"I envy her happiness. I envy his happiness. I envy John Brooke for marrying Meg. I hate Fred Vaughn. And if Beth had a lover I would despise him too. Just as you have always known that you would never marry a pauper, I have always known that I belong to the March family."

– Laurie, Little Women 1994

CW: Mentions of eating disorders and mentions of a minor having sex with an adult. If either or both of these topics aren't things you feel like reading about, feel free to skip this chapter and leave me a note in the comments if you'd like a Sparknotes summary :)

Also, this is a longer chapter, so buckle up lol.

As Rory and Christopher continued to cruise around Stars Hollow, Lorelai sat on the couch, thumbing unseeingly through a magazine while Juliet talked on the phone upstairs. When she heard the front door open, she hurriedly glanced back down at the quiz in front of her, pretending as though the only thing on her mind was whether she looked best in earth or jewel tones.

"We're back," Rory called as she slammed the door behind her, Christopher at her heels.

Lorelai looked up with a smile, kissing her daughter's cheek. "Oh, hey! Did you have fun? Where'd you go?"

Christopher smiled, putting a hand on Rory's shoulder. "Well, we saw Al's Paraguayan pancake house, we were stalked by several townspeople, and apparently I look like Billy Crudup."

Lorelai snorted. "You do not."

"Take it up with Jackson," he said with a laugh.

"Hey, where's Auntie Jules?" Rory asked, glancing around the living room with a frown.

Lorelai jerked her chin toward the ceiling. "Upstairs, talking to Max."

"Max?" Christopher arched an eyebrow with a curious smile. "Who's Max?"

"Her boyfriend," Lorelai answered warily, trying to figure out whether the tension in his voice was a result of brotherly protectiveness or something else entirely.

"He's great, Dad," Rory said, turning to her father with a smile. "You'll see. You'll get to meet him when he comes on Thursday."

"Looking forward to it, kiddo," he said, wrapping his arm around Rory's shoulders. He turned to Lorelai with an ingratiating smile. "So, she's got a Dean, Jules has a Max, and you have. . .?"

"A complete set of Charlie's Angels collectible plates," Lorelai said with a wry smile.

Christopher's smile widened. "Well, who needs a man when you have those?"

Lorelai chuckled uncomfortably, glancing at the stairs when she heard Juliet's footsteps coming down the stairs. "Hey!"

"Hey, sorry," Juliet apologized, tucking her hair behind her ears. She noticed Rory and Christopher standing beside the couch and smiled tightly. "Oh, hey."

"'Hey'?" Christopher repeated with a laugh. "I don't see you for five years, and all I get is a 'hey'? Come on, Jules, give me a hug."

"Right, yeah, sorry," Juliet said, glancing over at Lorelai briefly as she hugged Christopher quickly, accepting the kiss he pressed to her cheek with a strained smile.

"I missed you last Christmas," he said, pulling back and looking into her eyes earnestly, keeping his hands on her upper arms. "It sucks that you had to work."

Juliet wasn't about to admit that she'd purposefully switched shifts with another resident every time she heard that Christopher was coming for the holidays. Instead, she shrugged sheepishly. "Well, they need doctors on Christmas too."

"God, a doctor! That's amazing. I'm amazed every time I hear it. Can you believe it, Lor? Our little Jules is finally a doctor," Christopher declared proudly, putting a too-familiar arm around Juliet's shoulders as he turned to Lorelai with a bright smile.

Lorelai nodded, forcing a smile. "I know, it's amazing."

Christopher hugged Juliet closer to him, not noticing the tension in her shoulders as his smile widened. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I mean, she is your sister."

"Right," Lorelai agreed with a short laugh. She pointedly gestured to Rory with her eyebrows. "Um, has Rory told you how well she's doing at Chilton?"

"She sure has! I gotta say, kiddo, I'm surprised the plaid skirt life is for you, considering how much we hated it," he said, releasing Juliet to squeeze Rory's upper arm. He smiled at Lorelai again. "I know the genius thing definitely comes from your mom because there's no way you got it from your aunt. Or me. We were always tripping over ourselves to keep up with Lor growing up. Still are."

Rory giggled, beaming up at her father. "Oh, hey, we should go if we want to make it to the softball game on time."

"Right. I get to meet the elusive Dean," Christopher said, patting Rory's back with a smirk. He kissed Lorelai's cheek in farewell, his lips lingering a hair longer than they had on Juliet's. "See you later, Lor."

"Bye, Chris," Lorelai said, beckoning Rory over to where she sat so she could kiss her goodbye. "Bye, sweets, have fun."

"We will!" Rory promised, her hair spinning out behind her as she practically skipped to the door. She waved at Juliet. "Bye, Auntie Jules!"

Juliet waved back. "Bye."

"Hey, Jules, when we get back, we gotta decide how we're spending your last Saturday night in your twenties, huh?" Christopher called over his shoulder as he followed Rory. He winked. "Maybe we could get a keg or something."

Lorelai gave him a brittle smile, looking pointedly at Rory. "Of lemonade, sure."

Christopher scoffed, rolling his eyes at her. "Come on, Lor, I was kidding. Do you think I'm an idiot?"

Lorelai met Juliet's eyes with a sardonic lift of her eyebrows but said nothing. Christopher didn't wait for an answer, loudly slamming the door shut behind him and Rory.

The sisters were silent for a moment before Lorelai patted the seat next to her with a sigh. When Juliet sat down, Lorelai tapped her sister's thigh. "Everything okay with Max? You were talking to him for a while."

Juliet nodded. "Yeah, sorry about that. I just wanted him to know what's going on."

"You and direct communication," Lorelai teased, earning her an eye roll from Juliet. She sobered, meeting her sister's eyes. "So, is he mad? Do you need to go home?"

Juliet shook her head with a small smile. "No, he was sweet. He kept asking if I was okay."

"And? Are you okay?" Lorelai asked, searching her face worriedly.

Juliet nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just –" she cut herself off, blinking rapidly. "Why is he here?"

Lorelai snorted, the sound coming out more bitterly than she'd intended. "He told us. For your birthday."

Juliet turned to her contritely. "I didn't ask him to come."

"No, I know, Jules," Lorelai promised, patting her sister's knee reassuringly. She scoffed, rolling her eyes. "But the fact that he's making a big deal about being here for your birthday because you're 'basically' his little sister, but thinks a five-minute phone call is enough for when his actual daughter turns sixteen is just so . . . Christopher."

"I know," Juliet whispered.

Lorelai shook her head with a wistful smile. "You know, when we were together, that was one of the best things about him. How much he loved you. How sweet he always was to you. And – I don't know. A part of me kind of hoped that would extend to Rory. I mean, it's not like I expected him to suddenly become responsible or anything, but I thought he'd be more involved. Immature, but involved."

Juliet nodded sadly. "I thought so too."

"I know you did," Lorelai said softly, reaching for Juliet's hand and squeezing it. After a moment, she forced a smile. "I guess it doesn't matter why he's here, as long as it's making Rory happy, right?"

Juliet took a deep breath, pressing her lips together with a nod. "Right."

At exactly 12:37 on Thursday morning, Juliet was awoken by an incessant ringing noise. Lifting her head from Max's chest, she looked blindly around her darkened bedroom for the source of the sound, before realizing it was coming from her cell phone. She reached for it, not bothering to look at the caller ID as she flipped it open.

"Happy birthday, Jules," Lorelai whispered, her voice rough with sleep.

"Hi, Lor," Juliet whispered back, trying to gently remove Max's arm from around her waist without waking him.

"Juliet?" he mumbled suddenly, tightening his hold on her without opening his eyes. "Who are you talking to?"

"It's Lorelai. Go back to sleep, baby," Juliet whispered, brushing his hair back from his face, reveling in the feel of it without hair gel.

Lorelai gasped in mock scandalization. "Juliet Leigh Gilmore, is there a boy in your room?"

Juliet felt her cheeks heat up as she climbed out of bed, stepping into the bathroom, and closing the door behind her. "Um, maybe?"

"Slut."

"Shut up," Juliet laughed, rolling her eyes. She sobered, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "So, how are you? How's everything at home?"

