A/N: Another new point of view. I think if I get enough characters involved I'll go schizo trying to keep up with the different personalities. Then again, crazy people do tell the best stories...or was that drunk people? Doesn't matter--I've got that angle covered as well.

"Too many wild rejections
Ending in angry questions from her dad.
Too many T.V. dinners, and everyone loves a winner,
But she was lost. No one knows the trials she's had."
'In the Shelter,' Jimmy Buffett

13. Richard

He loved his daughter and his granddaughter. He loved his wife. And he loved his mother. But it never seemed like love was enough in this world. His mother and his wife despised each other. His wife and his daughter were constantly battling for control—over what, sometimes he's not even sure that they knew. And his beautiful granddaughter was caught in the middle of a brewing storm that won't hold out forever. He wondered what he did to incur such a punishment. Was it because he chose Emily over his college sweetheart? Did he unknowingly make a deal with a demon—in exchange for ending things amicably with Pennelyn Lott was he doomed to never find peace in his own family? The situation bordered on something out of a play from Antiquity. And if that was true, then he must be the tragic hero unable to save those he loved.

At least he saw his girls during the holidays—though things were by no means happy, he cherished the thirty to forty-five minutes in between the time Lorelai and Rory arrived and when the nit-picking began. Sometimes it didn't go any farther than that; other nights ended in cold silence. But he had learned to be happy with what he was given.

He was afraid that Emily's attempt to throw a birthday party would go bad, and was disappointed when it did. But he never expected Rory to become angry. Most surprisingly, Lorelai was the one who threw an olive branch and invited them to Stars Hollow. But Emily was upset and she refused before Richard had a chance to save the moment. It was only after Lorelai and Rory had left that he got the chance to speak to his wife. "You know, dear, we should attend that party."

"Why?" Emily asked bitterly. "I'm tired of having my efforts thrown back in my face."

"Emily," He said in a comforting voice. "I know it's hard. I'm sorry things didn't go as you hoped. But Lorelai was trying to salvage the evening." He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "And Rory was truly sorry for her outburst. If we don't go then all the progress we've made over these Friday night dinners will be for nothing."

Emily was quiet a moment. "I hate when you do that." She said without looking at him.

"Do what?"

"Convince me to change my mind." Emily sighed.

"I did no such thing. You want to go—I know it." Richard smiled. "Besides, I want to go too. We've yet to see that house she moved into."

That was how he found himself navigating the streets of Stars Hollow and grumbling about finding a parking space within walking distance. As they came up to the door he walked close to Emily. "I'm glad we came."

"Me too," Emily said as she turned a critical eye on the outside of the house.

"Be nice, dear." Richard chided lightly. "Let's just enjoy the evening."

After the knocking and the door-bell ringing—and after the embarrassing, awkward silence was broken by Rory running towards them—Richard found he was enjoying the evening. Rory gave him a frantic, disjointed tour of the house in between laughing with the party guests. He met her friend Lane, who talked very fast about some music.

"Have you heard Chuck Berry?" He asked.

Lane turned to him and smiled. "Love him. Great guitar player."

They talked a few more minutes before she was swallowed up in the crowd and Rory pulled him into the kitchen, where a man with a backwards baseball cap and a woman with an apron were working. The woman chatted about baking times and proper cooling temperatures and ice. The man just nodded his head and grunted.

"Luke! Sookie!" Rory said happily.

The woman turned quickly and a smile formed on her lips. "Rory!" She crossed the kitchen and hugged her.

"This is my grandpa," Rory introduced the two.

"So nice to meet you." Sookie said and looked back to an ice chest behind her on the floor. "Honey, where's your mom?" She asked Rory.

"Um, in the living room, I think." Rory answered.

"Okay." She turned to Richard. "Can you just, um, excuse me for one moment please…" She trailed off as she left the kitchen.

"I wonder what is going on." Richard mused.

"Just a minor disaster." The man who must be Luke said. "Her ice cream was melting faster than she had anticipated."

"Ah…" Richard said, a little confused.

"Don't ask me, I'm as lost as you are." Luke held up his hands to show his own confusion. "I'd have just served everyone seconds."

"Grandpa, this is Luke." Rory smiled. "Luke, this is my grandpa."

