Author Note: I do not own Gilmore Girls or any of its characters.
Logan wakes up with too much energy. He showers and gets dressed, making sure to fix his hair and wear Rory's favorite cologne.
Thanks to Finn, he knows which coffee cart Rory will be at, and approximately when she will be there. He gets there 20 minutes early and orders two coffees, though his is unnecessary. He fixes hers the way she likes it and sits down to wait.
Thirty minutes later, he spots her. She is talking to a professor, and her face is animated. She is so beautiful. God, I have missed seeing that face.
She finishes her conversation and turns his way. He rises, his heart beating fast. When she is about three feet away, he calls out "I knew you would have to hit the coffee cart eventually." She raises her eyes to meet his. She stops in her tracks, and the smile fades. Turning on her heel, she walks away from him.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
He throws Rory's coffee in the trash and pulls out his phone to call Honor. "It didn't work," he says as soon as she answers.
"Okay, relax. What did she say?"
"Nothing. She practically ran away from me."
"Okay then. What did you say?"
"Nothing, Honor. She ran away from me!" he shouts.
"Regroup, baby brother. Minor setback. Where do you think she is now?"
Logan thinks back over Rory's schedule, which he has committed to memory. "Uh, she has class."
"And so you are going…" Honor leads him.
"To wait outside her class. Thanks. I'm sorry I yelled at you."
"It's okay, Logan. I'm here to help. Stick to the plan."
But when he sees Rory after her class, she looks so happy, that he can't stand the thought of upsetting her again. I'll catch her at the newspaper meeting tomorrow. That won't seem so calculated.
The next morning, Logan heads across campus to the Daily News office. He slows and takes a deep breath before he walks in. She's here. She is talking to Paris with her back to him.
As he walks her way, Peter calls out to him, "Hey man, how was your break?" Logan shakes his hand and starts to answer, all the while keeping Rory in his peripheral vision. He makes some mindless small talk as his brain shifts into overdrive. What can I say to get her to hear me out?
"My door is not open! Huntzberger! My office! Now!" Paris shouts, moving to a makeshift cubicle.
He looks up and heads that way. He will have to pass Rory. He reaches out to touch her, and she recoils from his hand.
He keeps walking, unsure of what to say or do.
"Sit down, Logan. Now let's have a little chat about your future."
"Sure, Paris," he replies sliding into the seat across from her. God, she hates me. She is disgusted by me. I bet Robert told her about Cassandra. He vaguely hears Paris talking.
He slowly leans back in his chair, trying to catch a glimpse of her.
Please let her be waiting for me.
Her desk is empty, and her things are gone.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
"Hey! Either spin a plate on your nose while you do that, or cut it out, 'cause I am speaking," Paris barks at him.
"Sorry," he murmurs turning his attention back to her.
"Oh, you will be…Now let's talk about deadlines, emphasis on dead. You will meet my-"
"Listen, Paris. You know I can do this blindfolded. Just assign me the articles, and I'll get them done."
"Really? I am pretty sure that you told Doyle the same thing last semester."
"I know, but I mean it this time. I need to talk to you about something else."
Paris stares at him blankly.
"Paris, I have to get Rory back. I have been so-"
"Geez, what is it with you two? Keep your personal drama out of my newsroom."
Logan sighs, then stands up to leave. "Just email me my assignments. I'll take care of it."
"Okay. And Logan… just so you know, Rory has been talking about these pears non-stop. Babette made a pie… or something. I wasn't really listening. You know how she rambles."
Wait. Is she trying to help me? With pears?
"Where can you find pears this time of year?"
"Aren't you a Huntzberger? Just look for the damn pears, silver spoon. And get out of my office!"
He takes the rest of the day to regroup. He checks in with Honor who reminds him to stay the course. They have a plan, and it will work.
His confidence has taken another hit today, but he will keep trying tomorrow. The coffee cart won't work again. She'll probably go to the other end of campus to avoid me. I am just going to have to camp out at her apartment and beg her to talk to me.
The next day, he gets up and takes care to look good again. He picks up two coffees and heads to the address Finn had provided him. He passes by what are surely drug dealers on the stairs and heads up a few flights.
What a shithole. Ace cannot live here.
He knocks on her door. Paris cracks it and looks at him through the chain. She has some kind of weird padding on her face.
"What do you want, Logan?"
"Hey, is Rory home?"
