Veronica was a little disappointed that Logan had seemed so nervous earlier on the phone about her meeting with Duncan. She felt sure that she had eased any doubts he might have been having but she could understand his uncertainty, trust didn't come easily to her either. She changed the coffee filter and listened to the latest singer at the karaoke night, a curvaceous short red head woman in her forty's sang surprisingly well a cover of "Hey Jealousy" by The Gin Blossoms and her thoughts drifted to Logan.

Could she really fault him for being so jealous? Hadn't she last night ruined their date when she had found those pictures of Kendall?

The jealousy, was it because they were having such an intense affair? This connection between them… it felt like she had a fever. Her body burned for him even now. That he could ever think Duncan would ever compete with it was bewildering. This love for him… it was going to burn her up. Part of her was worried that this was one of those terrifying, completely self-destructive forces of nature that you spend your whole life searching for but know that in the end, it can only leave you broken or dead. This thing between them… it was like a bad drug habit… and she knew she would always end up going back for more. Probably no matter how far he pushed her limits. Love could show you a part of yourself that you never knew existed.

The woman began to sing louder as the song entered the chorus and it struck Veronica how perfectly it was timed as Duncan had arrived and the guitars were still playing. This was a conversation she would rather not be having. It had been here in this very café that she had gotten back together with him after her 18th birthday at the end of last summer. His face was still swollen and it looked like his nose had been broken, she had been furious with Logan after the confrontation between the two of them at school. Seeing Duncan, it was a reminder of just how unpredictable Logan could be. Of how much anger ruled him to degrees that terrified her.

"Hey.." she said shyly. Duncan gave her a small smile and slid into the chair at the counter beside her work station. She instinctively reached for the milk container and started to make him a latte like she usually did when he would come in during her shifts and keep her company while they had been dating.

Had that really only been a few days ago?

"How are you?" he asked shyly as Veronica handed him a piece of chocolate cake.

"Busy.. it's been a hectic night" she replied and gave him his coffee. Karaoke night tended to bring in a lot of regulars. "How is your..?" she said as she pointed to his bruises.

"I'm healing, it's not broken… it looks broken, but surprisingly, it wasn't" he said awkwardly. That was a typical Duncan response, she could never really tell if he was talking about his heart or his nose. The boy was a mystery, wrapped in an enigma and explained with a riddle. He never really talked about his feelings much.

"I'm sorry Duncan…." She said finally as his blue eyes bore into hers.

He had been her first love, the first boy she had ever allowed herself to go crazy for, he was the name wrapped all over her sophomore diary inside little hearts. He was the kind of man she had always envisioned herself being with… he ticked all the boxes, smart, handsome and a good person. Her adorable, honest, reliable and decent human being of a boyfriend… He was the only thing she had ever known she had wanted before her life had turned to chaos. He was the stuff of teddy bears and ice-cream. Back when she had just been a girl, romantic and trusting and a head full of dreams of the life she was supposed to have. But she wasn't that girl anymore… she had been shattered with the death of her best friend, she had been fractured with the disappearance of her mother and she had been demolished when she had been ousted by all of the people she had thought were her friends. She had been remade, rebuilt and forged from the vengeful fire she had allowed to consume her until she had caught Aaron Echolls, Lilly Kane's murderer. Who she had become was more of a weapon than the sweet girl whom Duncan had fallen in love with. A petite camera wielding badass had no place playing dress up with prince charming… not when there were damsels that needed saving. This was part of her that Duncan could never understand… but it was the very person who Logan had fallen in love with.

"No… I'm sorry Veronica… we should have realised… the truth is… I was trying to hold onto you to try to hold onto Lilly… and to try and go back… to get something back… but you are right. We both changed… you were with Logan and I was with Meg… and that's how it should have been…" he declared sadly as he took a bite of the chocolate cake.

So she had been right… for weeks, it had seemed like there was this part of Duncan that she just couldn't reach, ever since the crash… and even just before. She wasn't even jealous, just a little sad. It always seemed like they were jigsaw pieces that didn't quite fit as perfect as they used to. Duncan had always been defensive whenever Veronica had mentioned how Meg was getting along in the hospital. It was a relief in a way that they could finally be honest about these things. Meg Manning was important to Duncan, the same way that Logan was important to Veronica, if only they had just been less stubborn, less trying to hold onto the fantasy of who they had been before.

Perhaps Meg wouldn't be fighting for her life in an intensive care ward right now…

"Is there any news?" she asked softly, picking up her own fork and taking a bite of the cake as well.

His blue eyes broke away from hers and he became very pensive, lost. He stared at the floor for the longest time before he sighed and pursed his lips, looking at her finally.

"Meg's sister Lizzie came to see me yesterday" his voice sounded rough and his eyes were watering.

"Oh God… is she…?" Veronica stammered… please don't say dead…

"She's Pregnant Veronica… Meg is 26 weeks pregnant" he admitted, burying his head against his blue shirt. "Lizzie wouldn't tell me while we were together… but when she heard that we had broken up…."

Veronica thought back to how cold and defensive Meg had been those first few weeks of school and how bitchy she had been the day of the crash…. No wonder she hadn't wanted Veronica to be with Duncan.

"Oh Duncan…." she said, reaching her hand to hold his. They may not be dating anymore, but aside from that year he had avoided her thinking they were half siblings, they had always been close. Her heart was broken for him.

"I don't know what to do…" he confessed.

"You do Duncan, you will be there for her, I know you will" she comforted him, she left her side of the counter and wrapped her arms around him.

"I don't even know how I'm going to begin to explain this to my parents…" he told her, his tears were falling against her shirt. She knew from the brief encounter outside Meg's hospital room that her parents were very religious, and they largely blamed Duncan for their daughter being on the bus that day and not being in the Limo with the other 09er students.. Veronica blamed herself. If she hadn't been with Duncan that day, then Meg would have gotten into the Limo, she wouldn't need that machine to breathe. She wouldn't have been the sole survivor clinging on after that bus crash.

The bus crash meant for her and Duncan.

"Duncan… I have to tell you something…." Veronica told him as she stepped back a little. "It's about the bus crash…."