THE RETURN 35-Dick [Dick/Ensemble] PG-13
Title: The Return 35-Dick [The Nightmare]
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,782
Characters/Pairings: Dick, Mac, Lilly I, Weevil, Parker, Piz, Duncan and Wallace (mentions of: Logan, Veronica, OFC and Lilly II)
Spoilers: All episodes (from 1.01: Pilot to 3.20: The Bitch Is Back. Just to be sure) Although this is obviously AU and there are obviously going to be some alterations to events and especially some in the last couple of episodes.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Literally, nothing. So don’t sue me over this, because you won’t get anything. It all belongs to Rob Thomas and if I had owned it when it was still on the last season would have been way different.
1: Awake/ 2: Homecoming/ 3: Forgive/ 4: Arrival/ 5: Reconnect/ 6: Belong/ 7: Bets/ 8: Fight/ 9: Battle/ 10: Retreat/ 11: Push/ 12: Sound/ 13: Potential/ 14: More/ 15: Storytime/ 16: Understanding/ 17: Piggyback/ 18: Sinners/ 19: Drama/ 20: Dinner/ 21: Armor/ 22:Mingle/ 23:Bubbly/ 24:Awkward/ 25:Closing/ 26: Drunks/ 27: Logan/ 28: Wallace/ 29: Mac/ 30: Parker/ 31: Duncan/ 32: Lilly/33: Piz/ 34: Weevil
The Return
35
Dick
~The Nightmare~
“Are you okay?” Dick asked as Mac entered the bedroom and started packing up her bags.
“Yeah, why?” She responded with a smile, and the knot in his stomach seemed to ease a bit.
“You just seemed so nervous this morning, I wanted to make sure that you were okay. Get everything worked out with Veronica?” He didn’t want her to feel like he was pressuring her in any way, but he had to know if they were okay. He had to know.
“I’m fine, just a little freak out that’s all. No big.” She smiled up at him, relaxed and happy in the moment. He hated to ruin it.
“Over the fact that we finally slept together or because I said that I love you?” And the knot was back, full force now, as he watched her freeze. Her hands caught in mid air as she was folding one of her tops at the time. It was just a small moment, one frozen moment where he saw the thoughts whirl in her head and she came to a conclusion, a course of action and continued with her task.
“I just… I mean, I assumed that since it was during that it was a, you know, momentary I-love-you-for-having-sex-with-me kind of thing.” Now her eyes were averted and she wasn’t looking at him and the knot was starting to ice up and make his entire body feel cold.
“I do kind of love that you’re having sex with me now, but it’s not something I normally tell people. Especially the people that I have sex with.” He explained, sitting down on the bed and looking at his hands. He didn’t want to watch the next decision she came to.
“So it was more of a…” she hesitated and he felt the bed dip beside him as she sat. “How you feel kind of thing then?”
She was giving him an out, that much he could tell, but what he couldn’t tell was why. Because she didn’t feel the same? Or because she didn’t really think that he was in love with her?
“How I’m feeling. Kind of how I’ve been feeling for a while now. I don’t want you to freak out, or think that you have say it back. I just want you know that that’s how I’m feeling and it’s kind of a first for me so if you could be, you know, gentle with, you know, my feeling I’d appreciate it.” Wow, he sounded like an idiot.
“Your feeling? You’ve only got the one?” She was laughing now, which was a whole lot better than the soft and quiet acceptance that read more like she was going to flee than she felt comfortable and at ease with the topic at hand.
“Well, just the one particular feeling that I was hoping you’d be gentle with.” He smiled as he watched her hand reach out and her fingers intertwine with his.
“I think I’ll be gentle with all your feelings any way, just in case.” She whispered as she leaned forward to kiss him. His free hand went up to hold her face as they lay back on the bed.
~*~
Mac was dressed again, but he was taking his time with it. He didn’t really see the big hurry in getting dressed again after that. She had to repack her suitcase since it had gotten dumped off the bed a few minutes in. She had this quick and efficient way of packing, her hands moving quickly as she folded and tucked each item into the bag, making sure it all fit perfectly. Like she was playing a real life game of Tetris.
