Father's Day, Through the Years
Chapter 2. Father's Day - 2011
"Happy Fodder's Day, Daddy," a voice whispered, stirring Luke from his sleep. He felt Abby's body leaning against his chest and her little hands on his cheeks. As he opened his eyes, he found himself face to face with his 2-year-old daughter. Abby kissed his cheek and repeated, "Happy Fodder's Day, Daddy..."
Luke smiled and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "Thank you, Princess."
Lorelai was sitting next to them on the bed, and she rubbed Luke's arm affectionately. "Happy Father's Day, hon."
"Thanks," Luke replied as he sat up in the bed with Abby's arms still wrapped around his neck. He leaned over to kiss Lorelai, then turned Abby around to sit her on his lap. He kissed the top of her head and smoothed his hand over her hair.
"Here, honey, show Daddy the card you made," Lorelai said, handing Abby the piece of folded construction paper.
Abby passed the card to Luke, announcing, "I made card, Daddy."
"Did you make this for me?" Luke smiled as he opened it. He stared down at the colorful drawings that filled the inside of the card, trying to make out any familiar shapes. "Show me your pictures..."
"Rainbow," Abby pointed to the colorful lines at the top of the page.
"Wow, good job, Abs," Luke said. "What else is there?"
Abby pointed to a squiggly circle at the bottom of the page. "Panpake."
Luke chuckled. "You drew me a pancake? You are your mother's daughter."
Lorelai smiled. "She sure is. Panpake. God, she's adorable." She reached over to stroke Abby's hair as Luke continued looking over the card.
When they were done, Abby spotted Paul Anka in the corner of the room and quickly climbed off the bed, with Luke's help. "Hi Palanka," she called as she ran over to him. She sat down on the floor next to the dog and began petting him. Paul Anka had come a long way in his relationship with Abby. When she was a baby, the dog would run out of the room in terror whenever she cried, but now he was usually welcoming of her affection.
"Be gentle, Abby," Luke cautioned her. "Nice doggy." He turned back to Lorelai with a smile and patted her thigh. "How are you feeling? Everything okay?"
Lorelai placed both hands on her protruding belly and nodded. "Yup, all's well in the crockpot." She leaned back against the headboard with a smile. "Just 24 more hours to go."
"Unless he wants out today," Luke reminded her.
After a very healthy pregnancy, Lorelai was now 9 days past her due date. At her doctor's appointment last week, her doctor recommended inducing labor on Monday if she didn't go into labor naturally before then.
Luke took her hand into his and stroked it with his thumb. "You nervous?"
"I guess, a little," Lorelai replied with a shrug. She glanced down at her belly and ran her hand in circles over it. "And...it's kinda sad knowing this is probably the last pregnancy I'll ever go through. I mean, considering I was constantly reminded that I'm an old bag throughout both pregnancies, I assume I'm hitting my expiration date as a human incubator."
Luke smiled. "Advanced maternal age..."
"...Is doctor code for 'old bag'," Lorelai finished. "They didn't once tell you that you're at an 'advanced paternal age' and you're older than me. Talk about sexist!"
"Well, my job in this pregnancy took a few minutes and yours took 9 months, so your age is a little more relevant than mine," Luke pointed out.
Lorelai sighed. "A valid point, I guess..."
"But, you know, we're lucky... even with the age thing, two healthy pregnancies..." He kissed her softly. "You're an amazing human incubator."
Lorelai laughed. "How sweet, thank you."
"I see Mommy shoes," Abby said from across the room. They glanced over to see that she had moved away from Paul Anka and was now playing with the buckle on one of Lorelai's shoes.
"Yes, those are Mommy's shoes," Lorelai confirmed, then turned to Luke. "What time is it?"
Luke glanced at the clock. "Almost 7:30."
"Okay," Lorelai replied. "We have lunch at Sookie's at 12, and I have to pack the bags at some point, but other than that, it's a full day of you, me, and the little princess just hanging out..."
"And when is the big princess getting here?"
Lorelai smiled. "Rory's coming tomorrow morning. She's gonna stay until Wednesday, but she has to get some work done while she's here because of some Friday deadline." She scoffed. "Deadline, schmeadline, can't they postpone things like that when the journalist's mom is having a baby?"
