Rory eyes Jess skeptically as he does a 180, dropping his smirk and adopting a scowl. He sees her frowning but, upon seeing an adult woman in the room, Rory hurries over to her, leaving him behind.
Jess shoves his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket and heads towards an empty chair. There are about twelve chairs wrapping in a circle and a few are already taken by men of varying ages. He kicks his legs out, scooting to the edge of his seat to lean back in the chair and lets himself look over who is already in the room.
"I just wanna get better, you know?" A blonde boy with freckles to his right is saying this to another guy next to him, who is nodding furiously in agreement.
Jess rolls his eyes and stares at the ceiling. He never really understood suicidal ideation, but right about now, drinking bleach sounded a whole lot better than listening to these dinks.
Other men filed into the room within the next five minutes. Jess's leg shakes with impatience. He decides to occupy himself by watching Rory talking animatedly with the older woman. He allows himself to stare at her, taking in her features.
He would never say she was hot or beautiful, but she had a different kind of attractiveness to her. It was more gentle, sweet even, if that was a thing. She was definitely appealing in some subtle capacity. Jess shrugs to himself. It was probably the blue-eyes, dark-hair thing she had going for her. That and her school uniform left her looking… something, Jess couldn't put his finger on the word.
The older woman smiles at Rory, gently putting her hand on the small of Rory's back to guide her to take a seat for the group to begin. Jess follows her movements with his eyes until he settles on looking at her hands. She's blatantly picking at her cuticles, and Jess wonders what she's so bent out of shape about.
The older woman being in the room clearly meant that she wasn't leading the group, so he didn't really get it. Maybe she, like him, felt incredibly uncomfortable being in a room with a bunch of dudes talking about their feelings. His ego falters a little, realizing that to her, he's just another one of those dudes.
He inwardly groans and shifts uncomfortably. Not that it mattered what this girl thought of him.
Rory watches Jess's demeanor change as he skulks over to an empty chair. She thinks about how it's strange that he didn't join her in introducing himself to Ms. Leon. After all, he'd seemed so calm and nonchalant from what little she'd seen - he couldn't be a member, she felt pretty certain about that.
"Hi, Ms. Leon? I'm Rory," she introduces hesitantly; at the sound of her voice, the woman turns to greet her.
"Rory! Hi! So great to meet you," the blonde says enthusiastically, clasping Rory's hand with her own for good measure. "I'm Ms. Leon, as you know."
"Yes, great to meet you, too," Rory replies with a smile, adjusting her bookbag.
"Have you ever been in a group work setting, Rory?" Ms. Leon asks over her shoulder as she gathers two clipboards with papers attached.
Rory shakes her head.
"No, I want to be a journalist, so I haven't really adventured out into the world of social work," Rory confesses with a sheepish smile. "But my town is pretty quirky, so it might count," she adds thoughtfully, chuckling along with Ms. Leon.
"A journalist, you say?" The woman turns to look at Rory now, a wide smile on her face. "That was my major in college!"
"Really?" Rory asks with an incredulous smile. "For some reason I thought social workers would all major in social work."
"Nope! Some of us fall into this work. I fell in love on a journalism assignment, believe it or not," Ms. Leon says with a wink.
Rory smiles in reply, and ponders whether it would be appropriate to accost Ms. Leon about her experience as a journalist. She checks her watch and sees that they're only a few minutes to 5:30 and approaching a full house of men. She resolves to research Ms. Leon later and ask follow ups on Thursday.
"So, are you ready for anger management, Rory?" Ms. Leon continues, guiding Rory over to the circle.
"I think as ready as I'll ever be," she shrugs, offering a small smile.
"Don't be nervous," the older woman smiles gently, placing her hand on the small of Rory's back. "You're in good hands. And the guys are only up to age 20, so they're more your peers. Might offer you something good to write about!" Ms. Leon adds another wink for good measure before addressing the group.
