| by Cutiepie_67 Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, so please don't sue me! Pairing: R/T Summary: Rory finds herself avoiding certain people�one in particular Author's Note: This is my first fic, so be kind to me. "Welcome to the first day of the 2001-2002 school year here at Chilton. I trust you've all had exhilarating summers, although I encourage you to share the experiences at lunch and not linger in the halls. "Also, remember that the academic standards and rules are the same as ever, regardless as to the time of year. Failure is a part of life, but not a part of Chilton. "Have a nice day." Rory sighed. She couldn't believe she would have to hear more or less the same speech for another nine months. The monotony was already beginning to bore her, and when she looked at the blank sheet in her notebook, the feeling began to breed and multiply. Mr. Fossina began his lecture, and Rory willed herself to listen, though the many thoughts flying through her head often interrupted. Mostly, she thought about Dean and how their summer together had gone. "Miss Gilmore? It is only the first day of school and already you are distracted? My, my, what a year we're going to have together," Mr. Fossina reprimanded. "Sorry," Rory apologized. Mr. Fossina simply raised an eyebrow and continued with the lecture. When the class was over, Rory stood up, and, upon attempting to move into the aisle, was nearly bowled over by a tall, blonde-haired boy she recognized as Tristan. Well, at least he isn't bitter, Rory thought sarcastically. She sighed and filed out of the classroom with the rest of the students, the year looking more and more dreary as the day wore on. * By lunchtime, Rory was tired. Apparently, as you moved up, homework became even more pressing. She already had two projects and an essay to work on, and it was only halfway through the day. When she was finished with her meal, she went to the only place in the school she had looked forward to seeing again: the library. Stacks of books, just begging to be read. Rory wandered idly through them, enjoying the quiet time to think. Being with Dean hadn't been what either had anticipated. Although they still cared about each other, an unspoken rift had formed, making them careful and awkward with one another, and they agreed that perhaps romance wasn't an option anymore. Both were perfectly happy to be good friends. Rory smiled contentedly. She wouldn't trade in her friendships with Dean and Lane for anything. As she was engrossed in contemplation, she turned the corner without looking and smacked into someone. Tristan. "Sorry," he said coolly. He stood in front of her and looked down into her face. "So what happened with you two?" "We're friends." "Some friendly kiss." "Well, we were auditioning for the Jerry Springer show." Tristan leaned on the bookcase slightly. "I thought you two were about to say your vows." Rory rolled her eyes. "Goodbye, Tristan." "By the way, I took Adrienne to the concert." "Lucky her." "Yeah. It was a great concert." "I'll watch it on Pay-Per-View." Tristan stared at her. "I don't really like her music." "Adrienne's?" "No, PJ Harvey's." "Oh, I'm sorry, you said her. As far as I remember from a previous conversation of ours, PJ Harvey is a man." Tristan's eyes nearly bore holes through her own. "Bye," Rory said quickly, seizing the opportunity. What possessed him to do that? Rory wondered. She shook her head and hurried to her next class. * "How was your first day?" Lorelai asked when she came home. "Coffee," Rory replied. Lorelai sympathetically poured her a cup. "What happened?" "Paris tried to kill me at least twelve times by attempting to drill a hole through my head with her eyes, I have more projects than I will ever be able to cope with on day one, and Tristan is a little bitter about last year." "You should have your own soap opera. We could name it 'Fast Times at Chilton Prep'." "Mmmm. Caffeine." Rory leaned back into her chair, smiling as the caffeine coursed through her veins. "Now I can begin to contemplate my assignments, after which I will need a double dose to begin to think about actually starting one of them." "I'll tell Luke to make extra." "Like he'll listen to you." "I have only had two cups the whole day." Rory raised her eyebrows. "Well, two that Luke has seen." * The next few weeks were an adjustment period for Rory. She had to force herself to get into the rhythm of school again. Also, avoiding Max Medina after her mother turned him down was no small feat. Even though she knew Max had no hard feelings toward her, it made her uncomfortable to talk to him. Secretly, she was pleased that her mother turned him down. Their life was too perfect as it was; bringing another into the mix would ruin it. Like putting too much caramel topping on a sundae. "New seating chart today," Mr. Fossina began at the start of class. "Anderson, Abbey, Blake, Downy, DuGray, Gilmore, Grant..." Mr. Fossina trailed off to where Rory ceased to listen. All she could comprehend was the fact that she would be sitting next to Tristan and would have to endure his looks of resentment and hostility for the next eight weeks. There would be no way to avoid them now. Heaving herself out of the chair, she walked as slowly as possible to her new seat and flopped in it dejectedly. Adrienne, Tristan's latest, who had gone to the PJ Harvey concert with him, walked by, brushing his desk with her skirt. Rory shook her head