I've been debating about posting this story or waiting until it's complete, but I really do miss everyone so much, so as a birthday present to myself I decided to post the first part of this today. I started this story thinking it may just be a quick one shot, but then decided I wanted to go a bit farther with it. It won't be as long as my other multi-chapter stories, though.
Comments and reviews are always appreciated! And as always, special thanks to Bondopoulos for always being such a fabulous beta and friend!
Disclaimer: All original VM characters belong to Rob Thomas.
Logan heard a faint thumping rhythm as he approached the bar's front entrance. The bouncer, a big bulky man whom Logan recognized, gestured with a slight jerk of his head for Logan to proceed; he didn't need to see an ID. Logan gave him an acknowledging nod as he passed through the door, grimacing slightly as the wall of noise hit him once he stepped inside. Why did I agree to this again?
The bar was within walking distance of Hearst, which made it a very hot spot for college students as well as Neptune locals in that similar demographic. Another reason for its popularity was that they weren't overly diligent on monitoring for fake IDs. Logan had heard about Mr. Mars cracking down when he was temporarily running the sheriff's department, but things seemed to have lightened up again under Vinnie's watch.
Once he was far enough inside, Logan scanned the crowd for the familiar blonde head he was supposed to be meeting. Even though the bar was fairly crowded, Dick's height and boisterous personality usually made it easy to locate him even in a crowd. After a few minutes of looking, Logan noticed a couple of empty seats at the bar and decided he'd grab one of them while he continued watching for Dick to materialize. Logan hadn't really wanted to go out, even if it was a Friday, but Dick had guilted him into it since it had been Dick's birthday the day before and they hadn't seen much of each other lately. Several months ago, Dick had decided that the Grand was just too far away from Hearst and he was worried about all the potential partying opportunities he was missing out on, so he had moved in with a couple of guys from his fraternity who had rented a house right next to campus. Logan had also considered moving out of the Grand once Dick left, but he just hadn't found the motivation to do it yet. The perks of living in a hotel were certainly one of the reasons he stayed, but even those had started to lose their appeal in the last few months.
As Logan took a seat on one of the open bar stools, a bartender who looked as familiar as the bouncer out front asked if he could get Logan a drink. Logan nodded and asked for a Corona. Once the icy cold bottle was in his hand, Logan went back to scanning the crowd for Dick. His heart clenched slightly in his chest when instead of spotting Dick, his eyes landed on another familiar blonde.
Logan had come to the realization that his body seemed to have one of two reactions when it came to seeing Veronica. Back when they were still together, that reaction had been an overwhelming feeling that he was the luckiest guy in the world to have her in his life. The other reaction, unfortunately, was pretty much the polar opposite; a painful gut-wrenching revelation that he hadn't been good enough to keep her. The first time he remembered having that acute reaction was the day he'd watched her ignore his call in the student union, although, if he were being honest, it probably went back even farther than that.
It didn't take long for Logan to realize that Veronica was not acting like her usual self, and he immediately wondered what sort of case she was there for. Even from a distance, it was easy for him to tell that she was acting bubbly and tipsy, and he wondered what angle she was working on the guy she was dancing with. The guy seemed slightly older than college-age, and Logan wondered if he was a philandering dirtbag that she was trying to bait for a cheated-on-spouse. It made his skin crawl, though, thinking of her putting herself in that kind of position. He tried to remind himself that she was a lot tougher than people, including himself, sometimes gave her credit for. That and the fact that she was in a public place and likely had Mr. Sparky in the small bag hanging off her shoulder made him feel slightly better.
Logan felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and pulled it out to read the text he had just received. He wasn't terribly surprised to see Dick's name on his phone along with a somewhat apologetic note about not showing up. The 'sorry dude - bumped into hot chick on my way' was as close to a formal apology as he expected from his easily sidetracked friend.
When Logan glanced back up from his phone, his eyes landed on another familiar profile sitting at the opposite end of the bar. He couldn't help but notice the brunette was keeping a very determined gaze in the direction of where Veronica was still dancing. Logan spotted an empty seat at that end of the bar, so he picked up his beer bottle and made his way in that direction.
"I see you got wrangled into being back-up tonight?" Logan commented as he sat down on the empty bar stool.
