DISCLAIMER: Gilmore Girls isn't mine. All characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and the WB.

AN: Again, I'd like to thank M (Season4.5), for beta-ing this for me. And to all the reviews, thanks so much. They're awesome. Here's the next installment. Hope you all enjoy this one.

When You Least Expect It
02: Mere Acquaintances

"And where do you think you're going, young lady?" a mischievous voice said behind them.

The pair turned and saw Lorelai looking at them with a glint in her eye.

"Oh, hi, Mom. Tristan and I are hungry we're getting something to eat," Rory explained, her words rushed.

Lorelai's face contorted in disgust. "Something to eat? Don't tell me that you've learned to appreciate food that my mother would serve."

"No, we were gonna go somewhere to get burgers and milkshake," Rory replied.

A gasp escaped Lorelai's lips. "And you were gonna leave me all alone here in this hell? Rory bit her lip, waiting a bit too long to answer. "I was going to tell you."

"Liar! You were gonna sneak out, leaving me here!" Lorelai accused.

"No, I wasn't!"

"Yes, you were!"

"I wasn't"

"You were!"

"I'm sorry!"

Lorelai grinned. "That's all right," she said, giggling. "I did the same thing when I was younger…although I was years ahead of you. I'm so proud, Honey!"

"Mom!" Rory's cheeks turned pink.

"What? Soooo…aren't you going to introduce me to this delectable young man?" Lorelai asked, her mouth curling into a Cheshire grin.

Tristan stuck out his hand. "Tristan DuGrey, Ma'am."

Lorelai took his proffered hand. "Hello. My name's Lorelai Gilmore. You called me Ma'am. Prepare to die."

"Sorry."

"Call me Lorelai."

Eyes dancing, Tristan replied, "As you wish."

Lorelai's jaw dropped. "You know The Princess Bride? Inconceivable!"

"Of course," Tristan said with a cocky grin. He turned to Rory. "So, when do we get to the kissing part?"

"You wanna kiss my Mom?" Rory asked, smirking.

Tristan paused before he cocked his head. "Sure. I think your Mom's hot."

Lorelai bounced. "Oooh…you get points for that. But sorry, Kiddo, you're not my type. I think you're more of Rory's type. Blonde…rich society boy."

They say that three's a crowd. But nobody ever said that being a third wheel could be fun.

"Mom!"

"What? I'm just telling the truth. Limo boy is blonde and a society boy, complete with the attitude and parents from Snobsville."

"Logan didn't have an attitude," Rory argued.

"Of course he did! He could be the spawn of Dennis Rodman."

Crossing her arms over her chest, Rory scowled, "Logan could never be his spawn."

"Why not? Dennis Rodman's hair used to be blonde. Logan is blonde. Ergo, Logan could be Dennis Rodman's spawn."

"Your logic is twisted, Mom. One of the rules is that one premise should be universal."

"Hey, don't you use your college education on me. And since when did I follow rules?" Lorelai cried.

"So who's Limo boy?" Tristan finally asked.

Lorelai answered. "Limo boy is Logan Huntzberger. He was Rory's ex-boyfriend."

"Mom, I do not want to talk about Logan."

"Why not? I thought you were over him?"

"I am. I just…I'm not comfortable discussing him with…others."

"Others? Tristan is not 'others'. You were about to go out on a date with him. You were gonna leave me! For a man!"

Rory turned red. "Lorelai, behave," she scowled.

Lorelai waved her hand. "Fine, fine. That's just because you know I'm telling the truth."

Tristan chuckled. "Come on, Rory. How about that burger with fries and milkshake I promised you?" He turned to the elder Lorelai. "Why don't you join us, Lorelai?"

She shook her head. "Nah, I don't want to intrude. And besides, I need to get home."

They made their way to the front door when another guest stopped them.

"Tristan," a feminine voice called out.

The trio turned to see an elegant woman with blond hair and blue eyes.

"Mom," Tristan said, a smile on his lips. His companion looked at him surprised.

"Leaving so soon?"

"Yeah. I got hungry and decided to get something to eat."

"Are you sure that's what you're going to do?" she asked, a mischievous grin gracing her delicate features.

"Yes. What are you thinking?"

"Oh nothing. I thought you were going to take these lovely respectable ladies back to your place…and do whatever you do."

It was Tristan's turn to turn red. "Mom, you know I don't do that."

She raised an eyebrow. "Anymore, you mean." Rory and Lorelai laughed.

"Of course not!" Tristan said indignantly and Alice laughed. "By the way, this is Rory and her mom, Lorelai," he said. "And this is my mom, Alice DuGrey."

The women exchanged greetings. "It's good to know that somebody can actually put you in place," Rory told Tristan.

Tristan opened his arms. "Just tell me where you want me."

"Tristan, play nice," his mother admonished, her voice teasing.

