#jess mariano x OC

[randomestfandoms-ocs]

Taylor Swift Edits ✤ Kirsty Gilmore x Jess Mariano

1989 ✤ You Are In Love: Small talk, he drives, coffee at midnight

Tag List: @airwolf92– want to be added?

[athingthatwantsvirginia]

Nurse Fucking Ratched, Part One

PART ONE OF THE PIECES OF THE MIDDLE SERIES

Pairing: Jess Mariano x Original Character (Ella Stevens)

Warnings: discussions of illness, guilt, shame, swearing, plentiful pop culture references

Word Count: 8.2K

Summary: A blizzard hits Stars Hollow and Ella finally convinces Jess to watch Silence of the Lambs.

. . .

November 15th, 2002

Outside, the snow fell in harsh, twinkling sheets. From the moment Jess had risen that morning, the weather had been cloudy and brooding. Part of him was glad he didn’t have to brave the storm and take the bus to Walmart. The bus driver was a nice guy, but sometimes he would do his crossword puzzles while driving. Jess fancied himself a little dangerous, but definitely not enough to put his life in the hands of a well-meaning—albeit, distracted—eighty-year-old man in the midst of a blizzard. Though a reprieve from the monotonous manual labor of the forklift was welcome, the alternative was to suffer the relentless cheeriness of Stars Hollow and work the dinner shift. Both realities were equally exhausting. 

And yet, he felt antsy. Energized. He tried to remain absorbed in Ella’s copy of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, but his eyes kept flitting up to the big clock over the front door of Luke’s. It had been a week since he’d turned eighteen, and a week since he’d last seen Ella. He had been taking advantage of his legal adult status and picking up more hours at Walmart when he was technically supposed to be at school. Ella was always in the art room working on projects at lunch anyway. Plus, every moment she wasn’t serving up false grins at Luke’s, she was nose-deep in her statistics textbook. She had a big exam coming up, scheduled for the day before Thanksgiving break. Only then, she had told him, would she be a free bird.

But they were set to close the diner together, Luke busy with inventory or some new stock. Jess had more or less stopped listening after Luke told him he would get a chance to see Ella. The reason didn’t matter. His fingertips were yearning to graze over her skin. For his birthday, she’d driven him out to Hartford and showed him what she called ‘the coolest bookstore in the known universe.’ Jess had lived in New York long enough to see more than his fair share of vintage and gimmicky bookstores. Had he stumbled upon this particular bookstore himself, he would have thought it was nothing special. But Ella’s wonder at the place endeared him to no end. She’d walked in with a big, open smile on her face, and offered a tiny wave to the hippie woman behind the counter as though they were old friends. She’d taken him by the hand and led him up the winding staircase to the second-floor, where the rare copies were kept. 

Both of them had been caught up in their own separate explorations of the texts for a moment, touches ghosting over the worn spines. The wood floor was creaky and Jess had been wondering if they would fall right through. He forgot every preoccupation entirely when he saw a second edition copy of Big Sur. It was in considerably less than mint condition and had obviously been a library book for a time. But what was the point of a secondhand book if it didn’t have some character or history? When she’d offered to buy it for him, he’d thought she was joking. Then, when he saw she was serious, he’d vehemently refused. But she wouldn’t budge.

.   .   .

seven days earlier

“C’mon, Mariano,” she said, waltzing over to him as the ancient boards beneath her groaned in protest. “It’s your birthday. I want to get it for you.”

“You already gave me those CDs,” he argued. The yellowed pages in his hands were precious.

“Those were but a prelude to this main event,” she said, grabbing the book from his hands with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes before he could even realize. Her smile twisted slightly to become a smirk. “You only turn eighteen once. And we are fucking celebrating. I’m buying this for you, because you’re the fucking best.”

“Very eloquent of you,” he said, still incredulous. “That’s over fifty bucks. Seriously, you earned your money. I don’t want you spending it on me.”

Tilting her head at him, Ella narrowed her eyes. Then, after a moment, she cracked the book open to a random passage. She cleared her throat theatrically, and looked at him so pointedly he thought she might be seeing right through him. The waning afternoon sunshine streamed in from the giant arched window behind her and lit her up in golden. Her hair was sparkling, and her cheeks were rosy from the central heating inside the store. She still wore her bulky peacoat, no match against the winter wind. The youthful valor of her face made him feel hopeful and valued in a way he couldn’t bring himself to feel comfortable with. 

“You are going to let me buy you this book. And until you agree to that, I will have no choice but to subject you to my dramatic reading of Mr. Kerouac,” she said playfully.

Jess grinned, crossing his arms over his chest and raising his eyebrows in expectation.

She scoffed. He was really going to make her work for it. Ella made good on her promise. She looked him dead in the eye, then back down at the text with gravity. After taking a deep breath, she began in a voice that was somehow both mocking and reverent. She had been smoking like a chimney lately, and Jess could hear it in her words. 

“And I shudder sometimes to think of all that stellar mystery of how she is going to get me in a future lifetime, wow—”

She looked back up at him for a moment and quickly swiped her tongue over her bottom lip. The way he was staring at her, like she was the only person in the world, made her heart hammer in her chest. She uttered a bashful little chuckle as she returned her gaze to the book. Her smile widened and she kept reading.

“And I seriously do believe that will be my salvation, too. A long way to go.”

His affection for her was so arresting in that moment, he could’ve died right there and died happy. Before she could continue her recitation, Jess advanced towards her. He brought one hand to her waist and one hand to her cheek, surprising her with a heated kiss. Ella was so startled, she dropped the book. It fell to the side, thumping loudly on the splintered wood. She felt as though she were melting against him. Soon, her fingers were tangled in his hair. Despite the burn in her stomach, the hungry one, the flame that lit every time their lips met, she pulled away, panting. Passion be as it may, she certainly didn’t want to damage a relic of the past.

“Jess, the book-”

“Forget the book,” Jess cut her off, then captured her lips once more, pressing her up against the bookshelf.

He was glad for their privacy, knowing otherwise she would have been embarrassed. Not for the first time since he had arrived in Stars Hollow and met her, Jess felt as though the stars had aligned in his favor. The romance of it all made him feel dizzy and foolish. Then again, Jack Kerouac would never lie to him. The words Ella had just spoken to him must have been true. As he lost himself in her, her taste and the sensation of his skin against hers drowning out everything else, a fleeting thought floated through his mind. It was the best birthday of his life. 

.   .   .

“Where the hell is your girlfriend?” Luke’s annoyed grumble broke through Jess’s reverie.

Jess rolled his eyes and went on reading. His birthday present was tucked away safely in his nightstand. He couldn’t risk someone spilling coffee anywhere near it. “How should I know? She’s perfectly capable of captaining her own ship.”

“Well, her ship is usually here ten minutes early. Now, she’s fifteen minutes late!” Luke said. 

Due to the storm, the diner was essentially deserted. Lucky, as the customers usually preferred Ella’s beaming smile to Jess or Luke’s monosyllabic stoicism. There were a few stalwarts—primarily Taylor—who would no doubt show up at a moment’s notice, though, demanding a perfect recreation of their usual order and someone to cater to their every whim. Jess was a lost cause in terms of customer service, and as such he was often in awe of the tirelessness Ella exhibited. He knew it drained her sometimes. Part of what made them so compatible was their shared penchant for comfortable silence. After a shift, she would need a brief listening ear as she vented, and then they would simply sit together and decompress. Just being in the same room was enough; words weren’t always necessary. 

“I’ll be sure to let Ahab know that you’re now referring to her as my girlfriend. I’m sure she’ll love being defined by her relationship to a man,” Jess said flatly. His impatience was pulsing beneath his surface, and he was in no mood to deal with Luke’s totalitarian temper. 

Luke sighed. In the time since Jess and Ella had become official, he had grown used to feeling outnumbered. When Jess had first arrived, Luke truly believed the two of them hated each other. Looking back, he should have known the moment they started swapping the books. The books he could never understand as a high school student, and sure as hell didn’t understand as a middle-aged man. He didn’t know whether to be proud or scared of their naive thoughtfulness. Still, he felt a distinct affection for each of them. Seeing them together was almost heartening. But the strength of their bond also incensed him to no end. 

“Please don’t,” was all Luke could muster. He didn’t need an earful from Ella. Not today. He wasn’t by any means looking forward to inventory later in the evening. And the weather was harsh and biting, sucking the life out of his Friday night dinner rush. He had been more or less in the black for the last few fiscal years. But his stinginess was the only thing keeping him comfortable. He never liked to see the diner empty. His desire to maintain financial stability, especially now that both Jess and Ella were ostensibly under his wing, outweighed his consistent irritation with the patrons. 

