Giving Thanks

Disclaimer: I have nothing to do with The O.C. Don't sure, I 3 Josh (most of the time, hellooo Oliver!)

A/N: The sequel to Motherly Comfort has arrived! Hey, I noticed this is a Thursday, as is Thanksgiving...Yeah, concidence. This story is basically how ctoan's Road Trip was like a sequel to Graduation (you should check out both), in the same universe. I know things seem a little too perfect considering all of the drama just experienced. But I'm bad at writing drama, come on people, enjoy my fluff!

Seth and Summer sat together at the Cohen kitchen table eating a late breakfast. It was around noon.

"Thanksgiving, turkey, stuffing, other various foods...the time of year has come again!" Seth exclaimed as he poured milk into his cereal.

"Yeah, I'm oh-so-excited. Thank God for my dad making me only spend thirty minutes with him and the step-monster," Summer commented, "I get to spend the rest over here with you and your parents,"

"Someone else is coming," Seth said tauntingly after taking a big spoonful of Trix into his mouth.

Summer flashed a look at Seth and ignored his comment. "Coop gets to be with her dad, but she'll probably have to come over here too. You know King Nichol will bring his queen Julie Cooper, and she'll force Marissa to come, but only at the beginning of the day," Summer stated.

"That's great! We're avoiding an awkward, 'I missed you,', 'How's the fetus?', 'My life sucks!', 'Really? Mine's angsty,' encounter," Seth noted.

Summer took a bite of her fruit salad and questioned, "Cohen! What are you getting at?"

"I love when you talk dirty," Seth joked with a grin.

"You know what I love?" Summer asked, frustrated.

"Threatening me with violence?" Seth guessed.

Summer rolled her eyes. "No, when you tell me what the hell you're saying!" she answered.

Seth smiled devilishly. "It's gonna be a Chino-Returns-To-Newport-Thanksgiving!" he said excitedly, "Ryan's coming!"

Summer smiled. "Really? Is he excited?" she asked.

Seth's excitement level dropped. "Here's the thing, he doesn't know. But I want it to be a surprise. I know Mumsy and Popsy haven't seen Ryan, while I have, and I know they miss him a lot. So I figured we could take a drive to Chino and convince him to come back and visit," he explained.

Summer bounced in her chair. "Coop's gonna be so happy!" she yelped.

"Yeah...I don't want them to see each other," Seth muttered as he took his bowl to the sink.

Summer whirled around in her chair to face him. "Why?!" she asked, almost shouting.

"Calm down! I don't want them to get all sad and moping and 'Oh I miss you tear, tear,' 'cause that'll just make it suck," Seth stated.

Summer shrugged. "That's true," she agreed, "And plus, she's been spending all this time trying to forget him, and that'll be wasted,"

"So let's go!" he announced.

Summer raised an eyebrow and shook her head. "Um, no,"

"Um, yeah," Seth said mockingly.

"Look, we can't go tomorrow, because that's a holy day, and Theresa's so religious. We can't go during the week after school 'cause Ryan will be tired from work--" Seth explained.

"Ryan works?" Summer asked, cutting Seth off.

He nodded. "He replaced Theresa's ex. He works one week, goes to school the next. The school doesn't really care, that what he says," he finished.

Summer got up. "Let's go. We can take my car," she stated.

"Aw, you're the best!" Seth gushed, giving her a lengthy kiss on the lips.

Summer smiled. "I'm driving, and we're stopping at Burger King," she said firmly, strolling out into the driveway with Seth at her side.

"So, this is Chino. It looks like it smells," Summer noted as she drove into Theresa's driveway.

Seth laughed and stuffed a French fry into his mouth. "So wise," he murmured.

"I guess we just go up," she commented nervously.

"Yeah," Seth said as he unlocked the car door.

"We just get out and go up to the door?" Summer asked.

"Are you scared or something?" Seth questioned and got out of the car as she did.

Summer put one hand on her hip and frowned. "No! I'm cautious," she said, noticeably offended.

"My girlfriend, the thesaurus. I've been here before, Eva, Theresa's mom, she knows me," he assured, putting an arm around her waist.

