A/N: Thanks for the amazing reviews for the last chapter, guys. I'm glad you liked it so much!

Eight and a Half

By Imagine Backstory

Chapter Twelve – The Commitment & The Obligation

Rory

The weekend came and went far too quickly. Come Monday morning, it was time to go home. I was grateful for the small reprieve our brief visit had given us, but I was dreading going back to New Haven, back to the monotonous life James and I had been living for the past few weeks. On the other hand, I was hoping our mini-vacation would put us both in a better frame of mind so we could actually discuss our issues at length and, if all went well, recover from them smoothly.

I was just about done packing when Luke's large frame filled my doorway. He rested his elbow on the door frame and cleared his throat, even though he already had my attention. "Hey, Luke, what's up?" I asked, humouring him.

He cleared his throat again. "I, uh, wanted to ask you something, or rather run something by you," he began hesitantly, gesturing in my direction with one hand.

"Okay, shoot," I replied, sitting on the edge of my bed and patting the spot next to me.

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm good. Uh, I don't really know where to start." I waited, face neutral. After a moment, he just spoke. "Well, anyway, I was thinking about Thanksgiving."

"Yeah?"

"And uh...you know, Thanksgiving is a big deal around here, and it's really important to your mom, which makes it important to me."

"Uh-huh?"

"And Thanksgiving is a time when families, you know, come together, hang out, catch up, that sorta thing."

"Luke? Just spit it out," I said with a wry smile.

He sighed. "I was thinking about inviting Jess here for Thanksgiving," he said quickly.

I nodded, having figured out that that was what he was going to say. "I see."

"You know, it's been awhile since he had a proper visit, and since you two seem to be on pretty good terms, I figured why not. Liz's dying to see him and Doula probably doesn't remember him at all. And it might be nice to have the whole family round the table for a change."

I held a hand up to stop his ranting. "It's okay, Luke. You don't have to rationalize it. I think it's a nice idea." It's actually probably a terrible fucking idea.

"Really?" His eyebrows disappeared beneath the rim of his baseball cap. "Aw, that's really great. I'm glad you think so." He took a few steps into my room, then, and leaned in towards me in a covert fashion. "I should probably invite his girlfriend, too, right?"

"Uh," I blanched, trying to keep a relatively neutral face. "I suppose?"

"Well, that's the thing to do, right? When your nephew has a significant other, and there's a family gathering, it's customary to invite said significant other along with said nephew? I mean I've never met the girl, none of us have—have you met her?" Figuring it would be easier to lie than explain everything, I shook my head quickly. "Right, well, if they've really been going out for five years, I think it's about damn time she meets his family."

"He may think otherwise," I muttered as Luke turned away, nodding as if he'd finally convinced himself of something.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

"Okay. Well, I guess I'll give him a call."

"It's over two months away, Luke," I reminded him. "You could...wait?"

"Nah, if I don't give him this much notice he might be able to come up with an excuse not to come." Luke grinned, proud of himself, and left the room.

I sank back onto my bed, letting out a long breath. I tried to picture Nora sat in the dining room of the Dragonfly. Or even in Luke's diner. She just seemed too...urban to look any sort of natural anywhere in Stars Hollow. I then pictured her and Jess sat at the same table...with me and James across from them. Oh, boy.

I considered sending Jess a text to give him a heads-up. We hadn't spoken since his early morning phone call on Saturday, two days ago. I wasn't sure where we stood regarding the whole communication thing. Was that call just a one-time thing because he needed to talk to somebody? Did it mean we were no longer in a fight? Were we casual enough to text each-other randomly? I realized I had never really texted him before. Would he be different, speaking through small messages typed on small devices? Or would he just be his usual self, and be super irritatingly evasive and cryptic? Knowing how far his mind could take him, I couldn't imagine Jess being able to get many thoughts out in limited characters. He'd be terrible at Twitter.

Finding Dodger in my contacts list, I decided to go with the Fuck It route. Opening a new message, I quickly typed:

Heads-up: Luke wants the WHOLE family together for Thanksgiving. That means you. And Nora. And me. And James. Great, right?!

I frowned at the message, and then proceeded to mash the backspace button to erase it all forever. I tossed my phone away from me before I did something I really regretted.

