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( 𝘨𝘪𝘧: 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘫𝘦𝘴𝘴 )

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𝗝𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗢 𝗪𝗢𝗨𝗟𝗗 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗬𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗘𝗟𝗦𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡 𝗛𝗔𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗥𝗢𝗥𝗬'𝗦 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥. 

Emily Gilmore kept ranting about things he wasn't interested in, and he stabbed his food around, avoiding the look that Rory was giving him. He knew what it looked like, his bruised eye and arriving late. Yet the assumption angered him, the immediate look of disappointment at the thought of him picking fights even when that simply wasn't the case.

And Rory wasn't willing to let it go. "So, the eye must have been recent. Sometime between nine last night and now."

Jess clenched his jaw as Emily pushed her chair back. "There's no salt and pepper! We'll need it for the meat."

Waiting for her to leave the room, he turned to Rory in disbelief. "What is your problem?"

"My problem? You're the one who's hiding the truth." she scoffed, brushing her dark hair away from her pale-complexion face. "You've been in a fight with Dean, right? That's what it is."

He stared at her, waiting to see if she was serious, before lowering his gaze. "Unbelievable. It all comes back to Dean."

"Oh, that's rich, coming from you." Rory snapped, squirming in her seat under Jess's heavy gaze.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She licked her lips, undecided in whether to bring it up. "You and Cherry. She's all you ever talk about, all the time. Cherry this, Cherry that. One would think you're in love with her or something." 

Her words rung in his mind as Jess stared at her, slightly agape with his breath stuck at the back of his throat. His feelings for Cherry were complicated. What he felt for her was different than what he felt for Rory, and he had accepted that. That didn't mean he was in love with the blonde. She was a part of him, a fresh breath of air that contaminated his bloodstream. To risk losing that, losing her and losing a part of him wasn't worth the perilous danger. 

"How do you like your prime rib?"

Jess pulled his gaze away from Rory and followed Emily, slightly perplexed. "Cooked." 

"Can I talk to Jess for a second? We can go in the study." Rory interrupted, standing up. "It will only take a second."

Glancing at her, Jess realised he didn't want to do that now. He didn't want to talk about anything Rory was making him confront; ignorance is bliss, after all. "Rory, you're being a little rude to your grandmother." 

Emily placed her napkin down, eyes wide and feigning innocence at the lover's spat. "I can leave the room for a minute if you want." 

"No, grandma, we'll be right back." Rory said, leaving the room and giving Jess no choice but to stray behind. Digging his hands into his pockets, Jess entered the room, scoffing at the sight of Rory staring at him with her hands on her hips. "I told you, nothing happened. Believe what you want."

"I'm going to find out eventually." she muttered, clenched jaw.

And Jess was sure no one understood how painful it was for everyone to assume the worst of him. One look at him, and they were certain he was the trouble maker, the one starting fights and the one with no regard to anyone else. The world had decided he was bad before he got a chance to be anyone, to find himself. They had pushed him into this role, and if they wanted this Jess Mariano, then he'll give it to them. "What if I told you Dean sucker-punched me and I had to defend myself? You're not even considering the possibility that even happened, you know how that makes me feel?"

"Dean wouldn't do that." Rory defended himself, proving Jess's point. 

Scoffing, the dark haired removed his gaze. "I don't even know why I try."

"You don't!" Rory exploded, overloading in emotions as she tried as hard as she might to tear those walls Jess ha put up, with no avail. "That's the problem, you don't try. You're being rude to my grandmother, you shut everyone out, including me, and you ditched me on Winter Festival."

Guilt flashed across his face as he moved away. "I'm leaving."

"So now I have to explain to my grandma why my boyfriend, who showed up late with a black-eye, is walking out?"

Jess turned back to face her. "Well, you like making up stories in your head so that should be easy for you."

Rory blocked his exit, determination burning in her blue eyes as she frowned. She couldn't make him stay, but she might be able to extract some truth from him. "Tell me the truth then. If you're going to ditch me, again, then tell me the truth."

Misinterpreting her, Jess groaned, running a hand through his dark hair. "I told you already, I didn't get into a fi—"

"Do you like Cherry?"

Jess stared at her, eyes narrowed as his lips slightly parted. A million thoughts crossed his mind, but no valid excuse presenting itself. "I— you're being preposterous."

Muttering angrily, he pushed past her and grabbed his jacket before slamming the door behind him, meeting the cold breeze from the outside. Rory stared at the door, not willing to chase behind him — their relationship seemed to be a lost cause. His unwillingness to answer proved to Rory what she had picked up at for some time now. It had been easier to pretend, but now his feelings for the blonde were too choking to ignore. 

Instead, Rory returned to dinner alone. 

It was late evening by the time Jess Mariano returned to Star Hollows. He didn't return to Luke's, unwilling to face the questions he'd received about his night. Instead, he dug his hands into his pockets and stalked around the town. People stayed out of his way, recognising the pensive frown sketched on his face. He thought about what Rory had said. Perhaps he deserved her anger. Were his feelings for Cherry, whatever they were, so apparent? 

