A/N: Earlier this week, I posted a side story for Literati. It was supposed to be this fun, one-shot of AU and as a present for being awesome readers/reviewers. I marked it as complete and I didn't plan on adding to it. But your amazing response to it got me thinking maybe I should continue.
But here's the thing. If I do continue it, it won't be til after this fic is finished. These chapters are done in my rare free time lately and I don't think I could do two at once and if I did, they might be not be that good. So if you're willing to be patient, then I hope you will. I'm interested in seeing where that one can go too since I never planned anything past what I wrote. But I wanted to tell you what I was thinking and to let you know I've read your comments and why I don't update it soon.
And now to Nine Years Gone ;)
Rory shut the door as fast as she opened it. She started to walk away from it and went to grab her purse. She didn't have to be at work yet but she figured anything was better than seeing her father right now. There was another loud knock on the front door and she sighed. Well, if he's gonna be here, might as well tell him how she felt.
The door swung open again and Christopher sighed in relief. "What the hell do you want?"
"I want to talk to you about last night," he explained.
"Jess isn't here," she shrugged.
"I want to talk to you," he looked confused, as if he had no reason to talk to Jess.
Rory stood in the doorway, not letting him in. "We have nothing to talk about. Jess, on the other hand..."
"I don't want to talk about Jess right now," he shook his head.
"Huh," she said. "He's the one you owe the apology to."
"Apology?" He asked then his face looked angry. "He made you leave in the middle of dinner. Not even the middle, in fact."
"He didn't make me do anything," she replied. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions. One of them was leaving with Jess last night."
"Okay, fine," he put his hands up in defeat. "I don't want to fight with you."
Rory crossed her arms over her chest. "Should have thought of that last night when you interrogated my boyfriend."
"I didn't mean to interrogate him," he defended. She waited waited for him to continue. "Really. I was just curious because he hurt you before."
"I'm surprised you even know that," she huffed. "You weren't exactly around when me and Jess dated, or when we broke up."
"I had GiGi," he defended. She rolled her eyes. "I promised Sherry I would be there for her. Its why I went back."
"And what did you promise mom?" She questioned. "I mean, you asked her to marry you when you were sixteen and she said no so what? You left and just never saw your daughter because her teenage mother didn't want to marry teenage you?"
Christopher sighed heavily. "This isn't about Jess anymore, is it?"
"No," she shook her head. "It never really was. Because you questioned him about leaving me when if we're being honest, you've left me more times than he did."
"I've told you I'm sorry for that," he said.
She nodded. "You have. But what happened after? You left again."
"Can we go inside?" He asked. "This feels like a conversation for private."
"Fine," she opened the door enough for him and he walked inside her apartment.
He looked around and saw obvious changes between teenager Rory and thirty year old Rory. What probably struck him the most was the pictures she had around. Framed, on the fridge...there was so many and a lot of them were of Jess. Christopher picked up one of them beside the couch. It was Rory sitting on a bench outside, in a park, and Jess' arm was around her.
"That was a week ago," her voice was softer now and she smiled. Her anger pushed aside as she saw which picture he looked at. "We were in this tiny park I'd never been to before and there was a guy walking by and we asked him to take our picture."
He set the photo down and turned to his daughter. There was a light in her eyes he had seen last night before the argument. It must be something Jess related. "He's important to you?"
"Very," she whispered.
He nodded. "I didn't mean for last night to happen like that."
"Well, it did," her icy tone was back. "And you can't come here, with Jess not here and expect me to suddenly see your aide of things."
"I didn't know he was gone," he told her. "I didn't even know he was staying here."
"Well, he is," she countered. She remembered last night and how her dad would eventually connect they're sleeping together but right now she didn't care.
"So you two live together?" He asked. It didn't sound judgemental, just curious.
"Sort of," she shuffled her feet. "He still lives in Philadelphia."
"Philadelphia?" He raised his eyebrows.
She waved her hands in front of her. "That's where he lived the past ten years."
"Oh," he said.
"Are you gonna use that against him?" She asked stiffly.
"Against him?" Rory nodded. "No. I was just wondering."
"Because you think he's gonna leave me?" She asked.
"Because I don't want you hurt," he corrected.
She laughed without humor. "And then we're back to you. Because you hurt me, a lot. And this whole protective thing - its too little, too late."
Christopher looked stunned, as if she slapped him. "Its too late?"
"To care about my relationships, my life, any of it?" She asked rhetorically. "Yeah, it is."
"I never meant to hurt you," he explained. "I was never ready to be a father and I thought staying away was best. That you were better off without me."