Jess

"Jess!" Nora cried, nearly bowling me over as she swooped by me with a tray full of empty beer mugs, the top of her head just barely grazing my chin in the close quarters of the kitchen entrance. "You didn't tell me about that huge group that just came in! They've been waiting for nearly ten minutes."

I blinked, trying to figure out what she was talking about. I'd been engrossed in my phone, scrolling through countless e-mails from authors and agents alike. I hadn't really been reading them, I realized—at least, none of the information was sticking in my brain before passing out the opposite ear. It was for the distraction, mostly, something to do with my hands because if I stood still—well, I couldn't stand still. Restlessness was worse than nonchalance. I felt like I hadn't slept properly in weeks. Really, I hadn't. In part because whenever bed time rolled around I found myself the most wide awake as I'd been at any point in the adjoining day, and also in part because Nora's sex drive seemed to have mysteriously skyrocketed since the night-we-don't-talk-about. This used to happen all the time—she'd fuck up, I'd rescue her, she'd fancy me her hero, she'd fuck me till I couldn't keep my eyes open the next day, not to mention walk. Not that I was necessarily complaining—sex with Nora had always been like wow—but a guy needs his sleep in order to, you know, function. And the use of his legs is more often than not ideal.

The little kitten in question was glaring at me, hand on her hip, her expression one of pure sass, as she waited for me to respond. I let out a stupid "Uh—" before she threw up her hand with a disgusted "Oy!" and stalked away to dispose of the tray of soiled glassware in the dish pit. It was one of the few moments that she let the Jew in her come out to play, and to my amusement and dismay, it turned me on.

Generally, things between Nora and me had been good since that night. I had insisted on taking her to the hospital the following day, my paranoia earning me many snarls and groans but offering me the comfort and relief I so desperately needed. My nerves had been, for all intents and purposes, shot. And Nora had thankfully been smart enough to know that it was a necessary evil to make doubly sure, even if it involved an IV and nurses poking around her body, that she was okay.

We had talked—oh, we had talked—about the incident at length, during which conversation she swore off partying for a very long while. Finding this to be a bit of a stretch, I insisted that she only go out if I were accompanying her, at least for the first little while, until she got her head on straight again. I wanted her to know that I wanted to trust her. Acting like her personal body guard for too long wasn't going to help matters much if at all, and I didn't even want the task, anyway. It pained me to admit it, but I was getting a little old for New York's night life scene.

I didn't even realize my phone was ringing until Isabel snatched it from my hand. "Jess' phone. Here he is." She passed it to me with a shit-eating smirk.

I retorted with a dark glare as she walked away. "Yeah."

"Jess? It's Luke."

"This is a surprise," I said, because it really was. I couldn't remember the last time I'd received a call from Luke Danes.

"Yeah, hey, listen, I wanted to ask you what your plans were for Thanksgiving." Straight to the point, my Uncle Luke. As usual.

I chuckled, running a hand through my hair. It was slowly but surely starting to grow back; a few of the longer bits at the front were already curling around my ears. "Uh, you mean, the Thanksgiving that's like two months from now?"

"Unless you're going to Canada—yes the Thanksgiving that's two months from now!" Luke exclaimed with frustration.

I bit back another laugh, enjoying the banter I had to admit I had missed indulging my uncle in. "No, Uncle Luke, I can't say I have any plans yet."

"Oh, good, great. Well, listen, we—that is, Lorelai and me—were wondering if maybe this year you'd like to join us for Thanksgiving weekend. We always have a big dinner at the Dragonfly with the whole family—and your mom and TJ will be there, and Doula. We, Lorelai and me, we thought it would be nice if you were there, too, considering you are a part of the family, and, well, it's...been awhile."

I realized that that was probably the closest I was ever going to get to an I miss you from Luke Danes. It was also painfully obvious that this was not in the least bit Lorelai's idea. He was using that as a cover up; there was no way the older Gilmore woman would want me around, especially if Rory was going to be there. I exhaled loudly. "Ah—"

"Oh, yeah, and bring your girlfriend, too! I was just telling Rory it's about time we meet this girl, I mean you said you've been with her, what, five years?"

"You talked to Rory?" I asked, slightly incredulous.

