A/N: Apologies for the delay in updating!
It had been a week.
A week and Luke still hadn't come running. Sookie watched Lorelai's mood sink lower and lower with each passing day, until finally it got to the point that Lorelai wasn't talking. She responded when questioned, but had stopped offering thoughts, mindless chatter, random observations. And that's when Sookie really started to worry.
Sookie knew the root cause of her mood, and also knew that the root cause was still fishing. A week in hiding. A week! She mixed the cake batter in the large bowl with vengeance, as all the thoughts of what she would be doing to Luke if he walked in, came to the forefront of her mind, but stopped and dropped the bowl onto the counter when the door swung open and Lorelai came skipping in.
"Sweetie?" Sookie watched as Lorelai moved to the coffee pot a wide smile across her face. "You're looking...happy."
"I am."
"Oh? Is...um is Luke-"
"Luke back? I dunno. I don't care." She said with a flippant tone as she poured her coffee and took a long sip. "So ask me about my plans tonight?"
"What are your plans tonight?" Sookie asked carefully.
"I have a date."
"A date? With who?"
"Rob."
"Rob?"
"Rob! Rob! You know Rob!"
"Rob? I don't know a Rob! Rob who?"
"Rob the cable guy."
"The guy who was out here the other day fixing the cable."
"Yeah. Hence the moniker." Lorelai said with a waggle of her eyebrows as she sipped the coffee again and leaned against the counter behind her. "He had to come back today to fit the last three rooms and we got to chatting."
"Chatting huh?" Sookie watched him carefully.
"Yeah and so I asked him out."
Sookie dropped the knife she was holding and turned on her heel to face Lorelai with both arms on her hips. "You asked him out?"
"Yeah, for a drink tonight at Casey's."
"And he said yes."
"Yeah, of course he did, why wouldn't he?" Lorelai bristled.
"No honey, that's not what I meant." Sookie crossed over and rubbed her arm. "I'm just surprised is all."
"Surprised that a guy would want to go out with me?"
"No!" Sookie shrieked. "Surprised that you'd want to go out with anyone. Anyone other than-"
"Don't say it Sook." Lorelai turned and put her half empty mug into the sink. "Don't say his name."
"Lorelai-"
"You said he'd come running. He didn't come running." Lorelai gripped the sink. "I'm not waiting any longer for him to come running." She sighed, then added, "I was an idiot to wait in the first place."
"It's been a week. He's not even back yet."
"It doesn't matter. It was a stupid, stupid mistake and we'll both get over it eventually, but I'm not waiting around for him to come running."
"Oh honey, what you shared with Luke wasn't a mistake."
"But it was humiliating." Lorelai turned back and forced a smile for Sookie. "And it's over. It's passed. So on to new things."
"Like Rob."
"Like Rob."
Sookie smiled and Lorelai left. She forced the smile to stay plastered on her face as she made it through the foyer and to her office where she closed the door and leaned back against it. And before she could stop herself, she slid to the floor and hugged her knees.
A week. It would have been easier to avoid Luke if he was around to avoid. But his being away meant she was frustrated with her lack of ability to avoid him. Rory had dragged her into the diner for dinner four times this past week and every time she walked in with shaking hands and heart pounding in her chest and even when she saw Caesar taking orders and serving dishes it took her a moment or two to calm down. Over the past week, her fear had turned to worry. Her worry had turned to anger. And her anger had bubbled over into frustration. So she wanted to barrell past frustration and just get on with her life.
And that included going out with Rob. Lorelai hugged her legs to her chest and rested her forehead on her knees. Rob wasn't the answer to her questions. But he was attracted to her. She knew that for sure. She knew he would want to sleep with her. And she knew he would enjoy it.
Luke pulled at the tie that was around his neck to straighten it and resisted the urge to loosen it, or hell, pull it off entirely. The waiting room was stuffy, the air was close and he was struggling to take a full breath. But there was no way he was going to walk into this mediation session with his sister and her boyfriend, what was she called him, Eric? ugh, with a loose and crooked tie. He shuffled the folder on his lap and resettled himself on the chair.
