Melody knew that she had an unconventional family growing up – at least for the past seven to eight years. She had Lorelai taking on the role of mother. She had Rory taking on the role as sister. She even had Luke trying to act like a father. Sookie took on the role of aunt. Hell, she even had Emily and Richard trying to act like grandparents to her.

The people in her life just didn't fill the void that her biological parents left when they dropped her off at a friend's house and never looked back.

The only bright side was that she had a bigger family now than she had first started with.

Melody walked to school with Lane and Rory, like she usually did. Lane stopped to hand off her backpack to Melody while Rory handed her a shirt that Lane left behind at Rory's house. 

While Lane handed Melody her jacket, Mel adjusted her long sleeve shirt.

She yanked her checkered backpack, which she had decorated with buttons, up higher onto her shoulder.

Melody asked Lane, "When are your parents going to be okay with the fact that you listen to the devil's music?"

"Yeah, you're an American teenager for god's sake," Rory agreed.

"Rory, Mel, if my parents still get upset over the obscene portion size of American food and the fact that people change their hair color, I seriously doubt I'm gonna make any inroads with Eminem," Lane replied.

Melody ducked her head slightly. She had dyed her hair dark blue. She told Lane, "Maybe you should start off with Prince."

"And have their heads explode when they see him dressed like that?" asked Lane. They stopped in front of a sign that was advertising the Teen Hayride. Lane pulled on a shirt and put on some bracelets, before putting on a jacket. She pointed at the Teen Hayride, "I have to go to that."

"The hayride?" asked Rory in disbelief, "You're kidding."

"My parents set me up with the son of a business associate," Lane explained. "He's gonna be a doctor."

"How old is he?" asked Rory.

Melody wasn't entirely sure what the age had to do with anything.

"Sixteen," replied Lane as she grabbed her backpack from Melody.

"So, in fifty years, he'll eventually become a doctor," Melody stated as they started walking to the school.

"I was going to say a hundred years," Rory told Melody.

"Well, either way, my parents like to plan ahead," Lane told them.

Rory said, "You seriously have to go to the hayride with him?"

"And his older brother," Lane added.

"Oh, now you're kidding," Rory replied.

"Koreans never joke about future doctors," Lane told them.

As they walked up the stairs, Melody asked, "Do you want us to go with you?"

"I'm not going, because I'm still fuzzy on what's fun about sitting in the cold for two hours with a bundle of sticks up your butt," Rory replied as they went inside the building.

"I'll go with you," Melody told Lane.

"Don't expect me to clear the bundles of sticks out of your butt," Lane told Melody.

They didn't notice a guy in a leather jacket staring after Rory.

After school, Melody, Rory, and Lane headed to Lane's house.

While on the way there, Rory was talking, "They were passing nail polish in class."

"There is some game today and is tradition," Melody pointed out.

"They could've started the assignment, but they didn't," Rory stated.

"Well, was it a good color at least?" asked Lane.

Rory replied, "It had sparkles in it."

"Was it blue?" asked Melody, which was her favorite color. It was why she dyed her hair blue.

"No, but it smelled like bubble gum when it dried," Rory pointed out.

Melody said, "Stand back, Mark Twain, you got competition in sparkly, bubble gum scented nail polish."

Lane laughed as they walked in Lane's house that also doubled as Kim's Antiques. She called out, "Mom, we're home." She frowned, "Did either of you hear something?"

"I didn't hear anything," Melody said, as she was standing outside.

"I'm not sure," Rory replied as they walked in the store/house.

"Mom?" Lane called out again, "Are you here?"

"We're open!" a very distant voice called out, "Everything's half off."

Melody grinned, "And we have successfully contacted the mothership."
Lane nudged her and called out, "Mom?"

Mrs. Kim called back, "Lane?"

"Mom?" replied Lane.

"Lane?" replied Mrs. Kim.

They started walking around the store, while Lane yelled out, "Mom, where are you?"

"Lane, where are you?" called out Mrs. Kim.

"Back here!" yelled Lane.

Mrs. Kim yelled back, "Over here!"

"I think she's that way," Rory said, pointing in the direction.

They headed in the direction Rory pointed in.

Lane asked, "Are we closer?"

"I'm by the table!" yelled Mrs. Kim.

Melody looked at the tables, "Very specific."