“You’re cute when you pack.” He told her, dragging his jeans up and buttoning them as he leaned down to kiss the lovely patch of skin exposed by the open collar of her top, where her shoulder met her neck.
“I bet you would be too, if only I could see you do it.” She commented, but he’d heard the sigh she’d let slip out when his lips had touched her skin.
“Already done, my bag is downstairs sitting by the front door. Wallace is going to take it since your car doesn’t hold all that much.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and continued to kiss the back of her neck as she tried to ignore him and continue her own packing.
“And by pack you mean…”
“Shoved as much as humanly possible into my bag as quickly as I could before I zipped it up and threw it down two flights of stairs? Yeah, that basically it.” He gave her neck one last, loud smacking kiss before releasing her and slipping back into his t-shirt. “I’m going to go down and check who’s riding with who. I’ll be back to get your bags in a couple minutes, kay?”
“Okay.” She leaned up for one last kiss as he passed her on his way to the door. Suddenly he understood what the big draw of these huge and intense relationships were. Why Logan never seemed to mind that he was whipped. Why, no matter what she did to him, Logan was always so willing to make another go of it with Ronnie.
The casualness of just being with her in a room, even if she’s just packing. The ease of it, the just being able to know that he could call her up and she’d generally be happy just to hear from him. The fact that he genuinely got excited just at hearing her voice, or listening to her laugh. The fact that the sleeping with her part was just a perk and not the entire point of the relationship, that even that was more intense than it had ever been. Maybe Logan and Duncan and all those other whipped guys in relationships were really on to something. It had taken way too long to figure this out. Way too many years kowtowing to Madison and not enough time looking for one that was actually nice to him, that wanted him around.
“Hey Wallace, you still gonna take my bag with you in your car?” Dick called out to Wallace as he and Piz headed out the front door.
“Sure, man. Load it up.” Wallace grinned and Dick watched Piz wince at the volume.
Dick fell into step beside Wallace before he continued talking. “Lilly heading out with you too?”
“No, she’s not done packing yet. In fact, I don’t even think she’s started yet.” Wallace complained. “Good luck getting her out sometime this century.”
Dick laughed, it was probably the one thing about Lilly that would never change. Her inability to be on time for anything. In high school she had said it was just being fashionably late, but he was pretty sure it was because she didn’t know how to tell time. He heard Parker yell shotgun and the Little Lilly echo her. “We’ll hit the road soon, dude. Mac is trying to get a hold of Weevil and find out where he is.”
“Okay, I made sure all of Weevil’s stuff was packed up, although it didn’t look like he ever really took anything out of that bag of his.” Wallace said as he passing Piz so he could open the trunk for Duncan and Parker.
“You okay man?” Dick asked looking a Piz, who looked rather pale for someone that was currently living in California.
“Yeah, just dying a little but Wallace and Parker assure me that I’ll be fine.” Piz told him and Dick burst in a laugh. It’d been so long since a hangover actually affect him… or any of his friends.
“You don’t really drink much, do you?” Dick asked, grinning.
“Not really. I wasn’t much of a partier in high school and I didn’t have much opportunity to do so last year.” Piz explained.
“Well, it takes practice to be able to work through a hangover. You should have some beer this morning.” Dick suggested as they neared the car and Piz pulled a face.
“I want to get rid of the hangover, Dick, not be in a perpetual state of drunk.”
“It doesn’t get you drunk, it just helps a bit. Hair of the dog and all that.” Dick told him as he stopped alongside the small group that had gathered around the back of Wallace’s car.
“It’s true, hair of the dog is one of the best hangover cures if you do it right when you get up. At this point it’ll probably just make you feel sicker, though.” Duncan agreed.
Piz nodded and disappeared into the car.
“So we’ll probably all be in town around six or seven tonight. How about we meet up for pizza around eight? We’ll all switch bags and everything then.” Dick suggested.
“You think you’ll be in by then?” Wallace asked.
