A/N: Full of fluffy goodness! I hope you all enjoy. This is officially the longest chapter in this story thus far, and I find that a great accomplishment. I hope to read your reviews! Enjoy!
She woke the next morning to Logan softly kissing her neck. It was one of her favorite ways to wake up, and when she opened her eyes, she was met with a sight of adoration and love. He smiled at her, one hand playing with her hair as the other held onto her waist. Neither said anything, just looked at each other. One of her hands rested on his chest, right above the scar from the splenectomy - the line still raised and red, the other on his shoulder. Right before their lips met, they were interrupted by the yell that was none other than Babette.
"Rory!" she yelled, and Rory could hear her opening the front door. "Rory, honey! There's an odd car outside! Rory!" Logan closed his eyes and laughed. Quickly, she kissed him before standing up and walking out to the kitchen. Babette was standing at the counter, chest heaving trying to get a breath.
"Babette, it's like seven in the morning," Rory said, and the other woman just nodded. "And that 'odd car' is Logan's. We're in town for the festival."
"Oh, right. Is that hunk here?" Rory laughed, but decided for the sake of her 'hunk' fiance, she'd lie this one time.
"He's still asleep Babette. And I wish I still was, but alas." The woman smiled, embracing Rory in a tight hug.
"I'll let you get back to sleep. I just wanted to make sure you weren't being killed or something. I'll see you later, honey." The two parted, and Babette left out the back door. She took a breath before walking back into her bedroom. Logan was now lying on his back, looking at the ceiling.
"I'm a hunk, huh?" he asked with a smile. She smiled along, but shook her head before laying back down. His arm wrapped around her and held her close.
"You're my hunk," she replied, kissing along his shoulder, up his neck, across his jaw, before finally kissing him. Their eyes closed as he repositioned on his side, holding her close as they continued their embrace. One hand held the back of his neck while the other sat on his waist, his positioning almost a mimick. This continued for several more minutes before they separated, but he pulled her close.
"I love you," she said softly as he kissed her forehead.
"Love you too," he then responded, eyes closing. When his breathing evened out, she knew he was asleep again. But she couldn't sleep, so she stood and got dressed before walking into the kitchen. Her mom was already at the Dragonfly, and a part of her wanted to go see her and see the place now. However, the other part wanted to walk around town more.
Rather than choosing one or the other, she merged the two ideas together. She would go visit her mom, then walk around town. She left a note for Logan when he woke back up that she'd be gone, but that she'd see him before the festival. She poured herself a cup of coffee before finally leaving the house.
The walk to the Dragonfly wasn't horrible, but wasn't the most pleasant. Despite wearing her tennis shoes, she wasn't used to the walk anymore. When she finally arrived, she was greeted with a cup of coffee from Sookie who was patiently waiting for her.
"We were about to start making bets to see when you'd show up," Sookie told her with a chuckle. Rory laughed along, taking a sip. Luke may have had the best coffee, but Sookie came in a close second.
"Oh, before I forget," Rory said between sips. "I wanted to know if you would cater my wedding. I know it's a lot to ask, between the kids and this place, but it would mean a lot to me. It's going to be at the end of May, and I don't expect an answer right now, but." Her rant was cut off with a tight hug.
"Of course I'll cater your wedding!" Sookie practically yelled. "Do I get to do the cake too, because I have ideas." Rory nodded in agreement. "Perfect. Just tell me the colors when you have them, and I'll make sure it's perfect."
"Hello, Rory," Michelle said, his tone disdainful as always. "I was wondering when you would show up. Come to steal my post-it notes again?"
"It's nice to see you too. Actually, I came for the festival, but I think I could squeeze in some time to steal post-its." He glared at her before sulking away, probably to annoy somebody else. Rory sat the now empty cup on the counter as her mother walked in.
"I was wondering when you were gonna show, kid," Lorelai told her, hugging her.
