Chapter XIII

"You two are something else," Luke says as he hangs up the phone. "They're moving him first thing in the morning."

Lorelai grins as she raises the coffee cup to her lips, gives a glance to the Jess Jar at its new home next to the register. Rory left a while ago to head home, being a school night and all. From her perch at the counter, she can see Luke taking his time now to sort out the checks and bills, totalling the sum a second time while he shakes his head in amazement and mild discomfort.

"Something else, hmm? In the best way possible," she replies.

He echoes, "In the best way possible. Are you sure this is okay?"

Lorelai finds the vulnerability and concern in his blue eyes that she had seen in her daughter's, when she was standing up on that stage. "For the third time, Luke, it is more than okay. They did it for you. And no need to thank us again either."

The skimming sound of paper against paper comes to a halt. Lorelai swallows a large gulp of coffee too quickly when Luke holds up the five Benjamins. She begins to cough while he asks solemnly, "What is this?"

Lorelai keeps coughing, and Luke slams a cup of water in front of her, yelling, "Damn it, Lorelai! This was for Rory's car!"

After her throat takes in half of the glass gratefully, she lowers it and says, "I know that! But it's her money, and I can't decide what she does with it. Well, technically, it was Jess's money that became Rory's money so I guess he's helping himself."

Luke shakes his head, pushing the $500 across the counter to her. "Jess tried to give me money too. I didn't want it."

"Why not?" Lorelai demands after the initial shock, letting the cash rest on the counter. Now he's just trying to make things harder on himself. The punk is attempting to think of others for once, and Luke is discouraging that?

"Because I'm not going to take $2000 from my nephew when he could spend it on college!"

Lorelai scoffs. "Jess at college? C'mon, Luke. Be realistic."

"I know, I know. But he could do it. He's smart enough."

Lorelai tucks her hair behind her ears, briefly occupying herself so she doesn't laugh. "I'm sure he is! But you could use that $2000, Luke. With that and help from everyone else, you probably wouldn't need a loan."

"I… am beginning to accustom myself to the idea of a loan. I know how I'm going to pay it back, almost immediately."

"Yeah? What's the grand master plan?"

"I have something to sell. The market isn't good right now, but it'll bounce back by autumn. I can feel it."

"And what's that?"

Luke swallows, hesitating. "My father's boat. I've kept it since he died, and it doesn't make sense to keep it around any longer. If I can fix it up enough to sell it by autumn, I'll have enough money to pay back the loan and help send Jess to college."

Lorelai almost drops her coffee. Some of the liquid splashes over the side, barely missing the money, as the cup comes gracelessly to the counter. She pulls her hands into her lap to intertwine her fingers, squeezing the air in between her palms in a death grip. Luke immediately picks up the cup, swipes his rag under it, and replaces it in front of her, topping it off to compensate for what was lost. Lorelai's neck begins to hurt, as she is shaking her head faster and faster. It doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense. She hears Luke say her name, and she looks up at him. "You're a really good person, you know that?"

"Yeah, well."

"No. You are genuinely the best person I know. You would do anything for the people you care about." Luke just shrugs with one shoulder and watches as Lorelai picks up the money from the counter. She holds it out to him, and he slowly takes it. "I don't want you to sell your father's boat. It obviously means a lot to you, and I owe it to you to help you figure this out."

Luke shakes his head. "You've already helped."

"I can do more! … Rory, tonight… she said something about obligation. I used that same thing against you on Friday because I felt betrayed. I forgot that I have an obligation to you too. We'll think of something. The boat is a last resort, the very last resort."

Luke nods. "Okay. I don't know how else you could possibly help me. This is more than enough. I saw Jess today, and he was miserable with those five other guys in there. He's going to be ecstatic when they take him out tomorrow."

"And by that you mean grunt a little less sarcastically?"

"Well we can't get our hopes up too high…" Luke says, then slips Rory's $500 into the envelope. "He's not going to like this. He wanted Rory to have it."

Lorelai just shrugs. "He can send her a check whenever he wants, just not when the two of you are sitting on a mountain of hospital bills. Besides, a little birdie told me that dear Emily and Richard may be buying Rory a car for her graduation from Chilton so she's not driving home in a homemade piece of crap."

"The little birdie being you?" Luke guesses.

"Exactly!" Lorelai exclaims as she points at him. "Wow, you're good."