“Sure. Mac will finish packing and then go put a fire under Lilly’s ass if she has to.” Dick glanced into the car. Parker was setting herself up in the passenger seat, drinks in their holders and snacks within reaching distance. Piz was laying in the backseat, still looking pale and Dick was suddenly struck with the realization that when people say they look like death warmed up they’re talking about looking the way Piz looked right now. That had to suck. “But we still have to find Paco so while we should be there by seven, we’ll make it eight just in case.”
“Okay, call if you’re any later and I’ll just drop the bag off at the Grande after we finish out pizza.” Wallace agreed as he slid into the driver seat of his car and started it. Dick turned and jogged to catch up with Duncan and Little Lilly.
“So man, you think you can take some of your sister’s luggage back with you on Wednesday? Because I saw how much crap she pulled out of Logan’s car and that’s not all going to fit in Mac’s car.”
~*~
“No way, they left without Lilly?” Mac asked.
“Yeah, she wasn’t ready. Wallace said she hadn’t even started packing yet but when I stopped by her room on my way up she was packing, looked to be about half way done. Duncan said he’d take some of her luggage with him since she brought so much and you have limited trunk space.” Dick bit into the apple that he’d grabbed from the kitchen on his way up.
“You realize that that leaves us with Lilly and Weevil in a tiny VW Bug? Right? Please tell me you’ve thought of a solution to that problem because I’m drawing a blank.” Mac asked as she picked her phone up and dialed Weevil’s cell phone again. “Damn, he’s still not picking up and already one.”
“I don’t have a solution, but I’m sure they’re not going to do anything in the car. They’ll probably bitch a little and then quiet down and do whatever it is that people do on long car rides.” Dick assured her.
~*~
“Could you just stay on your side? Seriously?” Lilly yelled from the backseat. Ten minutes. That’s how long into the trip she resisted pitching a fit and she’s been at it ever since.
“What is it that you said about them not doing anything? Bitch a little and be quiet?” Mac commented to him, her voice loud enough so he could hear her and low enough that the three year olds in the backseat couldn’t.
“Well, I thought it’d be better than this. They’ve been at it for the past twenty minutes.” Dick mumbled as he felt Lilly kick his seat for the one billionth time. “Could you stop that?”
“No, actually I can’t because Weevil won’t stay on his side and keeps inching over to take up all my space!” Lilly shouted from the backseat and Dick could practically feel her heat vision boring into the back of his head.
“If you two don’t-” Mac started, interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. He could hear Lilly huff and then felt as her knee pressed into his lower back. The seat did basically nothing to shield him from her knees and feet back there.
“Hello? Parker?” Mac answered and then waited a beat. “Yeah, they’re both in her with us.” Pause. “Yep, both in the backseat and let me tell you, they’re just so pleasant today.” Mac was really good at sarcasm. “No, we’ve been on the road for about 30 minutes.” Has it really only been 30 minutes? “Okay, but keep your phones on because if things keep up like this we may have to arrange some sort of switch.”
“Mac, could you tell him to stay on his own side? Please because he’s not and I can’t get any further from the smell.” Lilly whined from the backseat and Dick had a hard time not rolling his eyes at the comment.
“Well, I didn’t get to shower and change and spend an hour making myself look as if I’m hitting road trip runway so you’ll have to excuse the fact that I’m in day old clothes.” Weevil’s voice was low and starting to sound a little on the dangerous side.
“I’m not sure but I think, I think, even trashy townie girls have washers and showers… Mac, have you heard anything about that? Or is that just a rumor? I don’t wouldn’t know, I’ve been a little out of the loop lately.” Mac was good at the sarcasm but apparently not as good as Lilly.
Mac heaved a big, exaggerated sigh and turned in her seat to answer… or to knock Lilly and Weevil’s heads together in an attempt to shut them up. He’d never know because she never got the chance.
