4. Suffered Enough

After making sure that Lane got home safely, Logan drove his Porsche in the streets of Stars Hollow to Rory's house. When he glanced at the car clock, he saw that it was already around 1:30 in the morning. He really couldn't believe that it was just an hour after the party had been busted by the cops. It had been a really strange night. Who knew that he would go to a crazy party? Who knew that this night would end up so crazily? And, who knew that he would be driving a strange girl to her home? A girl whom he surprisingly felt protective about.

"Are you okay?" Logan asked gently when he saw Rory looking pale and ashen.

"Yeah, I'm just worried about some of the questions my mom will ask about coming home in a stranger's car, which I am sure will lead to some explaining about everything that happened tonight."

"Is your mom the strict type as well?"

"God no, completely the opposite of Mrs. Kim, but Jess is not her favorite person."

"Gee, I wonder why." Logan uttered sarcastically.

Rory once again started to get agitated. "Logan, stop it, you don't know him."

"Rory, I know what I heard and saw, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that he yelled at you for no reason at all. I know it's not my place to judge your relationship since I just met you, but, Rory, I know what I heard. He basically blamed you for not having sex with him. And made it seem that just because you went up there, it was your fault."

"He didn't mean to… he was upset about something." Rory tried to rationalize.

"That's no excuse, Rory, and whatever the case, I advise you to not talk to or forgive the guy unless he offers a sincere apology. If he doesn't call you right away to apologize or come right at your door then the guy deserves to be dumped. The ball is in his court."

"Well, he will do that," Rory spat.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure, Logan, you don't know him!" She really hated this conversation. She knew Jess wouldn't approach her - he avoided conflict. And yet, again Logan was right. Jess did cause the conflict. However, there was that hope in Rory that maybe he would come and apologize to her. She refused to believe that Jess was totally callous.

"Okay then, if he comes, call me."

"I don't have your phone number, Logan, nor do I want it, Logan."

"Come on, if you're so sure that he will call you, what do you have to lose by telling me that he came by and apologized."

"I don't see how it's any of your business, Logan." When she was beginning to warm up to Logan Huntzberger, he was starting to annoy her once again.

"Come on, Ace, you know that I'm involved in this drama now. You couldn't possibly leave me hanging without letting me know how the dramatic scene I witnessed tonight ends."

"Yeah, I believe tonight's humiliation was amusing. Do you think I enjoyed being yelled at by my boyfriend and ex-boyfriend for things I don't understand? Having my ex-boyfriend believe something worse happened and then see him get into a fight with my current boyfriend. Having two guys fight over me like I'm a piece of property. I'm just so tired of this." Rory was on the verge of tears again.

Logan patted her arm gently. He had no idea what to say or what to do to comfort this girl. "Hey, I might only have known you for a couple of hours, but I already know that you're better than everybody. If your boyfriend doesn't understand, it's his loss."

Rory felt immediately comforted by his words and soothed by his touch. It couldn't be possible that she had misjudged him – that her first impression of him was wrong.

"I guess I should go."

"You should but you could stay here and talk. I promise it won't be about any of the trouble earlier."

"Are you sure Maria won't mind? I mean she'll probably be upset that she missed her chance with a guy who owns a Porsche." Rory laughed as she remembered how she and Lane had mocked shallow girls like Maria and other SH High girls and their want for guys with spending power.

Logan rolled his eyes. "Nah, I'm sick of her, she's just not worth it. Plus, she lives around here, it's not like I'm abandoning her to the wolves. Although, believe me she deserves way worse."

"I think she'll survive. I think by tomorrow she'll probably have her tongue down some other guy's throat if she is the same girl I went to school with. So, I don't think you'll be missed. Sorry, Logan."

"Don't worry about it, Ace, I don't date girls who are relationship types. They know what they're getting into… a drink and a bed for the night."

"Yeah, I figured, and why are you suddenly calling me Ace?" Rory asked curiously.

"Well, because I heard you love journalism. You are probably an Ace Reporter."

"Ever since when I was five years old, I have dreamed and wanted to be an overseas correspondent when I grow up." Rory smiled.

"Strong dedication." Logan marveled.

"So, what are you majoring in?"

"Well, Management because my dad believes that a proper education will help me take over the family business when the time comes, with English as a double major since Journalism is not offered at Yale."

"Oh, that's right you're related to Mitchum Huntzberger, boy Maria really did miss out." Rory laughed again.

"Ace, please don't remind me!"

