❝THANKSGIVING TIMES TWO❞
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⋆𐙚₊˚⊹ chapter fifty-five,
Gilmore Girls — Season Three

𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟖𝐭𝐡, 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟐

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[ LUCY'S POV ]

𝐈'𝐌 𝐒𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐌𝐘 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐓𝐀𝐏, 𝐓𝐑𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐍 𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐘 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃. Today is Thanksgiving, and while I'm a huge celebrator of the holidays, this is the holiday that infuriates me the most. It's the holiday that I'm not thankful for because it's the holiday I always, without a doubt, get injured on.

Caesar and I were preparing the turkeys, and he stepped away for one second, leaving me with the evil turkeys. I was checking on them, and Jess decided to walk in and walk right into me, knocking me forward which caused my hand to catch onto one of the hot trays inside the oven.

   Now it burns. Really burns.

   And it's Jess' fault.

"How's the hand?" Dad asks, moving my arm out from under the tap so he can inspect the nasty burn mark on my hand.

   I shrug. "Stings. It'll be fine."

   "I don't know how you do it, Luce." I can hear the amusement in Dad's voice, I swear to God. "Come on, last year you tripped over nothing and fell into the cabinet that──"

"──was holding the cranberry sauce, I know the story, Dad. I stared in it."

He hides his laughter behind his hand, and if my hand wasn't sore from the nasty burn, I'd reach over and hit him. "Every year, like clockwork, kid. You always get hurt."

He places a hand on my head, and I stare up at him. "Maybe you should make your diner safer."

"Sure, I'll baby-proof it for you, Luce." I roll my eyes. "But I didn't even baby-proof when you were, you know, a baby."

"Yeah, I get it."

   "Maybe this holiday is just cursed."

   "Well, you're the one who insists on letting everyone in town eat in here." I peer up at him, offering him a sarcastic smile that he obviously doesn't appreciate. "Don't get me wrong, I love this town, but why do we have to make a gazillion turkeys?"

   "That's not a number."

   "I'm emphasising, Dad."

   I love Thanksgiving, I do, but Dad isn't wrong. This holiday has got to be cursed with how much I get hurt. I also love this town, but Dad always hosts Thanksgiving dinner in here just so we can eat with the Gilmore's. For the last three years, we've been eating Thanksgiving dinner with the Gilmore's. I like Lorelai and Rory, but now I don't know how this particular Thanksgiving is going to go.

   Rory and Jess are dating, and he's eating dinner with us this year unlike last year when he moped upstairs and didn't come down. Now he's going to eat Thanksgiving dinner with us, and he's dating Rory Gilmore.

   While I suspected they'd always get together at some point, I'm still not sure what kind of relationship they have. I know they're... close based on the interaction I had with them just last week when I walked into the apartment and found them horizontal on the sofa. Oops.

   Sure, my dad has found me and Tristan upstairs a little too close for his liking, and he's forced us downstairs, but I've never had to catch Jess with anyone── not even Shane. Regardless, Dad isn't too fussed about Jess and Rory even though he goes upstairs every ten minutes just to check they aren't producing any babies── just like he does whenever Tristan and I are up there.

   Speaking of Tristan, I'm going to his house shortly after my dinner at the diner to spend the rest of the evening with him, his sister and his mother who I think likes me. Thankfully, his father isn't there or else I'd be dragging my dad to this shindig too.

   We've been together for two years now and I've only spent time with his family once, so I feel like I need to make more of an effort. I know they haven't been too interested in bonding with me, but if this thing with Tristan only gets more serious, I want his family to like me── especially his father, but I think I have a better shot with his mother.

   I continue to hold my hand under the cold tap, wincing at the pain. "Can I take a picture?" Dad asks, and I scowl at him. "No?"

   "No."

   "Wait until I tell Maisie and Buddy," Dad laughs, no longer hiding his amusement. "Every year, we try and guess how you're going to hurt yourself on Thanksgiving."

   "Dad!" This time I do smack his arm. "You can't do that. It's not my fault this diner is a safety hazard."

