Chris's Condo in Boston
Rory walks up to the door. She stands in front willing herself to make a move. Finally she bangs on the door and then quickly folds her arms over her chest. "Be right there!" she hears Christopher yell. Rory rolls her eyes glancing around. She's never really visited Chris's place so she's just taking in the scenery. Finally the door opens. "Rory," Chris says in shock.
"Hi," Rory responds, nervously tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
"Uh, come in." Chris motions her inside with his hand. Rory takes a deep breath walking past Chris inside. Chris pauses, taking a moment to hope that it's good that she came. Then he closes the door and turns around. Rory has walked into his living room and is glancing through his CDs. "I got the new Sparks CD. Your mother was really happy about it. Maybe you could take it and burn it for her." Chris walks into the living room. Rory picks up the CD, pursing her lips. Then she sets it down and turns to face Chris, glaring at him.
"Why do you keep doing this?" she asks coldly.
"Doing what?" Rory huffs.
"You know what I mean!" she cries, throwing her arms in the air. Chris shakes his head slowly. "You just keep showing up. You just keep trying to get in good with Mom. To fix things." Chris sighs.
"Rory, I screwed up. I know I did. That's why I want to fix things. I want to make up for what I did," Chris attempts to explain.
"You can't make up for that!" Rory exclaims, shaking her hands and looking at him like he's an idiot. Chris looks crestfallen.
"Rory, I don't understand how you can get over your mother cheating on me like that but I'm in the doghouse for the rest of my life." Rory shrugs.
"For one thing, she's my mother," Rory responds.
"So? I'm your father," Chris reminds her.
"Not much of one," Rory mutters. Chris put his hands on his hips.
"And Luke's a better one? Remember he was the one that your mother cheated on me with."
"I know. I heard the story. But Luke never hurt my mother. He never hit her. He never slapped her. He never shoved her against a wall by her throat almost choking her to death," Rory spits out. Chris's mouth drops open, as if he's amazed that Rory knows the entire story.
"Rory, I was drunk," Chris responds.
"Stop making excuses!" Rory shouts. "Mom can make all the excuses she wants, it happened to her. If that's the only way she can bring herself to forgive and try to get me to forgive then fine. I don't agree with it, but it's her choice. But you can't be using it as an excuse."
"Rory, it's the truth." Rory covers her ears with her hands and screams. Chris raises his eyebrows, having never seen this side of Rory. "Rory!" Rory glares at him. She reaches in her purse and extracts the series of pictures she found in Lorelai's old room in the Gilmore mansion of Lorelai and Chris mugging for the camera in '83. Making sure that Christopher knows exactly the pictures she's holding, Rory blatantly rips the strip in half long ways, letting the pieces flutter to the floor. Christopher stares down at the pieces in shock.
"Why do I even bother? Why do I try to come here to beg you stay away from Mom? Why would I ever think you would listen?" Rory wonders. "You say you want to be my father. You say you want to fix our relationship and then you go to the diner and pick a fight with my dad."
"I didn't go there to act out West Side Story. I…" Chris gives a defeated sigh. He looks down at the ground, trying to figure out what to do. "When you walked away after yelling at me at the memorial service, Emily told me to fix it. So I went there to tell him that nothing happened between me and Lorelai. She showed up here all upset and I just let her calm down for a bit. I gave her some coffee. It's not like I slipped her a roofie."
"And did you really think that was going to help things? My dad hates you. You hurt Mom. He had to come here and get her that night. He had to pick up the pieces. He had to try to mend what you broke. What, did you think that he would just listen to what you had to say and all would be well? You're like Daniel Cleaver picking a fight with Darcy just so he could be with the only woman he thought he had a chance with."
"I wasn't trying to get her back. I have a girlfriend, Rory. I was just trying to help," Chris insists. Rory folds her arms over her chest.
"Well stop. Just stop. Mom's better off not having you in her life at all than receiving even a bit of help from you." Chris stares at her. "The less you're in her life, the more likely she can finally get over what you did." Chris scratches her head, looking really befuddled.
"I don't get it. She came here of her own accord when she was going through her post-partum depression. That fact that she came here at all surprised me. But she told me again and again that she had gotten over it." Chris shrugs. "I just thought she had." Rory shakes her head.
"She's not over it. She's never gotten over it. If you were surprised that she hid the fact she had post-partum depression for all those years, then you don't really know Mom. She keeps everything inside. Mom just wants people to believe that nothing can hurt her, that she's invincible. And she almost is. She's the strongest person I've ever known. Pippi can lift a horse but Lorelai Gilmore can move mountains," Rory says. Chris chuckles.
"Now that I know. That's what always impressed me about your mother," Chris recalls smiling to herself.
"So every time she gets hurt, she just tucks it away inside. When you left her when I was a baby. When her parents told her she was throwing her life away. When I was 6 and yelled at her that I wanted a normal childhood with a home she couldn't afford and nice clothes that she couldn't afford and a bike that she really couldn't afford. When you hurt her. Each time she just made a little space in her heart and put it away in there and it's collected and she's hurting. Mom's hurting so much that she doesn't even know it and she doesn't remember why because she never learned how to deal with it. She thought that if you just ignore it, move on, then all her problems, all the pain, would just go away. It's childish, I know, but who was going to teach her anything else?"
"Who taught you?" Chris responds. Rory shrugs.
"I don't really know. Molly Ringwald?" Chris chuckles through the tension in the room. Rory gives him a slight smile. "I've never been strong like Mom. I wasn't built like that."
"Yeah, me neither," Chris agrees. Rory gazes at Chris for a moment, understanding what he's saying. She looks down. Chris grimaces. "So, Ror, is she still hurting?" Rory looks up at him and nods.
"Yeah, she is," Rory admits.
"If it's been going on that long, how's it ever going to change?" Chris wonders.
"She's starting to open up, I think. Dad does something for her. He's her Warren Justice. When she feels the world's coming apart at the seams, he's there," Rory tells Chris.
"I thought they were broken up," Chris notes. Rory looks away, sadly.
"Yeah," she whispers. She glances over at the CDs, fiddling with them for a moment. "I tried to fix that. I'm not sure what's going to work, but something will. Liam and Olivia need them together." Rory smiles to herself. "Mom and Dad need Mom and Dad to be together." She glances over at Chris.
"Well, what Lorelai wants, Lorelai gets. So if that's what she wants…" Rory nods. She almost turns to leave but then picks up the Sparks CD, biting her lower lip.
"I don't want to walk out of here and never see you again," Rory admits, glancing up at Chris. He raises an eyebrow. "You'll never be my dad. Once Mom and Dad get back together, I'll finally have a family, but I can't just ignore you."
"So what are you saying Rory?"
"Just give me a little time," she responds.
"And then..." Rory shrugs.
"We'll see." Chris shoves his hands in his pockets, wanting more of a promise out of Rory, but knowing that's the best offer he's gotten from her in a long time. "Just leave Mom alone." Chris nods.
"I will," Chris promises. "I guess I never realized…" Chris shrugs and Rory gets his meaning.
"Yeah…" Rory looks back down at the CD and then back at Chris. "Can I copy this?" Chris grins.
"Yeah and make a copy for your mom. You don't have to tell her who it's from," Chris replies. Rory nods.
"Okay. Well I better be getting back to Yale," Rory decides. As she walks away, Rory pauses at the door and looks back at Chris. "I'll call you sometime."
"I can't wait," Chris answers, giving her a smile. Rory nods and walks out.