HERE IS SOMETHING YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT THE SOON - TO - BE PROM QUEEN : she’s smart. there will be a reckoning of confusion, the apocalypse of barely - concealed bafflement, when jessica takes the stage twice ( first, as the crowned ruler. SECOND, as the valedictorian ). to play dumb always requires a certain sorta of intelligence ; vacant smile perfected, dull comments spewed out with ease. SHE DOESN’T WANT TO IMPRESS FORKS ( … ) her heart is beating with timid longing, gaze kept towards the stars, mind singlely - focused on a better life. playing dumb makes it EASIER to survive here.
❝ your biology flashcards can totally wait a night. ❞ HERE STANDS TWO OPPOSITES : bookworm girl laid buried between pages, prom queen laid buried beneath the dirt - choke of high school politics. rory stands with sheepish smile — jessica curls a wolven pride around herself, flash of pointed teeth, pelt of undying animals. would persephone have refused the pomegranate if she knew its bitterness? ❝ PLEASE? i think you’ll really enjoy it ( … ) it’s gonna be, like, the event of the year. and won’t it feel good to be out of the house? ❞
rory gilmore was not one to be swayed just by the prospect of ‘getting out of the house.’ she wasn’t a hermit, obviously, nor did she have such extreme tendencies, but any hypothetical perfect night she could ever detail was either set completely in her own home, or ended there with ample time for a snack and a movie. she’d never felt the need to go out of her way to go socialize in settings like big parties when there were alternatives more appealing readily available to her. her life in stars hollow was simple and small. she had her go-to restaurant, she had her best friend, and she had her mom. she’d never felt like she’d needed much more, and even though she felt some sort of sense of obligation to try and ingratiate herself with her new student body, she was sort of reluctant to sacrifice that comfort and familiarity for a situation in which she knew she wouldn’t thrive. rory was a good enough conversationalist, but she was an introvert. hours in a crowded house amidst a mob of loud acquaintances spent shouting over thumping music couldn’t hold a candle to an evening in with some thai food and something worth watching on the television.
but, of course, those were all assumptions rory was making. as someone who typically shied away from such social events, she had to go off of limited experiences and secondary sources in forming her opinions which, she guessed, was just a reason to go. if she gave in and said yes, at least she could actually have an opinion that was more informed. and jessica seemed nice enough, she supposed. for a moment, rory had wondered if her invitation was some kind of prank; she’d seen it at stars hollow high, when the new kid or the quiet kid or the nerdy kid was invited out to some party under the guise of being made the eventual butt of some joke. and even though rory still couldn’t quite understand why it seemed to matter to her at all whether or not she actually went, she didn’t get a feeling from her that suggested cruelty. for as stereotypically teen queen as she seemed, rory didn’t get the sense that she was a bully. and so, she exhaled her reservations away ( or, at least, tried to ), and, after a moment’s pause, gave in with a shrug of her shoulders. “well, who am i to miss out on the event of the year?” despite the hint of deadpanning in her tone, rory cracked a little smile, however tight and hesitant it may have been. “guess there’s no harm in stopping by, at least...”
