Rory's not the only shining star that outgrew Stars Hollow High. Three years before Rory's arrival at Chilton, Noelle Hastings' dreams of Ivy League halls brought her to the daunting doors of Chilton.
Spending less and less time in Stars Hollow, No...
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The drive to Stars Hollow was unnervingly easy. Noelle remembered every turn and stop sign like she had left only yesterday. Rory took notice from her spot in the passenger seat of the blonde's fidgeting feet and how every pause seemed to last a few seconds longer the closer they got to her beloved home. She tried to distract Noelle from her worrisome thoughts by talking about class and books, happy memories that they had shared running around the Gilmore home.
Once she had turned onto Main Street and drove passed the familiar shops Noelle felt like nothing had changed. Because truly nothing had changed; very storefront looked the same and very flower and blade of grass seemed to have been waiting for her. A gentle smile graced her face as she took it all in, she had blocked it out for so long she never thought about how nice it would be to return. As soon as she saw a flash of dark hair draped in a worn flannel everything came back to her and her eyes became more alert, looking out for a specific someone.
The girls pulled up to the Gilmore home without any issues and without any sightings of Sam Hastings, once Booth. Nostalgia washed over Noelle as she stood outside of the baby blue home. She followed Rory through the front door and upon entering burst out into laughter. Rory gave her a strange look wondering if the stress of stars hollow broker the girl before Noelle elaborated. "Do you remember when your mom had that lamp here? I will never forget your face when you broke it." Noelle explained before pausing for laughter. "You swore that you'd runaway before she saw and we just camped out at Miss Patty's." Rory joined in her laughter before adding, "well we would have lasted a bit longer if you hadn't left a note telling her where we were." "I didn't want to scare her." Noelle laughed, justifying her younger self.
The weight that had been resting on Noelle's chest the whole day had been left at the door along with her bag and coat. Rory and Noelle roamed around the house like old times and situated themselves on Rory's bed discussing her updated music and book collection.
The sound of the front door opening was silenced by the giggling coming from Rory's room. Lorelai, being the curious woman she is, wondered to Rory's room and peaked in the doorway. A bright grin took over her face as she saw the two girls, vivid memories passing through her mind before the girls noticed her and returned her smile.
"Hi mom." Rory chirped in synchronization with Noelle's,"Hi Lorelai." "Hey, good day at school?" Lorelai asked. She received a content shrug from Noelle as Rory delved into a deep report of her day.
"Okay so we can order pizza in a bit, snacks wise what are we thinking? Tots? Marshmallows? Nachos?" Lorelai listed looking to the girls for opinions. Noelle let out a gasp, "s'mores! We should make s'mores." "I like your style, kid." Lorelai pointed to Noelle. "Oh and tots too, and chips. Oh no, what about skittles." "The world is your buffet table." Lorelai encouraged before continuing, "I need to get the supplies from the market, want to come? Oh and what's the movie pick?" "We were thinking Casablanca." The girls advised. Lorelai nodded in approval before grabbing her jacket and lingering by the door to see if she would have company to the store. Rory gave Noelle a careful glance but she seemed to be in her own world. "Um yeah let's go. Should we order the pizza before we go?" Noelle asked nonchalantly. Rory was trying not to gape at the idea of Noelle walking around town and quickly got to her feet. "Good idea. Using that private school brain, I like it." Lorelai wondered off to the phone before ordering a couple pizza's as the girls got on their shoes and jackets. "Are you sure? You really don't have to for my moms sake, I did promise no adventures into town." Rory asked gently. Noelle let out an airy laugh at Rory's genuine concern regarding the mundane task. "I'm okay Rory, really. I won't have agreed if I wasn't. Plus I've got the Gilmore's as my backup." Noelle replied lightly with a smile, one that has been glued to her face since entering the home. "Oh yeah, no one will mess with you when you're with us. We run this town." Rory retorted in a mocking tone. The girls laughed together as Lorelai joined their side and they made their way to the market.