“No promises,” Jess said. 

Suddenly, the bell over the door chimed cheerfully, announcing Ella. Her hair was damp with flurries, and her combat boots were caked with snow. Her nose and cheeks were frosted with pink, dusted with freckles. She shot them a sheepish, close-lipped smile. She rushed to unwind her scarf and shed her coat. She was shivering.

“There she is,” Jess said, straightening in his seat and tilting his head at her with a smirk.

“About damn time,” Luke said. He had his arms crossed over his chest.

Ella was unsure whether his stern stature was directed solely at her or if Jess had pissed him off somehow before she walked in. The latter didn’t seem unlikely, but her stomach was swirling at the knowledge that Luke was disappointed in her. She never liked to break her patterns, especially not in front of the treasured few adults in her life who didn’t despise her. None of them were people she was related to, so she was well aware of the fact that their good graces were conditional. She had to be responsible, hard-working, and mature for her age. If she wasn’t, who would want to be her champion? There would be no point. She had never been too successful at being somebody’s child. Gulping nervously, she hid a wince and went towards the stockroom with her eyes glued to her feet. She couldn’t bear facing the earnestness in Luke’s face. She didn’t want him to think of her as fallible, or (so much worse she could barely even acknowledge the thought) lazy. A leech. 

Furrowing his brows, Jess watched Ella trudge back into the stockroom with shame painted on her face. She didn’t acknowledge him at all, cowering under Luke’s gaze. Her silence piqued his curiosity. But there was also something peculiar about the way she was walking, the way she was carrying herself. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Her posture was almost crouched, like she was hiding. Or maybe the weight on her shoulders was just particularly heavy today. He knew the college application process hadn’t exactly been kind to her. As usual, he was more or less clueless about what was going on in her home. Tossing the book aside without remembering to save his place, Jess rose from his spot near the kitchen and followed her. Luke was in the process of starting a fresh pot of coffee. Jess shot a scowl at his uncle as he passed. Luke only rolled his eyes. 

Ella had already donned her apron when Jess caught up with her. He leaned against the doorframe, assessing her as she tied up her hair. She looked, for lack of a better word, exhausted. Jess knew she could spread herself pretty thin, but this was something different. Having had enough of his staring, Ella raised her eyebrows at him impatiently as she finished with her hair and went to punch her wrinkled timecard. 

“Long time, no see, Stevens,” he said. “You alright?”

The worry in his voice caught Ella aback for a moment. But she tried not to let it show. She only nodded. She clocked in, then made to brush past him and start working. Before she could snake by though, Jess caught her arm with a gentle hand.

Ella sighed heavily, but still said not a word.

“Feelin’ Chaplin tonight, huh?” Jess asked suspiciously. With his free hand, he reached up and placed his palm on her forehead. His eyes widened. 

Scoffing, Ella swatted his hand away. But the damage was done. 

“Holy shit,” he murmured. “You’re burning up. Did you go to school like this?”

Squeezing her eyes shut for a moment, Ella tried to compose herself. She tried to think of an excuse. Her head was throbbing, pain shooting from behind her eyes to down her neck in vicious bursts. It had been since the moment she opened her eyes that morning. She couldn’t think of a coherent sentence, let alone something savvy enough to fool Jess. She cleared her throat, sniffled, then looked him in the eye again. Her hazel gaze was glazed and glassy. 

“Listen-” she began, but immediately stopped short. 

At school, she’d made an effort not to say anything, for fear of being sent home. No one, including herself, had heard her all day. She appeared to have misjudged her condition slightly. Instantly, Jess’s face morphed into an expression of utter surprise. Her voice was very nearly gone, words coming out strained and gravelly. The sound alone made Jess’s throat sore.

“I know, I know,” she said, raising her hands in her own defense. “But, I promise, it sounds worse than it is.”

“You honestly expect me to just ignore this?” he asked, eyebrows raised. “You sound like a woodchipper and you look like a Dickensian orphan!”

Ella smiled thinly and narrowed her eyes at him. Her tone was contemptuous, if subdued. “You sure know how to make a girl feel special, don’t you, James Dean?”

This time, she succeeded in pushing past him. Nonetheless, he followed, running an anxious hand over his mouth. 

“That’s not what I meant and you know it,” Jess said, hot on her heels.

The main room remained empty, and even in the couple of minutes they had been in back, the snow seemed to be falling ten times heavier, torrential. Ella shivered again, looking at it. Each time she swallowed, she fought a grimace. Her malaise had been maddening all day, slowing her down and clouding her brain. She was certainly not going to let it interfere with her paycheck, though. As she stomped around behind the counter and grabbed the broom, she made a considered effort to ignore Jess. She wanted to take advantage of the lull in customers to tidy up before the dinner shift. In the kitchen, she could hear Luke starting up the grill, a comforting sizzle filling the air. On a normal day, she would have been upset that she couldn’t smell the onions he was prepping. But she thought it might actually be a blessing, given the state of her stomach.

“Seriously, Eleanor,” Jess said in earnest, coming to stop her before she could exit the counter and make her way to the tables.

“Seriously, Jess,” she echoed venomously. 

He sighed through his nose, shaking his head. For a moment, they stared each other down, both motionless. Jess maintained eye contact with her, though, as he raised his voice to his uncle. “Hey, Luke, we got any chicken soup left?”

“What?” Luke called from behind the stove warily. He was already running behind, and Ella being late had done nothing to help him. Taking any sort of bait from Jess was not something he wanted to entertain, but he found himself turning down the gas so he could hear anyway.

“Chicken soup. We’re gonna need some. Eleanor’s temperature is about to reach boiling point, I’d say,” Jess said, watching Ella’s jaw tense.

“You dirty fucking traitor,” she whispered, ever dramatic. “Hey! Language!” Luke said, jumping into scold mode yet again as he turned the heat off and emerged, eyeing Ella in exasperation. “What’s wrong with you today?”

Under Luke’s questioning, she faltered. She was at a loss for words. No matter what, she would give herself away. It dawned on her that there was not a chance in hell he was actually going to let her work. And that meant trouble in more ways than one. Dread sunk into her gut and exacerbated her unease. She looked over her shoulder at Luke and then back at Jess. After biting her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment, she sighed again and Jess saw her facade crack.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again,” she began, pivoting so she could look at Luke. “You really do have a bionic ear, boss.”

Luke’s face softened. “Jeez, you sound terrible,” he said, putting his hands on his hips. He appraised her appearance. “You can’t serve food like this. Go home.”

“Can’t you just put me on dish pit or something?” she asked, cheeks flushing deeper. “Please?”

“No,” Jess chimed in.

“I didn’t ask you, jackass!” Ella snapped.

“You really think the dishes will get clean if you’re the one washing them?” Luke said.

“Ouch,” she said, uttering a humorless chuckle. “When did this become an inquisition?”

“I’m sorry, Ella. I am,” Luke said. “But you’re a walking health code violation. I can’t have that. You gotta go.”

She nodded dejectly. She felt silly for ever believing it would be a good idea to waitress with a cold. What kind of morals did she have, to jeopardize public health?  She could only imagine what Taylor would say if she spread whatever she had to him. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility for her face to end up on the front of the Stars Hollow Gazette, a town pariah named typhoid Mary. She knew what Jess and Luke were probably thinking. She was desperate. And irresponsible. And useless. She suddenly bypassed Jess again, heading in the direction of the stockroom. “Fine. I’ll go clock out.”

“I’m sorry, Ella,” Luke repeated. He didn’t have a choice.

“No, I’m sorry. It was stupid of me to even walk in here. I’ll go. I have homework to do, anyway,” she said, features drawn with guilt, then disappeared. The second she was out of sight, she started coughing into her elbow. At least she wasn’t under their prying, pitying stares, but of course they could hear it. She had been doing her best to keep it at bay. At least in that she had been mildly successful.

Jess shook his head again. He could hear that the cough was in her chest. He crossed his arms defiantly and raised his eyebrows at Luke.

“What now?” Luke groaned. He didn’t have time for this. When had so much of his life become devoted to standing around and arguing with two teenagers? It seemed like all he did anymore. 

“You’re gonna send her out there when she sounds like that?” Jess asked, gesturing to the storm through the windows. Already, the entire town square was bathed in white. The sidewalks were invisible. It appeared all the tourists had vacated in advance of the true New England weather. The snow was pristine, untouched, nary a footprint to be found. Jess’s mouth was set in a thin line and he was staring daggers. But there was a genuine quality to his words that perplexed Luke. He couldn’t recall a time when Jess had shown such sincere concern for another person before. Jess and Ella had only been dating a couple months. Luke hadn’t expected the feelings to be so developed. Granted, his only other frame of reference was the fling with Shane.

