Hey guys! Yes I am aware its been forever. Okay so originally this was supposed to be the final chapter, which was supposed to be followed by an epilogue. Well as the length should tell you everything got WAY out of hand. It's pretty much because I decided to give some space to Mac and Dick. Starting this story I put them together because I felt it was the most interesting way to throw Veronica and Logan together after such a long time, but after writing them for so many chapters I started to genuinely enjoy them as a couple. So I decided to spend some of the final chapter developing their story and giving a little insight into how they got together in the first place. Obviously the Logan and Veronica of present day are mixed in as well. Hopefully I give one couple a great ending and the other a great beginning. Let me know what you think.
Chapter 23
I Do Pt. 1
It's almost spring. Mac can feel it in the air. She'll finish this semester and only have one year left of college. One year standing between her and wherever the hell she feels like going. She can practically taste it.
The last thing she needs, the last thing she wants, is this little crush of Dick's to distract her. She probably should have been harsher that time he tried to kiss her when they were freshmen. Or when he tried to do it again when he got back from his summer break in South America. She'd spent sophomore year avoiding him and it seemed like he was doing the same. At least that's what she thought it meant when he smiled and nodded instead of trying to talk to her.
But apparently Dick was just biding his time. They'd shared a class in the fall of this year. He sought her out every single session, sat next to her and tried to make conversation. She'd thought they could be friends, or at least friendly, but it had become painfully clear that Dick wasn't looking for friendship. And this time he wasn't taking no for an answer.
She thought it was harmless, even as Veronica cocked an eyebrow as the first bouquet arrived at their apartment door. He just wasn't used to rejection. He would get over it. That had been in January. Now, as April approached every open surfaced in the tiny apartment she shared with Veronica and Parker was covered in flowers. A million different kinds, as no two arrangements were ever the same. Their scent infects every corner, clinging to the girls even when they leave.
She knows where to find him, stretched out in the grass on the quad, his sweatshirt pillowed under his head and a baseball cap over his face to hide it from the sun. She says his name once and he doesn't stir, so she drops his latest delivery on him. A dozen pink roses and the water that came in the vase too.
He pitches forward, the hat flying off his face. He winces at the rush of sunlight, but can't help but smile when he sees Mac standing over them. She realizes how ridiculous she must look, determination on her face, holding a dripping vase with both hands. She swallows back any kind of amusement at the situation. She will not find him funny. She will not find him funny. "You have to stop doing this," she commands, leaning over she sets the vase down next to him in the grass.
"Fine," he shrugs. Sitting up he brushes the flowers off of him, careful of the thorns. She knows it's not going to be that easy, they've had this conversation before. Sure enough he glances up at her under his eyelashes with a smirk, "Pick you up Friday?"
"Terrible idea," she shakes her head, crossing her arms over her chest and preparing for the argument she knows is about to come. The flowers have succeeded in that regard she'll admit. They are talking more then ever, it's just a lot louder then he probably wanted.
"Then the game's still on. Prepare yourself for more wooing," he replies, pushing himself off the ground so he can shrug out of the shirt she'd just soaked. He's not pissed. He knows he was asking for it, and hey a pro of Mac is she looks hot mad.
"Or as the California court system would see it, stalking," she snaps back. She will also not feel guilty for drenching him. Or anything at all as he throws his shirt to the ground and faces her in nothing other then a thing gray T.
"Most girls would be flattered," he points out, mirroring her stance with crossed arms and a head tilt. The move does nothing to lighten Mac's mood.
Instead she darkens, running a hand through her hair she remarks with a wry grin, "Yeah well I've never been like most girls,"
The smile he gives her in return is genuine and warm, like they share a secret. He takes a step towards her and whispers, "I know."
The flowers wouldn't bother her so much if she could throw them away. If she could actually bring herself to get rid of even one bud. She knows that it's driving Parker crazy, and that Veronica has taken to calling home the funeral parlor instead. But she can't, can't throw or give them away, and she doesn't know why. She ignores the sweetness in his words and squints up at him skeptically instead, "So if this is a game to you then what's winning?"
