Author's Note: So here is the second half of New York and Lorelai's Graduation!

Disclaimer: I do not own GG or any dialogue taken directly from the show!

Rory followed happily. It was strange seeing Jess in his element. Somehow surrounded by the harsh people of New York he didn't seem like the troubled kid anymore. Instead he blended right in, which Rory assumed was part of the problem Liz had with him. Blending into the crowd of New York was not every mother's dream.

"So where are we going?" she asked curiously as she glanced around the crowded streets.

Rory almost bounced with each step she was taking. Jess was leading her farther into the city but she wasn't even worried. She felt comfortable with him, she knew he wouldn't let her get hurt… the cast on her wrist was not her judging bar.

"It's a surprise." He said dryly.

"I hate surprises."

Rory repeated the sentence exactly as she had heard it from her mother. It was one of the Gilmore rules, hating surprises. Though she had rarely come across a bad surprise and Jess knew her well enough to pick a food place without her disapproval.

"You won't hate this one. I know you well enough to find us food." Jess joked.

She couldn't help but smile at their similar thought process.

"You know the people at the bus station were not very helpful. I kept trying to ask for directions and these New Yorkers, man, they did not feel in a helpful mood."

"Only a tourist asks for directions in New York." He laughed.

"I'm a rebel, I could blend into New York." Rory said trying to sound serious.

"Oh yeah, how?"

"I'll have you know that I am sneaking around with this bad boy type back home and no one in my town would approve –total rebel, we even kissed."

"You're right you're a complete New Yorker now." He said sarcastically.

Jess laughed looking at her as if she was ridiculous. If there was anyone who screamed of outsider it was Rory Gilmore. Their conversation was casual as if they had picked up right where they left off before he swerved that car. Rory felt her anger and sadness melt away each time she looked over at him and Jess felt his guilt fade.

"I feel very urban today." She told him looking down at her clothes.

"Oh yeah, the plaid just screams urban." He teased back.

"I think I look like a native."

"How well do you know Manhattan?"

Jess had never heard her talk about New York in all the times they had hung out. Besides when she was pestering him about where he lived and what his life was like New York had never come up in conversation.

"I've been here a few times. I had to have told you that."

"Not a thing, you Gilmores aren't known for your chattiness."

"Well no one is as chatty as you, Mariano."

Rory couldn't help but think about the moments back home when her statement held true. She had really enjoyed the moments when Jess let go and ranted about things he was passionate about. His rants were the closest to chatter he had gotten and they would always last a while. But overall he was a rather monosyllabic person.

"Touché."

"We saw the Bangles here." Rory returned to his earlier question, "I took some girls from school and mom took Sookie. Louise and Madeline bailed half way through and went to some party. Mom practically tore their heads off when she found them. And a few years ago we came here to do some shopping but couldn't find parking so we went home."

"How very adventurous."

Rory wanted to laugh at herself. Once she said it out loud it did sound like a very lame explanation of her time in New York. She could have focused on the party they broke up, or how close their seats were. Everything she had said sounded like a child went through it.

"I'm just saying I'm no stranger to the Big Apple." She tried to justify herself.

"You are if you're calling it the Big Apple." He teased.

"So I don't have the lingo down yet, but at least I have the attitude."

"The attitude I've seen. Show anyone that deadly withering stare of yours?"

Rory stuck her tongue out at him not even caring how childish it might seem. She had only fixed him a withering stare once while they were hanging out, and he would hold it over her head until the day she died. That much she was sure of.

"Oh yeah, a guy at the station."

Jess smiled, putting his arm across her shoulders and pulling her into him. He liked having her close. He could smell her lavender shampoo and the strawberry lotion she used. He had gotten used to those scents while he was in Stars Hallow. To suddenly have them taken away had been difficult.

