"So, you stay at my house every weekend, you eat my food, and yet you refuse to clean the refrigerator when it needs it?" Lorelai asked her sister as they walked through the town square.

"Auntie Jules is a moocher," Rory tsked in mock disapproval, shaking her head.

Juliet narrowed her eyes at her niece. "I am not a moocher."

Lorelai raised her eyebrows and shrugged, pressing her lips together. "Hmmm, sounds like something a moocher would say!"

Juliet rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. "Fine. I'll play your stupid disease-naming game. But I think I might have an unfair advantage."

"Hey! I resent that, we are connoisseurs of WebMD," Lorelai said, lifting her eyebrows haughtily. "You should bow to our superior aesculapian knowledge, you should – ooh! Puppies!"

Rory and Juliet exchanged a look of commiseration as Lorelai dropped their arms and dashed towards a display of puppies by the gazebo.

"Rory, Jules, come here! Look at the baby!" Lorelai cooed, petting the head of a golden retriever.

Juliet gave her sister a patient smile. "Lor –"

Lorelai stuck her bottom lip out, resting her head on Juliet's shoulder. "Isn't he just the cutest thing you've ever seen?"

"It's a she," Rory corrected, fingering the nametag on the kennel. She chortled at the blurb below the dog's name, and began to read aloud. "Buttercup is a special dog. She's extremely skittish and tends to react badly towards blonde-haired females, brunette males, children of either sеx, other animals, red clothing, cabbage, or anyone in a uniform."

Lorelai's face lit up as Luke approached them. "Hey, we just found the doggy version of you!"

"You people should not be anywhere near a dog," Luke said, putting his hands on his hips. "You can barely feed yourselves."

Lorelai's mouth dropped open in mock offense. "Shut up, you! We'd be excellent pet owners, thank you."

Juliet snorted. "Right."

Lorelai pouted in her sister's direction. "Well, then, you can get one for your apartment, and we'll visit it every day!"

"Sorry, my apartment complex doesn't allow dogs," Juliet said with a sardonic shrug. She rolled her eyes. "Which is so stupid when you think about it. I mean, I pay rent, I pay utilities, I pay for parking, why shouldn't I be allowed to have a dog if I want one?"

"I'll tell you why," Luke said, sticking his finger in her face. "It's because landlords are big, stupid, control freaks who only exist to make their tenants' lives miserable!"

Juliet scoffed. "They're the last relics of feudalism, is what they are."

"Okay, Marx and Engels, could we stop planning the social revolution for five minutes, please?" Lorelai asked, holding her hand up.

Juliet tilted her head. "Am I Marx or Engels?"

"Hmm, Engels. He had way better hair," Lorelai said, screwing up her face in thought. When Luke rolled his eyes, she placed a hand on his upper arm. "Don't worry, Karl Marx had kickass eyebrows."

"Yeah, that's what he's best known for," Luke deadpanned. Jerking his chin at Juliet, he asked, "So, how's hair gel guy?"

Juliet gave him a withering look. "You know his name."

"Yeah, how would you feel if he started referring to you as 'Karl Marx eyebrows guy'?" Lorelai asked, earning a giggle from Rory.

Luke smirked. "Well, I heard they were kickass."

Tuesday night, Juliet walked from Max's dinner table to his kitchen, dropping a stack of plates in the sink. "Hey, where do you keep your dish soap?"

"Under the sink," Max said, looking over his shoulder. As she leaned down to retrieve it, he suddenly crossed to her, closing the cabinet. "You're not supposed to wash dishes when you're a guest."

Juliet's brow creased as she smiled up at him. "Why not? I wash dishes whenever I go to Lorelai's."

"I would hope that our relationship is a little different than the one you have with your sister," Max teased, placing his hands on her hips with a chuckle.

Juliet laughed at that. "Including whether or not I help with the dishes?"

Max rolled his eyes, smiling. "Fine, help with the dishes, compare me to your sister, whatever."

"You should know me well enough by now to know that comparing you to Lorelai is the highest compliment I could give you," Juliet said, resting her hands on his upper arms, her fingers curling into his sweater.

"We'll make matching t-shirts when I see her next Wednesday," Max said, giving her waist a squeeze and moving to stand beside her at the sink. He handed her a towel. "Here, we'll compromise; I'll wash, you dry."