"Well, the toaster's still broken, if that's what you mean," Lorelai quipped, the faint rustling of pillows and blankets barely audible in the background.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I meant," Juliet deadpanned, sitting cross-legged on the bath mat.

"I figured," Lorelai said dryly. She exhaled, sounding frustrated. "No, it's been . . . fine, I guess. I don't know, you know how Chris is. He keeps talking to me about 'the good old days', trying to get me to ride with him on his motorcycle, the usual."

"Are you? Gonna ride on his motorcycle?"

Lorelai laughed shortly. "I'm tempted, but only because that bike is really cool. He and I have been over for a long time, you know that."

"Yeah, I know," Juliet said quietly, focusing intently on the patterns in the bathroom tile.

"He told me he wants to be more involved with Rory," Lorelai told her, her tone a mix of hope and skepticism. "You know, spend more time with her, be a pal."

"That's good, I guess." Juliet grimaced, feeling like a big baby and a terrible aunt for the pit that was beginning to form in her stomach. "So, he'll be around more, then?"

"If he means it, yeah," Lorelai said with a dry chuckle. "But we both know that Chris never makes up his mind for long."

Juliet laughed uncomfortably, crossing her free arm over her stomach. "Lor, I'm –"

"It's fine," Lorelai said quickly, cutting her off. The sisters were silent for a moment until Lorelai stifled a yawn. "Hey, we should go back to sleep. Us old ladies need plenty of rest."

Juliet smiled. "Okay. I'll see you tonight."

"See you tonight," Lorelai said softly. "Let's hope this birthday is less dramatic than your thirteenth, huh?"

"Fingers crossed," Juliet laughed. "I love you."

"Love you too, Jules. Happy birthday."

"Thanks, Lor," Juliet said as she hung up. She stood, using the edge of the bathroom counter for balance, and frowned at her reflection in the mirror, cataloging her face for any new wrinkles. In a moment of foolish vanity, she reached for her toothbrush and brushed her teeth quickly, rolling her eyes internally as she turned the bathroom light out and closed the door behind her.

She climbed back in bed, smiling fondly when Max's arm automatically wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her against him.

"Hi," he murmured sleepily. "Happy birthday."

"Hi," she whispered, reaching for his free hand and lacing their fingers together. "Sorry I woke you up."

Max pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "It's alright."

Juliet propped her chin on his chest to say something else but stopped when she saw his eyes were closed, his breathing deep and even. She rested her cheek back against Max's chest, trying to let the rhythm of his heartbeat lull her back to sleep, but unable to turn her mind off. After a few minutes of staring listlessly into the darkness, she felt him stir and tilted her head back to see his eyes blink open.

"I can hear you brooding," Max whispered with a chuckle, looking down at her as he stroked her hair soothingly.

Juliet lowered her eyes sheepishly. "Sorry."

He squeezed her hand with a concerned frown. "Is something wrong?"

She shook her head, ashamed. "No, I've bothered you so much with my problems lately."

"It's not a bother, Juliet," Max promised, continuing to run his hand through her hair. "Besides, considering that turning thirty is a rather fraught milestone to begin with, combined with your sister's houseguest and your history with him, I'd be more worried if you were completely fine."

Juliet was silent for a moment, rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb as she gathered her thoughts.

"I want him to go," she confessed venomously, her voice choked with tears. "I know that makes me a bad aunt, I know I shouldn't be this angry with him –"

Max scoffed. "You are entirely justified in being as angry with him as you wish."

Juliet shook her head again. "No, I'm not. It's my fault Lorelai didn't talk to me for a month, not his, he's the only one of her friends who checked in on me after she left –"

"For which his motives were wholly selfless," he said sarcastically.

"I can't hate him," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut. "He's family, I can't hate him."

Max wrapped his arm more securely around her, clenching his jaw. "Well, he's not my family."

"You have to be nice to him tonight," Juliet warned, tilting her head back to give him a pointed look.

"I will! I swear, I will be the very picture of amiability," he promised, raising his eyebrows innocently. "I will smile, and murder while I smile, and cry 'content' to that which grieves my heart."

Her brow furrowed. "That's not from Romeo and Juliet, is it? You haven't used it before."

"No, it's Henry VI." He shrugged with a little smirk. "I thought I'd branch out."

"Come on, we're late," Rory said, hurrying ahead of her parents through the town square.

Lorelai rolled her eyes, glancing back at Christopher with a smirk. "Honey, slow down. Mommy and Daddy aren't sixteen anymore."

"But they're probably already there!" Rory protested with a worried frown.

"Don't worry. Auntie Jules has known us long enough to not expect punctuality," Lorelai said with a light laugh, prompting an eye roll from her daughter.

"Yeah, remember how whenever we used to pick her up from school, we'd always be like ten minutes late?" Christopher laughed.

Lorelai nodded. "I remember."

"God, she was so cute with her pigtail braids, all excited to get into a car with high schoolers," he reminisced, shaking his head fondly. "The three of us used to have so much fun."

"Yeah, we did," Lorelai agreed with a small smile.

Christopher winked, lowering his voice conspiratorially. "Of course, Jules wasn't around all the time, or else there wouldn't be a Rory, would there?"

Lorelai chuckled, raising her eyebrows wryly. "No, there wouldn't."

Christopher opened his mouth again, presumably to make another attempt to pull her down memory lane, but was cut off when Rory tugged on her mother's sleeve. "There they are."

"Oh, hey, see? They just got here, we're fine," Lorelai said with a reassuring smile as she gestured to where Max and Juliet stood beside his car, their hands clasped as they spoke softly to one another. Lorelai lengthened her stride, lifting her chin as she raised her voice, adopting a shocked tone. "Oh, my God, is that a woman in her thirties?"

Juliet turned at the sound of her sister's voice, her smile widening when her eyes landed on Lorelai. "Hey, Lor."

Lorelai practically ran over to Juliet, wrapping her up in a tight, exuberant hug and pressing an affectionate kiss to her hair. She pulled back, framing her sister's face with her hands. "Aw, look at you. You're so old."

Juliet laughed, batting her hands away. "Shut up."

Rory was a few steps behind her mother and waited patiently for Lorelai to release Juliet before hugging her aunt tightly. "Happy birthday, Auntie Jules."

Juliet smiled, cradling the back of her niece's head with her hand. "Thanks, sweetie."

Rory pulled back and smiled awkwardly at Max as he wrapped an arm around Juliet's shoulders. She glanced back at Lorelai helplessly, as though her mother would have an answer as to how to address him.

Lorelai stepped in effortlessly, putting a hand on Juliet's shoulder with a teasing smile as she glanced pointedly at Max. "Well? Aren't you gonna introduce us to your boyfriend?"

Juliet rolled her eyes. "You guys have met before."

"Not like this!" Lorelai countered, raising her eyebrows.

"You sound like Mom," Juliet said with a laugh.

"Uh!" Lorelai's mouth dropped open in mock offense. "You take that back right now!"

"Ooh, that's gotta sting," Christopher laughed, wincing exaggeratedly. He stuck his hand out to Max with an unctuous smile. "Hey, how's it going? I'm Christopher."

Max matched his smile with a charming one of his own as he shook Christopher's hand, keeping his other arm wrapped protectively around Juliet's shoulders. "Max Medina. Juliet's told me a lot about you."

"Aw, she has?" Christopher asked. He glanced over at Lorelai with a laugh. "I feel like I should be worried, Lor, the only person who's got more on me than Jules does is you."

"Oh, I don't know about that." Lorelai smiled at Juliet, raising her eyebrows. "I'm pretty sure I've told her all our stories."

"Oh yeah," Christopher chuckled, maintaining the smile on his face even as a touch of bitterness crept into his eyes. "I forgot you two don't have any secrets."

Juliet lowered her eyes uncomfortably as she pressed herself a little closer to Max's side. He rubbed her arm comfortingly, easing some of the tension in her shoulders.

Lorelai turned to Max, cutting through the awkward silence with a bright smile. "So, Max, what do you do for a living?"

Max laughed, his smile turning more genuine. "I'm an acrobat."

"Wow, an acrobat?" Lorelai repeated, widening her eyes with stylized awe. "Is that dangerous?"

