Disclaimer: Characters were created by the Paladinos and are currently being f 'd up by Rosenthal. I don't own them.

Author's Note: Okay, I thought I had written my last fic for the year. Turns out I was wrong. This will be my last, though b/c New Year's is 3 days away, and I'm fresh outta ideas. I'm sitting here at work with nothing productive to do, so I just started to type. This story takes place in Season 4- where Luke found Nicole creeping with the sockman. Instead of Luke calling Lorelai to bail him out of jail, he calls her to pick him up from a bar. I can't remember if that was the spring break episode or not, but it is here. Rory didn't go to Florida, though. I hope you like it. Thanks for all previous love. Let me take a moment and reiterate how much I adore you guys. Just throw that out there real quick :-P

Junkie Turned Angel

Lorelai pulled up in front of the bar. She had had to look up the address in the phone book since all Luke had provided her with was the name of the establishment. Thirty minutes ago, she'd gotten home from her date with Jason to discover a message on her machine from a guy who vaguely sounded like Luke Danes. He had asked her to come and pick him up because he was not fit to drive. She found out the location, grabbed her keys, and was out of the door in no time.

She threw her car in park and stepped out into the chilly air.

Several men and women stood outside and a few of the men called out to her as she walked past but she smiled and kept walking.

When she was through the door, loud country music invaded her eardrums. She spotted Luke at the bar, so she moved through the crowd of people toward him. When she reached him, she patted his shoulder. "Taxi's here," she said leaning in.

Luke spun around in his seat. As soon as he saw her, he broke out in a wide grin. "Lorelai!" He said loudly. Lorelai's eyes went wide at his outburst. He was drunk. Really drunk. "Lorelai," he continued, "I'd like you to meet somebody." He stood up and slapped his hand on the shoulder of the guy seated next to him. "This is Billy," he said.

The guy looked at Lorelai and smiled. "My name is Pete," he corrected to her.

Luke stepped back and looked at the man sideways. "Really?" He asked dubiously. He scrunched up his face. "You know I'm not seein' it? I'll just call you Billy. It suits you." He looked back to Lorelai just as she was offering an apologetic shrug to Pete. "Billy," Luke continued looking happily to Lorelai, "I'd like you to meet Lorelai." He looked back to the guy. "She's gorgeous, isn't she?"

Pete looked up to her with an uncomfortable smile, and Lorelai looked back to him with the same one on her face.

She grabbed his sleeve. "Okay Luke, let's get you out of here." He leaned into her pull but still stood firm as he continued.

"But don't think about asking her out, Billy." He leaned forward. "She has a boyfriend." Pete raised his eyebrows in a way that suggested he'd rather be anywhere other than where he was.

"Uh, Luke, I'm double-parked. Let's go."

Luke squinted at Lorelai and widened his eyes as if he was trying to focus on her. "This is a bar," he began. "One guy's parked through the bathroom. Just feel happy that you found the parking lot."

"Luke, let's go," she repeated firmly. She looked down to his companion. "We're about to go. Nice to meet you, Pete," she said winking. Pete nodded and turned back toward the counter.

Luke gave Lorelai a lazy smile as she yanked him toward the door. "Bye, Billy!" He yelled.

She let him go once he started to follow willingly. Once they reached the door, several people started walking in the bar so Lorelai stood holding the door open. Luke walked directly against her backside, and she turned her head quickly thinking some drunk stranger was trying to grope her.

Upon seeing Luke, her expression of borderline anger changed to one of confusion and then shock at seeing that he was quite comfortable with his position. He placed his hands on her hips as he let his chin rest on her shoulder like he was doing nothing out of the ordinary.

The people had entered, but she allowed the door to close as she stepped away from Luke and turned to face him with her mouth partially open.

"What?" Luke asked with a grin. "The door's free. Come on." He waved her over before walking out leaving her standing there looking wide-eyed at him. She pulled herself together before walking out. As soon as she was outside, shouts started being directed at her once again, complimenting her in ways that was flattering, but rude nonetheless. Luke stopped and turned around, stumbling slightly as he reached an arm out to her. He did it more as a gesture to usher her ahead of him - - a protective move that played out even in his drunken state. She moved ahead of him, keeping a watchful eye on him as she did so.

They reached her jeep, and she started to walk around to the drivers' side but stopped at the passenger side door instead. She figured Luke may need a little help getting in. Standing at the door fumbling for her key, she felt Luke, once again, walk up behind her. He didn't walk flush against her this time. Instead, he reached a hand up and moved her hair to one side, and placed his mouth centimeters from her neck. She could feel his warm breath flowing against her skin.

