Disclaimer: I don't own them, I really don't want them. They really have a mess to fix right now, you know? ASP may be laughing now, laughing her evil, evil laugh but you know what. You don't own shit, ASP. I own a car, a computer, a creative story that doesn't involve sharks, and my own characters that actually are FUNNY! Imagine that, I have it all and you have millions of people hating your guts. Laugh away ASP, laugh away.
Author Notes: Now, I know a lot of people are watching and some have commented on my choice to give Gilmore Girls up. Judy Garland can best express my interest in Gilmore Girls right now, so HIT IT JUDY! I don't care,
I don't care,
What they may think of me.
I'm happy go-lucky,
Men say I'm plucky,
So jolly and carefree.
I don't care,
I don't care,
If I do get the mean and stony glare.
If I'm never successful,
It won't be distressful,
CUZ I DON'T CARE!
Thank you, Judy. Anyway, yeah I am done with Gilmore Girls. I don't like liars and I have already given the show chance after chance after chance. I'm done. I'm Peter Finch in Network and am mad as hell and sure as heck ain't going to watch it anymore. Besides, I am too concerned about the panties. I mean seriously, Addison found the panties. Addison found the panties in McDreamy's suit coat. Addison found, then washed the panties, and you know she knows exactly who those panties belong to. These are things that are important! Are Burke's hand tremors going to stop? Will George ever say I love you back to Callie? This is what is concerning me in TV land; the panties, Burke, and George.
BIG ROUSING THANKS TO shannanagin and her Office fic Laugh This Life With Me. She gave me permission to use the quote that starts her fic off in my story. Also thanks you Prof, Abbey06, Ronata, and anyone else that I can't remember who reviewed my story faithfully. I am sorry it took so long to finish, but life you know. Finally special thanks to my sista from anotha motha, GG1979, who gave me inspiration and said 'This is your final fic, do it right with fluff.'
So this is my last chapter of fan fiction. I doubt I will write anything else unless I get inspired. I will still read (and you authors know who you are) so I will be around, reviewing, lurking, throwing in my seriouslys and such. I'm like the shadow; I always know what evil lurks in the hearts of men and fan fiction. Oh yeah, the Luke/Emily conversation from last chapter took place August 8th and the Richard/Luke plotting occurred August 7th.
Onto the words. Please tell me what you think and if I finished this appropriately.
Chapter 11: Take My Hand Now, We'll Run Forever
August 9th
Lorelai was frustrated. Not the normal 'Michel is being a pain in the ass' frustrated, but the 'my life is falling apart and not working out the way I want it, but there is nothing I can do about it' frustrated. The Dragonfly was doing booming business, booked solid from September 1st all the way until February. She knew it was a good thing, but right now she hated it. Don't get her wrong, she loves her inn, it is after all her blood, sweat, and tears; it's the greatest thing she's done since Rory. However, right now, the inn is ruining everything. Not only is the inn booked solid until February, but there are weddings and conventions being held nearly every weekend. To make matters worse, the weekend of October 14th, the weekend she had planned to get married with her family and close friends present, there is a back to back convention and wedding. Sookie, catering both events, wouldn't be able to leave her kitchen staff with that big of a job, and honestly, Lorelai would be amazed if she could get away herself. Luke understood the situation and says he will be ready anytime she says 'go get your suit on we're going to the courthouse.' The balls are all in her court and right now, she wants all of them except the 'getting married to Luke' ball out of her court. This was the reason for her frustration that once again life (and her mother) was conflicting with what she wanted to do.
It was her frustration that led her to ignore the impending payroll and sit and shoot aliens on her computer. She was at level 5, shooting up the Queen Alien, an alien that looked freakishly like Emily Gilmore, and Lorelai was relishing every hit she made. She was about to finish her off when her phone rung, causing her to jump out of her alien killing stupor and watch as the queen alien hit her Jedi with a lethal hit. 'Damn you Emily, I'll get you next time,' she thought as she picked up her phone.
"Lorelai Gilmore, you want it, we got it,' she said half-heartedly, knowing Michel had strict instructions not to put anyone but Luke and Rory through to her office unless he wanted to gain about 50 pounds by secret carbohydrate administration.
"Are you playing Alien Fighter again?" Rory asked, knowing her mother wasn't doing her work.
"I can't help it. I am so close to the end, I can see the light!" Lorelai protested.
"You just play because the Alien Queen looks like Grandma," Rory said.
"I can't help that. Besides its therapeutic and better then actually doing battle with her in person."
"Anyway, other then Alien Fighter, what are you doing this weekend?" Rory asked, still giggling at Lorelai.
"Sitting all by my lonesome, watching my DVDs of the Mary Tyler Moore show, and eating a lot of junk food so when Luke comes back from camping he can yell at me," replied Lorelai, not at all excited about her plans.
