Disclaimer- Gilmore Girls and the characters associated with the show are not mine.

Chapter Six- Friday 11:00 AM –Jess

I me the nicest sweetest man today! He didn't even come on to me. Okay, he's a little dorky with all his milady and huzzah talk, but he likes me! I can tell he likes me, and it wasn't like he wanted anything. He saw the necklace I made in rehab, and told me I could sell them at his cousin's booth. I'm so excited! And I feel happy.

Rory stirred, stretching her muscles, enjoying the little aches.

"I'm sorry," Jess said. Turning to her side to face him, Rory smiled.

"Well, I do sort of feel like I've been rode hard and put away wet, but it isn't a bad feeling. I love you, Jess, and whatever you need, I'm here for. Plus, it was erotic to see you lose control, I enjoyed it."

"I should have made it last for you, I'm sorry. And have you been sneak watching old westerns again? Rode hard and put away wet… Jesus Rory, that's- horrible."

"And fitting as the case may be, although perhaps too descriptive, and oh my God, I just realized how dirty it is in this instance! How about, you cook breakfast, or lunch as it were, and you make it up to me tonight?" Rory replied with a kiss on his earlobe. "Besides, I'm hungry. Really hungry." Jess flipped her over onto her back, and gave her a gentle, sweet kiss, nuzzling his nose against hers.

"As you wish, anything your cast iron stomach wants," he said before climbing out of bed.

"Omelets. I want one of your everything in it omelets," Rory said, stretching again, as she watched her husband's naked body move toward the bathroom. Grabbing her phone, she scrolled through the texts to see if her mom had landed yet. Not seeing anything, she composed one of her own asking Lorelai to let her know when they'd arrived and to keep her informed. Tossing the phone to the side, she wrapped her arms around her knees, and thought about her husband. She was worried about his reaction to the townspeople, how he'd handle being the center of their attention again, the condolences. Picking her phone up again, she fired off a text to Miss Patty, letting her know what had happened and asking her to spread the word to give Jess some space. Keep things one on one as opposed to a big gathering of people. Besides, they might arrange some sort of get together when Luke returned. With the townspeople effectively sidelined, Rory gathered some clothes and decided she'd let Jess make it up to her right away, in the shower, instead of later. Besides, she wasn't fainting from hunger yet.

Sitting in the diner, Jess, Lane and Caesar worked out a schedule of sorts for the week. Despite not needing the extra income, since Zack's new band had hit it big, Lane could always be counted on to help at the diner when her boys were at school. She liked to keep busy and spend time with adults. So much of her time was devoted to her twins, and their friends, it was good to get out of the house, especially when Zack was on the road. With the new help Luke hired, it was only supervising the open and close anyway. With the schedule figured out, Caesar stood, straightened his apron, speckled with cheese sauce, and shuffled his feet. Tilting his head, Jess gave the older man an unspoken permission to speak.

Lane was surprised. It was obvious Caesar was going to offer his condolences, and even she'd been hesitant to say anything. The closed look on Jess's face, since arriving at the diner that afternoon, was enough to keep her quiet. Caesar was oblivious. Shrugging at Lane's stunned look, Jess figured he'd get it out of the way.

"Your mom, she liked my cold bananas. When she was in town, I always kept a few hidden in the refrigerator for her," Caesar said. "She was a nice, but weird lady. I'll miss hiding her bananas from Luke. I'll miss her chatter."

"Thank you, Caesar," Jess said. Standing, he gave Lane a wave, and with a nod at Caesar, left. Swinging in to Truncheon 2, he adjusted the coverage there to fit his schedule at the diner, and grabbed a new notebook. Sitting down in the gazebo, he chewed on the cap of his pen, opened the notebook, and looked at the blank page. Staring, he waited. Only one thing came to mind, and it didn't make much sense. He fought against it, tried to turn it into something else. Eventually, he gave in and put pen to paper.

My mother liked cold bananas.

Lifting the pen from the paper, he looked at what he'd written for a long moment, and then he began to write.