   "You only ever get hurt on Thanksgiving, Lucy. It isn't the diner."

   "No, this time it was Jess' fault," I grumble.

   Dad brushes a hand against my hair. "Sure."

   "He fell into me on purpose."

   "No, I didn't!" Jess yells from outside the kitchen, and I reach for the nearest weapon: a spoon.

   I stand up, determined to do some serious damage with my... spoon, but Dad grabs ahold of my arms, forcing me to sit back down. "No."

   "One of these days..."

   "Sure, one of these days you can..." He takes the spoon from my hand, eyeing it strangely. "...hit him with a spoon, but not today. I need you both on your best behaviour."

   "Yes, Luke," we both grumble, and Jess grins, awfully amused. "Love the weapon of choice, Luce."

   I snatch the spoon from Dad's hands, and I throw it in Jess' general direction. It unsurprisingly hits the ground, and while it didn't hurt Jess in any way, I still feel a strange satisfaction.

   Dad is staring down at me, obviously disappointed, but I just shrug. "What? He started it."

   "You're supposed to be the mature one."

   I look past Dad towards Jess who still stands at the door, sticking his tongue out like a child. I flip him off── frustrated on a whole other level── and Dad grabs ahold of my hand, pushing it down.

   He looks over his shoulder at Jess. "Stop provoking her."

   "Yes, Uncle Luke," Jess replies sarcastically.

   "Just Luke," Dad corrects. "Now apologise to each other. Now."

   Jess and I stare at each other, waiting for the other to apologise for... something, but neither of us say a damn word. We're both stubborn, so I know neither of us will apologise because we both believe we can do no wrong.

   Dad looks from me to Jess, and then back over at me, sighing loudly. "This is hopeless. You're both..." We shift our eyes over to Dad, grinning like a pair of freaky, creepy twins. "Just... Just no more throwing spoons, okay?"

   "No promises," I reply.

   Dad nods, realising he can't do a damn thing to stop us from acting like this. "Just behave, okay?"

   "Okay, Dad," I say at the same time Jess says, "Okay, Uncle Luke."

   Dad walks away, walking by Jess. "Just Luke!"

   Once he's away from the kitchen, I switch the cold tap off, wrapping my hand in a cloth. Jess turns to me, leaning against the doorframe of the kitchen. "Happy Thanksgiving, Luce."

   I scoff, smiling. "Happy Thanksgiving, Jess."

   To me, Jess is like that sibling you didn't ask for, but the one that shockingly makes everything just a little bit more amusing.

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𝐈 𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍'𝐒 𝐀𝐍 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐀𝐆𝐎, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐈'𝐕𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄. He and his family had their usual Thanksgiving dinner just before I arrived, and now all that's left is Tristan, Lisa and his mother. We're currently watching some random show on the TV, and the silence has never been more awkward.

I had a lovely dinner with Lorelai, Rory, Jess and Dad, and now I wish I had just stayed. I helped Dad and Jess clean up, and then I changed into more appropriate clothes── a dress and a pair of black pumps── before departing from the diner with a bouquet of flowers.

Mary thanked me for the flowers, and she said I looked lovely, but she hasn't said another word to me since. Sure, I haven't said a word either, but I really don't know what to say.

   Tristan's twelve-year-old sister is currently colouring in a giant turkey, and I'm sat a comfortable distance away from Tristan just because I feel awkward sitting so close to him while his mother sits across from us, her eyes on the television.

   I peer over at Tristan, offering him a tight-lipped smile, and he shuffles closer which I'm not opposed to. I could really use his words in striking up a conversation with his mother because I'm itching to leave if something doesn't happen.

   I clear my throat, nudging him slightly, and Tristan takes the hint... I think.

   "Uh, Mom, Lucy applied for Yale."

   Yale. Okay. That's a safe topic. I think. However, I assume she already knows.

   "Oh." She nods, smiling politely. "That's nice. Where──" She crosses her leg over the other. "Where else have you applied?"

   Okay. A question. Good.

