A/N: Thank you for all the wonderful comments! I'm glad people enjoyed the first chapter. Hopefully you will all like the second chapter as well.

Disclaimer: Of course the characters belong to Rob Thomas.

Chapter 2

After what seemed like an hour, Veronica had stopped her hysterical sobbing and had moved on to just soft crying. She heard the door to her dorm room unlock, open and close. She kept her face buried in the pillow, even as she felt the edge of her bed shift slightly.

Neither of them said anything for several minutes, but then Veronica finally spoke. "Why?" was the only word she could manage to get out. There were a hundred things she didn't understand and that word best summed up her questions about all of them. She felt Mac's small hand gentle rub her shoulder. She had texted Mac before she went up to Logan's room to let her know where she'd gone so she wouldn't worry about her, so she knew Mac would understand the general subject of her question.

"Why did we convince him to come back?" She finally heard Mac ask.

"Sure let's start there," she softly replied and turned her face so she could finally see Mac. She saw Mac flinch as she took in her face. She could only imagine how horrible she must look with red swollen eyes and tear stained cheeks. Mac moved her hand up to gently stroke her hair.

"I'm sorry," she instinctively started, then took a deep breath before continuing. "We were just tired of seeing you both so miserable and thought getting him to come back would help."

A frown formed on Veronica's face. "I wasn't miserable."

Mac gave her a doubtful look and shook her head gently. "You weren't the one watching the expressions you'd make whenever his name would come up in conversations. You were so preoccupied with trying to not obsess over him, you didn't even figure out that Dick and I were dating. And I was also getting tired of the calls from him every couple days to be sure you were being safe and not taking on any dangerous cases. I don't think Logan really hated LA, but he hated being away from you. You both seemed pretty miserable to me, and Dick as well."

"Then why did he leave again?" Her question came out in such a broken small voice that she couldn't even believe it had come from her. The tears that had stopped temporarily started slowly running down her cheeks again and she gulped in a breath of air to try to stop herself from sobbing.

Mac reached down and pulled her up for a hug. She talked softly as she rubbed her back. "I don't know. But if I had to guess I think he was just scared."

"Of what?" Veronica asked, her voice sounding a little less broken, but still tinged with sadness.

Mac pulled back so she could look at her and brushed some hair from her face. "Of getting hurt again," she answered softly as she gave her a sympathetic look. "Dick told me how badly he took it the last time the two of you broke up."

Veronica sighed and leaned back away from Mac. A bit of her determination had started to return. "I don't want to hurt him though. I... I love him, Mac."

Mac gently nodded her head and gave her a small smile. "I know you do. And I know he loves you too, so I don't know why he had to act like an idiot and bolt this morning."

Veronica gave her a questioning look. "You already knew that he left Neptune again?"

Mac slowly nodded her head. "He sent a text to Dick that he'd gone back to LA and wasn't going to meet him for surfing."

"What should I do?" Veronica asked as she looked to Mac, a desperate plea for help in her expression. "Should I just give him some time and talk to him when he comes back in a few weeks?"

Mac shrugged. "What do you really want to do?"

Veronica took a deep breath and thought about the question for a moment. "I want to drive to LA and make him understand how I really feel and make him come back." She said, finally starting to sound a bit more like her normal determined self.

Mac smiled happily at her. She gave her a little wink. "I'd suggest a shower and fresh set of clothes first." She paused a moment then asked, "Do you need the address?"

Veronica opened her table next to her bed and pulled out the piece of paper Tina had given her. Mac smiled and nodded.

By the time she made it to Logan's apartment in LA it was close to 6pm. She'd taken a while to feel composed enough before she left Neptune so she wouldn't just break down when she got there, and then traffic had been a mess. She stood in front of the apartment door for a few minutes staring at it apprehensively before she finally knocked. She couldn't help but hold her breath as she waited, so once it finally swung open she exhaled and took another quick breath.

From Logan's expression it was clear he was surprised to see her, and he quickly glanced at the two twenty dollar bills he'd held up as he opened the door. "You're not my pizza delivery."

She smiled and shook her head. She was about to ask if she could come in, but before she could, he opened the door farther and gestured with his arm to come in.

He closed the door and leaned against it then ran his hand nervously through his hair and looked down at his feet. "I'm surprised to see you. I was hoping I'd have a little time for you to cool off before I had to face your wrath for bolting this morning." He slowly tipped his head up and looked apologetically at her after he spoke.

Wrath? "I'm not mad Logan."

He gave her a skeptical look. He was still leaning on the door and jumped as the delivery person knocked. She smirked at him and he shook his head then answered the door. He exchanged pleasantries with the delivery guy and a few minutes later carried the pizza past her into the kitchen. She followed him and watched as he set down the pizza on the counter then fidgeted with the corner of the box. He kept his gaze mostly on the box with a few quick glances up at her.

