AN. Okay, I know it took a long time... but this chapter is really long.

Thanks to all of you who take the time to tell me what you like and dislike! I hope you continue to respond like this.

Disclaimer I don't own Gilmore Girls but I'm working on it.


Chapter 5

...One's a Big Mouth

Luke was still smiling to himself and his cheeks were starting to kill him. The day before, he had asked Lorelai not to sleep with Doug and she had agreed. He still couldn't believe it. Part of him felt guilty though. Who was he to decide whom she could or couldn't sleep with? But as soon as he focused on the wonderful feeling of relief that filled him, he knew he had done the right thing. And Lorelai wasn't even mad at him, which was an unusual -yet great- bonus.

Everything was for the best. He could still see his High School best friend without wanting to scratch his face off. Plus, if Lorelai had agreed so quickly, it meant she didn't feel that way toward Doug, right? Jealous-Luke could go back to sleep. Luke couldn't wait until the next time the three of them would all hang out. Maybe he'd be able to relax and talk more. Maybe he'd be able to make a move with Lorelai... Although only the thought of making a move was enough to make his stomach flip, which probably meant he wasn't ready. He'd been working on getting ready for almost 8 years now; his moment would definitely come soon.

Just as the last lunch-hour-rush costumer was leaving, Doug walked in.

"Doug! I haven't seen you since Mike's Tavern's night. What's up?"

Luke was genuinely happy to see him.

"Man, you wouldn't believe what happened to me!" Doug said, sitting on a stool and leaning on the counter.

"You're... seriously gloating. The last time I've seen you like this was the morning after you finally slept with Joan and we were... what? 16?"

"I'm still having these incredible flashbacks..." Doug said, amazed, looking through the window that overlooked the park.

"Of Joan? Whoa. I should have tried my luck too then."

Doug laughed.

"No! If it was possible to have the same sex-flashbacks for more than 20 years, it would be these new ones... Seriously."

"You met someone, huh?" Just as Luke thought he couldn't feel any better, Doug was telling him he had a new girl? Now, that was good news. Doug wouldn't even try flirting with Lorelai now. Even if he had always been the seductive one, he had also always been very faithful. Well, he only had one woman at a time, anyway.

Doug looked up at Luke.

"You're not going to question me about it?"

"I'm good, thanks. You want something to drink?"

"Luke! You know the rule. It's not real until you tell someone about it."

Luke snorted.

"What kind of rule is that?"

"It's always been our rule! I was the only one following it, though. You never talked about yours."

"Well..."

"And you were always so eager to hear the details! You lived through me, dude."

"Pff. That's not true."

"Come on!" Doug insisted. "Ask me details!"

"If you wanna talk about it that much, call your mother and tell her."

When Doug burst into laughter, he couldn't help himself but laugh too.

That's the first thing Lorelai heard as she was about to push the diner front door. Doug and Luke were laughing. Really loudly. She froze and felt a panic attack threatening her. Was Doug talking about what happened? Were they laughing about her? Lorelai shook her head to dismiss those ideas. For one, Luke would never laugh about her. Secondly, she was drunk when she had slept with Doug, but she didn't remember being funny.

She had no choice but to go in because Luke had noticed her. But as soon as she pushed the door open, the laughter faded out. A weird, uneasy silence replaced it. She stopped breathing. Maybe they were talking about it after all... No. They weren't. Luke wouldn't be smiling like that. Or would he?

She thought it wouldn't be weird seeing Doug again after that night. But she was wrong. It was weird. Because Luke was there and she had made a promise to him. A promise that was broken even before it had been made. She felt horrible but she hid it well. Because that's what she did best.

"Hey guys!"

Doug smiled at her. It was a friendly smile, no hidden meanings. The smile she gave him in return was kind of stiff.

"Hey, Lorelai," Doug greeted her.

How did it come to this? Why did only talking to Doug felt like she was stabbing Luke in the back? Why did she even feel guilty? She wasn't involved with Luke. She was a single woman and single women shouldn't feel guilty about anything.

Luke sensed something was wrong with Lorelai, maybe because she had picked up a menu on the counter and was actually reading it. And he thought Doug might have picked on her uneasiness too because he kept looking at her...

