Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls. Sad, but true.

AN: This is the next to last chapter boys and girls.

Tristan had done a lot of thinking while Maddie wasn't speaking to him. He didn't know how to tell Rory what he was thinking. It would be a huge adjustment for the boys but he knew that Rory woud be up for it. He would need to look into somethings before he told Rory so that he had a good argument just in case she had any reservations although he didn't see why she would.

He was in his office when Rory came home from picking up Jake from a friends. She knocked on the door lightly and he waved her in. She sat on the edge of the desk while he read an e-mail.

"Working hard?" she asked running her fingers through his hair.

"This isn't for work. It's just an idea that I had."

"What is it?"

"What would you say if I told you that I wanted to move us out of the city?"

"Is that a hypothetical question or are you for real?"

"Answer me first, then I'll tell you."

"If it's a hypothetical question I would say it's not nice nice to mess with me like that. If you're for real I can go to the packing store and get us some boxes to get started."

"It wouldn't be until this summer, but I would need to let work know so that they can find someone to take my place."

"If they think they can find a better A.D.A than I say good luck to them."

"I love you too," he said taking her hands in his.

He kissed each wrist before pulling her into his lap. She leaned against him with her head resting in the crook of his shoulder before looking at the computer screen. He had been looking at house listings in North Carolina.

"Tristan?" she asked cautiously.

"I know that it's going to be an adjustment; but I've been thinking, a change of scenery would do us all some good. Some of the most renowned papers in America are based out of North Carolina, so you would be able to find a job when you're ready," he reasoned.

"What about our families?"

"We could rent a house in Outer Banks and they can spend the whole summer if they want, we'll see them at Christmas; we can make this work Babe," he said confidently.

"I'm not doubting you, I'm just not sold on the idea of moving so far away from my mom. She'd drive us crazy. You think she calls a lot now? Just wait until I'm a thousand miles away!" she said with an exasperated laugh.

"That will be annoying, but I'm willing to deal with it if you are."

"Let's do it," she said with a brisk nod.

He smiled in victory before kissing her temple. There were things that needed to be sorted out and they still had to tell the kids but come June, they would be starting a new adventure.

XXXX

Maddie had only been in North Carolina a day and a half when Sam was rushed to the hospital. Her uncle and cousins were at the hospital with her and Olivia while her aunt stayed home with her cousins who were too young to be at the hospital. She had called her dad first thing that morning and he was flying down that afternnon.

Sam had slipped into a drug induced coma because the chemo wasn't working and his cancer had spread from his liver to his pancreas. There wasn't much hope for him, but Olivia wanted their youngest son and daughter to have a chance to say goodbye before she gave the okay to take Sam off the machines keeping him alive.

Maddie sat by herself while Olivia and her uncle Jonathan talked with the doctor. Her uncle Chase had shown up a few minutes ago but wanted to wait until her aunt Camden got there to go in. Chase silently handed Maddie the soda he had gotten for her and she held it with both hands as she continued to stare at the wall across from her.

"Are your dad and Rory coming?"

"Just my dad, Mom's staying with the boys," she answered quietly.

Chase had only been six when Rachel died. He was now seventeen and didn't understand how the rest of his family was okay with Maddie calling Rory mom. Rory had never tried to replace Rachel but that hadn't stopped Chase from thinking that it could potentially happen.

Olivia and Jonathan came back down the hall a few seconds later so Maddie turned her attention to them. The two of them had liked Rory since the moment they met her and Maddie was grateful for that.

"Chasen, why don't you go in? Cam is sill in class and she's got a two hour drive ahead of her. She won't be here until tonight probably," Jonathan rationalized.

"I don't mind waiting," Chase said shaking his head stubbornly.

"Why don't you and I go for a walk, hmm?" Olivia asked Maddie.

Maddie followed her grandmother to the elevator and they walked the first floor in silence. They stopped at the gift shop and Maddie picked out a card for her grandad and a bag of pretzels because she hadn't eaten since they had gotten there five hours before.

"Your dad called me while I was talking with the doctor. He got an earlier flight because there's soome bad weather coming in later. He should be here soon."

