Of course it does." She said in a hurt voice, "You know it does."
"Then how can you think about walking away?" He asked angrily, "I mean I know after your Dad died things have changed but Lorelai…" He shook his head and stepped away slightly, "You can't do this. You just can't. I won't let you throw this away."
She watched the way his shoulders lifted up and down with his heavy breathing. She could sense the tension, the fear and hurt built up in him. Somehow it matched her own. Their life was good and she was happy. But there was so many things that they both kept bottled up inside out of fear. Fear of losing each other. Fear of breaking this thing they had created. This thing they had fixed time and time again.
She couldn't let it break this time around.
And she wouldn't.
Stepping forward, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close. He stood still for a moment, unwilling to give into her embrace. But finally she felt his body relax and his arms wound around her waist. She felt him bury his nose in her thick hair and breath in, something he so often did when he was upset. She pulled the hair sat the base of his neck and whispered, "It was always you Luke."
He untangled his face from her hair and asked, "What?"
She pulled back enough to see his face, but made sure to keep body contact with him to ease his tension, "You. It was always supposed to be you. It is you."
He sighed, "Lorelai I'm really freaking out here I need you to make sense. Are you leavi-"
"No." She said quickly, giving him a little squeeze, "Absolutely not. I will never leave you."
He let out a little sigh of relief and felt his knees buckle slightly, "Lorelai…"
She smiled and pointed towards the grass, "Come here. Come sit."
They sat together on the little patch of grass, reeling from all that had been said. She could feel that he was still tense beside her, so she grabbed his arm and placed his hand in her lap. She traced circles on the top of his hand and he whispered her name, "Lorelai…"
"I'm not leaving you." She answered giving his a hand a squeeze, "I'm sorry I made you think that."
He frowned and whispered, "Sorry. Your behavior was sort of reminiscent of…"
She swallowed hard, "The night I gave you the ultimatum?"
Luke nodded, his cheeks flushed red, "Yes. Probably one of the worst moments of my life. Until…"
"Until I told you about Christopher." He didn't respond but he didn't really have too. She sighed and turned all the way towards him, crossed her legs in front of her and whispered his name, "Luke…"
"If you aren't leaving...then what did you talk to her about?" He asked nervously, "What about us?"
She sighed and looked down at his hands, "My Mom has made a lot of remarks recently about the fact that you and I aren't married." She felt him stiffen beside her, "And today...I was sitting there thinking about it all."
Luke frowned and fidgeted, "Lorelai-"
"My parents were married for 50 years." Her voice cracked as she spoke, "Fifty years Luke. That's a hell of a long time."
He swallowed hard, "Yes it is."
"And I…" She sniffled, "I never really let it bother me that we weren't married. Especially after we got back together." She laughed sadly, "Hell I was just so damn happy you'd even look at me again that I was willing to do whatever you wanted me to do. And so...we just...we co-existed."
"Is that what we're doing?" He asked softly, "Coexisting?"
She frowned, "I don't know. I mean we have a life together. You moved in when we got back together. Gave up the apartment. We do everything together. We have a joint bank account. We celebrate every holiday together. I drag you to town events and you try and hide vegetables in my food to make me live longer. That must mean you want me sticking around."
He chuckled, "I do. You know I do."
"We're partners." She answered holding his hand firmly in hers; "You aren't just my boyfriend...that seems so trivial at our age." She sighed, "You're…" Her voice trailed off for a moment, she cleared her throat and lifted her eyes to meet his, "You're the love of my life."
Luke let out a shaky breath and reached his hand to brush back her hair, "Lorelai-"
"I know that sounds cheesy and you hate cheesy." She said with a shake of her head, "But it's true. You were right Luke. We've been through so damn much. More than I ever envisioned and despite all the crap we've been able to stick to it. It wasn't easy...but we did it. And I'm so glad we did."
"Am I sensing a but here?" He asked in a soft voice.
She shook her head and said, "No. Not really."
"Not really?" He asked nervously, "Not sure how I feel about that."
"I don't need a ring to know that you're the one." She said with a shrug, "I thought that once. When we got engaged before...I thought that the ring and the ceremony made us a couple. I thought we needed that to prove that we were supposed to be together."
"And now?" He asked softly.
She smiled, "And now I don't need that. I don't really care what anyone else thinks about our life. I know what we have Luke. If we didn't want this we would have given up years ago. I know you're the one. You're my one."
He stared into her eyes for a moment, "Lorelai...you've always been the one. Everyone knows that." He smirked, "Hell Rachel and Nicole knew that."
