Disclaimer: These characters are so not mine. This particular scenario is though.
Thank you to my reviewers:
E.DelaMer – Thank you so much! I was trying to walk a thin line between being romantic and being appropriate. I think tension and imagination are powerful tools when used properly.
gilmore15girl – You're not the only one whose mind can turn to dirty jokes at the thought of Jess, lol. Another line I was trying to walk was covering the wedding without straying too far from the RJcentricity (Look, I made a new word), so I'm glad you liked it.
xh4z3L3y3sx – Thank you! And here's more for you to enjoy…
evangeline b – I'm guessing that means you really liked it, lol. Thank you!
inge-loves-lost – Thank you so much!
just hidden – Thank you! And here's more…
secondwolfmoon – Thank you!
Lunatic Lorenzio – It's very important for this story that they didn't go ahead, so I'm really glad you agree. And thank you for mentioning the parts you liked!
Tookie Clothespin – Thank you! I can see it playing out in my head, so I'm glad the words transfer some of that effect to you, the reader.
IloveJoeL. – 'Yay!' is right, although it was kind of fun writing the tension between them.
Roslynd – I'm glad you thought it was good. Are there particular things you see as not Rory-like? I pretty much write the characters how they exist in my head, and while I try to keep it accurate, sometimes my mental image can stray from the cannon characters, so your feedback is appreciated.
AN: Here's more! Sadly, I've hit that 'they've already kissed' lull where it becomes imperitive to find other sources from which to draw dramatic tension and raise the stakes. Don't worry too much, there's still plenty more important things to deal with, but in my opinion the last chapter was kind of hard to follow. The movies I mention are actually really good, and I suggest watching them if you ever get the chance, though they can be hard to come across.
(Almost) Just Like the Movie
"You have to let me go in first," Rory begged as she dragged Jess down the sidewalk of an unfamiliar town somewhere in New York.
It was a beautiful day and there were many people out walking and shopping, some of whom Rory didn't seem to care about plowing over for the sake of her mission. Jess sighed and tried to ignore the curious glances the two of them were eliciting from passers-by.
"It's silly, Rory. There's no reason for it."
"And there's no reason against it, either. So…you should let me go in first."
"And then what? You can stand there and while we pretend we don't know each other. Don't be silly."
"Aww, c'mon Jess. This is the fifth place we've been to today; at all the others I've just stood by and listened. It'll be fun. And aren't you even a tiny bit curious?"
Jess avoided her eyes. He was curious, but the whole idea still seemed ridiculous to him.
"Hah! I can see it in your face. You're curious, and according to the address you showed me, we should be almost…here."
Rory stopped and looked up at the sign that read 'Charlie's New and Used Books'. After taking a few seconds to size up the place through the window, Rory turned back to Jess.
"Okay, now you wait out here for a few minutes, and then you can come in. After I do my thing, I'll just find a book and eavesdrop from behind some shelves or something. I'll leave whenever you leave."
Jess rolled his eyes; there was no stopping Rory when she got an idea into her head, something she had obviously inherited from her mother. Rory stopped and looked at Jess seriously for a moment.
"Does this really bother you? Because if it does…"
She was interrupted by him pulling her to him and placing a firm kiss on her lips before he gently pushed her away towards the store entrance.
"Go have your fun, if you must."
Rory's eyes lit up and she practically bounced into the store, leaving Jess to shake his head and find a wall to lean against while he waited. Inside, Rory took a moment to glance through the stacks, just like any other customer might. An employee, alerted by the chimes on the door, noticed her and began to walk over.
"Is there something I can help you with, Miss?" the clerk asked.
"Yes, actually there is. My friend recommended a book to me and I simply have to find it. I've been hearing so much about it recently, but I haven't been able to find it anywhere!"
"What book might that be?"
"The Subsect, by Jess Mariano."
"The Subsect…The Subsect…Oh, yes, I remember it. A limited run book, right? I'm afraid I don't really know much about it except that we haven't moved a single copy, yet. They've just been taking up space."
Rory's heart sank. She knew that Jess already knew the book hadn't been selling in this store, that's why they were there today, but she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed and hurt for him at the clerk's indifference.
"Oh…well, could you show me where I could find a copy?"
