Chapter 10: Here comes the Sun
"Sookie, are you here?" Lorelai yelled when she walked into the kitchen at the Independence Inn. It was Sunday afternoon, October 7th and Lorelai had only 1 week till her due date. As she was getting closer to giving birth she's been picking up extra shifts at the weekends to make as much money as possible in the time she had left. Weekend shifts brought an unexpected upside to Lorelai's life - she got to meet Sookie. Sookie was a very clumsy but very fun girl her age, who worked at the Independence Inn as a chef's assistant. She was studying at Stars Hollow High during the week and working on the weekends as she wanted to become a chef in the future. When Sookie met Lorelai they were instantly drawn to each other as they were both very open and a little crazy people. Till Lorelai met Sookie, she had no idea that there are people who are more chaotic and disorganized than her. And she was the only person who could understand everything she was saying. Luke was always trying to keep up with her, but sometimes failed to understand her. For Sookie it came effortlessly - she simply was wired the same way as Lorelai. So it was natural that they became quick best friends. Additionally, Sookie was always very happy to make Lorelai cups of coffee and bring her baked goods. She was also her source of gossip regarding early years of Luke Danes, as it turned out that they've known each other since elementary school. Luke was not particularly happy about this part of their friendship, but other than that he was happy, that Lorelai found a good friend.
"In here" Sookie yelled back when she saw Lorelai. She turned around quickly and accidently let go of the plate that was in her hand. It broke loudly on the floor. "Oops, my bad." She looked apologetically at the chef who just shook his head with a smile. By now everyone got used to little accidents that followed Sookie around, and the chef didn't really mind, as he quickly recognised and appreciated her raw talent.
"You're okay, hon?" Lorelai asked, concerned.
"I'm good. And I got what you asked me for." Sookie smiled widely and gave her a tray filled with food - dozen perfect cupcakes with fluffy frosting on top, chocolate filled croissants and chocolate chip cookies. Lorelai looked at the tray, surprised.
"Sookie, I asked you to bake me some chocolate chip cookies because they're Luke's favorite. And you did all of this?"
"Well, yeah. You told me it's your 1 year anniversary, which, let's face it, is a huge milestone at our age. And I know you're not doing anything fancy but I just wanted you two to celebrate a little." Lorelai smiled at her words and gave her a hug.
"That's why you're one of my 3 favorite people in this world. Thank you, Sookie, you're the best. It looks delicious and smells even better."
"You have nothing to be thankful for, it was my pleasure. Is Luke working today? Do you need me to hide it here till your shift ends?"
"He's off today, thank God. He's been working so hard lately. And on top of that he's constantly worrying about me and is very stressed. I could barely convince him to take today and tomorrow off, and he's been working every day for the last 2 weeks. I would take today off, too, but it's my last day for a while and I wanted to get my check and finish a few things. But I'm basically done, I'll be going home soon."
"I can't believe you're not gonna be here for a while. I'm gonna miss you so much. And I know Mia's gonna miss you, too. She's always bragging about you to everyone, telling people that you're the best maid she's ever had, you know?"
"Please, I'm just a regular maid. It's the other girls who are exceptionally slow." Lorelai chuckled. "And you won't have a chance to miss me because you're gonna visit us, right? I want you to meet my baby. You're gonna be her aunt Sookie."
"I am? Really?" Sookie asked, excited. "Wow, this is so big. I mean, I know you're pregnant obviously, but you're gonna be an actual mom soon. And Luke's gonna be a dad. I would never be able to do that, I think you two are so brave."
"Believe me, we are both still scared out of our minds. But we talk about this a lot, trying to figure it all out one step at a time. We had this list of things we needed to do before the baby comes, and we finished it all last week. So, in theory we're prepared. But I'm pretty sure it's still gonna be unbelievably overwhelming. It's just scary, you know? This feeling that you're responsible for another life. That someone depends on you completely. I'm just glad I have Luke and I don't have to go through all of this alone. I'm pretty sure he doesn't remember it's our anniversary. With the way he's been working lately I'm surprised he still remembers his own name."
"I'm sure he remembers, Lorelai. Now give me a hug and run home to your man. You shouldn't be spending today at work. And please give me a call once you have your little girl and are ready for visitors."
"Sure, Sookie. I will. Now, please, be careful in this kitchen while I'm gone so you'll actually be alive to meet my kid." Lorelai hugged her goodbye and walked to her car. She finally passed her driver's exam two weeks ago and was now able to drive her and Luke's new used car. They usually worked the same hours so they could drive together. She was glad that Luke had a day off. She was worried about him and wanted him to get some rest. When she was leaving for work this morning at 8AM he was still sleeping which was a good sign, as he usually woke up at 6. She honestly didn't expect him to remember their anniversary, and she didn't even get him a real present, just cookies from Sookie to make this day a little more special.
