Metanoia: A Sequel

Chapter 2: An Unexpected Encounter

A year later, Ashton Meeks loomed over Rory to wake her up. "Wake up, sweetheart," he whispered in her ear. He was a stunning figure of twenty-five years of age whom Rory had been dating since six months after she had rejected Logan's proposal. He had many girls seeking attention from him similar to Logan, and in the end, he had chosen Rory. Now, they had bought an apartment room to live in together, and were planning at a steady pace for marriage. Rory never felt more light-hearted than when she opened her eyes and gazed at Ashton, ready to start the day. Somewhere in her still ached for Logan. Ashton was her way of eluding the memory of him, and she was perfectly content with that.

Ashton helped her up, and together, they trotted downstairs where Ashton made her a cup of coffee and stirred a reasonable amount of sugar into the glass, just the way Rory liked it. By now, he knew every aspect of her-what her preferences were, what her personality was like, even her history of boyfriends. He could recite them all by name: Dean Forester, Jess Mariano, and Logan Huntzberger. But he preferred to consider himself Rory's soulmate, forgetting about the others in her past.

Rory finished sipping her cup of coffee, transferred her cup to the kitchen sink, and washed it. This was a weekday routine for her. She wanted nothing more than coffee to energize herself throughout her day working for the Chicago Tribune. It was a quick way to finish breakfast and catalyze getting ready for her day. On weekends, she would spend more time lingering over breakfast with Ashton, who also had the day off. But for now, work was the priority, and she needed to keep her streak of showing up early.

She combed her smooth, silky brown hair after dressing in her work clothing-a cream-colored blouse, dark pencil skirt, and black heels that completed the look-and kissed Ashton goodbye with passionate force, picking up her handbag and clipboard to leave.

Rory stepped out, into the Chicago sunlight, locking the door and dropping the key in her bag pocket. She had no choice as she was leaving the apartment but to cut across the grass. She wasn't going to drive to work. It was a three-minute walk.

She stopped herself from toppling over as the heels sunk into the dirt. Better practice more on that catwalk, she thought as she searched her bag for her phone to text Ashton goodbye one more time as part of her daily ritual. She dug through a compact mirror, makeup palettes, a book, a pocket dictionary, and a box of bandages until she found it lying at the bottom. Aha! Found it! she thought in small victory just before slamming into a blonde-haired male.

"Ow!" she groaned, rubbing at her shoulder. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said to him, now having a flipped mind of defeat contrary to just seconds ago as she examined the spilled contents of her bag. She didn't bother to give the blonde a look as he helped her store them back in. Strangers stared as they walked by, too busy with commuting to their own workplaces to help.

At the end, Rory managed to say, "T-thank you." She glanced up to smile at...Logan? What was Logan doing here in Chicago? She squinted, thinking her vision was fooling her. But her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. It was Logan Huntzberger.

Logan, similarly, asked, "Rory? Is that you?" He probed Rory up and down.

Rory did not know what to say or how to react. The situation was an awkward one, running into her ex-boyfriend. "How..."

"I came here for business matters. Also, Lena is here to check on her parents. Uh, yeah, my new girlfriend," Logan stuttered, having evident trouble finding his words as well. He was finishing his sentence when a short, red-haired girl approached Logan and wrapped her arms around him, pressing her nose to his cheek. Then, she eyed Rory with a curious look. "Someone you know?" she questioned Logan softly, but enough for Rory to hear.

"Yes. Well, this is Lauren Barry, but I call her Lena. And Lena, this is Rory Gilmore-Hayden. She went to Yale with me. We're friends."

Used to be friends, Rory thought, but she offered Lena her best smile, concealing the layer of sadness she felt inside, a burning feeling that tempted her to choke and cry. She had Ashton, yes, but seeing her former boyfriend with another girl made her feel remorseful. Yet, she did not know why she was feeling this way with her own significant other back at the apartment just a minute away.

"Logan told me a lot about you," Lena started, initiating the conversation while twirling her silver hoop earrings.

Rory's eyes dashed to Logan, who was avoiding her gaze. He was rubbing Lena's bare shoulder as a way to pass the time.

"Yeah, um, we worked for our school's newspaper together," Rory responded, still forcing the smile, but feeling that she couldn't take it anymore. "That's why I know him."

She bit her lip, thinking, Must. Leave. Now. Have. To. Go. To. Work.

"Well, Rory, I'll be over there," Lena replied, indicating to a round outdoor Starbucks table. "You can talk here with Logan. I'll leave you two alone." She left, her glossy white court heels clicking with every step on the concrete, her spaghetti-strap revealing dress fluttering behind her.

Rory, seeing that the coast was clear, gaped in disbelief at Logan. "So..."