“You know I offered to change into clean clothes, but you threw a fit about stopping the car. I don’t know what your problem is, you either hate it enough to let me change or you’re fine with it and shut up!” Weevil turned to yell at Lilly and this time his knee actually did cross the imaginary line that she had drawn somewhere around mile marker twelve.
“See?! He’s on my freaking side. He’s crowding me and I need some fresh air because he wreaks of stale beer and bimbo and I can’t get it because he keeps getting closer and closer.” Lilly practically shrieked from the backseat and Dick felt his shoulders inching up towards his ears, the tension building.
“Oh my god! What exactly is your problem? The stale beer or my supposed wreaking of bimbo? Or is it that you want me closer and don’t know how to say it?” Weevil shouted back and Dick heard his seat belt release and watched in the review mirror as he slid across the four inches of backseat that separated them and put his face as close to Lilly’s as he could without touching her. Lilly practically came off her seat in indignation.
“Get away from me!” She yelled as she shoved him as hard as she could. Dick swerved slightly as her knees pushed into his back and Weevil was shoved not back into his own seat but between his and Mac’s.
“Oh my god.” Mac groaned as Lilly continued.
“Don’t touch me!”
“I’m not touching you!”
“But you were, you’re invading my personal space and you need to stop!”
“Actually if you both don’t stop…” Dick trailed off as felt his reign over his temper straining to the point of breaking.
“I never freaking touched you Lilly and will you stop shouting in my ear!” Weevil yelled back as if Dick had never spoken. That was it. The last straw.
“I swear if I have to pull this car over you’ll both be walking back home and you’ll have all the space you want!” He yelled and this was a nightmare. He sounded like his parents… Strike that, he didn’t sound like his parents because they’d never taken a road trip, they’d always gone in planes. He sounded like all those sitcom dads he’d watched while growing up, wondering why his dad wasn’t like that. Now he knew why, because it was a freaking nightmare. But at least there was a moment of blessed silence from the backseat.
“Mac?”
“Yeah?” He could hear the barely restrained laughter in her voice.
“Call Parker, tell them we’re going to have to meet up with them and switch because this can’t be the next six hours of my life.” She already had her phone out. Damn, he loved this girl.
36: Veronica
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,782
Characters/Pairings: Dick, Mac, Lilly I, Weevil, Parker, Piz, Duncan and Wallace (mentions of: Logan, Veronica, OFC and Lilly II)
Spoilers: All episodes (from 1.01: Pilot to 3.20: The Bitch Is Back. Just to be sure) Although this is obviously AU and there are obviously going to be some alterations to events and especially some in the last couple of episodes.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Literally, nothing. So don’t sue me over this, because you won’t get anything. It all belongs to Rob Thomas and if I had owned it when it was still on the last season would have been way different.
1: Awake/ 2: Homecoming/ 3: Forgive/ 4: Arrival/ 5: Reconnect/ 6: Belong/ 7: Bets/ 8: Fight/ 9: Battle/ 10: Retreat/ 11: Push/ 12: Sound/ 13: Potential/ 14: More/ 15: Storytime/ 16: Understanding/ 17: Piggyback/ 18: Sinners/ 19: Drama/ 20: Dinner/ 21: Armor/ 22:Mingle/ 23:Bubbly/ 24:Awkward/ 25:Closing/ 26: Drunks/ 27: Logan/ 28: Wallace/ 29: Mac/ 30: Parker/ 31: Duncan/ 32: Lilly/33: Piz/ 34: Weevil
The Return
35
Dick
~The Nightmare~
“Are you okay?” Dick asked as Mac entered the bedroom and started packing up her bags.
“Yeah, why?” She responded with a smile, and the knot in his stomach seemed to ease a bit.
“You just seemed so nervous this morning, I wanted to make sure that you were okay. Get everything worked out with Veronica?” He didn’t want her to feel like he was pressuring her in any way, but he had to know if they were okay. He had to know.
“I’m fine, just a little freak out that’s all. No big.” She smiled up at him, relaxed and happy in the moment. He hated to ruin it.