"It is. That's actually how we met," Max said, gesturing to Juliet with his free hand. "I fell from the trapeze during a performance one night and was rushed to the emergency room, where I was healed by the most beautiful woman I'd ever laid eyes on. And the rest is history."

Lorelai blew out a breath, shaking her head. "Man, that's a crazy twist of fate."

"We are all fortune's fools," Max said with a shrug, smiling down at Juliet as he hugged her closer. "Even those of us who deny its existence."

Juliet rolled her eyes, smiling. "I thought we agreed to disagree on the whole 'fate versus free will' debate."

"Yeah, I've been trying to get Jules to ride the fatalism train with me for years," Lorelai said to Max with a laugh. She winked at him conspiratorially, lowering her voice. "We'll work on her together."

Max nodded, laughing. "It's a plan."

Christopher frowned, arching an eyebrow in Juliet's direction at the easy banter between her boyfriend and sister.

Juliet avoided his eyes, pointing at the diner. "Um, should we go in?"

Rory nodded excitedly, pulling her father in the direction of the diner and turning over her shoulder to talk to her aunt. "Mom tried to talk Luke into making schnitzel with noodles for tonight, but he said no."

"Schnitzel with noodles?" Christopher repeated, his brow furrowed in confusion.

Lorelai gave him an incredulous look as she pulled open the door to the diner. "Sound of Music? Come on, Chris, you should know that, we made you watch it enough times growing up."

Christopher snorted. "I know, it's just a weird reference."

"Well, it's because of –" Rory cut herself off at the look her aunt was giving her and pressed her smiling lips together.

"Because birthdays are our favorite things," Lorelai stammered, covering for her with an awkward wink. She ignored her sister's eye roll and craned her neck to call into the kitchen in a sing-song voice, "Oh, Lucas! There's a thirty-year-old woman we want you to meet!"

"Keep your pants on," Luke grumbled as he came out from behind the counter, making a face when he saw Christopher was there. "Oh. Hey."

Christopher straightened to his full height, putting on a fake smile. "Hey, man! Thanks for letting us do this here. Lor and I really appreciate it."

"Yeah, sure," Luke said tersely, crossing his arms over his chest. He glanced over at Juliet and blinked, as though just noticing she was there. "Oh, uh, happy birthday."

"Thanks," Juliet said with a small smile. She turned her head to look at Max, resting her free hand on his chest. "You guys remember each other, right?"

Max smiled, offering his free hand. "Right, hi. It's nice to see you again."

"Yeah, you too." Luke's scowl eased slightly as he shook Max's hand, but returned as he watched Christopher sit down beside Lorelai. He blew out a breath. "I'll get some coffee."

"He really hides his jealousy well," Max whispered in Juliet's ear as they sat down.

Juliet ducked her head with a barely contained smile. "Shh."

"Oh, Jules, I forgot to tell you this morning," Lorelai began, tapping her sister's forearm with a too-bright smile. "Guess who Mom invited to dinner tomorrow night?"

Juliet looked from the falsely saccharine smile on her sister's face to the grimace Christopher was sporting, and her eyes widened. "No."

Lorelai nodded with a grim chuckle. "Oh, yeah."

"The Haydens?"

"The Schnickelfritzes themselves," Lorelai quipped, raising her eyebrows with false excitement.

At Juliet's uneasy expression, Christopher let out a snort. "I don't get why you're so worried. My parents adore you for some reason."

Max frowned, raising an eyebrow. "For some reason?"

Lorelai jumped in quickly, diffusing the tension with a wry smile. "Well, Chris's parents are just a little –"

"Difficult?" Juliet offered.

"Shitty," Christopher corrected with a short laugh.

"Chris. . ." Lorelai shot him a warning look, gesturing pointedly to Rory with her eyebrows. She turned back to Max with a smile. "Anyway, despite their Disney villain-esque hatred of anything good, they've always loved Juliet. Straub used to say she was the only one out of the three of us with any respect for her elders."

Juliet scoffed. "It wasn't respect, it was blind terror."

Lorelai waved her hand with a roll of her eyes. "Potato, potahto."

Rory looked at her mother with a worried frown. "Do you think they'll like me?"

"Of course they will, honey," Lorelai promised quickly, squeezing her daughter's shoulder reassuringly. "You're the greatest kid in the world. Who wouldn't love you?"

"Uh, Straub and Francine," Christopher muttered, glancing down at his lap and wincing when Lorelai kicked him under the table. "Sorry."

Lorelai forced a smile in Juliet's direction. "New topic, please?"

Juliet nodded in understanding. "Um, why don't you tell them about the paper you're writing?" she suggested, giving Max's knee a gentle squeeze. She turned to her niece with a smile. "He was telling me about it yesterday, it's really cool."

"What's it about?" Rory asked, tilting her head.

Max let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "Well, it's about Romeo and Juliet, actually."

"Shocking," Lorelai deadpanned with a smirk.

"In my defense, it's been my favorite play for many years, long before I met Miss Capulet's namesake," Max said, smiling as he brushed a lock of Juliet's hair behind her ear. "Specifically, this paper is about how Shakespeare subverts traditional Elizabethan gender roles and binaries through the two leads' respective methods of suicide."

"Woah, that's a lot of big words," Christopher chuckled, his eyebrows going up. He winked at Juliet, smirking. "Bet you have to carry a dictionary in your purse whenever you see this guy, huh?"

Max tightened his arm around Juliet, keeping the smile on his face. "What do you mean by that?"

"Max," Juliet hissed, squeezing his knee again.

Christopher waved his hand dismissively, smiling. "Nothing. Jules knows I'm just teasing her, don't you, Jules?"

"Yeah, of course." Juliet nodded. She turned to Max with what she hoped was a reassuring smile, rubbing his knee. "It's okay."

Max searched her face for a moment, before taking a deep breath and forcing another smile as he turned to Rory. "So, how are you liking Idylls of the King?"

A few hours later, after the last traces of birthday pie had been consumed, Juliet raised her eyebrows questioningly at Max, and he nodded.

She smiled at Lorelai, covering her sister's hand with her own. "Hey, we both have to be at work early tomorrow, so we should probably head back to Hartford."

"Oh! Sure." Lorelai stood up to bid them goodbye, giving Max a quick hug before wrapping her arms around Juliet tightly. "Happy birthday, Jules. See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow," Juliet repeated, rubbing Lorelai's back as she pulled away, then reached for Rory's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Bye."

"Happy birthday," Rory said, squeezing back. She gave Max a small wave. "Bye, Mr.– I mean, bye . . . uh– bye."

Max let out an amused chuckle. "I'll see you in class."

"See you tomorrow, Jules," Christopher said, pecking a kiss to Juliet's cheek. He offered his hand to Max with a wide smile. "Great to meet you."

Max shook his hand, still smiling artificially. "Oh, you too. It's been enlightening."

Juliet reached for Max's hand and gently led him to the door, glancing over her shoulder at Lorelai. "Tell Luke we said bye, okay?"

"I will," Lorelai promised with one last wave.

Max pushed the door open, his polished smile slipping from his face as he held Juliet's hand tightly in his.

As they walked to the car in silence, Juliet looked up at him anxiously. "Are you mad at me?"

"What? No, Juliet. Why would I be mad at you?" he asked incredulously. When she shrugged, lowering her eyes, he squeezed her hand. "I'm angry on your behalf, but certainly not at you."

She closed her eyes briefly, breathing a sigh of relief. "Okay, good."

They began to walk again but were stopped by a voice from behind them. "Juliet?"

Juliet turned around, giving Luke a slightly confused smile as he walked up to them. "Hey, what's up?"

"I just, uh, wanted to say goodbye to you," Luke stammered, putting his hands in his pockets.

Juliet blinked with a surprised smile. "Oh. Bye. Thanks for letting us hang out in there for so long."

"Yeah, sure. I mean, it was pretty dead anyway," Luke chuckled nervously, glancing down at his shoes.

Juliet frowned, concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just–" he cut himself off, glancing up at her with barely hidden desperation. "Are they together?"

