Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls.

As the temperature rose outside the temperature in the apartment turned cold. Not the actual temperature but Maddie's attitude turned cold enough to bring about a chill. Tristan and Rory had tried being nice, they had tried being stern, they had even tried rationalizing with her. Rory chalked it up to the fact that she was getting older and more independent. If this was how she was now, how was she going to be when she turned thirteen in less than a year?

Rory was working on her laptop when Maddie came in one afternoon slamming the front door in her wake. She stomped into the kitchen and could be heard opening then slamming cabinet doors before finally slamming the freezer. Rory walked into the kitchen with Aiden on her hip. Maddie sat at the island with a pint of ice cream and a magazine that had also come in the mail that day.

"How was your day?" Rory broached.

"Fine," Maddie answered listlessly.

"Did you get your report card?"

She reached into her messenger bag to retrieve the manila envelope. She held it out without looking at Rory. Rory sat it on the counter so that she and Tristan could look through it together later.

"Do you have any homework?"

"Nope," she said, her lips popping on the last syllable.

"Okay," Rory said with a pleasant smile.

Rory sat Aiden in his high chair then searched for a snack for him. She poured some Cheerios onto his table then grabbed something to make for dinner from the freezer.

"Is chicken okay with you?" she asked looking over her shoulder.

Maddie nodded, not looking up from her magazine. Rory pulled a bottle of water out of the refrigerator wishing that she could get through to her stepdaughter. The more she and Tristan tried the farther Maddie retreated. The front door opened and Tristan and Jake's voices filtered into the kitchen. Maddie deserted the magazine and quickly exited the room. Her door closed with a soft thump a few seconds later.

Tristan came into the kitchen and Rory smiled at him as he ruffled Aiden small tuft of hair. He came to lean against the counter noticing the envelope a few feet away. He turned it over in his hands, eyeing suspiciously.

"Nothing is going to jump out of it and attack you Tristan," Rory teased him with a gentle laugh.

"There's something other than her report card in here, I can feel it," he said with remorse.

"Open it," she said coming to stand next to him.

The seal gave after a few pulls letting him know that Maddie hadn't tried to open it. He pulled out a slim envelope first then the thin sheet of paper that was Maddie's report card. He set the piece of paper on the counter face down, not wanting to look at it. If the school had sent home a letter then things could be good. He pulled at the tape and the envelope opened easily. Inside was a lone sheet of paper. He read it slowly, his face falling with each word.

"What is it?"

"It's a letter from the principle. She hasn't been turning in her homework, but her test scores aren't bad. She's not participating in class and she's had three projects in the past two months that she hasn't turned in. There's no chance that she can catch up. I can't believe that she would do this," he said in distress.

"How many classes is she behind in?"

"All of them," he said with a hard laugh.

"Tristan, don't get upset. There has to be a reason why she would do this."

"I'm passed upset. Maddie, get in here!" he called.

Rory picked up the letter and Maddie's report card, glancing at them quickly. She didn't have anything higher than a D in each class. This wasn't like Maddie. Maddie peeked around the kitchen door, her eyes scared.

"Sit down," Tristan said, pointing to the island.

Maddie shuffled to the island and took the seat farthest from her dad. Tristan came to stand on the other side of the island in front of. He placed both hands on the counter top, trying to calm himself down.

"What has gotten into you?" he asked accusingly.

She shrugged her shoulders, looking down at her hands as a way of letting him know that she didn't know.

"What do you mean you don't know?" he asked harshly.

"Tristan let her explain," Rory cautioned him.

"I've had a lot on my mind," Maddie said quietly.

"Do you want to tell me what that means?"

"It's personal. You wouldn't understand," she said, finally lifting her head. Her chin jutted out in stubbornness.

"Is there a boy?" Rory questioned.

"No."

"Then what is it? Tell us so we can understand," Rory coaxed.

"I don't want to," Maddie said shaking her head.

"Fine, if you don't want to tell us than you can go back to your room. You'll have a lot of time to think while you're there because you're grounded," Tristan rationalized.

"That's not fair!" Maddie said her face crestfallen.

"Yes, it is. It's more than fair. You chose not to do your schoolwork and now you have to pay the price," Tristan confirmed.

"I'll make it up," she promised, her eyes clouded over with tears.

"There's no way that you can. You're too far behind," Rory said gently.

"Go to your room," Tristan said firmly.

"How long am I grounded for?"

"Your mom and I need to discuss that. We'll let you know in the morning," Tristan said answered honestly.

Maddie shook her head sadly before sliding off the stool. She stomped from the room, though the living room and down the hall before slamming her door as hard as it had ever been slammed before. Tristan shook his head with a harsh sigh before pushing away from the island. He walked into the laundry room and could be heard banging things around. Rory stood at the door watching him. He was going through the boxes on the shelf over the washer and dryer.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for a screwdriver. That door is coming off."

"The tool box is in the cabinet," she said pointing to the corner.

Tristan found a screwdriver and a hammer before pushing past her. Maddie could be heard pleading with him to not take the door down but Tristan was silent. He came back into the laundry room with the tools and the door.

"She can have it back when she learns to respect us," he said with a heavy sigh.

"Okay," Rory agreed.

Rory busied herself with making dinner while Tristan worked in the living room. Jake was playing quietly in his room when Rory went to tell him that dinner was ready. Maddie was curled up on her bed clutching her pillow as she wept loudly. Rory's heart broke with each bone wracking sob as she crossed the room.

"Things would have gone a lot easier if you had been honest with us," she broached.

"I know," Maddie said with a sniffle.

"Whenever you're ready to talk you know that I'll listen," she said putting a hand on Maddie's back.

Maddie shrugged her off gently before shaking her head. Rory sighed before walking out of the room. Tristan was still in the living room and he gave her a weary look before following her into the kitchen. They ate silently and once the kitchen was cleaned Rory made Maddie a plate. She carried it to her room only to see that she had fallen asleep. Her face was red and tear stained. Rory covered her with the afghan at the end of the bed before walking out of the room.

She covered the plate with aluminum foil before placing it in the refrigerator. Tristan sat on the edge of their bed with his head in his hands after she had gotten the boys settled down for the night twenty minutes later. She knelt in front of him with her hands on his knees.

"I don't know what to do," he said softly.

"I wish that I could give you some words of wisdom but I can't," she reassured him.

"I think I know what's going on, but I want her to tell me so that I can help her go through it."

Olivia had called a month before to tell them that Rachel's dad was in the last stage of prostate cancer. He didn't have much time to live and he wanted to see Maddie before he died. Tristan had said no, rationalizing that it was the middle of the school year and that it wouldn't be good for Maddie to be uprooted. He said that he would think about letting her come down for spring break which was now a few weeks away. Maybe her going down for a week would do her some good. And then he would send her down for her normal three weeks in the summer like he did every year.

"Do you think that I should let Maddie see her grandparents over spring break?" he asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I think that's a good idea, but it's up to you."

He nodded before leaning back to lie on the bed. Rory climbed onto the bed next to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Being worried about her granddad didn't warrant throwing away her education but Rory could see that it had deeply affected her. Maddie had lived the six of the first seven years of her life without a mother and now someone who had ties with Rachel was about to die. If put in the same situation Rory couldn't say that she would have handled it differently.