Chapter Seven

The streets in Stars Hollow were oddly familiar to Logan. They shouldn't have been, since he didn't venture there often while him and Rory dated, and he certainly hadn't been traipsing through her hometown in the five years they were separated. He could count on one hand the number of times he'd driven on these streets, yet they felt more inviting than the street his childhood home sat on in Hartford. It was because of her. Everything about her felt like home to Logan, even after they broke up. Being next to her again was like a warm memory come to life, and he couldn't get enough. He knew from that night when they tested out his app that they were both playing with fire. An attraction like theirs was too dangerous to be handled so cavalier, but they didn't know any other way. Their default was easy. Their fallback position was repartee and quips, always inching toward that unspoken line, but landing just short of it. The significant others helped. They kept both of them moderately in line, knowing there were other individuals who could get hurt beside themselves.

But then she told him that she was breaking up with Rob. He almost had to laugh at the resolute way in which she unilaterally decided to end the relationship. If Rob didn't respect her at least a little bit for that, he didn't deserve her. He'd immediately become distracted at the admission, half-listening to Rory's long-winded followup. Suddenly, driving aimlessly through the all-too-familiar streets of Stars Hollow, Logan had a problem. Half of the concrete reason for him and Rory getting back together was gone, and without that half, the remaining foundation was remarkably unsound. Because, he liked Molly but he didn't love her. He hadn't loved anyone since Rory, not even the one two years later that he thought he did. Everyone who came after didn't matter. They were placeholders until he could be in this car with her, barreling toward a future five years in the making.

And he was terrified.

"We can just turn right up here," Rory said, gesturing toward the stoplight.

"Where are we headed?" he asked. He could feel his nerves crackle at the duality of that question.

"Back home."

He turned at the light, leaving Luke's in the rearview mirror as they drove down the street. Logan reached over to the console and unnecessarily turned up the air conditioning. He saw Rory casually cross her arms over her chest as goosebumps rose on her skin, and he turned it back down.

He understood why Rory turned down his proposal. It took him a long time, but he did understand. Expecting her to give up the opportunity to report on the presidential campaign and come to San Francisco was irrational. She was just starting her career and she deserved the chance to explore those opportunities. She deserved the chance to be remarkable, which she was. He read every article. But still, even with all the understanding and wisdom that came with those five years, he'd never been able to shake the sinking feeling in his stomach when she gave him back the ring. He knew she hadn't actually rejected him, but it felt a lot like she did.

She asked him to come in for hot cocoa and leftovers. It would have been the lamest proposition from anyone but her. It was her, though, so naturally his first instinct was yes. His first instinct was always yes with her, but then what happened next? He knew himself. If they went inside, this would just go farther, and he'd end up standing in front of her again, asking her to say yes, and then…he didn't know. That was the problem. He didn't know what she would do next, but recent history didn't bolster his confidence.

"I should probably head back," he said, his words solidifying his resolve to leave things as they were. He liked Molly enough, but not enough that she could hurt him. It was the perfect level of involvement.

"Oh, right, sure. Well, thanks for being here. It means a lot to me."

"Just a friend helping out a friend."

He hated himself.

"Well, I'll let you get on your way," she murmured, voice betraying the hurt that she tried so poorly to hide. She always had a terrible poker face. He wrapped his hand tighter around the steering wheel.

"Night Ace."

"Good night, Logan."

She climbed out of the car, and her empty space beside him physically hurt. Impulsively, he called out, "Ace, wait."

She spun back toward him, face open and unguarded as she said, "Yeah?"

He noticed that her hand gripped the strap of her purse so tightly that her fist actually seemed to tremble. He leaned forward, desperate to say something. Anything. But nothing seemed right. No words fit the side show happening in his head, so he drew back into his seat instead and murmured, "Never mind. I'll see you later."

"Okay."

She watched him drive away. He could feel her gaze all the way until he turned the corner. His chest felt empty, because his heart was back there with her. He had no say in the matter, even as he deliberately drove away. Ran away. He wanted to go back. He wanted to find words for whatever the mess in his head meant, and he wanted to share them with her. It was always her. He turned the car with a deliberate jerk.

He spent so much of his life running. Running from responsibility. Running from rejection. He knew what he was running from, but what was he actually running toward? He didn't have an answer before, but he did now.

He parked in front of the Gilmore house and clumsily left his keys in the ignition as he rushed out. He quickly ran back, plucked the keys from the ignition, and went up to the front door. He didn't hesitate before knocking on the door. She opened the door, and although he had just seen her minutes earlier, he took delight in the very sight of her.

