Disclaimer: Gilmore Girls isn't mine. I do not claim to own any of its characters or plotlines. I just use them for my own insane storylines.

A/N: Hello my lovely reviewers. I'm terribly sorry for the wait on this chapter. I have been going through some personal problems and haven't really been in the mood to write. My life is much better, now, and I actually have a desire to continue with this chapter. Yay! Oh, and I would like to thank Christi for all her support and help.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 15: Click Your Heels, 'Cause There's No Place Like Home

Lorelai stood in the doorway holding Rory's new clothes and just watched the young teenagers. They weren't really kids anymore. This event would forever change their lives, and Lorelai was saddened by that fact. Her Rory would never be the same sweet, bubbly girl. She would always harbor the pain and loss of her unborn child. It would never go away. Tristan kissed her daughter with tenderness. She understood why Rory felt so strongly for him. He obviously loved her. Even the careful way he brushed Rory's hair out of her face was dripping with warmth and affection.

The two lovers were unaware of the bright blue eyed woman watching them. They clung to each other without speaking, holding each other in a tight embrace. Tristan placed light, butterfly kisses all over Rory's face, caressing her skin and wiping the stray tears that fell from her sapphire eyes. Rory knew in that moment that he loved her. Even if he never said the words, Rory could feel it radiating from his soul. He was hurting just as much as she was.

Lorelai decided against interrupting them, so she quietly shut the door. At that moment, Emily rushed up to her, raving mad, startling all three.

"Lorelai. What is going on? That nurse just informed me that Rory's leaving. The doctor said he was going to observe her overnight. What happened? Why is she going home, Lorelai?"

Rory sighed in Tristan's arms. Their intimate moment had been spoiled by none other than her grandmother. Lorelai tried to close the door, but Rory knew she had to explain to her grandmother that she wanted to go home.

"It's okay, Mom. Grandma, I decided to leave early. Mom signed some papers to have me discharged sooner."

"What?" Emily screamed. "How could you sign the papers, Lorelai?"

Rory got angry at her grandmother. She was blaming her mother, AGAIN, for Rory's decision. Rory was sick of it, so just like before, she stood up and told her grandmother exactly why she wanted to go home. She told her mother that she wanted to leave because she was sick of the hospital. Rory left out the part about why she was sick of the hospital.

"Grandma! Stop yelling at Mom! I made the decision to leave because I'm sick of the hospital. I hate this place. This is the place where I learned that my baby died and being here makes me think about that constantly. Having doctors poking and prodding me hurts like you wouldn't believe, and I'm sick of the hospital because every damn minute a baby is born here, and they announce it by playing that stupid song. And all I can think about is how my baby never got the song played. Because my baby is dead!"

Emily was shell shocked, but at that moment the worst possible thing happened. A few notes from "Hush Little Baby" played through the speaker overhead. Lorelai and Tristan were horrified, and Rory grimaced the entire time it played.

"There's that damn song, again. Mom, could I please have my clothes."

Emily quickly left the room, followed by Lorelai. Tristan stood awkwardly by the door, not knowing what to do. Did Rory want her privacy? Did she need help? He looked at her pleadingly, but Rory didn't even notice his presence. She reached for the ties on her hospital gown, and began to pull on the strings. She couldn't reach the one in the middle of her back, so Tristan slowly walked up to her and gave the string a small yank.

"Thank you," Rory whispered.

Tristan watched as Rory pulled off the hospital gown. The fluorescent lights shown on her pale, naked flesh making her look angelic. Tristan could see that the physical exertion was exhausting her, so he took the clothes from the bag and began to dress her. She felt strange and exposed, just lying naked in front of him, but at the same time it was comforting to be able to show such vulnerability to someone else instead of maintaining her strong facade.

He helped Rory clasp her bra in place, but not before his mind memorized the beautiful swell of her breasts. Her body was a piece of art. Her curves flowed perfectly together and made a magnificent masterpiece. Her T-shirt went over her head, and Rory disappeared from his view for a second. All at once, her arms and face re-emerged, and Tristan couldn't hold back any longer. He leaned forward and kissed Rory. The kiss was passionate and filled with every wonderfully horrid feeling the last couple of days stirred up inside of him.

