Chapter Two - Abrupt Awakenings (Part Two)
Hello everyone.
Summer is here, and the last part of chapter two is finished. We both hope you will like it.
LJ is evil though, and won't let me post the whole text in one post, so it'll have to be divided into two posts. The link at the bottom is the same in both posts though, so you'll get the whole chapter whichever link you choose.
Thank you all for your patience, and as I said before, both Sandi and I hope you like the end of this chapter.
...
Chapter 2 - Abrupt Awakenings (Part 2)
Saturday June 10th, 7:00 PM, Stars Hollow / Gilmore House
Sookie hurried down the street on her way to Lorelai’s house, relieved that her friend was home and seemed to be ok, for the moment at least. She felt a little guilty for abandoning Jackson, but reasoned that there would be plenty of time to tell him everything that had happened when she got home. Plus, she might have some actual news by then, and not just guesses.
Rounding a corner she almost ran into someone and stopped abruptly, letting out a startled cry. After taking a second to compose herself she recognized the girl in front of her and broke into a smile.
“Rory?” she exclaimed. “Oh my god, you scared me.”
Startled by the voice Rory, who had been too lost in thought to notice her surroundings, looked up, her eyes wide. “Oh, hey Sookie,” she said, managing a small smile. “I’m sorry.”
“How are you doing?” Sookie asked, but noticed Rory seemed distracted, and then realization hit her. “Oh,” she cried, “Lorelai told you. Well, of course she did. Are you ok, honey?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Rory assured her, but her smile faltered and Sookie frowned, not convinced.
“I have to go, I’m sorry,” Rory hurriedly said, before Sookie had the chance to say anything else. “I’ll see you later.” And she hurried off down the street, leaving Sookie staring after her worriedly.
Sookie sighed and watched the spot where Rory had disappeared out of sight moments ago and then continued on her way, not long after arriving at the Gilmore house. Not bothering with knocking she opened the door, calling out for Lorelai.
When she got no answer she continued into the Kitchen, rounded the corner, and almost collided with Lorelai. “Sookie!” Lorelai exclaimed, enveloping her friend in a hug. “You scared me on the phone, now you’ve got to tell me what that was all about. Who died?”
Sookie hugged her back, letting out a nervous laugh. “I’m sorry,” she said, letting go of Lorelai and stepping back. “I was just so shocked and you know how I get when I’m shocked.”
“Oh yeah, I know,” Lorelai said, with a knowing smile and sat down at the kitchen table. “So, no one died? That’s good.”
“Well,” Sookie said hesitantly, sitting down in another chair, and Lorelai looked worried again. “I don’t think anyone’s dead. That’s partly why I’m here actually, to see if you knew anything more.”
“Me?” Lorelai asked confused. “Why would I know anything more?” And then she gasped. “Oh…”
“I was calling you and I overheard Kirk telling Lulu that he killed him, and it just… And well, I thought that maybe you knew something more, and…”
“Sookie, breathe,” Lorelai ordered, and Sookie dutifully took a deep breath. “And no, I don’t know anything more than that Jess is at the hospital. Luke hadn’t heard anything when I left.”
“Oh,” Sookie mumbled. “So, it’s possible…”
“I’m sure he’s not dead,” Lorelai said, trying to sound confident. “I mean, come on, Jess is too stubborn to die, right? And besides, Luke would never allow it,” she said, trying to lighten the mood.
Sookie awkwardly smiled back. “Yeah, you’re right.”
Lorelai just nodded, and Sookie watched her carefully.
“How are you doing?” she asked quietly. “I mean, with you and Luke…” she trailed off, not knowing exactly how to continue.
Lorelai sighed and gave a noncommittal shrug. “I don’t know. I just…there’s so much happening. I don’t know what to think, no less feel.”
“Aww, I’m sorry, honey,” Sookie said sympathetically.
Lorelai gave her a weak smile. “It’s all just so confusing. I mean, at the hospital, it was so awkward, but at the same time it wasn’t. I just don’t know how to handle it.”
“Do you want me to stay?” Sookie offered. “I could make you something to eat and you could tell me all about it.”
“Thanks,” Lorelai smiled, “but I think I just need to think it all over first, wrap my mind around it, you know?”
“Yeah, of course,” Sookie said. “But don’t hesitate to call me whenever you need someone to talk to, ok? Any time, just call and I’ll be here.”
“Thanks Sookie,” Lorelai said, offering a small smile.
Sookie reached out and squeezed her hand reassuringly. “It’ll be ok.”
Lorelai nodded. “I hope so,” she said quietly.
“Are you sure you’ll be ok by yourself?” Sookie asked, and Lorelai nodded. “Ok then, but don’t forget to call me, ok?”
“I won’t,” Lorelai promised.
“Oh, I almost forgot,” she said suddenly, turning back. “I met Rory on my way here. She seemed upset.”
“Yeah, I told her about Jess, and she left about an hour ago, said she’d get something to drink. It’s just so confusing you know, I never know what’s going on with her when it comes to Jess.”
She gave a frustrated sigh and got up, starting to pace the room. “I feel like there’s something she’s not telling me, but I can’t figure out what it is.”
“They were always complicated, weren’t they?” Sookie said thoughtfully, getting up after her.
Lorelai nodded, stopping in front of her friend. “I just wish she would tell me.”
“I’m sure she will when she’s ready,” Sookie assured her.
“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Lorelai agreed.
Sookie gave her a reassuring smile. “So, you’re sure you’ll be ok?” she asked.
Lorelai nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“Fine, but take care of yourself, ok,” Sookie said sternly, squeezing her hand once more before starting for the door.
Saturday June 10th, 7:45 PM, Gilmore House / Hartford Memorial
Lorelai paced the bedroom, holding the phone in a tight grip, trying to convince herself to dial the well known number. Once again she reached the window and once again she raised the phone, only to drop her arm down by her side again.
With a heavy sigh she sat down on the edge of the bed, scolding herself for being such a coward. It was just a phone call. She'd made many phone calls in her life.
But of course, none of them had been to her up until a day ago fiancé about his nephew, whom she still couldn't quite bring herself to stop holding a grudge against.
