Well, here I am again! This story is apparently just begging to be told. Thanks for all the reviews, and enjoy!
Lorelai smiled as she shut off the engine of her jeep and stepped into the driveway, taking a moment to bask in how normal this seemed. Luke's truck was parked in front of hers and the lights in the house were glowing brightly. He'd promised to cook her dinner at home tonight, and she'd in turn promised to leave the inn as soon as her late afternoon meeting had ended. Luke had beat her home, but she didn't mind. It was nice to have someone to come home to.
"A girl could get used to this," she muttered as she ambled towards the porch.
"Lorelai!"
She cringed as she heard Babette's voice yell from across the yard. Plastering a smile onto her face, she turned to see Babette charging towards her. "Hi, Babette."
"I saw Luke coming in a few minutes ago," Babette reported.
"Uh, yeah, I'm getting my own personal chef tonight," Lorelai confirmed.
"Well, I just wanted to tell you, like I said to him, I'm just so thrilled he's around more," Babette continued. "It's been so nice to see you happy again. Morey! Hasn't it been nice to have Luke around again?"
Morey poked his head out the door. "Real nice," he agreed before he disappeared back into the house.
"Well, we're working on things," Lorelai said. "Is there something you wanted?"
"Aw, look at you, all anxious to get home to your man," Babette tapped Lorelai's arm. "I just wanted to let you know that we'll be out of town for the next couple days. I asked Luke if he'd mind checking on the gnomes, but I figured I'd ask you as well."
"Got it," Lorelai said, fighting the urge to laugh as she pictured the expression on Luke's face when he'd been asked to babysit garden gnomes.
"You're a peach!" Babette exclaimed. "Now, get inside and kiss that man of yours, I'm heading home. Morey! I'm heading home!"
Shaking her head, Lorelai closed the distance to her house and walked inside, inhaling the delicious aroma with a wide smile. "Honey, I'm home!" she called.
Luke poked his head around the corner. "I still hate that," he said.
"And I still have confidence that one day you will return with an angry rant about how I promised to be home hours ago and dinner is getting cold and how you feel completely under appreciated, at which point I'll kiss you and present you with a shiny new tool for Bert, and we'll eat dinner, you'll read the newspaper, I'll sew a quilt, and we'll go sleep in separate beds, each of us keeping a foot firmly planted on the floor just in case the temptation to touch each other is too much."
"That sounds miserable."
"No wonder Lucille and Desi didn't make it," Lorelai giggled, reaching for his cheeks as she pulled him in for a kiss. "Hi."
"Hi," he said, kissing her again.
"Is that your mom's lasagna I smell?" she asked.
"It is."
She smiled up at him as she watched him chop a tomato to add to the salad bowl. "That's my favorite," she said.
He leaned towards her until his face was inches from hers. "I know," he said, kissing her again.
"You're kissy tonight," she said.
He shrugged. "Just trying to be a better…whatever," he said.
"Well, I like it!" she declared, moving towards the fridge. "Hey, I heard you're on gnome duty this weekend."
"Your neighbors are insane," he informed her.
"And you do know that gnome duty requires a lot of responsibility," Lorelai said, hopping onto the counter beside him and taking a sip of beer.
"I'm not doing it."
"Well, I was going to suggest that since you'd be checking in on those poor, lonely gnomes in the wee hours of the night, you might want to stay here this weekend," Lorelai said. "Out of convenience, of course."
Luke gave her a sideways smile. "Convenience, huh?" he asked.
"Yep," Lorelai confirmed. "But since you're not interested, I guess I'll have to offer my hospitality to whoever accepts the job."
"Well, in the interest of convenience, maybe I'll just stay here," he said, setting his knife down and running his hands up her thighs.
"Good," Lorelai said, placing her hands on his shoulder. "You know the porch swing is very comfortable. I bet you'll get a good night's sleep out there."
He laughed and shook his head. "You're crazy," he said.
"For you, doll."
She grabbed a handful of flannel and pulled him closer, kissing him deeply. He kissed her back passionately, and one of her legs hooked around his waist to hold him in place. After several moments, Luke shortened their kisses and pulled her off the counter. "We can't," he said.
"I know," she sighed, moving around him to get some plates out of the cabinet. "Sorry."
"For what?" he asked, pulling the lasagna out of the oven and turning to look at her.
"We keep doing this awkward, teenage groping thing," Lorelai said. "I feel like I'm teasing you."
"It's not a big deal," Luke said. "We need to figure some things out before we take that step."
"Yeah," Lorelai said. She watched as he scooped some lasagna onto both of their plates. He placed a piece of garlic bread on each plate, then pointed to the salad bowl.
"At least one scoop," he ordered. "With all the vegetables."
She frowned. "Half a scoop and I pick out the carrots."
"Full scoop, you pick out the carrots, and I won't make comments when you eat whipped cream out of the can later."
"Deal." She took the plate he offered her and sat down at the table, cutting into her meal and smiling in approval. "Just as good as I remember."
"Good," he smiled at her before he turned back to his own dinner.
She watched him for a moment before she said, "So we see Abby tomorrow."
"I know."
"And, um, I was thinking that some of the things we have to talk about may not exactly be stuff we want to share in front of her."
He narrowed his eyes at her. "Like what?" he asked.
Lorelai paused, then said, "Sex."
Luke choked on his food and reached for his water. "What the hell are you talking about?" he asked after taking a long sip.
"I'm sorry, now is not a good time," she said. "We can talk about it later."
"Uh, well, now it's out there, so I want to know what you're thinking," Luke said.
"Okay," Lorelai said. "I guess I just want to know where we stand. I think we're right to wait, but I also don't want to have to stop to talk if we decide we're ready. That's too teenagerish. Not that I stopped to talk then because, hi, you've met my daughter."
Luke sighed and dropped his silverware on his plate. "What do you want to know?" he asked.
Lorelai avoided his gaze and poked at a carrot in her salad, stabbing it with her fork repeatedly. "Well, at the risk of sounding like a complete and total hypocrite, and I know that I have no right to ask, but…was there anyone else?"
