❝HAPPY GRADUATION, LUCY DANES❞
▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

⋆𐙚₊˚⊹ chapter sixty-eight,
Gilmore Girls — Season Three

𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟔𝐭𝐡, 𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟑
―୨୧⋆ ˚ LUCY'S POV

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

𝐈'𝐌 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐃𝐔𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎𝐃𝐀𝐘, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐈𝐓 𝐇𝐈𝐓 𝐌𝐄 𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐖𝐎 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐁𝐄 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐆𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐖 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐇𝐒. My eyes stare up at the dark ceiling in my bedroom, and the first thing I hear is Dad snoring. Well, that's one thing I'm not going to miss once I leave for college.

  I drag myself out of bed, pulling my blanket along with me, and I cross the room to my dad's side of the room. "Dad," I hiss, but he continues to sleep, snoring loudly. "Dad."

I step around to sit down on his bed. I tug at the bedsheet, whispering at him again. "Dad!"

  He jerks awake, breathing heavily, and I smile innocently. "Morning, Dad." I cuddle my blanket around me and I shuffle up the bed, sitting right next to my half-asleep father.

  His eyes hone in on the clock next to his bed. "It's two in the morning, Luce." He groans.

  "I graduate today," I say, crossing my legs. "I, Luciana Lilia Danes, graduate today. Can you believe that? I felt like this day would never, ever come and now it's here, Dad. It's here." I smack my hand against his arm, and he groans again, obviously frustrated by me. "I'm graduating today."

  "Yep," he breathes out, his eyes still closed.

  I peer down at him. "What if my speech isn't good enough? What if I mess up my words? What if I trip over when taking my diploma? What if──"

"Lucy." Dad sits up, and he leans against the headboard next to me. "You need to go to sleep. You need to stop overthinking this."

"I'm going to college soon," I say, and the words taste sour on my tongue. "I'm going to be leaving this house, this town, and I just..." My head hits the headboard. "...I'm really freaked out."

  "Luce, you've been fine for the past two weeks. Why are you freaking out?"

  "Because I'm leaving soon, Dad." I pull my legs up, resting my chin on knees as I cuddle the blanket around me. "I'm leaving, and that's scary. Who am I going to speak to at two in the morning?"

  "Me," he answers.

  "But you'll be here, and I'll be──"

  "That doesn't matter, kid."

"But it does. It won't be the same."

"It will be the same," Dad argues. "Kid, I'm not going anywhere. If you ever need me, all you have to do is let me know. If you need to speak to somebody at two in the morning, you call me or you come home. I am not going to stop being your dad once you leave. In fact, I'm probably going to act more like your dad once you leave."

"I'm just really scared," I admit, and the weight of the confession hangs heavy. I hadn't expected myself to get all worked up over something like this, not when I usually have this stuff handled, but I guess I've been holding it in, and now it's unleashing at two in the morning.

"You're scared?" Dad scoffs. "Luce, I'm terrified."

"What?"

"My little girl is going to be leaving in a few months." He nudges me, and I crack a broken smile. "I'm terrified that you may not need me so much in the future. You're growing up, kid, and that scares me. You're going to be away from me where I can't keep an eye on you, and I'm..." He exhales. "...I'm terrified, Lucy."

  "I didn't know you were scared."

  "Well, I am very good at pretending I'm not."

It saddens me that Dad is afraid of what will happen once I leave for college, and it suddenly makes my feelings seem so small. Dad is here, taking care of me every single day, loving me every single day, and I'm complaining about leaving when he also has to say goodbye to me. He's given up so much to take care of me so his feelings towards me leaving are reasonable.

  "I'll come home a lot."

  He pats a hand against my knee. "You say that, but you'll have a very hectic life once you start college, Luce. You'll be busy."

  "But never too busy for you," I insist.

  "You're always welcome to come home, but you will have a very busy life, Lucy. I'll understand if you don't come home as much as you say."

I understand that my life will likely be busy, but I still want to come home as much as I can. I still want to see my dad more than anybody else. I still want to eat dinner every Saturday night at Sniffy's Tavern. I still want to come home to this bizzaro town. I love my life here, and I don't want this to fade away once I go to college. I refuse to let this life I live in Stars Hollow disappear.