She took a deep breath and stared at the phone for a few seconds before resolutely pushing the numbers, only hesitating a second before pressing call. Holding her breath she waited for the call to go through, almost hoping he didn’t have his phone with him.
At the first ring she jumped, and she wished she had some coffee within reach, but she didn’t think she’d have the courage to call again if she hung up now.
And before she had any more time to think it over she heard him pick up. “Luke,” he said, almost hesitantly, as if not sure how to answer, and she felt herself smile despite everything.
“Hey Luke,” she said, surprised at how timid she sounded.
“Oh,” Luke said uncertainly and stood up from the chair he had been sitting in for the past hour. With a glance at Jess’ still face he walked away from the bed. “Hey,” he added as he opened the door and slipped out into the corridor.
The line went quiet, before Lorelai broke the silence. “How...” she began, but stopped. She didn’t even know if there had been any news. “Have you heard anything new?” she asked instead.
“Yeah,” Luke acknowledged, closing the door behind him, searching the corridor for any sign of life. It was empty.
“And?” Lorelai inquired apprehensively, not sure how to take his non-informative answer.
“And he broke a leg and a couple ribs.” Luke hesitated. “And…”
“And?”
“And he’s still unconscious,” he said, letting out a tired sigh.
“Oh,” Lorelai said quietly.
Luke sighed again, pulling at his cap nervously. “The doctor says he’s gonna wake up within twenty four hours.”
“Well,” Lorelai said slowly, “that’s good, right?”
“Yeah, I suppose so,” Luke agreed, glancing back at the door he had just closed.
Lorelai recognized the worry in his voice. “I’m sure he’ll wake up soon,” she said, trying to sound reassuring.
“Yeah,” Luke repeated.
“He’ll be ok, Luke,” she added as confidently as she could.
Luke found himself smiling slightly at her assurance. It actually made him feel a little better. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” Lorelai said, suddenly feeling awkward.
The line went silent again and they both grew increasingly uncomfortable, neither of them knowing what to say now. After a minute Luke cast another glance at the door to Jess’ room again and cleared his throat uneasily.
“I…I should be getting back inside,” he said nervously.
“Oh,” Lorelai said quietly. “Right”
“In case he should wake up,” Luke hurriedly added.
Lorelai sighed. “Yeah, of course,” she agreed. “Let me know if there’s any change, ok?”
“Yeah, sure.”
They were silent for a while again. “Ok,” Lorelai finally said, “I guess we’ll talk later?”
“Yeah,” Luke agreed. “Bye.”
“Bye,” Lorelai repeated and slowly hung up the phone. She sat on the bed for several minutes, staring unseeingly at the phone in her hand.
Saturday June 10th, 8:00 PM, Gilmore House / London Apartment
Rory quietly entered the house, trying not to alert Lorelai to her presence, and cringed as the door creaked when she closed it behind her. She stood completely still in the hallway for a few moments, listening intently for any noise in the house. When she didn’t hear anything she breathed a sigh of relief and quietly made her way over to her room.
Once inside she closed the door and leaned back against it, closing her eyes, trying to clear her mind. It didn’t work.
She had been out walking for two hours, rounding corners randomly and dodging everyone she recognized, with the exception of that brief encounter with Sookie. But despite her efforts it hadn’t helped her sort out her thoughts. And now she was back at home, just as confused as when she left.
She didn’t know what to think or feel, didn’t even know how she actually did feel. Apart from confusion and shock she felt strangely detached. But she couldn’t seem to be able to stop thinking about her mother’s words, and her mind constantly made up images she didn’t want to see.
It hadn’t helped that she had accidentally walked past the diner on her wanderings. She had made a conscious effort not to go there, but then her mind had drifted and she had suddenly found herself across the street, standing in the middle of the crowd, staring at the sight of a car lodged inside, covered in dust and rubble.
For a minute she had just stood there, staring in disbelief, but then she had heard Taylor’s annoyed voice and quickly walked away, head bowed down, trying not to be seen.
And now she was back in the house. She opened her eyes again, searching the room for a distraction. Her eyes fell on a stack of books on the desk and she made a move to walk over and pick one up, but stopped almost immediately. No, reading would not help now.
Looking around the room once more she sighed, and then she slowly walked over to the bed, sitting down on the edge, staring out in front of her. After a while she shook her head and decided to just go to bed.
She quickly changed into the night gown she’d brought and crawled under the covers, closing her eyes, trying to force herself to sleep. But she was still wide awake, her mind racing. Then, getting an idea, she suddenly jumped up and searched for her cell phone, finding it on the bedside table.
Dialing the numbers she sat back down on the bed, waiting anxiously for the phone to connect.
After what seemed like an eternity it finally started ringing and she counted the signals in her head. Four signals went through, then five and she started fidgeting with the hem of her nightgown. Then the line clicked and she could hear a groggy voice mumbling something incoherently.
“Logan?” she asked anxiously.
“Yeah,” came a mumbled reply. “Who’s this?”
Rory frowned. “It’s me, Rory, I…”
“Oh, right,” Logan said.
“I just wanted to talk to you,” Rory continued.
“It’s the middle of the night,” Logan muttered, rubbing his free hand over his eyes, squinting at his alarm clock. “I just got home half an hour ago from a late dinner party with some clients and I have a board meeting at seven. Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”
“Oh, I…ok,” Rory stumbled, surprised.
“Great, I’ll call you after my meeting tomorrow. G’night Ace.” He put the receiver back on its hook and was almost back to sleep again before he’d laid back on the bed.
At the other end Rory was left with the dial tone in her ear, feeling more confused than ever. She finally lowered the phone, and pressed the off call button, lying down on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.
She didn’t know how long she’d been lying there when she heard the far away sound of a door closing upstairs. For all she knew it could have been hours. With a sharp intake of breath she once more got out of the bed, slowly walking up to her mother’s room.
Outside the room she paused, not sure why she felt so hesitant. The door was closed, so she knocked softly before opening it.
“Mom?” she asked quietly, walking into the room.
Lorelai, having just gone to bed after her phone call with Luke, was startled out of her thoughts by the voice and sat up abruptly. “Oh, Rory, you scared me,” she exclaimed.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think you were asleep,” Rory apologized.
