Chapter Text
Veronica
I don’t even focus on what Fleming’s saying, because I’m too busy laughing with JD. I can’t believe he asked me out! This isn’t my first date, but it’s so much more exciting because it’s not just any guy, it’s JD. The ride back to my house in Heather’s car feels like forever, but when they reach my house I run out the door and into my house. I have to waste no time.
“BYE GUYS HAVE FUN AT YOUR SLEEPOVER!” I shout at the Heathers and they drive off. I run upstairs and shut the door behind me, out of breath. I spend the next few hours getting ready. I put my hair in rollers and apply this weird cream that the Heathers gave me. I usually do this routine before a party, this is the first date that I actually care about. I wear this off -the- shoulder long sleeve shirt under the black tank dress. I pair it with blue tights, dangerously thin heels, and a blue brooch that my grandmother gave me. I take my hair out of the rollers, and add hairspray. I re-do my makeup and spritz some perfume. I look pretty hot if I do say so myself. I don’t know why I’m doing all this; it’s just a date to the Snappy Snack Shack. I guess I just want to impress JD. It’s pretty cold outside, so I grab a jacket.
I wobble down the stairs, trying to get out of the house secretly, but my mom catches me.
“Care for some pate?” I sit down with them in the living room, even though I’m running slightly late.
“Can someone tell me why I read these spy novels?” My dad asks amusingly.
“‘Cause you’re an idiot.” We laugh and my mom looks me up and down.
“You too. So, Veronica, where are you going all dressed up?”
“I got a date,” I smirk slightly. “With a boy named JD.” The clock hands just turned to 6:32pm. “Listen, Mom, great pate but I gotta motor if I wanna make it to that date.” And with that I head out the front door, forgetting to take my jacket laying on the chair arm.
JD
As soon as I step inside my house, I hear the news reporter on TV say something, but I don’t pay attention to her. Instead, I spend my energy being as quiet as possible going up the stairs, but my old man has caught me.
“There you are, son. Where are you going in such a hurry?” He drunkenly bumps into me. I flinch, since God knows what happens when he gets drunk. Today, he’s in a good mood. He wobbles back over to the couch and I run up the stairs and gently close the door, so he doesn’t yell at me again. I shouldn’t be focusing on my dad right now though, because I have a date with Ronnie.
I changed my undershirt to a black tank top and put on a flannel, topped off with my black trench coat. Would cologne be too much? I don't look like I’m doing too much; I want to look casual and cool for Ronnie. I grab my keys and wallet from my nightstand and tiptoe down the stairs once again.
I leave a little after 6pm, so I can get her flowers. My dad is nowhere to be found in the living room, thank God. I go out the house and hop on my motorcycle, revving the engine and speeding off to the flower shop.
As I open the jingly door of the flower shop, an overwhelming floral scent smacks me in the face. A tired looking teenager is at the counter, slumping in his seat. He picks his head up and stops slumping once he sees me.
“Hello, welcome to Sherwood Blooms Flower Shop. What can I help you with?” He deadpans.
“Uhhhhhh,” I mumble, not knowing what to get for Ronnie. “Can I take a look around?”
“Whatever man…” The guy slumps in his chair again and I look around at the array of brightly colored flowers. One bright blue bouquet catches my eye though. It captures the essence of Ronnie, so I take that one and head over to the counter.
“Excuse me, what’s the name of this bouquet?”
“Those flowers are delphiniums, I think. Is that what you’re going with?”
“Yep. How much will that be?” I pull out my wallet and start counting the bills.
“$16.97.” Not bad. I count out 17 singles and give it to the guy. He nods and gives me my change.
“Have a flowery rest of your day. Come back soon.” The guy recites. I take the bouquet and leave the store, but not before glancing at the clock on the wall. 6:21. I hold the bouquet tightly and drive off to Ronnie’s house.
Veronica
I sit on the curb for a few seconds until I see a familiar figure riding towards me on a motorcycle. He’s so hot when he’s on his motorcycle, and I’m not afraid to admit that. He has a bouquet in his hands. Aww, how sweet. I stand up and walk to him, smiling. He already has a blush on his face, but I haven’t even done anything yet. He hands the blue bouquet to me and smirks.
