Two Week Stay-cation // (Logan, Veronica) PG
Title: Two Week Stay-cation -+- Chapter Seven of Eight
Author:
cloud_forest
Pairing/Characters: Logan/Veronica, Lilly
Word Count: 5,016
Rating: PG
Summary: With her parents on vacation, Veronica has been staying with the Echolls for about two weeks now. As seen in the previous chapter, she and Logan have definitely noticed their attraction to each other, and what follows is the aftermath of an early morning spent together…
Spoilers: Zero. Zilch. Nada.
Disclaimer: (The Shakespeare version) ‘Tis not mine! O, thou art so unfair, copyright laws! A plague upon your house!
|#|+---+---+---+---+|#|
{ Week Two || Day Seven ~ Thursday }
Veronica’s alarm clock the next morning was a private, in-house performance of Riverdance. Michael Flatley’s shoes were thundering against every bone in her skull while his accompanying orchestra assembled in her ears, apparently short on drums and choosing instead to use the ones they found there. She growled at the sonic invasion, rolling over in her burrow to find the source.
Her cell phone was ringing. Bouncing like a bee flipped on its back but attempting takeoff, humming the ring tone she’d chosen for this month. Glaring at it, she slapped her hand over the silver device and shoved it under the pile of pillows beside her. After a few more seconds its struggles abated, and she was at peace again.
Still exhausted, her brain edged back toward unconsciousness. It reached the front gates, entered the pass code, and was just about to step through…
When Michael Flatley assaulted her again.
Exhuming her phone from its comfy grave, she focused a blurry eye on the call display, wondering who was so determined to disturb her. Blue pixels crystallized into a name.
Logan.
Images of an early early morning spent wandering through the 09er district followed by a half hour in his backyard crashed into her.
…Logan.
A dose of adrenaline potent enough to resurrect an elephant ignited her heart.
Panic, worry, and embarrassment attempted to paralyze her fingers, to convince her that taking this call was a terrible idea.
Excitement, curiosity, and growing affection counteracted the force, commandeering the nerves and muscles that would open the line of communication. Lending its aid to the cause was the knowledge that knowing him, he would keep calling back until either her phone was destroyed- say by being whipped against a wall -or she picked up.
Deciding on the frugal route of action, she flipped her phone open.
“Hello?” Sleepiness cloaked what fragments of nervousness were mixed in with her voice.
“Good morning.”
“It’s 12:02, Logan. Technically it’s the afternoon,” she corrected him, remembering what time had been displayed on the screen along with his name.
“My apologies. I hope my mistake hasn’t already ruined your day.”
“We’ll see. I’ll be sure to keep you informed.”
“So you’re just waking up?”
“Mm-hmm.” And already regretting it, she thought through a brain made blurry by sleep deprivation. How had she let him convince her to go for that walk? To stay up even later afterwards? To skip school…
Oh yeah. Those two lips of his. The ones that held hers in a tight embrace. And with his tongue, danced up and down her neck like it was a lollipop. Arms that had closed around her, muscles jumping and pulsing against her flesh.
…But all of that had come after the convincing.
“You hungry?” Logan’s voice interrupted her confused thinking.
Glad for the distraction, she abandoned her failed reasoning and instead answered his question. “I guess so. Haven’t really had the chance to think about it.”
“Well, get dressed and come over. I made brunch.”
“Brunch?”
“Yeah. Breakfast foods at lunchtime. Brunch.”
That’s kind of cute. “You’re so lame.”
“Yeah, but I’ve got food sitting in front of me. Either come get some, or you might not have time to eat before we head to school.”
Okay, damn him for a) being all logical and making sense, and b) reminding her that they still had to go to school. Where Lilly and Duncan both were.
“All right. I’ll be there in a few.”
Dressing took much longer than it normally did. Every time she removed a component of her pajamas or reached for a fresh piece of clothing, she was interrupted by a new thought or question that forced her to stand still in contemplation.
