Disclaimer: I own nothing!!

A/N: Rory and Jess never dated and was never even friends… Only met a couple of times.

I looked up at the silver out-of-place clock on the wall of the bar, and sighed, this was going to be a long night. Every drunken man over 40, and tipsy woman under 30 was gone by now, and it was just me closing down this place. I am so ready to get home, though. This is not how I want to spend the night. Not that I have any other plans, because believe you, me, I don't. I just want to go home and… sleep. Real party animal, huh? I used to be… now I am going back to college, and working here as a bartender in my free time.

As I lock the bar's safe, and I was about to go put the closed sign up a woman walked in. Brown hair down to her mid back, wavy and full of body. Thick bangs that stop right above her astoundingly blue eyes. If her beauty didn't make me notice then it must have been the wedding dress she was styling. Very pretty, yet dirty at the edge, she looked as if she had been crying. As if she had been through hell. So I didn't shoo her out. She looked familiar oddly enough. I just couldn't place where I had seen her.

She looked up at me, and then looked back down. I decided to break the silence, "What will you have?"

She looks back up at me again, and I can't help but look directly into her eyes, all I can see is pain. I don't want to ask questions, so I don't. She smiles, suddenly, a slight smile, "I know you, you're Luke's nephew… Jess Mariano… the one that Luke goes to visit every Christmas… The one who is going to be hi best man next month, am I right?"

I nod, and suppress a small smirk, "Yea and you're that nutty woman's daughter. I knew I had seen you somewhere."

She smiles, "Do you remember my name?"

Who couldn't? When I first saw her I couldn't get her out of my mind for a week. She was beautiful, but Luke said she wasn't my type, "Rory Gilmore."

Rory smiles and I can't help but notice that it looks fresh and new, and not a smile she's used before, "That's right… I'll have a beer."

I nods, and turn to get her a beer, when I turn back around I gain the courage to ask, "Would you mind telling me why you are wearing a wedding dress?"

Rory takes a swig of her beer, and looks up to me, "I… I left my groom at the altar."

I nod, not wanting to push it, "Wow… know how to break a heart, huh?"

Rory shrugs, "He wasn't for me…"

I grab a beer, and drink a bit, "Wasn't prince charming?"

Rory laughs, lightly, "More like he was prince charming. I don't go for that. He was too… Logan."

I laugh, obviously her ex-groom's name was Logan, "Never heard of that before, he was too Logan."

Rory smiles, "That was his name, Logan Huntzberger. He was social, rich, very attractive, and he had everything going for him."

I have heard about the glorious Gilmore family, not Lorelai, but her parents. I heard they were fancy, snooty, and rich, "Sounds like your grandparents approved."

Rory tilts her head, slightly, "They did, but I didn't…"

I smiled, "You are looking for the dark bad-boy to sweep you off your feet?"

Rory looks down to her beer, I think I see a blush creeping into sight, "Something like that."

I laugh lightly, "Do you have a certain bad-boy you left Logan for?"

Rory shakes her head, "No one particularly."

I smile, again, for some reason I am utterly happy. But I shouldn't push this… Jeez, Mariano slow down… she just and I mean just left some Logan kid at the altar, "Good luck with finding him."

Rory smiles, "It's going to be hard, huh?"

I shake my head, finishing off my beer with one last swig, "Not if you know what you are looking for."

Rory shrugs, and takes a sip of her beer, "True."

I lean in closer, "What are you looking for?"

The beautiful girl smiles, a shy smile, that I find very attractive, "Love… true love."

I stand up straight again, "Huh."

She looks down at her hands, "Ever been in love?"

I was afraid she would ask that, I sighed, obviously upset about this subject, but then again relieved, "Nope… never." It wasn't a lie. I Jess Mariano have never been in love, "Committing isn't a usual for a guy like me, Rory."

She was smiling big now, "I like how you say my name."

I laugh, taken back by the words, "Excuse me?"

Rory looks up directly into my eyes, "You say it, and it just rolls off your tongue. I like it."

This girl was very odd, yet very amazingly interesting, "Well… uh… thank you?"

She smiles, "Don't think I'm like odd, now, ok?"

I raise my hands as of in surrender, "I don't… if I do you are an odd that I can get used to."

She finishes her beer, "Is that the alcohol talking?" she tips her bottle towards me.

I smile a sincere, real smile that I haven't used since… ever, "No."

I see her eyes go towards the clock, and she sighs, "It's late…"

I look up at the clock, and see the time, 2:45 A.M. "Don't you mean early?"

She laughs, "I better get back home."

I turn off the lights, putting on my jacket, "You want me to walk you? I mean I'm not a weirdo or anything…"

She stood up, and walked towards me, as I walked out from behind the bar, "Sure… you can walk me… it's not far from here."

I nod, and walk towards the door, "When I opened up earlier today I never knew I would be walking a runaway bride, in her wedding dress, at 2:45 in the morning, to her apartment. Even more weird that you are my uncle's soon to be step-daughter."

She laughs, and I notice her eyes, again. I just can't help it. A deep blue, with green and light blue specks, "I know… so strange. Thank you for talking to me tonight, you really made me feel better."

I smile, that makes me happy, she's so beautiful and very funny, I think I'm already hooked. And I've only really known her for less than 45 minutes, "I'm glad I could help."

She stops and looks up to the building we were standing beside, "This is it."

I looked surprised, "Not very far, at all. How come I have never seen you, before?"

She shrugs, "I just recently moved here."

That explains a lot, "Well… I guess I'll see you around Rory. If you need me for anything just get my number from Luke."

She smiles brightly, "I will… you can count on it."

This makes my heart skip a beat, "Hope you find what you are looking for."

As she unlocks her door she turns back to me, "I think I already have." She smiles and walks in, "Bye Jess."

"Bye Rory." I say as I walk back towards home.