"Sure. Right this way…" the man began as he set off through the stacks.
Rory was surprised when the man continued walking all the way to the back of the store to an unmarked section which seemed to hold a menagerie of books from every genre.
"Here they are."
"Where?" Rory asked confused as to where the clerk was referring.
"Right here," the clerk responded while pointing to the bottom shelf.
Rory was feeling a little bit indignant by this point, but she tried not to let it show too much.
"What are they doing all the way back here, and in this section instead of with the rest of the fiction?"
"Well, there wasn't really a lot of space up there," the clerk continued, "so we had to find a place to put them. Though, I'm not really sure what it's even about. Your friend actually read it and liked it?"
"She said she enjoyed it very much, and it reminded her of Hemingway, which isn't a surprise by the way, because I've heard that one of Jess…uh…Jess Mariano's favorite authors is Hemingway. And believe you me, my friend is a picky reader, so she wouldn't just say that, and she's read a lot to compare it to."
"Oh?"
"Yes, and really, no wonder these books haven't been selling, stuck in a corner like this. I mean, if you want the book to move off the shelves, people have to know it's there in order to consider buying it."
"Well, of course that's true..."
Rory bent over and pulled one of Jess' books off the shelf.
"I mean not everyone can have the luck of having a friend recommend a good book like this to them. That's part of why people come to bookstores."
"What?" the clerk asked confusedly.
Rory flipped open the cover and the first page or two of the book to find the dedication. There it was: her name, and a declaration that without her, none of it would have been possible. Her fingers traced the ink on the page as a smile crept onto her face.
"People don't always go into a bookstore knowing what they're looking for. They rely on displays and recommendations to lead them to something worth reading. And I think this book is worth reading, so I'm a little disappointed that it's stuffed into a corner instead of at least being in a section where people who might be interested can find it."
The salesperson was a little confused by this young woman's apparent devotion to a book she claimed she hadn't even read yet.
"Would you like me to ring that copy up for you?"
"Uh…"
This wasn't exactly going as Rory had planned. She didn't really want to buy another copy because she wanted it on the shelves for someone else to buy. Before she could think any further, Rory heard the chimes on the door again and realized it must be Jess coming in.
"I'm not finished looking around."
"Oh. Well, please, find me if you need anything."
"Thank you," Rory said as she pretended to begin to peruse the shelves as the clerk walked away.
As soon as he was out of sight, Rory let out a sigh and went to return the book to its previous place on the hidden-wrong-section-shelf. As she knelt down, she felt the urge to run her fingers across the bindings of all his books, lined up in a row. Hearing muffled conversation from the front of the store, Rory lost herself for a moment in the feeling of being surrounded by books, and in particular, being near his books. When she realized she could hear voices approaching her, Rory tried to stand up quickly to get away. Instead, she found herself face to face with the same clerk, this time accompanied by Jess, who seemed amused by Rory's surprise at seeing him.
"Ah yes, she's still here," the clerk continued. "Miss, you seemed so interested in that book, I thought you would like to meet the author. He seemed surprised he would have such an avid fan here."
"It's quite a coincidence," Jess stated calmly, but Rory could see the amusement in his eyes, telling her 'I told you so. This was a silly idea!'
Rory was getting too flustered to respond properly, and she could feel her cheeks turning beet red. She shot Jess a small look and dashed back to the front of the store and out the door, leaving the chimes clanging. Fifteen minutes later, Rory was leaning against a wall a few storefronts down, sipping a coffee she had just bought. She heard the bookstore door chimes ring again as someone exited. After a quick glance around, Jess spotted Rory and walked over to join her.
"Okay, fine. It was a silly idea…" Rory began sheepishly, but Jess interrupted her.
"Actually, no it wasn't so silly," Jess admitted.
Rory shot him a questioning look.
"Well, the guy was impressed someone had heard of my book, and he felt bad about it not getting a good spot on the shelves, so we moved them to where they belonged, and there was even a customer who overheard part of both of our conversations with the clerk, and he ended up buying a copy, and he even said if he liked it he would tell his friends, so…"
"So…what?"
"So…," Jess leaned in, "thank you for your silly idea."
