Author's Note: This short story is slightly AU. I have changed the timing of Tristan asking Rory to the PJ Harvey concert to after school. I hope it doesn't confuse you too much. Thanks for all the review and I hope you enjoy this part too!

Confrontations

The tantalizing scent of his cologne warned Rory of Tristan's approach. She inhaled deeply to treasure the inherently masculine fragrance before he came into her line of vision.

"You should decorate this thing," he suggested, leaning against a neighboring locker.

"I did." Rory refused to look at him until she had her defenses in place. The kiss from the other night played on a continuous loop in her mind.

"I mean with something other than a bunch of dead black and white women."

"Like what? Curtains?" Flippancy helped Rory keep her voice under control. His scent… it wrapped its fragrant fingers around her and tugged mercilessly. She could feel her temperature rising.

"You know what I mean. Hey, I did mine."

Irritation loosened the hold on her tongue. "Yeah, I saw that. The picture of the naked Siamese twins was particularly classy." She deliberately ignored the thrill that raced up her spine at his laughter.

"Do you know what these are?" Tristan asked. Rory glanced over.

"They look like tickets."

"To PJ Harvey."

Rory was floored. The voice in the back of her mind that sounded suspiciously like her mother whispered, See? You have something in common.

"Wow, you have good taste, I'll give you that."

"You like PJ Harvey, don't you?" Tristan asked casually. Inside he felt anything but casual. His stomach was tying itself in knots as he waited to see how this played out. In his fantasies, she was ecstatic to go out with him. But fantasies were often just that: fantasies.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Rory felt a ripple of pleasure that he might have asked around about her likes and dislikes. Why she enjoyed the thought that Tristan might like to know more about her mind than her measurements, she had a sneaking suspicion but was scared to fully acknowledge it.

"Oh, I'm all-knowing." Tristan kept up the light dialogue to avoid how desperate he was to have Rory. He had questioned people who saw her every day to find out what she listened to at lunch or who she displayed an interest in.

"How god-like of you." Rory felt the pleasure morph into sluggish disappointment. He was only being a player again. Her measurements again won out over her mind. Annoyed she slammed her locker shut.

"One of these is for you." The knot in his stomach tightened as he offered her a ticket.

The voice insider her head screamed Yes! Rory heard her own voice say, "Oh, I don't think we should go to a concert together." Inner-voice whined, Why? He might surprise you.

Tristan echoed the inner-voice's inquiry. "Reason?"

"It would seem like a date." Duh, Lorelei screamed in her mind. You want to date Tristan, you know you do.

"Well, it would seem like a date because, it would be a date." Tristan tried to offer her a ticket again. His stomach would never be the same after this. He was putting way more on the line here than he had ever before.

"I can't date you Tristan!" Yes you can. Rory seriously considered banging her head against her locker to dislodge her mother's voice from her mind. She was so confused. She missed Dean, she also enjoyed being apart, she wanted to date Tristan and she wanted her mother's voice to stop encouraging her to do something different for a change.

"I give you permission." Idiot, he castigated himself after the words left his mouth. That wasn't what appealed to a girl like Rory. He could literally see the distaste on her face at his player-like flirting.

"And on that note," Rory said, moving to walk away from him. Fear welled in his throat on having lost his final chance to have this girl who fascinated him. He remembered once teasing her about being in love with her and having dreams of her keep him up at night. Like a prophecy, he thought bitterly, it had come true. He grabbed onto her wrist like it was a lifeline. She tensed in response to the warmth that shot to the pit of her stomach at the contact. He didn't notice as he continued, "I not only give you permission, I'm asking you to give me an actual chance with you." She shrewdly studied his face, searching for a hint of dishonesty. She couldn't find any.

Tristan sensed her wavering and pressed. "I promise to be on my best behavior. I'll meet you mom and everything. Scout's honor." He saluted with two fingers, inwardly castigating himself for promising to meet her mother. He would have to now and most parents didn't like him.

"Were you even a Boy scout?" Rory asked before she could stop herself. Her inner-voice whispered: So what? One concert won't stop the world from turning. Take a chance.

Tristan smiled an incredibly slow and gentle smile. "I wasn't but I still promise to be on my best behavior. Call it a matter of family honor."

Before Rory could accept the invitation Paris stormed up with Louise and Madeleine flanking her. Her eyes took in the smile Tristan still wore and his hand on Rory's wrist. The battle light flared in her blue eyes.