And then, Luke understood. It hit him like a ton of bricks.

The reason Lorelai was acting tense was simple. She didn't want to hurt his feelings. He asked her not to sleep with Doug so she was being distant to prove him she wouldn't. I have to tell her she can still talk to him...

"So, that hanging out thing was fun!" Luke started.

Do NOT look at Doug, Lorelai told herself over and over again. She could feel him stare at her. She wanted to disappear.

"Yeah..." she barely let out. "It was... fun."

Could the situation be worse? Lorelai sat on a stool. She didn't want to stay, but her legs were shaking. She had no idea legs could shake. Ok, time to crack a joke, Lorelai.

"..."

That was all she could come up with.

"Coffee?" Luke asked, wondering why she hadn't begged for some already.

"Coffee," she repeated.

"Are you okay?" Luke was concerned.

"Yeah, sure! I'm just... you know, not 16 anymore. I'm still hangover, I think."

She saw it. The little repressed proud smile on Doug's face. Oh, come on! I'm not tired because of you, dude.

"It's been 2 days," Luke commented. "I didn't know you were such a girl."

"I'm not a girl!" Lorelai protested, offended. "I'm fine. I could party every night if I wanted to."

"Just like me," Doug said. He was looking at Luke but Lorelai felt that remark was directed to her. He was getting on her nerves. But it wasn't his fault, really. Lorelai had always been like that. Once she'd sleep with a man, he'd start getting on her nerves. Like if the single-and-proud-to-be part of her was pushing him away. Self-preservation or fear, she didn't know which one.

"Well," Luke started, "I'm looking forward to the next time." There. She would understand he was okay with her. She could relax about the no-sex-with-Doug rule.

He's kidding, right? Lorelai looked up at Luke. Oh my God, he's serious.

"Actually, I can't go out with you guys this Saturday. I have...wayyyyyyy too much work. I'm sorry. But you'll give me a play-by-play. You have to write everything down, every single thing. I can provide the paper and the pens."

"Oh," Luke mouthed.

Oh, please! Don't give me that face, that's so unfair! She hated when he used that face. His smile was trying to hide his disappointment, trying to make him look strong but, really, it made him look so vulnerable... Who said that Lorelai was the manipulative one?

Lorelai tried not to change her mind. You can't hang out with them, Lorelai. If this face hurts and moves you, think about the one he's gonna put on if he finds out what you did. Uh? Good girl. Stay quiet.

Obviously, Doug didn't know anything about telepathy.

"I'm free on Thursday. We could hang out then..."

"Yeah," Luke said. "Works for me. Lorelai?"

Was that hope on his face now? Mannnn.

"B... but that's too s... two days from today," she said, holding on her cup of coffee. Why were her hands so cold?

"Oh, you'll still be hangover, Sandy?" Luke mocked her.

A provocation AND a Grease reference? How could he know her so well?

"Call me Rizzo. Same time, same place?" She caved.

"Absolutely!" Doug answered.

She took her coffee to go and left, whishing for some kind of miracle. God only knows she wouldn't get one. Things could definitely get worse.

-----------------------------------------------

Luke was in his apartment, waiting for Doug to arrive. This was going to be fun. He had bought beer and the game was on and it was going to be like one of those school nights they had spent at Luke's parents' house, talking about girls and sports. When he thought about it, it made him smile to realize how cliché his teenagehood had been. And those were the best.

Doug entered without knocking.

"I told mom I was coming over to do a science project," he kidded.

"Hey, Doug. Have a seat." He handed him a beer and they both sat on the couch and drank. And drank some more.

"Is this the same couch that was in your basement a trillion years ago?"

Luke thought for a few seconds, looking at the worn out leather.

"Yeah, it is."

"Wow. Total flashback. Those were good times..."

They both stared in front of them, spaced out. Then they realized how old they were sounding and cleared their throats.

"Speaking of flashbacks," Doug said, "I know you wanna know about it."

"What? About your crazy night? Don't you think we're a little old for that kind of talk?"

"Well, we're sitting on the sex-couch, so..."

Luke laughed at the memory.

"Aw, man. The sex-couch... Okay. What am I supposed to ask? It's been a long time since I had this kind of discussion."

