Heythereee, everyone. Much thanks to the reviews and alerts from the last chapter- always a good way to make me happy. Enjoy. :)
- Veg

Volunteering actually ended up being…not that bad. Actually, Logan, Carlos and I really don't mind it at all- it's Kendall who comes home every day covered in paint with the world's worst migraine. "I hate this," he complains, crashing down on the couch. Week 2, and it's obvious nothing's gotten any better for him. "How much longer do I have of this?"

"Until Gustavo says so," Carlos says in a mocking tone while childishly pointing at him. I notice Logan sigh and roll his eyes, and I know exactly what he's thinking- almost eighteen years old, and Carlos is still as immature as ever. Kendall buries his face in a pillow and lets out a long, loud, fake sobbing noise. I can't help but be thankful that I'm not him right now as I try to hold in my laughter. My friends and I all exchange entertained glances when we noticed the big spot of green paint in the back of his hair.

"Maybe you should go take a shower," Logan suggests, letting out an awful fake cough to cover up his amusement. "Aren't you and Jo going out tonight, anyway?" Kendall just starts to make more annoying noises as he loudly whines something into the pillow, and none of us are able to figure out what the hell it is. "Uh, okay…"

"So, how're things going for you at the hospital?" Carlos then asks him as he repeatedly tosses a pillow up in the air. The little things that amuse that kid…

"They're incredible," Logan replies with a proud smile. "I feel like-" His smile then fades away as he stops himself. "Uh, never mind." Carlos and I exchange weird looks at that moment. "What about you guys?"

"I love old people!" Carlos exclaims, quickly changing the subject as we all give him a blank stare- even Kendall, who had to pick his head up to do so. "What? Have you ever had a wheelchair race across the whole building?" We all keep our stares on him, both worried and confused. "I didn't think so."

"Carlos," Logan starts, looking more worried than anyone. "That- that's not safe."

Carlos just innocently shrugs and tells him, "It was fun." Kendall and I just shrug it off- this is, after all, the same kid who's taken advice from parrots and somehow manages to pull his hockey helmet out of nowhere. "What about you, James? I haven't heard you complain- at all."

"It's actually…okay," I admit, and my friends look surprised. Well, except for Kendall, who just rolls his eyes.

"That's because he still gets to sleep in till 12 every day," he says, shooting me a glare. I just shrug in return- he actually has a point. I really don't have much of an organized schedule for my volunteering. I show up around 2 o'clock every afternoon and randomly assist someone there for about a half hour until Vera shows up, which is awkward, but the other volunteers are pretty friendly. Vera normally comes straight from school around 2:30, where I sit with her at the front desk. Vera busies herself with schoolwork, answering the occasional phone call, and I actually talk a lot, a lot of the times while eating something I picked up for lunch on the way. I'm not even sure what about most of the time, but I know she's paying attention, even if she does just quietly laugh at me the whole time as that scary one-eyed mutt growls at me, because Vera's a good listener. We don't really do much up until the last hour or so when we go for a walk. The dogs and I still hate each other, but I feel like we're slowly…warming up. "Seriously, what do you even do there?" I just kind of shrug his question off.

"I don't know. Hang out, walk dogs…that's about it," I plainly reply.

"And you're…okay with that?" Logan suspiciously asks, cocking an eyebrow. Of course- my friends figure that the only way I can possibly be enjoying this is if there's a girl involved.

"Yeah," I just shrug my shoulders and play the stupid, oblivious card that I'm so used to.

"In other words, the place is probably filled with hot girls," Kendall attempts to translate, and he actually can't be any more wrong.

"Actually, it's a lot of old people and gay guys," I correct, laughing a bit. "The one girl there who's our age…well, she has a boyfriend." Kendall rolls his eyes at me while finally taking a moment to sit himself up.

"You say that like that's never stopped you before."

"Yeah, well," I try to come up with some type of excuse or explanation, but I honestly can't. "This is just different, okay?" My friends all let out quiet, bored, "Okay,"'s before changing the subject yet again.

"Well, I better get ready," Logan says, and then taps Kendall on the shoulder. "And so should you. Don't piss Jo off tonight, alright?"

"Going out with Brooklyn?" Carlos teases, and Logan just happily smiles in return.

"Of course," is his reply. "Who else would it possibly be?" Oh, gag. Okay, yeah, I'm happy for him, but the two are just so…in love. Then again, I know nothing about serious relationships- I know nothing about anything. I mean, I guess the two really have been through a lot together- from Brooklyn agreeing to wear the ring Logan gave her to her mother passing away this past year. She's living with her grandmother and her brothers until she leaves for NYU in the fall, which Logan is dreading. I really do feel sorry for her sometimes, but if I've learned anything about that girl these past two years, it's that she's probably the strongest, most independent person I know, even if Logan doesn't want her to be.

Eventually, all of my friends are gone- Logan with Brooklyn, Kendall with Jo, and Carlos on a "Girl Hunt". I can't help but sigh at the thought of that one. Carlos… I nearly jump out of my seat when I hear a sudden knock on the door and quickly rush to answer it, curious to see who's coming to our empty room this time at night...oh, god...it's night time already? What the hell am I doing at home?

I swing the door open, only to find a very pretty, tiny girl with blonde hair and big green eyes. Oh! That was my plan for tonight! God, I really am stupid. "James," she says in her sweet tone. "You were supposed to meet me downstairs fifteen minutes ago." Please don't tell me she was counting. That would be a total turn-off. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," I immediately reply. "Sorry, I lost track of time." She flashes me a bright white smile and gently grabs my hand.