Luke smirked. "It's blasphemy." He glanced over at Abby, who had moved on from Lorelai's shoes and was now focused on pulling clothes out of the laundry basket. "And things are all set with your parents?"
"Yes. They're picking up Abby at 6:30 tonight," Lorelai replied. "And then they'll bring her to the hospital tomorrow whenever we ask them to."
"Okay." Luke climbed out of the bed. "You wanna shower while I get her some breakfast?"
"Yes, thank you," Lorelai asked, holding out her arms. "Help, please..."
Luke walked over to her side of the bed and helped her up. He pulled her into a hug and kissed her cheek. "I love you."
Lorelai smiled. "I love you, too." She kissed him tenderly, then headed toward the bathroom, stopping to rub Abby on the head. "Abs, you're gonna go eat with Daddy, okay?"
"Eat with Daddy," Abby echoed. "Daddy make panpakes?"
Luke smiled as he scooped her up from the floor. "You got it."
. . . . . .
That evening after dinner, Luke and Abby made a quick run to Doose's Market. When they arrived home, Abby toddled through the front door into the foyer, repeatedly calling, "Mommy?"
"Over here, baby girl," Lorelai called from the couch. "Come see Mommy."
Luke followed Abby over to the couch where Lorelai was lying. Her tank top was pulled halfway up to expose her pregnant belly, a common occurrence during the recent summer heat wave despite the blasting air condition inside the house.
"There's my little girl," Lorelai said as she struggled to sit up straight. "Did you have fun shopping?"
"Shopping with Daddy," Abby repeated. "I eat fishies."
Lorelai smiled. "Did you buy some fishy crackers?"
Abby nodded. "Fishy cackers and juice."
"And did you buy some candy?" Lorelai asked hopefully.
"Candy for Mommy," Abby repeated with a nod.
Luke pulled a pack of M&M's out of the shopping bag he was holding and handed them to Abby. "Here, give Mommy her present..."
Abby handed the pack to Lorelai. "Here candy, Mommy."
"Thank you, Abs!" Lorelai pulled Abby into a hug and tickled her sides, evoking an explosion of giggles from her little girl. When Lorelai put her down, she ran over to the corner of the room to play with her toys.
Luke sat down on the coffee table as Lorelai opened up the M&M's. "Thank you, I need this badly, severe craving," Lorelai said, then proceeded to pour half the pack directly into her mouth.
"You're welcome." Luke watched her, amused, as she chewed her mouthful of candy, and he wiped a bit of chocolate drool from the corner of her lip.
Once Lorelai had swallowed her mouthful, she leaned back against the couch with a sigh. Luke placed both of his hands on her stomach. "How's he doing?"
"Well, he had the nerve to complain about the lack of space again, but I was like, 'dude, you only have like 18 more hours in that womb, suck it up and stop whining.'"
Luke shook his head with feigned disappointment. "Tsk, he's just never happy, that kid."
Lorelai scoffed. "Right? He's the one that's checking out of the baby motel 10 days late, so he has no right to complain about the accommodations."
"I'll have a talk with him about that when he gets here. Other than that, you're feeling okay?"
"Yup, all is good," Lorelai reassured him as she pulled her shirt down over her belly. "Oh, April called a few minutes ago..."
"Again?"
"This time for me... she wanted to wish me good luck for tomorrow," Lorelai said with a smile. "It was sweet. She's excited for another sibling."
Luke smiled and nodded. "Yeah, she's counting down the days to her summer visit, she can't wait to meet him."
"Me too." Lorelai glanced over at Abby, who was sitting on the floor engrossed in one of her picture books. "So today is officially our last day as parents to just girls."
"Yup, it's about time we got some more testosterone in here," Luke said.
"Yes, finally someone to help you with the manly things like taking out the trash and making my meals," Lorelai replied.
Luke smiled. "So, are we all set for tomorrow? Bags are packed? Arrangements are made?"
"Yup. My hospital bag is packed, Abby's overnight bag is packed for my parents..." Lorelai checked the time. "...who will be here in twenty minutes. And Babette's gonna check on Paul Anka tomorrow." Lorelai glanced over at Abby, then back to Luke. "Can you do me a favor?"
"Sure," Luke replied.
Lorelai pointed to Abby. "Bring me that beautiful bundle of love so I can cuddle with her before she leaves."
