╭ ╮
━━━ " 📂 " ..⃗. ༉
𝘿 𝘼 𝙉 𝘿 𝙀 𝙇 𝙄 𝙊 𝙉 𝙎
! chapter three ─── ʚĭɞ
╰ ╯
IN THE EYES OF many inhabitants of Stars Hollow, Evie Hayden was a heathen. She rolled into town like she owned the place, smoked on the steps of the gazebo and by Miss Patty's studio as she read some sort of book (there were rumours that she was hiding a different book inside a cover) and wore boots that Taylor Doose considered criminal activity.
Jess Mariano was the same, except he had a tendency to steal garden gnomes. And so, the population of Stars Hollow were lucky enough to be graced by not one heathen, but two.
Both of which were now working in Luke's diner and absolutely loaded with information pamphlets of why smoking was bad, gum, patches, hypnosis tapes, chinese herbs and pictures of lungs after smoking - which Evie had so eloquently promised to keep in her purse upon receiving them. And whilst Jess and Evie were still causing little uproar and much gossip, neither of them were getting any worse, which was a good sign.
Evie had begun school, and it was clear just how she managed to get through that school her father enrolled her in whilst living in California - the girl was smart, but didn't like the attention and generally tried to stay quiet and fade into the background as much as possible.
Now, she was seen mostly at the diner or on the gazebo steps once more, but without her cigarettes and instead chewing the gum that Luke had gotten her. Both he and Lorelai knew that Evie's habit wasn't as prominent as Jess's, but she was getting off of them for good this time.
And when Friday rolled around, she worked a shift at the diner whilst Lorelai and Rory visited Emily and Richard, under strict instruction not to mention her at all. Her weekends now were filled with sitting by lakes and reading, no were near her usual scene of parties and mansions far too big for the snobby inhabitants.
But a routine was to be kept, and Evie had sworn not to go anywhere near them. She wasn't too upset about that though, because routine generally meant going to Luke's every day before school - and who was going to complain about coffee?
"I know it sucks. Just tell me it sucks." Rory was in quite a worried state on the other side of Lorelai. Evie was leaning over the woman's shoulder, the both of them reading it.
It was lucky that Evie could read freakishly fast, because Lorelai very suddenly placed it face-down on the counter and turned to her daughter. "It's great." She said.
"No it's not." Rory replied.
"It's an 'A'." Lorelai promised.
"Don't lie!" Rory asked. "Evie?"
"Doesn't matter what I think if you're not happy with it." The girl replied. "And I would like to state for the record that I was told that by a very drunk girl in the bathroom at a party once. It resonated within my soul."
"I'm going to ignore the drunk party like the very responsible guardian that I am." Lorelai turned back to Rory. "A+." She insisted.
"You're my mom!" Rory complained, although it did seem she was thinking about what Evie had said.
"Is there anything higher than an A+?" Lorelai tugged the paper out from under the Hayden girl's hand. "It's an A+ with a crown and a wand."
"This is not how you raise a child. You don't send them out there with a false sense of pride, because out there in the real world, no one will coddle you." Rory jabbed her finger towards the window. "And I'd rather know if I'm gonna be working at CNN or carrying a basket around its offices with sandwiches in it... And I've heard that drunk girls give very good advice - or was that compliments." She was speaking very quickly, Evie and Lorelai watching with raised eyebrows.
"About a month ago a drunk girl told me I looked hot after I had puked my guts up in her bathroom. It's definitely the compliments." Evie shrugged her shoulders, smiling at Lorelai's expression.
"I'm, again, going to ignore the part about throwing up and being drunk. But I've also recieved many compliments from drunk girls in bathrooms." The Gilmore woman turned back to her daughter, placing a hand over Rory's. "Rory... it's great. Really."
"Really - I think it's great as well." Evie leaned over with a smile. "But I was being serious about what I said. If you're not happy with it then you're not happy with it. But it is incredible, you're very talented."
"Thank you." Rory seemed to get the message and took her article back with a smile, sliding it into a folder.
"Coffee.. coffee. coffee." In front of the three girls, Luke poured the dark caffeinated liquid into their cups. "Okay, what do you want? Eggs, toast, combo?"
"What's the rush there, Zippy?" Lorelai asked the man.
"I'm just swamped this morning." Luke replied, glancing around his diner. "I was supposed to have help-" his words were emphasised by a purposeful glare upstairs "-But I don't, so order right now, or I'm bringing you the both of you an egg-white omelet with steamed spinach."