“Over the fact that we finally slept together or because I said that I love you?” And the knot was back, full force now, as he watched her freeze. Her hands caught in mid air as she was folding one of her tops at the time. It was just a small moment, one frozen moment where he saw the thoughts whirl in her head and she came to a conclusion, a course of action and continued with her task.
“I just… I mean, I assumed that since it was during that it was a, you know, momentary I-love-you-for-having-sex-with-me kind of thing.” Now her eyes were averted and she wasn’t looking at him and the knot was starting to ice up and make his entire body feel cold.
“I do kind of love that you’re having sex with me now, but it’s not something I normally tell people. Especially the people that I have sex with.” He explained, sitting down on the bed and looking at his hands. He didn’t want to watch the next decision she came to.
“So it was more of a…” she hesitated and he felt the bed dip beside him as she sat. “How you feel kind of thing then?”
She was giving him an out, that much he could tell, but what he couldn’t tell was why. Because she didn’t feel the same? Or because she didn’t really think that he was in love with her?
“How I’m feeling. Kind of how I’ve been feeling for a while now. I don’t want you to freak out, or think that you have say it back. I just want you know that that’s how I’m feeling and it’s kind of a first for me so if you could be, you know, gentle with, you know, my feeling I’d appreciate it.” Wow, he sounded like an idiot.
“Your feeling? You’ve only got the one?” She was laughing now, which was a whole lot better than the soft and quiet acceptance that read more like she was going to flee than she felt comfortable and at ease with the topic at hand.
“Well, just the one particular feeling that I was hoping you’d be gentle with.” He smiled as he watched her hand reach out and her fingers intertwine with his.
“I think I’ll be gentle with all your feelings any way, just in case.” She whispered as she leaned forward to kiss him. His free hand went up to hold her face as they lay back on the bed.
~*~
Mac was dressed again, but he was taking his time with it. He didn’t really see the big hurry in getting dressed again after that. She had to repack her suitcase since it had gotten dumped off the bed a few minutes in. She had this quick and efficient way of packing, her hands moving quickly as she folded and tucked each item into the bag, making sure it all fit perfectly. Like she was playing a real life game of Tetris.
“You’re cute when you pack.” He told her, dragging his jeans up and buttoning them as he leaned down to kiss the lovely patch of skin exposed by the open collar of her top, where her shoulder met her neck.
“I bet you would be too, if only I could see you do it.” She commented, but he’d heard the sigh she’d let slip out when his lips had touched her skin.
“Already done, my bag is downstairs sitting by the front door. Wallace is going to take it since your car doesn’t hold all that much.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and continued to kiss the back of her neck as she tried to ignore him and continue her own packing.
“And by pack you mean…”
“Shoved as much as humanly possible into my bag as quickly as I could before I zipped it up and threw it down two flights of stairs? Yeah, that basically it.” He gave her neck one last, loud smacking kiss before releasing her and slipping back into his t-shirt. “I’m going to go down and check who’s riding with who. I’ll be back to get your bags in a couple minutes, kay?”
“Okay.” She leaned up for one last kiss as he passed her on his way to the door. Suddenly he understood what the big draw of these huge and intense relationships were. Why Logan never seemed to mind that he was whipped. Why, no matter what she did to him, Logan was always so willing to make another go of it with Ronnie.
The casualness of just being with her in a room, even if she’s just packing. The ease of it, the just being able to know that he could call her up and she’d generally be happy just to hear from him. The fact that he genuinely got excited just at hearing her voice, or listening to her laugh. The fact that the sleeping with her part was just a perk and not the entire point of the relationship, that even that was more intense than it had ever been. Maybe Logan and Duncan and all those other whipped guys in relationships were really on to something. It had taken way too long to figure this out. Way too many years kowtowing to Madison and not enough time looking for one that was actually nice to him, that wanted him around.
“Hey Wallace, you still gonna take my bag with you in your car?” Dick called out to Wallace as he and Piz headed out the front door.
“Sure, man. Load it up.” Wallace grinned and Dick watched Piz wince at the volume.
Dick fell into step beside Wallace before he continued talking. “Lilly heading out with you too?”