and withdrew a sheet of paper. "Meet me after school in the courtyard," Tristan whispered to Adrienne. "What's in it for me?" "Guess." Adrienne grinned and walked to her seat before Mr. Fossina noticed the rendezvous. "Please turn your attention to the board and tell me the answer to number four, Mr. DuGray." "What?" "The answer to number four, which can't be found in Miss Gilmore's hair, although let's see if she knows it, just for fun." "X=45," Rory replied as the class snickered at Tristan. He stared down at his book the entire class, meeting no one's eyes. * "And here we are, yet another warm and fuzzy Friday night family dinner," Lorelai said, faking cheer as she and Rory made their way up the steps. "You two are late," Emily observed as she pulled the door open. "We tried hard; thanks for noticing, Mom," Lorelai responded. "Well, in any event, we have guests." "And here we are," Lorelai joked. "Punctual guests," Emily clarified. "The DuGrays, excellent people, they have a son Rory's age who attends Chilton. Tristan; do you know him?" The last part was directed at Rory, who nodded. "Anyway, his mother and I are planning something for the DAR and will be spending a few weeks together at Friday night dinners, so you two might hit it off." "Yeah. You thought the same thing about Chase Bradford and I." "You didn't give him a fair chance." "Never mind." Lorelai looked at Rory, concerned about her and Tristan having to be together. Rory widened her eyes slightly, and Lorelai put her arm around her daughter's shoulder consolingly. "Lorelai, Rory, this is Robert, Kathryn and Tristan DuGray. Rory attends Chilton as well." The DuGrays murmured their salutations and Emily suggested that Tristan and Rory head off into the smaller sitting area while the adults discussed the DAR issues. Lorelai looked immediately bored and Rory threw a horrified glance at Lorelai, who looked back helplessly. "So, Siri will call you when dinner is ready. Have a nice chat," Emily said before leaving the two of them alone. "I can't believe this," Tristan muttered. "Can't believe what?" Rory asked. "That we have to sit here and act like we'll be getting married tomorrow." "That's very 'Fiddler On The Roof' of them," Rory replied. Tristan glared. "Do you have any idea how many set-ups my parents have put me through?" "You know, you don't actually have to talk to me," Rory answered coldly. "Good idea." "I think we'll both be better off." "I'm glad you agree." "It's unanimous." They sat and stared anywhere but at each other, until finally Tristan brought up the subject of Dean. "I don't want to talk about it," Rory responded when he asked what had happened between them. "Why not?" "What ever happened to that whole 'no talking' thing?" The rest of the time before dinner was spent in silence. Finally, at five after seven, Siri called them into the dining room, where Rory was horrified to see that she had to sit next to him at dinner was well. Lorelai threw her questioning looks, and Rory tried not to look as miserable as she was. Tristan glared coldly at his parents and at Rory. "Tristan, your tie is off center," Kathryn addressed him in the middle of the salad course. Tristan simply pulled it looser and continued eating. "Tristan...," his father said threateningly. "Yeah?" he replied innocently. "Why can't you just listen to us for a second of your precious time and obey once in a while?" Lorelai looked amused and Rory stared fixedly at her food. "You sure do listen to Adrienne," Kathryn pointed out bitterly. "And before that, Summer, and before that--" "What your mother is trying to say is that maybe you should think of us a little more." "Why bother? What's in it for me?" Tristan asked bitterly. "You listen--" "So, next course, everyone ready?" Emily broke in. "Tristan, your tie, please," his mother repeated. In exasperation, Tristan tightened the tie around his neck and resumed eating his salad. "So, how's school?" Emily asked to save the yelling, since Robert was turning a dangerous shade of red. "Fine," Tristan said nonchalantly. "Well, we have a big project coming up in History. Miss Kelles has been going on about it for a long time now." "Really? What is it?" Kathryn asked. "We don't know yet. She's keeping us in suspense." "Oh, Rory, I just remembered. Right before we left, I noticed there was a distressed-sounding Lane on our answering machine," Lorelai began. "What did she say?" "Something about Henry and her parents and fifteen Korean in-laws." "Sounds interesting. I'll call her back." "If her mom will let you through." "It could be the beginning of World War III." "Yes. Walls will come crashing down, hospitals will be filled, a sequel to 'Pearl Harbor' will be made called...'Emerald Beach', starring Casey Affleck, Tom Brokaw's son will write dozens of novels about--" "Lorelai." Emily threw her daughter a withering look. "Pass the pot roast," Lorelai said to Rory, who nodded and passed it over the centerpiece. When her mother attempted to pick it up to put it back where it had previously been, she dropped it, crushing the flowers in the arrangement. "Lorelai!" Emily exclaimed angrily. Rory stared hard into her food, biting her lip to keep from laughing. Her shoulders began to shake when she ventured a look at her grandfather who was in much the same position. Siri came in and promptly cleaned up the mess. "So how is Jane?" Emily asked Rory. "Lane, grandma," Rory reminded her. "The cause of World War