The Secret

Epilogue

Though it had been a bitter pill to swallow, Rory finally had to accept that she and her mom would never be the same. Rory couldn't understand why Lorelai was so prejudiced against her marriage and Lorelai couldn't understand why Rory wanted to be a part of that life. Even still, Rory made sure she never kept Richard away from her. She didn't want either of them to experience the worry of being around each other like she did with Richard and Emily when she was a teenager.

Shortly after giving birth to Richard and coming home, Richard Gilmore passed away in his sleep. Within hours of this, Emily also passed away. It was a hard blow for everyone, especially Rory as she wanted her Grandfather and son to have a chance to get to know each other. She would have to make sure Richard lived on in his great grandson. And, while it was difficult to lose Emily at the same time, Rory realized it was probably from a broken heart and couldn't fault her Grandma for wanting to join the love of her life.

Things settled in nicely for Logan and Rory. Once they were home and ready for visitors, they hosted a housewarming party to show off their house. The ended up buying a three bedroom house and building an edition on the back that housed their master suite and another guest room. It was an open concept house that flowed easily from the kitchen to the dining room and into the living room. The only separation between them was a two step drop when they entered the living room. Other than that, you could see everything.

Rory also got her library, which Logan made sure to fit out with built in bookcases to house all her books and the ones she inherited from her grandfather. Even still, she found that her shelves quickly filled and was trying to convince Logan to add on to the library or at least allow her to take something from another room. Logan was also able to convince Rory to let him have a media room. It had taken some work on his part, but she finally agreed to turn what was going to be the office into a lavish space for them to watch movies with their friends. Logan ended up taking one of the guest rooms and making it into an office space for him when it was needed.

All told, Rory couldn't complain about her life and what she built. While it hadn't happened the way she wanted it to, she was still incredibly happy with it the way it was. It had been difficult, especially realizing that her life in Stars Hollow was over and she had to make a new one in Hartford. And, the rift with her mom took its toll on her, contributing to a near brush with full blown Postpartum depression. But, with Logan there and some sessions with a psychiatrist, Rory realized that she didn't need her mom in her life to define her anymore. She had Logan. She had Richard. She had her friends. And she had her writing. Those things combined created a pretty idyllic life that Rory wouldn't change for the world.

Walking onto the back patio, Rory saw everyone that she held near and dear to her sitting around, drinking beer and laughing. As she took her seat next to Logan, Rory said, "You know, I think that what we've got here is pretty great Huntzberger."

"Really?" he asked. "Why do you say that?"

"Look at all these people. Think about the impact they've all had on us. Even your parents. I'd say that it's pretty amazing. We're so lucky to have them. And so is Richard."

"Speaking of, where is the little guy?" Logan asked.

"Oh, your dad took him from me a while ago."

"My dad?" Logan asked, cocking an eyebrow and looking skeptical.

"Don't give me that look. He's your dad! And, he insisted."

She noticed Logan scanning the yard and looked also. She eventually spotted him sitting in a lounge chair under a tree. Rory pointed him out to Logan. "See, I wasn't lying."

"I didn't think you were, Ace. I'm just trying to wrap my head around my dad, the grandfather."

"How is that so hard to believe? Honor has kids."

"Yeah, but I've never really seen him interact with them. So, I guess I need to re-evaluate my opinion of my dad, don't I?'

"That might be smart. And, while you're at it, go on and re-evaluate your mom too. She's been pretty pleasant also."

Logan didn't comment and turned back to the conversation he was having previously.

Rory looked at him and smiled. She really and truly didn't know what she had done to get so lucky.