"Huh," she said. "It's funny how when you never mean to hurt someone is when you hurt them the most."
He looked her right in the eye. "Is that what Jess did?"
"This isn't about Jess," she answered. "Not right this second. Its about how growing up, I felt like my dad didn't want me. And when you finally did appear, it was never for me. It was for mom."
"That's not true."
"Of course it is."
Both were silent for a few seconds. Rory looked away and deciding on walking to her bookshelf. She pulled a few off the shelf and walked back to Christopher. "See these?"
He took them in his hands and read the titles then the aurhor. It was Jess' books. "Why are you showing me these?"
"Because you think he doesn't love me?" She asked. "You think he's not good enough for me no matter how much he apologizes or changed?"
He shook his head. "I didn't say that -"
"You hurt me, Dad," she cur him off. "You. And now your late protectiveness, I hurt him. Me. I guess it runs in the family, huh?"
"Did something happen?" He asked. "After?"
"Its nothing," she said and looked at the clock. "I have to go."
"Jess?" He asked curiously.
"Work," she said. "I'd like you to leave, too."
Christopher nodded and backed up, handing the books back to his daughter. She took them and placed them not on the shelf but the table besides the couch. "Okay."
He opened the door and shut it behind him. Rory sank onto the couch and fought the tears she so badly wanted to cry. Her feelings were all over the place between her father, last night and Jess' behavior this morning. She just wanted to hide for a few days but she couldn't. So instead she wiped at her eyes, looked at herself in the mirror and walked out the door with her head held as high as she could get it.
...
Jess left the coffee shop with a headache. He hadn't been lying when he told Rory he had a meeting to go this morning. He did however, leave out the part where he offered to go and now he regretted it. The guy was a bore. The plot for his book was lots of been-there, done-thats. There wasn't anything original in it and as soon as the guy left, Jess sighed in relief.
He pulled out his phone and his first instinct was to call Rory. Then he remembered what she had told her mother and felt...well, he wasn't even sure how he felt. Betrayed might be a good word. It felt like everytime she mentioned how he had changed was a lie and the words she whispered to her mother late at night on the phone was the truth. He wondered if there was other times she was reminded of his old self.
Instead of calling Rory - because really, even if he would, she was at work - he called Chris. The line for Truncheon rang and rang until finally he heard a familiar voice. "Truncheon books, how may I help you?"
"Hey, Chris," he said. "Its Jess."
"Jess!" He laughed. "Hey! The meeting's over?"
"Thank god, yeah," he rubbed his eyes. "Please don't publish that guy."
Chris didn't sound surprised by Jess' words. "Didn't like him?"
"He took parts of every novel, good or bad," he groaned. "And he mixed it all together as if that would appeal to everyone."
"So he showed you what he wrote," Chris remarked.
Jess stopped walking. "You knew it was that bad?"
"He made me read some in an email," he explained. "And it was...bad. But I needed a second opinion and now I have it."
"Why not ask Matt?" He made a face then figured it out. "Because he would just sign him."
"Exactly," he said. "I needed someone who could read it and not be someone who thinks that poet from years ago was a good idea."
Jess remembered the poet from nine years earlier. "Oh, man. He was bad."
"So...definite no?" Chris made sure.
He nodded, moving his hand and phone with him as he did so. "Definite no. I won't be changing my mind."
"Okay," Chris sounded like he crossed something off on paper. "He's officially off the list."
"Good because if we published him, remind me to go to the dentist," he teased.
Chris agreed, "Make me an appointment too if we do."
"Will do," Jess smirked.
"So what's next?" His friend asked. "You going to see Rory?"
"She's at work," he answered. He didn't feel much like saying how when he looked at her after that phone call, all he could see was the girl he loved crying in a bedroom at a party after he pushed further than he should.
"Oh," he said. "Trouble in paradise?"
"No trouble," Jess shook his head. "She's just at work."
Chris didn't buy it. "Uh-huh."
"Hey, I was wondering something, though," he brought up. "Can you send me something?"
"What is it?" He asked skeptically.
"Just a notebook," he shrugged.
"So get a new one."
"I want that one."
"Okay," said Chris. "What notebook and where is it?"
"It's red," Jess told him. "And you know the drawer in my desk I never let you touch? Just this once, I'm gonna ask you to go in there. But so help me, if you read it -"
"I won't," he promised. "I swear."
"Okay, good," he replied.
They hung up a few minutes later and Jess walked into a bookstore. This was a new one, he noticed. He browsed around and was surprised to find they carry his books. He walked right away from them and really hoped Chris would send the right notebook.
...
