Clandestine
Chapter Nine: Called
That night, when Ryan and Seth were flipping through comic books in Seth's room, Ryan questioned the other boy about Luke. "So why did you punch him?"
"Does it really matter?" Seth asked, not looking up.
"Well, I'm kind of curious why you just up and punched him."
"It wasn't just something random. There was a reason."
"Being?"
"Dude, Ryan. Drop it. I don't want to talk about it."
"Hey, hey. Sorry," Ryan said, moving from Seth's computer chair to the bed, next to Seth. "It's just that I want you to know that you're my best friend, and I'm here if you want to talk about anything. Wow, that sounded cheesy."
Seth looked up. He had called him his best friend. Seth had considered Ryan his best friend practically since he'd arrived in Newport, and he'd hoped that Ryan felt the same, but neither had just come right out and said it like that. "Thanks."
He gave Ryan a small smile and went back to inspecting the comic pages. He read in silence, not saying anything about Luke. Ryan didn't want to say anything. That would be pushing it. It was true, when he said Seth was his best friend - he'd never had a friend as good as Seth. Never. And there was no way he was going to screw it up. When Seth wanted to talk, Seth would talk.
* * *
Meanwhile, something similar was going on at Summer's house. Marissa was spending the night, and she watched Summer. Summer painted her nails as Marissa slowly wrote in her diary. She would have been writing faster, but she couldn't shake the thought of how unsettled the air had seemed when Seth and Summer had come back from their swim. Especially since Summer had arrived back to Marissa and Ryan much earlier than Seth had.
"Summer?"
Summer mumbled something without looking up. Marissa took this as a go-ahead.
"What happened between you and Seth today?"
"Nothing," Summer replied. She said it casually, but Marissa saw her pause in mid-stroke of the nail polish brush before picking up the rhythmic pattern again.
Marissa closed her diary and set it aside, tossing her pen down with it. "Come on, Sum, I know something happened. You're never this quiet."
What was it with best friends being able to sense this kind of stuff, anyway? Summer thought bitterly. Aloud, she said, "Seth and I had a... spat."
"Spat? That's such an old couple term." Her eyes flashed. "Summer, did you and Seth...?"
Summer looked up, an exasperated expression upon her face. "Did we what, Marissa?" Her tone was caustic and unlike her, although it was much better than the silence.
"Did you become a couple?"
"No, and that's exactly the problem," Summer half-mumbled, half- sighed.
"What do you mean?" Marissa asked. Summer hadn't expected her to hear that.
"That's what happened. We're not a couple, we had a spat."
"Come on, Summer," Marissa complained, stretching the "o" in "on".
"What?"
"I'm your best friend."
Pulling the friends card, even in a situation like this, was never a good thing.
Summer sighed. "We kissed. Luke and Holly caught us, I asked them to leave, they wouldn't, Seth stood up to Luke. We went to swim, I brought up the subject, then I had to go and tell him not to tell anyone." She left the part out about the time that she kissed him, prior to the most recent incident.
"Wait. You kissed? You and Seth?" Marissa asked, unbelieving.
"Yes," Summer sighed, resuming her nail-painting nervously.
"How... how was it?" Marissa asked.
"Coop! You're all over Ryan, yet you want to know how good of a kisser Cohen is?"
"No," Marissa laughed. "It's not as if I want Seth. I just wanted to know if it was really that bad. Was giving him a chance a good thing?"
Summer sighed, this time more blithe than her earlier, exasperated sighs. "It was good. Who would have thought he could kiss like that? I mean, it wasn't even all that passionate of a kiss. It was just... I don't know. Then they had to come and ruin it."
"See, giving him a chance didn't kill you."
"No, but I may have killed any chance of us having anything."
"You have to talk to him," Marissa told her.
"Yeah. Right," Summer snorted.
"Don't you want to make this work?"
"So what if I do? I can deal with it myself."
"Come on, Sum. Just talk to him."
"Marissa, I highly doubt Seth wants to talk to me anytime soon."
"What, exactly, did he say to you?"
"Something like, 'when you work it out, give me a call.'"
"See? Haven't you worked it out?"
"Yeah, but..."
"Come on. He said to call him when you worked it out."
"I'm sure he was being sarcastic, Marissa," Summer said.
"What's the worst that could happen? Think about it, Summer. What have you got to lose?"
"For starters, a chance for anything to happen. If he's really mad right now, he's not going to want to talk to me."
"Fine, do what you want. I just don't want to have to tell you that I told you so. Again." With that, Marissa walked into the adjoining bathroom. Summer bit her lip uneasily. Until a few weeks ago, Marissa had dated Luke for about six years. Six years. They had gone through their ups and downs, and until Luke completely broke Marissa's trust by cheating, they had gotten through everything. So maybe Marissa was right.
* * *
The Cohen's phone rang. "I'll get it," Seth replied lazily. He sauntered from the dining room table, where the family was eating, to the nearest phone, that in the foyer.
"Hello?" There was no answer. "Hello?" he repeated.
"Seth?"
"Summer?" he questioned, lowering his voice so the others couldn't overhear.
"Yeah, I... can you meet me tonight?"
"Summer, after this afternoon, I really don't think-" he began, but she cut him off.
"I want to make things right. Please, just meet me in front of the ice cream shop on the boardwalk in two hours."
Seth sighed. "Fine. I'll be there."
"You won't regret it," Summer promised. Without another word, she hung up, and he followed suit. He reseated himself at the table.
"Who was it?" Kirsten asked.
"Telemarketer," Seth shrugged.
