Rory waited until a little after ten before going into the diner. The breakfast rush was about over and the lunch rush hadn't begun. Instead of sitting at a table, she went directly to the end of the counter opposite from the cash register. Luke smiled at her as he walked over.

"Hey, Luke. How's it going?"

"Not bad, and you? How's Chilton?"

"It's good. Hard, but good."

"Well, good. That's good. So, what'll you have?"

"Coffee, I guess."

"You're sure you wouldn't like some nice hot chocolate?"

"Thanks, but coffee's fine."

Luke shook his head, but poured the coffee.

"Sorry I don't have any donuts, but once the feeding frenzy begins, nothing much is left."

"That's okay. Say, the place looks really nice. Nice and fresh. The walls look a lot cleaner."

Rory could feel Luke's attitude change; the smile was gone.

"Is there anything else?"

She hesitated a moment, then jumped right in. "Mom told me why you two are fighting."

"Did she send you here?" His voice was no longer friendly.

"No, she didn't. In fact, she distinctly told me not say anything to you at all."

"Well, she was right. This is between her and me."

"Like I said, I know why you two are fighting, but you don't."

"What are you talking about, of course I do. We had a date to paint this place and she never showed up, she was with somebody else."

"But you don't know the whole story. I don't know if you remember it or not, but last week my dad came to town."

"I remember, all of you were sitting right over there."

"That's right. And while we were sitting right over there, Grandma called and told us that Dad's parents were going to be at the Friday night dinner. So we all went to dinner together."

"That sound real nice." Luke's voice had a bit of sarcasm in it.

"It was, at first. But then Straub, that's Dad's dad, starting tearing into mom about how her getting pregnant with me was the reason Dad never went to Princeton, and how she ruined his life. And other things were said, ugly things, so Mom sent me out of the room, but I could hear."

Suddenly, Rory's eyes began to water. Luke handed her a napkin.

"Oh, Luke, it was dreadful! They were yelling, and Grandpa threatened to hit Straub, and when they left, everyone just scattered. I guess everybody wanted to be alone; it's a BIG house. Anyway a half hour or so later Mom found me, and she kept telling me it wasn't me they were talking about but what she did."

"Rory, I'm . . . I'm sorry, it must have been terrible."

"It was. It really was! So, after that, we all came home, and Mom kept telling me that it wasn't my fault. And then Mom and I went to bed, and Dad slept on the couch. So you see, it wasn't her fault she forgot. Everything was just so . . . so AWFUL!"

"But why didn't she tell me this herself?"

"I don't know. Why don't you go ask her? She's home now."

"If I went over there she'd probably call the cops on me."

"You know she wouldn't do that. Luke, just go. You guys need to talk."

"Well, maybe I will, when things slow down here."

"They look pretty slow to me right now. Anyway, I'm going back to Lane's. What do I owe you for the coffee?"

"You know you never have to pay."

Rory smiled at him. "Thanks. See you later."

"Sure."

x.x.x.x

Not long after Rory left, Lorelai dragged herself out of bed, took a shower and went downstairs to finish the coffee Rory had made. She was contemplating going to Weston's for more coffee and a late breakfast when there was a knock at the front door.

Unenthusiastically, she walked to the door and opened it and was shocked to see Luke standing there.

"Uh, Lorelai. Hi," he stammered, then held up two paper bags. "I thought you might want some coffee and something to eat."

"Um, s-sure," Lorelai stammered back. "Come in. I always want coffee."

He followed her to the kitchen where he set the two bags down on the table. It was then that she noticed the label on one of the bags.

"This one's from Weston's," she said, a little stunned as she looked inside. "Strudel! From Weston's! You brought me strudel from Weston's?"

"Well, I didn't have any and I know how much you like strudel. There's cherry, raspberry, cream cheese and blueberry."

"You've been fraternizing with the enemy? What's going on?" She was still shocked.

"I . . . I just want to say I'm sorry, you know, about this . . . fight we've been having."

"I can't believe it. You actually went into Weston's ... to buy strudel ... for ME!" She was smiling now. "I don't know what to say."

"Why don't you tell me why you tried some lame excuse instead of telling me about the Friday night dinner with Christopher's parents?"

Lorelai was a bit speechless.

"I don't know. I'm never any good with explanations, and it sounded so farfetched, I was afraid you'd think I was just making up this elaborate lie, and . . . . "

"Are you telling me you would lie about Rory?"

"No. God no!"

"Then why didn't you just tell me and trust me to know it was the truth?"

"I don't know. I have absolutely no alibi, no good reason, and I am so, so sorry. Maybe if our busy-body friends hadn't been so quick to interfere I could have, maybe."

"Yeah, they DO have a way of screwing things up."

"So, does this mean we're okay now?"

"Yeah, we are."

"And I guess Rory went to see you … even after I told her not to."

"She did. And I'm glad, and you should be, too."

Lorelai smiled gently. "I am, very glad."

"Look, I was thinking, since I was so rotten to you all last week, how about if all next week everything's on the house – breakfast, lunch and dinner?"

"Oh, Luke! You don't have to do that!"

"It's a done deal. Starting today."

"Rory, too?"

"Of course Rory, too!"

"So, what if I miss breakfast and come in for a mid-morning snack?"

"On the house."

"Or a mid-afternoon snack?"

"On the house."

"What about late after-dinner pie?"

"On the house."

"Oh! What about a midnight snack?"

"Well, since I close up at ten, then I'd have to say no."

"But what if I come in at 9:55 and want a cheeseburger?"

"If the grill hasn't been cleaned, then I'd say yes."

"But what if I come in right AT ten and the grill's only half clean?"

"Probably."

"Okay, so what if I come in at five AFTER ten, and . . . ."

"I think you're starting take advantage of the whole 'on the house' thing."

"Yeah, you're probably right. But what about coffee?"

"Coffee's on the house, including all the refills you can drink, which means I need to double my order for next week. Maybe I should triple it."

"To go?"

"I don't see why not."

"And donuts, or strudel, too?"

Luke was beginning to get a bit impatient, but he knew this was Lorelai.

"Yes, Lorelai, coffee AND donuts AND strudel. If I have any."

"For me and Rory?"

"I already told you – Rory is included in this deal."

"Can we get food to go?"

"Yes."

"Will you deliver it?

"Okay, now you're really pushing it!"

Lorelai grinned.

"I know. I was just checking. I wanted to make sure you were really Luke and not some evil Luke-clone trying to worm his way into my good graces."

"You have good graces?"

"Yep, you're the real Luke, all right."

"Well, that's good to know. Look, I need to get back to the diner. Lunch will be starting up soon. See you there?"

Lorelai held up the strudel bag, pointing to it and smiling with anticipation.

"Lunch!"

"Well, enjoy it."

"Oh, I will! But we'll be there for supper."

Lorelai walked Luke outside to the edge of the porch.

"Thank you, Luke. I'm so sorry we fought."

"Yeah, me too. Oh, and don't eat the blueberry."

"Why? What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing. It's for Rory. I know she likes blueberry."

Lorelai suddenly gave Luke a warm, affectionate hug, surprising both of them.

"See you for supper," he said as he left the porch.

"Six, sharp," she replied. "Or maybe five."

As Luke drove away, Lorelai went back into the house, her mouth watering at the thought of the strudel waiting for her. And she realized she was actually happy for the first time in more than a week.

The End

A/N -- I just want to say Thank You to everyone who took the time to read, and review the chapters. I sincerely appreciate all the kind words and the encouragement.