It was Saturday night, the night of the party, the night of Marissa's possible pseudo-date with the man named Kevin Volchok, the local surfer who had caught her eye the afternoon before, the night where, if everything went the way it was supposed to, many of her financial burdens could be lifted. The clock was quickly approaching 6:30, but Marissa had been ready for a half an hour already, and now she found herself sitting on the steps in the Cohen's foyer waiting for the doorbell to ring, praying he showed up, and nervously biting at her nails. Marissa could not figure out why she was so anxious to see this stranger again…or maybe she was excited because she knew she would see Ryan that night….or maybe, yet again, it was a mixture of both.

When the doorbell rang, she practically launched herself off the stairs but she didn't answer the door right away. She couldn't look desperate, so, instead, she straightened her dress, checked her appearance in the mirror over the sideboard table, and inhaled deeply before slowly opening the door to reveal her date with his back to her looking out at the view of the Newport coast. As he heard the door open, he quickly turned around and smiled at her appearance, well, smirked to be exact.

"I'm here, now what are you going to do with me," he asked with a raise of his eyebrow and a seductive quirk of his lips.

"Not that," she laughed unwittingly. Despite her efforts, she couldn't resist his charm, and so when he held out his arm for her to take, she smiled at him and laced theirs limbs together. After shutting and locking the door with her free hand, they set off to his car, got in, and were on their way. As he drove, they talked.

"You know, when I saw you, I didn't picture you as a Newport princess."

She looked at him slightly confused until recognition set in and she laughed. "Oh, you mean the house, yeah, it's not mine and it's not my parents' either. I work for the Cohens. I'm Sandy's glorified secretary whom he lets help with his cases despite the fact that I'm just a freshman in college. Someday though, I will be a lawyer."

"And you live with your boss," he asked incredulously. "I'd say that's a pretty close working relationship. A beautiful, younger woman like you always hanging around, I bet it drives his wife crazy."

"Far from it," Marissa replied, finding it easy to talk to him. "I'm friends with their son, we're the same age, it would be quite strange if anything would happen between us…which nothing will. Sandy's like a father figure to me, a mentor."

As they came to a stop at an intersection, his eyes left the road and he ran them up and down her body, savoring her appearance. "Well," he said cheekily, "you look like you fit right in here, at least physically; personality wise, you have them all beat." He winked at her and drove off, making her blush slightly as she sat back and basked in his praise.

"It's all a mask."

"Don't let them fool you," he said in a serious tone, "it is for the rest of them as well."

They both sat back for the rest of the ride and just enjoyed being in each others company, neither saying another word but not needing to. He was right though, she did look like she was a Newport heiress. As always she was understated and simplistically gorgeous, her makeup minimal, her long, luscious, honey hued locks gently women into a French twist, her dress floor length, black, form fitting, seductively conservative, and he couldn't get enough of her, occasionally stealing glances when she wasn't looking and eagerly anticipating the fact that he would be allowed to be in her regal presence all night. Somehow, someway, and with no way for him to stop it, something was happening to Kevin Volchok that had never happened before.

As hostess, Dawn believed it was always her duty to arrive at the party first, and as she stood around the glittering ballroom of the country club, she couldn't help but reflect upon the significant and numerous changes that occurred in her life in the past two weeks. Here she was after over 25 years throwing a benefit dinner for her first love and his wife after reconnecting with him, and her son, though he had made terrible mistakes so far, was in love with her first love's daughter and attempting to have a relationship with her. She had quit drinking, she had learned that her husband and eldest son were criminals and in less than 48 hours so would the rest of the world, and she had met someone new in the strangest of circumstances, someone she liked. Most importantly, she was rebuilding her relationship with Ryan. Contemplating it all, Dawn realized that at that particular moment, as she looked around at the visual proof that she was a smart, capable, and accomplished woman who was generous, loving, and loved, she was happy for the first time in a very long time. Laughter, familiar laughter, brought her out of her revelry.

Turning around to the doorway where the sounds of mirth were drifting from, a smile swept across Dawn's face as she saw her son smiling at something one of his two friends had said. As she made her way towards her son and his companions, they turned and advanced their way towards her. Although it didn't surprise her, she was disappointed to notice that a very key member of their group, newly added but vital, was missing, Marissa.