Juliet accepted the towel with a smile, touching her head to his shoulder briefly. "What's next Wednesday?"

"Parents' Day, my favorite day of the year," Max said with an ironic smile. "Every year, I end up getting yelled at because I assigned Hard Times, and now someone's child feels guilty because they're suddenly aware of the fact that poor people exist. Or I just get hit on."

Juliet frowned in sympathy, placing a hand between his shoulder blades. "I'm sorry."

Max smiled ruefully. "It's just . . frustrating. Knowing that these kids are going to be very powerful people one day, and not being able to teach them anything that might make them question the world around them."

"Yeah, I get it," Juliet said, rubbing his back. "I see people at work all the time who probably wouldn't have needed the psych ward if they'd gotten help earlier, but there's so much shame around needing help, and I feel like no one tries to change it."

He turned to her then, a teasing smile on his face. "We're very serious this evening."

Juliet lowered her eyes sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Black and portentous must this humor prove," Max recited, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Unless good counsel may the cause remove."

Juliet rolled her eyes with a laugh, bringing her arms up loosely around his neck. "Do you have that play memorized or something?"

"How do you know I'm quoting anything?" Max asked with mock surprise. "I could just be moved to extemporaneous verse by your very presence."

Juliet smiled. "Lucky guess."

It was after midnight when Juliet felt Max's arm slide out from under her shoulders, and his body heat shift away from her. Still half-asleep, she reached blindly for his hand and clutched it tightly.

"Where are you going?" Juliet asked, her voice small.

"To the bathroom," he said with a short laugh. When she didn't let go of his hand, he tugged it away playfully. "I kind of need that hand."

"Oh," Juliet ducked her head, embarrassed. "Sorry."

Max rolled his eyes with another chuckle as he walked away, and Juliet lay back down, replaying the eye roll over and over again as the minute or so Max spent in the bathroom stretched out. Juliet wondered if he would stay in there, waiting until she fell asleep so she wouldn't press herself against him like a clingy leech.

She felt for her collarbone underneath her t-shirt, rubbing at it almost to the point of pain. She heard the water turn off in the bathroom, feeling the bed dip as Max climbed back in.

"Are you mad at me?" Juliet whispered, rolling over on her side to face him.

He smoothed a hand over her hair, his brow furrowed. "For what?"

Juliet shrugged, avoiding his eyes. "For freaking out."

"No. My girlfriend misses me when I go to the bathroom, why would I be mad about that?" Max said with a smug smile, his hand traveling down to play with the end of her braid. "It's rather good for my ego, actually, considering it took me over a month to convince you to go out with me in the first place."

It was both too late at night and too early in the relationship to explain how interconnected those two things were, so Juliet simply scooted closer and buried her face in his chest, feeling like an elephant was sitting on hers. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize," he whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

Juliet shook her head. "I'm sorry."

Max sighed, sounding annoyed. "Go to sleep, Juliet."

Friday night, Juliet picked listlessly at her food, half-listening to the conversation around her as she replayed the scene in Max's bedroom over and over again. Poor Max Medina, thinking he was falling for Juliet and getting Ophelia instead.

And that sigh. He had been annoyed, she had annoyed him. She had annoyed him, and she was going to push him away with her neediness. She was going to grip this relationship so tightly in her fists that it exploded right in front of her, and she couldn't seem to stop herself.

Juliet was snapped from her reverie by Lorelai's foot sharply kicking her shin. She looked up, and Lorelai jerked her chin towards their mother, who looked like she'd been trying to get Juliet's attention for a while.

She blinked. "Sorry, what?"

"Is something wrong with the squab?" Emily asked, looking pointedly at the game bird on Juliet's plate. "You haven't touched it."

Juliet shook her head, forcing a smile. "Sorry, there was a Code Brown at work today, and my stomach's still feeling a little off."

"Code Brown?" Emily repeated, frowning.

Lorelai made a face, shaking her head. "You don't wanna know."

Emily gave her youngest a look of disdain as she realized what she meant. "Oh, Juliet, really, that is a completely inappropriate topic for the dinner table!"

"Sorry," Juliet said with a smirk at Lorelai, who was eyeing her untouched plate with concern.