"So you weren't mad that I left this morning without even saying good bye?" He finally asked. He still appeared to be waiting for some horrible fallout to begin.

Maybe Mac had been wrong. Maybe he had left for another reason. All of a sudden she was consumed by doubt. On the drive to LA she'd been too focused on how to convince him that she wouldn't hurt him again and why he should give them another chance, rather than over analyzing why he'd left. Mac's suggestion had given her something to focus her energy on how to fix it, rather than endlessly worrying again about why he left. "Did you want me to be mad? Was that your plan? Get rid of me by pissing me off?" She didn't mean for her voice to take on a bit of an angry and desperate tone to it when she spoke but she couldn't help it.

His expression immediately changed from being apprehensive to being alarmed. "Oh, God no, Veronica." He quickly moved over by her and looked like he was about to wrap his arms around her, but then pulled away again and just rested his hand on her shoulder. He shook his head. "I promise that's not why I left."

She looked up at him, trying to not be upset but she was sure the pain was clear in her expression. "Then why did you leave?"

He blew out a breath of air and moved away from her. Back over to the apparent safety of the pizza box. He started picking at the corner of it again.

"Please just talk to me Logan." She'd been able to regain her composure again, and her voice came out much calmer this time.

He wouldn't look at her, but he did finally start talking as he kept staring at the box. "I woke up early and was watching you sleep. I was thinking back to all the times we were together and then broke up." He started looking up at her a little as he talked, but quickly shifted his eyes back down to the box. She painfully realized that what was playing out in front of her was like a replay of what had happened in the quad a little over a year before only to a different script. His expressions and tone were the same, only the words were different. I've been thinking... this isn't working... "And every time the pain was a thousand times worse than the time before. I don't think I can survive it again Veronica, and if I'm near you I just can't help myself. When you're with me, you're like an addiction I just can't quit until you decide it's over and then I completely crash. So for some stupid reason running sounded like the best option at the time."

She momentarily wondered, the painful recollection of that day now fresh in her mind, whether she would have reacted differently if it hadn't happened in the middle of the quad. If they would have been alone, would she still have just quietly let him walk away? She guesses now that she probably would have let him go regardless of where it had happened. The person she was then hadn't spent almost a year not being with him, half of which she hadn't even been able to see him. Of course if she had stopped him and pleaded with him to stay, the reason for their next break up would never have happened and they may have been together over the last year instead. She had realized several times how pivotal of a point that day had really been for both of them.

She moved closer to him and put her hand on his cheek, forcing him to look at her. "I'm so sorry Logan. I never meant to cause you so much pain. I wish I could go back and do things differently."

He gave her a genuinely confused look, "But every one of our break ups were my fault Veronica, not yours. Always something I did and not you."

Veronica shook her head and dropped her hand down to her side. "Not every time, and if I'd realized at the time how much you really meant to me, I should have fought for us instead of just walking away. It was just easier for me to push you away and to just let you go, but I don't want to do that anymore Logan. I promise I won't do it again."

Logan sighed and reached up to brush his fingers gently along her cheek. "I wish I could believe it's that simple as just making a promise, Veronica. No one ever means to break promises they've made, but it's not always possible to keep them."

"Please give us another chance Logan." Veronica pleaded with a slight tremble to her voice. "I've spent the last three months since I got back from Virginia regretting that I didn't come see you when I came back. But I wasn't going to make that mistake again, which is why I drove up here today." She noticed he'd gone back to only looking her in the eyes for short moments and staring down at the floor or the counter the rest of the time.

Veronica took a deep breath. "But if you don't love me anymore, then I'll understand and leave you alone. I don't want to force you into something with me if you really don't have the same feelings that you did…. that I still do."

Logan looked at her sadly and sighed. This time his gaze stayed frozen on her and didn't shift away. "Of course I still love you Veronica. That's never been the problem. It's always been the stupid mistakes I've made that come between us."

Veronica shook her head vehemently "No Logan, it's because I was too stubborn to forgive you and to trust you, but I promise I'm going to change that Logan. I just… I might just need you to help me too… remind me of my promise…"

Logan looked away again for a moment before looking back at her. The expression on his face was so conflicted. "I just… I don't know Veronica… I don't want either of us to get hurt again."

Veronica's voice was tentative and soft, "I think it will hurt more if we don't try Logan. Please give us another chance."

He took a deep breath and pulled her toward his chest and rested his cheek on her head. "I just need some time to think about it Veronica. Can you give me that?" He laughed slightly, "My biggest worry before last night was how I was going to work up to getting you to be my friend again, not this. I absolutely never in a million years expected to end up in bed with you last night."

She chuckled softly back, "You almost make it sound like it was a horrible experience."

He laughed softly too. "Never with you, it's always perfect Veronica."

