Title: Crazy Little Thing Called Love

PDLD

Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING!

Rating: PG (or "K+" as they're calling it now… I personally like the old rating system better but Times Are A' Changin' I guess…)

A/N:

Ok so I updated within a little over a week! … That's not too too bad lol… Oh and in case you haven't already guessed I jumped forward in time again… now its November of the same year they met (they met in the spring, btw, of that year… then I jumped to the whole media scandal – which took place around July and now I've jumped to the holiday season)… and just to clarify: as far at their relationship goes, they are technically "together" but lets just say the distance is going to start to cause problems soon… hehehe but that's for me to know and you to find out…

Anyway… if your sick of my ramblings, you should be happy because I'm finally done… lol enjoy the chapter… there will be more to come soon…

Chapter 11: Cocktail Hour

"What are you doing here?" Finn asked, still in a stupefied shock over the fact that his parents were here. In Hartford. At the Gilmore residence. For Thanksgiving Dinner? Nothing seemed to be adding up in his head…

"Finn… is that anyway to greet your mother?" The woman replied, interrupting Finn's befuddled thoughts, as she came over to give Finn an awkward hug (he was still in too much shock to really reciprocate).

"And you must be the famous Rory… I've heard so much about you." The woman said as she turned to Rory enveloping her in a tight hug as well.

"Hello, Mrs. Morgan… Nice to meet you?" Rory replied in a soft voice (somewhat shocked herself).

"Oh please darling, call me Sylvia… there's no formalities between family…" Sylvia replied with a mischievous wink (now Rory knew where Finn got if from…)

"Family…?" Finn echoed stunned by his mother's choice of words.

"Why of course dear." Sylvia replied as she lead Rory and Finn further into the parlor. "I mean we've been close friends of the Gilmore's for as long as I can remember… it's just natural to consider family by this point."

"Of course…" Finn relied with dark humor in his voice.

"Rory…" Sylvia said (ignoring the tone in Finn's voice) as she steered Rory and Finn over towards the bar where Richard and Mr. Morgan were fixing drinks and talking about the latest changes in the stock market. "This is my husband, Daniel…" When his name was mentioned, Mr. Morgan turned and introduced himself

"Why hello Rory, your grandfather has told me so much about you…" he said as he firmly shook her hand. While it was obvious Finn had his mother's mischievous eyes, the rest of his appearance was clearly attributed to his father. The resemblance was so strong between father and son that there was no mistaking the fact that they were family.

"Oh…He has?" Rory said in the same quiet and unsure voice.

"Why he's been raving about you, my dear… from his report you seem like an extraordinary young lady…"

"Oh… well I don't know about 'extraordinary'" Rory stammered as a blush began to creep into her face.

"Nonsense, my dear… I'm sure you more than exceed your remarkable reputation." Daniel replied with a warm smile. Rory, still speechless by this man's remarks and not exactly sure of what to say in response, could only smile back shyly.

"So. How long have you known each other?" Lorelai (after noticing the "help-me!" stare her daughter was giving her) said in response to the slightly awkward silence that had developed.

"Oh for ages… we see each other every year at Huntzberger's Annual Christmas Party," Emily replied.

"And at other charity functions of course," Sylvia piped in. "Naturally, it's hard to keep in touch what with living on different continents…" The two women laughed in unison at Sylvia's remark (which was a truly horrifying site) "… but we've managed."

"Well… what will you two have to drink?" Richard asked.

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Rory fiddled with the charm marker on her wine glass… She had been sitting on the couch for the last 15 minutes and had hardly said a word. As the minutes of the "cocktail hour" slowly ticked by, she began to glance around the room nervously observing its other inhabitants. Finn, of course sat on her left looking as if he was about to go into cardiac arrest at any moment as he slowly sipped his scotch. On the couch opposite them was her Grandmother, seated with a martini in hand, as she chatted away with Sylvia, who sat next to her. Both women looked almost giddy with excitement, and it was freaking Rory out. Her Grandfather was at the bar fixing another drink and talking quietly to Daniel. And her mother sat in the corner, trying to contain her laugher over the entire situation.

"This is creepy…" Finn remarked softly, finally deeming it safe to speak to Rory while is mother's attention was occupied elsewhere.