III," Lorelai chimed in. "I'm ignoring you," Emily said. "And it only took thirty-two years," Lorelai replied vivaciously. "Lane is fine," Rory said quickly. The rest of the dinner was dedicated to DAR issues, and Rory and Lorelai throwing each other amused glances when the two women brought up ridiculously superficial issues. Tristan was silent throughout dinner, except to request food be passed. "Well, it was great, Mom, see you next week," Lorelai said, practically running out the door, towing Rory by the hand, who was complimenting her grandmother on another job well done with the dinner. * "That was an interesting dinner," Tristan greeted Rory at her locker Monday morning. "They all are. The best one was when my grandmother sprang a date on my mom and she escaped through the upstairs window." "No." "Yes." Tristan shook his head. "Sorry about being so rude." "That's okay." "Yeah?" "Totally." "So, you met my parents." "Yeah." Rory looked at him sympathetically. "Is that how it is all the time?" "Mmm-hmm." "Wow." "Well, I gotta go meet Adrienne." "Okay." Rory continued her walk to first period calculus with Mr. Fossina, where she was glad that she and Tristan had reached a tentative pact. As she walked, she contemplated the various allegations that his parents had thrown at him last night, especially the one about listening to his girlfriends more than his parents. Rory shook her head and walked to Calc, where Adrienne and Tristan were making out by the door. She sighed. It would still be a long day. * Rory trudged in through the rain on Friday to meet Dean and Lane at Luke's, ten minutes late. "Sorry," she apologized as she sat down. Luke brought her a cup of coffee. "How was school?" Dean asked, noting the tired expression on her face. "Peachy," Rory said dryly. "What happened?" Lane asked. "Oh, I got a few more essays piled on me, but I'm just dreading this whole night." "Oh, right, the additions to Friday night dinners," Lane said. Rory nodded. "It's so weird. We have to sit there and pretend to talk, and then we get to the table, and he and his parents argue, and then my mom and my grandma argue...it's just really not fun." "What happened last time?" Dean asked. "Didn't Lane fill you in?" "Nope." "Well, Tristan and I basically agreed that we wouldn't talk to each other in our little preludes before dinner, and then he and his parents had this blow-out, and then my mom dropped the pot roast on the centerpiece." "No." "Oh, yes." "So, this lasts for how many more weeks?" "Indefinitely. The good news is, at least Tristan and I have a tentative pact." "Meaning?" "We're civil to each other." "How civil?" Lane questioned. "Well, he no longer calls me Mary and I no longer make fun of him for his superficial relationships with shallow, meaningless girls." "Maybe we should get the U.N. involved," Lane joked. "Well, I gotta go get ready for the Gilmore-Gaslight gathering," Rory said, and stood up, waving good-bye to her friends thorough the window. * "Okay, it's only a couple hours of torture," Lorelai rationalized. "Watch out for the centerpiece." "Thanks for the tip, Ann Landers," Lorelai responded, voice besotted with sarcasm. "On time this week," Emily observed, opening the door. "Yeah, we've gotta work on being fashionably late." Emily rolled her eyes and allowed them in. "Rory, Tristan is in the same smaller sitting room as before. Dinner should be ready in about ten minutes." "Okay," Rory said, kissed her grandma on the cheek and dragged herself into the room. "Hey," Tristan greeted her. "Hey is for horses," Rory replied. "Very scientific." "Thanks. Just call me Madame Curie." "So..." "So?" Rory asked, wondering if the remark had anywhere to go. "I can hardly wait to see what happens tonight," Tristan said wryly. "Why don't you bring Adrienne?" Rory asked. "Why don't you bring Dean?" he countered. "He probably wouldn't want to come," Rory answered frankly. "He and my grandmother didn't exactly hit it off when they met." "Why not?" "You still haven't answered my question." "My parents don't like her. They think she's a slut." "Ah," Rory responded, thinking that his parents were exactly right. "And they're right," he continued, reading her mind. "But I'm not with her for some mind-expanding, marriage-inducing, long-term relationship." "So...why are you with her?" "Guess." "Oh." Rory blushed at the thought of being with someone because they were easy. She knew that she had been lucky with Dean, who took things at her pace. "I wonder what this secret DAR mission is." "I doubt whether I want to find out," Rory answered. "True," Tristan agreed. They sat in a semi-uncomfortable silence for a few seconds before speaking at the same time. "How'd you--" "Did you--" "You first," Tristan said. "I was going to say, how'd you do on the pop quiz in Calculus?" "Okay. B." "I got an A -." "Good job." "Thanks. What were you going to say?" "Did you like the project in History?" "It's okay." "Who's your partner?" "Paris." Tristan looked at her sympathetically. "Is she still angry about last year?" "Very." "Sorry." "Dinner!" Siri called. "Ladies first," Tristan said, ushering her into the dining room. "So are you two getting along okay?" Kathryn asked. "Yeah, sure," Tristan replied, shooting Rory and 'I'll-handle-this' look. "That's nice." "It certainly is," Emily said from the opposite end of the table, looking knowingly at Kathryn. "So, Mom, what is this committee thingie for?" Lorelai queried. "It's to