"They're not that bad. All the rage back up in the land of clones." Evie spoke up, eyeing the girls beside her as they stared. "Are the nicotine patches making my sarcasm go south? Geez it's not like I eat them - french toast please."
Luke nodded as he continued to pour coffee, Lorelai ordering pancakes and Rory ordering french toast as well.
"Luke, if you're so busy then I can help out a bit-" Evie began to slid off of her seat but froze when Jess appeared behind his uncle, eyes widening and a laugh bubbling in her throat as she sat back down. "Wow, way to make a statement."
The Mariano boy was wearing a rather.. gross design of a Metallica t-shirt, and it seemed she wasn't the only one with that reaction.
Luke hadn't seemed to have noticed yet, shrugging off Evie's comment as one of the many that came from the trio. "Jess, you were supposed to be down here-" Luke's gaze moved from his watch to the shirt, stopping in his tracks. "What the hell is that?"
"What?"
"That." Luke pointed at his chest.
"That.. is a shirt." Jess replied, eyebrows raised and clearly confused.
"Change."
"What?"
"Go upstairs and change your shirt." Luke told his nephew, a look of pure distaste in his eyes as he looked between the shirt and Jess.
"I like this shirt." The Mariano boy replied, and upon being asked why - "It brings out my eyes."
"Part of the deal of you staying here is that you work here." Luke adjusted his cap. "When you work here, you'll wear proper work attire, and that is not proper work attire. Now go and change into something that won't scare the hell out of my customers."
"Whatever you say, Uncle Luke." Jess turned around and headed back upstairs with a glare on his face that could rival Lorelai's when she didn't get what she wanted.
"Gross t-shirt." The woman in question wrinkled her nose, Rory agreeing before the both of them turned to Evie, waiting for her agreement.
"Just get rid of the neon green and it would be fine - hey, don't look at me like that!" The girl rolled her eyes and properly slipped off her stool, looking down at her outfit - a combination of a skirt, a tank top and one of Lorelai's cardigans over the top. "Does this count as proper work attire? I still can't wear anything over the bandages.."
"It still worries me that the drivers of those buses didn't question them." Lorelai began, moving her attention to her daughter's half-sister. "What sort of bus company doesn't ask where a sixteen year old is going with hardly any bags and bandages on her leg?"
"That's the beauty of it all, welcome to 2001 baby!" Evie grinned, voice far too loud and disrupting several of the customers. She didn't get her question answered, but she began towards the other side of the counter. "Hey Luke - considering Jess is changing out of the scary shirt, do you still need some help?"
"Fine, but only until your french toast is ready. Breakfast is important." Luke tossed her his notepad and pen. "Take some more orders."
"You got it boss." Evie took the pad and began to do exactly as she was told, before she had her breakfast and went to school for yet another day.
⩩≀𓈒
However there was one part in the routine that Evie wasn't sticking to that day. Usually after school she would head straight back to the diner to work for a couple hours that evening, but instead, she had made plans to meet up with Rory in Hartford.
It seemed that despite Lorelai's and Rory's efforts, they hadn't been able to hide Evie's return from Emily Gilmore, who had called Lorelai on Saturday afternoon and made several insinuating comments before coming out with how much disbelief she was in that Lorelai hadn't told her that 'Christopher's girl' had arrived.
The Gilmore woman had been furious with Lorelai for not saying anything about it and demanded that Evie began to attend their Friday dinners.
Both Evie and Rory heard every word of this very loud phone call and on Monday night, as they had sat on Rory's bed as Evie painted her toenails, the Gilmore girl had asked if she wanted to come with her to pick up a book from her grandparents house. It would give her a chance to see them before Friday and reduce the chances of it being extremely awkward and Lorelai receiving scathing comments from her mom.
After a few minutes of thinking, Evie had agreed to go, and as soon as she left the school she caught the bus and ended up in Hartford, getting off at the stop that Rory had told her to. She waited a couple minutes there before the Chilton student had joined her, and together they began towards the house.
"Have you met them before?" Rory asked, clearly nervous.
"Once when I was younger. Then I could just twirl my pigtails and sing some pretentious nursery rhyme and everything would be fine." Evie frowned. "I've met Dad's parents on several occasions - I'm guessing the same rules of etiquette apply?"
"Definitely." Rory nodded. "And try not to be anything like Mom if you want to make a good first impression. Second impression, if you count the first one."