She’d had her first kiss last night. With Logan Echolls. Okay, technically she’d had her first kisses, plural, but…
Since when did he like her?
Who knew she liked him that much?
Did she like him, or had she just gotten caught in an avalanche of misplaced emotions and misdirected actions?
He’d been so gentle. Handled her like a fragile gift wrapped in tissue paper.
He wasn’t anything like she would have expected him to be in that sort of situation. He never even thought about re-mapping her boundaries. Didn’t embarrass her over her inexperience. Acted as though their moments together were exhilarating and powerful despite their level of innocence.
…Where would they go from here?
After making sure that Backup was fed and had fresh water, she made her way over to the house. Each step got a little heavier, each meter of air a little harder to pass through. Those bothersome, anxious emotions from before had gathered reinforcements. All that kept her moving was a knot of hunger that could only be untangled by visiting the kitchen.
The soft click of the patio door announced her arrival, and he turned to address her. “Hey there.” It was a simple, neutral greeting.
Veronica found a few extra ingredients though. A glimmer of excitement in his walnut eyes. His smile was at an angle she’d never seen before, one that said he was pleased to see her. One he would perhaps reserve only for when it was her.
What she didn’t see though was the one thing she didn’t want to see. Expectation. Some sign that he thought she was going to throw herself into his arms, or take off at light speed into the journey they’d begun last night.
She didn’t see pressure or demand.
That single look liquefied every molecule of tension she carried. Allowed her to approach the kitchen island, climb onto a stool, and smile back at him. “Hey.” She tried to be casual while still responding to his demeanor. To keep calm but acknowledge that she didn’t want to close the doors they’d opened. Not yet at least.
“Sleep well?”
“Oh yeah. I don’t even remember getting into bed.”
“But… You remember everything before that, right?” He turned away from his duties at the stove to wait for her answer. Watching her with a mixture of hope and peaceful delight.
She bit her lip to stop her smile from getting too big or bright. “Yeah. I do.” As he turned back around, she took a deep breath, preparing for the Big Conversation she thought he was steering them towards.
“So, as you can see there’s quite the variety,” he said instead, waving his arm at the miniature buffet set out on the island. “Fruit, bacon, scrambled eggs. And over here?” He pointed to the frying pan with his flipper. “Chocolate chip pancakes.”
“Oo,” she said excitedly, the single syllable all she could offer now that he’d kept the conversation light. She hadn’t been expecting it.
“Yeah. I never believed my parents when they said you couldn’t have dessert with breakfast.”
“Bunch of liars. Trying to make us grow up all healthy and stuff.”
“I know. The nerve.”
Veronica smiled, savoring the aromas of cooked batter and warm chocolate as they thickened the air. They chatted while Logan filled a plate with pancakes and she feasted on the platters of food before her.
“Good to see my cooking isn’t toxic,” he remarked, serving her one of his polka-dotted patties.
“Well, I’ve got a HAZMAT team on standby just in case.” She pulled out her phone and waggled it at him. “Also have the CDC notified in the event we need to set up a quarantine of the area.”
“Always good to be prepared,” he agreed, returning to the stove and making a brief attempt at wrangling the mess he’d created.
“Mmm, these are amazing,” Veronica groaned as a fragment of gooey chocolate wrapped in velvet dissolved on her tongue.
“You didn’t think it could be done, did you? A rich kid making something delicious all on his own.”
“I had serious doubts,” she confirmed.
Dropping what he was doing, Logan glided toward the kitchen island. When he moved behind her, she thought it was so he could get to the place setting on her right. His hand closed around her left arm though, and she was too surprised to fight against being swiveled on her seat.
She found herself snared in his gaze, which hovered just inches above hers. There was no more air left in the room. She was sure of it. Resuming their trek from the previous night, his fingertips were wearing grooves in her flesh by now, approaching the sleeve of her t-shirt and then bouncing back toward her elbow. One desperate attempt at obtaining oxygen caused her to gasp before his lips met hers.
