❝𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐃 𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓❞
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⋆𐙚₊˚⊹ chapter nineteen,
Gilmore Girls — Season One

January 16th, 2001

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[ LUKE'S POV ]

     I'M MEETING MY DAUGHTER'S BOYFRIEND— whatever he is— today. I knew this day would come eventually, but that doesn't mean I'm prepared for it. In fact, I'm terrified of meeting my freaking daughter's boyfriend.

     My daughter— my sixteen-year-old— has a boyfriend who is quite literally the opposite of her and us. He's rich, comes from a wealthy family, and he goes to a private school. He's somebody I don't want around my daughter, not ever, but she likes him, and I want her to be happy. Even if her being happy involves him.

     And he's blonde with a douchey ass name.

     I always knew she'd meet somebody, I just didn't know she'd meet somebody this fast. Sure, she's sixteen and she's very capable of dating. She should date, right? I shouldn't be concerned about this guy, not when I know Lucy, and I know that she's somebody who will choose a good guy. I hope.

     This guy— Tristan— doesn't know how good he has it. My daughter is incredible, and she deserves the entire world. If he can't give her that, I don't want him anywhere near her.

     She warned me not to scare him but I fully intend to, don't worry.

     The second he steps into the diner, I can tell that he's never set foot in a small town. He looks around the diner, and everybody looks at him. I'm not surprised he's being glared at by the townsfolk. He's an outsider, and Lucy is loved by everyone in this town. If he breaks her heart, he'll be dead because I'll kill him and the town will help me bury him.

There are perks to living in a small town after all.

     Lucy wants me to be nice so I will try. I want Lucy to be happy, and if this jackass makes her happy, I'm happy.

     Lucy and Tristan step towards me, and I cross my arms over my chest, and I stare the boy up and down. "Dad..." Lucy places her hand on Tristan's arm, and I look towards him. "This is Tristan."

     I would've met Tristan sooner but he had a family holiday in London of all places. Lucy hasn't been abroad ever, and I, of course feel guilty for never giving her a real holiday, but she always did enjoy our boat trips. Now, Tristan just goes on these expensive holidays for the holidays, and I'm not totally familiar with snotty rich people, but I already know I don't like them.

He makes your daughter happy, Luke. You're doing this for Lucy.

     I take a deep breath, hold my hand out and I take the boy's hand. "Tristan," I say, shaking his hand firmly.

     Tristan shakes my hand back, holding it just as strongly as I do. "It's nice to meet you, sir."

     While I appreciate him being "polite," I don't care for being called "sir." I'm thirty-six-years old, not ancient. I don't need some teenager calling me sir. I'm not a teacher.

     "Luke," I correct. "Call me Luke."

     Tristan nods, and Lucy chuckles awkwardly next to him, her eyes darting between me and Tristan. I think she wants me to say more but there isn't much else I can say. I want to berate him, yes, but Lucy won't allow that.

     She won't allow it in front of her so I decide to solve the issue. "Hey, Luce." I look towards Lucy, and she hums. "You mind if I talk to him?"

     Lucy's face flushes white, and I smile towards Tristan who chuckles. If he's afraid, he's not showing it, and I appreciate that. I don't need my daughter to be with somebody who is afraid of me. I'm not here to scare him, I'm just here to warn him. Not scare him... completely.

     "Uh, Dad, I..." She looks towards Tristan, and she's silently apologises. "Uh..."

     "It's okay," Tristan assures.

     "Okay, but no big Dad talk, okay?" She points her finger towards me, and I squeeze her shoulder as she steps past me and around the counter to pester Caesar in the kitchen.

     I step away and I move around the counter. Tristan stays in his position, and I signal for him to sit down. "You like coffee?"

     "Not as much as Luce, but yeah," he says, and I decide to pour him a cup. He sits down at the counter, clasping his hands together, and I notice the shiny golden watch that covers his wrist. I know he has money. I saw that fancy bracelet he bought my daughter, and she's worn it everyday since he gave it to her. It's beautiful, expensive so I know he has money, status.

"It's a nice place you got here," he says, and I pull my eyes off his watch.

     I've heard that before, usually from out-of-towners like him. "Thanks," is what I decide to say because it's the safest option.

