A/N: Greetings, Literati fans! Yep, it's me, I'm back, just as I said I would be. I only hope you've all been looking forward to this latest update and that it doesn't disappoint at all when you read it :) Now, in case your memory is as bad as mine and you forgot where we left off, Luke & Lorelai had fallen out over Nicole making a brief visit to the diner, while Rory & Jess were headed out on the first official date of the new phase in their romantic relationship :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter )

Chapter 17

She was going to wait for him to come looking for her. That was the plan and Lorelai meant to stick to it, sure that this whole thing was Luke's fault and certainly not her own. That was until she got talking to Sookie. Suddenly, her quick trip to the Bellville household, to double-check a couple of things for the inn and visit with little Davey, had turned into Sookie playing relationship counsellor extraordinaire.

Lorelai told her exactly what had happened with Nicole, and somehow, she felt the need to spill about the whole situation with Jason too, and also, how she hadn't even told her parents about her and Luke yet. In the end, even she could see that she wasn't coming off too well. That Luke's part in their relationship was much closer to saint than sinner.

"Poor Luke, he's doing the best that he can," Sookie had told her with a look. "He finally has you, after all this time. I can't believe for a second that he would screw it up, at least, not on purpose. Well, unless..."

"Unless?" Lorelai prompted, almost afraid to hear what came next.

"Well, maybe he's feeling a little insecure or even mad, you know, about your parents not knowing about you two? And about the other guy asking you out? The rich, blue-blooded, Gilmore-approved type guy?"

At that point, Lorelai opened her mouth to protest, to argue every point, to give the best rebuttal ever, but for one of a very few times in her life, she had no words to give. Sookie was right. Luke was the best guy, the very best, not just for Lorelai, but for Rory and Jess and just about everybody, though he would try to deny it, especially when it came to the wider populous of the town. Hell, he had even given over his diner to Kirk and his first real date recently. He didn't have to, but he did.

She had been unfair to him, she saw that now, and in more than one way too. He deserved an apology and some understanding. That was exactly what Lorelai planned to give. She had picked up the phone the minute she got home, to call him up and ask him over for a real nice evening of making up. That was when she remembered that Rory and Jess were going out on the first official date of their rebooted relationship tonight.

"Diner it is," she said to herself, putting down the phone and rushing upstairs to change.

Wearing a dress she knew to be one of Luke's favourites, Lorelai headed into town, taking a deep breath before she pushed on into the diner. She found her man behind the counter, sorting receipts. It was getting late and the customer levels were down to a dull roar, which was helpful. Moving over to the counter, she pulled herself up onto a stool and waited until he looked her way.

"What can I...?" he began to ask, trailing off when he saw it was her. "Hey."

"Hey," she replied in kind. "So, I kinda think I owe you an apology."

"No, you don't," he told her, sweet as ever, even as he reached for a cup and started to fill it with coffee for her. "I never should've-"

"No, Luke, you did nothing wrong," she cut in fast, thanking him for the coffee with a smile the moment it arrived in front of her, then reaching to take a hold of his hand. "Like I said, I owe you an apology. I'm so sorry for the way I acted in front of Nicole. It was absolutely not cool. I guess just seeing her like that... it made me a little nervous. I mean, I know you guys weren't together a super-long time or anything, but you were talking about getting serious with her for a while there. Then, suddenly, she was here again and, you know, she doesn't seem to have suffered any kind of disfiguring accident since we last saw her. What I mean is, she's still attractive, you know, to you, and she was being so nice, and..."

"Lorelai." Luke shook his head, leaning down with his forearms on the counter. "Nicole is a great person, and yes, obviously, I found her attractive, but in a straight choice between her and you? There is no contest," he assured her. "Trust me, if I had any idea that you might want to be with me before, I never would have asked out Nicole in the first place. If I had already been with you, I probably wouldn't even have noticed she existed."

That made Lorelai smile so much her face ached. "That's some good talk, Mister."

"It's not just talk," he told her seriously.

She nodded her head. "I know, and you know, same for me. If I'd realised sooner, then the other guys in my life never would have been a thing. I mean, all the time we wasted, Luke..."

"Hey, there's no point worrying about that now. We got where we were supposed to be eventually. That's all that really matters," he said, holding her hand between both of his own. "So, no more apologies, okay? We're fine."

