"I think he likes it better in cones, too," Rory commented nudging Jess and pointing to the tiny kid sitting by her other side. The man cocked his head to the side to see her son with ice cream all over his face and arms, but grinning with honest and innocent joy. Jess couldn't help a chuckle at the scene. Especially as the boy looked back at him with a wide smile.
"He doesn't have the best aim but at least his taste is good," he agreed glancing at Rory.
"Two things he definitely got from me," she laughed. "I hope he decides to go play in the fountain after this or it will be a nightmare to clean him up." Jess nodded and they sat quietly watching Ricky for a while. "Thanks for doing this, Jess. I'm sure it's not what you had in mind when you called me yesterday."
"I called to take you out and celebrate your article getting published. I never said he wasn't invited. He's part of the package," Jess answered as he shoved his hands in his pockets.
"You're kind," she said gratefully. She finished her own ice cream and looked at Ricky to find him finished as well. She took her bag to try to find baby wipes only to sigh a few seconds later frustrated as she remembered she hadn't bought them.
"Is everything okay?"
"Yeah... I just forgot again to put baby wipes in Ricky's bag..." she said absent-mindedly, still going through the stuff, even though she knew it was fruitless. "I should go to the bathroom and get some paper towels or something..." she thought out loud. She bit her lower lip and looked at Jess hesitantly. "Jess... would you mind...?" She trailed off, moving in place and thinking of what to say next.
"You don't need to be uncomfortable about that," he said reassuringly. "And of course I can watch him, sure," Jess finished her sentence. She still hesitated but he pushed her lightly and she nodded before turning around and going to the bathroom.
Rory rushed a little, but as soon as she was out of sight she took slower steps. She had been feeling really funny in the last few days and at that exact moment she was starting to dangerously overthink it. Jess had been more present in her life than ever. She remembered when she told him she had got pregnant, at her mother's fake wedding and how awkward it felt. After this she was never sure about how to approach him. Especially considering she felt she had broken his heart again.
But he seemed to be over it. They seemed to be over it. She still felt eventually unsure everytime she talked about Ricky, even though she knew that Jess was not the type of person to hold a grudge on a two and a half year-old infant. Nevertheless, she was constantly afraid that mentioning or even being aroung Ricky would bring back bad memories and feelings.
She shook off these thoughts as she continued to walk aimlessly trying to find a bathroom.
She moved to think about how much closer she and Jess were lately. Of course living in the same city just a couple blocks away helped a lot, but it was more than that. He had been so supportive with everything. He didn't mind helping with the move, he didn't mind her bolting when they went to Chris' bar. He didn't mind her calling and changing plans for today because Paris couldn't babysit anymore. In fact, he even said it was a good idea to have him along.
In fact, if she had to be completelly honest, she was even feeling a little frustrated that he still hadn't tried to take a step further in their relationship. Maybe for the first time he was completely over her and was honestly just trying to be a good friend. She wasn't sure why, but she hoped this wasn't the case. Then, she imagined herself telling her mom she had started dating Jess again. She imagined her mother cracking a joke about her being too supportive about the whole environmental-friendly ideals, even recycling her old boyfriends - seriously? Dean, Logan and now Jess? Maybe that other one could still get another chance, if only she remembered his name - and endless jokes about being just like her great-grandmother, marrying inside the family.
And finally she remembered the fact that she had a child with Logan, who wasn't that much involved in Ricky's upbringing, but who made sure to visit his child anytime he came back to the U.S. for a few days. She definitely didn't want Jess to feel insecure about his presence. She decided to stop thinking about this altogether, get the paper towels and head right back to the bench she had left them.
She froze and felt her heart skip a beat when they were back into her sight. Jess was doing one of his infamous magic tricks and her boy looked at him completely mesmerized. She smiled in spite of herself and went closer to them. Ricky was the first to notice her presence.
"Mommy!" He greeted with a squeal. "Did you know Jess is a wizard?" She nodded with a light giggle as she crouched to get at the same height as her son.
"Your mom never cared for my super powers," Jess explained, peaking at her with a smirk.
"You're crazy, mom," Ricky commented and she laughed again.
"How did you learn them anyway?" She asked turning to Jess.
"I thought you had met T.J." Jess responded nonchalantly. "Liz's always got a thing for circus freaks."
"Are you seriously telling me that you learned them from your mother's ex?" She raised her eyebrows skeptically. She glanced at him before turning to her son and taking off the boy's shirt, which was completely soiled in pink.