Luke smiled. "You bet." He walked over to Abby. "Abs, you wanna read with Mommy and Daddy? Let's get some books..." He helped her pick out a few books, and they walked over to the couch.
"Read books, Mommy," Abby said, placing a book on Lorelai's lap. "I want monkey book."
"Yes, ma'am," Lorelai replied as she opened up the book with the monkey on the cover.
They were still reading a little while later when there was a knock at the front door. "Come in," Lorelai called.
They heard the door open, and Emily's voice called, "Come in? You just let anyone waltz right into the house when they knock? What if I was a burglar?" Emily and Richard walked through the foyer to the living room.
"I've told you, Mom, this is Stars Hollow," Lorelai replied. "People don't burgle here."
Luke stood up from the couch with Abby and walked over toward the Gilmores. "Look who's here, Abby...say hi..."
"Hi Gamma," Abby said to Emily.
Emily grinned. "Hello there, Abigail."
"And who's that?" Luke asked, pointing to Richard.
"Gampa," Abby replied. "Hi Gampa."
Richard had a tendency to turn into mush whenever he was in Abby's presence. "Hello, Abigail..." He tickled her in the crook of her neck and she giggled instantly, cocking her head to the side. "Ah, still ticklish, I see..."
"I tickle Gampa," Abby said, reaching for him. Luke leaned her closer and Abby poked Richard in the chest with her pointer finger. "Tickle tickle."
Richard chuckled. "Uh oh, you got me, Abigail. You tickled me. I'm gonna tickle you now..." As he started to reach toward her, Abby giggled again and buried her face against Luke's shoulder. She glanced at Lorelai, still on the couch behind them. "Mommy, Gampa tickle me!"
Lorelai smiled. "Yes, I saw that." She pushed herself up slowly from the couch and walked over to them. "Because when you think of Richard Gilmore, you think, yeah, he looks like he enjoys a good tickle fight. Happy Father's Day, Dad."
"Thank you, Lorelai," he replied with a nod.
"Lorelai, how are you feeling?" Emily asked.
"Great," she replied with an affirmative nod. "Feeling really good. Just tired and hot..."
"Yes, I bet it's awfully uncomfortable to be pregnant in this heat wave," Emily said, then glanced around as she rubbed her arms. "Although it seems you're addressing that issue by putting the air conditioner on the Alaskan setting. I'm surprised Abby hasn't developed pneumonia yet."
"So, uh, thanks so much for taking her tonight," Luke said quickly, trying to curtail any comebacks from Lorelai to Emily. "It's a huge help."
"Yeah, we really appreciate it," Lorelai added. "And especially for driving out here to get her."
"Of course, it's not a problem at all," Richard replied.
"Can I get you something to drink?" Luke asked them.
"No, we'll get out of your hair and let you get ready for tomorrow," Richard said. "Are her things ready to go?"
"Oh, yeah, the bag's at the top of the steps," Lorelai replied.
"I'll get it," Luke said, and he turned to pass Abby to Lorelai. "Here, say your goodbyes."
As Luke headed upstairs, Lorelai sat down on the couch and hugged her daughter tightly. "You're gonna go sleep at Grandma and Grandpa's big house tonight, in your special pink room. And what's Mommy gonna have tomorrow? What's gonna come out of her belly?"
"Baby," Abigail replied with a proud nod. "Mommy get new baby."
Lorelai smiled. "That's right, Mommy's gonna have a baby, and then Abby will come see him, okay?"
Abigail nodded. "I play with baby."
Lorelai smiled and hugged her again, pressing kisses to her cheek. "I love you, sweet girl... you be good for Grandma and Grandpa..." Lorelai felt tears forming in her eyes and she quickly blinked them away. "Mommy will see you tomorrow..."
Luke came down the steps with Abby's bag, and Richard reached for it. "Here, I'll take it."
"Thanks," Luke replied as he handed it off. He looked at Lorelai, who was hugging Abby tightly like she never wanted to let go. "All set?"
"In a minute," Lorelai muttered, burying her face against Abigail's neck.
Emily cleared her throat. "We'll wait outside by the car..." She put her hand on Richard's shoulder and led him toward the front door.
Luke sat down on the couch next to Lorelai and lightly rubbed her back. "You okay?"
