Rachel spread all of her pictures out onto the table. She tried to organize them as best as she could. She attempted to finish the scrapbook without getting distracted, or emotional. But somehow, she picked up each and every picture and studied it. She studied the lighting, the facial expressions, and the emotion of each picture. It wasn't to critique her work, but it was to reminisce, in a way. She was actually drawn to the pictures, as much as she hated it.
Rachel still hadn't completely gotten over the shock of the wedding she had attended. It had taken her a long time to comprehend that she and Luke were over to begin with, but the wedding had put an end to any hope she had of salvaging a relationship. It was hard, and looking at the pictures wasn't making it any easier for her.
Her favorite picture was of Luke and Rory dancing. It was such a sweet father-daughter type moment. She made that the center of the page. From there, everything fell into place. Rachel used the groupings of the pictures to create a scrapbook full of memories for Luke and Lorelai. There was a page dedicated to Kirk, Taylor, Babette, Miss Patty, and everyone else who cared for and loved Luke and Lorelai so much.
Making the scrapbook was simple. She had been working on it for a few weeks, and the project was complete without any major problems. The only bump in the metaphorical road was bringing the scrapbook to Luke and Lorelai. Rachel needed closure, but somehow, she just wasn't prepared to obtain that closure. She let the scrapbook sit at her desk for months.
After all, etiquette says that one has an entire year to give the couple their wedding gift. The way things were going lately, Rachel was looking at waiting just about a year to bring the book to Stars Hollow. Every day, she passed the scrapbook, staring her in the face and taunting her.
"Fine, fine, I'll bring it!" Rachel almost shouted one day, to no one in particular. She had taken just about enough from the book, and as much as she tried to cover it up, there was always a little bit of it that peeked out from underneath papers and other supplies.
Maybe that's the way things would be with Luke. As much as she tried to forget he was there, a little piece of him would be around for forever. She couldn't really control it. She'd just have to take it day by day, and hope that the pain of losing Luke would go away.
She picked up the book and dusted it off. Had it really sat that long? She's usually better about things like this. Why did she have to be such a baby about it? Luke was married, and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.
She placed the scrapbook in a box, and tied a beautiful pink ribbon around it, and placed it in the back seat of her car.
"Now we're getting somewhere," she said to herself. She started the car and sat for a moment. Was she making the right decision? She could have just sent the box, leaving it as an anonymous gift, and she wouldn't have to go through all of this.
Rachel reached for the key and thought about pulling it out of the ignition. But almost as soon as her hand made contact with the key, she jerked it back. "You're going to have to do this, Rachel," she said. "You're way too indecisive for anyone's good." She backed out of the driveway and made the trip she had made almost a year ago.
Maybe this trip wouldn't be as painful. Maybe she'd finally get the closure she needed and be able to move on. Or so she hoped. She drove slowly on the highway, but bursts of speed were frequent. She couldn't figure out whether she wanted to drive quickly, and get the meeting over with, or drive slowly, and avoid it as long as possible.
As the surroundings became more and more familiar, Rachel became more and more nervous. She parked her car in the first legal place to park, grabbed the scrapbook from the backseat, and slammed the door.
Rachel took a deep breath as she approached the Gilmore-Danes house. She stood on the porch, trying not to show her nervousness. She reached over and rang the doorbell.
When Luke answered the door, his face was hard to interpret. He seemed confused, and nervous, and a little skeptical, all at the same time. They stared at each other for a minute, almost as if they were trying to comprehend what was happening.
"Hey," Rachel finally said, breaking the awkward silence.
"Hey… Rachel, come in," Luke said, opening the door.
Rachel smiled and followed Luke inside. The house definitely wasn't Luke, but then again he was married to Lorelai Gilmore.
"Can I get you something to drink?" he asked.
"Sure," Rachel replied.
"I hope you like coffee, that's just about all we have around here," Luke said.
Rachel shrugged. "That's fine, thanks."
Rachel sat for a moment while Luke made the coffee.
"Well, this is kind of a surprise. What brings you back?" he asked, genuinely curious.
Rachel sipped her coffee. "Uh, well, I… I kind of crashed your wedding last year, and… I took some pictures. I thought you'd like a wedding gift, it's the least I could do after I showed up uninvited, you know?"
Rachel handed Luke the box. "Wow, Rachel, this is… this is really nice. You didn't have to…"
She put up her hand. "Just open it and enjoy it with Lorelai."
Luke sighed. "Thank you, Rachel. Lorelai's not home yet… she should be back in about 20 minutes or so. Do you mind waiting?"
"If she doesn't mind my being here."
Luke shook his head. "No, no, she won't mind. I'll catch her beforehand so she doesn't start incessantly babbling about something stupid. I'll let her know why you're here."
The two talked for awhile, catching up on Rachel's life. Rachel told Luke about her nonexistent love life, and all about her work. They were just about to focus on Luke when the front door opened.