Luke carried on as if there was nothing odd about that. "Yeah, she was here earlier—they just left, her and James, they were here for the weekend—and I ran it by her to see what she thinks. I wasn't sure where you guys were, you know, but she seemed to think it was a nice idea."

I scoffed. "Nice, huh?" I guess her leprechaun is back in town.

"Yeah! So...whatdya say?"

"I don't know, Luke," I groaned. "To be honest it just kinda seems like a recipe for disaster."

I could hear some clanging in the background and I assumed Luke had entered the storage room of the diner. "Please, Jess," he said relatively quietly. "It's important that you're here this year. It's just—well-Lorelai and I have some news, and I—we want the whole family to be here when we tell you."

I rolled my eyes. "You're getting married."

Luke sputtered on the other end of the line. "Well—I mean—technically we have been married for—"

"Yes, but now you're actually getting married, like with the big ceremony and shit, and you want everyone to be there when you announce it."

"Damn it, Jess—"

"Well, okay, then, Luke. Tell you what, since I know now, how about I skip Thanksgiving and I'll see you in town for the wedding?"

"Jess Mariano, so help me god if you do not come for Thanksgiving this year and bring your girlfriend I will personally drive out there and drag your sorry sarcastic butt to Stars Hollow come hell or high water! Oh, and I'll send your girlfriend in a nicer car—don't want her thinking we're a bunch of lunatics."

"Why do you think I've kept her away all this time?" I asked with a roll of my eyes.

"You're coming, and that's final!" Luke shouted. "And bring something nice to wear!" And with that he hung up, loudly.

I let out an exasperated moan-grunt thing and smacked my cell down onto my thigh. It was amazing how much time could go by and Luke still thought he had any say in what I did with my life.

Nora brushed past me, then, with a tray of full drinks this time. She gave me a quizzical look when she saw my expression. I smiled wryly and said through gritted teeth, "So, babe, wanna meet my family at Thanksgiving this year?"

She stared a me for a half a beat, and then her face exploded into a smile. She nearly dropped the tray as she gave me a one-armed hug, squealing in delight. "I thought you would never, ever ask!" she shrieked, then took off to deliver the drinks.

My shoulders sagged when she vanished. Kill me now.

I wondered, for probably the millionth time that day, whether or not I really did have an obligation to go to Stars Hollow for Thanksgiving. As I loaded mine and Nora's luggage into the trunk of my black Comet, I thought about my chances of beating Luke in a fight in case he made good on his promise to come get me if I didn't show up. I mean, I'd basically been outlawed from the town about ten years ago. Besides my brief pop-in for the not-wedding, I hadn't seen any of those people in about that amount of time, besides Luke and Rory. Was I really a part of that family anymore?

When we first started dating, Nora had often asked about my family, but she had figured out early on that it was a sensitive topic I seldom liked to discuss. I usually brushed it off with something like There's nothing to tell or something along those lines. Eventually she had stopped asking but I knew she'd always resented me a little for it. The family element was severely lacking in both our lives—she may have been looking to my family to fill the void hers had, but unfortunately, that was something I just could not provide her.

Nora plugged her phone into the auxiliary as soon as we started driving, blasting an indie pop playlist on Songza (SHE WANTS TO KNOW WHY HE'S NOT HOME / OH I BET MONEY MONEY MONEY I BET / HE'S AT THE SEXOTHEQUE). It was too cold outside but she rolled down her window anyway, her hair threatening to escape in the violent breeze that whistled through the car. She had dyed the ends of her blood red hair a lovely dark purple; it stood out vibrantly in the drab grey of the November day.

I watched her out of the corner of my eye, not wanting to take my eyes off the road for too long. I couldn't quite believe I was taking Nora to Stars Hollow. I wasn't quite sure how to feel about it. It was just a place, really. A place I had spent some time in when I was a teenager, nothing more. I had spent way more of my life in New York—that was really my home. Still, it felt like I was taking Nora to an untouched chapter of my life, a chapter which in its entirety had not been my finest hour. I was baring myself to her in a new way, and it sent an unpleasant tingle to my extremities.