Emily cleared her throat with a smug smile. "So, Lorelai, tell me about Parents' Day."

Lorelai snapped out of her reverie and looked at her mother, frowning. "What?"

"Parents' Day?" Emily repeated, arching an eyebrow. "Next Wednesday? When all the parents are supposed to go to the classes with their children all day long?"

"The Chilton newsletter came out today!" Lorelai said with false cheer.

"You didn't read yours?" Emily asked with pretended surprise.

Lorelai looked up at Juliet with an eye roll. "Not yet."

"Ah, well, you have your priorities, far be it from me to question them," Emily said pompously, holding her hands up in surrender.

Juliet glared at her mother. "Mom, come on, she has a job. I'm sure she was gonna read it when she had time."

Emily bristled. "So, I have no life, is that what you're saying?"

Juliet rolled her eyes, not in the mood for her mother's mind games, and went back to picking at her food.

Lorelai frowned, watching her sister worriedly for a moment before taking a deep breath. "So, Wednesday, huh?"

"It's okay, Mom, you don't have to be there," Rory assured her. "You're busy."

"You know what - I'll go!" Emily declared, as though it was the best idea any of them had ever heard.

"What?" Lorelai asked incredulously.

Emily shrugged with mock innocence. "Why not? You have to work. And I, as Juliet insinuated, have no life, therefore I will go sit with Rory on Parents' Day."

Lorelai clenched her jaw. "I'm not busy, I'm going. I will be there - that's it. End of story, okay?"

Emily pursed her lips. "Fine."

"Fine," Lorelai said, raising her eyebrows as she went back to her food, her eyes flicking up to her sister's as she mouthed, you okay?

Juliet gave her a tight smile and nodded, before avoiding her eyes again.

"I'm gonna go study," Rory announced as the three of them walked into Lorelai's house, kissing her mother and aunt goodnight.

Lorelai smiled, pecking her daughter's cheek quickly. "Okay, sweets. We'll be on the front porch if you need us."

Juliet arched an amused eyebrow. "We will?"

"We will," Lorelai said, her tone leaving no room for argument. She patted Juliet's back, steering her toward the stairs. "Go get comfy. I'll make coffee and tea."

Juliet let out a confused chuckle. "Yes, ma'am."

A few minutes later, the sisters sat on the front porch in their pajamas, a throw blanket draped over their laps.

Lorelai tucked a strand of hair behind Juliet's ear with a frown. "Are you doing okay?"

"I'm fine," Juliet insisted lightly, playing with her tea bag.

"You barely said a word at dinner, you didn't eat anything," Lorelai pressed, continuing to play with her sister's hair. "I don't know. You just seem . . . not yourself. Preoccupied."

Juliet shrugged, avoiding Lorelai's eyes. "I'm fine. I told you, my stomach's bothering me."

Lorelai pursed her lips in doubt. "Come on, Jules, it's me. What's going on? Is it work? Is it Max?"

"You mean 'hair gel guy'?" Juliet asked with a smirk, trying to impersonate Luke's low voice, hoping she could shift the conversation to Lorelai's feelings for him.

Lorelai didn't take the bait, and smiled patiently. "Yes, 'hair gel guy'. Is everything okay with you two?"

"Aside from the fact that he quotes Romeo and Juliet at me at least three times a night?"

"He does?" At Juliet's nod, Lorelai made a face. "Man, I bet that gets old real fast."

"I don't know, it's kinda cute," Juliet said with a tiny smile. Feeling her face crumple a little, she finally looked up at Lorelai, misty-eyed. "I really like him."

"Oh no, that's awful," Lorelai deadpanned. When Juliet didn't even offer her usual pity chuckle, Lorelai nudged her sister with a slightly bewildered laugh. "Hey, what's this for? You're dating a gorgeous guy you really like, who really likes you, what's the problem?"

Juliet avoided Lorelai's gaze, wiping a stray tear from the corner of her eye. "I think I'm smothering him."

"You're cracked," Lorelai said, rolling her eyes. "He's madly in love with you, there's no way you could smother him."

Juliet sniffled, giving her a pointed look. "When I was over there the other night, I freaked out when he went to the bathroom. The bathroom."