Luke rested his elbows on the table and buried his face in his hands. "There were a couple dates, with a single mom from April's swim team," he finally said.
The words stung more than Lorelai had thought they would. "Okay," she said. She remained quiet for moment before she asked, "So when you say dates, how serious are we talking? Like…what kinds of activities did you partake in? Movies? Dinner? Paintball? PTA meetings?"
"Just drinks, dinner," Luke said. "It wasn't a big deal."
"And by it you mean…it," Lorelai said. When he didn't deny anything, she swallowed hard and looked down at her lap. "Wow, okay."
"It didn't mean anything," Luke said. "She was recently divorced, and we were both just trying to move on."
Lorelai nodded, but then looked at him. "Sorry. I have no right to be jealous, I know that."
"No, you don't."
"But now it's out there and I…feel worse," she muttered.
"Why should it matter?" he asked.
"Because it puts pressure on it," Lorelai said.
"No it won't," Luke said. "I know it sounds cliché, but it honestly didn't mean anything. We were two lonely people. It was a physical thing, that's it."
"I hate someone else knowing you like that."
"Well, you're preaching to the choir there," he muttered.
Lorelai's eyes widened. "Okay, you're right," she said. "Thanks for being honest."
He nodded. "It wasn't like it was with you," he said.
"No?" Lorelai asked.
"It couldn't be," he said. "I wasn't in love with her. I barely knew her. We were both looking for a release."
Lorelai frowned. "That's so not you," she said.
"I did a lot of dumb stuff, let's chalk that up to one of them," Luke requested.
"Okay," Lorelai said quietly. She thought for a moment before she asked, "Does April know her?"
"Lorelai," Luke said, clearly frustrated.
"Sorry," she said, reaching for her water.
"April knows her, she's friends with her daughter. But she has no idea that I spent time with her," Luke offered as an explanation.
"Okay," Lorelai nodded. "Okay."
Luke watched her pick up her fork and take another bite of her dinner. She smiled slightly at him, then turned back to her salad, picking her carrots out one by one.
"Lorelai," he said, causing her to look up at him expectantly. "While we're, uh, on the topic… Are you still…are you taking…"
"I'm still on the pill," she confirmed. "We're good."
"Okay," he nodded.
"Unless you want to make a last minute down to the market to get the jumbo box of Trojans," Lorelai said, the sparkle returning to her eyes. "I know how much you loved how Taylor used the next town meeting to preach on the threats of premarital sex after your last late night run for that particular purchase."
"Yeah, well, I should've known better," he muttered.
Lorelai giggled. "I don't think you were thinking rationally at the time," she said.
"Well, when you walked into the diner wearing nothing but your coat, I wasn't exactly thinking at all."
"I know, I should have waited until my new prescription kicked in," she said. "You made that very clear. It won't happen again."
"Good."
"But don't worry, King Arthur can now safely head into battle without his shield," Lorelai said with a nod.
"Aw, geez."
XXXXX
"It sounds like you're in a pretty great spot," Abby said to Luke and Lorelai the following afternoon.
Luke nodded as he turned to look at Lorelai. "Yeah, we're doing pretty well," he agreed.
"Lorelai?" Abby prompted.
Lorelai nodded and reached to squeeze Luke's hand. "I think so too," she said. "We're comfortable and talking, about important things. And we're having fun together too."
"That's great," Abby said. "What's on your minds to talk about today?"
Lorelai turned to look at Luke with apologetic eyes and he knew what she was about to say. He tensed and pulled his hand away from hers as she whispered, "Christopher."
Abby looked between them for a moment, observing Luke as he crossed his arms across his chest and leaned away from Lorelai. Lorelai scooted into the corner of the couch and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees as she folded her hands and stared at the floor.
"This is one of the biggest issues in your relationship," she said gently. "I want you both to be honest and let the other speak their peace, can you do that?"
Both of them nodded minutely, neither making eye contact with Abby or each other.
"Okay," she said. "Let's get it all out on the table, and then we can piece it through. Lorelai, do you want to go first?"
Lorelai sighed and reached for a tissue from the table in front of her. Needing to keep her hands busy, she began tearing it into tiny shreds as she spoke. "I was wrong that night," she said. "I guess I'd been holding everything inside, and I felt it all bubble up. It wasn't fair of me to just throw myself at you in the street, but I had to make one last effort. In my messed up head, I thought that if I put it all out there, if I showed you my biggest insecurities you'd at least be able to tell me that you loved me, that you would set a date, something, anything, even if you didn't want to elope. But you said no and I couldn't be at home. I couldn't be surrounded by the house that we'd renovated together. So I went to Sookie's, but she wasn't home and Rory was busy with something for school. And at that point I was so desperate to talk to someone that I went to my parents' house. You know how I feel about them, and I went there before I went to him. But when they were already asleep I just sat in the driveway, like I had so many times after a fight, and suddenly I was fifteen years old again. I just wanted to see my friend. I didn't go to Christopher for anything but comfort. I told him what happened and he tried to comfort me and then he…"
"Stop!" Luke jumped to his feet, his hands resting on his baseball hat in the way they always did when he was stressed. "Stop!"
Lorelai immediately stopped talking and looked up at him expectantly. He turned to her with anger written all over his face. "You knew, Lorelai," he said accusingly. "You saw me with Nicole, you knew what she did to me! And I didn't feel for her even a fraction of what I felt for you! You were there that night, you saw her, and you told me I didn't deserve to be cheated on! And then you turned around and did the exact same thing, knowing how I felt about the guy!"
Lorelai buried her face in her hands. She'd completely forgotten about his disastrous marriage to Nicole, and she hated that she had caused him the same kind of pain. "I know, and I hate myself for that," she said.
"And did you ever think about what kind of guy would do that?" Luke continued, his voice raising. "I mean, for god's sake, you were there crying over a broken engagement and he sweeps you into bed? Who the hell does that? Not anyone with any ounce of respect for you."
"I know!" Lorelai shouted. "I know all of this, Luke, and I hate myself. I hate what I did to you, regardless of what was going on in our relationship. I hate everything about that entire stupid day!"
