[karana]

Chapter 7: Mr. Magic-eyes




When Luke came back some time later he found Lorelai and the twins upstairs in their bedroom. The girls were lying on both sides of Lorelai while she read to them.
“Hey you!” Lorelai smiled when she saw him standing in the doorway watching them.
“Hey you three. What are you reading?” Luke asked and sat down on the bed.
“Cinderella. They told me you started it a few days ago, so I thought I would read this.” Lorelai explained. She looked to her side and realized for the first time, that the girls were asleep again.
“Huh, I´m reading and they are sleeping. Just wait girls, when you wake up.” She said and kissed them both before she stood up, took Luke´s hand and lead him out of the room.
She slid her arms around his waist when they stood outside and gave him some quick kisses.
“Can we go downstairs and talk?” She asked then. Luke nodded and followed her down the stairs. They sat down on the couch where the blanket still lay.
“Luke, before you say something: I`m sorry. You have no idea how sorry I am. I know that I´ve been a horrible mother and wife this past year and I really wish I could turn back the time and do everything different, but I can´t. I called Rory this morning at the airport and told her that I was coming over, like she asked me to. She was at a party and drunk, and had no idea what I was talking about. She and Logan made up. Again. You were right: She does not need me anymore, at least not as much as I thought.” She told him quickly, just to get it all out.
“So you´re not here because you realized that the kids need you, but because Rory didn´t want you to come.” Luke summed it up and was clearly hurt.
“No, no Luke it´s not like that. I could have flown to her, I’m sure this peace won´t last long. I realized when I talked to this drunk young woman, that she isn´t a little girl anymore, she sometimes wants to be and I want her to be. She is not. And we have three little kids here. I know that you think that I don´t love them as much as I love Rory, but that´s not true. I just... I don´t know... thought that you are here. That they don´t need me because you are always there for them. Somehow I thought that it is enough when you are there, because Rory only had one parent, so why should it harm these three if I didn´t have that much time for them? But that was so stupid and selfish and I risked my family and lost the trust of my children because of my stupidity. Please, Luke, forgive me?” She asked.
“Of course I do. This one time, but don´t let it happen again. William really took it very hard and Sara and Laila were miserable. It hurt me to always tell them that you would not come, that you wouldn´t be there. They were so disappointed and sometimes I just failed. I yelled at them, because I missed you too. I took my bad mood out on them and that´s also why Will ran away at the mall. I am not a good single parent. I can´t do this! I need you to help me, to show me how to do it.” He said and she took his hand.
“Luke, you have no idea what an amazing father you are. Even my mother says that you are!” She said and smiled.
“You talked about me with your mother?” He asked surprised.
“Not only about you. She told me some things, gave me the final push, so to say. And she made a very nice offer.”
“What offer?” Luke asked.
“She said that if we want we could go to their house at Martha´s Vineyard if we like. We both took the week off, the twins are sick and can´t go to kindergarten and Will is bored at pre-school anyway. What do you think?”
“I think it´s a good idea. It´s warm there this time of year and we would have time only for us and the kids. Let´s do it, let´s go to the Vineyard!” Luke said and pulled her to him for a long kiss.


At noon, the twins were asleep again after taking the medicine, so Luke and Lorelai decided to pick up William together from pre-school.
When they arrived William was already waiting.
“Hey sweety, you´re already ready to go?” Lorelai laughed when she saw William standing in the entrance with his bag.
“Yeah let´s go!” William yelled exited and wanted to rush outside, but Luke held him back.
“Hey hey hey, we have to talk to your teacher and you will wait!” He told him.
“Mr. Danes, hello! See William now you can go home. He was asking the whole day if it was time to go back home!” The teacher said and shook hands with Luke.
“Hello, I´m Lorelai Danes, I am William’s mother!” Lorelai introduced herself to the woman.
“Oh, we already heard a lot about you. Nice to finally meet you.” The teacher said with a fake smile before she turned her attention back to Luke.
“William’s behavior was a lot better today. Besides his constant asking when he would be allowed to go home, he was like a completely different child. You were really nice today Willi!” The woman smiled and stroked over William’s head. William stepped back and hid behind his mother’s legs.
“Don´t call me Willi!” He mumbled. The teacher did not hear him, but Lorelai did and laughed, which brought her a confused stare from the other woman.
“That´s nice to know. But actually we are here to inform you that we will be on a trip for a week which means, that Will won´t be able to come. I hope this is okay.” Luke told her.
“Of course, no problem! Have a nice trip with your daddy, Willi!” She smiled at the boy, then at Luke.
“Well, no men-only trips this time. His sisters and I will join them!” Lorelai told her.
“Oh how nice!” The fake smile was back.
“We should go! We still have a lot of packing to do.” Luke said and the adults shook hand again.
When they walked outside arm in arm with William bouncing in front of them, Lorelai slipped her right hand in Luke´s right back-pocket of his jeans. Luke looked at her confused and she gave him a kiss. When they were outside and a few meters away from the pre-school Lorelai took her hand out of his back-pocket and slapped his chest with it.
“Oh my god! She was so checking you out! No wonder you always have to go there and talk with her about William! She so flirted with you!” Lorelai teased him with a smile.
“She did not flirt with me!” Luke said sternly.
“Of course she did! She was hitting on you right in front of me! She undressed you with her eyes and did you in her mind!” Lorelai said.
“Ah geez, she did not!” Luke argued with her.
“Hey Will, honey! Did this teacher of yours ever say something to you about your daddy?” She asked her son and wiped some color off his cheek.
“No. But she told the other teacher that she thinks daddy is hot and has magic eyes. But don´t worry mommy, she is nuts! She calls me Willi!” William said, opened his mouth, stuck in a finger and made a gagging sound.
Lorelai laughed, while Luke took his son’s arm and pulled the finger out of his mouth with a disapproving look.
“How often did I tell you not to do that?” He asked his son, who just rolled his eyes.
“Well, he is right Mr. Magic- eyes, it was disgusting how she drooled over you. And why does she call our son Willi? No one ever called him Willi! He is not a bee and his friend´s name isn´t Maja!”
“What?” Luke had no clue what she was talking about.
“Watch more cartoons daddy!” William told him and smiled at his mother, before he let her take his hand, at which he bounced home.


“Mommy can we swim there?” Sara wanted to know.
“Yes, but first you have to be healthy.”
“Daddy will you swim, too?” William asked.
“Maybe, we´ll see.” Luke shrugged while he put the suitcases in the back of the car.
“Lorelai, you told Kirsten to look after the guinea-pigs?” Luke asked her.
“Yes, and I called my mother and my father, I think they will get too much food! Everybody ready for take off?” she asked her children, who already sat in the back- seat in their car-seats.
“Yeah!” All three shouted, or tried at least, because the girls’ voices were still hoarse.
Both Luke and Lorelai knew that it wouldn´t take them long to fall asleep again and William had enough to do with several Winnie the Pooh books.
Luke started the car and Lorelai gave his thigh a squeeze before they drove off to the Vineyard.



TBC