Author's Notes: Okay so I've decided to update faster since a) I have the time, and b) I'm currently writing...chapter 31! I plan to go until 40, so only 9 more to go. Then I'm gonna MAYBE write a sequal...but then depends on the readers. Thanks again to my 3 most loyal, reliable and motivating reviewers!

Chloe2007- Christopher does bring in good drama and he's an important part of the show...if we like it or not. And thanks, glad you loved it!

Kat321- I can promise you, Logan IS being worked into the storyline, not too much of course since it's a L/L fic...but it's also partially other couples since it's a bit more realistic and fun to include everyone. As to how far the Rory/Logan stuff go...you'll have to find out.

Jeremy Shane- Yay, I love you reviews :P. I can garantee 100 that this is not a Lorelai/Chris story and will not be at all. Yes, Christopher has a thing for Lorelai but she'd in love with Luke and that it will remain! Luke and Lorelai have a lot to get past, a lot of things are going on right now with them...but divorce isn't in the cards at this point. And if all hell came about, they're likely to get back together anyhow. Luke and Lorelai have eyes for each other only.

Chapter Sixteen: Christmas Disasters

'41…42…'Lorelai counted as she rushed down the hallway of the hospital, dragging Richie along with her.

'Slow down!' Richie pleaded.

'Sorry' Lorelai said and picked him up. 'Ah! 245' she said and pushed the door open to find Christopher sitting in a chair beside Sherry's bed.

Christopher stopped talking as he noticed Sherry's expression change. He turned around to see Lorelai standing there with her son.

'I'll be back' he whispered to Sherry and released her hand. He got up from the chair and left the room, shutting it softly behind him.

'How is she?' Lorelai asked, putting Richie back down as he squirmed.

'The doctors aren't sure' Christopher sighed. 'But she's stable now…she seems okay' he said, the tiredness and stress was very evident in his eyes. He rubbed his face with his palm and then glanced down at Richie. 'Wow'

'What?' Lorelai asked and looked at Richie in concern.

'Ah, nothing…just, it's clearer in the light' Christopher said with a light shrug. 'He looks so much like you'

'Thanks, every boy loves to hear that they look so much like their mother' Lorelai said in a teasing tone.

'You know what I mean' Christopher rolled his eyes. 'I see he's got the style though' he added, since Richie was very fond of his black baseball cap and was wearing a flannel shirt. Richie never usually wore them, but Lorelai made sure they had some in the house Richie's size in case Richie felt like looking like his father, like today. Plus, Richie liked flannel shirts, not surprisingly since 95 of Luke's clothing was flannel.

'And sorry' Christopher told her.

'For what?' Lorelai asked, trying to keep her tone even.

'For making you come all the way out here, I just panicked before…'

'Oh' Lorelai nodded. 'Oh, right. Um yeah, it's no problem' she shrugged and glanced away. 'If you need us to stay…'

'Nah, I think things are okay here now…but thanks, for coming' Christopher nodded.

'Sure' Lorelai gave a small nod in return. 'Come on honey' she sighed and picked Richie up again. 'If you need anything, call'

'I will' Christopher nodded and headed back into the room.

'I don't like him' Richie said with a scowl as they left the ward.

As December rolled around, the residences of Stars Hollow were buzzing with the festive mood, but no one could top that off more so than Lorelai and Rory Gilmore-Danes.

'Who wants to put the pretty angel on the top of the tree?' Lorelai asked as she held up the last Christmas tree decoration.

'Not me' Luke grumbled. He wasn't too thrilled with the decorating the tree as it was, but with Lorelai talking about lights and stockings…it made him a little grouchy…Christmas celebrations really weren't his thing. He could escape it when they were dating, but being married was like a contract. Luke had never truly realized how lucky he had been to hide away in his diner all those previous years.

'I'll get it!' Lorelai suddenly cried out and searched frantically for the ringing phone. 'Ah hah!' she said and answered it. 'Hello? How may I assist thee?' she asked in a fake British accent.

'Who is this?' Emily asked.

'Oh, hey mum' Lorelai cleared her throat.

'Lorelai, is that you?' Emily wondered, very unsure.

'Unless you have another daughter that I don't know-ah yeah, it's me mum' Lorelai sighed. 'It's Lorelai' she then added as confirmation.

