Disclaimer: I don't own it.

A/N: OKay...so here is the last chapter of this story. I'm sad to end it, but it was time. I hope that you like the ending!

Chapter Twenty Three: Chanel or Bean?

It was a bright day, the sun shining warmly from the crystal blue sky. Clouds were scattered on the vast cerrulean midst, rolling along like tumbleweeds in a desert. It was wickedly ironic that such a beautiful day could house such a terrible event. Usually dark days constituted as the times for heart ache, but the beaming sun was high up and mocked all below, the golden glow refusing to lighten. The entire clan was seated around the coffee table in Logan's apartment, dressed in black with eyes downcast. The mood was somber, the silence speaking more than any words could. They were broken, hurt beyond words, and they couldn't forsee anything that could pull them back.

Rory shifted in her seat, crossing and uncrossing her legs. She couldn't help but think of the last time they had all gathered at Logan's apartment, the gay laughter and enormous joy still resounding in her memory. They had been elated, full of hope and life. Now everything had changed. Stephanie had succumbed to the darkness encompassing her, delving so deep into her own pity that her old self was barely visible. Colin was trying his hardest to hold on to her but Rory could see him fading, slowly beginning to give in. Even Finn had changed, his usual drunkness being replaced with mood swings and dark looks. Most of all, Rory noticed the change in Logan. His once carefree personality and character had done a complete turn around. He was always quiet, snapping at her for the littlest things. It seemed that once he had broken down after the hospital he had closed himself off to keep it from ever happening again. He wouldn't talk about it to anyone, not even Rory. She couldn't figure him out, couldn't stand to search his cold eyes, it hurt her too much.

"Does anybody need anything?" Rory asked softly, cursing herself silently for the lame question. Of course they all needed something. They needed their old life, they needed their old feeling of safety and completion. Her friends looked at her briefly, shaking thier heads.

"No thanks love," Finn muttered, his eyes dark.

"Okay, are you sure you don't need water? Or how about something to eat?"

"We don't need anything Ace," His sharp tone cut right in her, making her feel small and wounded. She nodded, leaning back into the seat, her body sinking into the plush cushions. She felt helpless, unable to fix what was wrong. Everything had changed, and she feared that it was permanent. Without a word she stood up, walking quickly out of the apartment. She needed room, she needed air, most of all she needed to get out of the silence that was so stifling she could barely breath. She took out her cell phone, dialing with trembling fingers.

"Hello?"

"Mom," She breathed, tears making her voice thick, "I don't know what to do,"

"Hunny-"

"Everything's different,"

"It's going to be hard Rory," She shook her head, tears of frustration in her eyes.

"Everyone's changed. Finn's diffferent, Stephanie and Colin are barely keeping it together, and Logan-" She stopped, not even wanting to vocalize it.

"Rory, everything will be okay,"

"He's so distant and cold. I don't even know how to approach him now,"

"Give it time," Rory sighed, wiping away a few stray tears.

"I should get back," Rory stated, grabbing a kleenex from her pocket to dab at her nose.

"Alright, I love you,"

"I love you too, bye Mom," She hung up, slowly making her way back to the living room. The atmosphere was somber as ever and she sighed, sitting back down next to Logan. She's listen to her mother's advie. She'd wait and hopefully everything would work out. The truth of the matter is that she couldn't leave, she couldn't give up. These people had become her family, and she'd be damned if she was going to give up on them.

"Mini me!" Rory smiled, hugging her mom tightly. She took in the scent of her, a light vanilla with hints of coffee. It smelled like heaven, it smelled like home. She had needed to go home, the scene at Yale being too much for her to handle in large doses. She knew that she needed some time away and immediatly pursued it.

"Hi Mom," Lorelai held her out at arms length, examining her thoroughly.

"You don't look too beat up," She commented, cocking her head to the side, "Slight dark circles under your eyes, but nothing that some good concealer can't deal with," Rory smiled, already feeling the effects of home.