Rory looked up from her desk to see her boss standing over her. Leslie smiled at her and Rory smiled in return. She wasn't exactly sure why she was there but she didn't want to make a bad impression on it either way.
"Remember I told you about a new hire?" Leslie asked.
Rory nodded. "Yeah. I'm supposed to be training her?"
"Yes," Leslie smiled brightly. "She's here so I thought I would introduce you two and she could watch you at work."
"Oh," she replied. She tried not to let it show how much she wasn't up for this right now. "Okay."
Leslie walked away and when she came back, she pulled a long blonde-haired girl behind her. "Rory Gilmore, this is Jennifer Mansfield."
"Nice to meet you," the girl smiled.
"Same, here," Rory smiled back at her.
Leslie cut in again, inching towards the door. "I'm going to head back to my office now but you two talk, get to know each other, advise."
"Will do," Rory nodded with a small smile on her lips. She really liked Leslie.
Once their boss was gone, the girl turned to Rory and looked embarrassed. "You can call me Jen. Jennifer sounds so formal."
"I'm just glad she didn't call me Lorelai," Rory laughed. "It took a long time to convince her not to."
"Gosh, I hope I don't spend long convincing people of my name, too," Jen laughed.
"You probably won't," she smiled softly. She looked over at her computer screen and thought of how much she had left of the article.
"Busy timing?" Jen asked.
"A little," she shrugged. "I'm just finishing up something."
"Oh, okay," she sat in a chair and leaned back. Jen stole glances around the small office Rory has acquired.
As Rory was doing the last touches on her piece, she noticed Jen was staring at her. "What?"
"Nothing," her blonde hair shook as she moved her head. "Its just...you look so familiar. Have we met before?"
Rory thought through people she's met in her life and came up empty. "No. I don't think so."
"I feel like I know you from somewhere," she kept going.
"Like where?" She asked, really curious now.
"I'm not sure," Jen laughed.
"Well, where are you from?" Rory asked to be helpful. She remembered the file didn't include a personal history, just her resume of work. With everything that had been happening, she only skimmed it.
Jen answered quickly. "Philadelphia. Born and raised. This is actually my first time out of there."
"Oh?" She nodded. "My boyfriend lives in Philadelphia. Maybe we saw each other."
"He does?" She asked. "How did that happen?"
"We met when we were teenagers," Rory smiled at the thought of Jess. "Years after he left, he got a job there and just kind of stayed."
"Where's he work?" She asked. "Maybe I know him."
"Truncheon books," Rory said proudly.
"No way!" Jen gasped. "I used to work there!"
Rory's jaw almost fell off the floor and she really regretted not reading the file better. "So you know Jess then?"
"Jess?" Jen asked and her face showed a million expressions at once. "That's why you look so familiar! The picture!"
"What picture?" the brunette asked confused.
"I saw the picture of you two as teenagers," she explained.
"Jess shows his coworkers pictures of us?" She questioned. "And as teenagers?"
"Oh my god," Jen's face fell. "You don't know."
"Know what?" Rory asked.
"Jess and I dated for three years," Jen explained.
Everything started to connect all at once. This was like another blow to everything that had happened in the past 24 hours. "You're her? He told me about you but not a name."
"I'm her," she nodded. "And you're the infamous Rory. Now I know why everything about you is familiar. Its nice to finally meet you."
"You, too," she said. To herself, she thought, this just keeps getting better and better.
Rory tried to look back at her screen to finish what she had been doing, she couldn't help the questions she wanted to ask. "Jen?"
"Uh-huh?" She said cheerily.
"What was Jess like?" She asked. "When you were together? Was he distant, did he open up? Just tell me."
Jen thought for a moment as she remembered. "He was in-between. He didn't tell me everything. He was especially hesistant telling me about you. But he did tell me a lot of stuff."
She nodded. "I hurt him."
"I know," she said.
"I hurt him last night," Rory clarified. "I said something to someone and he heard and the look on his face."
"Why are you telling me this?" Jen asked. "I mean, you could probably tell anyone, get advice from them. Why me?"
"Because I feel like a teenager," she sighed. "Asking what to do when me and my boyfriend fight. And I feel like I need to confide in someone, someone neutral to the past especially."
Jen considered it for a moment. "He dealt with it before. You should just give him time."
"But this is different," she shook her head. "Before, I was stupid and scared of my feelings. Now...now I shouldn't have even been thinking that because I know he's not that person anymore."
"Is this about who he was before?" Jen asked. "Because he told me only bits and pieces of his past...and I'm not sure what kind of help I'd be at this."
"You know what?" Rory said. "I shouldn't even be asking you. You're his ex-girlfriend. You don't need to know any of this."