Chapter Nine: Called
That night, when Ryan and Seth were flipping through comic books in Seth's room, Ryan questioned the other boy about Luke. "So why did you punch him?"
"Does it really matter?" Seth asked, not looking up.
"Well, I'm kind of curious why you just up and punched him."
"It wasn't just something random. There was a reason."
"Being?"
"Dude, Ryan. Drop it. I don't want to talk about it."
"Hey, hey. Sorry," Ryan said, moving from Seth's computer chair to the bed, next to Seth. "It's just that I want you to know that you're my best friend, and I'm here if you want to talk about anything. Wow, that sounded cheesy."
Seth looked up. He had called him his best friend. Seth had considered Ryan his best friend practically since he'd arrived in Newport, and he'd hoped that Ryan felt the same, but neither had just come right out and said it like that. "Thanks."
He gave Ryan a small smile and went back to inspecting the comic pages. He read in silence, not saying anything about Luke. Ryan didn't want to say anything. That would be pushing it. It was true, when he said Seth was his best friend - he'd never had a friend as good as Seth. Never. And there was no way he was going to screw it up. When Seth wanted to talk, Seth would talk.
* * *
Meanwhile, something similar was going on at Summer's house. Marissa was spending the night, and she watched Summer. Summer painted her nails as Marissa slowly wrote in her diary. She would have been writing faster, but she couldn't shake the thought of how unsettled the air had seemed when Seth and Summer had come back from their swim. Especially since Summer had arrived back to Marissa and Ryan much earlier than Seth had.
"Summer?"
Summer mumbled something without looking up. Marissa took this as a go-ahead.
"What happened between you and Seth today?"
"Nothing," Summer replied. She said it casually, but Marissa saw her pause in mid-stroke of the nail polish brush before picking up the rhythmic pattern again.
Marissa closed her diary and set it aside, tossing her pen down with it. "Come on, Sum, I know something happened. You're never this quiet."
What was it with best friends being able to sense this kind of stuff, anyway? Summer thought bitterly. Aloud, she said, "Seth and I had a... spat."
"Spat? That's such an old couple term." Her eyes flashed. "Summer, did you and Seth...?"
Summer looked up, an exasperated expression upon her face. "Did we what, Marissa?" Her tone was caustic and unlike her, although it was much better than the silence.
"Did you become a couple?"
"No, and that's exactly the problem," Summer half-mumbled, half- sighed.
"What do you mean?" Marissa asked. Summer hadn't expected her to hear that.
"That's what happened. We're not a couple, we had a spat."
"Come on, Summer," Marissa complained, stretching the "o" in "on".
"What?"
"I'm your best friend."
Pulling the friends card, even in a situation like this, was never a good thing.
Summer sighed. "We kissed. Luke and Holly caught us, I asked them to leave, they wouldn't, Seth stood up to Luke. We went to swim, I brought up the subject, then I had to go and tell him not to tell anyone." She left the part out about the time that she kissed him, prior to the most recent incident.
"Wait. You kissed? You and Seth?" Marissa asked, unbelieving.
"Yes," Summer sighed, resuming her nail-painting nervously.
"How... how was it?" Marissa asked.
"Coop! You're all over Ryan, yet you want to know how good of a kisser Cohen is?"
"No," Marissa laughed. "It's not as if I want Seth. I just wanted to know if it was really that bad. Was giving him a chance a good thing?"
Summer sighed, this time more blithe than her earlier, exasperated sighs. "It was good. Who would have thought he could kiss like that? I mean, it wasn't even all that passionate of a kiss. It was just... I don't know. Then they had to come and ruin it."
"See, giving him a chance didn't kill you."
"No, but I may have killed any chance of us having anything."
"You have to talk to him," Marissa told her.
"Yeah. Right," Summer snorted.
"Don't you want to make this work?"
"So what if I do? I can deal with it myself."
"Come on, Sum. Just talk to him."
"Marissa, I highly doubt Seth wants to talk to me anytime soon."
"What, exactly, did he say to you?"
"Something like, 'when you work it out, give me a call.'"
"See? Haven't you worked it out?"
"Yeah, but..."
"Come on. He said to call him when you worked it out."
"I'm sure he was being sarcastic, Marissa," Summer said.
"What's the worst that could happen? Think about it, Summer. What have you got to lose?"
"For starters, a chance for anything to happen. If he's really mad right now, he's not going to want to talk to me."
"Fine, do what you want. I just don't want to have to tell you that I told you so. Again." With that, Marissa walked into the adjoining bathroom. Summer bit her lip uneasily. Until a few weeks ago, Marissa had dated Luke for about six years. Six years. They had gone through their ups and downs, and until Luke completely broke Marissa's trust by cheating, they had gotten through everything. So maybe Marissa was right.
* * *
The Cohen's phone rang. "I'll get it," Seth replied lazily. He sauntered from the dining room table, where the family was eating, to the nearest phone, that in the foyer.
"Hello?" There was no answer. "Hello?" he repeated.
"Seth?"
"Summer?" he questioned, lowering his voice so the others couldn't overhear.
"Yeah, I... can you meet me tonight?"
"Summer, after this afternoon, I really don't think-" he began, but she cut him off.
"I want to make things right. Please, just meet me in front of the ice cream shop on the boardwalk in two hours."
Seth sighed. "Fine. I'll be there."
"You won't regret it," Summer promised. Without another word, she hung up, and he followed suit. He reseated himself at the table.
"Who was it?" Kirsten asked.
"Telemarketer," Seth shrugged.