"She went to brunch with her mom. She should be home soon."
"Um, okay. Can I come in and wait?"
"No," she says and slams the door shut. He can hear her flipping multiple locks.
So much for Paris helping me. I can wait outside. Gives me time to prepare. Woo her. Be witty, charming, spontaneous, honest, caring, sincere, contrite…
Forty minutes later, he hears someone coming up the stairs. He quickly jumps to his feet and picks up the coffees. Rory turns the corner carrying a couple of bags and looking totally preoccupied. She looks up, sees him, and stops where she is.
"I brought coffee, but it's cold," he begins and she rushes past him.
Keep going. Witty, charming, spontaneous, honest, caring, sincere, contrite.
"It's a nice place you got here. I've been discussing the proper baking soda to actual crack ratio you can get away with, with your neighbors downstairs. Two to one during the daylight, three to one at night," he tells her with a smirk.
"I have twenty minutes to change. Then I have someplace to be," she says fiddling with her locks and continuing to avoid his eyes.
Witty. Charming.
"It's gonna take you twenty just to unlock your door," he says thinking of how many locks he heard Paris flip.
"Bye, Logan."
Caring. Sincere.
"This place is a dump, Rory. You can't live here."
She finally turns to look at him. "You don't get to care about where I live anymore, Logan." He is surprised by the venom in her tone. "You broke up with me. Through your sister."
Honest. Contrite.
"I didn't mean for that to happen."
"You're a coward," she interrupts. "Mr. Life-and-Death Brigade can't even break up with his girlfriend."
But not so honest I look like an idiot.
"Honor was bugging me, and I told her we broke up- to shut her up. I needed some time-"
"So you didn't mean it?"
Sincere.
"No, I did. I just…It was too much for me, okay?"
I was jealous and angry.
"It was a fight. People fight."
I didn't know that. "Yeah, well, I don't fight. I don't want to be screaming at you in a bar. I can't take that. It's too much drama."
"Well if you can't take the drama," she sasses back, "then you shouldn't be in a relationship, which, by the way, you're not. So, everything's good." She turns back to work on her locks.
I have to make her hear me. "It's not that easy."
"Sure it is."
He sighs. This is not going as planned. Rory is still struggling with her lock, and he is struggling to get his words out.
Back to the plan. Spontaneous.
"You want some help?"
"Nope."
Witty.
"I bet one of the guys downstairs could help you out getting into a locked apartment."
She kicks the door twice. "Just go be somewhere else, Logan." She leans over to get her things.
I am running out of time. Honest.
"I thought that I wanted to break up," he rushes through his thoughts. "I thought that it was a stupid experiment- me trying to be a boyfriend. That it didn't work, and I'd just move on. And I didn't. Couldn't, actually."
Sincere.
"Rory, I love you."
She stares at him with no feeling in her eyes. "I have an appointment. I have to go." She finally gets the door open, then slams it in his face.
Logan stands at Rory's door unsure of what to do. Should I go? Should I wait for her to come back out? Crap, I've got to call Honor again.
"Hey, baby brother. How's it going?"
"Not good. I finally talked to her, and she slammed the door in my face."
"Did you say all the things we practiced?"
"I think so. I actually rambled a bit, but I did tell her I loved her."
"And she slammed the door in your face? Aww, that had to hurt. Where are you now?"
"Um, I'm still standing outside her door."
"God, Logan. You are so adorably clueless. Go home. You made actual contact. Start stage 2."
"Okay," he says. "You're sure this is the right move?"
"Yes. Stick to our plan. I love you."
"Love you too. Oh, wait. Do you know where I can get pears?"
"Pears? Like the fruit? Yeah, I can do that. Text me an address."
Once he gets home, Logan finds Honor's plans for stage 2:
Email, call, text.
Flowers, gifts.
Be contrite.
Be sincere.
First, he calls a florist. "Hi. I need to place a standing order. Big bouquets. Every color, every flower. Just mix it up. Two dozen, twice a day. Start with a week. And the cards should say 'I'm sorry. Please give me another chance. Love, Logan.'"
Next, he sits at his computer to start the barrage of emails.
Contrite. Sincere.
Dear Rory,
Please believe me when I tell you how sorry I am. You know that a lot of this is new to me. I really felt like a fight that big only preceded a break up.