She dropped her keys. "Luke!" She exclaimed as she stepped to the side. "What are you doing?" She asked slowly.

He held his hands up in a gesture that suggested he had no idea what she was talking about. He dropped his hands, licked his lips and bent down to retrieve her car keys. He had to hold onto the jeep for support.

"You dropped these," he said reaching the keys to her.

Lorelai regarded him for a minute before reaching out and grabbing the keys. "Thanks," she said caustically. She moved around him, pointing a finger in his face. "Do not do that again," she warned. She wasn't mad. Not even close, but she was on guard. She unlocked the door quickly and turned back even quicker making sure he was in the same location.

His eyes were drooped, and he broke out in another wide smile. "See," he said holding his arms out, "I'm being a good boy." Lorelai bit her lip as she tried to fight back a smile.

"Come on and get in," she said opening the door. He walked over and climbed in no problem. She closed the door and walked around to her side finding the door already unlocked. "Thanks," she said climbing in. "Now, let's- -" She stopped and took in Luke's proximity. He was seated right next to her, so close that she could look in her rear view mirror and see him without even leaning up. "Did you want to operate the accelerator?" She asked him as he sat looking at her.

He shook his head playfully. "I think I'm drunk," he whispered. "I can't drive."

"No kidding," she muttered. Lorelai looked around him to the large amount of empty seat. She looked back up in his face with a look of amusement. "Don't you think it'd be a good idea to slide over to where your seatbelt is?"

He turned his head and looked at his seatbelt before turning back to her. "Can't we just share yours?" His eyes dropped to Lorelai's body.

"Luke?!" She said loudly as she lifted his chin. The volume arose from shock at his actions as well as shock at her brief internal tingle. "Get over there now, put on your seatbelt, and…stop doing that!" She finished.

"Okay, I'm moving," he said with a still present grin. He reached up and lightly wrapped his fingers around her wrist, removing it from his face. She looked down to her wrist as if interrogating it about the not-so-small frisson that had shot up at his touch.

He moved over to his side. He fumbled with his belt buckle as he struggled to find the slot. He looked up at Lorelai. "Something's wrong with your seatbelt," he told her.

She shook her head. "Here," she said reaching for the strap. He tried to reach it to her, but it had locked. He continued to yank on it like something was just wrong with his strength. "Luke," Lorelai said scooting over a little, "you have to let it go back in and then extract it." She leaned over him to demonstrate her words. His head followed her actions, and his left hand went to rest on her right hip. She pulled the seatbelt back out and slid back to secure it across him. His hand fell away from her body.

She scooted back to her side and released a heavy sigh, taking time to fasten her own seatbelt. "My, aren't you a touchy drunk?" She said calmly as she cranked up the jeep.

She pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. Luke started to shift, and she threw a glance over to him. "Are you okay?" She asked as he continued to squirm.

"No, I'm fine," he said. He reached a hand up and wiped at his face. "It's just hot!"

"It's probably the alcohol. Crack your window a little," she advised.

"It's cold outside," he said rationally.

"Okay, well, don't crack your window a little," she said, watching him continue to fidget.

"Maybe if I just—" He un-clicked his seatbelt. "Ah, that's better," he said sliding down on the seat.

"Luke, your seatbelt is not making you hot. Put it back on," she told him.

He rolled his head against the seat turning to face her. "I don't want to put it back on. It's hot!"

Lorelai held up a hand. "Okay…then just…be really still."

He smiled. "I can do that."

Lorelai clicked on her signal and merged onto the highway. She relaxed a bit. "So," she began, "how was your night?" She asked with the tiniest bit of sarcasm.

He shrugged. "It was fine," he said looking out of the window. "My marriage is over," he added casually.

"What? Why?" Lorelai asked.

He released a sigh. "I don't wanna talk about it." He turned back to look at her, and she continued to split her attention between him and the highway. "You look pretty," he said.

Lorelai felt herself blush. "Thank you," she said as if she was trying to appease a small child.

"You do," he assured. He reached out a hand and slid it down the side of her leg. "Soft," he said low before dropping his fingers to the seat.

She had on a skirt, and his fingertips had grazed the part of her leg where the split lay. Her breath hitched, and her eyes fell to his hand. "We're gonna, um, get you home and into bed—"

"I'd like that," he said in a throaty tone.

"ALONE," she continued with a smile that she didn't even know was present, "…where you can get some rest."

"Whatever you say," he said yawning.