That drops the smile from his face. He throws his hands in his pockets but manages to keep his steady gaze on her, "I don't know yet." It's honest, which is more then he's ever been before. If there's one thing she should know it's that he didn't see this coming either.
"I do. I've known you almost my whole life remember," Mac observes, her tone no longer so generous. She knows how Dick plays games. The girls never win. "So prepare yourself for more rejection," she offers in parting before turning on her heel and escaping. It never occurs to her that he'd follow. He never has before.
He catches her by the wrist and spins her around, "You really think I'd be working this hard if all I wanted to do is sleep with you and run? I'm hot and in college. All I have to do is walk into a party and nine times out of ten I'm pretty much guaranteed to fuck something." She doesn't wince, doesn't even blink and he deflates immediately, letting go of her wrist, "I like you. In this weird way that makes me want to know things about you. Like ask you questions and actually listen to your answers-"
She interrupts him, "It's not a good-"
"Idea," he finishes her sentence with a roll of his eyes, "You've said that before. And believe me I've tried to get past it. Being into a girl who's obviously not interested isn't as fun as I make it look Mac Attack. But it's been months and I still want to the send flowers." He runs a self-conscious hand through his hair. Fuck this is uncomfortable. How do people do this constantly? He tries one last time to make himself clear, "I'm not asking to get married. All I want is to buy you dinner and ask you questions."
When she doesn't say anything, still stares at him with that same, calm gaze he sighs. He loses his seriousness, a mild smile ironing out his features. "Okay," he shrugs, turning around he heads back to his spot to continue with his nap.
She calls his name once and he looks back over his shoulder. "Friday. Eight o'clock," she concedes quietly, glancing away her face finally picks an emotion. She smiles again, not skeptical or cruel, it's a smile that says she has even shocked herself, "Don't make me regret it."
"Not on your life," he answers with a wink. She nods and walks away, hoping she didn't just make a huge mistake, and he lies down determined to convince her she didn't.
6:20 pm Saturday September 8
The vows make her cry. How could they not? Despite her assumption that Dick's would probably be three sentences tops he genuinely hits it out of the park. She can't look anywhere but the floor because if she locks eyes with Mac, or God forbid Logan, she's going to lose it for real.
Everyone applauds and laughs as Mac and Dick are declared man and wife. Then there's a bit of an uncomfortable silence when the two of them keep kissing for longer then ten seconds, then twenty and thirty. They're verging on a minute when Veronica clears her throat and Logan smacks Dick's arm and whispers under his breath, "Come on man, she's wearing white."
They shift apart eventually, both grinning and starry eyed. The sun has dipped below the horizon so the only thing that's lighting the outdoor patio is the hundreds of candles surrounding them. Everything is glinting and shadowed as Mac and Dick just stare at each other.
"We're married," Dick observes breathlessly. Mac laughs as she leans forward to wipe her lipstick off his face. He grabs her wrist to pull her forward and kiss her again.
"Jesus," Wallace laughs next to Logan as everybody begins to stand.
"Okay," Veronica claps as she steps in front of the couple, "The reception is inside and down the hall. Cindy and Richard will join us-"
"Whenever we feel like it," Dick calls from behind Veronica's back, before picking Mac up off her feet and spinning her around. Her veil is falling out because he can't keep his hands out of her hair and she knows they should stop. As usual she should be the voice of reason. But they're married and she just can't help it, can't even try.
As people file out Veronica crosses the beach to stand by Wallace. He raises his hand and with a smirk she gives him the high five he's asking for. "You made it through the entire ceremony," he observes, "I owe Jackie a twenty."
"I didn't even cough," Veronica replies, "or make the speech I brainstormed on the plane about how some people should just live together their whole lives."
"I can hear you Mars," Dick calls over his shoulder, the violinist that played Mac down the aisle is now striking up again to lead people off the beach. He's taken a break from making out with his new wife to attempt to put her veil back the way it was.