'Hm' Emily nodded and took a moment to clear her confusion and remember why she was calling. 'It's Christmas in three weeks'

'I know' Lorelai said.

'And every year, two weeks before Christmas, Your father and I like to hold a Christmas party at our house' Emily continued.

'I know' Lorelai stated again but had figured out where the conversation was heading.

'I was wondering if you were all coming to this annual event, or if you have other plans' Emily said, although anyone that knew her well enough could tell it wasn't exactly optional to not show up for it.

'Sure, we'll be there' Lorelai shrugged, followed by a defeated sigh. 'What time?'

'Seven, next Tuesday' Emily said. 'And is Rory there?' she wondered.

'Why?' Lorelai raised an eyebrow. 'But no, Rory's not here right now' she said loudly and Rory turned around to give her a puzzled expression.

'Well I just thought you should know what Logan Huntzberger and his family will be there at the party this year per request, but if it's too much for Rory…'

'Ah, Logan will be there? Um…' Lorelai glanced at Rory but her only reply was a mere shrug. 'Oh that's fine' Lorelai nodded. 'She's a big girl mum, I think she can handle it'

'I was also wondering if there is anyone else I should include in the guest list' Emily said, ignoring what Lorelai had said. 'Perhaps April has a boyfriend? Or…any other friends she may have. Oh, and what about Luke's family? I don't believe we've met everyone yet' Emily's tone hinted that she was very excited about the party and wanted as many people there as possible.

'I'll talk to April, but do you think…um' Lorelai gave Luke a nervous glance, which Rory noticed but Luke had his back turned. 'Christopher' she said and Luke glanced over with a raised eyebrow. 'Could you invite Christopher and GiGi? I mean they're going through a tough time right now and I don't think Sherry will be able to make it…but, I dunno'

'Hm, very well' Emily nodded, her tone filled with disapproval.

'Luke? What about Liz and the others?' Lorelai asked, covering up the mouthpiece.

'For what?' He asked and picked Richie up so he could reach higher parts of the tree.

'The Christmas party with the Gilmore's next week' Rory explained. 'We go every year, remember?'

'The one that they have two weeks before Christmas?' Luke sighed and rolled his eyes. 'I think it's stupid, I mean Christmas isn't for another two-'

'Yeah, uh huh' Lorelai interrupted. 'Liz?'

'Oh, right…yeah I'll ask her' Luke sighed again.

'Sure, we'll ask Liz and her family if they'd like to come' Lorelai told her mother.

'What about Sookie? I'm sure she'd love to come along too, and what about that Frenchman you work with, does he like parties?' Emily wondered.

'Woah, what's with the gathering mum?' Lorelai asked, getting a bit suspicious. 'Would you like us to give the President a call? Or what about Joaquin Phoenix? Oh! I know, I'm sure Ted Knight and Donna Summer would love to come!'

'Everything's a joke' Emily muttered. 'I just think it would be nice to invite all of your friends and family…is that so wrong? For me to want to know those close to you, to be interested in my own extended family, Lorelai?'

'No mother' Lorelai sighed. 'I'll invite anyone that I've shared the same air or existence with in the last five years' she said. 'I'll call you Sunday and let you know how many, I'll try to keep it under 400' she added and hung up.

'No' Michel said again but Lorelai ignored him.

'Here is the address and you may bring a date if you think it will make coming a littler more bearable' Lorelai handed the invitation to him. 'And a "date" does not mean "chows", got it?' she said as an afterthought.

'I am not coming' Michel said stubbornly.

'See you there' Lorelai grinned and headed off to give Sookie an invitation.

--

It wasn't Lorelai's favourite way to spend a Monday morning, but as lunch passed by, she finally found time to just sit down and breathe.

Lorelai sat on one of the chairs in the library. She bit her lip and wrote down a few notes on the paper and clipboard that sat on her lap. She glanced up as two young children ran past. The girl was about nine and the boy about eleven. They were clearly siblings, same hair, same eyes…also their skin colour was identical.

Lorelai sighed and just watched them for a moment and wished her mother had more parties that needed attention because she was still very stressed. It was also still a very big mystery to her as to why she was taking the whole "having a third child soon" issue so seriously and why it was such a big deal to her.