Luke sighed once more. Not that he was ever going to admit it out loud, but Jess was right. It would be cruel to make her walk home in the storm. And, moreover, to send her home. It didn’t cross Luke’s mind once to call Ella’s father. Even if Jake was decent enough to come pick up his sick daughter, he certainly wasn’t going to do anything beyond that once they returned to the little blue house. And Luke knew Ella too well to assume she would actually rest in favor of her homework. Had Lorelai not called only an hour ago to say they were already snowed in at her parent’s house in Hartford, he would have driven her straight over to the Gilmore house. Ella’s eyes were watery from her coughing fit as she returned and headed for the coat rack. Luke made up his mind. His parental improv would have to do.

“Ella?” Luke said, hands on his hips again, despite his apprehension.

“Hm?” she hummed, eyeing him in askance. She made her hands busy with putting on her coat and scarf. 

“Go upstairs,” he said.

“What?” she croaked.

“You can’t walk home in this storm. You’ll get pneumonia,” he said. 

Ella scoffed. “That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think?” she said, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “I’m a big girl, Luke. I made it here from school. I don’t need rescuing. I’ll be just fine.”

“Just give it up, Daria,” Jess interjected.

“Bite me, James Dean,” she replied.

“I’ll make you some soup and bring it up in a little while. Take it easy, alright?” Luke said. 

Glancing between the two of them, Ella felt her stomach churn with nerves. She didn’t want to go home, of course, but she wanted to sit around and wallow in her illness even less. The idea of Luke or Jess tending to her made her more nauseous than she already was. Wrestling with the idea of either running out the door before they could stop her, or maybe even spending the night on Rory’s porch with the unfounded hope that they would somehow find a way home from Hartford, she began to feel dizzy. There was no winning; not this time. No matter where she went, she would feel like shit. Heaving a resigned sigh, she looked down at her boots.

“Well, I’m flattered that you’ve both given me so much choice in the matter,” she muttered.

Jess smirked fondly. Then, he sauntered over to her and held out his hand. She raised her eyebrows at him for a moment, making no moves to grab it. Luke shook his head at her petulance, and tried to ignore the nostalgia touching his heart. Often, flashes of her as a child would pop up in his field of vision, distorting time and making him yearn in a way he found infuriating and uncomfortable. He experienced the same phenomenon with Rory every now and again. But with Ella, it was more frequent. Especially since she’d started working at the diner, and even more since Jess moved in, Luke was really starting to understand his age. They were growing up right before his eyes, and in some ways the reminders of what once was were welcome. In this case, sobering might have been the word. Ella could be so self-sufficient sometimes, he could forget that she needed just as much attention as a troublemaker like Jess, even if she didn’t act out. Being late was basically Ella’s version of stealing a gnome, though the question of intentionality definitely differed. When he looked at her, he glimpsed a towheaded four-year-old with strep throat, attached to her mother’s hip. Ella’s mother picking up coffee on the way to the doctor, eyes stressed but face assured and calm. Even then, Ella had been obstinate, arguing with her mother in a tiny, almost elfish, voice. 

“Just go get some sleep, kid. We’ll all still be here when you wake up,” he said.

Ella faced him again, not startled, not mystified, not exactly. But his tone of voice had been so parental she couldn’t ignore or hide her surprise. He sounded worried. Luke had already spent so much time and energy worrying about her. She couldn’t prolong it wilfully. She swallowed, and let the wince show clearly in her features. Then, she nodded. And begrudgingly, she gripped Jess’s hand. He squeezed gently and began leading her toward the stairs. 

“Alright. That’s the last I want to see of both of you until after I close. I’ve done enough client resolution for the week. I don’t need any more. And no funny business with her, Jess. She needs sleep,” Luke warned, pointing a finger at his nephew. 

Jess frowned, and when he spoke his voice was acerbic. “Jeez, Uncle Luke. Glad you see me in such a positive light.”

Luke rolled his eyes as they passed, but then began to shoo them faster with the rag in his hand. “I can see Taylor through the window. Hurry the hell up!”

.   .   .

“Feel any better?” Jess called from the tiny kitchen as he heard Ella open his bathroom door. He poured scalding water into a Cubs mug, and instantly the smell of ginger invaded the apartment.

“Yeah,” she replied, thready and tired. But she had to admit, she was way more comfortable in Jess’s Tool t-shirt and sweatpants than the outfit she’d worn to school, which she now held in her hand, folded and damp with frost. She went over to the rack by the door to stuff the clothes in her bag. 

“Good.” Jess was fluttering around the kitchen, opening cabinets and furrowing his brows in search of something. 

“Thank you for the clothes,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. Her body shook a bit as she stood awkwardly by the kitchen table. 

“Don’t mention it,” he muttered, distracted. But then, he finally spotted the honey in the cupboard with the baking soda. His back was still turned to her as he placed it next to the steeping tea and then went to put some bread in the toaster. “Why don’t you go lay down?”

“Are you actually gonna make me do that?” she asked.

“Yes,” he replied, matter-of-fact, pushing the toaster’s lever down. He turned to her and felt his heart do a twist at the sight of her. She looked ghostly pale, but also a little green, and just so sick. 

“Since when do you listen to your uncle’s orders?”

“Since you tried to come to work with laryngitis and a fever. Since then,” he said. “And you should stop talking. You’ll make yourself worse.”

Again, she rolled her eyes, though it only hurt her head. “I’ll say what I please. I’m fine.”

“That’s very convincing,” he deadpanned.

She glanced doubtfully over at his bed, then back at him. “You really want me in your bed right now? Didn’t you ever see Outbreak?”

“Now, I thought you were fine?” he said, feigning naivete.

“Shut up,” she said with a huff. 

“Oooo, angry face. You do not like being sick,” he said.

“I’m not kidding, Jess. I’m not contaminating your bed.”

“Eleanor,” he began, and continued even when she scoffed at him. He rested his hands on the back of a dining chair as he spoke to her over the table. “You’re my girlfriend. C’mon. Just let me take care of you.” 

Then, after only receiving a vexed stare from her, he sighed and continued. 

“Okay. How about we watch a movie first? You pick this time. Go set up shop on the couch and I’ll bring you some medicine. But, when the movie’s over, you’re gonna get in bed and sleep this off. And that’s my final offer, ma’am.”

She rubbed at her eyes in exasperation, having just washed off the heavy makeup she’d applied that morning in an effort to look less like an episode of Tales from the Crypt. 

“Please?” he said.

Smacking her lips together for a moment, she relented. Once again, she felt silly. Small. And selfish. Was he really pleading with her to let him play doctor? A part of her didn’t know whether to feel triumphant for getting Jess Mariano to go soft. But the rest of her just felt ashamed for being a brat. “Okay. I’m sorry. I know I’m being difficult.”

“Nothing for you to be sorry over. You’re sick.”

“Yeah, and I don’t want to sentence you to my fate,” she argued, growing uncomfortable at his affection. She felt disgusting; surely, she was disgusting. How could he still have such kind words for her, patient zero?

Jess shrugged. “I don’t mind. I’d rather I get sick from hanging out with you than from anyone else.”

“Are you sure?”

“Do I have to carry you over there myself?” 

“Alright, alright,” she said, raising her hands in surrender as she started towards the living room area. “White flag. But it’s your funeral.”

“I’ll take my chances,” he said, returning to the task at hand when the toast popped up with a jovial ding! “And for the love of God, stop talking.”

“Don’t bring God into this space,” Ella retorted, ignoring him. “He harshes my mellow.”

Jess rolled his eyes in frustration. “Whatever, Peter Singer.”

She only gave a hoarse laugh in response.

Meanwhile, Ella crouched down beside the TV and let her gaze roll over the various titles. Lots of people she knew had DVD players, but both Lorelai and Luke preferred VHS. She shook her head at the thought of the two of them. If only. She swallowed again and was reminded of her utter misery. Her amusement didn’t dampen completely though, as she read the boxes and assigned ownership to each one. Field of Dreams—Luke. Blade Runner—Jess. Bridge on the River Kwai—Luke. Apocalypse Now—Jess. But the one she landed on seemed a lot more like something she would have in her own collection. She popped it into the player and went to grab the afghan from Jess’s bed. Bringing it over to the couch, she settled into the cushions, finally off her feet. Like a little kid on New Year’s Eve, she wanted to will herself not to doze off. But, the moment she exhaled and her muscles relaxed, she feared the sheer weight of her own fatigue. Her eyelids were already impossibly heavy. If there was any movie so compelling it would keep her up, though, it was her choice for the evening.