"I reconsidered," Veronica points out as she pulls her out of its updo, letting all the pins fall onto the patio stones, "You really pulled it out with the vows Casablancas. I even believe you wrote them yourself." She glances over at Logan who, though standing only a few feet from her, manages to make it feel like miles. He's staring away from the group, watching the waves crash against the shore.
"I didn't write a thing," Dick replies as he finally manages to untangle Mac's veil from all her curls, "I just thought about my wife. And naturally the words came out awesome."
"You came up with that on the spot?" his wife questions, an even bigger grin appearing on her lips. She grabs his tie and throws an arm over his shoulder, whispering up to him, "If I could marry you again I would."
"Okay are you guys going to throw down on the beach," Logan mutters, glancing over as the couple begins to kiss once again, "Because there are some things you can't un see."
"Logan would know," Veronica mutters. As Wallace pulls of his tie Veronica takes it from him, wrapping it around her bouquet for safekeeping. The windows in the banquet hall are open and voices filter out onto the beach.
"Yep, I lived through your sex tape remember?" Logan asks, his voice is low and amused, making it clear that their wedding truce is over. Veronica opens her mouth to retaliate but Parker gets there first.
"Technically not a sex tape," she distinguishes, throwing an arm around Logan's shoulders and smirking over at him, she adds, "And Piz still has PTSD from the beat down, so don't mention it within earshot."
"Or we could just not mention it period," Wallace cuts in, his tone making it clear his suggestion isn't up for discussion. He likes Logan, hell they might even be friends, but if forced to pick sides there isn't even a question as to where he'll land. It's not like Veronica doesn't give as good as she gets, but to him it doesn't matter. She has his back and he has hers, and that's just the way it would always be.
"The kids are getting restless," Mac observes as she pulls away from her husband.
Dick sighs, laying his forehead against Mac's. Tilting just slightly he stares at his wedding party dubiously. "Fine, if you guys can't play nice we'll just have to separate you," he concludes, and without blinking he bends over to throw Mac over his shoulder, "The wife and I need sometime alone. Try not to break into a fistfight on the dance floor. Or do whatever, as long as you avoid the kill shots V."
"No promises," Veronica snaps as Dick jogs inside with a shrieking Mac. Without glancing at Logan she links arms with Wallace and heads inside behind the newlyweds.
"Burrrr," Parker shivers dramatically, "From beautiful to sex tape in less then an hour. You do know how to keep the girls guessing Echolls."
When Logan doesn't give her a smartass comment and a smirk in reply, instead actually glances away and frowns she squints up at him, "You know what you're doing?"
"She lost a kid," our kid Logan runs a hand over his face, looking up at the sky, "She begged for forgiveness and I can barely look at her."
The small smile falls from Parker's face, "I know."
"You want to hear a secret," she asks and when Logan and his puppy dog eyes glance down at her she enlightens him. "You're a good guy," Logan scoffs and she grabs his arms to force him to maintain eye contact, "People tell you different, hell I've told you different, but it's true. You try so hard to be otherwise, but when it matters you'll pick her every time."
"She lied. Veronica does that. She also pretends to be strong even though she's definitely not tough as nails," Parker continues, "And if it hurt you that much to hear about it imagine what she felt living it." She squeezes his shoulders, "You're a good guy Logan. Act like it."
The dates going shitty. He can totally tell. She's being cool about it, but he's nervous and he doesn't know how to make a girl like Mac like a guy like him. They'd talked about school, he'd cracked a few ill-advised jokes that had barely made her smile, and generally he had sweated and been uncomfortable.
She's going to blow him off. It's obvious that he's fucked up and she's going to slip through his fingers. He'll become one of the mistakes she made on her path to the perfect guy a few years down the road. That idiot who wouldn't take no for an answer and barely tried when given the opportunity. It's the drive home and she's staring out the window for Christ's sake.
Fuck it. He is not going down like this. He's turns the wrong way, taking her to the one place he never feels uncomfortable. She doesn't say anything until they pull into a parking space, that wry smile back in place, "I hope you don't think-"
"Wanna go for a walk?" he interrupts like he hadn't heard he speaking. Which he almost hadn't as his heartbeat is in his ears. What is he even going to say?
