Chapter 2

Thanks to her ingenious plan of shoving headphones in her ears and feigning sleep, the remainder of the bus ride was uneventful. At least to as far as the oblivious boy next to her was concerned, not seeming to pick on any of the electric tension Veronica was positive she was leaking through from her pores. She was had angled up against the window so her body was wedged in the space between the seat and the wall of the bus. Opening her right eye slightlya crack, she peaked peeked over at Duncan. His head was turned while in conversation towards Enbom. She frowned slightly, annoyed that he hadn't engaged with her, hadn't even bothered to nudge her or anything since they sat down.

Stop it. This is Duncan. Of courseYou know he cares. He just knows understands that I need a little space and is respectful enough to give it to me. Unlike some people...

Without looking, she knew that Logan was leaning up against the window in the seat behind her, jovially talking across the aisle to Dick and Beaver. He sounded to so calm and... normal. Well, as normal as any guy currently hated by half the population of Neptune could be. She found herself a bit jealous that he could seem so as unaffected by her as she was by him and with his body so CLOSE to her. She thought that he would have at least attempted to annoy her by snarking or teasing or, hell, even insulting her in some way – anything to assert his presence and continue with whatever that was when he got on the bus earlier.

Berating herself for even allowing her mind to wonder anything Logan related, she gave up her tired charade and began looking for something she could blast from her iPod, allowing her to get lost in the lyrics and forget about everything (everyone) else. Switching to her playlists, she started scrolling through the never-ending list.

Killers, Essentials, Black Keys, Green Day, Cold Play Hits, Bobcat's List of Delectable Hits, Dandy Warhols, Gorillaz, Spoon, – Wait, what?

Veronica let out a small gasp as she scrolled back up. Bobcat's List of Delectable Hits. She had completely forgotten about the playlist Logan had been bugging her to let him make for her. She had been worried that he would put some raunchy porn music on it and made it clear that she wasn't going to let Logan have his way - clearly, she'd failed at that. She glanced up over her shoulder at Duncan who was still wasno't facing her. Shifting her eyes left, she saw Logan still leaning up against the window, but now he was on his phone playing a game she assumed, brows furrowed and a look of intense concentration on his face. She smirked a bit and looked back down at her iPod, her finger hovering over the select button. She could feel a slow slow-growing warmth in the pit of her stomach. Butterflies or nerves, perhaps, but whatever it was, she didn't want it to stop. Decidedly With that choice made, she pushed select.

Oh God. Of course, you would go there! You never were able to pull off subtle very well with me. Unless you were banking on that...

At the top of the list was Incubus' "Stellar", a song that he had playing (purposely, she suspected) every time they got into a heady make out on the couch in his living room or on his bed. She shook her head lightly, knowing full well what the lyrics implied, and yet - she couldn't stop herself from smiling. She could feel the flush crawling up to the top of her face. She damned Logan for knowing exactly how to get THAT kind of emotional rise out of her as she gave one last glance up towards Duncan. Satisfied that he was not the least bit interested in what she was doing, she shifted until her back was flush against the seat. Pulling her bottom lip under her teeth, she closed her eyes and pushed play, letting one of the many, MANY memories she had been attempting (and again with the failing!) to suppress for the last few weeks overtake her senses, finally allowing her to drown herself in it.

"Meet me in outer space. We could spend the night, watch the Earth come up..."

**FLASHBACK**

Logan, in his board shorts and Veronica, in her new Black black String string Bikini bikini and cut off jean shorts– (an outfit she wore only ever wore for him–), were sat lounging lazily, both pairs of legs intertwined on the couch in his living room. Startleding her out of the haze of their post poolside shenanigans haze, she jumped when Logan reached across her in an attempt to grab her new iPod from her lap.

"Um, what are you doing?"

"Your playlist's are a complete disaster. Your music selection desperately requires a much-needed face lift. Lucky for you, your boyfriend is a learned scholar of all things disaster- ridden and is generously bestowing upon you his talent."

"I'm sorry, it sounded like you just said disaster. Did I hear that right?"

Wiggling his eyebrows and giving her his lazy grin, Logan nodded in agreement.

Veronica jutted her chin upwards with a smug smirk plastered, her eyes sparkling at back at him. "Mm hmm. Says the man who thinks 'My Lumps' is an acceptable song."