"Luke's camping?" asked Rory.
"He has April this weekend and wanted to take her camping and fishing. I was invited, but after the last camping foray, I declined. I'm still having nightmares about the giant bat," Lorelai said, shivering with the memory.
"Are you giving April the bat-beating stick?"
"Of course, with instructions of exactly how to hit the bat so that you completely miss it and hit Luke instead," Lorelai laughed.
"Did I mention how grateful I am about the picture," said Rory, giggling over the memory.
"It's framed on the mantle. If only I had brought the video camera. We so would have won America's Funniest Home Video with Luke's jumping around holding his head until he falls into the tent, taking the tent down with him. You just can't make gags like that up."
"And yet, he still invited you this time."
"He wants to make sure I know that he wants me and April to hang out and get to know each other. Hence the pity invitation that I declined. He did get extra points for waiting 30 seconds after I said no before saying 'Thank God,' said Lorelai, smiling at the memory.
"So basically, you have no plans for the weekend?" asked Rory after she finished laughing.
"It's the last weekend before the inn is booked solid so I took the weekend off since I will be working every other weekend from now till the end of time," she said with a slight hint of irritation in her voice.
"What would you say to a weekend of rest and relaxation up in Martha's Vineyard? School starts up again in a couple weeks and Grandpa offered me their house up there to relax before I hit the grind."
"Are they coming?" Lorelai asked, tempted but not wanting to commit if her mother would be there.
"Going to New York for a symphony fundraiser."
"Just the two of us, the beach, and the sun?"
"Yeap," replied Rory, jumping up and down on her end of the phone.
"You got a deal!" said Lorelai, grinning at the prospect of a weekend with her daughter.
Lorelai talked to Rory for a few minutes more, but after making initial plans for the weekend, Rory had to hang up so that she could get to her last day at the Eagle. Lorelai sat at her desk for a few minutes basking in the sudden feeling that everything was going to be okay. She decided to go over to Luke's and tell him that he no longer had to feel guilty for leaving her alone over the weekend. As she walked out the back door, she started giggling at Sookie and Jackson, both with a young child in their arms, arguing over the fresh or not fresh strawberries he just delivered.
As she walked with a light step through the town, people stopped in their tracks to watch her, not having seen her look so happy in over a year. She practically skipped towards the diner, humming Bob Marley's 'Everything's Gonna Be Alright', excited to tell Luke her news.
Meanwhile, Luke was sitting on the phone, watching the door for Lorelai and writing down what the caller was telling him.
"So she's going to go? Okay good…That's plenty of time…Yeah, call her and set up a time….You know her the best and you know exactly what Emily will pick…Just keep it simple…Don't let her overrule you…" Luke trailed off, seeing Lorelai skip through the door and immediately head for the counter. "She's here I've got to go…Okay…Okay… That's fine. Bye."
"Who was that?" asked Lorelai, holding out a coffee mug, waiting patiently for Luke to fill it.
"April, she's having problems packing for our trip. Ana wants her to take a bunch of unnecessary things, like a snake bite kit and a parka. I told her just to pack what I told her and we'll take out all the stuff Ana added later. Are you sure you don't want to come with us? April wanted me to make sure and she wants to see the bat stick in action before she leaves."
"I am sure. My last camping experience was enough for a lifetime. Unless there is running water and walls, camping and I will not be friends. Actually, I have plans this weekend, so April will have to see the stick another time. Rory and I are going to squat at my parent's house in Martha's Vineyard, having a relaxing, junk food filled, beach towels weekend."
"Are your parents going to be there?"
"That is what makes it relaxing. They'll be in New York," she said triumphantly, sipping her coffee.
"So you and Rory are invading the beach. I feel sorry for the vendors, they really won't be prepared. Maybe you should call them and tell them to stock up on all the hotdogs and various other heart attack inducing foods you guys are going to devour," Luke said with a grin.
"Hey there buddy, if you aren't nice, I may find another source of coffee," Lorelai teased, drinking again from the large coffee mug.
"Nah, you can't live without it," replied Luke, turning to grab the coffee pot so he could refill her cup.
"Wanna bet?"
"Nope, the supplier can't live without the junkie. Want a piece of pie? I saved a piece of chocolate," Luke asked, winking at his fiancé.
"Nope and pour this into a to-go cup. I need to head home and see if Tom finished the new room so I can start painting it. Did you ask April if she is absolutely sure she wants it to be yellow?"
"Yeah, she says it is calming and will be conducive to her studying."
"Okay, see you at home?" she asked, giving her diner man a kiss.
"Yeah, I'll bring dinner."
"Burgers?" she asked excitedly.
