Disclaimer: They aren't mine

A/N: This is like the 4,789,487 draft of this chapter. I had a hard time writing this, so please review!

Veronica realized as she pulled the car into her parking spot that she had forgotten her bio note cards in her locker and, instead of putting the car in park, she switched into reverse and headed back to school. She let her mind roam as she was driving the all too familiar route back to Neptune High. She couldn't believe it. She had been waiting two weeks to confront Duncan and she had never witnessed such artful dodging as he put forth during that time. She didn't understand it, why was he avoiding her? There was no way he knew that she was gonna kick his ass, she grilled Logan and firmly believed him when he swore he hadn't tipped Duncan off. He hadn't gotten the chance; Duncan had been avoiding him as well.

Lost in her thoughts, Veronica pulled the note cards from the shelf in her locker. She didn't hear Duncan approach her from behind.

"So, you and Logan, huh? How the fuck did that happen?"

Veronica's body tensed and a smile formed on her face as she turned to face Duncan.

"Duncan! You know, I have been looking all over for you, you stealthy little bugger. You've been avoiding me, and I couldn't figure out for the life of me, why. But I think I get it now." The big, fake grin on her face fell and she tore into him. "First of all, my personal life is no longer a concern of yours, you made that very clear. Second of all, how dare you think you have a right to ask me anything about Logan, or our relationship?"

Duncan opened his mouth to reply, but Veronica cut him off.

"No. You don't get to talk yet, my turn isn't over. When Logan first told me that you knew Aaron beat him, I was shocked."

She paused, waiting for the light bulb to shine over Duncan's head. His face turned a deep shade of pink and he looked at the floor.

"I mean, how could the Duncan I knew, that I loved, ignore the pain Logan was in? And then I started to think about it. You know what I came up with, Duncan? I never let myself know the real you. Not even after you broke my heart. I put you on a pedestal and made excuses for your behavior, but there are no excuses. You are a coward. Whenever things get even a little uncomfortable you shut down, disappear. You pretend the things going on around you aren't really happening, so that you don't have to worry your pretty little head about it. There are two types of evil, Duncan. One actively tries to hurt others, the other stands by silently and does nothing, even though they realize it's wrong. You want to know which I think is worse? Would you like to know where I place you?" She paused and looked him right in the eyes, waiting for a response. Duncan let out a slow breath.

"I didn't think so." Veronica finished and turned on her heel, walking towards the door.

Duncan stepped forward and grabbed her arm, hard.

"I had my reasons for all of it." He growled lowly.

She yanked her arm from his grip. "Oh, I know you had reasons, Duncan. There's a damn good reason why you didn't even offer to talk to your best friend about the abuse he was suffering through. And I bet there's an even better reason for why I was the last one to find out that we had broken up. I don't even need to ponder it. If it causes you to put forth any effort, whatsoever, and isn't gonna benefit you in the long run, then just ignore it 'til it goes away. No easy fix? Then just pretend it never happened. That's the Duncan Kane way."

"You don't understand, Veronica. I love you." Tears were forming in his eyes, and this was only intensifying her anger.

"What? How dare you say that? You don't even know me anymore, Duncan, and that was your choice. YOU broke up with ME. You've spent the past year watching your friends make my life a living hell. You don't get to say that to me now, now that you're jealous because I've moved on." Veronica was shaking with rage.

"It wasn't my choice, Veronica. I broke up with you for reasons you'll never understand."

"Oh really? Not that anything you say could ever make me feel differently about what's gone on, but you've sparked my curious side. Whose choice was it? What happened that was so bad you thought it would be better just to cut me loose without talking about it?"

She waited for his response, eyes burning holes through him as he stared at his shoes.

"C'mon Duncan! You can't say something like that and then not back it up." She paused again, "You know what? Forget it. This little chat has reminded me how much I don't care."

Veronica was almost to her car when she heard him running up behind her.

"Veronica, stop. Veronica!" He realized she wasn't going to stop. Duncan practically shouted across the empty parking lot, "I broke up with you because you're my sister."

She stopped dead in her tracks, the bile rising in her throat.

"What did you just say?" She barely whispered her back still towards him.

"The night before I broke up with you, my Mom told me she needed to tell me something important. She sat me down, and told me that my Dad and your Mom had been having an affair at the time your Mom got pregnant with you, and that you're my sister. And that I had to break it off now, before things got more complicated."

They stood in silence, tears streaming down Duncan's face, an unreadable expression on Veronica's.

"So, that's why I broke up with you, and that's why I never said anything about that night at Shelly's party. Because it was wrong, you're my sister. But I never stopped loving you, Veronica. I tried so hard, but I just couldn't stop." Duncan was full on sobbing, now.

Veronica felt dizzy. She turned slowly to Duncan, begging him with her eyes not to have mentioned Shelly's party.

"What about Shelly's party, Duncan? What are you talking about?" She was trying with all of her might not to let the tears in her eyes fall.

"That night was the best night of my life, Veronica. Being with you, it was perfect. But when I woke up the next morning, and I realized what happened, I had to get out of there. I knew you were my sister, and I…let it happen anyway."

Veronica's head was swimming; every fiber of her being was going into not throwing up.

"Oh my God" slipped out of her mouth as she turned and ran to her car. She turned it on, threw it into reverse, and skidded out of the parking lot.

She pulled over onto the side of the road, opened her door, and threw up the contents of her stomach. When she had finished, she sat, staring blankly at the steering wheel until the tears came. And then she sobbed. She couldn't figure out what was worse, that she may be Duncan's sister or that it had been him that slept with her at Shelly's party.

When she finally composed herself, she pulled her phone out of her bag and dialed.

"Logan, can you meet me at my place?"