Normal is the Watchword
She would like to say that summer before Senior year was simple but of course, this was her life, so it wasn't.
The night Aaron Echolls was arrested for the murder of Lilly Kane, someone tried to run Logan and Felix off the road.
While she and Eli laid in her bed, both of their phones started going off.
Thinking that it is the hospital about her dad she quickly gets up to answer. She notices that Eli grabs his at the same time.
"Hello" both say into their phones.
"Ronnie, thank god you're okay."
"Logan..why are you calling at three in the morning?"
"There's been an accident. Your boy had two of his bring me home. Ronnie, someone tried to run us off the road."
"Logan..where are you..who is hurt?" she says quickly grabbing something to throw on. Glancing at Eli she sees that he is doing the same thing.
"We're at the hospital. Felix and I are okay but Hector was on Felix's bike and I don't know Ronnie. It all happened so fast."
"Eli and I will be there soon...Logan about your dad..."
"It's okay. I know. At least..."
"I know be there soon." she hangs up and turns to Eli.
"Someone tried to run them off the road. Felix and Logan are okay but Hector..."
"I know that was Logan. He said the Hector was on Felix's bike?"
"I have no clue. Let's go."
Hector was in the hospital for two weeks.
When whoever tried to run Logan off the road, Felix had gone off the road and the vehicle had sideswiped the bike since Hector was in front of them.
Hector had lost control and crashed. Thank god he had his helmet on when it happened.
Unfortunately none of them had gotten a good look at the car.
"Felix, we need to talk." she says as the two of them sit on the beach.
Eli is at work so its just the two of them.
"What's up Blondie?"
"Have you forgotten what I told you to do?"
"Que?"
"Why haven't you told him about you being with Molly yet?"
"Molly is scared about people knowing. Said that her family would kill both of us if it came out. There hasn't been a good time..."
"Bullshit, you could have mentioned it at any time. You know that Eli wouldn't tell anyone if you asked him not too. I didn't think you would want everyone knowing but thought you would at least tell your best friend. You know what, Your two weeks are long overdue. I'm telling him." she gets up and is going to leave him there.
"You think he is going to like hearing that you didn't tell him either."
"I was giving you a chance to do the right thing." she yelled turning on him.
He got up and stalked over to her.
"This does not concern you." he nearly growled.
"The fact that my boyfriend's best friend is dating the sister of men that want to see every PCHer in the ground, does not concern me. That is where you are wrong if it concerns Eli or any of the boys safety, I am fully involved or do you think someone driving you, Logan and Hector off the road was a freak thing." Glaring at him she walks away.
She sat on the steps and waited for Eli to get home from work.
"Hey querida." he called.
She was so lost in thought about her argument with Felix that she hadn't heard him get there until he was sitting next to her on the step.
"Hey...I need to tell you something that I should have told you a while ago."
"I don't like the sound of that."
"Well, you are going to hate this even more. I hoped that he would tell you about this himself but he refuses too."
"V..what's going on?"
She looked at him and placed her hand in his, intertwining their fingers. "Felix has been seeing Molly Fitzpatrick. I found out because he asked me to cover one night for him. I told him to tell you or I would."
He let go of her hand, jumping to his feet and started pacing in front of her.
"How many people know about this? How many Veronica?" he pretty much yelled at her.
"Only you, me and the two of them, I hope." she stayed where she was letting him rant in front of her.
He was swearing and talking in Spanish.
"I've told you about them, Veronica. You know what kind of people these are and you covered for him so that he could be with ... Why didn't you come to me the instant he asked you cover for him?"
"I was giving him a chance to tell you. I thought it would be better coming from him. I..."
"Stop, okay. I...I gotta go." he stalks off without looking at her.
She sends him messages, calls but is ignored.
Any time she calls the house Letty or Angel tell her that he isn't home.
None of the boys respond to her calls.
By trying to help a friend did she just lose her boyfriend.
To pass the summer she gotten a part time job at Java Hut to make her dad happy.
She likes it but wishes that so many of her classmates didn't come in.
Logan, Dick, Cassidy, Wallace, Mac, Duncan and Meg become permanent fixtures.
Mac and Meg both told her to give Eli some time.