“What’s this?” Jess asked as he joined her on the couch, setting the plate of toast, mug of tea, and bottle of painkillers on the coffee table in front of her. “Something Stephen King, I presume?”

“Close but not quite,” she said. “Silence of the Lambs.”

“Eleanor-” Jess began, but she cut him off.

He had always been resistant to the film adaptation of Thomas Harris' novel, for some reason. Ella had tried countless times to convince him to give it a shot with her, calling it a cinematic masterpiece. It was a hill he would die on. He didn’t want to taint his experience of the original. But she knew he wouldn’t refuse her in her condition. “C’mon, James Dean. I promise it won’t be anything less gruesome than The Shining. More so, actually.”

“I’m familiar with the source material,” he said shortly. A glance at her expectant and feverish face, and all his hesitation faded. “Fine. Only if you promise to—and I mean this in the nicest way possible—shut the fuck up and give your voice a rest.”

“Deal,” she said with a smile and glued her gaze to the screen as the camera stalked Agent Starling on a run through the Quantico woods. She was already mesmerized, and not a word from the script had yet been spoken.

Jess reached in his backpack, thrown on the floor without care as he got home from school in the afternoon, and pulled out a notebook and a pen. Nudging Ella, he got her attention and handed them to her. “Just for the sake of curbing the urge.”

She shook her head at him, but still wore a tiny smile as she took to the college-ruled. It was almost halfway through the school year and Jess had barely used up the first ten pages. 

You have that little faith in me? she wrote in large cursive and showed the page to him.

Jess chuckled. “I think you’re asking me to bet on losing dogs.”

Fuck you, she wrote, though her scowl was ungenuine. 

“I love to hear you talk, Eleanor, I do,” he said. “Music to my ears. It just worries me when the songs start to sound like they were sung by Stevie Nicks herself. That’s not your normal style.”

She rolled her eyes. Don’t blaspheme Stevie. How about you shut up so we can absorb this tour-de-force of the thriller genre in peace?

As he read, she turned back to the TV, ready to lose herself in something after such a long day. A long week, really. Before she could get too absorbed, though, Jess went on. “And you have to eat that toast and take those pills.”

“The deal’s done. You can’t add more conditions,” she said, breaking eye contact with the screen to furrow her brows at him.

“Well, you’re in breach of the contract by talking, so why am I not allowed to add conditions?” he said.

Rolling her eyes again, she scribbled in the notebook. What about Luke’s soup? 

“Who knows how long that’ll take?”

Can’t I just take the pills? When did toast become part of the equation?

“Because if you take the medicine on an empty stomach, you’ll just throw it up. Then we’ll have to start this process all over again.”

Can I be honest with you?

Jess nodded.

Ella passed the notebook to him with an earnest embarrassment Jess had grown to expect. There’s a chance I’ll throw it up either way. 

Still, it was disarming to see her without her mask of confidence. In a way, it felt like a privilege to him. So, he chose his next words carefully, face glowing with a kindness he reserved only for her most unguarded moments.

“Well, I think I’m willing to risk it if it means you take those pills and start feeling better sooner,” he said. After a moment of thought, he held up one finger: wait. Then he made a brief beeline to his bathroom, and returned with a small plastic trash can. He set it down beside her and sat next to her again. “Some insurance. The tea should help your stomach, too.”

Ella looked at him for a moment with an expression he couldn’t place. She was bewildered, almost. “Stop being nice to me, Jess.”

“No,” he replied, light but unflinching.

Ella huffed. Nonetheless, she picked up one of the dry triangles of toast and took a gingerly bite. Then: “Thank you for making this.”

“Don’t thank me. Just be quiet and eat the damn toast.”

She spoke in a hiss so soft that her voice was barely audible, but Jess heard it clear as a bell just the same. “Nurse fucking Ratched.”

.   .   .

With the apartment awash in the dim glow of the TV, Jess couldn’t deny he was riveted. It was the second act, the search for the killer intensifying and nearing climax, turned down to a low volume. At his side, Ella snored slightly. Sure enough, she had been able to keep the toast and the aspirin down, along with the chicken soup. It had taken her all of ten minutes after Luke brought the steaming bowl up from the kitchen to pass out asleep on Jess’s shoulder. He could feel the blazing heat of her cheek through his shirt. The afghan was draped over the both of them, and outside, the wind was whipping by in blustering gusts. She shivered every so often, but less and less the more time went on. He was glad; at least he had done a couple things right. Of course, he had never been known for his caretaking skills. His mother certainly hadn’t been a master class in the instinct to nurture. But he had tended to a few hangovers in his life, only some his own. And with Ella, things sometimes came so naturally to him, he barely registered it. It was simple; he was going to do everything in his power to help her, because she mattered to him. As Hannibal Lector escaped, she shifted around sleepily and tried to clear her throat. But soon she began coughing in the crook of her arm once again. In an instant, she tore away from him and sat up. Jess smoothed what he hoped was a soothing hand over her back. 

“You want some water?” he asked when she finally caught her breath. 

Ella nodded, collapsing back against the couch and drawing her folded legs to her chest. The afghan slipped and dropped to the floor, but she paid it no mind. Curling up into herself, her skin was flaming, but still, waves of chills rolled over her. The haze of sleep was wearing off slowly, and for a moment upon waking, she had felt a streak of purely animal fear. She was out of her element, and her hackles were itching to raise. As Jess went and collected some water from the kitchen tap, she took a moment to breathe. He returned and she took the water from him.

“Thank you,” she said. Her voice was shredded, but she didn’t feel like her throat was scorched earth anymore. Progress, she thought wryly. The leaps and bounds of medical science.

“You’re welcome,” he said, watching her sip gratefully. “How do you feel?”

“Aces,” she retorted, tone flat.

“Yeah, I can see that.” 

“I’m sorry, Jess,” she said, placing the empty glass on the table. Too shy to meet his gaze, she rubbed her hands anxiously on her knees.

“For what?” he asked, confusion painted on his face. 

“I’m sick. I’ll get you sick. I’m sure you had more exciting plans than listening to me snore,” she said, gesturing with exasperation. She let her feet hit the floor again and pressed her hands down into the cushions at her sides, making to stand up. “I should just go.”

“Whoa, hey, Eleanor,” he said, grabbing her wrist before she could try. “There’s no reason you should be out in that weather. You’re already under it.”

“You think puns are gonna make me wanna stay?” she asked doubtfully, still refusing to make eye contact. “The reason is that I’m not your responsibility and I still have to study for my stat test. I’ve already overstayed my welcome.”

“As if you could ever do that,” Jess said, shaking his head at her. “Y’know, you should really be putting this in the notebook.”

“Fuck the notebook!” she exclaimed, words crackling.

“Alright,” Jess shot back. And after a moment of charged silence: “Look at me.”

Ella squeezed her eyes shut for a moment in frustration, then set her jaw tightly and faced him. 

The vivid brightness of her eyes was startling, but Jess knew it was the fever that had yet to break. “I’m telling you. I don’t mind. Luke doesn’t mind. Why can’t you hear me? What’s going on?”

“I just…” she began, her words a sigh. Her words trailed off for a moment, but then she took another resolute breath and doubled down. “I just don’t want you to see me like this.”

“Like what?”

“Sick.”

“Everyone gets sick. You don’t have to be embarrassed.”

“Obviously I know that, but…” she had to stop again, suddenly becoming more emotional than she was prepared to handle. Her head was on fire. Maybe the waterworks welling up would at least cool her down. “I just can’t! If I get sick and I miss school, or I skip my chores, or call out from work, my whole life gets thrown off! I’m already gonna be behind on my studying for my stat test! And then suddenly, I’m behind on fucking eveything, and I’m disappointing everyone, and then I don’t get into college, and I never get to be an artist, and I never leave Stars Hollow! I can’t!”

“Honey, hey,” he said, cupping her face in his hands so maybe she would finally listen. “You’re putting too much pressure on yourself. I promise it’s not the end of the world.”

She scoffed sadly. “Easy for you to say. It’s like a shark. If I stop swimming, I’ll die.”

“You’re human, Eleanor,” he said softly. He caressed her cheeks with both his thumbs, once, in affectionate synchronicity. Then, he dropped his hands and smirked in a way she found comforting. “And, for the record, I’m sure that even  Jaws still took a sick day every once in a while.”

She chuckled in spite of herself. A minute of pause sobered her amusement, and she smacked her lips together in thought. Then, she raked her hands through her hair and let her head loll back against the couch again. She rubbed her red-rimmed eyes with the heels of her hands, and then tilted her gaze at him. “I’m a nightmare when I’m sick. I know it. I’m sorry.”