"Everybody keeps saying that. It's like nine in the morning. How late do you think I was gonna be?" Lorelai smirked. "Oh come on! The last time I did that, you yelled at me!" This was in reference to the Dean debacle.
"That was different. This is Logan. I'd be surprised if you guys didn't, and now apparently I must be surprised." She just rolled her eyes at her mother. "You know he's back in town, Dean."
"I heard. It's none of my business though, and my life is none of his. He ended it, and that's that." Lorelai nodded. For Rory, Dean was old news. She was with Logan, she was marrying Logan and she loved him more than she ever loved Dean. She loved him more than she loved Jess. The only person she loved more than Logan was her mother, and that was more obligatory. To an extent, she was born to love her mother, but romantic love was a whole other story.
She parted ways with the two friends after another hour of conversation, making her way into town finally. Her mind fell onto her conversation with her mom from the night before. She wondered how long Logan had felt the way he was feeling, if she'd done something that would make him think she was going to leave. It was unsettling to say the least, but she tried to push those thoughts aside as she came up to the town square.
Ms. Patty's dancers were practicing in the studio, Taylor and Luke were yelling about decorations - a tradition as old as the festival itself, and Kirk was decorating. She saw him staple his shirt to the tree rather than the paper, which made her chuckle.
She sat on one of the benches as she watched the citizens of Stars Hollow prepare for the festival. Gypsy was setting up her cider booth, Jackson setting up his vegetable booth. She wasn't sure how he managed to grow vegetables in the middle of winter. Did he have a greenhouse? Were there vegetables that flourished in the winter? She took a mental note to ask him about it someday.
"So, you and Richie Rich, huh?" she heard a familiar voice ask from beside her. She didn't even realize somebody had occupied the other seat. She turned to see Dean.
"His name is Logan, and yes. Although I don't see how my engagement concerns you," she told him bluntly. She could see the hurt in his eyes.
"Just trying to catch up. I feel like I deserve a little bit of knowledge, seeing as I ended my marriage for you." That was a low blow, and she knew he knew it. But she also knew not to believe it. She'd gone over it all a thousand times in her head, blaming herself for his failed marriage with Lyndsey. She also knew it took two to tango.
"No, you ended your marriage for you, not for me. You dumped me, remember? At my grandparents' house in front of my friends." She just shook her head.
"I love you, Rory," he then told her. She shook her head again. She knew this was where the conversation was heading, knew that he'd bring up his own feelings in order to try and hurt hers.
"You don't get it do you, Dean?" she asked, turning her entire body to face him. "I loved you, past tense. I've moved on. But you think you're still in love with me, but you need to realize you're not. You're in love with sixteen year old me. You're in love with the idea of me. You always put me on a pedestal so high that nothing could compete, not even me. I'm not perfect, no matter how much you want me to be. I've made mistakes, I live with them every day. Logan sees that. He knows I'm nowhere near perfect and he loves me anyway. That's what love is, seeing somebody's faults and looking past them. Not getting mad when they make a mistake, when they show you those faults. You're always going to be my first everything, but I'm sorry, you're not going to be my last. He is." She took a deep breath, waiting to hear what his response would be. Rather than saying anything, he just stood and walked away.
"That was some speech, kid," Luke said, walking over with a cup of coffee. He took the seat Dean had been occupying just a few moments before, handing the cup over.
"It just annoys me that he thinks I'm so perfect in general, and so perfect for him. Maybe when we were sixteen, but that was years ago and he just won't move on." Luke nodded in agreement. "Do you think you and Mom will ever get back together? I mean, she and Dad didn't work out - again."
"I don't know, Rory. I care about your mom, but I think we both need to be at a place where we want similar things again. I mean, I have April now which is crazy. And she's dealing with the aftermath of your dad. Maybe someday." He wrapped an arm around her shoulder. It wasn't like him to be affectionate.
"You make an amazing dad, Luke. And no matter what happens with you and my mom, you'll always be a dad to me." He smiled before standing up and leaving her to sit there by herself again.
