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

AN: Sorry for not updating, been pretty busy. Thanks so much to M for beta-ing. Congratulations on your baby boy:)

When You Least Expect It
06: Glad It Was You

The place was well lit and the atmosphere was friendly and energetic. Rory clutched her bag as she waited for the facilitator to start the activity. Everyone was dressed to impress; girls in dresses or skirts, and guys were in slacks and jackets. She wasn't sure how her friends managed to convince her to join a speed dating service. This wasn't something she would do, but it wouldn't hurt to try in once, she told herself.

Fifteen minutes later, she found herself sitting across the small table from a man, who was actually quite attractive. Too bad he looked quite…mature for Rory.

Ding. Next guy please.

He was quite tall. He was blonde and had blue eyes. "Hi," he said. "I'm Frank."

Rory returned the smile. "Hi, I'm Rory."

"Hello, Rory. So…"

Five minutes into their date, she already knew the cause of his breakup with his last girlfriend. At least he didn't start to cry. The wife had left him and their 8 year-old daughter for another man. Rory wasn't exactly sure what to do. She could only sympathize and listen to the man talk. But all Rory was able to tell about herself…her name.

Switch!

Straight white teeth, nice smile, wavy brown hair. He was nice, polite, and shy. Not that it was a bad thing but he just reminded her too much of Dean. For the next eight minutes, they talked and Rory found herself smiling. He was an architect and also lived in the Boston area. When he talked, he made gestures with his hands that made Rory notice them. They were large and had long fingers with clean nails.

Candidate number X please…

The next hadn't exactly made an impact on her. He was tall on the lanky side. But he liked books and movies…definitely plus points in her book. So what if he didn't have perfect teeth? She could live with that.

And it went on and on…until it was time to deliberate.

--

Rory unlocked her door to her apartment, and then threw her bag on the couch on her way to the kitchen to get some coffee. Tonight wasn't actually so bad. Although there were some who she really didn't think she would ever go out with, there were others who were interesting.

As soon as she poured coffee into her mug, the phone rang. She let it ring and let her machine get it. After the beep, she heard her mother's voice. "Rory? Rory, are you there? Come on! Answer the phone!"

Letting out a sigh, she picked up the phone. "Yes, mother."

"So how's my darling daughter? How was that speed dating thing?"

Rory shrugged. "It was alright," she said, then told Lorelai everything. Of course Lorelai couldn't help but make sarcastic comments about every guy. "So do you think there could be something with that Dean-look-alike?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did you have that spark?"

Rory took a sip of her coffee. "Well, he was one of the interesting ones. And he's kinda cute, too!"

"What kind of cute? Josh Hartnett dorky cute? Or Heath Ledger hunky cute. How about Jensen Ackles boy next door cute?"

"I'd say he's a Ashton Kutcher cute."

Lorelai squealed. "Really? Rory! So you don't think he's interested in you?"

"Geez! I don't know mom. I mean we only talked for eight minutes."

"But you should definitely know. There are got to be vibes or something. Like what happened in Serendipity. You know, they saw each other then bam! Chemistry!"

"Oh, well I really don't know mom." There was a wail in the background. "Oops. I have to go. I have to feed your baby brother," Lorelai said.

Rory smiled. She missed her family; especially her mom even thought they talked to each other practically every week. "Ok. Give Dad, Gigi, and Adam a kiss for me."

"All right. Bye. I love you."

"I love you too."

They hung up the phone and went to her bedroom to change into her pajamas. She settled into her bed and she saw Tristan's copy of Fever Pitch. Grabbing the book, she thought of where Tristan might be. It was no doubt that he was out that night with his friends, living the life of a bachelor. She was about to call him, but thought otherwise. She didn't wan to bother him, so instead she read until she yawned, then went to sleep.

--

"Come on Tristan, please," Rory implored.

"How come Lydia or your other friends aren't going with you?"

"Because they'll all be busy that night," she pouted.

Tristan raised an eyebrow. "How do you know that I won't busy?" he asked.

Rory bit her lip. "Well, that's why I'm asking you now. It's still a weeks away! I know how busy your social calendar is," she said exasperatedly. Tristan had made a lot of friends in just a short period of time. He liked to go out and meet new people, and women flocked to him like ants to sugar.