“No, it’s fine,” Lorelai said with a small smile, “I was just thinking. And I didn’t know you were back”.
“Yeah,” Rory said, looking down at her feet, “I just got back. I took a walk around town.”
Lorelai nodded and sat up more comfortably, patting the bed beside her, motioning or Rory to come sit beside her.
“Are you ok?” she asked.
Rory nodded, managing a small smile. “Yeah, I just needed some time to think.”
They were quiet for a moment, neither quite knowing what to say.
“I just got off the phone with Luke,” Lorelai suddenly blurted out.
At that Rory instantly looked up, watching her expectantly. “And?”
“And Jess broke a leg and a couple ribs,” she said, echoing Luke’s words from not that long ago.
Rory visibly relaxed. “That’s not so bad, is it?” she asked, thinking of all the scenarios she’d made up in the last couple of hours.
“Is it?” she repeated, watching her mother carefully, seeing her expression.
“And he’s still unconscious,” Lorelai added softly, once more repeating Luke’s words, feeling a weird sense of déjà vu.
“Unconscious?” Rory echoed, getting worked up again. “As in…?” She broke off, not knowing how to continue, making a vague gesture with her hand.
“The doctors are certain he’ll wake up within twenty four hours,” Lorelai assured her.
“Oh,” Rory mumbled.
“Luke said he’d call if there is any change.”
“Ok,” Rory acknowledged. “Good.”
Lorelai watched her warily, reaching up a hand to smooth out her hair. “Honey, are you ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired,” Rory assured her. “I think I’m gonna go to bed.”
Far from convinced, Lorelai still accepted the response, knowing her daughter well enough not to push.
“Ok, honey,” she said, hugging her. “Sleep tight.”
Rory hugged her back, holding on tight for a moment. “G’night mom.”
“G’night Rory,” Lorelai said, letting her go.
Rory got up from the bed and walked slowly out of the room, closing the door behind her. Outside she closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, before walking down the stairs, into her own room and crawled into bed.
She lay down, closing her eyes, and immediately she was flooded with images of Jess lying motionless in a hospital bed and she could feel her eyes start to well up. Angrily wiping the tears away, she chided herself for being so emotional.
She had no business crying over Jess. She had a boyfriend, a good life; she was on her way to fulfilling her dreams, and everything was perfect.
Turning to her side, she once more closed her eyes, and again the images appeared, as if burned into her eye lids, this time mixed with some of Logan from the past days. Frustrated she turned on her stomach and buried her head in the pillow, squeezing it, and cried herself to sleep.
Sunday June 11th, 10:00 AM, Hartford Memorial
The first thing that entered his mind was an annoying sound coming from somewhere close by. His whole body felt stiff and his head seemed to be wrapped in cotton. Jess mentally checked his body for more damage and found his upper body bandaged tightly and his right leg immobilized by something heavy.
Somehow the feeling was familiar, but his memories and thoughts were spinning around and the slightest effort to sort them out set off an explosion in his head.
Slowly Jess opened his eyes. He was lying in an unfamiliar room and the meager walls, only decorated with cheap prints of flowers, in combination with the sterile, sharp smell of disinfectant identified it as what is was; a hospital room. He sighed, which caused a burning pain in his throat and he winced.
Out of the corner of his eye he caught a movement and carefully turned his head. Slumped in a very uncomfortable looking chair next to his bed was Luke, snoring softly.
“Ah, you’re awake,” came a soft voice from the other side of the room. A young nurse entered, smiled at him, and checked a monitor beside his bed. “How are you feeling?”
“Drugged?” he said, the only thing that came to his mind. His voice sounded scratchy and talking burned his throat even more.
The nurse grinned, taking the response as a good sign. “I’ll go and tell Dr. Daniels you’re awake,” she said cheerily. “I’ll be back soon.”
Jess just nodded, instantly regretting it as it started of a sharp pounding in his head.
“And I’ll see if I can get you some more of those drugs,” she added with a little wink after seeing his face.
Jess sighed, trying to stop the world from turning around in circles.
“Try not to move your head. You have a concussion,” the nurse ordered as she left the room.
“Shit!” he cursed through clenched teeth.
“Charming!” Luke said from the chair.
Jess glared at him, or at least tried to, as Luke stretched his arms over his head and stood up. Jess searched for a good comment, but his thoughts started to drift again and he found it hard to keep his eyes open.
“How are you?” Luke asked.
“I’m not sure,” Jess responded, shifting his gaze from Luke to the ceiling.
Jess’ absence of sarcasm or rebellion against the whole situation concerned Luke, but the doctor had told him that the painkillers might quiet him a little. So he sat back in the chair and took a deep breath.
“That bad, huh?” Jess sighed with a little chuckle and a grimace at the pain it started off and turned his head carefully back in Luke’s direction.
Luke rolled his eyes at his comment. “You’ll survive,” he grumbled, but Jess heard the hidden relief in his voice. “Kirk drove the car right into my diner during that stupid presentation of Taylor’s red light camera. You got in the way. Now your leg and some of your ribs are broken, you have a concussion and lots of cuts and bruises. They also intubated you back in the diner, so your throat will be a little sore, but besides that you were damn lucky.” Luke sighed and looked at the floor while rubbing his hands. “I was so close to strangle Kirk or Taylor…or both,” he added.
“So there could’ve been something good coming out of this, huh?” Jess grinned, but stopped at the pounding it one again caused in the back of his head.
“Nearly,” Luke said with a full smile on his face while the nurse came back into the room.
“So, here I am again,” she announced with a smile. “I’ll give you something for the pain and the doctor will check on you in a little while,” she informed and injected something in Jess’ IV-tube. “I will be outside if you need anything.” She smiled cheerfully, fluttered her eyelashes and left.
“I think she has a crush on you,” Luke teased.
“Sure,” Jess mumbled, fighting to keep his eyes open, his cheeks slightly pink.
Luke found it highly entertaining that his tough nephew could be so shy. “You should sleep,” Luke said softly. “I’m just gonna call Lorelai.”
“Lorelai?” Jess asked, half asleep.
“Yeah, she came here after I…”
But Jess had already closed his eyes and drifted off into the depths of unconsciousness.