Nora, on the other hand, was ecstatic. She had managed to pry a few stories out of me over the years, and had always expressed an interest in visiting the eclectic town which was the setting for many of my teenage adventures. Really, I think she just wanted to turn another page in the Book of Jess, find out another part of me, or something like that. She had this fantasy that I remained a mysterious unread novel to her, and she had to keep reading me chapter by chapter until she reached the stiff back cover. I had tried to explain to her that certain chapters should just go unread. But she persisted still.

As the trees began to give way and the roads became familiar, a pit formed in my gut. I gripped the steering wheel with iron fists, hoping Nora wouldn't notice my anxiety. I debated just making a fucking illegal u-turn and high-tailing it back to Brooklyn, but Nora would hate me for it—and also, it was a divided highway, so fuck me, right?

Nora squealed when she saw the sign for STARS HOLLOW on the side of the road, shooting me a smile. I returned it with as much enthusiasm as I could muster, considering my insides were disappearing into the wormhole in my core. There was no turning back now.

Rory

I loved autumn in Stars Hollow. Not too cold, but lacking in the sticky heat that was the Connecticut summer. Golden leaves crunched under our feet as James and I crossed the street into the town square, our arms full of brown paper grocery bags from Doose's. Sookie had sent us out last minute to get some more eggs and other odds and ends. The Dragonfly was a zoo for the holiday weekend, so James and I had been more than willing to escape for a bit. After delivering the groceries, we had headed out once again, hand-in-hand, for a brief walk before the craziness could really start.

As we crossed through the town, I kept scanning my peripherals for anything out of the ordinary—an unrecognizable vehicle, a familiar dark head of hair—but there was nothing, so far. I knew that Jess had confirmed he and Nora were coming, but I had no idea what time they would be arriving. It was already almost four—the sun was beginning to set.

To my dismay, I realized James was leading me into the park, towards the bridge. I tried not to bring James there too often—it just contained too many memories of another boy—but he seemed to just be drifting in that direction almost absently, and there was really nothing I could do to stop him without seeming weird.

He stopped me in the middle of the bridge and pulled me to him, folding me into his arms. We stood like that quietly for awhile, him shifting every now and then to press his lips to my head. When we parted, he had an intense look in his usually soft blue eyes. He held my hands in his and looked down at our feet, chewing on his lower lip thoughtfully.

"Everything alright?" I asked him.

He swallowed. "I'm a bit nervous," he admitted quietly.

I frowned. "About what?"

"Tonight," he said. "This whole week-end. With him coming. And everythin'."

I sighed, lightly brushing his lips with my own. "I'm nervous about that, too."

"Why?" His tone was gentle. Curious.

I shrugged, snuggling closer to James. Why indeed. "It's been awhile since he's been at any kind of gathering here," I said slowly. "And I don't know. I guess I'm just hoping you guys get along. Or are at least civil."

"We don't have the greatest track record so far," James said sheepishly, obviously referring to their phone call while I was in New York. "But I want to like your family, Rory. Your whole family."

I squeezed my arms around his waist. "It'll be fine." Who knew, anymore?

We remained in our silent embrace for a bit longer, then I felt James retreat again. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and shuffled his feet. Still nervous. But there was something else. A strange sort of energy in the air between us. He wouldn't look me in the eye. "I, uh."

I waited patiently, trying to keep my amusement off my face. James was so cute when he was nervous.

Finally, he looked up at me, his eyes wet. "Rory, will you marry me?" he asked, his voice like velvet.

My mouth fell open with a soft gasp. "But, we're already—"

"I know," he said, a grin pulling at the corners of his mouth. "But I just felt like I needed to ask again. Make it official. So—will you? Marry me, that is?"

"My answer hasn't changed," I cried, my eyes stinging with tears at his sweetness. "Of course I will marry you, James."

His face broke into a full-on smile and he swept me up into a kiss, pulling me into his body.

I tried not to think about the fact that this bridge, which had always held so much meaning to me, was now marked with a new milestone, unrelated to my teenage memories, and I tried to ignore the weird way my heart seemed to sink a little at that fact.

A/N: This was a bit of a filler chapter. I got sick and wanted to write but wasn't able to put anything particularly weighty together in my condition. I figured it would balance out the last chapter anyway. Next time—Thanksgiving! Please review and tell me what you want to / think is going to happen!