Title: It All Comes Down To You Author: mocha_queen Rating: PG Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me. All of it belongs to those whose names appear on screen. Spoilers: Season 2 Author Note(s): Feedback greatly appreciated. Not demanded (because I don't like that), but greatly appreciated. Helps the ego, helps the muses. Summary: Rory returns from Washington. Who will she choose, Dean or Jess? But every choice has repercussions. R/J ~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter 1: Welcome Home ~*~*~*~*~*~ Rory had just gotten back from six long weeks in Washington DC with Paris and was extremely happy to be back home with her mother, Lorelai Gilmore. "Rory, you're awfully quiet tonight. No tales of how annoying Paris was, and no complaints of how bad the coffee was? You went six whole weeks with out the goodness that is Luke's coffee. You must be a strong girl to have gone through all of that," Lorelai talked to her daughter over dinner at Luke's. "There's not much to tell, really. There were a lot of workshops, so Paris didn't have time to annoy me. And I did miss Luke's coffee, but now that I'm back and have Luke's coffee. I'm good," Rory explained. She didn't want her mother to worry. True, she was busy, but the only thing she thought about on the trip was the kiss she shared with Jess Mariano. She hadn't talked to him since Sookie's wedding. "Sweets, are you okay?" Lorelai asked, just making sure her daughter wasn't sick. "Yes, mom. I'm fine. Just tired from all the travelling. I had to get up at 5 am this morning," Rory replied politely. Then changed the subject. "I see you made up with Luke." "Yes, I did. I didn't have you to talk to, and Sookie was on her honeymoon, Michel wasn't very interesting, and the fridge, coffee maker, microwave and toaster are all mad at me. So, I had no choice but to make up with Luke," she explained. "And you wanted his coffee," Rory continued. "Can't live with out it," Lorelai replied taking a huge sip of the dark liquid. "Have you seen Jess around?" Rory asked. "He's been working in the Diner quite a bit. I don't know why he moved back, it doesn't seem like there's anything here for him," Lorelai commented. *I'm here for him.* Rory thought to herself. But instead, she said she was tired and all she wanted to do was go home. "Alright, Rory. Just let me get some stuff first, k?" Lorelai got an evil look in her eye before heading to the counter. "Luke! Two coffee's to go!" "No," Luke answered firmly. "Please?" she pleaded and proceeded to pout. "No," Luke said, calmly before filling in more orders. Lorelai tried a different approach. "They're both for Rory. She's coffee deprived." "One cup, for Rory, that's it," Luke said, pouring the coffee into a foam cup. "Thanks, Lukey," Lorelai laughed, leaving with the coffee that was now hers. Rory just rolled her eyes before getting into the Jeep. The ride home was quiet. Rory didn't talk, but Lorelai continuously tried to make conversation. "Mom, look, I'm tired. And all I really want to do at this point, is sleep. Tomorrow, I promise, I will tell you about my trip," Rory said. "You promise?" Lorelai asked. "Yes." "And do you promise to watch Willy Wonka with me?" "Fine." "YAY!" Lorelai happily cried. ~*~*~*~*~*~ When Rory got into bed, she couldn't sleep. Being back in Stars Hollow brought back more memories of the wonderful kiss with Jess, and the horrible thought of breaking up with her first boyfriend, Dean. After weighing out the good and bad for both Dean and Jess, she still couldn't come to a definite decision on which she wanted to be with. Finally, she gave up thinking. Looking at the clock, it told her it was 10:30. It wasn't early, but it wasn't too late to go for a quick walk to clear her head. "Mom! I'm going for a walk," Rory called, grabbing a coat. "I thought you were tired," Lorelai yelled back from her room. "I just need some fresh air," Rory replied. "Ok! Don't be too late," she hollered back before Rory walked out of the door. Even with no real destination in mind, Rory's subconscious knew where she was going before she realized it. The bridge. When she got there, she found Jess sitting on the bridge, book in hand. "Hey," Rory said, sitting down next to him. "Hi," he replied, not looking up from his book. "Good trip?" "It was OK, it's good to be back, though. I missed it here," Rory said. "Why did you come back?" "Cause," was Jess's answer. "That's it. Just cause?" Rory needed more of an answer than that. She wanted to know if it had anything to do with her. "Yeah. That's it," Jess replied. He didn't want her to know that he did come back for her. Because that would make him seem like a pathetic weirdo. The two sat side by side in silence. Neither could say anything that would fall under the category of appropriate. "Good book?" Rory asked, breaking the silence. "Maybe. It depends on how it