Luke sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. He moved to sit beside her, still not looking at her. "You said a couple weeks ago that you thought we could have fought through it," he said.
"Yeah," Lorelai said. "Maybe we could have. Part of me thought if you had time to forgive me we could have worked through it."
"So why did you marry him?" Luke asked. "If you wanted to give me space and time, I get that. Maybe I could have worked through it, I don't know. But space and time doesn't mean you can go get married to that same jerk who took advantage of you."
"I know," Lorelai said. She reached for another tissue to begin ripping into it. "I think I tried to convince myself that I didn't through away my relationship with you for nothing. If I could make it work with Christopher, then at least I could, I don't know, justify that night."
"That's great insight, Lorelai," Abby said gently.
Lorelai flashed a grateful smile, and then turned back to Luke. "It was his idea," she said. "I didn't want to do it, at least not without Rory, and he didn't care. Again I was fifteen, letting him talk me into something I knew was stupid. And then we came home and it all went to hell."
"Wonder why," Luke muttered.
"It was because he was jealous of you," Lorelai said, and Luke's head snapped towards her. "It's true. He knew there were…feelings on my end and that I never got over you. And then he had this insane idea for us to have a baby because he saw me holding Doula, and I said no, and we fought. Then he found the letter I wrote for you and I just couldn't make it work anymore. Once again, Lorelai Gilmore spreads her poison on a relationship."
Luke's jaw clenched, but he didn't say anything. Abby watched them both closely for a moment and them prompted, "Luke, do you want to say anything about this?"
He sighed deeply. "I think it hurts the most that it was him," Luke said. "You always went to him, and we'd been through it before."
"I know," Lorelai said, tears streaming now. "I know, and I was so stupid! God, even Rory saw he would screw things up."
"What the hell does Rory have to do with this?" he snapped, ever protective.
Lorelai realized she'd never disclosed everything about her parents' wedding to him. "Well, back before my parents' wedding, when Chris was starting to show up, Rory told him to back off," Lorelai said. "She saw how happy you and I were, and she told him to stay away. She was trying to protect you Luke. From her own father."
At the thought of Rory taking his side Luke seemed to relax slightly. She knew him well enough to know that he had always had a soft spot for Rory, and what he had just heard touched him.
"I want to forgive you," he finally said. "I want to be able to work past it, but I just don't know how. After everything with him, I honestly don't know how you could do that to me, especially knowing what I'd gone through in the past."
Abby leaned forward and said, "Luke, I want you think about why it is you want to be with Lorelai. Why you're here, wanting to forgive her, even if you don't know how."
Luke turned to look at Lorelai, who tried to avoid his gaze but turned to look at him eventually. Her eyes were filled with regret, red and swollen, and her face was still streaked with tears. "Because I love her," he finally said. He reached out to tuck her hair behind her ear and added, "I missed her."
Fresh tears filled Lorelai's eyes and she quickly reached to wipe them away.
"And now I want you to think about what you want from your life together," Abby said. "What's the goal here? Do you just want an explanation for everything so you can remain friends?"
"No," Luke admitted. "I want to be with her. I want to share our life, I want her to know April, and I want to be with her to celebrate the milestones in Rory's life. I want to spend Christmas and birthdays with her, I want to cook her dinner and listen to her crazy movie rants. I want to wake up with her in the morning and fall asleep with her eating pie or watching TV or reading a book beside me. I want…everything."
Lorelai reached over to squeeze his hand, unable to not be touching him in that moment. "I want those things too," she said. "So much."
"If you both want them," Abby said softly. "What's stopping you?"
Luke and Lorelai both looked at her blankly and she shook her head slightly. "Forgiveness doesn't mean that you're suddenly okay with each other's actions. Luke, you were incredibly hurt by Lorelai's what Lorelai did, and that's understandable. But forgiving her doesn't mean that you're happy with her choices or even the thought of it. Forgiveness means that you understand that she's sorry, you want to have a life with her, and that you can have that life without consistently drawing upon the hurt she caused you."
He nodded slowly, then turned to look at Lorelai. "I can do those things," he said.
"Luke," she whispered, unsure if he meant it.
"I can," he insisted. "I'll never like it, I'll never like him, but I know you're sorry and I know you won't let it happen again."
"I won't," she interjected. "Not ever, I was so stupid."
"I know that I'll have to…acknowledge his existence," Luke said. "For Rory. But when it comes to you…"
"I don't have a relationship with him," Lorelai said quickly. "None. Not a friendly divorced couple, not co parents, nothing. We were cordial at Rory's graduation, but she's a grown up. She can have a relationship with him without involving me."
"Good," Luke said firmly.
"But I want you to be sure," Lorelai said. "Because we are going to have to see him. You two can't be tossing punches at Rory's wedding reception."
"We won't," he said. "I won't." With a slight smile, he added, "That day I'll probably have to alternate my time keeping you from running background checks on the groom and making last minute changes to Rory's dress."
She smiled at his words, knowing it was his way of lightening the mood. Her eyes searched his for a long moment, and she asked, "You're sure? Because I can't have you throwing this back in my face every time we fight. If you forgive me, you forgive me, and we leave this behind us, right here, right now."
He nodded. "I forgive you," he nodded. "Consider it in the past."
She leaned up to kiss him softly, her eyes filling with tears. "Thank you," she whispered. "Luke, I…thank you."
He squeezed her hand in return, and Lorelai pulled back. "Sorry," she said gently to Abby.
"It's okay," Abby said. "This was a really big breakthrough, you're allowed to stop and celebrate those."
Lorelai nodded, wondering why she still felt a sense of guilt and dread sitting in her gut.
"Now we need to focus on you forgiving yourself."
"What?" Lorelai asked.
"Now that it's all out there and Luke has offered you his forgiveness, you need to do the same for yourself," Abby said.
"I can't do that," Lorelai said immediately.
"Why not?"
"Because t was too horrible," Lorelai said. "Everything Luke said was true. I knew his past, I knew how he felt about Christopher, and even as hurt as I was by our relationship, it was still the worst thing I could possibly have done. I can't forgive myself."
