Two months time

Chapter 2: Truth or Dare

A/N:

He pulled into her driveway at exactly one o'clock and honked. He did not want to go to the front door because of the light drizzle but after ten minutes of waiting for her he had no choice. He walked up the front steps and was just about to knock on the door when it opened. He assumed it was Lorelai, Rorys mother that had answered the door.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Tristan. Rory and I are doing a project together in history class. She said to pick her up around one."

"That means you come over at two." She laughed. "Rory's still asleep."

"Still asleep." He blinked. "Is that possible?"

"Well, she isn't dead." She opened the door all the way. "You want to come in for a bit? Have a poptart or something?"

"Sure."

"We have coffee too if you want some." She pointed to the couch. "Have a seat."

"I don't need anything." He sat on the couch and looked around the room. It was homey, just as he had predicted. He could picture Rory living here.

"I'll go wake her up. Be right back." He watched as she went into a room off of the kitchen and quietly closed the door behind herself.

After a moment or two he heard some loud whispering and a shout and then some thumping around before the door opened and mother and daughter both came out of the room. Rory went into the bathroom while Lorelai went into the kitchen and disappeared from sight.

Tristan got more comfortable as he heard the coffee pot start up. It would be a while.

Finally after about ten minutes Rory emerged from the bathroom, "Next time I suggest that you come over here after one-thirty." She said before going into the kitchen and when she emerged there were two cups of coffee in her hands.

"I don't want any." He said.

"I know. These are for me."

"Has anybody ever told you that you have a problem Mare?" he joked.

She sat down in the chair across from him and crossed her legs Indian style before glaring at him for using that name. "Yes. But it runs in the blood, my mom has the same problem."

Tristan nodded to hide his shock at her consumption of coffee. "It's going to start pouring soon and if we want to get to my place before that happens we need to get going really soon."

Rory nodded and finished off her cups of coffee. "We need to stop over at Lukes before that." She stood up. "It's on the way out of town anyway."

"Whose Luke?"

"He owns a diner." She headed towards the front door after grabbing her book bag. "Are we leaving or not?"

He stood up and straitened his coat. "Sure."

"Mom, we're gonna go!"

"Alright, call me when you're on your way back."

"Bye!" they walked out the door and ran over to the car to escape the rain.

"Stop here."

"But it's a hardware store."

She looked over at him, "It's a diner, trust me. Do you want a Danish or something? He makes the greatest coffee in the world too."

"Sure, get me a Danish." He went to pull out his wallet but she stopped him.

"Don't worry about it, Luke puts everything my mom and I get on this imaginary tab."

"You sure?"

"Yeah." She got out of the car. "Be right back."

He nodded and watched as she went into the diner before turning on his stereo, his Black Eyed Peas CDhappened to be in and he turned it up.

He jumped when the car door was opened and Rory through something into his lap. He looked down and saw that it was a bag. He opened it and found a Danish. "Thanks."

"No problem. Lets go."

By the time they actually got back to Tristans it was pouring, just as he had predicted.

He automatically led her through the house and into the library where he took a seat as Rory took out all the books they had collected from the public library. She handed him 5 of the ten books, a notebook, and a pen before sitting down herself and actually looking around the room."

"Where are your parents?"

"England. For two months starting yesterday evening."

"Two months?"

"Yup." He picked the first book up off the pile and opened the notebook.

"So your all alone here?"

He nodded.

"How can you stand it?"

"I can't." he looked up at her. "I merely learned to live with it around the age of thirteen when my parents decided I was old enough to live without a nanny while they were gone."

"Wow." She peered closer at him as if truly seeing him for the first time. "Must be lonely."

"Yeah." He pointed to his book. "You wanted to get some work done?"

"Oh, sorry."

He chuckled. "It's alright." He watched as she started taking notes from one of the books. Why did she have to be so perfect? He ran a hand through his hair and looked down at his own book. This was a studying session, not a staring session.

About 15 minutes and one book later the lights flickered and went out which was followed by a shriek from Rory. "Tristan?"

He looked towards what he hoped was her face. "Yeah?"

"I don't like the dark when it's like this."

"I don't think anybody does. It makes people nervouse." He stood up from the table and headed in the direction of what he hoped was the fireplace. "Stay right there, I don't need you tripping over something and hurting yourself."

"Okay."

He dragged a hand across the wall until he found the fireplace and the matches that sat on the shelf above it. He opened the box and lit a match to check that there was wood in the fireplace before throwing it in with another match to make sure they caught. "We aren't going to be able to study anymore. And I don't want to take a chance and drive in this weather."

"I should call my mom."

"Try your cell phone first, I bet the phone lines are down for the ground wires."

He watched as she dialed her home number.

"Mom?"

He listened carefully to her side of the conversation to make sure everything was okay with her mom.

"I'm safe, but Tristan doesn't want to drive in this weather and the power is out over here." "Sure, I'll call you when I'm on my way home." "Alright, bye." She hung up the phone and walked over to Tristan. "She says that there is a tornado warning for Hartford and that it probably won't clear up tonight." She frowned. "I might have to stay the night."

"No problem."

"What do you want to do know since we can't study?"

"I don't know." He looked into the fire and watched the flames curl around the pieces of wood.

"Do you want to play a game?"

"Like what?"

She sat down on the floor and looked up at him, "Truth or Dare?"

He smirked down at her. "That's a really girly game."

"So? Do you have any other ideas?"

He shook his head. "No."