"Hey! I am an equal opportunity listener and enjoy all genres! I'll have you know that anything Fergie sings, says, touches and hell, looks at, is grade A ++, and I have no shame in admiring a talented lyricist like her. Plus, Will. and the Black Eyed Peas are fuckin' awesome! Even you, Ms. Music Snob, can't disagree."

"Writing and singing 'My lumps, my lumps, my lovely lady lumps' is not impressive. I'm betting my dog could come up with something better, and his vocab is limited to woof woof and woof. So, you just keep on telling' yourself all of … that, buddy."

"You know what? I think I will, Surly Spice!"

Logan yelped, his hands shooting up to block Veronica when she gasped in feigned horror and lunged at him with her fists. Logan yelped, his hands shooting up to block her. In an obvious Aattempting to distract her, he grabbed her at the wrists, flipping them upwards and kissing the insides where, they'd recently discovered, she was especially sensitive. Accepting her temporary defeat, she giggled at the sensation and slouched back into the couch, purposely not pulling her arms back.

"That's Superior Spice to you, thank you very much."

Sitting back up on her knees, Veronica threw one of her legs over Logan's waist and straddled him, her wrists still her held in his hands. He looked up at her, his smile slick and eyes filled with lust (and something else she wasn't ready to analyze yet) and leaned into her to nip her left ear.

"Superior, huh? How about...Stellar Spice?"

He nipped at her neck this time as she scoffed at his response, unconsciously turningeven as she turned her head for to give him better access. He let released her wrists go and wrapped his arms around her waist. In turn, she slid her arms around his neck and raked her nails along the base of his head.

"Stellar?" She leaned to his right and he fully nuzzled his face into her neck. "Come on, Echolls. You can do better than that."

"Sexy Spice..." He he murmured as he began rubbing his arms up and down her back. He licked from the base of her neck up to THAT spot and lightly sucked, causing her to softly moan. She loosened her grip around his neck and slightly pulled back so she couldenough to look down at his face. Sitting upright, he looked up at her with hooded eyes and she gave him a superior smirk, her eyebrow quirked upwards.

"Getting warmer..."

Taking his face in her hands, she leaned down, and pressinged their foreheads together. Their breathing was heavy now, the electric desire and lust pulsing between them. He looked at her lips and leaned in.

"Sinful Spice..." His voice dropped to the husky tone she loved and he smiled that secret smile only she had seen as their eyes locked.

"Hot.." She she said breathlessly.

With a jolt jerk, he tilted his head up, and capturinged her lips in a searing kiss, one hand now grasping at the base of her neck and the other on the side of her face. Teeth and tounges began to duel for dominance and she giggled again as he twisted them and they fell back into the couch, her body molding against his as she wrapped her right leg around the back of his, pinning herself underneath him - the iPod and thoughts of music forgotten as their mutual passion overtook them.

A week later, the community pool burned down.

A few days after that, they broke up.

After her first official date with Duncan two weeks later, she'd came come home to find a small wrapped box on her doorstep. That And that night, instead of thoughts to of her safe, normal boyfriend, she'd cried herself to sleep over the boy she knew she had loved, but even though she hadn't been worth enough to him (so she thought) for him to stop his own disaster-ridden vendetta.

The iPod had been shoved into the back of her desk drawer and forgotten about until school had started back up again, but the memories of passion and playlists had long sinceremained suppressed, buried, right next to her heart.

***END FLASHBACK***

"Veronica. Babe. Hey, wake up!"

Veronica jumped suddenly as her reverie was broken by the light shove she'd felt onagainst her shoulder. She looked up and saw Duncan, already out of the seat and looking at her expectantly. She blinked and stared at him in confusion, still reeling from the emotional chasm she'd had just torn opentumbled into that was currently had the blood coursing through her veins at a rapid pace.

"We're here and this bus reeks, babe. Come on, let's go."

As she continued to stare at him, Duncan seemed to Ffinally realize that ing something was a little off, and he Duncan leaned back into the seat, extending an arm towards her.

"Hey, are you ok? Do you feel sick? You look a little flushed."

She shook her head, pushing herself out of what she surmised was a lust induced haze (dammit Logan!), a haze that was clearly apparently noticeable if since it caught even Duncan's attention could see the flush she knew had risen up to her hairline by now.