Glancing up, he realised his feet had mechanically brought him to the Doose's house, as if his thoughts about Cherry had ignited some compass inside him and led him to her. After a moment of hesitation, Jess found he couldn't resist. Knocking on the all familiar door, Cherry swung the door open. "Jess, what are you— oh my god your eye! Come in, let me get you sorted."

The blonde pulled him inside into the living room, as she disappeared to the kitchen. Glancing around, he followed her in, startling surprised as Cherry threw a bag of frozen peas to him. "Put this on your eye while I go fetch some special cream that prevents bruising. Otherwise you'll have it for weeks." 

"I don't need this, it doesn't even hurt anymore."

Cherry whipped around towards him, hands on her hip. "You'll do as I say or I'll kick you out with that bag of peas stuffed down your throat."

Jess grumbled in fake annoyance but did as he was told, a grin of amusement plastered on his face. As he awaited for her, he looked around the kitchen, opening up the fridge.

She walked in, pausing. "Why are you looking in my fridge?"

He straightened his posture. "Your fridge is filled with shit. There's only pop tarts in there. And why do you freeze bread?"

"So it doesn't go mouldy." she breezily answered, pointing behind her. "Come to the living room? There's better lighting there." 

The leather sunk under his weight as Jess took a seat on the couch, the blonde flopping beside and turning to him. "You sit still, don't move." she warned him, squirting some cream on her finger and holding his face delicately. Jess suddenly became aware of the proximity, hoping the heat from his cheeks wasn't too obvious. "So, what happened? You better not have been reading — I don't know how many times I have to tell you not to read while doing other shit."

"You're the first not to immediately assume I was in a fight." he grumbled, staring at his hands.

Cherry's smile faltered. "Please. You've only gotten in a fight once, and that was ages ago. Besides, you would not be the one with the black eye." 

Jess smiled softly, chuckling. "Yeah, well, Brad was an asshole."

"He was." she agreed. "I was rooting for you secretly, even back then when we weren't friends." 

There was that word again — friends. It fell short when describing the relationship the two had. But what else could one call it? Brushing it apart, he attempted amusement. "Oh, how better I was back then."

"Oi, watch it." she nudged his shoulder, finishing dabbing the cream. "There, I finished. Should heal up in a few days."

As she let her hand dropped, it seemed as if it suddenly came clear to her how close she had actually sat. Her blue eyes met his, and in panic she chuckled awkwardly, clearing her throat before moving her head to a side, aware his gaze was trained on the side of her face. Jess looked at his hands, rubbing them together anxiously as the words fell out of his mouth. "You know, Rory said something really preposterous before." 

"Mh?" she hummed, glancing at him.

"Said I spent too much time with you and that I liked you or something." he said, no trace of amusement as he stared at her, awaiting her reaction. "Funny, right?" 

Cherry froze where she sat, the only movement she made was the rising of her chest when she inhaled sharply. She didn't dare look back at him, in case she met his gaze and the look in her eyes would betray her true thoughts. "Right. You would never . . ."

Jess opened his mouth to disagree, but stopped himself. Licking his bottom lip, he moved closer to her, knees brushing. "What about you?"

"Me?" she whispered, with the softness of a spring breeze that peppered your skin with memories. She shook her head, so slightly that if Jess hadn't been staring then he wouldn't have realised. "Jess, don't make me say what you don't want to hear."

"But what if I do?"

Cherry glanced at him surprised, their breaths intertwining with each other. Jess wasn't sure where this sudden boldness had appeared from — he had managed to keep his feelings deeply buried for a long time now. But what Rory had said had reached down within him and told him to wake up or he'd regret it. Their lips hovered in close proximity, yet without touching. 

"Jess . . ." she whispered eye to eye, and the dark haired boy found the gravity too much to hold back against and kissed her, hands cupping her cheeks. 

Cherry's hands found his waist almost by own accord, and as she responded to the kiss, she realised she would do anything he said if he said it with his hands. Their lips mold together, fitting perfectly, as if they were made for it. As if both their paths would have always led here, as if they were meant to find each other, guided by some force long beyond their control. His fingers were tangled up in her curls, as she found her back pressed against the sofa. 

Jess felt like Tolstoy was whispering in his ears, he felt now that he was not simply close to her, but that he did not know where he ended and she began.

And, somehow, he fell even more deeply for Cherry Doose. 

finally am i right

so the code to my jess + cherry spotify playlist is down below, but it's called 'jess+cherry' which will be easy to find 

the first song is obviously all too well which sets the mood of the fanfic

then from 'ribs' by lorde to 'feels like' by gracie abrams = act one & 2

'andante, andante' by abba to 'the moment i knew' by taylor swift = act 3

'plz don't come around interlude' by the driver era to 'too young' by louis tomlinson = act 4

'the 1' by taylor swift to 'wonderland' by oasis = act 5

enjoy!