Title- Here Without You
Pairings- Luke and Lorelai (JavaJunkie all the way)
Set in the fourth season, after 'Afterboom' and before 'Luke can see her face'
Summary- Liz has cancer and she and TJ broke up. Who will be her savoir? And how will Lorelai react? It will start out a story then turn into a series of letters and each chapter will be in a different person's point of view.(Luke and Lorelai have been friends for 11 years.)
Disclaimer- If I owned it, there wouldn't even be an April or Christopher.
Chapter 16- Luke (August 28th 4:32 P.M)
And then, I kissed her.
Surprising, yes, I know. I wasn't even expecting it but then she was looking at me, looking small and regretful. And I took that leap; the one that I hoped would be different this time. I was pretty sure it was.
Lips softly set on lips and my right hand gently cupping her cheek, stroking her smooth skin to the rhythm of our lips melding together.
I tenderly set my other hand on her waist and fingered the hem of her shirt while at the same time I began to tug her closer to me. She obliged eagerly and gradually slipped her hands up my chest and linked them behind my neck, playfully tugging at the hairs poking out of the bottom of my hat.
I slid her bottom lip between mine and began teasing her incessantly with my tongue as I slid over and over it and bit at it playfully. She began to moan softly and pulled me closer than we were before while gradually parting her lips and prodding her tongue at mine.
As out tongues clashed and collided with each others and my hand played with her soft curls, breath became a necessity and we parted reluctantly.
"Wow," She breathed out, still standing in the same position with her hands laced together at the nape of my neck and eyes shut.
"Definitely," I agreed, trying to even my breath and savor the moment- just incase we have a repeat of last time, though I was trying not to dwell on it. I slowly began to untangle my hand from her hair and she must have taken that as a sign that I wanted her to move out of our embrace. Man, was she wrong.
"And there you go again," She pointed out softly, her breathing still hurried. Her eyes remained shut and I took that as a good sign. I pulled her hands into mine and began to knead at her soft skin with my thumbs, enjoying the feeling of her skin touching mine.
"You started it," I mumbled just loud enough for her to hear while still absentmindedly playing with her hands and fingers.
"How?" She asked skeptically, adding a scoff to her words as she opened her eyes up and raised an eyebrow.
"You came in here and got all territorial, you know, with your eyes shooting daggers at Allie," I told her, keeping a close watch on her reaction. "It's a total turn-on," I added with a smirk.
"I was not jealous," She stated firmly, crossing her arms over her chest in a defensive manner.
"Well, you reciprocated pretty eagerly," I told her with mock sympathy. "I mean to a guy that was flirting with another woman just five minutes ago and then you start ranting on how he shouldn't flirt with other woman, you seemed it,"
"I was not jealous," She repeated in the same tone, only this time through clenched teeth. "I was simply caught off guard by your gesture and with your lips and tongue and talented mouth in whole, I practically had to respond." She explained patiently, though I could see the uneasiness in her swiftly moving eyes as they darted around the room at everything but me.
"My talented mouth?" I asked, feigning confusion as I dropped her hands and did my best to suppress a grin forming at my lips.
"You know," She began with a wistful expression. "With your lips and your tongue and when you did that thing with your-" She stopped abruptly after noticing my grin that had escaped and glared at me. "Stop being cocky," She demanded, pointing a finger at me as a distraction, most likely so that I would fail to notice the blush rising in her cheeks. I didn't.
"I was not being cocky," I explained, trying not to grin anymore, but completely failing at the attempt. "I was just repeating your great choice of words. You just happened to interpret them your own way,"
"Hey," She defended. "It was your lips on mine; I just let you do the work."
"Well at least I got you to stand still long enough for us to face the aftermath of the kiss together this time," I shot back, though wished I hadn't once I saw her face. It was heartbreaking to see her so full of regret and sadness.
She began to avert my gaze as I began to move towards her. I tenderly set my hand on her forearm, trying to will her to look up at me. "I didn't want to run," She admitted in a barely audible tone, sounding so remorseful.
"I know," I told her softly, though in truth, I had no clue why she had run. I slowly draped my arm across her shoulder and led her over to the counter to have her lean against while she explained.
"It was just-" She began, but swallowed nervously while finding a sudden interest in her shoes. "You were leaving and I didn't know what I was doing, it was just a blur and it all happened so quickly. I didn't know what to do so I ran. I didn't want to run, I wanted to stay with you but you were leaving and I didn't know what I was doing." She was babbling and I gently put my finger under her chin and lifted it up, looking directly into her eyes, ready to say something. But, she beat me to it. "I'm sorry," She concluded shyly, biting her lower lip as if she was scared of my reaction.