  I lean my head against my dad's shoulder. "I am so proud of you, kid." I smile, my throat tight with emotion. "Not a day has gone by when I've not been proud of you," he admits. "You are, and will always be, the one thing I most proud of, don't even forget that."

  "Thank you, Dad."

  "Your speech is going to be incredible, Luce." I finished my speech a few days ago, and before I handed it into the principal, I dialled the number of somebody who needed to hear my speech more than anyone else.

  I found the number for Jimmy Mariano in California, and once I called his home, a woman answered and handed the phone off to Jess who seemed pretty surprised to hear from me. I then stayed on the phone with him for half an hour, reading him my speech, and he gave me all the advice he could. After talking with him, I added a few more sentences and then I handed it off to Principal Merton who... I don't think likes me much anymore, but it doesn't matter because after today, I won't be going back to that school.

  Dad doesn't know I spoke to Jess, and I didn't bother telling him. Jess didn't have much to say about his life in California, but he seemed okay. He mentioned that he had a job, but it was only temporary. I wanted to ask him so many questions, but I didn't because I knew he wouldn't answer them. Once I finished my speech, he was quick to get off the phone which I didn't mind.

  As long as he's okay, it doesn't really matter if we don't talk as much anymore. Sure, it saddens me because Jess actually became one of my closest friends, if I'm being entirely honest, and to watch him just turn back into a stranger is a little depressing.

  "You really won't let me read it?"

  "Nope." I shake my head, grinning at what I wrote. I'm excited to read it, but nervous about doing it in front of parents, teachers and students when it's so personal and meaningful. "But it'll be worth the wait, I promise."

  "I'm sure it will be."

  "Hey, Dad..." He hums in acknowledgment, and I look away from him to stare straight ahead at the sofa in front of me, avoiding all eye contact. "Thank you for everything. I mean, I don't think I'd be who I am if you hadn't been my dad."

  He smiles. "Well, thanks for making it easy."

  "I'm really grateful for you," I continue. "I don't say it enough, and I should. You're really the greatest dad in the world, and I'm just so, so lucky that I got you."

  "I think I'm pretty lucky, kid." Dad wraps an arm around my shoulders, and I sit next to him, cuddled up to him like I did when I was a kid.

  "Thank you," I whisper, my eyes closing. "And I love you."

  "I love you too, Luce."

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

          𝐈 𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐒𝐈𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍. My heart is pounding, my heels are too tight, and my dress is too itchy underneath this gown. My cap is sliding off my head which means I'm going to have cap hair── something I did not think about sooner. Silly me thought curling my hair would be smart because I look good with my hair curled, but now the cap is totally ruining my hair.

  My foot is hitting the ground anxiously as I stare straight ahead at the stage where Principal Merton talks to the crowd, addressing the teachers, the family and friends, and us── the achieving students.

I'm not paying much attention to what he's saying, only focusing solely on not screwing up my upcoming speech. I've replayed the words in my head over and over and over again, and I'm overthinking it as I sit here. What if the words I say sound stupid? What if they're meaningless? What if I stutter or screw it up?

A hand grasps mine. "Sweetie, you're sweating." Addy squeezes my hand, and my heart pounds in my chest as I scrape my heel against the ground. "And stop ruining my heels."

I stop moving my feet. "Sorry."

"You're going to be absolutely fine, Luce," Addy whispers, her eyes flitting over the many students who sit around us, dressed in their caps and gowns. Lindsay and Dean sit behind us, holding hands, and whispering to one another.

"I will not be fine."

"How about we have a signal in case you freak and you need a distraction?" I peer over at her, and a large, beautiful smile breaks out on her face. "Oh, come on, Luce. How about you wink at me or wave your hand dramatically?"

"Wave my hand dramatically?"

"Or..." She hums, grinning widely as an idea sparks in her head. "...dance like Chandler Bing."

"Yeah, that ain't happening."

She leans in closer, squeezing my hand extra tightly. "You're Lucy Danes. Your speech is going to be incredible, okay?" I nod, refocusing on Principal Merton who just received a round of applause by the parents for... something.