He'd already spoken one on one with the mediator and shared with him his opinion on what was happening. Now Liz was in there with Eric, telling the mediator her side of the story. Or rather, Eric's side. Luke was seething and his tie felt even tighter.
"Luke Danes?"
He looked up and saw the secretary calling him in. Without hesitation he jumped up and hurried through the door she had left open. The mediation room was long with a table in the centre that was big enough to sit up to twenty people. At the top of the table the mediator was sitting with a large folder closed in front of him. The secretary sat to the side with a typewriter of some sort in front of her. And across from where he was supposed to sit, Luke saw Liz and Eric.
He crossed the room and took his seat without taking his eyes off Liz but she didn't dare look at him. The mediator opened the folder and shuffled through a few pages to find what he was looking for.
"So I've spoken to both parties individually and now we need to discuss the issue to find an amicable resolution. Mr Danes, you're disputing the will?"
"No." Luke said. "I'm not disputing the will."
"You're disputing the value of the split!" Eric said.
"Please, only direct your comments and questions to me," the mediator said, then turned to Luke. "You don't dispute the will?"
"No, my father left both of us the building which contained his business, when he passed ten years ago."
"And the business was…?"
"A hardware store." Then he added, with a glare at Eric, "A failing hardware store."
"Do you have the books?"
"Yeah, I do." Luke pulled out the files from the folder and slid them to the mediator. "These are the accounts for the last two years of the businesses. As you can see he was losing money year on year."
The mediator took the time to read through the accounts.
"After I shut the business down. I had to remortgage the building to close the accounts my father had opened with various supply stores."
"Has the mortgage since been closed?"
"Since I opened the diner I've managed to close the mortgage."
The mediator went back to reading the will and the accounts. Then turned to face Liz who was still staring at her lap. "You claim 50% rights on the building?"
"The will states that the business-" Eric started to speak.
"I can see what the will says. But according to these books, the business was in arrears. Did you pay for any of the debts that had to be closed?" Liz shook her head. "At the time of the will, the business was failing."
"But the building was worth something."
"The building was worth capital for the business," the mediator said.
"Half of that capital belonged to me." Everyone looked up at him including Liz, and Luke tried to capture her eyes but she quickly looked back down to her lap. "To her, I mean."
"The building worth at the time of the will was…"
"The retail portion of the building was valued at 330 thousand dollars and the upper floor an additional 97 thousand."
"And the arrears?"
"All in there was an arrears of 210 thousand dollars."
"What?!" Luke looked over at Eric who had shouted his surprise across the table at him. "How did a small town hardware store run up nearly a quarter of a million dollars worth of debt?"
"My father didn't collect payment for large orders on delivery. He made deals by shaking hands and he let people pay him back when they could. He in turn paid back the suppliers when he could. It was a system."
"A failing system."
"His system." Luke defended. "It worked for him." He shrugged and looked over at Liz. "We never went hungry, we always had clothes on our back. It worked for us."
"So you remortgaged the building for the entire amount?"
"I was able to pay some of it upfront, but I needed to remortgage it for 190 thousand dollars."
"And it took you how long to pay that off?"
"Five years."
"What was the interest rate on the mortgage offered?"
"For a five year LTV loan I got 3.9% interest rate." Luke passed him more banking information and the full history of the mortgage loan.
For a few tense moments the only sound in the room was the ticking of a clock on the wall then the mediator collected all the material shared with him and put them into the folder before him. "I think I've heard enough."
"When will you let us know your decision?" Luke asked as he shuffled the pages back into his folder.
"You will have the report in writing within ten working days." The mediator stood. "You will have the chance to appeal my decision, but that appeal must be lodged within 72 hours."
"Thanks," Luke stood too and held out his hand. The mediator looked down at it, then back up at Luke and shook his head. Luke took his hand back and focused on picking up his folder.
Eric shoved whatever it was he had in front of him into a leather briefcase then stood and stormed out of the room.
