Author's note: Hey everyone. Just thought I'd drop in, say hi, and let everyone know that this is my first Gilmore Girls fic. Not my first fic as I have written a few GH fics. I hope to get you feedback, and If anyone has read any of my other fics you would know that I give very little away in the first few chaps, and that I love secrets. So I hope you enjoy and that you all tread, in time you shall know all that I do…

-.-

Prologue

She had her small petite hands folded gently in her lap as she allowed her fingers to play with each other. Her feet dangled over the edge of the front seat as she gently kicked them back and forwards. She just wanted something to do. The movement of her hands and legs were taking much of the energy out of her, but some still remained. The remaining energy went straight to her darting eyes. They couldn't seem to settle on a thing.

Her eyes froze for a second out the window, it was early October, the leaves were falling off the trees and the wind was carrying them through the night skies. The crescent moon peeked out beyond the nighttime clouds that it seemed to be hiding behind. The light drizzle of rain hit the car made the young girl cringe a bit as she remembered the actions of her mother that night. She had never seen her mother so mad, so angry, she had never seen her mother hit her father either. She quickly looked to the front of the car as a tree branch came crashing into it. She didn't understand why any of this was happening.

Her wandering eyes darted to her mother. She had tears in her eyes, that much the girl was sure. Her eye make-up was slowly running down her face as it mixed with the salty tears of the woman. The child looked up, restlessly as she tried to figure her mother out, even though she was only seven years old the two were incredibly close, they were best friends and could so easily tell what the other was thinking, but at this moment Rory couldn't figure it out for the world. She couldn't read her mother like she usually could. She was at a complete loss as to what was wrong; did her grandmother throw all the coffee out of the house again? Or was it that her grandfather had once again insisted that her mother marry her father? Or did it have something to do with why her mother had been hitting her father earlier.

Her father, with that thought her eyes glanced to her dress. It didn't look so great in the dull light of the moon. The once pristine yellow dress was no longer so pristine. The color seemed faded, no longer the bright vibrant yellow that her mother and grandmother had fought over her wearing. It seemed even more wrinkled than it had from her spending all afternoon sitting in the foyer. She tried to smooth it out, to will the memory away, but it seemed the harder she tried the more wrinkled it got. She just wanted to forget, she wanted all the images to leave her head and she wanted it to all go away, all the people trying to make her feel better, her friends asking her to come play, her grandparents telling her she wasn't being the proper hostess. Then there was her mother, who had just sat right next to her, quite as a mouse, hoping her daughter would forget this and have fun. It was after all her seventh birthday party, and what a happy birthday Rory had had.

-

Lorelai looked over at her sleeping daughter. She took in the wrinkled yellow party dress, one she completely despised, the scuffed up yellow shoes, the messy hair, and her daughters face. The puffy eyes that screamed her daughter had been crying, the fact that her cheeks were glistening in the light of the rising sun didn't helped to displace the fear that tears had left her child's eyes. She should have smiled and went to sleep in her own bed, rather than the old beat up Jeep that Lorelai had recently attained from a trade with a mechanic a few hours earlier. The thick pouty lips that adorned her daughter's soft angelic face made her want to scream. She hated to see her daughter cry, she hated to see her sad.

Lorelai refocused her eyes on the winding curves of the old country road; she had been driving for hours and saw no end to the road. She didn't want to see an end do it. She didn't want to stop, but she knew she would have to, the sun was rising, Rory would soon wake up, and the girl needed food, and to take that hideous dress off, she knew they should have gone with the pink.

Lorelai looked at the road signs, they were on some high way in Ohio. The middle of no where, and all they she saw in the next few miles was some sign for a little dinky dinner in a small middle of no where town. Lorelai pulled the car to a stop in front of the restaurant, this would have to do for now, at least they could both eat and get some rest.

-

She had left home a few days ago, driven the first eighteen hours straight living off some pretty bad coffee. Now the second day of driving was coming to an end, her back ached from the sleazy motel that the two had stayed in the night before, but as she left her credit cards, and had only taken the cash she could find in the house she had very few choices. She wasn't sure where she was at this point in time, but a few hours ago she had crossed the state lines of Colorado and now she was driving on some snow covered mountain road. She knew she needed to stop soon, she needed to rest, Rory needed to rest, yet she couldn't bring herself to stop.

She didn't know why she was doing this, she wasn't sure she wanted to understand. She had always tried to understand, to do what was right, and she finally figured it out that none of it was. It may have been right for her mother, her father, Chris, Chris's parents, but it wasn't right for her, for Rory. She had learned that the hard way three days ago at Rory's party. She was a seven-year-old girl, she shouldn't have to be playing hostess. She should be playing in the dirt, getting messy, and having fun.

She felt the tears coming to her eyes again; she needed to stop before she got into some sort of accident. She had hurt her daughter enough over the years. She kept her teary eyes on the road as she searched for a sign of life, a place to stay that night, heck, maybe forever. She wasn't sure, all she knew is that she couldn't put her daughter through it; she couldn't let Rory face more heartache. She had stayed so Rory could have a father, but that didn't seem to be a good plan any longer. They had fought too many nights for it to end any other way.