"Adding a notch to your bed post, Tristan?" she inquired icily. Rory tensed against the attack and narrowed her eyes as she prepared to answer. Tristan beat her to it.

"Jealous because your name didn't make it?" His voice was cool and controlled yet his grip on Rory's arm was fierce and warm. Rory tried to reclaim possession of her arm but he wouldn't let go.

Paris glared harder at the boy she had loved for so many years. "I have better taste than to accept something that's been used so often."

Tristan merely smirked as he slung an arm around Rory and leaned against her. His casual strength prevented her from escaping. "Yeah, well, that's what makes Rory so special to me. She's not so bitter to refuse help to a person who needs rehabilitation." His smile was a cool and sharp steel knife. "You know about being bitter, don't you Paris?"

Furious and frustrated, Rory succeeded in throwing his arm off of her. How infuriating! Tristan was using her to hurt Paris. Although she would readily admit to anyone that she wasn't a fan of Paris, she still didn't like hurting others. She planted her hands on her hips as she lit into each of them.

"You two seriously need a new past time other than using me to fight. Paris, we get along fine until Tristan comes up. Then you're as friendly as barbed wire. I'm fed up with it! Either you're going to make an effort to get along with me or we draw the battle lines now." She paused and waited for Paris to answer but the girl stood sullen and silent.

"And you!" she vented as she faced Tristan. His smirk slid off in astonishment. "I'm tired of you acting as if I'm nothing more than another 'notch on the bed post.' You won't get me if that's why you want me. Be clear about your intentions or back-off!" He stood stunned and silent.

Embarrassed and furious, she stormed off towards the bus stop. She was already beginning to regret being so hard on Tristan. She should have at least given him a chance to counter her and Paris's accusation that she was just another score. Lately she hadn't been very fair when it came to letting people explain themselves. She should let them explain more often instead of just making assumptions and leaving. However, when she saw Dean standing by his truck, all her newfound insights fled as she remembered her hurt from his treatment. She marched towards the inevitable confrontation like a warrior. Dean stood straight when he saw her coming.

"Rory-" he began in a kicked-puppy voice. Simply the sound grated on her vexed nerves.

"What, Dean? I'm ready to go home, I've had a frustrating day and I'm still not over it."

Dean pouted. Rory wanted to scream. A 6'2" male should not pout just because his ex-girlfriend admitted to being mad.

"Rory, I wanted to talk to you about the other night. I'll drive you home so we'll have some privacy." He reached for her arm but she jerked it back. Everything seemed to be bothering her. The anger coursing through her rejected any touching. She felt as if her skin was stretched too tight and as if her temperature was soaring. Crossing her arms she held in the vibrating anger.

"No," she growled. "Tell me now what you have to say. Today is the day for clearing the air, it seems."

Dean shuffled his feet before mumbling, "I want you back." He glanced up under his lashes but Rory only raised an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Because I miss you. Confound it, Rory, I love you!" Dean shouted. His own temper ignited as he tried to defend his request.

"You love me. Dean, you broke up with me because I didn't say it back to you. Personally, I think it was a wise decision. I don't love you and I'm glad we separated. I've realized that I latched onto you and didn't want to let you go because you were my first 'like.'"

"Are you trying to say you like someone else? It doesn't matter, Rory, you're my girlfriend!" Dean challenged.

"I was your girlfriend. Past tense, for goodness sake. Pay attention in you English class." Rory offered callously. She winced inwardly at the harshness but was unable to hold back her tongue. It was as if this anger under her too-tight skin had removed all niceness from her personality and left only the brutal and bitter truth. Sort of like Liar Liar, she mused.

"Dean, we should stay separate. Friends we can do-"

"This isn't how it was supposed to be!" Dean exploded. He started pacing in front of her as he tried to get a handle on his temper. The people who had eagerly surrounded the feuding couple stepped back warily. Neither the girl nor the boy noticed the blonde boy who stepped forward as if to protect Rory should Dean forget himself.

"I know, Dean. We both thought we'd be together longer than this."

"No! You were supposed to find out how much you love me while we were separated, not find someone else to like!" He didn't notice the deadly calm that settled over Rory. Suddenly her skin wasn't stretched too tightly and her temperature wasn't too high, it was all just right. The ensuing calmness was slightly disquieting to the rude crowd. Rory had just accepted her bad mood, and the reason was she finally realized the motive behind Dean's actions.