"Hey Mom," Ryan greeted her with a smile, taking her into his arms as he hugged her, pleasantly astonishing Dawn.

"Hey yourself there kiddo," Dawn returned, beaming. As they let each other go, she turned to the young couple beside them and welcomed them as well. "First arrivals, aren't we prompt?"

"Yeah," Seth agreed, "but we would have been one of the last ones here if I hadn't of told Summer the party started at five instead of seven."

"Cohen," Summer squealed, hitting him in the process of turning towards Dawn. "Ignore him, otherwise, you'll loose you mind. And just to let you know, I wanted to be here early to scoop the place out, because I like to think that a little bit of this is my handiwork.

"More than a little bit, Summer, you helped me out a lot," Dawn acknowledged graciously, "and I am very thankful for your assistance. If it wasn't your help, there is no way I would have gotten everything done. Thank you, but don't let me stop you two kids, go, take a look around the place, have fun."

"You don't have to tell me twice. Come on, Summer, I hear that dance floor calling my name. Someone has to warm it up!" With that Seth pulled his girlfriend away from the mother and son pair, leaving them to speak alone. As they talked, they walked together, side by side, each, so like the other, fiddling with their fingers afraid to look the other in the eye for they could reveal too much emotion.

"So, how are you doing," Dawn asked Ryan tentatively.

He countered, "I could ask you the same thing."

She audibly sighed in frustration. "Fine, if I tell you about myself first, will you at least open up to me a little bit. I noticed that someone who is very important to you is not on your arm tonight."

"I don't want to talk about her right now." Ryan tried to end the conversation there, but Dawn stopped him mid stride and glared at him.

"What happened to the mature approach, trying to grow up and become the man she wants and deserves?

"Well, I'd say that went out the window when she told me was bringing a date tonight."

"So," Dawn dismissed with a shrug of her shoulders, "she's either bringing a friend or worst case scenario, you have yourself a little competition. I've never seen you shy away from a fight, and you always win, especially when you want something bad enough. Giving up this easily is just going to prove her point."

Walking away from her, he changed the subject. "I thought we were going to talk about you."

"Alright, fair enough," she said as she followed him quickly to catch up with his noticeably faster pace. "I'm doing good, going to meetings, working hard, meeting new friends. I'm happy. Now, it's your turn."

"Do you want to know the truth?" He watched her closely to see her response, knowing that his mother of old would avoid any emotional declaration and run away to an alcohol induced state of solitary. Her eyes never wavered from his, proving to him that she really did want to hear about his life. "I'm not doing well, I miss her, I'm angry, I'm hurt, I'm depressed, I'm definitely not meeting new people, and I'm frustrated."

"You mentioned you talked to her," Dawn continued to pry, "how did that go?"

Ryan shuddered visibly as he thought back to the day before. "Yeah, we can't talk about that…too personal, too boundary crossing."

Although she was confused, Dawn let it go, knowing that if she pushed him any further, he would shut down further or, worse yet, leave completely, and she knew that even if their relationship was still very much strained, Marissa would be crushed if he was not there. Eventually, he found his way to a table close to the dance floor to watch Seth and Summer and wait for them to finish making fools of themselves as they went their separate ways and Dawn went back to the entrance to welcome her guests.

The party was in full swing, champagne flowing, bodies swaying effortlessly to the subtle sounds of jazz coming from the band, stress levels rising, when Sandy and Kirsten walked into the party, arm in arm, greeting those to their right and left as they made their way to a friendly face. Because his back was turned to them, Sandy tapped him on his shoulder and stuck his hand out immediately to take his.

"Neil, so glad you could make it back in time for the dinner," Sandy's voice boomed out over the crowd making his wife smile at his enthusiasm.

Neil returned his handshake with a smile of his own before replying. "Well, when I found out this benefit was to be held for the young lady who's been staying at my house these past couple of weeks, I had to be here, not only to support Summer's friend but to meet her. Plus, I figured it might help the cause to have someone from the hospital here, even if I'm a plastic surgeon and not an oncologist."

The three of them walked off together, talking easily amongst themselves until they reached their table.

"I think you'll be pleasantly surprised when you meet Marissa, Neil," Sandy gushed. "I must say we're quite fond of her."

