𝔹𝕝𝕦𝕖 𝕁𝕖𝕒𝕟 𝔾𝕚𝕣𝕝

Chapter Twenty-Six

Dani was missing Freddie, although she hated to admitted it. She was used to people leaving, she told herself, she knew he would go. But it still hurt. She had added the note to the others in her notebook, burying it under all the clothes in her bag. 

That was the reason she was on the porch roof, that and something happened with Lorelai and she was acting weird around her. So she star-gazed. But now that the sun was rising, there were now more stars for her to gaze at, so she clambered down the porch railing but as soon as she stepped foot on the porch, it fell through. 

"ARGH! MOM!" She yelled, yanking her foot out of the now gaping hole. "Great start to the day." She muttered as she walked through the door. 

*** 

"So do you think the porch is falling apart or do you just weigh a ton?" Rory teased her sister who was pouting over a cup of coffee. 

"The house is falling apart." Dani nodded. 

"The porch is fine. It just has a little extra ventilation in it now, that's all." Lorelai said calmly.  

"The wood is old." Rory said. 

"And rotting." Dani added. 

 "The wood is not old and rotting, it is strong and sprightly and will be with us for a long, long time to come." Lorelai protested. 

"So you do weigh a ton?" Rory turned back to Dani just as Kirk opened the back door.  

"Well, I checked under the entire house." He said.  

"And?" Lorelai asked.

"You have termites."

"Lovely." Dani grumbled. 

 Lorelai was shocked. "What?" 

"Tens of thousands of them. Subterranean, dry wood, the whole gamut." Kirk explained. 

 "Gross." Rory gagged.  

Kirk nodded, "Four of them crawled up my nose." 

 Lorelai grimaced, "Okay, Kirk."

 "It happens all the time when you're upside down. To them the nostril looks just like another hollow passage in the wood. They're not too bright." Kirk continued. 

"So you get on great, huh?" Dani muttered, making Rory giggle.  

"Okay, so, we have termites. So what do we - um, don't you want to come inside Kirk?" Lorelai asked, but the man had already walked out. "Oh, okay. Outside." 

"Right, bye Rory." Dani huffed, standing up and grabbing her backpack. She had to go into the school for a meeting with the headmaster and school council about her returning to school on Monday. 

"Good luck!" Rory called. "You'll need it!" 

"Thanks!" Dani smiled sarcastically. 

*** 

"Dani, wake up." Lorelai hissed, shaking her eldest daughter awake. Well, trying to. 

 "What's going on?" She mumbled, sleepily. 

 "We can hear them chewing." Rory explained.  

"Who?" Dani yawned. 

 "The termites. I hear them. They're everywhere, nibbling and eating and swallowing." Lorelai shivered. 

 "You're insane. Let me sleep." 

 "We can't sleep here." 

"We have to go to Sookie's." Lorelai added, making Dani sit up.