A/N: Thanx for all the reviews - you all rock:-)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 14

So, I'm toying with the very real possibility of my dating Logan Echolls. He's certainly all for the idea, that much is obvious from that kiss earlier and the fact he came out and told me he wants me. It's not exactly a phrase that gets directed at me much, and I have to admit, kind of makes a girl feel good. As for the kissing, what can I say? Either Logan has had a lot of practise or that's some natural talent God gave him. Probably it's a combination of the two, which only serves to remind me of the sheer volume of girls the young Mr Echolls is rumoured to have dated in a very short space of time. I know it's crazy to be thinking ahead to when and how I might be cheated on or dumped before I've even fully decided to date the guy, but that's just my over-active brain for you. It can't help but work out every possible outcome of the situation before going in, which isn't a bad thing in a lot of ways I suppose, but as Lilly often tells me, it does have a way of sapping the fun out of a situation.

So, following my sisters example I should dive head first into some kind of relationship with Logan, which honestly doesn't sound like the worst plan ever. I really can't seem to find a fault with him right now, sarcastic streak not withstanding, and maybe that's what bothers me most. Troy didn't have a flaw that I could find, and when it became apparent that he had more than one, I ended up hurt. Yeah, here I go again, comparing one with the other. It's so entirely unfair and I know it, but I also can't help myself.

I know not all guys are the same. I use Duncan for an example, since I know for a fact he's never treated a girl with anything but respect. He hasn't exactly had a whole long line of gifrlriends, but those he has had were always the sweet and sensible type, very similar to his own personality. He's definitely sticking to his usual type with Meg, and I'm happy for him, just the same as I'd be happy for Lilly if she could stick to one guy.

Its still kind of freaky to know she's seeing Weevil. The other 09er girls would have a field day with that information, since it's clear the Madison Sinclairs of this world do not believe in the mixing of classes. Of course not all the girls I know are as bad as her, though varying degrees of distaste for the those without cash and status can be found amongst the 09er set.

Lilly and Weevil would be the biggest coup since Romeo and Juliet, though hopefully without the cursing and the suicidal tendencies. The obvious theory would be that this is the only reason Lilly is even bothering with the head of the local biker crowd, and yet when I asked her about it there was this look on her face... it's hard to explain, but if I didn't know my sister as well as I do, I'd honestly think something serious was happening between her and Eli Navarro.

Yeah, I know, a better use of my time would be figuring out my own love life, or lack of same, instead of trying to second guess those of my family and friends, but maybe everybody else's issues are just a little simpler to figure out than my own.

Veronica had hoped that when she awoke this next morning she would be clearer on what she was going to do about her situation with Logan. Unfortunately that was not the case and she was as confused, as she entered the school building and headed to her locker, as she had been the night before writing about it all in her journal. So lost in her own thoughts, Veronica didn't realise she was the topic of a conversation further down the hall. Logan stood leaning back against the wall, staring down at the girl whom yesterday he'd admitted openly to wanting before kissing her to prove his point. With him now was that girls twin brother, Duncan, and their friend, Dick, both of whom had just now noticed Logan's staring.

"Dude, get over it!" the blond exclaimed, slapping him on the shoulder, "Ronnie isn't gonna go for you"

"Shut up, man" his friend complained, shrugging away, "Like you know anything about girls" he rolled his eyes, "You can't even see what's right in front of you"

"I can see what's right in front of you" Dick retorted lamely, "And you are never gonna gate a piece of that" he shook his head.

"Can we stop talking about my twin sister like she's a piece of meat now, please?" Duncan practically begged, "I'm getting used to this kind of talk about Lilly, I'm not happy about it, but I am" he admitted, "but not Veronica" he said firmly.

"Chill, D-man" Logan smirked, "I promise when your sister finally caves and dates me, we won't make out in front of you" he joked as Duncan looked ready to hurl and was grateful for the bell so he could get away from the conversation that was making him increasingly uncomfortable.

"So, now her brother's gone, what's the real deal, man?" Dick asked Logan with a particularly filthy look on his face, "You gonna nail Ronnie or not?"

"You do know there is more to liking a girl than that, right, Dick?" his friend checked, though it was quite clear his words meant less than nothing to him.