She blinks, opens her mouth like she might say no, but then bends down to pull off her boots, "Sure."
They walk across the parking lot barefoot and then down onto the sand. He takes the lead, walking until they reach the tide. He comes to stand right where the waves can brush across their toes. The bottoms of his jeans are soaked instantly, but he doesn't even seem to notice.
"I really like you," he turns his head suddenly, and the words are almost too quiet to hear. They nearly get lost in a wave.
"Why?" she doesn't look at him, her face trained upwards towards the stars, "Is it just because I knew him?"
"What?" his head cocks to the side as his brain tries to go the same direction as hers. Beaver. Cassidy. She's talking about his brother, "No."
Maybe it had started that way. Guilt isn't an emotion he's used to feeling. The way he treated his brother, fuck the way he treated her. It's something he might never forgive himself for. And that's probably how it's supposed to be. "I like you," he starts, not sure where he's going until it all tumbles out, "Because you don't even have to try to be awesome. You just do what you want and it ends up that way."
Now she looks at him, "What?"
Yeah that made almost no sense. What the fuck is he even trying to say? "Like you were friends with Veronica even when people were saying awful shit about her. And you learned how to hack the CIA while the rest of us were getting high," the explanation is disjointed and he's talking too fast, "And you don't give a shit that I have money or connections or whatever the fuck it is people say about me. That move you pulled? When you dumped the flowers on me? Gold. And I'm sorry about dinner. I remember that place being much cooler. And you see that's the point right? I don't do things like that. I don't worry or take girls to the beach and talk to them about-"
"Anything?" she finishes with a quirked eyebrow. It's the biggest smile she's given him all night. Maybe ever. And he laughs in agreement, the tension in his shoulders relaxing ever so slightly.
"I think I want to be like you," Dick continues slowly, like he's figuring it out for himself as he says it to her, "But mostly I just want to be around you. "
"You should have put that on a card," she whispers back honestly, "And for the record I can't hack the CIA."
"Yeah but I bet you've tried," he knocks their shoulders together conspiratorially, an easy grin crossing his face as she laughs. God that's nice.
"Anything else you want to tell me," she asks as a gust of wind rushes down the beach, sending her hair flying all over. Throwing her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket she turns to face him again. This is the last thing she expected. Who knew Dick would take her to a restaurant where the cheapest entrée cost more then her entire outfit and then end the evening baring his soul barefoot at the foot of the ocean?
"Yeah," he nods still smiling, "But I'd rather ask all those questions."
"Ok," Mac nods, and then she makes a sweeping gesture towards the beach, "Wanna walk?"
"Yeah," Dick replies, "Let's walk." He can't help it. Something's never change and he pushes his luck, throwing his arm around her shoulder. She doesn't lean in, but she doesn't tell him to let go either.
6:45 pm Saturday September 8
Everybody has taken their seats when Logan taps his fork against his glass. Veronica, the only person still standing, rushes from her father's table back to her seat next to Mac. She falls into her chair just as Logan begins to speak.
It starts off just as she expected, with a charming grin and a chuckle. Logan tilts his head as he gazes down at his seated best friend, "Jesus Dick you must be really nervous about me and this microphone. The stories I could tell…" Dick doesn't even blink, silently daring Logan to do his worst, "Hey remember that six-month span you were convinced Patron gave you super human strength? Or when we nearly got killed in Mexico because you wanted to bring some cartel guy's girlfriend home with you. What was her name?" Logan points the microphone in Dick's direction.
"Gloria," the newlywed replies, before arching an eyebrow and adding, "Come on man, quit going easy on me. That was before I was even eighteen. Lets be adult about this."
Logan's whole face lights up, and he taps his finger against his chin in fake contemplation even though he's got a million stories on the tip of his tongue, "How about your twenty first birthday when you woke up with your head shaved and couldn't see out of your right eye for three days? Or that time you were convinced Veronica knew I was going to propose and that she was following you to get answers? And you chased a random blonde around a parking garage and she got a restraining order-"
"Her name was Christy and I maintain she was stalking me," Dick defends into the microphone. The whole wedding party is practically in tears, the rest of the ballroom split between joining in genuinely or nervously.