She parked in front of the hardware store. It was closed on Sunday, so she had to dig up the key from her purse, while holding the giant tray of food from Sokkie in the other hand. She almost dropped it when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She got scared for a second, but it was gone quickly and she dismissed the anxiety she felt. She climbed up the stairs, which was getting harder and harder each day, but when she finally came inside she discovered that the apartment was empty. On the dining table she saw a single rose in a small vase and she smiled at the sight. He remembered after all. Next to the rose was a hand-written note, which said: "Meet me at the place where it all started."
She of course knew what place he meant immediately. She went back downstairs and walked to the gazebo, where she first kissed Luke exactly a year ago. She immediately saw Luke standing at the stairs of the gazebo, which looked exactly the same as last year with sparkling lights and fall themed decorations. But inside the gazebo stood a table with white cloth, candles and food which smelled delicious.
"Wow, you cleaned yourself up nicely." She said at Luke's sight, referring to his suit. Since he started the job at the Independence Inn, he's been dressing more for comfort than style - he was usually wearing t-shirts, flannel shirts, jeans and a baseball cap, which she honestly didn't mind. After seeing him most of the time in school uniform, she kind of liked his own, scruffy look.
"Yeah, I guess your mom was right when she said that I don't have the opportunity to wear elegant clothes. I haven't used this suit since last year's Christmas party at your house. So I thought I would look nice for you today."
"You always look nice to me. Especially with no clothes on." She chuckled and kissed him. "I can't believe you did all of this for me. I only got you cookies, which I didn't even make myself. And which I forgot to bring back downstairs." She realized that the tray from Sookie was still in their dining room.
"You couldn't possibly think that I forgot about this, right? It was one of the happiest days of my life, when you decided to kiss me. And thank God you did, because I have no idea how long it would've taken me to have the courage to do it myself. Happy anniversary, Lorelai."
"Right back at you. Overall it was a pretty good year, right?"
"You bet it was. Even with all the craziness it was one of the best years of my life." He said honestly.
"Something smells really good. Shall we eat? Because I'm starving."
"We'll eat in a minute. I was wondering if you want to dance with me first."
"Dance? Really?" She smiled widely "I recall you saying that you never dance, under any circumstances. And here you are, willing to do it in the middle of the town, with no music playing and while I'm 9 months pregnant. We're gonna look like idiots."
"I don't usually dance. But I thought I'm gonna make an exception this one time. And if we're gonna look like idiots then at least we'll be like idiots in love." He smiled and offered her his hand, which she gladly accepted. There was no music, but somehow they found their own rhythm, moving slowly, as close as it was possible with the size of Lorelai's stomach.
"This is amazing, you know? That we made it this year, despite everything that happened. Or maybe we made it because of everything that happened. Either way I just want you to know that I couldn't imagine doing it with anybody else. I love you." She knew she sounded cheesy, and it didn't help that her eyes once again filled with happy tears. She's been crying a lot lately, over every little thing - at the sight of puppies or babies, or anything that looked beautiful to her.
"I love you, too. So much that I'm not gonna keep you away from the food longer. Let's go eat." He took her by the hand.
"Thanks, babe. And just so you know, you're gonna get lucky tonight. But remember, till I'm done being pregnant, you're gonna have to do all the work." He laughed at her words.
"Sure, Babe. It's worth it either way." He winked at her. Suddenly she let go of his hand and took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry Luke, but I think we're gonna need to take a raincheck. On both the dinner and getting lucky part." She said.
"What's happening? Are you okay?"
"Oh, I'm super. I just think my water broke." She said slowly.
For a short second, panic overwhelmed Luke. But he quickly gathered himself up.
"Okay, then. Let's get you to the hospital. You're gonna be okay. Does it hurt?"
"Not much, yet. But if in the near future I'll start swearing and calling you names, just remember about this sweet little moment we had before. I'm scared, Luke." She said.
"I know, me too. But we're gonna be fine. And we finally get to meet our little girl. And how cool is that she'll be born on our anniversary?" He said, trying to comfort her.
"You're right, it's pretty cool. Okay, let's go have our baby." She said, feeling a mix of anxiety, panic and excitement.
The road to the hospital took a long time due to Sunday traffic and Lorelai's contractions were coming closer together. She was now in real pain, swearing and screaming. Luke couldn't bear to hear it but he knew that there was nothing he could do.
