Only a Matter of Time // Veronica Sawyer x Fem!Reader

six

Mac slides into her seat, the last one here. She greets us with that infectious smile. I hear Chandler sigh beside me.

"What now?" She asks Mac. The head cheerleader smiles.

"It's nice out today." Duke scoffs.

"Here it is, right on time." I raise an eyebrow at her.

"What?"

"Every year Mac makes us eat lunch outside for winter views and weather and shit. Before it gets colder." She sighs.

"What?" I say again. I grin. "Are you kidding? That sounds nice!" Duke looks at me like I'm crazy.

"You're joking."

"Nope."

"I think it could be interesting," JD butts in, ruffling his hair. "Change of scenery, right?"

"Exactly." I glance at Veronica. "You're the only outlier, Ronnie. What do you say?" She smiles a bit.

"Before the snow gets worse, that's probably a good idea." Mac lets out an excited squeal.

"Majority rule!" She springs up, and so do Veronica, JD, and I. Duke lets out a long sigh, then stands up as well. Chandler does, begrudgingly, as we all look at her expectantly. She has the final say.

"Fine," she says, rolling her eyes. We head towards the doors. I hold them open for the group, then follow them towards the front. I take a deep breath of fresh air, smiling to myself.

"Guys, I don't know why you're freaking out so much. It is nice out today." I run down the steps, following close behind Mac as she searches for a spot to sit. "Hey, what about here?" Mac glances over at me.

"Ooh, nice." We settle down on the bleachers, waiting for the others to join us. JD takes off his jacket and throws it down, sitting on it. The other three sit down. I lean back, looking up at the sky.

"You guys are so dramatic," I say with a satisfied smile. "I mean, at least Chandler and Duke are."

"Hey!" Duke says. I giggle softly.

"You'll survive." I sit up. "Sherwood is nice, guys." I get weird stares from everyone but JD.

"It most definitely is not," Veronica says. I laugh lightly.

"Well, Miss Sawyer, you've never seen it from an outsider's eye. Right, JD?" He nods in agreement, a small smile on his face.

"It's very homey. Not quite my cup of tea, but a lot nicer than a bigger city."

"Exactly. Thanks, Jason."

"Of course." I look down at the snow on the football field.

"Plus, I have you guys here." They all go quiet. "I don't have anything else like you anywhere else. You guys are what makes Sherwood good. You're what makes Sherwood home." Chandler suddenly hits my arm. "Ow!"

"Shut up with the mushy shit." I look over at her. She avoids my eyes, swallowing hard.

"Chandler... Are you about to cry?"

"No!" We all burst into a fit of giggles. I smile at her.

"I had no idea I could do that to you, Heather."

"You shut up." I shoot a grin at Veronica. She blinks a few times, then gives me a warm smile. I look down, rubbing my neck.

"You know I really mean that, right?" I say. "You feel like home." Mac suddenly hugs me.