She opens her eyes in distain. What in the world happened last night? She runs her fingers over the now-crinkled clothes from yesterday…which she was still wearing. Ugh…I don't even remember leaving the bar last night. Her head was aching. Her bed now had the overwhelming smell of cigarette smoke. That's it…I'm taking a sick day. She lays her head back down and instantly falls back asleep.

…………………………………

A couple hours later, Rory finds herself showered, prim-and-proper, and at the pizza joint down the road. It's amazing what a couple hours of extra sleep can do for a person. With headphones on, new book out, she chows down on a piece of pepperoni pizza…not wanting to think about the previous night. Glimpses of the forgotten night, however, refused to stop crowding her mind. Is this all a really bad dream? She got a glimpse of her long-winded declaration of injustice. Did I really drink that much? She got a glimpse of herself collapsing onto the barstool. And how in the world did I get home in one piece? That's when she started to remember his arm around her, supporting her…the way he smelled…how comforting his touch felt. Wow! Now I really must be dreaming! Lost in that thought, she again sees a glimpse of a familiar face…not in her mind any more, but here in the pizza parlor. This was it…she now had to confront him. It was now or never…

"Jesse! Wait!"

"Oh, Rory, hi! Fancy meeting you here, huh?"

"So it is you! I've been seeing you all over campus the last couple of days. I thought I was dreaming…I mean, you shouldn't even know where I am."

"Well…I kind of, sort of, overheard Luke and your mother talking about you. I hope you're not mad, but I just had to see you again. I miss you, Rory."

Falling into his arms…

"Miss you? Are you kidding? I have never been so happy to see anyone in my life!"

"Come on, Rory, let's get out of here. I know something's wrong with you. You're not the Rory I knew. Let's take a little walk, and I'll pry it out of you."

He protectively wraps his arm around her and leads her down the street.

"So what's going on?"

"Not much, really."

"Come on, Rory, don't give me that line of bull. I saw you at the bar last night. I literally had to carry you home. That's my style…not yours. What's wrong?"

"I don't know. Just lonely I guess."

"Well, where's this promising new boyfriend of yours? Everyone keeps telling me how happy you two are together."

"Oversees for business. Everyone thinks we are delightfully happy, but it's hard, you know, and I think he's avoiding me."

"Avoiding you? How could anyone possibly want to avoid you?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's not. But he never makes any time to talk to me anymore. I have to call him 90 of the time now, and when I do, he generally has to go right away. It doesn't even sound that happy to hear from me anymore. And mom…well, she's seeing my dad again. I'm happy for her. I really am, but she doesn't have a lot of free time right now to talk. Paris is my only really good friend around here, and she's so self-centered that trying to get a decent conversation out of her is hopeless…"

Wiping fresh tears from her eyes…

"Whoa. It's okay. I'm here now. I'm not going to leave you again. I promise."

He wraps her in an affectionate embrace that lingers before they continue on down the street.