"Eavesdropping on your own parents," Luke says with a mocking shake of his head.

"It's not my fault they believed me when I said I was going to the kitchen." Lorelai shrugs, slipping her purse onto her shoulder as she hops off the stool. "Anyhow, maybe you should hold off on telling Jess about this, especially the five hundred from Rory."

"He's going to suspect, but alright. Can't hurt."

"You can if you have to, but try not to. Thanks for the coffee." While Luke stares at her wordlessly, she tosses a dollar into the Jess Jar, the first of many. The bill sits at the bottom of the glass container like the lonely butterfly or lightning bug she would catch as a child. After a few minutes, she'd feel too guilty to keep it there because it deserved companionship. She fishes out some coins as well.

After bidding Luke goodbye and walking out into the spring air, Lorelai wonders if her parents would consider getting Rory's graduation present a little early. For that short-lived time, Rory truly enjoyed having a car, spouting about how empowering it was to pick Dean up for a change. It's not her fault it's gone anyhow… or Jess's. Richard and Emily can't say no to - Richard and Emily. Richard and Emily! Her parents! Her parents can fix this!

Lorelai takes her cell phone out of their pocket and dials the Gilmore mansion landline. As it rings, she mutters, "Pick up. Pick up."

She doesn't like to use her family to get what she wants, to get ahead of other people. That's one of the reasons she never went back to that life. It shouldn't matter who you know, what you were born into. And she definitely prefers to avoid asking Emily and Richard Gilmore for anything. With these thoughts, Lorelai considers hanging up after the fourth ring. Then, Luke's face flashes in her mind's eye. Dejected, aging, selfless. He's pouring all he has into this; he's putting everything forward, using every card. She imagines Rory as she stood on the stage begging for the town's help, crying for the person Lorelai detests almost more than her own mother. They are suffering for him, employing every move they have for him, and Lorelai has an obligation to both of them to do the same.

"Hello?" It is Richard's voice, while Emily yells in the background, "Richard, who on earth is that? Don't they know it is past nine o'clock?"

Lorelai takes a deep breath and plays her last card.

Rory and Lorelai almost have to press their backs to the door as Luke flashes past them with three plates up his right arm and four up his left, headed to the corner table. A group of seven people Rory doesn't recognize are sitting, laughing, and she and her mother rush forward to grab the plates off Luke's arms. As he calls out the orders, the plates are set down in front of the diners, who barely look up as they raise two fingers to claim their dish.

When Rory turns around, Luke is already behind the counter grabbing the coffee pot, coming back to the large table to refill all seven coffees. Two large mugs are in his other hand, which he pours to the brim with black liquid, placing them on the table before Lorelai and Rory can settle in its chairs.

"Busy morning?" Lorelai asks.

Luke shakes his head. "Nah just tourists, each of whom asked me to recite all the types of bread I serve, then can't decide between rye and wheat. Just pick one!"

While he shoots off a glare to the oblivious corner table, Lorelai says, "I'm glad you're not too busy. You headed to the hospital today?"

"Not until tonight. I'm going to call, though, make sure Jess is happy in his new room."

"Oh, I think he will be," Lorelai says too cryptically, and Rory raises an eyebrow that Luke doesn't catch.

He says, "I really owe you two for last night. Pancakes or waffles? It's on the house."

"Both," they say in unison, and as Lorelai calls out for extra syrup, Luke walks away with an eyeroll muttering, "I should've known. You're going to die of sugar overload."

Rory sinks down and whispers, "What did you do?"

"I called in a favor," Lorelai says back with a mischievous grin, lowering her head to the same level as her daughters, until both of their chins are almost resting on the linoleum table.

"Meaning?"

Lorelai says, "I put my parents to good use. You know how they're donors for Hartford Memorial? They're going to get Jess into a nice private room with no charge to Luke!"

A seed is planted in Rory's stomach, and it isn't blossoming into anything pretty. It's developing into a deformed pit, of shock and sadness and anger, none of which she understands. She forces out, "That's great! No strings attached?"

Lorelai sucks in a breath through her teeth. "You have to go to more debutante balls until you find a suitable husband, preferably of Western European descent, second to fourth generation."

Rory's face flattens as she stares at her mother, eyes narrowed. She pushes out through her clenched jaw, "What?"

"You look so ready to come out! Again!" Lorelai teases then rolls her eyes. "One more. You have to go to one more debutante ball so that Richard and Emily get a redo, since they were fighting during the last one. Besides that, no strings attached."

