Chapter 4
"Dating sucks, there've been medical studies proving that exact statement."
AN: I started writing this story a while back, before Marty returned in "Written in the Stars." So if his characterization seems a little off, that's why. He's pretty much "In My Head" Marty rather than ASP's Marty. Thanks to Lauren for the beta!
Chapter 4: Confessions and Pancakes
"You think I'm fat, don't you? You do. You think you married a big cow."
Marty looked at Rory, rolling his eyes. The couple in the booth behind theirs was in the middle of a very loud, very public argument that was just too funny to be ignored. Rory bit her lip to keep from laughing as the skinny platinum blonde woman put on her fake fur coat and flounced out of the all-night diner, tailed closely by her contrite biker husband.
And I thought I had problems, she thought.
Rory huddled in the large gray jacket -- Marty's, who had insisted. She stared at him over the rim of her coffee cup, watching as he happily dug into his Denver omelet. Feeling her eyes on him, he looked up and flashed a quick smile.
"How's your head?"
"A little better." That was true. The food and coffee had helped take the edge off her alcohol-induced headache. She thanked her lucky stars that she hadn't gotten to the throwing-up-raging-hangover level of drunk that night. She was too much of a lightweight for that.
Rory sat up straight in the booth, frantically reaching for her cell phone. "Oh, shoot! Did I..."
"Tell your friend Janet you were leaving? Yeah."
Relieved, she slumped back in her seat. "I don't even remember talking to her."
"We passed her on the way out. Everything's cool."
"More coffee, hon?" Rory nodded and passed her cup to the waitress.
"So. I guess the playing field is leveled now, huh?" Marty wrinkled his brow questioningly, so Rory elaborated. "This is much worse than pajamas and bunny slippers. Still not quite up there with sleeping in the hallway naked, though."
"No, I guess you're not in the ranks of true deviance yet."
You might be surprised.
"Why are you doing all of this?" she blurted out suddenly.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not a nice person, Marty. I'm selfish and self-absorbed and I do dumb things without thinking about the consequences. So I don't get why you're still here, doing things like pushing me into a fountain and buying me pancakes at 2 in the morning."
He shook his head, took a small sip of his juice. "I guess I see you differently."
"Differently than what?"
"Than you see yourself. You say you're selfish and do dumb things. Well I don't see that. I see an intelligent, thoughtful girl who's probably made a mistake or two and is much too hard on herself as a result. I see a girl who is in desperate need of someone to make her smile, because it looks like she hasn't done that in quite some time."
Rory dragged her fork through the syrupy remains on her plate. "So you're trying to save me, is that it?"
"No. I'm trying to be your friend, because for whatever reason, I like you."
Rory smiled. "Thanks." She wanted to leave it at that, but for some reason, she couldn't stop herself from saying, "I've made more than a 'mistake or two', as you put it."
"Why don't you tell me about him?" he said, popping a piece of toast in his mouth.
"Dean?" He nodded, and she laughed bitterly. "Which story do you want first? Because my personal favorite is the one where I broke his heart, but the one where I helped him commit adultery is a real barn-burner, too."
Marty choked on his toast, but to his credit, he merely gulped down some juice and said, "Uh, why don't you just start at the beginning."
She took a deep breath.
When she was finished, Marty whistled softly. "Wow."
"Yeah."
"So you broke up with Dean for...?"
"Jess. And actually, Dean broke up with me. Not that I blame him."
" But then Jess left you for California."
"More or less."
He shook his head. "That's really tough, I'm sorry."
"Sorry? Did you miss the part where this whole big mess was my fault?"
"I must have, because I don't see how any of this is just your fault. Dating sucks, there've been medical studies proving that exact statement."
"It wasn't just dating, it was—"
"What? Love? Can you really say you're in love with Dean?"
Rory sighed. "I used to be."
"Look, I've been on the receiving end of a harsh breakup before, and the thing no one ever seems to realize while it's happening is that it's NOT the end of the world. You may have hurt Dean, intentionally or unintentionally, I don't know, but if he was still hanging on to you even after he was married, then he is at least as much to blame as you are."
"But I'm the reason his marriage fell apart. You can't just wave that away as nothing."
"It sounds to me like he probably shouldn't have gotten married in the first place," Marty countered. "Not if he was still hung up on you. And he certainly didn't have to come looking for you that night."
"He's really not a bad guy," Rory said dejectedly.
"I'm sure he's not. But neither are you, so stop killing yourself with guilt. Mistakes get made, or, as my Grandma Izzy would say, shit happens."
Rory laughed. "Your grandma says that?"
"Oh yeah. She's eighty-two and full of charming little anecdotes like that. Thanksgiving is a real hoot, let me tell you."
She'd probably fit in well in Stars Hollow, Rory thought with a grin.
"You're a lot different than I thought," Rory said. "You were so quiet last year."