Mac turned toward him and blinked in confusion for a second before she gave him a grim smile and nodded. Logan wasn't sure if the confusion was a reaction to her seeing him there or the comment about her being back-up. Mac didn't linger long looking at him, though, and quickly shifted her attention back to Veronica. The song ended a few seconds later, and Logan watched as Veronica seemed to thank the guy for the dance and then unsteadily made her way back toward Mac. Even though Veronica was never really one to get drunk herself, she'd spent more than enough time around Lilly and all their other friends to be able to easily imitate an inebriated person.
Logan could easily tell the second that Veronica spotted him, and he was very taken aback at the way her face lit up. They'd occasionally crossed paths since starting back at Hearst two quarters ago for their sophomore year, and while she always seemed polite enough, she certainly never looked overly happy to see him.
"Loooogan!" Veronica sung out happily as she closed the distance between them.
Logan cast a quick glance at Mac and he thought he detected a hint of a frown on her face before he turned his attention back to Veronica. She opened her arms wide, and before he knew what was happening,Veronica wrapped them around his torso and hugged him tightly. He awkwardly patted her on the back, not wanting to blow whatever cover she might be working but not really sure exactly what else to do. When she pulled away she still had a bubbly smile on her face as she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek—only a fraction of an inch from his mouth. Not only was the kiss surprising, but even more so was the very strong scent of alcohol on her breath. Before he even had a chance to ask what was going on, a guy Logan hadn't noticed before placed a large hand on Veronica's shoulder.
"You promised me the next dance, remember?" the guy said with a shy, hopeful smile.
"Right," Veronica replied, nodding in the guy's direction before turning back to Logan. "You next though, okay?" she told him with her patented head tilt and sweet as honey smile that could pretty much guarantee any guy would do what she asked. "Don't leave, promise?" Logan nodded speechlessly, and a second later she was gone.
"What the hell's going on, Mac?" Logan asked in confusion as he turned his attention to the brunette next to him. She glanced at him for a second before turning her focus back toward Veronica.
"Nothing," she replied sternly, her gaze firmly locked on the dance floor.
"Bullshit, Mackenzie," Logan countered. It was very unlikely that Veronica would just randomly go out drinking for fun at a bar near campus, and Logan was also easily able to tell that Mac was lying.
"Isn't she allowed to blow off some steam every once in awhile? Act like a normal, irresponsible college student?" Mac replied defensively.
Logan hadn't meant to piss Mac off with his question, but he was certainly concerned by the situation. "I'm sorry... I just... she doesn't usually do this... so I was worried... that's all," he mumbled, hoping to smooth things over with Mac.
Mac exhaled loudly and glanced at him for a second before turning her attention back to Veronica. "I don't know exactly what's going on. She told me she just wanted to go out and have some fun. I promised her I would keep an eye on her and not let her be alone with any strangers. So you don't need to worry. It's fine."
It's far from fine. Logan let out a frustrated sigh while he turned his gaze back to the dance floor as well. At least the random dude Veronica was dancing with didn't seem like a threat or a sleazy perv, but that didn't help the sick feeling in Logan's gut. He clenched his jaw as he impatiently waited for the song to end. As the music started to wind down, he was relieved when she said something to the guy and then bounced back toward them.
"I'm dying for another drink," Veronica said as she reached for Logan's still mostly-full beer and took it from him before he had a chance to react. She made a disgusted face as she took a swig and then handed it back to him. "I liked those other drinks better, Macky... will you order another one while I dance with Logan... pleeeease?"
Mac gave her a placating smile and nodded. "Okay... but just one more... and then I think you've had enough for tonight."
Veronica gave her an exaggerated pout and then laughed. "Spoil sport," she giggled. "Come on, Looogan. You promised you'd dance with me."
Before Logan had a second to even reply, Veronica grabbed his hand and tugged him out to the dance floor. Despite his uneasiness with her current state, he let her lead him out there. His concern at least momentarily started to fade the second she turned and beamed up at him. His mind had a hard time thinking about anything other than how it felt to have her look at him like that again. He found his lips quirking up into a smile without even intending to. What is it about her smile that turns me to mush?
Veronica started dancing to the music, and while she'd kept a fair amount of space between herself and the other two guys he'd watched her with, she moved as close as possible to him. After a few seconds, she spun so that her back was against his front and looked seductively over her shoulder at him as she continued to groove to the music. What did I do to deserve this level of torture? He let out a slow shaky breath, trying to remind himself - and certain parts of his anatomy - that they weren't a couple and that they were in the middle of a public dance floor. He was grateful that she didn't stay in that position long, but instead turned back to face him. Even though he kept reminding himself that something major had to be wrong with her, he was still only about two seconds away from letting her do whatever she wanted to him and forgetting everything else that was going on.