He grinned before placing a gentle kiss on her lips, and Rory felt a little less foolish now that her idea had brought about some good results.
"So, we're done for today, and about two hours from Stars Hollow. What would you like to do?" he asked.
"Actually, I'm a little tired, and I'm supposed to go into the Stamford paper tomorrow, even though it's a Tuesday. And right now I should to get back to feed Paul Anka, not to mention he's probably not happy about being left alone all day…"
"Okay, okay, so Stars Hollow it is."
"But maybe we could do a movie night?" Rory asked giving Jess a pouting look.
"I get to pick either the movies or the food." Jess said warningly.
Rory pouted again, but Jess just stared back at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Fine. I'm picking the movies," Rory huffed slightly.
"Wonderful." Jess teased as he took Rory's hand and pulled her off the wall she was leaning on so they could walk back to his car.
Two and half hours, two coffee stops, fourteen CD changes, and one rehashed Rand/Hemingway debate later, Rory and Jess pulled into a parking space in the center of Stars Hollow. Rory hopped out of the car first.
"You get the food, I'll get the movies, and we'll meet back at the house?"
"Sounds dandy."
"Oh! And Jess?"
"Yeah?"
"Maybe you should, uh…pack some pajamas or something…I mean, you've borrowed Luke's clothes two nights in a row…"
"So, I'm invited to stay the night again?"
Rory just grinned and nodded. Jess smiled back.
"See you back at the house then."
Jess entered the house without knocking, loaded down with a duffel bag and food from Luke's. He went straight to the living room where Rory was waiting on the couch.
"You brought Luke's?"
"It's free and readily available."
"Oh, I guess…"
"What movies did you get?"
Rory perked up at this question, and picked up the movies she had stacked on the coffee table.
"You ready for this?"
"I hope so…"
"We're having a Hitchcock night, but not the typical Hitchcock movies…"
"So no Psycho?"
"Try Mr. & Mrs. Smith and Rebecca."
"Rebecca is the one with the girl who marries the rich guy, but keeps getting reminded about his dead wife, right? And something about a creepy housekeeper?"
"You got it."
"What about the other one? I've never heard of it, since clearly it's not the new one."
"Not even close. It's a classic, seriously. A 1941 screwball comedy with Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery…"
"Hitchcock directed a screwball comedy?"
"Stay with me here, Jess…"
"Sorry."
"It's about a couple that's been married a few years and they're really happy even though they fight a lot about silly stuff, and they have all kinds of rules that they agreed to follow. One morning she asks him whether, if he had the choice to marry her to make again, would he marry her? Because of their rules he has to answer truthfully. Basically, he says no, then later that day they find out that because of a technicality, they're not actually married. Hilarity ensues."
Jess was looking at Rory skeptically by this point.
"It's got great comedy and some really funny scenes. Plus, you can tell it was risqué for the time."
Jess hadn't changed his expression yet.
She pouted up at him, "Just trust me?"
He rolled his eyes and placed his bag on the floor and the food on the coffee table before flopping next to her on the couch.
"Let's get started before the food gets cold," Jess suggested, opening the bags of food.
Rory put Rebecca in, and they settled onto the couch to eat their food. When they were finished eating, she snuggled herself under Jess' arm, and he leaned over quickly to kiss her temple before turning back to the television. Rory felt a smile come across her face involuntarily as she thought how perfect the last few days had been. Whereas the week before the wedding they'd both been extremely busy and had hardly spent any time with each other outside of her meals at Luke's or wedding errands, since the wedding they had been inseparable. Granted, it had only been a couple days, but Rory was really enjoying waking up to him in the morning, falling asleep with him at night, and, while she was thinking of it, doing things with him in between the getting up and the going back to sleep.
"That twist still gets me every time," Rory said as she stood up to stretch and switch the movies after Rebecca ended.
Just after Rory had put the second movie in, but before they had pressed play, then the phone rang, and Rory began digging around the living room to find it. Finally pulling it from underneath a magazine on the armchair, she answered just before the machine picked up.
"Hello?"
"Hey kid!"
"Mom! How are you? How is Vermont?"