For the first few days back he had avoided fruit just because it reminded him of her. It was so strange that a girl who never ate it could always smell like fruit. He hadn't read for the first week he had been in town, books had just depressed him. Once he started reading again he needed them to be brand new books, ones he had never discussed with her or seen her reading.

"So your arm's okay?" he needed to know.

He had filled a moment of silence with a subject he assumed would be iffy. He knew she must be mad at him for getting her injured. But at least she didn't hate him. If she hated him she wouldn't have ridden a disgusting bus all the way to New York.

"Yeah, it looks worse than it is." She said sounding as if her wrist didn't bother her at all.

Rory wrapped her good arm around his waist and let herself fall more into him. Her head nuzzled into his body perfectly as she attempted to be as next to him as possible. Jess leaned his head down, rested his check on the top of her head.

They walked in silence for a minute neither feeling uncomfortable with it. Rory felt more at peace having gotten the subject of the accident out of the way.

"So here's our lunch place."

Jess pried himself away from her and pointed towards the hotdog stand in front of them. Rory looked at him like he was nuts. They had passed at least five hot dog stands on their way to this exact one. Jess had never struck her as one to go out of his way for something.

"A hot dog stand?"

"Hey, I eat here every day."

"Really?" Rory interrupted him, surprised.

"Yeah, why?" he asked before turning to the vendor, "One with everything."

"Make that two, please." She said. "You just don't seem like a schedule type person I guess."

Jess shook his head, taking his hot dog from the vendor. Rory copied his action and walked with him down the sidewalks. He tried to speak at one point but sound refused to come out. He wanted to know about Luke, he wanted to see if the man who had tried raising him was doing alright.

"Oh, my God, this is really good!" Rory exclaimed after she took a bite.

"I'm glad you like it. So how much time you got?"

"I got a bit." Rory said, knowing that bit was growing shorter and shorter every second.

"Remember the place I told you about? Record store right out of High Fidelity, we should stop by before you have to leave."

"Yeah, I remember."

Rory motioned for him to lead the way and followed as he walked down the sidewalk. She took small bites of her hot dog enjoying every minute of the small amount of food. She had skipped breakfast and wouldn't get dinner until after her mother's graduation ceremony. When Jess turned as if he was going into the subway Rory froze.

"Where you going?"

"Subway." He replied, looking at her like she had said the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard.

"When you talked about it you said you walked there."

"Yeah I walk from my mom's apartment. But it'll be quicker this way."

"Do they allow hot dogs in the subway?" Roy asked not wanting to give up her only food so far that day.

"You are so an out-of-towner." He teased.

Rory pursed her lips at him and glared. She turned to walk down the stairs making it look as if it was no big deal. Jess could only shake his head slightly as he followed her. It was amusing to him having her around. Rory always could be counted on for providing him some entertainment.

Jess was hardly paying attention through the subway ride or while they were looking at records. He was talking to her, he was listening but all he could really do was think. Rory was in front of him. She had missed a school day, and clearly judging by her outfit had skipped school to see him. He had insisted on leaving because he was sure that she wouldn't want to ever see him again but clearly he had been wrong.

"Oh my God!" Rory screeched.

"What?" Jess jumped slightly as she pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Look!" Rory shoved the album in his face.

"Go-go's. You've already got that. You have a copy from Lane, you made me listen to it like six times."

"This would be the perfect graduation present for mom though."

"Graduation?"

"Oh, from college, from business classes. She graduates tonight. I practically made her do the ceremony that's tonight –when you called we were celebrating."

"I'm surprised she has time for anything except lighting darts on fire and throwing them at my picture."

"Well, it's not a lot of time, but…"

Rory almost felt bad teasing. Sure her mom wasn't throwing darts but she did take every opportunity to hate on Jess. It didn't seem right to joke about it.

"Even I know your mom will like it, get it and tell her its from me too." He joked.

"Thank you so much for bringing me here. This was fate." Ignoring his joke as she turned towards the check out.

"Yes, it was." He said quietly.

