At the diner the next day Luke worked harder, pushed the contractors more and got all the rubble cleared out so they could begin replacing it with new material. He had ordered a new counter which was arriving later that day. The shelving had already been replaced around the walls of the diner and the kitchen which was highest priority was being tiled. Upstairs in his apartment he had gotten rid of all the furniture, and worked with another team of contractors to replace all damaged fixtures and fittings. He had collected all the pictures from the walls and had taken them to be treated and cleaned. He paid enough to get the frames cleaned and repaired too rather than destroyed. And by the end of the day it all started to look like a place he could actually live in again.
By the time the contractors finished up for the day, Luke was fit to collapse. Sookie had called around with lunch again that day and he knew by the smile and the twinkle in her eye that Lorelai had told her everything about what he had said the night before but he didn't care. In fact he felt like it had given him a bit of power. She hadn't reacted with disgust, she hadn't laughed at him or even made a joke. She was shocked, no doubt she was shocked but shock he could deal with. The others maybe not so much.
He packed up his tools and climbed into his truck. He drove back to her house slowly, savouring the moments before he would walk in because now he had said what he said, everything was a game of when. It always had been a game of when, not if, always when, but they were playing that game separately, this time they were playing it together.
He left his tools in the back of the truck and walked into the house, calling out a greeting so he knew she was there lest she was dancing around the kitchen naked. He chuckled at the thought as he toed off his boots and left them outside then closed the door behind him and she called out to him from the kitchen.
"In here."
He walked in and smiled at her, leaned against the wall as she washed her hands at the sink. She was wearing a pale blue dress with spaghetti straps over her shoulders and across her back. It dipped low in the front and came to above her knees. She had on a pair of heels and a dark blue shawl draped over one arm.
"Sorry to leave you alone like this but I have a function to go to in Yale with Rory."
"Yeah, that's fine."
"I totally forgot, I should have mentioned it to you."
"No forget it, go, have a great time."
"You'll be ok here on your own?"
Before he could answer, the doorbell rang and Lorelai froze. Luke stepped back to answer the door but she called out to him to stop.
"Its fine, I'll get it." She hurried past him, leaving a trail of soft perfume in her wake. She opened the door and Luke heard Chris greeting her with a smile. He stayed in the kitchen, and made himself busy by making some tea. He could barely hear them talking by the door and was sure Chris was trying to come in, but Lorelai was bustling him out. No doubt Chris had spied his truck in the drive, and his boots by the door and had some obvious questions. Luke couldn't help but smile smugly.
When the door closed he carried his tea into the living room and without realising it he made his way to the window. He moved the curtain aside and watched as they stood at the car arguing. Lorelai waved her arms at him in exasperation while Chris pointed at the house and asked her a question that Luke didn't need to hear to know what it was.
Feeling bad for spying he moved the curtain back into place and went over to the couch. He rested back into the couch then let his head fall back and closed his eyes. Seconds later he could hear the keys in the door at the same time as a car drove off. He sat up and turned to see Lorelai dropping her bag by the door and he stood up to greet her.
"What happened?"
"Oh it's just Chris being an ass!"
"What? Did he get mad because I'm here?"
"It's none of his business!" she yelled at nothing in particular. She grabbed the phone off the cradle and dialled a number. "Hi, tony, I need a cab…right now. Yeah…I need to get to New Haven."
"Lorelai, no you can't take a cab! That will cost a fortune!"
"Shhh, I'm on the phone!" She turned her body half away from him to speak on the phone. "How soon? Twenty minutes? Tony I need to be there in forty. Ok… as quick as you can then." She turned off the phone and replaced it on the cradle then walked into the kitchen to make a coffee. He followed her and turned her when she switched on the pot.
"You can't take a cab out there. What's wrong with your jeep?"
"I might have gotten a flat tire on the way home from work today."
"I can change that for you in ten minutes."
"I might not have a spare."
"You've been driving around that wreck without a spare tire?" She shot him a look of despair. "Sorry, here, take my truck." He passed her the keys to his truck. But she didn't take them.