"Liz…" Liz looked up and Luke's anger almost dissipated when he saw the lost look in her eyes. "Liz, whats going on? Do you need money? Is that what this is about?" He rounded the table to get closer to her but she was already gathering her things and backing away.
"Look Luke, I need to get what dad meant to give to me." She got around the table and Luke reached out to grab her arm, but she shook him off.
"Hey Liz," Eric stuck his head in the door. "Lets go."
Luke watched as his sister hurried off to be with the man who was suing him and his shoulder slumped. Never had he felt so alone or helpless.
He grabbed his folder and walked out of the office and back to his truck then pulled off his tie and tossed it over his shoulder. He rolled up his shirt sleeves and rolled down the window and let the breeze waft over him for a few minutes, before starting the engine to make his way back to Stars Hollow.
Casey's was not as loud and lively as Lorelai had hoped it would be. It was subdued even for a Tuesday evening though she guessed most of Stars Hollow residents were not massive midweek party goers. Except of course for Bootsy, who was singlehandedly commanding the jukebox to play the fully Johnny Cash anthology.
She had chosen a booth near the door and watched it with a smile plastered on her face, jumping a little every time the door opened and faltering when it wasn't Rob that walked in. She checked her watch. She had arrived early, when usually she would be the open to make her date wait a little, and had ordered a drink but she didn't expect to be ready to order another one before he had even arrived.
She checked her watch again. Still quarter past eight. It was eight right? She replayed the conversation over in her head and confirmed that they had agreed to meet at eight. She had arrived at 7.30, a little more eager than usual. A lot more eager, but she was dying to get this date started. Dying to get it finished with she admitted with a sigh.
She looked down at her watch, twisting her wrist enough to see it without lifting her arm. Eight seventeen. Wow, time really did move slower in Casey's. The waitress approached and took Lorelai's empty bottle.
"Another?"
Lorelai cast a surreptitious glance at the door and then again down to her watch. Well, she was out already and for the first time in a week not brooding at home in her pjs with a pint of ice cream so why not. She smiled and nodded at the waitress who left. Now with nothing in her hands, nothing to fondle, nothing to pick at, her fingers interlocked back and forth as she waited.
She couldn't remember ever waiting for a date like this before. Though there hadn't been that many dates to wait for, she realised. With Rory at home and bringing her up on her own, there wasn't much opportunity to be in bars waiting for men. The waitress brought her drink and Lorelai smiled then looked up to see Bootsy reenacting the Folsom prison concert on one of the tables only to be dragged down by the barman. She chuckled, enjoyed the show and felt herself relax a little.
"Lorelai?"
She turned, the bottle still on her lips and saw Rob standing next to her.
"Rob!"
"Hey, I'm so sorry I'm late."
"That's fine, I just got here a few minutes ago."
Rob slid into the booth across from her and sheepishly looked down. "I was leaving work to go home and get changed and a call came in for the hospice, cable was out, and matlock was about to begin."
"Ah, a real emergency!"
"So I had to go fix that but then I didn't get a chance to go home." He gestured at himself and Lorelai only noticed then that he was wearing his khakis and work polo, complete with his name embroidered on the sleeve. "And I wanted to dress up for you!"
"It's fine Rob, it's Casey's." Lorelai sipped her beer and gestured at the waitress to bring another. "So…"
"So…" A moment of silence fell between them and the waitress dropped over Robs drink. He lifted it and took a long drink. "So huh, come here often?" he said with a crooked smile.
Lorelai smiled and reached across the table to pat his arm. "Relax Rob, the lateness is forgotten."
"It's been a while since I was out on a date."
"Yeah?"
"I guess I just focus on work, and everything else fades away. It's been difficult getting the cable business to a point I feel like I can take any time off."
"I can imagine, especially in a place like Stars Hollow that is still so attached to the wireless!"
"Huddled around the storefront windows watching the news."
"Grabbing the headlines off the town crier."