"It's so much fun. You know how I was skeptical when Luke suggested a cabin in Vermont…"
"Of course…"
"But this is amazing! We have a fireplace in our room, and a Jacuzzi, and it's nice to have a cabin so we're not near other people, for their sakes," Lorelai giggled maniacally.
"I'm sure, so are there things to do there, outside of your cabin, that is?"
"Yes, but we haven't done any of them yet. In fact, we haven't really gotten out much, at all really…"
"Oh, ew, right."
"It's a honeymoon, right sweetie? How are things back home? I'm sure Paul Anka is thrilled he gets to spend so much time with you."
"Well, he was a little miffed at me this evening because I left him alone most of the day."
"Oh, where'd you go?"
"Jess and I went to check on some of the bookstores carrying his book."
Jess glanced up at the mention of his name, and Rory walked over to sit next to him on the couch.
"Aha. What are you up to tonight?"
"Jess and I are having a movie night, he brought food from Luke's and I rented Rebecca and Mr. & Mrs. Smith, the Hitchcock movie, not Brad and Angela."
"I'd hope so!...Done anything else interesting since we've been gone? Is the house trashed yet? You never really did throw a good house trashing party when you had the place to yourself. This could be one of your last chances."
"Ha Ha. Very funny, mom. Nah, Jess and I slept in yesterday, then he went to help out at the diner and I tagged along with some things I had to read to research for an article I'm writing. You know he actually cooked dinner last night? He's no Luke, but it beat anything I could've made on my own."
Lorelai cleared her throat a little before responding.
"So you and Jess slept in?"
Rory realized what she had said, and blushed, especially when she heard Luke repeat the question in the background.
"Well, yeah…"
"So is there anything else you want to tell mommy? Like why you and Jess are waking up together. When did this start?" Lorelai asked trying very hard not to sound freaked out at the thought of her daughter waking up in the morning next to Jess, in her house nonetheless.
"It's not like that mom…well, it's sort of like that but not actually like that…"
Rory glanced nervously over at Jess, who was now looking at her curiously.
"So then, what's it like?"
"Jess has been spending the night here with me since right after the wedding."
Rory watched Jess' eyes widen slightly before she continued.
"But, we haven't…we're not…we're fine, mom. We can talk more about it when you get home okay? You should just enjoy the rest of your week."
There was a pause before Lorelai responded.
"Okay hunny, just…you're being careful, right?"
"Yes, mom."
"Okay. I love you!"
"I love you, too, mom."
"Okay then, well…Oh, actually, is Jess there right now?"
"Yes."
"Can you put him on the phone? Luke wants to talk to him."
"Sure."
Rory handed the phone over to Jess and gestured that it was for him. He sat in silence for a few moments while Rory could just barely hear Luke's voice on the other end. When he finally started talking, Rory could only hear Jess' side of the conversation.
"Hey Luke…Yes, I'll make sure the ordering gets done tomorrow…Yes, I have…No, I'm not…No…No…No…No…Luke, seriously?...No!...Fine…No…Huh…Yeah, see you Sunday…Bye."
"What was that all about?"
Jess rolled his eyes and smirked at her.
"He wasn't exactly thrilled at the news that I've been spending the night here, with you, under his roof, if you get my drift."
Rory cringed a little, but couldn't fight the little smile that was pulling at her lips.
"He just doesn't like that he can't be here to walk in on us every ten minutes. He's being protective."
"Well, maybe we should take advantage of our privacy. Give him something to worry about," Jess jokingly growled while pouncing on Rory and pinning her to the couch. Rory laughed and kissed him lightly before abruptly shoving him backwards.
"I want to watch this movie, so you'll just have to behave yourself…"
She glanced slyly over at him.
"…for now."
Jess showed his resignation by pressing play on the remote, but he still pulled Rory back to him, and proceeded to run his fingers up and down her arms, around her hands, and finally along her legs.
"Would you sit still?"
"No."
"Please? You're going to miss the movie!"
"Tragedy."
"Jess!"
"Okay, okay…"
After a couple minutes, Jess leaned over and began to kiss Rory's neck and ear. She pulled away and glared at him for a second before turning back to the movie. He resumed his previous activity as soon as he could get her close enough again.
"Jess! Seriously, restrain yourself or I'm moving."
"Fine."