Lorelai, to her credit, tried to stifle a laugh, pressing her lips together when one escaped anyway. "What, did he not wash his hands?"

Juliet chuckled despite herself, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, that was it."

Lorelai wrinkled her nose with a little smile. "Does he leave the toilet seat up?"

"No, actually, he's very good about that."

Lorelai rubbed her arm up and down absentmindedly. "What, though? I mean, hon, it's his apartment. It's not like he was gonna leave."

"Logically, yes, I know that," Juliet said, chewing the inside of her cheek, her eyes filling again. "But – I don't know. I don't believe it, or trust it, or something. It's like there's this voice in my head that keeps telling me he's five seconds away from breaking up with me."

Lorelai's eyes narrowed. "Does this voice sound anything like Emily Gilmore?"

"Kermit the Frog, actually."

"Well, if it's not one, it's the other," Lorelai quipped, putting her coffee mug down and guiding Juliet's head down to her shoulder. "Have you talked to Max about any of this?"

Juliet snorted. "No."

"What? Did you get body snatched or something?" Lorelai asked incredulously, craning her neck to make eye contact with her sister. "What happened to 'direct communication is the way to go'?"

"That's different. This is a me problem, not a relationship problem," Juliet said, playing with a loose thread on the blanket. "I can't just force my boyfriend to coddle me whenever I'm feeling insecure."

"Right. That's my job," Lorelai deadpanned.

Juliet nestled further into her arms. "Well, you're very good at it."

Lorelai sighed. "Jules –"

"Let's drop it, okay? I'm just being a baby," Juliet pleaded, giving her sister the puppy dog eyes.

"Consider it dropped," Lorelai said, resigned.

Juliet laid her head back down on Lorelai's shoulder, and Lorelai squeezed her tighter, her heart clenching when she felt warm tears soaking her pajama top.

Monday morning, Lorelai was snapped out of her music video-esque staring into space by a coffee pot slamming down on the counter.

"What's with you?" Luke asked with a frown.

"I'm in an introspective mood, shoot me," she said, tilting her chin up defiantly. When his eyes narrowed in disbelief, she glanced around to make sure no one was listening and lowered her voice. "Max and Juliet are having problems."

"She allergic to his hair gel or something?"

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Oh my God, did you notice nothing else about him in the three hours you spent together?"

"I wasn't paying much attention to him," he grumbled, his eyes briefly flicking up to hers, before focusing intently on the counter again.

The words hung between them for a moment, dancing in the air like specks of dust, and she smiled down briefly at her now-cold coffee.

Luke cleared his throat. "So, what is it? She need me to kick his ass?"

"No, but I appreciate you offering," Lorelai said, feeling her smile widen.

"Yeah, well, I figured you might want to, but he's taller than you are, so . . ." he trailed off, looking a little embarrassed.

"Hey, anything you can do, I can do better," Lorelai declared, an exaggerated twang to her voice.

"Don't sing," Luke warned, his scowl returning.

Lorelai smirked, but didn't sing. She wrapped her hands more tightly around her mug. "She's convinced herself that he could dump her at any moment, and so she's getting all clingy, but she's a shrink, so she's aware that she's getting all clingy, which is freaking her out even more because she doesn't want that to be the reason he leaves. And I can't help her see how much he likes her, and how great she is. I mean, who would leave her? Her one, tragic flaw is that she listens to Britney Spears unironically!"

He tapped the counter. "Word of advice? Little sisters don't like it when you get all involved in their love lives."

Lorelai bristled. "I never said I was gonna get involved."

Luke raised an eyebrow. "You're gonna get involved."

"Okay, maybe I was planning to nudge him in the right direction, give him a little friendly advice when I see him on Wednesday, but that's it!" Lorelai admitted, her voice getting high.

Luke gave her a pointed look. "She's a grown woman."

Lorelai stuck her bottom lip out in a pout. "Take that back! She's eight!"

Luke rolled his eyes. "If she were eight, you'd be encouraging the man in his thirties she's dating to break up with her."

Lorelai laughed into her mug. When she looked up again, Luke was watching her, a look of understanding on his face. "You worry about her."

"Of course I do, she's my little sister," Lorelai said with an unapologetic shrug. She gestured vaguely to him. "I mean, you get it."