Along the ride, Luke had chosen to lay down on the seat, his head resting beside Lorelai as he looked up at her. At first he would occasionally reach up and touch her arm or her shoulder, and she'd gently remove his hand with no firm objection.

When they were about ten minutes outside of Stars Hollow, he reached a hand up and started to play with strands of her hair. Lorelai looked down to him, and saw on his face a look of concentration like he was her hairstylist in the middle of a masterpiece. She smiled at him and continued to drive.

His fingers running through her hair seemed to soothe her. It seemed like some kind of touch therapy that served to relax her and allow her mind to slip into a peaceful, carefree state. The ten minute drive seemed to fly by. She drove by the sign welcoming them to Stars Hollow. "We're here," she said quietly.

He pulled his hand away and struggled to sit up. Lorelai looked quickly at him, missing the contact in her hair.

He finally managed to get vertical, and he slid closer to her. "Hey," he said softly, leaning against the chair.

Lorelai rolled her eyes with a smile. "Hey Luke." She looked over at him and did a double take when she noticed his gaze on her legs. "Do not," she said simply.

His gaze rested on her parted legs. A corner of his mouth turned up. "Do not what?" He asked lazily. His tongue came out ran across his bottom lip as he glanced back up at her.

Lorelai completely forgot about the road as she watched him for a second. He was being very bold, and she momentarily wondered why she had just been so entranced by his tongue running over his lip.

She turned back toward the road. "Luke, scoot back over to your side," she said half-heartedly.

"But I want to thank you for coming to get me."

"Okay, you just did. And you're welcome."

"But, I want to show—"

"Luke," Lorelai said grabbing his hand before it made contact with her leg, "we really have to get you some coffee."

"I hate coffee."

She released his hand. "I know, but it'll help you sober up." She drove past Mrs. Kim's Antique store and squinted as she saw a familiar form. "Rory!" She said stopping next to her. Rory was about to climb into her car, but turned and walked over to her mom's jeep.

"Hey Mom." She walked closer, noticing the passenger. "Hey Luke," she added. "Where are you guys coming- - uh, Mom, why is Luke running his hand up your thigh?"

Lorelai looked to Luke casually before lifting his hand and placing it in his lap without a second thought. She turned back to Rory. "Well, Honey, Luke is a little inebriated. And apparently drunk-Luke equals extremely uninhibited horny-Luke," she ended with a smile.

Luke was now leaning back on the seat with his eyes closed, completely oblivious to the conversation going on about him.

"Oh," Rory said with amusement. "Well, that sounds fun for you."

"You have no idea," Lorelai responded with a roll of her eyes.

"Is he going to be okay?" Rory asked.

Lorelai looked over at him. "He'll be fine, Hon. Just a rough night."

"Okay, well you go ahead and get him home. I'll call you later."

"Alright. You heading back to school?"

"Yeah, I'm going to get a jumpstart on some reading."

"That's my little Spring Break queen. I'll see you later, then?" Rory nodded and walked closer, placing a kiss on her mother's cheek. "Next time you come home, how about giving me a call? I would've totally ditched Jason if I'd have known you were in town." Lorelai winked at her.

"I'm sure he would have loved that," Rory responded.

"Hey, Gilmore girl comes first," she said with a wide smile. She reached out and squeezed her hand. "Drive safe back to Hartford." Rory nodded, and Lorelai pulled off.

A few minutes later she pulled up in from of the market.

"Okay, I'm going to go in Doose's for a minute to get you some headache medicine because you will need it. Stay right here." She spoke to him even though he didn't seem to be cognizant. "Luke," she called evenly. "Even better," she said to herself as she climbed out of the jeep, closing the door lightly.

She walked in the store and headed straight toward the aisle where the aspirin were. She picked up a box without even stopping before heading toward the food aisle. She figured she'd pick him up a few things just in case he didn't have any hangover food in his apartment. She laughed to herself as she pictured him trying to settle his stomach with several pieces of celery.

A group of girls came in the store, and Lorelai took immediate notice because of how loud they were. They looked to be about 25, and she guessed between the four of them, they had to have an IQ of around 200. Not just because they were too beautiful to be smart, but because they just didn't look too bright. The fact that everything they said sounded like a question was beside the point.

The door opened again, and Lorelai looked up briefly, and her eyes went wide when she saw Luke stumbling inside. "Oh crap," Lorelai mumbled. She looked at Luke, and then she looked at the girls that were standing near. Her first thought was that he was going to try to feel them up, and they would be ready to press charges, not knowing him well enough to know that he'd never do anything to hurt them.