Sure, he liked sex as much as the next guy, he was a teenage boy after all, it was just natural, but Logan didn't want Veronica for that reason alone. He really liked her, in a far deeper way than just the physical. He knew it would sound lame to Dick and the other guys, but he was pretty sure he was falling head over heels in love with Miss Veronica Kane.

"So, what did you mean about not knowing what's right in front of me?" Dick was asking when Logan zoned back into their conversation, pushing off the wall as the pair walked towards their class.

"Are you totally blind, man?" he rolled his eyes, "I'm talking about that Mac chick" he explained, his tone making it clear he couldn't believe that Dick was oblivious to this, "I'm talking about the fact she practically falls in a heap at your feet every time you walk by, and you don't even see her"

"I see her" Dick said, shifting awkwardly as they headed on into the classroom and took two seats next to each other, "I just... well, she's not one of us" he said with a look, leaning sideways right over the desk and whispering like what he was saying was a state secret or something.

"One of us?" Logan raised an eyebrow and smirked at the words his friend had used, "What are you trying to tell me, Dick? That your wannabe girlfriend is actually the last daughter of Krypton?" he joked, as the blond shook his head seriously.

"Yeah, real funny, Logan" his friend rolled his eyes, "You know what I mean"
"I do" he nodded, "but I honestly wish I didn't. Since when are you so prejudice, man? If you like her, ask her out already!"

"Like you'd be so into Ronnie if you didn't know she was loaded" Dick scoffed, something that his friend took quite a bit of offence to.

"Hey, for your information..." he began, a little too loudly.

"Mr Casablancas, Mr Echolls!" the teacher snapped, catching their attention, "I trust your conversation is far more important than the class we are trying to start" he said with a fake amiable smile, "Perhaps you'd like to share your pearls of wisdom with us all" he offered, spreading his arms in an open gesture to face the whole class.

Without a thought Logan got up from his seat and faced his classmates.

"I was just giving my good buddy Dick here some dating advice" he said, as his friend shot him a glare and started to turn red, "You see, he likes this girl..."

"Thank you, Mr Echolls!" the teacher said sternly, his invitation to speak obviously having been based in sarcasm.

For once Dick actually agreed with the sentiments of a faculty member and was wholly glad when Logan was forced to retake his seat. Mr Casablancas was rarely embarrassed and yet having the world know he liked Mac, that would be so awful! His social standing and reputation would be in jeopardy, so Dick thought, or at least he would've thought that if his brain could cope with words of more than one syllable.

"Geez, man" Logan rolled his eyes at the teachers attitude as he dropped back into his seat, "Talk, don't talk. Stand up, sit down" he sighed, making some random gesture with his hand.

"Next thing y'know you'll be doing the hokey pokey and turning yourself around" Dick chuckled, the wrath at his friend from a moment ago all too quickly forgotten.

"That is enough!" the teacher repeated, going red in the face by now, "The two of you will see me in detention after school" he said angrily before turning back to his class and continuing to teach.

Neither Logan or Dick were impressed.

"So, what conclusion did you come to?" Mac asked Veronica as they met and walked down the hall together, shortly after the final bell, "About Logan?" she added as if it weren't obvious already to the blonde.

The two girls had spent their entire lunch break discussing Veronica's quandary over whether or not her dating Logan would be a good idea. Eventually, Mac had resorted to the old Column A, Column B test. Together the two friends listed all the pros and cons for the possible relationship on some unnecessarily fancy spreadsheet that Mac ran up on her computer. It seemed pretty futile since no matter how many positives they found, Veronica would always find a negative to match, though Mac was not convinced that those bad points were equal in value to the good. When they were done, they were not so very much further forward than when they'd begun, but Veronica had told Mac by the time they met up at the end of school she would've made a decision and stuck to it. Now was the moment of truth.

"I decided" Veronica said slowly as they stopped outside some random classroom, "That if I don't go for this, it'll be mostly because of Troy, and given that he wrecked enough of my life already, I'm not going to let him do that anymore" she smiled, as Mac's own face was almost split in two by a huge grin.

"That's great, Veronica" she said with so much enthusiasm, it made her friend laugh.

"As much as I'd like to think all your joy is for me" she rolled hr eyes, "Admit it, Mackenzie, you're pretty glad I decided to give Logan a chance because his best friend just happens to be your crush, and this will give you so many more hanging out opportunities"

"Am I so obvious?" Mac winced, hating that she couldn't control herself when it came to Dick Casablancas.