"No Luke I couldn't."
"Please, take it." He grabbed her hands and pressed the keys into them. "It's the least I can do after everything you've done for me."
"You don't mind?"
"God no, take it, go. Go to Rory and have a great time."
She smiled through her anger and without thinking about it, engulfed him in a tight hug. She released him as quick as she grabbed him and flew out the door without another word.
Luke watched her leave from the living room window then went out to her jeep to take a look at the damage. Her rear driver's wheel was completely flat. He checked the spare and found it to be just as flat. Shaking his head he pulled the spare out of the trunk and started to roll it down the drive and towards Gypsy's garage.
By the time he got the spare fixed and Gypsy gave him a lift back to the house he was wrecked. His back ached and his head was thumping from a lack of food but he wanted to get this fixed before sitting for the night, knowing full well that as soon as he sat down for the evening he would not be able to move again. He put on her spare then drove to Gypsy's to get the other tire fixed. On his way home he picked up some takeout then collapsed in the kitchen with his soup and sandwiches.
He cleaned up after himself then went upstairs for a shower. He dried himself off and climbed into bed, enjoying the stillness of the darkness around him. He dozed off and only woke at the sound of his truck pulling up into her drive. She came into the house trying not to make any noise but of course, sods law dictated that when she tried to be quiet, she hit every single creaky board there was. He heard her move into the kitchen, heard her fill the coffee pot and decided to go down and see how she was.
He pulled on a pair of boxers and a grey long sleeve and went down to the kitchen where he found her sitting at the table with her head in her hands. As he was barefoot she didn't hear him coming and jumped a mile when he rested a hand on her shoulder.
"Sorry, you didn't hear me say your name?"
"No, you scared me. Did I wake you?"
"No, I was up. Everything ok?" He pulled out the seat next to her and sat down, leaned forward with his arms on the table and looked at her worryingly. Her eyes were brimming with tears and from the looks of it they were not the first tears she had shed that night.
"Nothing, its fine." She stood up and turned her back to him, busied herself by grabbing her cup and getting the milk out of the fridge.
"Really?"
"Yeah, yeah, its fine."
"I'm sorry, it's none of my business, I'll leave you alone."
He stood up to walk away but she instantly felt bad and stopped him. "Sorry, I've just had a horrible night, being tag teamed by Chris and Emily." She emphasised their names with grit.
"Want to tell me about it? Or…is it me they were tag teaming you about?"
"Very astute Mr Danes." Luke had no response for that confirmation so he said nothing. "It's none of their businesses. And what the hell do they know anyway." She poured out her coffee in to the large mug and carried it back to the table and urged him to sit back down with her. "Oh what the neighbours will think, oh what will it look like if you are shacking up with this man, oh you barely know this guy!"
"Ah, I see." Luke grimaced and sat back into the chair and fiddled with the napkins on the table.
"What was I supposed to do! Let you sleep in a burned out shell of your home? In your truck maybe?"
"Its fine, look the diner is almost ready, I should have the apartment habitable by tomorrow night anyway."
"No Luke, that's not what I want."
"It's fine. The last thing I want to be is another root of contention between you and your family."
"Pffft!" She sneered. "If it's not you then it would have been something else, my shoes, my hair, my dress. Hell you should have heard the comments when I turned up in your truck." She chuckled and he smiled with her.
"I can imagine."
"You weren't a catalyst in all this. Its just my mother being small minded and judgemental. And Chris being a jealous ass." She patted his arm and he smiled again, happy to see she had calmed down and her tears had subsided. "You are welcome to stay here for as long as you like, me casa et su casa."
"Thanks. But it won't be for much longer. I promise."
"No rush, really Luke, don't move back to that diner until you know for sure it's ready." He nodded under her scrutiny and looked away, focused back on the napkins on the table. She stood up and washed the remains of her coffee down the drain then turned to face him. "So…"
"I fixed your car," he blurted out.
"What?"
"Both tires. You need to fix the flat when you replace the spare, that's how these things work. They are both fine now, but you need to promise me when you next get a flat you'll fix it and not end up stranded on some dark road between here and Yale."
