I hope this chapter turned as well as I wanted it to! I really struggled to find the right flow, I'm still not sure if I nailed it quite like I was planning. Hope you all enjoy.

And for any Something Corporate fans, I have a tiny reference at the end; see if you can catch it. I think the actual line it refers to (and the song) really describes Jess and Rory.

Oh, and for those people adding my story to their alerts, a review would be really great; I like knowing that you are reading and interested in the next installment, but I'd also like to know what you actually think in terms of the plot, my writing style, any grammatical errors, etc. I honestly take criticism (kindly phrased) pretty well so don't be afraid to say something is not right.

P.S. So my email is being quite weird so anyone wanting to talk GG and beta-ing, could you message me on AIM? My AIM SN perfectreject052. I'm practically always on and always looking for a friendly person to talk to, especially about GG:)

Chapter 8 – Here I Am With Open Arms

Hoping you'll see what your love means to me.

After he gratefully accepted Jess's offer to help Lane and Caesar run the diner that evening, Luke slowly lumbered up the stairs to his apartment. Despite having spent another day sitting on the bridge in silence, he felt worn out and wanted nothing more than to sleep away his exhaustion and confusion.

Lorelai's confession lingered in the back of his mind, torturing him. He wasn't quite sure what he would do when he saw her; mostly, right now, he just wanted to yell, but he knew Jess was right.

Luke had to forgive her. He loved her and couldn't picture the rest of his life—happily, at least—without her. And a small part of him felt that Lorelai would have never run to Christopher if Luke hadn't spent the last few months treating her the way that he had.

Tomorrow, Luke decided, he would go to her and they would start on the path to making things right again. It would take time, but he knew that they would work things out eventually. And this time, he wouldn't let anyone or anything ruin it.

Entering the small apartment, Luke stripped down to his boxers and approached the bed. However, the sight before him caused him to pause in surprise.

A miserable-looking Lorelai slept in his bed, with her slender arms tightly clutching one of his pillows. He could tell that she had been crying; her eyes were puffy and her face was blotchy. As she breathed in and out, she slightly snored.

Luke knew it was stupid, but she looked more beautiful to him in this moment than she ever had before. Because he could see, even as she slept, how much she loved him. She had stayed to wait for him.

Luke slowly advanced to the bed and sat down beside her, resting a hand on one of hers. The motion produced by his weight and the sensation of his touch caused Lorelai to stir.

"Wh- what? Luke! I'm so sorry! I am so, so sorry! Please just tell me how to fix this. I'm so sorry." Sitting up quickly, Lorelai threw her arms around Luke and began sobbing as she repeatedly apologized. "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me."

Luke wrapped his arms around her until she eventually stopped sobbing and apologizing.

Pulling away, he looked into her blue eyes and said, "I'm going to forgive you. I have to, not only because I love you, but because this was my fault too. We both need to forgive each other. But I need time; I can't do it today. Today, I need to sleep this day off. But I promise you, we're going to work things out."

"I love you too. Thank you," Lorelai softly replied with a small smile, sniffling. She slowly pushed herself off the bed in order to leave, until Luke gently pulled her back down into his arms.

"I'm not ready to talk, forgive, or even think. But tonight, stay. No words, no sex. Just stay with me," he whispered into her ear.

Lorelai nodded gratefully, flashing Luke another small smile behind her shoulder. They fell back onto the bed, settling into comfortable positions.

As the memories of the day washed over Luke, he pulled Lorelai closer, trying to block Christopher's leering face from his mind.

---

Rory waited anxiously for Lorelai's return in her reading chair, unable to actually focus on the novel in front of her. She was too nervous. What if Luke doesn't forgive Mom? she wondered miserably. Luke's the closest thing I have to father figure. I've spent every Father's Day with him for the last 5 years, even if we never admit that we're hanging out because of Father's Day.

However, her cell phone's buzzing interrupted Rory's worried thoughts. Hoping it was Lorelai confirming a happy reunion, Rory leap up out of the chair—the novel resting on her lap went flying to the floor—and quickly answered the phone without glancing at the number. "Hello? Mom?"

"Hey Ace."

Rory's heart jumped painfully. She hadn't given Logan much thought in the last few days, but suddenly she realized how much she missed him.

"Logan! How's London? Or should I say the 'Square Mile'?"

"Well, check you out, sounding like a naïve. The flight was long. I miss you. London's a bit dreary without you around."

She scoffed loudly. "London? Dreary? I don't believe that. Where have you been? Oh, did you go to the Palace of Westminster yet? How about the British Museum? Oh, please tell me you've seen the Rosetta Stone."

"Hey, hey, hey." Logan laughed. "I've only been here a couple days. Give me time."

"I wish I was in London." Rory said absentmindedly and immediately knew what Logan's reaction would be.

"Then come! I'll wire you money. It could be fun, spend our time visiting famous places, and doing other things…" Logan's voice was suggestive and Rory could imagine him raising his eyebrow as he spoke.

For a split second, Rory considered his offer, though she knew that there was no way she could do that to her mother. "Logan, I can't."

