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takadasaiko · 4 years

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Best Laid Plans (a Veronica Mars one shot)

FFN II AO3

Part of my Spanning Years. Continents. series.

Summary: Logan tries to surprise Veronica with a romantic vacation and things don't go exactly as planned.

Best Laid Plans

Surprising Veronica Mars with more than a small gift or a dinner out took a tremendous amount of patience and planning. Every step needed to be carefully mapped out - but definitely not written down in any way, shape or form that she could come across - and executed. It had to be flexible, but too much improvisation was a recipe for disaster. It typically took others that were both willing to help and that wouldn't underestimate her pension for uncovering something she hadn't been specifically looking for. It was an art form, really, and Logan thought he'd done a damn good job all things considered.

The first step had been to find and actually submit a request for leave. He couldn't remember requesting two full, consecutive weeks since he'd enlisted, but he had managed to snag the days and get them set, leading him into the next steps: the actual planning portion of the surprise. This was where things got a little more complicated. He worked to keep any physical files he needed at Dick's suite at the Grand and had forwarded any related calls to Riley's cell rather than his own. Still, that had been easy compared to the balancing act he'd had to go through to both make sure that Veronica freed her schedule during his leave time and didn't tip her off that he had a trip planned. That had taken some next-level finessing that he thought he'd pulled off right up until the night before they were supposed to leave.

Logan had left late that evening, tying up any loose ends on base before his two week vacation. Veronica should have beat him home by at least an hour or more on any normal day, but he found all the lights off at the apartment and a veryeager Pony at the door who was ready for his walk. Logan had checked his cell - no messages - and had called her phone as he walked their dog down down to a green patch. It rang through until it connected to voicemail. Okay. No need to jump to conclusions. She'd told him earlier that week she was going to make sure she took some time while he was on leave. Maybe she was just wrapping up a case.

Dinner came and went, and by the time that the front door opened Logan had already cleaned up the dishes, put their bags together for the trip, and was stretched out on the couch with a video game controller in hand. He hit pause and peeked up over the back of the couch. "Hey, you're in late."

Veronica jumped a little at his voice and shook her head. "Hey, sorry. This huge case dropped in our lap today. Kind of took over."

"But you wrapped it up?" he asked, even though something in him already knew the answer.

"No, actually brought it home. It's fine. You can keep playing. I'm just gonna set up shop at the desk."

Logan set the controller down and eased himself off the couch. "I thought you were going to take some time."

She shot him a confused look and he saw when she turned into what he'd meant. "Your leave starts tomorrow."

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry. It's time sensitive."

"Most of them are. Can't your dad take this one?"

"I mean, maybe, but I don't think we should risk it."

Logan quirked an eyebrow. "If you thought you told what the case is, you didn't."

She hesitated. In general, they didn't discuss the details of her cases, but as Logan waited as patiently as he could manage, he saw her make a judgement call on it. "Kidnapping," she said at last. "This dad's been trying to get custody of his son from his abusive ex-wife but the lady took off with the kid. The sheriff's office is being less than helpful and the dad hired us. There's a chance I may actually have to fly out at the break of dawn tomorrow."

Okay, yeah. That took precedence over his plans. No wonder she looked stressed. "That… yeah, okay. Don't worry about it. Just get the kid home safe."

She tried for a smile. "It'll be fine. You've got two weeks, right? I'll make it up to you as soon as we…." She dropped her bag on the desk in the corner and stopped at the sight of the suitcase and duffel bag that he'd stacked there. Slowly, Veronica turned back to him. "Were we going somewhere?"

"I thought we could take a few days," he offered vaguely.

"And you were going to surprise me? You did surprise me. I'm impressed. Where'd you make plans?"

"Napa Valley," Logan lied, hoping it was convincing enough.

She managed a tired smile, crossing the living room to wrap her arms around his neck and tipping up on her toes to press a kiss against his lips. "I bet they'll let you push the date back a few days. Let me get this kid home and safe and we'll go celebrate, okay?"

"Absolutely," he answered and kissed the tip of her nose. "Go get 'em, bobcat."

She lingered for half a second more, her gaze latched onto his, before finally releasing him to return to her files she'd brought home with her. He reached over to save his game and turn the TV off, giving her the space she needed to work.

------

Logan was in bed and asleep long before Veronica, and he didn't dare risk a look at the clock when he felt her climb in with him. He rolled over, wrapped an arm around her, and felt her fold into him, her hair tickling his nose as he settled back in to sleep.

For once, it was her alarm that woke him the next morning, and Veronica was out the door and on her way to Arizona by ten till six. He had stayed in bed - a rarity once he was awake these days, but he told himself he was staying out of her way so she could move without tripping over him - until she bent over and gave him a quick peck on the lips, promising she'd call.