Jess watched as Rory turned to go pay. He couldn't help but think the whole day had been fate. Rory showing up had to be a sign. It was clearly meant to show him he shouldn't have left Stars Hallow. He was supposed to be with her. The whole day was one big sign. If Rory knew what he was thinking she would say this day was like the snow, a positive omen.

Right after Rory bought the album Jess had to rush her to the bus station. She had barely been able to spend any real time with him but somehow it was still all worth it. Rory had gotten her backpack from its locker and was fiddling with the straps as if she didn't want to leave. It was classic Gilmore fiddling, she wanted to say more but couldn't.

"Why'd you get on that bus?" she asked quietly.

Jess was quiet. She hadn't asked him why he left all day. Until she had brought it up she hadn't been upset with him. But as she thought about it she got angrier at the fact that she had called out to him –tried to stop him and he still left town. Jess went to answer but they were interrupted by an older man.

"Excuse me, I'm so sorry to bother you. Which way is 44th?" a man asked Rory as he passed by.

"Oh, um, that way." Rory said pointing in the wrong direction.

"Great, thanks." He said as he headed off in the direction she had shown him.

"I got asked directions."

"That's very impressive. 44th's the other way."

"Oh no."

Rory looked as if he had crushed her whole day. Being mistaken for a native would have tipped the scales in favor of being the best day ever.

"Sorry."

Jess didn't want to keep the conversation going. He didn't want to answer her question, didn't want to think about that day. He knew eventually he was going to have to say goodbye. She had her mom's graduation. Rory had said the ceremony was that night she needed to get him. And Jess didn't want to keep on pretending she wasn't about to leave him. He looked everywhere he could besides her, at the ground, the ceiling, and the buses…

"Oh, man, I should go find him."

"He'll figure it out," in his effort to avoid looking her in the eye he glanced at the bus information, "Hey didn't you say your mom's graduation thing was tonight?"

"Yeah."

"Then why are you taking this one? You'll never get there in time.

"What?"

"It'll make like a million stops. You need an express, come on."

Jess led her through the crowd to find another bus to Hartford. He knew it might be iffy. There was the possibility there wouldn't be one in time but anything would get her there faster than what she had been planning on. Rory used her good hand to lace her fingers with his till her found a bus that was leaving soon. He didn't let go of her hand until they had stopped in front of the bus knowing she really did have to leave.

Jess was the one to take care of everything. He made sure the bus was leaving soon enough, he made sure it was a one stop bus, he made sure there was room for her. Rory couldn't help but smile a sad smile knowing that he was doing so much to get her where she needed to be.

"Well, I should go." She said after a few minutes of standing outside the bus in silence together.

"Okay."

"I gotta go to my mom's graduation."

"And give her Belinda." He reminded her.

"And give her Belinda." She said lifting the album up.

"Go on. Can't let the bus leave with you standing outside."

Rory gave him a sad smile, which he returned. Her feet felt heavy as she stepped up onto the bus. She found herself a seat with no one else and set her back pack down hoping to defer people from sitting next to her if possible. She looked out the window at Jess who had moved to be standing right outside her seat.

"Why?" he asked.

"What?" She asked after she had opened the window, the glass of the bus windows had muffled his voice.

"I said, why- why aren't you mad about the accident, why didn't you let me go to the hospital, why'd you come here?"

She was stunned into silence. They had spent over an hour together and he hadn't thought to ask her anything serious. He hadn't realized why she had come. In all the day dreaming she did on the ride up she always assumed he would read into her motivations on his own. She had never gotten her answer to why he left but he wanted to know why she came.

"I mean, you ditched school and everything. That's so not you. Why'd you do it?"

"Because," she paused trying to think of the best way to explain it all to him, "you didn't say goodbye."

