Chapter seventeen

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Rory exhaled, heavily, "Ya see, a few weeks ago, something sorta happened with, um, Jess and me."

"Yes?" Lorelai prompted.

"Well, he'd come into my place 'cos, well, I still don't really know why and he was being all broody, but I somehow managed to strike up a conversation with him, but then Karen-"

"Who's Karen?"

"His girlfriend." Rory answered, before continuing, "Karen called and she heard me in the background and she kinda freaked out and broke up with him, so he asked if he could stay the night 'cos he didn't feel like driving home and I said yes and he, he said he'd sleep on the couch but I said he could share the bed, and- "

"Rory, breathe."

"When I woke up, I just looked at him, and…"

"And?"

"I kissed him. But somehow it, uh, turned into…you know."

"Oh, God."

"Mom? Are you mad?"

"Yes, I'm mad, Rory, you just started seeing this guy again, you can't just sleep with him, right off the bat!"

"I know, it was terrible, I-"

"And this is Jess, Rory, the guy that broke your heart by leaving without so much as a goodbye!"

"I know, it just happened-"

"Bull! Things like this don't 'just happen', you have to make them happen, and YOU made this happen!"

"I know, I'm sorry, I-"

"And you waited a few weeks to tell me?"

"That's because you're reacting like this!"

"How do you expect me to react? Do you expect me to congratulate you on a fine choice? Do you expect me to comfort you and go 'There, there, Rory'?"

"No! Just don't be mad, it was just a one time thing, it's no big deal."

"You can't have a one time thing with someone like Jess, he's always going to be around, he's going to be your step cousin! Wow, whole new level of gross."

"Mom, calm down."

"No! Oh my God, I can't even talk about this with you anymore!"

"Mom!"

"Sorry, Rory, goodbye." She said, hanging up.

Ggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg

"Karen, I supposed your living situation is…bearable." Sheila admitted, frowning.

"It's a nice place, Kar." Paul said, with a smile.

"Thanks mom, dad."

"And I supposed the father is just about acceptable."

Logan rolled his eyes, before receiving a swift nudge in the gut from Karen, "Thanks, Sheila."

"Okay, so we'll be leaving, then." Sheila said, gesturing for Paul to get her coat, which he did.

"See ya, Kar." Paul said, heading out.

"Goodbye, Karen."

Logan waited until they were out of the apartment and the door was closed, "So, your mom…"

"I told you, she's a bi-"

"She's creepy, but your dad's okay."

"Yep, if my dad hadn't been there, I don't think I could've survived my childhood."

"If your dad hadn't been here, I don't think I could've survived today."

"Aw, Logan, did da wittle old lady scare you?"

"No, wait, what am I saying? Yes."

"And that's why I didn't want to call them."

"Okay, I give, I shouldn't have called."

"Thank you."

"Maybe a carrier pigeon next time…"

"A carrier pigeon, a cannon ball, a speeding bullet, whatever."

"Come on, let's go watch movie, this apartment smells too much of perfume."

"Okay."

Ggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg

"So, Rory, how's school?" Emily asked as they had dinner.

"Good." Rory said, looking at her dinner plate.

"And Lorelai, how's work?"

"Good." Lorelai replied, doing the same.

"Okay. Well, this is very nice, just us girls, Richard's in Yemen, on business for the next few weeks." Both girls grunted in acknowledgement, "What's wrong with you two?"

"Ask her." Rory said, "She's the one that won't talk to me."

"How can I? You're all the way at Yale, it's not like you answer your calls."

"Yeah, I have these little things called classes, you wouldn't know, you never went to college."

"Rory!" Emily said, "You two will either have to explain to me why you're fighting or be civil to each other for the rest of the evening, which will it be?"

"We were being perfectly civil before, mom."

"Yeah, we were."

"Fine. Lorelai, how're the plans going?"

"What plans?"

"The wedding plans, of course."

"They're going fine, we're having it in the inn."

"Oh." Emily paused, "Don't you think it should be in a place a little…grander?"

"The inn's plenty grand, mom."

"Yes, but still…the very fact that you're marrying the owner of a diner is an embarrassment to the family, but really, you should do it right."

"I am doing it right!"

"Don't raise your voice."

"I have a reason to raise my voice, you've just insulted both my fiancé and my inn!"

"Why do you have to be so dramatic about everything?"

"I'm not being dramatic, I'm just annoyed, mom."

"Fine, congratulations on grabbing yourself a diner owner, congratulations for being the one to propose, congratulations for every little thing to do with this wedding."

"Don't you mean 'best wishes'?" Lorelai corrected, stonily, before storming out, Rory trailing in her wake.

Once they were out of the door, Rory went up to Lorelai, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

"Are we good?"

"Yeah, hun, we're good."