"I know," I repeated. "You never brought it up, though," I added, dropping my fingers back down to my side.
"Neither did you," She exclaimed defensively, moving around to the other side of me.
"Well, you ran away after we kissed, how was I supposed to bring it up?" I asked incredulously, throwing my hands up in the air.
"Well you could have called and just asked, 'Hey, Lorelai, what did that kiss mean to you?'" She said in rough voice in a poor attempt to impersonate me.
"And you couldn't have done that?" I asked rhetorically, shooting her doubtful look to at which she scowled at.
"And then I was sending some subtle hints that I was ready to reciprocate the feelings you had without bringing up the kiss, but did you notice?" She asked in an implausible tone. "Of course not!" She answered, slamming her fist down onto the counter. "Damn it!" She cried out, clutching her hand while clenching her eyes shut in agony.
"Are you okay?" I asked, trying to stifle the hint of amusement in my somewhat sympathetic and concerned tone. I walked briskly over to her and took her hand in mine, examining it thoroughly for any damage.
She inhaled sharply, taking her balled up fist out of my hand. "Stop laughing," She demanded forcefully through gritted teeth.
"I'm not laughing," I insisted, doing my best to stifle a chuckle. "It's just- are you sure you're okay?" I repeated again, feeling terrible for her.
"I guess," She sighed, trying not to grimace. "Why'd you have to make those counters so damn hard?" She exclaimed, gesturing wildly at the big block of marble next to her.
"Hey, don't blame me- I didn't make it," I said, throwing my hands up defensively in the air.
"But you did make me slam my hand down on the counter," She pointed out, glowering at me angrily. "I am putting all the blame on you, if there is any permanent damage done; I am making you pay for it!"
"I've already given you $30,000, what more do you want?" I asked, faking annoyance.
"So, why is it that you never acted on those subtle hints I sent you?" She asked after a couple blissful seconds of silence- squinting her eyes at me in a perplexed manner. "I've sent you many. I mean, for god's sake we slept in the same bed!" She cried out. "And then the short's? Why do you think I wore those? Because it was laundry day?" She got up and began pacing, again. God, this was probably the most exercise she'd gotten all summer.
"What shorts?" I asked, trying to play dumb, though I precisely remembered the grey cotton shorts that accented her curves and the dark blue lettering on the back that read 'sexy'. Like I could forget those, I thought, scoffing inwardly.
"Don't play stupid," She scoffed, "You know exactly what I'm talking about," She said, looking at me with an all-knowing look. Damn, I wish I could see those again on her.
"Well, how was I supposed to know it was intentional? For all I knew it could have been laundry day. And the bed thing? I just thought it was you being crazy and doing your best to try and annoy me." I explained, feeling a bit awkward with thoughts of Lorelai's legs in my mind.
"Well you just should, I mean, its common sense." She cries out, frustrated, as if I should know this.
"See- that only makes sense in your mind," I added wryly, though noticing it slip in one ear and out the other.
"This is just- crazy!" She exclaimed. "It was a kiss, one kiss-"
"Two, actually," I pointed out awkwardly.
"Two kisses and now all of a sudden we're standing in a jewelry shop screaming at each other about all the 'what if's' and 'what you should have done'." She cried out, irritated.
Suddenly, the door opened swiftly and the same elderly woman that was here just over a week ago during my conversation over the phone with Lorelai. "Can't you see we're busy!?" Lorelai asked, annoyed while gesturing between the two of us.
"Lorelai!" I scolded, feeling desperately awkward standing between the fuming Lorelai and the horrified old lady.
"Well we're not going to get anything done around here if we have her listening in!" She defended, throwing her hands at the still horror-struck woman.
"Well, she is a paying customer," I explained, putting the emphasis on paying. "And you know, we don't get that much of them, so we kind of need it,"
"No, Luke, I don't know," She said with a patient and determined face. Damn, it was getting pretty awkward with that woman watching us. She wasn't even looking around, just staring at us.
"What do you mean?" I asked, the annoyance evident in my voice as I discreetly looked over at the woman through the corner of my eyes, willing her to leave before the next Lorelai Gilmore outburst.
"The last four calls we've had you barely even talked to me," She explained with a desperate tone. "And then when I get here, you kiss me. That, my friend, are very mixed signals you are sending me. I mean, you act all monosyllabic over the phone, making me think I did something to upset you, and then I come here and you're all over me."