“I’m gonna need you to stop apologizing now,” he said shortly, but free of malice. 

She opened her mouth to protest, but he interrupted before she could even begin. Once more, he laid his palm on her forehead and clicked his tongue in worry.

“You say one more word and I’m telling Luke that you still have a fever,” he warned. “And you’ll be wishing for the time when you thought I was Nurse Ratched. Believe me.”

Jess had been begrudgingly under Luke’s care for a little over a year, and had been privy to his uncle’s questionable bedside manner only a couple of times. Once, in the aftermath of him cutting his hand open on one of Caesar’s knives and painting the dish pit red, and a second time during the awful flu that hit Stars Hollow right around Christmastime the year previous. In both instances, Luke’s protective nature was abundantly apparent. It was in the tact and patience departments where he was lacking. Far be it from Jess to criticize anyone for their social ineptitude, though. 

Judas, she wrote. Whose side are you on?

He shrugged. “Desperate times. I can’t have a Satine situation on my hands.”

But then you’d have such tragedy to pull inspiration from, Christian.

“Believe me, it wouldn’t be worth it,” he said. “I’d never be able to return to the Moulin Rouge.”

She giggled with a quizzical expression, about to ask when the hell someone had dragged him to that movie. It was one of her favorite’s, staged like a LauTrec painting. She couldn’t imagine him sitting in the audience, and definitely not without a frown at its frivolity. But then, her body interrupted and she yawned into her fist.

Jess hopped up from the couch and held his hand out to her. “Okay. Bedtime.”

For a second, Ella thought about arguing. But then she decided she had given him enough of a hard time for one night. A jackass though he was, he was showing a restraint so immense she was having difficulty recognizing him. Part of her thought in a foggy, febrile way that the whole evening had been a hallucination of some kind. But she was exhausted past the point of interrogating the reality of things. Instead, she took her notebook in one hand and with her free one grabbed Jess’s. She let him help her up.

“Do you need anything?” he asked.

Ella squinted in the dimness of the apartment as she scribbled. You’re not tucking me in, Mariano. 

Jess smirked. “I’ll take that as a no.”

Ella lingered there for a moment, still apprehensive about lying in someone else’s bed when she was contagious. She wrote again. Thank you. Seriously, Jess.

“Don’t thank me,” he repeated. “There’s another addendum.”

You’re impossible.

“Right back at ya.”

You sure you don’t mind me stealing your bed for the night? I can just surf the couch.

“Nope,” he said with cool assurance. “Don’t mind at all. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

A nostalgic smile tugged at her lips. Then can you keep the movie on? And turn it up, please? So I can hear it from over there.

Shaking his head, Jess found the strength of his resolve again outmatched by just the sight of her. “Oh, yeah. That’s definitely not a recipe for night terrors.”

.   .   .

The first murky orange light of sunrise crept in through the windows above Luke’s. Jess wasn’t sure exactly what woke him up, but he thought he might’ve heard the bell above the diner door jingle, breaking the silence of dawn. He startled, and once again, Big Sur hit the hardwood. Getting his bearings, Jess realized he must’ve fallen asleep with the book on his chest before he could actually finish his chapter. He had already read through it once in the week since Ella bought it for him. Often, he had been tempted to put notes in the margins. But he couldn’t bring himself to sully the masterpiece with his markings. He supposed he owned it, but his gut was unaware. Holding it in his hands felt sacrilegious in a bizarre way he knew he could never vocalize. Nonetheless, he rescued it from the floor, along with the receipt he had used to save his place. At the present moment, all he could think about was coffee. There would be time to retrace his turning of the pages and find the spot he last remembered later. 

He rose from the couch, stretching. There was a crick in his neck. He shrugged it off and padded softly in sock feet over to the coffee maker. Glancing at his watch, he found it was not even five yet. There were no deliveries this Saturday; Luke was still snoring in the vein of Texas Chainsaw Massacre on his side of the apartment. Soon enough, though, his alarm clock would blare its grating BEEP BEEP. And Jess would be awoken regardless of whether he was scheduled to work. Jess knew it made Luke feel a bit vindicated, especially on this particular morning. Jess thought he must’ve fallen asleep around midnight. At that point, Luke had still been downstairs doing inventory, without Jess or Ella’s help to close. Misery loves company.

As bitter as Jess was about his body becoming accustomed to the early bird lifestyle, at least today his awakening had been a little less jarring. While he filled the pot up with water, preparing to pour it into the machine, he looked out over the town square, glimmering with fiery sparkles. Though it was only a ballpark, Jess had been a northerner his whole life, and was semi-confident in his assessment that there was at least a foot or two of snow on the ground. Once he got the coffee started, he took a minute to rummage through Luke’s tea stash. It was a cabinet he did not frequent, but had seen Ella organize more than once when they were hanging out upstairs. She did the same thing with not only the tea, but pretty much everything in the stock room. When he’d first come to town, everything had been arranged by color. At some point in the interceding months, she had made the transition to alphabetical order. He decided on peppermint, then prepared the cup and the kettle. The air was becoming fragrant with medium roast, and he decided in favor of waking Ella up gently, rather than let the alarm clock give a jolt of surprise to start the day. He wasn’t on shift until two, and he intended to keep Ella company for as long as she would let him. 

But as he rounded the corner from the kitchen to his room, he furrowed his brows. His bed was made, perfect and meticulous. On it, he found a note written in Ella’s cursive:

Hooper,

Thank you for last night (consider the contract officially ripped up). It was nice to float for a little while. But I really have to go! I’ll call you tonight. 

-Jaws

. . .

Author's Note:

It’s been awhile! I hope this note finds you well! It’s great to be back, but a bit nerve-racking! 

Please consider this story a companion piece to the original, rather than a sequel. A character study of sorts. An extension, if you will. An expansion. It will not be linear like the original, nor will it be as plot-driven. If you hate this, please ignore it and pretend the original story is all there is. In returning to this story and these characters, my greatest fear is corrupting the foundation. I also have not written in this particular voice in a while, so please be patient with me as I reorient myself with the pacing and the style of Gilmore Girls. Fair warning: this new story, much like the original, will in many ways be an avenue for me to work out some personal trauma. The eighteen months since I finished the original story have been…interesting for me. I can only imagine what y’all have gone through since then. My hope is that while the subject matter of this story may be dark, and the themes arguably even more mature than the original, we can all find some light and levity together. That’s what Gilmore Girls has always been about for me.

Moreover, I wanted to mention that there are a lot of things I wish I could change about the original story. It was written during the depths of the pandemic, with a feverish impatience that comes only from being locked inside for months on end. There are grammatical mistakes, timeline inconsistencies, and a few flat-out plot holes. With this new story, I intend to treat everything with a bit more time and care. So, if there are parts of this that read like revisions of the original, they are! Don’t get me wrong; I am proud of the original story and it was written with a lot of love. Just not enough editing. I’m not going to change anything really, just rework a bit. Only time will tell if this new addition corrects or exacerbates the errors of the original.

I’m also aware that not a lot happens in this chapter. Fear not; more action is coming. This was more about setting things up for the future and reintroducing us to the microcosm of Stars Hollow that is Luke’s diner.

But enough doom and gloom and warning! I am also so excited to share more of Ella and Jess with y’all! Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you thought of this first installment! Feedback nourishes my soul!

P.S. As you can tell, time has not afforded me any greater skills in brevity. I apologize!

[a-aexotic]

i can see you, 𝒈𝒊𝒍𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍𝒔.

✫ 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬 . . . y/n cromwell was nothing if not a sophisticated, pampered, and ambitious socialite. she had lived in manhattan for about five years with her workaholic mother since her divorce with from her father. in the five years she had lived in the upper-east side, she had conquered the elites and made them her minions. she was living her best life until she heard the worst news she could ever fathom...

tristan dugray was nothing like y/n, in any sense other than maybe the fact they were both rich, spoiled and rather confident - okay, maybe they had more in common than what meets the eye. they hadn't seen each other since she had moved away with her mother five years ago and they were happy that way.

until of course, her mother decided it would be best for y/n to spend the next few months with her father back in connecticut after y/n got in trouble with her friend group. what y/n didn't know until she eventually got to connecticut was that her father was engaged to none other than tristan dugray's mother. how could her year get any worse?

✫ 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 ;; tristan dugray x fem!reader, platonic!paris geller x reader, platonic!rory gilmore x reader

✫ 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 ;; not canon gilmore girls timeline (for the most part), rom-com energy, adult humor, asshole!tristan, family issues, the rest is to be determined...