     We fall silent for a second, and I watch as he takes a sip of the coffee. I'm not sure if I should speak first or if I should wait for him to speak. Honestly, I don't want to hear what this guy has to say, so I decide to speak first.

     I clear my throat and begin. "Look, Lucy is the light of my life, my pride and joy, my only kid, okay? She's the most important person in the world to me. Nobody matters more to me than her. She's a smart kid, and she's never been much for guys— or anyone— so the fact that she likes you means a lot."

     "I know," he says quietly.

     "Lucy is beloved in this town, meaning everybody will be watching your every move. If you hurt her, there's not a safe place within a hundred miles for you to hide," I warn, leaning forward on the counter to intimidate him, but Tristan doesn't cower away, he just stares at me. "This is a very small, weird place you've stepped into, and I imagine you aren't used to this."

     Tristan shakes his head. "I'm not, no."

     "All eyes are on you, kid. You walked in here five minutes ago and everybody is already trying to figure you out." Tristan looks around at the customers who sit in the diner, and he finds a few of them are already staring at him, trying to figure him out just like I had said. All eyes really are on him.

     He chuckles lightly, turning his attention back to me. "Scary town," he says.

     "Curfew will be enforced," I continue, and Tristan listens carefully. "You will not detract from her schoolwork, and you will drive carefully in that car of yours."

     "Okay."

     "Now, I have the right to change, alter, tweak, or add to this list of rules at any given time without any written notice." Seeing as I'm her dad, I'm allowed to enforce any kind of rules on this guy, and I don't care if that scares him. If he's afraid, he's not good enough. "Am I clear?"

     "Crystal," he replies, and I expect our conversation to be over but then he says, "May I speak now?"

     I lean back, crossing my arms over my chest as I glare at him. "Choose your words carefully."

     "Look, you can lay on all the rules you want and you can have the whole town spy on me and stare at me and chase me through the streets—"

     "I like that idea," I interrupt.

     "But I'm not going anywhere," Tristan says, and I actually think he's being genuine. He sounds genuine. "I mean it, Luke. I'm not going anywhere."

     "Then I guess the chase will be short, right?"

     Tristan laughs, and then he speaks again, and his tone is serious. "I need you not to hate me. If you hate me then I don't have a shot in hell with Lucy."

     "Lucy has her own mind," I say. No matter how much I'd like to dictate who she dates, I can't decide for her.

     "I know," he says, planting his hands on the counter. "But you're her best friend and what you think means everything to her." Of course I know that my opinion means a lot, and I know that Lucy will be upset if I don't approve.

     I sigh, realising I have to accept this. "I want to like you but you're dating my daughter, and she's all I've got in this world."

     Tristan nods, a frown on his face. "But you don't like me," he says, sighing sadly.

     "I will eventually if you really do intend to stick around." I'm not lying. If he does want to stick around and be in my daughter's life, then I can get to know him and eventually like him.

     "I do intend on sticking around," Tristan reassures me, and I nod, pleased with his response.

     "Then we won't have any problems."

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[ LUCY'S POV ]

     WELL, MY DAD MET MY BOYFRIEND— or whatever he is— and Dad gave him the talk. I don't know the contents of the conversation, and I don't bother asking Tristan or Dad because they won't tell me, but I think all went well.

     Dad inflicted a curfew— no surprises there— and Tristan must have me home at nine-thirty tonight or he's a deadman. Today I'm showing him around the town, and then we're having dinner at Al's Pancake World— something I didn't tell my dad because he would be very annoyed— but Tristan has to go at least once.

I walk hand in hand with him, and I cross the street to pull him over to Miss. Patty's. "Okay, this is where I used to dance as a kid," I tell him, waving towards Patty who stands outside while her class dance. "Hey, Patty!"

"Oh, Lucy." She waves towards me, and then her eyes find Tristan's.

"I apologise in advance," I whisper to him.

"Wha—"

"Oh, my." Patty steps down to meet us. "Aren't you handsome? You look like a young Leo." Patty sighs, fanning herself dramatically, and I feel Tristan's hand tighten around mine. "You have extraordinary taste, Lucy."

I smile towards him. "Tristan, this is Miss. Patty, my old dance teacher."

