A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed this fic at any point during the story. People, you're all so fab, you kept me going through a fic that I wasn't sure I could really write, and hey, we all made it to the end. Now, I hope you will forgive me the flashforward - I just could not find a way for Lorelai and Luke to be together too much sooner than this. I really hope you'll like it anyway. Also, I'm not ruling out the possibility of some sequel type stuff somewhere down the line maybe, if anyone would be interested in that. Anywho, here's the finale! :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 17

7 years later - 8th October 1991

"I can't believe I'm getting a diner for my birthday!"

"Sweetie, seriously. One more time - it's Luke's diner, not Rory's diner," Lorelai reminded her hopping, skipping, jumping seven-year-old daughter.

"But he's opening it on my birthday," Rory argued, "for me."

Lorelai made a thoughtful face.

"Well, kind of, I guess," she relented then.

After all, when trying to figure out when the place would be ready to open, Luke definitely had insisted to the contractor that it had to be this particular Tuesday. Most folks would probably expect a new business to open on a Monday, or maybe in the case of an eatery a Friday or Saturday, but no. Luke had realised that they could open somewhere in the second week of October and that was it, decision made, Rory's birthday was the occasion. No kid could be more thrilled about it than she was.

"You really shouldn't be this jazzed," said Lorelai, checking both ways before they crossed the street to the diner itself. "I'm pretty sure we're still going to have to pay for whatever we eat."

"Nuh-uh." Rory shook her head, sending her pig tails swinging wildly. "Luke always cooks me special dinner on my birthday and we never paid before."

"But he never ran a diner before, sweets, only a hardware store. You never expected a free hammer, did you?"

"Grandpa Danes gave me a pretty plant pot for free once. We still have it," said Rory with a brave smile.

"Yeah, I know," said Lorelai, reaching down to hug her little girl a moment.

It was still strange to be without 'Grandpa Danes' as Rory had so easily taken to calling him. He started insisting Lorelai call him William after a while, but as comfortable as she was around him, it never quite felt natural. He was Mr Danes, Luke's father, one of the nicest guys Lorelai ever met in her life, possibly second only to his own son.

"Oh, it's you," said the man himself, opening up the diner door and ushering Lorelai and Rory inside.

"And a howdy doo to you too, Mr Grumpy Pants," said Lorelai with a smirk.

Rory giggled at the name often used for Luke, but only by her mother. The younger Lorelai would never be so rude herself.

"I'm stressed, so sue me," Luke countered, expression pulling a complete one eighty in the next moment as he crouched down to Rory's level. "Hey, Birthday Girl."

"Hey, Luke," she said, grinning wide. "Thank you for my gift."

"I didn't give you your gift yet," he told her, frowning some.

"Sure, you did," Rory insisted. "You got me the diner."

At that he laughed, even though he was pretty sure she was serious.

"Well, I guess it is for you and your mom as much as for me," he considered. "But, I did also buy you something else," he admitted, pulling a package from behind his back and presenting it to her.

"Thank you, thank you!" Rory bounced excitedly, throwing her arms around his neck.

Luke hugged her back, smiling at Lorelai who hovered nearby, enchanted as ever by the relationship between her daughter and the man that had been her best friend for so long now. It was crazy really how well the two of them got along. Lorelai might've been jealous if she wasn't the one and only person Rory loved more than Luke.

Christopher had visited a few times, but not as much as he originally promised to do that first day at the hospital. It was Luke who kept to his vow. He was as much a father to Rory and a partner to Lorelai as she would allow him to be.

Luke never pushed his luck with Lorelai. Never tried to date her or kiss her or be romantic at all, he was just there, ever-present, ever-willing to help and be the best he could be for the Gilmore girls. Lorelai adored him for it. She loved him like she never loved anybody else she ever met. In her life, there was Rory and then there was Luke. After that, there was everybody else.

"You okay?" asked Luke as he got back to his feet and caught Lorelai staring into nothing.

"Sure, yeah," she assured him, shaking her head and refocusing her eyes. "I know I said it before but this place looks amazing," she told him then. "Seriously, to think that six months ago it was still a hardware store."

"Yeah, it is weird to think of it that way now," said Luke, nodding his head. "I'm happy with it, mostly."

"Only mostly?"

"Well, you know?" He shrugged his shoulders, adjusted his hat. "I just... I still keep wondering... would he really be okay with this?"

"Yes," said Lorelai immediately. "Luke, come on, you know your dad would be so proud. He left you the store because he knew he was putting it in good hands, and if anybody knew that you weren't exactly hardware salesman guy it was him. He would want you to do this, to have your dream, no matter what it was."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Luke with a lopsided smile. "Thanks, Lorelai."

"Anytime. You've been there for me so many times. It's nice to get to repay the favour once in a while."

"Mommy, look!" Rory suddenly cried having carefully pried the pretty paper away from her gift to save (Lorelai had no idea where she got that habit from). "Unicorn pajamas!"