ends. See, there's this girl, and this guy. They kiss, then the girl runs away, and the guy doesn't hear from her. Now he's very confused and doesn't know what to do next," Jess explained before turning back to his book. "Jess, I'm sorry," Rory cried. "For what? Kissing me? For not talking to me since? What, Rory?" Jess asked. Questions about that kiss had been on his mind all summer. It was driving him crazy, and if he didn't get answers soon, he might do something stupid to screw up what he had with Rory. Rory didn't reply. "I can't read minds," Jess said. "Jess." Rory started before trailing off. Jess just shook his head and ignored her, again. "I'm sorry, Jess. I needed time to figure things out. I didn't know what to do," Rory said. "Do you know now?" Jess asked, putting his book away and focusing his attention on her. "I think I do," Rory said. "And?" Jess inquired. "And I need to see Dean first." Jess got very frustrated at hearing that name. Dean. The stupid, tall, bag boy, moronic, jealous boyfriend of the girl that he wanted more than anything. "God, Rory! It shouldn't be this hard! You have feelings for both of us. You can only be with one of us. Choose!" Jess yelled. "I love Dean, he was my first boyfriend, my first kiss, my first for a lot of things," Rory said. "Then there's you. You just come to Stars Hollow, no respect for anything. But you love to read, we have so much in common. And you crash the car my boyfriend made for me. And I don't hate you. I can't. I- You crashed my car. That Dean made for me. And I liked you even more," Rory cried. "Funny, you didn't really focus on the Dean side," Jess smirked, in the usual Jess way. "I don't know what to do," Rory sighed. "It's easy, Rory," Jess said. Rory looked at him with a clueless look on her face and he continued. "Who do you want to be with? You do you want to see every night before you go to bed? Who do you want to see when you wake up?" Rory knew the answer. She'd known it for a while. She was just too scared to admit it to herself. "Need some help?" Jess asked, quietly. He was now standing inches in front of her. Rory nodded her head. Jess ducked his head down to hers and pulled her into a kiss. At first she was stunned but then she put her arms around her and kissed him harder. Jess broke the kiss, and put his forehead up against hers. "Did that help?" "More than you know," Rory said, pulling him into another kiss. ~*~*~*~*~*~ "Ror, is that you?" Lorelai asked, upon hearing the door open. "Yes, but there are these little green alien guys escorting me in," Rory yelled up to her mom. She heard the thumping of her mom's feet running to the stairs to see the little green alien guys. "Lair!" she snarled, when she saw Rory at the door, alone. Rory pretended to look hurt. "See, liar," Lorelai joked, coming to sit on the couch, where Rory joined her. "How was the walk?" "Amazing," Rory said, remembering the many kisses she and Jess had. "Is there something you want to tell me?" Lorelai asked. Rory sighed. Now was a good of time as any to tell her mom. "I'm going to break up with Dean." "Rory! Why?!?!" Lorelai cried. In Lorelai's eyes Rory and Dean had the perfect relationship. He was good for her. Although, he was a little jealous at times, but he was still a good guy. "Because he and I just don't have the same chemistry anymore. I don't jump for joy every time I see him. And the whole relationship is. Well.. boring. That. AndIkissedJess," Rory blurted out. "You what?" Lorelai screamed. "Who, what, how, why, when?" "Calm down, mom," Rory said. "I saw him at Sookie's wedding. And I was just so happy to see him, I kissed him, and he kissed me back. And then, when I went for a walk, I saw him, and he kissed me, and I kissed him back. Now, I don't want to be with Dean anymore. I want to be with Jess. And you missed where." "Are you sure?" Lorelai asked. "Because Dean is very nice. He made you a car. Which, by the way, Jess crashed. And Dean doesn't steal. He does well in school. He's a good guy, Rory. He's the guy you should be with." "Since when do I have to date who you want me to?" Rory wondered. "Because last time I checked, I could date who I wanted to." "You can. They just have to be boys that you can take home to meet your mother." "I can bring Jess her-" Rory was cut off. "Bring home and not be killed by the mother." "You just don't like Jess because swerved, and we got in an accident, and my wrist got fractured." "And he's a bad kid, Rory. Don't you understand? I'm looking out for you. Jess is wrong for you. And Dean is perfect," Lorelai explained. Trying her best to show her daughter that all she was thinking about was her, and what was best for her. "If Dean's so perfect, why don't you marry him?" Rory retorted. She knew it was a stupid thing to say, but she didn't care. "Fine, maybe I will!" Lorelai shouted. "Fine!" "Fine!" "Fine!" Rory yelled, running