Juliet's eyes widened slightly in understanding, and she shook her head with a tiny smile. "No. I mean, they're friends for Rory's sake. But no, they're not together."

Luke nodded, his shoulders dropping. "Okay. I was just curious."

Juliet raised her eyebrows with an amused smile. "Sure."

Luke glared at her, narrowing his eyes. "Oh, shut up."

Max tilted his head, his brow creased. "Not to be blunt, but why haven't you made a move yet?"

Luke bristled. "It's complicated."

"He doesn't want to ruin their friendship," Juliet explained, resting her free hand on her boyfriend's bicep.

"Well, I suppose that's understandable, but that's kind of inevitable, isn't it?" Max asked, glancing between them. When Luke frowned in confusion, he hastened to explain. "Both you and Lorelai are single now, but you likely won't always be. She'll start dating someone, or you'll start dating someone, and your significant others are going to pick up on the fact that the two of you are clearly attracted to one another, and like it or not, that will affect your friendship. So you might as well tell her how you feel."

The words hung in the air for a moment, until Juliet smiled gently. "He's right."

"I know," Luke grumbled, working his jaw as he glanced back at the diner with a sigh. "I'll think about it, okay?"

"Good, that's good," Juliet said with a nod. "You don't want to do anything impulsive."

Max shook his head with a frown. "No, I think this situation warrants some impulsiveness."

Juliet rolled her eyes fondly. "Just sleep on it, okay? It's not like you can do anything with Chris here."

Luke nodded, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "Okay. Thanks. Uh, both of you."

Juliet smiled, waving goodbye. "Anytime. See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow. Happy birthday."

Juliet pulled up to her parents' house, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw Lorelai's Jeep already parked in the driveway. She locked her car and rang the bell, blinking in surprise when her mother answered instead of a maid.

"Oh, good. At least one of you knows how to use a doorbell," Emily said dryly. She ushered Juliet inside, signaling for the maid to take her coat. "Everyone is in the living room, we're just waiting on Straub and Francine."

"Thanks," Juliet whispered to the maid, flipping her long hair behind her shoulders as she followed her mother into the living room.

"Juliet! Happy belated birthday, my dear," Richard said when he saw her come in, reaching for his younger daughter's hands and kissing her cheek quickly.

Juliet exchanged a look of surprise with Lorelai at the rare endearment. "Thank you, Daddy."

"It's hard to believe that our baby is thirty, isn't it, Richard?" Emily asked with an uncharacteristically warm smile as she poured a martini and handed it to Juliet.

"I know, it's crazy," Lorelai agreed, patting Juliet's thigh as she sat down beside her.

"Crazy," Christopher echoed, smiling charmingly as he reached around Rory to squeeze Lorelai's shoulder. "I mean, God, she was kind of like our practice kid growing up, wasn't she, Lor?"

Emily laughed out loud as though that was the funniest thing she'd ever heard. "Practice child! Oh, that's clever. Isn't that clever, Richard?"

"Very clever," Richard agreed, raising his glass. "Your father is a very clever man, Rory."

Rory beamed up at Christopher with shy adoration as Lorelai leaned closer to her sister to whisper through her teeth, "Now, imagine the reaction if I had called you my 'practice kid'."

Juliet huffed out a laugh, giving her sister a tiny nod of agreement as the doorbell rang.

Emily stood up to answer it with an excited smile. "That would be Straub and Francine."

"Oh, God," Christopher muttered, loosening his tie as Richard trailed after his wife eagerly.

Juliet leaned forward to look at him with a frown, feeling a stab of pity in her chest despite everything. "You okay?"

Christopher forced a pained-looking smile. "Yeah, my tie's just too tight."

"This is weird. These are my other grandparents," Rory whispered to her mother nervously. "I don't even know them. What do I call them?"

"Just, uh, call them Straub and Francine. . . or, uh, Mr. and Mrs. Hayden." Lorelai glanced helplessly at Juliet for answers and turned back to her daughter when she found none, rubbing her back gently. "Sir and ma'am? Why don't you just avoid calling them anything?"

"Look who's here," Richard announced as he and Emily came into the living room with the Haydens at their heels.

Christopher stood up, smiling tightly at his parents. "Hello Mother, Pop."

"Christopher," Straub greeted, shaking his son's offered hand.

Francine reached out to tighten her son's tie as she smiled up at him. "Christopher, hello."

Lorelai nodded politely. "Mr. and Mrs. Hayden, long time no see."

Francine gave her a frosty smile. "Lorelai. You look well."

"I am, thanks." Lorelai gently ushered Rory forward, keeping a protective hand on her daughter's back. "You remember Rory. You haven't seen her in quite a while."

"No, we haven't," Straub said shortly.

Francine turned to Rory with a pinched smile. "Rory, hello."

Rory smiled shyly at her paternal grandparents. "Hi."

When neither Straub nor Francine made any attempt to connect further with Rory, Lorelai gestured to Juliet on her other side. "And, uh, you remember Juliet, of course."

Juliet smiled tremulously, wiping her sweaty hands on her skirt. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Hayden."

"Hello, Juliet. My goodness, you've grown so much," Francine said, taking both of Juliet's hands in hers and kissing the air near her cheek.

Straub hummed in agreement, giving Juliet something that vaguely resembled a smile. "And grown very successful, we hear. Your father tells us you're a doctor now?"

Juliet nodded, twisting her fingers together nervously. "Uh, yes. Or– well, my residency isn't done until May, but yes."

"And where do you work?" Straub asked as he accepted a martini from Richard.

"St. Joseph's?"

"Excellent hospital. It's very impressive what you've accomplished at your age," Straub said, taking a sip of his drink.

Juliet lowered her eyes with an embarrassed smile. "Thank you."

Straub looked pointedly at his son. "Especially compared to some."

"Straub," Francine chided in a low voice.

Juliet glanced at Christopher apologetically as he loosened his tie again, the stark reminder of why he was the way that he was momentarily removing some of the resentment she felt toward him.

Richard came to his aid with a genial smile. "We're very pleased about Christopher's business success out in California."

"Yes, it's taken a while but it seems to be finally coming together. Seems to be," Straub agreed as he sat down on the couch across from his son. He turned his assessing gaze on Rory, his eyes narrowed. "And how old are you, young lady?"

"Sixteen," Rory answered, glancing at her mother.

Straub raised his eyebrows with pursed lips. "Dangerous age for girls."

Juliet laid a placating hand on Lorelai's thigh, feeling it tense beneath her fingers as Lorelai clenched her jaw and Christopher stared at his shoes uncomfortably.

Emily attempted to diffuse the tension with her hostess's smile. "Rory is a very special child - excellent student, very bright."

"You should have a talk with her Straub, she could give you a run for your money," Richard declared proudly.

Straub set his drink aside, raising an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

Emily nodded. "That's right."

Rory glanced around uncomfortably at the faces of all the adults in the room, saying nothing.

Straub chuckled bitterly. "Well, I think my money's safe."

"I hate President Bush," Lorelai burst out suddenly, like a matador waving a cape in front of a charging bull.

Juliet squeezed her thigh warningly. "Lor–"

"What?" Straub asked incredulously.

"He's stupid and his face is too tiny for his head and I just want to toss him out!" Lorelai continued, her voice rising.

Straub turned to Richard with a sardonic smile. "I see your daughter is just as out of control as ever."

"Hey, come on," Juliet chided, despite the shaking in her hands.

"Yeah, Pop," Christopher agreed. "Let's try and keep it civil, please?"

Straub ignored them both. "Tell me Lorelai, what have you been doing with your life anyway, besides hating successful businessmen? I'm just curious."

"Why don't we all go into the dining room?" Emily suggested desperately, as though a change in setting would help anything.

Lorelai pursed her lips, meeting Straub's eyes. "Well, uh, Straub, I run an inn near Stars Hollow."

Straub arched an eyebrow. "Really?"

Lorelai narrowed her eyes. "Yes, really."

Christopher tried again. "Dad, come on."

"Nice to see you found your calling," Straub said with a condescending lift of his eyebrows.

"She's also in business school," Juliet cut in, her jaw set. "She's doing really well."

"Are you?"

Lorelai nodded. "I am."

