A/N - This was a little story I started for the VMHQ 1000 word challenge, but then when it went quite a bit over 1000 words, I decided I wouldn't post it for that. Now that I've seen several post that have been even longer than this, I thought I'd go ahead and share it too. You can probably figure out what inspired the concept - it fit for both Bondopoulos and myself a couple weeks ago.

And as always, thanks to Bondopoulos for all her help and encouragement! And for the title!

Disclaimer: All original VM characters belong to Rob Thomas.

Logan stared at the back of the seat three rows down and four seats to the left. It was normally occupied by a familiar blonde, but today it sat empty. He wasn't sure if it was good karma or bad that had landed them in the same psychology class, but he'd certainly been surprised to spot her entering the large lecture hall ahead of him on the first day of class. They'd been on extremely rocky terms since the end of freshman year, so he'd played it safe and carefully avoided her for the first two weeks of class so that she wouldn't drop the course just to get away from him. He managed to escape her notice until the third week when she'd spotted him sitting in his customary seat three rows behind her. She'd looked surprised, but other than a brief nod and a slight grimace, she hadn't acknowledged him further. They hadn't really interacted at all since then. And now her seat was empty.

Logan tried to focus on the lecture, forcing himself to take more notes than he usually did to keep his mind from worrying about why she wasn't there. He'd never told her about the nightmares he used to have — technically still did have. They'd started shortly after seeing Liam force her down on the disgustingly grimy pool table at the River Styx, and they'd only gotten worse after that. Beaver, Mercer...Sorokin. Logan knew he really didn't have any right to worry about her, but that didn't mean that he could stop. Veronica Mars never skipped classes, and as the hour slowly ticked by and the seat remained empty, the knot in his stomach continued to grow.

Logan blinked at the bright sun as he walked out into the quad, just barely avoiding crashing into a couple of girls racing along the sidewalk to whatever destination they were headed. Would it really be so bad to just send her a text to put his mind at ease? The professor had warned them at the previous class that today's lecture would cover a lot of material for their midterm, so that fact alone was reason to assume Veronica wouldn't miss. And yet...

He debated about whether to just let it go or to check in on her as he made his way to his Range Rover. In the end, his over-protective nature won out, and after tossing his backpack onto the passenger seat, he pulled out his phone and drafted a text message to her number.

His finger hovered above send for a few seconds before he finally gave in and pressed it. After the deed was done, he re-read his message again quickly. 'So unlike the always dedicated Veronica Mars to play hookey - everything okay?'

He held his breath for a long minute then finally let all the air flow out of his lungs in a loud huff when there wasn't a reply. She had plenty of other friends and her dad to make sure she was safe. It certainly wasn't his responsibility anymore, so even if something was wrong, what was he actually going to do about it? He certainly wasn't going to track down Mac or Wallace to check up on her. That would definitely cross some boundary that he was sure she'd placed around herself. He'd just put his key in the ignition and was about to start the car when his phone beeped. Her one word reply - 'Sick' - made him feel a little better. At least now he knew she wasn't bleeding in an alley or lying unconscious in some hospital bed. He stared at the phone for a few more seconds knowing he should let sleeping dogs lie, but that uncontrollable need to take care of her won out.

'Anything I can do?'

The 'No' response came back much quicker than her initial reply had. He certainly wasn't going to say anything else, so he tossed the phone into his cup holder, started the Rover and headed in the direction of the Grand. He was about three blocks from campus when he heard his phone beep again. He waited for the next red light to grab it to see who had texted him, certainly not expecting it to be Veronica.

'Chicken soup?'

He smiled fondly to himself as he typed a quick reply and then glanced over his shoulder while he signaled to change course.

Logan paused when he reached Veronica's apartment, glancing through the partially open blinds before he knocked. The first thing he spotted was one of Veronica's keds lying in the middle of the floor, with the second a few feet away, closer to the couch. Immediately past that was one of her hoodies, obviously discarded without a care. What he assumed was Backup's leash was also lying haphazardly on the floor. His eyes traveled the rest of the way to the couch where Veronica was curled up on her side with her face obscured by hair and a bent arm. A kleenex box and pile of wadded up tissues littered the coffee table next to her.

He stood there for a moment, hating to wake her up, but knowing she'd be expecting him as well. He noticed her cell phone was on the opposite end of the coffee table near her feet. Maybe if he just sent her a text, it wouldn't wake her up, and he could just wait in the Range Rover until she woke up on her own. He started to turn, but Backup, who had been curled up on the floor near Veronica's head, must have noticed the movement outside of the door and he let out several loud barks.

Logan watched as Veronica reached down and placed her hand on Backup's shoulders, quieting him. Always her loyal protector, Backup continued to stare menacingly at Logan through the blinds.

"It's open," he heard Veronica croak out as she followed Backup's gaze.

Logan frowned as he opened the door and walked in, making a show of checking that the deadbolt would actually lock properly before he closed the door. He wasn't thrilled that she'd left the door unlocked for just anyone to walk in on her. Of course his theatrics drew an irritated huff from her.