"Lorelai, at any point did you stop to think?" Abby asked. "Did you say to yourself, 'Luke really hurt me and I'm going to hurt him back. Let me find Christopher and sleep with him because Luke hates him and he's been cheated on before?'"
"No, of course not," Lorelai said. "It wasn't a conscious decision."
"And that unconscious decision was a poor one, but if Luke can forgive you, then you should think about forgiving yourself."
"She's right," Luke said, causing Lorelai to turn to look at him.
"What?" she asked.
"Look, it's not like I want to ever understand or think about that night," Luke said. "But if you really want to leave it here and never look back you can't keep dwelling on it either."
"We could have fought through it," she whispered.
"Maybe, maybe not," Luke said. "But you can't keep up with this self hatred. It's not healthy."
She stared at the cream colored carpeting beneath her wedge sandals, tapping her foot anxiously. "I just wish I could go back and stop it," she said. "I should have taken the night to think and gone to you calmly the next morning, like you tried to do."
"Lorelai, you've spent a lot of time talking about how this event was the major tipping point in your relationship with Luke," Abby said. "But it wasn't the only major factor. It can't all come back to this, and you have to be able to understand that if you want to move forward."
She sighed. "I guess I can leave this in the past," she said. "But, Luke, eventually he's going to come up. Not on a daily basis, but we can't go through this every time Rory mentions him or something. I can't keep hashing it out."
"It's done," he said, and Lorelai visibly relaxed.
Abby smiled as she leaned forward. "This was a huge day," she said. "Why don't you take some time this afternoon and just enjoy it together. Don't worry about any of the big issues, just work on having fun."
Lorelai turned to look at Luke and he nodded. "We can do that," he nodded.
"Good," Abby said, standing. "Until next week."
Luke and Lorelai bid her goodbye and then walked to the parking lot. "What do you want to do?" Lorelai asked as he held the truck door open to her. "It's a beautiful day."
"I have an idea," he said.
"Oh, really?" Lorelai asked.
"Yeah," he said. "Mystic's only fifteen minutes away. Want to go walk around downtown? We can go to the Drawbridge Ice Cream Store."
Lorelai smiled as she looked at him. "That's where Rory had her fist ice cream cone," she informed him.
"I remember the story," he said.
"You're the best," she said. "Let's go!"
An hour later, Luke and Lorelai were walking hand in hand down the main street of the coastal town that reminded Lorelai of a smaller, more touristy Stars Hollow. She was finishing her ice cream cone, and he had recently polished off his own cone, which Lorelai had dared him to eat and then been shocked when he'd accepted.
"This is so nice," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.
"It is," he said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
"I like the new us," she said. "We never did this, the hand holding or anything. It's refreshing."
"I like holding your hand," he said.
She offered him a wide smile as they approached the dock and leaned against the railing. He let go of her hand to wrap an arm around her shoulders and she snuggled closer, her head on his shoulder.
After a long moment, she sighed and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Hey, we're doing a pretty good job this time, aren't we?" she asked.
"Third time's the charm," he replied.
"I guess so." She turned her head back to the river for a long moment before she sighed and pulled away. "I feel a lot better about things."
"Good," he said, turning to look down at her. "Me too."
XXXXX
"Reese Witherspoon?" Lorelai asked him later that night.
"Nope."
Lorelai continued to think from her spot lying on the porch swing, her head resting on Luke's knee. The summer dusk had slowly given way to night, and the stars were twinkling as Luke ran his hand gently over her hair.
"Halle Berry?"
"No."
"You don't find Halle Berry attractive," Lorelai said dubiously.
"I didn't say that, I said she wasn't prettier than you," Luke said. "This is a stupid game anyway. Even I'm not dumb enough to answer that question with anyone besides you."
She giggled. "Nicole Kidman?"
"No."
"Jennifer Garner."
The phone rang before he could answer. "Saved by the bell," he muttered as she reached for it, quickly settling back into position with her head on his thigh. Luke smiled as he watched her, his hand running through her hair.
"Hey, sweets, how's the road…oh, really, when?...wow, that's almost a week! You'd make the mommy very happy…we'll have to make a schedule…we'll that's not surprising…things are good…yeah, he's right here…why?...I will let you talk to him, I just want to know why…is it about me? Are you planning my birthday party?...I know it's almost a year away, but I just want to…"
"Hello, Rory," Luke said, grabbing the phone out of her hand, causing her to frown up at him. "You're welcome…that's good, it'll make your mom happy…yeah, I think she is….oh, really? Do they know they're talking to a Gilmore?" He laughed slightly and Lorelai looked up at him curiously, wondering what in the world Rory was telling him. "I don't know much, but I could tell you what I do know…yeah, I'll be around…okay, sounds good…bye, Rory."
"What was that all about?" Lorelai asked as he hung up the phone.
"Rory," Luke informed her. "Needs to learn to play basketball."
"Why in the world would she ever need to gain such a useless skill?" Lorelai asked.
"Apparently there's some sort of tournament between members of the press corps," Luke said. "The winning team gets an exclusive with the Senator."
"Ah, they pulled out the big guns," Lorelai said. "She asked you for help?"
"Well she knew better than to ask you," Luke said pointedly.
Lorelai giggled. "I think it involves a hoop," she said. "How much do you know about basketball?"
He shrugged. "I was never on a team, but I know the basics," he said. "I'll help her when she's here this weekend."
"I can't believe she's coming home," Lorelai said happily. "Who would have thought they'd have her training people in the Bridgeport office so soon?"
"Uh, I think she's the one receiving the training," Luke said.
"Whatever," Lorelai said. "Thursday to Tuesday with my baby!"
Luke smiled down at her. "I'm glad you'll get to see her," he said.
"Hmm, me too," Lorelai said. "I can't wait to watch you teach Rory about basketball. I'm definitely going to need popcorn for that."
"You could join us," he offered.
Lorelai giggled and sat up, leaning into him. "You're cute," she informed him. "But no."
