Your eyes dart across the room, you're afraid, they can see it in your eyes. Don't let them see your fear Veronica Mars, show them how brave you can be put some of your karate training into use and kick their asses. You have to do something, if you don't things could get a lot worse.

Or you could just sit there and tremble in silent fear. Your lips quiver and your heart races to the full extent, it's hard to take in air when you cannot think, when you're shaking in fear. Your lungs feel like they're about to collapse and your body feels numb to whatever pain will come next.

As you cower into the corner naked, bloody and bruised a hand grabs your hair and pulls you to your feet. The face is a blur as tears block your view but you can clearly make out the hate deep within his soul. Please, have mercy I am only human, I make mistakes.

Your back meets the wall with a thud and suddenly you feel like every bone in your body is broken. Fight back Veronica; don't let them do this to you. Your face meets an angry fist, once, twice and three times. Yes, your nose does bleed, it flows down your face staining your skin and dripping to the carpet under your feet.

Hands go around your neck as you fight to breath, to live, to survive. You splatter and suck in any air you can but it's almost impossible for the grip around your neck is so tight.

Have mercy. Everybody makes mistakes.

---

Your eyes shoot open, mouth dry and forehead painted in sweat. Your baggy t-shirt that you wear to bed sticks to your clammy body as you sit up in your bed. Breathe in, breathe out.

Was it all a dream?

You examine your neck and face in the mirror by your bed. No hand prints around your neck and no bruises other than Duncan's mark are on your face. What an awful dream.

Slowly you get up and move to the kitchen for a much needed glass of water and a large bowl of cereal. Your dad's in the kitchen reading the morning news paper, he looks at you with a questioning gaze but you don't say anything.

"Good morning" He says, taking his eyes from a news article to meet your own.

Do they portray the fear you had in your wicked dream?

"Morning"

You proceed to pour yourself a glass of water and a bowl of cereal. Slowly you make your way through each part of your breakfast, finishing eventually.

"I'm going to have a shower" You tell your dad.

So if you had of been living with Logan still you know what you would have been doing right now? You would have been in the shower with Logan having his way with you which is a lot more appealing than showering alone.

The water cascades down your back, the heat of the water making your skin a slight red colour. The previous fears of your dream wash away with the water as you're lost in thought about Logan and his incredibly well built body.

Stop Veronica. You cannot touch yourself in the shower over Logan Echolls.

---

You wait patiently for Logan to pick you up. Your dad stands by trying to make it look as if he wasn't waiting with you but you know he is. He glances from the TV to you and then back to the TV and then back to you. What is he so worried about now?

Finally your hear footsteps nearing your door. They are Logan's. Don't ask how you can tell, you just can. As soon as his fist hits the door you swing the door open and wrap your arms around his neck, he seems surprised but hugs you back and kisses your cheek.

All of a sudden the mood changes when your dad approaches you both. You know your dad has something serious to say when he does that. Why can't you and Logan just go off to school without the burden that is your dad?

"Good morning Logan"

"Morning Mr. Mars"

You can anticipate what will come next. So you interrupt before your dad has a chance to embarrass you.

"Dad, we should really get going. We're going to be late otherwise"

"Okay honey. I'll see you after school. Come straight home remember"

"Sure dad"

You hurry out the door with Logan, rushing him to the car so you can devour his lips. Oh how you'd missed his touch, his whispers last night. You'd missed his arms wrapped around you at night right before you sleep and that cute thing he does when he's kissing you in bed.

As soon as you're both in the car and a safe distance from your apartment you pull Logan's face to you and kiss him so passionately that it even surprises you. He pulls away quickly though and laughs.

"Veronica, I'm trying to concentrate, stop distracting me"

"Sorry I'd just been dying to do that all morning. I missed you"

"I missed you too Mars"

---

The halls of Neptune high fill with gossiping teenagers going about their daily routines. The bell for class hasn't rung yet but you wish it would. Logan stands by your side at your locker watching you placing everything in the metal locker.

The bruise Duncan marked you with has fainted a little but still visible even under all the make-up you put on to cover the ugly mark on your skin. People walk by and gossip about what happened, you know the truth, Logan knows the truth and Duncan and Dick know the truth.

