Rory woke up from bed. She wasn't sure if she was still sleeping. The bed she was in was a king sized bed, much larger than the twin that was largely on her messy bedroom floor. The room was covered in lace and pink and frills. She moved to the bathroom – her own – and saw it stocked with a variety of soaps and lotions. Her Chilton outfit was laid out and pressed perfectly, hanging, smelling new.

The surreal nature of her situation didn't change when she walked down the creaky steps into the kitchen. The first thing she noticed was the host of fruits and berries spread around a pyramid of muffins, bagels and a variety of jams. Rosa, the maid, scurried in with a plate of scrambled egg whites on a plate with whole wheat toast on the side. The maid then squeezed an orange to top off her juice, and placed a warm cup of French-pressed coffee in a porcelain mug on the table, too.

"How did you sleep last night, Rory?"

Emily's smile beamed across the kitchen table, with Richard next to her reading that morning's edition of the Financial Times. Rory's grandfather was already ready for work, his hair handsomely combed, bowtie straightened. Emily was already looking old-money perfect – hair parted with a red and blue checkered designer top paired marvelously with a black skirt.

Rory sat down and the reality of the situation washed over her. She had thought for some time, weeks, about what it would be like not just coming over to her grandparents' estate for dinner, but to actually live there. And it was waking up to the smell of breads with a cup of gourmet coffee prepared and her school outfit not in a pile on the floor. And she smiled as she sat down.

"It was perfect," Rory said as her grandmother's smile somehow grew even larger.

Rory started to eat her breakfast.

"Well, there's no need to beat around the bush, Rory," Emily said. "Dinner's tonight and we have to figure out a way to tell your mother about what it is you want."

Rory just stared down.

"Grandma, I don't know –"

Emily's eyes narrowed. She was afraid of this.

"No, Grandma, don't worry. I want to live here." Emily relaxed back. "But… I don't know if tonight's the night. This is just so fast. I don't know if I'm ready yet.

"You're not," Richard said, folding his newspaper down. "You're not ready yet. And, Emily, we're not either."

Emily's glare narrowed at her husband's.

"I sat up last night thinking about this situation. And this is a tough situation for you. And it is for us, too," Richard said. "So I have decided that this is something we need to ease into."

Emily obviously did not like Richard's decision and, most importantly, not included in the process. But Rory was obviously more relaxed.

"Rory, you will stay the weekend," Richard said. "And it will be the type of weekend we envision for you. But we have your mother to consider in this, too."

Rory nodded.

"Well, Grandpa, she has a very busy weekend," Rory said. "There's a huge wedding at the Inn. The ceremony is Sunday night—"

"Who gets married on a Sunday night," Emily asked.

"So, I was essentially going to be on my own this weekend. I was supposed to meet Lane. And I have the movies and books and could always go to the Inn," Rory said. "But this is a really busy weekend for Mom."

"Excellent," Emily said. "So then your stay shouldn't upset her."

"No," Rory said. "I really do have a huge study meeting with Paris after school today. And it actually does make sense for me to come right after school."

"How is the Chilton golf team going, Rory," Richard asked.

"Well, Grandpa, I do have to go to one more round for it to count as my athletic credit," Rory said.

"Wonderful. I'll arrange for us to have a tee time at the club tomorrow morning,' Richard said. "You can tell your mother that it will just be easier for you to stay here as opposed to her having to drive."

"And, Richard, I'm sure you'll inquire about membership," Emily asked.

"Of course. If it's what Rory wants.'

Rory smiled as her grandparents looked at her.

"Yes," she said. "It's what I want."

Rory took a big sip of her coffee.

"Maybe I should also tell mom I have a big science lab to do, so I have to go back to Chilton," Rory said. Emily's lips moved together. She enjoyed seeing her granddaughter think about ways to scheme.

"Wonderful, Rory," Emily said. "I assume this is a bit of a… well… exaggeration?"

Rory flashed a conspirator's smile at her grandmother with a bite of a bagel in her mouth.

"Good. Because I have so many ideas for outfits for you already. I've just been dreaming of seeing you in Valentino dresses. And, of course, some Tiffany earrings. And afterwards is a big meeting of the Mark Twain Society. The women there will just absolutely adore you."

Richard stood up.

"And I will drop you home Sunday night," Richard said. "No ifs, ands or butts. I'll get the car ready, Rory."

He put his newspaper down and went to the other room.

"I know telling that mother of yours anything will be difficult. She's always been so emotional," Emily said. "But trust me. If this is what you want, then this is what you'll have."

Rory smiled and stood up.

"What I would really like most is my coffee for school," Rory said with a tone of newfound authority in her voice as Rosa scurried with a hot thermos. Rory snatched it.

"Thank you, Grandma."

And off she went to Chilton. Not on an hour-long bus ride where she had to walk past classmates being dropped off in luxury cars. But dropped off by her wealthy grandfather in his Jaguar.