In the heart of Harvard, Alessia Gilmore is ready to embrace her second year and the independence it brings. After a summer spent reconnecting with friends and discovering herself, she's determined to step out of her twin sister Rory's shadow and ca...
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The walk back home was colder than it should've been.
Stars Hollow's streetlamps blinked on one by one, casting uneven circles of light onto the pavement as Alessia made her way up the familiar hill. Her breath clouded in front of her, curling into the winter night like smoke. Part of her wished she could just keep walking until the town disappeared behind her — until every string tied to her felt thin enough to snap.
But the house waited. It always did.
She pushed open the door, and the warmth hit her first — too warm, almost suffocating. The smell of popcorn drifted from the living room. A movie was playing. An old one she recognized instantly from the cadence of a single line of dialogue.
Something Rory loved. Something Rory quoted.
"Mom?" Alessia called out.
"In here!" Lorelai's voice floated from the living room, light and quick and careless.
Alessia stepped inside, shrugging out of her coat but not really wanting to. It still felt safer than the house did.
Lorelai was curled up on the couch with a blanket draped over her legs, bowl of popcorn balanced on her knees, eyes bright with the kind of easy joy she saved for movies and Rory and takeout nights.
"Oh hey, kiddo!" she said, glancing back with a smile that didn't go all the way to her eyes. "You were out for a while."
"Just... walking around."
"Cool, cool." Lorelai nodded absently and unpaused the movie. "Oh! Speaking of walking — Rory called twice today! She got that insane seminar professor, the one who basically eats students alive unless he likes them. I swear, she's gaining superpowers at Yale."
Alessia stood awkwardly in the doorway, boots still half-on. "That's... great for her."
"And she might come home next weekend," Lorelai continued, grinning. "Won't that be fun? House will feel alive again."
Alessia's stomach sank.
"Yeah. Fun."
Lorelai laughed at something on-screen, then tossed popcorn into her mouth like nothing in the world could possibly be wrong.
"You look tired," she said offhandedly. "Did you sleep at all?"
"Not really."
"You should nap, then. Or, I don't know, take a bubble bath?"
Alessia stared at her mother's profile, waiting for the moment she'd pause the movie, turn toward her, ask the obvious question—
Are you okay?
It didn't come.
"Mom," Alessia said quietly. "Can we talk?"
"Mm-hm!" Lorelai chirped, eyes glued to the moving screen. "I'm listening."
"No." Alessia swallowed. "Like... really talk. To me."
Lorelai blinked at that, finally pulling her eyes off the TV. "Is something wrong?"
Alessia opened her mouth. Nothing came out.
What was she supposed to say? I cried myself to sleep in Rory's bed. I don't know who I'm supposed to be here. I almost kissed Jess tonight. I needed you and you didn't even see it.
She closed her mouth again. "Never mind."
"Okay," Lorelai said lightly. "Well, if you change your mind—oh! I printed out Rory's latest article. I think I left it—"
"Mom."
Lorelai looked back, popcorn midair.
"I'm going back to campus tomorrow."
The kernel dropped into the bowl.
"Tomorrow?" she repeated. "Already? You just got here."
"I know."
Lorelai sighed, confused, like the math wasn't mathing. "Well... okay. Just make sure you take leftovers or something. And text when you get there." Her face brightened again. "Rory's going to be so bummed she missed you! I'll tell her you stopped by."
"I doubt she'll care," Alessia said before she could stop herself.
Lorelai's posture straightened, voice sharpening. "Hey, that's not fair. Your sister loves you."
"Yeah," Alessia said softly. "Or she loves being the only one you see."
Lorelai blinked, taken aback. "Where is this coming from?"
"Nowhere." Alessia shook her head, stepping back. "It doesn't matter."
"Alessia—"
But she was already turning toward the stairs.
"Goodnight, Mom."
Lorelai hesitated — long enough Alessia almost hoped she'd follow, insist, be there.
Instead she just sighed, sinking back into the couch cushions.
"'Night, kiddo."
The words hit harder than if she'd said nothing.
Alessia sat on the edge of the bed and let out a breath that trembled, even though she tried to steady it.
Downstairs, she heard Lorelai laughing at something on the TV.
Up here, everything was quiet.
She lay back slowly, eyes reaching the ceiling but seeing nothing.
She didn't belong here.
Not in this house. Not in this town. Not in the space that had always been carved perfectly around her sister.
Tomorrow she'd leave. Tomorrow she'd go back to school, back to Logan, back to a place where people actually noticed her existence. Back to anywhere that wasn't here.
Tomorrow she'd stop pretending Stars Hollow was something it had never been for her.