"So, how's your dad like? He is a very impressive journalist." Rory asked curiously.

"Well, he's a great journalist, but not a great father. He is very cold and jaded. The only time he talks to me is to remind me that I am not living up to my potential. Hartford is the capital of strained parent/children relationships. Most of my friends except Finn have strained relationships with their parents."

Rory laughed. "I know what you mean, I love my grandparents but as soon as they are together with my mom, they are like cats and dogs. Mostly because they feel that my mom believes they don't approve of her raising me in Stars Hollow, a small town, away from Hartford high society, after getting pregnant at sixteen. Even though I do believe they love her, they're just too proud to admit it."

"Wait, is she Lorelai Gilmore?" Logan couldn't believe that he didn't recognize the name Gilmore earlier.

"How do you know her? I know she is popular but not that popular."

"She is kind of a legend. Raising a kid outside of Hartford, going against the norm. Not sticking to the status quo. That's right, your grandparents are Richard and Emily Gilmore. They are friends with my parents."

"I'm sure she'll be proud to know that. She is my best friend and we're freakishly close. She is a lot like me except more into fun stuff than into studying."

"I've never met anyone who is close to a parent. What about your dad?"

"My dad is cool, too, but we have a tough history. He's been in and out of my life. We are making progress now, but I'm still a little upset at him."

"Why?"

"He got his ex-girlfriend pregnant at the time when he and my mom were starting to reconnect and maybe, in my mind, have a happily ever after. I finally thought I would get my parents together. Plus, it hurt that my half sister would have her dad around while growing up and I didn't. But, I will not hold that against her, besides, none of these is her fault. She is just an adorable baby… she's beautiful. I also now know that my dad didn't mean to hurt me, although sometimes it still hurts."

"I'm sorry, you got disappointed by your parents… I know the feeling," Logan said, remembering some of Mitchum's false promises in the past.

Rory could not believe that she was connecting so fast with Logan. She has never even told Jess about her father issues and he was her boyfriend.

"So do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"One. My older sister Honor. She's the only person in my immediate family who I can relate to, and she was always there for me when I was growing up. She's a senior at Wellesley and is going to work for a well-known fashion company. I envy how she can choose her own destiny."

"And you feel you can't?"

"No, my dad has a say in everything I do. It's the reason why I try to have as much fun as I can now."

"I understand that."

"So, what movies do you like? Do you have any favorites?" Logan asked hoping to move on to a much lighter topic.

"Gee, that is a really tough question… I love all kinds of movies. I love the old classics such as, Casablanca, Funny Face, and Breakfast at Tiffany's, and I like comedies like Monty Python, especially, Holy Grail.

Logan burst out laughing at the mention of Holy Grail.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing I just remembered when my friend Finn tried to reenact some of the scenes in Holy Grail … it was scary."

"Your friend Finn sounds like quite a character." Thinking of all the times Logan had mentioned Finn that evening.

"That, he is, so is my friend Colin with the way he takes himself seriously all the time. I have some pretty odd friends."

"Yeah, I know how it is. This town is pretty crazy. There is this guy Kirk who has done every odd job in this town and Mrs. Patty who is a dance teacher but also knows about everybody's business in town. Plus she flirts with every guy in town. This town is small, but not boring."

"I know, I can tell by what happened tonight, and, I've been to many crazy parties."

At the mention of the party Rory felt herself come back to reality, and realized that a lot of time had passed since the cops had broken up the party. Rory looked at the Porsche clock just to see how late it was. She was shocked to find out that it was getting close to two in the morning.

"Logan, I really got to go. It was great meeting you." Rory was surprised to find herself feeling a bit disappointed at leaving Logan's company just when they were starting to connect, to bond.

"Okay, just wait a sec." He looked through his car, hoping to find something to write his phone number on. Instead, all he found was an old gum wrapper. He sighed, and wrote down his cellular phone number - thankful for once that Mitchum had taught him to never be caught without a pen in his pocket.

"Here, Ace, if you ever want to talk." He handed the gum wrapper to her.

"Thanks, Logan, for everything." She looked at him for a long moment, and then went inside her home.

When she got inside, she found Lorelai sitting on the couch with a curious face rather than an angry face.

"Mom, I'm sorry I came later than expected. It has been a crazy night."