"Yea…" Rory answered. "I mean… did you have any idea that our families were such good friends?"

"I knew that they knew of each other… but beyond that, not a clue."

"But you were at the Huntzburger Christmas parties every year..." Rory replied accusingly. "You're telling me you were never introduced to them at some point over the last say three decades of your life?"

"Well… I may have been introduced to them at some point… but then again, the finer details of those evenings always seemed hazy the following morning…" Finn said with a mischievous glint in his eye. "Besides, it wasn't as if I was scoping out the party for the grandparents of my future girlfriend… especially not when there was greater fun to be had…"

Their conversation was sent to a momentary halt but the obnoxiously giddy laughter of Emily and Sylvia laughing over some shared joke.

"That's… just wrong…" Rory said as both she and Finn turned to watch the horrifying site of their family members getting along so well.

"Yes it is…" Finn said in reply.

"I feel like the twilight zone theme song should be playing or something…" Rory stated, still staring only at the two women seat across from them.

"In some odd way that would actually be comforting…" Finn said nodding in agreement as he took another swig of his scotch.

"Hey you two…" Lorelai said as she approached the sofa and sat down next to her daughter. "How are you holding up?"

"Oh just splendidly…" Finn remarked with dark humor filling his voice.

"Hey now… sarcasm accomplished does nothing to help the situation," Lorelai scolded.

"Mom… I don't think anything could help this situation…" Rory replied.

"Well…I could think of at least a few options for escape…"

"And how many of these options would involve us not sending grandma into cardiac arrest as a side affect?" Rory asked sardonically.

"Well… none…" Lorelai replied with a glint in her eye, "but, Sweetie, that's half the fun…"

"Mom… that's just mean…"

"I never claimed to be nice…" Lorelai replied with a shrug. "And besides…I tried to help… I warned you to stay away… but did you listen…? nooo…"

"Oh I'm sorry… next time your using a Scottish accent and saying 'Turn 'er around captain! Iceberg ahead' I'll know to take you seriously," Rory answered stealing some of Finn's dark humor from before.

"Are you saying my warning would have been more effective if I had used 'danger Will Robinson'?" Lorelai said, going off topic once again… "Because I was going to use that one… but then I thought of how titanic is just simply not made fun of enough and I felt really bad that I had been neglecting to mock it for sooo long—"

"MOM! Focus here! What the hell are we going to do… this is like Stepford without all the happy times…"

"There's always the 'lattice-across-from-the-second-floor-balcony' option…"

"For some reason I think they might just notice if we went to the bathroom and never came back…"

"What about the getting wasted option…?" Finn piped in as he took yet another long swig of his drink. "I'm all for that one…It would definitely help to take the bite out of Emily's bark…"

"Oh, I vote that one too!" Lorelai said, raising her hand in agreement.

"Do you really want to face down your parents with only half sober?" Rory said as she gave withering stares to both Lorelai and Finn.

"She's got a point…" Finn said to Lorelai after a moment of contemplation.

"Why did we let her into the club again…? She ruins all our fun…" Lorelai wined.

"You'll thank me tomorrow when you're not awoken by Emily's lovely voice at 8am to find that you had passed out on the couch." Rory replied as both Finn and Lorelai did simultaneous shutters at the thought.

A moment later all conversation in the room was interrupted by the maid announcing dinner was ready…

"I fell like there should be a bell or something signifying the start of Round Two." Finn groaned as he begrudgingly got up off the couch.

"Again with the dramatic!" Rory said in exasperation as she held out her hand so that Finn could help her up. "You would think you were heading into the bull pen, instead of the other room."

"Well… the term 'bull pen' might actually be more correct" Lorelai said thoughtfully.

"Oh… not you too…" Rory said shaking her head as they began to walk toward the dinning room…

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TBC…

A/N: Ok so again another chapter with no drama… but hey there was a lot of tension… and tension's always fun…

OOO and I also want to thank all of you who have been faithfully reviewing this story…. I love you all… and I want to send an extra Thank You out to Problem Child1 (as always) and also to Pocahontas83 for her lovely (and long) reviews! Haha keep and it up… I LOVE reviews… they make my day!