Rory half-sighs and half-groans. None of this feels right. She should be more than willing to squeeze into a cupcake dress and parade around a ballroom; she already cried on a stage at the Town Meeting and humiliated herself. This is what is best. Yet, she can't help but think that she wanted to do something for Jess, and that got taken away.

Lorelai asks, "What's wrong? I thought you'd be happy about this. I bet Chris will come back for this, and Dean will probably escort you again."

"It's not about that," Rory mumbles.

Lorelai reads her like an open book and reaches her arm across the table to touch Rory's shoulder. "Sweets, you still helped Jess. The money can be used to help with his treatment."

"You're right," Rory says. "Of course you're right. This is good. I'm not exactly ecstatic for take two, but it's worth it. Thank you, Mom. I'll call Grandma and Grandpa after school to thank them."

"And get the date of your next coming out!" Lorelai adds before pointing to the Jess Jar. "Look!"

There is a small pile of bills from the early morning breakfast crowd, coins at the bottom and paper stacking atop them. The rocks at the bottom of the glass bowl far outnumber the surface plants, but there is progress.

Luke approaches with two full plates, one with waffles stacked high, various fruits and whipped cream nearly covering the pastry. The other plate has pancakes infested with chocolate chips, and a syrup pitcher hangs by its handle over Luke's wrist. At their cries of delight, he sets them down, then says, "Here you go. Let Caesar know if you need anything else. I have to go talk to the principal."

Rory offers, "Hey, Luke, I'm happy to help Jess study and make up his work."

Luke smiles, "Thanks, Rory, but you don't have to. I know you were just doing me a favor."

"I want to!" Rory says, and as soon as the words come out she knows they escaped too quickly. "Exams are coming up, and he can't get behind. I'll do whatever it takes, short of doing it for him."

Luke shrugs. "It's up to you. I'll be back in twenty."

Through the window, Rory watches Luke head off towards Stars Hollow High with some papers tucked into his back pocket. She observes Taylor stopping him on the sidewalk, a brief conversation ensuing before an envelope is delivered from older to younger man. Probably a bill for the bench. Beside her, Lorelai is cutting through the stack of waffles cursing her butter knife for being duller than her past two dates. Gradually, an idea is forming in her mind. It's been two days since she overheard Babette and Patty talking about packing boxes. Luke is going to be gone for 20 minutes. The apartment upstairs is empty. She stands up suddenly, gives an excuse about going to the restroom, and nearly runs up the stairs. Lorelai's face is too far gone inside the pile of whip cream and waffles to notice her disappear behind the curtain.

When she opens the door, it approaches softly like a nervous animal, touching to her toes. It is hard to describe; Rory simply has a… feeling. It feels emptier here. There are several boxes in different spots in the room. She shakes her head. This doesn't mean anything. The feeling grows as she approaches Jess's side of the apartment. The top of his dresser has been cleared off. There is a box next to it, stacks and stacks of books packed in. Nicholas Nickelby. Mansfield Park. Fahrenheit 451. The Unbearable Lightness of Being. Those are the titles on the top, many of their kin following underneath. Another box contains CDs, cassettes, and vinyl. Rory identifies The Clash, Simon and Garfunkel, and Queen from the array. Maybe Luke is just doing some organizing… Rory rotates ninety degrees and sees a third box, stuffed with clothing, two pairs of black shoes sitting on top.

The feeling that approached carefully before is suffocating her now. The nervous, hesitant creature was a boa in disguise. It overcame her without her noticing, or understanding why, slithering up her back before revolving around her neck to choke her. She backs away from the boxes and as her knees are buckling, lets herself sit down at the kitchen table. Dropping her elbow onto the hardwood surface, her forehead comes to smack against her palm and her eyes close. Rubbing her temples with her fingertips, she tries to make a pro-con list. Pro: If Jess leaves, Dean will be happier. Pro: If Jess leaves, her mom will be happier. Pro: If Jess leaves, the entire town of Stars Hollow will be happier. Con: If Jess leaves, Rory is scared that she might actually miss him.

She opens her eyes to see a newspaper folded in half resting on the kitchen table. In bright red marker, as if it were waiting for her to discover it, is a circle around a selection on a schedule. A bus schedule. Headed out of Stars Hollow on Saturday morning.