Tristan never really knew what was so great about going to the carnival. But then, it wasn't part of his activities as a youth. He sighed. "Ok."

Rory jumped and squealed, launching her self into Tristan. "Thank you!"

Surprised, Tristan gave her a one-armed hug. "Why would you want to go to a carnival anyway?" he asked."

"I used to go to the Stars Hollow carnival every year until I started going to Yale. So I'd really love to go. I really miss it. It'll be fun, I promise!" she said in one breath, leaning against the cushions of the seat.

And that was how Tristan found himself a week later. The carnival they went to was in a small town half an hour away from Boston. There were kids running around, teenagers strolling about, cotton candy, popcorn, clowns, game booths, rides, and everything one expected from a carnival.

The air was cool and the sky was clear, it was a perfect night for stargazing, for moon watching. It was a perfect night for a date. But Tristan and Rory weren't. If they were, Tristan would have taken Rory's hand in his or put his arm around her waist. If they were, Rory would have snuggled against Tristan, borrowing some of his warmth or would let Tristan put his arm around her.

Instead they settled on walking while eating junk food, oohing and aahing over the things they saw. Tristan watched as Rory enjoyed her cotton candy. "Having fun, Mary?"

Rory nodded her head. "Uh hmm. I just love the carnival!"

Tristan smirked. "Admit it, you just love it coz you're with me."

"Right. Of course that's the reason," she shot back, deadpanned. Suddenly her eyes lit up. "Ooh Ferris wheel!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the ride. "Let's go ride!"

Tristan scrunched his nose. "We're riding the Ferris wheel?" he asked letting himself be lead by Rory.

"Why? What's wrong with riding the Ferris wheel?"

"Nothing. It's such a girly ride."

"It is not!" Rory said indignantly. "You're just scared…are you?"

He gave her a "you've got to be kidding" look. "Of course not. It's boring. And next thing I know, you'll be asking me to go with you to the Merry Go Round." Soon, he was sitting beside Rory in one of the carriages of the Ferris wheel.

"Stop being a whiny brat and just enjoy the ride," Rory said sweetly. The wheel started moving and they found themselves going up. The scene before them was beautiful. Everything was dark except for the city lights; like stars in a midnight sky. "It's pretty!" she breathed.

Tristan nodded. "It is actually." It was nice…sitting beside Rory, sharing each other's warmth. There was a time when he couldn't imagine ever being friends with Rory Gilmore, especially when they were back at Chilton. There was the Paris debacle, his hatred for her then boyfriend and the trouble he caused, and of course the PJ Harvey incident. He would never forget that day at the courtyard when she just about yelled in front of everyone that she hated him. Heartbroken he wasn't; but he felt pain, deep and sharp in his chest, and then surrounded his entire body.

Then he was sent away. He was actually sorry that he had to leave; but life goes on. He knew that the chance of seeing her again was close to nil until that night at the party. Now they were friends. They enjoyed each other's company even when they were just reading together or sitting beside each other talking about nothing.

Of all the people from his past that he had to see again, he was glad it was Rory.

"Has anyone from the speed dating called you?" he asked.

"No."

"Don't worry. They're all losers for not wanting to get to know you better."

"It's ok. I'm not devastated or anything. And why? Do I look desperate?"

Tristan pretended to think. "Well…yeah!"

Rory turned in her seat. "Really?" she asked, biting her bottom lip.

"I'm kidding, Ror!"

Soon, the ride was over and they got off. "That was nice," Rory said, smiling.

Tristan smiled right back. "It's my turn to pick."

"As long as it's not going to make me throw up my dinner, it's fine."

"Ok. Let's go to the Haunted House."

She stopped in her tracks. "The Haunted House?" she squeaked.

He grinned. "Yup."

"Can we do something else?"

"What? You're scared Mary?" he teased.

"No, I'm not!" She crossed her arms. "I would just rather do something else."

Tristan started walking to the Haunted House. "No, come on. You already had your fun in the Ferris wheel. It's my turn."

"Fine!" she stomped after him.

Tristan bought tickets. While waiting in line and Rory started wringing her hands. "Come on, Ror, it'll be fine," he said, gently unclasping her hands from their tight grip.

"I know!" Rory never liked going to Haunted Houses at carnivals. She wasn't a scaredy cat. But she had to admit that she wasn't the bravest girl in the lot.