They din't know what was going on but she told them a little without going into detail.
Molly actually showed up once and tried to apologize for messing up her relationship.
"I'm sorry about all of this. If I thought that you and Eli were going to break up just for covering for us I never would have had Felix ask."
"Wait..who told you that we broke up?' she was suddenly having a hard time breathing.
"I assumed when Felix told me that he heard that Weevil was with some girl at the party the other night...Oh..." Molly started stuttering and left.
Wanting the truth she called Thumper, who ignored her call. So she tried Marisol.
"Thanks for coming by." she said sitting down with Marisol on her break.
"No problem, what's up?"
"I'm sure you know that.."
"You and Weevil had a fight, so of course all the boys are staying on his side even though they have no clue what the hell is going on. Yeah, I have heard about it for the past two weeks."
"Someone asked me how I was doing with the breakup. I am lost because I don't remember the two of us official ending and this same someone told me that he was with some girl the other night."
"Oh..I have no idea who told you that but it is bullshit. Weevil hasn't looked at one girl. I'll bet whoever claimed that is trying to make sure the two of you break up. Weevil is like most guys from the neighborhood, they will tell you to your face if you are done. Okay?"
"Thanks, I just..I know I fucked up not letting him know something the instant I found out. I know I should have. I miss him, Marisol. The past two weeks have been hell."
"Would it make you feel better if I told you that according to Thumper, Weevil looks like hell."
"Yes.." she whispered wiping the tears out of her eyes.
She went home that night and found a certain biker sitting at her door.
"Hey." she whispered.
"Hey, can we talk?" he asked standing up.
"Yeah. she moves around him and unlocks the door. Entering she throws her bag on the couch and turns to face him.
"V..."
"If you're going to dump me..."
"I don't want to break up...shit chica I love you."
"Two weeks of zero contact doesn't make me feel very loved. Hell, I have been getting pity looks from Logan." she stressed his name.
"I've been a jackass. Angel and abulea have both been telling me to get my head out of my ass and return one of your many calls. Even the boys have said the same thing."
"I know that not telling you was the wrong thing to do but why did I get the silent treatment while Felix seemed to be forgiven?"
"Cuz I am a stupid jackass that doesn't know how good he has has. If I had been thinking I would have seen that you were trying to do by having Felix tell me but I felt betrayed."
"I'm sorry, that's all I have been trying to say...I.." he pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her and he covered her mouth with his.
"Can you forgive me for being an idiot?" he whispered against her mouth.
"Only if you forgive me..."
"I stopped being upset hours after I stormed off but was to damn prideful to go to you and beg forgivness for storming off."
"Which snowballed into two weeks of no contact. God, you are such a guy." she laughed, brushing a kiss on his neck.
"When's your dad coming home?" he asked as he started rubbing her back.
"Not for a couple days..."
"So can I stay the night and make up the last two weeks?"
"Maybe. Who was the girl?" she knows that Marisol said there wasn't one but she needed to her from him that there wasn't.
"What girl?" he asked looking at her like she was crazy.
"Molly came in today to apologize for her part in our 'breakup'. Seems Felix told her that he was told about you with some girls at a party the other night."
"I don't know what anyone is talking about. You are the only girl that I am interested in. hell, I left the party after an hour because I felt so out of place there without you."
"Okay." she whispered before kissing him. Taking his hand she lead him to her bedroom.
The rest of the summer went by without incident.
She found out that one of Marisol's friends was the one that started a rumor about Eli hooking up with someone else because she wanted to date him.
While she and Eli were able to ignore the girl, Marisol, Meg and Mac made the rest of her summer hell.
It really is nice to have girl friends.
She and Eli celebrated her birthday the same way they did his.
Only the dinner was a little crowded this time.
Her, her dad, Alicia, Wallace, Darren, Eli and Letty.
Afterwards it was a bonfire on Dog Beach with the PChers, Wallace, Mac and her handful of 09er friends.
Logan, Duncan and Meg surprised her with a key card to a suite at the Neptune Grand for her and Eli for the night.
She was a work the day before Senior year when Kelvin Moore shows up.
When he tells her that he failed his drug test and has been banned from sports for all of the year she is not surprised.
