Meant to Be

CHAPTER 3 - NEW YORK, NEW YORK

After calling Claudette and accepting the position I found myself in my new apartment in New York in early May, ready to embark on this new career path. I no longer had to worry about bylines, sources and leads – now it was all brides, flowers and catering menus and I couldn't be happier.

It was early June and I felt like I was finally settling in to my role assisting Claudette during these busy months. I also made a conscious decision that I could not only focus on work, I needed a social life. That was made all the easier when one Friday night walking out of a local pub I ran in to Finn, Colin, and Robert. I was shocked to see them as it had been nearly 4 years since I had last seen them. I gave up those friendships when everything with Logan slipped away. I didn't think it was fair to try to maintain a friendship with his closets friends when I was likely the last person he wanted to see.

"Mother, is that you?"

"Colin, Finn, Robert! What are you doing here?"

"We're meeting up with Steph, Rosemary and Juliet for drinks. You must come with us, Love."

I tried to think of an excuse but nothing came to mind so I accepted the offer and headed to a swanky lounge with the boys. 

Steph, Rosemary and Juliet screamed when they saw me walk in behind the guys.

"Rory! Is it really you?" Steph screamed out.

"It's me! I haven't seen you girls in forever. How long has it been?" I replied.

"Too long if you ask me," Juliet said.

"Yes, way too long. I'm so excited you're here. Let's catch up," Rosemary said.

We spent the next few hours chatting. I learned that Steph and Colin finally realized that they were perfect for each other and had been dating for the last two years ... wedding bells were definitely in the future for them. Rosemary had recently broken up with her boyfriend and was considering giving Finn a chance but she wasn't going to tell him that ... yet! Juliet and Robert were in a on-again off-again relationship and right now they were most definitely on.

Colin was working his way up at his father's law firm and was enjoying divorce law which much to Stephanie's dismay he was keeping very long hours at the office. Finn was working for the family business and overseeing the development of a new hotel in New York and would be in the city for at least the next 18 months – plenty of time to convince Rosemary to give him a chance. Robert was working for his father's investment company and was dabbling in real estate. Steph and Juliet had recently opened a fashion boutique in the City and Rosemary was just about to wrap up her medical degree at Columbia.

Rory was taken back by their success, but honestly she wasn't that surprised. Her friends were all destined for greatness and she was thrilled that the years had been treating them well.

As the night wrapped up, Rory made a mental note that no one had mentioned Logan all night. She assumed they thought it would upset her and they were probably right. Although, a small part of her was curious but she pushed those feelings down and wished her friends a goodbye and a promise to meet up again.