She had been lost in her thoughts, in the pain of the last few years that she hadn't even noticed that she was now driving in circles as the small flakes melted on her window. She was driving around some sort of square, a town square to be exact, it was a cute little town, and Lorelai found herself immediately drawn into it all. It reeked of that small town life she had seen in the movies, with the naive children growing up in pure innocence and bliss. That's what she had wanted for herself, for her daughter, and as she stopped the car in front of a small diner she couldn't help but think, maybe, just maybe she would have the chance to give her daughter the life she didn't have.

She stepped out of the car and walked to the passenger side, she opened the door and gently shook her daughters shoulder. Rory slowly opened her eyes as she looked up at her mother's soft-featured face; she looked very much at peace. When Rory had fallen asleep her mother looked distraught, uneasy, and very sad. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes as they settled on the sight behind her.

"Where are we," she asked, her voice thick with sleep as she unbuckled herself from the car.

"I'm not sure sweetie," Lorelai spoke as she lifted her daughter from the car, "But I think we both need some food and sleep."

"Okay," was the only noise the child made as she rested her head on her mother's hip and walked into the building with her.

The two walked into the building as all eyes fell on them. Lorelai felt uneasy for a second before she walked her daughter over to a table in the corner and sat down. She set her daughter in a chair before she took her own seat. She spent a few minutes looking at her menu while the owner took the order of a table across the room. She watched as the man walked behind the counter and placed an order. Her foot began to tap against the floor rather loudly as she kept her eyes on the man, she needed coffee, and she needed it now.

"Excuse me,' Lorelai screamed towards the counter as she craned her neck to look over the people in the diner. "Excuse me," She screamed again finding that the man wasn't paying attention.

She slowly pushed herself out of the chair as she walked up to the counter. She stood in front of the man in a flannel shirt. He seemed to be arguing with a slightly balding man about some sort of town function. Whatever it was about, it could wait.

"Hey," She screamed loudly as the entire room turned to look at her, including the man in flannel. "So that's what it takes," A wide grin spreading across her face.

"Can I help you," The man replied irritated.

"Yes, You can actually. I'm looking for one Al Borland. Either you're him, or you've stolen his clothing. Minus the tool belt," Lorelai said with a smirk.

"What," The questions and irritation flashed through his eyes.

"Come to think of it you need a beard, maybe not forever, but no mustache. I draw the line there. You wouldn't look too good with a mustache," She continued to tease as the flannel mans face began to contort.

"Okay, What ever it is you want could you just spit it out," His irritation bubbling over.

'Now now Luke, That's no way to talk to a guest," The balding man spoke as he turned to face the bubbly brunette, "I'm Taylor. What ever you need during your stay in Star's Hollow just ask me and I'll see what I can do."

"Taylor," Luke warningly commented.

"Alright, alright. I won't pester her now, But we sir," Taylor said waving a finger between himself, and Luke, "Are not done."

"He looks like a pain in the butt," Lorelai observed as she watched him walk out as he made small talk with a few of the other customers.

"You have no idea," the words flew from his mouth before he could stop them. "Why am I telling you this," he asked himself as he watched her shrug her shoulders, "And what in the world so you want. I have work to do you know."

"Yes, and one of those jobs of yours is to make sure that you service your customers," A small chuckle escaped her lips as the wheels in her head began to turn, "And I as a customer would like two cups of coffee."

"Coffee's bad for you, it stunts your growth," Luke said as he went to enter an order.

"Yes, lucky for me I'm not planning on getting any taller."

"Who's the other cup for," He replied warily.

"How do you know that they're not just for me?"

"I wouldn't serve you two cups at once. At this rate you'll be lucky for one."

"Uh," She indignantly responded as her hands went to her hips, "You're lucky I'm in a good mood otherwise you would have a very pissed off Java Junkie. And no, they aren't both for me, ones for my daughter, though that one still needs some milk in it. Slowly trying to wean the girl off the milk. To get the full effect of coffee it must me taken in black," Lorelai perkily replied.

"Lady you're crazy," Luke said as he went to pour the coffee and look throughout the diner, "And what daughter are you talking about."

Lorelai's head shot up before she could even inhale the scent of her coffee. Her eyes quickly darted to the corner table, no one there. She scanned the walls, the other patrons, nothing. This couldn't be happening. Rory just couldn't disappear; it had to be a mistake.

"Mommy, I'm hungry," the small tired voice came from her side she looked down to see her daughters piercing azure eyes staring back at her.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again you evil, evil man." Lorelai spoke as she turned on the man before her.

"What did I do? I didn't see the kid there," he spoke as he turned to watch the girl climb into a chair beside the woman who he assumed was her mother.

"Well you can make it up to me by getting us two burgers with fries."

"And a coffee please, with a glass of milk," Rory added.

"Two burgers and a glass of milk coming up," Luke spoke as he smiled at the cute little girl.

"Hey! Why so nice to the kid," Lorelai asked confused.

"She asked nicely. You, you just annoy me," Luke spoke as he went for the milk.

"Well that's fair," Lorelai huffed as she crossed her arms and watched him set the milk down.

"What," Luke yelled as he took in the glare from this woman.

"You forgot my coffee," Rory spoke as if it were as plan as day.

"You're just a kid. You don't need coffee. It'll stunt your growth."