Around six thirty he finally admitted that sleeping in was no longer something his brain allowed him to do even on vacation and he rolled out of bed. His bare feet hit the floor and it was time to decaffeinate and try to be productive. An hour after that he had canceled their trip and was out the door for a run, dragging a very reluctant Pony with him. Two miles with the dog and three on his own later he rounded back around to the apartment and decided to remind himself that he could and should take some time to relax, even if things hadn't gone as planned. Good thing the waves were always perfect on Neptune beaches.

"Weren't you supposed to be on a plane to Paris or something like that today?" Dick asked as they paddled out and away from the beach.

"Yeah, that didn't work out."

"Ronnie bailed on ya?"

Logan cringed at the complicated question. "She had a case she couldn't get out of."

"Not cool, man. Work over a vacay in France? I told you you shoulda booked at least a month. No one vacations in Europe for two weeks."

"A lot of people go for a week or two," Logan chuckled as he flattened himself out on the board, ready for the incoming waves. "But I didn't tell her where we were going. The whole trip was supposed to be a surprise."

The wave started building and he popped up on the board, finding his balance as he rode it up and over. It felt good, relaxing, even as he finally tilted and ducked down under it.

"That was your first mistake," Dick called as they surfaced. "No one surprises Veronica Mars."

"Hey now, I've managed once or twice."

"But did you really?"

Logan snorted, pushing saltwater out with the breath through his nose, and glanced over at Dick who was straddling his board next to him. He shoved him hard, sending his best friend tipping over and into the warm water. He smirked as a mop of blond hair surfaced, but didn't have time to let himself get too smug - or escape - as Dick returned the favour and both men found themselves treading water next to their boards.

"I mean, it's not like France is going anywhere, man. Just take more time off."

Sometimes Logan forgot that Dick had very little real world experience, especially hen it came to the way the Navy functioned. He could explain things in detail and it was the old cliche of in one ear and out the other. Dick would nod, give the occasional uh-huh at times that Logan would swear meant he was actually listening and comprehending what was being explained, but it was like all of the data got deleted at the end of the day. If it was the drugs he'd indulged in over the years or just the way Dick's brain worked, he still wasn't sure, but at least his heart tended to be in the right place, and if nothing else he was trying to help. That had to count for something.

"Eventually," he chuckled.

"Piece of advice, buddy," Dick said as he flopped over the board again, working his way back onto it. "Next time, just tell her. The big ol' romantic gesture only works if she shows up."

Logan wrapped his fingers around the opposite side of his board, using it to stay afloat as he looked at his friend. "Maybe you're right."

"Definitely, man. C'mon. That one looks good."

Logan glanced back to see the wave rolling in. Well, he could think of a lot worse ways to spend a vacation, even if the plans had fallen through.

-------

Nearly four days after taking the case, it was finally finished and closed. They had found the missing little boy and gotten him home to his father. It had been a mess of interviews with both Neptune's illustrious sheriff's department as well as the local police force in Arizona and the FBI after they had found out that the mother had crossed state lines in the kidnapping case. Count Lamb's disinterest as yet another knock against his reelection. Really, he just continued digging his own grave. It was going to be a glorious day when they booted him out of office.

Veronica dragged herself up the stairs to her apartment and dug in her bag for her keys. The lights were on and she could hear the muffled sound of music from inside. Logan must be cooking and as her stomach gave an audible growl she knew she couldn't find her keys fast enough and rapped her knuckles against the door.

There was a long moment, then another, before she saw her boyfriend peek out the large window next to the desk and shake his head. "Sorry, we don't want any," he shouted loud enough for her to hear and she flipped him off with a smile.

He undid the locks on the other side of the door and finally pried it open, but just a little. "Fine. Just one box of thin mints. That's it."

"Asshole," she laughed and pushed her way in, wrapping her arms around his neck and suddenly she was kissing him. Interesting. She hadn't realized quite how much she had missed him until that moment.

Veronica felt Logan's strong arms around her and without warning he was lifting her up and off the floor, bag still draped over her shoulder and all. He spun her a little, pulling her fully into their apartment and she wrapped her legs around his middle for support and found herself looking down at him. "Miss me?"

"So much." He pulled her down into a kiss and she grinned into it. She thought he might forget whatever he was doing and just take her straight back to the bedroom, but instead he set her down, pressing a gentle kiss against her forehead. "You find him?"

"We did. Everything's good."

She felt a twinge of pain at the relief that flashed across his face. She knew what abuse cases did to him, even if he really had nothing to do with it other than being near to her. "Good," he breathed. "You hungry?"

