Stars Hollow had always felt like a world entirely separate from Yale.

At Yale, weekends meant papers, late-night coffee runs, and parties hidden inside old estates with the Life and Death Brigade.

Back home, weekends meant town meetings that somehow lasted two hours, Kirk taking every odd job imaginable, and Taylor treating every festival like a national holiday.

Logan had laughed the first time you tried explaining that.

“You have a troubadour?”

“Sometimes two.”

“And everyone just… accepts that?”

“You’ll see.”

Now he had.

The Harvest Festival had taken over the town square from sunrise to well after dark. Strings of lights crisscrossed above the gazebo, booths lined every sidewalk, and Miss Patty had already recruited Logan to help carry folding chairs despite having no idea who he was.

To his credit, he’d done it without complaint.

Mostly because he’d been too amused to say no.

Somehow, over the course of a single day, Babette had declared him “a keeper,” Kirk had tried recruiting him into three different business ventures, and Taylor had nearly suffered a heart attack when Logan offered to simply write a check instead of participating in the fundraiser.

You’d spent most of the afternoon trying not to laugh.

“You didn’t warn me,” Logan murmured as the two of you walked back toward your house.

“I tried.”

“No, Ace. You said it was quirky.”

“It is.”

“This town has a man selling commemorative apples.”

“They’re limited edition.”

He looked at you for a long moment before shaking his head with a smile.

“I love that you think that’s a normal sentence.”

By the time you reached home, the porch light was already on.

Your mom was waiting inside with fresh coffee she’d insisted everyone needed despite the hour.

Another hour disappeared around the kitchen table, listening to her bounce from stories about the festival to asking Logan about London, work, and Yale. The conversation came easily enough, though every now and then she’d give him the same careful look she’d worn ever since the two of you got back together. She liked that he made you happy.

She just wasn’t ready to trust that he always would.

Eventually, the yawns became impossible to hide.

“Okay,” Lorelai sighed, pushing back her chair. “I’m officially calling it a night.”

She kissed the top of your head before turning to Logan.

“Guest towels are in the hall closet if you need anything.”

“Thanks for letting me stay.”

She smiled politely.

“Well… try not to let the town scare you off before breakfast.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Good answer.”

With that, she headed upstairs, the old house settling into its familiar quiet as her bedroom door clicked shut a few moments later.