He knocked on the door twice and a Hispanic woman around her forties answered.

"Seth!" she greeted and pulled him into an uncomfortable hug.

"Hi, Eva," he muttered, embarrassed by the woman's hospitality.

Summer perked up and took the moment to introduce herself. "Hola, me llamo Summer," she greeted in Spanish.

"She speaks English, Summer. I know you take Spanish, but it's starting to irritate me. Rosa speaks English too!" Seth exclaimed.

Eva shook her head. "It's nice to meet you, me llamo Eva. Seth es un chiflado niño,"

Summer smiled politely and nodded. "I have no idea what that woman just said," she whispered in Seth's ear.

"Ryan's in the back, I'll go get him," Eva said and scurried away.

Seth closed the door behind them and took a seat on the old and slightly stained couch. He patted the area next to himself, offering Summer a place to sit.

Summer scrunched her nose and shook her head. "What if I get those yellowy pee-looking stains on my butt? These are Joie silk cargoes!" she exclaimed as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Seth chuckled to himself and waited. Ryan came in, smiling a little. His hair was a little longer, his skin a little paler, but not much had changed.

Seth got up and gave Ryan a light hug, and Summer gave him a warm and welcoming embrace that said, "I missed you, Chino,"

Summer promptly sat next to Seth on the ratty couch, not to be rude. Ryan sat across from them in the old but comfortable looking chair around the coffee table.

"So, how have you guys been?" Ryan asked, actually interested and not out of manners.

Summer began talking before Seth could open his mouth to answer.

"Oh my God, Chino, it is so boring without you! Like, nobody does anything! It's just me, Cohen and Coop, and let's be honest here, I can only be with them so much. I mean, I've been hanging out with Kirsten a little and all, but not at school," she started, her rambling going at top speed.

Ryan and Seth exchanged amused glances and Summer went on and on about how her step-mom and father were irritating, the teachers wouldn't stop giving her and Seth dirty looks, and other things.

"Did you have anything else to tell me?" he asked, interuppting Summer.

Summer looked a little peeved at Ryan's interupption, but Seth jumped in before she could say a thing. "Yes, indeed we did!" Seth exclaimed.

Summer rolled her eyes. "You sound like an old man, ass cake," she muttered.

"Ass cake? Is that from the Body Part Bakery?" Seth joked.

Ryan couldn't help but smile at their bickering. It made him feel normal, but maybe because compared to their insane relationship, he was.

"Shut up, Cohen. Talk!" she ordered.

Seth continued, "Okay, Thanksgiving is really soon. And I'm not really sure what the Mexican tradition is for Thanksgiving, because Theresa's family is Mexican but American and...Not the point. Look, Mom--" he corrected himself, "Kirsten and Sandy miss you a lot, and so I thought you could come and visit. Stay for dinner. It'd be a very awesome surprise," he explained, stressing the "I" to show it was his idea.

Ryan hesitated. Wasn't he living with Theresa's family now? Was it exactly fair to spend Thanksgiving with the Cohens? He didn't want to put any stress on Theresa.

"I'll defenitly think about it. I want to come it's just..." he paused, "I'll check with Theresa,"

Theresa stuck her head in the room, as if she was right on cue. "About what?" she asked.

"How to make fajitas!" Summer exclaimed.

Seth's eyes widened in annoyance. "Again with the Hispanic sterotypes!" he murmured into Summer's ear.

Theresa let out a small laugh and rolled her eyes. She walked into the room. She was wearing a black tank top and jeans, but her growing belly was still easy to see. Her face had gotten a little bit bigger too, and although he face was bare of make-up, she looked basically the same.

"Ryan, you know we don't eat fajitas, but my aunt does. If you want to know, I can ask my her," she said.

Seth shook his head quickly. "Um, no, we'll just go to Taco Bell...or a place where they sell fajitas," he said.

"Yeah," Summer said, standing up, "We're gonna go,"

Ryan nodded and they all said their goodbyes. Ryan closed the door after them.

"Oh, he is so ours," Seth said.