FIC | 014 nothing happens accidentally
Title: Nothing Happens Accidentally
Fandom: Veronica Mars
Characters/Pairings: Season 2 general cast; Logan/Veronica
Spoilers: The entirety of Season 2
Rating: Not more than PG-13, I think
Wordcount: 3330 this chapter!
Summary: It hits Veronica right at home that normalcy is so, so underrated now: This is Neptune. Nothing happens accidentally. A Season Two rewriting project that focuses on the prospect of S2 Logan/V. Thank you, crazybohemian18!


NOTHING HAPPENS ACCIDENTALLY
C. 2006

--
In her dimly lit living room, Veronica can’t decide if things will ever be fine for any of them. If she had a dollar for each time she had deluded herself into thinking that things just might work out the way she wanted them to, she might just have enough to get herself a decent education at Stanford.

But Stanford is the furthest thing from her mind. Now, sitting in front of a forlorn-looking Logan with her own legs crossed, she can’t bear to start talking. Logan looks at her expectantly; something indescribable shining in his eyes.

That look haunts her.

Lacing her fingers with his, she takes a deep breath, looks him in the eyes, and starts to speak.

“I keep thinking that if I stuck by you… That you’d get past this –” she pauses for a while, searching for a right word to use. “This phase, and you’d be you again.”

He is taken aback. He swallows hard, that look in his eyes transforms to disbelief as he utters, “Are you breaking up with me?” She knows she needs to say Yes, yes, it hurts me but I have to, but she can’t. Should say I can’t stay with you, things can’t get back to normal, someone’s gonna get killed, but none of these comes out; instead she shakes her head and grips his hands.

“No, I’m not breaking up with you. But you can’t cruise around at night hatching plans, refusing to let things get back to normal,” she tells him, slightly surprised at the tears welling up in his eyes. Still, she decides that this must get drilled into his brain, and continues. “Someone’s going to get killed, Logan – ”

“Someone already has,” he interrupts in a scarce whisper, and Veronica thinks she has never seen him quite as broken. She gives him a small, sad smile as he looks down, the first of the tears falling. She doesn’t know how to react than to grip his hands, still. She doesn’t finish her sentence for him.

Someone’s going to get killed, Logan, and I’m scared to death that it’ll be you.

She moves closer to him and holds him, her actions unsure to even herself, and stays in that position until her father enters. Her father looks at them, and something sad glazes across his face. Veronica isn’t sure what that is, even after he nods at her affirmatively and leaves the two of them in the living room.

She pries Logan away gently, and he cracks a smile half-heartedly at her as he lifts his head. There is something surreal about this situation.

Logan looks at her, and then just simply, plainly, he apologizes.

“I’m sorry.”

She doesn’t need him to tell her what he’s sorry for because she hears those words clearly through the silence.

**

“So where’s your boyfriend?” Wallace asks, a little smirk on his face. “I fully expected to be treated to Round Number 87 of your PDA at lunch today.”

Veronica raises her eyebrow, her lips pursed as she shrugs a little.

“Only 87? I’m disappointed, Wallace,” she cracks a grin at him. “He’s skipping the first few days of school. Says he doesn’t want to ‘partake in the nitty-gritty of hassling around’,” she tells him, giving air quotes with her hands. Then, with a not-quite-there sigh, she adds. “And who can blame him, really?”

“Well, I ain’t gonna say anything ‘bout that,” her best friend croons out as he stands up, and she laughs a little. “I’ll catch ya later.”

She nods, still smiling. As she packs her things into her bag and stands up, someone swings her around. She manages not to squeal out as a big grin breaks on her face, as said someone plants a big kiss on her lips.

“Logan! What are you doing here?” she says softly, and he smiles fondly at her, pulls back from her and brushes a few strands of hair off her forehead.

“And here I thought, by golly, she’d be pleased to see me.”

She swats at his chest playfully and asks, adopting a serious tone. “I thought you said you weren’t going to come to school today.”

He shrugs, picking up her bag for her and grabs her hand into his as they start walking away from all the yellow tables and benches.

