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Veronica Gilmore, or Ronnie as most people called her, was the 45-minutes-younger, louder, and, in her opinion, funnier twin sister of Rory Gilmore. The pair lived in Stars Hollow, a town so quirky it could be its own sitcom, along with their equally eccentric mother, Lorelai Gilmore. Together, they shared everything—clothes, questionable humor, and an unrelenting addiction to coffee.
Right now, Ronnie was en usual route to Luke's Diner for her daily caffeine infusion and to meet up with her mom and sister. Walking alongside her, as he often did, was her best friend, Matt Thompson. They'd been inseparable since kindergarten, back when Matt convinced her it would be cool to eat glue sticks (spoiler: it wasn't).
The entire town was waiting for them to become Stars Hollow's next great couple, but Ronnie would always laugh it off. She and Matt were just friends. Best friends. That's all. Right?
Matt, on the other hand, wasn't so sure. He'd been carrying a torch for Ronnie longer than he cared to admit. But confessing his feelings? That was a risk he wasn't ready to take. Instead, he'd perfected the fine art of pretending he wasn't completely smitten.
"I still can't believe you said yes to Angelica freaking Smith," Ronnie said dramatically, waving her hands for emphasis. "The girl's practically the villain in every high school movie. Remember when she literally set my homework on fire?"
"That was in fifth grade, Ronnie," Matt replied with a playful roll of his eyes. "She's grown up since then. Besides, what was I supposed to do? She asked me out in front of half the cafeteria."
Ronnie scoffed, narrowing her eyes. "Oh, poor Matt, victim of peer pressure. Newsflash: you could've said 'no thanks, I prefer girls who don't double as arsonists.'"
Matt grinned, shaking his head. "You know, you'd make a great lawyer with arguments like that. Too bad you're more interested in stealing my fries than pursuing justice."
"Gotta play to my strengths," Ronnie shot back, smirking. "And for the record, if you wanted to date someone, you could've chosen literally anyone else. Angelica Smith? Really?"
They reached the corner where Luke's came into view, but Ronnie slowed down, checking her watch. "I have to meet Mom and Rory. Don't let her talk you into setting my locker on fire next, okay?"
"Wait—are you mad about this?" Matt called after her, his grin faltering.
Ronnie turned around, her expression light but teasing. "Nope. Just disappointed."
Matt groaned loudly enough for her to hear. "That's worse!"
------
Inside Luke's, Ronnie slid into the booth where Lorelai and Rory were already seated. Rory greeted her with a grin. "You just missed the great Creepy Dude Standoff of 7:45 a.m. Mom scared them off with her 'I know where to hide the body' face."
Ronnie laughed, shaking her head. "Classic Lorelai Gilmore."
Lorelai leaned forward, eyeing Ronnie with her usual curiosity. "Speaking of classic, what's got you doing the trademark Gilmore 'life is so unfair' pout?"
Ronnie sighed, fiddling with the mug of coffee Luke had placed in front of her. "Matt's going on a date with Angelica Smith."
Rory gasped dramatically. "No!"
"Yes!" Ronnie said, nodding in disbelief.
Lorelai, however, looked confused. "Okay, who's Angelica Smith, and why is she apparently Voldemort in a miniskirt?"
"I am so not jealous!" Ronnie protested, her voice a little too high-pitched to sound convincing.
Lorelai smirked, tilting her head. "You so are. It's written all over your face."
"Come on," Rory teased, giving her twin a knowing look. "Just admit you like him."
"I have said this a million times: we are just friends!" Ronnie exclaimed, throwing up her hands. "And even if he did like me, which he doesn't, why would he go on a date with someone else?"
"Maybe he's trying to move on," Lorelai offered with a shrug. "Can't wait around forever, kiddo."
------
Later that day, Ronnie was packing up her locker at Stars Hollow High, with Matt beside her, helping her stuff things into a box.
"I still can't believe you're leaving me for Chilton," Matt said, handing her a book. "It's betrayal, pure and simple."
"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Ronnie replied, grinning as she arranged the contents of the box. "I'll probably sneak back here when the Chilton uniform makes me break out in hives."
As they walked down the hallway, Ronnie glanced at him. "By the way, how was your super romantic date with Angelica?"
Matt cleared his throat and avoided her gaze. "I didn't go."
Ronnie stopped in her tracks, surprised. "What? Why not?"
"Didn't feel like it," Matt said with a shrug. "Besides, you're right—she's a bit... intense."
"Wait a second," Ronnie said, narrowing her eyes. "You didn't back out because of what I said, did you?"
Matt grinned, trying to deflect. "Why give an opinion if you didn't want me to listen?"
Ronnie sputtered, taken aback. "I didn't mean for you to—"
"Relax, Ronnie," Matt said, his voice softening. "I didn't go because I didn't want to. Okay?"
Before she could respond, they spotted Rory standing with a tall, unfamiliar boy.
"Who's that?" Ronnie asked, nudging Matt with her elbow.
Matt turned to look, raising an eyebrow. "Whoever he is, Rory's blushing, so this should be good."
They walked over, and Ronnie grinned slyly. "Hey, are you gonna introduce us to your friend?"
The Thompson boy slightly nudged his best friends in the side as Rory blushed.
Rory stammered, her cheeks flushing red. "Uh, this is Dean. He's new to Stars Hollow."
Ronnie shook Dean's hand, still smirking. "Nice to meet you, Dean. Welcome to the madness."
"Dean was just helping me pack up my locker," Rory said innocently.
"Oh?" Ronnie stated with a smirk. "How nice of him."
The atmosphere became thick with blushes and awkward silence, much to Ronnie's delight. Dean glanced at Rory, whose face was a mix of flustered and embarrassed.
"Are we interrupting an epic moment?" Matt chimed in, trying to lighten the mood, but the three friends could practically hear the crickets chirping in response.
"Might want to leave before the cuteness overloads," Ronnie said with a smirk, giving Rory an exaggerated, conspiratorial nudge.
"Yeah," Matt replied with mock seriousness. "Before we drown in the sugary sweetness of young love."
They started to step away slowly, and Ronnie tossed one last playful comment over her shoulder. "Sure you two don't want to exchange numbers or something?"
As they walked away, Matt leaned close, lowering his voice so only Ronnie could hear. "You're so cruel sometimes."
With a playful spark in her eyes, Ronnie tossed him a smile. "Yeah, but you love it."
Matt muttered under his breath as they rounded the corner. "Yeah, I do." And for now, that was the best-kept secret of Stars Hollow.