Sunday June 11th, 12:00 PM, Hartford Memorial
Lorelai slowly walked down the corridor the nurse at the front desk had pointed out to her, scanning the numbers on the walls. Right outside 334 she stopped, looking back at the double doors leading out into the main corridor, and out of the hospital, briefly considering turning around.
But she shook her head and knocked on the wooden surface in front of her. She had spent an antagonizing hour trying to work after Luke’s phone call earlier that morning, freaking Sookie out, before finally deciding to go to the hospital and get it over with. And now that she was here, it would be silly to just drive all the way back again.
She didn’t feel comfortable enough to just open the door and walk right into the room though. Instead she stood outside, waiting for it to open, shifting her weight from one foot to the other nervously.
But then she heard footsteps on the other side and she quickly tried to compose herself, standing up straight and bracing herself for the meeting.
Moments later the door opened, revealing a tired looking Luke, and she wondered if he had slept at all the previous night. He stared at her, shock evident on his face.
“Hey,” she said, a small smile on her lips.
“Hi,” he nodded, still looking surprised. “What are you doing here?”
Lorelai opened her mouth to say something, but he quickly interrupted her. “Sorry, I just didn’t expect you,” he said, offering a tired smile.
Lorelai nodded and he opened the door further, silently asking her to come in. She cast a quick glance inside the room, before looking back at Luke.
“He’s asleep,” Luke answered her unspoken question and she nodded, walking past him.
They both stayed silent as Luke closed the door and Lorelai looked around the room. Finally her gaze stopped on the bed and the sleeping form in it.
“So, he’s going to be ok?” she asked when Luke came up beside her.
“Yeah,” Luke confirmed. “They’re just keeping him for observation, to make sure there won’t be any late effects of the blow to his head.”
“Good,” Lorelai said, surprising herself with the fact that she actually meant it.
Luke looked at her curiously, but shook it off and nodded in agreement. “So…” he started, still not sure why she was there.
Lorelai quickly looked back at him. “Right,” she nodded. “Well, after your call I thought you could probably need a shower and some real food,” she said, trying to make it sound like the most natural thing in the world. “And I think I should add some sleep to that list as well,” she added.
Luke looked down at his clothes, still the same he had worn yesterday and still sprinkled with dust, and nodded.
“Yeah, I know. I just don’t want to leave for too long. The doctor might be back with more information, or…”
“Or Jess might wake up,” Lorelai said, continuing before she could think it through too much. “You should go home for a while. You can take my car, it’s right outside. I can stay here and cover for you.”
Luke looked at her surprised. “Are you sure?” he asked.
“Yes, I’m sure,” she said, smiling slightly, handing him her car keys. “Now go, before I change my mind.”
“Ok, I’m going,” Luke agreed, hesitantly accepting the keys. “I won’t be long, just a quick shower and pack some of Jess’ things,” he added before starting towards the door.
He stopped with his hand on the door handle, turned around and gave her a brief smile. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, watching as he closed the door and then kept staring at it, already wondering what she was doing here. Eventually she took a deep breath and turned around, slowly walking up to the sole chair by the bed, sitting down in it.
Sunday June 11th, 12:15 PM, Gilmore House
It wasn’t until she woke up, clutching her comforter tightly to her chest, her pillow still a little damp from her tears, and sun streaming in through her window, that she realized she’d finally fallen asleep. And almost immediately she wished she could go on sleeping.
She burrowed her head under the pillows, willing the world to make sense again, wishing she could go back to a time when her life was simple and organized. Realizing her attempts were completely futile she gave up. She needed coffee and she desperately needed to talk to her mother.
With a sigh she flung the covers to the side and slowly dragged herself out of bed, wondering what time it was. Yawning she opened the door to the kitchen, and immediately saw the yellow post it note on the coffee pot, and she slumped back against the door post in disappointment. Her mother wasn’t at home.
Slowly she walked over to the coffee pot, ripping away the note, scanning it quickly, before pouring herself a mug of the lukewarm coffee and putting it in the microwave. As she watched the mug turn inside she contemplated calling her mother.
The oven beeped and she retrieved her coffee, warming her hands on the mug and took a sip, only to spit it out again, making a disgusted face.
“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” she muttered angrily, studiously poured the coffee in the sink and sighed. It definitely wasn’t her morning.
Right then she just wanted to crawl back into her bed again and forget the last couple of days ever happened. But she didn’t want to give up again, so she decided to at least try to face it and with a deep breath she headed upstairs to take a shower.
Next on her list of things to do that day was to find some decent coffee and then to go talk to Lane, hoping her friend could make her see how ridiculously she was behaving.
Sunday June 11th, 12:30 PM, Stars Hollow
Luke drove the distance between Hartford and Stars Hollow faster than he ever had before; he even thought he might have exceeded the speed limit a couple of times. He wanted to get there and back as soon as possible.
But when he neared the diner he suddenly stopped in the middle of the street. He was a block away, only had to turn the corner to see the street outside the diner, but he was starting to question his hasty decision to leave the hospital. Maybe he should just turn around and go right back.
He could always call Caesar and ask him to bring some things from the apartment, surely the hospital had showers he could use, and the food wasn’t really that bad, if you ignored the weird consistency of it.
He had almost decided to turn around when the sound of a car horn startled him out of his thoughts. Glancing in his rearview mirror he saw a line of cars behind him and after looking out the window he realized he had stopped beside a truck unloading boxes to one of the stores by the street.
With a sigh he put the car in gear and waved apologetically to the driver behind him, starting forward again. He turned the corner and came in full view of the diner, and almost stopped again at the sight.
The car had been towed away, but nothing could disguise the damage to the building, and with a sigh Luke drove up outside, trying to avoid the rubble on the street. For a moment he just sat in the car, the engine running, dreading going inside. But then he realized how silly he was acting and quickly turned the key, and got out of the car.
And immediately he regretted his decision, as he was assaulted by an all too well known sound.
“Luke?” Taylor’s voice called out, sounding both expectant and hesitant at the same time.
Luke slowly closed the car door, tightening his grip around the keys in his hand as he did. Of all the people to be there, and it had to be Taylor.
