"Flirt with Disaster" by Romantique
Disclaimer: The characters, quoted dialogue, locations, etc. are the creation/property of Amy Sherman-Palladino et al, as well as the property of the WB...the following work is my humble homage.
Author's note/acknowledgements: For now, this story will be a four-parter...it was originally planned to have ten or more chapters, but I actually over-multitasked myself and am currently working on four different fics (yes, including the sequel to my first fic, "Rules of Engagement"), so maybe if the other ones get done sooner rather than later, there may be more chapters after all. Thanks to my betas who have seen me through various drafts: Carrielynn, Chiaroscuro and Kristi – your comments and catches have really inspired me to continue this story that I nearly gave up writing. Special thanks to truthseeker, who inspired me to write this in the first place and whose ideas inform some later plot points.
Chapter One – Let the Games BeginLuke thought about driving to the Dragonfly Inn's test run, but decided that it would actually be a nice chance to take a walk and calm down his nerves. He opened up his duffle bag enough to hold the bouquet of flowers as he walked. The ducks swam by and made a lot of noise as he walked across the footbridge.
The last time Luke had taken a weekend off was when he had taken the cruise with Nicole the past summer. He looked at the flowers in his bag again and sighed...Taylor had asked him what kind of flowers he wanted to buy, and he had no idea what to pick, figuring roses would be safe. But then when Taylor went into the discussion about the symbolism of rose colors and what certain types of flowers communicated, Luke ended up asking for whatever kind of bouquet that wouldn't be offensive to a woman. He didn't think that buying flowers would be so time-consuming or difficult. Wait, didn't she say she liked daisies? What am I doing?
"You're making a gesture of affection, a gift demonstrating your feelings for her..." said the audio book voice in his head.
As he approached the Dragonfly, Luke forgot all about flowers and audio books, as it sunk in how much of a change had come over this place. It was no longer the ramshackle old inn in the photographs Rachel took four years ago; now it was Lorelai's materialized dream come true. She's completely transformed that ruin, thought Luke as he turned around to look at the landscaping. He couldn't feel prouder of her than he did at that moment, knowing how much of herself she had put into this place to make it to this test run.
Lorelai's transformed me into this flower-buying guy too. Not that I was a ruin myself. He cheered up a little more about bringing the flowers, and laughed at himself.
As he crossed the driveway, Emily and Richard Gilmore suddenly appeared in the doorway, following a large cart of luggage that was being carried down the front steps. They looked less than thrilled to be there, and Luke wondered what their problem was. Aren't they proud of what their kid's done? Are they leaving already?
"Excuse me...oh, hello Luke." Emily noticed the bouquet of flowers in his hand and raised a brow.
"Hi, Mrs. Gilmore. Mr. Gilmore."
"No need to be so formal. Richard, you remember Luke, don't you?"
"Ah yes. How do you do?" Luke saw that Richard looked even more distracted and uncomfortable close up, as if he would rather be anywhere else. "If you'll excuse us, we were on our way to our room."
"Your room?" Luke was puzzled. "So why is the luggage going in the wrong direction?"
"Apparently, we got a special room with a separate entrance," replied Emily in a hurried tone. "Well, we should get settled, shouldn't we, Richard? I expect we'll see you at dinner, Luke." She gave him a forced smile and Richard nodded, as they continued to follow their luggage away from the main entrance.
Luke considered it a miracle that he wasn't forced to make small talk with Lorelai's parents. He felt the tension in the air between them, and did not want to be caught in their crossfire. As he walked through the front door, he was impressed with how different the Inn looked since his last visit – shinier, brighter, finished. After he examined the doorframe, admiring its craftsmanship, Lorelai greeted him in front of the staircase.
"Hey, hi, you came!" Lorelai smiled at him.
"Sure. I RSVP'ed."
"Oh..."
Luke handed the bouquet of flowers to Lorelai. "Here, these are for you, a little congratulations." He smiled as he saw her face light up. Maybe this was a good idea after all.
"Oh my god, they're beautiful, thank you." Lorelai's eyes darted nervously between the bouquet and Luke. "I was...um, well, okay we should get you all, uh, checked in. And...that'sss....over there."
Wow...she's nervous. Luke laughed in disbelief. He had been waiting to hear her deliver one of her usual snappy one-liners. "You okay?" He couldn't remember ever hearing her stutter like this before.
"Oh god yeah. Me? I'm totally fine...Oh!" A door suddenly appeared in front of Lorelai and she smacked right into it.
"Lorelai!" Luke held out his arm to hold her and to make sure she wouldn't fall backwards.
"Oh god..." Lorelai laughed as she looked over at Luke in obvious pain. Luke was stunned – he was torn between concern and full-blown laughter, but managed to control himself. She can't be losing it now...not when everything's finally falling in place.
Rory handed Luke his key, as Lorelai tried to explain away the accident."So...you got your key and, uh, b-b-bye."
