Chapter Seven: The world without…
The quiet knock on the front door pulled Rory away from the movie she was watching, while Anna slept peacefully in her carry cot near her. With a quick glance at her daughter while she paused the movie she got to her feet. It was eleven thirty in the morning so she knew it couldn't be Lane who was bringing the boys over this afternoon. Curiosity rising she pulled the door open. Jess stood on the doorstep holding up a cardboard box.
'What's that?' Rory asked, ushering him inside the house. He walked past her into the lounge, smiling at Anna as he set the box down on the coffee table.
'My mum sent over a bunch of Doula's old things for Anna.' Jess shrugged. Rory smiled and opened up the box, examining the items that had been neatly folded.
'Thank her for me, and thanks for bringing them. You want something to eat? I was thinking of getting some lunch soon.' Rory replied without looking up, she picked up a little pale green dress and smiled.
'Sure…so you ok today? You look better.' Jess said sitting down on the couch.
'Much better today, well rested. It helped so much to be able to sleep yesterday, thank you so much for watching Anna.' Rory answered, getting off the floor and standing.
'Anytime.' Jess shrugged. Rory nodded slowly, still not quite believing hoe mature Jess was now. She smiled slightly and shook her head.
'Ok lunch, anything you fancy?' Rory asked.
'Wait! Do you mean to say you actually have food in the house?' Jess asked in surprise, his eyebrows raised. Rory laughed a bit.
'Well you know Luke insists we have food here, ever since he married mum we've been eating a lot less take-out. I even know how to cook some stuff.' Rory said proudly.
'I'm impressed.' Jess smirked.
'Ooh I know we can make pasta!' Rory clapped her hands together loudly then froze as Anna stirred in her carry seat. Her hand flew to her mouth, while her eyes went wide.
'It's ok I think she's still sleeping.' Jess said looking over at Anna, Rory nodded and smiled in relief, her hand dropping down to her side.
'Good.' Rory sighed in relief, waving for Jess to follow her into the kitchen. Jess stood, making sure the baby monitor was turned on, he followed Rory into the kitchen where she was already pulling out an array of vegetables, pasta and a jar of tomato sauce.
'What can I do to help?' Jess asked surveying the ingredients.
'Well I thought we'd make vegetable pasta in a tomato sauce, so you could chop the onions because they make my eyes water when I do them, I'll chop the carrots.' Rory replied.
'Ok, where are the knives?' Jess asked.
'Second drawer.' Rory pointed. 'Maybe we need some meat as well.' She added pulling the fridge open and searching through it. Looking over her shoulder Jess nodded toward something.
'There, how about grilled chicken on a bed of tomato and vegetable pasta.' Jess suggested grabbing the pack of chicken from the shelf.
'Sounds perfect.' Rory replied starting to chop the carrots as he cut the onions with no problems. 'So a friend I made at Yale, Olivia, she taught me this game and we used to play a lot, generally it got very silly and loud so we'll have to watch that, but since there's just two of us it should be fine.'
'What game?' Jess asked curiously.
'It's called the world without.' Rory replied. 'Basically we would go round the circle and take it in turns to say what we'd hate the world without, you start.'
'Ok, um let's see, the world without books.' Jess said picking something obvious. Rory threw a bit of chopped carrot at him playfully. 'I believe that makes it your turn.'
'The world without Anna.' Rory said looking back down to her task of chopping.
'The world without music.' Jess replied watching Rory carefully.
'The world without family.' Rory said confidently.
'The world without ice cream…in cones.' He smirked, she smiled back at him, memories of a failed study session swimming through her eyes.
'The world without coffee.' Rory laughed.
'Oh yeah that would be awful.' Jess teased. 'Hmm the world without good friends.'
'Yeah good friends.' Rory echoed quietly. Putting the now chopped vegetables in the pan to be cooked. 'Let's see the world without Luke's food.'
'I'm sure he'll appreciate that one.' Jess smiles, putting the chicken under the grill.
'It's your turn.' Rory prompted. Jess looked over at her for a few seconds.
'The world without terrible movies that we can mock.' Jess replied.
'Ooh that's a good one.' Rory laughed, just as the baby monitor indicated that Anna had woken up and was now crying. Rory stopped what she was doing trying to find a place to put down the bowl she'd been holding full of the sauce that she was going to add to the pasta once it was cooked.
'I got it.' Jess said heading into the lounge and picking Anna up out of her carry cot. Cradling her gently against his chest, he swayed her slightly.
'Hey Rory, I'm going to change Anna, you ok cooking in there for a few minutes?' Jess called through.
'Yeah, thanks Jess.' Rory called back. 'Changing mat and things are in the bathroom.'
Rory continued cooking while Jess went off to change Anna, a smile spread across her face thinking how nice it was that her and Jess could hang out like this, how everything just felt so…right.
'Hmm something smells good.' Lorelai's voice brought Rory out of her daydream. Lorelai walked through the back door and sat at the table.
'Hey, what are you doing home?' Rory asked, adding the sauce to the vegetables and pasta.
'Well don't I feel loved.' Lorelai sulked, Rory rolled her eyes at her mother.
'You know what I mean, I thought you'd be at work.' Rory replied.
'I am, I mean I was but I had a break and thought I'd swing back here and see how my favourite daughter was, and how my favourite granddaughter was, where is mini-me?' Lorelai asked.
'Firstly she's not a mini-you, that's me, so she's a mini-me, which I guess is kind of the same thing if I'm a mini you.' Rory rambled.
'Uh-huh, so where is she?' Lorelai asked again.
'Jess is changing her.' Rory said not making eye contact with her mum, instead busying herself with dishing up the food.
'Oh…Jess is here, again, um are you guys working on the book?'
'No, not today he just brought over some things from Liz and I invited him to stay for lunch.' Rory shrugged.
'I see, Rory?' Lorelai looked toward her daughter with a worried gaze.
'Ok she's changed and happy.' Jess said walking into the kitchen holding Anna. 'Oh hey Lorelai.'
'Hi' Lorelai replied. 'Right so I should get back to the inn, I really did only have a minute.'
'Oh ok.' Rory turned round and smiled at her mum. 'I'll see you tonight.'
'Yeah, we should kick Luke out and have a girls night so we can…talk.' Lorelai said pointedly, walking out the door again.
'Why do I get the feeling Lorelai still really hates me.' Jess said sitting at the table, Anna cradled in the crook of his left arm, whilst he ate with his free hand.
'She doesn't hate you.' Rory replied, though she didn't sound to convincing.
'At least Anna seems to like me.' Jess replied looking down at the baby who was staring back up at him.
'Loves you more like, she really likes having you around…we both do.' Rory smiled.
A/N- Hope you're liking it. Please review.