Jess took a few steps away from Rory and pulled out his cell phone. He searched the contacts list until he found the number marked "Jimmy" and pressed send. After 4 rings, he almost gave up. Finally the voice of a young girl picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey Lily it's Jess." He tried to keep himself from sounding nervous.

"Jess! Are you coming to visit?"

Jess smiled. For some reason, no matter how much he yelled at her and ignored her, that kid loved him.

"I don't really have the money right now Lil, but I'll try to come soon okay?"

"Okay, I guess. Then why are you calling?"

"Um I was hoping to talk to your mom. Is she home?"

Lily hesitated before answering.

"Yeah, uh she's home. She hasn't been feeling too well lately though. I think she's lying down. She's always resting lately…"

Jess sighed. He hated the thought of adding to her pain, but she did have to know.

"Do you think you can bring her the phone? It's really important Lily."

"Okay Jess hold on a second."

As he waited, Jess walked back towards Rory. He reached for the bottle and took another big sip. He suddenly wished he had drunk more before making this phone call. Rory accepted the bottle back and gave him a sympathetic look.

"Jess?" Sasha sounded tired and weak, so much different from when he had last seen her.

"Yeah, hey Sasha."

"Is everything okay? We haven't heard from you in awhile."

Jess hesitated, knowing it couldn't be avoided.

"No, not really. Listen Sasha, I'm calling about Jimmy."

"Jess… Jimmy…Jimmy's not here. He left last week."

"Wait, he left? Did you know where he was going?"

All of a sudden Jess started feeling slightly angry. Did he just walk out on her?

Sasha sighed. "Hold on a second….Ok I don't want Lily knowing all these details… I… I'm pregnant. I thought, I don't know. I thought he'd be happy. I'm so stupid. I told him and he got all freaked out and left. He probably just has to calm down and think it through. I'm sure he's coming back, don't worry too much…"

"Sasha… oh god… ok I need you to sit down. Look I don't know how to tell you this but Jimmy died yesterday. I got a call from the police today. He was here, in NY and he was drinking. He got into a car accident. They said he died instantly."

Both ends of the phone were silent for a full minute.

"Sasha, you still there? You okay?"

"He's dead? Oh god. I can't believe he's gone…" She sounded so distant, so fragile.

"I'm so sorry… I don't know what to tell you. Sasha I'm just so sorry." He was still shocked she was pregnant.

"Jess are you okay? I mean he was your father." He could hear the tears in her voice.

Jess smirked. "I'm okay. I'm handling it. I got a bottle of vodka and an old friend here. I'll be alright." He gave Rory a meaningful look when he said "old friend." She gave him a small smile.

"When's the funeral? I guess it's in NY?"

"I don't know. They were trying to get me to fill things out and make some arrangements but I was too shocked. I told them I'd go back tomorrow to finish whatever they need."

"I just can't believe he's dead… Jess we'll fly out there as soon as we can…"

"Sasha you don't need to… he doesn't deserve it… stay home and take care of yourself."

"No. I think we need the closure. We'll be there."

"Okay. Call me when you know when you'll get in and I'll meet you guys. Be careful until then, okay?"

"Ok, you too…and no driving tonight, got it?"

"Got it. See ya soon."

"Okay. Bye Jess."

Shutting his phone, Jess let it slip from his hands. Rory watched as he walked up to the nearest tree and hit it. Twice.

"Jess stop.. what happened? Come on Jess your bleeding.." Rory tried to drag him away from the tree, but not before he got one more hit in.

"Jess now look at me. What happened?"

"He's a fucking prick…. I can't believe he'd do it again…"

"What Jess? What did he do?"

Jess, calming down a little looked into her eyes. "She's pregnant, Rory. She told him and he left. He was abandoning her, just like he did to Liz."

Rory was speechless. She reached out and wrapped her arms around him. They hugged for what seemed forever, each trying to gain some understanding of how their worlds have been falling apart.

Finally he spoke. "God I'm so stupid. Here I am feeling like I missed out on something by never having known him. He was an asshole though… I thought…it doesn't matter though he didn't change."

"Jess, it's okay. Of course you wanted to know him, he was your father… and it's okay to be sad that you never got to really know him."

"No it doesn't matter. He was dead to me most of my life, so why should it feel any different now."

The two of them drank in comfortable silence for a little while longer until he finally voiced the question he was wondering all night.

"Why aren't you home? Shouldn't school be over now?"

Rory knew this would eventually come up, but she still wasn't prepared. She had already sidestepped the issue once and knew she wouldn't get away with it again.

"Alright. Things have just been falling apart for me lately…I guess it all really started the night after I last saw you. I was just so… confused. I regretted the way things happened that night so much and it upset me even more that I still cared so much. I don't know, there are no excuses for what I did. The day after I saw you, I slept with Dean. It was horrible, I was so upset with myself. I guess to try to compensate or whatever I tried to prove to myself that it wasn't a mistake. Dean and Lindsay got a divorce and Dean and I got back together. I guess I figured that if a relationship came out of it, it wouldn't seem like such a bad thing. Then we of course broke up and I got caught up with these rich kids that felt like their trust funds meant they were untouchable. I mean to an extent it does. They never get into any real trouble, but the things they do…well my mom hated them and I started dating one. Of course my grandparents think he's great but I feel like I'm becoming one of them. I interned at a newspaper that my boyfriend's father owned and at the end of the internship he told me that I don't have what it takes. I was so upset…somehow it seemed logical at the time for me and Logan to steal a yacht…Well we got caught and right now I'm out on bail. I'm just so freaked out about the whole thing.. I mean I don't have what it takes to do what I spent my entire life working towards. Anyway, I dropped out of Yale and my mother and I argued…now I'm staying in my grandparent's pool house. God this all seems so pathetic compared to what you're going through…" Rory was amazed at the how easily she could tell this all to Jess. It was embarrassing to tell, but the alcohol probably helped with that part.

Jess patiently waited through the story. Of course it was disappointing for him to hear how her life has gone downhill since he last saw her, but he knew what it was like when things got out of hand.

"Rory, it doesn't seem pathetic. I know what it's like when things just go spiraling out of control. You think you have a handle on things but suddenly realize that nothing's really the way you thought. It's okay. You're a smart girl, you'll work everything out. I don't think anything less of you because of it. If anything, maybe it just makes you a little more human."

Rory sat with tears in her eyes. This is the man that she was so determined to try to hate? "Jess I'm sorry. You should not have to comfort me at a time like this.."

Jess cut her off. "Shh… Maybe all we need is to be there for each other."

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