"Look, we'll meet you in the kitchen!" yelled Lane.

"What?" asked Mrs. Kim.

"The kitchen!" yelled Rory.

"Who's that?" yelled Mrs. Kim.

Lane said, "It's Rory and Mel, Mom!"

"Oh," Mrs. Kim replied.

"Wow, I can hear the disappointment from here," Rory said as they headed for the kitchen.

"You can hear it?" Melody replied, "I can feel it."

"Oh, come on," Lane said. "Stop it."

"You know, it sucks that after all these years, your mom still hates me," Rory told Lane.

"She doesn't hate you," Lane replied.

"She hates our mother," Rory said, speaking for her and Melody.

Melody nearly grimaced. Even after living with Lorelai for almost eight years, Melody still wasn't sure if she should call Lorelai by her name or call her 'Mom.'

Sure, she had a crumb of hope that her real parents would return for her one day, but Rory and Lorelai were to kind to not point out that they would probably never come back to get her.

"She doesn't trust unmarried women," Lane pointed out.

"You don't have a husband," Melody said.

"I'm hayriding with a future proctologist," Lane said. "I have potential."

They walked into the kitchen where Mrs. Kim was waiting for them.

"Go upstairs," Mrs. Kim told them. "Tea is ready. I have muffins – no dairy, no sugar, no wheat. You have to soak them in tea to make them soft enough to bite but they're very healthy. So, how was school? None of the girls get pregnant, drop out?"

"Not that we know of," Lane said.

"I did find Summer Alcott crying in the restroom," Melody pointed out.

"And I think Joanna Posner was glowing a little," Rory added.

"What?" Mrs. Kim turned on so fast, Melody found herself thinking that it was astounding that Mrs. Kim didn't pull a muscle.

"Nothing, Mama," Lane started. "They're just kidding."

"Boys don't like funny girls," Mrs. Kim told them sternly.

"Noted," Rory replied.

A bell rang and a man called out, "Hello? Anybody here?"

Mrs. Kim called out, "We're here! We're coming." She spoke to the three girls, "Have the muffins. Made from sprouted wheat. Only good twenty-four hours." She called to the customer, "Everything's half off!"

"Where are you?" asked the man.

"Over here!" called Mrs. Kim.

"Where?" asked the man.

"By the chair!" called Mrs. Kim.

"What chair?" asked the man.

Rory looked like she was trying hard not to laugh.

Melody went to the muffins and picked one up, "Who's up for pelting Taylor's house with these?"

Melody played the Oregon Trail when she got back, while Rory went on the Independence Inn. But judging from the excited way Rory burst into Melody's room, Rory had gotten into Chilton.

"That's amazing, Rory," Melody told Rory, going to hug her.

However, an irrational part of Melody was terrified of being abandoned by another person in her life, which was ridiculous because Rory was just going to another school not another state.

After school, Melody and Lane stood by to help Rory clear out her locker.

While doing that, Rory was excitedly telling them about Chilton, "And we get to wear uniforms. No more having people check you out to see what jeans you're wearing 'cause everyone's dressed alike in boring clothes and just there to learn."

After the last bit of stuff was placed in the box that Melody was holding, Lane closed the locker door, and said, "Okay, there's academic-minded and then there's Amish."

"Which one does Chilton fall under?" asked Melody as they walked down the hall.

"Funny," Rory replied.

"Thank you!" Lane said, "So, I told my mom you're changing schools."

"How excited was she?" asked Melody.

"The party's on Friday," Lane said. "I gotta go. I have to have a pre-hayride cup of tea with a future doctor." She stuck some books on top of the stuff in the box that Melody was holding, "How do I look? Korean?"

Melody said, "Very."

"Spitting image," Rory added.

"Good," Lane said. "Bye."

"Bye," Rory said and Melody said.

Lane took off and the books that Lane stuck on the box slid off with a loud clatter.

Melody started to crouch down.

"I got it," Rory said, crouching down to pick up the books and balled up papers.

Some dude came up to them.

Before Melody could chew him out for being creepy, Rory noticed him, "God!" She picked up a book, "You're like Ruth Gordon just standing there with a tannis root. Make a noise."

"Rosemary's Baby," the guy said.

Rory looked at the guy, like she never saw him before, and stood up, "Yeah."

