Title: City Screaming
Fandoms: Veronica Mars, Gossip Girl
Pairing: Jenny Humphrey/Eli Navarro, Eli Navarro/Veronica Mars
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None from VM; late S2 Scott-related Gossip Girl spoilers.
Disclaimer: All characters mentioned here are the property of The CW, Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, Rob Thomas, Stu Segall, College Hill Pictures, and Silver Pictures. I make no money from this work of fiction, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Notes: Written for
Detox; pairing and prompt are from the
Multifandom Porn Battle. Takes place approximately late S2/early S3 of Gossip Girl (after the Scott reveal), and post-series for Veronica Mars.
~*~
The holes in Scott's story are obvious from the second he opens his mouth. Dan thinks he's full of shit, Serena thinks maybe his parents just didn't tell him all the facts, Eric is in denial, and Chuck (predictably) claims not to give a fuck. Jenny doesn't know what to think. She's gotten pretty good at processing the insanity that has become her life, but secret siblings once thought dead and now in her Algebra class? That's a whole new ball game.
Blair's the one that suggests a P.I. And not just any P.I. - the best P.I. They're going to need hardcore skills if they ever expect to get past the gated fortress of secrecy that Van Der Woodsen money can buy. Which is how all six of them end up on the other side of the country in Neptune, California, at a detective agency that's small, dingy, and dark, leaving Jenny wondering what the hell they're even doing. That sinking, helpless feeling skyrockets when they cross the threshold and are greeted by a blonde girl who can't be much bigger than Jenny herself, all cocky voice and dismissive attitude in jeans and a pair of Converse sneakers. Blair isn't impressed. She seems to have taken point on this excursion, given that she's the only one not emotionally invested in the situation, and that's fine by Jenny. She slips back out the door while the others all clamor to be heard and heads for the side alley.
A police siren wails in the distance as Jenny pulls the pack of Marlboros out of her purse. And seriously, can she just turn eighteen already? Because it's pretty fucking obnoxious to have to hide in sketchy alleyways like a common criminal just to have a smoke. She leans against the wall and lights a cigarette, the brick cold and sharp against her back. By the time she's finished a second, there's still no sign of anything having been resolved inside, and Jenny finally sighs. Time to face the music.
The motorcycle pulls up just as she's crushing the butt beneath her heel. Jenny blinks in surprise. The bike pulls up directly in front of her and the rider kills the engine. And all she can do is stand rooted to the spot as the helmet comes off to reveal piercing eyes and a dazzling smile. Damn.
"Can I bum one of those?" the mystery rider asks. Jenny bites her lip.
"Yeah, sure," she replies offhandedly, retrieving the pack of cigarettes. The biker peels off his leather jacket and drapes it across the seat of the cycle, revealing even more dark skin, well-defined arms inked with a web of intertwined tattoos. Jenny sucks in a breath. Damn, indeed.
"Eli," the mystery rider introduces himself, reaching for the box and lighter from her outstretched hand.
Jenny's convinced that if she looks to her left, she can see the miniature Eric perched atop her shoulder, silently daring her.
"Jenny," she introduces herself. Okay, that came out a bit breathless. But did he really have to brush his fingers over hers like that? She lets herself get distracted by his lips as they curl around the cigarette, doesn't notice he's talking until he's spoken twice, using that very cigarette to make a pointed gesture towards the door of the detective agency.
"Gatherin' the courage to go in?" he asks. Jenny shrugs, fiddling with the strap of her bag. She considers having another smoke, but Dan is going to be pissed off enough as it is when she comes back smelling like nicotine.
"Letting the rest of the family handle it," she responds. Eli nods.
"Well whatever it is you need, she'll get it; V's good at what she does." Jenny bites her lip for about half a second before deciding not to let such a golden opportunity slip by her.
"And what about you?" she presses, moving a couple of steps closer to where he's leaned up against the opposite wall of the alley. "Are you good at what you do?" Eli smirks.
"Depends on who you ask." Jenny stands toe-to-toe, eyes tracing the crown on his neck. She plucks the cigarette delicately from his mouth and takes a drag, blowing the smoke into his face. Eli smirks but doesn't back away. Jenny sticks the cigarette back between his lips and notes with satisfaction that a ring of her red lipstick now stains the white paper.
"How old are you, sweetheart?" Eli asks.
"Nineteen," Jenny lies smoothly. Well it's not like she's going to tell him that she's underage. But Eli doesn't appear to believe her anyway, and before she knows what's happening, his hand shoots into her purse, lightning-fast, and retreats with her wallet in hand. She scoffs. "Criminal much?" But it's useless, because as soon as he flips open the front flap, his eyebrows rise to his hairline.
"Fifteen?" he says with a whistle. Jenny snatches the wallet back, but the damage is already done.
"Well, you've caught me. Gonna arrest me now, for underage tobacco consumption or whatever?" Her eyes light up. "Got any handcuffs?" Eli chuckles. As he brings the cigarette back to his mouth, he checks his watch and starts when he notices the time. A trail of smoke follows the butt to the ground as Eli flicks it to the pavement.
"Gotta blaze," he announces, but he pauses to give Jenny one last once-over. "Too bad," he adds. "I've got a thing for mouthy little blondes." With that, he disappears into the back door of Mars Investigations and suddenly Jenny gets it. She lets out a grunt of frustration and crushes the ember of Eli's cigarette beneath the heel of her stiletto before heading back towards the front door of the office.
This Veronica chick better be worth it.
~*~
The first thing Veronica does when the front door closes is glare at him. Weevil can't say he's surprised.
"Were you smoking?" she demands, and he bites back a sigh.
"The little one was havin' a smoke break outside. Figured I'd try and bond with her, see what she had to say." Veronica raises an eyebrow.
"Yeah?" she prods. "And did you get anything useful?" He shrugs, tosses his jacket on her chair and pointedly ignores her huff of annoyance.
"She's a scared kid. More interested in flirting with me than talking about her feelings." The arched brow nearly reaches Veronica's hairline, but she lets the comment slide and pretends to be too intent on shuffling papers around her desk to care.
"Yeah, well, that scared kid is going to rake you in a pretty nice-sized paycheck," she informs him. Weevil steps behind her to peer over her shoulder at the paperwork from their latest case.
"Oh yeah?" he prods. A hand settles tentatively at Veronica's waist. She doesn't bite it off the second it touches her, so he supposes he should be grateful.
"People with too much money trying to keep skeletons in the closet."
"Sounds familiar," Weevil chuckles, lets his hand slide from hip to stomach. Veronica remains focused on filing, but it only serves as incentive, and the bare skin beneath her ponytail taunts him. When she's stacked and stored every sheet from the surface of the deck, free of any further excuse for distraction, Weevil finally makes his move. He slides his arms fully around her waist, lips suckling firmly at her clavicle from behind until she finally gives. He has to smirk. Veronica turns in his arms, wrapping her own around his neck.
"So," she says. "Girl flirting with you in the alley." Weevil shrugs unable to hide a grin.
"What can I say?" he teases, stealing a kiss. "I've got a thing for blondes."
~*~
.....And now all I want to do is continue this, because I realize that I've left Veronica Mars and Blair Waldorf in a room together and that is just begging to be written.