XXXXX
The following Saturday morning, Lorelai was in her element. Rory had arrived home on Thursday night, after accepting a training session in the website's Bridgeport office. She'd had training again on Friday before she'd surprised her grandparents at Friday Night Dinner, and now Lorelai was thrilled to have an entire weekend with her daughter stretched ahead of her.
"Thanks for breakfast, Luke," Rory said as she sipped at her coffee.
"Nothing I haven't done before," he shrugged, reaching for her plate.
"Yes, but being on the road has given me a finer appreciation for good food," Rory explained. "Your pancakes are infinitely superior to any others in the country."
"I've been telling you that for years," Lorelai informed him.
"Happy to hear it," Luke said. He carried the plates to the sink and then turned, eyeing both women in front of him still dressed in pajamas asked, "Either of you planning on changing out of your pajamas today?"
Lorelai pretended to contemplate. "Well, I was thinking about it, but now I think I'll have another cup of coffee before I do," she said.
"So, Luke," Rory said. "Are you still up for some one on one later?"
"Impressive sports talk," Lorelai complimented.
"I've been researching," Rory confirmed.
"Ready when you are," Luke stated.
"Just let me change," Rory requested. "I hope you're ready for a challenge."
"So where is this basketball lesson going to take place?" Lorelai asked Luke.
"I set up a court in the front yard," Luke said.
"You set up a court," Lorelai replied.
"Yeah."
"A basketball court?" Lorelai asked.
"It wasn't a big deal," Luke said.
Lorelai pushed her chair back and moved to the front door, stopping short on the porch. In front of the garage was a portable basketball hoop and a platform next to it. She turned to look at Luke with amazement written across her face. "Wow, fishing pools, ice rinks, basketball courts," she said. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were making big gestures trying to get us to be more active."
"She wanted to learn, she has to have a place to learn," Luke shrugged.
"Well, it's very sweet of you," Lorelai said, leaning up to kiss him. "Thank you, Luke."
"Wow, a whole court!" Rory cried as she ran down the steps to examine the new addition to the yard. For a flash in time, she was twelve years old again and rushing outside to examine a bookshelf Luke had built for her.
"I'm going to change, don't start without me," Lorelai said.
Ten minutes later she lay in a lawn chair, dressed in shorts and a tank top with a magazine in her lap. Luke was explaining the rules of basketball to Rory, who was nodding furiously, her brow furrowed in the same way it did as she read the New York Times.
When Luke began demonstrating a free throw, Lorelai let out a wolf whistle. "Looking good, Danes!" she called, earning exasperated looks from both athletes.
"You could join us you know," Rory called.
"No way, just call me Beyonce," Lorelai replied, flipping through her magazine.
"Beyonce?" Rory repeated.
"Front row seats, not breaking a sweat, and looking flawless," Lorelai explained, gesturing to her position. "All I need is a hot man to bring me drinks and whispering in my ear. Know anyone who might be interested?"
Luke rolled his eyes as he turned to Rory. "All athletes need to know how to tune out the crowd," he informed her.
"I heard that!" Lorelai called. She couldn't help the warming of her heart as she watched Luke and Rory interact. He'd always been there for Rory no matter what, but it was still wonderful to see them together. Rory was laughing as she tried to dribble the ball and take a shot, and Luke offered a smile as he tried to give her directions on what to change. Lorelai remembered that Luke had included some concerns about his relationship with Rory on his list of fears about their own relationship, and they had yet to really discuss them. But for the moment Lorelai committed everything she could to memory, watching Luke and Rory interact with such carefree abandon.
Too soon, the moment was interrupted when a car pulled into the driveway. Curious, Lorelai craned her neck to observe the unexpected visitor, freezing when she saw Christopher climbing uncertainly out of the car. He looked past her to where Luke and Rory were continuing their lesson, not having noticed their guest. Luke pointed to the hoop and then stepped back, crossing his arms over his chest as Rory looked down at the ball and took a shot, squealing excitedly when it went through the hoop. Luke offered her a high five, but she froze as she realized what was happening on the lawn. Luke followed her gaze and tensed visibly.
"Uh, hi," Christopher said, breaking the ice. "I didn't know you'd be here, kiddo."
Rory shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "Yeah, just a weekend off," she muttered.
"Taking up a new hobby?" Christopher asked.
"Luke's teaching me," Rory shrugged, offering as little explanation as possible.
"What the hell are you doing here, Christopher?" Lorelai asked tiredly.
"Well, I'm helping my mom clean out her house, and I found some stuff Rory might want," Christopher said. "I thought I'd drive it down and leave it here for her. I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
Lorelai crossed her arms over her chest and looked at her feet, and Luke turned to the garage, no one speaking in the tension of the moment.
"We're in the middle of a lesson," Rory said. "Leave the stuff for Gigi. Come on, Luke, I need to learn defense."
He looked at her closely for a moment, wondering what the best course of action was. Lorelai was standing stubbornly in the middle of the yard and Christopher was looking at him with a mixture of curiosity and something that may have been hurt, or perhaps jealousy. But Rory was standing in front of him, basketball in hand and determination in her eyes, and he nodded. "Okay," he said, reaching for the ball.
"You should have called."
Lorelai's words caused them to turn to her, and Rory deflated, obviously having hoped that her father would have taken the cue and left. Luke reached to rest a hand on her arm. "It's okay, kid, we're past it," he said.
"Obviously not," Rory muttered.
"Lor, I didn't mean to interrupt, I just thought…"
"Next time you just think, call first," Lorelai said. "The past is the past, whatever. But that doesn't mean you can just show up whenever you want. We have a life, and we're not going to stop everything because you decide you're ready for a visit. We've moved on, and you have to do the same."
Christopher nodded slowly as understanding washed over him. "You're right, I should have called," he said. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Lorelai said shortly.
Christopher looked past her to Rory. "Are you sure you don't want to look through some of this stuff?" he asked. "I've got a first edition Poe collection."
Interest flashed in Rory's eyes, but she turned to Luke for support. He nodded towards the driveway with a simple, "Go."
Rory examined him uncertainly for another moment before she walked slowly towards her father, cradling the basketball in front of her as an extra layer of defense.