"Here ye! Here ye!" Rob yelled out, garnering the attention of some of the other patrons and Lorelai laughed, covering her mouth with the back of her hand to try and keep it quieter. Rob settled back in his chair and they shared a smile.
Nerves diminished, smiles got a little looser and they talked easily, swapping work stories and nightmare customers back and forth. Lorelai was surprised at how easily the conversation came. She was always a good talker, and certainly able to carry on a conversation, even if her partner was not a chatty cathy, but this was easy, relaxed and ...safe.
Lorelai watched as Rob crossed the bar to the bathroom and the word "safe" rattled around her head. He was a nice guy, had a good job, a killer smile, and was able to hold his own in their conversation. Hell he'd even gotten her Flash Gordon reference. But she wasn't feeling any reciprocation. She didn't notice him checking out her chest, her lipstick, her nail varnish, anything. He kept eye contact and didn't venture south of the border.
Was he not attracted to her? A ripple of doubt made it's way over her spine and she shuddered to get rid of it. Rob was making his way back and about to settle into the booth again but she reached across the table and grabbed his arm.
"Hey," she put on her most demure smile. "You wanna get out of here?"
Rob's smile widened and he nodded. He turned his arm and grasped her hand then tugged her out of the booth. She slipped on her jacket and led him out of the bar. He had his hand on the small of her back as he propelled her out of the room, eager to get out of the bar/ The ripple of worry was replaced by a ripple of desire at the sensation of his hand on her and Lorelai smile was wide as she pulled open the heavy bar door.
She was looking back over her shoulder and smiling at Rob as she stepped through the door, and right into Luke.
With a soft shriek she planted both hands on his chest to stop herself from losing her balance, and he grabbed her upper arms to hold her still. She looked up, already knowing the face she was going to see and felt all the blood drain from her face and pool around her toes. His grip on her arms seem to tighten and her fingers curled against the soft cotton blend of his white shirt and she tore her eyes away from him as she felt the hot blush creep back up her neck to colour her cheeks.
For a beat, no one moved. Then noticing the man standing behind her Luke released his grip on her arms and stepped back, allowing her enough space to walk through.
Lorelai immediately felt a pang of loss as her hands fell off his chest and dropped by her sides. She felt pressure on the small of her back pushing her forward soshe let it. She didn't look back and instead focused on buttoning up her coat as they crossed the road towards the park.
"Did you know that guy?" Rob asked as he took her elbow and guided her over the road and into the park.
"Hmm?" she stalled wondering how to respond.
"The guy at the door back there, is he an ex?"
"And ex?" Lorelai chuckled mirthlessly. "No, he most certainly is not an ex. An Ex would imply there was a thing from which to break up, which there was not."
Rob watched her intently as she brushed down the front of her coat and looked everywhere but at him.
"Look, I don't want to get in the middle of anything here," he said and he held his hands up, palms out.
"Middle? No, there is no middle." Lorelai turned to face him and grabbed his hands. "There is you, and there is me, and there is this wonderful park." Rob smiled. "Noting in the middle…" she leaned in towards him and his lips curved in a soft smile. Lorelai kissed him.
She didn't know what to expect. Fireworks? Sparks? Tingles? Anything? Instead all she felt was his lips against her. His hands as they grabbed her elbows and his body when he pulled her against him. But other than that, there was nothing.
Lorelai felt a pang springthrough her chest when she realised this was a failed attempt to stoke a fire that wasn't taking. She pulled back and looked up at him. He was looking back with a smile, clearly ready to keep going but Lorelai stepped back again.
"Um…" she began. His smile faltered. "Listen…" He released her and dropped her arms.
"Nothing?" he asked, an arched eyebrow. Lorelai shook her head slowly.
"Sorry," she started to apologise and try to think of something to say but he cut her off.
"Forget it, it was worth a shot right?" Lorelai nodded. "Let me take you home."
A/N: This is a Luke/Lorelai pairing story, that's all I write for GG. But I may have them temporarily paired with others until they can circle back to each other. #FairWarning