You and I: Becoming Us Again Chapter 21: I Fall The Hardest When I'm With You, an o.c. fanfic

Is it too late for Ryan to save Marissa from falling apart? Or is he just in time to catch her?

Song credit: "Make This Go On Forever" by Snow Patrol

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Ryan drove up to Summer's house and picked Isabella, who was half asleep, up out of the passenger seat. He dropped her off and raced toward the airport. When he got there, he searched around frantically, looking for Marissa. She wasn't at the gate, so he took that as a sign that she hadn't left yet. Just then, he saw her going up the escalator. He barreled through a large group of people and ran to catch her. She was stepping off the escalator when he called her.

"Marissa!"

She turned around and started to go down the down escalator.

"What the fuck do you want?"

A few people turned and glared at her as the two of them continued to move up and down, trying to stay at a place on the escalators where they could both communicate.

"Summer called me and told me you were in trouble."

"I don't need you to save me again, Ryan."

"See, that? That's bullshit!"

"What are you talking about?"

More people scoffed and walked past Ryan and Marissa on the escalators. They didn't have time to stand and watch these two people argue.

"If you didn't need me to save you, I wouldn't be here! You called Summer and you knew she couldn't handle this! You knew I'd be here!"

"I don't want you here!"

"Stop fucking lying to me, Marissa!"

Everyone turned and stared, including Marissa. Ryan sounded so angry, like he had finally snapped. He had had enough of the way she treated him, and it was going to end tonight.

"You can play your games with other people, but they don't work with me anymore! You use me so much and you don't even realize it! I can handle the fact that I had a bad childhood. I can handle the fact that I never had a real family until I was 16. But what I can't handle is that you're the one who's always had everything, yet always needs to be saved! When is it my turn, huh? When are you ever going to save me?"

Ryan was fired up. He couldn't remember the last time he had ever talked so much, so passionately. Then, a single memory popped into his head of the last time he had talked like this. He had just been a scared 16 year old kid, sitting at the top of the Ferris wheel.

He and Marissa locked eyes, and he saw hers sparkling with tears of regret. She spoke, as they stood at the same point on opposite escalators.

"What can I do?"

His eyes turned hard and cold.

"Go wherever you're running away to…but don't come back."

Ryan let himself drift up the escalator, turning his back on the girl he once loved more than anything. He walked away, not bothering to look back. Marissa ran down her escalator and shot up the other one. She had to let him know how she felt, before it was too late. She sprinted toward him and he suddenly felt her small hand forcefully tug on his wrist.

He only had a few moments to study the fire in her eyes before her lips crashed into his. She pulled on his arm and pressed her body against him. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she moaned satisfactorily. They moved together, so that their tongues could explore each other's mouths and only broke apart when the need to breathe overcame their desire. Ryan smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. Marissa whispered a few words as she leaned forward, allowing their foreheads to touch.

"I think I'm finally ready to fall again."

"I'll always be here to catch you."

"Good, because I always fall the hardest when I'm with you."

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Seth and Summer stood in the middle of the dance floor, finishing their first dance as husband and wife. They smiled and shared a small kiss. Then, Seth took the microphone and pointed toward the doors leading to the hallway outside the reception hall.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we know that tonight is about us and our families, but most importantly, it's about love. So now, we'd like to introduce our best man and maid of honor to share a dance together. Without further adieu, please welcome Miss Marissa Cooper and Mr. Ryan Atwood."

Please don't let this turn into something it's not
I can only give you everything I've got
I can't be as sorry as you think I should
But I still love you more than anyone else could

The doors opened and Ryan and Marissa walked into the hall together hand-in-hand, as a slow melody started to play. Ryan looked charming in a sleek black tuxedo and Marissa's beauty shone brightly as she wore a light pink dress that flowed down to her ankles and tied around the back. They turned toward each other and smiled lightly, Marissa curtsying to her date. He moved his arm and placed it around her waist, still keeping their other hands held together. They moved closer together and he whispered.

All that I keep thinking throughout this whole flight
Is it could take my whole damn life to make this right
This splintered mast I'm holding on won't save me long
Because I know fine well that what I did was wrong

The last girl and the last reason to make this last for as long as I could
First kiss and the first time that I felt connected to anything
The weight of water, the way you told me to look past everything I had ever learned
The final word in the final sentence you ever uttered to me was love

"Are you scared?"

"Of what?"

"This. It isn't going to be easy, you know."

"Has it ever been?"

They smiled as she rested her head on his shoulder. They moved slowly, in time with the music, knowing that everyone they loved was watching them, judging them.

We have got through so much worse than this before
What's so different this time that you can't ignore
You say it is much more than just my last mistake
And we should spend some time apart for both our sakes

Kirsten and Sandy Cohen smiled at their son. He had been a wreck without her. As much as their relationship had left scars on his heart, they knew that Marissa would be the only one who could ever heal him.

Jimmy and Julie Cooper looked proudly on their daughter. She had a few rough patches in life, even one that had lasted ten years. But she was back in Ryan's arms where they both had to admit that she belonged.

Summer was standing with her back against Seth, and she was positively glowing. Seth's arms were wrapped around her and he kissed the top of her head. Both of them were smiling for their love and the love that their friends shared. The love that finally brought them back together.

And I don't know where to look
My words just break and melt
Please just save me from this darkness

Ryan spun Marissa out, and then safely back into his arms. He smiled, feeling her head resting against his chest. This was definitely what felt right. After everything they had known, together and apart, nothing felt safer than being in each other's arms.

And I don't know where to look
My words just break and melt
Please just save me from this darkness