Maddie nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Olivia pulled Maddie to her and rubbed her back soothingly. The girl had always had a special relationship with her grandfather and to lose him now was a difficult blow to handle.

XXXX

Tristan came face to face with Chase as soon as the elevator opened on the Ocenology floor. Chase brushed passed him, not able to look him in the eye. It had been a few years since Tristan had come to North Carolina. Not since Jonathan's wedding six years before. He hadn't expected Chase to be so hostile, he would need to talk to Olivia.

It took him almost ten minutes to find everyone since the two nurse's stations he had passed were deserted. It seemed like there was a nurse in every room he passed. It was a busy afternoon for the Ocenology ward. He found Olivia and Maddie in the waiting room working on a puzzle to pass the time.

Maddie looked up as soon as he sat down across from them. She abandoned the puzzle and squeezed into the oversized chair with him. He draped an arm over her shoulders and she wrapped her arms around his waist. His eyes met Olivia's and she nodded in acknowledment before picking up another puzzle piece.

"Let's go see him dad," Maddie said.

"She's been waiting for you to get here to go and see him," Jonathan explained from across the room.

"Come on," Tristan said quietly.

Maddie held his hand as they walked down the hall. She directed him where to go and soon they were outside Sam's room.

"Has Chasen seen him yet?"

"He's waiting for aunt Camden," she said with a shake of her head.

Tristan opened the door then pulled Maddie inside. The room was dark except for a dim light attached to the wall over the bed. There was a chair next to the bed and small couch underneath the TV. He sat in the chair while Maddie stood on the other side.

"Is there anything that you want to say to him?" Tristan broached.

"I love you Gramps, I'll never forget you," Maddie said, her voice thick with emotion.

"That's really nice," Tristan said with a nod.

"Do think he knows we're here?"

"I'm sure he does, just because he can't answer you that doesn't mean that he loves you any less."

"What do you want to say to him?"

"Thank you, Sam for giving me a chance when not many people would and thank you for letting me be a part of your family," he said with a small smile.

"Can I have a few minutes alone with him?"

"Sure, I'll be outside."

Tristan closed the door silently to see Chase and who he guessed with Camden coming down the hall. Camden had only been fourteen the last time Tristan saw her. Seeing her now was like seeing Rachel all over again. Her copper colored hair fell in ringlets to the middle of her back and her green eyes shimmered with fresh tears.

"Maddie should only be a few minutes," Tristan explained apologetically.

"That's fine, it's good to see you here," Camden said with a weak smile.

Trisan nodded as the door opened. Maddie looked stoic as she walked into the hall to let Chase and Camden go in. Tristan placed a hand on Maddie's back to lead her back up the hall to the waiting room. All they could do now was wait.

XXXX

Sam passed away within minutes of being taken off his machines. Olivia was the only one in the room because Tristan and the others felt like it was the right thing to do. Olivia came out of the room wiping her eyes and looking disoriented. Jonathan and Camden led her to a chair before her legs gave way on her. She collasped into the chair then started to shake uncontrollably. Maddie sat next to her and she put a comforting hand on her back.

Tristan slipped away quietly to give them some time alone. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and called home. It wasn't until the phone rang twice that he realized that it was almost midnight.

"Hello?" Rory whispered groggily.

"Why are you whispering?"

"The boys are in the bed with me," she said with a sigh.

"Why?"

"This is what we do when you're away. We've done it since Jake was two, if Maddie were here she'd be sleeping at the end of the bed. Is everything okay?"

"Sam died a few minutes ago. It's gonna be at least another four days before I come home."

"Did you bring one of your suits?"

"I did, just in case. I'll let you go back to sleep. Give the boys a hug and kiss for me."

"I will. Tell everyone that I'm sorry for their loss. I'll order some flowers for the funeral tomorrow."

"That would be nice. I'll talk to you tomorrow, I love you."

"I love you too."

Tristan shut his phone and turned to walk back when he nearly collided with Chase. Tristan sighed before running a hand through his hair. The boy was built like a linebacker, he outweighed Tristan by a good twenty five pounds and even though Tristan was nearly a foot taller he had no doubt that Chase could take him down.