Doug didn't answer, he drank his beer instead, giving Luke an "ask anything" look.

"Okay... uhm... was it in your car or under the bleachers?"

"In her house," Doug replied with a smile.

"Oooh. That's so grown-up-like! Did you use protection?"

"Oh, come on, Dad!"

"I was kidding," Luke laughed. "You sure she wanted to?" Luke joked again.

"Well, she did ask me in."

"Dirty... alright. Uhm... Jeez! Why don't you just tell me? I suck at 20 questions."

"Well, everyone knows she's an amazing woman, but now I know she's amaaazing... I don't even know where to start. I don't think it was supposed to happen. Well, I guess I knew I wanted it to happen, but I mean, I didn't plan it or anything."

"Spontaneous, always good."

"Better than good, man. It was like... what? 2 a.m. when I walked her home? And I thought I would have to work for it, you know? But then, all of a sudden, she was all over me. I felt like a boy-toy."

Luke chuckled.

"So she was on top..."

"She had complete control over me. Her dark brown hair falling on her face... The way she moved... I really felt like a teenager, you know?"

"So she took care of you. Did she...?"

"Of course, she did! I think she woke up the neighbors. And her breast... Ok, I have to stop talking now."

"Are you gonna see her again?" Luke asked.

"Well, I'm gonna see her... but I don't know if I'm gonna see her," Doug replied.

"When was that again?"

"2 days ago. Want the last beer or can I take it?"

"Go ahead..." Luke searched through his wasted brain. "2 days ago? That means... did you meet her at Mike's Tavern?"

Doug was taken aback a little. He had assumed Luke knew he was talking about Lorelai. After all, he had made it pretty clear the other day that he was interested in her. But something in Luke's attitude made him re-think the whole thing. Maybe Luke shouldn't know he was talking about Lorelai.

"Kind of..." he said, trying to avoid further explanations.

"Why didn't you show her to me?"

"Well... uhm... it was after you left, so..."

"Yeah, you've always been the lucky one. Except with Rachel," Luke remembered. "What did Lorelai think of her? She usually has a strong opinion about other women..."

Feeling trapped, Doug didn't answer. And Luke didn't notice. He went on, "Wait... you didn't leave Lorelai alone to be with that Superwoman, did you?"

Doug felt as if he had just swallowed his tongue. He shook his head.

"Good," Luke said, relieved. And he changed the subject. Not really. "I hate to think Lorelai drove back home. She was pretty drunk."

"She didn't drive. She left her car at the tavern."

There was a silence and Doug decided it was time for him to leave before any other questions. He got up. Luke talked some more.

"You let a drunk-Lorelai walk home by herself to be with some woman? That's not very gentleman-like, Doug... I'm disappointed." Luke wasn't sure if he was kidding or not.

Since Doug wasn't replying, Luke looked at him and saw him staring at his shoes.

"Hey, it was a joke. Don't feel bad," Luke reassured him.

"I walked her home," Doug explained.

Luke was confused.

"Wait. I think you mixed up your lies a little."

"I didn't lie," Doug said.

"Well, something's not working in your story." Luke was drunk, but not stupid. "You walked from the tavern to Lorelai's place before you went back there, met the mystery-woman and walked that one home also? All of this before 2 a.m.?"

"Yes."

"I left around 1," Luke insisted.

"So?"

"So in 60 minutes, you had time to do all of this?"

Doug capitulated.

"No."

"No, what?" This was so confusing.

"I didn't go back to the tavern."

Luke took a second. "So... then... the woman walked with you and Lorelai?"

"Kind of..."

Luke hated to be taken for a fool.

"What do you mean, kind of?"

Doug sighed. He was way too drunk for this. Luke suddenly had a horrible feeling. He felt even more sober than before the first beer. It was clear now. A little too much.

"You didn't walk two women home, did you?"

"No," Doug sighed again. Why did he have to say all this? Why did Luke even care?

Luke was so scared to ask.

"And you didn't lie about... the sex part of the story, did you?"

"No."

Luke nodded slowly.

This can't be what I think. Lorelai told me she wouldn't... She told me yesterday. She...