Richard held out his hand. "It's a pleasure."

"Nice to meet you," Luke shook his hand.

"You wouldn't happen to be the Luke, from the diner, would you?" Richard asked.

"That'd be me."

"Well, in that case, it certainly is nice to meet you." Richard said.

Sookie burst into the kitchen with a couple stacks of cereal bowls, closely followed by Lane. "Head's up!" Sookie cried. "Luke, get out the scoop! We're dishing seconds on the ice cream!" She was already to the counter and pulling out the ice cream.

"Back to the grind." Luke muttered. "Happy birthday, Rory." He said.

"We'll let you go before you get into any trouble." Richard said with a smile. Rory led him back to the crowd, but he needed a moment of quiet so he stepped outside.

Rory appeared after a minute with a magazine. "It's not the Wall Street Journal, but it's got a quiz to determine if you're a spring or a fall." She told him, and then let him have his quiet. He was finishing the article and about to start the quiz when he heard Rory's voice come from around the corner of the house. "Did you forget something outside?"

He heard the back door close and Luke came into view, followed by Rory. He went to a green truck—which he had somehow managed to park right next to the house even though he showed up later than Emily and Richard had—and pulled out a small balloon. "Happy birthday," Luke said. The rest was too low for him to hear, but Rory smiled and hugged him before they went back inside so she must have liked whatever he got her.

Curious, he went inside to see if he could find out what Luke had given Rory, but was immediately treed by two women. He smiled and tried to remember their names, but they beat him to it. "Hey there, darling." The shorter one said. "Patty and I have been wanting to talk to you all night."

"Babette, please. You'll scare the poor man off." Patty said with a smile. "How are you?" She turned to Richard.

"Fine, I guess." Richard answered.

"And how are you enjoying the town?" Babette asked.

"Actually, we haven't seen much since it's dark outside."

"Well, let me tell you! You should come back for the weekend, especially during a festival…" Babette and Patty rambled on and on about the town festivals and historical sites and all the shops in town. He asked questions when they talked about the diner Luke owned. Babette was called away by her husband but Patty wouldn't let him go. Finally he was rescued by Emily and sent on a scouting mission to find out more about Luke.

After Emily left them alone he began making conversation. "That big Chevy outside is yours, I imagine."

"Yes, it is." Luke nodded his head.

"Chevrolet does make a fine work truck, I knew a contractor years ago who wouldn't drive anything else."

"Like a rock." Luke quoted the tagline from commercials.

"Indeed." Richard smiled. "So did you come here straight from work?"

"You mean the diner?" Luke asked, and Richard nodded. "Yeah, I had a little more to clean up than I thought, but I made it."

Richard noticed Luke looked a little uncomfortable with the party going on around him, so he asked, "Do you mind if we step outside? I just can't keep up with the party crowd anymore."

"No, not at all." Luke said as he went for the front door.

Richard picked up his drink, which he had set down on the foyer table when Rory started her tour. "Can I get you anything?" He asked. "A beer maybe?"

"No," Luke shook his head and they stepped outside.

"You don't drink?" Richard asked, curious, as he shut the door behind them.

"No—well, I do, just not that often. And not tonight." Luke said.

"Why is that?" Richard leaned against the house and looked out over the front lawn.

"I have an early day tomorrow." Luke said as he braced himself against the rail of the porch.

"Ah, got to feed the town." Richard smiled a little.

"Taylor will throw a tantrum if I open a few minutes late, plus I still have to mop the floor tonight."

"Who is Taylor?" Richard asked.

"Town Selectman," Luke answered with a small chuckle. "He lets the power go to his head."

"Still, I bet you're glad to have tomorrow afternoon off." Richard said.

Luke shook his head at that. "Don't have the afternoon off."

"Working open until close? That's a long day." Richard sympathized.

Luke didn't sound too upset when he said, "It's either that or sit around for half the day."

Richard thought about that. "So do you work all day often?"

"Most every day."

"That's a hell of a work ethic, if you don't mind me saying."

Luke looked at him. "It's not that. I just hate wasting time. Besides, I've got more than enough to keep me busy." He sighed a little and then said. "I'm sure you work long hours too. Lorelai told me you work in insurance, right?"