“No, she’s not done packing yet. In fact, I don’t even think she’s started yet.” Wallace complained. “Good luck getting her out sometime this century.”
Dick laughed, it was probably the one thing about Lilly that would never change. Her inability to be on time for anything. In high school she had said it was just being fashionably late, but he was pretty sure it was because she didn’t know how to tell time. He heard Parker yell shotgun and the Little Lilly echo her. “We’ll hit the road soon, dude. Mac is trying to get a hold of Weevil and find out where he is.”
“Okay, I made sure all of Weevil’s stuff was packed up, although it didn’t look like he ever really took anything out of that bag of his.” Wallace said as he passing Piz so he could open the trunk for Duncan and Parker.
“You okay man?” Dick asked looking a Piz, who looked rather pale for someone that was currently living in California.
“Yeah, just dying a little but Wallace and Parker assure me that I’ll be fine.” Piz told him and Dick burst in a laugh. It’d been so long since a hangover actually affect him… or any of his friends.
“You don’t really drink much, do you?” Dick asked, grinning.
“Not really. I wasn’t much of a partier in high school and I didn’t have much opportunity to do so last year.” Piz explained.
“Well, it takes practice to be able to work through a hangover. You should have some beer this morning.” Dick suggested as they neared the car and Piz pulled a face.
“I want to get rid of the hangover, Dick, not be in a perpetual state of drunk.”
“It doesn’t get you drunk, it just helps a bit. Hair of the dog and all that.” Dick told him as he stopped alongside the small group that had gathered around the back of Wallace’s car.
“It’s true, hair of the dog is one of the best hangover cures if you do it right when you get up. At this point it’ll probably just make you feel sicker, though.” Duncan agreed.
Piz nodded and disappeared into the car.
“So we’ll probably all be in town around six or seven tonight. How about we meet up for pizza around eight? We’ll all switch bags and everything then.” Dick suggested.
“You think you’ll be in by then?” Wallace asked.
“Sure. Mac will finish packing and then go put a fire under Lilly’s ass if she has to.” Dick glanced into the car. Parker was setting herself up in the passenger seat, drinks in their holders and snacks within reaching distance. Piz was laying in the backseat, still looking pale and Dick was suddenly struck with the realization that when people say they look like death warmed up they’re talking about looking the way Piz looked right now. That had to suck. “But we still have to find Paco so while we should be there by seven, we’ll make it eight just in case.”
“Okay, call if you’re any later and I’ll just drop the bag off at the Grande after we finish out pizza.” Wallace agreed as he slid into the driver seat of his car and started it. Dick turned and jogged to catch up with Duncan and Little Lilly.
“So man, you think you can take some of your sister’s luggage back with you on Wednesday? Because I saw how much crap she pulled out of Logan’s car and that’s not all going to fit in Mac’s car.”
~*~
“No way, they left without Lilly?” Mac asked.
“Yeah, she wasn’t ready. Wallace said she hadn’t even started packing yet but when I stopped by her room on my way up she was packing, looked to be about half way done. Duncan said he’d take some of her luggage with him since she brought so much and you have limited trunk space.” Dick bit into the apple that he’d grabbed from the kitchen on his way up.
“You realize that that leaves us with Lilly and Weevil in a tiny VW Bug? Right? Please tell me you’ve thought of a solution to that problem because I’m drawing a blank.” Mac asked as she picked her phone up and dialed Weevil’s cell phone again. “Damn, he’s still not picking up and already one.”
“I don’t have a solution, but I’m sure they’re not going to do anything in the car. They’ll probably bitch a little and then quiet down and do whatever it is that people do on long car rides.” Dick assured her.
~*~
“Could you just stay on your side? Seriously?” Lilly yelled from the backseat. Ten minutes. That’s how long into the trip she resisted pitching a fit and she’s been at it ever since.
“What is it that you said about them not doing anything? Bitch a little and be quiet?” Mac commented to him, her voice loud enough so he could hear her and low enough that the three year olds in the backseat couldn’t.
