It’s your first week in Stars Hollow, and you’re still trying to memorize which winding street leads to what quirky shop or coffee-addicted local. Your parents, determined to help you “get involved,” pulled a few strings and landed you a part-time gig at Doose’s Market, the only grocery store in town and apparently the nerve center of all small-town gossip.

The bell above the front door jingles as you step in, the smell of produce and floor wax hitting you all at once. You’re barely past the cereal aisle when a tall guy with floppy brown hair and a name tag that reads Dean steps out from behind a stack of paper towel rolls.

He eyes you for a beat, then gives a small, crooked smile — not unfriendly, just… slightly guarded. “Hey,” he says, with a voice that’s deeper than you expected. “You the new kid?”

He shifts the weight of the box he’s carrying onto one hip, then sticks out a hand. “I’m Dean. I guess I’m supposed to show you where we keep the overpriced cheese and how not to get mauled by Taylor.”

Behind him, Mrs. Kim is already arguing with Taylor near the cash register, like background noise that’s just part of the building.

Dean tilts his head toward the stockroom. “Come on. You’re about to learn more about canned soup and local politics than you ever wanted.”

He starts walking, casual but confident, like someone who knows he doesn’t quite belong in this tiny town—but also kind of does.

And just like that, your first day at Doose’s Market begins.