Noise From The Basement

Chapter Four: I Don't Really Like You

The next day as Veronica and Wallace walked across the blacktop to the entrance of Neptune high, they were amazed to find the entrance surrounded with Balboa County Sheriff Department Crown Vics and many officers in their beige uniforms. As they approached closer, they could see the flagpole going through 13 well stacked cars, Veronica's Le Baron conveniently at the bottom of the pile. Every student that had arrived to school earlier just gawked at the sight while Clemmons and Lamb were looking very upset. Veronica surveyed the site with eagle eyes and managed to pick out the other 12 girls with the same look of disbelief that dawned on all of their faces. Sooner rather than later, more and more students started flooding into the courtyard as the school buses dropped them off.

"What the fuck…" Veronica heard Logan say softly as he approached behind the pair.

Veronica felt tears begin to brim in her eyes as she watched the swarm of students approach. She looked at the Le Baron, becoming crushed underneath the weight of the 12 other cars and remembered how reliable it had been during stakeouts and how she wished she hadn't crashed it into the pole that previous summer. Clemmons yelling into a microphone brought her out of her nostalgia.

"I regret to inform you that until this matter is settle, Neptune High will be closed," the crowd that had formed cheered loudly "I also sympathize with the owners of the vehicles that have vandalized our flagpole. Anyone who knows anything concerning this matter should talk to me immediately and you shall remain anonymous. The perpetrator will receive the punishment that is fit in due time, however I am giving them this chance to come out and confess their crimes as soon as the crowd dissipates and you will receive the minimum sentence. That is all." Clemmons clicked off the microphone and proceeded to talk to a flushed Lamb.

As students returned to their cars and the buses that remained, the crowd began to thin, leaving a tear-streaked Veronica and Logan and Wallace staring at the piled cars. The other remaining students happened to be mostly the other 12 girls and a few stragglers.

"Damn V, I wonder if…" Wallace began to say until he saw Veronica's face "Veronica, are you okay?" Veronica remained silent as the tears began flowing faster and she crumpled to the ground, sobbing loudly. Logan, alarmed, fell to the ground beside her and hugged her closely to him, stroking her hair. She sobbed freely into his shirt, making it damp and Wallace sat near them, watching their exchange. When the tears finally began to slow, Veronica began to speak.

"Its just…"hiccup "the bus crash…"hiccup "and trying to find out who killed Felix to prove…"hiccup "Logan is innocent…"hiccup "is so much and then…"hiccup "finding out who and why…"hiccup "I was in the basement…"hiccup "I just…"hiccup "can't take it anymore!" She began sobbing again and Logan held her tighter.

"Don't you worry, Ronnie. Don't worry about me, okay? I can find out who really killed Felix without your help. I'm sorry I dragged you in the first place. You have enough on your shoulders, you don't need anymore." Logan pressed a small kiss into her hair and proceeded to pick her up.

"What are you doing Logan?" Veronica asked softly as he carried her to his X Terra.

"I'm gonna take care of you, like you did for me last year when my mom jumped. Don't you worry bout a thing." He placed her in the backseat of the X Terra and turned to Wallace, who had followed.

"If her dad calls, just let him know she's at my place. I can handle Keith Mars, no problem."

"Okay, man, but if you're an eunuch the next time I see you, don't blame me."

Logan chuckled and let out a "Will do, man." He somewhat skipped over to the drivers side and peeled out of the parking lot.

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Whenever they stopped at a red light, Logan peeked behind to check on Veronica, who slept peacefully against the cool leather seats.

When they finally reached the Neptune Grand, Logan parked near the entrance and carried Veronica to the elevator and headed up to the penthouse suite. Ever since Duncan had left, Logan had switched to the very top to be as discrete as possible. The only bad thing was that when you were carrying a 120lb- or so blonde, the ride up seemed excruciating. Once they dinged at the top and the elevator doors opened, Logan fished for the card key in his wallet while still trying to carry a sleeping Veronica. It proved to be a tedious task but all the while, challenging. Once he finally got it out and opened the door, Veronica was beginning to awake from her nap. When Logan noticed her yawn, he couldn't help but tease her.

"Hey Sleeping Beauty, how about next time you sleep, could you shed a few pounds? It was torture trying to get you up here."

Veronica, still a bit groggy, took a little while but soon realized where she was.

"Logan? Why am I here?" she asked sleepily, then yawned again. His demeanor softened when he saw that her eyes were still red and puffy from her tears earlier.

"Baby, I told you, I'm gonna take care of you. You have too much on your tiny shoulders. Now go back to sleep…" he said softly, stroking her hair lightly.

"Okay…" Veronica responded and was soon sleeping again in his arms. He placed her on his bed and covered her with a light extra blanket from the closet.

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Around 2 hours later, and after watching a very boring movie on HBO, Logan heard his bedroom door opened and saw a disheveled Veronica staring back at him.

"We need to talk." She said firmly.

A/N: Okay, This chapter is longer than usual and it has answered some questions I hope, but this story is far from over… So love it, hate it? Drop me a line cause I wanna know.