"Oh, yes, Lucy was quite the dancer. You and Adelaide were just the cutest," she reminisces, and I smile sweetly because I certainly wasn't a good dancer. Addy, on the other hand, had the ability to look pretty and dance. "It's lovely to meet you Tristan. You treat our girl good, okay?"

"I will," he says, his eyes finding mine.

When we step away, we're greeted by Babette and Morey who go into great detail about the new cat they're planning to adopt. Babette then decides to inform Tristan about the time me and Addy protested against Taylor when we were ten. He laughs, I nearly cry, and then we walk away before I have to indulge in another embarrassing story.

However, we don't escape the wrath of townsfolk, we only walk into more. Tristan meets Taylor— bless him— who claims he charges more for out-of-towners. I assure Tristan that he won't ever have to step foot in the market again. From Taylor, he meets Andrew who lets me know that they have new books in stock that I should check out. After Andrew, Tristan meets the sweet woman that is Fran, and she insists that he stops by the bakery to get some pie.

I feel as if I'm meeting everybody for the first time myself. Before we part ways with everyone, they all say, "Treat our girl right." It's sweet, but if I have to hear it one more time, I'll hit somebody.

When we've escaped— for now— Tristan wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me along. "Your dad wasn't kidding," he laughs, and I look to him, confused. "He told me that I walked into a very strange town today."

"You certainly did," I agree. "I hope it's not been too daunting for you. I had no idea everybody would want to meet you."

"Well, I am dating the town's daughter."

I always knew the entire town cared for me, it was no surprise, but I had no idea how interested they were in my dating life. I know I've never been once interested in another guy, but can anyone blame me when I live here?

I lean my head into him, humming delightfully because I'm so happy he's here in my town despite the "warm" welcome. "Seriously, has today been okay?" I ask, looking up at him.

"Definitely," he says, and I sigh in relief. "I think it's nice that there's so many people looking out for you. I mean, this town, your dad, they..." He pauses, and I lift my head to really look at him. He's hard to read, especially when he goes quiet like this. "They care, you know? It's nice."

"Tristan, you have people out there who care for you, you know?" He must have people out there who care. I mean, I've seen the way his sister looks at him, and I know he has friends at Chilton so there's people in his corner, I know it, but something is obviously bothering him. "What's wrong?" I ask.

He shrugs, his arm tightening around me. "The way everybody talks about you..." He pauses again, and I stop so we can step away for a second. "I've never had anyone talk about me like that. They love you, Luce. I guess I'm just..."

"Envious?" I question, and he nods. "I'm just lucky, Tristan. I've lived here my entire life, and this town is wonderful and weird. It's full of crazy people who, yes, love me, I know, and it's sweet but it's overwhelming too."

"I'm sorry," he laughs, shrugging his emotions off and I reach my hand out to touch his shoulder. "This town is great. Your dad is great. I just didn't realise that coming here would..." He looks to me and I nod because I understand. "Being here makes me realise that nobody cares for me like this."

"I do," I say, stepping forward and sliding my arms around his neck. "I know we're still getting to know each other but I care, Tristan. You've been so patient, so understanding, and I want you to feel like you can talk to me, okay? About anything."

"Okay," he whispers, his arms falling around my body to pull me forward. "I care about you too. I know we haven't known each other long, and I'm not a guy who, you know, is exactly boyfriend-material, but I really like you. You've had this positive effect on me, and I'm just really glad I met you, Blue."

I lean forward, my arms around his neck. His arms tighten around my waist, and I toy with the ends of his hair at his neck. Tristan leans down, and he closes the small gap between us, and it's the most relieving feeling in the world.

Feeling his mouth on mine is all I want right now, and I get a little lost in the press and the push of him against me. My hands tangle in his hair and I hold on tightly as he responds to me with the same passion.

This kiss is beautiful in itself. It isn't rough or hard, it's soft and undeniably gentle. Nothing could have more beauty than this moment. My hands move and press against his cheeks, and my eyes flutter. The kiss is sweet, beating and slowly becoming addictive the longer we stay attached.

One arm remains around my waist while the other arms moves upwards, and his hand cups my cheek, his mouth opening and closing around my lips in a bruising kiss. I like how accustom we've become to doing this, and every kiss between us is different. It's never boring, never the same, it's always different and perfect.

