A/N: Thanks to all those who followed/favourited/reviewed the first chapter! It really made me want to keep writing.

Eight and a Half

by Imagine Backstory

Chapter Two – Goodbye & Hello

Rory

It was amazing just how fast the whole town could switch gears. Within the span of an hour, the Dragonfly had been transformed from blissful party utopia to sombre mourning zone. The people who were present at the party all helped clean up and then, after offering their condolences to James and me, cleared out to let us grieve in peace.

After a trip to the bathroom during which I puked up everything that had been giving me strength up until this point, I flopped down onto the couch next to James in the living room, holding my water glass to my sweaty forehead, which was throbbing with a headache. Instinctively, I took his hand. He hadn't said much since he got that phone call from his brother in Ireland. His mother had apparently been alone in the house when she suffered a heart attack; she was already dead by the time his father came home.

I was completely and utterly spent. Kicking off my shoes, I curled up against James' torso, resting my head on his shoulder. "What now?" I whispered, my lips grazing his shirt collar, which now hung open, his tie askew.

He breathed a few times before replying, his gaze set firmly ahead of him. "I'm leaving in the morning," he said simply. When he finally looked at me, his eyes were swimming with tears again. "I'm so sorry."

I took his hand and gently kissed each of his fingertips. "I know, honey. We'll postpone. It will be okay."

"You've been working so hard," he said, brushing a stray lock of hair from my face. "You and your mum and everyone here. I feel terrible to just cancel it all."

"We aren't cancelling, we're rescheduling. Nobody could have seen this coming, James. It's not your fault." His chest shook beneath my cheek as he sobbed silently. I just held on tighter, not knowing what else I could do. My heart, my head, and my body all ached simultaneously. I had only ever met James' mother over Skype; we had been planning to visit his family in Ireland while honeymooning in Europe next month, since most of them weren't able to make the trek over to America. Still, a death in the family is always rough, and up until tonight I had been a week away from joining that family.

I helped James get to bed; we had decided to just stay at the inn so we could sleep in a real bed instead of an air mattress at Lorelei's house. After I'd tucked him in I went down to make sure everything was arranged with my mother.

I found her and Luke by the front desk, a sleeping Emerson tucked safely against Luke's chest. Luke swayed absently while he chatted with my mother, lulling the child into a deeper sleep. It made me sleepy just to watch him, and I suddenly had the overwhelming urge to pass out or cry or both.

"Aw, honey," Lorelei said when she saw me. She came to me, her arms open. I walked into her hug, feeling tears sting at the back of my eyes. I shut my eyes tight against them, however, as I squeezed my mother, the fimiliarity of her body reassuring me for the moment. As Lorelei pulled back, she kept me at arm's length, staring into my matching eyes. "Has everything been arranged?"

I nodded, wiping my damp eyes with the insides of my wrists. "We booked his plane ticket for tomorrow morning at seven. I'll drive him to the airport."

"And the wedding?"

I looked down at my hands, absently twisting my engagement ring around my finger. "I started making calls, but then it got late. I'll have to continute after I drop James off in the morning, when it's a more decent hour."

Lorelei leaned against the concierge desk. "What are you going to do?"

I shrugged; I hadn't really thought about it. "Stick around here for a few days, I guess, if that's okay. I'm booked off work for the next two weeks, but I guess I could go back early and save my vacation days."

"You're welcome to stay here, sweetheart. You know that." Lorelei kissed my forehead and took my elbows in her hands. "We're gonna get going. Are you going to be alright?"

I nodded. Kissing the three of them good-bye, I stood in the lobby until I saw the tailights of Mom's truck rounding the corner of the drive and disappearing.

Unsure of what to do with myself, I wandered around the inn, wondering how it was possible for me to be so hopelessly exhausted and restless at the same time. My body was trembling, probably a symptom of my hangover, and as nausea creeped up on me again I decided to at least try sleeping.

Slipping quietly into the room so as not to wake James, I crawled into bed next to him. Evidently, he was just as restless as I was, and before I had even properly settled under the sheets he was pressing his chest against my back, circling me with his arms and pulling me close. I squeezed his arms to my chest, feeling his breath hot on my ear. "I'm going to marry you," he whispered sleepily. "I promise."