"And where is this 'business school' you attend?" Straub asked, practically spitting out the words.

"Connecticut State," Lorelai answered without breaking eye contact.

"You know, that's quite a haughty tone to take when you announce to the world that you attend a community college," Straub told her sanctimoniously. "Perhaps if you had attended a university instead, as your parents had planned and as we planned in vain for Christopher, you might have aspired to something more than a blue-collared position."

"Don't do this," Christopher pleaded.

Straub continued as though he hadn't spoken. "And I wouldn't give a damn about you derailing your life if you hadn't swept my son along with you."

"Honey, go into the next room," Lorelai whispered to Rory, tapping her daughter's leg. "Go, go."

Richard set his drink on the end table as Rory hurried out of the living room. "I'm going to have to echo Christopher's call for civility here. A mutual mistake was made many years ago by these two, but they have come a long way since."

"A mutual mistake, Richard? This whole evening is ridiculous. We're supposed to sit here like one big, happy family and pretend that the damage that was done is over, gone?" Straub scoffed, pointing in the direction where Rory had just fled. "I don't care about how good a student you say that girl is–"

"Hey!" Lorelai barked, her nostrils flaring.

Juliet shot Straub a quelling look, trying to keep her voice even. "Stop it."

"Our son was bound for Princeton. Every Hayden male attended Princeton including myself, but it all stopped with Christopher." Straub turned in his chair to address Richard, gesturing to Juliet. "At least you had another child to make up for the shame your eldest brought to your family–"

Juliet sat up ramrod straight, all pretense of civility tossed out the window. "Oh, fuck no. You don't get to do that."

"Juliet, language, please," Emily hissed through clenched teeth.

"But he is all we had! Our family's reputation, our family's legacy, are ruined forever, all because she seduced him into ruining his life," Straub declared, pointing a finger at Lorelai. "She had that baby and ended his future."

"You recant that, Straub!" Richard stood up suddenly, pulling Straub up by the front of his suit. "How dare you come into my house and insult my daughter?!"

"Let go of me!" Straub yelled, getting more agitated.

"Chris, grab your dad, we'll get ours," Juliet ordered as she stood up, grabbing Lorelai's hand and pulling her up with her. The three of them rushed over to Richard and Straub, pulling them apart as though they were patients scuffling in the psych ward.

"Shame on you Straub, shame on you for opening all this up again," Richard seethed, ripping himself from his daughters' grasp. "My daughter is very successful at what she does!"

"Get your purse, Francine," Straub commanded, shaking Christopher's hand away. "We're leaving."

"You're not leaving. I'm kicking you out," Richard scoffed, all but throwing Straub and Francine out the door as Emily hurried after them.

After a moment of heavy silence, Christopher turned to Lorelai with a wry smile. "And you brought up Bush because?"

Lorelai chuckled sheepishly. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"At least she said something," Juliet muttered under her breath.

Christopher's head whipped around to face her. "What was that, Jules?"

Juliet looked up in surprise, not realizing she'd spoken aloud. She shook her head quickly. "Nothing, Chris. I didn't say anything."

Christopher raised an eyebrow, his jaw clenched. "It didn't sound like nothing. What did you say?"

Juliet glanced at Lorelai helplessly. "I – well – I just, um –"

Lorelai put a hand on his shoulder, trying to placate him. "Come on, Chris. Let it go."

"There's nothing to let go! It's not a big deal, she can tell me. I mean, we're friends, aren't we?" Christopher asked, shaking Lorelai off with a smile of false geniality and taking a step toward Juliet. "Tell me what you said."

"I just – someone was insulting Rory right in front of you, and you said nothing," Juliet began hesitantly, trying to force some semblance of gentleness into her tone. "I mean, yeah, you tried to stand up for Lor, but he was talking about your kid like she was a mistake or something, and you just sat there."

Christopher bristled. "He's my dad."

"I know, but she's your daughter," Juliet reminded him, crossing her arms protectively over her chest. "I mean, even our dad stepped in when your dad was yelling at Lor."

"Please, like your dad is winning any Father of the Year awards," Christopher scoffed.

"Well, neither are you," Juliet said, regretting the words before they were even fully out of her mouth.

"Hey, guys, come on, let's table this until we get home," Lorelai said, glancing over her shoulder as Emily came back into the living room.

Christopher ignored her, taking another step toward Juliet. "That is none of your business!"

Juliet looked at him incredulously. "It's not?"

"No, it's not!" he spat, leaning forward. He pointed at his chest. "Rory is my daughter! Mine!"

Juliet laughed out loud, the remainder of her self-control falling away. "Really? Because I seem to remember someone going with Lor to all her prenatal appointments, and holding her hand in the delivery room, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't you!"

"I was sixteen!"

"So was she!" Juliet cried, gesturing at Lorelai. "And I was thirteen! Thirteen, and doing your job."

"Right, I forgot. You're just the perfect sister, aren't you?" Christopher mocked. He jerked his head back in pretend realization, a triumphant smirk coming over his face. "Oh, wait. I remember a time when you weren't always."

Juliet felt the blood drain from her face as guilt began to bubble in her stomach.

"Chris, don't," Lorelai pleaded, placing a protective hand on Juliet's elbow.

"What is he talking about, Juliet?" Emily asked slowly, raising an eyebrow. "What are you talking about, Christopher?"

Christopher laughed bitterly, his eyebrows raised in intrigue. "You mean they don't know? You didn't tell them after I dropped you off here? Sweet little Jules kept a secret this big from Mommy and Daddy?"

"Christopher shut up," Lorelai warned through clenched teeth.

Emily looked between her daughters and Christopher, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as her eyes widened in horrified realization. "Oh my God! You didn't, Juliet. Tell me you didn't."

Juliet opened and closed her mouth like a fish. She had. She did. Her silence was all the confirmation Emily needed, and her mother seemed to grow ten feet taller before her eyes but checked herself as she remembered they had company over, pressing her lips together in a tight line and taking a deep breath.

"Please excuse me, I'm going to go check on dinner," Emily said in a dangerously calm voice, turning on her heel and leaving the living room. She couldn't even look at Juliet.

Juliet watched her mother go, biting her lip to the point of pain, barely aware of the soothing circles Lorelai was rubbing into her back. To her horror, she realized her cheeks were wet, and she wiped the moisture away hastily.

Lorelai's eyes shot daggers at Christopher, and he belatedly realized the destruction he'd caused as his anger left him like a deflating balloon.

"Jules," he whispered, lifting a hand as if to reach for her and then dropping it.

Lorelai was still gently rubbing her back, making the guilt rise again like bile in her throat. Juliet shook off her sister's touch, giving her and Christopher a pained smile.

"Um, I'm gonna go make sure Rory's okay," she said, turning on her heel and leaving before either of them could react.

"Dad?" Lorelai called, knocking hesitantly on the door to her father's study. "Can I get you something to eat?"

"I'm not hungry," Richard said shortly.

"Okay." Lorelai nodded, smiling tightly. "Well look, thank you."

"Thank me?" he repeated. "For what?"

She shrugged. "Well, for what you did in there. I'm just unbelievably touched and grateful for what you said to him, for defending me like that. I know it was hard for you because, well . . . but thank you."

She turned to go, but her father's voice stopped her. "Why do you think I did it?"

Lorelai turned back around. "Wha – I don't know."

"A member of my family was being attacked," he explained evenly, his voice detached. "The very Gilmore name was being attacked. I will not stand for that, not under any circumstances."

Lorelai blinked, taken aback. "Okay, well it doesn't really matter why you did it –"

"Yes, it does matter why I did it! It matters greatly!" Richard cut her off, standing up. "Lorelai, what are you going to take away from this? That everything that happened in the past is suddenly fine because I defended you?"

"No –"

He continued as though she hadn't spoken. "That the hell that you put this family through for the past 16 years is suddenly washed away? Well, it's not. I had to tell my friends, my colleagues, that my oldest daughter, the brightest in her class, was pregnant and was leaving school."

"That must have been devastating," she whispered, feeling a prickling sensation beginning to form behind her eyes.