I smile against his lips, and I laugh softly when he squeezes my neck gently and presses his lips to mine harder than before.

Annoyingly, we're forced to separate but we remain close, our foreheads pressed together for a quick second while we compose ourselves. "Thank you for that," he breathes, and I smile. "I needed that."

I separate myself from him, my eyes moving around to see that I've pushed us into a street next to Taylor's. Thankfully, nobody has walked by— I don't think— because I don't need East Side Tilly or Patty gossiping about this to my father.

I retake Tristan's hand and I pull him forward. "So what did my dad say to you?" I ask, looking up at him. "He didn't scare you, did he?"

     Tristan shakes his head. "No, he was very fair."

     "Is that code for 'horrible'?" I ask, pouting in response, and Tristan laughs. "God, I told him to be nice. I swear—"

     "Hey." Tristan interrupts. "To say I'm dating his daughter, I think he was quite generous. He was straight with me, and I was straight with him. I told him I liked you and, well, he must like me a little right? We're here together right now."

     I hum, finding his realisation to be correct. "Maybe, but my dad is a little hard to read."

     "I'll crack him," Tristan assures.

     "Really?"

     "Look, I want to be with you, and the only way I get to be with you is if your dad likes me."

     "Tristan," I sigh. "I have my own mind."

     "I know, but your dad is your best friend, right?" I nod, and he hums. "Exactly. His opinion matters to you, and while I don't understand the relationship you have with your dad, I still want him to approve of me."

     "He will," I promise, my arm wrapping around his as we walk together. "I like you and my dad just wants me to be happy, and you make me happy."

     "How happy?" he toys, his eyes on me.

     I grin wildly, looking back up at him. "Extremely happy," I tease, and Tristan leans down to push a kiss against my head.

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     ❝THIS IS WHERE I USED TO LIVE. ❞

I look out to the house I lived in for a few short months when I was a baby. It's a nice house, and I've always loved it. It's a kind reminder of the time I lived with my grandfather and dad. It holds many memories in its walls and nobody has lived in it since my grandfather's death.

Someday I want to live in it again. Maybe. It'd be nice to raise a family in the house I technically grew up in, but I also want to live far, far away from my little life here in Stars Hollow.

I look over at Tristan, and I find that he's already looking at me. "What?"

"You love this town," he states the obvious. "But you want to go to Stanford one day."

I shrug, looking away from him. "I know."

"Why?"

I turn to him, surprised by the question, and I open my mouth to answer but no words come out because nobody has ever asked me that before. I always assumed I was going to Stanford because it's the best law school in the country, but is that the only reason I'm going? Do I really have a purpose for wanting to go or am I going just because I want the best education?

Why am I going? Why do I want to leave the safety of my hometown to go all the way across the country to Stanford?

"I..." I look towards Tristan. "I don't know why I'm going."

"I didn't mean to—"

"No, you're right," I interrupt, and I move to take a seat at a nearby bench. Tristan follows, sitting beside me. "I don't know why I'm going to Stanford. I want to study law but I can study that anywhere, right? There's Yale, Harvard— schools closer to home— but I want to go all the way to California? Why?"

Tristan remains silent, and I lean back into the bench. "I don't know why I want to go to Stanford," I admit.

"Perhaps you want to escape," Tristan suggests, and I turn to look at him. "Yes, you love this town but you want to do something away from everyone's eyes. You want to do something for you without this town holding you here. Believe me, I understand the appeal of wanting to escape."

"But I love being here. I love my life here."

"This life still stays here wherever you go. Hell, you could go to Oxford or Cambridge, and your life here will remain intact." I scoff because I'd never have the guts to go all the way to England. "Perhaps deep down some part of you wants a release from the safety of this town."

"You'd make a great therapist," I comment, and Tristan grins knowingly.

"Look, I'm expected to go to Princeton— follow the steps of my father, my grandfather— but I'm sure as hell not." I know he doesn't wish to be like his father, be like his grandfather, and I respect his desire to be different, to be himself. It's one of the many reasons I like him. "Every part of me wants to escape, and one day I want to leave this place and make something of myself too, just like you, Blue."