“I realized I’d be sad and lonely playing Kingdom Hearts all by myself in my big house with nobody by my side,” he starts, mumbling a little as he always does, and Veronica smiles a little. “Besides, it’s not like there’s a lot for me to do whether or not I come to school. The plus point of coming here, of course, is that I’ll be able to share the memories of our first day of senior year together.”

He waggles his eyebrows faux-suggestively and she giggles.

“Well, tough luck, big guy,” she stops walking as she spots Kelvin Moore sitting at his table. “I’ve got work to do.”

He looks at his watch, and asks; a genuinely confused look hangs on his face.

“Your shift at Java the Hut starts at 12 today?”

“Wallace got nailed for doing drugs –”

“Wallace doesn’t do drugs,” he says it matter-of-factly, and she nods once in agreement. “Oh, so I take it you’re going to do your whole spy thing and, what do you call it,” he mocks her good-naturedly and gently, “Alter his files and find out who did this while trying not to get that on your own file?”

“Exactly that,” she dons her most serious look, trying to keep her straight face. She wouldn’t classify the combined unit of Logan and Wallace as BFF – yet, she adds – but there are certain perks to being the boyfriend, and best friend of Veronica Mars. Such as… Movie Night. Or Arcade Night. Together.

Ever since that night, Logan doesn’t spend all his time with the Casablancas, and Veronica is more than glad for that. Instead, he had promptly moved his Xbox over to her house, plugged it into her television (‘No offence, Veronica, but your television is the size of my Mom’s, circa 1980.’ Glare. Yelp. ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Stop fucking poking me already!’) and despite Veronica’s pleas for the both of them to hang out somewhere other than her house, he had complied only after she kicked his ass in Soul Calibur.

“I’ll go by your house later, then,” he smiles a lopsided grin, and gives her a quick peck on the cheek. She reaches out to take her bag from his hand, and watches his retreating back view as he walks towards the building. Sighing a little as she turns and plops down in front of Kelvin, she starts. “Kelvin, I’ve had a change of heart.”

**

“Honestly, are we seriously going to board the bus to go to Shark Field? I can think of at least ten ways we can actually enjoy ourselves,” he teases, pressing a quick, chaste kiss to her lips and she pushes him away, laughing gaily. She is about to hit him back with a remark of her own when she spots a tall, brooding Duncan boarding the big yellow school bus, and her attention is instantly dispersed.

Logan notices, of course, but keeps his mouth shut. The last time that they had discussed Duncan, it had turned ugly when Logan tried to (jokingly) convince Veronica that Duncan could be classified as a stalker with intentions, but she would have none of it. Why, she had argued, would Duncan be stalking her? Logan told her the reason he believes: that Duncan still has feelings for her; that that is also why he broke up with Meg.

His eyes trail as Meg boards the bus. As she gives Veronica the chilliest glance, Logan is suddenly glad he is not a girl. He glances at Veronica, who didn’t miss the subtext written all over Meg’s face, and grips her shoulder slightly as they board the bus.

Logan can’t help but think that the situation feels funny somehow; that the burning question of the day is why Meg is behaving this way towards Veronica, who has by far done nothing wrong. Duncan’s breakup with Meg became hot topic of discussion, even surpassing the chatter of ‘So do you think Logan like, killed that biker guy?’ Instead, it turned into ‘Oh my gosh! Did you hear what Duncan did to Meg? He like, completely went nuts during English class on the last day of school and screamed at her and they broke up!’

Logan didn’t like it that his best friend – or at least, former best friend – became the pinnacle of discussion, but a little part of the selfish him is glad for it.

**

Somehow Veronica manages to realize that Duncan’s eyes aren’t locked on her or Logan; instead, he is engaged in deep conversation with Meg. Scratch that: make that deep, intense and emotional conversation with Meg. She doesn’t know what they’re talking about, but by the way the both of them are gesticulating, she figures that even if it is of paramount importance to the both of them, it really is none of her business to even care.

“You know, I never truly played baseball,” Logan interrupts her flow of thoughts, and she is appreciative of that. She turns her attention to him and gives him a small grin, unlinking her left arm so that he can take the food from the buffet table for the both of them.