"I know," I replied softly.

Moments later his breaths slowed to a steady rhythm, and I simultaneously dropped off into the blank, endless void of restless sleep.

"That was the last one," I called out to Lorelai, who was in Emerson's room down the hall. I tossed the phone down onto my mother's bed and sank into the cushions, the weight of the day finally settling on my shoulders, making me exhausted. I had spent the past two hours calling all the wedding guests who hadn't already arrived to let them know we were postponing the wedding. I also had to phone the caterers and the florists and the photographer, and earlier in the day I had helped my mom and Luke to store all the decorations and wedding favours in the shed for safekeeping. And then, of course, to kick off the day bright and early in the morning, I had said good-bye to my fiancé and watched him board a plane to Ireland using his one-way ticket.

The whole future we had planned for ourselves that had been at our fingertips suddenly seemed very far away.

Lorelei entered her room, a squirmy Emerson on her hip, and offered me a sad smile. "Oh, sweetie. You look exhausted."

I looked up from my spot on the bed, surrounded by papers and receipts and address books. "I am," I replied lightly, massaging the spot in between my eyebrows, which was throbbing from frowning all day.

Lorelei sat on the edge of the bed, cradling Emerson to her. "Maybe you should have a nap?"

I shook my head. "I won't sleep. Maybe I'll go to Luke's and get some coffee."

"Would you mind bringing me back some?" Lorelei asked. "I've been trying to get this one down for a nap for over an hour. When you get back, it's you, me, coffee, and Casablanca. Sound good?"

I smiled and kissed her cheek. "Sounds great, Mom."

I took my time walking to Luke's grateful for the fresh air and space to think. For the past twenty-four hours I had been constantly surrounded by people; first at the opening ceremony party and then today accepting condolences and having every single person in the town ask me if I was alright about a dozen times each. I knew all their hearts were in the right place but I felt like I was suffocating a little. Stars Hollow had that tendency.

Luke's came into view too quickly; I decided to take a detour through the park. Strolling along the dirt path, the birds screeching in the trees overhead as if they had not a care in the world. I realized that I was absently twirling my engagement ring around my finger again and stopped for a moment to look at it. It was physically impossible since I cleaned it once every few days, but it seemed to have dimmed somewhat since last night, as if it sensed that it was going to remain alone on that finger for a bit longer than expected. Stuffing my hands into the pockets of my shorts, I pressed on, eager to get to the pond and sit on the bridge and think. Or rather, not think, preferably.

As I approached the pond and set foot on the bridge for the first time in god knew how long, eager to get to the halfway point and just sit down, I realized with an ample amount of dismay that my spot was already taken. I was annoyed for a split second before I focused entirely on the person who was sitting in the middle of the bridge, his legs hanging over the side, bare feet skimming the surface of the pond, and my heart lept into my throat so fast that I gasped.

He looked up from the book he was reading, a blazen scowl on his face, until his dark eyes found mine.

I froze, staring. "Jess?"

Jess

She hadn't changed a bit.

I had heard her exclaim my name in such a fashion so many times before that for a moment, when my eyes first landed on her, I thought I had somehow travelled through time to a moment deep in my past where I would have just offered her my crooked smirk in response to such a reaction.

This was the present, though, and as such I did not give her my crooked smirk. To be perfectly honest, I just kind of froze, sitting there like an idiot, my feet submerging in the lukewarm water of the pond. It was all I could do to not drop my book into said water, and I suddenly found I was clutching it so tight my knuckles were paling.

I thought I had prepared myself for this moment. I just hadn't expected it to happen so soon.

Speak, moron. "Hey." Lame.

To her credit, she just kinda stood there like an idiot, too, her hands meshed together, and I wondered if she was subconsciously hiding her engagement ring from me.

When she didn't respond, I pressed on, clearing my throat. "I guess congratulations are in order."

"Stand up," she said, her voice low.

I raised my eyebrows. "What?"

"Stand up," she repeated, taking a step towards me.

Unsure what else to do, I did as she asked, stuffing my book into my back pocket as I did so. We stood facing each-other for a moment, an unusual hush settling over the pond.