into her room and slamming the door. *Oh, dear* Lorelai thought, heading up to her own room. ~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter 2: The Truth is Out ~*~*~*~*~*~ Lorelai couldn't sleep. She kept wondering what Rory was doing with a guy like Jess. He was mean, rude, and disrespectful. Even the fact that he was recently behaving didn't calm Lorelai's fears. She only got about 2 hours of sleep before waking up. Groaning about how early it was, she made her way out of bed, knowing she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. After leaving a note for Rory, she made her way to Luke's. "Gimme some coffee," Lorelai grumbled, sliding onto a stool. Luke looked at Lorelai and did as she asked. "You okay?" "Rory wants to break up with Dean to be with Jess," Lorelai cried. "JESS!" Luke yelled, up the stairs. "Get down here, NOW!" "What?" Jess sighed, appearing in the diner. "I told you to stay away from her. I told you to leave her and Dean alone," Luke spoke loudly. Luckily there was no one else in the diner to hear him. "I did, she came and found me," Jess explained. He was tired of everyone blaming him for everything bad that happened to Rory Gilmore. Somehow, it always managed to be his fault. "And you didn't do anything to make her want to break up with Dean?" Luke questioned. Jess was about to lie, but after seeing the look on Lorelai's face, he knew he should tell the truth, for she already knew. "Fine. Maybe I kissed her. But maybe she kissed me first." "That doesn't sound like Rory, Jess. Don't lie," Luke warned, unaware that it was the truth. "He's not lying," Lorelai piped up. "Rory told me last night. She kissed him at Sookie's wedding." "Jess, I told you not to go down there," Luke repeated. "I went to the river. And Rory happened to show up where I was standing. I didn't run around screaming her name!" Jess yelled. He'd had enough of this. This wasn't his fault. Rory kissed him. Rory wants to break up with Dean. Rory was the one who came to see him last night. Silence settled among the three. Each thinking about the current situation. "If you don't need me now, I'm gonna.." Jess trailed off. Luke and Lorelai waved him out and he left with a book to the bridge. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Rory woke up to find her mom's note. After a shower, she left to go find Dean. Better to tell him now, rather than later. Rory checked all of his usual spots but couldn't find him. After an hour of searching she decided to head over to Luke's for some much needed coffee. "Hey, mom. Hey, Luke," she waved walking inside. "Jess isn't here," Luke said. "Oh," Rory replied, disappointed. "Hey, hun, what's up?" Lorelai asked. "I'm trying to find Dean, do you know where he is?" Rory asked. "Oh! I forgot, he went away with his parents for a vacation," Lorelai remembered. "He said he'd be back this week, and he would be sorry if he didn't make it back before you got home." "Thanks mom. Luke, can I have a coffee to go?" "Coming right up," Luke said, pulling out a foam cup and filling it with coffee. "Thanks, bye," Rory said, heading out the door. *If I were Jess, where would I be?* Rory asked herself. She immediately knew the answer and headed for the bridge. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Jess got up when he heard her coming and greeted her with a kiss. "Hey." "Hey," she smiled, kissing him again. The two sat down on the edge of the bridge. He gave her the book he was reading and pulled another one out from his pocket. The two sat contently, reading their books, and enjoying each other's company. "Done," Rory chirped, and smiled up at Jess who was now reading the book over her shoulder. "Me too," he said. "What now?" Jess looked at her, with a grin. She smiled back and kissed him. ~*~*~*~*~*~ "RORY!" Jess and Rory broke apart. The voice yelled again. "RORY!" It was Dean. Rory quickly cleaned herself off, so it didn't look like she had just been making out with Jess. She opened up the book and pretended to read when Dean reached the bridge. "Rory," he breathed upon seeing her. It had been a long 6 weeks with out his girlfriend. He missed her. All he wanted to do now was go and spend some time with her. But when he saw Jess beside her, he immediately freaked out. "Dean!" Rory cried. Not getting up to hug him. "What's going on?" Dean asked. "I'm reading," Rory replied, innocently. "What's he doing here?" Dean snarled at Jess. "Also reading," Jess replied, a short answer as usual. He knew that his lack of extensive answers made most people, including Dean, mad. "Rory?" Dean asked. "Yes?" She replied. "You're reading your book upside down," Dean commented. Rory looked at the book, and sure enough, it was upside down. "Didn't you know? If you read upside down, you learn more," Rory tried to come up with a believable explanation. "Rory," Dean said sternly. "What's