Sitting at the counter in the diner with her chin resting on her hand, Rory stared at the door, waiting for someone to come in and warrant her being there. But the place had been deserted for a little over half an hour, and quiet for some time before that too so she didn't really like the chances.
"What are you still doing here?" Luke asked, coming out of the store room.
"My shift doesn't end for another two-"
"Who cares about that? There's no one here, nothing to do, just go would you?"
"I can't."
"I'll let you in on a little secret – I'm the boss, if I say you can go you can go." Luke explained. "And if you need any time off for assignments or any study groups or anything, let me know and I'll figure out a way to make-"
"She told you." Rory cut him off.
"Who?"
"Mom. About my silly little college fantasy,"
"It's not a silly-"
"Ha! I knew she wouldn't be able to keep that to herself."
"She wanted to share some good news, is that such a bad thing?"
"Well, anyway, it doesn't matter. I don't mind hanging around here until things-"
"Get out!" Luke ordered, pointing towards the door.
"What?"
"Go home. You're fired. Well, no, not fired. Suspended with pay, so just go, will you?"
"Are you kidding me?" Luke shook his head and pointed again. "God, you're seriously kicking me out. Wow! I haven't been banned from anywhere since... well it hasn't happened once here. This is amazing; I didn't think the people of Stars Hollow were capable of something like this. You sure showed me."
"You aren't banned, just not allowed to work unless I'm so desperate I start considering Kirk's standing offer to help out."
"Oh, so you expect me to come back after you've lost your mind? Yeah, I don't see a problem with that." Rory replied sarcastically.
"Rory, would you please go home and study? You have the SAT's coming up soon, don't you?"
"PSAT's. The P is for Practice. They're not actually-"
"Go home, study, pass the PSAT's, and the SAT's and graduate near the top of your class."
"Well, sure Luke, how could I say no to such a simple and kind request?'
"You weren't given the option. Now go!"
"Man, when you want something you don't give up, do you?" he didn't answer, just gave her a look and she stood up. "Ok, I'll go. But I hope you realise that you're forcing me into geometry." Rory explained, dipping below the counter to collect her things.
"I'm ok with that."
"Well as long as you don't mind." She shrugged on her jacket and moved towards the door. "Totally nuts..." she muttered on her way out.
"You'll thank me later!" Luke called out after her.
"Remember our discussion about my temporary firing?" Rory asked Luke as they were putting everything out on the table for diner two nights later.
"Your what?"Lorelai demanded turning from the fridge.
"I did not fire- would you please try to remember things correctly?"
"Right, sorry, my suspension. Well, I was wondering if we could start that this weekend. Some kids from school are getting together for a two day intensive study session. That's the way Paris put it anyway, and she's running the show, which will suck, but-"
"Banned for the weekend sounds good to me,"
"Thanks."
"Ok, so, can someone please catch me up here? What's going on? Do you still have a job?" Lorelai asked as she brought the food over from the stove.
"Yeah, I think so. I just don't have to go in, and I still get paid, right?"
"Right,"
"Wow, how'd you score that deal?"
"Someone blabbed about a secret conversation about Boston."
"Oh, yeah... Sorry?"
"Whatever."
"Well, at least he didn't say anything for a while, that's good, isn't it?"
"How long have you known exactly?"
"End of December,"
"Oh, good, so you managed to hold that in for, what, a day?" Rory asked, glaring at her mom.
"I think it was at least two, actually."
"Congratulations!"
"Well, anyway, it doesn't matter." Luke cut in. "You've got the weekend to cram and then we'll see where we're at on Monday."
"I think I may like this special treatment," Rory decided.
"Good, because you're one of the only two people who are going to get it,"
"Aww, thanks Uncle Luke!"
"Don't ever call me that again."
"You're right, I'm sorry. You're dating my mother, so I should really call you-"
"Eat!" Lorelai ordered.
"Ok,"
Paris Gellar was crazy.
At least, that was the thinking among most that knew her. She was pushy and mean and could probably intimidate a terrorist if she so desired. But she got things done.
