Sinister and Sensibility (Supernatural x Gilmore Girls Crossover)

Chapter 5

Rory had wandered off from her mom and Lane at the estate sale having found a table of old books. Most were out-of-date dictionaries or encyclopedias. She had been holding on to the Oxford dictionary from 1924. The warn grey cover was slightly washed out, the spine almost completely gone. She was gentle as she opened the cover and ran her hand over the yellowed pages, the paper soft under her fingertips.

She had been hoping for old, dusty novels and long-forgotten poetry, but the closest thing she'd found was children's stories like Black Beauty, Robin Hood, and King Arthur. All three had large fonts and numerous full-page length pictures, which would only take her about an hour or so to read. She was just going to have to stop at the bookstore. She'd already depleted all the reading material she'd packed two weeks back.

Rory set aside the books she planned to keep, sorting through the array of novels scattered around her in the grass. She pulled the cardboard box into her lap as she tried to neatly put the discarded books back the way she'd found them. So much for getting a head start on her Christmas shopping.

"Find anything worth keeping?" Lane came up behind her, Lorelai trailing behind as she examined the fabric spools she'd found at one of the tables.

"I found some good stuff, just not much actual reading material. I'll probably stop by the bookstore after this." They'd practically seen everything worth looking at over the past few hours. If she hadn't come across any other books at this point, it probably wasn't going to happen.

"You're on your own for that," Lorelai said.

Rory smiled. People didn't typically want to join her on her long trips to the Black White Red Bookstore. She also enjoyed the time alone, and not having to worry about people rushing her. Rory thought about the many times Dean had often sat on the steps waiting for her to come out or her mom having to drag her out when she'd lost track of time and Lorelai had been waiting on her to go eat dinner at Luke's. It was why meeting someone who understood her immense love for books was so important to her. People like her grandfather, or Jess or Logan; though he'd never be caught hanging out in a bookstore or library, but he was well-read.

Rory got to her feet, situating the books in her arms. "Alright, Jo March, are you ready to go?" Lorelai asked.

The girls stood in line to pay, discussing where to go for lunch. Miss Patty had a new basket that she was unloading full of china plates and old costumes, as she held up the line so she could flirt with the college student who was checking her out. "I think we just witnessed the meeting of husband number four," Rory teased, watching the boy squirm as he folded up Miss Patty's purchases and glanced at Mrs. Dunfrey for help.

"Oh my God," Lane said, her eyes wide as she spotted two men following after Taylor Doose. She could've sworn one of them was Dean Forrester, but she knew that couldn't be right.

"What?" Rory asked. She scanned their surroundings, trying to comprehend Lane's outburst, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

"Lane, you look like you've seen a ghost," Lorelai said, placing a comforting hand on the young woman's shoulder and exchanged a confused look with Rory.

"In a sense." Lane shrugged. She watched Taylor stop beside the gazebo, the two men turning so that she could get a pretty good view of their profiles from where she stood thirty yards away. "I think I just saw Dean."

Rory's heart felt like it had tripped over itself. Dean. Her eyes followed to where Lane was pointing, and sure enough, there he was. Her Dean. She wasn't sure what to think. The last time she saw him was outside her grandparents' house when he broke up with her. Their fallout hadn't been dramatic or explosive, but it had still been sudden and disappointing. She had learned a couple of months later that he had left Stars Hollow entirely. She didn't blame him. But he had left without her knowing where they stood with each other. Would he be happy to see her or be standoffish? They had broken up and become friends again before, surely they could do it a second time. She held no malice for him. How he felt was a different story, however.

"I thought he went back to Chicago?" Lane said, moving up in line.

Rory still felt nervous, her high school awkwardness returning in full swing. "Maybe he came back to visit his parents?" Rory said. It was the only thing that made sense.

"Rory, are you okay?" Lorelai asked, pulling her daughter into her side.

"Yeah. I just wasn't expecting to see him while I was here. It took me by surprise is all." Rory forced a smile, trying to clear her worries away.

The men finished their conversation, Dean and the other guy heading down the sidewalk toward the street. Dean's gaze wandered to the crowd, his eyes eventually landing on Rory's as she watched him nervously. He offered her a kind, reassuring smile before his eyes eventually traveled to the ground as he walked.

Rory's stomach dipped when they made eye contact. He had seen her. But the quick, fleeting exchange did nothing to calm her nerves. What did that smile mean? Was it a smile from a friend, or just him being civil? He had been friends with all three of them at one point. Surely that stillmeant something to him.

"Next!" Rory shook her head and smiled at the college kid behind the table, setting down all of her findings. A trip to the bookstore was something she desperately needed.