Title: The Mariano Agenda
Author: Bent137
Rating: R
Disclaimer: Characters of Gilmore Girls(as well as anything else associated with it) aren't mine, the title is a spin of the Dark Angel episode "The Berrisford Agenda".
Spoilers: Up to the Season 2 Finale
Music References: No Music
Authors Note: I've had this bouncing around for a little while. I finally got the chance to sit and write it out. This is the first time I've done script format. Thanks to Rea for beta reading for me.

Black and Blue

Previously

Lorelai: What's wrong with him?

(The diner bell jingles. Cut to showing Jess walk in with his head down.)

Luke: We don't (trails off as he turns around.) Jess. Oh my god!

Lorelai: (turning around) Huh? Oh my god. Jess are you okay?

(Cut to Jess staring at them. He's bruised and obviously beaten. His face is swollen and black and blue, his nose is bleeding and the corner of his lip has been cut and is bleeding as well. He opens his mouth as if to say something, his lower lip trembles and he closes his mouth. He looks down.)

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(Cut to Rory and Paris settling into a pair of seats in the center of the auditorium. They are in the fifth row back from the stage, and the seats are slowly filling in around them. Though the auditorium is somewhat small there were very few people sitting in the back of the auditorium. Rory turns her attention from people watching to the pamphlet they had been given upon entering the auditorium. It is notebook size, with a light blue cover and plain black writing on it. It reads "Washington, D.C. Annual Leadership Summit June-July 2002." The letters are raised and Rory runs her hand over it before opening it to the first page. The first page boasts black and white drawings of some of the cities more famous sites, The Washington Monument, The Capitol Building, The White House, and The Pentagon pre-attack. Suddenly the lights dimmed and a spotlight hit the stage. A young man with short brown hair walks out into the spotlight, he's dressed fairly casually.)

Young Man: Hello everyone, my name is Mark. Welcome to the Annual Leadership Summit held here in beautiful Washington D.C. I hope you enjoy your stay with us. This has all been made possible by the wonderful people at Microsoft, McDonalds, and Borders. (Rory smiles at that.) It is now my pleasure to introduce to you the leader of this shindig, Sam Ecks.

(He backed up from the spotlight and began clapping, the audience followed suit as a young woman dressed in a frilly black skirt and a peasant blouse stepped into the light. Her auburn hair hung past her shoulders in thick waves and she smiled. Rory pushed aside the shock that Sam was in fact, female and clapped harder.)

Sam: Hello ladies and gentleman. I would also like to welcome you to the Annual Leadership Summit. My name is Sam, please do not call me Samantha, or Miss. Ecks, call me Sam. (she smiles) I hope we all have a wonderful time this year. Now lets get down to business. If you'd open up your pamphlets please.

(Cut to the diner, Luke is hurrying around the end of the counter towards Jess but Lorelai has already beaten him there. She wraps and arm casually around his shoulder and places her hand on his chin tipping his head up.)

Lorelai: Are you okay Jess? What am I saying? Of course you aren't okay. We better get you cleaned up! (She ushers him to Luke and they lead him to the stairs) I can take him up Luke, why don't you get him something to eat and drink? (Luke nodded and hurried towards the kitchen as Lorelai and Jess made their way up the stairs. She steered him into the bathroom and sat him down on the closed toilet.) Okay, let's clean you up. (She grabbed a washcloth and held it under the faucet, which she had turned on, she rung it out then began carefully cleaning Jess' wounds. Whenever she hit a particularly nasty spot he flinched and pulled back a bit.) There we go, nice and clean. (She turned and rinsed out the cloth then hung it up to dry. She opened the medicine cabinet above the sink and located a box of Band-Aids and some antiseptic cream.) Here we go, don't want you to get all infected and get gangrene and have your face fall off now do we? After all your biting wit wouldn't be nearly as devastating if you weren't cute huh? (She began dabbing some of the cream on his battered face and placing the bandages over it.)

Jess: Um, Miss Gilmore?

Lorelai: Call me Lorelai, Jess.

Jess: Okay, Lorelai, why are you doing this?

Lorelai: Doing what? (she was still bandaging him)

Jess: Acting worried, acting like you care?

Lorelai: Well, um, because you're hurt.

Jess: (smirking) So it's not to get back on Luke's good side?

Lorelai: Um, well, no. Not completely at least. I guess I just feel kind of guilty. I think I've misjudged you, and been a little too harsh, and expected too much or maybe even not enough or maybe I shouldn't have expected at all. And in the process I not only hurt Luke, but I hurt my own daughter. I mean, she cares about you, god knows why. So maybe I should make an effort.

Jess: (calmly and coolly) Sometimes, you have to be harsh. Sometimes you have to expect too much, or not enough, or at all. Sometimes, you can't help but hurt people. Sometimes you run, sometimes you don't. Sometimes you should, sometimes you shouldn't. (Lorelai stared at Jess in confusion, his eyes were glazed over and he was staring at the grout in the floor) I've done a lot of things I shouldn't have. I shouldn't have ran.

Lorelai: Ran from what?

Jess: (looks up into her eyes. His eyes seem dim and lifeless) Death, life, love, hate, joy, pain. It's a vicious circle. (He stood up and brushed past her and walked out the door of the apartment.)