"So hungry. You have no idea."

He brushed a stray strand of hair back and let his gaze linger on her a moment before returning to the kitchen. She followed him, finally giving herself half a second to both see and smell what the meal-in-progress was. "Oh. Look at you. I thought I was the only one that could convince you on a steak night. Is there some leggy brunette hiding back there I should be aware of?" she asked, her tone light and playful as she circled around behind him, her fingers against the small of his back.

"More of a pairing thing. I picked up that Bordeaux we liked."

Veronica hummed a soft agreement, letting her hand drift down his arm and she laced her fingers into his as he shifted to use his now free - left - hand to awkwardly flip the steak. "Enough there for both of us, flyboy?"

"I think we can manage. You wanna grab some of the frozen green beans?"

"No veggies? You really were being bad while I was away," she teased, finally - reluctantly - releasing him as she turned to grab the frozen veggies he'd requested.

"I'm on vacation," he answered and flipped the steak in the pan with some effort.

"You know dad would totally have been cool if you went over to his place to use the grill, right?"

"Bold of you to assume I can grill."

She smirked as she bent down to grab a pan to boil the green beans in. "I just remain impressed you can cook." She filled the pot with water and she saw him reach for a fresh wine glass and pour her some of the Bordeaux he'd gotten into that night. "So, you talked to whatever vineyard you booked us that surprised trip to?"

"You remember that, huh?"

"The amazing wine is reminding me."

She grinned at the way his eyebrows danced at that one and took a long sip, waiting. "We'll figure something out. I still have some time on the books."

There was something in his tone that, even as exhausted as she was, caught her attention and she peered over the lip of her glass at him. "What's up?"

"What'dya mean?"

"I mean something's up."

"Nothing's up."

"Logan, as much as I love fun games, but I know when something's up," she said pointedly, turning so that she could lean back against the cabinets. Did he really think he was hiding it that well? She didn't know what was going on, but she was about to find out.

He loosed a long breath. "It's really nothing."

"But really something you're gonna spill," she popped back, her tone lighter than the meaning was. He was starting to push her buttons and she was letting him to know.

She saw his gaze flicker towards her and he flipped the steak again. There was a moment in there when the resolve finally cracked. "I didn't plan a trip to Napa."

"Then what were the bags for?"

"France?"

The answer came out more like a question and Veronica felt a tightness in her stomach. "France?"

"It was supposed to be a surprise," he murmured, looking more like a kicked puppy than she would have liked.

"You booked us a flight to France?"

"You'd never been," he answered, as if that was an explanation. She shot him a look and he kept going, motioning at the bottle of wine with those long, expressive fingers of his. "Flight was into Paris, I figured we'd rent a car once we got there and after you saw what you wanted to in the city we could drive down to the wine country. I had two weeks."

"And now you don't," she breathed.

He gave a dry chuckle in response and moved the steak from the pan to the plate. "Next time, and I won't try to surprise you."

Veronica wrapped her arms around him from behind, pressing a kiss between his shoulder blades. "It was sweet."

"It didn't work."

"Still sweet." She tightened her hold until he dropped a hand down to cover hers. "You think you might be able to pull some of that Echolls magic in Napa? Or… somewhere?"

"Maybe. It's not France."

"But it's with you."

She felt him tense at that and for one brief, terrifying moment she thought she'd said something wrong. He turned in her arms, though, and she saw that look that said she'd said something right instead. He reached a hand up to her face, cupping her cheek and holding her gaze, his smile slow but real. "You sure you're good with work?"

"Definitely."

"Then I'll call them first thing in the morning." He ducked down, catching her in a kiss.

Veronica tightened her grip on his shirt at the small of his back. "Hey," she murmured against his lips.

"Hmm?"

"Still starved."

He chuckled at that, finally breaking the kiss and he reached for a spoon to start stirring the beans in the pot as she split the sizable steak in half for them. He dished out the veggies and they started in on it, Veronica's gaze fixed on him as he started going over some spots he liked in northern Cali that would make for a good vacation. She listened, nodding along and commenting when she liked one, but her focus was on the thought behind his original plans. Despite the cost of the trip - something she was desperately trying not to think about - it had been absurdly sweet that he was trying to take her to a place she'd never been for a getaway. They needed it, not because things were bad, but because they were good. She wanted to spend time with him and him with her. Northern California wasn't Paris or the wine country of France, but they could still get away, just the two of them, and that was the point. The best laid plans didn't always pan out, but they didn't have to to be perfect anyway.

#Veronica Mars #Logan Echolls #LoVe fanfiction #VeronicaMarsFanfic

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