"I don't, I generally don't wear pigtails and I have an awful singing voice - I'm a completely different person." Evie replied, holding her chin up. "Also you're asking me to not be anything like the woman who joked I'm her clone several different times, please note that most of the time I've spent developing I've been nowhere near here."
"You're right. You're like a walking biohazard." Rory chewed her bottom lip. "But you'll be fine, sometimes Mom manages to go through several dinners without creating a mess."
"If Lorelai can do it I'll be fine." Evie nodded, clearing her throat. "I'll be fine." She repeated with an air of confidence.
Not long later and the two girls had arrived at the house, Evie marvelling at the sheer size of it as Rory dragged her up the drive. Rory wasn't too sure what maid had let them in, but either way they thanked her as she directed them towards the open doors at one end of what seemed to be decorated like a living room - but they had already passed through that one, which was even more elaborately designed.
"No. He's been swamped at work, night and day, weekends." A clear, slightly exasperated sounding voice carrying through the open doors. "You would think he was the only person who worked at the company."
"That's Grandma." Rory whispered.
"Plus - he hasn't being feeling well." The now more sympathetic voice of Emily GIlmore continued. "His back.. and knees - he has very bad knees."
"It sounds like she has guests." Evie made a face as she peered around the corner - she was right, and several women in various neat hairstyles and different coloured versions of the same outfit were beside the person Rory had pointed out. "I'll wait until Friday, I don't want it to be awkward - I'm sure they'll have their very unwelcome opinions on the story behind my conception."
"Good idea." Rory nodded as she slid out from behind the door frame and approached the open doors, greeted by several words of shock and introductions to the various friends of Emily.
Evie had pulled her book out of her pocket and was leant against the wall as she waited, words slipping in and out of her mind. "Sunny, leave the girl alone." Emily was saying, marking the first time that Rory would glance back at Evie, looking a little uncomfortable.
"I want to see the walk. Lorelai had such a specific walk." The woman named Sunny continued, another of Emily's friends commenting on it. Rory was then invited to sit down for tea, but refused.
"Oh no.. I came to pick up a book grandpa was supposed to leave." Rory lifted her arm, thumb pointing behind her. "And.." She trailed off, eyes widening slightly. That marked the second time the girl glanced behind her, meeting Evie's eyes.
"And?" Emily repeated. "Is that new maid hanging around again? Horribly flighty creature." She turned towards her friends. "I'm half expecting one of the crystal candlesticks to go missing." A couple of high-pitched laughs came from her friends.
"No - no maid. I should just really get that book." Rory quickly fixed her mistake.
"It might be on her desk." Emily told her, Rory thanking her and disappearing inside, mouthing a 'sorry' to Evie as she disappeared into Richard's study. Evie was about to zone out again, when she heard the women talking about Rory making her debut.
Evie couldn't imagine a more awful event - she had been forced into one or two by her grandparents back in California when they came to see her father, Straub and Francine had a talent of visiting exactly in the weeks that the debutante balls fell on. She knew that they always wanted a perfect society daughter, and she also knew that her father hated things like that and they made fun of every single one she ended up attending.
Lorelai felt the same, but Evelyn wasn't too sure whether Rory would or wouldn't agree to going to one. She was leaning towards her agreeing to it and then getting her mom to get her out of it, but she wasn't sure.
"You have to - with a girl like that you'll be the hit of the ball!" The ginger-haired woman exclaimed, before the conversation twisted towards the topic of how Rory would be the prettiest one there, especially because Katie Hethington had fallen off her horse.
Caught up in memories of her own debutante balls, Evie's attention drifted and soon enough Rory had returned now clutching some large leather-bound book. "I found it." Rory smiled, glancing back at Evie once more as she waved it around.
"Rory who on earth do you keep looking at?" Emily was suddenly standing up from her seat. "Is there somewhere in there? That maid again? Or Richard - has he come back early?"
"Oh no - Grandma there's no one there." Rory hurried, clutching the book and forcing herself not to look back at Evie. But it was too late, her grandma was moving through the open door and stopped in her tracks.
Evie very suddenly stood up straight, hurrying to fold the corner of the book and tuck it into her bag. She could see some strange mix of distaste and some other emotion in her eyes, her appearance in the Gilmore home rendering her useless.
"Hi.. Mrs Gilmore." Evie offered a smile, watching as the woman looked over her appearance, taking in the skirt, the bandages and the tank top-cardigan combo. "I'm Evie.. Evelyn Hayden, Rory thought it would be a good idea for us to meet before Friday dinner."