Luke smiled as he walked up the stairs following his room door. Say nothing...don't blow it...
As he walked past other rooms, he heard Miss Patty. "Are you sure that door's not going to fall in on me when I open it? Would you be a dear and check the hinges down there again for me?" Luke rolled his eyes as he saw her admiring the worker's posterior.
Luke arrived at his room, which faced the front driveway. While his door was being installed, Luke went to the window and sat in the armchair next to it, admiring the view. He saw a crowd of people near the barn, admiring the horses, while a few people walked around the grounds, taking in the scenery.
He turned to look around the room, and he couldn't help but notice the appearance of dragonflies in the wallpaper design.
"Luke! Good! You came." Kirk walked right in past the workman making some last adjustments on Luke's door and immediately started looking around the room, assessing the wall, listening and knocking at different places.
"I told you I was coming," said Luke. "Hey stop that, will you?"
Kirk stopped checking the wall. "Now, you remember what I told you. Any–"
"You already told me, Kirk. You don't need to tell me again. Really. Once was more than enough. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to change."
"Oh yeah. So do I. For dinner. So you're not wearing that?"
"Goodbye, Kirk."
"I'll see you later, okay?"
Luke nodded as he shut the newly fastened door. He looked at the clothes he brought, and wondered if he should iron the pants. He figured it wouldn't hurt to look sharper than usual, even if she was going to be too busy to notice. He started to unpack his clothes from his duffle bag.
Luke looked at himself in the mirror as he took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. He smiled and shook his head as he thought of the last time he saw Lorelai. She had almost knocked the entire table down, and had done a good job of knocking its contents to the floor. But then he thought about the dance and after the dance...she had looked at him differently than she had looked at him before. It was strange, new...and he couldn't help but be captivated by her blue eyes as they waltzed. But then she kept looking away from him...what did that mean? Did it mean anything?
"Remember, the brain will always try to trump the heart. Don't second guess, listen to what your heart tells you..."
Yeah, but what if all you can hear is this damn audio book? Luke wondered if he would ever be able to turn off that annoyingly chipper voice in his brain and felt like banging his head against the wall.
After he changed into a sweater and slacks, he went to comb his hair in front of the mirror above the dresser. There, he found a big basket of fruit and a note that had an illustration of the inn with "Compliments of the Dragonfly Inn" in dark green ink.
Dear Luke,
Thanks for helping make this dream possible. You rock!
(As in both the verb and noun. In good ways.)
Lorelai
Did she just call me a rock? Luke smiled at the note, and tucked it away in his bag.
He wondered why it took him so long to acknowledge what had been there all along beneath all the wisecracking and the bluster. Why he had never said anything, why she hadn't. Why it took a book to point out the obvious to him. Things are going to be different now. They already are –
There was a knock at the door as he finished changing. "Luke?" It was Patty's voice.
Luke answered the door. "Patty, hi."
"My, don't you look nice." Patty smiled at him, checking him out from top to bottom.
Luke saw that she was dressed in a yellow bathrobe. "And you're wearing a..."
"I know! This robe is amazing..." She twirled around. "I don't want to wear anything else!"
Luke didn't know how to respond to this, so Patty broke the silent pause. "So what are you waiting for? Aren't you coming to dinner?"
"Yeah." A bathrobe to dinner? You have got to be joking.
"Sit with me and Babette. Lord knows we could use an infusion of testosterone if you know what I mean. Good food with good company, right?"
While Luke didn't want to encourage this line of thinking, he couldn't think of any reason to say no. "Uh, okay. As long as I don't have to sit with Kirk."
"Why?"
Luke gave her a look that said, "Do I need a reason?"
The dining room was empty as Luke, Patty and Babette were the first to arrive. They were seated near the center of the dining room. Babette also decided to wear her bathrobe to dinner, and as she chatted to Patty about their coordinating outfits, Luke wondered if it would be rude at that point to try and sit at another table.
"So, Luke, TJ and Liz had a lovely wedding, didn't they? I don't know what I would've done if Lorelai hadn't come to help with the dress," said Patty as she winked at him. "Good thing she came with you."
So, here it starts. Luke was about to reply when Babette stood up to flag down one of the waiters. "Excuse me, can I have some more water please!" As she did this, her robe fell open. It turned out, to her brief embarrassment, that the hem of her robe had been caught under Luke's chair leg. "Oops!"
"Hey, watch it!" Luke immediately turned away, covering his eyes. Since there wasn't anybody else in the room, Babette was more amused at Luke's reaction than embarrassed, and she laughed.
Patty joined her. "What's wrong, Luke? Is she too much woman for you to handle?" Patty could barely speak.
"Sorry, sugar!" said Babette, as she adjusted her robe and retied her belt. "Didn't mean to turn this into a peep show!"
Luke's eyes were still covered, just in case Patty felt inspired to join Babette in a moment of robe solidarity.
"Luke, it's okay to open your eyes again," said Patty, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Her girls are back in place now." They both started to laugh even more hysterically as Luke kept his eyes firmly shut.