She decided not to answer the other questions. How was she supposed to explain that she couldn't be mad at him even if she wanted to. How could she tell him that she'd been more concerned with her mother attacking him if he went to the hospital –that a broken wrist and a cast were nothing compared to what her mother would have done to him.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

The bus started to move and Jess jumped out of the way afraid that the driver might not be paying attention. Rory put her hand on the glass and watched as Jess slowly got farther away from her window. His mouth was open as if he wanted to yell something to her. Rory could see that the pained expression on her face perfectly matched the one on his. He still hadn't said goodbye.

The bus was pulling into the Hartford station ten minutes before the graduation was supposed to start. Rory clutched Belinda harder as she panicked about being late. Quickly she pulled out her phone and typed a message to her mom.

Might be a minute or two late. Getting your present took longer than I thought.

It wasn't a lie, it wasn't the full truth but it also wasn't a lie. She typed a message to Sookie quickly as she switched buses. Belinda safe by her side she waited only two minutes before the local bus pulled out.

Sook, save me a seat please!

The bus pulled in front of the school only three minutes after the graduation had started. Rory felt ridiculous not having changed. It was like her uniform had completely slipped her mind until she was running through the school halls looking for the room where the ceremony was being held. The bag Belinda was in was hitting her side as she stopped suddenly outside of a set of double doors.

She could hear the ceremony inside and tried her best to be quiet as she snuck in the doors. Sookie and Jackson were sitting in the back with a chair next to them. Rory slipped into the seat breathing heavily.

"Hey hon, you didn't miss a thing. They started late, the camera guy needed something from the car."

"Camera guy?" Rory asked trying to catch her breath.

"Emily and Richard." Sookie didn't need to explain anymore.

She should've known, she'd been the one to invite her grandparents of course they'd do something ridiculous to draw attention to themselves. But she smiled knowing that it showed how much her grandparents cared about their daughter no matter how they acted. They loved Lorelai, and Rory felt like she had made the right decision in inviting them.

Rory watched the ceremony trying not to get sentimental. She could see how crazy her mom got when the cameraman followed her around. But if you ignored that fact the whole thing was actually quite nice.

"Congratulations, Lorelai." Rory heard Emily saying as she got closer.

Sookie, Jackson, and Rory had held back for a moment hoping to give Lorelai a chance to get out of the crowd. But it seemed the Gilmore's had gotten to her already.

"Thank you. I'm glad you guys came."

"Yes, well, we should get going. I guess we'll see you tomorrow for dinner. Oh Rory, we'll see you tomorrow as well." Emily said.

Lorelai looked up and smiled at her daughter. But as Emily turned away she got flustered for a moment.

"Hey, wait. Aren't we going to take a picture?"

"Excuse me?" Emily questioned, stopping in her tracks.

"The three of us, me in the middle with the gown, you know the traditional pose. And one with Rory too."

"Well, uh, we don't have a camera with us." Richard explained.

"Hold on. I do." Lorelai said reaching to grab the disposable camera.

"That's a camera?" Emily questioned in disbelief.

"It's a camera, grandma. Here I'll take the picture."

Lorelai waited for her parents to find their place around her. Everyone managed to smile and look happy. Sookie took the camera from Rory's hands when she was done and insisted on taking the whole family picture.

"Thank you." Lorelai said to her mother after the picture was taken.

"Yes, well, tomorrow then."

"Absolutely." Lorelai said with a nod.

"Let's go, Richard."

Rory walked a few steps with her grandmother as if to say goodbye. Her grandfather stayed behind talking to her mother but she hugged her grandma and said her goodbyes once her grandfather had caught up.

When Rory got back to her mother's side she was already talking with Sookie and Jackson.

"Hey, we're so proud of you!" Sookie said kissing Lorelai's cheek.

"Yeah, you were great up there."

"Didn't fall or anything." Roy teased.

"Thanks, you guys." Lorelai said tugging on her graduation gown. "I should probably get the gown back. Thanks for coming, Sook, Marcus Schenkenberg." She said with a smile towards Jackson.