"We've had some good times huh?" Logan asks and Dick raises his glass, knocking it against Logan's and nodding his head, "I mean I've known you since you were like eight. We were friends even for that dark year in middle school, when you had to wear your head gear to school." This is the first reference Dick looks even vaguely embarrassed about, "I can honestly say, excluding that time you walked in on me while I was in the shower, I have never seen you happier."
Dick guffaws and slaps the table while Logan steps around him to look at his new bride, "All joking aside, I have to say thanks. Mac there were some years there where I was worried, and Dick will probably agree it could have gone either way. Trying to change your perception of him is honestly the hardest I have ever seen him work for something. He wanted you in his life and believe me, after nearly two decades of wishing the exact opposite it's a bizarre feeling. And ultimately you accomplished the impossible. You helped the semi alcoholic Peter Pan of Neptune High grow up. And for that you're my hero. So thanks Mrs. Casablancas, and Dick, I guess we'll always have Vegas." Logan toasts the couple and Mac, who's in tears by the end of the speech, stands to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss his cheek.
After Logan's done Veronica rises to make her own speech. She'd originally written one like Logan's minus the emotional ending. She didn't feel comfortable saying anything honest, given her proclivity for spur of the moment smart ass comments she was genuinely afraid she would say something mean to the groom and ruin the night. But now, her mind goes blank and the words flood in, none of them smart, all of them emotional.
"Now that Logan's done seducing the bride I guess it's my turn," she grips the microphone with both hands and stares out into the crowd with a wolfish grin. She receives a ripple of laughter and tucks a piece of hair behind her ear as she continues, "Ok so, if you told me ten years ago I would be watching Mac and Dick get married I would have laughed in your face. And it was lost on no one that even a week ago I was still skeptical. How can two people who are opposite in so many ways possibly spend their lives living with those differences? Mac's beautiful, smart, she loves learning new things and getting lost in a good book. And Dick," she pauses for effect and the blonde groom is the first one to laugh, "well he likes sports and videogames and participating in events where they make you sign waivers so your family can't sue if you die. They differ on big issues and small ones, and most of the time if you're on the outside you don't understand. But then you, or more specifically I, look closer and catch them in a moment. The way he looks up and smiles when she walks into a room. The way she laughs when he whispers a joke in her ear. It's those little things. They pass in a second. But they tell you the most about Mac and Dick's relationship. He cooks, she cleans. He talks her into jumping off buildings and she teaches him how to use his iPad for something other then Angry Birds. He makes her feel safe and she makes him feel loved. If you pay attention you'll see what you didn't get in the beginning, their differences are the best part. Being similar would ruin them. And what's even worse is that it would be boring. They're a balancing act, and every day they have to work to figure it out, but it's worth it in the end," her voice dips low, and she blinks a few times, refusing to let her eyes position on the person they want to, the person that's staring at her with his mouth half open, "To find that somebody who makes you feel like a complete person whenever they're standing next to you. That feeling doesn't come to everyone, and it's once in a lifetime." She trails off, ending her speech abruptly with a raised glass, "So here's to Mac and Dick."
Mac, who'd expected to either be laughing or uncomfortable during her maid of honor's speech, stands again. She's ashamed that's she's now verging on full bridal hysterics. Dick follows a moment later. He leans around his bride to kiss her blonde best friend on the cheek. "Really," Veronica asks at the weight of his hand on her shoulder and his breath on her cheek. This is quite possibly the closest she and Dick have been ever. Excluding that time she maybe made out without him in her GHB stupor.
"You earned it," Dick shrugs, smirking to try and hide the emotion under the surface. He and Mac stand next to each other, between them only their interlaced hands. It's a point of pride, his wife. That someone so beautiful and intelligent and just fucking cool fell for someone like him. He forgets that he provides anything at all to the equation. Mac had told him all the reasons why just an hour ago, and now Veronica, the last person he'd expected it from, had summed it up perfectly as well.