They tried to whisper, but were shamefully loud in doing so—another hint that Lorelai's presumed IQ for them wasn't that far off mark.

"He is cute. Go ahead. You're the one with a thing for older guys," dumb-ass one said to dumb-ass two.

"He seems hammered, though," dumb-ass two said.

"But he's really hot. If you're not going to go for it, I will."

"Well, one of you guys need to do something," dumb-ass three chimed in.

Lorelai rolled her eyes at them as Luke made his way through the door. She knew that Luke would make a pass because he was uncharacteristically frisky in his intoxication, and there were four young, hot, apparently willing females at his disposal.

She looked from him to them, not making the logical choice to just go over and get him. Luke came in the door and stood there for a second as he looked around the small store. He spotted Lorelai and broke out in a wide grin before heading over to where she stood looking at him.

All four of the girls stood in the path leading to her. As soon as Luke noticed them, Lorelai's breath caught. "This won't be good," she muttered to herself. Luke looked up and looked confusedly from face to face as if they'd sprung up from nowhere.

"Excuse me," he slurred as he tried to pass by.

"Wait," one of them said. Lorelai's head reared back at the very forward dumb-ass two. "I was kind of wondering if maybe I could give you a call sometime," she said looking up at him.

Luke's head reared back the same as Lorelai's had. He seemed to sober up when he replied, "No, thank you." He tried to move past them, and dumb-ass two placed her hand on his arm, stopping him.

"Are you sure? I could really make it worth your while."

"I am very sure." He looked down to her hand. "Do you mind?" He asked looking at her annoyed.

"Suit yourself," she said removing her hand. "Your loss." He walked around them with steady steps, his eyes concentrating on avoiding body contact with all of them.

"Man, is he gay."

"Sooo into guys," another replied causing a series of dumb-ass giggles.

Lorelai stood there witnessing the whole thing play out in front of her. She watched Luke as he made his way over to her, and her first thought was that he had managed to sober up a bit. He got to her aisle and the goofy smile returned to his face.

"I thought I told you to stay in the jeep, mister," Lorelai said lightly.

"I missed you," he said coming over to her and placing his arm around her shoulder. He leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.

"Luke," Lorelai whispered. She tried to ignore the butterflies that sprung up in her stomach. "You can't keep doing that."

"I know," he said closing his eyes lazily. "I know you have a boyfriend." He removed his arm. "I'll stop. I'll be good. I'm sorry."

She thought that he had slipped partially out of his alcohol high, but he was still in full effect. She wondered why he hadn't been affected by the four temptresses. Any man would have been, and if he was drunk, that would have only hightened his attraction.

She looked up at him and saw a sudden sadness. She stepped closer to him. "I just don't want you to do anything you're going to regret tomorrow. That's all."

"I won't regret anything that I do with you," he said as he reached out and grabbed the shelf that held canned goods.

She looked at him seriously for a few seconds. The genuineness of his words threw her for a moment. "Let's go, okay?" She took hold of his wrist and started walking toward the checkout counter. Luke pulled his arm back, causing his hand to slip into hers, and she turned back, looking at him and then their intertwined fingers. She turned back around, deciding that there was no harm in it.

They reached checkout where Taylor's niece was slowly ringing up the first of the two customers that stood there. Lorelai sighed heavily, not wanting to stand in line waiting forever for the girl to finish. She stopped behind the elderly gentleman in front of her and placed her items on the belt. Luke stopped beside her, his hand still inside of hers. He breathed deep too, noticing the small line of people.

Lorelai looked down again to their hands when she felt Luke's other hand come over hers. He slid his right hand out and replaced it with his left as he moved to stand behind her. Lorelai released a tired sigh, having grown tired of reprimanding him. He stepped behind her and slowly came to stand right up on her body.

"Luke," Lorelai said with a warning tone.

"Just tell me to stop, and I'll stop," he said into her ear. Lorelai could smell the beer on his breath. Not one to get turned on by drunk men, she wondered why she was having a little trouble getting words out. This was Luke. Luke represented friend and coffee god, and the feeling that was slowly building with his proximity didn't fit in any of those descriptions.

"Luke, I told you," she said with little heart.

"You told me what?" His lips actually managed to touch her ear that time. Lorelai's eyes slid shut, and she snapped them open quickly.

She pulled on his hand, bringing him back to her side. She looked up at him. "Stand there. Do not move," she said sternly as she released his hand. He nodded with a half smile.

-------------

Lorelai stood in Luke's kitchen unloading the items that she had gotten for his morning hangover. "Man, you really do eat healthy," she said as she held the refrigerator door open. "You must have a BMI of like two percent."

