Lorelai wasn’t sure what woke her up. But as she swam up to consciousness she realized she was pretty much in the same position she remembered falling asleep in - nestled next to Luke, his left arm around her, with her right leg draped over his left. Her right arm was a little cramped, but not too bad.

She could hear Luke’s heart beating, and the soft rumbling of his breathing through his chest, but she didn't want to move, she was too comfortable.

Lying there, she became aware that they were both becoming, verging on being just a little ripe. After a wonderful, sweaty, satisfying episode of love making, and after lying together all night under a pile of blankets, a shower would be perfect. Another nice, long, hot, steamy shower together -- washing each other’s back, playing around, having fun; until the hot water ran out.

‘Man!’ She thought. ‘Luke has GOT to get a larger hot water heater. One that’ll stay hot for a thousand years.’

She lay there a little longer, thinking random thoughts until she was fully awake.

‘I wonder what time it is. If we get up a little earlier, we’ll have time for that shower before he has to open the diner and I have to get to the Dragonfly.’

Lorelai raised her head just enough to look at the bedside clock and cracked one eye, but it was too dark to see.

Raising her head a little more, she opened both eyes for a better look, but it was pitch black inside.

She looked toward the window, where the street lights always framed the curtains, but it was black there, too.

“Luke?” she said, softly, shaking him just a little.

“Hmmmm?” she heard him answer.

“Honey, wake up.”

“Wha-? What’s the matter?”

“It’s dark outside.”

“Maybe it’s because it’s the middle of the night.” He mumbled as he was trying not to wake up.

“But it’s DARK! Dark dark. Look.” she said, shaking him again.

Luke slowly lifted his head and looked toward the window.

“Must be a blackout.” He reasoned.

“A blackout? We NEVER have blackouts!”

“It happens.”

“NO! It never happens.”

“It’s happening now.”

“But we have to get to work. You have to open the diner, and I have to relieve Tobin.”

“It’ll be back on soon enough. And if it isn’t, not much use to get excited about it. I can't cook without electricity, and the Dragonfly will be fine. Let Michel relieve Tobin.”

“But Michel hates Tobin.” She answered, then smiled evilly. “Good thinking.”

Lorelai laid her head back down on Luke’s chest. She was fully awake now, and sleep didn't seem to be coming any time soon.

As they lay there, she could feel Luke’s breathing becoming slower and more even; he was dozing off.

“Luke?” She was in the mood to talk.

“Hmmm?”

“Do you ever wonder how we got here, together?”

“I thought we came up the stairs.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about. How -- why did it take us so long to become a couple, you and me, like this?”

“It was about time?”

“But so many years? For as long as I can remember, everyone was always asking if we were dating, or if we were an item. You know, Sookie really got irritating about that. And every time she saw us together Mom would want to know what was up with us.”

“I know. She said we were idiots.”

“She did? When?”

“Do you remember when your dad went into the hospital with his heart attack?”

“Yeah, I do. It was during one of their Christmas parties.”

“Well, I was sitting in the hall, waiting, and your mom came out of his room and sat in the chair next to me. And after some meaningless small talk, she wanted to know what was going on between us. So I told her we were just friends, and she said we were idiots.”

“I kind of remember that, but I thought you said she called you and idiot, not both of us.”

“Well, I didn‘t want to fan any flames, it was a bad night.”

“Yeah, I know. Scary.”

There was silence for a while.

“You’ve always been there for me.” Lorelai stated. “No matter what it was. No matter how crazy things got, or how pathetic I was, there you were, ready to do whatever it took.”

“Well, that’s what friends do.”

“Do you remember that thirty-thousand dollar check you gave me?”

“Remember it well.”

“I didn't deposit it for three days. And I wouldn’t have done it then except I had to pay Tom so he could pay his guys to keep working.”

“Why’d you wait so long?”

“I didn't want to let go of it. I would take it out and just … stare at it. Wow! Thirty thousand dollars! And you just handed it over just like that, no questions, no strings.”

“Well, you needed it, and I had it.”

“You really came through for me that day, just like always. You were my knight in shining armor, my Sir Lancelot.”

“So, I guess that made you my Maid Marian.”

Lorelai slapped him not so gently on the chest.

“Maid Marian was with Robin Hood. It was Guinevere that was with Lancelot. But not that psycho painted warrior princess Keira-Knightley Guinevere. I’m talking about the ‘Camelot’ Vanessa-Redgrave Guinevere.”