"And with your initials on 'em too," said Lorelai with just as much delight as her daughter. "Wow, that's so cool. I'm actually jealous."

"Maybe Luke will get you some for your birthday," said Rory easily.

She missed the semi-awkward look that passed between her mom and Luke at that remark, her attention taken by a tapping on the door and familiar faces appearing through the glass.

"Jess!" Rory cried happily, waving to her friend.

Luke moved to let Liz and Jimmy into the diner, along with Jess who immediately ran to Rory. The kids were caught up with each other in a second, talking about books and school and the new diner and everything else. Liz laughed at the way they were together and then moved to hug Luke.

"Hey, big brother," she greeted him happily. "Wow, look at this place."

"Liz, I can't believe you're here. You came all the way from New York for a diner opening?"

"For my brother's diner opening? Of course, I did," she said definitely.

"Besides, we knew it was a certain little princess' birthday," said Jimmy loudly.

"A princess?" said Lorelai joining in the game. "Well, I don't know who you could be talking about."

"Well, we brought this gift for somebody," Jimmy continued. "Hey, Lizzie, you maybe remember who this was for?"

"You two, seriously. It's like talking to Abbott and Costello." Liz rolled her eyes, taking the wrapped gift from her husband's hands. "Here you go, sweetie," she said, turning to Rory now. "Happy birthday."

"Thank you, Aunt Liz," she said politely, grinning like a fool. "Thank you, Uncle Jimmy."

"You're welcome, kid," he assured her, smiling along with all the other adults as the kids scampered into a corner and pulled themselves up into a booth to continue talking, as well as open up Rory's gift.

"She's so cute," said Liz with a sigh. "Makes me want a girl too."

"Come on, you got a handsome little boy right there," Lorelai assured her. "Besides, you really have the energy or the money for two of those? I know I haven't."

"We haven't either," said Jimmy definitely. "We're happy with one anyway."

"Oh, yeah. Definitely happy," Liz agreed easily, leaning back against him.

His arms went around her on automatic as they shared a kiss. Lorelai couldn't help smiling at the sight. To think at one time Jimmy had been talking about running away, unable to believe he could ever be a decent husband and father. He certainly proved himself wrong over the past few years. He and Liz were as in love as any two people Lorelai ever saw, they were raising Jess into a real decent kid too and getting on pretty well in New York these days.

"Mom?" said Rory, rushing back over with Jess on her heels. "Did you bring juice boxes? I'm kind of thirsty."

"I didn't," said Lorelai, shaking her head. "Um, we could run to the store, I guess."

"Isn't this a diner?" asked Liz, looking to her brother. "You got drinks, right?"

"Yeah, but we're not open until four," he said, squirming some. "I have some stuff upstairs though. You guys want to go up and see what you can find?" he asked the kids. "I have to be down here, I've got the guys with the banner arriving soon."

"It's cool, bro. We'll go up with them," Liz offered, pulling Jimmy by the hand. "It was a long drive from New York, I could use coffee and a bathroom break too."

"Thanks, Liz!" Lorelai called behind them as they all disappeared.

"You don't want to go up too?" Luke asked her, even though he was really glad she stayed truth be told.

"Somebody needs to stay with you, make sure your head doesn't explode," she said, leaning back on the counter with a grin. "You can be such a stress head sometimes."

"I'm a businessman now, it comes with the territory," said Luke smartly. "Honestly though, I'm glad you stayed down here anyway."

"Oh, yeah?" said Lorelai, tilting her head. "I thought Anna would be here to keep you company."

"Anna?"

"Sure. I mean, you guys have been on, what? A half dozen dates now?"

"Just three," Luke corrected her, "and it is nothing like a serious relationship. Nothing's... you know, happened or anything. In fact, I doubt I'll be seeing her again."

"Oh, okay," said Lorelai, trying not to smile too much. "You don't seem to have so much luck with girlfriends."

"I don't have girlfriends," Luke told her definitely, coming to lean beside her on the counter. "You know that better than anyone."

"But you date."

"Yeah, I date, sometimes," he admitted.

The two of them stood there, leaning back on the counter, side by side. They were staring at their feet even as they talked to each other, standing so close that their elbows touched more often than they didn't. It was that weird combination of awkward and comfortable that so often existed between Luke and Lorelai when they were left alone together. The unresolved sexual tension that seemed impossible to overcome, at least up to now.

"So, Anna's not so much fun, huh?" asked Lorelai, scuffing her shoe on the floor.

"No, she's fun. She's a nice person and she's not unattractive."

"High praise, Lucas."

"Do not call me that," he warned her, bumping his shoulder against hers.

"Do not use your body weight against me," she countered, pushing back as hard as she could - he didn't move an inch. "Cheater!" she said, looking up at him.