“Hi Ronnie! Wow, you look.. Lovely.” He shyly looks me up and down. I’ve noticed something weird; he acts so cool and nonchalant in front of others, but in front of me, he’s so sweet and shy. It’s so cute how he calls me Ronnie.
“You too, JD.” Just to make him feel something, I go on tiptoes and kiss him on the cheek. You know, just to mess with him. I don’t know if this is weird to say, but I feel like a whole other person when I’m around him. More carefree, more bold. His face instantly gets red, but he still keeps his smirk.
“Are you good to go?” JD asks me, trying to hide his blush.
“Are you sure this thing is safe to ride?” I ask him. “Do you have a helmet?”
He laughs and says, “Sorry, I don’t have a helmet but I drive responsibly, I promise.”
I sigh and climb on the back of the motorcycle and wrap my arms around him. “Is this good?” He nods and we drive off to the Snappy Snack Shack.
We end up getting there at around 6:40pm. He parks the motorcycle and extends his hand to help me get off. I grip it tightly and we chat as we enter the store.
“So, I take it that you’ve never ridden a motorcycle before,” he chuckles to himself, holding open the door for me.
“Yea, no one in this stupid town owns a motorcycle.” I smirk to myself. He leads me to the back of the store, where the slushy machine is.
“You want a slushy?”
“If you’re nice, I’ll let you buy me a Big Gulp.” I flirt with him a little. I watch attentively as he gets the biggest cup there is.
“That's like going to Mickey D's and ordering a salad. Slurpee's the signature dish of the house. Now did you say blue raspberry or cherry?”
“I said Big Gulp. Cherry.” I smile to myself. He fills the cup up to the brim with a red, sugary water, places a lid on it and hands me the cold cup. He gets a cup for himself and fills it up with the blue raspberry flavor. We go up to the counter and he pulls out his wallet.
“I can pa-” He’s already done paying, though. Guess he’s a gentleman.
We go outside the store to sit on a curb and chat. I’ve always loved the weather during the evening. “Hey, how do you even know about this place if you’re new to town?” I ask him.
“All the towns and cities I’ve been to always have their convenience stores in the same place.”
“Oh, I see. Do you move around a lot?” Intrigued, I lean closer to him. He chuckles to himself again.
“I guess you could say that. My dad owns a deconstruction company, so we’re always on the move.”
“Deconstruction? Oh! Is your dad Big Bud Dean?”
“Yep. You seen the commercial?”
“The one where he pushes the plunger and the screen blows up?” We laugh together, but I can see the hollowness behind his eyes.
“Must be hard always moving around like that.”
“I’ve been through ten high schools; they start to get blurry. I don’t really bother with names or faces since I know in six weeks I’ll be off to another school in another state.”
“Damn, how do you deal with all of that?” I put my head on his shoulder and look up at him quizzically. His blush returns.
“Easy,” He takes a long sip of his slushy. “A slushy always helps freeze my brain for when I need to forget things.” He clutches his skull and I giggle.
He nods down at me. “You try.” I take a long sip like he did, but for the first few seconds nothing happens.
“I don’t see what the big deal is… AW SON OF A BITCH!” A head-splitting pain strikes me, forcing me to close my eyes and press my head against his shoulder. The pain eventually goes away, thankfully.
“See what I mean?” He gently elbows me, grinning. I nod, eyes still shut tight. When I open them, I see that it’s starting to get dark.
“We shouldn’t be sitting out in the dark. Do you want to go somewhere else?”
“Do you want to go to the park nearby?” I suggest.
He nods and says, “Lead the way.” We go back on his motorcycle and I tell him the directions to the park.
JD
Ronnie brings me to a nearby park. It’s a simple park, with benches and a fountain. Those are actually the only things there. She guides me to the bench closest to the fountain and sits down. I follow her movements, our hands still intertwined. I can’t help but be a little sad when she lets go to take a sip of her slushy.
“Wow, how do you take such big sips?” She holds her head again.