That is until he lets her know that he has been clean for ten months.
She agrees.
"Veronica, your dad is on TV." her co-worker calls.
The book.
Over the summer her dad agreed to be part of the book about Lilly's murder.
They need the money with all of his hospital bills.
"You know your dad is hot." the co-worker says.
Ignoring her, she gets back to work.
"Hey, where's your boy?" Wallace says as he catches up to her.
"Clemmons wanted to see him early."
"That's not a good sign."
"No, hey what's up?"
"I failed my drug test."
"Wait...that's not possible." she says making the two of them stop.
"Tell me about it. Five of us failed when Jim Day, who everyone knows tokes up, passed."
"I heard no 09ers failed."
"That's where you are wrong. One 09er did fail and it's going to to shock you."
"Really, who?"
"Meg."
"Meg 'Snow White' Manning failed her drug test. Oh, someone is going down." Someone just messed with the wrong blond's friends.
Wallace informs her about the details of the drug test.
"Okay, when do you have office aid this year."
"I don't."
"Oh. that's not going to work for me."
"Take it up with my mom. Don't worry, I got you covered." he hands her a key and piece of paper. "Master key and password to most of adminasting that I could get my hand on."
"Oh I love you."
"Now now..what's this about love?" Eli says as he and Felix join them.
"Wallace got me a present." she says showing off her key.
Both boys just look at her in confusion.
"I'm not being a office aid this year. It's a master key."
Understanding comes over both boys.
"Hate to kiss and run but I got work to do." she gives Eli a quick kiss and after a fist bump to Wallace and Felix she goes to talk to the kids that failed the test.
She talks to the students who were framed in the drug test.
Kelvin tells her about a kid, Butters, that he humiliated.
The other tell them about other students or people that might have it out for them.
Seeing Meg and Mac, she goes over to them.
"Meg, hold up." she calls.
"Hey, I'm looking into the failed drug tests, do you have any idea who might have it out for you."
"Besides Madison or Shelly. No." she says wrapping her arm around herself.
"Ronnie, why you looking into this?" she asks.
"Well Kelvin hired me so I was going to look into it. That was until Wallace told me that the two of you failed."
"Never mess with Bond or her friends." Mac says smiling.
"Damn straight. So where's your boy?" she asks looking at Meg.
"Visiting his dad."
"Why?" she asks.
"Ronnie..."
"I'll be nice. Talk to you later." she squeezes her arm than runs off.
Talking to Wallace, she connects the five people who failed to the Butters incident.
Wallace is on his way out when her dad comes home.
"Hey, there's the man of the hour." Wallace jokes.
"You know dad, I know a slutty twenty four year old that thinks you're hot." she jokes.
"How slutty?"
"Hey careful now or I'll tell my mom."
"Wallace, your mother and i have an understanding."
"Really?"
"Yes I behave myself and she never leaves me. Do tell your mother that I grovel on the ground she walks on." he says placing his hands over his heart.
"On that note I am heading out."
She talks to Butters only to find out that he is Clemmons' son.
She and Wallace sneak into Clemmons office to check the permanent files for the tests. Determined to prove that they were faked.
Checking each test, she find that they weren't faked.
"Could you have ingested the drugs without realizing it, maybe some brownies."
"Spirit boxes! There were spirit boxes in all of our lockers before the test. No brownies but there were cookies."
"How many did you eat?"
"Six."
"That's my Wallace. Meet me at my house in say twenty minutes."
"Sure."
Wallace takes a at home drug test which shows him as clean.
And back to square one.
The two of them stare at her board of the failed kids.
"What who replaces every one?"
Wallace gives her the name of the kids that take over there position. Remembering that one mention a company she asks for her dad's help, after making him swear not tell Alicia about it. He gives her the names of the company's shareholders.
She thinks that the parents paid off the lab tech to fake the results.
In journalism, she tells Wallce that she is going to send each parent a email wanting more money from the lab tech.
"Veronica do you have your permisson slip?" the new teacher asks.
"Yeah, here you go."
"Umm explain." Wallace says.
"She's taking all the journalism classes to Shark stadium."
'But you hate people..."
"Hey V..." Cervando says sitting down next to her. "So I hear you are joining me on the field trip."