"I promise. Thanks!" She walked behind him and patted his shoulder as she went towards Rory's room where she would be sleeping. "I'm wrecked and I'm going to crash. G'night."
"Good night Lorelai." He said without looking at her.
"Oh and Luke?" She was standing in the bedroom now, her face just visible behind the half closed door.
"Hmmm?" he answered, still without looking.
"Nice boxers." She closed the door and he smiled.
More determined now than ever to get his apartment liveable again as quick as possible Luke was up and dressed and out of her place by 5am the next morning. He had little or no sleep and was running on pure adrenaline and his ability to see the finish line. By the time the contractors arrived to help get the new counter fitted he had the place scrubbed and brushed and ready. The new linoleum was put down and by lunch he had a new stove and fridge and was waiting for the final touches to arrive for a fully functioning kitchen.
This time it was Lorelai who arrived with lunch and he greeted her on the sidewalk when she got out of the car.
"Hey," she smiled at him and passed a brown bagged lunch to him, keeping one for herself as the rest of the crew gathered round the food and helped themselves. "I thought I might stay for lunch today."
"Great!" He looked around for a place for them to sit but there was nowhere. "How about over in the square?"
"Sure." She checked the road for traffic then hurried over to a free bench in the square. She dug into her lunch bag and pulled out a spicy chicken wrap and proceeded to pull out the peppers and bits of lettuce.
"Careful, you might end up eating something that's good for you," he sneered as he bit into his own lunch.
"I know, I don't know what Sookie was thinking when she packed these."
"How are things going at the Inn?"
"Pretty good. Getting a good boost of customers from the fishing competition out in Galliard Lake."
"Oh that's this week?"
"Yeah, why?"
"I was planning on going out to that. But things got a little crazy here and I totally forgot."
"How is it going over there?"
"Pretty good. Got a new counter in, should have a working kitchen by tonight. Glaziers are arriving at 5 to replace the front windows and I'll have a lockable door by then too." He seemed genuinely pleased with himself as he told her about all the work that had been done.
"C'mon," he said as he finished his last bite and crumpled up his lunch bag. "Let me give you a tour."
They tossed their rubbish into the bins and he led her back to the diner. She ooh'd and ahh'd in all the right places as he pointed out the work that had been done. Then he led her up to his place and showed her what had happened there too. The room he had originally converted from an admin office his dad used to run the hardware store into his apartment was an empty shell. All the furniture was gone, the walls were bare plaster the bathroom was freshly tiled with a new floor and his wardrobe was replaced with a new, but empty one.
"This looks great Luke. You got so much done."
"Yeah, I have all this too…" he pulled a large metal box out from under the sink and rested it on the floor then crouched down to open it. She crouched beside him and watched as he pulled out all the old pictures that normally hung on the walls. She looked through them with him but then spotted at the bottom of the box, the sidewall from the counter downstairs where his father had written the order.
"What are you going to do with that?"
"I dunno." He took it out and blew some of the soot off it then twirled it in his hands and handed it to her. She took it gingerly knowing the wood was fragile and the paint and memory on it even more so. "What do you think?"
"I think you should put it back exactly where you found it. It's too important to be hidden away up here.
He looked at her and smiled, delighted that she understood.
"So when does the furniture arrive?" She placed everything she was holding back into the box on the floor and stood up to walk around.
"Huh?"
"You know, table, chair, bed. The essentials."
"Oh, yeah, em, I dunno, I haven't bought any yet. I just focused on getting the diner ready."
"Luke you need to look after yourself as well or there will be no one to look after the diner. Then where will I be?"
"Where will you be?"
"At Westins Luke, at Westins, drinking coffee with Mrs Doyle and eating burgers from Al's World of Pancakes!"
"Alright!" he held up his hand in surrender. "I was planning on going shopping for a bed tomorrow. Then I'll get a table and chairs and the rest will come as I need it."
"Good. I don't want to see you near this place tomorrow unless you are carrying in furniture."