"One of the few I ever liked," he confirmed as he handed her the clean shirt from the bag.
"How did that end?"
"Circus moved out of town," he shrugged. Rory stood up and Jess copied her. He took the paper towels and put them in the trash while she picked her son up.
The blond boy immediately yawned and rested his head on her chest, completely exhausted. It made her realize how long they had been together. It was getting closer to his nap time, and if she didn't take him to bed soon the boy could get cranky. Jess seemed to notice her conundrum, but wasn't sure of what to say. She suddenly got a determined look on her face.
"Why don't we take this to my place?" She suggested. "I need to put Ricky to sleep, but it's still early and there's no food at home, but I've got Netflix and we could order some take out."
She felt relieved as he agreed in a heartbeat. He felt relieved she had made thhat suggestion, and they started walking back to her apartment, taking turns on holding the boy. Something that felt weirdly familiar, but in a good way.
Rory opened the apartment's door and let Jess choose a movie on TV while she went to the back to give the boy a shower before leaving him to sleep.
He felt awkward just sitting there on the couch, flicking through movie recommendations, some of which made very clear there was a kid in the house, while she was back there doing everything. He was sure that if a feminist passed through that moment he would never hear the end of it, and he agreed. But everytime he offered to do something she waved it off. It was natural for her. To do all these things on her own. But it didn't have to be. He didn't want it to be. So, after some insistence she finally agreed to let him go get a towel and the boy's pajamas.
"What are we watching?" She asked when she finally came back from the kid's room and throwing her weight at the cushion next to Jess.
"Now, remember. Don't be judgmental," Jess started, turning to her while she tried to read the name of the movie. "I wasn't so sure myself at first, but I really think you'll like it."
"Predestination," she read out loud. He nodded and watched her, waiting for her to protest or complain. What she did instead, was to close the gap between them. It definitely took him by surprise, but it didn't take very long for him to get a grip on the situation and start kissing her as well. She pulled apart for air.
"Why didn't you kiss me before?" she asked accusingly. Her breathing was heavy and irregular.
"I wasn't sure I could," he replied honestly. "I wasn't very successul the last few times."
"Ah..." she let out and made a small pout. "I'm sorry, Jess. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you before."
"That's okay. Our timing has always been bad," he answered with a smirk. "But right now I wish we could find a better use for our mouths instead of talking." He completed as he pulled her closer again and she happily followed his lead.
They ended up in her bedroom. She had no idea how that had happened, and he had very little recollection of that as well. But it felt right. It felt long overdue.
It wasn't as if she hadn't been with anyone after Ricky. In fact, some men were even more interested in her once they found out she was a single mother. But of course, for those, the interest was gone as soon as Ricky got in the way. This was different.
It felt like being eighteen again. She couldn't remember the last time there had been this much passion between her and someone else. Well, actually, she did, and now she had a reminder of that time sleeping a few meters away.
It was still different. It wasn't an end. It was a beginning.
She rested her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her. This somehow seemed to start a chain reaction that caused the silence to be broken by a loud cry in the room near theirs. They looked at each other. Rory gave him an apologetic look before she put on a nightgown and wrapped a robe around her to go see what had happened. She came back a few minutes later, finding Jess exactly the same way she had left him. He straightened his back as he sat on the bed.
"It was just a bad dream..." she explained, moving closer to him. But he knew there was more by the way she looked at the duvet. "He wants me to watch him sleep..."
"You need me to go," Jess concluded. She felt a little relieved that he said need, instead of want. And nodded lightly. "Okay," he said and kissed her forehead before standing up and looking for his clothes.
"This isn't how I wanted this to end..." she muttered as she watched him get dressed.
"Rory, it took us twenty years to finally make it work." He said getting closed to her and looking deep into her eyes. She could feel her cheeks burn as he touched them and leaned over to give her one more kiss. "I'm not giving up that easily." He reassured her. "I'll call you tomorrow, Ava."
A.N.: Sorry this chapter took longer to be posted than the others. I hope it was worth the wait. As I said, this was supposed to be the last chapter, and I like how it ended. But recently I've been rewatching the show and when I got to the last episode of season 5 I just knew I had to add one more, which will be the next and last chapter. But if you're satisfied, you may stop here :) as usual, I'd love to read your feelings and thoughts in the story. Sorry for any mistakes. And I hope to see you again for the last chapter!