Luke stepped down from the platform and stood beside Lorelai, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and ducking his head down to hers. "You okay?" he murmured.
"Yeah," she said. "You?"
"Fine," he replied.
"You know I didn't…"
"I know," he confirmed.
Lorelai nodded, then leaned into him as she watched Rory examine a book silently while Christopher reached for a box from his trunk. "She's trying to protect us," she murmured.
"I know," he said. "That's a pretty great girl you've got there."
"I saw you tell her to go to him," Lorelai murmured. "That was really great of you."
"He's her dad."
"Well, not everyone's as lucky as April," Lorelai said softly.
Luke simply pressed a kiss to the top of her head and rubbed a soothing hand over her back, suddenly eager for this whole encounter to be over with.
A few minutes later, Rory walked over to them with a box in her arms. "I'm just going to bring this inside," she said. "Then we can keep playing?"
"Sure," Luke said with a nod.
As Rory turned towards the house, Christopher raised a hand in silent goodbye and then got into his car. Lorelai returned the wave, and then murmured to Luke, "Well, awkward first encounter over with."
Luke was suddenly glad they'd discussed their issues with Christopher earlier that week. He knew if they hadn't agreed to forgive each other on that matter and put it behind them, the last few minutes could have gone a lot differently. "You sure you're okay?" he asked.
"Positive," Lorelai said, turning to look at him. "And you know…the whole teaching Rory how to play basketball thing? You're making me fall for you all over again."
"Then I should have taught her years ago," Luke murmured, leaning in to kiss her deeply. "We're okay?" he asked when he pulled back.
"We're great," she confirmed, standing on her tiptoes to kiss him again.
"Enough already, some of us are trying to know things here!" Rory called from the porch.
Luke blushed as he turned from Lorelai, and she shook her head slightly. He was going to have to be okay with kissing her in front of Rory, because suddenly she could foresee the three of them spending time together during Rory's visits home well into the future.
She knew, sometime soon, they would have to discuss April and her role in their future. The reality was, as amazing as it was to see Luke interact with Rory in a paternal way, it would never really be just the three of them. April deserved to be part of this life just as much as Rory did. But Lorelai decided to put those thoughts on hold for the time being. April was still a kid, she had a mother who loved her, and she lived across the country. Her situation was much more complicated than an adult Rory popping in when she had a free weekend, but somehow Lorelai knew that they would work around it. She could use someone to commentate with as Rory laughingly tried to block Luke's attempts to score a basket.
"Hey, put some effort into it, Gilmore!" she called.
"Just sit there and look pretty, Beyonce."
XXXXX
"Oh, there are three seats together," Lorelai pointed to the second row of Miss Patty's and pushed Luke towards them. "Hurry!"
"I hate sitting this close."
"Well, we have to get them, otherwise Rory has to sit on her own," Lorelai said.
"Why are we wasting her only Saturday night here at a town meeting?" he asked.
"You think we can find better entertainment than a town meeting?" Lorelai asked, setting her bag down and pulling out a can of Pringles. "Chip?"
"No thanks," he said dryly.
Lorelai shrugged. "More for me."
"Isn't Rory getting food?" he asked.
"We can never have enough food for a town meeting, you know that," she said. "Remember what happened last time I ran out of marshmallows?"
"Yeah, you accused Taylor of being a mobster and he threatened to have you arrested," Luke recalled.
"And he so would have left the cannoli," Lorelai said around a mouthful of chips.
"Don't get used to me doing this," he informed her.
"I know," she said.
"I don't do town meetings."
"You know, I'm starting to recognize this tree," Lorelai commented.
"Hey, I got snacks!" Rory said, suddenly appearing in the seat next to Lorelai. "Milkshake!"
"Oh, you are so my favorite daughter!" Lorelai replied.
"Here, Luke, I got you some celery," Rory said innocently, causing Lorelai to smirk.
"This is your influence," Luke shoved a finger in Lorelai's face as he took the celery.
Lorelai shoved his hand away and turned to Rory. "Got the checklist?" she asked.
"Yep," Rory said, pulling a piece of paper out of her pocket.
"What the hell is that?" Luke asked.
"Town meeting checklist," Rory replied. "In my absence, I've decided to make a list of all the things I want to see on the few meetings I can attend. I will then proceed to rank them, first by entertainment value and then by productivity. I don't expect the lists to be similar."
"Yeah, and when she's not here I'll take over the checklist system," Lorelai said. "I'm turning her room into the production studio for data analysis."
"Okay, here we go," Rory said as Taylor called the meeting to order.
"Alright, good citizens, we are here to discuss the annual Stars Hollow 4th of July celebration," he announced.
"Festival," Rory checked an item off.
"Now, this year, I was thinking that we could add some new elements to the celebration to make it more authentic," Taylor continued. "The Stars Hollow Historical Society," Rory checked the mention off her list, "has analyzed the events that took place on that fateful July 4, 1776 and has decided to recreate the town as it was to the finest detail, including the lack of electricity and modern plumbing."
Luke shifted in his seat and Lorelai tapped Rory. "We've got fidgeting."
"That's ridiculous, Taylor," Andrew called. "People wouldn't have even known something special was happening until a couple days later."
"It's the romanticism of the idea," Taylor tried to explain.
"What's romantic about outdoor toilets?" Babette shouted from the back.
"That's not the point…"
"At this time I'd like to offer my services to disconnect all toilets in your home," Kirk stood. "I have business cards, see me in the back after the meeting."
"Kirk mentions a job," Rory nodded.
"If you people would look past the superficial elements of the day, we can focus on the more important details," Taylor said in an exasperated tone. "I have been nominated to portray George Washington…"
"By who?" Gypsy demanded.
"Yeah, I never got a ballot," Andrew stated.
"Well, the town elders have a rigorous process which is very exclusive and cannot be revealed to the common public," Taylor explained.
"That's six shades of red," Rory commented, leaning over Lorelai to look at Luke as he leaned forward and stared at the floor, hands clasped tightly in front of him.