“Haha, I’m just used to it by now.” I finish my slushy and drop it into the trash can behind us. She sets her slushy to the side as well and starts taking off her heels.
“Ughhh, these are killing me.” The heels of her shoes are so pointy I can’t even imagine how she spent the past hour on her feet.
“I can hold them for you if you want.” She smirks.
“Aww, what a gentleman.” She puts her shoes in my lap, the heels digging into my pants. We keep chatting for about half an hour until I notice a drop of rain on my head.
“Hey, is it raining?” We both look up to the sky, but that was a mistake. Much more cold, droplets of water fall on our faces. I notice Ronnie shivering so I take off my trench coat.
“Oh no, you don’t have too.”
“That’s not very convincing when you are shivering.” I point out. I wrap my trench coat around her. It looks way too big on her, but it’ll keep her warm.
“T-t-thanks. Should we walk to a more covered place?”
“Absolutely.” We get back on my motorcycle and drive until I see a closed store with an awning. I pull up under the awning turning back to look at Ronnie, but her head is pressed against my back, eyes closed. She must be really tired today. I stay perfectly still and let her sleep until the rain passes.
“Oh my god I’m so sorry I slept on our first date!” She shamefully looks away.
“It’s fine, we had to wait out here until the rain stopped, anyway. Ready to go home now?” She nods and we drive into the now foggy night.
We soon reach her house, so I jerk the motorcycle to a stop and let her off.
“Swanky first date, huh?” I repeat her words from earlier. She smiles. Then, she does something unexpected. She leans in and kisses me on the lips.
“Bye JD! See you tomorrow!” She opens her door and goes back to her house, not knowing the state she left me in. I’m in shock. Veronica Sawyer just kissed me. I can still taste the cherry slushy on my lips. I’m sure I’m red as fuck driving back home, but I don’t care. If my dad is home, that won’t make my day any worse. Nothing can bring me down from this high. Thankfully, he’s not home, so I can be happy in peace. I quickly change out of my clothes and into my pajamas, but I notice something. I must’ve left my trench coat with Ronnie. Eh, I’ll get it back tomorrow. She can have it for as long as she wants. I’ll do anything for her. I go to sleep happy, with a smile on my face, and dream of blue clad girls and cherry flavored kisses.
Chandler
“I’m so glad you suggested this sleepover, Mac, because I need to plot against Veronica, and you guys will help me.” Duke has been running her mouth about Vee in this car for the past half hour. I feel bad for Mac; Duke is just chewing her ear off. We pull up to the Snappy Snack Shack and for a split second I see a flash of blue tights and a black trench coat head towards the back of the store.
“Mac, why don’t you go this time? Get some corn nuts and a diet coke.” Mac nods and steps out of the car. I just saved Duke from another tantrum. And if Mac knows what’s good for her, she won’t tell who's in the store.
“Heather, I usually go, why not this time? I think I saw something in there…” Duke starts craning her neck to see, but thankfully the two have gone to the back of the store.
“Yea well.” I dryly replied.
“I’m gonna go check.” She opens the car door and heads inside. Oh shit. Then Mac comes out. Oh thank god. Mac’s eyes widen and she ushers Duke outside with one hand. I have never been this thankful for Mac.
“I have a feeling you guys are hiding something from me, so what is it?” Duke leans forward so I can see her in the rearview mirror. Mac has a hand on her shoulder.
“Shut up Heather. You’re always so paranoid.” I only call Duke Heather when I tell her to shut up. But I actually am hiding something. I’m hiding the fact that 1. I think Vee and JD are on a date and 2. I think they look good together. But Duke would throw a hissy fit if I said that so I’ll distract her for now. We finally pull up to Duke’s house, as it is the largest. I park in her garage, and we step out of the car.
Mac cheerfully calls out behind me, “Hi Mrs. Duke!” Mrs. Duke is sitting at the kitchen island with a glass of red wine in her bony hand.
“Hello girls.” She calls out in a tired voice, waving us upstairs. We go up to Duke’s green bedroom. She sits on the bed, I sit at the vanity seat eating corn nuts, and Mac sits on the fuzzy rug sipping her diet coke. We form a triangle. As soon as Duke plops onto her bed, she starts ranting. Words like “bitch” “JD” “trouble” “plan” “help” flow in and out of my ears. Mac’s already sleeping on the rug because of how bored she is.