"And then, you run away and treat us like lepers. Your mother and I did nothing to deserve that! Your sister did nothing to deserve that!" Richard seethed, pointing a finger at her as he walked around his desk. "A fourteen-year-old girl, who worshiped the ground you walked on, and you tossed her aside as though she meant nothing to you."

"I didn't toss her aside," Lorelai said defensively, crossing her arms. "She understood why I had to go. She was fine with it."

"Fine?" Richard echoed with a bitter laugh. "I assure you, young lady, that girl was far from fine. Her anorexia came back, did you know that?"

Lorelai's head jerked up, a pit forming in her stomach. "What?"

"No matter what your mother and I did, we couldn't get her to eat," he continued, his voice tight. He sniffed, shaking his head once as though to clear it. "Her coming-out dress was held together with safety pins because she was losing weight faster than we could get alterations done."

"I didn't know," she whispered, unable to look him in the eye. "She didn't tell me." Why didn't she tell me?

"Yes, well, now you do," he sighed, sitting back down. He closed his eyes. "I'm tired, Lorelai. I'll see you next week."

Wiping away one more pesky tear, Juliet pushed open the kitchen door, pausing mid-stride when her mother and niece's whispered conversation stopped abruptly as they looked at her. Right, Mom was going to check on dinner.

"Oh, sorry," Juliet said awkwardly, backing out of the kitchen. "I'll let you two keep talking."

"That's okay," Rory said, giving her a small, wry smile. "We weren't talking about you or anything."

The look her mother was giving her suggested that that was about to change. Juliet avoided her eyes, turning her attention to Rory.

"Oh, good, you got something to eat," she said, gesturing to Rory's now-empty plate.

Rory nodded, forcing another smile. "Yeah, Grandma took care of me."

"Someone should," Emily said bitingly. Juliet gave her a look and gestured to Rory with her eyebrows, silently pleading with her mother to table their fight for now so they could make sure Rory was okay. Thankfully, Emily seemed to understand and put a gentle hand on her granddaughter's shoulder. "Rory, dear, we're all tired. Let's skip the formal dinner tonight. Why don't you find your parents–" she threw a pointed look at Juliet, reminding her that Christopher and Lorelai were a unit in her eyes, "–and we'll see you next week."

Juliet gave her niece a reassuring smile as Rory glanced between the two of them curiously.

"Okay, Grandma," she agreed, getting up from her stool and giving Emily a hug and kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for the food. And the talk."

Emily returned the hug. "Of course, sweetheart."

"See you later," Rory said with a small wave at her aunt. Juliet just nodded in response, not trusting her voice to come out steady.

Once Rory was gone long enough to be deemed out of earshot, Emily whirled on Juliet.

"I want you to confirm something for me, Juliet," she began in a dangerous whisper. "Did you, or did you not, sleep with the father of your sister's child? The man she was supposed to marry?"

Juliet didn't even bother to remind her that Lorelai never wanted to marry Christopher. She just ducked her head. "I did."

"Oh, my God." Emily brought her hand up to cover her mouth. "Oh, my God! When did this happen?"

Juliet swallowed. "Fourteen years ago."

"I don't believe this. I cannot believe this." Emily shook her head as she eyed her daughter with disgust. "You broke up a family, Juliet."

"They weren't even together," Juliet protested half-heartedly, feeling like she was choking on the words.

"They have a child together!" Emily exclaimed, as though that was all that mattered. She shook her head again, barking out a short laugh. "All this time, I've blamed your sister for not marrying Christopher, believing she was too stubborn to allow him to be a proper father to that child, when really–"

Juliet felt her eyes well up again. "Mom–"

"When really, it's your fault that your niece doesn't have a father! And Lorelai was protecting you from the consequences of your actions. Just as she always has," her mother spat, her voice dripping with contempt.

"Hey, it was his choice not to be there!" Juliet protested, hastily wiping away the tears that were already running down her cheeks. "There are plenty of people who are more involved in Rory's life than Christopher is and none of them are married to Lorelai."

Emily ignored her, stepping closer, and Juliet took an involuntary step back at the unbridled rage she saw in her mother's eyes. "Tell me, Juliet, do all of Lorelai's relationships end after a few months because she can't commit to a man, or is it because you sleep with them, too?"

"Stop it, Mom!" Juliet begged, her voice growing watery as the tears came faster than she could wipe them aside. "You're not being fair."

A muscle twitched in Emily's jaw. "Fair? Is it fair that your sister is a single mother because of you? Is it fair that Rory's father isn't in her life because of you? You behave as though you're a second mother to that girl, like you deserve a medal for being as involved in her upbringing as you are, when if you had just kept your knees shut, they wouldn't even need you!"

Juliet reared back as though she'd been slapped, not knowing what to say to that. What could she say? Emily was right. She wiped her nose with her sleeve, frowning in disgust at the maelstrom of snot that now decorated one of her favorite blouses. Emily, after a moment of watching her daughter unsuccessfully clean her face up, went to the sink and dampened a paper towel, handing it to Juliet with a sigh.

"Thanks," Juliet sniffled, bringing it to her cheeks. The coolness of the towel was soothing and she felt her breath begin to slow.

Emily was saved from responding as the kitchen door swung open and Lorelai marched in, placing a hand on Juliet's back.

"Hey. I sent Rory and Chris back in my car," she said, her voice almost a whisper. "I figured you and I could just go straight to Luke's."

Emily arched an eyebrow. "Luke's? The two of you are going to see Luke?"

"Yes," Lorelai said, daring her mother to make a comment. "We're helping him repaint the diner."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Lorelai?" Emily asked snidely. "Letting Juliet spend so much time with a man you're clearly interested in?"

Juliet ducked her head in shame. Lorelai's face tightened into a scowl and she immediately stepped between her sister and mother. "Let it go, Mom. It was a million years ago and it was once."

"Once an adulteress –" Emily began, pursing her lips.

"For God's sake, Mom! We weren't together! It's not adultery if you're not together!" Lorelai exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration.

"Need I remind you that you and the ice man aren't together, either? If that's all that's stopping your sister from jumping into bed with him, I'd be extra careful," Emily stage-whispered, her voice falsely sugary.

Juliet's head jerked up, so disgusted by the image her mother had drawn that she was momentarily distracted from her guilt.

"What the hell is this?" Lorelai scoffed, her voice rising. "Last week you were all Don Murray in Endless Love and now you're telling me to mark my territory before Jules gets the chance? Maybe pee on him a little? I mean, God, Mom, I know you've never listened to a thing I've said, but I need you to hear me when I tell you that Christopher was every bit as involved in what he and Juliet did as she was. Maybe more!"

Emily opened her mouth to respond but Lorelai held up a hand to silence her. "We're leaving. We're late to help a friend and we're leaving," Lorelai said, grabbing Juliet's arm and pulling her out of the kitchen. "Thanks for a great family reunion, Mom. We'll see you next week."

The car ride back to Stars Hollow was a silent one, with neither sister offering any conversation or making an attempt to turn the radio on. Juliet had never looked more focused while driving and had never been less focused on the road.

As they passed the Welcome to Stars Hollow sign, Juliet couldn't hold it in any longer. "I'm sorry, Lor."

Lorelai gave her a look of exasperation. "Jules, you have nothing to apologize for."

"Yes, I do," Juliet argued. "I slept with Chris. With your baby daddy."

"Well, now you have to apologize for forcing me to hear the words 'baby daddy'," Lorelai quipped, and Juliet rolled her eyes despite herself. Lorelai placed a hand on her sister's shoulder, offering a comforting smile. "I meant what I said to Mom. It was years ago, it was once, you've already apologized a million times for it. We're good."

"But what if Mom's right?" Juliet asked in a choked voice. "What if it's my fault that he's not more there for Rory? For you?"

"She said that?" Lorelai asked incredulously. At Juliet's confirming nod, she scoffed. "Honey, he already hadn't been there for Rory for two years. He and I were done."

"Still," Juliet said, chewing the inside of her cheek. "Sleeping with your sister's ex is a shitty thing to do."

"Well, yeah, it was kind of shitty," Lorelai allowed with a small shrug. "But it'd be pretty damn hypocritical of me to keep judging you for a mistake you made at fifteen. Besides, I dated Chris even though I knew you had a giant crush on him, so I guess we're even."