The kiss was full of their painful loss. The kiss represented his undying love to her that he just couldn't express while she was awake and yearning for him to say it. The kiss held the loss of innocence this tragedy had brought upon them both. But above all things, the kiss represented their desire to move forward from this. They would never forget, but they needed to continue their lives. That would be the hardest thing for either of them to do. They broke apart to breathe, and Rory looked into Tristan's eyes. She said the one thing that he needed to hear, but had no right to expect her to say.

"It's all going to be okay."

Tristan hated to cry, especially in front of other people. His father had always taught him that crying showed weakness. The stress had built up and he fell to his knees and buried his head into Rory's lap and wept. He had shed a few tears for his child, but he had held back for Rory's sake. She despised seeing Tristan hurting this bad, but it was slightly comforting to know that she wasn't truly alone. Sure, she felt like the only person in the world who knew what she was going through, but Tristan had lost his child, too.

Tristan sobbed into Rory's lap, and Rory ran her fingers through his hair. He let out all his frustration, anger, pain, and sadness. His breathing slowly returned to normal, and he raised his head up to look into Rory's tear-filled eyes. Rory had been able to control herself while his head was buried in her legs, but the dams in her eyes broke when his blue eyes met hers. She didn't sob. Rory just wiped the few tears from her cheeks and then reached down to wipe Tristan's, as well.

"See, Tristan. It's all going to be okay."

Ten minutes later, a fully dressed Rory, and a very puffy-eyed Tristan exited her hospital room. The nurse urged Rory to sit in the wheelchair, which she obeyed. The few steps from her bed to the hall had made her weak legs shake, so the wheelchair was a welcome sight. As the nurse began to push her out of the hospital, Rory saw her dad, Luke, and her grandparents all sitting in the waiting room. Tristan's grandfather and mother had left after Rory's breakdown because they 'didn't want to interfere.'

Emily kept her mouth shut in a tight line and watched as they wheeled her granddaughter outside. Luke and Christopher rushed over to her and looked at her intently, as if to make sure she hadn't broken. Luke still had Tristan's car keys, so he volunteered to pull the car around. As he left, an intern ran up and handed Lorelai a bag. His beeper went off before he could tell Lorelai what was in the bag, and he scurried off to do his minion duties.

Lorelai opened the bag, wondering out loud what was inside. If she had thought it through, she never would have opened the bag. She screamed when she saw the blood, and the small plastic bag dropped from her hands. Its contents spilled out, and the exhausted couple stared in horror. Rory's "white" Capri pants were completely red, and had been cut right down the middle. Her floral print, cotton panties were drenched in blood. Even her loose-fitted green blouse was smeared with blood from where people had touched her pants and then touched her stomach.

"Oh my God!" Rory screamed in agony, quickly shutting her eyes and looking away.

Lorelai thought quickly and used the bag to scoop up all of the clothes and closed it tight. Rory refused to open her eyes, and a couple of tears squeezed out from where her eyelids met. Tristan grabbed her hand and squeezed it. After seeing the clothes Rory was wearing, it brought him right back to where he was when Rory grabbed her stomach.

He remembered the fear he felt when he saw the blood seeping from her womb. The blood was gushing out, but he had pushed that part of the ordeal out of his mind. His thoughts were centered on how he felt when the doctor told everyone the news. The pure panic he felt when Rory passed out shook him to the core. Obviously, Rory was reliving the painful memories as well.

When Rory didn't respond to Tristan's touch, he knelt beside her and hummed, quietly, while caressing her face.

"Come on Rory. It's going to be okay. I promise you that we'll get through this."

He then whispered, "together," in a voice only audible to Rory.

The others wondered what he was saying to her, but whatever it was, it worked. Rory opened up her eyes and gave a weak smile. Tristan returned her smile and rubbed his nose against Rory's, giving her an Eskimo kiss. Christopher watched the exchange with interest. He felt like the group was intruding on an intimate moment. It wasn't the normal teenage gesture. This was different. Their actions towards one another had been taken to another level. Each touch and word was meant to be comforting and loving. Christopher actually teared up just watching how much the two loved each other. If his little girl had to fall in love with someone, he was glad it was Tristan.

"Rory, sweetie. I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but I know you're in good hands. I'm so sorry," Christopher said and gave Rory a big hug. "I'll try to visit in another couple of weeks, and I'll call you every day."

"It's okay, Dad. I understand," Rory replied, sincerely.