"Now it makes sense." Wallace says with a grin.
Ever since she and Eli made up over two months ago, the PCH boys had started trying to spend more time with her.
Cervando was the most recent. Next to Felix, Hector and Thumper she got along best with him.
"Shut up. Yeah I'll be joining you."
"Awesome. let me know if you need any help with homework."
"I will."
She sets up the parents and has Clemmons listen in.
"You hear enough." she asks when the final set of parents show up.
"Oh yeah."
"Veronica, you boyfriend is here." her co-worker says with a knowing smile.
She wraps her arms around Eli and, not caring who is there, kisses him like she is dying.
"Te amo." he whispers against her mouth.
"Te amo."
Duncan and Meg get on the bus while she kisses Eli at this bike.
"Awe isn't that sweet." Logan snarks.
"I didn't know you were coming." she says.
"Me on a field trip. I don't think so. I have other plans." he says with a smirk.
"Oh really, what's here name?" she asks with a smile. Glad the two of us are somewhat friends again. Eli puts up with him for my sake and vice versa.
"You mean the annoying one hasn't found out yet. I feel all special." he snarks as he walks off.
"Why are you friends with him again?" Eli asks.
"It is better to be on his good side."
"Hey V. Weevil." Cervando says coming up to them. "I'm stealing her."
Eli gives her one more quick kiss and she joins everyone on the bus.
Dick, of course notices the new girl.
"Down boy." she smirks from her seat with Cervando.
Like she does with most of the boys, Cervando has his arms around her.
"You know, one of these days Weevil isn't going to like how touchy all of you are with his girl." Dick says to him.
"Dick, if you could you would cuddle with her be honest. Weevil knows that none of his boys see her that way."
"She like our sister, man." Cervando says.
"Yeah Yeah, Hey Miss Dumass. It sticks back here. Smells like something died." Dick yells at the teacher.
The new girls turns out to be Gia, Woody Goodman's daughter.
"Hey, my dad is sending a limo. We don't have to get on that stank bus again. teach says its okay." Dick tells her, Meg and Duncan.
"I need to talk with Miss Dumass. You go.' Meg tells Duncan.
"You sure?"
"Yeah." she gives him a small kiss.
"I'll stay on the bus, too." she tells him.
"Your loss." Dick smirks.
Once again she cuddles with Cervando and watches as meg talks to the teacher.
"Think he was right about this bugging Weevil?" he asks.
"I have already talked to him about it. If I'm not with him, I cuddle with you, Felix, Hector or Thumper. He says he likes knowing no matter what that I am safe." she says. "Like you said we are family."
The bus stops at a rest stop and after being told that they only had five minutes, she runs in to get a soda.
Coming out of the store she hears Lilly. Seeing her, she runs around the corner to find her boyfrined at his bike.
"Are you following me?" she says with a smile.
"Not really baby. I got bored. Come here." she walks into his embrace and they stand there kissing that they don't notice the bus leaving.
"Shit." she says turning around to see that the bus is gone.
"Don't worry about it, mama. Get on." he says handing her a helmet.
They are riding for a bit when they see the limo pulled off to the side of the road and notice what looks like smoke.
Getting off the the bike she runs to join the others.
"It went straight off the cliff. They're all dead." Gia cries.
"Veronica!" Duncan yells grabbing her.
"They're all dead!" Gia cries again.
Eli pulls her away from Duncan, who looks ready to break down, and wraps his arms around her.
If I hadn't been at the store...
This is Neptune, nothing is an accident.
Driver Ed
"This isn't what I ordered." Jackie says handing her drink back, annoyed at the blond girl.
"Shit, I'm sorry. I don't know why I even bothered to come in today. Should have gone to the hospital." she whispered the last part but she still hears her.
Remembering the news about the bus crash, it clicks in that this girl must have known someone on it.
"Hmmm, you had friends on that bus didn't you?" she knows that she is one the right track when the girl looks down.
"I knew most of them but I had two friends on it. One survived but she..."
"Damn..you really shouldn't have come in today." That's right only one survived. Damn to have two friends on the bus, this chick is stronger than her she would be curled up in a little ball.
"Veronica. They won't let me see her." a dark haired boy interrupts them.