Once the applause dies down, Principal Merton looks towards me. "It's with my greatest pleasure to introduce to you our valedictorian." My family cheers loudly a couple rows behind me, and my cheeks heat in embarrassment, but they're my biggest supporters so I'm not surprised by the cheering. "This young lady is one of the most remarkable students to be taught at this school. She has distinguished herself immeasurably. She is a hard working, humble, and competitive student whose achievements are unmatched. Ladies and Gentlemen, Luciana Danes."

"Good luck, babe," Addy whispers as I stand up, removing my hand from hers.

Applause and cheers erupt as I walk up the stage, careful not to fall flat on my face as I move up the stairs towards the podium where Principal Merton stands, smiling proudly. I thank him quietly, and I step up to the podium to see that my speech is laid out, ready for me to read.

  I inhale sharply, and I lift my eyes to see my family a few rows away. Maisie holds up a camera, constantly taking pictures of me, and Buddy wipes his eyes── already crying. I shift my eyes to Tristan who has that beautiful, relaxing smile on his face. I then look to Dad, and he's nodding his head at me, urging me to go on which pushes me too.

  "Principal Merton, faculty members, fellow students, family and friends, welcome," I begin, my voice oozing confidence because this isn't so scary. "We never thought this day would come. Believe me, we prayed for it, marked days off our calendar, and counted every painful second for this day, and now it's finally here. While I've waited for this day, it still pains me greatly to leave behind friends who inspire me..." My eyes lift, landing on Addy, and then moving over to Lindsay and Nathan. "...and teachers who have shaped my life and my fellow students' lives forever."

  I clear my throat, lifting my eyes from the words on my page to speak to the crowd. "I often live in my head── always creating stories through reading, writing and learning. I have read many books in my lifetime, and I will continue to read for the rest of my life, mainly because I am inspired and moved by each word I read. I often wish to be apart of those books── live in the eyes of another character, but unfortunately, that is not my reality."

  I peer down at the words on my page again, and then I lift my eyes to see those I love sitting a few feet away from me, and it makes everything just a little bit easier. "No, the life I really live is the one I am most fortunate for. It is the one that I wake up for, the one that fuels me, and the one that changes everyday. The reality I live in is full of love, emotion, and inspiration. This life I live is away from the books, and it is truly beautiful."

  I look to Maisie and Buddy, offering them a smile as emotion pricks in my eyes. "Maisie and Buddy Linds are kind, unfailing generous people. Without them, I'm afraid I would not be standing here right now. I've discovered that family is not always who we share a blood relation with. No, family is who is there── who gives you free chocolate cake..." A few laughs bubble out in the crowd, and I smile. "...who lift you up when you need a boost, who push you to be the greatest, and who love you like you're their grandchild. Maisie and Buddy Linds may not be my blood relation, but they are the grandparents I have grown up with. They are the grandparents I will cherish forever. I am very proud, and very lucky to be their granddaughter."

  I see Maisie put her head down, and I suspect she's crying. Buddy has a hand on her back, but he nods at me nonetheless, smiling that signature smile he always does. I inhale a shaky breath, realising I'm getting quite emotional just talking about this, and I shift my eyes over to the reason I'm standing here altogether.

"My ultimate inspiration comes from my best friend, the fabulous man from whom I received my name and life, Luke Danes."

"My father never gave me any idea that I couldn't do whatever I wanted or be whomever I wanted to be," I continue, eyes swelling with tears. "He believed in me. He pushed me to achieve my dreams. And he loved me regardless of how stressful I made his life." Laughs bubble out across the crowd once again which calms me. "He created a safe, loving environment for me to grow. He inspired me every single day, showing me that I could do quite literally anything with just a little bit of hope. He gave up his life to love me, and I will forever be indebted to the wonderful man who I get to call my father." Dad's wiping his eyes, and a tear slides down my cheek. "As he guided me through these eighteen years of life, I don't think he ever realised that the person I wanted to be the most was him."

I inhale sharply, another tear sliding down my cheek. "Thank you, Dad. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for supporting me. Thank you for guiding me. Thank you for just being my dad. I love you an indescribable amount."

He nods at me, indicating to me that I did it. I said almost all that I needed to say, and while there's tears in my eyes, I'm still... here. I said all that, and I still have more to say, so I continue, wiping my eyes quickly and refocusing on the task at hand.