"That's right Summer told me that she's working for you and that you invited her to move into your poolhouse."

"We did," Kirsten countered, "but don't let us fool you, it was for purely selfish reasons. We enjoy her company and the house is way too quiet with Seth always at your place. Plus, her presence will give me a female ally in the house."

"I understand what you mean by a lonely house. I am dreading the day when Summer goes back to school this fall." Just then Dawn appeared at their side. Neil turned to her and joined her into the conversation. "What about you, Dawn, how do you fare when the house is empty and Ryan's off at school?"

"To be honest, it will somewhat be a new experience for me. Last year when he left I was drunk all the time so I have no idea how I'll react." Sandy, Kirsten, and Neil's jaws fall open as they are stunned by her candid confession. She just laughs at their response before continuing to talk to them. "Sorry about that, I sometimes forget that I can't be that blunt around here. I recently started AA and have been sober for a couple of weeks and it's quite refreshing to just state exactly what I feel and think."

"Well, I for one," Sandy joined her in her laughter, "have always been a fan of outspoken people. There are too many secrets in this town as it is. Welcome to the ranks of the unpopular crowd though. You've just crossed over and joined the rebels of Newport Beach, and as the founder and sole member up to now, I say it's about dmn time!"

Kirsten rolled her eyes at her dramatic husband but couldn't help but love him a little bit more because he had gone out of his way to make Dawn feel comfortable and appreciated. "Congratulations Dawn. We're all really proud of you. I bet Ryan is thrilled."

"We're taking it slow," Dawn admitted, "but so far so good. It feels nice being a real mother again."

Just then a fifth member joined their party startling them all.

"Hello Dawn."

Dawn looked up at the person standing in front of her and a smile lit up her face, making her glow. Sandy also smiled as recognition set in when he saw who had joined their intimate group. Slapping him on the back, Sandy greeted him as loudly or perhaps even louder than he had Neil.

"Mike Patterson, what the hell are you doing at a Newport charity event? The last I knew, you hated all things that had to deal with this town." He stopped talking for a minute to let him respond, but then it clicked in his head that Mike had greeted Dawn and only Dawn when he had approached them. "Hey, how do you two know each other," he asked, motioning between the ecstatic Dawn and the slightly nervous Mike.

"Oh Dawn and my wife were old friends, he replied smoothly." Dawn's face fell, "well, my ex-wife," and reformed into a grin almost instantly.

"Small world," Sandy chuckled as the five continued to chatter and enjoy each others company.

He pretended to be interested in what they said to him, made all the right responses and gestures, acted the part of the perfect Newport gentleman, but the whole time his eyes searched the ever growing crowd for the one face, the only face, he wanted to see. His mind raced with thoughts of her, and he found himself nervous and eager to see her all at the same time. Just when he thought he would not be able to take the anticipation any longer, she appeared. The crowd seemed to part just enough so that he could have the perfect view of her, the noise seemed to die down so that it was not distracting his thoughts from focusing on her, and the lights seemed to illuminate off of her golden skin. She smiled as she laughed at something someone behind her said, and he felt as if his heart might leap out of his chest, it was beating so rapidly, but then his fairytale moment came crashing down around him as he saw the arm snake itself around her waist and lead her into the party. So she did bring a date, he thought to himself, and as his eyes moved up to see who the person was, anger flooded his entire body and he had to do everything he could to not go and attack him right then and there. He could not believe it. Of all people to bring, Marissa brought Volchok.

Glancing over at his two best friends standing beside him, he noticed shock and abject fear on Seth's face and shock and slight admiration on Summer's. His eyes left them behind as they went back to the doorway, utterly unable to keep from watching the train wreck in front of him, but the couple of his nightmares was not there anymore. He searched frantically for them, and just as he was about to laugh it off as a sick, horribly realistic daydream, they appeared literally right before him. He remained frozen, shaken in silence.

Against her own will, Marissa's face lit up when she saw Ryan watching her, but her joy quickly disappeared when she saw the misery written all over his expression. She knew that he would not like her bringing someone to the benefit, for he had a jealous streak, but this reaction was beyond anything she could have ever imagined. She turned her eyes away from him to look at Seth and Summer and found their reactions to be surprising as well, but her mind could not ponder the situation for it was interrupted by the sound of her date starting conversation with her friends.

