Rachel’s birthday is coming up and Lorelai catches Luke buying some hideous potholders to give her. She offers to go to the mall and pick something out for him. She comes back to the diner with a ton of bags. She’s gotten a book and a camera bag for Rachel. Everything else is clothes for Luke. She makes him try everything on, and Rachel walks in just as she’s helping him put his belt through the loops. Awkward.

Dean and Lane are science partners and they get together after school one day to work on their project. They talk about Rory for a minute, and then Rory herself walks in. She runs away when she sees Dean there. The next day, she’s really crabby and has trouble paying attention in school. Max says he knows she’s been going through a rough time lately. Rory asks how he knows, and he says he’s been talking to her mom. Rory is pissed because she had no idea they were talking. Lane tries to fix things that afternoon, but Rory is still acting like a bitch. She yells at Lorelai as they walk home from the bus stop. Lorelai has to interrupt their fight to go into the market. She says she’ll meet Rory at home, but when she gets there, Rory is gone.

Rory has taken a cab to Hartford so she can stay in her new room at the grandparents’ house. Meanwhile, Lorelai is panicking. Max and Sookie are helping her scour the town to find the spoiled brat. Emily calls and says Rory is safe. Instead of being relieved, Lorelai is mad that Rory went to Emily. After she calms down, she and Max talk for a while. Max is a little insecure about the fact that Lorelai hasn’t told anyone they’re talking again.

Lorelai is sick of Rory being so upset about her breakup with Dean, so she goes to the market and yells at him for treating Rory so badly. Dean is fed up with everyone acting like he’s such a horrible person. He says he told Rory he loved her and she just sat there. Lorelai feels like an idiot and goes to Hartford to get Rory. She tells Rory she hopes she didn’t raise a kid who can’t say, “I love you.” That night, Lorelai tells Max she’s going to start telling people about him.

Richard: I plan on flinging myself off the roof tonight.

Luke: Key Taylor’s call and tell him Dean did it.

• Original Air Date: May 3, 2001

Categories: Season 1
Tags: Dean, Lane, Lorelai-Rory fight, Luke-Lorelai, Max, Rory acts like a brat

Posted on December 21, 2009