going on?" "Dean, I need to talk to you," Rory said, pulling him away from Jess. "I guess there's no easy way to say this," Rory sighed, once they were off the bridge. This was the hardest thing she ever had to do. "But, I don't think we're going to work." Dean stood, shocked. "What?" "I've been doing a lot of thinking. A LOT, of thinking," she emphasized a lot so Dean knew she had put time into her decision. "And I just don't think we're working out. I want to be honest with you, and tell you before I keep leading you on." "You want to be honest with me?" Dean yelled. "Then, honestly, tell me that you're not breaking up with me for that jerk!" He pointed at Jess, who sat quietly on the bridge, listening to every word they said. Rory said nothing. She didn't want to lie to Dean, but she didn't want to hurt him either. "I don't believe this," Dean cried, holding his head in his hands. "You're breaking up with me for him?!?!" "Dean, please. Things haven't been the same for a while. Even if Jess wasn't here.." Rory couldn't figure out how to phrase it. "Dean, I'm bored. Of this. Of us. There's no excitement." "But Jess excites you? With his bad boy ways?" Dean shook his head, not wanting to believe what he was hearing. "God, I just.. JESS? YOU'RE BREKING UP WITH ME FOR JESS?!?!" "Dean, calm down," Rory touched his arm in an attempt to get him to settle down. At her touch, Dean exploded and ran onto the bridge to kill Jess. "Get up you ass hole," Dean yelled, running towards him. Jess jumped to his feet, ready to defend both him and Rory. "What did you do to her? Huh?" Dean asked, sure of the fact that Rory wouldn't willingly date Jess. Jess remained calm. "What are you talking about?" "Rory. How did you do it? How did you make her like you?" "Why don't you ask her?" Jess replied, still cool as stone. "Don't bring her into this," Dean yelled. "But-" "Stay away from her, Jess. Or else," Dean threatened. "Or else, what?" Jess asked, curious as to how far Dean would go. "Or else, I'll have to hurt you," Dean smirked. "I'd like to see you try," Jess taunted. That made Dean crazy and he charged at Jess. Jess easily sidestepped him, and turned to face his attacker, whose fist went into his face. Jess crashed to the ground. "Jess!" Rory cried, running up to him. "Dean! STOP!" "No, Rory, he needs to learn not to mess with you," Dean said, drunk on anger. Jess got back up and punched Dean, knocking him down. Jess then straddled Dean and continued to punch him. Dean put his hands up against Jess's shoulders and rolled him into the water. Jess hit his head on the bridge as he fell in. "Jess!" Rory jumped in after him. "Jess!" Jess stood in the water, holding his head, which was now bleeding. Rory swam up to him and hugged him and inspected his cuts. "Rory, I'm fine," Jess assured her, but winced when he touched him. Rory rolled her eyes and continued checking his cuts. Dean stood there, quietly watching the two. Rory helped Jess up, out of the water. Once Jess was out, she made her way to Dean for one last confrontation. "If you ever, ever, come near me or Jess again. Or hurt either of us in any way. I will have the whole town on you so fast, you'll never know what hit you." Rory left it there. Dean knew the town. He knew that they loved Rory. And he knew that if he ever did anything to upset her, she would turn the town against him. Dean nodded and ran off to deal with his bleeding face. As soon as Dean was out of sight, Jess keeled over onto the ground. "God, Jess," Rory slid down next to him. "Are you ok?" "Yeah, Rory," he said, giving her a kiss. "I'll be fine. I just wish my head would stop throbbing." "Common, let's get you home," Rory got up and helped Jess to his feet. He leaned on her for support on the way back to Luke's. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter 3: Aftermath ~*~*~*~*~*~ Luke saw Jess leaning on Rory across the street. That concerned him. When they both walked in, covered in blood and soaking wet. He was beyond worried. "Jess. What happened?" Luke asked, taking Jess off Rory and sitting him in a chair. Jess just closed his eyes to try and ignore the pain. Kirk, who was sitting and eating a sandwich saw the blood on Jess and was immediately disgusted. He left mumbling something about keeping your blood inside your body. "Jess? Rory?" Luke asked, hoping they were both okay. Rory decided to tell Luke what happened. "We were on the bridge, reading, and Dean came. I told him it was over, and I didn't deny the fact that I was leaving him for Jess. And he freaked out and hit Jess. Jess hit him back. Then Dean shoved him into the lake and Jess hit his head on the bridge when he fell in." "I'm going to go get some aspirin and band aids," Luke said, heading upstairs. The familiar jingle of the door sounded and the two left at the table looked up to see who it was. Lorelai ran in when she saw the blood