“Get away from me Taylor,” he said warningly and started towards the diner.
“But Luke,” Taylor tried again, almost pleadingly. “I wanted to talk to you about renovating the diner. We had a meeting last night and…”
Taylor abruptly stopped as Luke turned around, staring at him furiously.
“Jess is in the hospital!” Luke yelled, emphasizing the words with his arms, staring at the other man in disbelief. “You and your stupid camera put him there, and you want to talk about the freak show you call town meetings?”
“Oh, yes, I was going to ask you about Jess too, of course,” Taylor hurriedly cut in, suddenly looking a little uneasy.
Luke shook his head. “Of course you were.”
Taylor tried to ignore the hostile expression on Luke’s face, but took a small step backwards, just to be on the safe side. “We’re all very anxious to see how he is,” he added, trying, and failing, at giving a convincing smile.
“He’s alive,” Luke said shortly. “Now get out of my sight Taylor.”
“Oh, good!” Taylor exclaimed, and visibly relaxed, ignoring Luke’s request.
Luke just stared at him for a moment and then turned and continued towards the diner.
“But Luke,” Taylor protested, “what about the renovations? I have a plan here I want to show you…”
With a heavy sigh Luke stopped once more. “Don’t you think you’ve done enough damage already, Taylor?” he growled at him.
“But -”
“Stay away from me Taylor, and stay away from my diner. I don’t want to have you anywhere near it. Understood?” He didn’t give Taylor enough time to answer before he walked up to the diner door. Despite his anger he felt that it would have been wrong to enter through the hole in the wall.
At the door he paused for a second. “And the same goes for Kirk,” he added before opening the door, walking through it, slamming it behind him and starting for the stairs.
At the counter he stopped briefly, glancing at the dark spot on the floor, but continued up the stairs quickly, ignoring Taylor calling out behind him.
He was fuming all the way up, muttering choice words that would have made him more than a little uncomfortable had the situation been any different. As it was, he just clamped up the stairs, as if trying to make as much noise as possible, and slammed the apartment door behind him after entering.
Once inside it was as if all the anger suddenly dissipated, and he leaned back against the door, completely drained of all energy. Standing there he suddenly had no idea what to do. Up until now he had been operating on auto pilot, doing what had to be done and pushing everything else to the back of his mind.
For a long time he just stood there, trying to catch up emotionally to the last couple of days. Then he inhaled slowly and pushed himself off the door, telling himself to stop acting so weak. This wasn’t the time. Jess needed him and he would not let the kid down.
With new found energy he quickly got started, and twenty minutes later he left the apartment, his hair still wet from a quick shower and in new clothes, not covered in dust, and holding a bag of things for Jess, including clothes, five books and a couple of sandwiches to make up for the hospital food.
Moments later he emerged from behind the curtain at the foot of the stairs and hurried towards the door. Rounding the counter he stopped abruptly, as he found himself face to face with Lane.
“Oh, hey,” he greeted, surprised to see her, or anyone for that matter in the diner.
“Hey Luke,” Lane said, giving him an apologetic smile. “Sorry if I scared you.”
Luke shook his head. “You startled me, that’s all.”
“Oh,” Lane mumbled, looking away nervously. “Sorry.”
Luke made a noncommittal answer and they both fell into an awkward silence, Lane searching for the right words to ask the question that was hanging in the air, waiting to be asked. Finally she opened her mouth.
“How is he? I mean Jess, how is Jess?” Lane babbled nervously. “No one seems to know anything, is he…is he ok?”
Luke nodded. “He will be.”
“Good,” Lane said with a smile. “That’s good to hear.”
“Yeah,” Luke said. “Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
Luke nodded and then gestured outside the diner. “Yeah…well, I should be getting back to the hospital. I left Lorelai alone with Jess, and I’m beginning to think it wasn’t such a great idea.”
“Lorelai’s at the hospital?” Lane asked, surprised.
“Yeah,” Luke confirmed and half turned towards the door. “So, I should be off.”
“Oh, yeah, right,” Lane said and hurriedly added, “Could I just, before you go maybe…ask you something?”
“Um…ok?” Luke said cautiously.
“Well, everyone feels really bad about what happened to Jess, and the diner, and they all want to help in any way they can and I know you probably don’t want their help and especially not Taylor’s, but if you could just think about it?” Lane rambled, almost tripping over her own words.
“Please?” she added after a moment when Luke still hadn’t said anything.
Luke just kept looking at her for a long time and then shook his head. “Taylor put you up to this?” he finally asked. “I told him to stay away from me.”
“No!” Lane exclaimed quickly.
Luke gave her a strange look. “Ok, so…”
Lane smiled awkwardly. “We all just really want to do something.”
“But I -” Luke began, but Lane cut him off.
“Just think about it, ok?” she quickly suggested. “You can go back to the hospital and make sure Jess and Lorelai haven’t killed each other and let me know when you’ve decided anything.”
Luke hesitated. “I don’t know, Lane…” he trailed off.
“Just think about it, please?” Lane asked him.
“Fine,” Luke conceded and Lane’s face broke in a huge smile. “But no one does anything without my consent.”
“Of course not,” Lane agreed.
“And no Taylor, you hear me?” Luke added.
“Yeah, sure, no Taylor,” Lane assured him. “I promise.”
“Fine,” Luke reluctantly agreed. “I’ll think about it.”
“Yay!” Lane exclaimed, receiving a questioning glance from Luke.
A moment of awkward silence followed, until Luke cleared his throat, pointing out at Lorelai’s car. “I should get going.”
“Right, sorry,” Lane exclaimed, darting over to the door and opening it. Then she hesitated.
“Say hi to Jess from me,” she blurted, before she could change her mind, and then left the diner.
Sunday June 11th, 1:00 PM, Hartford Memorial
When Jess woke up the second time, the feeling of cotton balls filling his head was gone and he sighed with relief. But it didn’t last long, because instead he became aware of a throbbing pain behind his right ear.
He groaned and slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times against the light until his eyes adjusted.
His memory was still a little foggy, and he looked around the room to orientate himself. When he turned his head to the side he looked right into the eyes of Lorelai Gilmore.
Jess blinked, once, twice, three times, but she was still there, on the same chair Luke had been sitting on the last time he was awake.
