After she sent Logan to the Dragonfly, Rory tried to get more sleep. She dozed on and off for a couple hours but the slumber was far from restful. In between bouts of alertness, foggy dreams swirled in her subconscious, leaving her feeling disconnected from reality.
At half past seven, Rory climbed out of bed and pulled her familiar robe around her and padded into the kitchen. She found her mom, pouring a cup of coffee into a travel thermos. Lorelai turned and held out the coffee pot. "Need a jolt?"
Hoping it would help straighten out her jumbled thoughts and emotions, Rory agreed. Lorelai handed her a cup of the steaming brew, then gestured to the table, choosing seats on opposite sides.
"Get more sleep?" Lorelai knew Rory was battling her emotions and hoped that extra pillow time would help work things out, if only to give her a reprieve from the worry.
"Yeah but it was hardly productive. I kept having unfocused dreams that did little to clarify anything."
Lorelai seemed to ponder her next question carefully. "How do you feel now? About Logan or what he said?"
Rory took a moment to consider. "I don't know. I still fear his reaction was a way to delay talking about Odette and whether the baby changes his plans. But, like you said, it isn't fair to jump to conclusions—as hard as that may be." Rory placed her hand on her stomach. "I owe it to our child to let Logan decide what involvement he wants. And, as much as I may not end up liking his decision, we will deal with it. Together."
It hurt Lorelai to see Rory struggle with this. She had only known about the baby for a little over a week but it already felt like old news. With Logan having his moments of running hot and cold, it was truly unclear at this moment what the end game would consist of. No matter what though, Rory was right about one thing—they would face the future together.
*****
Wielding a little power, Rory waited until dusk to call Logan and ask him to come over. She knew this was a conversation she wanted to have on her turf, as if home field advantage would be favorable.
Within ten minutes, Logan was knocking on the door. Rory answered it, saying nothing. She only moved into the living room and got comfortable on the couch. Unsure of what to do, Logan followed suit, sitting on the opposite side.
Silence stretched for several minutes before Rory started. "I know this conversation may be uncomfortable, even awkward, but we have to talk about Odette. I thought having time to collect our thoughts separately may help with clarifying where we both stood in regards to the baby or anything between us."
"May I go first?" Logan asked. When Rory nodded, he expelled a breath. "Before I proposed, I did a great deal of research to find the place I thought was the right fit for us. I fought to make sure I was in a position to not only be your husband but also the father of your children. After you turned me down, I was devastated. I felt the dreams I worked hard to make a reality had slipped away. For years, I struggled with personal demons, wondering if I had overlooked or misread something in thinking you'd say yes. I know now that, for whatever reason, you and I had to both find our own paths before those paths could merge into one."
Rory held up a hand to stop Logan. "I told you back then that the unknown was exciting, that I liked not having my future mapped out. And that was true. I was able to gain personal experience and travel while covering an actual presidential campaign. How many new journalists can say that? Things are different now, though. I have veered away from journalism and, while I am running the Stars Hollow Gazette, I am focusing mainly on writing the book about my life with my mom." Rory looked down, unable to meet his eyes as she said the next part. "I'm ready to settle down. I'm ready to be a mother. And a wife."
Logan closed the gap between himself and Rory, grabbing her hand in his. "You have no idea how much I needed to hear that. You have always been the one who got away."
Rory couldn't stop another round of tears from forming. "And I needed to hear that."
Moving his hand into the hair at the base of her neck, Logan leaned toward Rory intending to seal everything with a kiss. Rory did not object and eagerly met his lips, savoring a kiss from the man she thought she would never again taste.
Pulling back, Rory touched a finger to her lips. "At the risk of ruining the mood, this means that you're picking me, right?"
The light in Logan's eyes dimmed. He knew that hurting someone was never easy.