It would be great if her dad could stay, but she was okay without him. It was an awful fact, but it was true. Rory loved her father, but he hadn't been much of a father to her. Besides, she had Tristan, Luke, and Lorelai to help her get through. Rory watched her father climb into the cab and sighed.

"We better be leaving , too," Richard said, sadly.

He gave Rory a kiss and gave his condolences. Emily had stood beside Richard, coldly, and had every intention of leaving without saying one word to Rory. That is, until she saw the clothes spill out of the bag. When Rory was screaming in pain, Emily was terrified. She thought Rory was going to die, and seeing the clothes put her pettiness aside. All she wanted was the best for her granddaughter. Emily sucked up her pride and embraced Rory, whispering in her ear the sweetest words she had ever said to her granddaughter.

"I love you, Rory. All I want is for you to be happy. I'm so sorry for the part I played in this, and I promise you it will not happen again. I hope someday you will be able to forgive me."

As Emily pulled away, both grandmother and granddaughter had tears shining in their eyes.

"I love you, too, Grandma," Rory said quietly, barely able to choke back her sobs.

As her grandparents left the entrance to the hospital, Luke pulled Tristan's car around and Lorelai pushed Rory's wheelchair towards the curb. While Tristan comforted Rory, Lorelai had discarded the bloody clothes in a nearby trashcan. Why the intern had given her the bag still remained a mystery.

Tristan scooped Rory into his arms and placed her in the backseat. He climbed in after her, and let her lay her head in his lap. Rory sighed as she smelt the familiar smell of Tristan's car. His scent inhabited the car, and it was a comfort to Rory who was disgusted by the sterile smell of the hospital.

"Do you mind if we stop by my house, so I can pack a bag?" Tristan asked Rory.

"Not at all," Rory said, relieved that he wasn't going to leave her later to do that.

Tristan lived five minutes from the hospital, so in no time they pulled up to his house. Tristan groaned inwardly when he noticed the light on in his father's study. He did not want a confrontation with his father, because that usually ended with him being knocked into a wall. Luckily, Tristan had a "secret passage" that led to his bedroom. That was code for the trellis outside of his window.

He felt it best not to tell anyone. Rory didn't need his family troubles on top of her emotional vulnerability. He had climbed up that trellis countless times. The trick was getting past the view from his father's study. Fortunately, his father's desk faced the opposite way, so he would most likely not be seen. Luke was confused when he saw Tristan go past his front door and begin to climb up the side of the mansion.

"Uh, does he live here?"

"What do you mean?" Rory asked, sleepily.

"I mean, is this your boyfriend's house?"

"Yes. Of course it's his house. Why?"

"Because if this is his house, then why is he climbing up the side of the house like a burglar?" Luke asked.

Rory was puzzled and she sat up, slightly, and saw what Luke was talking about. She tried to come up with a conceivable reason as to why Tristan would be climbing up a trellis to his own house.

"I have no idea."

Once Tristan had packed his bag as quietly as he possibly could, he began his descent. He could hardly believe his luck when he reached the ground without being seen. Quickly, he ran back to his car and climbed into the back seat. Three sets of eyes were on him as he settled himself in.

"What?" he asked.

"Uh, why were you climbing up the trellis to your own house?" Rory asked.

"Oh, I was just practicing for our balcony scene, Juliet."

"Seriously. What was that?"

"I am being serious," Tristan said, lightheartedly.

Rory gave him a look, and he decided to tell her the truth.

"Fine. I was trying to avoid seeing my father. If I walked in the front door, he may have ignored me, but I didn't want to take a chance."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

Tristan stroked Rory's hair as they drove towards Stars Hollow. He saw a soft smile grace her lips when the car began driving along the familiar streets. Luke parked the car in the driveway of the Gilmore house, and Tristan lifted Rory effortlessly into his arms and carried her across the threshold. Luke grabbed Tristan's bag for him, and all four entered the house. Rory inhaled the familiar smell and took in all the familiar sights. When she left this very place, she was pregnant and on her way to tell her grandparents. Now, as she looked around the room, she was no longer pregnant, but she had gained something from the horrible experience. She knew she was strong enough to survive anything. It felt good to be home, again.

A/N: I really hope you enjoyed this installment of He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. Please review, because it really helps me improve my writing. If you did not like this chapter, please inform me of your reasons. I really appreciate every single person who reads this story. Thank you.