"You wanna go out to eat? Celebrate a little?"

"Rory and I have a plan already, don't we kid?"

"You better believe it. This lady is about to get the best present ever, including a free meal wherever she wants. And my company, nothing is better than that." Rory said with a smile leaning into her mother.

"See you tomorrow then."

"Thanks." Lorelai said watching her friends walk away.

Rory followed her mom to return the gown. She started to feel a wave of guilt for almost being late. The fact that she would have been late had the ceremony been on time was eating away at her.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't here earlier."

They'd planned on getting ready together. They'd had a special plan for the entire day and she had risked it, ruined parts of it. They'd never get the chance to get ready for Lorelai's graduation again. She had missed the opportunity and it was her own fault.

"You're okay, right?"

"Yes. I'm fine." Physically –besides her wrist- but mentally she wasn't sure how she was doing.

Lorelai nodded, putting her gown on the first hanger she had found.

"Well it's good you didn't miss it. You're why I did this stupid thing in the first place."

"I know."

"You didn't miss, that's what's important right?" Lorelai said not sounding totally convinced.

"Right."

Roy walked out with her mom towards the jeep knowing that something was off. Something between them was weird. Lorelai wasn't okay with knowing her daughter had just barely not been late. Rory knew that, but she wasn't sure what she should say.

The car ride to the house felt uncomfortably long. Lorelai pulled the jeep under the tree and put the car in park. She didn't bother taking the keys out when she turned it off. Instead she just let the car without a word. Rory followed making it onto the porch before Lorelai stopped and turned towards her.

"Actually no, what was it? What was so important you almost missed this?"

Rory had been expecting a question along those lines. The silent drive from Hartford had been excruciating. Rory didn't mean to say anything, she could just avoid the question and get ready for dinner but she found herself blurting out the answer anyway.

"I cut school!" Rory yelled out louder than she had intended.

"You what?"

"I cut school and I got on a bus. It was dumb, and I shouldn't have risked it today of all days, but I did it."

"Why…"

"And I left school and I got on a bus and I went to New York." Rory said hoping that would be enough explanation for her mother to catch on to what she was saying.

"You went to New York?" there was a cautious tone to her voice. "Rory, why did you go to New York?"

"Would you believe the only reason was to get your present?"

"Rory." Her mother said seriously.

"To see Jess."

"You went to New York to see Jess."

"I'm a horrible person, I risked missing your graduation to see Jess."

"You're not a horrible person and you didn't miss the graduation."

"I am sick, I'm ill, I'm cracked. I mean, I almost missed your graduation, which would have been the worst. And I had to spend hours on a gross stinky bus, which is awful."

"Do you, oh my God…" Lorelai looked like she had just had an epiphany, "do you like Jess?"

Rory was silent. She couldn't lie to her mom. If anything blurting out where she had been proved that. Lying to her mom was impossible. What she needed to do was just take a breath and think her answer through. Her mom didn't need to know about the secret hang outs, she didn't need to know how much Rory liked him. She just needed to make sure whatever answer she gave was truthful.

"Rory, you cut school. You got on a bus and went to a strange city in your uniform to see Jess. That means something." Lorelai said when Rory stayed silent.

"It doesn't matter, he's gone and I'm not. Right now all that matters is you, your big day, the awesome meal we're about to eat, and this." Rory said pulling the Belinda bag out from behind her.

Lorelai looked at the present comprehending what it was slowly.

"Alright kid. We'll do this your way. No more talk. Go get changed and take me out to eat."

Roy smiled, knowing that her mother was being sincere. She just wasn't ready to think about the Jess stuff yet… not yet. Besides what she said was true how she felt about Jess didn't matter. As long as he was in New York she didn't have to obsess over it. As long as he was far away she didn't need to think about how confused she was.

A.N: So there is is, what'd you think? Up Next: Sookie's wedding!