“You never played Little League either?” she asks, just out of curiosity, even if she already knew the answer to this redundant question. Logan smiles at her and shakes his head emphatically, says nope, and lets the end consonant pop at his mouth. She glances at the amount of food Logan is piling on to their plate, and cocks her eyebrow at him.

“Well, then I must say, if you’re going to be eating all of these, you had better pick up a sport to burn off all the fats, or I will be forced to find another trophy boyfriend to take out in public,” she jokes, but something wild flashes in Logan’s eyes just for a split second that makes her wonder if she has taken the joke a little too far. She’s glad to see those eyes twinkle though, and he makes a big sweeping gesture with his free hand, puffing his chest out a little.

“I have plenty of energy to burn if you’ll allow me,” he tells her, and Veronica uses her left hand to push his head down as she realizes what he’s implying, laughing as she does so. He grins boyishly at her, baring all teeth, and then his eyes catch hold of a tall black man standing just right opposite to them, separated only by the plastic barrier. “And, as much as I’ve never played baseball, I know a good game and a good player when I see one. Look.”

He gestures to Terrence Cook and Woody Goodman, who is evidently placatory to the other man. Veronica finds that weird, but like how she handles most things now, she chooses to ignore it. They turn their backs to the table when Mr. Goodman introduces the whole class to Terrence Cook, and then Dick comes bounding after.

“Hey, we’re not taking that stank-ass bus back to Neptune. My dad’s sending a limo. Will you and your girlfriend, whose wit I find enchanting –” she rolls her eyes at him but he remains unfazed, and continues without a hitch. “Like to take the trip back in style? Ms Dumbass –” Another eye roll. “Said it was cool.”

“Smelled like something died in there,” Logan notes, and Veronica just knows that he is going to take up the offer, and looks at him balefully. He wrinkles his nose at her and turns back to Dick, about to say no when she speaks up reluctantly.

“Fine, we’ll be there.”

“Off to the limo we shall go!” Logan says cheerily to Dick.

Dick just throws him a weird look.

“Dude, I don’t even know what you’re thinking anymore,” he tells him, and even manages to sound a little disgusted. Shaking his head appearing to be almost disheartened, he just gives a little wave to the both of them, and then walks over to where Gia Goodman is.

Logan just gives Veronica a ‘What can you do?’ look, and she is reminded yet again how much he’s changed. At least it’s a change for the better, she muses, and she turns her head just in time to see Duncan back himself away rather forcefully from Meg; his face flushed and if she isn’t mistaken, he’s looking a little pale too. Meg is visibly upset, and as she catches hold of Veronica’s gaze she looks away painfully and Veronica realizes this isn’t just any simple thing. She watches as Meg trudges her feet towards the bus line (she wonders why she isn’t getting on the limo, but she thinks it’s probably got to do with, if not Duncan, then her).

“I’m going to try and talk to Meg, all right? You go ride in the limo because you can’t stand the smell of the bus, you privileged rich kid,” she teases, and he laughs softly, plants a little kiss on her forehead, and skips off to where Cassidy is. She watches as he goes, and then taking a deep breath she follows where the non-privileged, non-limo riding crowd are forming a line at.

**

The conversation – if you will even call that one – is obviously fruitless as Meg completely clams up and only makes snide remarks to Veronica; eye rolls and exasperated sighs getting more and more obvious as she gets listless with every second that passes, and Veronica just gives up momentarily trying to find out what is going on. At this rate, she figures, she can possibly work out why Samson loved Delilah first.

The thing that frustrates her most is that she has no idea why Meg is being so hostile towards her. Sure, only God knows what was going through Duncan’s mind when he broke up with Meg, but she is willing to bet that perhaps learning they weren’t half-siblings possibly aided that cause. But besides that, she is lost to all reason. Veronica doesn’t want to lose whatever little of the friendship there is left with Meg, but she doesn’t know where to start mending the holes that are invisible to her.

Sighing a little she lays her head on the back of the seat, the bus bumping along the roads. It slowly backs up towards the berth and she waits until everybody has alighted before she stands up, and as she tightens her grip on the strap of her bag she walks down the steps of the bus slowly, hoping that things will somehow magically work themselves out.