"I want soup… not a lecture," Veronica grumbled as she sat up on the couch, her voice sounding much deeper and raspier than normal. She pointed at Backup. "Better than a locked door," she added before coughing loudly. She grimaced as she started to stand up.

"Just stay there. I'll get a bowl and bring it to you," Logan offered sympathetically, his annoyance about the door being unlocked overshadowed by his concern over how sick she sounded.

Even though he hadn't been in her apartment for close to a year, he went directly to the cabinet with the soup bowls. After transferring soup to the bowl, he grabbed a spoon and carefully moved back to Veronica. She'd flopped over on her side again as he'd worked in the kitchen, but pushed herself up as he approached her.

"I'm probably contagious… you can just leave the soup on the edge of the table and vamoose," she warned him feebly as she tugged on the edge of the tank-top she was wearing.

"Come on, you know I'm never smart enough to actually run from danger," Logan replied as he sat down on the couch next to her, carefully placing the bowl of soup on the table in front of her.

"Thanks," she said as she gently checked her shoulder into the side of his arm, her bare skin pressing into him right below the edge of his t-shirt sleeve.

"Shit, Veronica," he said as his hand instinctively reached out and landed on her forehead. "You're so hot."

"Ah your favorite way to start the day… with a hot blonde," Veronica snapped humorlessly as she jerked away from his touch.

"Sorry," he mumbled, abruptly pulling his hand back down to his lap almost as if it was actually burned by her skin.

Veronica let out frustrated sigh and shook her head. "No, I'm sorry." Her expression softened as her eyes met his. "I really suck when I'm sick. You brought me soup, and in return, I snap at you."

Backup interjected with a loud whine as he stood up and plopped his head down on Veronica's knee.

"I can take him out, if he needs to go," Logan offered, wondering for the first time how long she'd been crashed on the couch before he'd arrived.

At the mention of 'out', Backup started wagging his tail and shifting excitedly from foot to foot, answering Logan's question before Veronica even had a chance to.

"Come on, boy," Logan muttered as he reached for the leash on the floor and then clipped it onto Backup's collar. He'd spotted Veronica's keys on the kitchen counter when he'd been working on the soup. "I'll lock the door since I'm taking your protection," he told her as he grabbed the keys and then headed out the door.

Veronica was curled up in her original spot on the couch with her eyes closed when Logan returned with Backup. Logan quietly unhooked the leash and then hung it on the hook by the door where it was normally kept. The bowl of soup was now empty on the coffee table and so he decided he'd at least move it to the sink. He was debating whether or not he should just quietly sneak out and let her rest. The spoon made a soft metallic clinking sound as he picked the bowl up from the table, and Veronica opened her eyes.

"Thanks," she croaked out hoarsely, her eyebrows still furrowed in discomfort.

"Sure… did you want more, or do you want me to put the rest of it in the fridge for later?"

"I've had enough for now," she replied, her hands coming up to rub her temples.

"Will your dad be home soon?" Logan asked after he'd rinsed out the bowl and put the rest of the soup in the refrigerator.

"Ummm," Veronica muttered, coughing a bit before continuing. "Tomorrow night, probably." Her lip quirked up a slight bit before she continued. "He's wiser than you and staying away from the germs."

Logan chuckled softly and nodded in agreement. Veronica scrunched up her face for a second, clearly uneasy about whatever she was about to say. Logan braced himself for some unpleasant retort.

"Could you, um," she mumbled, crinkling her nose before she continued. "Could you make me some tea?"

Logan let out a surprised laugh, absolutely not expecting her to say that.

"Nevermind," she replied tersely as she started to sit up again, clearly misinterpreting Logan's reaction.

"No… I can do it… I expected you to ask me to leave instead," Logan explained, drawing a confused look from Veronica. He shrugged before starting to look around the kitchen for tea. Veronica must have realized that he didn't know exactly what to do, so she ended up instructing him from her spot on the couch. Although most of the instructions were more comprised of pointing and coughing than actual words.

She gave him a grateful look several minutes later when he brought the tea over to her, taking a seat next to her once again. "Thank you," she said softly as she leaned her head against his shoulder and then started to blow on the hot tea.

"I could stay and help with Backup," he offered, realizing it sounded like a lame excuse the moment it left his lips.

"And heat up more soup for me later?" Veronica asked as she leaned away so she could look up at him, a genuine smile forming on her lips for the first time since he'd arrived.

He couldn't help but smile back as he nodded.

"I'm already indebted to you for bringing me soup, how much is it going to cost me to have my own Florence Nightingale for even longer?"

There was something about the look in her eyes that emboldened him to say something he certainly hadn't expected to be saying when he'd driven over earlier. "A date — when you're feeling better."

She narrowed her eyes in a thoughtful way. "Hmm... will I be footing the bill?"

Logan smiled more and shook his head. "Nope, I'll gladly pay."

"Cash money?" she asked, raising her eyebrow teasingly.

"Absolutely," he replied as he reached up and gently pushed some stray bangs out of her face, his smile broadening a bit more.

She smiled and then leaned her head against him again. "Maybe I should get sick more often. The benefits definitely outweigh the cost."