Their eyes met and the world went away. It happened every once a while, lately more often than ever, but usually it didn't last. Quite often some outside source broke the moment, like Rory or Mia or some random denizen of the Hollow. This time there was nobody to interrupt, and somehow, neither Luke not Lorelai seemed prepared to look away.

"You really wanna know why things aren't working out with Anna?" he asked her.

"If you wanna tell me." Lorelai nodded, holding her breath until the answer came.

This was a gamble. Nobody was more aware of that than Luke, but he just couldn't take this anymore.

"Lorelai, I can't have a relationship with any other woman, because they're not you," he admitted, breathing a sigh of relief now that the truth, too long held back, had finally been spoken. "I know you don't wanna hear it or at least you didn't want to for a long time, but things are different now, right? I mean, you've proved you can cope alone, that you and Rory can handle things without any help, or very little help at least. I haven't pushed, I haven't interfered, but I've always been here, and as far as I can recall, I've never let you down."

"Never once," Lorelai agreed, swallowing hard.

"So, you trust me, I know you care about me, and I... I could not love you more, Lorelai, you and Rory both," he promised her, hands gently resting on her shoulders as he faced her now. "And if you really don't want to be more than friends, I'll find a way to deal with that, but honestly-"

Before he could say another word, Lorelai pushed herself forward and kissed him firmly on the lips. Her arms wound around his neck as Luke refused to waste an opportunity and kissed her back with everything he had. After seven years of waiting, it really was quite a kiss that they shared, and even when they parted, they remained close, foreheads pressed together.

"Wow," said Lorelai breathlessly. "If I knew you'd gotten that good, I'd've done this sooner," she joked, before thinking better of it. "Seriously though, Luke, if we're gonna do this, it has to be... well, serious."

"Lorelai, you know me," he told her earnestly. "If we do this, I am in. I am all in. You're not scared, are you?"

"Scared? With you? Never," Lorelai promised him. "I know I'm always safe with you. You're... you've just always been there for me, Luke, and I know I've made things so hard for you. Geez, that was dirty," she said to herself as she realised it.

Luke couldn't help but chuckle at her unintentional joke.

"The point is," Lorelai continued then, "when I need you, you're always there, and when I said I wanted us to just be friends, you respected that, even though I know it was killing you, but it's how it had to be. I couldn't let it be any other way, not back then."

"And now?"

"Now, things are different," Lorelai considered. "We're different. Rory's growing up so fast, I have my life in order and so do you. The future's looking pretty bright for all of us, so how about we enjoy that future together?"

"Together? For real?" asked Luke, hardly daring to believe this particular dream was coming true for him.

"For real." Lorelai nodded, her hand going to his cheek. "You know, I've been thinking about it for a while but me and Rory... I always worry what she might think. I mean, she loves you so much, but having you in her life is different to having you be, like, a step-father or something, and then the other day when we were talking about what she'd like for her birthday, she turns to me and she says, 'If I could have anything in the world for my birthday, I'd like for Luke to live with us, in a house in Stars Hollow.'"

"She said that?" Luke checked, eyes wide.

"Cross my heart," Lorelai confirmed. "She loves you, Luke. Almost as much as I do, I think. You've been more of a father to her then Christopher ever has and you... you just mean so much to me. If you want to be with us, we'd love to be with you."

Luke couldn't help it, he just had to kiss her then before he could manage to form the words for a real answer.

"I never wanted anything else," he told Lorelai as they parted from that kiss.

There wasn't a chance for another word to be spoken as a rapping on the door signalled the arrival of the guys with the banner. Luke reluctantly let go of Lorelai and moved to let them in.

Lorelai watched him go, her face aching from how wide she was smiling. She stared unseeing through the diner window for a few moments until her eyes suddenly focused on the street outside. That spot right there on the corner, that was where she first ran into Luke, one rainy day in April 1984. Now here they were, so many years later, with so much having changed, and still he was somebody she could depend on, somebody she loved so much.

"You okay?" he asked, returning to her side. "Lorelai?"

"I'm more than okay," she promised, pulling him closer. "I don't think I've ever been happier, actually. In fact... Lucas William Danes, do you... do you wanna marry me?"

Lorelai wasn't surprised to see shock register on Luke's face when she asked that question. She certainly hadn't intended to say it but she wasn't sorry she had now. It just felt right, she had no regrets no matter his answer.

"Yes, Lorelai," he said, his arms right around her.

"Yes?"

"Yes!" he confirmed, lifting her up off her feet and spinning her around.

"Oh my gosh!" gasped Rory from behind the counter, rushing out to where her mom and Luke were standing still now. "This is the best birthday ever!" she declared, hugging them both around the legs.

She had to have heard at least the last part of the conversation, and Lorelai was astounded as she realised they were also getting applause from Liz, Jimmy, and Jess too. Luke looked as amazed as she was, but was also smiling just as wide. Lorelai was sure she had never been this happy in the whole of her life before, and somehow, she was sure that feeling was never going to go away from here on out.