"I wasn't just apologising for the Nicole thing," she clarified, meeting his eyes. "Luke, I need you to know that that whole situation with Jason Stiles asking me out, I did not encourage that. I seriously never thought he would ask, and I absolutely did not want him to. I swear, it's true."

"And I believe you. Honestly, it's no problem," Luke told her easily.

"And I will tell my parents about you, about us," she continued fast, before she lost her nerve. "I just need you to know what that means before it happens. You do know that if I tell Emily and Richard that you're my guy, they will want to meet you."

Luke frowned at that. "They already met me before."

"No, no, no, my friend Luke from the diner met my parents before. This would be an official boyfriend meeting the parents thing. That is very different, and they will be awful," she said definitely. "More awful," she felt the need to clarify right after, since she was pretty sure there was hardly ever a time when her parents were not awful, especially to anybody connected with Lorelai (excluding Rory, who was forever beloved and perfect!)

"Hey, if that's what it takes to date Lorelai Gilmore," he said, squeezing her hand, "then it's a price I am more than willing to pay," he promised her.

"I'm really worth that much to you?" she asked, only half-teasing.

"And more," he told her without pause. "I love you," he said softly, so only she would hear.

"I love you too," she echoed back just the same, stealing a kiss, "and you are so freakin' amazing!" she added more loudly, before kissing him again and again, not caring at all if anyone saw.

Why should she? She had the best boyfriend in the world and Lorelai was more than proud of that. She only hoped her daughter and Luke's former-hoodlum nephew were having as good of a night as they were.

The nerves had started to fade not long after they left the dorm. Jess wasn't really sure why he had felt so jittery in the first place. It wasn't as if it were a real first date, and it was far from his first date with Rory. They had been here before, maybe not heading to dinner at a New Haven located eatery, but still, they had shared dinner in a restaurant before. It wasn't new. Except that it was.

There were times when Jess felt as if he were new somehow, that he was a different version of himself. Jess 2.0 perhaps. Maybe it wasn't that big. Maybe it was just Jess 1.1, but whatever number he went with, he liked what he saw in the mirror a little more than before. He actually believed he might be in some way worthy of Rory and the feelings she clearly had for him. He wasn't just waiting around for things to implode.

Maybe that was the real difference. Jess had been so scared of everything going to hell the last time, so sure that it was a foregone conclusion, he never really tried hard enough. What was the point? It was always going to end badly anyway. Then the worst did happen. He screwed up with Rory, and with Luke too. He ran away to California, desperate and angry and alone, to a father he barely knew.

It was bad, and then it was a little better, and in the end, Jess had to admit, it had been worth it. It had to have been, because he ended up here, back in Connecticut, reconciled with Luke, actually dating Rory again. God only knew why he deserved this second opportunity, but he wasn't screwing up this time, not a damn chance.

"Jess? Are you okay?"

He hadn't known he was staring across the table so hard until Rory asked him that.

"Yeah, sure. I'm good," he promised her, smiling genuinely. "I was just thinking, probably too much," he said, shaking his head. "It doesn't matter."

"It does matter," she told him, reaching for his hand and taking hold. "Tell me. Please?"

She liked when he talked. Jess never thought it would do him any good, which was why he never really bothered much in the past. Nobody was ever all that interested in what he had to say before. His mother, his teachers, even his so-called friends. He got used to bottling things up, and then, that made it harder to share, even when somebody did show an interest or genuinely want to help.

Sasha actually made a big difference. She was a talker, believed in a lot of things that Jess couldn't himself, but he did know she cared, about everybody and everything. She cared about him and that was why she all but made him talk. That got him into a good habit, for a change, and before he knew it, he was calling Rory, calling Luke, learning to be open about things. Turned out it wasn't so bad actually. Sometimes, it even made things a whole lot better.

"I was just thinking that I'm lucky is all. Mostly because I'm back together with you. I guess sometimes I wonder what exactly I did to deserve this... to deserve you. Maybe something in another life. That's what Sasha said anyway." He rolled his eyes at the very idea.

"I don't think that's true," Rory told him, fingers entwining with his own on the table top. "I think this version of you deserves every good thing that happens to you. You suffered enough when you were younger, Jess, the balance has to swing back the other way eventually. That's why you came to Stars Hollow, to live with Luke, to make friends and build a good life. You deserve it all, Jess. I know you do," she told him firmly, smiling as she said it, meaning every word.