Rory picks at her cuticles and lightly bites her lip. She knew it was only a matter of weeks before she was completely comfortable in the group. Everyone had a learning curve, she would be no different. She allows her eyes to drift to the guy she had met earlier, only to find Jess's eyes immediately flick to hers. She looks away quickly, embarrassed to be caught staring at him.
"Gentlemen," Ms. Leon calls, her blonde hair bouncing as she turns with her clipboard to face the group. "Let's settle down and get started."
Rory is close at her heels, smiling shyly as she stays behind Ms. Leon. A few of the boys raise their eyebrows at her, and she feels a rush of pink to her cheeks. She feels like the chihuahua in a pack of dobermans, ready to stake her claim in spite of her size.
She half expects Jess to walk over and join them in the empty seat next to her but he doesn't move, only rolls his eyes at the older woman. She looks at him curiously, wondering why he is there in the first place.
"My name is Ms. Leon," she begins, eyes scanning the room. "I will be your facilitator and counselor for the next eight months. I'll tell you a little about myself in a minute, but I'd like to also introduce you to a student at Chilton High School in Hartford."
With that, she waves her arm in the direction of Rory. Rory freezes for a moment, debating whether she should also stand or remain seated for her introduction. She decides to stay in her seat.
"Hi, I'm Rory," she calls with a smile and a small wave.
After a few seconds of silence that precluded a few of the young men smiling at Rory, Ms. Leon prompts her.
"And do you want to tell us a few things about what you'll be doing here, Rory?" Ms. Leon asks warmly, her eyes playful.
"Oh, right," she says, feeling a little silly. "Well, I'm in my senior year of high school, hoping to major in journalism once I get to college. Um, I'm taking a social engagement class," she pauses, catching Jess raising an eyebrow in her direction, "and we were all assigned to a different group. So here I am, at your service!"
"Thank you, Rory," Ms. Leon says with a nod. "So gentlemen, be on your best behavior for Rory! She'll be using group discussions for her yearly assignments. Everything will of course be kept anonymous. You were told in your placement forms... but not everyone reads," she finishes off with a chuckle. She goes on to tell a bit about herself before opening the floor for questions.
Rory grabs the clipboards and looks around at the different faces.
"I have a question," says one boy with thick black curls, leaning back in his chair.
"Yes?" Ms. Leon asks, now seated and eager to hear from her group member.
"Does Rory have a boyfriend?" He asks slyly, getting a round of chuckles and shoulder nudges from his peers.
Rory flushes, both with embarrassment and anger. This was precisely the reason her mom didn't want her in an all male group. Well, one of them, she supposed.
Ms. Leon's face darkens and she opens her mouth to retort, but another voice cuts her off.
"Keep it wrapped, would you?" Jess deadpans from his seat, eying the offender.
"Excuse me?" The boy with curls asks, leaning forward now to glare at Jess.
"I doubt she came to a therapy group to find her very own Mr. Darcy," he snorts. "So keep what little you have in your pants."
"Her who?" The guy asks, a look of confusion clouding his formerly annoyed expression. "And who are you calling little?"
"It's the romantic protagonist in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, but maybe you would know that if you read a third as much as you flirted with innocent bystanders," Rory flares at him, exchanging a look with Jess. He looks pleased.
This gets a chorus of laughter from the other young men, a scowl from the offender, and the clearing of Ms. Leon's throat.
"Young man, this group is a safe space for all of us here, and we all will contribute to the group norms. But we can't grow if we are targeting or objectifying other members. That's something I won't tolerate from anyone in this group, is that understood?" She looks at the boy sharply and he nods, mumbling something of an apology to Rory.
Jess looks smug and Rory looks thankful. She offers him a small smile and he shrugs his shoulder ever so slightly in acknowledgment.