I didn't know my mother ate bananas. They weren't part of our diet when I was growing up. Fruit, in general, was not something we bought. It was too expensive. Sometimes, the corner grocer would take pity on us, the poor young mother and child, and would give us overripe fruit. Never bananas, which could be turned into breads. I remember this incredible smell coming from the corner market's bakery. It wasn't until I was a teenager, when my Uncle made banana bread for Thanksgiving, I realized what it was. The memories of starving, which I associated with the scent, were overpowering. I had to go into the storeroom, and collect myself before I could be around other people. Before I could face the townspeople who had lived charmed lives in Stars Hollow. No, fresh fruit and vegetables were a luxury Liz's rare paychecks didn't stretch to cover. Not like cigarettes, alcohol, and later, drugs.

How did she get there? To her final resting place? How did she go from a child in the fairy tale land of Stars Hollow to a dead dealer? How did she pass in and out of those lives?

My mother liked bananas. Cold ones. I didn't know.

Looking up from his paper, Jess closed the cover and watched the town again. It was a little thing. A snippet, but he knew it had broken his block. He could see the sequel to Cerulean Steel unfolding chapter by chapter in his head. Flipping his notebook open to a back page, he began to jot down the plot points as they came to him. Finished, he leaned back with a smirk. Huntzberger would be pleased. He'd wanted a sequel to film since the first movie hit the three hundred million mark in box office sales. Heading home, he watched Kirk walking back and forth in front of his and Rory's house. Sighing, he realized Kirk was going to offer his condolences.

"Hey Kirk, what can I help you with?" Jess asked, slapping his notebook against his leg, anxious to see Rory and Garret.

"I wanted you to know, I wanted you and Rory to know, I'm available to help you."

"That's nice, Kirk. I'm sure Rory will appreciate it."

"I didn't like your mother," Kirk said. "I'm ashamed to admit it, but I didn't like your mother." Jess looked at the odd man, in front of him, and realized what he was seeing. Guilt. Kirk was racked with guilt over his feelings, and Jess didn't know what to say. Why the hell was he being put into this position? Biting back the acidic retort on the tip of his tongue, Jess shrugged.

"I didn't like her much either, Kirk. So I can't help you with this."

"Okay then. If you need anything, let me know. Mother always said if I was stronger, I'd forgive, but I can't. So Lulu said helping you might help me," Kirk said. He was wringing his hands together, and switching his weight back and forth. His anxiety sidetracked Jess from his words for a second.

"Wait, why do you want to forgive Liz?" Jess asked. Kirk's body froze, and then regained its movement. He stammered, and a tear ran down his cheek.

"I know I'm different, but I try. I do try. I've always tried to do my best, to not be, as mother said, the village idiot," Kirk trailed off, too choked up to speak. Jess took him by his arm and led him up onto the front porch. Half the time he hated Kirk. The other half of the time, he felt sorry for him, and it was the pity which motivated him now. And curiosity. He wanted to know what Liz had done to Kirk.

"All right Kirk, sit down. Talk to me. What did my mother do to you?"

Looking up at Jess, who was leaning against a pillar, Kirk felt a moment of fear. He'd been scared of Jess for years, and he was used to the emotion. But his feelings had changed last winter, when he'd followed Jess around town, keeping an eye on him for Luke. He knew Jess was like Luke. A jawbreaker shell covering a marshmallow center. He tried to keep it in mind as he took in Jess's obvious irritation.

"Your mom, she was older than me, the same age as my brother Rick. They dated in junior high and I was little, really little, almost three, but I remember it like it was yesterday. My mom had taken the other kids out Christmas shopping. Rick was supposed to be babysitting me, but your mom came over. She didn't like me in the living room with them while they kissed on the couch, so she lured me outside with candy and tied me to a tree in the back yard," Kirk stopped speaking, and Jess could tell this Liz story wasn't going to end well. "There were so many of us kids, and because it was winter it got dark before mother came home. She didn't notice me, and Liz had stuffed a handkerchief into my mouth, so even my screams were muffled. Plus I was cold, I was so cold it hurt. Pins and needles, and then nothing, numbness. It wasn't until after bedtime, when my mother did her last lights out room check, she realized I wasn't in my bed. My brother remembered where I was, but by the time she had me untied, I was unconscious."