Eyes closing, she focused on the sensations of touch and taste. He caressed her with his mouth, sometimes barely touching her; teasing her. Making her admit that she wanted more than he was offering. Forcing her to curl her hands in the open edges of his button-down shirt and pull him closer.
He tasted like watermelon and strawberries. Sugary treats that mingled with the chocolate she’d eaten to create a delectable dessert.
A thought was poking her on the shoulder, demanding attention. Sensing that it wasn’t one she wanted to hear though, she shoved it away, focusing harder on the boy that was consuming her.
They sparred for several long seconds. He kept trying to straighten up, to open the distance between them, then grinned against her lips as she held him steady.
Veronica’s hand found its way to his shoulder, and then his neck. She opened her eyes, thinking she would venture there. Find out how other parts of him tasted. At that moment though, she caught sight of the shelving unit over his shoulder. And the family photos parked there.
That was when the annoying little thought crystallized.
“Mm. Mm, Logan.” Pressing her hands to his chest, she nudged him away. “Not here. We can’t do this here.”
“Why?” He kissed her again at the corner of her mouth, then on her cheek.
“Your parents,” she said, attempting to shake him off. “I mean, I barely know what’s going on here. I don’t want them to see…”
He chuckled. “Dad’s at a meeting in L.A.. Mom’s at the spa. Probably covered in expensive mud as we speak.”
“Still…” she insisted, holding him off as he attempted to reestablish their connection. “Maybe it’s best if we don’t. For now.”
“Okay.” He nodded, letting his fingers cascade down her back. “We should probably go soon anyway,” he said, casual tone helping to brush away the clouds of disappointment that were hanging over both their heads.
“But what about brunch?” Veronica asked, tossing a quick glance at the food behind her.
“Oh, after brunch, obviously,” he assured her, knuckles dancing over her knee before he disengaged and slid onto his stool.
“Obviously.” She posed her features in a caricature of his own mock-serious expression, forehead wrinkled, brow furrowed.
Veronica finished everything on her plate. Fruit, eggs, bacon, three or four pancakes. Even with all of that though, for the rest of the day just one flavour remained bolted to her tongue.
Logan.
|#|+---+---+---+---+|#|
Whoever said ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ was a moron. Or at least, they weren’t telling the whole truth. Because apparently presence also did one Hell of a job.
Two weeks ago, if someone had asked Veronica what her opinion of Logan Echolls was, she wouldn’t have given the most flattering description.
Logan was… a finger painting. Designed by human hands, for sure, unlike the other photo-copied eight-by-eleven-inch sheets of plain white paper that populated their school. She could at least give him that much credit. Other than that though, he wasn’t very complicated. A canvas covered in green paint with a series of off-white streaks running through it.
True, he was a nice enough guy. They shared laughs and moments of friendship fairly often. When they weren’t competing for the all-time sarcasm championship, of course. Beyond the few thought-provoking comments he offered up in a given day or week though, he hadn’t proven to be much more than a typical teenager. Someone who was capable of exercising his intellect, but didn’t go out of his way to make it happen. Whose focus was directed at three primary targets; girls, money, and partying. Valid life choices at his age, for sure, and enough for her to still designate him one of her ‘good friends’, but nothing that would ever put him in Veronica’s Possible Boyfriend column.
Twelve days after her parents climbed onto a plane headed for Mexico though, things had changed. Not only had they laid down some new concrete on the foundation of their friendship, but she’d also found herself making out with him in his backyard at three thirty in the morning.
At some point, someone had come along with a full set of brushes and an endless colour palette, and added to that finger painting. They’d drawn in new shapes and landscapes. Created a foreground and a background, layered colours and added texture. They’d turned him into a thought-provoking piece of artwork. Something any museum or gallery would beg to hang on their walls.
During her stay at the Echolls Inn, she had been more or less surrounded by Logan. When she woke up in the morning, he was there. He drove her to school. Suffered through classes with her. Sat beside her at the dinner table and hung out with her during the evening- usually because he wanted help with his homework.
