A/N: This is how the story ends. I doubt anybody cares anymore, it has been literally 5 years since the first story, but now here is the fifth and final part of the originally planned series. Quite honestly, this fic is not exactly what had planned because everything changed when the Veronica Mars movie landed. This ficlet is in fact a spin on the reunion from the movie, continuing on from the previous four one-shots. If anyone still cares, here's the final Mac/Weevil piece in the puzzle.
Disclaimer: All recognisable characters from Veronica Mars belong to Rob Thomas and other folks who aren't me.
Real Men Love You Long Time
"You sure you wanna do this?" asked Weevil as they arrived outside of the building.
Mac checked her new hairstyle in the rearview and wore a wide smile as she looked across at him from the passenger seat.
"Are you kidding me?" she checked. "As a Neptune High nerd that made good, I deserve my victory lap," she said definitely, putting her hand into his and entwining their fingers. "C'mon, you don't wanna show off your wife to all the losers we used to know?"
Weevil grinned at that. Years on from the day they got married and he never had gotten bored of hearing the word 'wife' come out of Mac's mouth in reference to her role in life. The only thing he liked even better was knowing this woman was the mother of his child. That was definitely something he wanted to tell the whole world and then some, including every single person at this stupid-ass high school reunion.
"Let's go, chica," he said, leaning into to kiss her lips briefly before they left the car, the familiar pet name falling from his mouth so naturally.
They joined hands again when they met on the sidewalk and headed inside together, swinging their arms just a little. The hall was noisy, packed with people greeting each other with hugs and much joy. Mac glanced around, wondering where Wallace and Veronica were. He had messaged to let her know that he had in fact convinced their mutual friend to attend the reunion, even though Veronica had definitely put up a fight. Of course, before they could get through to the main hall, they had to pass the check-in table. Weevil felt Mac's hand clench tighter around his own and he knew why. His wife had long since explained the whole story about her being switched at birth, with none other than the bitch monster from hell that was Madison Sinclair.
"Name?" she questioned as they approached the table.
"Eli Navarro," he said sharply. "And Cindy Mackenzie," he gave her maiden-name since that was what she would be listed as here.
Madison's eyes widened just a little as she realised who she was looking at.
"Wow. The computer nerd and the boy from the wrong side of the tracks," she said. "How very... risqué of you, Cindy."
"Well, what can I say, Madison?" she sighed, pulling Weevil's arm over her shoulder. "Some people can be satisfied by idiot surfers and incompetent sheriffs, but us more discerning ladies? We require a real man," she said with a wicked smirk before walking away.
Weevil went with her out of momentum and the fact she had a tight hold on his hand more than anything else. Honestly though, he couldn't keep the grin off his face at Madison's shocked look - it was pretty hilarious actually.
"Damn, woman!" he said, turning Mac towards him as soon as they got through the door. "Just when I think you can't surprise me anymore..." he shook his head.
Mac giggled at his words, feeling just a little embarrassed about what she had done. Her confidence had come on leaps and bounds over the years. She had always been kind of bold, with the coloured streaks in her hair and refusal to conform to societies norms when it came to fashion and the like. Still, she usually kept her mouth shut in front of people like Madison back in their high school days. Now she didn't care. She was a grown woman with qualifications, a husband, a child, and a life that she loved. High school bullies were nothing to her, and the life she might've had if she and Madison hadn't been switched was a faded fantasy that no longer interested her at all.
"We should really find Wallace and Veronica," she said as they continued on into the main room.
"I'm guessin' V is gonna be somewhere near the bar," said Weevil thoughtfully. "This has gotta be like walking back into the ninth circle for her."
"Talking of the devil..." said Mac under her breath when she realised who was headed over to them. "Dick Casablancas," she greeted him with a forced smile.
"Mac!" he yelled, arms wide, smile wider, as if it was such a wonderful surprise to see her. "And Weevil. Wow, so you two are like lovers now?" he asked, noting their joined hands.
"Little more than that," said Mac, lifting her hand with Weevil's around it and showing Dick the ring she wore. "Been married four years now."
"Married?" Dick echoed with a shudder as if the very word burned him inside.
"I'm guessin' you're still livin' on a trust find and shining your board all day, right, dude?" said Weevil, emphasis on the 'dude' and a forced California accent.
Mac bit her lip and slapped his shoulder. It was mean to tease people who wouldn't even understand they were being teased. Dick wasn't so bad, he just hadn't grown up because he simply didn't have to, she supposed. That was his loss, but there was no need to rub it in.