Lorelai bit off the end of a red vine. "I give it another seventy seconds before he explodes," she predicted.
"Now, we have to discuss the elements of clothing," Taylor said. "The leaders of the town will of course be dressed in full military regalia, with the women wearing full bodied skirts and corsets."
"We want equal rights!" Lorelai called out. "Women can wear pants too!"
"Now, some of the less…traditional members of the town will be asked to wear costumes that some might interpret as a bit sensitive," Taylor prefaced. He turned to Lorelai as he said, "While it may seem offensive today, wearing the letter A was not uncommon…"
"That's it!" Luke shouted, jumping out of his chair and causing Lorelai and Rory to huddle together in a fit of giggles. "This is insane, Taylor! We are not going to parade around dressing up like a bunch of lunatics, and you are not going to make anyone wear a letter on their shirt for any reason. We are not going to shut off the plumbing or electricity because that sounds dangerous and frankly downright disgusting. We're going to do the same damn thing we always do, have a reading of the Declaration of Independence, march around with patriotic shirts, sing Proud to be an American, and watch some fireworks. Somewhere in there, we'll eat a burger, drink a beer, and discuss how great this country is. And you know what's great about this country? Freedom! Freedom that you are taking away from us with all your insane ideas!"
"Oh, it's getting political," Lorelai said to Rory. "You should write about this on your website."
Rory sipped at her milkshake. "I wish I'd brought my tape recorder."
"Lucas, your father would…"
"My father would call you a damn fool for shutting off the power to the entire town!" Luke shouted. "This whole idea is crazy."
"Yeah, Luke's right," Babette called. "Why should we have to suffer?"
"Isn't that why they had a revolution, so we wouldn't have to suffer like they did?" Gypsy asked.
"Actually, I think it was because they didn't like tea parties," Kirk interjected.
"Let's push the damn tea into the harbor!" Lorelai declared.
"All in favor of the usual town hall celebration?" Patty called, bored with the idea.
"I," The entire room raised their hand in unison as Taylor sighed dejectedly.
"Far be it for me to provide you with a historical experience," he said. "Now, moving on…"
"Good job, hon," Lorelai patted Luke's knee. "You saved us from having to dig a hole next to Paul Anka's."
He shot her a glare, and she held a Ziploc out to him. "Celery?"
XXXXX
"Well, that was a very successful meeting," Rory said as the three of them walked towards the diner an hour later.
"We got nothing accomplished," Luke pointed out.
"Yes, but the entertainment value was exceptionally high," Rory said.
"I don't think anyone has ever dared take the gavel from Taylor before," Lorelai commented. "I hope Kirk made it home okay."
"Even Kirk could outrun Taylor," Luke said, placing a cup of coffee in front of each of them.
"Kirk is surprisingly fit," Rory agreed.
"Pie?" Luke asked.
"You have to ask?" Lorelai replied.
"Sorry," he moved to the other end of the counter to cut into the display.
Lorelai took a sip of her coffee and turned to Rory. "So tomorrow do you want to hit the mall?" she asked. "You need wrinkle free clothing and I need new shoes."
"You do not need new shoes," Luke interjected as he placed a piece of pie in front of each of them.
"No ice cream?" Lorelai asked.
He sighed in exasperation and took the plates into the kitchen. She turned back to Rory and asked, "So what do you think?"
"Sounds good," Rory said. "It is surprising how few motels have irons in this country."
"Well, they can't all be charming and thoughtful like your mother's fine establishment," Lorelai commented.
"I gave you an extra scoop so you won't demand more later," Luke announced as he returned their plates to them.
"You are the perfect man," Lorelai said dreamily.
"Aw jeez."
Rory smiled as she took a bite of pie. "Mmm, blueberry," she said. She sipped her coffee and then glanced towards the storage room, where Luke had disappeared to. "Things are going well, huh?"
"They are," Lorelai said.
"Things seemed okay today with Dad's impromptu visit," Rory commented. "Luke indicated that you talked about it."
"Yeah, that's water under the bridge," Lorelai said. "Not the prettiest water, but at least it's gone."
Rory nodded. "What about April?" she asked.
Lorelai glanced to the storage room and, noticing that the coast was still clear, admitted, "April is still the prettiest ghost in the room."
"You haven't talked about her at all?" Rory asked.
"Not aside from a couple mentions in relations to other things," Lorelai said. "I think she'll be our next big fight."
"There have been fights?" Rory asked.
Lorelai shrugged and stabbed at a lone blueberry. "Not fights so much as…conversations with a lot of emotion and an accusation or two," she said. "We've been spreading them out so we can really focus on one issue at a time."
"And April's the next issue?" Rory asked.
"Well, we covered my inability to commit and Luke's communication issues, and then moved on to your dad," Lorelai said. "April's the next big hurdle. And by hurdle I mean cute, smart girl. None of this is her fault."
Rory smiled sympathetically. "She seems nice," she offered.
Lorelai shrugged. "I wouldn't know," she said.
Sensing her mother's abrupt mood change, Rory decided to lighten things up. "How about manicures and pedicures tomorrow?" she asked. "My treat."
Lorelai smiled at her in appreciation. "Well, look at that, working girl," she said. "You do owe me for all the times I treated you."
"I know I'll be paying you back for the rest of my life," Rory sighed.
"Hey, you could have bought your own diapers," Lorelai shrugged.
"You didn't tell me that at the time," Rory said.
"Well, it's my fault then," Lorelai nodded. She stood and moved towards the coffee pot. "More?"
"Luke's going to get mad," Rory informed her.
"Then I'll flip my hair," Lorelai shrugged. "Works every time."
"Lorelai, get out from behind here," he said, appearing behind the counter and taking her elbow, gently pushing her towards her stool.
She flashed him a smile and then casually flipped her hair over her shoulder with a toss of her head. "I was just getting coffee," she said innocently.
"The hair flip doesn't work when you announce you're going to do the hair flip," he informed her.
"Good to know," she confirmed. She turned to Rory. "You ready to go home?"
Rory shoved the last bite of pie into her mouth and nodded. "Yep, I'm good," she said.