"I-I'm fine. It's fine. Just go and I'll catch up. Still… um,… still trying to wake up." She smiled up at him as and he nodded in acceptance, andthen turned back towards Enbom and to resumed their conversation. Which, of course he did. When did he ever really look at her and take notice of...well, anything really, that didn't directly affect him?

The smile dropped as she rolled her eyes and pulled her earphones out. Leaning down to grab her messenger bag at her feet, she had the sudden sensation of a new set of eyes on her. She sat back upstraightened, bag in hand, only to come face to face with the boy she had just relished at the feel of in her mind. Her breath hitched and she held it in anticipation. She wasn't sure what to expect from him, especially since he was looking at her like she was something he wanted to devour. Their eyes locked and she lifted her eyebrows in question.

After what seemed like only a minute, or an eternity, she wasn't quite sure, he broke eye contact and looked down, slightly smiling to himself as he shook his head. When he looked back up at her though, the shy smile was gone. and replaced by his jackass smirk, . his His eyes sparkedalive with something, something that she couldn't name, but scared her anyway, like he knew what was in her head, and he wasn't afraid to use it against her. what looked like power, (*I cant think of a word for this! Its like, he just realized that her weakness really IS him and its ironic and now he KNOWS and he wants her to know that he has this now, and he will exploit it if it makes her realize that its HIM that she should be with and not Donut. Does that make sense? I cant think of the word!**) He Bbacked ing out of the his seat, not breaking their gaze this time, he then slung his backpack over his shoulder and as he straighten up to standstood.

"That must have been some song you were listening too. If I'm not mistakenIt might be my imagination, but I'd say you almost look a little turned on. Someone has quite the taste in music."

She stayed silent, not sure she could respond even if she wanted to, and Ttheir eyes remained locked for a split second more, before he huffed quietly and shook his head. He gave her a mock salute and pivoted on his heels towards the exit as she stared after him, now standing up in the seat. She reluctantly dragged herself into the aisle and trudged after him, her earlier mood effectively ruined. As she reached the top of the stairs, she stopped short when she sawat the sight of him at the bottom, leaning against the doorframe.

"Challenge accepted," he'd said at the start of this trip, and it was undeniable that Knowing something was definitely changing between them. , challenge accepted or not, s She waited until he looked up at her, feeling his eyes boring into her, all the way to her soul. This time, when he smiled at her, it was definitely not innocent, or endearing, or shy, or even a little jackass. No, this smile she recognized immediately, as she had just experienced it in her mind - just before being pushed back onto his couch, and she couldn't stop herself from relishing in the feeling that began to pool in her core in anticipation of his parting shot as she came level with him. They were face to face at this point, barely any space between them as she remained atop the bottom step, his arms leant resting against each side of the door, effectively pinning her to her spot. That old familiar feeling of electricity sparked and snapped between them as he leaned in slightly, enough that she could feel his warm breath on her face as he spoke.

"You know, babe, one could even say your taste in music is stellar."

Challenge excepted, Logan? If this is just a game to you, you can bet your ass I'm playing too, babe.

"Oh, is it? How about sexy? Sinful, perhaps?"

Not expecting that response, he leaned back slightly, intently studying her face. Apparently She didn't know what he thought he saw there, but it appeared that he wasn't not happy with whatever he thought he saw, because his eyes narrowed at her.

"Yeah, maybe. Too bad you aren't with someone who appreciates that." ," He he spat as he pushed himself off the doorframe, turned, and walked away.

Veronica watched him for a moment, that the warm feelings effectively cooled in a metaphorical ice bath, and she worried that she' had pushed him too far. Sighing, she stepped down off the bus and began the trek to the stadium, following a safe distance behind him untilwhen she saw him stop. He turned slightly to look over his shoulder, apparently looking for something, when his eyes caughtcatching her eyes. That sexy smirk was back, his one eyebrow raised,lifted and he nodded up at her and winked before he turned back around and continued on walkingtoward the stadium. That The warm feeling immediately reignited inside her, this time reaching burning levels as she attempted to suppress a smile by smashing pressing her lips together firmly. She threw her head back and shook it, quietly laughing at the sky. She knew in that instant she wasn't going to last be able to hold out against him, and she relished in it.

Oh man. I am so dead.


A/N - As always, thanks to Irma66 for her constant encouragement and mad skillz!