Seeing you with Jess was really hard for me. I don't like to feel jealous or out-of-control. I thought I needed a break from all of it. But being without you for six weeks was awful. I will gladly take the drama if it means we can be together again. Please, put me out of my misery and give us another chance.
I love you,
Logan
He re-reads it quickly, embarrassed at how vulnerable he sounds. This is what Rory needs to hear.
Contrite. Sincere. Embarrassing. Send.
The next day, he attends his first class of the semester. Missed the first three days. Drop-add anyway. Getting Rory back is my focus this semester.
As soon as his class ends, he stops by the Daily News and her favorite coffee cart. No sign of her.
He gets a text from Honor. "Got the pears. Ordered some candles. Shipped the Jane Austens. Anything else?"
I am so lucky to have her. Growing up in that house would have been impossible without her. And now she spends her free time trying to fix my love life.
He decides to wait until he gets home to respond. She deserves an email or a phone call. She actually deserves some flowers, too- I'll add to my order.
He goes to his next class and spends the hour thinking about the email he will send Rory today. She did not respond to yesterday's, but he is sticking to his plan. Rory fell for the Logan Huntzberger who wouldn't take no for an answer. He can be that guy again.
Once home, he sits down to type.
Dear Rory,
Paris assigned me my first article of the semester. She wants an expose on the dearth of healthy options in the dining halls. As you are a former dining hall employee and a junk food connoisseur, I plan for you to be my first interview. Do you think this means Paris is TEAM LOGAN? Maybe I should get her a shirt. I always knew she really liked me deep down.
In all seriousness, I like myself a lot more when I am with you. I'm kinder. I'm more thoughtful. I'm just happier (and therefore less likely to be drunk or high).
You used to tell me that I helped you to be less rigid. More spontaneous and open to new adventures. We are good for each other, Rory.
We can get that back. I know we can. Please forgive me. Just talk to me.
Love, Logan
Before he goes to bed that night, he tries a phone call. She doesn't answer. He leaves a voicemail.
"Hey Ace. I just wanted to tell you that I hope you are happy to be back at Yale. I'm sure you're already sniffing books in the library. I'm hoping you'll answer next time I call. I'm not giving up, so…Have a good night and enjoy your coffee in the morning."
Honor checks in the next day between classes. "How are we doing?"
"I don't know, Honor. I'm emailing and calling, but she is completely avoiding me. Last night, I even hired a guy to be her personal coffee cart this morning, and she still hasn't responded."
"God, she's tough. You would choose this one. Maybe run through your lists one more time and see if there is anything else you can do. Something big. Something she can't ignore."
"Yeah, I'll try. I'm going to head back to the paper and try to catch her. I'll talk to you soon."
He heads into the Daily News office. Dad would be so proud at how much I have been here this- oh, God. She's here.
She looks up, sees him enter, and sighs. They hold eye contact for a moment. Logan is about to head her way when Paris shouts, "Gilmore! Get in here!" Rory looks toward Paris's office, and then back at him before going into the bunker.
Logan lets out the breath he'd been holding and settles into his desk to wait for her. Doyle comes over ("Lo-Gan!") and sits on the corner of his desk.
That felt like progress... She actually looked at me… Shut up, Doyle…It seemed like she wanted to talk… There she is.
Rory grabs her things and rushes out without glancing back his way.
Fuck.
He stands up and goes to see Paris, leaving Doyle in mid-sentence.
"Hey, Paris."
"Huntzberger. Is this about your assignments? Because you told me that you could-"
"No. That's not…I'll…those are fine. They'll be done. I just need to know. Do I have a chance here? Is she coming around at all? Because I am really trying. Harder than I've probably ever tried at anything. But I'm not sure it is going to work."
Paris's face actually softens. "Don't give up yet." And then the softness is gone. "But quit sending things to the apartment. The doo-wop group downstairs does not need to think that we have any access to money."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll stop. Well, some things are already ordered. But nothing else."
Logan goes back to his desk and decides to send Rory today's email from there.
Dear Rory,
It was great to see you today without you yelling at me, though I will take yelling if it's all I can get. I felt like maybe you wanted to talk, so call me. Or just respond to this. Please.
Love, Logan
When Logan arrives home, he opens a beer and begins to study his lists, per Honor's suggestion. He rereads the board "Things Rory loves." The top two items are Lorelei and Stars Hollow.
Shit. I know what I have to do.