"There is one final person who I want to address who isn't here today, but who is equally as important to me as everybody else I've discussed." I peer down at the sentences I scribbled down at the last minute after my phone call with Jess. "I want to credit my cousin, Jess Mariano who isn't here, but who I know deserves to be here. I am severely grateful for his help, for his guidance and advice. He is an incredible writer, an incredible worker, and an even more incredible friend. I wanted to include him in my speech today because he deserves to be spoken about in a rewarding way. I'm very lucky to be his cousin, and one day I hope he realises just how thankful I am."

I clap my hands together, moving past the talk about my family. "I want to say a final thank you to my teachers and to Principal Merton. Thank you for supporting us through these hectic years. We're sorry for all the trouble we caused." A few laughs erupt, and I crack a smile at Principal Merton behind me. "Here's to the Class of 2003!"

People clap and cheer as I move to step off the stage, rejoining Addy who shockingly has tears glistening in her eyes. Nathan claps my hand, congratulating me, and Addy wraps an arm around mine, cuddling closer to me.

She wipes her cheek. "Screw you and your poetic words, Lucy Danes. Screw you."

I smile widely. "Sorry, babe."

  I won't bore you with the rest of Principal Merton's words. He just said a lot of kind, unfunny words, but now we're standing in line to receive our diplomas. Because we're now in alphabetical order, I'm no longer stood with Addy. The closest friend to me is Dean and he's still six people away from me, so I stand silently in between unfamiliar faces.

  I tap my foot impatiently, waiting to be called up as each student steps up to the principal, accepting their diplomas and moving forward, waving to their families.

  After the applause dies down again, I hear a name I finally recognise, "Luciana Lilia Danes."

  I step up, hearing constant cheers and whoops from my family who are now standing, clapping for me. I step up to the stage, and I walk with my head held high as I reach Principal Merton. "Congratulations, Luciana."

  "Thank you, Principal."

  I shake his hand, take my diploma and I begin to walk away, but just before I do, I look to Dad who is standing, clapping his hands with a proud look on his face. I wave to him, my face ecstatic as I move away as the next name is called.

  I stick around by the stage, cheering for each of my friends who step up to the stage, take their diplomas and shake hands with our principal. I'm joined by Dean, Nathan, Lindsay and then Addy, and we share a group hug.

  Just before we part to our families, another familiar name is called.

  "And graduating in absentia, Jess Mariano."

  I snap my head over to Principal Merton who offers me a nod, and my mouth gapes in surprise, but I exhale a laugh, overjoyed. My words must've struck a cord with him, and he actually listened to me. Jess Mariano is graduating, and I'm holding his diploma in my hands, thanking Principal Merton over and over and over again for giving Jess a chance. He hands Jess' first draft back to me as well as his diploma, and he urges me to speak with him about pursuing writing which I definitely plan on doing once I see him again. He's so talented, he has no idea.

  When I rejoin Dad, he embraces me in a hug, and I squeeze back extra tightly. "Oh, I'm so, so proud of you." I pull back, and he holds my face in his hands. "You had something to do with Jess graduating, huh?"

  I shrug, a little smug. "Maybe." I hold up Jess' diploma, waving it in front of Dad. "He did it, Dad. You didn't fail him. He did it. He just doesn't know that he did it."

  "Well, he did it because somebody didn't give up on him." Dad pushes a kiss against my head. "You're a really great kid, Luce. I'm so, so proud of you."

  "Thank you, Dad."

  Maisie and Buddy step over, emotion in their eyes, and smiles on their faces. "Hey, guys."

  "Thank you for all those lovely things you said, Lucy." Maisie places a hand against my cheek, and I feel emotion prick in my eyes once again.

  "I meant every word. Seriously, thank you guys so much for everything."

  Maisie and Buddy look to one another, and Dad places an arm around my shoulders. "Well, we have a little gift for you," Maisie begins, and Buddy scoffs.

  "Little?" Buddy questions, grinning.

  She smacks his arm. "Shush."