save a very rare type of rock." "What?" Lorelai asked. Richard smiled and looked at Rory who grinned back. Both immediately looked back at their meals so neither woman noticed. "How do you 'save' a rock?" Lorelai asked incredulously. "Well, we're taking donations to collect them from their depository sources, and then scientists can extract DNA--" "I didn't realize that a rock was so important." "It's a beautiful rock, Lorelai." "Uh-huh." The others ate their food in silence, none of them wanting to interfere in the argument. Tristan found himself looking at Rory when she was looking away. He couldn't believe it: after all this, he was still in love with her. He loved the way she and her grandfather exchanged furtive looks when they heard something particularly ridiculous. When he reached for his dessert fork, he "accidentally" brushed her hand, and this confirmed what he knew: there were definitely sparks between them. "Well, I guess I'll see you Monday," Tristan said when the evening ended. "Yup." Rory stared at her feet. "Mom!" she called, and then rolled her eyes when she found her bickering with her grandmother. "You two," she said. "Does this happen a lot?" Tristan asked in reference to Lorelai and Emily. "Only when they're breathing." "Ah." Finally, Lorelai emerged and said breathlessly, "Let's go. I can't convince her that I do not want to become a member of the DAR." "I thought you already knew that." "Well, you know me, I like to work on lost causes--like you grandmother." "I heard that," Emily called from the living room. "Little pitchers have big ears," Lorelai retorted. "See you next week, Mom. Bye, Tristan," she added on their way out the door. "Bye." * The next week at Chilton was laden with homework, because it was mid-terms. Rory and Tristan rarely spoke, and when they did, it was trite conversations in the halls by their lockers, outside classroom doors, on the way to and from school and so on. Of course, Rory didn't exactly make an effort to talk to him. But I'm not avoiding him, she told herself. On Friday, Rory walked in, running late because of the bus. On her way to her locker, she was cornered by Adrienne. "Hey, we haven't been properly introduced," Adrienne began. "No," Rory agreed," we haven't." "I'm Adrienne." "I'm Rory." "I'm Tristan's girlfriend." "Okay," Rory said, completely uninterested. "But I think you should be." "Should be...what?" Rory asked. "Tristan's girlfriend. Wow, you really are as naive as Tristan says." "He says I'm naive?" "He uses the word 'sweet', but I call it naive." "Back to the girlfriend thing." "He loves you." "Please. Tristan doesn't love anyone. He's just in it for the...physical encounters." "He's with me for the 'physical encounters'. He loves you." "Why are you telling me this?" "Because I'm tired of him staring at you instead of me. You can't tell me you haven't noticed." "Adrienne, I have absolutely no experience with guys. I have had one boyfriend, who I am still good friends with." "Well, I'm going to break up with him, because you two are meant to be." "Adrienne, don't do this because of me." "Rory, I'm not doing it because of you. I'm doing it for me." "Okay. I have to get to class." "You know, Tristan was right about another thing." "What's that?" "You really are nice." Rory smiled at her. "See you later?" "Definitely. If you ever need some guy help..." "I'll talk to you." Rory felt happier than she had in days. Although she was confused about the Tristan thing, she had finally made a friend, or sort-of-friend, at Chilton. When she walked into Calculus, she saw Adrienne, who winked at her, talking to Tristan, who had a neutral expression on his face. After class, Adrienne caught Rory by the door. "See? He looked real hurt, huh?" "Well..." "I'll see you later, Rory. And..." "Yeah?" "I think you two will be great together." Adrienne smiled and walked away, pleased with her decision to break up with Tristan. * Rory was nervous about dinner that night. She hit her mom up for advice, and all she told her was, "Go with the flow." "Okay, Cliche Mom." "No problem, Sweet Valley High Daughter." "Well, you've solved the fashionably late problem, I see," Emily greeted them. "Traffic," Lorelai said, searching for a place to put her coffee cup. Emily took it and practically shoved them into their respective rooms. "Hi," Rory greeted Tristan. "Hi," he aped. "I'm sorry." "About what?" "About...Adrienne." "Oh, that. I saw you two talking," Tristan said warily. "Yeah, she's great." "She can be nice if she wants to." "Oh. So, you aren't the least bit miserable or melancholy?" "It's been coming for a while." "Oh." Rory couldn't think of anything to add to that, so she shut up and stared at the fireplace mantle. "I wonder if they've made any progress in the rock area." "Who knows? Maybe they'll figure out how to clone the ideal rock, and people will call in for individualized rock beds, each rock picked with the precision of DNA--" "You have quite a vision of the future." "Call me Alan Greenspan." "I have quite a variety of names to pick from: Madame Curie, Alan Greenspan, Rory..." "One name for each of my many personalities." "So, you're bipolar?" "Actually, it's beginning to spawn into tri-polar, so maybe I'll call myself multi-polar, just in case I come up with any other names." "Good troubleshooting." "I could work for a computer manufacturer." They went silent as each tried to think of something to say. Rory hoped he didn't know Adrienne