Logan was like tomato sauce in a bowl of spaghetti; he was everywhere.
By being forced to live in such extended, close proximity to him, she discovered so many new things. Aspects of his personality that his comrades at school never gave him the opportunity to exhibit. Things that didn’t tend to come up during their fairly uneventful hangouts. She saw the reasons why Duncan had chosen him as his best friend. Why Lilly could stand to spend more than five minutes alone with him.
Logan was the kind of guy who could have fun without first consuming a gallon of alcohol and thus accessing his inner Neanderthal. He was someone who would spend fifty of his own dollars on pizza so she wouldn’t have to force down the pretentious sludge that rich people seemed to think made them special. He could be kind and gentle. Could carry on a conversation with her about politics or a philosophical topic of choice, and disagree with her while still showing interest in her stance.
He was polite, too. In a caring sort of way. Veronica wasn’t stupid enough to think that last night’s encounter had been all kinds of fun for him. It was the first time she’d ever kissed anyone. There had been moments of clumsiness and hesitation; no doubt far less thrilling than what he got with Lilly or any of the other bimbos he’d hooked up with in the past.
Still, when it had come time for them to part ways, he took a second taste of what she had to offer. And this morning, he’d seized his first chance to go for a hat trick. She assumed it was because he wanted her to believe what he’d said about none of it being a mistake, not because he wanted to stumble through another kissing session with an inexperienced partner. Which meant that, strangely, he cared about her feelings. About her.
Sure, he was anything but perfect. Could be an absolute jerk when he wanted. There was no denying the flames that flared in her gut when he was around though. How he made the blood pump through her arteries a little faster and a little harder than normal. Caused dormant neurons to light up in her brain, preparing her for whatever he threw her way. Besides, the ‘being a jerk’ part? That was something she’d always enjoyed about their friendship anyway. No reason it couldn’t translate in a relationship just as well.
Logan was fun and interesting. Challenged her to be more than she was, if only by going out of his way to disagree with her. Veronica wasn’t sure what else she could hope for in a boyfriend.
And damn, he was easy to look at.
Things weren’t that simple though. They didn’t boil down to boy likes girl, and girl likes boy, so girl and boy date. No, no. Because at the moment, Veronica’s brain was pitching back and forth between two painful extremes.
On one side there was excitement- lots of excitement. Last night she’d had her first kiss. She finally knew what it was like to be tied up by a boy’s strong muscles. To have his tongue dancing with hers. To be that close to someone and yet be wishing there was some way to further close the distance, hating that there was so much clothing and skin between them. There was an amazing cocktail of fire and ice running through her circulation… heating everything to the point where she thought she would burn up from the inside out before a cool, soothing wave washed through her.
Smothering those sparks though was a blanket of confusion. A mile-long list of questions she’d been repeatedly asking herself for hours.
Had last night been a mistake? Did she even like Logan that much, or was her mind confusing familiarity with affection? Fooling her into thinking she saw things that weren’t really there, so her emotional attraction to him corresponded with her physical desires…? Did he like her that much? He’d told her there was a purpose to everything that happened, and he certainly seemed sincere, but really… Why would Logan Echolls have a thing for her?
Assuming they wanted to give it a try, how could the two of them ever really have a functioning relationship? For one thing, there was Lilly. Promiscuous as she was, Veronica couldn’t see her having the most positive reaction if she found out her best friend and her ex were dating. Plus, she had to wonder if Logan was really over her yet. They’d only broken up a few weeks ago.
And what about Duncan? She still kind of sort of had a crush on him, too.
There was an entire honeybee colony buzzing around in her head, each one with their own opinion on the matter, and all of them were demanding to be heard.
Not only that, but a big part of her still couldn’t believe that all of this was happening.
Needless to say, it was a good thing she hadn’t bothered going to the first half of the school day, because she hadn’t gotten much out of the few classes she did go to. By the time Lilly found her that afternoon, her mindset couldn’t exactly be described as… stable.