✫ 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 ;; i am rewatching gilmore girls and of course, i've been inspired to write a fanfic because there are not enough tristan fanfics on tumblr. i hope y'all enjoy, this is very self-indulgent lmao. i love tristan sm and i think a rom-com esk fanfic would bring me (and everyone) so much joy. thank you so much for reading! let me know if i should make a taglist for this series.

dedicated to my beautiful best friend, @autumntales 🩷

main masterlist. gilmore girls masterlist. playlist.

0 of 15 chapters published. started: july 31, 2023 deadline: october 1, 2023

prologue

chapter one

chapter two

chapter three

chapter four

chapter five

. . .

[teddypickerry]

adding onto the Jess Mariano x reader where he has a crush on her, it’s sort of like how he was with Rory except he’s more touchy but not in an uncomfortable way, It’s like those guys that make excuses to touch you

𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐂𝐊 𝐎𝐍 𝐀 𝐏𝐔𝐙𝐙𝐋𝐄.

pairing! jess mariano x fem! gilmore reader

word count! 2k

warnings! strong language

summary! in which your best friend jess pines for you by doing things for you <3

a/n! this kinda sucks but whatever. this is also unedited!!! promise i’ll edit it later. also WHY IS THERE LIKE NO JESS BLURBS ON HERE?? i’ve read all of them. help. if you want to be tagged everytime i post a jess fic or any fic really sign up for my taglist <3

THE AMBIENCE OF STARS HOLLOW had never seen the same since jess mariano moved to town. the charming town filled with chilling weather and almost burnt colored leaves were hardly the same. there was something about the leather jacket wearing boy that changed the traditional small town. maybe it was because he was the only atheist in town, taylor doose had spread around the town.

the moment you heard the words utter from the market owner you had huffed. it had never been fair to judge someone for their beliefs or views, unless they were actively hurting someone with their words or of course - physically. that's what you had been taught at least and seemed to have believed throughout all sixteen years of life. so the moment the town came conspiring against the new boy, you were sure to make sure there was someone on his side.

so when you came to work that morning you complimented his band t-shirt. and with that, you seemed pretty much in. it had been almost two months since the boy moved to the small town and you had nearly forgotten life without him. you'd grown very fond of him, despite the rest of the town's opinions differing. but luke enjoyed the two of you and your friendship. "it's good for him" the diner owner told lorelai gilmore, your mother, one evening. she never found herself agreeing but it was hard when she watched him chase you around the diner with an album in his hand. smiles brightly shone on both of your faces.

it was two days later that you found yourself wiping the diner counters after school. earbuds placed in your ears. a familiar melody playing throughout them, your favorite song. one jess had learned was your favorite his third day in the hollow. when you gasped excitedly when it began to play on the radio, singing along making him smile. a grin he quickly yanked off of his mouth when his uncle luke caught him. "sleep with a hanger in your mouth, huh? got a little crush, jessie? aw." he could practically hear luke's words.

so you scrubbed the counters, the sound of the diner bell being unheard as the boy entered. his jean jacket toppled over a flannel. truly channeling his inner john bender. it was easy to spot you. something about the magnetism you seemed to have on him. you were a goddamn fridge. and he truly believed that in a good way.

you nearly screamed when you felt arms around your waist, picking you up quickly. you were quick to realize it was jess as he lifted you off the ground, making you drop the cleaning rag onto the table. you swatted him with your free hand as an earbud fell from your ear. "what are you doing?" you nearly screamed at the boy as your interaction was now the lady liberty of the diner. "got something for ya'."

"is it on the ceiling? i don't think so. so just put me down, jess mariano!" he chuckled at your words as he set you on the ground. you were quick to turn around nearly falling into the boy not used to how close he was standing to you. there was a pretty smirk on his face. one you honestly couldn't stop thinking about. but the envelope in his hand had your attention much more. "what's that?"

"your will to live. picked it up for you off your grandmother's shoe," jess's lips curved at his own words as you fought a smirk. a hum released from your mouth as you reached forward for the envelope resulting in him reaching for it about his head. he couldn't bare the look on your face as you gave him your best puppy dog face. "jess," you whined. pulling the earbuds from your ears and sitting them on the table. "i will strangle you with these."

"but then we can't go see the strokes," he tilted his eyebrows as you furrowed your own. you stood frozen for a moment in confusion. there was no way you were going to see the strokes. you hadn't even able to get tickets the week before when they were being sold. despite wanting to go more than having a left leg. "okay that's a sick joke. even for you."

"me, joke? nev-a." jess smiled as he tapped the envelope to your chest. you had never been more confused as you reached for it, pulling it into your hands. he had taken a step back as you opened the envelope between the two of you. and there they were. two tickets to see the strokes. "jess...?"

"happy birthday," jess joked knowing your birthday was several months ago. you had wasted no time jumping into him, your arms wrapping around him as he wrapped back. picking you up in the process, before you pulled him back down. your arms wrapped around his neck as he laughed into your shoulder. there was doubt every customer in the diner was watching the two of you. the disturbance causing great entertainment for the eating folk. especially luke, who was stood in awe of his nephew. who seemed very selfless in this moment. first time for everything, i guess.

it was three days later that jess mariano found himself staring up at the sky. the dark shade of blue filled with stars that lit the night sky - but they had nothing on you. your beautiful face remained a thought in his mind all night long. until he we would see you at school, where he couldn't help but stare at you as you sat at your seat. smiling at him ever so slightly. he just wanted to hug you. he didn't know why. i mean jess was never one for hugs but god - he could hug you until the poets ran out of rhyme. in other words, until the end of time.

the next week, spider-man was at the stars hollow theater. so naturally, the two of you found yourselves clung together in a red love seat in the small room. several groups of people around you guys, all focused on the film. but jess couldn't keep his eyes off of you. a popcorn balanced in your lap, one he argued to buy you but you won that argument of course. your eyes were locked on tobey maguire while his on you. you noticed the moment you sat down how close he was to you. your legs touching as he leaned in a little closer. jess wasn't the guy to get nervous, no, but he was a little nervous around you.

so when you turned to him twenty minutes into the film, your eyes locking, his heart nearly stopped. "are you gonna watch the movie or what?" you whispered to him, a newfound confidence boosting through you. he could only admire how close your face was to his in that moment. and how much he wanted to kiss you. "hm, i like this view much better."

and with that, his arm wrapped around your shoulders, pulling you in. your head leaned onto jess's shoulder nuzzling into him comfortably. and fuck, he would have thought he died and went to heaven.

nearly two weeks later was the concert. the two of you hadn't seen one another very often since the movie night. partly because you were stuck with your grandparents in maine for a few days, and partly because jess's feelings towards you started to mess with him a little bit. he didn't want to mess up whatever the two of you had first of all, and second of all, he had never felt this way before. sure, he had went on a few dates. but those were dates with girls. but you, you were so much more. you were his favorite person. so, he couldn't fuck that up.

but, the evening of the concert be sucked all his feelings down. not ready to ruin an evening the both of you looked forward to so much, over his feelings. a red baseball tee cling to his waist, his classic leather jacket over it to fight the cold december month. he leaned against the door as he knocked on it loudly, making sure you would hear.

the moment the door opened, he completely forgot the attempt of lost feelings for the evening. the way you looked in your tank top and jeans (and of course leather jacket) made his heart jump a mile. he decided in that moment, that he wanted you. he truly did. scratch that. he needed you.

"hey, jess." your voice was like a simple song turned to a symphony. you immediately noticed his hand on the doorway, his position giving you a great look of him. your heart also raced. god, you're both idiots.