“Well, I thought it’d be better than this. They’ve been at it for the past twenty minutes.” Dick mumbled as he felt Lilly kick his seat for the one billionth time. “Could you stop that?”
“No, actually I can’t because Weevil won’t stay on his side and keeps inching over to take up all my space!” Lilly shouted from the backseat and Dick could practically feel her heat vision boring into the back of his head.
“If you two don’t-” Mac started, interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. He could hear Lilly huff and then felt as her knee pressed into his lower back. The seat did basically nothing to shield him from her knees and feet back there.
“Hello? Parker?” Mac answered and then waited a beat. “Yeah, they’re both in her with us.” Pause. “Yep, both in the backseat and let me tell you, they’re just so pleasant today.” Mac was really good at sarcasm. “No, we’ve been on the road for about 30 minutes.” Has it really only been 30 minutes? “Okay, but keep your phones on because if things keep up like this we may have to arrange some sort of switch.”
“Mac, could you tell him to stay on his own side? Please because he’s not and I can’t get any further from the smell.” Lilly whined from the backseat and Dick had a hard time not rolling his eyes at the comment.
“Well, I didn’t get to shower and change and spend an hour making myself look as if I’m hitting road trip runway so you’ll have to excuse the fact that I’m in day old clothes.” Weevil’s voice was low and starting to sound a little on the dangerous side.
“I’m not sure but I think, I think, even trashy townie girls have washers and showers… Mac, have you heard anything about that? Or is that just a rumor? I don’t wouldn’t know, I’ve been a little out of the loop lately.” Mac was good at the sarcasm but apparently not as good as Lilly.
Mac heaved a big, exaggerated sigh and turned in her seat to answer… or to knock Lilly and Weevil’s heads together in an attempt to shut them up. He’d never know because she never got the chance.
“You know I offered to change into clean clothes, but you threw a fit about stopping the car. I don’t know what your problem is, you either hate it enough to let me change or you’re fine with it and shut up!” Weevil turned to yell at Lilly and this time his knee actually did cross the imaginary line that she had drawn somewhere around mile marker twelve.
“See?! He’s on my freaking side. He’s crowding me and I need some fresh air because he wreaks of stale beer and bimbo and I can’t get it because he keeps getting closer and closer.” Lilly practically shrieked from the backseat and Dick felt his shoulders inching up towards his ears, the tension building.
“Oh my god! What exactly is your problem? The stale beer or my supposed wreaking of bimbo? Or is it that you want me closer and don’t know how to say it?” Weevil shouted back and Dick heard his seat belt release and watched in the review mirror as he slid across the four inches of backseat that separated them and put his face as close to Lilly’s as he could without touching her. Lilly practically came off her seat in indignation.
“Get away from me!” She yelled as she shoved him as hard as she could. Dick swerved slightly as her knees pushed into his back and Weevil was shoved not back into his own seat but between his and Mac’s.
“Oh my god.” Mac groaned as Lilly continued.
“Don’t touch me!”
“I’m not touching you!”
“But you were, you’re invading my personal space and you need to stop!”
“Actually if you both don’t stop…” Dick trailed off as felt his reign over his temper straining to the point of breaking.
“I never freaking touched you Lilly and will you stop shouting in my ear!” Weevil yelled back as if Dick had never spoken. That was it. The last straw.
“I swear if I have to pull this car over you’ll both be walking back home and you’ll have all the space you want!” He yelled and this was a nightmare. He sounded like his parents… Strike that, he didn’t sound like his parents because they’d never taken a road trip, they’d always gone in planes. He sounded like all those sitcom dads he’d watched while growing up, wondering why his dad wasn’t like that. Now he knew why, because it was a freaking nightmare. But at least there was a moment of blessed silence from the backseat.
“Mac?”
“Yeah?” He could hear the barely restrained laughter in her voice.
“Call Parker, tell them we’re going to have to meet up with them and switch because this can’t be the next six hours of my life.” She already had her phone out. Damn, he loved this girl.
36: Veronica