"You mean you deliberately broke up with me so I would come running back, saying 'I love you Dean, please take me back?'" Her tone was almost politely curious.

"Yes!" Dean was glad she had finally caught on but he didn't realize how big of a hole he had dug himself: 6' by 6'.

"You were trying to manipulate me with love and heartache? How dare you!" Her voice lashed out now as she advanced on him. "I'm not a marionette whose strings you can jerk on for your own purposes, Dean. I'm a person who is fully aware of her own mind and capable of making my own decisions. So let me say this: we are over. I don't want you bothering me again."

She whirled on her foot and started towards the bus stop as anger slowly began seeping out of her, leaving behind an aching emptiness. When she got home, she needed to talk to Lorelei and maybe even wallow a little. A day like this called for it, she thought. A large hand stopped her progress.

"No you don't," Dean growled. "You are not going to humiliate me this way." Another hand, this one tan and supple with strength, pulled Dean's off of her. Tristan inserted himself between Rory and Dean, protecting her.

"Are you going to bother her, Bagboy, even after she's made it clear she doesn't want you anymore? She said to leave her alone. You might want to listen to Rory. Not listening is bad for your health."

Dean curled his lips in a sneer. "Tax time already? Let me get my paystubs." He shrugged Tristan's hand off of him. "I told you I'd kill you if you fought me. Is your will ready?" He took off his coat and tossed in onto the hood of his car.

Tristan handed his blazer to Rory and eagerly stepped forward. "I just hope the grocery store doesn't have a surplus of customers today." He sidestepped the wild punch Dean threw in response and threw one that caught Dean in the gut.

"Stop it!" Rory yelled. She found herself more annoyed than anything. That emptiness gave her a surreal detachment from the scene. "Dean, just leave!"

"Why?" he grunted as he grappled with Tristan. When he had Tristan pinned under him, Dean glanced up. "Is he the one you like now?" Tristan used the distraction to jam his elbow into Dean's ribs. Dean's breath whooshed out of him and then he was pinned under Tristan.

Tristan's glance speared Rory where she stood. His eyes had a feral quality that was predatory. "Well Rory?" he drawled. "Am I the one you like?" He struggled with Dean but managed to keep his eyes on Rory.

Come on, Rory. Her inner-voice urged. You have to admit it. If you don't he'll get hurt. But who am I worried about getting hurt? Rory asked silently as she watched the two boys exchange punches. She felt as if two people were in her head fighting, not on the ground. One insisted that her heart was broken by Dean's manipulations, the other that Tristan was a new part of her life. Tristan had been forced to pay attention to the fight again rather than hold Rory with his demanding gaze. She saw him take a fist on the chin and go down hard. Rory rapidly made up her mind when panic managed to break through her surreal detachment and confirmed that she cared more for Tristan than she had originally allowed herself to think.

"Stop it Dean! Yes, he's the one! Now leave him alone!" Rory tried to force them apart herself but Dean shoved her back.

"No, now I just have a better reason t-" a fist plowing against his cheek ended his sentence. Tristan now looked even more furious, if that were possible.

"Did you just push her?" he roared. He was hitting Dean steadily now, never giving the taller boy a chance to land another punch. "Don't you ever touch her again, you-" the words he used to curse the stupid boy shocked Rory.

Some teachers finally showed up and forcefully pulled the two boys apart but Tristan didn't stop yelling. "You better leave her alone, Bagboy, or you'll end up in the hospital again." Dean was dragged off of the campus but Tristan had to answer a few questions.

"Mr. Dugrey, why were you engaged in such a blatant display of vulgarity just now?" The headmaster asked with disdain.

"Sir, that person," he almost spit the word, "threatened Miss Gilmore. He came here today with the express purpose of confronting Miss Gilmore. When she refused to go back out with him, having made her reason clear, she went to leave the premises to return home. He grabbed her and I interceded before he could harm her. Then he threatened me. I defended myself against him." The explanation plus the damp towel someone had found for him helped Tristan cool down.

The headmaster sniffed, unsatisfied with the explanation. "Miss Gilmore, is that what happened?" Rory was staring at Tristan and jumped when the headmaster addressed her.