Just as you turn around Duncan Kane walks passed with Dick. Logan sees the look on your face. Duncan stops in front of you, he towers over you by far. His hands on your body, killing you inside.

"Go Kane before I kick your ass again" Logan warns.

Your eyes are on the cuts and bruises Duncan possesses. You may dislike Duncan right now but you cannot help but feel pain when you look at him. You should have stopped Logan, you shouldn't have let him kick the shit out of your ex boyfriend; his ex best friend.

Wallace soon approaches you.

"Whoa. Veronica what happened?"

You haven't seen Wallace in awhile. Between the nights with Logan and fights with your dad your life has just been way too hectic for time with your best friend, your only confidante.

"Hey Wallace"

"Did you get into a fight?"

"Um. Yeah kind of. Hey can we talk about this later?" You ask, noticing the people starting to stare.

"Sure. I'll see you later" With that he's gone.

"Hey, are you okay?" Logan asks, placing his hand on your shoulder.

"I'm just not used to having all these people stare at me you know? I'll be fine" You kiss his cheek and wave goodbye, you're going to go study in the library before class.

---

The library isn't a place you see many students in, no matter what time of day, it just really wasn't a popular place with most of the kids and Neptune high and for that you are thankful. At least there's one place in the school you can sit and be alone without having 100 people stare at you constantly.

You start to read a text book on Einstein, you don't have any classes that you need to study Einstein for but you'd rather be here reading about Einstein then out there in the eyes of the public. Really, you shouldn't let it bother you, why should it?

You don't get far in before a male hand places itself on your shoulder, by the touch of it, it feels much like Logan's hand. You turn around with a great smile on your face only to wipe it off as quickly as it came and replace it with both confusion and horror.

"Dick?"

"Hey."

Dick Casablancas.

"If you've come here to rag on me don't bother okay? I get it."

His eyes dart everywhere as if he's nervous. Could it be? Could Dick be nervous around the girl he almost bashed and raped?

"Actually Veronica I wanted to apologize…you know for the other night. I went too far."

Wait. Rewind. Did Dick just apologize? Even if he did hold you against your will and touch you with his hands, Dick never apologizes to anyone and that includes both his brother and his father. So why was he here saying this to you?

You laugh. "Right. You apologizing. That's a funny one." You turn back to your book and try to concentrate on the words on the paper instead of Dick's figure standing over you.

"Seriously Veronica, I am sorry. I was drunk and I shouldn't have done what I did"

You remember the look on Dick's face when he walked away with Duncan. Guilt. Could it really have been guilt? Like serious this is Dick Casablanca's you're talking about.

"You're not joking are you? Because if you are Dick I'll kick your ass"

He smiles. Dick is quite attractive. Well, if you look past his arrogant attitude and smugness then sure he could be attractive. But you wouldn't do that, you wouldn't cheat on Logan…not now. Not after everything that's happened the past couple of weeks. Really you wish you were blind, at least then you wouldn't think about kissing other guys.

"No. I promise. I'll see you later Veronica"

He walks off. Was that really Dick or an impostor? Maybe you'll never know.

---

I heard it was Darcy Baron who hooked up with him. Really it doesn't surprise me, he's a man whore. Plus Veronica so deserves to find out.

That was what you heard 2 hours ago as you left the girls' bathroom. You've been replaying those words in your head for the past 2 hours in class. Lucky for you Logan isn't in these 2 classes and you only have to see him at lunch.

The bell rings, you slowly get up because the faster you go the quicker you get to Logan and right now can you deal with him? As you leave the class room Logan is already at your locker waiting for you, you see him from your end of the corridor. He smiles, showing all his pearly white teeth. You smile, pursing your lips close together.

You approach him, he wraps his arms around you and kisses your lips. Perfume. You can smell it on him. Could he have really hooked up with Darcy?

"Hey, how was class?" He asks casually.

"Fine"

You shut your locker and start to walk outside to the lunch tables, Logan catches up and grasps your hand in his own. How can he do that? Pretend it never happened and just play house with you.

Maybe the girls were right. You do deserve this. After all you did cheat on Duncan with his best friend. At least it wasn't your best friend who Logan cheated on you with. But it still feels crap. He told you he loves you, why would he cheat on you?