all over Rory. "OhmyGod! Rory!" She cried, hugging her daughter. Afraid that she was hurt, again. "Mom! I'm ok. It's not my blood. It's Jess's," Rory said, then went on to explain what had happened. "Dean? Your Dean?" Lorelai asked, it didn't sound like something Dean would do. "He's not my Dean," Rory said. "Your former Dean?" Lorelai clarified. "Yes, my former Dean," Rory replied. "Are you sure? It doesn't seem like Dean to nearly kill Jess," Lorelai said. Rory gave her a look. "Okay, fine, maybe it does sound a little like Dean when he's jealous, but-" "Mom, it was Dean. I was there, it was Dean," Rory said, frustrated. "End of conversation." "Ok," Lorelai said, finally seeing that it was Dean who hurt Jess. Luke came back down with band aids and aspirin for Jess. The three of them bandaged him up as best they could. "What if he needs stitches?" Lorelai asked, admiring their handy work. "I'll take him to the Doctor's," Rory offered. "We'll all go," Luke said, flipping the open sign to closed. ~*~*~*~*~*~ "Is he going to be ok?" Rory asked, as soon as she saw the doctor come out of Jess's room. "Yes, he'll be fine. We put in five stitches to close the wound. It was a clean cut so there shouldn't be any extensive damage. Jess is aware of this, but if he feels funny, especially around the cut, please inform us right away. I recommend that you bring him back in a few weeks for a check up, and so we can remove the stitches." "Great, thank you, Doctor," Luke said, shaking his hand. "No problem. Jess's head should hurt for a while, so I left him with some painkillers. Side effects are minimal. Don't use with alcohol, drugs, etc. And as a warning, the pills may make him a little drowsy, so I don't suggest he operate heavy machinery while on them," he joked. "Thank you very much," Lorelai said. "Can we take him home?" The Doctor nodded and wished them a good day before going to attend to other patients. Jess crawled out of the room, looking a little out of it. "How do you feel?" Rory asked, helping him to the car. "No pain. But tired," Jess said. "Understandable," Rory nodded. Jess stifled a yawn. "Can we go home?" Rory nodded yes, and whispered comforting things in his ear the whole way home. ~*~*~*~*~*~ "Can I stay with Jess?" Rory asked as her mom was heading out the door. Lorelai looked at her daughter. She still didn't trust Jess. No matter how much she wanted to. "I don't know, Rory." "Mom. Look at him, it's not like we'll be doing anything bad," Rory stated her case. "Rory," Lorelai cautioned. "Please?" Rory gave the baby eyes. "Fine. But you can't sleep with him, sleep on the couch, or the floor, or with Luke," Lorelai said, and then realized the last part was wrong. "Ewww! Don't sleep with Luke. For the love of God, please don't sleep with Luke!" "Don't worry, mom," Rory smiled. "No sleeping with Luke. Check." Rory then turned and winked suggestively at Luke. "That's my girl." Lorelai hugged her daughter goodbye, and promised to drop her clothes off in a half hour. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Rory went up stairs while she was waiting for her mother to drop off her stuff. "Rory?" Jess asked, when she stepped in the room. Rory sat down on the edge of the bed. "Yeah?" "Did you really break up with Dean for me?" Jess wondered. He wanted to know if he had any influence in her decision. He hoped he did. He wanted her to be with him. He wanted to be with her. Rory let out a small laugh. "The kiss on the bridge, that was definitely the deciding factor. Mostly, I did break up with Dean for you. But the other part of it was, that he was boring. I was bored of my own boyfriend." "You won't get bored of me," Jess assured. "I hope not," Rory smiled, and kissed him on the forehead. "Get some sleep, I'll be here when you wake up." "You stayin' over?" Jess asked. "Yeah, mom's bringing my clothes. I need to get out of these cold, wet ones," Rory shivered, feeling the cold. Her clothes weren't soaking wet, but the damp clothes mixed with the air-conditioning made her very cold. Jess rubbed her arms to keep her warm. "Hey, there's a big black shirt on that chair, get out of your clothes and put it on. If you want some shorts, I have some boxers you can use," Jess said. "Thanks," Rory said, taking the shirt and boxers and getting changed. "Better?" Jess asked, drowsy, when Rory walked back in. "Yup," she said, lying down next to him. "Warmer?" Rory nodded, but the shiver gave her away. Jess lifted the covers. "Get in." Rory looked unsure. "Don't worry. I'm not going to try anything. Blankets, warm. You, cold," Jess said. Rory looked at him once more before getting under. She rested her head on his shoulder. Being together was a dream come true for both of them. Jess had waited so long to be with Rory. And now that he finally was, nothing could make him feel better. Rory on the other hand, recently discovered her feeling for Jess. And with every passing day, she found herself liking him, maybe even loving him, more and more. "Does this hurt?" she asked. "Hmm?" Jess wondered, half asleep. "Me lying on you. Does it hurt you?" Rory asked, more clearly this time. "No," Jess smiled and wrapped his arms around her, before drifting asleep. Rory, who was more tired than she expected, found herself falling asleep with Jess. All promises to her mother, forgotten. Luke came upstairs to drop off Rory's bag. He found the two snuggled up in Jess's bed. He shook his head, knowing that Lorelai wouldn't be happy with this. But he let the two be, and left Rory's bag at the door, before closing it. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Luke saw Lorelai crossing the street. He quickly poured a cup of coffee for her. "Hey, Luke." Lorelai sat down. "Rory up?" "Nah, I think she's still sleeping," Luke replied, handing her the coffee. Lorelai gulped it down. "I'm going to check on Rory," she said, heading for the stairs. Luke let her go till he remembered where Rory was. In Jess's bed. With Jess. "Lorelai!" He called, running up after her. Lorelai checked the living room, Luke's room, even the bathroom. No Rory. Only one place left to check, Jess's room. Lorelai slowly opened the door, afraid of what she'd find. Her worst nightmare had come true, Rory was in bed with Jess. Lorelai opened her mouth to yell 'Rory!' but Luke covered her mouth before she could wake the sleeping teens up. Luke closed the door and dragged Lorelai to the sofa. "Luke!" Lorelai whispered, loudly. "I know. I know what you're thinking. But it was totally innocent," Luke started. "Innocent? How do you know that? Did you have a spy cam in there?" Lorelai questioned. "No. Rory was only alone with him for 10 minutes, nothing could have happened. And you know Rory, she would never let Jess do anything to her. She's a good kid, Lorelai, you know that more than anyone," Luke said, his hands rubbing up and down her arms. "But Luke. Look at them. They're together. In bed. If this isn't bad, then I don't know what is," Lorelai argued. Afraid that her daughter would make the same mistakes she did. Rory had such dreams, Harvard and everything. She didn't want those dreams thrown away on account of some boy. "Lorelai. Whatever problems you have with Jess, is not Rory's problems. Rory likes him. She doesn't care if you approve. Jess is a good kid. Maybe you don't see it. Maybe the town doesn't see it. But Rory sees it. Don't you trust her?" Luke asked, already knowing the answer. "You know I do," Lorelai sighed. "But I still don't like Jess." "No one said you had to, but if Rory and Jess become something. I think you're going to have to start to warm up to the idea," Luke said. "What if I don't want to?" Lorelai pouted. Luke shrugged. "Let's go get you something to eat," he said, ushering her downstairs. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter 4: All You Need is Love ~*~*~*~*~*~ The conversation between Luke and Lorelai woke Jess up. His head still hurt but he didn't want to risk waking Rory up to fetch the painkillers from his jacket. Instead, he lay beside her and watched her sleep. Rory woke up. She felt someone next to her, assuming it was her mom, she began her early morning wake up stretch. When she opened her eyes, she realized she wasn't in her house, but in Jess's room. She turned over to see him watching her. "Hey," she smiled. "Hey," he smiled back before kissing her. Her smile faded as she remembered the events of yesterday. She closed her eyes and tried to make the bad thoughts go away. Giving up on making them disappear, she decided to make conversation. "How's your head?" she asked. "In pain," Jess answered. "You want the pain killers?" Rory asked, ready to get up and fetch them. "I'm fine," Jess put his arms around her. "I like having you here." Rory snuggled up against him. "I like being here." "So, why did you come back?" Rory asked, wanting to know the answer. "And don't say, just cause, I'm not gonna buy it." Since Rory wanted to be with him, he didn't care as much if he looked pathetic for coming back to Stars Hollow to be with her. In fact, she might even find it cute. "Because I wanted to be here. With you. And I kinda missed this place," Jess shrugged, looking embarrassed about admitting his liking for the town. Rory giggled. "It grows on you, doesn't it?" Jess rolled his eyes. Rory's eyes found the clock on the nightstand. The red numbers told her it was late. "I should go find mom before she comes up here looking for me and finds us like this," Rory said, getting up to go. But Jess stopped her. "She already knows." "What?" Rory asked, in disbelief. "I guess she came in here and saw us, because I heard her and Luke talking outside." "Oh, God," Rory cried, falling back onto the bed. After minutes of hard thinking about how to face