Death of a Bachelor ✶ Marcel ✶

✶ F O U R ✶

Veronica is not having a good day. Her friends have relentlessly taken the piss out of her all day despite agreeing that Nicole deserved what she got for being a bitch all the time. What Nicole got was actually two black eyes and a bruised nose.

Veronica feels relief flood her body when the final bell rings. She's so past done with everyone and everything. She just wants to go home and sleep for 84 years but she can't because of this stupid punishment. Her feet drag all the way to the office.

Marcel greets her amicably as she collapses in the rolly chair beside his. "Good afternoon."

"Shut the fuck up I want to die," she whines back dramatically, limply flopping backwards in her seat. "What am I even supposed to do??"

Marcel disappears into a closet then comes back out with 5 heavy packs of paper. "You get to refill the printers. It's the easiest job we have."

Veronica groans, but she gets to work behind Marcel, pulling out the various trays and filling them. After a while, Veronica breaks the silence. "Can't I just blow you and you tell O'Malley that I worked for today?"

"I don't want your blow jobs," Marcel reminds her.

"Why not though?!"

"You're evil and manipulative and judgemental and vain and-"

"Okay okay! Geez..." Veronica glances over her shoulder, wondering why Marcel doesn't want her if even just for her good looks. He's not exactly in a position to pick and choose. Neither is Veronica at the moment, but things will eventually go back to normal. Probably around homecoming time when guys will be lining up to ask her because this is the first year she's ever been available. "Are you going to homecoming?" Veronica wonders aloud.

"I have to. My mom is chaperoning, and she wants me to 'put myself out there'." Marcel uses finger quotes around his mother's words, rolling his eyes.

"That's unnecessary. You're about as out there as someone can be. You're the only person at our school who's.... well, who's like you, ya know?"

"A giant nerd."

"Nah, there are tons of nerds," Veronica replies, sitting back beside Marcel. He's going through some permission slips. "You're just you all the time. Like, even when it gets you kicked in the face, you just keep on the same way you always have. You haven't changed at all the whole time I've known you. It's kind of impressive."

Veronica is surprised with herself. She didn't mean to say all that. She didn't even know she was thinking it in the first place. But it's out in the open now, and she's a little worried because Marcel hasn't spoken for 5 minutes now. The only sound in the office is the shuffling of papers in his hand and the metallic clicking of Veronica's ankle bracelet charms as her knee bounces nervously under the desk.

"Why should I?" Marcel's adenoidal voice pierces the silence, startling Veronica out of her thoughts.

"Huh?" she asks in confusion.

"Why should I change? They're still going to treat me the same." Veronica chews her lip but stays silent as Marcel continues. "Harry has this whole school wrapped around her pretty little finger. As long as she hates me, everyone will. You can take away the glasses and the ties, and I'll still be Harry's brother. I just wouldn't be myself."

That makes sense, but there's still a question that's been swirling around in Veronica's mind for ages. She's always wanted to ask Harry, but she knows she would never get a real answer from her anyway. Harry would just say that Marcel is a nerd and that that should be enough reason to hate him. But Veronica feels like she can ask Marcel. "Why does she hate you?"