A flashback, a cherry slushy, and cornuts.

Many things stood out in Veronica's mind as she stared at the corn nut display, realizing this new kid was behind her.... She new exactly how to deal with this. She put on Heather mode and turned around hautily.

"No, but if you're nice I'll let you buy me a slushy."

She smiled sneakily before turning back to the cornuts.

She scanned the display carefully... Looking for the orange packaging... Unlike some people, she identified Heather's precious corn nuts by color.

Blue.. thats the onion and cream cheese... Yellow... That's normal.....a-ha.

She carefully raised a flawless hand to pull the package off the metal rod.

Jason Dean had been quiet... Giving her time to sort of fall into her head like she usually did.....

Heather Chandler was young... Around 10 or 12.

Even in young age she held her fluffy hair in a scrunchie.

It was lunch.... Veronica sat at the table across the way... Sneaking glances at heather while she ate her corn nuts

Heather McNamara sat next to Chandler.. she to had light hair... Only, it was much straighter.

Heather Chandler was eating her cornuts quietly, licking the powdered salt off her fingers.. like any kid would

Veronica had watched as a much older kid sat down next to heather..

The older kid was eating some other snack Veronica couldn't remember, but heather took one glance at this older girl... And immiediently changed. Her form was straighter and she suddenly was eating without licking her fingers... Why was Veronica thinking about this? Well, as she stood staring at the packaging, she couldn't help think about simpler times. Times where a kid could eat cornuts any way she wanted, but those days were over.

"I see you know you're convenience store speak well."

She said, coming out of her stuper.

JD leaned up against a counter, she noted the large slushy held tight in one hand.

She smirked at this.

What was he even doing here?

Stalking her? ha, She wished...

"Yeah, well. I've been moved around all my life."

He stared deep into Veronica's eyes. Doing again, that thing where it seemed he could x-ray her whole body. She felt exposed, like he could see into her thoughts... See through her skin... Her eyes... His eyes... Meeting hers.. the unspoken conversation...

"Dallas, Baton Rouge, Vegas... Sherwood Ohio. There's always been a snappy snack shack."

There was saddness hidden deep beneath the mask he wore. The smirk he wore reached his eyes only part of the time. The rest he was masked. Even if she couldn't see the sadness in his eyes, she knew it was there. And it was for that reason she continued to talk... Lowering her heather percentage and raising her flirt percent.

"Any time any place, pop a ham and cheese in the microwave... Feast on a turbo dog."

He gestured to the disgustingly gurgling hotdog station... Gross. But he looked at this cement trash heap as if it was his own child. Something he loved no matter out disgusting it was.

"Keeps me sane."

Oh so we were gonna play like that weren't we?

Veronica thought.

"Really..."

JD felt himself getting x-rayed now... Her stare was just as peircing as his smirk.

He adjusted his slurpy and met her eyes....

"The thing you pulled in the caf today was pretty extreme."

She broke away her Auburn gaze to lift the glass lid off the red liquorice jar... Snagging a few..

He noted how much she was aware of her movement. Complete and fully in control.

She toy'd with the candy in her fingers...

"The extreme always does seem to make an impression."

He stepped forwards a few steps. Veronica felt the butterfly's that had been hidden so long flutter in her stomach...

She didn't break her gaze.. she brought the candy to her lips and sucked on it in the corner of her mouth like heather taught her... Even if she was doing it wrong, no one would have noticed. With the confidence Veronica Sawyer had to JD, she could pull off anyrhing. Anything at all.

He was so close....

"Did you say coke slushy or cherry?"

Veronica smirked as she quietly chewed the vine for a few seconds just to keep him waiting in suspense.

But even before she had swalled her small rubbery bite, JD knew he had won her over.

Even so, when she gave her answer, he felt something new in his stomach. Fluttering?

"I didn't. Cherry."

JD bought her a massive slushy, and the two headed out side to the parking lot, heather Chandler was looking at her nails, even though she seemed occupied Veronica knew she was a ticking bomb.

"Great bike!"

She exclaimed, smoothly, I might add. JD looked around as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes, breathing in the fresh night hair as he leaned against his bike.

"Yeah, it's just a humble perk from my dad's construction company."

He didn't seem to proud about it, didn't seem to care much about the thing anyhow.

He flicked his lighter into action and sheilded the flame from a slight breeze as the ciggerate busted into a red flame.

"You've seen the commercial right?"

He looked up at Veronica, not noticing how angelic she looked in the dark... The slight neon of the sign shining on her face...

"Bringing every state to a higher state."

He breathed in the sweet nicotine as the smoke filled his lungs... Before breathing it out.. the vapora mixing and swirling in the dark night... Disappearing into the atmosphere... Becoming one with the earth..

"Wait a second..."

Veronica squinted her eyes...finnally remembering something she had seen on TV..

"Jason Dean... Your dad's big bud Dean construction!"

Unlike most people JD met who knew about his construction dad, Veronica's voice was lowered... Into.. is that sympathy?

"Must be rough, moving place to place."

JD barley hid his suprise-, starting at Veronica cunfused.. before gathering himself and taking another nice long draw from the ciggerate between his two fingers.

"Yeah well... Everyone's life's got static."

He gestured to the red convertible that held heather Chandler. She had now realised that the loser over there was Veronica....talking to the psycho trenchcoat kid... NOT getting her corn nuts...

"Is your life perfect?"

He asked, impassive.

"Oh yeah, I'm on my way to a party at remmington University..."

She smiled stupidly in sarcastic happiness.

Right on que an Annoyed and fuming heather Chandler honked on the horn... Startling the kissing couple around the side of the building.

Veronica rolled her eyes at heather before turning back to JD..

"No my life's not perfect... I don't really like my friends.."

She stared into space as she took a sip from her slushy to fill silence.

"Yeah uh... I don't really like you're friends either."

He said this carefully... Maybe Veronica would be mad now...

"It's like the Heather's are people I work with... And our job is being popular and shit.."

She hugged her slushy as she let her gaze fall.. all those times heather and yelled at her... But all the times that heather had stood up for her kept butting in...

JD smiled after a draw from his smoking ciggerate.

"Maybe it's time to take a vacation."