Gilmore Girls: Life After Graduation

Chapter 39

They slept in later than normal the next morning since they had been out partying with their friends the night before.  They awoke to a beautiful sunny day late fall day.  The air was crisp, the November sun was not strong enough to warm the air much. Rory dressed in jeans and a Yale sweatshirt with a jacket over top. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and wore sunglasses. Logan also had on jeans, a sweatshirt and sunglasses. They decided to walk over to campus and leave the car at the apartment.

"Oh my god! Everything looks the same! I missed this place so much!" Rory said taking it all in. The autumn leaves had almost all fallen to the ground by then so the trees were mostly bare.  But the campus still looked beautiful.  Rory looked at all the old stone buildings that held so many memories for her. "Can we walk towards my old dorm room? I want to see everything!"

"Where you lead, I will follow, Ace," Logan said holding her hand as she pulled him along.

"Oh, did I ever tell you this is the spot my grandparents got engaged?" Rory turned towards Logan and asked.

"Yes, I didn't remember it was exactly here, but you told me they were fighting and he proposed," Logan said.

"Yup, it was here. Isn't that romantic? It was spur of the moment.  He blurted it out, but he obviously meant it and wanted it. And now they have a spot to come back to and remember. They showed me and Mom when we came for a football game. It was so cute they way they looked at each other when they told the story.  My grandparents aren't overly affectionate, but I could see how much they love each other," Rory said with a wistful look in her eyes as they continued wandering the campus.

"That's really sweet,"  Logan said squeezing her hand.

Rory took another look at the spot and continued walking.  They passed the big, old library. "Do you think it's open? I want to peek in just for a minute."

It was open. There were students quietly studying in the corners and doing research at the computers. Rory dragged him through the library whispering her memories. A minute turned into nearly an hour as she wandered through the library visiting her old books.

They finally left the library and wandered past the dining hall. "Are you going to drag me in there too? If you really want, I am sure we can pay our way in and have lunch later. I think we can probably do better than college cuisine nowadays though, unless you really have a hankering for CocoPuffs," Logan said. Rory did peek in and commented on her card swiping days, but they kept walking.

"There used to be a coffee cart here, remember? I guess it's not here on the weekends when not too many people are around. I could have gone for a cup of cart coffee," Rory said sulking.

They made it to her old dorm building. It still looked the same. They stood in the sheltered outdoor foyer area when Logan laughed and said, "I believe it was around here that I instructed you to call me Master and Commander. That was a good name. We should reinstate that."

She laughed. "It was right here! Oh look, the bulletin board is still there," she said as she took off her sunglasses to read some of the ads. "Ha! A Fro-Yo Social! Can you believe they still do that? Can you believe I went to one with that Chilton girl I was showing around?"

Logan moved closer to read the hanging papers with her. He bumped into her arm roughly causing her to drop her sunglasses.

"Hey clumsy," Rory said steadying herself against the board.

Logan started to bend to retrieve the glasses and said, "Sorry, I got them. Loose brick, must had lost my footing."

Rory turned back towards the bulletin board. "Look at that, they have wanted signs for DJs and bartenders. Remember fighting right here over Marty and your crappy treatment of him? I was so mad at you. That was part of the whole the Master and Commander conversation..."

Logan didn't answer. Rory turned to look at him. When she turned, she saw him down on one knee next to her. He looked up at her with a serious, slightly nervous look on his face. In his hand, he held an small box with a very familiar ring inside. It sparkled up at her. She lifted her gaze from the ring to his face.

"Rory Gilmore, my Ace, we stood in this exact spot many years ago. I think I began to fall for you that day. No one had ever challenged me or enticed me the way you did. You still challenge and entice me. I didn't know I loved you then. But I know how much I love you now. Will you marry me?"

Rory stood staring at him completely in shock. Her eyes filled with tears as her smile grew, "Yes! Yes, I will marry you!"

Logan breathed a sigh of relief. He slipped the ring on her finger and rose to his feet as she sank into his arms. "I love you so much," she said kissing him. She pulled away and looked at her hand. "You saved it."

"It was always yours. I just hoped I had the chance to put it on your finger again someday," Logan said.