Then, Rory snapped to life. In five long strides she was upon me, and, getting the strange sense that I was somehow coming home, I crushed her to me.

Rory

I could feel Jess trying to withdraw from the hug, but I didn't dare let go. Seeing him had been the last straw to my inevitable unravelling; I simply dissolved in his arms, and to my utter mortification I realized I was completely soaking his shirt with my tears.

"Hey, hey." His voice was a familiar low rumble, pressed hot against my ear. "What's up?"

Gently, he held my face between his hands and forced us apart, keeping me close enough to stare into my eyes. My vision was too blurry with tears to get a good look at him, but I felt the rough pads of his thumbs brushing my tears away.

Suddenly spooked, I backed out of his grip, wiping my eyes with my wrists. "What are you even doing here?" I demanded. In an attempt to pull myself together, I folded my arms over my body.

He spread his hands, squaring his shoulders. "I believe I was invited," he said, looking at me pointedly, one eyebrow raised.

It took me a moment to process what he meant. "You got the invitation?"

"Well, when you put something in the mail to send to someone, it generally ends up in that person's hands." His tone was acidic, but he was rubbing the back of his head with his hand, which meant he was nervous. It was such a Jess moment that I had to remind myself to breathe.

I exhaled, long and slow, and then bit my lip. "You didn't RSVP."

He shrugged with one shoulder. "I wasn't sure if I was going to come."

"I didn't think you would come," I said, my voice small.

He shrugged and spread his hands again by way of explanation.

For some reason, I found myself reluctant to tell him about the postponed wedding. It meant that he might leave. Still, I couldn't stand it if he heard it from someone else first, and then just took off without saying good-bye again. I had to count to three before I could blurt it out. "Jess, there's no wedding."

His eyebrows shot up. "What do you mean?"

Blinking up at the sky to prevent more tears from falling, I shrugged. "It's been postponed...indefinitely." I hadn't yet used the word indefinitely. It turned my stomach into a twist of knots.

Jess took a step towards me, and then thought better of it, opting instead to lace his hands behind his head and stride away from me. Turning back, lowering his hands, he snapped, "What happened?"

"James' mother died," I replied quietly. "Yesterday." I checked my watch. "He's probably landing in Dublin right about now."

"Dublin?"

"He's from Ireland. His family is all there."

Jess nodded. I could see him processing all this as he rubbed a hand over the stubble peppering his jaw. He held out that hand towards me as he spoke. "Listen, shit. I'm sorry to hear that." He sounded sincere.

"I never met her," I said, "but it's still sad."

"'Course."

I studied Jess for a moment. He looked...older. Granted, he was eight and half years older than he was when I last saw him. But he seemed grown-up, more mature. His dark hair was shorter than it had been last time I'd seen him; curls cropped closer to his head on the sides, but messy on the top as I remembered it. His boyish mouth was disguised by the stubble on his jaw. He was shifty-eyed and fidgety as usual, his eyes never really staying focused on one thing for too long, his feet constantly shuffling his own weight, but he was generally carrying himself differently, his shoulders weighted with a confidence I hadn't seen him possess before. He had filled out a little bit but was still relatively small in stature, his muscles taut and lean under his form-fitting white t-shirt. His jeans were rolled up to his knees so as not get them wet in the pond, and I couldn't help but notice he was wearing pants a little tighter these days.

Being Jess, he caught me looking. "It's been awhile," he said, a hint of his signature crooked smile playing on his lips. "Like what you see?" He held his arms out and did a cheeky little spin for me.

He had a pencil behind his ear, a book in his back pocket. It was like being transported back in time. My knees felt suddenly weak.

"I'm sorry you came all the way out here," I managed to choke out.

He paused, gazing at me with an expression I couldn't quite read. "Why?"

I shrugged, tightening my arms around myself. "Well, there's no wedding so you drove all the way here for no reason. I'm sorry."

He smirked, jerking one shoulder up. "Don't be. 'S not your fault. Shit happens." He took a step towards me, leaving about a foot's distance between us. "How are you holding up?" he asked softly, reaching out to briefly touch my elbows.

As per usual with us, I merely shrugged in response.

Jess then said the most wonderful thing he could have said in that moment. "Hey, do you wanna go get some coffee?"