"Atwood, Roberts, Dorkboy, fancy meeting you here. Do you all know Marissa, my date," he sneered at the three unfriendly faces in front of him.

"Kevin," Marissa whispered at him in minor frustration for how he was treating her friends. He turned to look at her and realized that he had miss-stepped so he shot her an apologetic smile before turning back to face forward.

"Kevin, you call him Kevin," Ryan shouted at her causing several pairs of eyes to be turned in his direction.

Under her breath, Summer tried to communicate with him a warning. "Less aggressive there Mike Tyson."

Seth snickered at Summer's comment, but no one else found any humor in it as they just continued to stare at each other not knowing what to say. Finally, Marissa broke through the gauche tension.

"So, I take it you all know each other?"

Volchok laughed before replying sarcastically, "Uh, you could say that the four of us go way back, and by your reaction, Marissa, I take it you know them as well."

"Yeah, we're Marissa's friends," Summer threw back at him, matching him glare for glare.

"We're more than friends," Ryan stated bluntly looking at Marissa the whole time and avoiding Volchok entirely as if he was not even worth his time.

"Ryan," Marissa begged in an attempt to make him back down, "not now, not here, please."

Taking a step towards her and wrapping his hand around her arm as if to escort her away so they could talk in private, he spoke calmly to her. "Fine, then come with me now and we'll talk someplace quiet, just the two of us."

Before Marissa could even reply, Volchok's icy voice was heard ringing loudly through the crowd. "If you don't take your hand off of her right now, you won't have a hand left."

Ryan had still not let go of her as Marissa turned to speak with her date. "Kevin, it's fine. Obviously there's some sort of past between you two, but," she stopped momentarily as she turned to look at Ryan before she continued speaking, "Ryan would never hurt me."

Ignoring her, Volchok kept pushing. "Yeah, well, I'd rather keep you here with me where I know you're safe than test that theory."

Ryan released Marissa arm and whirled around to face his nemesis. "You want to do this, fine, we'll do this. It has been building for years, so let's just settle this once and for all!" Ryan raised his fist to punch a smirking Volchok in the face, making a food of himself not only in front of Marissa but the entire upper-class of Orange County, but luckily, before a punch could be thrown, a strong hand grabbed a hold of Ryan and held him back.

"Ryan, stop this now! Come on, let's go outside and get you to cool down some, okay?"

"Who the hell are you," Ryan snapped, anger distorting his face.

"A friend of your Mom's," Mike replied coolly, strengthening his grip upon the younger man slightly, trying to impress upon him that he needed to back off. "Come on, man, just back down." Ryan was still not budging, but then he looked into Marissa's eyes and saw only hurt and pain.

Quietly she whispered to him, "Please Ryan, just go."

Her four, quiet, tortured words crushed him and took the fight right out of him, making him complacent enough to be led out onto the patio away from the other quests whose stares followed him while they whispered amongst themselves about the latest morsel of gossip to add to their repertoire.

Dawn followed Mike and Ryan onto the patio and stood watching as her son, nearly reduced to tears, fell apart before her eyes. Mike stepped back from him to give him his room but stopped and stood by Dawn.

"So I take it that's what you meant by lady drama," he asked, his voice void of any mockery or humor. She could only shake her head as the sympathy she felt for her son had taken over her body. "She loves him, too, you know, you can tell by looking at her, but you can also tell that she's scared and that he hurt her, badly." Still Dawn said nothing so Mike continued to press the issue. "Did he cheat on her?"

"Technically, no," Dawn said as she finally found her voice, "but in her heart, it feels like he did."

"I know you don't want to hear this right now, but you have to tell him about Dan and Trey, the sooner the better."

She sighed before replying, "I know." They stood in silence before she spoke again. "Will you help me….tell him, I mean. I'm sure he'll have a lot of questions, and you're really the only one who can answer them."

"Are you sure," he asked gently, pleasantly surprised that she wanted him that involved in her son's life.

With a strong voice, she looked him the eyes and stated, "yes," without even a moment's hesitation. Walking to the still pacing figure before them, they pulled Ryan aside and slowly began to tell him that the world he had known for 19 years was about to become utterly unrecognizable.