[ Sorry to do this to you again, but please follow me to the Conclusion of Chapter Seven… ]
Author:
cloud_forest
Pairing/Characters: Logan/Veronica, Lilly
Word Count: 5,016
Rating: PG
Summary: With her parents on vacation, Veronica has been staying with the Echolls for about two weeks now. As seen in the previous chapter, she and Logan have definitely noticed their attraction to each other, and what follows is the aftermath of an early morning spent together…
Spoilers: Zero. Zilch. Nada.
Disclaimer: (The Shakespeare version) ‘Tis not mine! O, thou art so unfair, copyright laws! A plague upon your house!
|#|+---+---+---+---+|#|
{ Week Two || Day Seven ~ Thursday }
Veronica’s alarm clock the next morning was a private, in-house performance of Riverdance. Michael Flatley’s shoes were thundering against every bone in her skull while his accompanying orchestra assembled in her ears, apparently short on drums and choosing instead to use the ones they found there. She growled at the sonic invasion, rolling over in her burrow to find the source.
Her cell phone was ringing. Bouncing like a bee flipped on its back but attempting takeoff, humming the ring tone she’d chosen for this month. Glaring at it, she slapped her hand over the silver device and shoved it under the pile of pillows beside her. After a few more seconds its struggles abated, and she was at peace again.
Still exhausted, her brain edged back toward unconsciousness. It reached the front gates, entered the pass code, and was just about to step through…
When Michael Flatley assaulted her again.
Exhuming her phone from its comfy grave, she focused a blurry eye on the call display, wondering who was so determined to disturb her. Blue pixels crystallized into a name.
Logan.
Images of an early early morning spent wandering through the 09er district followed by a half hour in his backyard crashed into her.
…Logan.
A dose of adrenaline potent enough to resurrect an elephant ignited her heart.
Panic, worry, and embarrassment attempted to paralyze her fingers, to convince her that taking this call was a terrible idea.
Excitement, curiosity, and growing affection counteracted the force, commandeering the nerves and muscles that would open the line of communication. Lending its aid to the cause was the knowledge that knowing him, he would keep calling back until either her phone was destroyed- say by being whipped against a wall -or she picked up.
Deciding on the frugal route of action, she flipped her phone open.
“Hello?” Sleepiness cloaked what fragments of nervousness were mixed in with her voice.
“Good morning.”
“It’s 12:02, Logan. Technically it’s the afternoon,” she corrected him, remembering what time had been displayed on the screen along with his name.
“My apologies. I hope my mistake hasn’t already ruined your day.”
“We’ll see. I’ll be sure to keep you informed.”
“So you’re just waking up?”
“Mm-hmm.” And already regretting it, she thought through a brain made blurry by sleep deprivation. How had she let him convince her to go for that walk? To stay up even later afterwards? To skip school…
Oh yeah. Those two lips of his. The ones that held hers in a tight embrace. And with his tongue, danced up and down her neck like it was a lollipop. Arms that had closed around her, muscles jumping and pulsing against her flesh.
…But all of that had come after the convincing.
“You hungry?” Logan’s voice interrupted her confused thinking.
Glad for the distraction, she abandoned her failed reasoning and instead answered his question. “I guess so. Haven’t really had the chance to think about it.”
“Well, get dressed and come over. I made brunch.”
“Brunch?”
“Yeah. Breakfast foods at lunchtime. Brunch.”
That’s kind of cute. “You’re so lame.”
“Yeah, but I’ve got food sitting in front of me. Either come get some, or you might not have time to eat before we head to school.”
Okay, damn him for a) being all logical and making sense, and b) reminding her that they still had to go to school. Where Lilly and Duncan both were.
“All right. I’ll be there in a few.”
Dressing took much longer than it normally did. Every time she removed a component of her pajamas or reached for a fresh piece of clothing, she was interrupted by a new thought or question that forced her to stand still in contemplation.
She’d had her first kiss last night. With Logan Echolls. Okay, technically she’d had her first kisses, plural, but…
Since when did he like her?