"How are things here?" Rory asked, taking a quick glance around.

"Pretty good, Babette's finally gotten over her gnome phase,"

"Really?"

"Uh huh, now she's a Chia Pet fanatic. She has them all, including one with Bill Clinton's head,"

"They make a Chia Pet of Bill Clinton's head?" Lorelai smiled, nodding.

"They also have a Hilary Clinton but Babette thought her too political to have in her yard," Rory laughed, feeling her spirits begin to lift. Somehow when she was home, things just felt right. She could still feel the sorrow, the slight ebbing pain in the pit of her stomach, but home made it easier to deal with.

"Can we go to Luke's?" Rory asked, "I'm starving and am in need of some good coffee," Lorelai smiled, putting her arm around her.

"Let's go get some caffiene,"

"Rory, you're back," Luke said with a warm smile, coming over to hug her. She smiled, feeling her heart swell once again with love for her town.

"Hey Luke,"

"How's Yale going?" Her smile faltered as she remembered what she had left. The picture of Logan's lifeless eyes came to mind and she quickly pushed it away, plastering a smile on for Luke.

"It's busy," She said simply.

"Well that's good," Luke looked over at Lorelai who was gazing at him with a look of disbelief, her mouth hanging open.

"What?" He snapped.

"You so ignore me!" She cried, her lips pursed in an exaggerated frown.

"I see you every day. I hardly ignore you,"

"You ignored me today. Fawning all over Rory adn then leaving me all alone," Luke shook his head with irritation.

"Well, then go get a cat,"

"Luke-"

"Just sit down," Lorelai smiled, her eyes twinkling.

"Aw, there's that charm I love," Lorleai cooed, sitting down. Rory sat next to her, placing her cell phone on the counter next to her. Lorelai looked at her, smiling slightly.

"Paranoid much?"

"Logan she he would call me today,"

"Uh huh,"

"I don't want to miss it,"

"Rory," She looked at her mother, noting the weary tone.

"I need to be there for him,"

"No, you need to be there for yourself. You need some time to heal too," Rory shook her head.

"No-"

"Rory, listen, you need this," Rory sighed, resing her head on her hand. Lorelai picked up the phone, turning it off, "If he leaves you a message then you'll call him tomorrow," Rory nodded, taking a deep breath to steady her mounting nerves. Luke had just arrived and placed coffee in front of them, looking wearily at Rory.

"Rory, are you okay?" He asked awkwardly, not sure if he was breaching something off limits.

"Yeah, I just need one of your famous burgers,"

"Alright, coming right up," Rory looked down at her cell phone, sighing.

"You need this Rory," She nodded sadly.

"I know,"

"Okay, so we have Breakfast at Tiffany's, Rebel Without a Cause, and of course Casablanca," Lorelai rattled off, tossing the DVDs one by one onto the coffee table.

"I say we go with Rebel Without a Cause. Awkward James Dean and an overmade up Natalie Wood is a classic,"

"You convinced me, pop it in!" Rory set the DVD player and watched the image pop on the screen. She plopped on the couch, settling into the soft cushions. Lorelai looked at her, hating to see her so displaced. She saw how hard Rory was trying to be normal. She was playing the role of who she used to be, and it killed Lorelai inside. All she wanted was for her daughter to be happy, to not hurt anymore.

"Hey, Rory," She looked up at her mother, inquisitively, "Go check your cell phone," Rory smiled in relief, puling her side kick out from her pocket. She turned it on, expecting to see messages in her in box. Upon seeing it empty she felt a bit empty herself. Logan hadn't called. No one had called. She felt as if she had been removed from her life; cast away by a terrible turn of events.

"Rory-"

"Let's watch the movie,"

"Do you want to talk?"

"No," Rory said adamantly, "Let's just watch the movie,"

Rory got in her car, the warm sum bouncing off of the rearview mirror, glaring directly in her eyes. She squinted, shading her eyes with one hand as she said good bye to Lorelai.