"Oh c'mon, why not?"

"Well, some things have been happening in Star's Hollow and I need to be here. For my mom."

Logan was silent on the other end; she knew that he disliked 'sensible' Rory and waited for him to tell her so. He didn't disappoint. "Ror, this is the opportunity of a lifetime. Your mom will do just fine without you."

"I know it is. But really, my mom really needs me…" Rory trailed off, thinking of her vow to rediscover herself. She wondered what Logan would think of that.

Perceptively, Logan asked, "Is that all? Your mom needs you? That's the only reason you're turning down a chance of a life time to visit London with your boyfriend?"

"Well, my mom isn't the entire reason, but she's definitely the biggest," Rory said.

"What else?"

"Well, lately I've been noticing how different I am from how I used to be. So I thought I might try to, you know, to 'rediscover' myself. And I think Stars Hollow is a good place to do that."

"I like you just the way you are."

Without thinking, Rory replied, "But I don't." Logan didn't respond and Rory sighed. "I just miss some of the things I used to do is all. I missing reading and spending time with my mom."

"Okay, Ace. I have to go."

"Oh, okay."

"I love you, Rory. Don't change too much while I'm gone."

Rory didn't bother to reply to the second comment. "Love you too."

---

A few hours after they had returned to the diner, Jess decided that it might be about time to check on Luke.

"Hey, I'm going to go upstairs for a minute," Jess called out to Lane, who was arguing with Kirk about the cost of his modifications to a tuna melt.

"Sure, Jess!" Lane responded, turning back to Kirk. "Look, Kirk, I am not going to take 50 cents of the cost of the tuna melt just because you don't want cheese today! It's only 3 dollars anyway!"

"But I am assuming that the cheese is part of the cost, and if I don't want the cheese, then-"

As Jess climbed the stairs, Lane and Kirk's argument faded into the overall clamor of the diner. He swung the door open, moving through the apartment to find Luke.

The sight of the Luke and Lorelai wrapped up together while peacefully sleeping made Jess smirk, and he turned to leave the room.

"Jess?" Luke whispered softly from the bed.

"Yeah?" Jess answered in an equally soft voice.

"Bring up some soup, wheat toast, and a burger, onion rings, and apple pie. I'm finally hungry again."

Jess couldn't suppress the smile that appeared on his face; since he'd arrived at Star's Hollow, convincing Luke to eat anything had been an arduous endeavor. Nodding even though Luke's eyes were closed, Jess turned to leave once again.

However, he glanced at the sleeping couple once more before leaving, and even though Lorelai's back was facing him, he was almost certain she was smiling.

---

Rory hung up, feeling a little frustrated. She had hoped that Logan would understand her quest to reconnect with her former self. Wasn't that the Rory he'd fallen in love with in the first place?

Still, she missed him and thought sadly of how far away Christmas was. And London would be amazing… but I can't desert Mom right now, she really needs me.

At the thought of her mother, Rory realized that it had been quite a while since Lorelai had left and she still had no idea where her mother was or what was going on.

Pressing the 2 on her cell phone pad, Rory listened to her mother's cell phone ring several times, only to realize that the phone was sitting on the kitchen table.

The only other number Rory knew to call was the diner; she was certain that Lorelai would not have gone anywhere else once she told Luke. But what if Mom and Luke haven't worked things out? I don't want to upset him by calling and asking about her.

Praying that Lane or Caesar answered the phone instead of Luke, Rory took a deep breath and speed-dialed the diner.

But the voice that picked up the phone did not belong to Lane, Caesar, or even Luke.

"Hello?" Jess's cool voice answered.

"Oh hi, Jess."

"Rory?"

"Yeah. Um, this might sound strange, but do you know where my mom is?" Rory bit her lip, feeling rather silly asking Jess of all people if he knew where her mother was.

"Huh. You lost her?"

"Well, not quite. I just don't know where she is."

"I think Webster might argue that, given your description, you lost her."

"Shut up," Rory replied good-naturedly, feeling slightly flustered by his innocent teasing.

"Wow, Gilmore, your wit is astounding. What has that school been teaching you?"

"Look, I'd love to retort, but I really need to know if you know if my mom is there. I'm a little worried."

"Yeah, she's here."

Rory let out a sigh of relief. "And?"

"To paraphrase Goldman or, if you wish, Morgenstern, mistakes cannot stop true love. All they can do is delay it for a while."

Rory felt a smile take over her entire face. She knew they would work things out. "Well, I'll never doubt again," she joked.

"I don't think there will never be a need," he replied seriously.

His tone and words sent a shiver down her spine and a strangely comfortable silence lingered between them. Finally, Jess asked, "You hungry?"

"I'm a Gilmore."

"Come to the diner, I'll have Caesar make you something. If you hurry, you might catch what I have coined 'the tuna melt meltdown of 2006' between Lane and Kirk. I think she's going to end Luke's record."

"But only Luke kicks Kirk out of the diner!" Rory exclaimed.

"I think we are on the edge of something new. "