"You look too stressed," she yelled over the music as she smiled up at him and reached up to tousle his hair. "Relax and have some fun. I know youknow how to have fun, Logan."
He swallowed hard and then let himself smile again. "That's better," she said more quietly, as she continued to grin up at him, removing her hand from his hair and running it down his chest. A second later she reached for his hand, and did a spin under his arm when she lifted his hand up above her head.
Logan struggled throughout the song between wanting to just get completely carried away with her and holding on to the worry about what was really going on. Finally the song was over and she wasted no time in taking his hand and tugging him back to where Mac was sitting.
"Yummy," Veronica chirped excitedly as she took the large glass that Mac handed to her. Logan wasn't sure what the concoction was, but it took her practically no time at all to down half of it. "Soooo gooood," Veronica happily announced as she looked between Logan and Mac with a goofy smile.
Mac shook her head slightly at Veronica before she let out an amused huff and then nodded in agreement.
"Finish your beer, so you can dance with me again," Veronica instructed as she picked Logan's beer up from where he'd left it beside Mac and shoved it into his hand. She took another long draw from her own glass as she bounced slightly to the song that was currently being played.
"Logan may have other plans tonight," Mac cautioned as she glanced between him and Veronica. Logan couldn't tell if Mac was intentionally trying to get rid of him or maybe trying to give him an out if he didn't want to stay. She seemed to say it in the nicest way possible, so it could have been the latter, but Logan's suspicious nature made him wonder if it wasn't the former.
Veronica turned to Logan with a dramatic pout on her face. "Do you?" she asked, her big blue eyes looking expectantly at him.
Even if he actually had, there was no way he'd leave when she was looking at him like that; not to mention there really was no way he was letting her out of his sight until he knew she was safely home given her condition. While he certainly trusted Mac, he really needed that reassurance for himself. He shook his head in reply.
Veronica's pout was replaced by an enormous grin. "Good," she said as she nodded happily.
It seemed like Mac was looking critically at Logan for a moment before she spoke again. "Well if you're in good hands with Logan for a few minutes, I'm going to run to the restroom." Mac paused and turned to Logan. "Under no circumstances are you to let her out of your sight or leave, got it?" she directed at him a bit more tersely.
Logan frowned slightly but nodded in understanding. Mac gave Veronica one more slightly concerned glance and then turned to head toward the back of the bar where the bathrooms were. Logan watched as Veronica quickly finished off the rest of her drink.
"Ready?" she asked with an outstretched hand, her eyes seeming slightly less focused than when she was talking to him before.
"Maybe we should wait for Mac to get back so she doesn't lose her seat," he suggested as he watched Veronica carefully. She bit on her lip and he wondered how quickly the alcohol was hitting her.
"She'll be fiiine," Veronica drawled out as she grabbed his hand and started tugging on him. "Pleeease dance with me..."
He let out a sigh and reluctantly stood up from the stool. He hoped Mac's instructions not to 'leave' just meant the building in general and not their spot at the bar. He noticed Veronica stumbled a bit more on the way out to the dance floor, but she seemed to just laugh at herself when she did. They were only able to dance for a few seconds before the song faded out and a new one began. Most of the songs had been faster ones, but this one happened to be quite a bit slower, and other couples on the floor moved closer together. Veronica followed suit and did the same, wrapping her arms around Logan's neck and pressed herself tightly against him.
"We could wait for a faster song, if you want," Logan suggested as he leaned down so he could talk quietly into her ear. She turned her head unexpectedly causing their faces to be intimately close to each other.
"No," she replied almost breathlessly. Her expression reminded him of those few rare occasions at the Grand when she'd woken up next to him when she was still groggy and blissed out from their pre-sleeping activities. She bumped her nose gently into his as her gaze fell to his lips. "I miss you," she murmured as she licked her own lips.
He was about to reply that he missed her too when her head suddenly moved quickly away and her forehead thumped into his chest. "I feel soooo dizzzzy," she said weakly as he felt her grip start to loosen around his neck.