   "Uh, Columbia, NYU and Yale," I reply, and Mary nods, but I can't tell if she's pleased or just being polite. She's a very difficult woman to read, maybe more difficult than Tristan's father. "I don't know why I picked those, I just needed some safety schools."

   "Yes, of course."

   Tristan's hand lands on my knee, and he squeezes tightly. "You'll get into Yale."

   I smile, resting my hand over his. "Hopefully."

   "Well, you're a smart girl, Lucy." I look over at Mary. "Your father spoke very highly of you."

   If there's one thing I can count on, it's my dad. It doesn't matter if I fail, Luke Danes will always talk highly of me── even to people who don't seem to show that much interest in me. I'm very grateful for my dad, more and more each day.

   "Well, he isn't wrong," Tristan gushes.

   "We're very proud of Tristan," Mary speaks, and I feel Tristan's hand tighten around my knee. "I mean, applying to each Ivy League school and Oxford. It's just──"

   "Each Ivy League school?" I look up at him, a little confused. "Like Harvard, Yale and Princeton?"

   He opens his mouth to speak, but his mother beats him to it, "Oh, yes. His father convinced him." She chuckles lightly, reaching forward to pick up her wine glass. "It's a remarkable school, but I'm secretly hoping you go to Yale."

   "You..." I sigh. "I thought you weren't applying to Princeton."

   "I-I mean, I'm not gonna go if I get in."

   "Yes, he just did it because his father wouldn't shut up." Mary rolls her eyes, taking a long sip of her wine. "God, your father isn't persistent, isn't he? He won't just let you go to a school you want to go to." She shakes her head, continuing to drink her wine.

   Mary Dugray hardly said a word for ages, and now she won't stop talking.

"Honey, you can do whatever you want." Mary stands up, taking her wine glass with her. "And Lucy, you can do whatever you want, okay?"

"T-Thanks," I reply, confused.

"I mean, my son wants to go all the way to Oxford just to get away from us, but at least your dad will get to see you wherever you go."

"Mom──"

"No, it's fine." Mary shakes her head, moving away from the living room. "Like I said, do whatever you want, honey."

Mary leaves the room, and now it's twice as awkward as it was before.

"Lisa, can you──" Tristan doesn't even have to finish his sentence for Lisa to get the hint. She mutters a quick goodbye to me, and she picks up her books, leaving the room promptly to go upstairs.

I turn to Tristan, reaching out to take his hand. "What's going on?"

"Dinner was..." He sighs. "Awkward."

"Why?"

"Well, the whole college talk came up, and my mom wouldn't stop drinking and..." He falls back against the sofa, defeated. "She doesn't want me to go all the way to Oxford if I get in. She thinks I'm just trying to get away── and from this crazy family, I am."

I pull his hand onto my lap, toying with the ring on his thumb. He looks over at me, smiling like all is okay, but I'm not so sure it is. "You should go wherever you want to go, Tristan." Even if that is Oxford, I think, but I don't say it out loud. "You're so smart, you deserve to get away and go to a really great school."

"Yes, but there's also great schools here too."

I nod, but there's a question eating at me, and it has been for some time so I know I should just come out and say it. "Tristan..."

"Yeah?"

"If you get into Oxford..." I pause, swallowing my fear. "...will you go?"

He shrugs, hand squeezing mine. "I don't know."

"You have no idea."

He chuckles softly. "No, Luce, I don't... I don't know. Why?"

Part of me is worried that he does know. If Tristan gets into a school like Oxford, I think he'll go. It's an amazing opportunity, and while it would be amazing to study in England, I wouldn't dare leave the country. I have a thousand reasons to stay but Tristan has very little to stay here. He wants to explore, and I understand his need to run away, but I'm freaking terrified.

I'm allowed to be terrified, right?

He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, cupping my face and turning me so I'm facing him. "What are you worried about?"

"If you get in, I think you will go," I say, and I can't come back from it now.

"Luce, I just said──"

"I know what you just said, Tristan," I interrupt. "But if you get into Oxford, you'll go. I mean, who wouldn't go? Is there any reason why you wouldn't go?"

