The Other Gilmore

The Accident

It had been a few weeks since Jess' spontaneous visit to Boston, and Frankie was still riding high off it. She and Jess were talking every night, and she missed him like crazy, but finally saying 'I love you' gave them both the reassurance that their relationship was stable and secure.

That is, until the accident.

Christopher's cell phone rang in the middle of the movie he and Frankie were watching one night. They both had fallen asleep, so the loud blaring of the ringer startled the pair awake.

"I'm up!" Christopher called out as he jolted upright.

"Where's the fire?" Frankie asked, her eyes shooting open.

"Lorelai?"

"Mom's here?"

"No, she's on the phone."

Frankie nodded, watching as her father's face fell. "What happened?"

"We gotta go. Grab your coat."

"Why?" she questioned, not understanding what had occurred.

"Your sister was in an accident with Jess. Let's go."

Frankie jumped up and grabbed her sweatshirt from the coat rack, bolting out the door with her father. They drove straight to the hospital, but Rory and Lorelai were no longer there.

"Call your mom," Christopher said, handing his cell phone over to Frankie.

She dialed, but no one picked up. "Voicemail."

"Okay. We're going to the house."

Frankie nodded, taking a deep breath. She hadn't been in Stars Hollow for a long time. It was going to be a nerve-wracking reunion.

When they arrived, the house was dark.

"Check the turtle," she said quietly, pointing to the turtle statue by the front door. Sure enough, there was a spare key underneath, so Christopher used it to let them in.

The pair walked quietly through the house to Rory's room, peeking in to see Lorelai and Rory asleep.

"Um, you go in. I'm gonna go to my room, I don't want to crowd them," Frankie whispered to her father.

"You sure?"

She nodded and hugged her dad, watching as he grabbed a couple chairs and brought them into Rory's room. With a sigh, she snuck out of the house and began searching Stars Hollow for Jess.

Frankie finally found him at the diner. She knocked on the door to get his attention, which startled him out of his thoughts. Reluctantly, he got up from his seat at the counter and opened the door, allowing her entry to the establishment.

Once he had closed the door, she immediately hugged him. "I'm so glad you're okay," she mumbled into his shoulder.

Jess pushed her off him, walking back to the counter. "You shouldn't be here."

"Why?"

"You know why. Your family hates me now."

"I don't care."

"You should, Frankie!" he yelled at her.

The volume of his voice made the girl flinch, but she tried to keep her cool. "Fine. I wanted to make sure you were okay. I see that you are, so I'll go." She turned around, hoping Jess would stop her, but he didn't. As she made her way back home, she let the tears fall down her cheeks, unable to contain her emotions anymore.

It took Frankie a minute to remember where she was when she awoke the following morning. Stars Hollow. Right, she thought, swinging her legs over the side of her bed. Yawning, she made her way out of her room, only to collide with another body.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed.

"It's okay," Lorelai said to her youngest, grasping her upper arms to steady the girl. "It's good to see you, Frankie," she said quietly, a small smile playing on her lips.

The girl nodded, unsure of what to say.

"You know Jess was driving, right?" the mother asked, a tone of disgust laced through her words.

Frankie scoffed and furrowed her eyebrows, glaring at her mother. "That's one of the first things you want to say to me? Really? Not 'how are you, Frankie', or 'how's Boston, Frankie', or even 'I've missed you, Frankie'?"

"I'm sorry, you're right. I've missed you –"

"Too late." Frankie shook her head, a look of repulsion written all over her face as she walked away from her mother.

"Hi, Frankie," a voice called out. The girl looked over and saw her sister lying on her bed.

Frankie poked her head through the doorway, smiling shyly at Rory. "Hey."

Rory gestured for her twin to enter the room, and Frankie obliged, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"How are you feeling?" the younger twin asked, genuinely concerned.

Rory shrugged. "I'm okay." There was a long pause while the sisters thought of what to say next.

"I'm sorry, Frank."

"I should've been here, Ror."

They laughed with each other. They hadn't spoken at the same time in a while, and they both had missed it. It was always a happy accident.

"You first," Rory said, a small grin on her face.

Frankie took a deep breath and nodded, trying to find the words. "I'm sorry I wasn't here. I feel awful. I'm your sister, you shouldn't have had to go through that alone."

"It's not your fault," Rory reassured, grabbing Frankie's hand and giving it a slight squeeze.

"I know, but still. I should've been here, and I'm sorry I wasn't."

"Well, you weren't here because of me and mom, so I get it." It was Rory's turn to take a deep breath. "I'm sorry. Truly, genuinely sorry for kissing Tristin. It was wrong, and I ruined things for you two, and I feel awful. I didn't acknowledge it because I wanted to forget it happened, but it wasn't just me and him it affected, it was you, too. And that wasn't fair of me."

Frankie smiled at Rory, leaning over and giving her a hug. "See? That's an apology I can accept."

The twins laughed again, and they started to feel their relationship getting back on track. It had been far too long since they had just laughed and spent time together, so that's what they did for the rest of the afternoon.

That evening, there was a movie playing in the town square, but Frankie opted out of the event. She didn't want to be bombarded with questions by the town gossips, and she didn't want to deal with the stares from her neighbors. So, she spent the evening reading, but also waiting by the phone, hoping a certain someone would call.

But the call never came.