"I bet it was! I was pretty worried when I heard sirens earlier. Then, when I saw a Porsche coming through the driveway I was scared at first, thinking that maybe Jess had stolen a Porsche or that Luke had won the lottery. Luke winning the lottery would mean no more coffee since Luke will probably sell his diner. No more Luke's coffee … very scary. Then I see you inside the car and talking to this blonde boy who doesn't look like Jess. I wanted to interrupt but you guys look so comfortable talking there… so, tell me what happened?"

"Nothing interesting… there was just a fight at the party. Cops came, and Logan was the date of one of the girls who went to the party and he drove Lane and me home. "

"And what about Jess… was he okay with another guy taking you home? Lorelai asked curiously.

"Um, he had to leave because he and Dean got into a fight." She decided that it was better to talk and tell Lorelai about the fight Jess and Dean had, and then, her own fight with Jess.

"Over you?"

"I was a contributing factor."

"Was anyone hurt?"

"No, but there was a wrecked fence and some property damage."

"Wow, and that's why the cops came and broke up the party?" Lorelai's tone was with amusement.

"Yes." Rory would have preferred her mother to be mad at her than for her to be so amused. Like she told Logan, she didn't find that night's drama to be funny at all.

"So not only did you go to a party that was raided by cops but you caused the reason for the cops to come? And a fence is destroyed because of you?" Lorelai's tone was in such a sing song way that Rory was worried that she would make the incident into a mocking opportunity.

"What's your point?"

Lorelai started to break into song: "Did you ever know that you're my hero?"

"Oh, my God!"

Just when she thought that her night could not get any worse Lorelai started to ignore her and continued to sing. "You're everything I would like to be. And I could fly higher than an eagle, 'cause you are the wind beneath my wings."

"Mom, I'm going to bed."

"Sure, but tell me about the blonde tomorrow? Was the fight about him, too?"

"No, Mom, it wasn't." She walked into her bedroom, trying to ignore her mother who was singing 'Hero' in the other room. What a horrible night! She looked at the gum wrapper which Logan had given her and thought that meeting Logan was the only positive thing that happened that night. Was it serendipity? Who would have known that she will meet this very intriguing person at a party where her current boyfriend had a fist fight with her ex-boyfriend? Logan could be annoying, yet so easy to talk to. However, she needed to focus on forgetting this horrible night and working things out with Jess. She really hoped that Logan was wrong, and, that Jess would call her and would try to work things out with her.

*********

The following day Rory walked to Lane's to see how she was doing. She was hoping to forget the anxiety gnawing at the pit of her stomach – the fact that there were no calls from Jess. Maybe, he just needed some time to himself before coming to see her.

When Lane had answered the door, Rory was surprised that Ms. Kim still let her answer the door after all, Lane came home late the previous night – drunk.

"So, how are you? How were things last night?"

"You mean, after my drunken call to my mother?"

"Yeah. What happened after Logan and I dropped you home?"

"I'm not sure. Although you should tell Logan that his hangover cure worked, my headache is miraculously gone."

"What do you mean you're not sure?" Rory tried to ignore the mention of Logan because it reminded her of her own problems that she was trying to forget.

"Well, after you and Logan dropped me off, after my Farelly brothers audition in the bushes, thanks by the way…"

"Anytime."

"I went in and the place was dark."

"No Mrs. Kim?" Rory asked with a lot of surprise.

"No Mrs. Kim." Lane declared.

"No Mrs. Kim." Rory repeated.

"So, of course, I panicked. What does this mean? I mean, when I come home ten minutes late from bible study, she has a cow. But I call her drunk, tell her I'm at a party, I'm a drummer in a band, and I'm in love with somebody who is not Korean. I expected there to be backup - aunts, uncles, cousins pulled out from villages I've never heard of, but nothing."

"I don't understand." Rory couldn't believe that the woman who threw Lane's TV when she was watching a Pamela Anderson TV show would be nonchalant when her daughter came home drunk and late from a party.

"So, I go upstairs to make sure everything's okay. I look in her room and she's in bed asleep."

"No."

"Then this morning, I get up, I go in the kitchen where she's making breakfast and I say, 'Good morning, Mama'."

"And."

"She turns around, looks right at me and says, 'Good morning, Lane'."

"Really?"

"And those were the last words she's said to me all day."

Lane proceeded to talk about her mom's strange behavior and Rory tried to interject theories into why Mrs. Kim was acting so strangely. Rory felt her problems being distracted momentarily until Lane suddenly asked: "So, what's the deal with you and Logan… I mean, I might have been drunk last night but I was aware of the easy banter between the two of you, plus, he was cute."