'Maybe I'm just over thinking it' she shrugged but then jumped as her cell phone rang. 'Yeah? Hi mum, yes I have the list…'

'Remind me why we're doing this again' Luke frowned, as they were welcomed into the Gilmore Mansion by a maid that Tuesday night.

'Because we love our parents very much' Lorelai joked with a high level of sarcasm.

'They're your parents' Luke reminded her.

'Ah, but they're your in-laws' Lorelai smirked as she poked his arm.

'God help me' Luke muttered as Emily approached.

'There you are!' Emily smiled and greeted everyone. 'Come, there are some people I'd like you to meet' She said to Luke and April, dragging them off into the sea of people.

'They're probably wishing they'd never met us' Rory said, seeing the look on Luke's face.

'Probably' Lorelai nodded and picked Richie up so they didn't lose him in the crowd. She then slowly glanced around the room and spotted Michel sitting at a table, talking on his phone boredly.

'I hate ties' T.J was complaining nearby while Liz fussed over Doula's hair.

'Oh' Rory said and gulped once she spotted Logan near the back with his sister Honor and her husband Josh, along with a toddler that she presumed was Logan's nephew.

'What are you going to do?' Lorelai wondered.

'I don't know' Rory replied. 'Should I talk to him?'

'I don't know' Lorelai said in the same tone as they wandered away from the entrance and over to one of the food tables.

'Why did you do that?' Luke hissed as he came back. Rory linked arms with April and the girls headed off to talk to a few people they knew.

'What did I do?' Lorelai asked as she handed Richie some cake with a napkin.

'You let your mother drag me off to meet some overdressed, stinking rich manager of some stupid company that I've never even heard of' Luke ranted.

'She's your mother-in-law' Lorelai smirked.

'Will you stop saying that?' Luke cursed but then raised an eyebrow as Lorelai grabbed a plate and started to fill it only with fruit.

'What?' Lorelai noticed the look he was giving her. 'Stay close' she told Richie and put him down, placing a hand over her stomach.

'Luke…' Emily came over but saw Lorelai's expression.

'I'm fine' she told the concerned faces that were looking at her. 'Just feeling a little queasy. I'll be back' she nodded and put her plate down, heading for the bathroom.

'Is she…?' Emily glanced at Luke.

'I…don't know' Luke replied, his expression as panicky as hers.

'Keep an eye on her' Emily said and saw a man nearby. 'Charles! How wonderful to see you!'

'Is mum okay?' Richie wondered, tugging on his father's shirt.

'Yeah' Luke nodded and picked Richie up. He quickly found Rory and handed her Richie. 'Look after him, your mother might be pregnant' he told her and then rushed off.

'Ah…what? Um, okay. Sure' Rory shrugged, slightly caught off-guard and shocked. 'Oh no' she noticed Logan approaching. 'Turn away' she said quickly to April and they did, but he had already seen them.

'Hey' Logan said casually and politely, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

'Oh, Logan!' Rory pretended to be surprised. 'Hi!'

'Who are you?' Richie asked, frowning.

'I'm Logan Huntzberger, who are you?' Logan asked as he noticed the small child in Rory's arms…that made him very concerned since they looked rather alike.

'I'm Richie' he replied. 'These are my sisters' he pointed, copying how his parents and grandparents had been talking to people all night, introducing everyone to strangers.

'Well nice to meet you young man' Logan shook Richie's hand and then held it out to April. 'I don't believe we've met'

'Probably a good thing' April replied but shook his hand anyway. 'Ah, Rory' she nodded towards the crowd were Christopher and GiGi were approaching them.

'Do I have a neon sign over my head or something?' Rory grumbled under her breath. 'Hey dad' she said and then gave GiGi a brief hug, whom was getting pretty tall now. 'Hey little sister'

'Hi Rory' GiGi smiled, moving some hair from her face.

'April, this is my other sister GiGi and you know my father'

'Nice to meet you' April smiled at GiGi. 'Hi' she then nodded to Christopher.

'I'll leave you to it' Logan said politely. 'Excuse me'

'Isn't that the guy that propos-' Christopher started to say but Rory spoke over him.

'Yeah, so how are things?'

'I'm still hungry, can I have more cake?' Richie complained, squirming a little in Rory's arms.