Juliet frowned thoughtfully. "Huh. I never thought of it that way."

"Well, good. So stop beating yourself up about this. Because you're a really, really good sister," Lorelai promised.

"Yeah, you're not too bad either," Juliet said with a small smile, pulling the car to a stop near the diner. She inhaled shakily, glancing over at Lorelai. "Hey, how about I just drop you off here? I mean, you guys probably don't need my help that much, right?"

Lorelai gave her a pointed look. "Come on, don't let Mom get into your head. I know you're not gonna try anything with Luke."

"Of course not, but I don't want you to feel –"

"I don't," Lorelai cut her off, shaking her head vigorously. "Besides, even if I did think you were some man stealing hussy like Mom's pretending you are, you and Luke have less chemistry than Julia Roberts and Nick Nolte in I Love Trouble. Except, you know, you don't completely hate each other."

Juliet snorted, rolling her eyes with a fond smile. "No, really, I'll just head back to your house. Luke didn't seem that happy about me crashing your date in the first place."

"It's not a date," Lorelai muttered, blushing.

Juliet smirked. "Sure it's not."

Lorelai shot her sister a glare, then sighed, working her jaw. "I would feel better if one of us was with Rory after what happened at dinner. In case she wants to talk or something."

Juliet nodded in understanding, jerking her chin at the diner. "Go have fun. I'll make sure she's okay."

Lorelai bit her lip, glancing over at the diner. "Are you sure? I mean, with Chris at the house and you guys fighting and everything?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Go. You promised to help," Juliet said with another nod, waving at Luke when she saw him step outside. "Want me to pick you up when you're done?"

"What, to save me from a grueling ten-minute walk through the mean streets of Stars Hollow? I think I'll be okay," Lorelai said with a short laugh, hopping out of the car. "Thanks, though."

"Anytime," Juliet laughed as she waved goodbye.

Lorelai gave her one last wave over her shoulder as she crossed the street, raising her eyebrows with a bright smile when she reached Luke. "Hey."

"Hey," Luke returned with a shy smile of his own. He looked up at the sound of Juliet's car driving off with a frown. "She not coming?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No, tonight was kind of rough for Rory, so Jules is gonna check on her."

"What happened? Is Rory okay? Do you need to go home?" he asked in a rush, his brow knit with worry. "We don't have to do this tonight."

"Nah, Auntie Freud's got it covered," Lorelai said with a wave of her hand. She smiled up at him with a shrug, trying to appear nonchalant. "But, uh, we can wait till tomorrow, if you want. The painting songs do sound a lot better with Jules singing harmony."

"Oh, I'm sure," Luke deadpanned, rolling his eyes. "I, uh, I think we'll be okay though. On our own."

Lorelai's smile widened. "Okay."

Luke nodded, opening the door for them both. "Okay."

"Hey," Juliet said softly as she came into the kitchen, smiling tightly at Christopher.

Christopher returned her smile with an awkward one of his own. "Hey."

She gestured to Rory's closed bedroom door. "Um, how's Rory doing? Is she okay?"

"Yeah, we talked for a little. She said she just wanted to go to bed, but she's probably still up if you wanna talk to her," he said, leaning forward and resting his hands on a chair. He smirked, huffing out a laugh. "One of your Dr. Phil talks might help."

Juliet stared at the door for a moment, chewing the inside of her cheek, then shook her head. "No, I don't want to push her. Lor can talk to her in the morning. Or me and Lor, if she wants."

"Where is Lor, anyway? She didn't have you run her over with your car, did she?" Christopher joked, craning his neck to look over her shoulder.

Juliet chuckled half-heartedly. "No, uh, she's helping Luke paint the diner."

The teasing smile slipped from Christopher's face, giving way to barely concealed jealousy. "She's with the diner guy, huh? I didn't know they were shacking up."

"They're just friends, as far as I know, but . . ." Juliet trailed off, not wanting to say too much.

Christopher nodded, his grip on the chair tightening ever so slightly. He took a deep breath, then looked up at her after a moment. "Hey, um, I didn't mean to spill the beans to your mom earlier. Really. I just – everything with my dad, and then you and me were fighting –"

"Don't worry about it. It was gonna come out eventually," Juliet said with a sad smile. She traced a finger over the wood patterns on the table uncomfortably. "And I'm sorry for yelling. I don't usually lose my cool like that."

"No, you don't," Christopher agreed with a wry chuckle. "But, I mean, you are in your thirties now. Unmarried, no kids. You might just be bitter."

Juliet huffed out a laugh, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, that's it."

He straightened, taking a step closer to her. "So, what do you say, Jules? Pals again? Should we hug it out?"

Juliet nodded, moving around the table to wrap her arms around him, patting his back after a moment and making an attempt to pull away. When he didn't let go, she pushed him away gently, frowning at the distinctly un-brotherly look she saw in his eye. Christopher met her eyes, as though confirming they were the same color as Lorelai's, and leaned in.

Juliet's eyes widened, and she shoved him more forcefully, taking a step back. "No, no."

"Yes," Christopher whispered, grabbing her hand to stop her escape.

"No," Juliet repeated, wrenching her hand from his grip and backing further away. "This is not gonna happen. This is over. The ping-ponging between me and Lor, it's over."

Christopher stepped closer, reaching for her again. "Of course, it's over, I'm picking you!"

"You're not 'picking' me, you've never picked me. You don't want me, Chris," Juliet scoffed as she moved to the other side of the table, worried he'd try to kiss her again if he got any closer. "You just know that Lor's not an option anymore and apparently I'm the next best thing. But I'm in a relationship! A happy, loving, committed relationship. I'm not an option, either!"

"Oh yeah, Hugh Grant." Christopher chuckled bitterly, raising his eyebrows with a smirk. "He and Lor seem close."

Juliet bristled at his tone. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, Jules!" Christopher said, holding his hands up in surrender. "They just– They seem a little friendlier than you'd expect a guy to be with his girlfriend's sister. But hey, you know him a lot better than I do and I know you wouldn't be with anyone who has a thing for her."

"No, I wouldn't," Juliet agreed, crossing her arms protectively over her chest. She swallowed thickly, feeling her eyes burn a little as she looked up at him. "Do you really think he has a thing for her?"

"Hey, I only met the guy yesterday. What do I know?" Christopher asked with a short laugh. He paused when he saw the look on her face and softened, his shoulders dropping. "I'm sorry, Jules. I didn't mean to freak you out."

Juliet shook her head rapidly, flicking away a stray tear that had gathered in the corner of her eye. "You didn't freak me out. I'm fine."

"Really, I'm just trying to look out for you," Christopher promised. He smiled, trying to coax one out of her. "That's what big brothers are for, right?"

"Right," Juliet chuckled weakly, forcing a smile. "Um, I'm gonna go to bed. I, um, I don't think Lor will be back until late, so you probably don't need to wait up for her or anything."

Christopher nodded. "Okay. Night, Jules."

"Night," Juliet said with a tiny wave, taking the stairs to Lorelai's room two at a time and willing herself not to spiral.

Max loves you. He chose you, Juliet reminded herself as she brushed her hair out and braided it for sleeping. She closed her eyes tightly, feeling them start to prickle. He loves you. He chose you.

On a logical level, she knew that Christopher had been trying to get in her head, to take the hurt and embarrassment he was feeling out on her. And he knew her well enough to know what would sting the most, despite not having seen her in years. His words didn't mean anything.

Did they?

"Thanks for letting me borrow this," Lorelai said as she came down the stairs, buttoning an old flannel over her skirt and blouse. "I packed stuff in my car to paint in, but then I rode home with Jules –"

"No big deal." Luke cut her off with a half-smile. He cleared his throat. "It, uh, it looks good on you."

Lorelai bit her lip, a blush rising to her cheeks. "Flattery will get you everywhere, my friend."

Luke smiled, avoiding her eyes as he glanced around the barren diner. "So, you're the expert. How should we do this? Do we just pick a wall and start there?"

Lorelai nodded, pointing at the windowed wall facing the gazebo. "That one?"