"Nothing, he was just there, and we are just acquaintances… we sort of became friendly."

"Really, because he seemed pretty concerned about you?" Lane said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"I guess he heard a small argument between Jess and me, and felt sorry for me." Although it was more than a small argument - Rory did not feel like bringing it up with Lane.

"Was that before or after the big fight with Dean?"

"After."

"What was the fight about?" Lane was curious. It wasn't like Rory to not share her boyfriend problems.

"I don't know… he was upset about something. We were kissing, and then he started yelling at me." Rory said not wanting to get into the exact details of what happened.

"So, Jess started randomly yelling at you? Rory, I tried to be supportive because you're my best friend, but you deserve better than someone who is constantly moody."

"Lane, I told you before – you don't have to like him, but it's not your business to tell me if I should be with him or not."

"I know that, Rory, and I hate saying this but I've seen how unhappy you were when you had to leave the Korean wedding we attended. And not have to stay for the reception because Jess is not a reception-kind-of-guy. I've seen how you were at the hockey game when Jess was not calling you. I don't see Jess making you happy… I mean when was the last time he made you smile?"

"Lane, thanks for the lecture but I really have to go." She couldn't handle the constant reminders of the downward spiral of her relationship with Jess anymore.

"Okay, I'm sorry I brought it up. I just find it so unfair that Dave goes to hell and back just so my mother can approve of him while Jess is not Lorelai's favorite person but she still lets you date him. However, he doesn't respect you nor Lorelai."

Rory had never thought of it that way: how much it bothered her that Jess had complete disregard for her mother, even though her mother was making an effort to like him. In the past 24 hours Rory had found herself having a new perception, a new insight, a new awareness about him that was totally not positive.

*********

The days after the party were harder and stressful for Rory with the school year coming to an end. Before, she had been looking forward to attending the graduation prom at SH High where Jess would be more comfortable with his classmates than at Chilton with Rory's classmates. She was looking forward to having a fun time, to having a good time with Lane - maybe have her last dance at the prom with Lane. But, with the situation with Jess, she was sure that she will not be going to the prom there. He had not made any move to talk to her about the incident at the party. This was bothering Rory and adding nervous tension and strain which she did not need. But, at the moment, she had decided not to think about the state of their relationship. Rory and her mom were going to attend the funeral services for Fran, the owner of the old Dragonfly Inn.

On their way to Fran's funeral, she almost went to see and talk to Jess at Luke's but decided not to. She stopped as she remembered Logan's words: The ball is in his court. She could have sworn that she had seen Jess coming out of the diner to her, but then he decided not to. She wondered why he didn't care enough to do something to save their relationship. She wondered why he didn't treat her well. She wondered why he didn't explain his behavior. Why was she in the relationship when he didn't even care about her? Was it really a relationship? Was it worth saving? Why did he ruin her hope to have a good graduation prom experience? It hurt Rory to watch Paris' excited face as she talked about how Jamie had arranged a helicopter ride for the two of them. Jess never did anything thoughtful for her, never did anything to surprise her except with the Distiller tickets - but his getting the tickets felt more like a bribe/pay-off because she was mad at him that night. She hated that Dean has moved on with his life. Not that she still had feelings for him, but it hurt her that he had to hammer the fact that Jess had treated her like dirt.

Then later, after the services when Rory tried to focus her attention on Lorelai talking about how she attempted to negotiate the purchase of the Dragonfly property at the funeral, they unfortunately stopped in front of a store with a prom dress in the window. It seemed like everywhere and everything showcased 'Prom Night'. Rory felt that everyone was obsessed with the prom. She hated that May was prom month. She hated that Lorelai looked at the window and said, "Come here."

"I saw." Rory said flatly.

"That one would look great on you."

"Oh, I don't know." It was an okay dress, but it wasn't exactly what she wanted her prom dress to be.

"We should come back tomorrow and try it on." Lorelai added.

"Maybe."

"Hey, prom's coming up, kid. We need to get you a dress. Unless you want me to make you one."

"No, that's okay." Rory said, wanting to end the conversation. She was sick and tired of hearing the word prom.

"Maybe we could hit the mall tomorrow after school. I could meet you in Hartford and we could go to a fancy store where they'll follow us around like we're thieves." Lorelai hoped that her excitement would rub off on Rory who appeared to be surprisingly glum.

"I don't wanna talk about dresses anymore!" Rory exclaimed.

"We've only been talking about dresses for two minutes."

