Day 3- Wednesday
Lorelai winced as she slowly made her way up the stairs into the diner, dramatically whining, "Oww" with each step she took. Her feet were blistered from wearing heels while dancing the night before and it felt like someone was grabbing her calves with a vice grip. She didn't understand why, but her entire core was also in pain, and it hurt whenever she turned or even laughed.
As Lorelai entered the diner, she saw that Laila was behind the counter with Luke 'helping' take orders and deliver food. Marcus was already sitting at a table so she made her way over to join him and attempted to look normal as she sat down but couldn't hide her grimace.
"I heard you were out dancing last night," Marcus said with a smirk as he noticed the expression on Lorelai's face.
Before Lorelai could respond, Laila bounded over happily, "I saw you when you walked in, LaLa. Mommy's walking the same way," she said, giggling.
Lorelai smiled, pleased to hear this, "Oh, is she now?" she asked, hoping to get more details.
Laila nodded, "Oh yeah, she rode Daddy's bike last night to get 600 points. I think your competition is so silly. Mommy and you hate exercise!" she answered laughing.
Lorelai motioned for Laila to come closer and then put her hand up like she was sharing top secret information, "Let's just keep this between us. Don't tell Mommy that I was walking like her, say I looked refreshed and re-energized like I just had a day at the spa," she stage whispered.
"Ok," Laila readily agreed with a smile, happy to feel like she was a part of an important plan.
Lorelai then turned to Marcus, "And that goes for you too, Mr." she said with a serious tone.
Marcus threw his hands up in surrender, "I'm staying so far out of this, you could grow Freddy Kruger arms and you still aren't gonna touch me," he responded.
Just then Luke called over from the counter, "Laila, what's the number one rule of being a waitress?"
"No small talk. Get in and get out without annoying the customer," Laila repeated dutifully, "Oh, I was supposed to come get your order!" she exclaimed realizing she had forgotten, "What can I get you?" she asked in her most professional voice.
"I'll take the club with fries," Marcus ordered, playing along with his act as the customer.
"Cheeseburger and fries for me," Lorelai replied, "And tell your boss I appreciated the friendly service a lot more than the grunts and monosyllables I usually get at this place," she added with a smirk as she glanced over at Luke.
"I'll give him the feedback," Laila replied, still maintaining her professional attitude, as she walked away from the table to report back to Luke.
Marcus laughed and then turned towards Lorelai, "Oh, I just remembered what I wanted to tell you. Rory and I rewatched Titanic the other night," he said with a slight smile.
"And?" Lorelai prompted.
"I stand by what I said before; Jack was not getting onto that door without sinking it," he declared.
Lorelai sat up straighter, ready to debate, "He so could have! And I mean, don't tell me you wouldn't have at least tried a little harder. 'Well, doesn't look at this is gonna work, I guess I'll just let myself freeze slowly and painfully to death.' No one's that relaxed about dying!" Lorelai shot back emphatically.
"But that's the point!" Marcus replied equally as animated, "If he keeps trying, he risks bringing Rose down with him and they both die. He'd rather guarantee she survives than risk her life to possibly save his. That's what makes the movie right there," he finished throwing his hands out on the table to make a point.
"So, you're saying you'd do that for Rory?" Lorelai asked in a swooning voice.
"Of course," Marcus affirmed.
Lorelai tilted her head, "Sweet but stupid," she replied, "But do me a favor and if you're ever in that situation, try more than once to save yourself too. I'd like to keep you around," she added teasingly.
"I will if my attempt isn't going to end up with both of us dead," he replied with a smile to which Lorelai just responded with a look.
They continued talking until Luke arrived at their table with plates of food, "Club," he said placing the sandwich down in front of Marcus, "And dead cow," he finished placing the burger in front of Lorelai.
"I see you decided to ignore the customer feedback I told your waitress to give you," Lorelai replied teasingly. Luke just grunted and was about to leave when Lorelai noticed something on her plate, "Wait, what is this?" she asked disgusted as she pointed to the extra lettuce and tomato on her burger.
"Well, with your newfound passion for exercise, you're going to have to be sure to give your body plenty of nourishment. That means actually eating at least some form of fruits and vegetables," Luke replied, clearly enjoying the moment, "Even if it's just a tomato and piece of lettuce on a hunk of heart-stopping death," he added, sounding less pleased.
Lorelai began to laugh as she got ready to retort, but immediately regretted it, "Owww!" she cried out as she felt every muscle in her stomach contact in pain and grabbed at her sides. Luke just smirked and Lorelai glared at him, "Hmmf, you don't even care that your wife is in excruciating pain. Seems like someone is forgetting their wedding vows," she said dramatically.