"Jesus, Kirk, I didn't think things like that happened in Stars Hollow. Did your brother get into trouble?" Jess already knew Liz wouldn't have. Who would have disciplined her? He wasn't sure how old Liz was when their mother died, but he knew Luke's dad had been sick too.

"Mother grounded him, and forbade him to see Liz again, but it only made Liz hate me more. Until the day she left the first time, she'd trip me so I'd land in dog poop, or push me into mud. Throw stuff at me. Make fun of me, encourage her friends to bully me. I tried to hide from her, to stay with adults as much as possible, to keep busy with jobs out of her way. But it didn't always work. When she came back to get married here, she smirked at me. In the diner. She sat on her stool, and smirked, trying to pass it off as a smile. She was still laughing at me, at what she'd done. I knew she might appear different, but she wasn't, not on the inside where it counted. Not like you. You don't look different, but you are. She made me feel small all the time, and she liked it."

Jess was floored. Not because of Kirk's story, but because of Kirk. This person in front of him was new. He wasn't weird, wacko, or saying inappropriate things. He was fairly clear, concise and intelligent sounding. Damn, Kirk had layers.

"I wish I could disagree Kirk, but I can't. I can see her taking joy in making you feel bad. Sometimes, she wasn't- nice. You're an odd duck, Kirk. But you're not the village idiot, and you have a good heart."

"Thank you Jess, for listening. If there's anything I can do to help you, let me know," Kirk said, standing and getting ready to leave, adjusting his jacket, and straightening his hair.

"I will," Jess said, holding out his hand to Kirk, and shaking it firmly. Kirk gave him a serious nod, and letting go of his hand, left Jess alone on the porch. Sitting in the rocker Kirk had vacated, Jess opened his notebook and began to write Kirk's story down. Trying to write it from the perspective of a terrified three year old. He could picture his mother as a young teen, bullying Kirk. When he finished, he headed inside, finding Rory in the kitchen talking on the phone to her mom. Wrapping his arms around her, he hugged her close, trying to wipe away the sadness Kirk left him with.

"Kirk has depths," Jess whispered into Rory's ear after she hung up the phone. Pulling out of his arms, Rory looked into his brown eyes. Today, with the sun shining in the kitchen windows, she could see the green undertones. Sometimes his eyes were a dark brown, sometimes they were the brown of a sun dappled forest. Lost in the colors, the depth, Rory was surprised by Jess's kiss. Chuckling as he pulled away, Jess dropped his forehead onto hers. "Keep thinking what you're thinking, but right now, we should do something, anything which gets us out of the house and out into the sun," Jess said.

"I have an idea, but I don't know if you'll go for it," Rory replied, moving to the other side of the table and leaning against the counter. Jess raised his eyebrows at her actions. He knew she was about to suggest something she wanted to do, but had already decided he wouldn't like. Sometimes in moments like this, he chose to surprise her and go along with her crazy plans. Today, he wasn't sure if he could, if he was up to it, but he owed her for this morning.

"I won't know till you tell me. Is it something Garret will enjoy?"

"I think he'll enjoy it. Maybe. It'll be different anyway. An experience for him," Rory replied, tilting her head, widening her eyes and getting ready to pout if needed.

"What is it?" Jess asked again, not liking the fact she hadn't answered him. Narrowing his eyes at her, and leaning against the door jam.

"This afternoon is the Yale vs. Harvard football game, and Grandma and Grandpa invited us to the festivities. There will be good food and stuff. Plus it's almost worth it to see how funny Grandma and Grandpa are about the whole thing. They're tailgaters, Jess. R.V. tailgaters. I'll pout if I have to," Rory added. Closing his eyes against the picture of himself at an Ivy League football game, and at the possibility of the Gilmore pout being unleashed, Jess focused on the positives. People who didn't know Liz, family, sun, and hopefully good food. He had some conditions first.

"One- I will wear blue, but I am not wearing Yale attire. No sweatshirts, no logos, no funny hats. Two- you can't expect me to play nice for more than four hours. After that time period, I will smirk, and I will be sarcastic if I believe the occasion calls for it. Three- if at any time, Garret wants or needs to bail, we bail, and if he says no, we don't go," Jess said, crossing his arms across his chest.