She grabs his wrist as he pulls away from her and squeezes once, just enough to make him look into her eyes. "So did you," she agrees and Dick hesitates for just a second before giving her an exaggerated wink and sitting back down.
Mac takes the opportunity to throw both her arms around Veronica's shoulders. "I'm staying here until I stop crying okay?" she whispers into her friend's shoulder, "I'm not depressing people at my own wedding."
"Finally sinking in you willing tied yourself to Big Dick Junior," Veronica whispers back, succeeding only in making Mac laugh and cry at the same time. "Stay as long as you need," Veronica adds, resting her chin on her best friend's shoulder.
She relaxes, and that's when it happens. She focuses on Logan and he focuses on her. Him half turned in his seat just finished talking to Dick and her in Mac's arms. It's stupid, this urgency she feels, this overwhelming need to be understood immediately. She's gone years without speaking to him, but suddenly she just can't say enough. It's not the time. God it's never the time. She closes her eyes and he clenches his jaw.
Mac's a hysterical drunk. Not very coordinated but she makes up for it in inappropriate comments and the looks she keeps shooting him across the table. Plus she's downing her share of the tequila shots like a pro.
It's the first time he's ever seen like this. In the last eight weeks they've been spending a lot time together, but mostly alone. For some reason he doesn't like to share her, and if he's honest there's more then a little part of him that worried it would all fall apart in public. He played the whole thing confident, picked her up just like any other Friday night.
But he was expecting to get blown off. Veronica was going to be at the bar and she hadn't exactly hidden her thoughts about their relationship. Her recent engagement, which they were all celebrating tonight, had done nothing to temper her blatant skepticism. He was going to say something bad and Mac would blush or clam up on him and start avoiding his calls. His strategy going into the night was to just keep his fucking mouth shut.
She must have noticed something was off on the drive over. Maybe he was talking too fast or not enough. Hell maybe she was nervous too. But just as they were about to walk into the bar she brushed her shoulder against his and laced their fingers together. Which never happens. Mac isn't a big PDA person. When she touches or kisses him it's in private. Which he's fine with. More then fine with actually.
But he likes this too, likes that she smiles, squeezes his hand, and then pulls him into the crowded bar. Likes the message it sends and the way it makes him feel. The anxiety melts away almost immediately.
She's been great all night since and he likes to think he has too. He and Veronica are doing the awkward polite thing they always attempt in front of Logan and he and Wallace are getting on better and better terms. But the night doesn't take a turn for the awesome until she makes him dance with her five shots deep.
She is terrible at it. Like really just the definition of a spazz. None of her moves match the beat of the song and eventually she's just shaking her hips and waving her hands back and forth. She must know she's terrible, because she keeps sticking her tongue out at him. The best part is it doesn't bother him at all. He just tries to keep up and maintain a straight face.
Eventually she gets bored and thirsty and drags him back to their friends. There she continues to provide drunken amusement by being predictably bad at pool and surprisingly good at catching bar nuts in her mouth. Sometime after catching her as she nearly falls off her barstool and before he crushes her at darts Logan shoots him a look. The same look Dick's been giving his best friend since he started following a certain blonde around. It's the 'what are you getting yourself into' look. The 'you are so fucked' look. The 'get out while there's still time' look. And Dick finally understands why Logan has always scowled silently in reply. It's because there's really no time left. He's fucked and fine with it.
They fall into the cab at last call, the car abandoned down the street because of their twin states of inebriation. His arm is over her shoulder and he would do anything to be kissing her right now. Their first kiss has set the tone for the last two months though. He lets her take the lead when it comes to physical contact. Which is sparse at best and bordering on the friend zone at worst. He's gotten her pants off exactly one time and Parker interrupted them about a minute later. Sometimes it's so clear she likes him, and others she borders on aloof. He's getting better at reading her but it's definitely slow going. And he's afraid to push because it would kill him if he tried something and she looked at him the way she did the first time he tried to kiss her.