"Okay so..." Let's make this clear. "...you slept with Lorelai?"

How could words hurt so much?

"Luke... you didn't tell me anything. When we talked about her, I told you I... I thought she was only your friend. You told me she was only your friend..."

"Did you sleep with Lorelai?"

At this point, Luke knew. Of course he did. But he needed to hear it. Well, he needed to hear it wasn't true.

"Luke, you didn't tell me anything! How was I supposed to know..."

"Doug," Luke said in a calm voice, "Did you sleep with Lorelai?"

And Doug looked at Luke straight in the eye.

"Yes."

The power of that one little word is so underrated. Luke was really confused. He needed time. Time to calm down, time to digest everything. Was he supposed to be mad at Doug now? Was he supposed to kill him? Luke clenched his fists. He knew Doug was right. He hadn't said anything. And he should have said something. But what exactly? "Excuse-me buddy, could you not touch Lorelai? I'd like to make a move first. Maybe you can wait for a couple of years, just the time I need to gather the courage"? Men weren't supposed to talk about this. Men were supposed to be bright enough to recognize another man's territory.

Doug wasn't looking at him anymore. In fact, he was totally avoiding any eye contact. And Luke didn't feel like looking at Doug anyway, so he turned around and started picking up the empty beer bottles. He needed silence to figure out why he was reacting like a child to all this. Okay, maybe Doug wasn't the one to blame, but Lorelai... Lorelai was the one who lied to him.

Luke put the bottles on the kitchen table. Doug was still next to the door.

"Listen, Luke. I'm really sorry. I... Man, I don't know what to say to you. You know I wouldn't have done anything if I had known that... that it would upset you like this."

Lorelai knew. She tried to tell me. I didn't wanna listen, Doug thought.

Luke felt so stupid. He really felt like a little boy. Even better, he felt like that little 12 year-old girl complaining in her diary. And the worse thing was that Doug was acting as if Luke needed to be shielded.

"I'm okay. Really. I'm just surprised, that's all. I'm fine," Luke lied.

"So, we're good? You're not gonna put arsenic in my coffee tomorrow?"

Luke tried a fake laugh. It kind of worked.

"I'm fine!" And to prove how much he was, he added, "I'm happy for you. Seems like you had a great time."

"You haven't heard half of it..."

Okay, that was pushing too hard.

"I'm good, thanks."

Doug was still uncomfortable but he knew everything would be back to normal in the morning. It had always been like that.

"Okay, well... Goodnight."

"Yup." That's all he could manage to say before Doug shut the door behind him.

That night, Luke didn't sleep well. Because usually, when he dreamt about Lorelai, Doug wasn't there too.

-----------------------------------

When the bell jingled above the door in the diner on Thursday afternoon, Luke knew it was Lorelai even though his back was facing the door. Her coffee cup was on the counter before she sat down. He turned around and mumbled, "Arsenic muffin?"

"What?" She laughed.

"I said, 'wanna pick a muffin?'."

"Yeah thanks. I didn't have time to eat yet. Thank God Patty's rehearsal is postponed to Friday," she said before taking a bite of her muffin.

"So, I didn't see you yesterday... " Luke started.

His heart stopped and he almost dropped the coffee pot. She was wiping the corner of her lips with her thumb. He would have sworn she did it slow motion. When she quickly sucked the chocolate off her middle finger, lifting her head up to look at him, a strand of hair fell on her left eye.

'She had complete control over me. Her dark brown hair falling on her face... The way she moved...' he heard Doug's voice say in his head.

As Lorelai wiped the collar of her white shirt, she couldn't see Luke, mouth half-opened, having trouble breathing.

Luke realized he was gazing at Lorelai's breast and he closed his eyes for a split second to get a grip.This split second was enough for him to clearly see a naked Lorelai, sweating and moving, and gasping for more.

"I'll be right back," he let out before he almost ran to reach the stairs of his apartment. He sat on a step and buried his face into his hands, elbows on knees. Doug had slept with Lorelai and Luke was having flashbacks as if he was the one who did?

Lorelai wondered what Luke's problem was. He seemed a little tensed. That man is working way too much, she thought.

Luke knew he had to go back there. He got up and took a long breath.