had told her about his feelings. It was difficult for Rory to restrain herself from asking about the comments Adrienne had made. Lucky for both parties, Siri called them to dinner, where everyone except Kathryn and Emily sat in an uncomfortable silence. Lorelai stared intently at her food and avoided making comment, for once. What was she thinking about? Rory thought. Usually, Lorelai was quick to make sarcastic, witty comments about anything her grandmother had to say. As the soup came, Tristan whispered, "Rory?" "Yeah?" she said back, equally quiet. "I really am sorry about Paris." "I know." Rory looked at her lap. "Why did you tell her?" "It's a curse. I always talk before I think." "Maybe they teach a class--" "What is so interesting down there?" Robert asked. "Nothing, Dad." "You wouldn't be enjoying one of our get-togethers, would you son?" "No." "Oh, good. For a minute there, I thought we'd have to separate them, put them in cells, never let them see the light of day again," Lorelai interjected, saving Rory and Tristan from embarrassment. "Lorelai, have you given any more thought to the DAR membership?" Kathryn inquired. "No, not really. I have, however, been thinking about spending the rest of my life in a medieval torture chamber and being forced to watch the 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' movies over and over and over again." There was a deafening silence. "She was joking," Emily said helpfully. "Ah," Kathryn said, as though she was waiting for someone else to acknowledge it. "So, Mom," Lorelai said, "I won't be able to make dinner next week." "Oh?" Emily asked suspiciously. "Yeah, oh?" Rory echoed. "A friend of mine invited me out, and it's really important." "Sookie?" Rory asked curiously. "No, a different friend." "Which different friend?" Rory pursued. "So not the time, Rory," Lorelai said, jerking her head toward Emily. "Lorelai, I'm sorry, we agreed. Friday nights." "You let Rory out that once." "And look what happened," Rory murmured. "She deserved a break." "And I don't?" Emily sighed and looked at Rory. "You'll be here, right Rory?" "I'm planning on it," Rory replied. "Well...," Emily considered. "In guess, just this once, if it's really important." "Yeah, it is, Mom." "Alright, then. But only this once." "Thanks." The table resumed silence, until Lorelai said, "Rory, did you straighten things out with Lane?" "Yes. She tried to decipher another answering-machine message and somehow got the impression that Henry didn't like her anymore after their date when all he said was, 'I had a great time. I'll call you again'." "Hmmm. So, did Mrs. Kim actually like him?" "Yes, and Lane is now allowed over at our house again." "Great!" "Why wouldn't she be allowed over?" Emily asked. "Well...," Lorelai faltered. "We had a bit of a parenting disagreement." "Oh," Emily said knowingly. "Don't 'oh' me," Lorelai started. "I can still reconsider about next week." "But you can say whatever you want if you let me out." Tristan looked at Rory furtively as she ate, ciphering out the spinach in her soup. He almost laughed. She looked so cute, taking a spoonful, then dumping half of it out again, then refilling and doing the process over until she had a spinach-free bite. "So, Monday?" Tristan said hopefully when dinner was, at long last, over. "Monday," Rory confirmed. * On Monday, however, Tristan didn't show at school. Rory wasn't exactly concerned, because she didn't like him that much, or so she told herself. It's probably just a cold, Rory told herself to keep her mind off it. She did her best to stay focused, and even managed a conversation with Adrienne about Friday night dinner, where Adrienne helpfully decoded all of Tristan's comments. On the bus ride home, Rory didn't know what to think. Maybe Tristan really did genuinely like her, as Adrienne said, on numerous occasions. Still, it was Tristan. When she got to the bus stop, Dean and Lane were waiting, studying while they anticipated her arrival. "Hey," she said in greeting. "Hey. That's all I came to say, because I have to be home, but I'll call you later," Lane said quickly, then jogged home, where her mother was standing on the front porch. "So, how was school?" Dean asked, taking Rory's bag. "Oh, okay." "How did it go after Friday night dinner?" "He wasn't there." "No?" "Huh-uh. But I did talk to Adrienne." "Yeah? And what did she say?" "She maintains her ridiculous stance that Tristan has an actual, genuine thing for me." "I knew it." "Please. He still just wants to prove something." "Have there been new girls this year?" Rory looked at him in confusion as he veered completely off the subject. "Well, of course." "So, has he pestered them as much as you?" "Well." Rory stumbled here, confirming Dean's argument. "No, he hasn't." "So, why would he still tease you and talk to you if he wanted only to prove something?" "I guess you're right." "Of course I'm right. I'm a guy. I know these things." Rory gave him a look and took her bag. "Bye, Guy Guru." "See you, Rory." Rory decided to drop her stuff at home and walk to the inn to talk to her mom about the situation. Better yet, she would call her and make fun of Michel to boost her spirits. "Hello, Independence Inn, Michel speaking." "Hello Michel. It's Rory. I want to talk to my mom, please." "Why must you call here? You know I despise answering the phone and fetching Lorelai." "I do it all for you, Michel." "I�ll get her." "Hello?" Lorelai sad breathlessly ten seconds later. "Hi, Mom." "Hey, kid, what's going on?" "I just needed to talk." "Okay, shoot." "Tristan wasn't there today." "And you're bummed?" "No." "You like him!" Lorelai exclaimed triumphantly. "I do not." "You do. You may not think you do, but I know you better than you know you, and I know you like Tristan." "I do not!" "You do so! You are totally bummed about him not being there, even if you think you aren't." "Am not." "Rory, honey. Think about it. You have your best sparring matched with him, arguing like old, married people. Come on. Even his ex---what's her name?