Jess tried to watch the movie for a little while, which he had to admit was actually pretty funny. At the line 'I'd give five bucks to see that cat take a sip of that soup.' he actually laughed out loud. Rory looked over at him and smiled.
"See, good movie."
Jess rolled his eyes and resumed tracing his fingers up and down her leg, watching for her reaction out of the corner of his eye. She swatted his hand away, but he started again right away. She jumped up suddenly, grabbed a throw blanket, wrapped herself in it, and flopped herself down in the armchair on the other side of the room.
"Rory…"
"Shhh."
"Rory…"
"Shhh!"
Jess watched the rest of the movie in silence from his seat on the couch, now a little miffed that she had rebuffed him so many times, and that she had gone as far as to sit across the room to get away from him. He was quickly reminded of how lonely it was to be in a room with her when he couldn't hold her, and it wasn't a nice feeling. When the movie ended Rory stood up and came back over to Jess. She tried to sit down next to him and snuggle under his arm, but for some reason he didn't quite understand, her moving had really irked him, so he stood up and walked into the kitchen without saying anything. Rory sat on the couch for a minute before her face grew annoyed. She stood up and stomped into her room, slamming the door behind her. Jess sighed from his seat in the kitchen. He hadn't actually intended for her to get mad at that, he had just needed a moment to himself before talking to her, and now it seemed like she was actually mad at him instead of just playfully annoyed.
"Great," he muttered to himself.
He knew he probably needed to give her some time to cool off, but he didn't actually want to leave, especially since she was angry. He walked over to her room and knocked.
"Rory?"
Nothing.
"Rory?"
Loud music was the only response he got this time. He sat back down at the kitchen table.
"You've got to come out sometime!"
He sat there for a while, wondering what he should do. He stood up and knocked on her door again. The only response was the music being turned up slightly. Jess resumed his seat at the kitchen table for several more minutes. Suddenly, his face lit up. He felt like a dork for stealing an idea from the movie, but it was just crazy enough that it might work. He stood up and loudly pushed his chair in at the table, before walking, also loudly, to the front door. Once there, he opened the front door and then shut it again noisily, but without actually going outside. He stood silently in the entryway, waiting for what might happen next. She might look out her window and realize he hadn't actually left, or she could stay in her room, without bothering to come out. Now he felt like a dork and an idiot, standing there silently in her entryway, hoping that she wasn't so angry she wouldn't bother to go after him. Then, he thought he heard her door open, and then he heard her muttering to herself.
"…think he is. Leaving like that, I mean honestly…"
Rory entered the hallway carrying her shoes and jacket and jumped back startled when she saw him standing there.
"Jess! I thought you left!"
"You were supposed to."
Rory now stood in the hallway glaring at him.
"You locked yourself in your room, and I wanted to talk to you. I thought this might get you to come out…"
There was a minute of intense silence between the two as they stood motionless. Finally, Rory's face softened a little.
"There's no lock on my door, so it's not like I could really keep you out."
"You didn't want me in there though…"
"No…"
Another minute of silence passed, this time a slightly more relaxed one.
"It's really not nice of you to make a joke like this about you leaving."
"I didn't leave."
"I thought you did."
"I didn't leave."
Rory's face softened further
"You didn't leave."
Jess' face softened too.
"And you came after me."
Jess stepped forward and then paused. Rory looked up at him and he could see her cheeks were slightly tearstained from her time in the bedroom. He reached out and pulled her into his arms.
"I really, really didn't want to make you cry."
"I'm sorry I overreacted."
"I'm sorry I was bothering you."
He cupped her face in his hands and used his thumbs to stroke her cheeks. He leaned in to kiss her gently, and then rested his forehead against hers. She started giggling.
"What?"
"I can't believe you stole an idea from the movie."
"Don't mock! It worked didn't it…"
"Aren't you glad I made you watch it?"
"If we hadn't watched it, we wouldn't have fought."
"Hmmph, don't nitpick."
"Is it time for bed yet?"
"Yes, and…"
"And, what?"
"I don't think I'll get so annoyed if you don't behave…"
Rory turned and walked back towards her room, leaving Jess to stand for a moment as her comment sunk in before he smirked and followed her.
AN: Reviews make the world go 'round.