It's the same reason he hasn't asked her to be his girlfriend, even though it's been on the tip of his tongue for forever. He's not seeing anyone else, has been painfully, exclusively celibate since their first date. Sometimes he worries she might still be seeing other people, but he's not going to fucking ask a question he doesn't want the answer to. He was telling the truth when he said he just wanted to be around her. It's not his fault that being around her has made him want a lot more.
He decides to go for it. Last time he did it worked out better then he ever imagined. So he uses his free hand to tilt up her chin. She blinks up at him blankly, then gets this little smile on her face. "Finally," she whispers as he dips his head to press his lips to hers.
And then apparently it's on, because Mac knots one hand in his hair and wraps the other arm around his neck. By the time the cab driver is pulling up to her apartment she's in his lap with her hand down the back of his shirt. He's going to cry. Really when she pulls away and a wall of cold air hits him he actually thinks he might.
But then, because she is perfect and merciful and just as hard up as he is, Mac laces their fingers together for the second time that night and pulls him out of the cab with her. He considers throwing his wallet at their driver, just to cut down on time, ends emptying the contents on the passenger seat and waving the guy off.
Then he turns. At some point during the drive he'd pulled her hair out of its ponytail, and now it pools around her shoulders. The dress she's wearing is black and off the shoulder, short and hot as hell. They stand there on the sidewalk and size each other up until he takes a step forward and she reaches for him at the same time. She doesn't see it coming, when he grins mischievously, sidesteps her hand and lifts her up around her waist. She probably should have predicted he'd make her laugh before he made her moan. His propensity to put her at ease by being unpredictably funny was one of her favorite things about him.
He'd wanted to wake up earlier then her. Really he'd thought about it and everything. Last night had been fantastic and all those other great adjectives. She'd fallen asleep lying on top of him like a blanket and he may or may not have said out loud something embarrassing like he could sleep like this for the rest of his life. He'd wanted to wake up and buy her that weird coffee shit she liked. A nice 'thanks for letting me see you naked'.
But his body isn't conditioned for that. Logan is always the one who drags his ass out of bed in the morning for surfing. His internal clock is warped thanks to years of dicking around until three in the morning. So if given the opportunity it sleeps until noon no matter what he intends.
She's the one who wakes him up. Not intentionally. She just crawls back into bed with her coffee and textbook and he feels the bed shift. He reaches forward to rub her knee and then drags his head over to lay it in on her thigh, which is covered in a silk robe that feels perfect on his cheek. She runs her fingers absently through his hair and somehow this moment feels more intimate then anything that happened between them last night.
He wants to ask the question. Will you be my girlfriend? Will you just fucking like me as much I like you? Will you fall in love with me like I'm falling in love with you? But she makes it is easy to avoid. She hands him her coffee cup and he sits up to take a sip. They trade the cup back and forth until it's empty and then, remembering they're both still technically naked he sets to work on getting her out of that robe.
7:30 pm Saturday September 8
Dinner is served, and then trays upon trays of deserts are rolled in. Mac shoves half a piece of cake in Dick's face and laughs as he wipes it off himself and tries to put it on her. They kiss for the hundredth time, messy and silly and ridiculously, insanely in love. Mac throws her bouquet, and even though she glances back five times in an attempt to aim Veronica successfully dodges and Parker throws enough elbows to steal it. Mac's Dad spins her around the dance floor and Dick comically attempts to salsa with his stepmother. Veronica dances with her Dad, with Wallace and Piz and Dick. She's just about to make a beeline for the open bar when he catches her around the waist.
"Dance with me," it's not a question and she doesn't try to argue. She puts her arms around her his neck. They aren't in high school anymore, she's seen him naked, and neither of them feels the need for proximity. She rests her head on his shoulder and he pulls her close enough to feel the beat of her heart against his chest. They're not really dancing and neither care who notices.
Sometime, in the middle of the fourth or fifth song, she ruins it. She pulls back, "I really did mean it."
He sighs, reaching forward to push all that blonde hair out of her eyes, "I know."