"Oh yeah, I get it," Luke sighed, lifting his eyebrows.

"It's just – I don't know. There's a part of me that feels like it's my fault, you know? I mean, I left her. I ran from that house and didn't look back, and I left her to deal with the wrath of Mr. and Mrs. Stalin all on her own. And she's never told me exactly what happened those years I was gone, but it had to have been really bad, or else she would've," Lorelai swallowed thickly. "And I keep . . . wondering, what if this fear – that Max is just gonna up and leave her when she least expects it – is because of me?"

"It's not because of you," Luke promised, laying his hand on top of her forearm after a moment of hesitation. "And even if it is, it's not your job to fix whatever's going on between her and hair gel guy."

Lorelai rolled her eyes at the nickname, but there was no bite behind it. She took a shaky breath after a moment of prolonged eye contact, then smiled awkwardly. "Okay, well, I should get to the Inn."

Luke nodded. "Sure. See you later."

"See you later," Lorelai confirmed, standing up. "And Luke?"

"Yeah?"

She smiled. "Your sister's really lucky to have you."

He ducked his head, his cheeks pinking. "Yeah, so's yours."

Lorelai pushed the door open with one last wave. "Bye."

When Parents' Day came around, Lorelai was resolved. Juliet would be mad, sure, but Lorelai would rather her sister be a little mad at her for a while than be worrying up a storm for no reason. She would be perfectly normal: no threatening to maim Max if he hurt Juliet, no withering stares. There was nothing wrong with a little friendly advice, was there?

"On Monday we will start a two-week creative writing exercise, but that doesn't mean we stop reading. One of the greatest inspirations of working writers is the writing of others that they admire. Walt Whitman read Homer, Dante, Shakespeare. So, I am going to impress you all by butchering the Bard," Max pulled a leather-bound copy of the Complete Works of Shakespeare and held it up for them to see, "and read a passage from Romeo and Juliet."

Lorelai rolled her eyes in Rory's direction and mimed gagging. Rory pressed her lips together to keep from laughing as she hid her face in her notebook. The Gilmores cringed, and cringed again, as Max read from the famous balcony scene, pinching one another to keep from laughing when he inevitably looked up at them every time the name 'Juliet' came up.

They were saved by the bell, and Max closed the book. "Oh, that does it - parents, thanks for coming, students - papers on Whitman are due tomorrow and those of you who are just starting tonight - I'll be able to tell."

As parents and students filtered out of the classroom, Lorelai lingered behind, watching her sister's boyfriend erase the chalkboard, and took a deep breath.

"Sweets, you go on ahead, okay? I'm going to talk to Max for a second," Lorelai said, patting Rory's back gently.

Rory frowned. "About what?"

"A lonely goatherd," Lorelai quipped, propelling her daughter out the door. "Thirty seconds, babe. I'll meet you in the cafeteria."

"Don't say anything embarrassing," Rory warned, sticking a finger in her mother's face.

Lorelai snorted. "I don't think Leonard Whiting over there has any room to make me feel embarrassed."

Rory snorted as she left, and Lorelai carefully schooled her features as she approached the desk. "Hi."

Max turned around from erasing the chalkboard and smiled politely. "Hi. It's nice to see you."

"You too, you too," Lorelai nodded quickly. "Um, how are things with Juliet?"

"Good, but I wouldn't think you'd need me to tell you that," Max said with a perplexed smile, sitting on top of the desk. "Unless – did she say otherwise?"

"No, no, she really likes you. She just –" Lorelai cut herself off with a chuckle. "Oh, God, she's gonna kill me for this."

"Ah, is this the 'what are your intentions with my sister, young man', conversation? Because that purse looks a little small for a shotgun," Max said with a genial smile, indicating the handbag she held.

"Oh, well, would you settle for pepper spray shaped like lipstick?" Lorelai said with a short laugh. When he chuckled too, she met his eyes, tucking her hair behind her ears. "Uh, well, sure, since you brought it up: Mr. Medina, what are your intentions with my sister?"

Max laughed again, then blinked, looking a little surprised. "Oh, you're serious. Well, uh, my intention, Miss Gilmore, is to stick around. Barring a blood feud between our families, of course."