When they got to hospital it turned out that, despite being in great pain, she was nowhere near giving birth and it would still take hours before the baby was here. The doctor was able to give Lorelai some pain-relief drugs, which ease her pain and made her feel a little better.
"I guess she's not gonna be born on our anniversary after all." Lorelai said when she looked at the clock. It was almost midnight and the doctor who just checked on her told her that it would take at least 2 or 3 more hours.
"I guess she wanted to have her own special holiday and did not want to share it with us. She's smart." He joked.
"I can't believe I'm gonna be a grandad soon." William said. Luke called him when they got to the hospital and he came as soon as he could to be there for the birth of his granddaughter.
"Not soon enough," Lorelai sighed impatiently. She glared at her stomach. "Listen, kid. I know it's comfortable there, but if you already decided to come here a week earlier, then you should just get it over with. You don't want to see your mommy angry." She said to her stomach. "By the way, we still don't have a name for her. What have we landed on lately?" She asked Luke.
"I think we were debating Leigh versus Liv. I'm still not sure, though. Maybe it'll be easier to decide once she's here."
"Yeah, maybe. William, we really appreciate you coming here, but honestly, she's taking her sweet time. It's totally alright with us if you want to come home, get some sleep and come back tomorrow when she's here." Lorelai said when she saw how he struggled to keep his eyes open.
"Oh no, honey. I'm fine. There is no way I would miss this." She frowned for a second at his words but quickly changed it to smile. Luke, however, was fast enough to notice her first reaction and he knew what it was all about. Lorelai's parents have not contacted her since she moved out. It's been 3 months and he was sure that they would call sooner or later, especially when the due date was approaching. But they had no words from them. Luke was trying to convince Lorelai to call them, but she was stubborn and insisted that since they were the one who kicked her out they had to make the first move. Even today when they got to the hospital, Lorelai told Luke to not call her parents and tell them that their granddaughter is coming. But when he saw her face he knew that she wanted them here, the way he had his father. So he made a decision.
"Lorelai, I totally screwed up. I forgot to bring the baby car seat. I have to go back home and take it."
"Really? I could've sworn that you put it in the car earlier this week. I must remember it wrong. But are you sure you want to go now? What if you miss it?" She asked, worried.
"You heard what the doctor said, it's gonna be at least 2 more hours, and I'll be back in half an hour tops. I promise I'll be here. And in the meantime my dad will keep you company." Luke gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and left before he could change his mind. The car seat was of course personally installed in the car by Luke this week. He needed to leave for entirely different reasons. He debated the whole way there whether it was a good idea. He knew there was like 50% chance that Lorelai would be furious with him. But he also felt that sooner or later she's gonna appreciate that her parents were there when their granddaughter was being born. So he drove to Gilmore's house and rang the bell. It was silent for a while, which wasn't surprising, as it was the middle of the night. But after the third ring, he heard a commotion on the other side of the door.
"I hope that there is a robbery or a fire as it is the only reason for somebody to wake up people at this hour." Emily said while opening the door. "Luke?" she asked surprised "what are you doing here?"
"Good evening, Mrs Gilmore. I know this seems weird to you and I'm so sorry to wake you up but I thought you should know that Lorelai is in labor. She's in the hospital, here in Hartford. And I came here, because I know that even though she won't admit it, she misses you and she wants you there." He expected some rude comments, yelling or even Emily shutting the door at his face. Instead Emily replied:
"I'll wake up Richard and we'll drive there. Which hospital?"
"Hartford general hospital. We're in room 2243. Mrs Gilmore, I really appreciate this, but I just want to make something clear. I'm asking you to come because I want you to be in your daughter's life and in my daughter's life. But if you want to come just to point out all of our mistakes, or to be angry at Lorelai for leaving and not calling, then please don't. This is supposed to be one of the happiest days of our lives. And I want to share that with you, not having it destroyed by you. I'm sorry if I seem harsh to you, but I want to get it out of the way and go back to Lorelai as quickly as possible." Emily listened to Luke's rant in silence. She had to admit that the fact he came here like this had to take some guts and she appreciated his honesty.
"I understand Luke. Thank you for telling us. We will come and we will be on our best behavior, I promise." She even managed to smile at him. He took a deep breath, relieved.
"Thank you, you can take your time, it's still gonna be a while. But I appreciate this. See you there." And with that he was gone. On the way to the hospital he thought about how he should approach Lorelai with this subject. He knew he couldn't lie, because the minute her parents would show up, she would know that he was the one who told them. So instead he decided to just be honest. He told her everything the moment he got to the hospital. She had mixed emotions when she heard that her parents were coming, but deep down she was glad that they cared enough to show up.