Emily stared even harder after the girl had told her her name. Her eyes continued to flick up and down the girl's appearance, focusing particularly on the bandages.
"Emily?" The voice belonged to the blonde Sunny, who was trying to lean back in her chair to see inside the room. "Who is it?"
"I have no idea why you've just been standing there!" Emily suddenly exclaimed brightly, rushing forward and pulling Evie forward, tugging down the end of her skirt a little more. She stopped her next to Rory, and the women in front of them had wide eyes as they took in the pair, seeing the resemblance. "Girls, this is Christopher's daughter, Evelyn."
"Oh - it's just Evie." The Hayden girl corrected, although it seemed that Mrs Gilmore's friends had already begun to mutter to each other.
"Come sit, you two." Emily instructed, pulling out two chairs for her granddaughter and her half-sister. "We have plenty to talk about."
It seemed that Evie wouldn't be able to make the hour-later start to her shift like she planned.
⩩≀𓈒
When Evie and Rory were finally let go by Emily and her group of friends, it wasn't long until they had boarded the bus and were back in Stars Hollow. "Just a moment Rory - I need to go and tell Luke that I'm sorry I missed my shift." Evie glanced over at the diner, wincing slightly.
"Oh of course!" Rory seemed a little taken aback. "I didn't realise you missed it. I'll wait here."
"I wasn't going to, I had it set for later.. but then your grandma began to rope you into debutante balls." Rory had sat down on the bus stop bench, pulling out her book as Evelyn moved towards the diner. "I'll be two minutes."
Glancing both ways, she dashed across the road and pulled the door open. It was practically empty and she let out a sigh of relief - it hadn't been busy.
"So now she shows up." Jess was stood behind the counter, leaning on the cupboards as he read his book. "You left me to do this all by myself."
"Well I would pay to see you talking about debutante balls." Evie retorted, confusion instantly flickering over Jess's features. "That's where I was - Rory's grandparents. Debutante balls - you know what they are, right?"
"Unfortunately." Jess had actually stopped reading, a tone of sarcastic horror to his words.
"Yeah.. apparently Emily Gilmore loves them." Evie blinked, glancing around the diner. "Your uncle wouldn't happen to be in?"
"Uncle Luke?" The phrase was driving the man in question crazy, which gave the Mariano boy all the more reason to keep saying it. "He's not here right now.. but I can let him know why you weren't."
"I wouldn't mention the whole debutante thing." Evie advised. "Just stick with the fact I went to visit Emily Gilmore."
"He already gives me enough shit for my own clothes, I don't want to listen to him talk about frilly dresses. I'll let him know." Jess promised, looking back down to his book.
"Wise choice." Evie had left the diner half a second later, dashing back over to Rory and the two girls making their way back to the Gilmore home once more. They were greeted by the sight of Lorelai studying at the table.
"I'm coming out." Rory began.
"Out of what?" Lorelai asked, similar expressions of smirks written across both her's and Evie's faces.
"To society." Rory replied, the two teenagers sliding into the chairs either side of the Gilmore woman. "We went to Grandma's house after school - you know so that Evie could meet her before Friday."
"Okay, right away, bad." Lorelai looked up, clutching a bright green highlighter. "There should definitely have been adult supervision when they met. Was it bad?"
"No.. she actually seemed sort of happy." Evie peered up at Lorelai. "Is that bad?"
"Not bad, strange." Lorelai replied, before looking back to Rory. "Was it bad other than you taking Evie to meet her not-blood-related Grandma?"
"I'm sure she would be delighted to hear that title." Rory's nose crinkled. "All her D.A.R friends were all there and they're talking about this debutante ball that's being thrown."
"Oh no." Lorelai sounded horrified.
"And when I got back from Grandpa's office they invited me and Evie out onto the patio." Rory continued.
"Oh no, no, no. Please do not tell me you two went out onto the patio." Lorelai's gaze shifted from Rory to Evie several times, as if watching a rather good tennis rally.
"We did." Evie confirmed. "We went out onto the patio."
"Oh! Rory, Evie - that's like accepting the position as the drummer in Spinal Tap." The horror in Lorelai's words just kept growing.
"Before I knew it, Grandma was telling us how important it is for a person to be properly presented to society... and how every young girl dreams of this day. And how there are flowers, and music..."
"Oh Lord! Please!" Lorelai screwed her eyes shut.