--sees it." "Adrienne." "Huh?" "His ex's name is Adrienne." "Beside the point." "You asked." "It was a wandering in the sentence. I wasn't actually curious." "Well, since you're no help--" "Rory, there's nothing wrong with liking him." "But I don't!" "Fine, fine. Have it your way. You'll see it eventually." "Bye, Mom." "Bye, babe." Rory hung up rather dejectedly. She started to shuffle through the mountain of Chilton papers, but couldn't bring herself to stare at her own handwriting for one more second. She moved into the kitchen and began eating her way through the leftover pizza. * When Lorelai came home late, she found Rory asleep on the couch with her head resting in the pizza box. Shaking her head, she removed it and thought about waking her daughter. Instead, she covered her and watcher her sleep, smiling to herself. The phone rang, and Lorelai jumped. "Hello?" "Lorelai?" "Hey, Luke." "Still on for Friday?" "Of course." "Have you told Rory yet?" "No. I can't think of a way." "It's not like she'll be angry...right?" "She won't be. But I don't want her to think I've moved on too quickly, because what's that going to teach her? Rebound skills? And no, not the basketball kind." "Lorelai, Rory is the most mature sixteen-year-old I know." "Yeah, she is." "And she has obviously not learned awful rebounding skills. Look what happened with her and Dean." "Yeah." "Friday?" "Again, yes." "Just making sure." "I know." "Still Friday?" "Are you that insecure?" "No, I just like having you make fun of me in the patented Lorelai Gilmore way." "Good night, Luke." "'Night, Lorelai." * On Tuesday, Tristan trudged into class moments before the tardy bell and sat down without looking in either direction. Mr. Fossina took the whole class time with demonstration, and Rory didn't get a chance to ask about yesterday. She took detailed notes and listened closely, although she noticed that Tristan didn't pick up a pencil the entire time. Apparently, so did Mr. Fossina. "Mr. DuGray?" "Yes, sir?" "Are you testing out a new ginko-biloba product?" "No, sir." "So, is there a reason you haven't taken any notes?" Tristan looked at his paper, surprised, as though seeing it for the first time. Mr. Fossina elevated his eyebrows and continued on with the demonstration. "Tristan!" she called to him in the hall. "Oh, hey, Rory." "Where were you yesterday?" "Oh. Home. Car. Around." Rory looked confused. "Why?" "Don't you know by now?" "Know what?" "You really are out of the loop." "What loop? What are you talking about?" "Never mind. See you later." "Okay. Bye," Rory returned, more confused than ever. What loop? What am I missing? * When Friday night dinner once again rolled around, Rory found herself driving alone in the Jeep, while her mother waited for Luke to pick her up. "Have a good time," Rory told her mother, gave her a hug, and stared toward the door. "You too," Lorelai jested. Rory nervously drove to Hartford, unaccustomed to the freeway traffic. Lucky for her, it wasn't too bad on Friday nights, so she made good time without rushing. When she rang the bell, Emily smiled and opened the door, giving her granddaughter a welcoming hug. "Hi, Rory. Tristan is in the same place." "Hi, Grandma." Rory smiled when she saw her grandfather. "Hi, Grandpa." She stood on her toes and kissed her grandfather on the cheek before ambling into the sitting room. "Hello," she said cheerfully. "Hi," Tristan said, sounding atrabilious. "Well, don't we sound cheery," Rory retorted. "Yeah." "So, you still haven't answered me about the whole Monday thing." "You still don't know?" "Obviously not, or I wouldn't be asking you again." "Adrienne didn't tell you?" "No." Rory was beginning to get exasperated with the mysterious facade. "Look, Rory...," she saw the pain in his eyes." "What?" "My parents...they're..." "Tristan, I'm so sorry." "It's not your fault." "I know, but I'm still sorry." "Okay." There was a pause. "Thanks. I means a lot, coming from you." Rory felt the atmosphere change. "Uh, I wonder where Mr. Fossina is going with this unit in Calculus. He's always so cryptic about things. Like, last time, I thought it was review, but them he kicked into a different gear or something and he started to go into completely new territory, and them we were all like, 'Um, hey man, where do you think you're going because yesterday--'" "Rory?" "Hmmm?" "You can stop babbling now. You don't need to keep making noise for my sake." "Okay." Since she didn't know what to say next, she stared, embarrassed at her comforting skills, at her shoes. "So, what happened on Monday?" "Excuse me?" "What happened in school?" Tristan looked at her blank expression. "School? The gloomy, depressing place we go, Monday through Friday?" he expanded. "Oh, not much. Haven't you gotten your assignments?" "I wasn't talking about assignments." "Then what were you talking about?" "I don't