Marissa had been quiet the rest of the night and it seemed to Volchok that she had been living in another world. Unbeknownst to him, her thoughts were wrapped up in Ryan, hating him for embarrassing her at her first Newport party, a party thrown to make money for her dying parents, loving him for his insanely obsessive need to protect her even if that meant from herself. She was so torn and confused that she barely noticed when Volchok had parked the car in Sandy and Kirsten's driveway….her driveway now, turned off the car, and walked around to her side of the car and opened the door for her. He gave her his hand to help her out of the low, streamlined sports car, squeezing it gently to show his support. Finally, that one small gesture, broke through the haze that had surrounded her mind the whole evening since the confrontation and she smiled up at him.

"Well, sorry I wasn't the most attentive date tonight, but I appreciate you taking me," Marissa said softly as they came to rest in front of the door.

He laughed. "No, you weren't that attentive, but you sure know how to cause a scene."

"Not funny," she admonished as she tried to hold back a few giggles of her own but couldn't help but smile slightly at his teasing.

"See, that's better. Your face should always have a smile on it, and if you'd let me, I'd teach Atwood what happens when he makes you upset."

"Kevin, please, just stay away from Ryan." She paused for a second as she gathered her thoughts. "Look, obviously you can tell that we have a past, and I won't lie to you, I'm in love with him, but we can't be together right now."

"So where does that leave me," Volchok asked with a glimmer in his eye.

Marissa shook her head at his persistence. "You're my friend."

"Friend with benefits," he inquired smirking at her.

"No," she said emphatically. "I'm in no place right now personally in my life to be with any guy, especially if he's not Ryan."

"Fair enough, I've been warned, but let me warn you." The wit disappeared from his voice and he stared at her while he spoke as earnestly as he could. "I intend to be more than your friend, and I will do anything in my power to get what I want."

"Is that a challenge," she flirted back audaciously."

"Not a challenge, a promise. So, how about a real date with just the two of us in attendance," he requested hopefully.

Laughing, once again, she opened the door to walk in but stopped and gave him an answer first. "I'll tell you what, if I want a date, I'll call you."

She went to close the door on him, but before she could, he put his arm in and pushed it open so that she was standing in front of him once again. Never breaking eye contact, he lifted up her hand delicately and barely brushed his lips across it before walking away and calling over shoulder, "Can't wait." With that, he disappeared into the night leaving Marissa with even more to ponder.

The only sound assaulting her ears was the gentle lull of the ocean as it performed its never ceasing dance with the shore, a sound she normally found peaceful and relaxing, but tonight only eerily haunting and emotionally offensive. Perhaps it was because her mindset was contrasting so sharply with the sea's, while it was at rest and content, she was on edge, baffled, and depressed, or perhaps it was because she felt an unwavering, intense pull to go to the ocean, but as to why she should feel like that, she had no idea.

Annoyed, she kicked the sheets off of her body and switched positions yet again as she tried to make herself so comfortable physically that her body would mentally and emotionally concede to going asleep as well. It did not work. She tried daydreaming about something sweet and beautiful, something forbidden in the daylight but cherished at night in her fantasies, laying in Ryan's strong arms as they whispered together after making love. She tried counting sheep. She tried naming all the Supreme Court justices. She tried listening to music. She tried getting up and getting something to drink. She even resorted to crying, but nothing, absolutely nothing worked. Finally, as she was about to give up, her cell phone rang.

"What the hell," she said out loud to herself as she rolled over to rummage for it on her bedside table, glancing at the clock momentarily as it read 3:16 in the morning. Still grasping for the phone and trying to find it before it went to voicemail, the significance of those numbers seized her mind. "That's Ryan's birthday," she whispered to the still room as she flipped open her mobile.

"Hello," she said in a surprisingly chipper tone for such a late or early hour depending upon how you looked at it.

"I need you," the emotionally wrenched voice pleaded. At the sound of his voice, she shot up in bed as if she was on fire, perhaps she was…in her heart.

"Where are you at," she asked breathlessly.

"The beach….where we were that night."

"Stay put, I'll be right there."

And with that one call, she knew why hadn't been able to sleep. Ryan needed her.