Who knew she liked him that much?
Did she like him, or had she just gotten caught in an avalanche of misplaced emotions and misdirected actions?
He’d been so gentle. Handled her like a fragile gift wrapped in tissue paper.
He wasn’t anything like she would have expected him to be in that sort of situation. He never even thought about re-mapping her boundaries. Didn’t embarrass her over her inexperience. Acted as though their moments together were exhilarating and powerful despite their level of innocence.
…Where would they go from here?
After making sure that Backup was fed and had fresh water, she made her way over to the house. Each step got a little heavier, each meter of air a little harder to pass through. Those bothersome, anxious emotions from before had gathered reinforcements. All that kept her moving was a knot of hunger that could only be untangled by visiting the kitchen.
The soft click of the patio door announced her arrival, and he turned to address her. “Hey there.” It was a simple, neutral greeting.
Veronica found a few extra ingredients though. A glimmer of excitement in his walnut eyes. His smile was at an angle she’d never seen before, one that said he was pleased to see her. One he would perhaps reserve only for when it was her.
What she didn’t see though was the one thing she didn’t want to see. Expectation. Some sign that he thought she was going to throw herself into his arms, or take off at light speed into the journey they’d begun last night.
She didn’t see pressure or demand.
That single look liquefied every molecule of tension she carried. Allowed her to approach the kitchen island, climb onto a stool, and smile back at him. “Hey.” She tried to be casual while still responding to his demeanor. To keep calm but acknowledge that she didn’t want to close the doors they’d opened. Not yet at least.
“Sleep well?”
“Oh yeah. I don’t even remember getting into bed.”
“But… You remember everything before that, right?” He turned away from his duties at the stove to wait for her answer. Watching her with a mixture of hope and peaceful delight.
She bit her lip to stop her smile from getting too big or bright. “Yeah. I do.” As he turned back around, she took a deep breath, preparing for the Big Conversation she thought he was steering them towards.
“So, as you can see there’s quite the variety,” he said instead, waving his arm at the miniature buffet set out on the island. “Fruit, bacon, scrambled eggs. And over here?” He pointed to the frying pan with his flipper. “Chocolate chip pancakes.”
“Oo,” she said excitedly, the single syllable all she could offer now that he’d kept the conversation light. She hadn’t been expecting it.
“Yeah. I never believed my parents when they said you couldn’t have dessert with breakfast.”
“Bunch of liars. Trying to make us grow up all healthy and stuff.”
“I know. The nerve.”
Veronica smiled, savoring the aromas of cooked batter and warm chocolate as they thickened the air. They chatted while Logan filled a plate with pancakes and she feasted on the platters of food before her.
“Good to see my cooking isn’t toxic,” he remarked, serving her one of his polka-dotted patties.
“Well, I’ve got a HAZMAT team on standby just in case.” She pulled out her phone and waggled it at him. “Also have the CDC notified in the event we need to set up a quarantine of the area.”
“Always good to be prepared,” he agreed, returning to the stove and making a brief attempt at wrangling the mess he’d created.
“Mmm, these are amazing,” Veronica groaned as a fragment of gooey chocolate wrapped in velvet dissolved on her tongue.
“You didn’t think it could be done, did you? A rich kid making something delicious all on his own.”
“I had serious doubts,” she confirmed.
Dropping what he was doing, Logan glided toward the kitchen island. When he moved behind her, she thought it was so he could get to the place setting on her right. His hand closed around her left arm though, and she was too surprised to fight against being swiveled on her seat.
She found herself snared in his gaze, which hovered just inches above hers. There was no more air left in the room. She was sure of it. Resuming their trek from the previous night, his fingertips were wearing grooves in her flesh by now, approaching the sleeve of her t-shirt and then bouncing back toward her elbow. One desperate attempt at obtaining oxygen caused her to gasp before his lips met hers.