"Of course. No double suicide for you two, that's an order," Lorelai quipped, waggling her finger playfully.

Max chuckled, glancing down at his shoes briefly before looking up again, cocking his head with a puzzled smile when she made no move to leave the classroom.

Lorelai hesitated, crossing her arms over her chest and hoping Juliet would forgive her for what she was about to do. "Can I maybe give you some advice?"

He shrugged. "I would welcome it."

"Just –" she gestured vaguely with her hands. "Tell her that. I know I'm the one who asked, but Juliet never will, because she thinks that needing a little extra reassurance is a character flaw or something, and she's so stuck in her own head that she can't see that you're majorly, totally, butt crazy in love with her –"

Max held up a hand to stop her with an amused smile. "I'm sorry, 'butt crazy'?"

"It's from Clueless?"

Max shook his head with a blankly apologetic look.

"Amy Heckerling? Alicia Silverstone? Paul Rudd? Greatest Austen adaptation of all time? I can't believe you've never seen Clue –" Lorelai cut herself off, trying to get back on topic. "Whatever. It doesn't have to be a big declaration, just make sure she knows you're not going anywhere, okay?"

"I'll make sure to use the exact words 'majorly, totally, butt crazy in love'," Max promised dryly.

Lorelai smiled as she headed for the door. "Yeah, quote Clueless, because, I gotta say, you're bleeding Romeo and Juliet a little dry there, pal."

"I'll keep that in mind," Max chuckled.

Wednesday night, Juliet wearily trod up the stairs to her apartment, digging her keys out of her bag with a sigh. She looked up, her brow furrowing in surprise when she saw Max standing outside her door.

She ran a hand over her hair as she walked up to him, blowing out a breath. "Hey. Did I forget we had plans tonight?"

Max shook his head with a little smile. "Do I need to make plans every time I want to see you?"

Juliet shook her head, smiling shyly. When he stepped a little closer, she held both hands out to stop him. "I smell like bleach."

"I can handle it," he said softly, surprising her with a tight hug instead of his usual peck on the lips. He held her for a long moment, then pulled away slightly. "I have something for you."

"For me? What?" Juliet asked with a puzzled smile, which froze on her face as he produced a monstrous leather-bound book from his bag. Her eyebrows lifted, and she tried to make her voice sound enthusiastic. "A book!"

"It's Proust's Swann's Way," Max explained with a smile, handing the heavy volume over to her. "I figured you'd like Proust, a lot of his work was influenced by psychologists of his time."

"Well, I – I haven't finished Northanger Abbey yet," Juliet stammered, running her palm over the grooves in the leather. "And I heard this book is kind of a hard read, and I'm not exactly a fast reader to begin with –"

He cut her off with a kiss. "That's alright. Finish Northanger Abbey, then take your time with Proust, and then you can return it to me when you're finished, however long that takes. Okay?"

Max took her hand loosely in his, and squeezed it once, maintaining eye contact with her. Juliet frowned in confusion at the earnest, almost pleading look on his face, like he was begging her to read something significant into his words. Her eyes widened in sudden realization.

"Oh, God, today's Wednesday," Juliet said, squeezing her eyes shut in embarrassment. "Lorelai talked to you, didn't she?"

"She did," Max confirmed with a sheepish smile, ducking his head.

Juliet winced. "What did she say?"

"That you might be feeling a little unsure about my intentions, and I should make them clear," Max said, reaching up and smoothing her hair back from her face.

"Hence, the giant book," Juliet covered her face with her hands and rubbed at her eyebrows. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry. I'm gonna kill her."

"Actually, if I could plead for clemency on her behalf," he said with a short laugh. "I'm glad she said something. Why didn't you?"

Juliet shrugged, avoiding his eyes as she blinked back tears. "Because you weren't doing anything wrong. You're still not. It's me, it's my own stuff. I need to work through my abandonment issues, not make them your problem."

"But we're in a relationship, Juliet. I want you to tell me these things," Max said with a concerned smile, his hand moving to play with the baby hairs at the nape of her neck. "For example, while it might not technically be your problem that two women in their forties made a pass at me today, I'm sharing that information with you because we're together, and if I don't tell someone I'm going to go crazy."