"So, ready to go?" She asks, sounding a little too excited. Where exactly am I taking her again?

"Uh," That's when I draw a blank. What the hell is her name again? God…come on, think, you idiot. A…A…Ashley, Amanda? No…no. "Yeah, sure. Let's go." I guess I'll figure it out soon enough.

The next day, I'm surprised to find Vera sitting at her desk when I reach the shelter around 2. She looks both overly comfortable and half asleep in her sweatpants and sweatshirt as she reclined back in her chair with her feet up on her desk. "Hi, James," she quietly greets me, mid-yawn.

"Hey," I say, a bit confused. "What're you doing here so early?"

"I have half-days during midterms," she whines. "And I'm exhausted." I can't help but laugh a bit, and she scrunches up her forehead in return, obviously not pleased with my reaction. Once she warms up to you, Vera is actually rather comical. She then slides her chair over to the door that leads to the back, opens it just the slightest bit, and loudly calls out, "Zach! I'm taking a break!" We immediately hear her flamboyant fellow volunteer yell back, "You've been taking a break for the past two hours!" To that, Vera just giggles and yells back, "Okay, thanks!"

"That's the loudest I've ever heard you," I can't help but point out as I notice her pulling a set of keys out of her pocket. She dangles them in front of me and shows me a small smile.

"I'm gonna go get lunch," she says, back in her usual silent tone again. "Care to join me?"

"Vera Partrov, are you making a move on me?" I tease her, placing my hands on my hips in a mocking way. I flash her a smirk when I notice her face transform into a bright shade of scarlet.

"James," she attempts to sternly state, but it just comes out as timid as ever. "Seriously..."

"Of course, I'm starving," I reply with a chuckle, slinging my arm around her shoulder in a friendly manner- her face still turns even brighter. "Let's go." She quietly leads me to back parking lot and over to the little red Nissan I just so happen to park next to almost every day.

The two of us hit up a diner around the corner that I've probably seen a million times and have never even thought of going in. When Vera orders a veggie burger after we sit down, I'm tempted to ask if she's a vegetarian, but I don't want to make myself look any dumber than I probably already have. The funny thing is that as smart as Vera probably is- and you have to be pretty damn smart to get into Penn- she never really seems to mind my stupidity the way other smart girls seem to. I can't help but remember going out with Brooklyn after we first met, which Logan still holds against me, but it's really not my fault there's not one girl in this world that's able to resist me. But, let's just say after this first date with her, I was done- she was done with me. Apparently, I really embarrassed myself because I had no idea what the hell she was saying 95% of the time- I just knew she looked hot, and that was all I cared about then (not that looks aren't important anymore, because they definitely are.) Anyways, Vera's different. I may be stupid, but she doesn't seem to mind much. She just listens to my mindless babbling and laughs at things no one else would find funny.

In the midst of our conversation, I can't help but notice that Vera has quite a few small bruises on her neck, which makes me wonder. "I'm sorry," I say, referring to the fact that I just interrupted her. "But, what happened to you?" I gesture towards her neck, which she immediately places her hand over, wincing in pain.

"Oh," she says with a nervous laugh, showing me a smile that seems forced. "I'm really clumsy...and on top of that, I bruise really easily. I don't even know where half of them come from."

"Oh, okay..." I say, kind of shrugging it off, but it still seems weird.

"You know, James- you're a lot different than I expected you to be," she then proceeds to softly tell me with a mellifluous smile.

"And what's what supposed to mean?" I question with a mock of offense. Once again, as expected, she laughs at me.

"Honestly, when I heard some big-name record producer was looking to push one of his boys on us for publicity, I was kind of..." She innocently shrugs her shoulders before adding in, "...annoyed." She shoots me a nervous look, probably wondering if she's really offending me. I just give her a warm smile and nod, telling her it's okay for her to continue. "I really just expected you to be some jerk trying to look like some hot-shot in a noisy muscle car and a million girlfriends, but you're...different." I tightly purse my lips together and let my eyes wander out the window- she clearly missed my car in the parking lot and doesn't know my calendar filled up to next week with dates with different girls. She actually made me feel guilty. "You're actually a real person- a very funny, sweet and genuine person. Misha doesn't even hate you that much anymore and it hasn't even been two full weeks yet." I laugh at that last one, but she's not kidding. The one-eyed mutt seems to be growling at me less and less every day. "You know, we should get going soon. I left my phone with the rest of my stuff, so they're probably looking for me."

"You know, this was pretty fun," I blurt out once the waiter places the little black folder in between us, which Vera gently grabs, and I grab it back before she can open it, place the pay on the inside and call for the waiter, who is quick to retrieve it.

"James, you didn't have to-" She stops once I start laughing at her again.

"It's not a big deal," I assure her. I mean, it is only lunch at a diner. That's, what, not even 10$ out of hundreds of thousands I get paid? Really, no big deal.

When the two of us pull back into the shelter parking lot, Vera completely freezes. "You alright?" I ask, clearly confused. She slowly nods, just enough for me to notice.

"Yeah, sorry," she says, pulling the car back into her spot. "My boyfriend's here. He's probably been waiting."

And after meeting Vera's boyfriend, "David", I learned that he's just this cocky, controlling jerk with a bad attitude. That's probably why good ol' Misha spent that whole 15 minutes gnawing at his ankle.