The Other Gilmore

The Aftermath

It was the Monday after the Dance Marathon, and Frankie could hardly feel her feet. She and Jess had spent the entirety of Sunday sleeping, only waking up for school the following day. Once they had woken up, Jess gave her a pair of his sweatpants and a t-shirt, since she didn't have any clothes at the apartment, and they headed down the stairs to the diner.

"How are we standing right now?" Frankie mumbled as they descended what felt like a thousand steps.

"I don't know, but at least I'm not exhausted," replied Jess, wincing as he placed both feet on the ground.

The girl took his outstretched hand gratefully, then walked through the curtain and into the diner. At the counter were Rory and Lorelai, both staring at the couple like they wanted them to spontaneously combust.

Frankie rolled her eyes and grabbed a donut from the container, following Jess to a table.

"Hey! Lid, Frankie!" Luke called out.

She groaned and tried to stand, but failed miserably. "Feet. Hurts. Please, Luke? Just this once?" she whined.

The diner owner huffed, placing the lid back on the container, and sent the couple a side-eye before turning back to Rory and Lorelai.

Rory continued to glare at the pair. Frankie could have sworn she saw smoke coming out of her ears, but she chose to ignore her sister and turned her attention to Jess. "So, school?"

Jess turned in his seat, gazing at the building that was only a block away. "It's so far."

"I know. But we can do it," she said, fighting to stand up straight. Her knees felt like they were going to buckle underneath her.

"Can we, though?" he mused, unconvinced.

"Skateboard." She pointed to the board that was leaning against the wall behind Jess' chair.

He glanced at the board, eyes brightening, then gazed back at Frankie. "Have I told you lately how much I love you?"

She giggled and shrugged. "I don't know, but it doesn't hurt to hear it again."

"I love you." Jess kissed her and picked up the board, calling out to Luke over his shoulder as they left the diner. "School!"

Luke waved them off as they left the building. Placing the board on the ground, Frankie climbed on, with Jess squeezing in behind her, arms secured around her waist, and she steered them to the school.

"There you two are!" Kayla yelled out as she saw the couple approaching the front steps. "Tell me everything!"

"Tell you what?" Frankie asked as they stepped off the skateboard, grimacing when their feet met the pavement.

"'Tell you what'? Are you serious?" she responded, eyes wide in astonishment. "The dance marathon, dummy!" Kayla swatted her best friends arm, scowling slightly. "I heard about it. I need details, pronto." She stood in front of the couple with her arms crossed over her chest.

Frankie sighed, leaning her head on Jess' shoulder as the trio slowly made their way up the steps. "Can we talk about this later?"

"No! I need details! Answers to my millions of questions! I'm so bummed I missed the whole thing. Stupid Florida with its stupid humidity. I hate it there."

"You were visiting your grandparents, Kay," Frankie stated with a laugh.

"So? Nothing happened there. But everything happened here! And nothing happens here! Oh, I'm so mad that I had to leave this weekend," she groaned, earning chuckles in response.