Veronica felt a terrible pain in her head as she slowly regained consciousness. It was as if someone had placed a vice around it and tightened it as far as it would go without actually causing her skull to crack open. Opening her eyelids seemed like a monumental task, but she mustered up enough strength to finally do it. She could tell, even before she opened her eyes, that she was lying on an extremely hard and cold surface and she wasn't surprised to find herself on a bathroom floor once she did finally pry her eyes open. Panic coursed through her though as she realized it was not the bathroom floor at her and her dad's apartment, and, thankfully she supposed, it also didn't look like the floor in the communal bathroom at Mac's dorm either. Just the thought of how gross that would have been to sleep on caused bile to rise up in her throat - either that or it was just the aftermath of how much she'd drank earlier. She had no idea what time it was, but at the moment figuring out where she was seemed much more pressing.
Veronica suddenly realized that her head was resting on a very soft, fluffy towel that had a familiar floral scent to it, and as she stared at the extremely clean porcelain toilet in front of her, a few memories from the night before came crashing back through the fog swirling around her brain. The Grand. She also realized, at about the same time, that there was a hand resting on her shoulder. Despite the pain from the bright light, she forced her eyes to focus, and she was able to spot the owner of the hand in a reflection off a silver toilet paper holder. Logan. He appeared to be asleep, his head resting on his other arm that was slung over the side of the bathtub. Several more memories from the night before came back to her, although they were all jumbled together. She remembered going to the bar with Mac and really enjoying a drink that the bartender had suggested she try. She remembered dancing with quite a few guys, and then out of nowhere, Logan had suddenly appeared. She unfortunately also remembered puking all over his bathroom and whining that she just wanted to lay on the cold bathroom floor because it felt good. She could taste a bit of mint in her mouth and remembered that he'd had her swish some mouthwash around and had her drink as much water as he could before she got angry and curled up on the floor again.
Her thoughts suddenly swirled back to a much different time. But I'm always here...if you need anything... She doubted cleaning up her vomit and holding her hair back while she dry-heaved into the toilet had been what he'd had in mind when he'd said that to her last year. Deciding her current position wasn't really comfortable at all, Veronica attempted to sit up, groaning slightly as she tried. She heard Logan let out a drowzy groan when his hand slipped off her shoulder. She was able to sit up enough to pull her knees up toward her chest, and then she buried her head against them while she hugged her legs closer to her body, closing her eyes tightly again as the pain in her head intensified with the change in position.
"Hey, you okay?" she heard Logan mumble softly and then felt his hand lightly caressing her head and then her back.
She shook her head slowly.
"Head or stomach?" he asked next.
She slowly brought one of her arms up to point to her head.
"I'll get you something to help, but you need to drink more water too."
Veronica heard a drawer opening and then a pill bottle rattling before the sink turned on. A second later, the water turned off and she felt his hand gently squeeze her shoulder. She slowly tipped her head up to look at him. Logan was squatting down in front of her and held out a glass for her to take. She gave him a grateful look as she took the water and then he handed her a couple of pills. She didn't have the energy to ask what they were, so she just swallowed them down with the cold refreshing water. She really had no reservations about trusting him.
"Where's Mac?" Veronica asked weakly. "I was supposed to stay the night in her dorm room."
"She's sleeping in the other bedroom," Logan explained as he gave her a sympathetic smile.
"Dick's room?" Veronica asked, a bit horrified that Mac may have had to share a bed with Dick.
Logan shook his head. "No, Dick doesn't live here anymore… it's just me."
"Oh… I didn't know."
"She, um… she helped you change clothes before she finally crashed."
Veronica hadn't even realized she wasn't wearing what she'd had on at the bar. She glanced down and saw that she had one of her old t-shirts and shorts that she must have left at Logan's back when they were dating. Veronica took a slow steadying breath, hoping the dizzy sensation would fade away. "What time is it?" she asked before taking another drink of water.
"A little before four," Logan replied after glancing up at the clock on the counter. "Do you want to try lying in bed now? You were pretty adamant before about staying on the bathroom floor."
"Sorry... you didn't have to stay with me, you know." She wondered how long he'd been asleep leaning against the bathtub and she felt pretty guilty about it.
"I did promise Mac earlier at the bar that I wouldn't leave you, and I always keep my promises."
She gave him a weak smile and nodded.
"Do you want to try brushing your teeth? That might make you feel a little better."
Veronica nodded and started to try standing up and grimaced.