Lorelai smiled and looked down, "So did Max. And even Christopher…"
"We're just stupid." He whispered in a joking voice.
"Incredibly stupid." She said with a smirk, "We suck sometimes."
"We do." He nudged her gently, "But at least we suck together."
She laughed and reached her hand up to wipe a tear away, "Luke…"
He smiled, "Sorry." He held her gaze for a moment before asking, "I mean...is marriage something you want though?"
She frowned, "I don't know. I suppose when we got back together I was so focused on fixing everything that the idea of marriage for us was so far away. And then suddenly all this time has passed and now it seems silly in a way." She shrugged, "I mean we've both been married before."
Luke frowned, "I'm not sure those marriages really counted."
She smiled, "Technically in the eyes of God and law they did."
"Well they didn't count for me." He said in a gruff, stubborn voice.
She smiled, "Okay."
He lifted his head to her, "Okay?"
She shrugged, "We can get married if you want to get married."
He shifted again, "What?"
"We don't have too." She said with a smile, he looked confused, "I'm not explaining myself very well, am I?"
He rubbed the back of his head, "Trying to keep up…"
She smiled and reached her hand out to smooth back the creases on his face, "Luke I love you. In some ways I have loved you before I even realized it. Today in Claudia's office…" She shrugged and said, "All these emotions and fears came flooding into my brain. And for a moment I thought there was something wrong with us because we never did get married. But then…" She shrugged, "I thought about my marriage to Christopher. And yours to Nicole...those pieces of paper and rings didn't make a marriage Luke. They didn't make a real partnership."
He shook his head, "No...they didn't."
"What we have is real." She whispered, "It is so real. It's more than I ever could have dreamed of having. Because you have always been right there when I needed you and I never had that before. To be honest it's probably part of the reason I kept you at an arm's length for so long before we did cross that line." She admitted.
"Why?" He asked curiously.
"Because despite how I felt about you...the fear of losing you in my life completely was more intense than that love or wanting to try to make it work. I need you Luke. I've always needed you. When we were apart I was a mess. I was miserable. Nothing made sense." She frowned, "That was what I had been afraid of for so long. And so maybe self consciously when we got back together I just needed it to be good between us. I needed it to be safe so that you would stay. So that I wouldn't screw up. So I didn't push the marriage thing."
He frowned, "Okay...but now?"
"And now I realize I don't need to be married to you to know that there is no one else in the world I would rather be with. I mean if you asked me to...I'd marry you right this second. But only if it's something you want too." He still looked lost and she smiled, "What I'm trying to say and clearly failing miserably at…" She said with a laugh, "Is that I am happy with our life. I am happy with you." She leaned forward and rested her forehead against his, "And I know I don't say it enough and I know we're not one of those mushy gushy couples but I do love you Luke Danes." She paused for a moment and added, "I hope you know that. I need you to know that."
Luke breathed her in and placed his hands on her elbows, "I do know that. And I love you too. I hope that you know that. I hope I've made that clear over the years."
She smiled and pulled back again just enough to see his face, "You have. The chuppa, $30,000 dollar loan, taking care of my kid, building an ice rink and forgiving me at my worst moments kind of proved that to me."
Luke chuckled, "Well that's good."
She smiled and sat up a little straighter, "Good. I'm sorry I dragged you all the way out here for this. I just needed some air...needed to clear my head. Claudia made me unlock some serious vaults today."
Luke smirked, "Lord knows there's plenty of them in that brain of yours."
She glared at him playfully, "More than you even realize my friend."
He smiled softly at her, "I figured as much."
She sighed and pushed herself off the ground, "Now that we've covered the emotional breakdown portion of our evening...we can head home. Paul Anka is probably still waiting for that meat you were blowing on." She paused and then laughed, "Wow that was so dirty!""
Luke watched her stand up and take a few steps forward, stretching as she went. And in that moment she was everything. She always had been but something seemed to fall into place. For nine years now he had wondered if there would ever be a moment to propose. Like her he had been almost afraid of getting to that point if only to see it crumble all over again. It seemed easier to keep it the way it was. Safer. But maybe they did deserve more.
He didn't need a ring on her finger to prove that she was the one. He didn't need her to say yes to know that she loved him. She was right. They were partners. In every sense of the word. And yes they had their faults. And yes they had things they had to fix. But the mere fact that they were still here after all this time proved they were meant to be together.
So no...Luke Dane's didn't need her to be his wife to prove anything.
But damnit he wanted it.
"Lorelai." He said her name softly, she barely heard him.