“Am I dead?” The question slipped out of his mouth before he could think.
“You mean; are you in hell and am I here to torture you?” Lorelai threw back with an evil grin.
Jess raised an eyebrow at her.
“Luke went to take a shower.”
Jess kept looking at her, staying silent.
“He’s bringing some of your things back too.”
“Ok.”
“He was afraid the doctor would come by when he was away.”
Jess kept staring at her.
“I offered to stay,” Lorelai continued. “In case the doctor comes by,” she quickly added.
“Right,” Jess said with a nod, grimacing at the pain that shot through him at the sudden movement. He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw, hoping it would pass soon.
Almost against her will Lorelai felt herself rising from her chair, a concerned wrinkle forming on its own on her forehead. “You ok?” she asked.
“Fine,” Jess bit out through clenched teeth.
“‘Cause that look says fine like nothing else,” Lorelai scoffed, sitting down again.
“No worse than the last time I ended up in the hospital,” Jess mumbled, finally feeling the pain subside.
“Last time?” Lorelai asked automatically, almost biting her tongue off when she’d realized she’d said it aloud. She was not concerned for him; she was just covering for Luke.
Jess opened his eyes at her words, looking over at her, catching the expression on her face, and looked away again. “It’s nothing,” he mumbled, silently cursing himself for having said anything.
“You’re practically black and blue from head to toe, they covered you in plaster and your head apparently hurts like hell,” Lorelai listed. “You call that nothing?”
“Huh, I hadn’t noticed,” Jess said, stopping himself from nodding again, ignoring Lorelai’s question.
Lorelai narrowed her eyes at him. “Charming as ever I see,” she remarked.
“Look,” Jess said, taking a deep breath and sitting up in the bed, wincing at the pain in his ribs, and turning his head back to Lorelai. “I have no idea why you’re here, but I’m pretty sure it’s got nothing to do with me. You don’t want to know about it anymore than I want to talk about it.”
“What’s to say it’s got nothing to do with you?” Lorelai asked indignantly, trying to ignore the way she had almost reflexively reached out to stop him from sitting up. She had to admit though, he wasn’t exactly wrong.
“Yeah, right,” Jess scoffed.
“So, humor me.”
“What?” Jess asked.
“Pretend I actually am here because of you,” Lorelai said nonchalantly. “What did you do last time?”
“And here it comes,” Jess said with a small humorless laugh.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It just had to be me who did something, right?”
“You telling me it wasn’t?”
Jess looked at her, but didn’t say anything.
“Ok,” Lorelai said slowly. “So, what happened then?”
“Why can’t you just let it go?” Jess asked, starting to get frustrated with the situation.
“Why won’t you just tell me?”
“Because it’s none of your business.”
“Oh, of course,” Lorelai bit back.
Jess let out an annoyed sigh. “Why do you always act like you know me so well?”
“I do not,” Lorelai said with an indignant huff.
“Oh no?” Jess asked skeptically. “I could make a list for you if you like, to refresh your memory.”
“Well, I should know something,” Lorelai defended. “After all, I practically was you growing up.”
“Oh, my mistake,” Jess scoffed, “it must be that concussion making me confused, but I thought you grew up in a fancy house with lots of money and people looking after your every whim.”
“Well, I did…”
“Then how could you possibly have been anything like me?”
“Because,” Lorelai defended, “I hated my life just as much as you hated yours, if not more, and I wanted nothing more than to get out of that horrible house, away from all the rules and expectations.”
“Yeah, must’ve been tough,” Jess drawled.
“Hey, you weren’t there!” Lorelai exclaimed. “I ran away from everything to raise my daughter by myself, working my ass off to support us, living in a tool shed because I didn’t want her to have to deal with that world. So don’t act like you know everything because you don’t!”
After her outburst Lorelai stared at him defiantly, as if challenging him to come up with some remark she could attack. But it never came.
Instead Jess sighed, saying quietly, “Rory showed me the shed once.”
Lorelai stared at him with something very close to disbelief. “She did?”
“You don’t have to sounds so surprised,” Jess muttered.
“I didn’t mean to…” Lorelai began, but changed her mind. “Well, yes I did, but -”
“She was proud of it,” Jess offered.
“I…” Lorelai began, but stopped, not knowing what to say. “Thank you.”
Jess stared at her for a second. “So, you really want to know?” he asked, his voice suddenly distant.
Lorelai stared back at him, a bit taken aback by his sudden change. Then she nodded.
“Ok, but don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Jess said, not moving his eyes from hers.
“One of Liz’s boyfriends got a bad hit and went psycho. He came after Liz, I tried to stop him. He punched me and threw me down a flight of stairs. I don’t know what happened after that, but I woke up in the hospital two days later, feeling like I got run over by a truck. I was 14.”
He paused for a second. “After that I learned to take care of myself.”
Lorelai stayed silent, meeting his unwavering gaze, too shocked to know what to say. Almost against her own will she felt something resembling sympathy, and maybe she finally found some sort of understanding for the troubled kid that had made her so uneasy only a few years ago.
She sat there watching him, for the first time wondering if she had been too harsh on him back then. A frown formed on her forehead and she felt the silence starting to press onto her.
“I’m -” she began, but Jess cut her off.
“Don’t say you’re sorry unless you actually mean it,” he said, keeping her gaze for a few moments before averting his eyes, staring up at the ceiling.
Feeling uncomfortable Lorelai quickly stood up, taking a deep breath. “I’m gonna go see if I can find someone to give you something for the pain,” she said and started for the door.
Jess didn’t say anything, just kept watching the light on the ceiling shift as the wind rustled the leaves on the trees outside the window.
Lorelai opened the door and went out, but stopped before closing it.
“I am sorry,” she said quietly and silently closed the door behind her.
Jess sighed and lay back down on the bed, carefully, and then stared at nothing for a long time. Then he closed his eyes, releasing a breath.
Sunday June 11th, 1:15 AM, Town Square
Rory was walking slowly over the Town Square, a steaming to-go cup of coffee from Weston’s in her hand. She was headed for Lane’s apartment to meet her friend, but when she reached the Gazebo she stopped dead in her tracks.