It was funny how she knew so much about his past. The less pleasant stories, crazy times with Liz, they had slipped out all too easily when he and Rory got closer. In the dark, with her head tucked under his chin, nobody looking and only her listening, it had been simple enough. Of course, he always played it off like no big deal afterwards, because that was just the person Jess was.

He should have shared more of the good stuff with Rory. She deserved that. She deserved every good part of himself that he could find and then some. It was what she was going to get from now on.

"You're the best thing that ever happened to me, you know that, right?"

That made her smile even more, and blush besides. It was a rare thing to render a Gilmore girl speechless, and therefore, all the more worth trying to do. Not that Jess was certain he could really claim that this time. She might have said something, if the server hadn't come over to ask them if they wanted to order anything else. Of course, Rory wanted one more coffee, but Jess only needed the check.

"You know, I can pay my share," said Rory as soon as the server left them, one hand already reaching for her purse.

"Hey, that's not how this works," Jess told her definitely. "I arranged this date, so I'm paying for it. Don't worry, I can afford it," he assured her when she looked unsure.

"I'm sure you can. I wasn't offering because I didn't think you had money."

She said it, but he wasn't sure she entirely meant it. Jess didn't exactly make a whole lot working in the diner, but he did live rent free and rarely bought anything beyond the essentials, plus a couple of books here and there. His car cost more than he would like sometimes, but he and Rory shared the burden of driving back and forth to see each other, so gas money wasn't too prohibitive. He could absolutely afford dinner tonight. He just couldn't make this kind of date a weekly occasion and hoped she would understand that.

"Are you happy working in the diner?" she asked a while later, when they were headed back to Yale. "I mean, it's fine if you are, I just wondered if you thought any more about doing something else."

Jess thought of the flyer he had pulled off the bulletin board outside of Rory's dorm, burning a hole in his inside pocket. Now didn't seem like the time to mention it. After all, it probably wouldn't amount to anything at all.

"I like the diner," he told her honestly. "I never thought I would, but it beats a lot of other jobs I've had. At least the boss likes me," he said with a smirk.

Rory laughed and rolled her eyes, just as Jess pulled the car back into the parking lot. Of course, he got out to walk her to her dorm, even though she told him she would be fine. It wasn't only that he was being a gentleman and seeing her safely back in the dark of the late hour. It was also because one of the best parts of a date like that was saying goodnight at the door.

"So, thank you for dinner," she said, leaning back against the wall and smiling at him. "It was wonderful."

"You're more than welcome," Jess assured her, leaning in close and kissing her lips.

Their arms wrapped around each other as they let themselves get lost in the moment for a while. This part had always worked for them, even when nothing else did. Now, they were lucky enough to be making all the key parts of a relationship work, but that didn't mean Jess still didn't really enjoy this part.

Rory seemed to be having a pretty good time too, given the sounds she was making, from the way she was clinging to him, seemingly desperate to be closer, by any means necessary. Jess more than understood that need himself, but they were in a hallway where people could see them. Something made even more obvious by two girls walking by, telling them in stereo to get a room already.

Rory broke away from him gasping and Jess had to catch himself, his hand quick against the wall, so he didn't pitch right over.

"Okay, so that was..." Rory began to say, once again struggling to use her words, which Jess really did take as a compliment this time. "You know, I would probably actually invite you into my room, but Paris..."

"Wow, there's a mood killer," said Jess, complete deadpan. "One word - Paris."

Rory smiled, but didn't laugh, her expression serious again in a second. "You know, I really would invite you in if she wasn't there."

There was only one way to take something like that, so Jess didn't question it. He wasn't even sure why he was surprised really. After all, the two of them had talked about it before, about being together that way. Their first try at dating, somewhere towards the end, not long before he started piling failures on top of failures, she had said she thought she would be ready soon. She actually apologised for making him wait so long, but he had told her not to be sorry. That he understood, that he was positive she would be worth it, no matter how long it took for her to get to a place where she was comfortable going that far. He still believed that. He hoped she knew, because those were words he didn't have right now either.

"Some other time, some other place," he said at last, earning himself another bright smile, complete with blue eyes sparkling like jewels.

"Definitely," she agreed, reaching out to pull him in for one last kiss. "Goodnight, Jess."

"Goodnight, Rory."

To Be Continued...