Lucy sipped on her soda as she sat at the bar; listening to her music. HER music, not Jess' new playlist, for obvious reasons. Luke passed by; looking at what seemed to be the past.
Lucy, sitting by herself, not opening in conversation and listening to that damned iPod. She was relapsing. But from what he couldn't tell.
He cleared his throat to get a conversation going with her, "Lucy."
She looked up briefly taking out one earbud, "Yeah Luke?" she asked gently.
"Anything interesting happen this week?" he asked as he cleaned out a glass. He felt like the cheesy therapeutic bartenders, it was making him sick.
She looked at him absentmindedly, "Nope. Same boring Stars Hollow." she said and looked back down at her plate of toast.
"Do you want anything else?" he asked.
She shook her head.
Luke sighed. He felt like he was pulling teeth with this conversation. If you could even call it one. He looked at her and moved closer so only they could hear each other, "Are you okay? Did something spook you?" he asked.
Lucy looked up about to retort when she heard the backfire of an ugly ugly car trying to start up. She sighed and put her earbud back in. Luke noticed her revert back in her shell and looked out the window that gave him view to the dead of night.
"No way." he muttered to himself before quickly leaving his notepad on the bar and hurrying outside.
Lucy looked back out the window to find Luke and Jess already arguing. She sighed shaking her head and finishing up her soda.
"-So I guess it didn't work out with your dad huh?" Luke changed the arguing about his car to something he could converse about; his arms still crossed not defensively but exhaustedly.
"It worked out fine." Jess defended.
"So what are you doing back East buddy? Still searching?" he poked.
"Been traveling." Jess side-eyed him.
"Well-thanks for all the swell letters and cards you sent while you were away." He said sarcastically. To which Jess immediately yelled at him, "You kicked me out, what did you expect? A candy gram??"
"I didn't kick you out, you got yourself kicked out," he replied calmly. "Nice spin, you should work for Bush." Jess rolled his eyes and his finger around. "So what'd you get out of this Kerouac trip of yours- you write the great american novel, or learned to play the hermonica?"
"What do you care? You're not my guardian anymore.."
"And I bless every day that I'm not."
"Well when you're not best at something it's best to cut and run," Jess jabbed. "Oh, sorry I tried to give you a decent life Jess. Sorry I didn't think driving a Forklift for the rest of your life was good enough for you."
"Well that is condescending isn't it? What happened to friend of the working man?" he retorted.
"-Oh that sister of mine, what a prize. What, a prize." he shook his head. "What does she have to do with anything?" he said.
"I tell her about the car, she runs and tells you, and her claiming she had no contact." he guessed.
"Again. The car was Mine. Liz was doing the right thing- that's what family does." he pointed. "Family?" Luke frowned, "What a joke coming from you."
"Go clean your counters, I'm tired." he said done with this conversation five minutes ago. "So you staying in town?" Luke said; not like her cared.
"I don't know of any twenty-four hour auto shops here, do you?"
"Well you're not staying with me." Luke said high and mighty.
"Didn't cross my mind." Jess yelled.
"-Get it fixed, quick." he insisted.
"Believe me, no one wants to fix it faster than me." he assured him flatly.
"You stay away from her while you're here." Luke said his voice changing.
"Stay away from who."
"You know who I mean." he said deeply.
"Gee, you're so criptic."
"You've done all the damage there you're gonna. Okay?"
Jess looked at him knowing he meant Lucy, "I'm just here to get my car fixed, and then I'm gone." he repeated his goal.
"Where are you staying?"
"Back seats as comfy as any." he said walking to his car.
"Fine by me." Luke said before going back inside. Lucy watched him come back in, not being able to hide quick enough that she had been listening. She looked down briefly. Luke shook his head and looked around the place, "Lucy I think it's time you went home." he said seeing as it was late and she was the only person there still.
Lucy looked up at him. She slid him a fifty dollar bill. Luke frowned, "You can't buy me, Lucy. If it's open for you, it has to be open to everyone-now why don't you want to go home." he said cutting the bullshit; seeing as he had enough of it today as it was.
Elizabeth looked down and bit her lip. She kept her music in and playing and closed her eyes tightly as she shook her head.
"And since when are you not speaking anymore huh? When did that chestnut happen." he said getting frustrated. Of course it wasn't her personally, it just felt like there was so much drama in this town, too much for Luke.
She bit her lip and shook her head again looking pained.
Luke's eyes softened when she saw her eyes gloss over. He sat beside her at the bar. "Is it your dad?" he frowned, "..I admit I haven't been available much but-you always used to like talking..."
Lucy covered her face and hiccuped as she felt the tears emerging. She hid her eyes in her arm as her breaths unsteadily racked her body.
Luke's eyebrows furrowed in a further confusion and looked at her. "What's wrong?" he asked; wanting to help her. "Lucy please tell me.."
Lucy let out a whimper and cried, to which Luke immediately hugged her.
____
Luke was steaming where he sat and glared, "So you mean to tell me, that..."
Lucy nodded.
"And he..."
"-By accident-" she reminded him quickly.
"There's no by accident about that Lucy. What he did was still.. - it was still wrong what he did. You should not be defending him and you should not feel guilty- I'm going to kill him-" he got up, "I'm going to kill him--"
"-No! No-" she grabbed his arm tightly, "Luke I'm begging you don't say anything."
"Lucy. It's just another one of those situations alright? It sucks this shit keeps happening to you, but you should know by now that I will always do the right thing-"
"Luke!" she pleaded. He stopped and sighed, "What."
"Dean was hurting. Okay?" she looked at him. She sighed as he sat back down slowly, "I-it was consensual..." she looked down ashamed.
Luke frowned, "..What?"
"At first - there was no way in hell but - he was hurting Luke.. I mean. Rory was playing him. Leading him on when they were together.. and even when they weren't together he was still being lead on." she said, "I love Rory, she can read into any good book, but she is terrible about reading other people." she said. Luke's eyes softened only slightly.
"So yeah he came onto me, and he was slightly intoxicated, but- he needed some release-" she breathed, "And the more I thought about it, I had come to that party ready to open myself up to Jess. To tell him, how I really felt... I couldn't find him... I couldn't find him Luke and you of all people know that pain.." she sighed and rubbed her head. "By the end of the night I was as lonely and hurt as Dean was.."
Luke shook his head and sighed, "I just... no. No Lucy I can't believe it." He said his tone relatively leveled, "You're telling me, that after forcing himself on you that you were okay with it? Because you're not Lucy. You're not okay. And everyone can see it. After that night no one saw you for weeks. And to add to the matter, now you'be reverted back to you're old self." He said and looked at her. "What happened to trying new things Lucy-"
"Look what trying new things has got me Luke." She looked at his exasperated.
"...I told you to stay away from Jess. Did I not?"
Lucy looked down and rubbed her head. "You're right. Maybe I should go home-" she got up.
"No-" he stopped her getting up, "No stay." He sighed. "Just. It's a lot to process okay?" He rubbed his head knowing he was hating this already, "If..if you need some time, sort yourself out. You can stay here."
She looked at him. "Yeah?"
Luke begrudgingly looked down, "Yes."
Lucy exhaled in relief and went to hug him. She grabbed onto his shoulders and hugged him tightly. "For what it's worth Luke?" She said, "I wish you were my guardian.." she said, referencing to the nasty talk he had outside with Jess.
Luke sighed and hugged her back, "Me too, kid." He looked down.