Lorelai nodded as she pulled back from Abby. "Mmhmm, I'm good." She kissed Abby's cheek. "I just don't like being away from her."
"It's only one night," Luke said comfortingly. "She'll be back home tomorrow..."
"I know."
Luke stood up. "It'll be okay. Let's bring her outside..."
Abby had started to play with Lorelai's necklace, and Lorelai gently removed it from Abby's fingers. "Go to Daddy, honey..."
Abby stretched her arms toward Luke, who picked her up. She hugged his neck as he rubbed her back. "Time to go to the big house."
Lorelai stood up. "That sounds like you're sending her to prison. We need to come up with a better nickname for that house."
Luke kissed the top of Abby's head. "Daddy loves you, Princess. You be a good girl, okay?"
The three of them walked outside. Emily and Richard were standing next to the car, the back door open waiting for Abby. Luke started strapping her in the car seat.
"So, you'll keep us posted tomorrow, Lorelai?" Emily asked.
"Yes, I'm sure Luke or Rory will send you updates," Lorelai replied. "And be sure to call one of us if Abby needs anything, okay?" She glanced nervously toward the backseat. "Even if she just wants to talk to us..."
"She'll be fine, don't worry," Richard assured her. "She's never had any issues when she's slept over. You just focus on that grandson of ours, and we'll take care of Abby. Good luck tomorrow, Lorelai."
Lorelai swallowed hard, blinking back tears. "Thank you," she whispered.
Once Abby was buckled, Luke and Lorelai both kissed her goodbye, then shut the car door. As Emily and Richard said their goodbyes and got into the car, Lorelai wrapped her arms around Luke's waist and rested her head on his shoulder. As the car started pulling away, Lorelai's tears began falling.
Luke pulled her into a hug and rubbed her back soothingly. "It's okay...don't worry..."
"I'm not even sure why I'm crying," Lorelai muttered through her sniffles. "I know she's gonna be okay... I know I'll see her tomorrow..."
"Well, there's a hell of a lot of things going on right now," Luke pointed out. "Abby's gone for the night, Rory's coming home tomorrow, you're having a baby... lots of emotional things hitting you all at once..."
Lorelai lifted her head to meet his gaze. "So you don't think I'm crazy for crying right now?"
"No, that's not currently on the long list of reasons I think you're crazy," Luke replied.
Lorelai playfully nudged his stomach with her fist. "Don't mock the emotional pregnant woman."
. . . . . .
The next day, Lorelai was induced into labor at 7 a.m., and by the afternoon the newest member of the Danes family had arrived. A few hours after the delivery, as Luke sat in the hospital room with Lorelai and a sleeping baby Ryan, there was a knock at the door.
Luke walked over to open the door, and Emily and Richard stood in the hallway. Richard was holding Abby, whose face lit up when she saw Luke. "Hi Daddy!" she smiled and immediately reached for him.
"There's my girl," Luke said as he took her from Richard and kissed her cheek. "Let's go see Mommy..." As he walked toward the bed, Luke smiled back at Richard and Emily. "Come meet your grandson..."
Abby smiled when she saw Lorelai in the bed. "Hi Mommy!"
Lorelai smiled and reached her arms out to Abby. "Hi sunshine! I missed you... come give Mommy a hug."
"Gently," Luke said as he placed Abby next to Lorelai on the bed. "Be gentle with Mommy, Abby."
Lorelai hugged her little girl and kissed her cheek. "Did you have fun with Grandma and Grandpa at the big house?"
Abby nodded. "I go in big pool."
"Oh, yes, we took her in the pool today," Emily explained. "Don't worry, we put lots of sunscreen on her."
Lorelai smiled sincerely at Emily and Richard. "Thank you so much for taking her, it was a huge help, really..."
"Of course, anytime," Richard said. He and Emily were standing next to the bassinet staring down at the baby.
"He's beautiful, Lorelai," Emily commented. "Congratulations."
"Yes, congratulations," Richard said. "He looks very healthy."
Lorelai smiled. "Thank you." She kissed the top of Abby's head, then smoothed her hair. "You wanna see the baby, Abs?"
"Play with baby," Abby said, pointing to the bassinet.
Lorelai smiled. "He can't play with you yet..."
"Why?" Abby asked.
"Because he's too little," Lorelai replied.
"Little baby," Abby said.