"Duncan...umm here's your coffee. If I got it wrong just let me know and I'll refund you." she hands her a coffee before coming around the counter to take to the boy. Boyfriend? No..didn't look all that happy to see him.
"No problem." she walks away.
She takes a sip of her drink, and found that the tiny blond got it right this time.
She turns to see the girl trying to comfort the dark haired boy, who seems to be now sitting on the floor.
She turns to go see if she needs help when two guys join her. One covered in tattoo and a surfer.
The one covered in tattoos give the blond a kiss while the surfer type help the boy to his feet.
Damn... wouldn't have put her with a bad boy.
She enters the bathoom and the bus driver's daughter is there.
"You know who I am?"
"Yeah."
"Did you know who I was last week?"
"No..."
"I doubt you'll do this but I want to hire you."
"What?"
"I want you to prove my dad didn't commit suicide and take people with him."
"I...don't know what to say."
"See I have a mother and a little brother. We've gotten use to having a place to live and food. See insuance companies don't pay out if it's ruled suiced."
"I wouldn't even know whee to start."
They ae interupted by some 09er clones and when Jessie punches the girl. She pulls her off and agrees to help.
"I'll help, okay. Not sue whee to start but I'll help but you need to chill."
They go to the crash site and not finding anything she gets Jessie out of thee when she starts to get upset.
That night, during dinner her dad tells her that Woody wants him to run for Sheriff but he doesn't think that he will.
"Dad, you should do it." she says.
"I don't know honey."
"Sheriff, you should run. Might be nice to have someone that knows what they are doing being in chage." Eli tells him.
Whatever her dad was about to say is cut off by the news.
Where a reporter is interviewing the clerk from the store that the bus stopped at.
The convenience store clerk says that the bus driver was acting weird.
She and Eli go to the Grande to check on Duncan.
He hadn't come to school since the cash and she was getting worried about him taking his meds since Celeste wasn't around to make sure he takes them.
"Duncan?" she calls going into the room.
"How did you get a key to his room again?" he asks slightly annoyed that she has a key to his room.
"It's Meg's key. Her sister Lizzie slipped it to me. She didn't want their parents to find it among her stuff."
Okay now he feels like an ass.
He follows her into the bedroom but still no Duncan.
"Maybe he's at the hospital." he suggests when they can't find him.
"Possible, maybe Meg's parents let him see her. I jusst want to check his pills and than we can go." she walks into the bathroom.
"Eli!" she yells.
Running into the bathroom, he finds tuning off the water. Duncan is curled in a ball, fully dressed in the shower.
"Fuck!"
"Duncan..come on DK answer me." she mumbles trying to get him out of the shower. "Call.. dammit I don't even know who to call...call..." she mumbles.
"I'm calling abulea." he mutters.
Letty show up quickly after he calls.
"Oh mijo. You should have called me sooner." Letty says.
"I think he had an episode. I know that calling his parents would be the smart thing but I fer that they would make things worse. He hasn't been taking his pills, Eli." he pulls he close as they watch Letty take over.
"Letty..." she starts.
"I am going to check on him every day, Veronica. Make sure has food and has taken his medican. The poor thing is hurting. The girl's parents aren't letting him see her?"
"No..."
Shaking her head, the three of them look at Duncan.
"Ronnie..when did you get here?" Duncan says looking at her.
"Duncan...you..."
"Did I..?"
She sits down next to him and rubs his back as he beaks down crying.
"Mijo, you are a being a good friend." Abulea whispers in his ear.
No I'm being a good boyfriend.
After leaving Letty to take care of Duncan, the two of them head to the convenience store.
"Hey what's going through that head of yours?" he asks befoe she heads inside.
"Lots of conflicting emtions."
"Like what mama."
"I feel grief for us and everyone that lost someone, guilt that Meg and Cervando were on the bus and joy because I'm alive." she breaks down slightly and he pulls her in a hug.
"I feel the same, querida." he whispers giving her a quiet kiss.
"Okay, time to work." she says.
Having Eli stay with the bike she heads in and the fist thing she finds are crash souvenirs.
She trying to keep her anger under control when her phone starts ringing.
"Hey, Wallace."
"What you doing?"