"I'm sorry, but it's difficult to have sympathy for you when you're the one who insisted on going to that ridiculous class in the first place," Luke pointed out.
"No! Miss Patty forced me to come which is I why I in turn, had to force you to go," Lorelai immediately shot back.
Luke looked at her doubtfully, "How did she 'force' you? I've never thought of Miss Patty as the threatening type," he said, challenging Lorelai to come up with an excuse.
"She said if I didn't come, she would do the thing… and you know… it would be there… and then that would happen… and of course, the other thing…" Lorelai babbled incoherently as she attempted to come up with an excuse.
"Uh huh," Luke muttered as he turned to walk away.
"Wait!" Lorelai called after him, "You forgot to take off the lettuce and tomato."
Luke smirked at her from behind the counter, "You have to bring it up here if you want it fixed."
Lorelai face grew contemplative as she weighed the effort it would take to get up compared with the taste of lettuce and tomato on her burger. She sighed and went to remove the offending produce herself but soon realized that Luke had purposefully sandwiched them between the cheese and sauce, making their elimination very difficult. Hungry and impatient, Lorelai picked up the burger and took a large bite while sending a glare towards her husband. Luke just sent her back a pleased smile and walked away.
A few bites into their meals, Rory arrived and joined Lorelai and Marcus at their table, "Hey, sorry I'm late. I had some work to finish up," she said hurriedly as she grabbed a handful of fries from her mom's plate.
"Hey, why don't you steal from your husband's plate?" Lorelai exclaimed unhappily.
"He doesn't like sharing food," Rory responded simply through a mouthful of fries.
"Well, I don't either," Lorelai retorted.
Rory rolled her eyes, "That's not true, you still steal from my plate all the time."
"I don't mind that kind of sharing," Lorelai replied like it was obvious, "But not when I'm the one who has to share."
"It doesn't work that way," Rory responded with an overly sweet grin as she grabbed another fry.
"Luke!" Lorelai called out urgently, "We need another cheeseburger and fries over here ASAP." She then turned back and pointed at Rory, "And you're paying me back when that gets here." Rory just shrugged and continued to chew.
Once Lorelai had finished her burger, she turned her attention back to making conversation, "How are you feeling after your bike ride last night?" she asked with a smirk.
"Like I'm ready for the Tour de France," Rory replied confidently, "How about you after dancing?"
"Fantastic, Len would have given me a ten" Lorelai replied equally confidently.
Upon hearing this from behind the counter, Luke 'accidentally' dropped a container of dirty silverware resulting in a loud crash and causing everyone to instinctively turn towards the source of the noise. "Ahhh!" Lorelai exclaimed as she did this, and pain shot through her core.
"Sorry," Luke addressed the whole diner as he smiled directly at Lorelai who just glared back.
"Liar!" Rory exclaimed pointing at Lorelai.
"So are you!" Lorelai shot back.
Rory looked at Marcus who immediately responded, "Don't look at me," as he pointed to Laila who was still behind the counter with Luke.
Rory groaned, "Fine, we're both tired and sore and sick of exercise. What's the point of continuing to torture ourselves?" she asked, hoping maybe they could agree to call the competition off.
"Hmm, you're right," Lorelai admitted, "We need some motivation. Let's make a bet!" she suggested excitedly.
"Yeah… wait, what!?" Rory exclaimed, not expecting her mother's response.
"A bet," Lorelai repeated, "Like, I don't know…. Oh! Loser buys winner's coffee for a month," she stated, proud of the plan.
Rory shook her head, "No way, that would cost me a fortune."
"Oh, so you're already admitting defeat? I didn't think I raised a quitter, but if you want to just start paying up tomorrow…" Lorelai baited.
"No! I was just giving you an out, but if you want to finish this week of agony, fine. I'm winning right now anyways," Rory finished with a smirk.
"What!? No you're not," Lorelai immediately replied as she checked her watch, "Rats," she mumbled when she saw that Rory was right, "Well, that's just because I haven't gotten my workout in yet," she defended.
Rory looked skeptical, "You're really going to work out after this when you can't even turn your head without the whole block knowing?"
"If there's coffee involved, you better believe it baby," Lorelai responded.
"So, the bet's on?" Rory confirmed, "Loser buys winner's coffee for a month."
Lorelai nodded, "It's a deal," she solidified as she held out her hand which Rory took and shook firmly.
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Current Standings-
Lorelai: 1,572 (372 for day)
Rory: 1,654 (568 for day)