"Are you okay?" He questions as you both sit and the lunch table.

"Yeah"

"You seem out of it. Are you sure?"

"I'm fine"

"Positive?"

Anger boils inside you. Like a volcano waiting to erupt and bring hell with it. That's what your insides feel. Any moment you will erupt and bring hell with you.

"I'm fine! God"

He seems taken aback by you. The people around start to stare. Fighting already. I knew they'd never last.

Darcy Baron walks close by. You see the coy smile she gives Logan and the way his cheeks tinge red when she looks at him. He smiles back. Right in front of you. He could have had the decency to not do it in front of you. You're a god damn practicing detective for fucks sake, how can you not find out.

The bell for class rings. You get up and leave. Logan barely notices. When he starts to talk and realises you've left he gets up and runs to catch up with you. You say nothing.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing"

"There's something wrong Veronica. Tell me"

The volcano inside you erupts. Red lava spilling out of every crevice and crack of the mountain.

"When you decide to tell me. Then I'll tell you" You pause. "I'm catching a ride with Wallace too, so don't bother waiting for me"

---

Wallace drops you off at your house. You can only think about what happens next. The talk with your dad. Oh god.

You get inside, your dad is waiting on the sofa for you. Your bag drops and you sit beside him.

"How was school?"

"Fine. How was work?"

"I have a new case"

"What's the case about?"

"That's not what we're going to discuss Veronica"

Yeah, okay so you tried to get off topic at least for a few minutes so you could prepare for what your dad could say to you now.

"I know"

"So, this thing with Logan…is it…you know"

"Sexual?"

"I was going to say intimate, but that does the trick too"

Your dad blushes slightly. Obviously he thought you'd never grow up and he'd never have to have this talk with you. Ever. Sorry dad.

"Dad, do we have to talk about this? Really it's not necessary, I've had a billion sex ed classes and-"

"Veronica" He tells you sternly.

"Yes dad, it is intimate. Yes, we've had sex"

"Have you used um protection?"

Your eyes go wide. You can't believe he's asking you this. No, not all the times have you used protection but hey you're on the pill and the worst that can happen is you could get herpes or aids or something along those lines. Most likely you already have them from him anyway.

"Yes. Can I go now?"

"No. I want to talk about Duncan. Do you know why you cheated on him?"

"No dad I don't okay? I don't know why I did it, or why Logan Echolls, but I did. I'm going to go read for awhile"

You walk off into your bedroom and close the door. Well that was embarrassing, you never thought you'd have to have that talk with your dad.

---

Two knocks on your bedroom door awake you from the nap you took this afternoon after the talk.

"Come in" You yawn.

The door opens slightly and in walks a man. You can't really make out his face or any features right now due to the lack of light and the brain function that's taking it's time regaining.

"Hey"

Logan.

"What are you doing here?" It comes out more bitchy then you wanted it to.

"I came to see my girlfriend, but I have no idea where the fuck she's gone" He says angrily.

Guilty Veronica possesses your body.

"I'm sorry" He says and sits with you on your bed.

"It's fine. I deserved it"

"No you didn't. I'm sorry"

He looks at you with those adoring eyes and for a few seconds all is lost on what he's apparently done. Only to come back a short while later when he grabs your hand.

"Don't" You say.

"Why? What did I do wrong?"

You did Darcy Baron wrong.

"Why don't you tell me Logan?"

"Because I don't fucking know Veronica. If I knew I wouldn't be here risking getting killed by your dad"

Your heart melts slightly. He'd risk getting killed by your dad to talk to you. That's so sweet.

"Darcy" You whisper.

"What?"

"Darcy Baron. You fucked Darcy Baron"

He looks at you. "What?"

"You cheated on me with Darcy!" Tears fill your eyes and pour down your cheeks.

You sob, your hands wiping the tears you want to go away. Logan pulls you into his chest and wipes away a stray tear then pulls back your hair. You hear his heart beat, you hear him breath and him shushing you.

"I didn't cheat on you Veronica. I would never. I certainly wouldn't with Darcy Baron"

"I don't believe you" You cry.

