Hi,

I'm a newcomer here (and an Aussie - so don't pick on any of my Australian word usage!) and haven't really been into the writing before. This is a very short, sharp piece, intended as a one-parter and I'd really like to hear what you think. It'd be really helpful to me if I could have a bit of constructive stuff said! Thanks!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, so please don't sue! You'll be lucky to get anything out of me anyway - I have about $1.20 in the bank!

Characters: Seth/Summer

"Knock, knock", he spoke quietly and carelessly as he tapped his fingers on her door, not spending any time waiting for an answer before gently prying the door open with his fingertips. She never closed her door properly, nor did she ever answer to his taps each time he entered her room, so there was no reason for him to think things weren't right.

When he first caught sight of her, crunched up in a tight ball beneath the masses of quilts that covered her bed, he thought she was playing a game so he pounced on her, ready to pull the cover back and attack her with his love. As he pounced, however, he heard a whimper that spoke no words of delight.

"Sum?" Gently lifting back the covers his hands fell to her face, subconsciously tucking her hair behind her ears and then wiping away her tears with his thumbs. "Sum, what's up?" His voice spoke words of uttermost concern as sobs escaped her mouth. His lips gently gliding kisses along her forehead. "Hey, what happened to my beautiful girl? You can tell me Sum."

"I-I...love...you." Small whimpers of pain sounded from her mouth between each word she spoke. It sounded like she was forcing it out, but with the look on her face he could tell she really meant it.

"I love you too Summer. I don't like to see you hurting like this, 'cause it hurts me too. What's wrong? I want to help you."

"I'm s-s-sorry Seth." She only ever called him Seth when something was up. He just wished that she'd get on with telling him her problems because at the moment he was struggling to help. "It's just so real now that I can't handle it. I thought I was just thinking things all along and then I find out there's a reason for all of this."

"Sum, Sum. Slow down, how about we start at the beginning?" Seth had no idea what was going on anymore. All he could see was the love of his life crying back at him.

"Cohen, I'm a freak. The doctor actually diagnosed me with obsessive-compulsive disorder!" It all came rushing out of her mouth in an almost incoherent babble before she covered her face and disappeared back under the covers away from questions and comments. However, it was only a matter of seconds before she'd reappeared, deciding it was better that she explained herself properly, 'cause Cohen may not even know what the hell that meant. "Ah damn, I'm sorry I should explain myself." Summer's sobbing had subsided and you could now only hear her sadness through her voice. "They call it OCD for short. I do things which I can't help and it's been getting to me lately. It's pretty easy to hide 'cause it only really happens badly when no one else is around. When I'm at home, I-I check the locks on all the doors like 12 times before I go to sleep. Sometimes I wish we only had one door. I do other things too, like, touching and tapping things as I walk past them – sometimes I even walk past a tree and don't manage to tap it so I have to go back to do it. I put my hands to my nose to "smell" them before I do something. It's all… it's all just stupid." As she spoke her voice slowly got softer and softer as it faded out, as though she had been defeated.

"It's not stupid Summer. I did a project on it back when I was younger. I kind of know what you're talking about and I know you can't help it. You're not a freak." Seth pulled back the covers of her bed and slowly crawled under them with her, showing how he was there to support her.

"I just… I feel like a freak because I do these freakish things and can't stop them. If I don't do them I convince myself that I'm going to die, or you are or something. It's like these horrible, I don't know, devils in my head forcing me to do what I don't want. It's making me depressed Seth, I'll never be normal."

"Well Sum, you have nothing to worry about in my eyes. You'll get better; I promise you it'll be OK. I'm a freak to you know – and people can actually see my freakishness from the outside! It's not too bad being a freak though – you do sometimes get lucky like me and pick up amazing girlfriends…" Seth winked and raised a suggestive eyebrow at her, "maybe it'll get your mind onto better things?"

"Cohen!" Her slim body crawled over his and her face bent down til their lips brushed against one another. "You know this means I can now officially explain that I HAVE to kiss you three times, I don't actually always want to do it that way!"

"Pfft, well I hope the treatment doesn't fix that part!" He fumbled with the bottom of her top, raising it to lift it over her head.

Please let me know what you think! It's new for me so I need some feedback!