"I'll ask you first then." She smiled. "Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Wimp." She looked up at the ceiling for a moment before smiling up at him from the floor. "What are three things your really bad at?"

"That's all you can come up with?"

"It was an on the spot thing. Now answer my question before you get the punishment."

"What is the punishment?"

"You'll have to find out."

He groaned. "Fine. I suck at taking tests."

"That's obvious." She smiled to say that she was messing around. "You don't study, your not going to pass anything until you do."

"Anyway, I can never get my parents attention on anything serious." He smirked and looked her strait in the eyes. "And I can never get up the nerve to ask somebody if they want to be friends."

She smiled. "Was that pointed towards me as a question that isn't a question?"

"You could say so."

"Well, if you don't call me Mare anymore, sure." She smiled. "You're a good guy, you should work on showing this side of yourself more often."

His heart skipped. "So we're friends then?"

"Sure." She pushed some hair out of her face. "Your turn to ask me."

"Truth or dare?"

"Dare."

Tristan sat up in the chair and smirked. "You're a brave one."

"Yup. Did you think I was going to ask for a truth like you?"

"You wound me Mare."

"Hey, what'd I say about calling me Mare?"

"Sorry?"

"Apology excepted." She giggled. "So, what's my dare?"

"Smell my feet."

"No!" she watched in mock horror as he took off his shoe. "I refuse."

He stopped pulling off his shoe. "Are you saying my feet smell bad?"

She nodded and then shook her head.

"Which one is it? Yes or no?"

"Yes."

"Then there is a punishment."

"That's not fair."

"Yes it is. You said the same exact thing."

"But I'm a girl."

He chuckled, "A brave girl as you agreed earlier."

"But-"

"No buts about it." He took his shoe off all the way as well as the other one. "Are you going to take the punishment or are you going to do the dare?"

"I'll go with the dare."

"Alright." He lifted a foot up in her direction, "Have at it."

She leaned forward cautiously and sniffed his foot before backing away.

"So what does it smell like?"

"A foot."

"A smelly foot?"

"No. Actually, it smells like a clean foot." She smiled and pushed his foot back to the floor.

Just the feel of her fingers sent fire along his nerves. He wondered if she felt it too.

"Truth or dare?"

"I'll do a dare this time."

"Smell my armpits."

He shrugged, "I guess that's fair."

"Don't worry, I applied deodorant this morning."

"How do I know your not lying?"

"Because I'm a girl, and wearing deodorant is an unlisted girl rule."

"Alright." He leaned forward and smirked as she lifted her arm and laughed as he sniffed.

"What is that, flowers or something?"

"Yup."

"Truth or dare. Last one and then we go search for some dinner."

She nodded. "Truth."

"Who is your crush?"

She bit her lip and looked at him. "Wow, serious question." She looked at her fingernails and continued to chew on her lip.

"Well?"

"Can I get back to you on that one?"

"Nope, say it know or find out what the punishment it." His heart beat faster, could she like him? No, that just wasn't possible. But he could still dream.

"Alright…." She looked up at him and blushed. "You."

His breath caught and he went in to a bit of a shock. He couldn't have heard that right. "Come again?"

"I like you."

"I'm dreaming right? I must be dreaming." His head was swimming; he leaned back into the chair and ran a hand through his hair.

"No, your not dreaming." She bit her lip. "It's okay if you don't feel the same way."

"Are you joking?" he slid off the chair and slowly moved in towards her lips. When she didn't pull away he kissed her. He loved the way she tested his lips with her tongue, the way the tips of her fingers brushed through his hair.

He quickly pulled away. She was not a bimbo like the other girls that threw themselves all over him. She was the girl he wanted to date, not spend the night with and then kick her out in the morning.

"You feel the same way then." She said, slightly breathless.

He nodded and stood up. "Yeah." He walked out of the room and headed for the kitchen, he didn't need any light to get through the house.

As he passed a window he realized how bad the weather really was. As if for the first time he heard the house creak, the windows groan. He heard the rain, it was loud enough to sound like thunder all its own. He feared then that perhaps there would be a tornado.

He quickly walked past the window and into the kitchen where he found a big flashlight and switched it on. He would need light to find food in the fridge.

He jumped when a finger tapped him on the shoulder.

"Tris," she paused for a moment and the name itself sent shivers up his spine.

"What?"

"Why are you running if you feel the same way?"

"I don't know."

Rory chuckled softly. "Yes you do."

He stood up from the fridge and looked into her eyes. "I guess I do."

"Tell me why then."

"Because I don't want to blow it." He closed the fridge and leaned against the counter by the flashlight. "I don't want to mess it up with you before anything even happens. I don't want to accidentally treat you like those other girls at Chilton."

"And you won't."

"How do you know that? How do I know that I won't?"

"Trust me Tris, you won't." she brushed a hand across his cheek before pulling her hand away. He caught it and held her hand to his heart.

"Are you sure you want me to be anything more than a friend?"

"Yes." She took a step closer, so close that he could smell the shampoo that she had used. "I want this. I want us."

He squeezed her hand before kissing it and letting go with a huge grin on his face. "I never dreamed that we would ever even be on more than speaking terms."

"It's a good thing you asked that question then."

"It's a good thing you chose truth."

She nodded. "Yeah."

He opened the fridge again and looked at her. "Dinner?"

A/N: So? You think it's cheesy? Good? Bad? Horrible? Let me know! And if you like it I will continue writing it, otherwise, down the drain it goes! Lol

-Over and out-