Jess imagined that most of the other kids preparing for the test with a study group would have just cleared some space in their living room and ordered pizza at some point during the day. But with Paris in charge, they had a study room at the school library, reserved for the two days and a detailed plan of how their time would be used, including when they would be breaking for meals and where the food would come from at the appropriate times.
"Am I the only one who thinks this is a little OCD?" Rory whispered, leaning in towards Jess and Tristan on his other side.
"Shh! If she hears you she'll make you write lines." The blonde whispered back, smirking.
"So, if we're all clear on the proceedings, then we'll begin with vocabulary." Paris informed the group - consisting of her two best friends, their current boyfriend's, as well as Rory, Jess and Tristan - having just summarised what was detailed on page one of the booklets she'd had set out on the table when they all arrived. "If you could all turn to page two," she added, shooting a particularly menacing look at Madeline's boyfriend as he reached for the pencil beside his book and his hand fell away.
Rory settled back as best she could in the high-backed chair that refused to give and began to read.
Crashing into seats at the diner that evening the three teens seemed to deflate almost simultaneously. Luke couldn't help but laugh at the looks on their faces as he moved towards them, carrying mugs and a pot of coffee.
"Normally I'd fight you on this, but you guys look like you could use it," he commented, pouring them each a drink.
"Need. Desperately need." Jess nodded.
"What we really need," Rory replied, weakly reaching for her drink, "is for someone to make sure Paris Gellar is bound and gagged sometime during the night, making it impossible for her to continue her tyrannical rule over that study group tomorrow."
"So, productive day?"
"I really hate you for letting me out of work today I just thought you should know."
"I'll make a note of it in my diary. Can I get you anything else, or do you just want to sit here, slowly dying?"
"Fries," Tristan requested, managing to lift his head from the table top for the first time. "A big plate of starchy goodness, and lots more coffee,"
"Coming right up,"
"Look the scholars have returned!" Lorelai announced, coming in and walking over to their table. "How was your day?" she asked them before receiving only incoherent mumbles and groans as a reply.
"They all seem to hate a girl named Paris." Luke informed her, acting as translator, before giving her a quick kiss.
"Oh, well, of course. I understand that. Remember when we were at school there was that girl... Arizona something? She was awful."
"Yeah, well there are probably a lot of people who aren't very nice, because their parents saddled them with a ridiculous name of a state or country. And they've had to spend years fighting off bullies."
"I cannot believe you are taking her side! She was so mean, to everyone!"
"Not to me."
"That's because she had a crush on you."
"She did not. Did she?"
"She totally did."
"Huh, well, it would have been nice if someone told me that,"
"Hello! Can we get our order please?" Rory interrupted.
"What 'our'? I ordered the fries and the coffee. You just sat there complaining about your hatred for Luke." Tristan reminded her.
"Fine. Luke, can I also have what Tristan's having?"
"Ditto." Jess added, too tired to say anymore.
"Ok, I'm on it. We can continue this discussion later."
"Oh, sure. I'll go home and find her number for you now if you'd like."
"Sounds great,"
"Yeah right," Lorelai muttered pulling out a chair and sitting with the kids. "She really wasn't nice to anyone, but Luke was nice to everyone, so she just... You guys really don't care about this do you?"
"Really don't." Jess agreed.
"Fine. So, tell me about your day. Have your brains been so filled with knowledge that your heads are about to get really big and bald and egg like?"
"I hope not. That would make the next school picture day very unpleasant." Tristan decided.
"Like it's any fun in the first place,"
"Well, what's on the agenda for tomorrow?"
"Fries, fries, fries and caffeinated death," Luke announced, putting the plates down along with a full pot of coffee.
"Oh, would you look at that? One mention of Arizona What's-her-name and he forgets all about his girlfriend. Where's mine?"
"Your what? You never ordered anything."
"Uh, since when has that meant I don't want something?"
"Well, I'm not a mind reader, am I?"
"Of course you are Luke." Lorelai replied, fixing him with a look.