"I was not all over you," I protested. "And what do you mean I haven't been talking to you lately?" I asked, lying through my teeth. I had hoped it wasn't obvious that I couldn't get off the phone fast enough, it was just, the thought that Lorelai might be with another guy hurt. She was supposed to be mine, I thought selfishly, not his.
"Whenever I call, you say hi and then all of a sudden you make some lame excuse about having to leave, And you didn't even give me any indication that I did anything wrong, I mean, I could have at least apologized for whatever I did. Just tell me what I did wrong?" She pleaded in a desperate tone with her breath hitching slightly in the end. God, why did she have to make things so difficult?
"It was nothing, just something that Jess was bothering me with. Nothing important," I lied, not really up to expressing the truth at the moment as I shifted from my left foot to my right foot awkwardly.
"Are you sure?" She asked doubtfully, obviously feeling stupid for making the assumption.
"Yeah, it was nothing," I said, waving a hand dismissively at her, then I noticed the woman still standing there in the same place. I timidly leaned over towards Lorelai and nudged her towards the woman. "Why is she still standing there?" I whispered into her ear, trying to ignore the looks the woman was sending us.
"Maybe the cables out," She replied, seeming just as frightened as me. "Um, hello," She called out cautiously. "Do you need anything?"
"Well, I was wondering, do you happen to know the directions to get to Worcester Massachusetts?" She asked hesitantly, glancing nervously between Lorelai and me.
"You do know that that's a little far away, right?" Lorelai asked, blinking rapidly at her randomness. "At least three hours," She added.
"Three hours?" She asked, wide-eyed. "Are you sure?" She looked at the two of us intently, as if thinking we were lying just to get her out.
I nodded weakly, agreeing with Lorelai. "Is that all?" I asked, sighing, shifting my feet while trying to ignore the looks she was sending me.
"You know, if you keep up that attitude, it will no longer be a mystery why you two don't get any business. You could at least try and be friendly." She said haughtily, turning away briskly and stomping out the door.
"Well that was random," Lorelai stated, breaking the awkward silence.
"No kidding," I agreed, craning my neck to see where that woman had gone. After no more sign of her I turned back to Lorelai, "So, what are your plans for tonight?" I asked casually, walking around the counter and sitting in the only chair located behind it.
"Oh, um, well I was just thinking that maybe you could, you know help me find a hotel or an inn or even a B&B to stay in," She requested, slowly walking over in front of me and hopping herself up on the counter, setting her dangling feet on the armrest of my chair.
"Or," I said with a sigh, knowing that this was what she expected. "You could just stay with me. And Liz. And Jess." I added reluctantly.
"Why, Luke, I don't want to impose," She said, clearly meaning the opposite. "But if you insist, it would save me a lot of money." She said, smiling warmly.
There was a pause in the conversation and Lorelai began to slowly slip off the counter, sauntering over to my chair. "So," She began slowly, setting herself down on the arm of the chair.
"So," I echoed, doing my best to restrain myself from touching her or pulling her into my lap.
"Did you regret it?" She asked quietly, looking over at me in a somewhat helpless face. She was biting her lower lip and glancing at me nervously.
"The kiss?" I asked, looking for a clarification. She nodded silently, obviously seeming a little too anxious. "The one we just had?" I asked and again, she nodded silently. After sending her a sardonic look, I sighed. "You do know that I was the one that kissed you; therefore I should be the one asking you," I told her, listening to her deep breath release in relief.
"Right," She agreed, nodding hastily. There was an awkward silence in which I hoped she would fill, saying how she didn't regret it either. I gently nudged her lower back hoping to get a reaction out of her. "Oh, right," She said jumping back into reality. "I didn't regret it either, so far from regret. It was the total opposite of regret. I am content and I am satisfied," She said firmly.
"That's good," I said, grinning softly. I slowly slipped my arm around her waist and tugged on her until she fell back into my lap and kissed her again. Because this time, I was sure it would end good.
Authors Note- So I didn't think it was that great and the old woman- she was pointless, I had no idea what to do with her so I left her in asking a stupid question. I already have the next chapter planned out and hope to have it up by Sunday.
Thanks for the amazing reviews in the last chapter- they made my world. I need just as much in for this chapter and also some comments if I left anything out. I need them though so make sure you review.
Only one episode remains and I am so loving the promo. Luke and Lorelai kissing! Finally! Though the downside is that we'll never see it happen again. This sucks. But I am living off repeats.