"Aye aye capt." He saluted her when he back was turned.
"I saw that." Luke smiled and she turned to face him and smiled too. "Okay, I better get back."
"Oh hey, Lorelai," he caught up with her at the door to his apartment. "Tomorrow night, I'm going to cook dinner for you."
"You don't need to do that."
"I do. Of course I do."
"Okay, that sounds great."
They walked down the stairs and back out to her car again. "You're still stuck with me for one more night though."
"I'll suffer through."
He waved her off and watched her until she was out of sight. Then got back to work. With the windows in and a door he could lock, Luke started to feel like all was not lost. Sure he had lost a lot of precious memories, but overall he was lucky he had something to work with, something he could build on. The kitchen was fully equipped, the flooring and woodwork was ready. The counter was in place and the tables and chairs would be arriving first thing the next day. He stood at the door and looked around at his new diner and smiled. It wasn't what he had, but it was still his.
He locked up and ran a few errands then went back to Lorelai's. He found her sitting in the living room talking on the phone to Rory. She waved and smiled as he walked in but rather than interrupt or eavesdrop he went straight up stairs to shower and change. When he later emerged she was off the phone, lying on the couch reading a magazine.
"How is Rory?"
"She's fine." She scooted up on the couch to make room for him at the other end and he sat down. He stretched one arm along the back of the couch and half turned to face her. "She is still upset about what happened last night?"
"Oh, she knows I'm staying here right?"
"Yeah, of course, I told her as soon as I invited you!"
"Ok, good." Then he added. "And she doesn't mind?"
"No! Of course not."
"Ok, good."
"It's just last night was special for her. It was her first debate with the Yale society and when it was over she found myself, my mother and Chris fighting at the back of the hall instead of paying her the attention her night deserved."
"Right."
"I just felt so bad for her." She sighed and tried to push the tension from the night before away. "But it's over now, I've spoken with her and Chris has, she's fine, she is just a worrier."
"Yeah, she always was."
"She was more worried about me being upset than I was about her."
"Sounds like Rory alright."
"Anyway, how is the diner looking?"
"Oh you should see it. It's got windows and doors and everything now"
"Wow!" She chuckled along with him. "Sound like a really real place that will soon be serving."
"I reckon I can have it up and running in about three days."
"Really? So soon?"
"Yeah, Kitchen is finished. Furniture will arrive first thing. Food and stock deliveries tomorrow evening and I'll be painting then the day after that, ready to open the following day."
"Wow that's brilliant. Well done. You did an amazing job."
"Wait till you see it before you say that."
"Oh stop, I'm sure its fine."
They shared a smile, but it was he who broke it by looking away.
"So, I dunno if you have plans tonight but…"
"Plans? Me? Yeah I'm expecting price charming at the door any minute."
"Well I didn't want to presume."
"Sounds like you have something in mind."
Luke nodded. He got up off the couch and went over to the front door where he had left the packages when he came in. When he returned he put the bags on the floor by his feet and made a show of digging deep into them for what he was looking for. She loved this game already.
The first thing he pulled out was a packet of popcorn.
"Oh I like where this is going."
He followed that with a pint of cookies and cream ice cream.
"Getting better all the time."
And finally he pulled out a video cassette.
"Oh Luke!" she squealed in delight. "Did you rent a movie?!"
"Yeah. But not just any movie. My favourite movie."
"Wait stop…" she put a hand on his arm to stop him from getting up to put in the video. "You have a favourite movie?"
"Yeah, I don't live in a cave!"
"You don't even own a TV!"
"I don't need a TV To see a movie!"
"You are never at the screenings at the book shop!"
"Do you want to watch this movie or not!"
"Of course I do!" She yelled, then as he put the tape into the VCR she raced out to the kitchen and grabbed a couple of spoons. "Don't you dare start it without me, I want to see everything!" She grabbed a couple of beers and hurried back to him but this time instead of stretching out on the couch she sat crossed legged in the centre and patted the cushion beside her, then passed him a spoon when he sat down.