They were perhaps one of the oddest pairings imaginable, and she ought to be mad about the fact he was blaming his massive intake of alcohol for even spending half an evening with her on the night of Shelley Pomroy's party. Unfortunately for Mac, she couldn't be mad, and she couldn't find a way to switch off the feelings she had for the dumb blond that was Dick.

"Dude!" the sudden exclamation made both Mac and Veronica wonder if the thoughts in their heads had suddenly been personified, as they both spun around and caught sight of the man in question, Dick Casablancas, and the possible object of Veronica's affections, Logan Echolls.

The two boys were clearly about to strike up a conversation when Mr Williams burst in telling them this was detention, not gossip club.

"As if you didn't do enough talking in my class" he said, putting his bag down on the desk, not even noticing the two girls hovering by the other door, "Now you will remain silent and still, and I will back in five minutes" he said, giving the pair a stern look before stalking back out of the room via the door by which he came in.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Veronica said loud enough for the guys to hear as she entered the classroom, practically dragging Mac behind her, "And how exactly did you two fine upstanding gentleman land yourselves in detention with the most easily played teacher at Neptune?" she asked Logan who was both pleased by her entrance and amused question.

"What can I say, Miss Kane" he told her, hand on heart, "I guess I'm just a very bad boy" he said with a look many miles away from innocent.

"We talked in class is all" Dick complained, "And now we're stuck here for the next hour" he said glumly, rocking his seat back and forth like a child.

"Well, Mr Williams is always fair with me" Mac piped up, "Y'know maybe if you said you were sorry he'd let you go" she suggested, though neither Dick nor Logan looked convinced.

"Hey, maybe we can go one better than that" Veronica said with a grin, "Mr Williams loves me and..."

"What are you two girls doing in here?" the teacher in question asked as he arrived back in the classroom, "This is a detention, girls, not a pick up point"

"Oh, but Mr Williams, please don't say Logan and Dick are stuck here for an hour" Veronica said all innocent and cute as she moved towards him, "See, they're supposed to be driving me and Mac home, and our Dads will go crazy if we're late"

"I'm sure you girls can get a ride with somebody else" Mr Williams began but Mac shook her head and dared to interrupt, Veronica's own confidence and the fact she knew she was helping Dick making her a little more brave.

"No, sir, we can't" she told him, "Almost everybody else is already gone, and I don't know about Mr Kane, but my father wouldn't want me getting a ride with just anybody"

Logan and Dick looked at each other, trying to keep straight-faced as the girls worked their magic upon the teacher that was such a tyrant with them, and yet crumbled under the pressure of the twin pouts Veronica and Mac shot his way.

"Well, I suppose since the crime was minor, and I don't wish to be responsible for you girls getting into any more trouble than is necessary" Mr Williams sighed, "Mr Echolls, Mr Casablancas" he snapped at the boys suddenly and they hopped to their feet, "You are on your last warming about talking during my class. Understood?" he said, pointing at the two of them with a stern shake of his finger.

"Yes, sir" they chorused as they grabbed up their bags and were permitted to leave.

Veronica and Mac held in their laughter long enough to thank their teacher before hurrying out behind the guys and collapsing in fits of giggles.

"Oh my God" Mac gasped, "What did we just do?"

"We're young, we're having fun" Veronica told her firmly, "I feel like it's too long since I did something like that" she admitted as they leaned against the lockers in the hall, still amused by their own antics.

"So, do you girls really need a ride home?" Logan asked with a smile, "Or was it all part of the evil plan to bust us out of there?"

"Veronica was gonna ride the bus with me but I guess we missed that by now" Mac said as she looked around the empty halls.

"Well, I guess since you girls helped us out we could give you a ride home" Dick said awkwardly as Mac continued to smile brightly at him, "Right, Logan?"

"Who said anything about home?" Veronica asked, eyes sparkling with fun, "If you guys want to thank us we need more than just a ride home. What do you say Mac?" she asked her friend who grinned back at her.

"I could definitely use something to eat?" she suggested as the guys shared a look.

Somehow they'd gone from a detention with Mr Williams to a double date with two hot chicks, and there was no way they were going to argue with that.

To Be Continued...