"Logan," she murmured in surprise, "What are you –"

He silenced her with a kiss, wanting to communicate all the miscommunication between them without the fear of words getting in the way. She didn't kiss him back at first, but then she did. Everything was right. He pulled away for air, and he could see the gravity of what happened settle on her slim shoulders when she began to mention Molly. But, he would take care of that. He'd noticed the way Molly almost pitifully patted his arm after telling him to be with Rory after Richard passed. She knew. She was probably just waiting to see how long it would take him to figure it out. The answer was embarrassingly long.

"Do you really want me to leave?" he pressed.

"Well, no, but –"

"Because I don't want to leave. I don't want to leave so badly that I was literally going to sleep in my car one house down so I could be near you. That's how badly I don't want to leave you."

"You have a girlfriend."

"Tell me you want me to stay," he urged. "Just tell me you want me to stay. Tell me you want me, and I'll be here. Forever. Whatever you need, I will be here."

"Logan-"

"I love you."

There it was. The truth they'd been dancing around since they met again in that coffee shop. He never stopped, and he told her so. He told her that she was it for him, and always had been. And then she was telling him something about being parked in front of a fire hydrant, and the Stars Hollow PD not being particularly busy.

"No real crime happens here, so you can imagine how excited the Stars Hollow PD gets over minor parking offenses."

"Where should I move my car?" he asked apprehensively. He suspected. He hoped. He would never assume.

"The driveway is fine," she returned softly, her voice caressing the words. "My mom probably won't be back until tomorrow morning. Luke can park his car next to yours."

"So, I'm staying?"

"You're staying."

He wanted to touch her. He wanted to feel her skin beneath his fingertips again, but they'd done enough for one night. Still, he felt himself drawn toward her. Unable to resist, he reached up and traced the curve of her cheek with her fingertips. She turned into his touch, eyes drifting shut. They broke apart when Luke's truck pulled up into the driveway. He scratched irritably at the back of his head and she murmured, "You need to end things with Molly and I have to Rob. Before anything happens, we need to make that right."

He nodded. "Okay."

She reached forward and took his hand in hers. "I don't mean anything by that. About us, I mean. I just –"

"No, you're right," he said, squeezing her hand. "They deserve the truth."

Luke came in the front door just as Rory dropped Logan's hand. He offered them both a quick greeting and then said, "Logan, you're going to want to move your car. The Stars Hollow PD might as well be renamed the parking violation department. It's all they do."

"Yeah, I was just going to move it."

"Are you staying the night?" Luke asked, trying to casually glance at Rory to ascertain her reaction and failing miserably.

"He's staying," Rory said. "I asked him to."

Luke nodded. "Okay, that's great. I'll just…" he hooked a thumb up toward the stairs, "…I'll be in your mom's and my room, if you need anything."

"Okay, thanks Luke."

Logan moved his car quickly, parking properly in front of the Gilmore house this time, and went back inside. Rory made the couch up for him, and as promised, they drank hot cocoa and ate some old pizza that Luke guessed was from earlier that week (although he cautioned that the constant rotation of refrigerator pizza leftovers made his guess uncertain). They stayed up well past midnight, watching reruns of The West Wing on the television. She fell asleep against his arm, and he didn't move out of fear of waking her up. He just shifted enough on the couch to stretch out his legs and then rested his head against hers, letting sleep wash over both of them.

"They look nice," Lorelai said softly, referring to the tableau of her daughter and Logan snuggled on the couch. She'd curled almost entirely into him, one arm draped around his torso and face buried in his chest. His chin rested on the top of her head and his hand lightly gripped the arm tossed over him.

"I feel creepy," Luke said, handing Lorelai a cup of coffee.

"There's nothing creepy about it. We're basically chaperoning them right now."

"We're chaperoning your twenty seven year old daughter?" he asked.

"Okay, when you say it that way it does sound weird," she said, brushing past him into the kitchen.

"What do you mean when I say it that way it sounds weird? I said it the exact same way that you did," Luke said, following her into the kitchen.

Rory stirred, shifting against Logan as she came fully to the waking world. She tilted her head up and took in his sleeping face. She thought of the night before and smiled softly. She didn't think it was possible to wake up smiling after the day she'd had, but he made it possible. He made her worst day marginally less awful, and for that she could never thank him enough.

"Stop staring at me," he murmured.