Luke had to admit that Emily and Richard kept their promise. When they got to the hospital, they were polite and they asked Lorelai about her life in Stars Hollow. They didn't react badly at the news of their daughter working as a maid, even though Luke could tell they weren't exactly thrilled. They even engaged in the conversation with William and Luke, and Emily was sitting next to Lorelai, making sure she was comfortable and attending to her every need.
Finally, just before 4 AM, the doctor told them it's time. William and the Gilmores left the room to give them some privacy and Luke stood next to Lorelai, tightly holding her hand. He could tell that whatever ease the painkillers were giving her before, they were most certainly not working so well right now. She was screaming and swearing, physically exhausted and feeling like she wasn't able to push anymore.
"Oh God. It hurts so bad. I can't do this anymore." She cried in pain.
"Lorelai, you're almost there. Just a few more minutes and she'll be here." Luke was comforting her but apparently it was no time for that.
"I'm sorry, I don't see you trying to squeeze watermelon through your vagina." She snapped at him. "Get ready for a future sexless relationship, because I'm not taking any chances here, buddy. This is the first and last time I'm doing it."
From that moment he decided to keep his mouth shut and just be there for her in silence. And finally, after one last push, she was done. And the room was filled with the most beautiful sound Luke has ever heard - a crying baby. He looked at her and couldn't help but cry at this sight. He knew it wasn't very manly to cry, but he has never seen someone so perfect.
"Lorelai, you did it. She's here." Lorelai was crying also, waiting impatiently for the doctor to clean her up and hand it to her. Lorelai has never held a baby before, and she had no idea they could be so small, but somehow her instincts kicked in and she held her little baby girl as it was the most natural thing in the world. And when she was looking at her, all the pain she felt suddenly didn't matter.
"She's perfect." Lorelai kissed her baby's forehead, breathing in her smell.
"She really is." Luke confirmed it, not being able to take his eyes off her. "So, what do you think - does she look like Leigh or Liv?"
"I think I like Leigh." Lorelai said, but Luke wasn't convinced.
"I'm not sure. I think… I know you were only joking before, but she kind of looks like Lorelai." he chuckled lightly.
"You really wanna name her after me?" Lorelai asked in disbelief.
"Perfect name for a perfect girl. We could give her a nickname, though, so it won't be too confusing."
"How about Rory?"
"I love it. And we can keep Leigh as a middle name." Luke suggested.
"Yes, I like that." She smiled looking at their brand new perfect baby. "She's so calm, like a little angel. New to this world, but she already feels that she belongs here. Do you want to hold her?"
"Of course." He picked her up delicately, afraid that any sudden movement could break her. "Hi, Rory. It's your dad. We were waiting forever for you. But you've been worth the wait. And we love you so much." He whispered to her.
After they both had a moment with their daughter, Luke handed Rory back to Lorelai and went outside for William, Emily and Richard. They went inside the room together and smiled at the sight of their grandbaby.
"Meet Lorelai 'Rory' Leigh Gilmore-Danes" Lorelai introduced her. "Rory, these are your grandparents."
"Welcome to the world, Rory." William smiled at the baby.
"I must say, she's an exceptionally beautiful child." Emily said with a smile. It was impossible not to smile when looking at the baby.
"Yes, I agree. Must be those Gilmore genes." Richard said with teary eyes. "And Danes' genes, also, of course." He added quickly so his comment wouldn't be taken as an insult.
Then they all took turns holding the baby, and by the time she went back to Lorelai's arms she was fast asleep. And she slept so calmly, not even realizing that to Luke and Lorelai she just became the whole world.
Author's note:
First of all, I want to thank you all for your comments and likes, it means so much to me, and I appreciate it so much. Also, this story just hit a very important milestone with the birth of Rory and I just wanted to clarify few things before next chapters - yes, I know that the biology is not by my side and that Luke and Lorelai's child is not the same thing as Lorelai and Christopher's child - but for the sake of this story, this Rory is exactly the same as the Rory we all know. This story will continue, but the chapters will be set further apart in timeline, so you get to see Rory growing up. My goal is to get to at least 16-year old Rory and it's possible that she'll get her own romantic interests. So just a heads up to all people who are team Jess - this is obviously not gonna happen here as Rory and Jess are cousins. Nevertheless Jess will be a part of the story, however he'll be younger, because I made Luke younger so naturally Liz is also younger and she'll be pregnant later on. I am team Logan and I'll probably introduce his character soon (much faster than we originally got to meet him), but nothing is set in stone yet. Thank you all, a new chapter will be posted soon.