"Drive safe," Lorelai said with a smile, "Not that you ever don't. You drive twenty in a fourty zone," Rory pouted, shaking her head.

"Yes, it was alos snowing with sleet,"

"So?" Rory smiled.

"Bye Mom,"

"Bye hun. Call me when you get back,"

"I will," She backed out of the driveway and the drove off, leaving Stars Hollow behind her. Trees whizzed past as she drove, forming green blurs as her speed increased. All she wanted to do was get back to Yale where she belonged. She needed to be there for her friends and most of all she needed them. Her cell phone went off and she jumped in surprise, quickly grabbing it from her purse.

"Hello," She smiled when she heard Logan'svoice, the smooth sound sending chills down her spine.

"Logan-" She was cut short by the sickening sound of metal crashing against metal, her head driving itself intot he steering wheel with a resounding thud. As her car skidded off the road from the impact one lone voice could be heard, panic ringing in it's one repeated word.

"Rory...,"

Logan sat in the hospital, reflecting on how he had been there much more often than he cared to. He couldn't stop thinking about the phone call, the sound of him nearly losing everything. He had heard the crash, the heart wrenching sound of her gasping in pain as her head crashed into the steering wheel. Now she was in a hospital bed hooked up to several machines, unable to keep herself live. The thought of how she looked was enough to reduce him to tears; the bruised face, blood soaked hair.

"Where is she?" Logan looked up to see Lorelai, her eyes mirroring the same fear that he knew shone in his.

"She's in a recovery room. They won't let me see her though," Lorelai shook her head, surging to the front desk.

"What room is Rory Gilmore in?" The nurse looked up from her magazine, dark kholed lined eyes staring up at Lorelai's pale face.

"Are you family?"

"Yes, I'm her mother,"

"Her mother?" Lorelai scowled with frustration.

"Look, I had her when I was sixteen, end of story. What room is she in?"

"She's in room 118," Lorelai shot off towards the room, the nurses reprimands behind her. She quickly found the room, not even waiting a moment before barging in. The sight before her was terrible, so heart wrenching that she gasped aloud. Clamping a hand over her mouth she moved closer, unable to control her sobs. Rory's battered body was nestled among the pristine white sheets of the hospital, her head rolled a bit to one side. Her eye was swollen, a guaze bandage wrapped around her head to hamper bleeding caused from the blow to her head. Her right arm was broken, bandaged up in a stiff looking cast.

"Ma'am, you can't be in here," The nurse snapped, finally catching up with Lorelai. One look at Lorelai's tear stained face softened her though, the sight catching her off guard. She put a hand on her shoulder, turnign her away from her battered daughter.

"The doctor will come to you when he had more information. Come on," She gently led her out of the room, Lorelai still hearing the buzz of Rory's ventilator in her mind.

"Logan," He looked up to see Stephanie there, her eyes bloodshot, hands trembling. She sat next to him, carefully looking him in the eyes.

"I'm scared," He said, trying hard not to cry. Stephanie put her arms around him, holding him tightly.

"She'll make it," Stephanie said adamantly, "We've lost enough already, we're not losign her too,"

"I can't...," He broke off, shaking his head. He couldn't even stand to think of being without her. It wasn't possible, at least not in his mind. Stephanie looked over at Lorelai who was sitting with a guy she had never seen before. She was grasping a cup of coffee tightly, her legs shaking with nerves.

"How's Lorelai holding up?"

"She's okay, Luke's here so she has someone,"

"That's good,"

"Yeah," Logan saw Rory's doctor coming and immediatly streightened up, preparing himself for the worst.