Ms. Leon continues the group and has them do a round of introductions. She asks for their names, ages, area that they live in, and ends with an opening go-around of what they want out of the group. Jess isn't paying attention; he doesn't see the need to get all chummy with the guys in the group. As far as he's concerned, he's being held hostage there and wants nothing to do with them.
He does, however, spend the rest of the group stealing glances at Rory. He isn't sure what he's more impressed by - her fiery attitude at the end or her immediate understanding his reference.
Then again, didn't a lot of girls read Jane Austen? The next time an opportunity presented itself, he would throw in a more obscure reference and see how that went. For now he was intrigued.
Rory does her best to take notes on the men's names and ambitions. There hasn't been any disturbances after the Jess-Rory-Ms. Leon shut down in the beginning of group, and she's thankful for that. It's one less thing for her to decide whether she tells Lorelai or Dean about it.
She finds herself waiting for Jess's response, unsure as to why. She was genuinely grateful that he'd stood up for her after knowing her for a whopping three minutes, but then again, she didn't know him well. She was still surprised that he was there, but then, none of the boys had really exhibited rambunctious behavior yet.
She isn't sure what she is more intrigued by - the sticking up for her part or the Jane Austen reference. Had it been another girl, she thought, she wouldn't be as impressed. Maybe that was anti-feminist, but she rarely met girls at Chilton who hadn't read it, and she never met any guys who freely referenced what most would call a classic romance novel.
She holds her breath when the go around makes its way to Jess. He looks less than impressed with his surroundings.
"And you?" Ms. Leon prompts when Jess doesn't offer any information.
"Jess."
"Is that your name?"
"It's not my zipcode," Jess deadpans. Rory looks down at her paper so she doesn't smile.
"Okay, so, Jess," Ms. Leon emphasizes, raising her eyebrows. "Tell us your age, where you live, and what you want to get out of the group."
He stares at her, a challenge. When she doesn't look away and he sees Rory look up in what might be mild annoyance at his lack of compliance, he sighs.
"Seventeen. New York. And just out." Rory cocks her head. New York was far.
"I'm sorry?"
"You asked what I wanted to get out of the group. I said that I want to just get out."
A few of the other boys snicker but Ms. Leon isn't impressed.
"Well, the best way to do that is to participate and be present!" She says cheerfully, moving on to the next guy, earning an enthusiastic eyeroll from Jess.
Rory raises her eyebrows, making a face. Maybe she could see a little bit why Jess might be there. He didn't seem too great with authority figures.
The group went by well, in Rory's eyes. Her job was mainly to record and take notes, but Ms. Leon made it a point to keep her engaged and included. Several of the boys were talkative, in fact most of them, but Jess, the boy with the curly black hair who she learns is Phil, and another were quiet the entire time. Rory recorded how often the boy with curly hair glowered at Jess, and how often he simply stared or smirked back. It made her worry a little for what could happen after group sessions.
Rory hangs by Ms. Leon's things as the older woman asks the boys to choose a day for their personalized sessions. Rory knows this isn't typical of all groups, but Ms. Leon informs her that the social work interns would take most of the cases.
Ms. Leon walks over to Rory as the young men look through their scheduling options.
"Do you know if you're supposed to sit in on any of the counseling sessions?" she asks as Rory finishes scribbling a note or two.
"Um," Rory bites her lip, thinking of her assignment. She pulls the paper out of her bookbag and steps to the side, offering Ms. Leon an opportunity to look it over with her.
"It might be useful," Ms. Leon suggests, pointing to the third assignment. Rory reads it along with Ms. Leon, frowning in thought. "You have to do a biopsychosocial on a group member. "
"A what?"
"You basically have to sit with somebody and go over the biological, psychological, and social factors that affect their behavior in life and group. It's not due until closer to February, but it might be good to start now so that you can seek support from the social work interns," Ms. Leon explains sympathetically, her face softening once she sees how uncomfortable Rory looks.