"It's five o'clock in the afternoon I'm not getting you pancakes."
"See! You are a mind reader."
"I said no."
"I bet you'd make them if Ariz-"
"A burger. You can have a burger if you want."
"Fine! I guess that'll have to do. Sookie would make me pancakes, coz she still likes me."
"I'm not even going to respond to that. I'm just walking away." Lorelai grinned and jumped up from her seat, following Luke to the kitchen.
"Your parents are exhausting." Tristan informed Rory, reaching for a couple of fries. She just looked at him and narrowed her eyes, but couldn't be bothered to offer a retort.
"I've changed my mind," Rory announced to the two boys at lunch time the next week. "That whole, 'I want to go to college' thing? Forget it. It's too hard, and not worth the nightmares." She added tiredly.
"What nightmares?" Jess asked, watching her, concerned.
"Ever since Fuhrer Gellar's reign of terror over the weekend I can't sleep without having her stand over me, pelting books as thick as a double edition of War and Peace at me while yelling SAT words as mathematical equations float around my head."
"It could be worse,"
"Did I mention she's over thirty feet tall and there's at least twelve of her?"
"Ok, not a whole lot worse."
"Try ignoring a Paris from every age, telling you you're nothing but a pretty face and you'll never amount to anything on your own." Tristan challenged her and Jess grinned. "Go on, just imagine a seven year old telling you you're a worthless pretty boy."
"My giant Paris's trump your regular sized ones."
"I never thought I'd be happy to have a screaming baby wake me every other hour."
"Can we switch?" Rory begged. "Please? I'll pay you!"
"I seem to remember making that offer once before and you made me very uncomfortable with your answer, so I think I'm going to have to pass."
"That's just mean! Can't you see how this is affecting me?"
"Well I'm sorry, but I can't help you there."
"Fine, be that way. I guess I'll just have to see if I can stay at Sookie's and let Davey cure me."
"Good plan, except that he's mostly sleeping through the night now."
"Ugh this sucks!" Rory groaned, dropping her head onto the table. "Ooh, do you have an alarm clock?"
"Haven't needed it for a while now," he nodded. "Doula's just as good."
"Well can I borrow it? If I get a whole bunch of them and set them to go off every now and then, Paris won't get the chance to attack me."
"And you'll never get any rest." Tristan pointed out.
"Who cares about that? First I get rid of the bad dreams, and then I can concentrate on rest."
"You are putting way too much thought into this."
"Can I borrow it or not?"
"You'll be the one explaining this to your mom. And anyone else who's bothered by the crazy."
"Sure, no problem,"
"Ok, I'll get it for you after school and bring it over later."
"At least you still care about me a little,"
"You know this is nuts, don't you?" Jess asked as Rory sat on the couch that night setting three alarm clocks to go off at different intervals. She glanced over at him, working in the kitchen and rolled her eyes.
"I don't care how crazy it is, at this point I'm willing to try just about anything to get her out of my head."
"I do not envy your mother when those things start going off tonight."
"She's not going to be here. She is currently on a date and will be staying elsewhere."
"Oh, good, so she'll get one final night's sleep before having to put up with the hourly wake up calls."
"They aren't going to be that loud." Rory objected.
"If you say so,"
"Oh, you know what we should do this weekend?" Rory asked, setting aside the last clock.
"What?"
"We should go out and find some volunteer thing that we can add to our transcripts. Make us look even better to the fancy schools. Or, I should, you probably don't need to."
"No, I'll come, that's probably a good idea,"
"Good, so I do have those, I was starting to think I'd imagined it for a minute there."
"Hey, you thought of this, didn't you?"
"You cooking me dinner? Why, yes, I do believe I did."
"Well, that was genius, especially with your mom elsewhere."
"You're right. I am a genius!"
"She says so humbly."
"Hey, I don't need to be humble. I am simply repeating what you already said about me, so there."
"I've created a monster," Jess said sadly, carrying the two plates over as Rory pushed the clocks to the end of the coffee table and laughed maniacally.