Alright guys! I may just get two chapters out in one day! Holy cow! I hope you are enjoying this! I swear, I do not mean for Max to sound at all creepy, I loved his character.
He had come into Palo Alto that morning to visit a friend of his from school. He was still at Stanford, and lived just outside of Palo Alto, away from the college craziness that sometimes seemed to follow him. Of course, after driving to the house, he was informed that his friend's baby had a bug and that he shouldn't be around her. So, rather than drive back to his empty house, Max decided to read a book and enjoy some coffee at a coffee house his students seemed to love.
The morning had passed by dully enough. The shop was quiet, and Max was seated in a corner table, being paid no mind from the various students coming in and out. A few who knew him said "hello", but no one really stayed to have a conversation. Still, it was a nice way to spend a hot, sunny day, and Max had to admit that the coffee house was pretty wonderful.
Later on, as the students at the table next to him finally left, he saw a young woman doing work, her face hiding behind a computer screen. Again, he felt as though he had seen that level of focus before. He tried to concentrate on his book again, but he could not help glancing back at the woman every so often. She looked older than college-student age, but not old enough to be 30. She was typing some long document, so maybe she was a graduate student.
All of a sudden, a man, around her age, with blond hair walked over to her and blocked Max's view. All he could see was the girl raising her eyebrows. It intrigued Max more than it should have. Did she know him? Was he just some poor guy hoping to get a date for that night? The young man sat down, and the girl put her computer away. Max gasped at what he saw. It was Rory, or, at least he thought it was Rory.
She wasn't the same girl he had seen at her graduation. Her hair was a bit shorter again, pulled back haphazardly. She was even thinner than normal, and looked years older than she should be. He had to do the math in his head to make sure she was only supposed to be 24. He wondered why she was in Palo Alto, and why she looked the way she did. He was worried that something terrible had happened to her, or, God forbid, Lorelei. Yes, something happening to Lorelei would make sense. Max felt his whole being tighten at the thought of Lorelei being in any kind of danger.
He watched the two of them act awkward around each other, and then he thought he understood. She was acting the way he himself would act if he ever saw Lorelei again. He could spot a broken heart from miles away, it seemed these days. He wanted to reach out to the girl who looked like Rory. He still wasn't entirely convinced that it was her. She seemed so other-worldly, so not the girl he remembered. He spotted the Rory look-alike tear up and just break down on the coffee shop table. His rare fatherly instinct he never got to act upon wanted to jump into alertness and help her cope. He was about to get up and tell the man to go away, but the blond man got up and beat him to it. He could see the girl relax slightly when he put his arms around her, and she seemed to melt a bit in his arms. He could also see them both clearly say, "I'm sorry".
Max watched as the two regained their composure and continued to talk for a while longer. Soon, the young man got up and left, and the girl grabbed her computer once again. Max had to know, had to see if it was indeed Rory. So, he put his book away and made his way over to her table.
"Excuse me. Are you Rory Gilmore?" Max asked quietly, so as not to startle the girl. The young lady's eyes went wide, and she let out a little gasp.
"Mr. Medina?" Rory questioned back, amazed at the day's surprises. "Isn't this the day of unexpected meetings. Would you like to sit down?"
"Yes, thank you," Max replied, taking the seat that had been occupied by the young man.
"So, Rory, what brings you to this sunny state?" Max said, starting with something basic.
"Oh, well, let's see. After I graduated from Yale, I was offered a position as a reporter for an online magazine to follow Barack Obama on the Presidential Campaign Trail. So, I have been traveling from place to place for the last two years now. This week we are here, in Palo Alto," Rory told him.
"Wow, how exciting for you! I knew you would always achieve great things!" Max encouraged. He felt like a proud parent, hearing all of this.
"Yeah, well. To be kind of honest, I am really glad the trail is almost over. I have only gone home twice in those two years, and I am tired of traveling. I want to get a permanent writing job, in one general location," Rory admitted.
"I am sure that you will find some other great job, and a lot closer to home," Max said, noting the tiredness in Rory's voice. They sat in silence for a few seconds as they always seem to do. Rory took the time to examine her former teacher. He had to be about what now, 45 years old? He seemed to look his age for once, if not a few years older. His hair was just beginning to gray at the temples and the fine lines around his eyes seemed bigger, more defined somehow. He was thinner than she remembered him being, and his eyes had the same tired look as her own. She grew concerned at this rapid change, or, at least what she viewed as a rapid change in his appearance. It had been, what? Four years since she had last seen him? It seemed liked a lifetime ago. She had always thought that she had seen him at her graduation, but, just as she headed towards him, he was gone. She declared it a trick her mind was playing on her and returned to her family.
"So, Mr. Medina, what have you been up to?" Rory asked, finally breaking the silence.
"Well, not much has changed. I am still teaching at Stanford, full-time now. The students are great, but I am not a huge fan of the weather here…far too hot. I sometimes long to go back to the East coast. But, I have grown to love my students here. I have a great job here," Max replied with a small, albeit sad smile.
"Is there anyone, um, special in your life?" Rory asked, worried that it might be too forward of a question. Max looked at her and raised his eyebrows.
"Now, Miss Gilmore, you are getting a little forward, don't you think? Oh, are you even Miss Gilmore still? I never thought that you might be married by now," Max said, changing the subject. Rory laughed uncomfortably.
"No, I am still the same old Rory Gilmore. I came close though. That guy that was here earlier, you might have seen him? He was my boyfriend I told you about a few years ago. Logan? He asked me to marry him at my graduation party," Rory explained.