her mother, who was probably downstairs waiting for her arrival, Rory finally got out of bed, and headed for the door. "You might want to get changed," Jess suggested, leaning on the doorframe. His head still spun when he stood up. Rory looked down at her clothes. "Yeah. Good thinking. Thanks." She took her bag and left for the bathroom to get changed. By the time she was done, Jess was already ready to go. His head hurt less as the painkillers started to kick in. Jess took Rory's hand and led her down the stairs to the diner where Luke and Lorelai were waiting for them. "Rory," Lorelai simply said upon her arrival. "Mom," Rory answered back, equally non-excited. "Jess, what were you thinking, sleeping with Rory?" Luke yelled. "What?" Jess asked. He didn't sleep with Rory. Not in the bad way, anyway. "You. Rory. Bed. Together." Lorelai explained. Rory decided this was her battle and jumped in. "Look, I was wet, I was cold. My clothes hadn't arrived yet. Jess offered some of his so I could get dry. Then I got under the covers to keep warm. It was totally innocent!" "You promised me you wouldn't sleep with him!" Lorelai screamed. "I know I promised. I didn't sleep with him! I just slept with him!" Rory yelled back, then after realizing what she had said, cleared up her statement. "I mean, I slept with him in the non romantic way." "But you promised!" Lorelai cried. "You promised to tell me about your trip, you promised to watch Willy Wonka with me. You didn't. Those, I can deal with. But this, Rory. Sleeping with Jess? I expected more from you." "Mom!" Rory tried to explain. "No. Rory! You have these dreams, dreams of graduating, dreams of getting into Harvard. If you sleep with Jess, and something happens. You won't get to go to Harvard, or graduate from high school," Lorelai explained. "This is different. I just slept in the same bed. All we did was sleep," Rory said. "And don't lecture me on what my dreams are, mom! I know what my dreams are. And don't try to compare your self to me. We are totally different. Is it my fault that you slept with dad? Got pregnant? Never got to graduate from high school or go to University?" Rory asked. Lorelai was hurt. "Ouch, babe, that really hurt," she sighed, walking out of the diner without saying another word. Rory chose not to follow her, instead she collapsed on the chair. He head fell into her arms, and she whispered. "What did I do?" Jess sat next to her and rubbed her back. He wished he could make everything okay for her, but it wasn't in his power to do so. This was a Gilmore fight and it was best if he stayed out of it. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Rory finally found the courage to face her mother at dinner. But when she got home Lorelai was nowhere to be found. Rory curled up on the couch to wait. It wasn't long before she fell asleep. Lorelai came back from Sookie's carrying Tupperware containers filled with left over food. When she got into the living room she saw Rory sleeping. Needing to talk to her daughter, she woke her up. "Mom!" Rory exclaimed upon seeing her. "Rory!" Lorelai said, in a sarcastically excited voice. "Mom, I'm so sorry. For everything. For breaking your trust, for falling asleep with Jess, for saying all those mean things to you. I totally did not mean any of them." "Rory-" "No. Mom, please listen. I'm so, so sorry. Just as sorry, if not more than I was for missing your graduation. Oh! I know! We can bring that list back out and we can implement those rules now!" Rory said. "No. Honey, calm down," Lorelai said, pulling her into a hug. Rory hugged her back. "But mom. I said mean things to you. And no matter how angry I am, I should never say things like that." "Rory, you were angry. I was angry. We were both angry. We said some things we didn't mean. Now we regret it. It's okay, Rory," Lorelai explained. Rory sighed. "I still want to be punished." "Fine," Lorelai gave in. "Go to your room. With dinner or without, personal preference." "I'll take a chocolate bar because I'm really, really hungry. But no more. This is a punishment," Rory went to take a bar from the kitchen. "You should also take away my books, my music, my phone, everything. I don't deserve it." "Hun, keep your books, music, phone, etc. Hey, we can even bring in the little TV if you want," Lorelai suggested. Rory immediately declined. "No! Punishment, remember?" Lorelai sighed. "Fine, just go to your room." Rory turned to leave, but was called back. "I love you." "Love you too, mom," Rory said, before going to her room. Lorelai didn't know what to do. Sometimes Rory was too hard on herself. ~*~*~*~*~*~ "Rory! Phone!" Lorelai called for the seventh time that night. "I already told you, no phone!" Rory yelled, still banished to her room. "Rory, this is enough! I demand you get on the phone and talk to the people who continuously call you so they will leave me