𝐁𝐮𝐛𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐖𝐫𝐚𝐩 𝐁𝐚𝐛𝐲 |» 𝘫.𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘰

~not much of a mechanic now are we?~

Sitting at the table, the three girls talked while Ellouise ran over and grabbed a muffin for Mia. She placed it down and sat next to Rory as they chatted about Santa Barbra and the hot weather that didn't match her wardrobe. "Mia, do you know anything about toasters?" Ellie asked in a bright tone in hope of a good answer.

"Not a damn thing," she chuckled back at the young blonde. Chuckling, Ellouise made her way behind the counter and grabbed the pot of coffee. it swirled within the glass as she stepped towards the table to pour it for her. 

"So, Mia, how's living in Santa Barbara?" the eldest Gilmore asked her with curiosity dripping from her voice. Rory sat with them too and leaned in to hear Mia's reply.

"Horrible," she grumbled as she shuffled in her seat. "Did you know the damn sun shines all the time out there?" Mia sounded stroppy as she spoke. "Half of my wardrobe is obsolete."

"Aw, drag," Lorelai sighed sarcastically. With more enthusiasm, she perked up, "Hey, you know that vintage blue coat?" she prompted. 

Interrupting, El added, "Oh, and that scarf!" 

"You're not getting it," Mia shot down the idea quickly, knowing that the pair had had their eyes on her clothes since she had bought them. As Ellouise put down the pot, she poked her head over Luke's shoulder and looked at the mess that was the broken toaster. It looked like it had been murdered and its guts were spilled all over the counter.

"You're making that worse," she giggled at him as he stuck a screwdriver into the machine. Emerging from the upstairs apartment, Jess rubbed his eyes and sighed as he looked at all the screws. 

"Wow, not much of a mechanic now are we?" Jess teased as he snuck past his uncle. 

With an eye roll, Luke slammed down the screwdriver and scoffed, "Big help, thanks." 

Grabbing Jess by the wrist, Ellie dragged him across the diner to the 3 girls sat drinking their coffee. "Mia, this is Luke's nephew," Ellie introduced with a huge grin plastered across her face.

Luke quickly rushed over to them. "Luke, this is your nephew?" she asked.

"It's Liz's kid." Jess rolled his eyes. He wasn't a kid. He was more than just Liz's son. "Jess, this is Mia, she owns the independence Inn," Luke smiled down at the boy who didn't return the expression.

"Huh," he grumbled with minimum effort and his hands stuffed in his pockets.

With a huff, he translated for Mia, "That's 'hello, nice to meet you ' in slacker."

"You don't need me here, do you?" Jess shrugged before walking away, leaving El alone with the adults and her cousin.

"I'm sorry, Mia. He's just..." he tried to find the words to explain.

"Oh please, forget it," she chuckled lightly. "You weren't exactly a talkative boy yourself when you were his age," Mia smiled up at him.

Elliouise's cheeks pushed up as she turned to look at Luke."I can't imagine Luke as a boy," she giggled, trying not to burst into bits of laughter.

"Can we change the subject," Luke groaned.

"He would help carry groceries home," Mia proceeded to gossip about a young luke. An image of a boy around 5ft waddling down a road with 6 bags of groceries popped into her head.

"Oh, how very boy scout-y of you," Rory chuckled before lifting the coffee and draining it down her throat making her stomach warm among the cold autumn air.

"For a quarter a bag!" Mia added making them all gasp in shock. Now the boy in Ellie's imagination was wearing an oversized business suit with his pockets weighed down by coins. It made her smirk.