When she saw him come back, Lorelai said, "Good thing tonight's our hanging out session. You seem like you can use a little relaxation."

Tonight... relaxation? Yeah, right. Luke thought for a second about not going. But then, he realized that Doug would think he was he weak, stupid, jealous and upset... And as childish as it sounded, there was no way he could bare the thought of Lorelai alone with Doug.

Lorelai's cellphone rang and Luke shot a meaningful look at Lorelai.

"Don't look at me like that!" she said, picking up her purse. "It's not like it happens all the time. And I'm not leaving because of that wannabe-threatening look. I have to go anyway." And before she left, she stuck out her tongue at Luke.

Aw Jeez, that tongue... Luke hoped those fake-flashbacks would go away before tonight, because there was no cold showers at Mike's Tavern.

Once outside, Lorelai answered the phone.

"Allo?"

"Hey, Lorelai, it's Doug."

She glanced at Luke through the window. He wasn't looking at her.

"Hey, you cancelling for tonight?" she asked, not quite sure if she hoped he would or not.

"No, not at all. I was just wondering if you'd want me to pick you up instead of brining your Jeep."

"Uhm..."

Lorelai was still looking at Luke. He might have felt watched because he caught her staring. Her stomach made a U-turn, nearly causing her to drop the phone so she quickly turned the corner of the street.

"... I... No, I prefer having my car. I don't have a sitter for it tonight..." She thought her joke was really lame, but Doug laughed.

"No problem. See you tonight?"

"Of course! Bye."

When she entered her house, she let herself fall on the couch.

I don't wanna gooooo, she whined.

--------------------------------

For someone who didn't want to go out, Lorelai spent a lot of time primping. She was just about to get her keys when the doorbell startled her.

She suddenly hoped it was Rory, coming home for the weekend and needing her mom to stay with her so she'd have a good reason not to go after all. But it wasn't Rory.

"Luke? What... Is there a problem?"

What was he doing here? He didn't even plan on it. He was nervously driving to the bar when, instead of turning right, the car had decided to turn left... and had stopped in her driveway.

"No... I just... heard that you left your car at Mike's the other night so I thought I'd pick you up instead of making you return there tomorrow to get it... you know."

Well, that sounded plausible, didn't it?

"Oh! Uhm..." She had just refused Doug's offer... It wasn't fair to accept Luke's, was it? Come on, Lorelai! You slept with one, what was fair in that? The least you can do is to accept the other one's lift...

"Okay, thanks! Let me just get... uhm... What did I wanna get?"

"You're asking me?"

She stared at Luke's shoes for a while, trying to calm her heartbeats and to remember what she had to do.

"My keys!" she almost screamed. She hurried to the kitchen while Luke ran a hand in his hair. He stood there, embarrassed. So that was what it felt like to pick Lorelai up for a date?

Come on, Lorelai! Where did you put your keys? Keys, keys, keys... Hurry up! Luke's waiting for you. Luke's in your house, all dressed up, waiting for you. Luke's in your house, all dressed up, waiting for you and he smells really good.

She beat herself up for even thinking this, found her keys and they left for Mike's Tavern.

She wondered if her house would still smell like Luke when she'd get back.

----------------------------

When they arrived, Doug wasn't there yet. They sat down next to each other. They both realized they should have sat across from one another but neither of them wanted to be the one to change seats. They didn't want the other to think they were uncomfortable. Because it would have been even more awkward.

The waitress quickly brought them beer. Luke knew he had to talk to her about it. And since Doug wasn't there yet, it was the best opportunity. He took a sip first. He didn't know how to bring this up. So he did as he always did. He jumped head first.

"So, were you planning on keeping this affair a secret? Is it more thrilling this way?"

Lorelai thought for a moment that she had just died. But when her lungs screamed for air, she quickly breathed in. She tried to look at him, she really did. But her eyes were stuck on his hands holding the bottom of his beer. She was surprised she could even talk.

"How did you..."

Luke's tone was a bit harsh. Maybe it was intentional.

"I warned you he was gonna tell all."

Now that he had removed his hands from his glass, she had no where to look. So she slowly looked at him from the corner of her eyes. He wasn't looking at her either.

