The Other Gilmore

Rory's First Day

Frankie was sleeping peacefully in her bed on a Monday morning when she was rudely woken up by her mother and sister yelling at each other. Groaning, she got up and stomped out into the living room, only to see her mother running down the stairs in a hot pink t-shirt and jean cut-off shorts.

"What?" Lorelai asked Rory, who stood with her arms folded over her chest, leaning against the banister.

"Nothing, I just didn't know the rodeo was in town."

Frankie snorted, turning around and heading for the kitchen.

"Alright, that's it. I'm bringing the baby pictures." Lorelai snatched a baby photo from off a table, holding it up for Rory to see.

"No! I'm sorry. I love the rodeo, the rodeo rules!"

Frankie cackled and waved goodbye to her family as they drove off for Rory's first day at Chilton. She walked back inside and took a shower, changed into sweatpants and a baggy sweatshirt, and grabbed her bags. Frankie picked up her skateboard from the front porch and skated over to Ms. Patty's, dropping off her duffle bag, and then skating across the street to Luke's.

"Need something, Frankie?"

"Coffee, please!" the teenager replied as she sat down at the counter.

Luke rolled his eyes and filled up a mug, sliding it over to the girl. "You know coffee stunts your growth, right?"

"Good thing I'm not growing anymore." Frankie sat at the counter, drinking the warm liquid before she checked the time. "Crap. Hey, Luke? Can I get a to-go cup for this?"

Luke sighed and poured the coffee into a portable cup, topping it off before handing it back to Frankie.

"Thank you, you beautiful man. You're my favorite person," Frankie said with a huge grin.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Flattery will get you nowhere with me, kid." Luke waved Frankie off, a slight scowl on his face.

As Frankie was leaving school that afternoon, she was stopped by the tall boy she had ran into the other day.

"You're Frankie, right?"

"Who wants to know?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm Dean," the boy said, sticking out a hand for Frankie to shake.

Frankie took his hand hesitantly. "Okay?"

"Rory told me about you."

"Ah. You're the guy."

"I'm the guy?" Dean questioned.

"Yeah. The guy who had my sister all in a tizzy thinking that she shouldn't go to Chilton." Frankie crossed her arms over her chest, one foot on her skateboard, a challenging gaze aimed at Dean.

The boy cleared his throat, obviously uncomfortable. "Right, well, that wasn't my intention. I just like her, and I wanted to introduce myself."

"Mhmm. Okay."

"Yeah, okay. Well, I have to go," Dean said, backing away from Frankie.

"Bye, Dean." Frankie waved slightly with a tight smile on her face and watched him walk away. Shaking her head, she hopped back onto her skateboard and rode over to Ms. Patty's.

"Frankie, dear, you have today off," Ms. Patty called out to the girl from the piano across the room.

Frankie furrowed her eyebrows, confused. "Why?"