“Gotcha. Vanessa Redgrave.”

“We really are friends, aren’t we? Good friends.”

“That’s what I’ve been telling people all along.”

“You know, next to Rory, you’re my very, very best friend.”

“I thought Sookie was your best friend.”

“She’s my best girl-friend friend. You’re my best all-time, all-things-good-or-bad friend.”

“Next to Rory.”

“Next to Rory . . . You don’t mind being number two, do you?”

“Can't think of a better place to be.”

They lay silent for a while longer.

“Luke?”

“What?”

“I hurt your feelings sometimes, didn't I?”

“What do you mean?”

“All those times people would ask if we were dating and I would say ‘it’s just Luke,’ or ‘it’s only Luke,’ like you weren’t important to me.”

When he didn't answer, she continued. “I didn't mean it like that, you know that, don't you?”

“Sure, I guess.”

“I can't believe I was so thoughtless. I should have been more sensitive, more caring about your feelings. But you were always there. Just like - like . . . .”

“. . . an old faithful dog?”

“Yes. NO! Well, sort of. You were, you ARE, my support, my backup guy, my rock. You’re my Rock of Gibraltar.”

“So that makes you my - what?”

“I don't know, your Rockette?”

There was more silence.

“Luke?”

“Hmm?”

“Will you do something for me?”

“What?”

“If I ever say or do anything that hurts your feelings, you’ll tell me?”

“Sure.”

“No matter how small?”

“Sure.”

“Even if it’s such a small thing you don't even think it’s worth mentioning?”

“Sure.”

After a few seconds, Lorelai added. “You’re not going to, are you?”

“Probably not.”

More silence.

“You’re a better friend than I am.”

“What are you talking about?”

“All the things you’ve done for me, and for Rory; all the times you’ve come running when I’ve called you out of the blue; all the work you’ve done on my house. What little bit I’ve done for you can't even compare.”

“You’ve done your share.”

“Yeah! Right!”

“You have! You bailed me out of jail. You let me talk about the problems I had with Nicole. And there was that thing with my dad’s boat. You rescued it, and gave it a place to stay. Lots of things.”

“Doesn't sound like so much.”

“You painted the diner, all by yourself.”

“Yeah. But only because I stood you up. I promised you I’d be there to help you and I wasn't. And I felt so bad about that. You’ll never know just how bad.”

“But you still did it. And it was nice you did that.”

“It you say so.”

“And you helped me out when Rachel was here.”

“For all the good it did.”

“Well, that was Rachel being Rachel . . .  And there was that time you and Rory worked your butts off in the diner when I was going through all that crap with Uncle Louie's funeral."

"We were glad to help out. But I never built you a chuppah . . . Do you think that maybe one day we might use it for something besides a place for the wisteria to grow?  Unless you'd feel weird about it."

"No. I don't think I would."

There was a long pause.

“Luke?”

“I’m still here.”

“Do you remember that  conversation we had?”

“We’ve had lots of conversations.”

“This one was during the dance marathon. You remember, that big blow up Jackson had about all the kids he wanted, and Sookie didn't?”

“That part sounds familiar.”

“Anyway, you were fixing my broken heel, and you just happened to mention that if you met the right person you might consider having kids one day.”

“I did?”

“Uh huh, and then you asked me the same thing.”

“What was your answer?”

 “The same - if I met the right person.”

Lorelai waited a few seconds, hoping she wouldn’t have to work for the answer she wanted, but Luke wasn't forthcoming.

“Sooooo?”

“So?”

“So, help me out here. Am I the right person?”

“You’ve always been the right person.”

Lorelai blinked away a couple of happy tears.

“Do you think we can really make this work? You and me?”

“If I have anything to do with it.”

Lorelai smiled happily in the dark.

“I had a dream about you, you know.”

“No, I didn't know. What was it about?”

“It was really odd. I woke up one morning, in this dream, and there were hundreds of alarm clocks all going off at the same time. And when I went downstairs you were there, making breakfast. You were trying to give me decaf coffee, but I found the real stuff under the sink. And we had this very strange conversation, like you always have in dreams. Then you kissed me, and talked to my stomach.”

“Why would I do that?”

“So we were married?”

“I think so. Anyway, after that you kissed me again and left for the diner.”

“And then what?”

“And then I woke up.”

“Prophetic dream?”