"Maybe, you'll just have to wait and see," Luke replied, giving her another kiss and nudging her to the door.
"See you later, Burger boy."
"Bye Crazy Lady."
Lorelai walked out the door and turned to blow Luke a kiss before turning and practically skipping home.
Luke smiled and shook his head at his crazy fiancé before he picked up the phone and dialed, "Richard, its Luke…Yeah she's coming to the Vineyard…"
Saturday August 12th
The Gilmore Girls set out for Martha's Vineyard early Saturday morning, equipped with tunes, magazines, and three thermoses of Luke's coffee. The drive was short, filled with banter about Luke, Logan, clothes, and life in the way that Lorelai and Rory perfected when Rory was just learning to speak. By the time the girls arrived at the Vineyard in the early afternoon, after stopping at various stores on the way to shop and eat, Lorelai and Rory felt as if their mother/daughter bond was closer then ever. Though the two of them were growing up, they no longer were growing apart. As Lorelai pulled up to her parent's vacation home, Rory pulled out her phone and started dialing.
Lorelai, looking confused asked her daughter, "Who are you-"
Rory just held up her hand and spoke into the phone, "Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father prepare to die!" Then she hung up and turned to her mother, "Finn is leaving me ridiculous voicemails and I finally thought of one that will confuse him for at least a week. You ready for some fun in the sun?"
"Always babe. So we unpack, make coffee, then hit the beach?"
"Sounds good, why don't you go in and start the coffee and I'll start bringing in the bags," suggested Rory, barely able to hold in her excitement and was beginning to bounce.
"Okay," replied Lorelai, confused as to her daughter's sudden bouncing. She decided that it must be from lack of caffeine and opened the front door, completely unaware that Rory was following her in, silently, without the bags.
"Hey Rory, why is the door open? I thought you said that-" Lorelai stopped mid-sentence as she saw Luke standing in the foyer. He was standing, shyly smiling, with a bouquet of flower in his hand that looked identical to the bouquet that he first gave her at the test run of the Dragonfly that was sitting on her dresser, dried with a ribbon around it. "Luke…what are you…I thought you were camping?" Lorelai asked, her voice cracking in disbelief.
"I know I promised no more secrets and no lies, but I thought it would make this more memorable," Luke said walking over to where Lorelai stood stunned at the entrance. "I know we planned for an October wedding," he began, taking her hand and leading her towards the living room, "but I know that isn't really working out the way you want it. So I thought, why not get married now. Everyone we wanted to be there is here…so I was wondering if you would marry me today?"
Lorelai just stared at Luke, her expression showing that she was stunned, overwhelmed, and slightly scared. She looked around the room and saw Sookie, Jackson, and Michel. She saw Jess, Liz, TJ, and the new baby. She saw Rory and April, both girls nodding their heads and bouncing up and down. Finally, she saw her parents, both Richard and Emily, smiling, waiting for her to make her decision.
Lorelai opened her mouth, trying to speak, but only managed incoherent sounds. She closed her mouth and attempted to collect her thoughts. That was easier said then done as her mind was as frozen as her body. She had the same words going around and around in her head since she first saw Luke standing there with flowers. They were going around and around making her decision making process almost impossible.
"How do we know when it begins? That moment when life suddenly changes? Is it an explosion? A simple indrawn breath? Does it steal into our lives slowly like the night? Does in pounce and roar and let itself be known? How do we know that this is the moment? Or is this just another in a series of forgettable moments that litter our lives? The answer lies unfairly at the end. And the journey is often too long. How do we know that this is the worthwhile path? How do we know to take it? To let this moment move us? To let this moment shape us? We cannot know. Not now. The only chance we have is to close our eyes. Scream as loudly as possible and leap as far as we can. Into the unknown."
It was Luke touching her hand that broke her out of her reverie. She looked up at him, smiled, and hugged him. She knew the worthwhile path now, she knew her unknown, and she knew that this was the moment. So, with a sigh that was a happy scream in her head, she leaped into her new life.
AN: So that is it. Yes, I can hear you screaming, "WHAT HAPPENED!" Well, Luke and Lorelai got married. They got married that day on the beach like they wanted, with the people they wanted present. I tried to show the wedding, I wrote like 5 different wedding scenes, but I just felt it took away from the ending I have now. It took away from it and I didn't want to compromise the quality I had there.
Yes, it was a dress Luke was talking about on the phone and yes, he was talking to Rory. Rory and Emily bought a dress for Lorelai to wear, a simple dress that most definitely isn't fugly. What happens next with Lorelai and Luke? I don't know. They probably have 2 kids, fight, and banter well into old age. At least that is what happens in my universe.
Thanks for joining me on this ride. I am sorry my updates were so far apart, but I like to think that they were worth it. Enjoy the show, I won't be.