Sabrina sat awkwardly in her grandmother's living room. This was the first time Emily and Sabrina had ever been alone together, and the tensions were high. Lorelai skipped out on dinner because her boyfriend invited her out to New York, and Sabrina insisted she would be fine without her. Rory, on the other hand, just decided to stay home studying. After a few seconds of small talk they sat in silence until the doorbell rang.
Emily opened the door and Sabrina was shocked to find Jess standing there with a black eye.
"Sorry I'm late" Jess mumbles avoiding eye contact with the two women.
"Oh, that's all right. Come in, come in. It's cold out." Emily warmly smiles
"Um, well , this is Jess. Jess, my grandmother." Sabrina introduces
"Nice to meet you." Emily sticks out her hand for a handshake
"Same here." Jess hesitantly shakes her hand back
Emily walks back into the living room and Sabrina pulls Jess aside.
"Are you okay? What happened?" Sabrina whispers
"It's a long story, I'm sorry" Jess scratched the back of his neck
"Are you okay though? We can leave if you want to"
"I'm okay, I wish I would've been a little more presentable but I told you I would do this. I don't want to be rude to your grandmother"
"Okay, let's go then" Sabrina took in a deep breathe and led them into the living room.
"So, is that new?" Emily gestured towards Jess' black eye
"Brand new." Jess nods
"It looks bad. Does it hurt?"
"I'm fine."
"Is it why you were late?"
"No, 84 was jammed."
"Oh well, we knew that. There was something with a big rig. Oh, those things, they scare the life out of me. And apparently, all the men who drive them are hopped up on bennies and goofballs. Come, come, have a seat at the table. I'll go check on dinner." Emily gets up and leave towards the dining room
"Are you sure you're okay?" Sabrina asked again once Emily was out of the room
"Please stop worrying, I promise I tell you what happened later. Okay?" Jess took Sabrina's hand into his
"Okay sorry, I'm just worried about you"
"Thank you for worrying about me, let's just try to get through this evening, sound good?"
Sabrina nodded and led them into the dining room.
"The roast looks perfect. Oh, Jess, you eat meat, I hope. I forgot to ask." Emily said entering the room
"I'm a carnivore." Jess nodded
"Good. I don't see how anybody can resist eating meat."
"It's why we have teeth."
"That's how I feel. Dinner parties used to be simple. Now every time we give one, I have to run my menu down with every person on the list. It's tiring. This one eats just about anything." Emily gestured towards Sabrina
"Grandma" Sabrina turned slightly red
"I'm sorry, but the way you and your mother eat, and those slim figures of yours it's a medical marvel."
"They should be studied." Jess smiled
"So, Sabrina tells me you're part of the WalMart corporation." Emily inquires
"Only out of necessity." Jess replies
"They sound like wonderful stores."
"Oh, yeah, I wanna be buried there."
"We've never actually been inside one, but we own the stock."
"Thanks for the paycheck."
"Oh, that's very funny. Oh my God, there's no salt and pepper on this table. We'll need it for the meat. These people are supposed to be trained before I get them, but God knows that's never the case." Emily hurries out of the room
"How you holding up?" Jess places his hand on Sabrina's leg
"Me? You're the one that has to make a good impression, how are you holding up?"
"I'm trying to make some kind of quasi-positive impression on your grandmother, but what the hell are raisins doing in a salad?" Jess said trying to lighten the mood
"We've got great choices on the prime rib. How do you like your prime rib, Jess?" Emily asks returning to the dinning room
"Cooked."
"He's not picky, Grandma." Sabrina answers
"Good, that'll make it easier. So, what did I miss?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing." Sabrina and Jess both smile at each other trying not to laugh.
After dinner, Jess drives them back to Stars Hallow. They hung out for a little bit until it git late, and Jess dropped Sabrina off at her house. Sabrina ran upstairs and dialed Lorelai on the phone.
"Mom hey"
"Hey hon, how did dinner go?"
"Surprisingly well, Grandma was great, the whole time. Not one passive aggressive remark. She was even understanding about him arriving late"
"You're kidding"
"Nope, she was a complete saint"
"Wow, Jess must've made a hell of an impression"
"I sure hope so"
The two girls talked some more about Lorelai's time in New York before saying goodbye and hanging up. Lorelai then called up Emily to thank her for being so wonderful during the dinner.
"Mom, hi, listen. Sabrina kind of explained what happened last night, and how you were really great the whole time. I just wanted to thank you. I mean, I don't know all the details, but I'm sure it all could've been way worse, and you keeping your cool like that was really, really nice. Thanks."
"How can you let your daughter be with that abominable thug?"
"Mom-"
"First he arrives late, how disrespectful is that? Then he's rude to Sabrina, rude to me."
"Mom-"
"Oh, and that attitude I wanted to slap that monosyllabic mouth of his. And God forbid they're in another accident together or his heap of a car breaks down. How can you let this happen? He had a black eye. He belongs in jail!"