alone," Lorelai yelled. "Fine!" Rory came out to pick up the phone. "But I'm only doing this because you wanted me to." "Can't talk long, being punished," Rory said, answering the phone. "Hey," Jess said. "Hey," she replied, happy he was on the other end. "You do know that your mom isn't punishing you, right?" Jess asked. He had talked to Lorelai when he called and she filled him in on Rory's voluntary punishment. "I know. But I deserve to be punished, and if she won't do it, I'll have to do it myself," Rory explained. "But aren't you coffee deprived?" Jess wondered. He was trying to get her to come out. And he knew Luke's coffee was her weak spot. Rory laughed. "You have no idea." "Come, get some coffee," Jess coaxed. "Nuh uh, you're not getting me out of my room," Rory shook her head. "I'm being punished, remember?" "Well, how about you take punishment like a normal kid, and sneak out the window to drink coffee with your boyfriend," Jess suggested. Realizing he used the word boyfriend. He didn't mean to, but it did have a nice ring to it. She, too, noticed how he snuck boyfriend into the sentence. They hadn't really talked about where their relationship was heading but she liked the ring of boyfriend and girlfriend. "Well, that does sound appealing," Rory said, warming up to the idea. "Does that mean you'll come?" Jess asked, hopeful. Rory thought for a moment. "Mmmm.. Yeah." "Good, I'll see ya in a bit," Jess hung up the phone. "MOM!" Rory yelled. "Have you come to your senses yet? I don't like it when my daughter is crazier than I am," Lorelai grinned. "I'm sneaking out to get coffee," Rory said. "Ok! At least you're doing something useful. I'll look in your room and become worried by 12, k?" Lorelai said, hinting she should be back by then. "12, gotcha," Rory said, sneaking out the window. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Rory showed up at Luke's, which was now closed. She saw Jess and he waved her in. "Glad you could make it," Jess smirked, giving her a kiss. "It's a tough life sneaking out your window," Rory smiled. Jess laughed. "Want to go for a walk?" "You promised me coffee, I want some coffee," Rory said. One could never have enough coffee. Jess poured some in a take out cup. "Now, do you want to go for a walk?" "You bet," she smiled, looping her arm through Jess's. "Luke! I'm going out," Jess called to the kitchen where Luke was cleaning up. "Don't cause too much trouble," Luke said, coming back into the diner. "Just don't stay out too late," he said, upon seeing Rory. Jess wasn't going to try anything stupid with her around. Jess nodded, while Rory skipped out the diner, pulling him behind her. The two walked hand in hand, neither knowing of their destination. They were content to just be together. On their way, they saw Dean out for a walk, as well. When he saw them, he broke into a brisk walk and sped past them. His eyes shooting daggers at both of them. Dean was still angry about the whole thing between the three of then. He didn't think that he could ever get past Rory and Jess being together. But he knew Rory was serious about letting the town loose on him if he hurt her and Jess. "Glad he's not bitter," Jess said, in his usual sarcastic ways. Rory got a sorry look on her face. "I'm sorry about Dean." "Rory, it's not your fault. Dean is just a jealous freak," Jess comforted her. "But if I didn't break up with Dean." "Then you would be completely miserable, pinning for me," Jess finished. Rory gave in. What Jess said was true. "How's your head?" "Much better," Jess replied. "It's still sore, but I'll survive." "Good to know you'll be alive and kicking tomorrow," Rory said, leaning her head on his shoulder while they walked. A few more minutes of walking led them to their special spot on the bridge. Hand in hand, they sat down together to admire the stars and moon. "It's gorgeous out tonight," Rory commented. "Just like you," Jess replied, before mentally kicking himself for saying such a stupid thing. Rory let out a silent laugh at what Jess said, because it was totally unlike Jess to say such a thing. "Thanks." They sat there for a while, just happy to be together. Jess was thinking about his feelings for Rory. He didn't want to chase her away, but he wanted her to know that he cared. He wanted to say, "I love you," but was too afraid to. "Rory," Jess finally spoke up, making his decision on what to do. But his resolve failed him and he didn't say anything more. "Yeah?" she said, trying to get him to say what he wanted to. "Rory, I," Jess started. *To hell with this,* he thought before blurting it out. "Rory, I love you." Rory sat, slightly stunned. Not stunned from the fact that he loved her, but stunned by the fact he actually said it. "I love you too, Jess," Rory replied, before bringing him into an earth shattering kiss. ~End~
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