"I'm sorry," Juliet whispered, wrapping her arms around his torso and burying her face in his shoulder.

Max locked his hands together at her back, dropping his chin so he could look her in the eye. "For not talking to me, or that I got hit on?"

Juliet lifted her head with a small smile. "Both."

"Forgotten," he said softly, brushing a kiss to the tip of her nose. "Well, this part is. I think the image of Paris Geller's mother trying to take off my blazer is forever burned into my brain, and will be triggered by the barest whiff of Chanel no.5. Which –!"

Max tapped the cover of Swann's Way excitedly, and Juliet looked up in recognition, smiling. "Oh, is Proust the smell memory guy?"

"He's the smell memory guy," he confirmed.

"Cool," Juliet breathed, running her hand over the cover again. She leaned into him, resting her cheek against the soft wool of his blazer. She felt him lean against her hair, then lift his head slightly. She laughed. "You can smell the bleach, can't you?"

"No, it's good," Max said with a laugh. "It's clearing the Chanel no.5 from my nose."

Juliet leaned her head back down, laughing into his shoulder. Maybe someday she would tell him about her own olfactory memories, why she could only handle the smell of coffee when it was mixed with Lorelai's perfume, why she might not ever fully believe him when he told her he was here to stay. But for now, she just hoped that if he held her tightly enough, he could squeeze the fear from her.

When Juliet pushed open the door to the coffee house on Thursday, Lorelai was waiting for her, swinging her legs at the counter. When she heard the bells chime, she turned around and gave Juliet a nervous wave. "Hey."

Juliet's face broke into a grin as she lowered herself onto the stool beside Lorelai's, and Lorelai's shoulders immediately relaxed at the joy effusing from her sister's face. "Oh, smiling's good."

Juliet ducked her head, her cheeks pinking as she smiled down at her hands. "Smiling's very good."

Lorelai craned her neck, forcing her sister to make eye contact with her. "I take it that means you still like me?"

"I always like you," Juliet promised, a fond smile on her face as she covered Lorelai's hand with her own. "I'm mad at you right now, but I still like you."

Lorelai's smile widened, and she pointed a finger at her face. "See, that'd be a lot easier to believe if you didn't look like you slept with a hanger in your mouth."

"Okay, I'm not mad mad, mostly because your meddling worked," Juliet admitted, rolling her eyes. She laid her other hand on Lorelai's forearm, meeting her eyes seriously. "But don't do that again."

Lorelai turned her palm upwards, squeezing Juliet's hand. "I'm sorry. You just – you were so sad, and I hated that you were so sad, and I wanted to make it so you weren't –"

"So sad?"

"Yes," Lorelai laughed.

Juliet squeezed her hand again, laughing. "Thank you."

"So, I'm forgiven?" Lorelai asked, raising her eyebrows with a smile.

Juliet nodded, shrugging. "I was going to call Luke and tell him you're in love with him – you know, as revenge – but I decided not to."

"So merciful," Lorelai quipped with an exaggerated sigh. "Everything's okay, though?"

"Everything's okay," Juliet confirmed, her lips twisting up of their own volition. "He wants me to meet his parents."

"Oh, Jules," Lorelai breathed, her smile warming. "That's so great. I'm so happy for you."

"Yeah, we'll see how that goes," Juliet said with a nervous laugh. "I think he actually likes them, so there's extra pressure."

Lorelai made a face. "Yeah, I don't know how to help you with that."

Juliet tugged on one of her sister's curls. "You're banned from helping me, remember?"

The corners of Lorelai's mouth turned up in a knowing smirk. "Except when you want to borrow my clothes?"

"Well, sure, that goes without saying."

Notes:

I mentioned before that I was nervous about this episode, because of how Max/Lorelai heavy it is, but to me, this episode is, at its core, about Lorelai's attachment issues, so I decided this would be the chapter where I took a deep dive into Juliet's. I personally love attachment theory, I think it's so interesting, and it was fun to imagine how Max Medina might react to an anxiously attached partner rather than an avoidant attached partner.
I also almost left the Proust out, because it's a Max/Lorelai thing, but Proust is an important figure in both literature and psychology, so I felt like I kinda had to keep him in there for our lit and psych nerds :)
Feedback is always appreciated, so let me know what you think!