The Other Gilmore

End of Summer

Frankie decided to stay in New York for the summer and work at a dance studio in her neighborhood. The studio was closed on the weekends, however, so she would travel to Stars Hollow every Friday night. She would stay with Lorelai in the house, but there was a lot of construction happening because she and Luke were renovating, but Frankie didn't mind. She enjoyed being home, especially because of Paul Anka.

Lorelai had been sad, what with the rift between herself and Rory, and Frankie being in a different state, so she decided to adopt a dog – that dog being Paul Anka. Frankie was obsessed with Paul Anka. He had become her buddy, and they would do everything together. Whenever Lorelai had to work on the weekends, Frankie would skate around town with Paul Anka, and whenever he got tired, she would cradle him like a baby and skate home. It was their routine, and they both loved it.

Frankie hadn't talked to Finn all summer. She hadn't talked to Rory or Logan, either. She was upset that Rory hadn't even told her about dropping out of Yale, she was mad at Logan for being okay with Rory dropping out of Yale, and she was still pissed at Finn for making light of her family's hardships. All in all, Frankie was angry, but she was glad that she and her mother were repairing their relationship, the one good thing to come out of the rift.

Before heading back to school, Frankie had a week off from work, so she went back to Stars Hollow. She awoke one morning and walked into a packed kitchen, where Lorelai was giving instructions about breakfast to the construction crew.

"Morning, boys," Frankie called out with a smile.

"Morning, Frankie," they replied in unison.

"Oh, hey, oh!" Lorelai vocalized, rushing up to one of the men as he went to pet Paul Anka. "Remember, people, only pet the dog with your non-watch hand. Uh, in case you don't remember, watches cause him to freak out, jump up on the counter and kick my once-working toaster across the room."

Frankie chuckled, shaking her head as she walked up to the coffee machine, pouring herself a mug.

Just then, Luke came into the kitchen with a huge box of muffins, which Lorelai told the construction crew to take, much to Luke's dismay.

"Does the dog have to sit in the chair like that?" Luke asked, horrified.

"Like what? His posture's perfect," Lorelai replied.

"Yeah, chairs are for people."

"Not that chair. That's Paul Anka's chair."

"Dogs are filthy. They –"

"Hey!" Frankie exclaimed, rushing over to Paul Anka and covering his ears. "Don't be rude, he'll hear you."

Luke rolled his eyes, then ushered Lorelai outside so they could talk to Tom.

Frankie grinned as she watched them leave the kitchen, then turned to Paul Anka. "Ready to go?"

He barked in response, jumping down from the chair.

She laughed and followed him into the front hall. "Just need to put on my shoes."

As she walked outside with Paul Anka, Frankie overheard the tail end of her mother's conversation with Luke.

"No one sees the goods but you, okay?" Lorelai kissed Luke then walked off.

"What?" Frankie asked, a look of horror on her face.

Luke just sighed, shaking his head, then walked over to talk to Tom.

Later that day, Lorelai loaned Frankie the car, and she drove to Massachusetts to see Lane and her band, Hep Alien, perform their final night of their tour.