"Maddie's looking for you," Chase said gruffly.

"I was just calling Rory to let her know what had happened."

Chase shrugged indifferently and Tristan put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Chasen-"

Chase gave him a hard look; no one called him by his full name to his face because he didn't like it. Tristan sighed before starting again.

"Look Chase, I know that you had the least amount of time with Rachel of your siblings. You want to keep her legacy as a good daughter, sister, and mother in tact, I get that. But you can't possibly expect me to raise Maddie as a single parent for the rest of her life. I went through the same thing in my mid twenties, remember when my parents got divorced? I know that it's a different situation but my feelings towards the guy my mom ended up marrying were valid. I didn't want Ted thinking that he could horn in on my dad's role as Maddie and my niece and nephew's biological grandad."

"I didn't expect you to stay single forever, but I thought she would come around more often and want to be a part of this part of Maddie's life," Chase said with a sigh.

"Rory feels that she's intruding when I bring her down. She doesn't wan to step on anyone's toes. The last thing she wants to do is take Rachel's place in Maddie's life."

"Do you think you could ask her to come to the funeral? Mom wanted to ask you but she didn't know how to ask you."

"I'll talk to her," Tristan said with a nod.

Chase shoved his hands in his pockets before turning to walk away. Tristan sighed in relief, he thought that it would be harder to confront him. he was glad that he and Chase were on the same page.

XXXX

Tristan sat in the front row with Rachel's family while Rory sat in the row behind him with the boys. Olivia insisted that Rory bring them so that she could finally meet them. People were starting to come in and take their seats when Aiden started to get antsy. Rory pulled him into her lap and shushed him quietly.

"No, Momma, I want to sit with Daddy," he protested.

"I can take him," Tristan said quietly as the minister started.

Everyone stood as Olivia was led in by Jonathan and Chase and the rest of the family was acknowledged. The minister talked about Sam's time in the army before he married Olivia and their life together before Sam's brother came up to read the eulogy.

The service was over five minutes later and Jonathan and Chase along with two of their cousins carried the caseket down the aisle. Everyone filed out of the sanctuary silently and headed to their cars. Tristan's rental car was second in line after Olivia's and the hearse. The ride to the cemetary was silent except for the sounds of the boys playing in the back seat.

At the gravesite Rory and the boys were allowed to sit with Tristan and Maddie because there were a few extra seats. The service lasted only ten minutes and both of the boys held their hands over their ears when the guns were shot off in remembrance of a former military officer.

Lunch was held at Jonathan's and the boys were happy to have a few kids their age to play with. One of Jonathan's neighbors had offered to look after them so that Rory and Tristan wouldn't have to.

Tristan found them a place to sit while Rory went to get something to eat with Maddie. Maddie introduced her to a few pepole and they were pleasant and cordial when they learned that she was Tristan's wife. Most of the people had known Rachel and Rory had been worried that she would get a cold reception.

They were getting something to drink when Camden came up to them. She grabbed the extra plate of food and extra drink before leading the way through the crowd.

"Nice job making your pregnant wife get your lunch, genius," she said playfully as she set Tristan's plate and drink in front of him.

"Hey now, I offered to go get her something," he said with a light laugh.

"Uh huh, sure you did," Camden said with a smirk.

Rory sat in between Tristan and Maddie and Olivia sat on Maddie's other side.

"Congratulations are in order. How far along are you?"

"Seven weeks, we found out just before Christmas."

"I have to say that your boys are so polite and quiet," Olivia's sister complimented them.

"We had to bribe and gag Jake to make it happen," Tristan said dryly.

"Oh you and your sarcastic humor," Olivia said with a giggle.

"Thank you, we try," Rory said with a smile.

"And they both look exactly like Tristan, lets hope this one look like you, hmm?" Olivia's sister questioned.

"I'm keeping my fingers crossed," Tristan said hopefully.

Rory smiled, glad that things were going so well. She had been worried that they wouldn't accept her and it felt good to know that they were being so warm and welcoming just like her family had been with Tristan and Maddie. She felt that it was important to be there for Maddie but she hadn't wanted to overstep her boundaries. Luckily, Tristan saw things the same way.