"Six," he replied as he lay stretched out on his bed. "Six percent," he sang out. "Six percent. And that's still not enough for old Nicole. Oooold Nicole," he finished indolently.

Lorelai closed the refrigerator door and started to walk over to where he was. "You want to tell me what happened?" She asked softly as she sat on the edge of his bed.

"There's nothing to tell," he said rolling his neck to look at her. "I went distant. She went bye bye with the sockman."

"Oh my god. So, there was something with the socks?"

"There was something with the socks," he confirmed. He paused. "I followed her. I followed her…like Batman creeping in the shadowy shadows, and guess where they went?" He didn't give her time to answer. "They went up the stairs and into the house, and they stayed there for one hour, then two hours." He raised his eyebrows. "So, I left. I left to go have a beer," he stated proudly. "It beat my first idea of going to kick the shit out of sockman's car. That would have taught him. Bastard."

"Luke, maybe—"

"But he didn't do anything. He probably didn't even know about me. It was her. Nicole, my wife. My wife," he repeated. He started to chuckle. "What the hell was I thinking?" He asked laughing harder. "Well," he breathed out. "If it wasn't over before, it definitely is now." He laughed again. "That's for damn sure."

"I'm sorry," Lorelai said shaking her head. "You don't deserve to be treated like that."

"Yeah, I did."

Lorelai's head turned quickly to him. "No, you did not," she said firmly.

"I didn't want to be in there with her. She knew it. I went distant. She left," he repeated.

"In where?"

"In the relationship," he answered. "Nicole's a very smart woman. I knew she wouldn't put up with it for too long. But I couldn't help it. I just didn't want to be in it with her."

"Well, even if you…'went distant', that doesn't justify her indiscretion, Luke. She should have talked to you. And if that didn't work, she should have ended the relationship, gotten a divorce, and then called…the sockman. None of this is your fault. And I do not want you thinking it is."

"Okay, but that still doesn't stop the fact that it is." He looked at her when he saw her shaking her head in his peripherals. "You know, she really didn't care for you," he said, ignoring her objection.

Lorelai looked at him with a smirk. "Thank you for telling me that," she said sarcastically. He smiled. "And just for the record," she continued, "the feeling was mutual."

"Was it?" Luke asked. She gave him a small nod. A long silence followed her admission where Luke just stared at her with a telling grin on his face.

"Stop looking at me like that," Lorelai said turning away.

"Okay," he said simply.

Lorelai glanced back at him, noticing his gaze now toward the ceiling. "Okay, I'm going to go ahead and take off. I doubt you'll get sick, but I put a trashcan next to the bed because you can never be too sure. And, in the morning, you can eat some pancakes. I put the mix in the cabinet next to the frige."

"Why do you have to leave? We can stay up late and talk or something."

"Luke, I can't stay here."

"Why not?"

"Because…I can't stay here."

"Nice argument."

"It's going to have to do," she responded standing up.

"Wait." Luke stood up too, but almost fell over his dresser when he did.

"Watch it!" She yelled reaching for him.

He regained his footing, grasping her elbows as she held on to him. "Excuse to touch me?"

She smiled. "An excuse to have me touch you?" She asked playfully.

He bent down and flipped a switch on his clock radio. He swayed a bit, but held a light grip on Lorelai's arm to hold her in place.

"What are you doing?" She asked as she held her hands out in case of an emergency rescue. He continued to change the dial until an instrumental slow song came through clearly. "Luke, what are you doing?" She asked him again.

He stood up. "Can I have this dance?" He asked her.

Lorelai started to laugh. "Are you kidding me?" She looked down at his hand that he had extended toward her. "Luke, you are drunk. I am not dancing with you."

He started to nod. "I'm a pretty good dancer," he urged.

"I don't doubt that, but 'pretty good' will mean nothing when you stumble and knock yourself out cold."

He considered her words for a moment. "Okay," he conceded. He dropped his hand and walked toward the kitchen, music still playing. "You want some water? Or some wine?"

"You don't have any wine," Lorelai said knowingly, figuring he probably didn't.

"No, I don't, but would you stay if I did?"

She laughed and shook her head. "I'll see you tomorrow, Luke." She started walking toward the door. "Call me if you need something…or tomorrow when Luke returns. Whichever comes first."

"Like you would stay for Luke," he mumbled.

"What?" She asked pausing at the door.

"I am Luke, and I'm asking you to stay," he said shrugging.

"I know you're Luke, but you're not…Luke."