"Yes. There's a huge reason why I wouldn't go."

"Why? Why wouldn't you go to an incredible university and study English in──"

"Because the only reason I want to stay is you," he interrupts, and I clamp my mouth shut. "Lucy, if I move across the freaking ocean to another country, I'll barely get to see you. Do I think we'd make long distance work? Yes, but it'll be damn hard, and I can't..." He shakes his head. "These past two years have been the better part of my life, and I'm not exaggerating."

I sigh, moving away from him. "Tristan..." I shrug, not knowing what to say without sounding like a bitch. "I don't want you to make a really important decision based off me. I don't want that kind of pressure. I──" I stand up, suddenly feeling uncomfortable on the sofa. "I'm not basing my decision on you, so you shouldn't either."

"I know you aren't, but I want to factor you in, Lucy, I──"

"We're eighteen, Tristan!" I don't know why I'm growing overwhelmed. I just... I just am. "We've got a lot of life ahead of us, and going to college is a huge, important decision that we need to make alone. If you want to go to Oxford, I will support you and I will love you. If you want to go to Princeton despite saying you hate it──"

"I'm not going to Princeton," he interrupts, but I continue to talk.

"──then I will support you. I will always support you, no matter where you end up. Yes, if you go to Oxford, it'll be hard but we... we can try long distance. We can..."

Tristan laughs, and I look away, closing my mouth. "Lucy, why are we even talking about this," he asks, standing up. "We have time, and I haven't gotten into anywhere yet."

"I know, but you will."

He stands in front of me, and he places his hands against my face. I look up at him, a touch of sadness in my eyes. "You're right. I should make this decision alone, but we don't know what will happen, okay? Can we just..." He brushes a piece of hair behind my ear. "Can we just leave this conversation until we find out?"

I nod, swallowing the painful lump in my throat. "I'm sorry. I just..." I laugh awkwardly. "I don't know why I got so upset."

"I'm sorry for putting that pressure on you. I don't mean to, baby, I just..." His thumb strokes my cheekbone. "You're a really big part of my life even if we are only eighteen."

"And you're a really big part of mine."

"Come here." Tristan pulls me flush against him, and I wrap my arms around his torso, feeling the warmth of him. He rests his chin on my head, and his hand strokes my hair. "I love you, Blue, you know that, right?"

I nod, tears forming in my eyes. "I know."

I don't know why I said all those things, but they've been bouncing around my head for a long time. While we should have this conversation later, I still can't help but think about how Tristan could leave this country and do his own, brilliant thing.

A selfish part of me doesn't want to let go, but another part of me knows I have to let him do his own thing if he chooses to leave.

I'm allowed to be afraid. Right?

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❝𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐋 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑?❞

Jess and I sit in the back room snacking on a box of Lucky Charms just like we had done a few months ago. While we haven't done this since last time, he knew exactly what I meant when I said, "Cereal hour?" We grabbed two boxes of Lucky Charms, sat down on the only seats in the back room, and we've been chomping down on the sad boxes of cereal for the past ten minutes, not saying a damn word.

   Thanksgiving is over, and it's currently two in the morning, but I don't care. I should be asleep, but I'm annoyingly awake, and I knew Jess wasn't asleep. He kept moving around rather than snoring like my dad does.

   I'm the one who called this cereal hour, but I'm not sure if I did it to talk or if I did it for some simple, awkward company.

   While I could wait to talk to my dad in the morning, I've strangely formed a friendship with Jess that's definitely not... normal in any sense, but it's a very symbiotic relationship. We get one another, if that makes any sense.

   I open my mouth, prepared to speak, but Jess surprises me by talking first. "Dean tried to start a fight with me."

   My eyes widen, and the only word that leaves my lips is, "What?"

   He nods, swallowing a handful of cereal. "He tried to start a fight with me. I don't think he's, uh, over Rory."

   While Dean and I have formed a friendship due to the project we're working on, I believe that he would try and start a fight with Jess over something like Rory. I know he isn't over her, but he shouldn't try and fight Jess.