"And cake." Evie added.
"Oh - the cake's actually good." Lorelai was smiling.
"Before I knew it - before we knew it, Grandma was bringing out your old dress and I was trying it on and.." Rory was speaking a little quicker, a smile on her face which faded when Lorelai got up. "What are you doing?"
"I'm getting you both out of this." Lorelai was picking up the phone and beginning to dial the number.
Rory flashed Evie a horrified look before standing up. "Mom - wait."
"I swear there is nothing my mother's better at than getting someone to agree to something that in any other universe, they would never even consider." Lorelai began dialling despite Rory's protests. "I'm still convinced she had something to do with Lily Tomlin doing that movie with John Travolta."
"I definitely wouldn't be surprised." Evie was watching with her eyebrows raised, Lorelai seeming to appreciate her comment and pointing at her before raising the phone.
"I'm doing this." Rory insisted, taking the phone away from her mom and placing it down on the counter.
"Why?"
"Because! You should've seen the look on Grandma's face when she asked me. It's just really important to her. If it's that important to her, and not that important to me, then why shouldn't I do it?" Rory asked - a rather good argument if Evie had ever seen one.
"Rory - do you know what a coming out party says?" Lorelai asked.
"It says I'm a woman."
"No, it says, 'Hi, I'm Rory. I'm of good breeding and marriageable age, and I will now parade around in front of young men of similarly good breeding and marriageable age so they can all take a good, long look at me." Lorelai replied.
"You're exaggerating. Evie tell her she's exaggerating." Rory looked rather betrayed when Evie shrugged her shoulders, unable to do so.
"No I'm not - it's like animals being up for bid at the county fair - except sheep don't wear hoop skirts."
"Look, I promised. But you don't have to be a part of it if you don't want to." Rory's brow furrowed.
"No, if you both want to do it I'll help" Lorelai promised. "It's just weird. This is all the stuff I ran away from.. I just assumed you would be running with me."
"I would but I heard something about how debutantes don't run - something about the heels." The younger Lorelai replied as she folded her arms across her chest.
"Alright then.. if you're sure." Lorelai turned back to the table and sat down, leaning on her arms and looking over at the Hayden girl. "Evie, please, the light of my life - please tell me you aren't doing this?" She asked.
Evie shook her head and Lorelai looked delighted. "I managed to get out of it. Straub and Francine have forced me into a couple before, so I got out of it with a promise to show her pictures with them. I didn't tell her the history of my escorts, and as far as she's aware I was the perfect lady." She explained, a proud smile on her face.
"Grandma loves her." Rory confirmed. "She was a bit funny about the length of her skirt, but she didn't question the bandages or why Evie was here at all."
"Probably already found out, and saving the questions about bandages for Friday." Lorelai shook her head, turning to Evie again. "Oh you get smarter everyday. And what's this about your history of escorts? Sounds juicy." Lorelai's eyes flashed with excitement.
"I'll definitely tell you another time. But for now I've got to go and find those photos - I'm convinced they're in the pile of photos that I brought with me.. they'll all tied together with a rubber band and will take ages for me to sort out." Evie said, standing up and pulling her bag over her shoulder.
"Come back in in half an hour." Lorelai said, as she made her way over to the door. "Would you rather I order pizza or get food elsewhere?"
"Well you have an abudance of pop-tarts so I think I'll be fine." Evie replied, the woman nodding and beginning to list off things that Rory would need as she searched for the pop-tarts and examining the flavours.
Then, she realised that silence had fallen and she turned around, Lorelai and Rory trying to communicate by mouthing things to each other. "What?" Evie asked.
"Well.. I'm guessing you already know this." Rory began, holding up the folded bit of paper she had been given. "But it says that your father is supposed to present you at the ceremony."
Evie had completely forgotten, staring at her half-sister as if she had just said something in an obscure foreign language.
"It's fine - I can just get someone else to do it." Rory shrugged, offering a smile to her sister. "I don't need him there... Grandpa probably, or Taylor."
"You should have your dad presenting you, Rory. It's fine if you can try and invite him, at least." Evie said, swallowing back her nerves of seeing him as she finally found the flavour she was looking for, pocketing a packet. "Don't worry about me, I've done my fair share of debutante balls."
But as she disappeared out the back door, Evie knew that wasn't why they were worrying. She was utterly terrified of seeing Christoper again, leaning against the wall as she heard them dial the phone.
It wasn't fair for Rory to miss out on this because of her.