know. Gossip. Paris. Adrienne." "Paris and I are working civilly on our project, thank you. And Adrienne is officially my only friend, thanks in part to your debonair handling of the PJ Harvey situation last year." "I'm still sorry." Rory sighed. "I know. I still don't understand why you told her." "I didn't think it through. And..." "And?" "And I thought you'd cave. I honestly, really, truly thought you'd go with me. Maybe not even because it was me, but for PJ Harvey." "Tristan, I wouldn't have gone because of Paris no matter what." "Why are you so loyal to her? All she does it treat you badly--" "So that's justification to treat her the same?" "Well..." "Dinner!" Siri called, and Tristan extended his arm in a swoosh motion, indicating that she was to go first. Without Lorelai, dinner really dragged, and the party was even smaller than last week, what with Lorelai and Tristan's father gone. Emily and Kathryn chattered endlessly about DAR issues, plainly avoiding the issue of the pending divorce. Richard simply thought about business or other equally important matters, and Rory pondered her relationship with Tristan. She really did feel sorry for him, and was beginning to see that there was another facet of Tristan she had yet to fully see. It was partially revealed at the party, and again at the prelude tonight. Maybe Adrienne was right...maybe Tristan was legitimately in love with her. She remembered back to the night of the dance, nearly a year ago now, and remembered Dean saying that Tristan had a thing for her. Then, she had written it off as gelastic, but now, it seemed as though it could actually be. When dinner eventually commenced, Rory said her good-byes to everyone and drove home in a silence she was unfamiliar with, a void without her mother's incessant babble. She popped in her Incubus CD and thought about Tristan, Adrienne, Tristan's parents, Luke and her mom, Dean, Lane--things she rarely had time for deep thought about in the midst of schoolwork. Rory was beginning to wish Adrienne had never told her about Tristan's feelings. Every meeting with him was awkward for Rory, who was desperately trying to cover the fact that she knew about his sentiments. When things melded and became a swirl of confusion, Rory put everything out of her mind and focused on the road and the music. Upon coming home, she found her mother nowhere. After changing into her flannel pajamas, she turned on AMC and watched an old, bad, black and white movie while waiting for her mother to hear every detail of the date. Rory sleepily stared at the TV, not comprehending any of the plot, and began to fall asleep. Lorelai came in at one in the morning and smiled when she found her daughter "waiting up for her." She walked up the stairs to her bedroom, humming "I Feel Pretty." * On Monday, Paris and Rory presented their project in History, putting an end to the week of bickering and compromising. Paris was obviously overjoyed that she was rid of Rory, and Rory shared more or less the same attitude. As Rory put her books away for the day, Tristan approached her locker. "Your project was good," he complimented. "Way to butter me up," Rory replied. "I can't help buttering up beautiful girls," Tristan returned. "Please," Rory said, continuing her routine. "So I thought you might want a ride home," he persisted. "Why?" "Well, in case you haven't noticed, it's raining really hard." Rory hadn't caught a glance out the window in hours, so she took his word for it, considering there was no way he could hide it if it weren't raining. "And you probably wouldn't want to wait outside." He kept going, with or without comment from Rory. "Unless you enjoy being sopped to the skin," he added, "which I wouldn't mind seeing." Rory rolled her eyes. "I see someone is recovering okay." "Only when you're around," he wanted to say, but instead he replied, "Maybe it's just you." "Ha!" Rory exclaimed. "Do you want a ride?" "Well...," Rory paused to consider, "it would be nice, but it's a long way to Stars Hollow." "I don't care." "Well, thanks, then." They initiated the walk to Tristan's car in the parking lot, where it was, indeed, pouring rain. The two-minute walk took half the time because they were running, and even then they were drenched. "Here," Tristan said, handing her a towel and removing his blazer and tie; the former because it was wet, the latter because it was bothersome. He watched Rory as she dried her face, then rumpled her hair a little, attempting to gain some ground on the moisture. When she caught him gazing at her, she didn't drop the connection, simply held it, eye to eye. Tristan started to lean in, and Rory didn't resist, but he knew this wasn't right. "We better get started," he said. "Yeah," Rory agreed, feeling, unbelievably, disappointment at the missed opportunity. "So, how do you get to this Stars Hollow?" "Take exit 35, follow the signs, and turn right at the rooster." "The...rooster?" "Yup." He looked at her for confirmation. "Really?" "Yeah. Paris didn't take me seriously, and she, Madeline, and Louise ended up getting lost, and an ensuing conversation took place that involved my mother calling him Monty the Magnificent." "Okay, I'll heed the rooster." "Good choice." "Who's your favorite author?" Tristan asked, knowing he was venturing into a very long exchange. "Ummm...I don't know. I love Dorothy Parker, Leo Tolstoy, Ernest Hemingway, George Eliot, John Steinbeck...I could never pick a