"And you would stay for Luke?"

Lorelai stared at him before shaking her head briskly. "Okay, this is getting confusing."

He ignored her. "Wait, I'll get him for you." He held up a finger to her. "Luke!" He called.

"Luke—"

"Luke!" He continued. "Where are you, buddy?"

"Luke—"

"Lorelai's here, Luke. She wants you! She wants you to come and pour her coffee and be her shoulder. She needs you, man." Lorelai fell silent, and her hand fell off of the door knob. "Lucas," he sang. He turned and looked at her. "I hate that name," he said to her. He turned back and looked under the table. "Luke, where are you, you handsome devil?"

"Luke, stop," Lorelai said softly.

"I haven't found him yet. What, you don't want him any more?" He waved his hand. "Of course you don't. You never did. Luke's the kind of guy that would stick around and raise his kids. Luke's the kind of guy that wouldn't take off and leave a SIXTEEN year old girl to be a mother and a father to her child. Of course you don't want him. He's not your type."

"Okay," she said holding up a hand. "Drunk or not, that was really uncalled for."

"Whatever," he said walking over to and then flopping down on the couch.

She placed her hands on her hips. "Where the hell did that come from?" She asked.

"It came from nowhere. You can go if you want to," he said. "I'll be fine."

"No, no," she said walking over and sitting beside him. "You are not about to get out of this so easily. I want to know where that came from, Luke." She waited for an answer. "Do you think I use you?" She asked after a while.

"I'm sorry. You didn't deserve that," he said sliding down on the chair.

"Why did you say it, then?"

He shook his head. "I'm a jerk. I really shouldn't have said that."

"No, you're not a jerk, which is why I'm wondering if that's the way you really feel."

He looked at her and turned away. "No, it's not." He reached up at rubbed his face. "Alcohol talking."

Lorelai felt the need to remind him that alcohol only makes you more apt to verbalize emotions that you wouldn't reveal otherwise. She felt that that would only start course on a winding road with neither of them getting anywhere, though.

"How do you feel about me?" She heard him ask.

She turned and looked fully at him. "What do you mean?"

He repeated his question, and she just looked at him and rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Luke, I'm not about to answer that right now."

"Why?"

"Because," she said. "You're drunk, and if you were asking as Luke, then it'd be different, but you're not, and your intentions are not really…Luke-like."

"Okay, can we stop with that already? I'm Luke. I'm asking," he said pointing to himself. "Talk to me."

"You are not Luke," she said simply.

"Then, who am I if I'm not Luke, Lorelai?"

"Gropey McGroperson? I don't know," she said laughing.

He released a sigh. "Forget it," he said softly.

"You're not going to have much memory after tonight anyway, so it won't matter what I say to you."

"You're acting like I'm asking you what the secret meaning of life is or something." She smiled. "It's a simple question." He spoke in a gentle tone. "Just…tell me how you see me."

She shrugged lightly and looked quickly around the room as if generating speech. She finally released a tired sigh and settled her eyes on Luke. "You want to know how I see you, Luke?" He nodded eagerly. "Fine, I'll tell you." She moved her hair behind her ear.

She started speaking as if she was retelling a story that she had told thousands of times. "You're Luke," she began. "Friend, confidante, protector, listener, and giver of everything, including the best coffee I've ever tasted. Sometimes I think that you'll one day grow tired of me and ditch me like a bad habit- like one day I'll become your twelfth step or something. I have no idea why you continue to put up with me, but I have always dreaded that one day when I would see you and you would inform me that you can't take me anymore, that you've had enough of me. And apparently, that day is today."

He stared at her expressionlessly, and she looked back to him. "So, how do you feel about me?" Luke asked her.

She gave him a confused look. "I just told you." He continued to stare at her. "What do you want me to say?" She asked. He continued his stare, until she broke contact. She started to say something but was interrupted by her cell phone buzzing.

Lorelai looked down at the caller ID before answering. "Hey," she said. "I thought you'd be asleep by now. Decided not to go on your business trip?" Pause. "Yeah, of course not," she said smiling. She looked back at Luke as he sat looking down at the coffee table. "Oh," she continued. "I told you that you would forget it." Pause. "Well, I'm not there right now but go ahead and let yourself in. Key in the turtle." Pause. "At a friend's house." Pause. She started to smooth her hands over her skirt nervously. "No, Luke." Pause. "Well, look at you all jealous. Totally loving the Eric Stoltz's Mr. Grimm thing." She chuckled. She tossed another glance back to Luke and he was still looking down. She stood up and started to cross the room. "No, I'm probably going to be here for a little while longer." Pause. "Jason, please. I'll explain everything to you tomorrow, okay?" Pause. "Jason? You there?" Pause. "Thought you had hung up. I'll talk to you tomorrow?" Pause. "Are you upset?" Pause. "No, you just sound like your mood kind of shifted." Pause. Her voice was much less enthused. "I told you I won't be back for a while." Pause. "Jason, please don't act like that, okay? I can't take it right now." Pause. "Okay, fine. I'll talk to you tomorrow," she finished quietly.