Eyes closing, she focused on the sensations of touch and taste. He caressed her with his mouth, sometimes barely touching her; teasing her. Making her admit that she wanted more than he was offering. Forcing her to curl her hands in the open edges of his button-down shirt and pull him closer.
He tasted like watermelon and strawberries. Sugary treats that mingled with the chocolate she’d eaten to create a delectable dessert.
A thought was poking her on the shoulder, demanding attention. Sensing that it wasn’t one she wanted to hear though, she shoved it away, focusing harder on the boy that was consuming her.
They sparred for several long seconds. He kept trying to straighten up, to open the distance between them, then grinned against her lips as she held him steady.
Veronica’s hand found its way to his shoulder, and then his neck. She opened her eyes, thinking she would venture there. Find out how other parts of him tasted. At that moment though, she caught sight of the shelving unit over his shoulder. And the family photos parked there.
That was when the annoying little thought crystallized.
“Mm. Mm, Logan.” Pressing her hands to his chest, she nudged him away. “Not here. We can’t do this here.”
“Why?” He kissed her again at the corner of her mouth, then on her cheek.
“Your parents,” she said, attempting to shake him off. “I mean, I barely know what’s going on here. I don’t want them to see…”
He chuckled. “Dad’s at a meeting in L.A.. Mom’s at the spa. Probably covered in expensive mud as we speak.”
“Still…” she insisted, holding him off as he attempted to reestablish their connection. “Maybe it’s best if we don’t. For now.”
“Okay.” He nodded, letting his fingers cascade down her back. “We should probably go soon anyway,” he said, casual tone helping to brush away the clouds of disappointment that were hanging over both their heads.
“But what about brunch?” Veronica asked, tossing a quick glance at the food behind her.
“Oh, after brunch, obviously,” he assured her, knuckles dancing over her knee before he disengaged and slid onto his stool.
“Obviously.” She posed her features in a caricature of his own mock-serious expression, forehead wrinkled, brow furrowed.
Veronica finished everything on her plate. Fruit, eggs, bacon, three or four pancakes. Even with all of that though, for the rest of the day just one flavour remained bolted to her tongue.
Logan.
|#|+---+---+---+---+|#|
Whoever said ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ was a moron. Or at least, they weren’t telling the whole truth. Because apparently presence also did one Hell of a job.
Two weeks ago, if someone had asked Veronica what her opinion of Logan Echolls was, she wouldn’t have given the most flattering description.
Logan was… a finger painting. Designed by human hands, for sure, unlike the other photo-copied eight-by-eleven-inch sheets of plain white paper that populated their school. She could at least give him that much credit. Other than that though, he wasn’t very complicated. A canvas covered in green paint with a series of off-white streaks running through it.
True, he was a nice enough guy. They shared laughs and moments of friendship fairly often. When they weren’t competing for the all-time sarcasm championship, of course. Beyond the few thought-provoking comments he offered up in a given day or week though, he hadn’t proven to be much more than a typical teenager. Someone who was capable of exercising his intellect, but didn’t go out of his way to make it happen. Whose focus was directed at three primary targets; girls, money, and partying. Valid life choices at his age, for sure, and enough for her to still designate him one of her ‘good friends’, but nothing that would ever put him in Veronica’s Possible Boyfriend column.
Twelve days after her parents climbed onto a plane headed for Mexico though, things had changed. Not only had they laid down some new concrete on the foundation of their friendship, but she’d also found herself making out with him in his backyard at three thirty in the morning.
At some point, someone had come along with a full set of brushes and an endless colour palette, and added to that finger painting. They’d drawn in new shapes and landscapes. Created a foreground and a background, layered colours and added texture. They’d turned him into a thought-provoking piece of artwork. Something any museum or gallery would beg to hang on their walls.
During her stay at the Echolls Inn, she had been more or less surrounded by Logan. When she woke up in the morning, he was there. He drove her to school. Suffered through classes with her. Sat beside her at the dinner table and hung out with her during the evening- usually because he wanted help with his homework.
Logan was like tomato sauce in a bowl of spaghetti; he was everywhere.