She squeezed him a little tighter and nodded her head. "It's always perfect with you too."

He took a deep breath and released his hold slightly so he could look at her. "So, can I interest you in some pizza?" he asked, gesturing with his head toward the box on the counter.

She grinned mischievously at him. "Come on Logan, you really have to ask?" He shook his head and then released her.

His smile faded slightly. He looked at her more intently and brushed a few strands of hair out of her face. "For the rest of tonight can we just keep it light and maybe just hang out and watch a movie. I really meant it when I said I want some time to think about jumping back into something with you. But there's no way I'm letting you drive all the way back to Neptune alone tonight, so you're welcome to crash here in Casey's room or mine, and I'll take the other one."

She nodded and gave him a small smile.

They spent the evening eating pizza and watching Easy Rider because she knew it was one of his favorite movies and she insisted. She had taken a seat on the couch first and waited uneasily to see where he would sit. She was a bit discouraged that he chose to sit in a recliner that was at least at the same end of the couch that she was at, but he was definitely maintaining his distance. She kept stealing glances at him and every once in a while would catch him looking at her too. They would exchange a quick smile when they caught each other looking then turn back to the movie. Halfway through the movie Logan asked her if she wanted some ice cream. He smirked as her face lit up. He paused the movie and told her there was a decent ice cream parlor just down the block so they never actually kept ice cream in their freezer. The walk to the shop was a bit awkward, with neither seeming to know exactly what to say. Logan walked with his hands shoved in his pockets and only occasionally glanced at her as they walked. At least on the way back he was more relaxed and pointed out a few restaurants he and Casey had eaten at as they walked. When they got back to the apartment, she took her spot on the couch again and this time he sat next to her. He offered her a taste of his cone since they'd gotten different flavors and had an amused smile on his face as she took some of his. No grand gestures or passionate embraces, but it was still nice to just be around him again, even if it was just sitting next to him watching a movie together.

When the movie was over, he asked if she wanted to watch another or go to sleep. She unintentionally yawned right as he was asking, and he laughed and said that seemed like an obvious answer. He offered to let her borrow a t-shirt to sleep in. She followed him to his bedroom and sat on the bed while he searched through his dresser. He grabbed a t-shirt for her and as he turned to hand it to her, he saw that her expression had changed from the smile she'd followed him in with, to near tears.

"Hey what's wrong," he said as he knelt down in front of her and put his hands on her knees. He looked up at her with a concerned expression on his face and gently rubbed her legs.

She took in a trembling breath and got mad at herself for her lack of control over her emotions. She shook her head hoping it would come across as being nothing, but his gaze didn't let it go. She finally sighed and gave in. "I'm afraid I'm going to wake up and you'll be gone again." She said as a tear escaped down her cheek. "I'm sorry, I'm being ridiculous. Just ignore me." She reached out and took the t-shirt as she wiped at her face and shook her head again. She quickly retreated into the bathroom to change.

She splashed some cold water on her face and took a few deep breaths before she got ready to go back out. As she had watched him looking for a shirt, she started worrying about what would happen if he decided he didn't want to try again. For some reason this really felt like their last chance and if he said no now, she didn't think they'd ever be together again. The thought had just overwhelmed her while she was watching him and she couldn't control the horrible sense of despair that overtook her. At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to just feel his arms around her, but didn't expect that to happen given his distance all evening. She tried to convince herself that her lack of composure and overwhelming insecurity was likely just exhaustion from an extremely emotional 24 hours and that she needed to be patient and give him the time he asked for. She desperately wanted nothing more than to be with him again, but had to trust that if she gave him some time he'd believe her and that they could work this time. She took a deep breath and was about to open the door to go back out and either head to his bed or Casey's. She wasn't even sure if he'd just assume she was staying in his and that he'd already be gone to the other room that he pointed out as they passed it in the hall. After her ridiculous outburst, she wouldn't blame him for bolting for the other room already so he didn't have to deal with her being an emotional wreck. She put her hand on the door handle, then hesitated and rested her forehead on the door. She tried to tell herself that even if he had gone to Casey's room, it didn't mean that he would vanish again and that she'd see him in the morning. She tried to put a pleasant expression back on her face, but knew she was doing a miserable job of it. She finally took a deep breath and pushed herself away from the door and opened it.

She looked first at the empty bed and took a deep breath and stepped through the doorway. She hadn't noticed that he was leaning against the wall outside the door and when she stepped forward he reached out and pulled her towards him. She let out a small sob as her face gently fell against his chest. She tried to keep from crying and sucked in a shaky breath and held it, trying to keep her tears from falling. She finally realized that he was trying to sooth her and he was making soft shushing sounds. "It's okay Veronica, please don't cry." He said softly as he placed a soft kiss on her head. "I promise I'm not going to disappear like this morning, okay." She nodded her head against his chest and took another deep breath and held it again, still trying to regain control of her composure.