This was totally more than Rory had bargained for. Not that she didn't care about social engagement, she believed in being an upstanding and socially engaged citizen, but it was intense. Paris had insisted that this class would look great on her transcripts to Harvard; that was the only reason she had really agreed to suffer along with her frenemy.
"Okay," she breathes, blowing her hair out of her face. "So who do I pick?"
Ms. Leon begins gesturing for the boys to come up.
"You have some time to decide. Their sessions won't begin until next week, but maybe try to stick to somebody directly before or after the group, what with your classes ending so close to start time. Maybe somebody in that slot will jump out to you?" She shrugs, smiling.
Rory smiles back, nodding.
"Now will you help me record these days and times, dear? The only person who should have a set time is…." she looks at her clipboard, flipping the paper up to reveal a roster. "Mariano, Jess. His was pre-scheduled at a 7:30pm slot for either day."
Rory nods and bites her lip, stealing a glance at Jess, who of course was in the far back of the line. Something told her that she already knew who's session she wanted to sit in on.
Jess takes a hard step forward, clenching his fist instinctually. He inhales deeply and turns sharply on his heel, locking eyes with Phil.
"You don't want to do that," Jess warns.
Phil looks smug as the other boys file out of the building, glancing over but not paying much mind to the stare off.
"Why's that?" Phil asks, taking a step forward.
Jess looks at him with as much boredom and annoyance as he can muster. He genuinely thinks some brain cells died during group. He sighs and composes himself. He would not prove Principal Jeffreys or Liz right. He shakes his head.
"I'm not wasting my time on you," he offers dryly.
As Phil goes to open his mouth, Rory steps out of the doors. She reads Jess's face quickly, noting how angry he looks. She shuffles over, looking nervous.
"Hey guys," she says softly, stepping just enough towards Phil that he turns around to glance at her. He looks over his shoulder at Jess, huffs, and turns back to Rory.
"Looking forward to seeing you on Thursday, Rory," he mutters, throwing back two fingers at Jess as he stalks off.
Rory looks confused as Phil goes past her before looking back to Jess. He glances behind himself, grabbing at his jacket. No grubby handprints from that low life as far as he could see. He snaps his jacket in the front and tilts his head to the side, looking thoughtfully at Rory.
"Were you guys about to fight?" She asks, furrowing her eyebrows.
Jess didn't seem like the initiating type, so she immediately thinks that it was started by Phil. But, he was older than Jess by two years; she would have thought he'd be more mature than to start a fight right outside of his anger management group. She sighs to herself. She had a feeling the earlier incident would carry outside of the room.
"Actually, we were going to hold hands and skip," he quips with a smirk. She narrows her eyes at him, folding her arms over her chest.
"Whatever," she huffs and pushes past him towards the parking lot. "And to think I came looking for you to thank you for earlier."
Jess turns and jogs after her, catching up in a few steps.
"Aw, you came lookin' for me, Teach? That's awfully sweet of you," he says lightheartedly. Rory might have taken it as the playful statement it was meant to be, but he'd annoyed her now. She wasn't interested in talking to him anymore.
"Bye, Jess," she says with a sideways glare, not breaking her stride.
She reaches her car and he holds off, hovering for a moment. Rory can feel his eyes on her and whips around, offering him her best annoyed face.
"The guy is a jerk," he says flatly, shrugging his shoulders.
Rory shoots him an exasperated look. Did he not realize he was being just as jerky to her? She softens when she sees that his eyes have also softened. She takes this as an unspoken apology and nods, opening up her car door.
"See you Thursday, Teach," Jess salutes before backing away from the car and heading down the block.
Rory rolls her eyes and closes the door. She grabs her phone and dials Dean, letting herself watch Jess disappear in the distance while she waits.
AN: Thanks for all of the positive feedback! It genuinely helps me because I know what is working. Anywho, this chapter is long. I do a lot of group work so I wanted to take the time to build its structure for later scenes :) The formatting of this chapter keeps going craycray so I apologize in advance. Please review lovely people :)