"Let's go see him," Luke said as he lifted Abby from the bed. He moved closer to the bassinet. "There's your baby brother Ryan. Can you say Ryan?"
"Ry-an," Abby pointed to the sleeping boy.
Luke smiled. "Good girl." He brought her a little closer toward the baby, and Abby reached her hand toward the blanket that Ryan was swaddled in.
"You have to be very gentle with baby, okay?" Lorelai said. "Touch him softly...nice baby."
"Nice baby," Abby repeated. She softly stroked the blanket as if she was petting Paul Anka. "Little baby."
The hospital room door opened and Rory walked in carrying a takeout bag, surprised to see the new faces in the room. "Wow, I leave for 10 minutes and a party starts..."
Rory hugged her grandparents hello, and then walked over to Luke to greet Abby, who was still petting the baby. "Hi Abby..." Rory said softly. Abby glanced over toward the voice, and she smiled shyly when she saw Rory.
"Who's that, Abby?" Luke asked.
"Ree-ree," Abby replied.
Rory took her from Luke and hugged her. "Did you see the baby?" Rory asked her, and Abby pointed to the bassinet. "Yeah, there he is... baby's sleeping..."
"Baby seeping," Abby said, then brought her finger to her mouth and said, "Shhhh."
Everyone responded with quiet laughter so as to not to wake the baby, and Rory hugged Abby tightly. "Oh my God, you're so cute... I missed you." Rory realized she was still holding the takeout bag, and she handed it to Lorelai. "Oh, here's your sandwich, Mom."
"Thank you," Lorelai replied. "I'm starving." As she reached into the bag, she told Emily she could pick the baby up, since he would be waking soon to eat anyway.
Emily happily obliged and carefully picked him up from the bassinet. She cradled her sleeping grandson in her arms, smiling at him as she walked over to the rocking chair to sit down.
. . . . . .
Later that evening, shortly after Emily and Richard had left the hospital, Lorelai was holding Ryan on the bed as Luke was getting ready to take Abby home. Rory sat in the rocking chair snacking on cookies.
"You're sure you don't want someone here with you overnight?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, I can sleep here, Mom," Rory offered.
Lorelai shook her head. "I'll be fine. I'll have Rory here for a little while longer if I need anything, and then the nurses will be at my beck and call all night."
Luke sighed and hesitantly nodded. "Okay. Call me later to check in?"
Lorelai nodded. "I will."
Luke and Abby said their goodbyes. After they had left, Lorelai smiled at Rory. "So, alone at last...tell Mommy what's new."
Rory smiled and shrugged. "Well, as a matter of fact, a potentially interesting conversation occurred a few days ago that I've been waiting to tell you about in person."
"Aha, I knew it!" Lorelai exclaimed softly, trying not to startle the baby. "I knew you were withholding information. You had that look on your face all day. How dare you keep secrets from Mommy!"
Rory laughed. "I just didn't have a chance to tell you yet... there were people around all day, and, oh yeah, there was that little matter of you giving birth..."
"Okay, well, the baby's been birthed and everyone's gone... so, tell me now," Lorelai urged.
Rory smiled and walked over to the bed to slide in next to Lorelai. "Well... there may or may not have been a discussion about the future... about our future... and if we saw a potential marriage working into it..."
Lorelai gasped. "With each other, or with other people?"
Rory nudged her mother gently. "With each other!"
"And... what'd you decide?" Lorelai asked anxiously.
Rory smiled. "Well, things have been going really great. I mean, it's been almost two years since we got back together, and I've been really happy..."
"I know you have," Lorelai agreed, smiling. "Soooo?"
Rory shrugged nonchalantly. "So, I think if you were to place bets on a possible Rory/Jess engagement in the near future, you'd probably come out a winner..."
Lorelai grinned. "Really? Aww, honey, that's amazing news! I'm sorry you had to keep that to yourself all day... you must've been dying to tell me!"
"Well, I really needed to get it out to someone, so I whispered it to Abby earlier," Rory said. "She's a good secret-keeper."
Lorelai smiled, then shook her head in disbelief. "Oh my God, I can't believe my first baby is talking about getting engaged."
Rory rested her head on Lorelai's shoulder. "I know... I still feel 16. "
"And you still look 16," Lorelai added. "Why don't you age? Where did you get those genes?"