**

Veronica is positive she heard and saw Lilly calling from behind that turn, but that’s got to be lunacy, right? So maybe she can go on Oprah and tell the whole world she can see dead people now.

Taking in a deep breath she turns the corner, and then rolls her eyes a little when she realizes all there is is Weevil.

“What are you doing here, huh?” he taunts. “Shouldn’t you be running for Homecoming Queen or something?”

“We’re safe standing here, right? You’re not going to fucking shoot at us, are you?”

She spins around in shock at the sudden inclusion of his voice from behind her. Logan looks at her and then at Weevil with something obviously shining in his eyes (and she thinks she’s seen that look before, even though she can’t recall when or where, or what) but all she does now is plead that he doesn’t do anything stupid that might jeopardize himself. He walks towards her and then holds his hand out, and as she laces her fingers into his, Weevil gives a little laugh, and shakes his head.

“You say another word and I will shoot your brains out.”

It is but a few seconds of silence, but Veronica feels like an eternity has passed with the two males glaring at each other; herself feeling Logan’s urge to just go forward nearer to Weevil but she pulls him back. It is one thing to be defensive, another to be plain stupid.

“Haven’t you already tried that,” Logan mutters, not even bothering to present the statement as a question. In that split moment Veronica thinks Weevil’s reaction expresses shock, but she seriously isn’t going to go in on a tirade about the PCHers and their unlawful doings. Instead, she tugs at Logan’s arm and beckons him to go.

“I’m not going to let you get away with Felix’s murder just like that, crackerjack,” Weevil’s tone becomes low and threatening and she glances at him disbelievingly; this time she is the one unable to stop herself from going towards him.

“Six guys jumped Logan. They broke his ribs. Yet somehow he managed to wrestle one of their knives away and stab Felix?” she starts, and to her surprise it is Logan who is trying to get her to stop now, but she continues anyway, wanting very much to instill some common sense in Weevil. “You were out cold. You didn’t see anything.”

Weevil’s eyes flash angrily as he steps even closer to her, almost intruding on her personal space. “Well, I guess Felix killed himself.”

“Someone stabbed him, but it wasn’t me.” Now it is Logan’s turn to speak up and his tone is calculating and cold, and as he speaks he pulls Veronica physically further away from Weevil as if he’s afraid of him violating her safety. Weevil scoffs, shakes his head again, and places his helmet on before swinging his leg up his bike. He’s smirking but Veronica doesn’t know why until she hears the sound of the school bus behind her starting up and going off without her.

Logan almost – almost – forcibly drags Veronica into the direction where the limo is parked and then as he realizes he is doing that he drops his grip and the look on his face hardens, his gaze towards something beyond the blue horizon. As the door opens from the inside he looks down and she purses her lips, but slides into the limo nonetheless – it’s not as if she has another transport mode she can choose from anyway. He follows her in, and through the trip even though Dick’s making the world’s stupidest jokes and the most inappropriate remarks and Cassidy strangely laughing at all of them; the girls are laughing amongst themselves (it’s something about a college boy mooning them) and even Duncan smiles a little, she's wondering whether she made the right choice to stick by Logan through these testing times, and then berating herself for doing so.

She decides from now on she’s going to be Veronica Mars, normal girl working a normal job with normal friends and a loving boyfriend, and she’s going to choose to ignore everything else going on in the crazy, out-of-normal life. This way she doesn’t have to feel guilty about anything, and she finds the thought strangely comforting for a moment before laughing at herself for being silly. Logan wraps his left arm around her and she even lets her head rest on his shoulder.

Five minutes later, when she first spots the white fumes through the blue tinted windows of the limo, she thinks nothing of it. Yet when the limo-riding kids spill out of it she is aghast to find out the harsh truth, and as she gasps she finds Logan clasping her hand tighter than he has ever done before. Gia Goodman exclaims the obvious fact and then it hits Veronica right at home that normalcy is so, so underrated now.

This is Neptune. Nothing happens accidentally.

--

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