In front of her was the diner, or what was left of it, and she cringed. The car was no longer lodged in the wall, but that almost made the sight worse than it had been the night before. Or maybe it was the fact that now she saw it in daylight, as opposed to the dim illumination of street lights.
When she finally managed to stop staring at the disaster, she noticed the complete lack of people in the vicinity, and she frowned. It wasn’t like the towns people to stay away like that.
And that’s when she saw Lane at the edge of the Town Square. Her friend was currently wearing her most annoyed expression, and she was yelling at Taylor. Had the circumstances been different Rory would have burst out laughing at the sight, but as it was, she didn’t even smile.
After a short internal debate, she finally decided to get closer. She was after all on her way to see Lane, she reasoned. As she drew closer, she started to make out what they said.
“No!” Lane exclaimed intensely.
This did not go well with Taylor. “Now, listen to me, you lady,” he began, in his most frustrated voice, but he didn’t get any further.
“Luke is my boss,” Lane said resolutely. “And he gave me strict orders not to let you anywhere near the diner, and I’m a very good employee.”
“But,” Taylor protested. “I have to oversee the progress. How can I be sure everyone does their job if I don’t watch them?”
“First of all, there will be no work done on the diner until Luke gets back from the hospital,” Lane said resolutely, and raised her hand warningly when Taylor opened his mouth to protest.
“Secondly, the only repairs to be made will be done by Luke’s order, and under his overseeing.”
“But,” Taylor tried again.
“If you insist, I’ll be forced to get Miss Patty and have her convince you.”
Taylor looked uneasy at the threat, and Lane crossed her arms over her chest, staring at him as if to challenge him to try her.
Taylor opened his mouth to say something several times, but finally closed it and turned away with a huff, grumbling to himself.
Lane watched him leave with a pleased smile on her face, and then she turned around to see Rory approaching slowly. She hurried to meet her friend and greeted her with a tight embrace, which Rory accepted gratefully.
“What was that about?” Rory asked curiously when they let go of each other.
“Taylor?” Lane asked while leading her to the gazebo, where they sat down, and Rory nodded. “I talked to Luke before about the town and that everyone wants to help with the repairs of the diner, and he promised to think about it, but specifically forbid Taylor from having anything to do with it.”
“You talked to Luke?”
“Yeah,” Lane nodded, watching her friend closely. “He was just here. Your mom didn’t tell you?”
“Mom?” Rory didn’t know what to think. “Tell me what?”
Lane frowned. “That she’s at the hospital.”
Rory stared at her for a moment. “She’s what?”
“I thought you knew,” Lane smiled apologetically.
“I -” Rory began, shaking her head. “I was still asleep when she left this morning. I thought she was at work.”
“Apparently not,” Lane said awkwardly.
“So, um -” Rory fidgeted with her shirt sleeves. “Did he, I mean, did Luke say anything about - ?”
She trailed off, for some reason not able to say his name out loud. But Lane nodded.
“He didn’t say much, but he said he’ll be ok.”
“He’ll be ok?”
“Yeah.”
“Ok, good. That’s good.”
Rory nodded to herself, and then she started crying.
Lane just held her until the tears slowed down.
“Feeling better now?”
Rory nodded. “God, I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” she managed to choke out.
Sunday June 11th, 1:30 PM, Hartford Memorial
Lorelai didn’t know how long she had been standing outside the door, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation she had just had. Lost in her thoughts she didn’t notice Luke slowly approaching her.
“You ok?” he asked, looking suspiciously in the direction of Jess’s door behind Lorelai’s back.
“Huh?” Lorelai mumbled, looking up a little surprised.
“Are you ok? You look a little…well I would say flushed, but…” Again he let his eyes wander from her face to the door, curious what had happened behind it.
“Oh, no, I’m ok, I’m just… It’s warm in here, right?” she rambled. “So did you get all the stuff you wanted?
Luke had learned not to push her, and as the situation was he was definitely not about to try, so he let it go and raised a bag up in front of him. “Yes, everything is here, at least what I could find in Jess’ bag. God, that kid has two T-shirts with him, but 10 books.”
Lorelai laughed at that. “Reminds me of someone,” she grinned and once again the same feeling she got after Jess told her his story came over her. Her smile died quickly. “He’s changed, you know,” she said thoughtfully.
“Who?” Luke looked at her, confused about the change of topic.
“Jess, he has changed,” she clarified and looked down the corridor. “He’s grown up a lot.”
Luke was surprised and now even more anxious to hear what had happened after he left. He had expected a lot of things, but not this. “He wrote a book,” was all he could think of to say.
“Oh,” Lorelai breathed out, even more surprised. “A book, huh?”
“Yeah. I read it, it’s good. Not that I know anything about writing and it’s more of a novella, but I liked it, and…” He cut himself off when he realized he had started rambling. “Well yes, he wrote a book,” he finished a little out of breath, but with a proud smile on his face.
Lorelai couldn’t hold in a smile of her own when she saw that and instinctively she reached for his hand, wondering if Rory knew anything about it. And once again wondered why she kept connecting those two in her mind ever since the last talk with her daughter. Then she realized that Luke was looking at their intertwined hands, shock written all over his face, and she quickly pulled hers away again, looking down at the floor.
The corridor was suddenly filled to the ceiling with tension, and they stood silently, neither knowing what to say, trying to gather their thoughts. Before either of them had the chance to say anything Dr. Daniels came hurrying around the corner, his white coat flying behind him, and smiled when he saw Luke.
“Ah, there you are!” he exclaimed cheerfully. “I'll be all yours in a few seconds. I just have to get rid of these files.”
Both Luke and Lorelai looked up at him startled and then stared after him as he quickly continued down the corridor to the nurses’ station, dropping off the files. As if this was just what they had been waiting for they both felt the air lighten and Lorelai slowly looked back up.
“Seriously, what is it with all the chipper staff in this hospital?” Luke grumbled when the doctor was out of hearing range.
Lorelai chuckled. “Have you met the nurse yet?”
Luke rolled his eyes and nodded, “Yeah, I think she has a crush on Jess.”
“Oh,” Lorelai said, chuckling.
Luke smiled. “I think she scares him.”
