I swear guys, I swear I'm a LoVe shipper. I swear! But there's just something about Leo I adore with all my heart, and it breaks my poor heart knowing that him and Veronica never really had a chance. This is probably more for Logan shippers, though, 'cause it's just poor Leo angst. It's just something really quick&really short that came to me as I rewatched some Leo seens. Tell me what you think & maybe I'll attempt to write a happier Leo/Veronica story :|

Disclaimer: I do not own, in any way, Veronica Mars, or any of its characters.

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It Could've Been Me

Leo D' Amato was almost never a bitter person; life was too short for that. In fact, Leo liked to live his life off the motto of "going with the flow". He didn't like to stir up unneeded trouble (sometimes), nor did he like to start any drama. If a girl didn't like him, then that was fine with him; he was Italian, meaning he knew there was plenty of other woman out there for him to test his luck with. Why waste his time pining after a girl who didn't want him back? But, just like with any rule, there was an exception for Leo. There was one girl that, no matter how hard he tried, no matter how many times she's proved that she just doesn't feel the time, he just could not move on from her. Leo had one exception to his rules on girls.

Veronica Mars was his exception.

Leo sat in his cop car one afternoon. He was doing his typical rounds, rookie work given to a deputy. He was bored and restless; today was just too much of a quiet day in Neptune for him to even be working. Leo was looking for any excuse to do something else, even if for five minutes, and that opportunity arose when he realized he had just finished off his coffee. Leo grinned, finally happy he had a reason to leave the spot he was parked in, placed his keys in the ignition. Before turning it, however, something caught his eye. Getting out of the passenger side of a car Leo did not recognize, was the woman that he just couldn't seem to forget about; the woman that always seemed to cross his mind, even when he knew she shouldn't.

Veronica.

Without thinking, Leo pulled his keys out of the ignition. He reached for his door handle, ready to get out and go talk with Veronica, forgetting his coffee and his shift. He would have continued with this plan if another person, a guy to be exact, didn't get out of the driver's side. He walked around the car to where Veronica stood waiting. Instantly, they started walking together as if their steps were in synch. The man reached down to grab hold of her hand, with no effort, almost as if it was expected for him to do so. Leo felt his chest tight up in pain.

It was Logan Echolls.

Sadly, Leo was very familiar with Logan. On more than one occasion, Logan had interrupted time his spent with Veronica, and, also on more than one occasion, Leo has arrested him or caught him doing something that didn't make Veronica too happy. Not to say that he didn't enjoy the latter, though. Leo felt his face turn into a scowl as he watched as Veronica laughed at something Logan had said and Logan bringing her hand up to his mouth for him to kiss.

It pained Leo to see them together. It hurt even more seeing how happy Veronica was with him. He felt bitterness pass through them as he watched them walk by his unmarked vehicle, completely unaware that he was there. They were so wrapped up in each other that neither noticed as they walked right by Leo.

"That could've been me," whispered Leo out loud to himself. He knew he could make Veronica happy; he knew. "I wouldn't fuck up if I was with her; I wouldn't take her for granted or dare to do anything that hurt her."

Watching them as they continued down the sidewalk hand in hand, Leo couldn't help but to think back to the last date he had with Veronica; the last date they shared before she broke it off with him and went right into the arms of Logan Echolls.

He remembered how easily they walked down a different sidewalk, her fingers wrapped around his, not Logan's. He thought of how easily conversation came to them, and how easily they passed witty banter and flirty comments back and forth.

"I could've been everything to her," Leo said once again out loud to nobody. "Why not me? I could easily protected her, easily made her happy." Leo couldn't help but to think that, even though slightly upset by their age difference, Keith easily preferred him over Logan Echolls any day. "Her father saw how good I could've been for her, so why can't she?"

Leo hated the feeling that Veronica gave him; he hated how he couldn't let her go, even though their time together was short. He hated how he remembered every detail about her face, how he could easily picture her in his mind even when she was nowhere around. But what he hated the most that it isn't him making her happy; that it isn't him holding her hand or making her laugh anymore. Leo hated that it was, and probably always will be, Logan Echolls making her happy. Without thinking, Leo slammed his fist down onto the dashboard, and almost instantly a pain shot up his arm. Grunting, his shock his hand to help ease the pain. He hated how he had no control over his emotions when he thought of her with him.

"I need coffee," he mumbled to himself as he put his keys back into the ignition and started his car. Pulling out of the space he was parked in, Leo couldn't help but to turn in the direction Veronica and Logan walked, even though his favorite coffee shop was in the other direction. Less than thirty seconds later, Leo caught sight of Veronica and Logan heading towards a crosswalk. By the time Leo's car reached the crosswalk, the couple was still waiting for a chance to cross the street. Again without thinking, or as if to test something, Leo stopped to let them cross in front of his car.

Once again, Veronica and Logan walked by his car, still hand in hand, without noticing him. A sense of frustration passed through Leo as he was tempted to beep the horn to get their attention. But, by the time Leo decided that it wasn't a bad idea, the couple had already crossed the street and was walking down towards the beach.

Shaking his head, Leo continued on driving, forgetting about his coffee and forgetting about his shift.

"It isn't me with her because it'll always be Logan," Leo said out loud as he picked up his speed, hoping he could outrun the thoughts he had of what could have been with Veronica Mars.