"And you said no," Max said. It was a statement, rather than a question.
"I know, I sound like my mother. Yes, I turned him down. I wasn't ready to give up my many options the world was holding open for me. He wanted to move here, in a little house, with an avocado tree in the backyard. He completely threw me. I loved him, but, I wasn't ready to settle down. Well, at my graduation, he gave me an ultimatum. Essentially it was him, or my career. He refused to go back to dating long distance. So, I chose my career, and he walked away. I hadn't talked to him since, until I ran into him today," Rory said, staring at her hands.
"Wow, eventful day for you. What are the two of you going to do now, if you don't mind me asking?" Max prodded. He was curious to see what would happen. Rory had never come across as a particularly romantic person, but, he could tell that she still loved this Logan immensely, much like he still loved Lorelei.
"I don't really know. I still love him, a lot, and he says he still loves me. I believe him because he looks like me. We've looked better, if you haven't noticed," and Rory motioned to her pale face.
"You still look great to me," Max said, not wanting to hurt Rory. As he hoped, Rory let out a small laugh.
"Flattery will get you everywhere, Mr. Medina. Anyways, he and I are meeting for dinner tonight. I guess we will see then, if anything more will happen between us. I, for one, am not getting my hopes up."
"That sounds wise," Max replied.
"Anyway," Rory continued, "that was a nice way to get you away from answering the question I asked you. Now, your turn. Any Mrs. Medina in the world?" Max sighed, and Rory immediately regretted asking him the question again.
"No," Max said simply. "No one just ever seems to be 'the one', you know? I've dated, but no one can make me feel the same way."
"The same way as mom did," Rory finished for him. "I understand a little where you are coming from. I mean, I didn't miss Logan for nearly as long as you have missed mom, but, it's an awful feeling. You are taking care of yourself, though, aren't you? Maybe get a dog?" Max smiled.
"I am doing fine, no need to worry about me. I get up each morning and live my life. You know, when I first saw you, I thought you looked upset. I thought something had happened to Lorelei," Max said, wanting a Lorelei update.
"Well, I was missing her. She's doing fine, great actually. It's been a whirlwind of two years for her. She and Luke broke up in my junior year; she gave him an ultimatum. He has a daughter you see, he had just found out, and just couldn't handle everything and mom got tired of it. He didn't take her ultimatum until it was too late. So, she and my dad got together. They eloped in Paris, then soon divorced. She couldn't get over Luke. The night he threw me a 'going away' party, they made up. They finally got married a couple weeks ago. They are in Alaska right now on their honeymoon. She had sent me a picture and I just got to missing her, I guess," Rory explained. "I'm sorry if any of that was hard to hear."
"No, I am glad things are working out for her. I was wondering, would you mind if I saw the picture? I haven't seen her in almost six years. I feel like I need to see her truly happy and in love. Maybe it will help me finally move on," Max requested. Rory looked at him carefully, not knowing if that was the greatest idea. She sighed lightly and turned her computer on. It took her a moment, but she was able to pull the picture of her mother and Luke onto the screen. She spun the computer around so that Max could see it. And then she held her breath.
Max knew when he saw the picture, that Luke and Lorelei were right for each other. Her face, her beautiful face with the crystal blue eyes looked radiant. She was smiling broadly, the sun in her dark hair, and her arms wrapped tightly around Luke, who just seemed to be laughing at the camera. He did not need to be an expert to realize that she had never looked that way when she was with him. Yes, she had cared for him, and possibly loved him, but it was a different kind of love. He knew then, that any fantasy he had had of being with Lorelei was over. Did that make his hurt any less? Absolutely not. Rory noticed the tears threatening his eyes, and she looked down, wanting to give him a moment. He cleared his throat and turned the computer back to her.
"Well?" Rory asked, timidly.
"It helped and it didn't help. It made me realize she never loved me that same way. But it doesn't change the fact that I did, do, love her that way. I guess it might never change," Max said, resigned.
Their talk went on for another hour or so, and then Rory realized the time.
"I am so sorry, Mr. Medina, but I have to go get ready for tonight!" Rory said, rushing to get her things in order.
"Oh that's right, your date," Max said, smiling.
"It's not a date!" Rory replied. "I don't know what it is. Are you going to be around tomorrow or Monday? We could meet for another chat before I head out to Arizona."
"I'm sorry, but, I am leaving for town on a conference trip tomorrow morning. I was supposed to be visiting a friend this morning, but it fell through. I'm glad it did," Max told Rory.
"Yes, Fate brought us back again. Go figure," Rory said. "Shall we leave it to Fate again?"
"Well, how about we can email? I have a standard Stanford email account. If you ever feel like it, just drop me a message every now and again. Sound good?" Max suggested.
"Sounds great!" Rory answered. She gave her former teacher a quick, but strong hug. "I will talk to you soon, then, Mr. Medina."
"Call me Norman," he said, smiling.
"Okay, Norman. Take care of yourself, I mean it. And I will be in touch." Rory said. And she quickly ran out the door.
Max sat back down at the table, trying to sort out his thoughts. It was just like a Gilmore Girl to leave him so confused about all that had happened. He hoped for Rory's sake that she patched things up with that Logan kid. She deserved happiness. And, he had to admit, he was glad Lorelei was happy. He sighed and stood up, grabbing his book. He was heading back to his empty house, to spend another night, alone. Maybe he would follow Rory's advice and get a pet. He smiled to himself briefly, and left the coffee shop. Who knew? Maybe the next time Fate brought him and Rory back to the same place, maybe he would finally be able to talk to Lorelei.