Lorelai leaned over to kiss Luke. "See you later?" she asked.
"Yeah, come in for breakfast tomorrow," Luke said.
She frowned as she pulled back. "You're not coming over?" she asked.
"Oh," he said, glancing in Rory's direction. "I…"
"Don't worry about me," Rory said, holding up her hands innocently. "I'm fine with you being there." She turned towards the door, giving Luke and Lorelai some privacy.
Lorelai turned to look at him, examining his expression carefully. "She's okay with it," she said.
"I know, I just thought…I've never stayed over when she's been home," Luke said.
"Yeah, and I seem to remember you saying something about not being part of my relationship with Rory," Lorelai said. "That was wrong of me…choosing her or you. I can choose both of you."
"I don't know…"
"Luke," she sighed, glancing towards Rory and lowering her voice. "We're not even having sex. You were there before she woke up this morning. It's okay, really."
He didn't say anything, but she could see the wheels turning in his head. "It's her home," he said.
"And mine," Lorelai said. "I won't be mad either way. If you want to think about it, that's fine. I want you there, Rory's fine with you being there, but if you're not comfortable, that's okay. I think we'll need to talk about it in the future though."
He glanced towards Rory, who quickly averted her gaze and pretended like she wasn't watching them. "You're really okay with it?" he called to her.
Rory nodded and held up her hand. "Scout's honor."
He narrowed his eyes at her. "You weren't a scout," he said.
"I was until Mom ate all my cookies and refused to pay for them," Rory reported with a pointed look at Lorelai.
"You did okay without those ridiculous outfits," Lorelai shrugged.
Luke shook his head and leaned down to kiss her cheek. "Give me an hour to clean the kitchen," he requested.
She beamed up at him. "Thank you," she said.
He squeezed her arm then stepped behind the counter. "See you in a bit, Rory," he said.
Rory offered him a smile. "See you in a bit, Luke," she said.
"Come on, babe," Lorelai said, wrapping an arm around Rory. "We have a boy coming over, we have to hide the pictures of shirtless men we've got lying around."
XXXXX
"I find it extremely impressive that a presidential candidate can so thoroughly embrace popular culture," Rory commented later that night.
"Well, he's got my vote based on his voice alone," Lorelai commented as she watched Senator Obama slow jam the news with Jimmy Fallon. "Does he always sounds that se…. seriously committed to being a strong leader?" she changed her statement as she caught Luke's warning gaze.
"He does have a good voice," Rory agreed. "It's actually a political strategy to make sure people hear him, get the image of an all American guy out there."
"Plus he plays basketball so now you can be best friends with him," Lorelai said. "Thanks to Luke's excellent teaching skills."
"Hey, that was natural talent," Luke said. "All I did was tell you when to let go of the ball."
"Yeah, well, my natural talent is making me sore," Rory said. "I'm going to bed. Night."
"Night, honey," Lorelai said, kissing Rory's cheek. Luke chimed in a goodnight of his own before Rory disappeared into her room.
Lorelai reached for the remote and shut the TV off, then turned to Luke. "It's not that bad, right?" she asked.
He rubbed her leg tenderly. "Not at all," he said.
"Good," Lorelai said. "Let's go to bed."
He followed her up the stairs and they took turns changing in the bathroom. When Lorelai emerged, clad in his flannel shirt and leggings, Luke was already under the covers with a book in his hands.
"You're reading?" she asked in surprise.
"Yeah," he shrugged. "Why?"
"Nothing," she said, sliding under the covers next to him. "I just…don't think I've ever really seen you read before."
"Well, April likes to read and she likes to talk about what she reads, so I figured this was a good way to have some conversation topics in my back pocket," he said. "I don't know if you're aware, but teenage girls can sometimes be difficult to talk to."
Lorelai gasped. "You're kidding!" she exclaimed. "I thought we were all open books."
He laughed and turned back to his book. He felt her eyes on him and looked up to meet her gaze. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"I'm just really glad you're here," she said. "Having you and Rory here, it feels good, it feels right."
"I'm glad you're happy," he said, rubbing her leg over the covers.
She smiled slightly, but then gently reached out and took his book from his hands. She put it on the nightstand and then turned to him. "It's not complete," she whispered. "Not for you."
He sighed and shook his head. "No, it's not," he admitted.
"We need to talk about April," she said carefully, watching him to see how he'd react.
"I know we do."
"She has to be part of this, Luke," she said. "Today, watching you and Rory, it was so amazing. And I know I don't really know April, but I was thinking that there is room for more love here, for more family. There's a spot for her here. I barely know her and I missed her today."
"I miss her too," he said.
"But you have to let it happen," she said. "We can't live here in this fantasy world and fall into a routine with Rory and then shove April into your apartment with you when she comes to visit. That's not fair to any of us. Including her."
"I know."
"So you'll do it?" she asked. "You'll let us figure out how she fits into this unique little family we're forming?"
"Of course I will," he said. "But it's late and after seeing Christopher today..."
"I know," she said. "I know now's not the time, but I guess I just need to know that you'll be ready to talk about it. Soon."
"Thursday?" he asked.
"Thursday," she confirmed. She leaned down to kiss him gently, then reached to turn off her light. "I had a really great day," she said quietly.
He shifted and tossed an arm over her stomach. "Me too," he murmured into her neck.
"I love you," she trailed her fingers over his arm.
He pressed a warm kiss to her collarbone. "I love you too."
"You're getting pretty good at saying that."
"I'm trying," he said, and his tone told her he was talking about more than just his words.
"I am too," she sighed. "I'm proud of us."
"Hmm," he agreed, his breath becoming even and his arm becoming heavier around her waist.
"Are you asleep?"
"Hmm."
"Luke?" When there was no response, she whispered, "I want to marry you."
His even breathing filled the room and Lorelai shifted slightly, snuggling deeper into his embrace as she prepared to sleep. Her eyes were just starting to drift closed when she felt his grip on her tighten. "Want that too," he murmured into her shoulder
With that, Lorelai slipped into a very pleasant dream that involved Luke and the chuppah he'd built for her.