  "You guys didn't need to get me anything." I look from Maisie to Buddy who both take my hands, and pull me away. I don't protest, I just follow them out the back of the school and to the street where──

  I come to a halt. "Oh, my God." Sitting outside the school is a silver nineteen-ninety-four Ford Taurus with an obnoxiously large red bow plastered on the windshield. "You bought me a car," I gasp, a hand over my mouth. "What?"

  "Well, this is our old car. You see, we don't drive anymore," Maisie explains, her hand holding mine. "And we thought we'd fix her up and gift her to you for your graduation so you can drive to and from college whenever you want."

  I look away from the shiny car to Maisie and Buddy. "Thank you," I say. "Thank you so much. I don't even think thank you carries enough meaning for how freaking grateful I am."

  "Well, we just wanted the best for our granddaughter," Buddy says, pressing a kiss against my head, and my smiles widens. "We love you, kiddo."

  "Thank you so much," I say again. "I love you both so, so much."

When Maisie and Buddy leave, I step away to talk with Tristan who has been hanging in the background── letting me talk with my family. Dad steps over to Addy, hugging and congratulating her, and I'm swept into a sweeping kiss by my boyfriend.

Standing there, in the middle of parents and teachers and students, Tristan kisses me and he doesn't stop until I can't breathe anymore. He pulls back, resting his forehead against mine, and I circle my arms around his neck.

"I loved your speech, Blue." Tristan pushes his mouth against mine quickly once again. "You did amazing up there. I'm so..." He moves his hair away from my eyes. "...I'm so proud of you, and I'm so in love with you."

I step closer, embracing him, and we hug one another, holding on tightly for the future we're going to have now that we've both graduated school. I went to his graduation with my dad to watch Rory Gilmore and Tristan, and now he's just watched me and applauded and cheered, and now we're moving forward to the future.

To our future, and I'm beyond excited.

I pull back from our embrace. "Oh, I have a little something for you. Come on." I slide my hand into his, and I tug him along, dragging him back into the school.

I left my locker open with his gift in── the one I finished yesterday after watching his graduation. He gifted me Billy Joel tickets which made me squeal and cry. I've been dreaming of seeing Billy Joel by entire life, and now I have tickets to actually see him. I'm beyond grateful, and I hope he enjoys the gift I handmade for him.

I reach my locker and I pull out the gift── a gift I made myself.

I push the untitled book into his hands. "That's your book," I tell him. "I had the book bound for your graduation, and I finished it yesterday. I used all the transcripts and drafts you'd given me, and I made it into a real, hardback book."

Tristan stares down at it, speechless, and he opens the first page. "I, uh, know you haven't named it, but it's just a first draft, right? I just wanted you to see your achievements, so I hope you like it. I know──"

He silences me by placing his lips on mine, and he pulls away quickly, his eyes moving back to the first page where I scribbled a quick note. "Thank you, Blue," he whispers, reaching for my hand.

He reads the note I scribbled out this morning:

It was Walt Disney who said, "All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them". I wanted to show you that you did it── you bravely created a beautiful, life-altering story that I am proud to be apart of.
You have so much courage and so much strength, and I'm beyond proud of you.
I love you, Tristan Dugray, don't ever forget that, pretty boy.
Love, Blue.

He lifts his eyes, presses his forehead to mine and kisses me again. "Thank you, pretty girl, but I think I have the perfect name picked out for my book."

"Oh, yeah?"

He flicks to the dedication page── the one that reads, "For the girl I call Blue." He places his finger over every word but the word Blue, and that answers my question.

I look to him, surprise in my eyes. "Really?"

"I couldn't have done it without you."

This time I kiss him, and I don't stop until he's the one that's breathless. When I bring my face back, he smiles.

"Happy Graduation, Lucy Danes."

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

authors note:

uh, omg, i finished this book and OMG this chapter made me all emotional and happy and just so relieved that i finished this

yes, there will be a sequel, and yes, there will be more lucy & tristan in the future

thankyou so much for reading along, for loving this story as much as i do, and for giving me ideas and thoughts. i appreciate all of you :)

i hope you enjoyed this chapter, and i hope you liked how i changed a few things like jess getting his diploma in the end.

i'm a sucker for happy endings, what can i say?

thankyou!!!!!!