The long road home

Chapter 9: Reaching out

Rory showered quickly and walked down the stairs into the diner just as Lane arrived. 

"Rory!" Lane cried as she saw her best friend.  "Hey, you don't look so good.  What's going on?"

Rory felt the eyes of the entire town of Stars Hollow shift her way curiously.  "Umm...let's go upstairs to talk."

Rory shut the door when they arrived in the upstairs apartment and finally spoke.  "So, maybe we should sit down for this conversation."

"Rory, you're scaring me here.  What's going on?"

"Well, this is a little difficult.  You know how I've been here and there lately, staying in a lot of different places?  When I was here I stayed with you or Mom, I stayed with Paris in New York.  So...uh...when I was in London I stayed with Logan."

"Whoa.  Logan?  As in, Logan who is the love of your life and heir to the Huntzberger fortune?  As in, Logan who is engaged to be married in under a month?"

"Yep, the one and only," Rory said quietly.

"That's big," Lane responded, obviously still surprised.

"If that's big then it's a really good thing you're sitting down, because there's more.  He and I had been seeing each other when we could until Odette moved in with him.  He and the guys decided to come steal me away for one last night together about a month and a half ago.  It was the perfect night, Lane.  Anyway, he and I spent the night together, and as it turns out, I'll carry more than just the memory of that night with me," Rory said with her voice trailing off.

Lane was quiet for a moment, obviously considering Rory's last statement, when her face suddenly lit up with realization.  "Rory, are you trying to tell me that you're...you're pregnant?"

"Yeah, I'm pregnant," Rory finally answered with tears in her eyes.

"Whoa.  That is big.  Does your mom know?"

"Yeah, I told Mom and Luke, and now I've told you."

"And does Logan know?"

"No, he doesn't.  Mom and Luke both think that he has a right to know, but I'm not so sure, Lane."

"You love him, Rory.  You've never stopped loving him."

Rory dried her eyes and looked up at Lane.  "I do.  I love him so much that it hurts, Lane.  That's why I had to let him go back to what he wants."

"Hey, who said that it's what he wants, Rory?  Did you ask him if he wanted to marry her?"

"Well, not exactly.  I asked him if he was going to marry her."

"And...?" asked Lane.

"And he said that him marrying her is the dynastic plan.  He marries her in less than 3 weeks, Lane, and I'm carrying his child."

"So go to him, Rory.  Put it all on the table and let him choose."

"Don't you see, Lane?  I love him too much to ask him to choose between me and the career that he loves and his family."

"Wow," Lane answered quietly.

"Yeah, wow.  Pretty ironic, huh?  All those years ago, his family didn't approve of me because they didn't think I would be able to support him in achieving his dreams, and now here I am, so much in love with him that I've shut him out because I can't bear the thought of him settling."

The girls just sat quietly for several minutes, but Rory felt so much comfort from just having Lane there with her.

"So," Lane finally continued, "that leaves us here, huh?  Are you going to stay in Stars Hollow?"

"Yeah, I think so.  I mean, I don't have anywhere else to be, and I think it will be good to be close to the people I love.  Luke actually told me that I could stay here so I could have more privacy but still be nearby."

"Good!  Tell me what I can do to help you.  Whatever you need, Rory, I'm here."

"Thank you, Lane.  I guess you could help me get settled here, maybe?  And I have my first doctor's appointment later this week.  Do you think you could come with me?  I'm sure that I'll be a little emotional."

"Of course, Rory!"