favorite." "Understandable." "Who's your favorite?" "The Bronte sisters." Rory looked at him in amazement. She always thought those were strictly for interesting, intelligent, female people. Apparently not. "Really?" "Yeah, really." "I like Jane Austen too." "I'll add it to the list." "You've never read Jane Austen?" "No, not yet. Just 'Pride and Prejudice' in English once." "You should read 'Mansfield Park' or 'Sense and Sensibility'." "I saw the movie." "Not as good as the book." "I assumed." "Have you read Fitzgerald?" "Only 'The Great Gatsby'." "Try 'This Side of Paradise'." "I'll do that." Rory was astonished to find them at her house already. It was a very engrossing discussion, and to have such a debate with Tristan was really something of a miracle. Who knew he read willingly? "I'll see you tomorrow, I guess," Rory said. "Yeah," he said softly, looking longingly at her face, particularly her lips. "Bye," Rory whispered, almost inaudibly, took her bag, and walked in the house to call Lane and have her aid in denial. She didn't know whether or not to tell Lorelai, who would probably gloat that she knew it the entire time. Maybe she would keep this to herself, for now. * Rory spent a good deal of her time at Chilton avoiding people. Max Medina, Paris, and, now, Tristan. She didn't know how she felt about him--did she like him? Hate him? Love him? Rory couldn't decide, so she dodged him, having only oversimplified dialogues with him in the halls. Friday night dinner was rapidly approaching, and Rory decided to do something she never thought she'd do: she was going to ask Dean for guy advice. "Hey," she greeted him in the market, where he was shelving cookies. "Hi," he returned, putting the last box on and facing her. "What's up?" "I need help." "What kind of help?" Rory swallowed. "Guy help." "Ah. I knew it, I knew someday..." "You aren't angry?" "Of course not. Meet me at Luke's in twenty minutes. I have a break coming up." "Thank you." Rory left the store, and decided to go to Luke's early and sip coffee and perhaps have a muffin. When Dean came in, Rory was ready with questions. "So?" "Okay. Do you want a re-cap of the situation up until now?" "It might be helpful." "Okay, well, it began that Tristan and I were--" "Tristan?" "Mmm-hmmm." '"Okay," Dean said, giving her a strange look, "keep going." "We were kinda friends, and then the dinners came into play, and we became actual friends, and he gave me ride home on Monday and almost kissed me, and I felt..." Dean looked at her intently. "You regretted that fact that he didn't kiss you?" "Yeah. Maybe. I guess. I don't know!" Dean smiled. "You like him." "Do I?" "Yes." "What do I do?" Rory cried, her prepared question completely gone. "Let him make the first move. He knows what he wants, and he's starting to get to know you." "What do you mean?" "I mean, he didn't actually kiss you, right?" "Yeah," Rory said. "So he knows you need to take it slowly, and that you might hate yourself if you kissed him." "Really?" "Truly." "Thanks, Dean. I owe you one." "No, this was for the Donna Reed night." "We're even?" "Yeah." Rory gave him a hug. "I have to get ready for dinner. See you later." "Bye, Rory." Dean smiled wistfully at her and went back to work. * Lorelai and Rory stood on the stoop, waiting for Emily to answer the door. Rory was so nervous, her knees were shaking, and Lorelai was dreading the Emily Inquisition about her Friday night. "This is the last week our guests will be here," Emily announced as a greeting once she opened the door and allowed them in. "Dive right in, why don't you, Mom?" Lorelai said sarcastically. "Be nice to Kathryn." "I haven't not been nice." "What about the time she asked about the DAR membership?" "She deserved it." '"She most certainly did not. Rory, you can go meet Tristan in the sitting room." "Okay, Grandma." Rory walked nervously into the room, where Tristan sat, focused on the mantelpiece. "Hi," Rory said, sitting on the couch with him. "Hi," Tristan echoed. "The last dinner." "Not for me." "I meant--" "I know." Rory ventured a look at Tristan who was staring intently at her. "Some week at school, huh?" "We could say the same about every week." "True." "Rory..." "Hmmm?" "What did Adrienne say the first time she talked to you?" "Oh...um," Rory floundered. "She, um..." "She told you how I felt, didn't she?" "Well...yeah, she did." "So, is this why you've been avoiding me?" "I have not!" "Oh, yes you have." "No!" "Rory..." "Okay, a little." "She was right," Tristan continued, inching closer on the setee. "Oh?" "Yes, she was." Tristan was so close, she could smell his clean, lemony soap and shampoo. He put his hand on her arm, and Rory's infamous butterflies began to stretch their wings again. Tristan gently tugged her arm and cupped her chin in his free hand, forcing her to make eye contact with him. "Can you feel it?" "Yes," Rory whispered, not certain if any sound had actually escaped her lips. "Good," Tristan replied and leaned down, tenderly touching her lips with his. He separated them and scrutinized her eyes for her consent. Finding it, he once again leaned down and touched his lips to hers, then deepened the kiss when Rory relaxed a little, parting her lips with his tongue and caressing her face with his thumb. He broke this kiss off and smiled at her. "Now, I hope you won't avoid me after this." "Why?" she asked playfully. "Because I have every intention of doing this many times." |
| AVOIDANCE |