'I'll take him' April offered.

'Go ahead' Christopher nodded to GiGi, as his seven-year-old daughter seemed to want some cake as well.

Rory watched the small group leave and then turned to her father. 'How's Sherry?'

'Coping' Christopher replied with a shrug. 'How's work?'

'Interesting' Rory shrugged also, not feeling particularly comfortable.

The night went on in a reasonably bearable pace. Sookie had also helped out with the food menu so she spent most of her time wandering back and forth to the kitchen; while Jackson and the kids spent some time with the rest of the group that had come along only because Lorelai had successfully talked them into it.

Lorelai had finally convinced everyone that she wasn't pregnant or anything of the sort, but she was getting really annoyed with Luke and Christopher. Both men were constantly arguing with each other over the stupidest things and felt the need to be very competitive, even when Lorelai reminded them that she was already married so the prize for being the biggest idiot wasn't going to be her.

Several of the guests had left by the time nine pm came around.

Lorelai frowned as she battled with a headache and grabbed another apple on her way towards the group. She then froze at the sight before her.

'The world is coming to an end' Lorelai gasped.

'I know' Rory nodded, just as shocked.

Luke and Christopher were a few meters away and talking with several businessmen…and laughing.

'They're getting along, they find the same joke funny' Lorelai gasped. 'I can't breathe' she said and sat down at one of the tables. 'I'm seeing things, I'm going insane!'

'Is it possible to hallucinate the same things? Cuz I think…it can't be…' Rory sat down beside her but noticed the apple Lorelai had been eating. 'Ah, Mum?'

'Can't talk, speechless' Lorelai replied as if she was unable to breathe.

'Hey' Luke said as he and Christopher came over.

'Who are you people?' Lorelai pointed an accusing finger at them. 'What do you want from us?' she shrieked.

'What?' Christopher frowned and glanced at Luke to see if he knew what Lorelai was on about…which he didn't.

'You're married to her' Christopher said.

'So were you' Luke replied in his own defense.

'You're co-existing!' Lorelai gasped. 'Did you both get brain transplants? Did some blood-sucking monster grab you both and trick you in believing that…' she paused and then calmed down. 'I need fresh air' she stated and got up, leaving her apple core there on the table because she knew it would drive her mother crazy.

'Where's April and Richie?' Luke wondered. Rory pointed in the direction and he went to find them.

Rory watched Logan and then took a deep breath, going to talk to him in hope of clearly up some of the awkwardness between them.

Christopher knew where GiGi was and was about to go see how she was going but saw Lorelai through the glass window. She was leaning slightly and was rubbing her head as if it hurt.

'Lore?' Christopher asked as he came outside to where Lorelai was.

'Oh, hey' she glanced up and tried to look fine but her headache was bothering her.

'You don't look so good'

'Thanks' Lorelai said sarcastically but then felt an odd taste in her mouth as she felt nauseous again.

Luke got back to the table to see no one was there. He looked around and spotted Lorelai and Christopher through the window. He frowned angrily as he saw Christopher's arm around Lorelai's waist and she was leaning against him a little.

Luke rushed outside angrily but the moment he moved closer, he realized that Christopher was merely providing Lorelai with some support as she threw up into the garden.

'What happened?' he asked, very worried about his wife now and all other paranoid thoughts were gone from his mind.

'I don't know' Christopher said truthfully as he continued to support Lorelai. 'We were talking and then she just…heaved'

Lorelai stopped and wiped her mouth with a napkin. She turned to tell them that it was just a bug or something but then she felt dizzy.

'Lorelai!' Luke said and was very thankful that Christopher was able to catch her as her eyes rolled back and she passed out onto the pavement…

Author's Notes: Okay, so the ending to this chapter is more dramatic than it sounds, but you'll find out why she passed out next chapter. I happily have my 3 reliable reviewers, although it's sad that I only get 3 per chapter, i'm relieved it's not less. I hope that those whom are reading this and not reviewing at least like the fic, well obviously if they're still reading by this point. Anyhow, I will update the next chapter very soon...possibly even tomorrow! I'm going to speed things up a bit, if anyone would like me to slow down...let me know. Please review, I love to hear opinions and quesitons etc, makes me happy and motivates me to write more! :) Anyhow...please, review!!

-Mel