"Well, it feels like longer." Everything pertaining to prom and relating to Jess had felt so long-drawn-out ever since the incident in Kyle's bedroom.

"Rory?" Lorelai asked in confusion. She couldn't remember a time when she had seen her daughter look this unhappy.

"And I don't know if I even need a dress, okay, 'cause I don't even know if I'm going to the prom."

"I thought Jess agreed." It seemed that it was only last week that Rory was excited about going to the prom with Jess.

"Well, that was before."

"Before what?

"Before the party, before the fight, before the thing in Kyle's bedroom."

"Okay, come with me."

She really hoped her daughter did not do anything in Kyle's bedroom she wasn't ready for. They both got into the Jeep as Lorelai was anxious to find out what had happened in the bedroom. "Okay, we left off with the thing in Kyle's bedroom."

However, Rory was still busy trying to get everything off her chest about Jess that she ignored her mother's questions. "I don't understand. One minute he's happy, and then he's not. And he doesn't tell me anything ever. I mean, you're supposed to tell your girlfriend things. That's the whole point of having a girlfriend, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. Now, Kyle's bedroom, what happened there?" Lorelai asked again, anxious to get to the bottom of what happen.

Rory was still in her rant and she could not stop. "And I'm so tired of fighting. Or not even fighting because he won't fight. He just gets mad and disappears and then comes back and I don't like how I feel and I don't like what I do."

"Like what you do where, in Kyle's bedroom?"

"I don't wanna feel like this, I don't wanna sit around wondering when we're going to talk, if he's mad, why he's mad. I hate this. I really, really…" Then it dawned on her that Logan was right - that she was suffering because of Jess.

"Honey, you gotta tell Mommy what happened in Kyle's bedroom!" Lorelai demanded.

Duly chastised Rory proceeded to tell her what had happened. "Jess was upset and I went to look for him and we were kissing and then it seemed like he wanted to. . ."

"Did you?"

"No, I didn't. And then he got all weird like he was mad at me." Rory replied, trying very hard to be very composed when she could feel herself tearing up.

"Hey, if he was mad at you because you wouldn't have sex with him, then he's a jerk." Lorelai could not believe that Jess had the audacity to get mad and yell at her daughter over something like that.

"I know that, but I don't even know if that's why he's mad at me. I don't know if he's mad at me. I don't know anything because he won't talk. He just sulks then disappears, and just when you're through with him, he shows up at hockey games with Distiller tickets."

"Distiller tickets? What Distiller tickets?"

"Oh, that's right, you don't know about that because I didn't tell you because I was embarrassed because I didn't wanna be that girl and you don't want me to be that girl, but after the hockey game, I was that girl."

"What girl? Help me, drag me along, honey."

"The girl who lets her boyfriend treat her like dirt and then lies to her mom about it. But, that's not the worst part. Logan, the blond guy who gave me a ride home, told me how wrong Jess' behavior was, that if Jess does not talk to me and apologize right away, I should dump Jess. And, I just didn't want to admit to myself that I want to stand by Jess because I broke up my relationship with Dean for him, and, I needed to prove to everyone who hates him, including you, that he's not a bad person."

"Okay, you need to breathe."

"Something's going on with him and it's been going on for awhile."

"You can't make him talk, Rory. He has to want to."

"But why doesn't he want to? Have I ever given him a reason not to trust me, and he shouldn't have done that at Kyle's bedroom and if he was sorry he would have apologized already or at least explained things."

"Because it's probably hard for him."

"Mom, you don't have to lie that you are on his side anymore I'm going to tell him this, and I think it's going to be over, so over."

There was a car waiting to take their parking spot. Lorelai leaned out the car window to yell at the driver,

"Hey, we're not leaving. We're gonna live in this car and we're gonna die in this car, so find another freakin' spot."

Then Lorelai faced Rory, "Honey, are you sure, although I have to give this Logan a nice fruit basket for saying what he said."

Rory started to cry, "I don't wanna talk about it anymore. I'm tired of talking about it. I'm just . . . tired."

Lorelai held her daughter close. She hated to see her daughter like this but she was glad that Rory has decided to break up with Jess.

*********

When they got home, Rory was still contemplating on what she should do. A part of her wanted to call Jess and tell him her epiphany and her decision, but, another part of her felt tired to deal with Jess. She saw the gum wrapper that Logan had given her with his phone number. She picked up the phone and dialed it.

Author's Notes:I hope everyone had a good holidays and got all the gifts you wanted.