I nod because he's making sense. I understand the desire he has to escape, but I still don't understand why I want to escape.

"I think I want to be somebody my family— my dad— can be proud of," I say, sinking further into my seat. "I know he's already proud of me, but I want him to be able to say, "my daughter's a lawyer" one day, you know?"

"Yeah, I get that, but your future doesn't depend on your dad, Luce."

I know that too.

"Regardless of what you do, I think your dad will always be proud of you." If I told my dad I wasn't going to college, he'd still support me, and if I told him I was attending a college hundreds of miles away, he'd support me. He's always been my number one supporter, my cheerleader in the corner. "He wants the best for you, he told me himself. He doesn't want me to be a distraction, and while I am hot stuff, I will not deter you from achieving your goals."

I laugh loudly, and I allow my head to fall upon Tristan's shoulder. He wraps an arm around me, pulling me towards him, and I let out a sigh of relief because I'm just relieved I have somebody else to support me.

I inhale sharply. "Thank you," I whisper.

"Thank you," he repeats, flattening his hand against my hair. "It feels nice to have somebody in my corner, to have somebody listen to me."

I look up at him, and his hand brushes against my cheek. "Your corner is safe. I won't leave it."

He pushes a kiss against my head, and I rest my head against his shoulder again. I don't know how long we remain side-by-side with our bodies resting together, but it's close to curfew when we finally move from the bench and begin to walk back to the diner.

Tristan holds my hand tightly, and I lean against him gently as we walk. "I gotta say, Blue, your weird and wonderful town has been fun."

"Yeah?" I grin.

"Oh, yeah." I'm relieved to hear that he enjoyed the tour, that he enjoyed being in my town. Showing him this life I live should have scared me but I'm happy. I'm thrilled that he likes this strange town, and I hope that he'll want to come back. "I'll definitely be coming back."

I smile warmly. "We'll welcome you back."

"Will I get a welcome wagon?" he asks, and I roll my eyes because this is the third time he's asked me. I informed him that, when a new person moves to this town, they get a welcome wagon from the town. Usually, to get a wagon, you have to be married to one of the townsfolk or actually move in, and Tristan will likely not receive one as I've told him several times.

"I've told you that you'll get a welcome wagon if you stick around for a long time," I inform, and he chuckles lightly.

"I plan on sticking around, sweetheart."

He doesn't know if he'll be sticking around, he just likes to flirt and toy with me. Despite how I feel about Tristan, I fear that— as a sixteen year old girl— we won't last forever. Forever is a long, long time, and I can't exactly see into the future.

"Then you may get a welcome wagon," I say, nudging him playfully.

We continue to walk down the street, and we're seconds away from arriving back at the diner. There's one thing I want to speak to him about before we part ways, and I've been meaning to bring it up all day but I've chickened out, of course.

I stop us walking just before we reach the diner, and he turns to me. "Uh, this might be a little strange but I wanted to ask you what..." I pause, my throat suddenly feeling tight because I don't know how to ask this. "I want to know if—"

"We're exclusive?" he interrupts, and I nod, pulling my eyes off him from embarrassment. "Yes, Blue, we're exclusive. You're my girlfriend, I'm your boyfriend, okay?"

"Boyfriend?" I repeat, my voice raising.

Tristan steps forward, his arms closing around my waist. He dips down, his lips grazing mine as he says, "Boyfriend." He pushes his lips to mine softly and quickly, and I whine at the loss. "I'm yours, okay?"

I nod, swallowing the tense feeling in my throat. "And I'm yours," I say. "Girlfriend."

Tristan chuckles, and he leans in to push his lips upon mine. The kiss is firmer, stronger than the previous one and I reciprocate the kiss by opening and closing my mouth against his with the same strength.

When he pulls back, he pushes a final kiss against my cheek and whispers, "Thank you for today, girlfriend."

"Thank you for being here, boyfriend," I toy.

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authors note:

will tristan be lucy's one true love— the ONE?

i know tristan isn't like this in the series, he's more of a playboy who hits on rory constantly but i like the idea of lucy finding somebody, and i think tristan deserved more of an arc

also luke pov :D yayayay

2 chapters in one day idk why