"I know I warned you too late... Why didn't you tell me then? You think I'm an idiot?"

It wasn't like Lorelai to stay quiet or like Luke to do the talking. But right now, it was working out. He continued, angrier but not louder.

"You lied to me. Straight to my face. You looked me in the eye and you lied. I just... don't understand."

She didn't recognize her voice as she heard it.

"I didn't want to make you uncomfortable..."

Luke snorted.

"You didn't wanna make yourself uncomfortable," he rectified.

She finally looked at him.

"I'm sorry, okay? And it's not an affair. It happened once, that's it. I'm sorry I lied to you. I didn't mean to."

There was a silence and they both took a sip while thinking about what to say next. Lorelai found something first.

"And I didn't tell you because you don't talk to me about your sex life either!"

"What do you wanna know?" Luke fired back.

Their eyes met. There was the silence again.

"Hey guys!" Doug shouted as he saw them. Taking a seat in front of them, he poured himself a glass. "What's up?"

Their eyes were still locked.

"Luke was about to tell us about his sex life."

"You're kidding!" Doug laughed. "That's a first!"

Luke took another sip. Doug said, "Well, he's not talking... Are we aloud to ask questions?"

"He's not gonna answer," Lorelai stated.

Luke decided he would.

"Ask away."

Doug couldn't believe it.

"You're gonna tell the truth?"

"I'm not a liar."

Maybe that sentenced wasn't meant like that, but Lorelai took it very personal. He's not even upset that I slept with his best friend. He is because I lied. Is he still my brother?

"I think I should ask the first question since I've wanted to know for a longer time," Doug proposed.

Lorelai smiled. She would definitely learn some things tonight that she would be able to mock Luke with later. She was shocked about how much she wanted to know the answer to the first question.

"Do you prefer to give or to receive?" Doug asked.

"What kind of question is that!" Luke jumped.

"Answer, please," Lorelai insisted.

There was something about having to play this game in front of Lorelai that was just... pure torture.

"I prefer to share," he answered before trying to drown himself in his beer.

"That's so cheesy!" Doug laughed.

That's such a good answer, Lorelai thought.

Luke quickly glanced at Lorelai to see what she was thinking. She was unreadable.

"Lorelai, your turn," Doug said.

"And choose a good one because it's the last one," Luke warned.

Doug shook his head. "No, it's not! You have about 20 years to make up for!"

Lorelai searched through her brain. There were so many things she always wanted to know about Luke's personal life... she didn't know what to ask.

"Okay... Uhm... Since I've known you, have you only slept with Rachel and Nicole, or were there some other dates I never knew about?"

"You wanna know how many women I slept with?" Luke clarified.

"No! I'm just wondering if you really keep your sex-life private or if it just doesn't exist..." she exlained a little too quickly.

Doug laughed, Luke cleared his throat.

"There were other women."

Oh. I don't believe you. Lorelai thought. She bit her bottom lip. Great, now I'm gonna wonder who these stupid bimbos were.

Doug didn't wait for someone to tell him it was his turn. He asked, "Who was the best, Rachel or Nicole?"

THAT I wanna know! Lorelai leaned towards Luke, to make sure she would hear the answer. She said, "I'm sure they were both extremely bad."

"Why would you think that?" Luke asked, really curious.

"Well, easy! Rachel was really self-centered, which is not really a good thing, and Nicole... well, she was a cold woman and she needed practice with another man!"

Luke was so surprised by this comment that he laughed. Lorelai smiled to herself. She loved that laugh... she loved making him laugh.

"Actually, I think I liked it with Rachel best..." Luke said.

Doug added, "Well, all that gymnastic in High School must have made her flexible!"

Luke blushed. Lorelai understood Doug's statement was true. She really didn't need to know that.

When she saw that Doug was looking at her, she realized it was her turn to ask.

"Okay, scary question... Have you ever had sex in the diner?"

Please say no, please say no. I could never go in there ever again!

"Oooh, that's a good question!" Doug said.

"Well..." Luke dragged out.

Oh my God! Don't say you did, please! Lorelai's heart started racing as she held onto her glass, unable to breathe.

"No, I never did it in the diner," he said.

