Chapter 13

"Luke", Loralai mumbled nudging his side, "someone's at the door… go get it…"

He groaned in response. "You."

"What if it's a homicidal maniac", Loralai insisted, "go open it."

"If it was a homicidal maniac I doubt he'll knock first", Luke rolled his eyes behind his closed eye lids.

"Fine", Loralai grumbled rolling out of bed. She wrapped her bathrobe around and walked downstairs toward the front door, "I'm coming… I'm coming… you can stop ringing the doorbell now."

She slammed open the door and her eyes opened wide in shock. "Rory, Lori! Luke! Luke!"

Luke was already coming down the stairs. "Don't bother taking her you'll just be paying me to get her off your hands in an hour…"

"Luke", Loralai said, "it's not a maniac… its Rory and Lori… they're back!"

He started picking up speed and met his wife at the door. "Rory, Lori, welcome home…"

Rory and Lori hugged them both for what seemed like forever. Loralai shed a few tears thanking the Heavens for returning her daughter.

"I've missed you kid", she repeated over and over.

"I've missed you too mom", Rory sighed while still hugging her mom and Luke.

---

The four of them were sitting at the small kitchen table having breakfast.

"So", Loralai broke the ice, "are you going after him?"

Rory had filled them in on what happened the last couple of hours of her life. The last three months were quiet compared to the last couple of days. She had slept with Logan, she'd seen Jess, she'd sent Logan back home, and now she was here.

"Honey", Loralai said softly, "are you going after him?"

"I don't think he wants me to mom."

"I think he's tired of chasing you."

Rory started to get defensive. "He doesn't chase mom. He drops in unexpectedly and disappears into thin air as fast as he can. That's his proverb."

"That's not fair to him Rory and you know it."

"Oh so now you're defending him", Rory said standing up, "when did you suddenly become 'Team Jess'."

"I'm not 'Team Jess'", Loralai said, "I'm Swiss remember… I'm neutral…"

"I need air", Rory got up, "Lori, can you stay with grandma and grandpa…"

"Yeah mom", she said softly.

"I'll be back."

Rory walked out the front door, slamming it shut.

"Well", Loralai sighed, "that went well."

---

Rory walked until she ended up in her favorite part of town; the bridge. She almost half-expected Jess to be sitting there, like so many times he had been. She knew she was alone, however. Rory walked out to the middle of the bridge and sat down with her feet hanging over the water. She closed her eyes and sighed. She felt tears shed from her eyes, but she couldn't remember when she'd started crying. Maybe she started ten years ago and never really stopped. She sobbed as memories flashed before her.

"So it's been a couple of days since you made the big decision", Jess said with his arm around Rory's waist walking away from the video store, "you still going to Yale?"

"Yes I am", Rory answered, "it's got all the classes I want, some really great teachers and plus you know as an added bonus it's really close to here."

"22.8 miles", Jess said quickly.

"How'd you know that?"

"Do you yahoo", he asked.

"You looked it up", Rory asked shocked.

"Yeah", he answered nostalgically.

"You looked it up", she stated.

"I just hit a couple of buttons on a computer", he answered.

"You looked it up", she smirked.

"I was bored", he excused, "there was nothing on T.V and I was fooling around. It was something to do, that's it."

"You looked it up", she teased and wrapped her arm around him.

Jess pulled her closer to him and kissed the top of her head.

Rory smiled at the memory. Even though she'd never admit it now, at the time, Jess had been one of her biggest deciding factors in her decision to go to Yale. She'd written him on her pro list. When Loralai had seen that list, she didn't mention Jess' name, but Rory knew her mom knew then how she felt about him.

"Oh yeah, when I was getting a locker for my backpack, at the bus stop there was this guy and he was just standing there staring at me, instead of ignoring him, I just fixed him with a really withering stare", Rory was telling Jess as they walked through New York.

"Now that I've gotta see", Jess said.

"No", she smiled.

"Oh come on", he was telling her, "let me see your withering stare."