The clock in the town square chimed, signaling that it was five. She figured it was time to go find Logan. Her mom would be at the square in a half-hour along with the rest of the town to begin the festivities. She stood from her bench, looking around. The fairy lights were covering the gazebo, the booths were all set up. It was like she'd always remembered it.
She walked back to the house, the snow starting to fall again. She walked in to see Logan sitting on the couch, ready to go. His head was tilted back, eyes closed. She wondered if he was sleeping again, but knew better than that. He couldn't sleep sitting up, a fact she'd learned not long after they started the no strings deal.
"Hey," she said softly, sitting next to him. He brought his head down, looking at her with a smile. "How's your day been?"
"I woke up around noon," he told her. "Grabbed what I could find to eat, which was a poptart. Go figure." They both laughed. "I walked around the town a little bit. Talked to Luke, got cornered by Babette and Ms. Patty. I apparently look like husband number four and she'd love to make me number six. Almost took her up on the offer if it wasn't for you. Then came back here and tried to nap for a minute."
"You tried to nap sitting up?" He nodded. "Who are you and what have you done with Logan Huntzberger." They both laughed as he kissed her softly.
"What about your day?" he asked when they separated. She filled him in on her talk with her mom and Sookie, as well as Sookie's excitement for the opportunity to cater their wedding. She told him about her conversation with Luke, leaving Dean for last.
"I also ran into somebody you kinda know." She could see his interest peak. "Dean."
"Oh," he said, brow furrowing.
"It was fine. He can't let the past go, and I told him to. I told him I'm with you and that what he and I had was done. I reminded him that he was the one who ended it, whether or not he wants to remember it that way. I closed that door of my life and finally locked it shut."
"I love you," he told her in response to her animated speech. She smiled, kissing him again before standing up and pulling him up with her.
"Let's go. They'll start without us. Don't think they won't." He laughed as she led him out the door and down the sidewalk. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder as her arm wrapped around his waist. They both smiled, talking about the town and her childhood.
When they reached the town square, nearly every citizen was already in attendance, walking around each of the booths. They, however, found the perfect bench in front of the gazebo, waiting for Ms. Patty's production and story telling time. It didn't take long for her and her dancers to make their way from the studio to the small stage. The sun was setting, the lights were shining, and in that moment everything was perfect.
"This boys and girls is the story of true love," Ms. Patty said in a gentle tone. "A beautiful girl from one county, a handsome boy from another. They meet and fall in love. Separated by distance and by parents who did not approve of the union, the young couple dreamed of a day that they would be together. They wrote each other beautiful letters. Letters of longing and passion, letters full of promises and plans for the future." She could feel his eyes on her as she watched the dancers and listened to the story she'd heard every year for the past twenty-one. "Soon, the separation proved too much for either one of them to bear. So one night, cold and black with no light to guide them, they both snuck out of their homes and ran away as fast as they could. It was so dark out that they were both soon lost and it seemed as if they would never find each other. Finally, the girl dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her lovely face. 'Oh my love, where are you? How will I find you?' Suddenly, a band of stars appeared in the sky. These stars shone so brightly they lit up the entire countryside. The girl jumped to her feet and followed the path of the stars until finally, she found herself standing right where the town gazebo is today. And there, waiting for her was her one true love who had also been led here by the blanket of friendly stars. And that my friends is how Stars Hollow came to be and why we celebrate that fateful night every year about this time." She and the rest of the town clapped as the dancers made their way back to the studio with Ms. Patty.
"Remind you of anybody, Ace?" he asked her. She knew he saw the similarities between the fable and their lives. They did come from two separate worlds - she from the small town and him from society. Their communication wasn't quite letters. It was banter and articles and text messages sent from across the sea. His family thought that she wasn't good enough, and she knew her mother hated to see her go to society life. But they'd found one another, they'd loved one another. And now, here they were sitting on a bench a few feet from the fabled meeting spot finally where they needed to be, with each other.