"Remembering why I'm a misanthrope. They're selling souvenirs. Crash souvenirs."
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. Did you need me for something"
"Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it myself."
She talks to the clerk that talked to the bus driver and asks for his last meal, which was a Slurpee and bag of peanuts.
Noticing the no change sign and payphone she figures out that he needed change for a call and bought the cheapest thing he could get.
She goes to the Sheriff's department, pretends to be filling out a job application, to access the phone records.
She goes to see Jessie.
Let's her know that he dad made a call to someone Named Cotter, that lives in the apartment complex.
Sheriff Lamb shows up with a search warrant.
Going to visit Wallace, she finds him reading the article on Cervando.
"That annoys me."
"Supafly?"
"He cried when he fist saw 'Stand and Deliver'. God, this is utter bullshit." she says reading the article quickly. "I know none of the boys have talked to any reporters, where did they get this stuff."
"I overheard some girl talking about him in homeroom. This new girls was eating it up..."
"Yeah, and blabbed what they thought they knew for a couple minutes of fame."
"Don't worry about it supafly. How is Duncan?"
"Not good. He's not taking care of himself, Eli and I found him completely out of it. He's unable to see Meg and..."
"Hey, things have to get better."
"Yeah...I hope so."
She goes to talke to the Cotter family, but they say that it was a wrong number.
She calls to check on Jessie only to be told to stop.
Lamb found a suicide note on Ed Doyle's computer.
She goes over to check on her and overhears her mom yelling at her little brother.
After Jessie sends her bother out to play, she pulls the note out of her pocket and reads it to her.
"I'm sorry to leave you this way but I truly believe in my heat that its for the best. I can't go on like this. I can't stay just for the kids even though they mean more to me than anything. This isn't good for them."
That doesn't sound like a suicide note.
She goes back to the Cotter house and finds Mrs. Cotter.
"If it was a wrong number, why did it last for four minutes." she asks.
"I..."
"I think that M. Doyle was going to be leaving his wife and kids for you..."
"Come inside." she opens the door and has her come inside.
She brings Jessie to her work and introduces her to Mrs. Cotter.
Leaving the two of them alone she joins Mac at a table nearby.
"Where's Weevil and the rest of your shadows?"
"Having some boy time at the moment but seeing him later."
"So they have boy time and we get girl time." she says with a smirk.
"Something like that. Think she is going to be okay?" she says nodding to Jessie who was still talking to Mrs. Cotter.
"Bette than thinking your dad killed himself and took out people with him."
"Good point."
Running home she grabs Backup and heads over to spend the night with Eli.
Letty is just getting ready to put supper on the table when she walks in.
She isn't surprised to find Duncan at the table with Ophelia.
She kisses Letty on the cheek and takes the plate of enchiladas out of her hands and places them on the table.
"Hey, Ronnie. You here for supper too?" he asks.
"Hehe, she's spending the night with Uncle Eli." Ophelia giggles.
"Mijo, shhh." Letty says sitting down.
"It's okay, abulea. Duncan wont tell the Sheriff." Eli says as he, Felix and Thumper come in.
"Not like it's really a secret." Thumper says with a grin as he sits down next to Duncan.
"It is from her dad." Felix says with a smile sitting down on the other side of Ophelia.
"Okay okay. Let's eat." she says pulling Eli to sit down next to her.
She pulls on her jeans and grabs one of Eli's shirts before heading out of his room to join him for breakfast.
He hands her a cup of coffee before pulling her into his lap.
"Where's..."
"Bringing Ophelia to school than swinging over to check on Duncan before she heads to work for Opie." he answers before kissing her neck. "You know we got some time before we need to be at school." he says running his hand from her knee up.
"Hey, hands where we can see em." Thumper and Felix call from the door.
"Hmmm." she turns so that she is straddling him and with her hands behind her back gives him a deep kiss. He grabs her hips to pull her closer.
"Nope...we have to go to school." she laughs against his mouth and gets up.
"V...you're killing me." he says as she gabs her bag and blowing him a kiss, brushes past the boys.
With a grin, Thumper smacks at her as she passes.
They hear her laughing as the door closes.
That night her dad tells her that he changed his mind and will be running for Sheriff.