"I-I'm not" she stammered in surprise. "I just looked at you. There's a difference."

His eyes drifted open. "It's too early for this conversation."

"You're the one who brought it up."

"How are you?" he asked, brushing some hair away from her face.

"I'm okay. Surprisingly okay."

"Good." He leaned down to kiss her, but she stopped him. "Right, sorry," he said. "Not yet."

"I don't want this to start that way," she said. "You understand, right?"

"Yes, I do," he said. "I'll call Molly today."

"And I'll call Rob," she said, pressing her head back against the couch cushion. "This is not going to be a pleasant conversation."

"I'll bring you donuts afterwards."

She laughed. "Thanks, but I'll be fine. I'm a grownup, I can do this."

"I never said you couldn't."

Rory wiped at her eyes wearily. "Can you hand me my phone, please?"

He grabbed it from the coffee table and handed it over to her. She quickly sent a text message to Rob, asking him to talk later that day. She dropped the phone into her lap and said, "Your turn."

"I'm already seeing Molly for lunch today. I'll break the news then."

Rory nodded, feeling sick to her stomach. "Be nice about it, okay?"

"I don't really think she'll be surprised," Logan said. "I talked about you a lot. Like, a lot."

She smirked. "A lot, huh?"

"Well, I'm sure you talked about me to Rob."

She shook her head. "Never."

"Wait, seriously? You never talked to Rob about me?"

"Nope. He was jealous of Kirk once after hearing me talk about one of our festivals. So, I generally avoided other males in stories after that."

Logan smirked. "He was jealous of Kirk? Has he met Kirk?"

"No. I never was able to get him to Stars Hollow. Something would always come up."

"Well, it's his loss," Logan said. "Kirk is basically a national treasure."

Rory nodded solemnly and returned, "I'd agree with that."

"I thought I heard that you two were up," Lorelai said, walking into the living room. "We have donuts and coffee in the kitchen. Help yourselves."

The conversation with Rob went about as well as Rory thought it would. There were no plates smashed or heart-filled-tirades, but he did leave her with the parting line, "I deserve someone who deserves me. You clearly don't."

Paris overheard that part and threw a handful of gold painted macaroni from her craft table at him on his way out. Rory knew that at least part of her should feel marginally bad about how things ended with Rob, but she couldn't find it in herself to care. Because somewhere across town Logan was waiting for her and he'd been waiting for a long time. They both had.

She didn't hear from Logan for the rest of the day, but she didn't worry. She could still feel the warmth of his gaze. She always loved the way he looked at her. He'd get this sort of half smile, like her very existence was a puzzle he'd just figured out. No one else looked at her that way.

Rory went into work the next day. She offered to stay back in Stars Hollow and help with the funeral planning, but Emily refused, insisting that Richard would want her at the paper not toiling over flower arrangements. She got into work later than normal, the morning commute slammed from some accident down on Fifth street. When she finally trudged into her office, tossing her bag on her chair, there were already several messages flashing on her machine. She pressed the button for them to play on the machine and swore under her breath as she searched frantically for a pen amongst the mess of papers on her desk. Her editor's voice filled the small cubicle, going on about a new assignment.

"Aha! There you are!" Rory said triumphantly, plucking a pen from under a large stack of court documents.

The next message was the secretary of a politician that she called the week prior, telling her that this particular state representative was booked up for the next month, and unable to talk with her. Rory shook her head and murmured, "Bad move, buddy. Anything you would have said couldn't be worse than the big fat 'no comment' that'll be in there now."

The message ended and a familiar voice filled the office. Rory froze, her heart going like a wind-up toy at the sound of his voice.

"Hi Ace. It's me. Logan. Although, you probably already knew that. Anyway, as you might know, I'm in town." She grinned at the parallel to another message he'd left years ago. "I'm in town sort of indefinitely, actually. That app you wrote about really picked up. Wired magazine even put us as one of the tech startups to watch. Not to brag. Okay, that was a little bragging. Anyway, successful tech startups get pretty good lunch breaks, and I was hoping I could take you out during yours today. I'll even treat. Give me a call, okay?"

The call ended and Rory's mind whirred in the silence. She imagined that lunch, and the ones that would come after. The life that she'd denied herself because of her pride and her fear of ending up hurt like before. She let her judgment become clouded by doubt and fear and a host of other negative emotions that made comfortable bedfellows. No more.

She called back immediately.

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has read and reviewed this story. It was an absolute joy to write and share with you all.