"Don't we need bowls?"
"God no, then we'd have to wash them. Here, just share the pot." She opened the popcorn and put it on the floor between them then grabbed a cushion and held it on her lap. Her excitement was palpable and all the more obvious by her inability to sit still.
"Ready?"
"So ready!"
He pressed play and sat back into the couch. She leaned forward as if it would help her guess the movie quicker. He opened the ice cream and started to eat then as soon as the opening sequence started she squealed in delight and slapped his thigh a couple of times.
"Oh my god! I knew it!"
"What?" he was laughing at her reaction. "I knew this was going to be your favourite movie."
"How?"
"It just makes sense. And you, you are Quint right?"
"What?" he was laughing more now. "No!"
"Okay, if not Quint then you are the shark."
Luke let his head fall back and laughed loudly and she delighted in the sound of it. It was a rare sound that he didn't often make so she revelled in it while she had the chance. She turned under the pretence that she was reaching for the ice cream but she really just wanted to see him laughing. As the movie played she found herself sitting back into the couch next to him, her shoulder snuggled under his arm, his arm around the back of the couch almost around her, almost holding her close, but not quite. She jumped and screamed, laughed and gasped in all the right places and Luke knew he wasn't ever going to be able to watch this movie again without thinking of this very evening.
Without realising it she rested her head back on his arm and soon rolled it over so it was on his shoulder. He wanted to rest his head on hers but he restrained himself. Knowing his own rules, knowing he had only one more night to keep them before he could relax and make his move he satisfied himself with her touch alone.
As the ending credits started to roll he felt her take a deep breath and let it out slowly. They had finished the ice cream, or rather she had, and he had only managed to secure a few bites.
"That, was amazing. What a movie." She said without moving.
"Yeah."
"I can see why it's one of your favourites." She moved her head to look at him, all too aware of how close it would put their faces but she didn't care.
He looked down at her and before he could stop himself his hand came up to caress her cheek. He ran the back of his fingers down the side of her face, and under her chin. The pad of his thumb brushed across her lips and his arm that was on the back of the couch held her tighter as her lips parted and her tongue appeared. Luke looked down at her lips and imagined what it would be like to kiss her right then.
The salt from the popcorn, the sweet taste of the ice cream, it would be amazing. He just knew it would be. But he also knew he couldn't not while he was staying here. Then as if she recognised his hesitation she moved towards him. Her face came closer and he realised she was going to kiss him so he moved away.
"No, wait…" he leaned forward on the couch, covered his face and took a deep breath.
"Luke?"
"I'm sorry Lorelai, but this isn't right. Not like this."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean I can't kiss you like this while I'm staying here. It's not right."
He stood up and hiked up his jeans in that familiar fashion then gathered up the trash and carried it out to the kitchen. She thought of letting him get away but then decided against it.
"Luke, wait…" he was separating her trash into recyclables when she found him in the kitchen. She put a hand on his back and urged him to face her.
"Trust me Lorelai, please, just trust me on this."
"On what? You want to kiss me, I know you do!"
"I do, god I do."
"So-"
"So I want to kiss you," he stepped forward, grabbed her upper arms and pushed her back until she was pressed against the fridge. "I want to kiss you right now, in a way that will make you forget everything that's happening, that leaky faucet, that strange humming from your fridge, the dog that's barking incessantly outside, the bills waiting for you on your porch and the customers waiting for you at the Inn." As he spoke he leaned in closer to her all but pressing his body against hers. His face moved mere millimetres away from hers, she could feel his breath, his words and it was driving her crazy. "But not yet."
He held her in place for a moment more then released her and backed away. He was trying not to show how fast his heart was beating and how hard it was for him to catch his breath but he didn't really care if she could tell. He could see the same effects in her.
"I'm leaving early in the morning to go to Woodbury. I should be back at the diner by 5 or 6 so if you want to call around for dinner tomorrow make it at about 7."
Lorelai nodded. He watched her for a moment more then turned and walked out of the room leaving her stood stock still in her own kitchen wondering what exactly had just transpired.