"If you want we can stop for food on the way home so you don't have to cook." She said still not looking at him.
He sat up on his knees and reached for his back pocket, "Lorelai…"
"Gypsy said there is some new Italian place that makes great pizza somewhere around here. We can try that." She said still ignoring him.
"Lorelai." He tried again desperately.
She turned towards him, "Or we cou-" She stopped when she saw that he was on one knee in front of her, "What are you doing?"
He smiled and reached into his wallet, "I don't need a ring. I don't need a marriage license to prove anything either. But…" He shrugged, "I still want that."
She gasped and put her hand over her lips, "Luke-"
"And if you say no...if you just want to keep things the way they are than fine." He said with a little smile, "I'll pull myself up off this ground and I'll be okay. I'll still love you. I'll still be there for you. I'll still be 100% committed to us." He shrugged, "But...if you say you want to marry me too then I'll do all those things and I'll get to call you my wife."
Tears welled up in her eyes, "Luke…"
"I don't have a ring with me." He said with a sigh, "But I still have your old one at home...I can get you a new one if you want."
"You don't have too." She said with a little shake of her head.
"But I do have this old horoscope." He said with a smirk lifting the worn piece of paper up into the air, "I've had it since the day you gave it to me." He paused and whispered, "And I'll have it for as long as I live." He smirked, "In fact I demand to buried with it."
She giggled, "Luke-"
"So what do you say?" He asked tilting his head to the side, "You wanna marry this old grump? You wanna make an honest man out of me once and for all?"
She smiled and took the horoscope from him reading her faded handwriting, "You will meet an annoying woman today. Give her coffee and she'll go away."
Luke smirked, "Lucky for me...she didn't go away."
She sighed happily and reached one hand to touch his face, "And I never will."
He stared up at her hopefully and asked, "Does that mean-?"
"Yes Luke." She answered simply, "I will marry you."
Luke beamed up at her and stood up quickly, ignoring the ache in his old bones. He pulled her flush against his body and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he crushed his lips to hers. She giggled when he pulled away, "It just felt-"
"Right." Lorelai whispered against his lips as she kissed him again, he nodded in response, "Yes. It does."
He sighed and breathed her in, "God I love you."
She smiled and held the horoscope in front of his face, "This proves it."
"Lorelai." He said with a smirk.
"And I love you too." She said nuzzling his cheek, "More than you will ever know."
Luke sighed and pushed back her hair, "Was this okay? I mean I know everything you just said and I agree with it but-"
She smiled, "But it's still nice."
"We gonna do it this time?" He challenged with a soft stare.
She glared at him, "We better. Otherwise I'm digging the grave and throwing you and this damn horoscope in."
Luke shook his head; "Only way out of it this time is in a body bag."
She laughed, "Now we don't have to write our vows."
Luke smiled, "Imagine what your Mom will think."
She rolled her eyes, "Let's just get married in the Diner and let her totally lose her mind. I'll walk in wearing one of your flannel shirts and I'll carry ketchup and mustard as my bouquet."
"You're exhausting." He said with a laugh, "Totally and completely exhausting."
"And yet after all this time...you still don't want to get rid of me." She said in awe.
"I'm kind of used to you by now." He said with a shrug, "I like things simple. I get a routine and I keep it. You're part of the routine." She started to laugh, "Wake up, open the Diner, pour the crazy lady coffee, feed Kirk and make a second burger to replace the one he drops. Kiss the crazy lady, remember how lucky I am, think about how amazing she is and make sure she doesn't run for the hills. Go to sleep and repeat."
She sighed and traced the scruff on his cheek, "Sounds like you've got it all figured out."
Leaning forward he whispered, "So...about that pizza. How bad do you want it?"
She smiled and started to pull his hands back, "I don't necessarily want it right this second…" She smirked, "But we should probably get some to go. We're going to need our strength."
"Is that so?" Luke whispered as she walked him backwards.
"Yeah. We have a lot to celebrate." She said pulling him with her as they walked back towards the car.
Luke smiled as he watched her go, "Yeah...we do."
She flashed him that million-dollar smile again and he knew that after all this time, they were right where they were supposed to be. It may have taken longer than some people thought it should but it didn't matter. They were doing what was right for them.
And it was time.
It was definitely time.
So hope you liked it :) I loved Luke's speech in the kitchen. I loved how it all happened. But I did want them to talk more. I probably will do an extension of the real proposal scene at some point too. This was just a spin on things.
I really do feel like one of the reasons they weren't married yet was they realized they didn't need a ring to prove anything. They did love each other. They had flaws but they were always meant to be together.