"I'm still his friend," she replied. "And honestly, I thought it'd be weirder for you."
"It is weird," Rory told her with a small smile. "But I don't think that's fully set in yet."
"Tell me when it does," she smiled back.
"Oh, you'll definitely know," Rory nodded. "Maybe now we should actually work."
"Good idea," she agreed.
And so they got to work.
...
Jess threw his keys down as he entered the apartment. After that meeting and finding the bookstore, he managed to stay out all day. He wasn't sure if he was just purposely trying to not come home or he really was just enjoying his city. Whichever it was, he was surprised at the sight he saw when he came home.
"Rory?" He called out.
The table was set nicely and he very clearly could smell food. He wondered if Rory had attempted to cook or for all he knew, she actually could now. She peaked out from the bedroom and smiled. "Hey."
"What's this?" He asked.
"I got us dinner," she answered as if she didn't need to. He still looked at her cluelessly so she expanded her response. "I didn't cook."
Jess couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face that she had to add that. "What's the occasion?"
"You," she shrugged. The smile was still on her face.
He walked more inside the apartment and she came closer as well. "Me?"
She nodded, the smile finally gone. Rory was now close enough to him that she could take his hands. "I don't want you thinking that I don't mean it when I say you changed. I do mean it. And you have changed."
"Rory..." He shook his head, not in the mood to talk about that.
"No, listen," she told him. "I met someone today. And I kind of confided in her."
"Okay," Jess said.
"It put stuff in perspective," she continued. "You're nowhere near the boy you were twelve years ago. I know that, I do. I cant change the way I was reminded of that night with my grandma all those years ago but I can change things now."
"And how would you change them?" He asked curiously. His eyes tightened at the mention of that dinner with her grandmother but he kept his thoughts to himself.
"I'd not jump to conclusions," she started. "That was what got us into trouble that night, too. And I'll give you the benefit of the doubt because I was pissed last night, too. And I shouldn't have said that like you were the only one upset."
"You don't have to defend the things you say to your mom, Rory," he sighed. "I wouldn't ask you to."
"I know," she kept her hold on his hands. "But I have to defend this. Jess, my dad came here this morning. After you left."
His face darkened. "What happened?"
"I yelled," she laughed. "I was all over the place. Went back and forth from last night and how he was to you to how he was never there for me growing up."
Jess squeezed her hands back for a moment. "I don't want to make you fight with your family."
"That's the thing," she told him. "He's not my family, not really. He's my biological father but he's more like that - what that thing you called Jimmy?"
"The guy that donated sperm," his lips quirked up and fought a smile. They lost.
Rory laughed again. "That's pretty much what he is to me. He wasn't there sixteen years of my life and when he did come back, it was because he wanted to be with mom."
"Okay," Jess said. "So he's a shitty father. What does that have to do with me?"
"It has everything to do with you," she explained. "Because you're my family. You. Not some guy who doesn't even know who I am."
He looked down at her in surprise. Instead of letting her go on, he just nodded and kissed her forehead, pulling her closer to him. Rory hugged him so tightly it felt like they were one person. He kissed her hair now and she buried herself in Jess.
"Come on," he whispered to her. "Let's eat."
"Okay," she agreed. He led her over yo the table where she sat. Jess grabbed the take out she ordered and brought it to the table. Once he was seated across from her, she called to him. "Jess?"
"Yeah?" He looked over at her.
"Are we..." Rory took a deep breath. "Are we okay?"
"Yeah," he answered. "We're okay."
She wasn't so sure. "Really?"
He smiled at her. "Really."
"Okay," she nodded and gave him her own smile back. They ate in silence, neither knowing how to continue the conversation. He was slowly getting his thoughts away from that dreadful party all those years earlier. And after dinner, Jess cleaned up and he kissed Rory. It wasn't the same as usual, it was a need kiss. She instantly gave in and he brought her to the bedroom.
This time their love making was slow. They spent their time on each other and making sure the other knew it wasn't just about sex, this wasn't just sex. The two of them fell asleep many hours later, tired but content. Rory woke up only two hours after she fell asleep and looked over at the sleeping Jess beside her. She stared at him and smiled. Finally, she snuggled back up to him and fell asleep once again.
A/N: For some reason, this chapter feels all over the place. Maybe its just me but I hope you don't think so or if you do, you like it. And kudos for guessing Jen was here! She won't cause problems, I promise. I could have done the Christopher scene better probably but I feel like Rory would be so upset with him she wouldn't be able to just keep on the one track. And why does Jess want the red notebook? Tell me what you think!