"Here, let me help you," Logan quickly volunteered and then scooped her up carefully and sat her down on the bathroom counter next to the sink. He opened one of the drawers and pulled out a travel toothbrush case and toothpaste. She gave him a fond smile as she took the toothbrush that she'd forgotten she'd even bought to keep there. She'd gotten it right before they broke up and never actually ever used it. He gave her a shy smile in reply. He obviously must have known who it belonged to, but he'd never thrown it out. Her hair started falling into her face as she leaned toward the sink and he immediately offered to hold it back for her, gently rubbing small circles on her back while she carefully brushed her teeth. When she was finished he offered her a little more mouthwash to swish around which definitely helped with the lingering bad taste that hadn't completely disappeared yet. When she was finished, he gingerly picked her up again and carried her out to his bed. She really was too exhausted to protest and leaned her head against his chest as he walked.
She couldn't help but smile fondly at the sight of the meticulously made and turned down bed. Just one of the many perks of living in a hotel. He sat her down carefully and then helped her get covered up.
"I'll move the trashcan next to you just in case you feel like throwing up again and can't make it to the bathroom, but you do seem to be past the worst of that now."
She nodded and looked at him gratefully, but then she started to frown as he headed for the bedroom door.
"Where are you going?"
"I'll just crash on the couch," he explained as he looked at her with a subdued expression.
"There's plenty of room... please don't go," she blurted out, sounding way more needy than she'd intended. She wasn't sure if he'd noticed, but regardless, he nodded and walked back to the bed.
After climbing under the covers, Logan adjusted himself so that he was resting on his back with one arm propped up under his head, staring at the ceiling. She'd rolled onto her side so she could see him better. Even though the main lights in his room were turned off, there was still a soft glow from the light fixture above the headboard. Lying next to him like they were brought back so many good memories of other times she'd been in his bed with him. She'd certainly never expected to end up where she was when she'd gone out with Mac that night.
"Thank you... for everything tonight... you went way above what I would have ever expected you to."
"Why?" he asked with a deeply troubled expression as he abruptly turned to face her.
She wasn't exactly sure what he was specifically asking, which made her hesitate for a moment. There was certainly something more meaningful in the way he'd asked it, and given the look on his face, she figured it was about more than her just not expecting him to help her like he had. "Why wouldn't I expect that, or why did I get drunk tonight?" she finally asked since she wasn't sure what he really wanted to know.
'Both," he replied looking even more concerned than before.
"Well... the first... because... I don't know... we're not together anymore and I never expected you to give up your Friday night to take care of me. I'm sure you probably had better things... or other people… you wanted to do... things with." She internally cringed at how the last part had come out.
He frowned and shook his head at her. "I still consider you one of my best friends, Veronica... even if you don't feel that way about me... and I promised I'd always be there for you, and like I said earlier, I don't break my promises." Both his expression and tone were very serious as he spoke.
"But it's not fair to you to have to feel that way... after everything... I can't ask that of you."
"Well, that's the thing about true friends... you don't have to ask."
She felt emotions start to bubble up that she usually tried to avoid, but in her current state she didn't seem to have any control over them. She wasn't sure if he could tell her eyes had gotten a bit watery in the soft glow that came from the obscure wall mounted lighting decoration above the bed. He must have noticed, though, because he reached out to gently run his thumb under her eye when she felt a stray tear slip over her eyelid.
"And the second?" he asked softly.
She let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes. He didn't say anything, but his hand was still resting on her cheek, his thumb very gently stroking across her cheekbone. After a few seconds she braced herself and opened her eyes again. His soulful brown eyes were still staring at her, with a concerned look evident on his face. She swallowed the lump she felt form in her throat and rolled onto her back so she wouldn't have to look at him, staring at the ceiling instead. She'd been the one to push for complete intimacy before, but when it came to her own demons and issues, she realized she was the one who struggled to be honest. He'd pulled his hand away as she started to move and she heard him rest it on the bed next to her head; not trying to touch her again.
"I'm guessing you won't buy the 'I just felt like cutting loose?' excuse," she mumbled helplessly.
"No," he breathed softly.
"It's stupid, really," she muttered as she closed her eyes again, setting her jaw tight.
"I highly doubt that, Veronica," he murmured compassionately.
She exhaled loudly as she opened her eyes and stared at the dark ceiling again, still not willing to turn to look at him. The light from the headboard made odd patterns on the dark ceiling and she concentrated on those as she thought about what to say. If anyone in the world could understand how I feel—even if it is completely irrational—it would be Logan. What they'd been through when they were younger… no one else on the face of the earth could ever relate to that. It still didn't make it any easier to actually admit it out loud though. A part of her wished he would reach out and pull her to his chest and whisper that everything was okay… that he was there for her no matter what, but that's not who they were now… she didn't have any right to expect that. She felt a few tears roll down her cheeks and she closed her eyes tightly, trying to steady her composure again.