"Sure," Luke said, opening one of the paint cans. He squatted on the floor, looking up at her as he poured the paint into a tray. "So, why was tonight so rough?"

Lorelai grabbed two rollers and handed him one with a perplexed frown. "What?"

"Tonight? You said it was rough for Rory?" he reminded her, dipping the roller and beginning to paint.

"Oh. Yeah," Lorelai snorted, thinking of everyone at dinner that night who she wanted to maim. Straub, Chris, her mother, Chris. "Um, Christopher's parents are in town, and they've never met Rory – at least, not since she's been out of diapers – so my brilliant mother decided to invite them to dinner tonight."

Luke paused mid-roll to look at her incredulously. "They haven't seen their own granddaughter since she was in diapers?"

"They don't want to," Lorelai said bitterly. "To them, she's the reason their son never made it to Princeton. She and I ruined his future."

"That's crap," Luke scoffed, shaking his head. "How the hell could she have affected him going to Princeton? It's not like he's particularly involved in her life. And even if he was, I mean, you figured out how to go to school and work on top of taking care of Rory, Juliet's got two degrees and she's around all the time, why couldn't he make it work?"

Lorelai smiled sadly. "You're preaching to the choir, buddy."

"Still," Luke muttered under his breath.

"And then my dad defended me, which was nice, but when I went to thank him for it, he and I got into it," Lorelai said, allowing the repetitive motion of the paint roller to settle the anger still bubbling in her veins. "He laid into me for getting pregnant and embarrassing the family, for running away from home when I did. And then he told me that after I left –"

"What?" Luke prodded when she cut herself off.

"That Juliet stopped eating again," Lorelai confessed, busying herself with dipping her roller in the tray to avoid his eyes. She sniffled, pursing her lips. "You know, she promised me, I made her promise when I got pregnant that she'd get better, that she wouldn't give my kid an eating disorder by osmosis. I guess she decided she didn't need to worry about that if we weren't there."

Luke blinked at her in surprise. "Juliet had an eating disorder?"

"Anorexia," Lorelai clarified, nodding. She swallowed thickly, shaking her head. "Growing up, my mother was always telling us to watch what we ate. We'd go shopping and she'd make little digs about how clothes looked on us when we tried them on, we had to eat half a grapefruit every day with breakfast, she'd get all passive-aggressive when we grew out of our school uniforms, stuff like that."

Luke scoffed. "But you were kids."

"And she was Emily Gilmore," Lorelai quipped with a wry smile. "I, of course, being the free spirit that I am, decided I didn't care what size plaid skirt I wore and ate like crap just to piss my mom off, so I got out from under Jean Nidetch's thumb with relatively few battle scars. But Jules always took all the crap my parents said to heart, that's just how she is. So she stopped eating. She'd guzzle black coffee all day so she wouldn't get hungry, and then if she thought she ate too much one day, she'd force herself to drink more as a punishment or something. That's why she won't touch the stuff now."

Luke lowered his eyes, working his jaw as he guiltily recalled all the times he'd disparaged Lorelai for her excessive caffeine consumption and compared it to her sister's seemingly healthier palate.

"I just – I thought she was past it. It had been more than a year, so I figured she was okay. I really thought she'd be okay," Lorelai insisted defensively, meeting his eyes as she silently begged him to believe her.

"I know you did," Luke said softly.

"She didn't tell me," Lorelai whispered, almost to herself. She looked up at Luke, searching his face for answers. "Why wouldn't she tell me?"

Luke shrugged sadly. "Because she probably knew it'd make you feel like this."

She sniffled, knowing he was right. They maintained eye contact for another long, charged moment, until Lorelai dropped her gaze, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. She laughed uncomfortably, focusing back on the wall she was supposed to be painting. "Sorry. I guess painting brings out my chatty side."

Luke snorted. "You only have chatty sides."

Lorelai's mouth dropped open in mock offense. "Excuse me, I resent that! I can be very quiet if I want to be."

He raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You can?"

"Yes," she said, dragging out the word with an impish smile. "I just usually don't want to be."

"Oh, yeah, makes sense," Luke deadpanned, rolling his eyes with a smirk. He looked at her, barking out a laugh. "Oh, you have, uh – paint."

"What? Where?" Lorelai asked, wiping at her face blindly.

"No, not there." Luke tapped his cheek. "Right here."

"Right here?" she repeated, mirroring him.

"No, other side," he said, pointing to her other cheek. When she wiped ineffectually again, he laughed, stepping forward hesitantly. "You're just spreading it around. Here – can I –?"

"Oh! Yeah. Please," Lorelai giggled, stepping closer, her eyes closing of their own volition when he shyly brushed her cheek with the pad of his thumb. She opened her eyes, her breath catching in her throat at the sight of his face so close to hers. "Did you get it?"

"Yeah," he whispered but didn't move his hand away.

"Thanks," she breathed, unable to tear her eyes from his.

He nodded, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed. "Sure."

His gaze dropped to her mouth, and she unconsciously moved closer, resting her hand on his bicep. They dropped the rollers they held, and they clattered to the floor unnoticed, the sound echoing through the empty diner.

Lorelai climbed the stairs to her bedroom slowly, closing her eyes in frustration when she saw a light on from underneath the doorway and hoping Juliet had fallen asleep reading or something, not wanting to deal with her sister's questions right now. She opened the door, wincing when the hinges creaked. She saw Juliet sitting on top of the covers, wearing a too-big sweater over her pajamas, her chin resting on her knees as she stared straight ahead.

Juliet glanced over at the sound of the door opening, her brow furrowing at the stunned look on her sister's face. "What happened? Are you okay?"

Lorelai sighed, pressing her lips together and squeezing her eyes shut. "I just slept with Luke."

Juliet's eyes widened. "Oh my God."

Lorelai nodded, biting her lip. "I know."

"Oh my God!" Juliet repeated, sitting up straighter and turning to face her sister. She searched Lorelai's face with a confused frown. "What – you don't look happy. Was it not good?"

"Oh, no, it was good. It was –" Lorelai cut herself off, smiling involuntarily at the memory. She nodded, barking out a laugh. "It was good."

"Then what's wrong?" Juliet asked, her brow furrowed. She patted the bed. "Here, sit."

Lorelai lowered herself onto the bed, focusing intently on the quilt. "Well, um, you know, after, we were laying in his bed – did you know he has a single bed, by the way? He's this giant man, and he sleeps in a twin bed every night like he's ten years old or something, isn't that funny? I mean, not funny, it's just not what I pictured. Not that I was picturing his bed or anything, but –"

Juliet halted her babbling with a gentle hand on her knee."What happened?"

"So, I'm laying there, and it just hits me – the enormity of what we've done. I was like Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally, you know? Just staring blankly at the ceiling, completely wigging out. And I just – I had to get out of there. So I finally made some excuse about needing to get home to Rory, which of course he understood, and I just Nancy Mitford-ed it out of there as fast as I could," Lorelai said with a self-deprecating chuckle, her eyes glistening. She huffed, disgusted with herself. "What am I doing, trying to start something with Luke? I shouldn't have even thought about it!"

"Lor –"

"No, he's too important! What was I thinking? There's no way to escape him when this goes badly! We live in the same tiny town, I see him every day, Rory adores him– Oh, God, Rory!" Lorelai pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. "If things don't work out, she's gonna be crushed! And she told me not to date him! She's already attached, so she told me not to date him! Why didn't I listen?"

Juliet tried again. "Lor–"

"And he's your friend too! The man is enmeshed in every part of my life, and this'll ruin everything!" she exclaimed, looking at her sister helplessly as her eyes filled with tears. "I ruined everything. He's my best friend, and I ruined everything."

Ignoring the gut punch that came from Lorelai referring to Luke as her best friend, Juliet wrapped her arms around her sister, stroking her hair as she felt tears soaking the sweater she wore. "Shh, you didn't ruin anything. Everything's gonna be fine."

"He's my best friend, Jules. What did I do?" Lorelai sobbed, tightening her grip on her sister's waist. "What did I just do?"

Notes:

Again, thank you to tree for proofreading for me! I'm not a fan of how much dialogue I borrowed from the show, but I felt like it was necessary lol. Please let me know what you think!