She flipped her phone shut before walking back over to where Luke sat. "Trouble in paradise?"

She looked at him. "It's nothing I can't handle," she told him.

"You can leave if you want to. Thank you for putting up with me."

She turned her entire body to face him and tucked a leg under her other leg. Her skirt came up, exposing even more skin, and Luke's gaze immediately fell to that part of her body. She snapped her finger. "Eyes up," she instructed, not bothering to change positions. He raised his eyes back up with a smile. She started to speak.

"You asked me how I feel about you." She continued without giving him a chance to respond to her statement. With a sudden burst of confidence, she began. "Every since I got a chance to really know you, I have thought that you were, in so many ways, the perfect man. You're handsome, so sweet, caring, and above all, you care about Rory." Luke instinctively nodded at that. "I do not particularly care to see you with other women. I do not know why, and frankly, I have put in lots of effort trying not to give it any thought." She looked down and smiled, more at herself. "But, I'll digress. It's not even about 'types' with you. No matter what kind of man a woman is into, I really can't see anyone not finding you enticing. Honestly. You're like…the whole package or something, but again, no thought time going on in here," she said circling her finger over her head. "I am hoping like hell that you'll forget all this by tomorrow by the way," she said quickly. "Because you are too great a friend to put in the middle of my awful relationship tendencies." She pointed to the phone. "See that, what just happened there? That's probably the end of that." She smiled. "It'll suck. I'll probably even cry because it's one more step in solidifying my growing old with cats scenario. But you know what? I'll get over it and move on." She paused. "If I were to go there with you, I know that when I managed to screw it up, there'd be a lot more tears, and the moving on would not come nearly as easily. So, how do I feel about you? Let's just say that I think very highly."

Luke broke in a wide grin.

"Did that answer your question?" She asked.

He stood up slowly, trying to keep his balance, and she went on alert in case he needed help. He held his hand out to her again. "Will you dance with me?" He asked.

"What is it with you and dancing tonight?" She chuckled. "Luke, you are drunk. I can't dance with you. It'll be weird, not to mention a little gross."

He couldn't help but laugh. "Come on. I won't do anything. I promise." He picked up her hand and started to pull gently for her to stand up. She stood up reluctantly.

"I know I'm going to regret this," she mumbled.

"No, you won't," Luke said as he pulled her close. She was directly in his face, and she stilled for a moment.

"Okay," she whispered. "Why don't we just back this up a little." She took a couple small steps backward. "Better," she said when their pelvises separated. She smiled even though the charge that was ignited at contact hardly felt humorous.

The music from the clock radio had changed to a slower ballad, but an instrumental still echoed around the apartment. Luke started to sway and began to move them steadily from side-to-side. His ability to remain steady surprised Lorelai since he proved his walking ability to be less than satisfactory.

"You move well," she said as she looked down to his feet.

"You should see me in the –"

"Do not even finish that, Mr. Bravado."

"Sorry," he said with a wide smile. They danced for a while longer in silence. Lorelai put much effort in avoiding his eyes—ones that he kept glued on her. He slowly started bringing her nearer and nearer to him. She went. One tiny step, then another, and another before…

"Okay, I think that's enough dancing," Lorelai said backing up. "Let's go ahead and snap a cork on this night and get you to sleep so you can hurry up and wake up and start being embarrassed." She smiled.

Luke still held onto her. "Can I have a kiss?" He asked.

Her reaction wasn't one of shock like Luke was expecting. "I'm going to have to say 'no'" She said calmly, not pulling completely from his light grasp. "But what you can have is a glass of water and some aspirin before you climb into bed."

"One kiss and I'll go to bed and leave you alone," he said with a smile.

"Luke, I can't - -" She looked at him as his suddenly very blue eyes looked back into hers. She rolled her eyes. "And then you'll go to bed?" She asked.

"And go to sleep for 2 days if you want."