When Luke finally uncovered his eyes, all he could think about was sneaking back to his room, but then the other guests started arriving.
Luke spotted Rory and called out to her. He was grateful for a distraction from his table companions.
"Luke, hi! Hi, Miss Patty, Babette!" Rory smiled at them all, as they waved back at her, still in fits of laughter. She then looked back at Luke. "Hey, where's yours?"
"My what?"
"Your robe. You look a little out of place at this table." Rory laughed.
"Actually, that was the look I was going for."
"What's wrong?" Rory couldn't help but notice that Luke's eyes were glued to his table setting.
"Uh, you don't want to know." Luke lifted his head quickly to make eye contact with her. "Trust me."
"Oookay." Rory looked at him curiously, then smiled. "Oh, don't worry. I think I understand. Are they already hassling you about--"
"Rory!" interrupted Patty with a mischievous grin. "I want to hear all about the Yale men you've been toying with all year."
Luke couldn't help but smile, now that Patty's attention was directed away from him.
Rory saw this, and gave him a look that said, "Hey, not funny!" She turned to Patty. "Uh, maybe some other time. I have to go and help out with -- with something. See you later!"
"Luke, do you know what's going on with Rory's love life?" asked Patty.
"Why are you asking me?" His eyes focused on the salad fork.
"Well...Lane works at the diner and maybe you've overheard something, and I don't know, maybe Rory's mother's mentioned –"
"Well, I have no clue. But it's her business, anyway, right?" He looked up at her briefly before he took a swig of his ice water, and for once that evening, Patty had nothing to say in return.
The dining room filled up quickly, and then the wait staff passed out the salad and rolls for the first course. Luke was grateful for any distraction, as Patty and Babette were beginning a detailed conversation about Kirk and Lulu of which he wanted no part.
"Honestly, Babette, did you think they would have lasted this long? Kirk has a good heart and everything, but he's a little...you know, loco."
You have no idea. Luke started to eat the salad, as he tried to look around at the surrounding tables to see if Lorelai had come into the dining area.
"Oh, Patty, I think they're so sweet together. I've never seen Kirk like this before."
"Yes, you're right. Ah, young love, "said Patty wistfully. "Remember how glorious and overwhelming that was? When your heart's pitter-pattering and you can't think straight, and you almost don't recognize yourself in the mirror."
Babette sighed. "Yeah...and you get so flustered you can barely string two words together, much less keep your balance. I could tell you some stories about Morey's cuts and bruises..."
"Oh yes. I remember my first dance with my first husband. Even though I was quite an accomplished dancer already, I kept stepping on his toes."
"How about you, Luke?" asked Babette. "Did you ever fall over yourself for a girl?"
"Good salad, huh?" was Luke's response.
He was so focused on eating his salad that he almost didn't notice Lorelai when she entered the dining room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her greet Tom, who was almost unrecognizable in a suit and without his tool belt.
"Hi, how is everything this evening?" Lorelai approached their table and Luke continued to stare at his salad.
"Oh my God, these robes." Babette began to gush about Luke's least favorite subject of the moment, and sure enough Patty chimed in.
Lorelai stepped closer to Luke. "How are you doing?"
"I'm just staring at my plate." Luke wouldn't put it past Babette to try something in Lorelai's presence. He was completely outnumbered...or was he? He snuck a peek at Lorelai from the corner of his eye and caught her smiling at him...but he immediately looked back to his salad.
"He's shy. My bathrobe slipped earlier, and his poor heart couldn't take it."
"I like salad." Luke looked up at Lorelai again. This time, he didn't look away and smiled right back at her. She really is the most beautiful woman in the room...hell, the entire town...the entire county...and she's smiling at me. But how do I tell her this without having her laugh in my face? He then realized that he didn't need to say a single word, as she smiled coyly back at him.
At that moment, it seemed like the volume of noise in the room was turned down. Luke could hear Babette and Patty talking to each other, but had no idea what they were saying. Lorelai, save me, won't you? His eyes remained fixed on hers.
"Okay, well, you two go easy on him, now." Lorelai, no, don't leave...
Lorelai didn't look like she wanted to leave just yet as she gazed at Luke, but nonetheless she backed away from the table. Unfortunately, she didn't see one of the waiters and she crashed into him, apologizing as she excused herself in embarrassment. Luke turned back to his salad to wonder why she was acting so klutzy lately when Kirk bent down to whisper to his ear: "We're all set up."
"Stop whispering in my ear, Kirk." So not the person I want to have whispering in my ear.
"I'm just saying..."
"You're still doing it, Kirk." But Kirk couldn't dampen Luke's surprisingly good mood. Luke couldn't help but smile as he finished his salad.
"What's so funny, Luke? Did Kirk tell you a joke or...something intimate?" Patty looked at Luke curiously, as it was rare for her to see him smiling like this.
If you only knew, Patty. If you only knew...