"Are you the family of Rory Gilmore?" The nodded, Lorelai and Luke moving closer, "Okay, she is pretty injured from the crash but with proper restr she should make a full recovery. We had to do some surgeries to stop internal bleeding, but she is stable," Lorelai smiled, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh, that's wonderful,"

"And the baby is fine as well. She is very lucky to have not lost it,"

"What?" Lorelai looked at Logan, his eyes wide.

"Excuse me?"

"She's pregnant?" Logan asked in disbelief.

"Yes, she's about a month along," Logan stood up immediatly, unable to contain himself.

"Is she awake?"

"Yes, but-" Logan strode off, anxious to see Rory. He burst in, finding her awake with a hand resting on her still flat stomach.

"Ace," He went right to her side, taking her hand in his and kissing it tenderly. She gazed at him, eyes hazy.

"Logan, you're here," He held her hand even tighter, nodding.

"Yeah, I'm here Ace, I'm here. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Logan I need to tell you something,:

"I know," He said softly, wiping away stray hair from her face.

"How?"

"The doctor told me," She brought his hand to her stomach, pressing it against her belly.

"We're going to be parents Logan," He bent down and kissed her, unable to think of a sweeter kiss.

"I'm sorry about before," He said softly, watching her eyes mist up.

"Logan-"

"No, I need to say this. I was an ass before. I was upset and didn't know how to deal with it,"

"Logan, you don't have to say all of this,"

"I know, but I want to. I love you and would never do anything to make you think otherwise," She smiled, relieved to know that through it all she still had him.

"So, I think we should start thinking about names," She laughed, unaware of how happy the sound made Logan.

"Already?" he kissed her forehead, gently touching his lips to her skin.

"Yeah,"

"But we don't even know the gender yet,"

"Then we'll think of unisex names,"

"Like Pat,"

"Yeah, or Erin," Rory smiled, gazing up at him. She noticed the warm gleam in his eyes, compassionate smile. She had him back, it had been a hard journey, but Logan had returned to her.

"I love you," She said, wondering if she had ever meant anything more in her life.

"I love you too Ace,"

ONE YEAR LATER

"You have officially been replaced as my favorite boy," Rory teased Logan, smiling widely at him.

"I should've seen it coming," Logan responded with an easy smile. They were standing in Lorelai's rec room, the delicious smell of coffee wafting through the air.

"Seen what coming?" Lorelai asked, coming out from her kitchen with three cups of coffee.

"I've been replaced as Rory's favorite," Lorelai smiled.

"Oh sweetie, that was bound to happen," Lorelai looked over at Rory, eyes twinkling, "Now let me see your little cutie," Rory grinned, handing off her three month old to Lorelai. The baby giggled, immediatly grabbing on to one of Lorelai's curls.

"Ah, you're a grabber. That you definitely got from your mommy," Lorela kissed the baby's head, blonde hair just beginning to surface.

"He said his first word today," Rory said proudly, brimming with joy.

"What did he say?"

"Cocoa," Logan answered with a wry grin.

"Chanel or bean?" Rory laughed.

"I'm assuming bean, but that coudl be debated. Lorelai looked at the little baby in her arms, gently stroking its head with her hand.

"Regardless, he's adorable guys, he really is," Rory smiled, looking at her beautiful baby boy, her little Jake. Next she glanced at Logan, noticing how much he'd changed over the past year. He'd matured, finally become the man that she always knew he could be. She took his hand, rubbing her thumb along his still smooth skin. As he brought her hand to his mouth to kiss she caught sight of her wedding ring, a beautiful platinum band encrusted with the most precious diamonds. At that moment she realized how lucky she was. Although her path had been unexpected, wehere she ended up was exactly where she wanted to be. She had her family, she had Logan, she didn't need anything else. Except maybe coffee...but she was pretty sure Luke had that covered.

A/N: Thanks to everyone who has read this story the entire time. I really appreiate you reading. We had some ups and downs..but I am so thankful to the peopel who stuck it out and believed in this story. As you probably know I have tons of other stories so feel free to go read those...THANKS AGAIN!