"Hey, look. There's Veronica," she smiled. "Excuse us," she said to Dick, moving past him towards her actual friends.
"There's my happy couple!" the blonde grinned the moment she saw them, rushing to hug first Mac and then Weevil.
Wallace greeted them too, with a hug for Mac and a hand-shake for her husband. They saw each other on a pretty regular basis, and though Weevil would always be the asshole who taped Wallace to a flag pole that first day at Neptune High, they had both grown up a lot since then. They made an effort for Mac and for Veronica, even though the latter hadn't been in Neptune for the last nine years. It mattered that they all got along, more now than ever.
"So, how's it feel, V?" asked Weevil with genuine interest. "Being back in the land of Pirate pride?"
"Eerie; strange; a little too familiar," she admitted. "Gotta be even weirder for you two though, huh? I mean, Neptune High, the place that started it all. Are people totally blown away by the biker and the nerd gettin' hitched and spawning?" she joked.
"My chica here sure wiped the smile off Madison Sinclair's face," said Weevil, proudly hugging Mac close.
"Now that I would've liked to see!" she laughed. "Although I'll settle for the latest picture of that adorable baby girl you two made."
"Not a problem," said Mac as she pulled out her phone and soon had an entire slideshow ready for Wallace and Veronica to watch.
"That's a good looking kid you guys got there."
"Seriously, guys, she gets cuter every time I see her!"
"Maybe now you're finally here she can meet her Aunt Veronica for real," said Weevil with a look.
"I would love that," she assured her friends. "I'm really not supposed to be here long... but I'll make time," she promised.
"Good," Mac nodded once. "It'd mean a lot, Veronica."
The four got themselves some drinks and fell into easy conversation. Nobody mentioned why Veronica was in town, not with Logan being such a sore point for everyone in different ways. Mac and Weevil told tales of their family life that Veronica found oddly riveting, and Wallace spoke of how Neptune High was now, from a teacher's perspective.
"It's so weird to think of you as a responsible adult in that school," said Veronica shaking her head.
"Yeah, 'cause I was such a rebel back when we were students," Wallace rolled his eyes.
"I think we all got in our fair share of trouble, although probably me more than most," said Weevil, almost embarrassed to admit it apparently.
"Hey, I gave you a run for your money," countered Veronica with a grin. "I got into more situations in those last two years than you did."
"Yeah, but you forget, I did five years to your four, and you spent two of yours being Miss Goody Two Shoes."
"Point taken," Veronica considered. "Hey, it was Senior year before you guys really got close, right?"
"I got him through his algebra final," said Mac, leaning in close to her husband on the booth-style seat. "That was how it started."
"That's what you think, chica," smiled Weevil as he kissed her temple. "Hell, I wasn't blind. You think I didn't see you before that and know you were somethin' special?"
"You did not!" she laughed and slapped him in the chest, certain he was joking.
"Hey, I'm serious here," he told her, even as he chuckled at her amusingly embarrassed reaction to his words. "Sure, it was V who always got her flirt on around yours truly, but she wasn't the only smart chick I noticed back then."
Mac looked up and met his eyes, realising he was being very serious; "You never told me that before."
"You never asked," he shrugged. "Besides, high school, class divides, yadda, yadda, yadda," he waved his hand in some 'whatever' gesture. "Your crowd and my crowd didn't exactly mix."
"This is true," she sighed, curling into his side once again. "Well, thank God for Veronica, otherwise maybe we never would've got this far!"
"I think you would, somehow," said Veronica herself. "I mean, look at you guys. You're perfect for each other, and all those times fate pulled you apart, it always put you back together. That kind of thing is hard to deny."
Mac deliberately did not make the comment that sprang to mind about those same forces putting Veronica and Logan back together just as many times as they parted too. Now didn't seem like the time or place for it.
"I don't know about fate or destiny or whatever," said Weevil then. "All I know for sure is I love this woman right here, and I don't care if I'm a wuss or whatever for saying it. It's as true as I'm sittin' here."
"I love you too," she promised, lifting her head to look at him again. "And you're not a wuss, you're a real man, Eli Navarro, and you're my man, always."
She kissed him then, the two of them falling into a moment that soon had Wallace clearing his throat and offering to fetch more drinks. Veronica spotted Piz's arrival and made a beeline for him, also glad of somewhere else to be. Mac and Weevil didn't even notice the going of them, they only had eyes for each other.
The End