"Well, that's a great movie," the guy said. "You've got good taste." The guy looked at the box that Melody was holding and asked her, "Are you moving? Because a fellow new kid, I say good luck in your new school. I just moved here from Chicago."

Melody blinked, "What? No. I'm not moving."

"I'm the one that's moving," Rory said. "I mean, just my books are."

"I'm Dean," the guy said.

"Hi," Rory said. She realized that Dean was waiting for her to say her name. "Oh, Rory. Me. That's – that's me. And that's Melody, my sister."

Dean looked at Melody then at Rory, clearly noticing the difference – Melody's slightly darker skin tone. It was obvious that Melody wasn't white. He must've settled on 'adopted' – which was sort of the truth.

"Rory," Dean said looking at Rory. He looked at Melody, "Melody." He took the box from her.

"Well, Lorelai technically," Rory explained.

"Lorelai,"Dean said. "I like that."

Melody decided to take off because she clearly wasn't needed, and she'd rather not watch whatever attraction was going on. Besides, she had a hayride to join Lane on.

The hayride was a bust, but Melody didn't mind the lack of conversation with Lane, who was rather grumpy over the forced date.

After coming home, Melody went to the fridge to get something to eat, trying to ignore the Macey Gray song that had been playing.

She took out the container from Luke's, which held a club sandwich and fries. Luke must've packed it for her since she didn't go in.

Lorelai came into the kitchen, "Who's the guy that Rory wants to throw Chilton away for?"

Melody was confused, "Rory doesn't want to go to Chilton?"

"All because of some boy," Lorelai replied.

Melody was confused, "She's not you, you know. She's her own person."

"Throwing away a good education over a boy sounds exactly like me to me," Lorelai replied.

"I don't know anything," Melody replied. She was pretty sure she knew who the guy was.

"You know something," Lorelai pointed out.

Melody nearly grimaced, "No, I don't."

In an authoritative voice, Lorelai said, "Melody."

"Lorelai," Melody mimicked.

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at Melody, "Tell me."

"All I know is that his name is Dean, and he moved here from Chicago," Melody replied.

On Friday, they had gone to Hartford for a random dinner.

They stood on the porch, with Melody messing with dress that she was forced to wear.

Rory said, "So, do we go in or do we just stand here reenacting The Little Match Girl?"

Melody cringed at the short story. She had cried when she had read it and decided never to read it again.

Lorelai looked at Rory and said, "Okay, look, I know you and me are having a thing here and I know you hate me, but I need you to be civil, at least through dinner and then on the way home you can pull a Menendez with Mel. Deal?"

"Leave me out of it," Melody said.

"Fine," Rory replied.

Lorelai rang the doorbell and a few seconds later, Emily opened the door.

Melody wondered if Emily was waiting at the door to answer it.

"Hi, Grandma," Rory greeted with a smile.

"Well, you're right on time," Emily said, allowing them to come inside.

"Yeah, no traffic at all," Lorelai replied.

"I can't tell you what a treat it is to have you girls here," Emily said as she took their overcoats to place on the coatrack. She frowned when she got to Melody, "Melody, what did you do to your hair?"

Melody replied, "Dye it?"

"Yeah, isn't it great?" asked Lorelai.

Emily looked at Lorelai, "Is that a collector's cup or can I throw it away for you?"

Lorelai looked at the to-go cup she was holding, "Oh." She went to toss it away in the nearby wastebasket.

"In the kitchen please," Emily said. She spoke to Rory, "So, I want to hear all about Chilton."

Melody looked down.

"Well, I haven't actually started yet," Rory replied.

Emily turned to Melody, "Oh, Melody, I have a surprise for you."

Melody was confused, "A surprise?"

Emily took Melody and Rory and led them into the living room, "Richard. Look who's here."

Richard looked up from his paper, "Rory, Melody. You're tall."

"I guess," Rory mumbled back.

"Well, what are your heights?" asked Richard.

"5'7," Rory replied.

"5'6," Melody said.

"That's tall," Richard said. He spoke to Emily, who was pouring drinks, "They're tall."

Lorelai walked in the living room, "Hi, Dad."

"Lorelai, your daughters are tall," Richard told her.

"Oh, I know," Lorelai replied. "It's freakish. Mel and I are thinking of having Rory studied at M.I.T."