Then it was their turn to go into the house with their group. It was dim inside, with only red and orange lights and the sound of an organ being played echoed through the house. Fake cobwebs lined the ceiling, while plastic masks with painted blood were hanging. A door opened then slammed shut, making Rory grab onto Tristan's hand. "It's ok. I'm here," he whispered.

Walking deeper into the house, they saw life like spooks; a woman with her head in her hands, a man with a knife pierced into his skull with blood running down his head and face, and an old hunchback with a severely deformed face, holding a walking stick. Thinking that it was only wax, Rory reached out and touched its arm. Suddenly, the spook came to life and started hobbling to her while making deep growling sounds from its throat. It started making motions with its walking stick and Rory buried her face in Tristan's chest as she shrieked.

Tristan chuckled and wrapped his arm around her back. He could feel her tremors and held her tighter. Leading her away to the last chamber, they saw a group of teenagers laughing and pushing each other out of the Haunted House. They followed them out and once they were outside, he let go of Rory. "Hey, you ok?"

Rory wasn't the clingy type. In fact she hated clingy girls, but this time, she couldn't help what happened back there. The spook looked so real and when it touched her, its hands were icy. She regained her senses. "Yup, I'm ok now." A breath. "Sorry about that."

"You don't have to be sorry for anything."

She nodded then smiled. "Thanks!" she said shyly.

"Ok." He saw that her face was flushed and he laughed. "Come on. Let me win you a cheesy prize," he said as he pulled her to the shooting booth. "It'll make you feel better. And it's my way of saying sorry for making you go to the Haunted House."

"I wasn't that bad!" Rory said, affronted then walked with him to the game booth.

"I didn't say it was." He gave the teenager a dollar and he was given three darts. There were small balloons stuck on a corkboard and he had to pop three. Rory watched Tristan concentrate, his eyes were focused and his hands steady. She couldn't help but notice the muscles on his arms flex as he aimed then threw the dart. It went straight to the balloon, and the balloon burst.

"Nice!"

"Of course," he said cockily, and Rory just rolled her eyes. "One of these days, your ego is going to get you in trouble."

Tristan just laughed then turned his attention back to the balloons in front of him. He aimed then shot, and did it again until he got two more balloons. Rory's eyes widened. "Wow! Military School sure did you some good."

"Yeah, it actually did."

Tristan took the adorable brown stuffed bear from the man then handed it to Rory. "Thanks, Tristan."

"You're welcome." He stuffed his hands in his pocket. "So what's next?"

Rory hugged the bear to her chest and looked around. "Well, how about the roller coaster?" she suggested. Then we can get hotdogs?

"You're hungry again? You just ate a bucket of popcorn and cotton candy! Where do you put all your food?"

"My mom and I were blessed with fast metabolism."

"I see that," he said, appraising her. "Let's go. The roller coaster is waiting for us. Last to get there is a chicken shit." He started running followed by a scurrying Rory.

"Ugh! You sneaky evil person!" she yelled after him. When she finally caught up with him, she said. "You know I don't do sports and anything to do with it. Ergo, I don't like running."

"You were running? Geez! I thought you were walking."

Rory slapped him in his arm. "Whatever!"

Being childlike, running and playing like kids, it was good for the heart and soul.

--

That night, she laid in bed, hugging Mr. Cuddles, her teddy bear Tristan had won for her.

She smiled. If someone told her in high school that she and Tristan would be friends, she would have laughed at their face. She still couldn't believe that this man beside her was the same cocky rich bad boy from Chilton. She tried so hard to ignore him, but tried even harder to make her life a living hell. He caused trouble between her and her then boyfriend Dean; and between her and Paris. And she would never forget that day when he said good bye to her. He got in trouble when he went through his friend's dad's safe and he was shipped off to Military School. He looked sad, lonely, and sorry. She thought sadly how it would be the last time she would hear him call her Mary.

And so she went on with her life. She became friends with Paris, graduated at the top of her class, went to Yale instead of Harvard, met and dated Logan until her relationship with him fell apart, then applied for a job at Boston Globe and got in. She thought she would see him one of the parties her grandparents usually threw. It was a pleasant surprise when she saw him that night, and she was glad that they were given a chance to get to know each other and be friends.

Of all the people from her past that she had to see again, she was glad it was Tristan.

--