Chapter Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I own Bo Diddley, Ginger, and Jackie.

A/N: Thank you for the reviews! I needed to write more! Also, remember this is set 10 years from finale. So even though we are in 2015, it's 2017 in the story. And half of this chapter is set back a few years.

Jess was up, dressed, and out of the apartment above the diner before his ex-wife could even crack an eye open. He knew she'd try to make small talk, and he was avoiding it like the plague. Even though the sun was barely awake itself, he couldn't get out of there fast enough.

Caesar had been opening up a couple of times a week for Luke in recent years, letting him enjoy mornings with his family. With Caesar's kids being teenagers, he understood how precious the years before puberty actually were and wanted Luke to experience it as often as he could.

"Morning," Jess called to him with a small smile before he walked out of the front door and into the dark morning. Once he was outside, he shoved his hands in his jean pockets and made his way to his car parked across the street.

He didn't have the beat up car he slept in outside of the diner many years back, but instead had upgraded to a sensible Honda Accord that he bought while he was still married to Rory. A family car. What a waste of money.

The drive to his mom and T.J.'s wasn't too far, but once he pulled into the driveway, the sun was already coming up. He saw T.J. on the porch and smiled some, getting out of his car and heading towards him as soon as he killed the engine. He used to not be the biggest T.J. fan, but over the years, he's grown to actually like him.

"Jess!" T.J. said with a smile, pulling a cigarette out of the carton in his hand as Jess climbed up the porch steps. "You look good."

"Thanks, T.J.," he replied, nodding to him with a laugh. "You do, too."

"Want a smoke?" he offered, the cigarette hanging from his lips as he pointed the carton towards Jess.

With a wave of his hand, Jess politely declined, a polite smile playing on his lips. "I don't smoke anymore," he said, proudly, but with a sad tone that did not go unnoticed.

January 12, 2013

Jess sat on the end of the bed in the guest bedroom, staring at his reflection in front of him as he loosened the charcoal colored tie around his neck. Dark circles were painted under his eyes and he would have paid for just an hour of sleep.

The sound of bare feet against polished wooden floors interrupted his thoughts and he glanced up to flash a weak smile at his wife. As she took earrings out of her ears, she made her way over to him and placed herself in his lap. Once the diamonds were in her palm, she wrapped both arms around his neck and pressed her forehead against his.

"Hi," he said, his voice hoarse from exhaustion.

"Hey sleepy boy," Rory replied, pressing her free hand to his cheek. "You need to sleep. I can pack our bags and get the plane tickets ready. You look like hell."

"I'm fine," he lied, using his free hand to pull hers away from his face. "I just need to get out of here."

"I understand, but Sasha really appreciates you helping out."

Jess shrugged some, glancing down again before closing his eyes tightly to block out any emotions that were rising in his chest. "He was my dad," he commented. "It's the least I could do."

They had grown closer over the years—Jess and his father. Jess made trips out to the West Coast, his dad sent weekly e-mails, and every few days there was a phone call exchanged between the two. But a couple of months after Rory and Jess were engaged, Jimmy was diagnosed with lung cancer. He wasn't sick long before passing away almost a year after their marriage.

"We don't have to go back to Monaco yet," Rory assured him, breaking him from his thoughts as she did. "We can go to Stars Hollow and see our family if you'd like." She knew his father's death was harder on him than he let on, and she wanted whatever would make him feel better.

He suppressed the urge to sigh rather well, not wanting to talk about going back overseas after this. That's all they had been doing since before they were married. When Jess and Rory began round two of their romance, it was in October of 2008. A year into their relationship, and Rory began traveling with her job—which was something she loved. When the question was popped in 2010, he was traveling with her and writing his third novel as he did. Their wedding was in March of 2012, and they spent a week in the states before traveling to Africa for a project that she had worked so hard to get. From there, they moved to Monaco and were there until Jimmy passed away. Jess made more trips back to the states than Rory, but holidays were always saved for their families.

"That'd be nice," he answered, instead, smiling up at her as he pressed a kiss to her chin before landing one on her lips. "When do you need to be back?"

"Just in a few days," she replied, waving her hand as if it were no big deal. "But if you need longer, we can stay longer. They understand."

Jess stared at her face and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling some as he took in her appearance after taking her makeup off. She was beautiful in any light, at any age, and in any way. He took a deep breath and furrowed his brow before pulling her a little closer. "I want to have kids."

Her eyes widened in surprise and she laughed a little, glancing down and away from his stare. "I-Well, I do too… you know that."

"Soon, though. I want them soon. I just keep thinking about the time wasted between Jimmy and me, because he wasn't the greatest dad and I just—I want to begin our life with kids so I can be that father he wasn't. And life is short, you know," he said, looking up at her with a smile. "So why not start now?"

"Because of our careers," she answered with a smile, believing she was being the sensible one. When she saw the light of excitement leave his eyes, she quickly scurried to redeem herself, pressing her hand back to his cheek. "But, how about we start trying next year?"

"No," he said, shaking his head as he leaned back a little, looking up at her. "I don't want to trap you into this kind of commitment. We will have a family when we are both ready."

She stayed quiet for a moment before finally gazing into his eyes again. "I promise you that if you give me until next Christmas, then we can settle down and start a family. I've been traveling for five years now, and I know we've talked about starting a family so its only fair."

"I don't want fair," he replied, smiling back at her. "I want you to be happy, too."

"That will make me happy," Rory assured him, honestly believing that herself. Settling down would be nice and having kids with the love of her life sounded like a dream, but right now she figured that their careers came first. But, a year and a half from now, she was sure that would change.

The grin that graced his features was enough for Rory, and she leaned in to kiss him again, pulling herself tightly to his warm body.

"I take it that's a deal?" Rory mumbled against his lips and he only pulled back to nod in agreement.

Short chapter, but just a filler with some background to push us along! Thank you for the reviews! MORE!