"hey, y/n. you..." jess's voice trailed off as he gave you a small smirk, one that was too familiar. he let out a breath as he stood normally and stepped back. "c'mon."

you wasted no time shutting the door behind you, following him to the car. there was something off about him today. you knew he was avoiding you, you'd called him three times in the past week and everytime luke answered. "uh... he's busy right now, y/n. he'll call you later." spoiler alert, he never called.

the entire car ride reciprocated the interactions between the two of you in the past few weeks. silent, awkward, & non-existent. the radio hummed in the background during the hour drive. jess tapped along to the beat as you got lost looking out the window. it was forty minutes in that you finally glanced over at him. his eyes were on the road, his hand messing around with the radio. "are you gonna watch the road or not?" jess asked, mirroring your words from weeks before.

you let out a laugh, biting down on your lip for a second as you watched him glance over at you. with that pretty boy glance that made you go mad. "i like this view much better." you repeated his own words, a smile appearing on his lips. it was what happened next that made you nearly jump a mile. jess moved his hand from the radio, settling on some black sabbath. his fingers brushed your knee, warmly placing them above his knee. his hand cupped your leg, inching it up slightly. jess rested it directly in the middle of your thigh.

the smile on both of your faces spoke for the two of you. and god, it felt so good. the moment you arrived at the venue jess didn't let you out of his touch. his fingers intertwining with yours as you made your way with the crowd. his warm hands never left yours even when handing the tickets to the bouncers - which of course was a hassle. but you couldn't complain. because the way you felt when he touched you was something unbelievable and something you never felt before. you truly wanted to be his.

standing beneath the stage with hundreds of other people. but all you wanted to do was look at the boy beside you. the boy who bought you tickets for the show. the boy who punched the guy who said he'd have to "double bag" if he got anywhere near you. the same boy who snuck into your room last month when you called him up crying, to simply let you know you had someone. and the exact same boy who you were falling in love with. and who was falling in love with you.

the lights dimmed as the band took stage. the shared smiles on both of your faces and squeeze between your hands was all you ever needed. several songs and several sweet interactions between you two as he watched you dance around and laughed along. singing together as he wrapped his arms around you. and simply simple shared smiles. it was when "last nite" started playing that you noticed him looking at you a certain way. the concert was ending soon. and your seeming fairytale coming to an end.

but the perfect ending to the perfect night had to happen at once. the sweet sounds of the band echoing throughout the venue. his eyes were locked on you, no care for anyone one else around the two of you. his hand gripped your waist, the other already holding your hand. you looked at him,  your arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him in closer. and just like that, his lips pressed to yours. your lips moved together passionately something the both of you had both waited for, for months.

"i'm gonna take you home as my girlfriend."

[moonlight-maiden]

its literati season

[im-still-bejeweled-sparkling]

Marissa Cooper x Jess Mariano

attempt at maniping but i actually think this would be a good crossover ship

[artsyfartsytheaterkid]

I just want to be rory gilmore. like young rory like Chilton years is where it's at. The peak of the show, where it's fall and it just chefs kiss🤌 her fashion, her hair, her face, her makeup, I just want to be her. She's always been naturally pretty even now, I just want to be pretty is that too much to ask for bro.

[fleetwoodmcs]

🍂 jess and amelia + all too well (taylor’s version)

“So, you’re over that, right?”

“I don’t think I’ll ever be over it, Uncle Luke.”

taglist: @aaudace @kiara-carrera @genyazafin @samwilsonns​

[roeyliteratiforever]

Would it be weird for Rory and Jess to get together now as Lorelai and Luke are married? Does it sort of make them related?

Asking because I really want both couples together

Hi @enchantedlandcoffee

Thank you for the ask! I really don't care about that I still want Jess and Rory to end up together. Jess and Rory are in no way related, they aren't siblings, and neither were they raised as cousins or anything like that. Jess and Rory got together way before Luke and Lorelai even were together romantically, so Jess and Rory already had a foundation of being in love with each other before Luke and Lorelai ever got together. Plus there is no blood relation so it's really not weird, if anything just a funny story to share! Luke and Lorelai & Jess and Rory just belong together, and that's the way it should be. Other shows have done crazier. Dan and Serena from Gossip Girl's parents were married and they share a sibling and they ended up together, Ryan from The OC was adopted into the Cohen's family and ended up dating Lindsay who ended up turning out to be Seth's mom's Dad's illegitimate daughter, also his Dad ended up with Marissa's mom, and if she hadn't have died they might have been endgame because Marissa was the love of Ryan's life. So there is no reason why Jess and Rory couldn't be endgame in my opinion as well as Luke and Lorelai.

[ladystardust-thinks]

Hello There!

My loves,

my name is Ronnie and i try to write. I write for some specific franchises and characters because I'm a tad bit uncultured and I have not watched a lot of stuff. This post will be a list of people I write for and you can request fics. I only write OC and x readers though. I am very sorry if that is not what you are interested in.

the people in italics are those I prefer to write the most about right now (bc I'm just a girl and I have phases ok?) and those in bold are the people I have a request in my inbox so works for them are basically coming soon

Any of the Marauders!

Any of the Daisy Jones and the Six girls!

DJATS; Eddie Roundtree, Warren Rojas

Kingsman; Eggsy, Roxy

Celebrities?; Tom Blyth, Taron Egerton, Taylor Swift, Florence Pugh, Joe Mazzello, Hailee Steinfeld, Suki Waterhouse, Josh Whitehouse, Maya Hawke, Joseph Quinn, Joe Keery

Stranger Things; Eddie Munson, Robin Buckley, Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrington, Chrissy Cunningham

misc; tom blyth's!billy the kid, eloise bridgerton, razzle dingley, brian may, roger taylor, paris geller, rory gilmore, lorelai gilmore, jess mariano

Any Spiderverse Character!!

ATTENTION!

this list is not limited, if you have any request about the marvel or star wars universe send it around.

I do not write rpf (real people fiction) smut! The celebrity members list only includes fluff and light angst! I am not sure if I will be writing smut in general.

[daughter-of-melpomene]

For the plot bunny ask game: Gilmore Girls + Rory Gilmore x Jess Mariano poly ship, please??

@dancingsunflowers-ocs ✨💛✨

Ooooh, thank you so so much for this, Alexandra!! (And I’ll also tag @manyfandomocs ‘cause I know he likes Gilmore Girls and I like him. <3)

NAME: Theodore “Teddy” Young.

LOVE INTEREST(S): Rory Gilmore + Jess Mariano.

SUMMARY: Teddy had been in love with Rory Gilmore since the two of them were in elementary school, but what he’s never been is good enough for her. Rory, always the smartest girl in class and now even attending a renowned private school outside of Stars Hollow, has always been out of reach for a laid-back guy like Teddy who cares more about learning new tricks on his skateboard than he ever has about grades, but no matter how many other girls and guys Teddy has dated, he’s never been able to forget the only girl he truly wants. And now that Luke’s witty, good-looking nephew has moved to town and seems to be interested in Rory, Teddy feels that she might be farther away from him than ever as his new friend pursues the girl of his dreams… except that, incredibly, Jess seems to be interested in Teddy as well, and the more time the three of them spend together, Teddy finds himself returning the feelings, and Rory even seems to finally be reciprocating the love Teddy has had for her for so long.

OTHER INFO:

Listen, Rory and Jess need nothing more than a cool skater boy as a part of their relationship, and by God I’m gonna give it to them.

Basically Teddy has that stoner skater boy vibe without actually being a stoner, that’s the best way I can describe him.

He’s also actually pretty smart! He has a really good memory and likes to read, which is how he becomes friends with Jess in the first place - he just doesn’t care much about academics.

Emily is mildly horrified that Rory’s dating him (miraculously she breezes by the fact that Rory’s dating two boys at once who are also dating each other), Richard actually loves him because he’ll play golf with him and he’s surprisingly good at it, and Lorelai also loves him because he teaches her how to ride a skateboard and they have similar taste in movies.

He’s actually also an amazing cook - Luke hires him to help out at the diner eventually, and after the story’s happy ending when Jess takes it over, Teddy becomes the head cook.

send me a fandom and a faceclaim/love interest and i’ll make an oc!!

[randomestfandoms-ocs]

Ash's Gilmore Girls OC Masterlist

Gilmore Girls OC Masterlist for @the-witching-ash (none of these ocs are mine, I only organized the list)

Name: Andrew Cartwright*

Story: Everything Changes

Faceclaim: Logan Lerman

Love Interest: Kirsty Gilmore (@randomestfandoms-ocs)

Pinterest: x

*a variation of the standard To Being An Us Verse but combined with the Gilmore Girls Delicate crossover

Name: Addie Hisenburg

Faceclaim: Rachel Hilson

Story: So Much Better

Love Interest Paris Geller

Pinterest: x

Name: Alice Hawthorn

Faceclaim: Olivia Colman

Story: Multi

Love Interest: Rupert Hawthorn

Name: Callum Zang

Faceclaim: Harry Shum Jr.