An evil smile was growing on Lorelai’s face and immediately Luke regretted what he had said. “Don’t even think about it!”
“About what?” Lorelai purred, still smiling like a maniac.
“He’s hurt!” Luke tried again, already knowing it was pointless.
“Well, we’ll find out about that right about now,” Lorelai smiled and gestured towards the doctor who was now making his way back to them.
Luke let out a sigh, shaking his head, and greeted the doctor when he arrived, following him into Jess’ room. He gave Lorelai a wondering look when she followed right behind him, but didn’t comment on it.
“Oh good, you’re awake,” Dr Daniels said, sounding pleased, when he caught sight of Jess.
“Yeah,” Jess mumbled, not able to suppress the surprise he felt when he saw Lorelai entering behind Luke, slowly closing the door.
“I’m Dr Daniels,” he introduced himself, “and I’m the one who put you back together, so to speak.” He smiled brightly. “It’s nice to see you’re recovering.”
Jess eyed the doctor and frowned at the cheerful introduction. “Uh, thanks?” he said suspiciously.
He could hear Luke grumble at his response, which didn’t surprise him at all, but he wasn’t prepared for the snicker that could be heard from Lorelai who was still standing by the door.
Dr Daniels just smiled more brightly. “Well, now that’s taken care of, why don’t I tell you what we’ve done, ok?”
“Just cut to the chase, ok?” Jess said, not up to hearing just exactly how bad it was. “When can I get out of here?”
“That’s the spirit,” Dr Daniels chuckled. “However, since you may have a concussion, we want to keep you at least overnight for observation.”
“Great,” Jess mumbled, but actually wasn’t that annoyed. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to stand up right now anyway.
“And once you’re free to leave the hospital someone still has to keep an eye on you, just to be on the safe side. The brain is not something to take lightly.”
“Looks like you’re stuck with me for a while, huh, Uncle Luke?” Jess smirked.
Luke sent him a glare and grumbled something under his breath, but Jess noticed that he didn’t seem all that displeased.
Monday June 12th, 6:00 AM, Hartford Memorial
Rory looked up at the clock on the wall for the third time in less than a minute, and nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She had been standing in line for ten agonizing minutes, and she was starting to lose her nerve.
Just her luck that everyone in Hartford seemed to be at the hospital at the same time. She couldn’t for the life of her understand what they all were doing there this early.
“What can I help you with?” a young nurse finally asked, causing her to almost jump. She had been too lost in thought to notice that the man in front of her had moved away.
“I…um,” she stammered, earning a sigh from the woman in front of her.
Rory took a deep breath and started talking fast, before she could change her mind. “I’m looking for a Jess Mariano. He was brought in here two days ago.”
“Mariano?” the nurse repeated, turning to her computer and pressed some buttons. “Are you family?” she asked, glancing up at her briefly.
“Um, no,” Rory said, suddenly afraid she’d reached the end of her trip. “I’m a…friend.”
“Ok,” the woman said, looking up from the keyboard once more, and Rory felt a sudden urge to explain herself, but it soon disappeared, and instead she just nodded.
“He’s in ward 3, room 334. It’s through those doors and three floors up.”
“Ok, thank you,” Rory said, not able to hold in a sigh of relief and was about to leave when the nurse continued.
“Visiting hours don’t start for another two hours though, and since you’re not family I’m afraid you won’t be allowed in before that.”
“Oh,” Rory mumbled, and felt her heart sink. “Thank you,” she added halfheartedly and turned away when she felt her throat close up.
She hurried out the doors and breathed in deeply, angrily wiping away the tear that was forming in the corner of her eye. She couldn’t believe she was standing outside of a hospital, crying over Jess of all people.
Feeling confused she looked around her, finding a bench not far away, and went over, letting herself sink down on it. She had no idea what to do now, but she just couldn’t face having come all this way only to turn back.
She wasn’t sure she’d actually come to a decision, but suddenly she stood up, and walked back in through the doors. This time she was glad for the people crowding the room, using them to sneak around to the door the nurse had pointed out to her.
Rory felt like a thief, sneaking around the way she did, looking over her shoulder every two seconds, jumping at the smallest sound. Every time she rounded a corner she was sure she would run into someone, and she did not want to explain to anyone why she was here.
She wasn’t even sure she knew herself. But she was here, and she wasn’t about to let a thing like reason change her mind.
After what felt like hours creeping along dark corridors she finally stood right outside the right door, and it wasn’t until that moment she realized the small problem with her plan.
Luke.
How was she supposed to get into the room without anyone noticing her when Luke was probably in there right now?
And then she wondered why Luke was a problem at all. She was pretty sure he wouldn’t stop her from seeing Jess. But there was the chance that he would be asking questions. Questions she didn’t know how to answer.
And then there was the thing with her mother.
With a sigh she leaned against the wall, and almost immediately jumped as she heard someone move on the other side of the door, coming closer.
Her heart was pounding in her chest and she looked around in panic. Then she noticed the bathroom sign on a door close by, and she darted for it as quickly as she could. She flung the door open and almost skidded inside, locking the door behind her.
She leaned against the door, catching her breath when she heard steps approaching. Holding her breath she listened as they stopped right outside and someone pressed down the handle.
“Oh great,” someone muttered on the other side of the door, and Rory’s eyes widened when she recognized the voice.
She listened intently, and after a few seconds she heard him walk away down the corridor.
Once everything was quiet, she took a deep breath. This was her chance.
She unlocked the door and opened it slowly. It was still quiet. Then she hurried over to Jess’ room. She hesitated for a moment outside the door, but then she realized that she had no idea how long Luke would be gone, and she quickly entered.
The room was dimly lit by a small lamp on a table by the window and it took her eyes a while to adapt. She could hear the steady beeping of machines, and the sound comforted her.
Her eyes fell on the sleeping form in the bed and she took a shaky breath, her legs pulling her closer almost of their own accord.
Rory stood there quietly, watching him, her view blurring. She swallowed, and impulsively reached out to touch his hand. She gently squeezed his hand, a tear rolling down her cheek.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
Then he stirred in his sleep, and Rory’s eyes grew wide. She blinked once, and then darted from the room.
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