"Please talk to me, Veronica?" he pleaded in such a soft whisper that she barely heard him.
She felt her chin tremble and bit on her lip to try to keep from crying. She'd done enough of that earlier before she'd finally pulled herself together and asked Mac to go out with her so she wouldn't have to think about it anymore. But if she didn't talk to someone, wouldn't the same terrible thoughts just keep coming back. If the only person who could maybe understand how I feel wants to help, why is it so hard to let him? Maybe it was because deep down she kept telling herself that it really was stupid and the fear of saying it outloud was just too overwhelming.
"I just want to help, Veronica…" he assured her. She couldn't help but find the tenderness and concern in his tone a little overwhelming. Even after everything they'd been through, he still seemed to care so much about her and regardless of whether her earlier thoughts were totally irrational, she knew in her heart he'd never make her feel that way.
She opened her eyes again and exhaled loudly. "I'm sure you heard the Kanes filed for divorce a month or so ago?" Veronica asked in a soft but steady tone. She heard him whisper 'yeah' very softly. She took a deep breath, hoping that would help her get through the next part. "Well… um… my mom showed up this morning… to tell me her big news…" She paused and swallowed hard. At least she could draw on some of her anger to try to overshadow some of the sadness. "That she and Jake were getting married." She heard Logan let out a soft 'oh' and she nodded her head, but still stared at the ceiling instead of looking at him. "And then…" she felt her voice break slightly. "After she told me, I started thinking… how if they'd only done that years ago… before Lilly..." She couldn't hold back the sob that surged from her. "If they'd just done that when we were younger… maybe things would have been different… I could have known… or been there… I don't know… I just… all those years of them having an affair… and all the damage that did… and now… I'm just so angry… about everything… and wishing it could have been different… but it's irrational and pointless now." She realized she was crying again, which instantly made her angry with herself for not being able to handle it better than she was.
"Hey…" Logan said soothingly as he shifted and wrapped his arms around her sobbing body and pulled her to his chest. "It's okay." She felt him place a soft kiss on the top of her head. "I know how much it hurts to think about what you could have done differently to save her. I spent countless hours doing that to myself after she was gone. And I'm also sure dredging up all those old feelings about everything your mom did couldn't have been easy for you either."
Veronica shook her head against his chest before taking a deep breath. "It doesn't matter now… like I said… it's stupid and pointless to get upset about it now."
She felt Logan's hand move up to her head where he started stroking her hair gently. "Your feelings are never pointless, Veronica. You've had to deal with so much… I guess we both have… but feeling angry and upset about things from time to time is natural and you shouldn't berate yourself for it. And I certainly can't lecture anyone about getting drunk to try to deal with things, even if it's not the greatest idea. Just um..." He paused and cleared his throat, sounding more emotional all of a sudden. His hesitation caused her to finally look up at him. Their faces were so close that she could easily see all the emotions brewing behind his eyes. "I would die if something ever happened to you… you know… I'm always here if you need someone who understands… instead of… of feeling alone and not having someone you can talk—"
Before he could say another word, Veronica pressed her lips to his. She knew it was probably not the smartest idea, but at that second she didn't really care. He seemed surprised for a moment, but then she felt his arms squeeze her a little tighter; then her brain reminded her that she'd just spent the last few hours sleeping on his bathroom floor after getting drunk and puking everywhere.
"Oh my god," she said slightly horrified as she pulled away and covered her mouth with one of her hands. "I'm sorry… ugh… that must have been terrible for you."
At first there was a look of despair on Logan's face, but then he chuckled and shook his head at her; a smile slowly spreading across his lips. "Kissing you is never terrible." She shook her head at him as the flush of embarrassment continued to spread across her cheeks. "You tasted minty fresh… if that's what you're worried about."
She let out a soft huff of breath and nodded. He reached up and pushed some hair off of her forehead and then placed a soft, tender kiss there. "You should get some more rest… we can talk more in the morning, okay?"
She nodded again and shifted so she could nestle her head against his chest. Logan adjusted his arms again so they were protectively wrapped around her and then placed one more kiss on the top of her head. After her tearful confession and the lingering effects of drinking way too much, she felt herself quickly drift off to sleep.