"I can't let you go," she continues, and she really could care less if people are watching them stand still in the middle of the dance floor. If she doesn't say it now she never will, and they'll just keep going in the awful, exhausting routine that will kill them both, "It's taken me so long to realize, too long. And I don't know if I'll ever change Logan. I don't know if things like this will ever come naturally."
"What are you saying Veronica?" he thinks he understands. He thinks she's admitting what he already knows. There are things that can't be erased or forgotten, scars that don't fade even as time goes by.
"I don't want to pretend I can be something I'm not," she shrugs, she's tried to tell him this before and he'd broken up with her for it. But she'd rather be honest and know it then lie and have to live with it, "I'm stubborn, and cynical and I know I can be a-"
"-A pretty big bitch?" he finishes with a smirk that has no fire behind it. It's an observation not a taunt.
She sags against him, and the frustration in her voice is painstakingly clear, "I don't want to make you miserable Logan."
His mouth is a thin line, and he wants to tell her she's an idiot but something else has been bothering him all day and he might as well use it to change the subject, "Was your book about us?"
That perks her right up. She'd known telling him about the book would make it inevitable and that laying it in his lap was her Hail Mary pass. The only option she had left. "It didn't start out that way," she reasons, "It actually started because of Duncan."
He doesn't know what to do with that so he chooses to ignore it. If she wanted to be with Duncan she would be in South America, or Siberia, or wherever his wayward former best friend was at the moment. But she was here, with her arms wrapped around him, "Yes or no Veronica?"
"Yes," she says it quickly. The truth. She'd promised herself and him the truth. And the truth was she didn't realize writing that book would be her therapy. Her own warped way of working out ten years of her life, of dissecting the most important relationship she'd ever had. She hadn't intended to come here and use it as an apology. She hadn't planned on telling him about it at all because she didn't know she wanted to be forgiven. She was the worst kind of liar, because for so long she'd even managed to fool herself.
He nods to himself, coming to a decision. Pulling back he grabs her wrist, "Come with me."
They leave the ballroom, heading down the hallway and out the door. The hotel staff is folding up chairs and all the candles have been blown out. They pass without a word, only stopping as they approached the sand. Logan kneels to untie his shoes as Veronica watches, "Logan-"
"Shoes off," he commands, and she reluctantly bends. When he's done and she's still making an attempt at the first shoe he grows impatient, thinking she's stalling, "Veronica take off your shoes."
"These aren't dress shoes Logan they're death traps," she points out, throwing a glare as her balance falters and she stumbles to one side, "They have like seven straps."
He rolls his eyes and motions to the bench right behind her, "Sit." He kneels, going to work on her right heel while she finishes off the left. When they're both done he grabs her wrist and helps her up, "Okay lets go."
"Where?" she whispers conspiratorially as he basically drags her down the beach. When her feet hit wet sand she hisses, "Logan don't make me walk into the ocean."
He rolls his eyes again, spinning to face her, "Stand here." Her back is to the hotel while his is to the ocean, providing a view of both sides of the beach as well as the buildings lining it, "Okay so now, unless assassins with scuba diving equipment are after us we should be safe."
Veronica can't help but grin, "That's counting on your observational skills which we both know aren't-"
"Veronica," he interrupts louder then necessary. His fuse is shortening by the second and he can't keep doing this. When she visibly winces he softens, taking a step towards her so their close again, so she has to tip her head back to look at him. "Veronica," he repeats, and it's barely even a word. God this is torture.
"Logan-" she assumes she should speak again. There is so much she has left to say. That she actually wants to say.
"No I'll go," Logan shakes his head. He'd freaked out on her and she'd freaked out on him. They'd gone back and forth a million different times and now he gets to figure out his shit while she listens, "It's my turn. You said what I wanted, you gave me what I needed and I'll go."
So she falls silent. She looks up and waits because she can't keep making decisions for both of them. With nothing but the pounding of the waves in her ears she lets him take the lead for once.
The next chapter will probably go the same way unless everybody absolutely hates the switching back and forth. Then there will be an epilogue with a time jump. God I can't believe how close we are to the end.