"It's dangerous", she said, "I could hurt you."

"I've been hurt before", he said.

"No", she said.

"I'm disappointed", he pouted.

It should have been obvious to her back then. Everyone around her knew, including her mother and Dean. She'd traveled on a city bus just to spend the day with him. After that he had to have known how she felt. That's why he came back.

"What are you doing her", she asked when she saw him by the lake.

"Hello to you too", he replied.

"Is everything okay", she really had been concerned.

"You look nice", he was changing the subject.

"Thank you", she said, "What are you doing here?"

"I moved back."

"What", Rory couldn't believe it.

"I moved back", he repeated.

"But… what… why?"

"Just, wanted to", he shrugged.

That was when Rory had kissed him. There was something about knowing that someone voluntarily placed themselves somewhere they hated just to be close to you. She had gone to Sookie's wedding with Dean, but she had kissed someone else. After that, she left for the summer. But when she got back, a few weeks later, she and Jess were together.

"So, tell me what your decision about smoking that depending on", Rory asked Jess while he leaned against a pump in front of Gypsy's.

"What's gonna happen", he answered.

"When", she asked even though she knew.

"Now", he said softly and pulled her closer to kiss her.

There first real kiss was initiated by her, but there first official kiss he initiated all by himself. Rory smiled at their awkwardness that first day.

"You've read this before", Rory said looking at the book Jess had "borrowed" a few days earlier.

"About forty times", he said nodding.

"I thought you said you didn't read much", Rory smiled knowingly.

"Well", he shrugged, "what is much? Goodnight Rory."

"Goodnight Dodger", she nicknamed him.

"Dodger", it'd only take him a second to figure it out.

"Figure it out", she smiled turning to walk home.

"Oliver Twist", he called after her.

Rory turned around and smiled, before turning back to walk home. She never noticed Jess' smirk.

Rory smiled to herself.

"Can I know what you are smiling about?"

"Hey Luke", Rory said wiping her tears.

"Can I sit", he gestured to the spot next to her on the bridge.

"It's a free bridge", she said scooting.

"I think", he said sitting down, "Taylor might argue against that."

Rory smiled. "You're probably right."

"So", he said leaning forward looking at her, "what are you thinking of?"

"Just memories", she answered.

"About", he stretched the word.

Rory smiled. "This place reminds me of him."

"It reminds me of him too", Luke said pointing to a spot, "you see that over there…. I pushed him into the lake right there."

Rory laughed. "I know… he told me…"

"He did huh", Luke asked.

"He'd even offered for me to push him that day."

"You should have taken him up on the offer. It was cathartic."

"What's up Luke", she knew he was up to something.

Luke smiled. "You know me well."

"I've known you most of my life."

He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a slip of paper and handed it to her. Rory stared at it for a few seconds before he started talking again.

"It's all his information. It's pretty reliable. I've been calling, even though he hasn't answered or returned my calls. And a couple of months ago I sent a package that was never returned."

Rory stared at him open mouth.

"You can use it or toss it in the lake. It doesn't matter. Do what ever you want with it. What ever you think you need to do."

He stood up and sighed. "I'll leave you to decide."

Luke walked away, probably back to the house. She stared at the paper once again. She didn't believe in signs of any kind. She'd never even really believed in a "higher power", until now that is. This really had to be fate.

She now knew, more than ever, what she had to do.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm sure you all know what's coming. Does she drop it in the water? Does she put it away and never look back? Or does she use it? Tune in next time… I have absolutely nothing to do until about after 2:00 EST so I will most probably be posting the last chapter. It's half way done, since the end has been written for about a week and half or something. I know I promised the ending tonight, but shock I went out to dinner tonight with friends. Who would have thought that I had friends? I'm totally kidding ha ha. I'm not anti-social at all. By the way… as a little disclaimer for you, all the italics are actual clips/moments between Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel). I, in no way, shape or form, own them. I wish I did though. There was some really good writing in there. Well, until next time… stay thirsty!!