He ran one of his hands up and down her back, and the other one tangled up into her hair, where he gently rubbed her head. "If you want, I'll sleep in here with you. If that will make you feel better."

She nodded her head again, and he released her slightly and then tipped her head up so she would look in his eyes. She let a little sob escape again as she looked into the pair of beautiful hazel colored eyes with small flecks of gold that she had missed so much. The same eyes she would frequently see in her dreams when she was in Virginia. "It's okay Veronica," he said again, and kissed her softly on the forehead. She wanted so badly to feel his lips on hers, but wasn't going to push him. Not tonight. She noticed he'd changed into shorts and a t-shirt while she was in the bathroom too. He released her a bit more, then took her hand and led her over to the bed. He carefully pulled back the covers for her, and gestured with his hand for her to climb in, before climbing in right beside her.

He turned off the lights, though there was still some light coming in from a few small skylights that were at the very top of one of the walls. She'd curled back toward him after he'd laid down and wrapped her arm across his stomach while she rested her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close, placing a kiss or two on the top of her head. He was gently rubbing her back. After a few minutes of just laying there silently he spoke. "I know I said I want to take some time to figure things out, but would it be okay if I gave you a proper kiss goodnight?" She let out a half sigh, half laugh and nodded her head quickly before tipping her face up toward him. He moved his arms so he could put his hands on either side of her face and gave her a small smile before pressing his lips to hers. She took a deep breath trying to inhale his scent as she enjoyed the feel of his soft tender lips. She really didn't want it to be the last time they ever kissed like that. The thought suddenly overwhelmed her and a sob escaped her as they were still kissing.

"Well, I can't say I've ever gotten that reaction from a kiss before. I must really be out of practice." He teasingly said as he pulled back and wiped a tear from her cheek.

She shook her head and gave him as much of an apologetic look as she could while trying to regain her composure again. "Hey, what happened to that fierce confident woman who drove all the way up to LA to try to argue her way back into my life?" he asked, somewhat jokingly though in a very soft tone.

"I'm so sorry," she said in almost a whimper, still holding her head up so she could look at him. "I just really don't want to lose you again Logan."

"I guess I'm just not use to seeing you like this, well certainly not over me. Perhaps because of something stupid I did, but not actually over losing me." He gave her a half smile and wiped under her other eye.

She tried to smile and scoffed a little, "Yeah, Veronica – never show weakness – Mars." She looked at him a bit nostalgically, "You did see me cry like this once when I was terrified of losing you though." He gave her a confused look. "After the River Stix, when I was so certain you were going to get yourself killed."

He gave her a small smile and brushed his hand along her hair. "I thought you were just upset about what happened to you. I didn't realize it was more than that."

"You always were a little slow," she said with a little smile on her face.

"I seem to remember you liking it slow sometimes," he teased back as he pulled her up for another long slow kiss. He gently rolled them over with out breaking the kiss and after a few more moments, pulled his head back and looked down at her. He smiled lovingly at her and stroked her hair, spreading it out across the pillow.

"You know we've almost always just jumped into 'us' after some huge dramatic event?" She nodded. It was something she'd thought about too. The first kiss after he saved her from the asshole ATF agent. Showing up at her apartment after he'd been nearly beaten to death by the PCHers the same night Aaron had tried burning her alive. Rescuing her from Cassidy on the roof. Their lives before had been filled with so much drama and chaos, ultimately pushing them back into each others arms, but not now. This time it was different because there wasn't some tragic outside force pushing them together. The only force this time was her love for him. She wanted nothing more than to prove to him that she really did realize now that she was able to love him unconditionally.

He was still looking at her thoughtfully and playing with a few strands of her hair. His eyes were shifting between her eyes, down to her lips, over to her hair and back to her eyes. "Maybe we should try something more normal this time."

This time... This time she wasn't going to let anything come between them. This time she was going to be more understanding and not make him feel like she was ever disappointed in him. This time she wasn't going to give up even if things became difficult. This time they could make it work.

She smiled more genuinely at him, "I'm still waiting for you to win me that Teddy Bear."

The smile that crossed his face melted her heart and finally made her feel secure again. He nuzzled his head against her neck and softly kissed her there, then raised his head back up and looked into her eyes again. "Will you go to dinner with me tomorrow night?"

"It's a date," she said quickly back and nodded her head.

"A date," he said back happily. He kissed her one more time softly on the lips, and then pulled her back over so she was resting her head on his chest again with his arms wrapped around her. He kissed her again on the top of the head before he softly spoke again. "Good night Veronica. Sweet Dreams."

Veronica sighed and said goodnight back to him. She was sure she'd have the sweetest dreams ever.