She shook her head. "One kiss, Luke," she said firmly. He nodded. Her nerves started to vibrate wildly under her skin, and she knew instantly that she would regret her decision. She was not supposed to be kissing Luke. She knew that, and still she had agreed. Butterflies flitted up in her stomach as she realized what was about to take place.

She took a deep breath, looking at Luke's lips. He pulled her closer to him, and his eyes slowly closed. She watched his mouth drawing closer and closer to her own before her eyes slid shut. Upon contact, Lorelai's breathing stopped as she allowed the new sensation to shoot up and down her body. His lips were soft. Soft and warm, with no detectable taste of beer. His lips moved over hers a little. Her hands were positioned on his arms, and she knew that at any moment she would lose herself in this kiss. It was becoming a battle trying to keep her tongue at bay. She began to slide her hands up to bring them around his neck, but before she could, Luke pulled away. She opened her eyes quickly as if being jarred awake. She opened her mouth, taking heavy breaths as she looked to Luke. His eyes remained shut as he held onto to her. He slowly opened his eyes and focused on her.

"I'll leave you alone, now," he said softly. He stepped back. Lorelai had a moment of confusion as she had to fight for her brain to remember something other than Luke's lips on her own.

She finally remembered what she had said to him. "Oh, yeah," she said aloofly. "Good."

"And now, I will keep my end of the bargain," he said as he walked over and lowered himself on the mattress. "Goodnight," he mumbled, burying his face in the pillow.

Lorelai stared after him. "Yeah, goodnight," she said back.

-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

"Lorelai?" Luke asked sitting up. "Lorelai?" He said louder.

She sprung up quickly, looking around her. She looked over and saw Luke. "Oh, hi," she said sleepily. She reached up and rubbed her eyes. "I must have fallen asleep," she said.

He looked at her with wide eyes. "What, uh, what are you doing here?" He asked grabbing his head.

Lorelai brought her lips in and hung her head for a few seconds before looking back to him. "You don't know why I'm here?" He gave her a look like he was trying hard to remember. "Let me guess," she began. "You don't remember anything that happened last night."

"I know it involved alcohol," he said rubbing his temple. "Did I do something embarrassing?"

She shook her head sadly with a small smile. "No, you didn't do anything," she said softly.

"Good," he said. He lifted the covers and peaked underneath. "Clothing. Always a good sign," he said climbing out of bed. He stood up and grasped his head again. "Man, how much did I drink?"

Lorelai looked at him. "I don't know," she answered distractedly.

He walked over to where she sat on the couch, stopping at the end of it. "Did I call you?"

"Yeah," she said, trying to sound normal. "You were at a bar in Litchfield. I came and got you."

"So my truck—"

"Is still in Litchfield," she finished. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I'll drive you to pick it up if you want."

"No," he answered, still holding his head, "I probably caused you enough trouble." He grabbed onto the back of the couch. "Thank you, Lorelai. I'm sorry if I ruined your evening. I see you're all dressed up." She looked down at herself.

"It was no big deal."

"I can't believe I let myself get that drunk. I haven't felt like this since I was young and stupid with no idea how to handle my alcohol."

She smiled. "Well, I guess I'm going to take off. Are you going to be okay?" She asked standing up and straightening her clothes.

"Yeah," he said softly. "I'll be fine. Thank you. I owe you one."

She rolled her eyes. "Please Luke, as many times as you've been my savior?" She waved away his comment. "Don't worry about it." She leaned down and retrieved her things. "I'll see you later on." she said.

"Can I get you some breakfast or something. It's the least I can do."

"No," she said quietly. "I have to get going." She walked toward the door. "Thanks, though," she said turning slightly. She opened the door and walked out.

Once outside, she closed the door and leaned against the wall. She took a few deep breaths, feeling an unflattering emotion building up in the pit of her stomach. "It never happened," she whispered to herself. She opened her eyes and pushed herself off of the wall, walking quickly down the staircase.

Inside of the apartment, Luke started to take off his clothes so that he could take a shower and get in the diner. He took off his flannel, and smelling a highly familiar fragrance, he looked around before bringing the shirt up to his nose. He sniffed it and recognized immediately that it belonged to Lorelai. He brought the shirt down and released a heavy sigh. He had been close enough to get her perfume on his flannel. He pictured himself leaning on her for support as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Of all the things not to have memory of," he muttered as he headed into the bathroom.

...TBC...????????

I don't know where to go from here. No ideas beyond this. I know it could definitely go on. Should I continue this or just let it die? Ideas? I don't know. Let me know. Or don't . It's whatever. Well, either way, here's wishing a happy new year to everyone. Bring 2K7 in with a bang. Literally. Ha!