"Uh, yes sir. That's what happened." She flushed over the possessive look Tristan was giving her now. He heard her admit that she liked him. Well, that'll make it easier to go to the concert tonight, Inner-Voice comforted. Rory groaned mentally at the thought.

"Fine then, but please keep your personal relationships from interfering with the school again. And don't think for a moment that this incident isn't going into your files." The headmaster waited for her to nod then he returned to his office. The rest of the student body dispersed as they eagerly gossiped about the fight. Soon only Tristan and Rory were left. Realizing that she was still holding his blazer she went to hand it to him.

"Here's your jacket and um… thanks for defending me." Rory whispered shyly. She couldn't make herself meet his burning gaze. She went to wait on the bench for the bus but a hand stopped her for the second time that day.

"Did you mean it?" His voice seemed deeper to her and sparked pleasure through her veins.

She pretended not to know what he was talking about. "Mean what?"

"That you like me." He tugged on her arm to make her face him but she just stared at their shoes. "Rory, please, tell me you meant it," he pleaded huskily.

"Why would it matter to you?" His finger lifted her gaze to his and she saw the truth in his eyes before he spoke it.

"Because I fell hard for you when you lectured me at your birthday party. I had already liked you more than was normal for me but I assumed that it was what you said, proving myself. Then you looked so beautiful when you were angry at me that my eyes opened. But you had already judged me," he smiled half-heartedly as he admitted this. It almost broke her heart.

"So I waited for you to realize how much I liked you. I tried everything I knew to gain your attention but it only seemed to garner more distrust and distaste. Then at the party-" his voice caught and he cleared his throat before he continued, his voice softer and huskier. "At the party I kissed you and we ended up friends. I was so happy that I now had a chance of pulling you closer to me so you would like me. I had hoped to use the concert to show you I'm actually a good guy." His finger caressed her jaw and he smiled again. "Then I saw you and Dean going at it and I was happier than I had even been in my life to hear you tell him to leave you alone. I had a better chance if you weren't pining over him."

"Now tell me if you meant it," he commanded, gathering her closer to his body. His hand framed her face when he teased her, "We can go to the PJ Harvey concert as our first date."

Rory smiled and lifted her own hand to his face. "I like you, Tristan Dugrey, even though I tried not to." He closed his eyes and kissed her palm, gently caressing it with his tongue. She shivered and he smiled.

"I'm glad you couldn't not like me." He whispered. He bent his head slowly towards hers but halted a breath away from her lips. She could feel his lips move as he asked, "Rory Gilmore, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Yes," she whispered back. Before he could deepen the contact, she cleared her throat nervously and leaned back.

"Just a moment. I want to be up front with you about something. What Dean did hurt me and even though we are broken up, it may take me a little while to fully reconcile myself with what just happened. So maybe we could delay the actual dating part of the relationship so I can be certain I'm not going to hurt you or myself with this."

Tristan smiled at her speech. "Are you done?" He asked politely, still keeping her in his arms.

Warily she scanned his face, "Yes."

"Good. Now my answer to delaying the dating: no. If you hurt me, or if you hurt yourself, we'll talk about it or argue about it, fix it and keep going. This is a relationship that's going down in history." He brushed his mouth against her lips then brought his mouth harder against hers. He wasn't teasing her or testing her with this kiss: he was claiming her. The heat of his mouth branded her heart as surely as it did her lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her fingers in his hair. He lifted her against him as he deepened the kiss. Their tongues intertwined and challenged before they broke apart for air. They leaned their foreheads against each other and breathed heavily.

Rory heard a familiar sound and looked over his shoulder. She groaned when she saw her bus leaving without her.

"What?" Tristan asked. "What's wrong?"

"My bus just left." He chuckled and hugged her tighter.

"Then I guess I'll just have to start my boyfriend duties and give you a ride home. And it'll make it easier to keep my promise about meeting your mom." He set her on the ground reluctantly and picked up their bags and led her to his car. He opened the door for her and looked confused when she laughed. "What now?"

"Nothing, it's just that I can't wait to see my mom's reaction to all of this." Actually the Lorelei voice in her mind had already cautioned her about the inevitable questions waiting for them at home.

I'll be waiting and I demand an inquisition at Luke's so we can put the fear of God in him, she had said. Rory smiled and leaned back against the upholstery, holding her boyfriend's hand as they headed home to an impatient Lorelei.