"Rory, what did I tell you? No fighting with the boys you like," Lorelai said.

The mothers laughed at their children's shocked expression.

"Well, I have to go. I have to save your father from Mrs. Stanley. His ears are about to bleed from hearing her talk about her grandchildren."

"Have you thought of an excuse why you need to leave early this time?" Tristan asked.

"No. What if we tell everyone that your dad and I suddenly decided we want another baby so we need to go home and have sex?"

"Mom!"

--

Coffee was still her favorite drink. However, there are times when chocolate milk shake sound just as good.

"So, how have you been, Rory? What happened after I left?" They were at a diner just ten minutes away from the house where they were earlier.

"Well, Paris and I became friends, she was president and I was her vice-president senior year, and we both ended up going to Yale. We were even roommates." She took a sip of her milkshake.

Tristan's forehead folded. "I thought Paris wanted to go to Harvard? It was her goal in life…at least when we were in high school."

Rory bit her lip. "She was too good for Harvard."

Tristan nodded, clearly understanding what she meant. "I can't believe you and Paris became friends. I thought she was going to murder you back then every time you got a higher grade."

A strand of brown hair fell over her face and she pushed it back behind her ear. "Things change. Paris is nice; it's just that she gets really intense."

"She has always been like that even when we were in kindergarten. She would threaten anyone who played in the monkey bars since that's where she usually plays."

They both laughed at the picture of little Paris with her eyes shooting daggers at anyone who got in her way.

"So Logan Huntzberger, huh? Didn't know you were into rich society boys. I was surprised when your mom mentioned him," Tristan said slowly, feeling as though he was treading on thin ice.

She pursed her lips. "She should have not said anything."

"Hey, if you don't want to talk about it, it's fine."

Shaking her head, "No, it's fine," then proceeded to tell him the Cliff's Notes version.

To say that Tristan was surprised was an understatement. He was surprised and shocked with everything Rory had undergone. But she was still Rory. It was in the way she talked especially about her strained relationship with her mother at the beginning of the Logan years, and how she still disliked attending parties with the rich Hartford society.

"How come you guys aren't going out anymore?"

Rory sighed. "I didn't want to be a trophy wife, and Logan couldn't defend me to his parents. I don't want to change my life for him and I don't want him to change his life for me."

"What if he was willing to change for you?"

She shook her head. "And I know he enjoys his life just drinking and hanging out with the LDB."

"Did he tell you that?"

"No, but I know that he would hate me eventually for that. I want him to change because he wants to, and not because of any other reason. Not even for me."

Then silence, both parties contemplating on what was just recently discussed. Until she broke it.

"Enough about me. Let's talk about you. How have you been?" she asked.

He cleared his throat. "Good."

Rolling her eyes, she prodded, "And?"

Well, the night of the play, my parents decided to send me to military school. But right the following year, they transferred me to another school, somewhere closer to home."

"Which school is this?"

"Blair Academy. It's actually in the next city."

"How come you didn't go back to Chilton?"

"Didn't want to."

Rory frowned. "How come? You were the king of Chilton. Everybody knew you. You were popular and all."

"I couldn't go back. I didn't want to go back." At Rory's questioning glance, he explained that he and his parents didn't always have the best relationship. Back then his dad was always too busy, never had time for his family, and he hated him for it. That night of the school play, he and his friends decided to play a prank…for Tristan, it was to get his father's attention. Little did he know that his wish would come true.

She just listened, trying to understand the teenager that was Tristan. So that was why he called her names, hardly went to class, and was in different kinds of trouble.

"I don't know when, I don't know why, but while I was there, my dad decided to…fix our family. Suddenly, he wanted to talk, wanted to be involved in my life, wanted to be…a father."

It wasn't easy. Tristan pushed his father away, never wanted to give him the time of the day. But his mother asked, but never begged, him to give his father a chance, coaxing him. "Eventually, I did. And it's been good. Glad I did."

Rory regarded her companion and her thoughts went to the Alice Dugrey. The way she and Tristan interacted told her that they were pretty close and different from the other families who belonged to Hartford's elite circle.

"Military school did teach me a thing or two and I didn't want to go back to Chilton because I didn't want to go back to my old ways. So they enrolled me at Blair, which is closer to home than North Carolina."

"Wow…"

"Yeah."

"And after that?"

"After that isn't as exciting. Went to Harvard and now I'm a professor, believe it or not."

"Never would have guessed. Where and what do you teach?" Rory was about to take a bite of her cheeseburger when Tristan answered, "I teach American history at Boston University."

The burger stopped its journey to her mouth and Rory stared at Tristan.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

"No, it's just uhhh…I work for the Boston Globe."

Old acquaintances…by some twist of fate you see them again. It's a nice surprise when they turn out to be more that what you expected. And this time being mere acquaintances isn't enough.