"That's correct." Richard said.

"Ah," Luke said, and Richard couldn't help but think that Luke didn't have pleasant memories of his insurance representatives. "Lot's of travel?"

"Too much sometimes, if you ask me. There were years when I would be gone twenty days out of every month. It was hard to balance family and work."

"I bet." Luke commented.

"It's much better now. These days I spend most of my time either in the company office or on the golf course with clients." Richard said. "I like being able to spend time with my wife and see my daughter and granddaughter." Richard watched as Luke nodded in agreement. "What about you? How does your family get around you working those long hours?"

Luke shook his head. "I don't really have a family."

"Oh, you're a bachelor?" Richard asked.

"Yeah."

"What about your relatives, if you don't mind me asking."

"My sister and nephew—they live in New York right now. But she's a bit of a…free spirit. They don't visit much."

"What do your parents think of that?"

"My parents died years ago." Luke said. "It's just my sister and my nephew."

"And Lorelai and Rory, I imagine." Richard added.

"Yeah."

Richard took a sip of his drink. "How long have you known my girls?" I'll bet you remember the day you met, don't you.

"A little over five years," Luke answered casually.

"Well, thank you for watching out for them."

Luke looked up at that and Richard thought he struck a nerve. "What do you mean?"

"I know my daughter," Richard laughed. "She's probably had you doing little things for her since you first met."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that…" Luke trailed off

"The first time I remember hearing your name involved mashed potatoes and minor carpentry work." Richard smiled knowingly, and Luke's eyes betrayed his surprise.

"Really," Luke commented in a low voice.

"Rory said something about—how did she phrase it? 'Those stinking Yankees.'" Richard took a sip and Luke chuckled. "I was discussing one of my clients, who had offered me tickets to a game in New York. Rory had just gotten over the chicken pox, and when I asked where she had heard of the Yankees, she said it was from you. The man who brought mashed potatoes and coffee and did work for Lorelai at the inn. Then she told us all about your diner. She said, and I quote, 'Luke would be very disappointed if we went to a Yankees game.'

"I haven't thought about that in years." Luke said.

"I'm just saying I'm glad someone is here to help. Lorelai isn't always good at asking for it."

"Well, you're welcome." Luke said.

"This is a nice little town." Richard commented.

"It has its moments. Watch out for the festivals, though." Luke told him.

"Does it get a little wild?"

"A little nutty is more like it." Luke scoffed. "Tourism is the main draw—especially the leaves in the fall. The town holds festivals for just about every holiday to keep things going throughout the year. You've just got to be prepared for seeing and hearing things that—any other day—would put you in a padded room at the nearest mental facility. But it helps the town, so I just try to stay out of the way."

"I bet your diner is pretty busy during the festivals."

"Part of the reason I can stay out of the way." Luke said.

Richard studied the window sill a moment.

"Something wrong?" Luke asked.

"No, I was just looking. Although, I don't know about the rest of this house…"

"It's a good house, and I think she got a really good deal on it." Luke said.

"I was looking at the chimney earlier—it seemed shoddy." Richard told him.

"She had it swept a few years ago—I don't think they've used it since then."

"Do you do a lot of repairs for Lorelai?"

"Just little things." Luke said.

The front door opened and Lane stepped outside. "Hey, Luke—Oh, hello Mr. Gilmore."

"Hello." Richard said.

"What do you need, Lane?" Luke asked.

"Sookie and I are moving some stuff—coolers and whatnot. Except we need a man because everything is too heavy for us to do the actual moving part. Could you help?"

"Uh, I should probably go…" Luke motioned to the door.

"Oh, go ahead." Richard said. "I've got to finish this article Rory gave me to read."

Luke followed Lane inside and Richard sat back down on the bench. Interesting man, he thought.

He passed on what he had learned about Luke to Emily while they drove home, and she sat quietly staring out the window. Finally she spoke. "He seems to like her."

"I think you're right."

"Rory really likes him." She continued in a low voice.

"He seems to care about her too."

"He's done a lot for them, hasn't he?"

"It appears that way." Richard agreed.

Emily didn't say anything for a moment, then she asked, "Did you know she broke her leg a few years ago?"

Thank you for not abandoning my story.