"Well, it's late. I get chatty after midnight."
"I will have to keep that in mind." Rory checked her watch. "It is getting pretty late. Would you mind giving me a ride back?"
"Nah, I was planning on leaving you here."
"Very funny, Fountain Boy." Rory reached for the check that the waitress had left on their table, only to have her hand slapped away.
"Nuh-uh. My treat." Marty snatched the check away and stood up, tossing four dollars on the table for a tip. Rory slid out of the booth and followed him to the checkout counter.
"You'll have to let me pay for something at some point, you know," she said as they headed to the door.
"Fine," he replied, holding the door open for her. "Next time I get embarrassingly drunk, you can buy the hangover food."
~*~*~
Rory leaned her head against the headrest. She let her eyelids slide down until her lashes met, flashes of color and light shining through them from the lamps and streetlights they passed. She remembered doing the same thing as a kid, thinking that the colors looked like little fireworks. "Hey," she said lazily, her eyes still mostly shut. "Tell me something about you."
He slid a glance in her direction. "Aren't you tired?"
"Yeah. But I've been talking about myself all night. And I meant what I said earlier -- I want to know where you're from and what your family's like and all that stuff."
"Well, I'm from Boston."
"My dad lives there."
"Oh yeah? You see him often?"
"Not really. He's remarried, has a new baby. We're both busy. And hey, this is supposed to be about you."
"Sorry." He smiled as he made a left turn at the light. "I have one older brother. Sean. I guess you could say he's kind of a screwup. He barely finished high school. My parents are counting on me to do well, not disgrace the family, all that crap."
"I think my mom feels kind of the same way. She didn't get to graduate from high school and go to college, so she wanted all that for me."
"Why didn't she get to do all that?"
"Well, I'm almost 20, and she's 36. You do the math."
"Oh. Wow."
"Yeah."
"She had you at sixteen and raised you by herself? That's amazing."
"She's pretty extraordinary. She's been my best friend my whole life."
"But you're not speaking to her now," he said matter-of-factly.
Rory wondered how he knew that, but then remembered that he'd witnessed the aftermath of her failed conversation with Lorelai a few weeks before. "I've kind of avoided her this summer. Since that night I told you about."
"I'm sure she misses you."
"I miss her. A lot." She swallowed hard, determined not to start crying again.
"So talk to her," Marty said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world.
"I don't think I'm ready yet."
"Okay then." Marty nodded.
"So," Rory said, returning to the topic at hand, "What do you do in your spare time?"
"Well, I like long walks on the beach -- ow!" He laughed as Rory smacked his arm. "Fine, fine. I actually teach karate at the New Haven Y."
"Really?"
"Yeah. My mom put me in lessons after I got my butt kicked in kindergarten. So I worked my way up to a black belt and now I teach beginners." Rory snickered. "Dare I ask what's so funny?"
"So you know kung fu?"
"What?"
"C'mon, you've seen The Matrix. You've gotta say it."
"I know kung fu," he said resignedly.
"Thanks, Keanu."
~*~*~
"Nope. Definitely not my keys." Rory giggled at the sight of Marty holding her cell phone, paperback book, wallet, and hairbrush as she dug through her purse. She added a tube of lipgloss onto the pile he held.
"OK, at some point, the pile o' stuff will end, right?"
"I'm a girl, mister. You'd be surprised at how much stuff we have -- ah-hah!" She triumphantly pulled her keys from her purse and dangled them in front of her face.
"Congratulations. It only took you five minutes."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Before everything gets dumped back in there, do you happen to have a paper and pen?"
"Umm..." She peeked into her bag. "Yeah."
"Trade you." He dumped her stuff back into her bag and accepted the pen and scrap of paper she held out. He propped the paper up against the wall and scrawled a few lines.
"Marty Harris, Calhoun 324, extension 4631, at your service," he said with a smile, handing back the paper and pen. "Now you have no excuse for drinking alone. I like tequila as much as the next guy."
"I'll remember that. Hey." Rory reached out to touch his arm, keeping him in place. "Thank you."
Marty smiled down at her. "Feel better, Rory."
"I already do."
"Excuse me," came an unmistakable voice as Rory's suite door was thrown open. Paris stood in her pajamas and bathrobe, sporting her patented Gellar death glare. "This is all very touching, but kindly shut the hell up before I get testy."
"Marty, you know Paris. She likes sleep," Rory said by way of explanation.
"Hi, Paris. Sorry to wake you up."
"Yeah, well, just be glad I'm in a good mood."
"Good mood?" Marty mouthed to Rory as Paris turned back into the room.
"In or out, Gilmore!"
"Yes, mom," Rory muttered with an exaggerated eyeroll in Marty's direction. "Night."
"Goodnight," he said, turning and heading for the stairs. Rory leaned against the doorway, watching until he was out of sight.
Posted by Carrie on 10:29 PM