"Says the woman who just gave birth and already looks like she could be on the cover of Shape magazine in a bikini," Rory countered.
Lorelai laughed. "Oh trust me, I won't be wearing a bikini in a magazine anytime soon, unless it's for Flappy Skin Weekly." She glanced down at the baby nestled against her chest. "But totally worth it. He's pretty cute, huh?"
Rory smiled. "Very."
Lorelai sighed contentedly, then looked at Rory. "I'm so happy for you, honey... this is so exciting." She kissed Rory on the cheek. "You know what comes next, right? Ring shopping!"
Rory smiled and nodded. She was quiet for a second as she aimlessly fingered the sleeve of Lorelai's hospital gown. "So... you don't think it's too fast, right?"
Lorelai shrugged. "Only you know if it's too fast, kid. But, think of it this way... if he were to show up right now with a ring and ask you to marry him, would you hesitate? Would you need to think it over, or go make a pro/con list before you answered?"
A smile slowly formed on Rory's lips. "No."
Lorelai smiled and patted Rory's arm. "Then you found the one."
. . . . . .
Later that night, Lorelai was settled in the hospital bed with the baby sleeping in the bassinet next to her. She picked up the phone and dialed the house.
"Hey you," Luke answered. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah, we're good here," Lorelai replied. "Did Rory make it home?"
"Yup, she got here a few minutes ago," Luke replied.
"Was Abby okay?" Lorelai asked.
"Yeah, we ate dinner, we drew a picture for the baby, she had a bath, we read books, and she's asleep now. And she was talking about how she wants to play with the baby."
Lorelai smiled. "Aw, she's so cute. I miss her...and you."
"We miss you, too," Luke replied. "How was your night?"
"Good. Ryan was fine, and Rory and I had a lot of catching up to do," Lorelai said. "Like, a lot, a lot..."
"You have gossip," Luke said knowingly. "I hear it in your voice. What's going on?"
"Well...seems like Rory and Jess have recently discussed the possibility of..." Lorelai paused for dramatic effect. "... getting engaged soon."
Luke's eyes widened. "What? Seriously?"
"Yup. They talked it out and they're both on the same page... they both see this as a permanent relationship..."
"Wow. I'm in shock," Luke replied, shaking his head in disbelief. "Were you shocked?"
"No, I kinda saw it coming," Lorelai told him. "I mean, things have been really good for them since they got back together. Plus, they're living together... seems like it was the next step. They've always had a deep connection. I think they just needed to have their own experiences for awhile and then find each other as adults."
"Yeah, I guess. Just... doesn't it seem like they're still kids?"
"Yup, they're still kids and we're still in our thirties and are able to stay up past ten without needing to caff up first."
"Ah, the good old days," Luke replied with a laugh.
Lorelai glanced over at the bassinet. "Our son is the most beautiful baby boy I've ever seen in my life."
"Our son," Luke repeated. "I love the sound of that."
"Me, too."
"You were amazing today," Luke said sincerely. "I don't know how you do it... how you always manage to stay so calm with everything going on..."
"Drugs, hon... they're magical," Lorelai replied. "Plus, I did have a pretty awesome man supporting me every step of the way."
"We're a good team," Luke surmised. "You, me, and the Epidural."
"Yup," Lorelai agreed. "So... best belated Father's Day present ever?"
"Yeah, you're gonna have quite a time trying to top this one."
"Oh shoot, I set the bar pretty high, didn't I?" Lorelai muttered. "We may have to cancel Father's Day going forward to avoid your future gift disappointments."
"We'll just cancel the gift part of it," Luke said. "We'll just stick with those handmade cards. I kind of like those. Panpake."
"Panpake," Lorelai repeated with a laugh. "I love it."
"So, what's he doing now?"
Lorelai was staring into the bassinet. "He's sleeping but he's making this adorable pouty face," she replied. "I wonder if he's dreaming..."
"Will he be hungry soon?"
"No, I just fed him," Lorelai replied. "He should be good for a bit."
"Okay, I'll let you go try to get some sleep then," Luke said. "You need your rest."
"Okay. I'll see you guys tomorrow morning?"
"First thing," Luke replied. "Kiss him for me."
"I will. I love you."
"I love you, too. Goodnight."
...
Next Up: Father's Day, 2014...