Richard didn't get that it was a joke, "Ah." He returned to reading his newspaper.

Emily came over to them, holding a tray with champagne flutes on them. "Champagne, anyone?"

Lorelai took a champagne flute, "Oh, that's fancy."

Rory and Melody took a champagne flute.

"Well, it's not every day that I have my girls here for dinner on a day the banks are open. A toast – to Rory and Melody entering Chilton and an exciting new phase in their life."

"Here, here," Richard said, holding his glass up.

Melody was too confused to even take a drink because she didn't apply for Chilton because she wanted Rory to get in and didn't want to mess with Rory's chances.

"Well, let's sit everyone," Emily said, ushering them to sit down.

Melody sat down next to Richard and Rory sat next to Melody, while Lorelai sat on the couch opposite them.

Emily went to get something and returned with a blue gift bag stuffed with purple tissue paper. She handed it to Melody, "Here you go."

Melody took the gift bag. Her birthday was on February 14, hence her middle name being Valentine.

"Oh, thanks," Melody replied, taking the gift bag.

Emily sat next to Lorelai on the couch, looking eager, "Open it."

Melody opened the gift bag and fished out a blue plaid skirt that matched Rory's Chilton skirt. "I'm going to Chilton?"

Emily smiled, "Yup. I talked to the headmaster's wife, and she managed to pull some strings, so you got accepted too."

Lorelai started, "Okay, Mom, you don't need to—"

"Oh, please, Lorelai," Emily interrupted. "I find it wrong to let one of your daughters to go to some public school while the other goes off and gets a better education. After all, an education is the most important thing in the world, next to family."

"And pie," Lorelai added. She got strange looks in return, "Joke, joke."

Melody thought about it and asked, "Is there pie? More importantly, banana crème pie?"

Emily said, "I can go and have the cooks make some."

Melody smiled, "Please?"

Emily got up to talk to the cooks.

When dinner was ready, they moved to the dining room. Rory and Melody sat on one side of the table and Lorelai sat across from them, sort of in the middle, while Richard and Emily sat at the ends of the table.

They were eating lamb.

Emily asked, "Rory, Melody, how do you both like the lamb?"

"It's good," Rory replied.

"I really like this peppercorn dressing," Melody added.

"Too dry?" asked Emily.

"No, it's perfect," Rory said.

"Potatoes could use a little salt, though," Lorelai said.

Emily took offense to that, "Excuse me?"

"So, Grandpa, how's the insurance biz?" asked Rory, trying to diffuse the inevitable fight that was brewing between Emily and Lorelai.

"Oh, people die, we pay," Richard replied. "People crash cars, we pay. People lose a foot, we pay."

"Well, at least you have your new slogan," Lorelai chimed in.

Richard asked, "And how are things at the motel?"

"The inn?" Lorelai said, "They're great."

"Lorelai's the executive manager now," Melody told them, smiling at Lorelai.

"Isn't that wonderful?" added Emily.

"Speaking of which, Christopher called yesterday," Richard said.

"Speaking of which?" Lorelai asked, "How is that a speaking of which?"

"He's doing very well in California," Richard replied. "His Internet start-up goes public next month. This could mean big things for him." He spoke to Melody and Rory, "Very talented man, your father."

He must've forgotten that Melody was adopted. Unless he was trying to act like Melody was born in the family.

The only thing Christopher was talented at was being a dead-beat, judging from the once-a-week phone calls Rory gets and the once-a-year visits in Hartford.

"Rory knows," Lorelai replied flatly.

Richard continued, "He always was a smart one, that boy." He looked at Melody and Rory, "You two must take after him."

Melody would rather not take after Christopher, "Sure thing." She would rather take after Lorelai.

"Speaking of which, I'm gonna get a Coke," Lorelai said, taking off to the kitchen, "Or a knife."

Rory and Melody looked at each other, before Rory started to stand up, "I think I'm gonna go talk to her—"

"No, I'll go," Emily told Rory. "You stay and keep your grandfather and sister company." She took off and Rory sat down.

Melody tried to eat her food while trying to make idle chat with Richard and Rory.

She tried to ignore the argument coming from the kitchen.

"Well, I wasn't too proud to come here to you two begging for money for my kid's school, was I?" asked Lorelai.

Melody looked at Rory, who clearly heard that part.