Logan kisses your hand and holds you close. His scent fills your nostrils.

"Veronica, trust me. I wouldn't do that to you. I love you"

That's the problem. You don't trust Logan. How could you. You've known Logan since you were 12 and in all those years Logan has never been trustworthy, or the greatest friend in the world. Why should you trust him?

"No. I can't Logan"

Your boyfriend pushes you off him and gets up. You can see the fury his is gorgeous eyes.

"Fine. Don't fucking trust me Veronica. I'm sick of changing for you"

Logan don't go. That's what you wish you could say. But you can't and he leaves before you can say anything else.

---

You've slept about 20 minutes. It's 4.18 am, you have school tomorrow but you can't sleep. You feel awful about what happened with Logan, did he really cheat on you? You just don't know, Logan can't be trusted no matter how much you love him.

Tossing and turning in your bed grows tired and you get up to retrieve your phone. You flick through your phone book for Logan's name. When you stop at his name you contemplate calling him. Should you? He could be asleep and you don't really want to get him angry by waking him up.

Finally you decide to call him. His phone rings barely once before he answers.

"Veronica?"

"Hey"

"I've been waiting for you to call" He reveals.

"How'd you know I'd call?"

"Because it's me" Logan says smugly, you can only smile at how confident he is.

It's silent on both your end and his. You really don't know what to say, your heart is saying to apologize but your brain is telling you not to trust Logan. After all he is infamous for cheating on his girlfriends.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you" He says.

"Me too"

"But I didn't cheat on you Veronica. I really didn't, I wouldn't"

"I…I don't know Logan, I just don't think…I mean, how can I trust you?"

Is that Logan crying? You hear him sniffle. Oh no, you've made Logan cry.

"Are you crying Logan?" You ask astonished.

"No"

"I'm sorry, really I am Logan. I thought I could trust you but I just don't know anymore. People don't change. That includes you"

"So…we're breaking up then?" He asked in a not so subtle way. You almost regret saying what you said.

"I guess so. I don't want to, but if I can't trust you then how can we date?"

He sounded upset. You heard the choking sounds of what seemed like Logan trying to fight back tears. Don't sob Logan.

"Please don't cry Logan. I'm sorry"

"Yeah. Me too. For fucking believing that I could be anything more to you"

"You are. You're my lover Logan. I love you but this won't work"

"Why? Because 'People don't change'? People change Veronica, I have. I fucking changed my life for you. I wouldn't cheat on you. I love you so much Veronica" He was really choking on his tears now. "Please trust me. I promise you I didn't cheat on you. I can't lose you Veronica"

"Logan…"

"I swear on Lilly's life I didn't cheat on you Veronica"

"Then what were you doing with Darcy?"

"I…I can't say" He stutters.

"This is why I don't trust you Logan!"

"Fine. You really want to fucking know? I was planning a surprise for you and I needed to see Darcy about some arrangements. I was whispering in her ear because I was afraid someone would hear! So obviously who ever the fuck you got you fucking information off got the wrong idea"

"I…" Pause. Breathe. Sob. "I'm sorry"

"Veronica, don't cry"

"I'm so sorry Logan. I should have trusted you"

"Don't cry baby"

"Oh god. Who've I become to listen to stupid rumours?"

"Veronica, calm down. It's alright"

"I'm so Logan. I just love you so much and I don't want to get hurt"

"I love you too"

"Can you forgive me?" You ask him.

"Of course"

You brood a smile on your face and fall back on your bed.

"I have to go. Are you picking me up in the morning?" You ask, glad that you have your boyfriend back.

"Sure babe. I love you. Sleep well"

"You too"

You shut off your cell phone and get under the covers of your warm bed. You're glad that you called Logan because if you hadn't you would have been on edge right now wondering what was going on. Although you are upset about ruining his surprise for you and everything.

At least now you've began trusting Logan.

Sorry it took me so long to update guys. I couldn't get anything out and god it was so hard to write. Unfortunately for me I have exams in a week and I had to rush to finish this chapter so due to the time I have to spend studying and crap I may not be able to get a chapter written or up in a week or two. Sorry for the inconvenience to my lovely reviewers and readers.

Thanks a billion. Please review. :)