The Other Gilmore

Dad's in Town II

It was Friday, and Rory had a debate at Chilton. Frankie couldn't attend because she had tests to take at school, but because Christopher was coming to town for the debate, she had gotten off work in the afternoon. As soon as school was out, she hightailed it home where she saw her mother and sister frantically cleaning the house.

"What's going on?" she asked as she dropped her backpack in the hallway.

"No, no, pick that up! Sherry is coming over!" Lorelai scolded as she rushed past her daughter and into the living room.

"Sherry? As in Sherry, dad's girlfriend, Sherry?"

"Yes! Now, go clean your room!"

Frankie grabbed her backpack and scurried over to her room, tidying up the loose items that were scattered on her desk and bed. She was a pretty neat person in general, so her room wasn't a total mess. Once she was done, she made her way back to the living room and picked up anything that Lorelai and Rory had missed, tossing them either in the front closet or placing them back in their rightful home.

Cleaning was cut short, however, when Christopher and Sherry arrived. Sherry was very kind, complimenting the house and Rory, telling her she was wonderful in her debate. Frankie had no input one way or the other because she hadn't been there, so she stayed quiet.

"And Frankie, I hear you're a wonderful dancer."

"Hm? Oh, yes, I dance."

"How long have you been dancing?" Sherry asked with a smile.

"Since I was three, so about thirteen years."

"Wow, that's really impressive. I'd love to see you dance sometime." Sherry's smile never left her face, and it was freaking the Gilmore's out.

"I think that can be arranged," Christopher chimed in, rescuing his daughter.

"Absolutely. I have a competition coming up soon. I'd have to check my calendar for exactly when, though."

"Oh, how wonderful! Where will it be?" Sherry inquired.

"Yeah, where will it be? And why didn't I know?" Lorelai said, a slight frown on her face.

"Uh, I will have to get back to all of you on that," said Frankie, trying to get out of the conversation as quickly as possible.

Lorelai stood up and offered drinks to the group, and Sherry went with her to the kitchen, leaving the father and daughters in the living room.

"So, kiddos, what's new with you guys?"

"Well, besides my debate, not much."

"Did Rory tell you that Dean built her a car?"

"I did hear about the car during one of our calls, yes. That was very thoughtful of him," Christopher said with a kind smile.

"Did Frankie tell you she has a new boyfriend?" Rory retorted, an edge in her voice as she threw a glare over to her sister.

"No, she did not," he responded, furrowing his eyebrows and looking over at his youngest daughter. "Who is he?"

Before she could respond, Sherry came back into the room and the phone rang. Lorelai called out to the twins, asking one of them to pick up the phone. Rory answered, then beckoned Frankie over.

"One moment, Frankie's here." Rory passed the phone to her sister, then walked back to the couch.

"Hello?"