Lorelai let out the breath she was holding in and Luke noticed she seemed relieved. It made him smile. He grinned at her as Doug asked, "In the storage room, then?"

Lorelai's head jerked towards Luke.

"No," Luke said, still grinning at Lorelai.

Oh, stop looking at me like that, Luke Danes.

"Have you ever wanted to?" Doug asked even though it wasn't really his turn yet.

She didn't know how she managed to, but she held Luke's gaze and discretely dried her palms on her jeans. Was he going to answer?

"Yes," Luke simply answered.

Oh, God. Lorelai's mind went blank. Why is he still looking at me?

Doug didn't wait long before he asked the next question.

"With whom?"

Luke turned to Doug, Lorelai looked around to calm her heartbeats.

"Huh?" Luke asked.

"Who did you wanna do it with in the storage room?" he repeated.

Luke caught Lorelai's glance on him but they both quickly looked somewhere else.

"No one in particular," he lied.

There was a silence then and they took their time to refill their glasses. Doug told Lorelai it was her turn to question Luke. She pretended to think for a few seconds, still imagining Luke in the storage room. Is it me, or it's really hot in here? Haven't they ever heard of air conditioning? She straightened her back.

"Uhm... What position do you like best?" she let out.

Did she just ask that? Luke felt Doug's eyes on him but Lorelai's stare was the one killing him. She looked like she really wanted to know.

"There's noooo way I'm answering that. I'm not drunk enough."

"We'll work on that," Doug said. "Keep that question in mind, Lorelai."

"Oh, I will..." She said, still staring at Luke.

She swore she saw him blush. Again.

------------------------------

When the second pitcher was empty, Doug got up.

"A last one, guys?" he asked. He didn't wait for the answer and left to wait at the bar.

The evening wasn't so bad. Doug wasn't making any move towards Lorelai, Lorelai didn't seem too uncomfortable. They were having fun.

A few minutes had passed and Doug still wasn't back. He was good with conversation topics. And apparently, Luke and Lorelai, alone, weren't.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Lorelai said, getting up. Luke didn't move his chair away from the table so Lorelai had to squeeze herself in between. Facing Luke, she was trying not to knock the table over and not to touch him, which didn't work so well. She didn't know what happened... maybe her feet crashed on his, but she fell. On him. Her legs strangling his hip.

Both surprised, they stood still for a while, studying each other's face. When Luke suddenly felt like pulling her closer to him, he had to snap out of it.

"So it's true, you like to be on top..."

"Wha...?"

"Told you Doug was great with details," Luke explained.

Lorelai's eyes fell on his chest. Ashamed? Embarrassed? She pulled herself up.

"Nice... very nice," she whispered.

She walked to the door. Luke didn't follow.

Doug caught her arm before she went outside.

"Hey, what's wrong? You're leaving?"

She gave him a cold, dark look. He understood what it was about, but she told him anyway.

"You told Luke."

"Why are you mad? He's not even upset!" he defended himself.

"Of course he is! Two of his best friends went and screwed behind his back!" She was almost yelling, but the stupid music was so loud, she had no choice.

"Oh, come on!" he said lightly. "We're not in High School anymore..."

"Damn right we're not in High School anymore," she blurted out. "So why did you have to act like a stupid hormonal teenager and tell him? Oh, but you didn't stop at telling him! You told him details."

Doug was still calm.

"He's the one who asked for the details!"

"No, he's not!"

"Were you there?"

She stayed quiet, not wanting to believe him.

"Luke would never ask for details," she said again.

"He was impressed." He was trying to lighten up the mood, not aware he was making things worse.

Oh God.

Doug continued.

"Listen, I'm sorry ok? Luke and I have always been like that. I'm sorry I didn't consider it would embarrass you."

"I'm not embarrassed!" She raised her chin. "I'm... concerned... about Luke. Okay, maybe a little embarrassed."

Or a lot.

"Did you tell him everything?" she asked, afraid of the answer.

He made an "I'm sorry" face.

"Everything everything?"

"He knows a lot."

Oooooh God.

