There were only two weeks left. The days were ending too soon, and every moment was desperately filled with something so that time wouldn't be wasted. Logan knew that summer had to end, but for now he would concentrate on the small amount of time he had left before school started and everyone went crazy again. He was in bed and he rolled over carefully, trying not to be more active then he had to be Except he wasn't in bed. He was in a sofa. Which he had just rolled out of.
"Shit."
"Hey man, you were like sleeping beauty or something gay like that. Couldn't wake you up."
"So instead of kissing me you chose to play video games and drink beer that's been left out for god knows how long? Thanks."
"Whatevs."
"What time is it? I have to see Veronica."
"Dude, what's that sound I hear in the distance, is it… A whip! Ca-ching!" Dick made a noise that in no way resembled a whip and kept punching buttons on his game controller.
"Seriously, what time is it?"
"I dunno."
"Dick, you have a thousand dollar Rolex on your wrist. Can you read it or do I have topretend my arms are the hands of the clock?"
"It's early I guess."
"Dick. Just freaking tell me what time it is!"
"Why don't you just look behind you?"
Logan peered over the sofa he'd been sleeping on. A huge clock was mounted on the wall.
"Thanks man," he muttered sarcastically. Dick just nodded, his mouth full of stale beer. Logan worried about him sometimes. Everyone had different coping mechanisms and Dick's was denial. Logan knew one day that something would set him off and that Dick was basically a loaded gun. Loaded in both senses of the word, because he wasn't even waiting for breakfast now to start drinking. Veronica's coping mechanism was to act like everything was fine, while inside she deteriorated. Veronica! He had to run.
Logan sprinted out the door and ran to his car. His huge yellow car. Which had in no way turned invisible overnight, right? So then where the hell was his car?
"Dude where's my car?"
"I dunno, where's your car dude!" Dick cracked up.
"Not funny, where is it?"
"You came in mine. Don't know if you want to use it though, cause that blonde I had in there last night got kinda sick."
"She threw up on you Dick."
" Yeah."
Logan swore to himself. He took off at a slow jog. He didn't want to leave Veronica alone for too long, because well. It was normal, but she worried a lot. Maybe a bit too much. It was fine, Logan didn't mind having her depend on him, hell he wouldn't mind if she enslaved him and forced him to wait on her hand and foot. God, his feet were killing him. But Veronica needed him. They were going to have brunch.
He reached in his pocket so he could check the time on his cell phone. No cell phone. Damn it, he must've left it at Dick's. Shitshitshitshitshit, the mantra repeated over in his head as his feet pounded the pavement. Veronica needed him to be there for her, she couldn't be alone, not after that night when she thought she was really alone, her father dead, her mother gone, no one in the world to look after her but him. Father dead and mother gone, and even if he didn't love his father, it was so lonely. Veronica couldn't be alone. He would keep her company. She didn't have to be so alone.
He was so close, he could see the beach, he was so close. He practically collapsed on the sand. He really needed to get a personal trainer or something, what was the point of living a quasi-Hollywood lifestyle if you couldn't hire people to make you look pretty and muscular?
Where was Veronica? He looked around, one step from total desperation. Where the hell was Veronica? Probably at her apartment. He would be so glad for the year to start. College dorms definitely weren't that glamorous, but they did have perks. Like no over protective fathers with recently sorted out grudges. Knowing Veronica's father her dorm room would have a video camera hidden in the ceiling or something. That thought struck a little too close to home. Fathers hiding video cameras in the ceiling was a concept Logan was too familiar with.
Logan arrived on Veronica's doorstop out of breath, and with barely enough energy to lift his hand to the door and weakly rap it with his knuckles.
"Logan?"
"Sorry I was late."
"I… I…"
Veronica let out a tiny noise, and Logan watched as she mentally berated herself for almost crying. His chest clenched a little, and he felt so bad. He never should've left her alone. Logan watched as Veronica resolved herself.
"Logan, I didn't mean to freak out. It's very early and I could use a highly caffeinated beverage not lacking in the sugar. Can we go?"
"Of course."
They drank coffee and joked and fought a little, and Logan relaxed. It was the end of summer, and everyone was a little touchy now right? Just a little while till summer was finally over and Veronica would be surrounded by thousands of people. She wouldn't be so lonely. In just a little while summer would end and Logan wouldn't feel so lonely. Merely weeks from now his normal life would start, and he wouldn't be so alone. Right?