“I don't know. But it really freaked me out, so I had to call Rory to find out what it meant?”

“Rory can analyze dreams?”

“I had to tell somebody.”

“What did she say it was?”

“First, she said it was because I was secretly in love with you and wanted to marry you and have your twins. Well, of course, THAT was simply crazy talk, so I demanded that she tell me something else.”

“And?”

“And she said it was because I had just found out that Sherry, that was Christopher’s then-girlfriend, his then-wife, and now his absent-without-leave-wife, was pregnant, and I wanted it to be me.”

“So if you wanted to be pregnant with Christopher’s baby, why didn't you dream about him?”

“Well, in hindsight, it’s pretty obvious it was really your baby I wanted to have. We do want to have babies . . . don't we?”

“Well, sure we do . . . but not right now.”

“Of course not, not right now.”

“We should have some time for just us first.”

“Oh, most certainly.”

“And you’re still on the ground floor with the Dragonfly, and that’s a lot of work.”

“Uh! Tons of work.”

“But someday.”

“Yeah. Someday. You’re absolutely right.”

“Twins, huh?”

“Twins.”

“Huh!”

“So, what about you? Ever dream about me?”

“Sure. Lots of times. Well, they weren’t dreams just about you, but you were pretty much in there somewhere.”

“That’s all? I was just . . . hanging around?”

“Well, there was that one about you.”

“Do I get to hear about it?”

“There wasn’t much to it. It was just before Nicole and I left for our cruise . . . .”

“Ahhhh yes, the now world-famous Luvvvv Boat cruise.”

“Do you want to hear it, or not?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. You were saying.”

“I was in the diner cleaning up, and you came in and told me not to get engaged.”

“That’s it?”

“That was it. You walked out of the diner and I woke up.”

“And then you went and got married.”

“Yup.”

“See? If you had dreamed I told you not to get married, you would have just gotten engaged and could have avoided all those problems with Nicole, and her lawyers, and you never would have gotten thrown in jail . . . .”

“Well, what can I say? We’re here now, so it doesn't matter.”

“We’ve had some real adventures, haven’t we?”

“Some doozies.”

“Remember the time you were fixing my oven and you kept doing that bit?”

“I wasn’t doing any bit, I kept hitting my head inside that ridiculously small oven of yours.”

“And Rory called and I was telling her about it?”

“I remember.”

“She said that I sounded happy. And I was, happier than I’d been in a long time.”

“Because of my bit?”

“No. Because of you. You make me happy.”

“You’ve been happy before.”

“Well, sure I was, sometimes.”

“You were going to get married, I know you were happy then.”

A red flag popped up. Lorelai knew she had to pick her words carefully.

“Yes, I was happy about that. Max was a great guy. He still is. And Rory liked him. And I really thought he was the one -- the right guy for me and for Rory. But when it came crunch time, I couldn’t go through with it. He wasn’t the one after all. And Christopher wasn’t the one, and Jason wasn’t the one. So, it looks like all along, as much as I denied it, and as much as I refused to consider it, you, Lucas Danes, are the right guy for me, and for Rory.”

“That’s good to know.”

Lorelia took a deep breath and discovered she was getting sleepy. It was still dark outside, and they had had, she thought, a good talk. Luke said all the right things, and more importantly, she felt in her heart he was sincere.

No longer able to keep her right arm from cramping, Lorelai crawled up on top of Luke, kissed him, then slid down to rest her head on his chest, her hands on both sides of him, and her legs intertwined with his.

“I’m not too heavy, am I?”

“You’re just right.”

“I can always move.”

“Don't you dare.”

Things got quiet again as Lorelai felt herself being lulled to sleep by the beating of his heart.

“Luke?” She said dreamily.

“What?”

“Will you get a larger hot water heater? You know, the kind that holds a couple thousand gallons, so we’ll never run out of hot water again?”

“You mean ‘water heater’?”

“I thought that’s what I said.”

“No, you said ‘hot water heater.’ What’s the sense of heating water if it’s already hot? The right term is ‘water heater.’ Although, to be technically correct, it probably should be called a cold water heater.”

As Luke droned on about the specifics of water heater terminology, Lorelai listened to the rumble of his voice through his chest, letting herself drift off to sleep. She was warm, and she was safe, and she was happy.

“Luke?” she heard herself say, as if she were far away from herself.

“What?” he answered from even father away.

“Will you get a larger hot water heater?”

“Sure.”