-----------------------------------

The next morning, Lorelai told herself she wouldn't go to Luke's. She was going to go to the rehearsal where she would have to face Doug and that was enough. She didn't even glance at the diner on her way there. Okay, maybe she did. Once. Okay, twice. But she didn't go in.

As she entered Miss Patty's studio, she saw the director walking around in circle, throwing her arms in the air.

"You okay, Miss Patty?"

She didn't answer but quickened her pace. Kirk was mumbling, "I can do it. I told her I can do it. She didn't believe me. I should have caught her that one time during the exercise, the time we had to catch our partner. Maybe she would trust me if I had. I can do it, I swear!"

"What are you talking about, Kirk?" Lorelai asked, not really curious. She kept looking at Miss Patty, a little worried.

"I can do Kyle's part. I know I can. Why didn't I catch her? Why?"

"Kyle's part is Doug's, Kirk. You have to accept it."

"Not anymore, it's not," Kirk said without looking at Lorelai.

"What do you mean?"

Patty's desperate tone filled the studio.

"It's oooover. We have to cancel the whole thing!"

She had stopped walking around. She seemed to hyperventilate. Lorelai approach her.

"What's going on, Patty?"

"I have no Kyle."

"Well, it's only a rehearsal... We could do some other exercises for today. I'm sure Doug has a good reason for not being here today..."

"He quit," she sobbed.

Lorelai wasn't sure she heard right.

"He called me and said he couldn't do this project anymore."

"Oh."

What was going on? Was Doug quitting because of her? Seriously, the guy was a teenager.

"Well," Lorelai started, "we'll figure something out."

"I don't want Kirk to be Kyle. Even if he says the names look alike..." Patty whispered through her teeth.

"I know. I don't want him to be him either..." Lorelai shuddered at the thought. "Everything's going to be fine. I'll talk to Doug."

"Oh, he's not coming back. He left for New York."

New York?

"Let me handle this."

Lorelai went outside and dialled Doug's cellphone number.

--------------------------------

So much for not going to Luke's today... She needed coffee.

When Luke saw her, he automatically smiled. He didn't think he'd see her today. Exhausted by Miss Patty's meltdown, she sat down and tried to smile at him.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked, concerned.

"Doug left," she said. She still felt weird saying Doug's name in front of Luke. Especially now that he knew... details about her.

Luke's chest tightened. Was she sad? She seemed sad.

"Yeah, he told me. He had this wonderful acting opportunity in New York..."

Doug really didn't leave because of Lorelai or Luke. But this acting job would be god for all of them. Doug thought it would be easier for his friend and Lorelai to realize some things if he was not around.

"He could be in Egypt, for all I care, but Miss Patty's a basket case. We have no more male lead so we have to cancel the whole thing."

That's the reason she's upset? I can deal with that.

"I'm sorry," Luke said. "I know you were excited about this. And you were a really good actress, too."

She smiled as she remembered rehearsing with Luke. Boy, was he intense!

"No one else can do his part?" Luke asked, trying to help. "I mean... Doug's not irreplaceable."

Lorelai felt as if she had been struck with lightening. She had the perfect solution that could save the play and maybe resolved this weirdness between Luke and her since Doug had showed up. The thing was how to make him do it. She decided on the usual tactic.

"Thank you, Luke! You won't regret it!" Lorelai said excitedly, getting up.

"Whoa, whoa! What won't I regret?"

"Accepting to play Kyle in the play! I would never have thought of it myself! I knew from the minute you helped me rehearse that you missed acting."

"I didn't..."

But everyone knew Lorelai had her way with Luke. Even if he didn't know it yet, Luke had agreed.

"I'm gonna tell Miss Patty before she gives the part to Kirk out of desperation!"

And she was off.

Wow. Okay...

Luke knew it was unnecessary to try to get out of it. Though he thought about all the ways he could have handled this conversation so it didn't end up like this.

He was going to be an actor? The town people wouldn't believe it. He was going to be mocked for the rest of his life...

But Doug was gone... and Lorelai didn't care.

He smiled.


AN2 Are you smiling? The spider's gone for good! I know this chapter lacked of LL lovin' but next chapter's gonna makeup for it. PROMISE! ;) OOOOH IT WILLLLLLL...

Teaser? Can anyone say 'rehearsal' ?