   "You didn't fight him, did you?"

   He shakes his head. "No, I..." He looks down. "It's not worth it, right?"

   "No, it definitely isn't."

   "Besides, if I fight him, Rory will think it's my fault." Sadly, I feel like that's true. Everybody sees Dean as a good guy in this town, and people still view Jess as a hooligan and while he's not committed any kind of crime in a long ass time, he's still not very well liked.

   "He's not worth it, Jess."

   "Thought you and he were besties now?"

   I scoff. "No. We're just... school friends."

   "Right." He pushes the box towards me, and I take it despite having my own cereal box to eat from. "How's that project going?"

   "Great," I reply, a little too happily because it's going damn well. I really do think we're going to score pretty highly. "How's it going for you?"

   "It's..." He huffs. "It's not."

   "Who's your partner again?"

   "Uh, Chloe..." He clicks his fingers several times, trying to think of the name. "Vanessa?"

   "Chloe and Vanessa are not even similar names."

   "What's the name of that chick who always chews too loudly," he asks, and I scoff, finding his way of describing people to be very... impolite, but I also know exactly who he's talking about.

   "Ava," I answer, and he claps a hand over his leg in response.

   "Yep. That one."

   I roll my eyes, pushing the cereal back towards him. "Well, it's a good thing you know her name, isn't it?"

   He nods, chewing a mouthful of cereal, and we fall silent again, but only for a moment before he stops chewing and asks, "Why'd you call for a cereal hour?"

   "I love that we're calling it──"

   "Luce..." He sighs. "Come on, just talk, alright?" I take a handful of cereal from my box, needing something to eat for a layer of much needed comfort.

   "Tristan applied to Oxford."

   Jess' eyes widen, surprised. "Wow. What's he trying to get away from?"

   My lips upturn in a small smile. "Today he said that he wanted to factor me in and I..." I shake my head. "...I freaked out, and I said some stuff, and now it just feels odd between us. He said we'd talk about it later when we find out what colleges we get into, but I don't know. I just... I don't want him to factor me in, but I also don't want him to go..."

   I look over at Jess, now realising that I just rambled like a fool. "Wow," he breathes out. "That's complicated crap."

   I snort out a laugh. "Yep."

   "I hope you're not factoring him in."

   I shake my head. "I'm not, but should I?"

   Jess scoffs loudly, pushing the box of cereal towards me. "No. Lucy, you've worked far too hard to factor in some guy."

   "Jess, he's not just some──"

   "Yes. Yes, I know." He waves his hand in front of his face. "You're all in love and sappy and gross, but your future is far more important than him, alright?"

   "I know. I've worked too hard to give it up."

   "Look, Tristan might not get in, and if he doesn't, he'll probably be nearby. Hell, he might be at Yale with you."

   "I might not get──"

   "You'll get in," he interrupts, sounding very confident, and my smile widens.

   "I want to get in. I want to be at Yale. I want my future to be worth all this hassle. I want..." I chew down on the cereal aggressively. "I want it all to mean something."

   "And it will if you focus on yourself and not him." Jess jabs a finger in my direction. "I know he's important to you, Luce, but there's nothing more important than your future."

   I look at him wistfully. "You know for a guy who isn't so good at talking, you sure know what to say."

   He reaches forward, snatching the box of cereal from me. "Shut up."

   "I'm just saying, you could go to college, Jess. You could──"

   "Hey, I've already said this, Luce. We aren't talking about me, alright?" I nod, deciding not to bring it up. "You called this ridiculous hour, and I'm just offering my friendly advice."

   "I love cereal hour."

   He reaches into the cereal box. "I don't."

   "Oh, come on. We're bonding."

   He stands up, pushing the cereal box into my hands. "I'm going to bed."

   "Thanks. Jess."

   "Yeah, it's not a problem, Luce."

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authors note:

fun thanksgiving chapter

i haven't edited this chapter ugh im lazy when it comes to that but i hope it's not too bad

thanks for reading :)