“I would rather get fucked with a chainsaw than listen to you yap about Vee and JD. Let’s make up a plan.” I interject.
“And what would that be? Your first plan already ‘worked.’” She lays back in her bed. “Oh! I know! If I dress more seductively, he will notice me and stop looking at Veronica!”
“So your plan is to dress like a slut? Wow. Didn’t expect that from you.” I examine my nails.
“What was your plan?” She cries out desperately.
“You know what? Fine. Let's look in your closet.” I step over Mac to get to Duke’s walk-in closet. It’s even bigger than mine, but I’ll never admit that. We spend the next few hours turning her closet upside down. At hour 3, she finds a green velvet off the shoulder body con dress. Its style reminds me of the 1960s.
“This is the one!”
“Duke, that looks like a prom dress. Are you sure you want to wear that to school?” I look the dress up and down, making it clear that I’m judging her.
“If I wear this, JD will not be able to keep his eyes off of me. Then Veronica will back off and I can have JD all to myself!” Her voice slowly gets louder, waking Mac up. She walks up behind us and gasps.
“Duke, are you wearing that to Ram’s party? It looks great!” She reaches over my shoulder and feels the velvet.
“No, I’m wearing it tomorrow to impress JD!”
“WHAT??? You cannot wear that! Save it for the party or something.” I’m bored, so I leave to go shower and brush my teeth. I’m not going to let Duke’s harlot activities interfere with my beauty sleep. I pull out the red sleeping bag from her closet and set it closest to the window. I close my eyes and sleep to the sound of Mac and Duke still talking.
Duke
“Mac, I don’t know why I can’t wear this to school. I have other dresses I can wear to the party!”
“Don’t make a fool of yourself! JD’s gonna think you’re trying too hard! Give it up, girl.”
“Ughhhh, fine. I guess I won’t ever have JD.” I throw the dress across the closet and stomp off to the bathroom. I take a red hot shower to calm my anger at Mac for talking me out of my plan. I take extra long, just to piss Mac off. When I walk back into the room, Mac is already sleeping in her yellow sleeping bag, hair still wet. I braid my hair to make it more wavy in the morning and climb over to my bed. I guess I’m sticking to my usual blazer and skirt. I dream of hitting Heather Chandler’s head with a green croquet ball.
I am the second one to wake up after Heather. She’s still in her pajamas, sitting at my vanity applying her signature red lipstick.
“Good morning Duke. I have your outfit laid out.” She points to the outfit draped over the doorknob of my closet. The message is clear: I will not be wearing the dress.
“Should I wake up Mac?” Heather nods so I shake Mac awake. She yawns.
“What time is it?”
“It’s already 7am, Mac. Wake up and get ready.” Mac gets up and I go to the bathroom to brush my teeth. By the time I get out, Heather is in her blazer and skirt while Mac is doing her hair.
“Oh good you’re out.” Mac rushes past me and closes the door to brush her teeth. We all finish getting ready and eating breakfast at around 8:00am. We are running late again, as usual.
“Come on guys get in the car. We’re gonna be late.” Heather shouts from inside the car. Mac and I rush in the car and Heather drives quickly.
“What is up with you guys today?” Heathers asks rhetorically. In about ten minutes, I see Veronica's house. Heather honks and she rushes outside. She’s holding a black bundle.
“Are we going to be late again?” Veronica asks.
“Yes, obviously.” I hope she hears the venom dripping out of my voice.
Mac tries to cut the tension. “So, Vee, what are you holding?”
“Oh this? This is JD’s trench coat! He left it yesterday.”
“Oh how nice of you.” Heather says it in a way where she makes it clear that the conversation is shut down. I am just glowering at Veronica. We spend the rest of the ride in silence until Heather parks at the school. I don’t see JD outside. Matter of fact, I don’t see anyone outside because we are late. Again. School started at 8:30am, but we are here at 8:45am. We enter the doors of Westerberg into the empty hallways and go to our classes.