Do You See Her Face? (A Jess Mariano Fanfiction)

Going Carole King

Disclaimer: All Gilmore Girls content belongs to Amy Sherman-Palladino.

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Air in the diner was fragrant with spices, and Ella's cheeks were flushed with the heat of the oven as she stepped back out of the kitchen. Only a few patrons peppered the red tables, Rory and Lorelai at the counter. They spoke about the four Thanksgivings they were roped into. A rare smile stuck out on Luke's face as his palms rested on the counter, speaking with his one true love. Ella rolled her eyes at the sight. How could he be so oblivious? Shaking her head to herself, Ella turned to Jess, sitting on his stool near the kitchen door with 1984 in his hands. His brow was heavy with concentration, noting something in the margin.

"Some light reading, huh?" she asked, eyebrows raised.

He looked up with a smirk at the sound of her voice. With hair pulled away from the hairline in a bandana and cascading down her back, Ella had an excited sparkle to her eyes and a streak of flour across her forehead. Jess licked the pad of his thumb and swiped it away. She scrunched up her nose.

"Now I have Jess spit on my face," she said with a groan.

"Wouldn't be the first time."

Snorting a laugh, she rolled her eyes. "Fuck off."

"Hey!" Luke scolded, brows furrowed as he shot a look back at her. His hands went to his hips, and Lorelai and Rory snickered behind him.

Ella brought a hand to her mouth self-consciously. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. God, you have hearing like the Bionic Woman!"

Only grunting irritably, Luke went back to his conversation. Ella scoffed and turned to Jess, who marked his place in his book and stuffed it in the back pocket of his jeans. She brought her hands to his shoulders and his arms laced around her waist.

"Are you going for a record with those pies this year?" Jess asked. She'd arrived at the diner around six in the morning, and had cooked continuously until two in the afternoon. And he hadn't seen her so jazzed since applications, though now the stress was far more pleasant.

She nodded. "Every year, it gets more impressive. Don't you remember last year? You were here by then."

Pursing his lips, Jess shook his head a little. "I think that day I was perfecting the chalk outline of a body."

"How have you never been arrested?"

He shrugged. "There's always time."

"You're impossible."

"Right back at ya."

Casting a glance over the counter at the nearly empty diner, she snuck a kiss to his cheek. Jess gasped, and placed a hand where her lips had been. "How dare you, Lady Chatterley!"

"Shut up," she smiled, but then averted her gaze and turned more serious. "Hey, Jess?"

"Yes, Eleanor?"

Sighing heavily, she looked back up at him and clutched at her necklace. "Okay, my family's coming to town tonight and considering Adam practically walked in on us the other day anyway, I thought maybe you could come for Thanksgiving?"

By the time she finished with her rapid speech, she slightly was winded. The key on her necklace zipped back and forth along its chain anxiously. Jess raised his eyebrows and sighed, running a hand over his mouth.

"Elle, your dad already hates me-"

"What? Why would he?"

"Do you not remember the hair gel comment?" he asked.