By being forced to live in such extended, close proximity to him, she discovered so many new things. Aspects of his personality that his comrades at school never gave him the opportunity to exhibit. Things that didn’t tend to come up during their fairly uneventful hangouts. She saw the reasons why Duncan had chosen him as his best friend. Why Lilly could stand to spend more than five minutes alone with him.
Logan was the kind of guy who could have fun without first consuming a gallon of alcohol and thus accessing his inner Neanderthal. He was someone who would spend fifty of his own dollars on pizza so she wouldn’t have to force down the pretentious sludge that rich people seemed to think made them special. He could be kind and gentle. Could carry on a conversation with her about politics or a philosophical topic of choice, and disagree with her while still showing interest in her stance.
He was polite, too. In a caring sort of way. Veronica wasn’t stupid enough to think that last night’s encounter had been all kinds of fun for him. It was the first time she’d ever kissed anyone. There had been moments of clumsiness and hesitation; no doubt far less thrilling than what he got with Lilly or any of the other bimbos he’d hooked up with in the past.
Still, when it had come time for them to part ways, he took a second taste of what she had to offer. And this morning, he’d seized his first chance to go for a hat trick. She assumed it was because he wanted her to believe what he’d said about none of it being a mistake, not because he wanted to stumble through another kissing session with an inexperienced partner. Which meant that, strangely, he cared about her feelings. About her.
Sure, he was anything but perfect. Could be an absolute jerk when he wanted. There was no denying the flames that flared in her gut when he was around though. How he made the blood pump through her arteries a little faster and a little harder than normal. Caused dormant neurons to light up in her brain, preparing her for whatever he threw her way. Besides, the ‘being a jerk’ part? That was something she’d always enjoyed about their friendship anyway. No reason it couldn’t translate in a relationship just as well.
Logan was fun and interesting. Challenged her to be more than she was, if only by going out of his way to disagree with her. Veronica wasn’t sure what else she could hope for in a boyfriend.
And damn, he was easy to look at.
Things weren’t that simple though. They didn’t boil down to boy likes girl, and girl likes boy, so girl and boy date. No, no. Because at the moment, Veronica’s brain was pitching back and forth between two painful extremes.
On one side there was excitement- lots of excitement. Last night she’d had her first kiss. She finally knew what it was like to be tied up by a boy’s strong muscles. To have his tongue dancing with hers. To be that close to someone and yet be wishing there was some way to further close the distance, hating that there was so much clothing and skin between them. There was an amazing cocktail of fire and ice running through her circulation… heating everything to the point where she thought she would burn up from the inside out before a cool, soothing wave washed through her.
Smothering those sparks though was a blanket of confusion. A mile-long list of questions she’d been repeatedly asking herself for hours.
Had last night been a mistake? Did she even like Logan that much, or was her mind confusing familiarity with affection? Fooling her into thinking she saw things that weren’t really there, so her emotional attraction to him corresponded with her physical desires…? Did he like her that much? He’d told her there was a purpose to everything that happened, and he certainly seemed sincere, but really… Why would Logan Echolls have a thing for her?
Assuming they wanted to give it a try, how could the two of them ever really have a functioning relationship? For one thing, there was Lilly. Promiscuous as she was, Veronica couldn’t see her having the most positive reaction if she found out her best friend and her ex were dating. Plus, she had to wonder if Logan was really over her yet. They’d only broken up a few weeks ago.
And what about Duncan? She still kind of sort of had a crush on him, too.
There was an entire honeybee colony buzzing around in her head, each one with their own opinion on the matter, and all of them were demanding to be heard.
Not only that, but a big part of her still couldn’t believe that all of this was happening.
Needless to say, it was a good thing she hadn’t bothered going to the first half of the school day, because she hadn’t gotten much out of the few classes she did go to. By the time Lilly found her that afternoon, her mindset couldn’t exactly be described as… stable.
[ Sorry to do this to you again, but please follow me to the Conclusion of Chapter Seven… ]