Girls Have Cooties
Duncan has always known about Logan's abuse, you would have to be horribly negligent to be that close to someone and not notice. This does not mean that they have talked about it, they haven't—ever. Boys will be boys and rough housing as a cover-up is much more appealing than talking about the wounds and how they really got there in the first place. He was a clumsy little boy and he can keep pretending.
The reason I bring up the issue at all is to put into perspective the fact that until Veronica Mars put on her detective hat and snooped through Duncan's medical records, Logan had no idea about Duncan's epilepsy. None whatsoever.
They were both issues restricted to family, only Logan wasn't privy to Duncan's secret. If either party had ever been in possession of all the information then this is where they would have first found the cracks visible.
A pretty little girl called Veronica was a much easier excuse to break them apart than years of casual mistrust.
Later, when Duncan and Logan reformed their tentative bond, Logan would leave a 'Hello my name is…' sticker in Veronica's locker with the word "Yoko" markered in thick, black sharpie. She would throw it in the trash on her way to class and maybe it would be 'us' against 'her' all over again.
"Did you put something in Veronica's locker?"
"What? No, man, like I want to risk having my ass hauled into the Sheriff's."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really. What the hell?"
"Nothing, man, I'm sorry."
Share and Share Alike
The problem with Veronica is that neither boy is in love with the same qualities in her. They were both desperate for her to be different people—Duncan couldn't deal with Logan's Veronica, Logan couldn't stomach Duncan's Veronica and it was altogether possible that Veronica was just tired of defining herself by burnt-out relationships.
She had never intended to be a home-wrecker when she kissed Logan. He had never intended to give up Duncan when he kissed her back.
"Duncan!"
"What?!"
"Huh. Is this how it's gonna be? You just ignore me now?"
"What, Logan? I have things to do."
"By all means, don't let me keep you."
Play Nicely
Duncan was the light side and Logan was slipping into the dark. It was all very simple until Duncan slept with barely conscious Veronica and Logan sped to her 'rescue' outside a cheap motel on cue. There are different volumes of grey inside of everybody and Duncan has never has much luck in grasping that concept. Clean edges and pointed blame is easier to process. That way he can still maintain control and fighting the epilepsy is all about maintaining emotional control—not letting it win.
Logan, on the other hand, throws himself right toward the edge, desperately trying to find some catharsis in experiencing his emotions. He allows the pain to buzz from his mouth and fingertips, trusting that some inner moral fiber will hold him back from Too Far.
Duncan to this day is unaware that Logan smashed the headlights in Veronica's car. Duncan doesn't know that Logan drugged him at a party. Logan doesn't know that Duncan was in love with his own sister.
"Duncan…"
"Yeah?"
"Uh, it's cool, nothing."
"Oh-kay."
Footie Pajamas
The old song goes: stand by your man. And Logan had done just that, unknowing of whether or not Duncan had really killed his own sister, Logan's girlfriend, Veronica's best friend. When Veronica pulled with her family, Logan stood by Duncan and tugged with his. Duncan amounted to the sum total of Logan's family. Veronica could have come through for them but instead she became the enemy.
Logan misses those days. He misses having Duncan. They may be working towards their former status as friends, but he still loses out to Veronica every time. It may simply be the idea of karma however Logan never intended to become the outcast.
"I can't believe she would just forget us like that, man. You're so better off without that whore."
"She's not a whore."
"Yeah, okay."
"Logan—"
"Whatever, dude. If she never gave a damn about Lilly that's fine, not like I care."
Toy Guns and Cowboy Hats
Logan imagines that he hates his father even more than Duncan does. Not because of whom they both lost but because of the lasting impact that he left on their lives. Logan had never, ever wanted Aaron to prove him right when he called his father a "psychotic bastard".
Duncan lives on his own out of choice because his parents are in hiding and with Veronica by his side he has no reason to. Logan lives alone because his mother is dead and his father imprisoned. It's not as glamorous as a teenage boy with his own mansion might seem.
It is lonely and chilling, full of take-out and hangovers. Not that he would ever admit this to anyone.
There is something very sickly about appearing weak. Logan would much rather that he just played the archetype villain and got his quick quips and warring words in neatly. He does not want to appear vulnerable. He does not want to win back Veronica with sympathy. Most days he doesn't want to win Veronica back at all—he would rather have Duncan instead.
Duncan left him, but at least Logan gave him a reason to. This is the way that Logan sees the situation anyhow. He feels justified in giving Duncan a second chance because it's owed to him. Logan would love to say that he will never give Veronica Mars a second, third or fourth chance but he's not an archetype and he's in love with her. At least he thought he was.
"Still fighting that stage fright, dude?"
"Don't—"
"Seriously, if it happens again just close your eyes and imagine everyone in the room in their underwear—wait! Everyone already was. Well, if Veronica in her little, pink panties is too much for you next time just send her over."
He Pushed Me
When Duncan becomes the enemy and Veronica becomes the one standing idly by, Logan cannot help but wonder why he still fills the same role. The antagonist.
If he happened to be self-pitying then he might claim himself merely an obstacle to Duncan and Veronica's relationship. A hurdle to climb. But he's not quite self-loathing enough to reduce himself in importance like that.
Logan knows full well that he plays, has always played, a role in their lives that no one else ever will. So is the power of history. They make it so easy for him to wedge in between them—start a fight with one, taunt the other, gauge a reaction, just keep pushing until someone cracks and he's got their full attention.
"Wanna watch, huh? Does it get you horny?"
"Don't you dare talk to my girlfriend like that."
"What you gonna do? Defend her honor?"
Puppy Dog Tails
When they first became properly aware of one another Duncan and Logan had very little in common. Wealth and the 'Y' chromosome seemed to be the basis for their original friendship. It grew, as most friendships do, with time and shared experiences. Somewhere along the line one or the other of them declared 'best friends' and the title stuck—for a while at any rate.
Logan thinks it feels a lot like breaking up, Duncan hasn't really thought about it yet. This thing—a tentative truce, clean start—with Duncan is almost the way Logan might feel with Veronica if he was less inclined to hate her. He is not in love with Duncan, but he does love him—Logan had never doubted the reciprocation until Duncan gave Veronica more worth.
Veronica changed the way Logan saw a lot of things, thought about a lot of things. He never expected her to change his view of Duncan. He never expected to hate her for that rather than all the other ways she hurt him.