Story: Royals

Love Interest: Hana Ryu, endgame Jess Mariano

Pinterest: x

Name: Clemency Campbell

Faceclaim: Helena Boham Carter

Story: Multi

Name: Daisy Gilmore

Faceclaim: Zoe Colletti

Story: Where Do You Belong

Love Interest: Dave Rygalski & Lane Kim

Pinterest: x

Name: Eileen Bloom

Faceclaim: Maya Hawke

Story: Hazy Shades of Winter

Love Interest: TBD

Pinterest: x

Name: Everett West

Faceclaim: Jesse L. Martin

Story: Multi

Name: Evie Charleston

Faceclaim: Lucy Fry

Story: It’s Nice To Have A Friend

Love Interest: Rory Gilmore & Logan Huntzberger

Pinterest: x

Name: Floyd Bach

Faceclaim: Cole Sprouse

Story: Things You Can’t Speak About / Piece By Piece*

Love Interest: Lane Kim

Pinterest: x

*a crossover with @randomestfandoms-ocs' Kirsty Gilmore / Piece By Piece universe

Name: Floyd Bach*

Faceclaim: Cole Sprouse

Story: Delicate

Love Interest: Vicki St James

Pinterest: x

*A second variation of Floyd who exists in the Delicate crossover verse with @randomestfandoms-ocs' Kirsty, Troy, Harry, Vicki, and Lottie, sometimes combined with other crossovers

Name: Grace Kim

Faceclaim: Lana Condor

Story: How Girls Should Behave

Love Interest: Regina Gilmore

Pinterest: x

Name: Hana Ryu

Faceclaim: Jenna Ushkowitz

Story: Royals

Love Interest: Callum Zang, endgame Lindsay Lister

Pinterest: x

Name: Harriet Stiles

Faceclaim: Caroline Goodall

Story: Mean

Name: Imogen Flemming

Faceclaim: Anne Hathaway

Story: Mean

Love Interest: Jess Mariano

Pinterest: x

Name: Liberty Danes

Faceclaim: Jennifer Love Hewitt

Story: There She Goes

Pinterest: x

Name: Lily Lister

Faceclaim: Lili Reinhart

Story: Fearless

Love Interest: Rory Gilmore

Pinterest: x

Name: Lydia Danes

Faceclaim: Ginnifer Goodwin

Story: My Little Corner Of The World, Multi

Love Interest: Lulu Kuschner

Pinterest: x

Name: Mario Medina

Faceclaim: John Barrowman

Story: May God Have Mercy, Multi

Name: Mercy Medina

Faceclaim: Michelle Trachtenberg

Story: May God Have Mercy

Love Interest: Logan Huntzberger

Pinterest: x

Name: Richie Gilmore

Faceclaim: Grant Gustin

Story: Things You Can’t Speak About

Love Interest: N/A

Pinterest: x

Name: Richie Gilmore*

Story: Piece By Piece/Multi

Love interest: Multi

*a variant of Richie that exists in multiple crossovers, always with @randomestfandoms-ocs' Kirsty Gilmore

Name: Richie Gilmore / Richie Donahue-Callisto*

Story: Delicate

Love Interest: Troy Donahue-Callisto & Harry Bechtel ( @randomestfandoms-ocs )

*A second variation of Richie who exists in the Delicate crossover verse with @randomestfandoms-ocs' Kirsty, Troy, Harry, Vicki, and Lottie, sometimes combined with other crossovers

Name: Regina Gilmore

Story: How Girls Should Behave

Faceclaim: Leighton Meester

Love Interests: Vance Hawthorn, Grace Kim

Pinterest: x

Name: Rupert Hawthorn

Faceclaim: Tom Cavanagh

Story: Multi

Love Interest: Alice Hawthorn

Name: Vance Hawthorn

Faceclaim: Ed Westwick

Story: Multi

Love Interest: Regina Gilmore, Colin McCrae & Finn

Pinterest: x

[teddypickerry]

thinking about the missed opportunity that was supposed to be jess’s spinoff show and how we probably would’ve got a really cool love interest (or at least i hope, because no thirty something year old man needs to be stuck on his high school girlfriend of six months).

i have no fucking clue as to where the show would’ve went besides jess and jimmy getting to know eachother. i doubt it would make it past its first season if it did air. BUT nonetheless, i’m talking about it.

a possible love interest (or just character on the show in general) i’d love to see is your typical beachy blonde. i’d love to see some rich girl from venice that jess sees out with her friends or something and automatically assumes the worst. she must be some bitchy blonde with guys all over her… right? until one night he’s strolling on the beach and sees her drunk shoved up against a tree by some guy. jess gets in a fight, blah blah. gets her home and realizes just how empty her huge house is. they slowly start hanging out and despite her lack of knowledge in the literature scene, she’s probably one of the sweetest girls he’s ever met (shit now i really wanna write a fic about this).

i’ve also always felt like jess needs someone exactly like him. so much so that it freaks him the fuck out. HA! i was originally thinking the girl from “she’s all that” but now im iffy. ANYWAYS. when jess is looking through one of the huge bookstores, he sees her sitting on the floor with a book. he sees her around town a lot (typically hanging out with the guys who stole his book and skated off) turns out she works near jimmy’s truck. she’s ridiculously shy and reserved. but she’s not afraid to call someone out. think an artsy rory with balls.

now, would rory come back and ruin jess’s possible relationship? probs. would jess get in his head cause what is he doing moving on from rory? probs. would it even last? who tf knows. BUT NOW IM INTERESTED. BYE!

[divinexxchaos]

Hello everyone!! My name is Ari, I am 22, and I am looking for new RP partners! I have not been very active lately on tumblr, but I have been available on discord! That being said, I am looking for 18+ RP partners on discord!! I am looking for things with my fandomless ocs as well as some canon x canon interactions! 

I would be willing to do many different au’s (apocalypse, future or past, fantasy worlds, modern, slice of life, angst, crime) or crossovers, as well as different pairings (oc x oc, canon x canon, oc x canon). 

If you’re interested in oc rp just let me know that in our messages! I can link you to information on my ocs!  OC Related Info When it comes to ocs I am really willing to build our whole own little universe if you are!!  Ships are based on chemistry, but are welcome!! Any/All pairings are desired (FxM, MxM, FxF, MxNB, FxNB, NBxNB). I would be happy to do ships if that is the vibes we come up with, but anything platonic or even something in the realms of enemies would be awesome!! 

I would love to do something with two muses (platonic or romantic or otherwise) that keep meeting up in every single life that they live on earth (working with reincarnation) !! I would also be mooooore than down to do modern things, slice of life things, apocalypse things, things set in the future, things set in the past, fantasy related, whatever!! 

Canon Related Info

If you’re wondering what canon pairings I am looking for, they’re listed below. I have bolded the canon/canon-divergent character that I would like to play. 

Shameless

Mandy Milkovich x Lip Gallagher 

Mandy Milkovich x James Cook (Skins UK) (crossover) (I would be happy to play either)

Iggy Milkovich x Fiona Gallagher 

Iggy Milkovich x any shameless based oc / any oc at all really! (would love to do a mxm ship with him)

The Fosters 

Callie Adams-Foster x Aaron Baker 

Gilmore Girls 

Rory Gilmore x Jess Mariano 

Feel free to like this post for me to come to you, or alternatively send me a message and with what you’re wanting to try writing with me!! The list of RPs I’m searching for may be added too or changed!

[randomestroleplays]

𝔴𝔞𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔡 𝔭𝔩𝔬𝔱𝔰: 𝔠𝔞𝔯𝔬𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔢 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔯𝔰𝔢𝔱

multifandom / original / oc friendly (X)

tropes:

Age Gap

Arranged Marriage

Boarding School

Celebrity

Childhood Friends To Lovers

Enemies To Lovers

Fake Dating

Found Family

Friends With Benefits

Holiday Fling

Period AU

Politics

Reality Show

Road Trips

Roommates

Royalty

Secret Celebrity / Royalty

Secret Relationship

fandoms:

original plots

gilmore girls

gossip girl / gossip girl 2021

the perfectionists

harry potter

outer banks

dream pairs:

dylan o’brien

timothee chalamet

thomas doherty

joe keery

danielle rose russell

chris evans

potential ships:

jess mariano

logan huntzberger

nate archibald

nolan hotchkiss

ava jalali

blair waldorf

sirius black

remus lupin

harry potter

draco malfoy

regulus black

jj maybank

john b routledge

( open to anything else & fandom / original ocs! )

musical inspiration:

august / betty / cardigan

tis the damn season

cruel summer

illicit affairs

mirrorball

how to be a heartbreaker

gold rush

the last great american dynasty

off to the races

best years

not in the same way

no shame

[prpfs]

🍪Hiiii! 20+ writers only, (please and thank you.) GILMORE GIRLS RP! Mxf is my teen OC x Jess Mariano or Luke Danes x my OC's daughter.

For the Jess x Mariano one! I was thinking my Muse, can be Rory's younger sister who is always left behind due to Lorelai favoring Rory a tad bit more. Then she runs into Jess, who's staying with Luke, and then... they start to get close.

The Luke One, he finds out he has a daughter who is put in foster care... since her mother (his ex) recently passed and she hadn't told him she had gotten pregnant with his kid. So it all was a shock to him, but... he decides to have visits with her until he gets custody of her.

(My Oc's faceclaim is Michelle Trachtenberg)

give a like and anon will get back to you