"We have to find a decent concert to go to this summer," Peyton said.
"Decent by your standards or ours? 'Cause if you're going to go see some whiny rocker, you can take Seth and the rest of us will go do something normal," Brooke said.
"And why is bitch being a Brooke," Taylor said.
"I am not."
"Are too."
"Am not."
"Are too."
"And I thought Seth was immature." Peyton mumbled.
"Brooke, what's wrong?"
"Tomorrow's Sunday," Brooke said.
"Oh boy," Taylor rolled her eyes. "It's twenty-four hours. I leave at midnight and I come home at midnight. It's no big deal."
"No big deal?" Brooke huffed out her breath and crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't believe you."
"It's one day that I don't spend with you a week. The other six days I will be with you, okay? You can drag me shopping and to the beach and I will listen to you whine about your sunburn without complaint. One day a week I spend totally with my boyfriend."
"Boyfriend. Feh. Who needs 'em? I don't like him."
"You said you did. You said you were happy for me."
"Oh, I am. I am, I just want to spend more time with my favorite cousin."
"Aw Honey, I'm sorry. But it's just one day a week."
"I know," Brooke said. "But I'll miss you."
"You'll have plenty of fun with Peyton and Summer and Seth. You guys can torment Seth by making him hold your shopping bags."
"That sounds fun. Payback for all that whiny music he makes us listen to."
"That's not whiny, that's good stuff."
"If you say so, Peyton."
Taylor looked at the clock when there was a knock on the door, "Come in Ryan."
Ryan poked his head in, "Hey."
"It's only," Brooke looked at the clock and frowned, "twelve oh-one."
"Came over to see if Taylor wanted to sleep in the pool house with me tonight."
"What did Sandy and Kirsten say?"
He reddened a little. "I got the safe sex or no sex lecture."
"God, Sandy and Kirsten are good parents," Peyton said. "Dad has never given me that lecture."
"Larry probably still thinks you're a virgin," Taylor said as she put together a bag of clothes. "If he only knew what you and Nathan did together."
"See you tomorrow, Taylor."
"Bye."
Ryan and Taylor shut the door behind them as they left. Ryan took Taylor's bag and put an arm around her.
"So, safe sex or no sex," Taylor asked.
"Don't remind me."
"Bad?"
"Sandy's a lawyer. He could've gone on for hours. And Kirsten kept giving me dark looks."
"Poor baby." Taylor giggled.
"They just want to make sure I don't ruin you."
"Interesting thought," Taylor smiled.
"Very funny."
"So, how was dinner the other night? Sorry I had to leave early."
"I wish I could've left early. I said something snide to Marissa and Cal laid into me and then Kirsten laid into him."
"That's Kirsten for you. No one picks on her family, not even her family."
"I must be getting used to you."
"What makes you say that?"
"I understood what you said."
Taylor smiled at him as they paused by the in the hall by the front door. She looked over Ryan's shoulder and then back at him, "Are there any lights on behind me?"
Ryan looked and shook his head, "No. Everything's dark."
"Good," Taylor said pulling Ryan to her by the front of his shirt, sliding her arms around his neck and kissing him.
He kissed her back, pulling her so close there was no space left between their bodies.
When she pulled back she smiled and rested her forehead against his, "So, safe sex tonight?"
"Well, if you insist...."
"Ryan, I'm serious."
Ryan pulled back and studied her face, "You are serious."
She nodded and held up her hands, "See? No fluttering."
"Can you wait a week?"
"Why?"
"Because, I don't want to just take you back to the pool house and go at it. I want it to be something you remember."
"Why wouldn't I remember tonight?"
"I don't have any candles or anything to make it special."
"Why do we need candles to make it special?" He muttered something under his breath, turning red. "What?"
"I don't have any condoms."
"That's a problem," Taylor nodded. "Okay, we wait."
"Thank you," Ryan slid an arm around her waist as they left the Roberts'.
-x-x-x-x-x-
"Really," Brooke raised an eyebrow at Taylor. "Why didn't you say anything yesterday?"
"Because of the twenty-four hour rule," Taylor smiled.
"Not fair," Brooke pouted.
"Hey, it's the rule."
"Still not fair. Anyway, when?"
"I think this Sunday."
"Nervous?"
"A little," Taylor admitted. "He's got a lot of experience and I don't have any."
"Yeah, but I'm willing to bet all of the experience he has means nothing because this time he's in love."
"He could have been in love before. You've never seen his old girlfriend."
"But we both know he's in love with you right now and you're in love with him."
Taylor nodded, "I really am. It feels so amazing Brooke."
Brooke smiled, "Good. You deserve it."
"Yeah, well so do you."
"I'm not really interested in finding it."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want to turn into my parents."
"Oh Brookie, you are nothing like Victoria."
"Well, I don't have the greatest example of marriage to follow after so it might happen whether I want it to or not."
"I guess I got lucky there. I always had Sandy and Kirsten as a model for how parents and a marriage should be when my mother's attempts fell short."
Brooke smiled a little and then frowned as something crossed her mind, "Does Ryan know?"
"No," Taylor shook her head.
"Taylor!"
"I know, I know," Taylor groaned. "I keep trying to tell him but I can't get the words to come out and more than that, I don't want him to think I'm defective."
"You are not defective."
"Yeah well try telling most of the student body at Harbor that."
Brooke gave Taylor a hug, "I kinda love you, you know that?"
"I know. I love you, too."
"And Ryan loves you and he would not think you're defective. I think he'd be a little more careful-"
"That's something I don't want either. I just want to be normal with him."
Brooke blew out a sigh and nodded, "Okay. I won't say another word until you want to tell him."
"Thanks B."
"C'mon," Brooke stood up. "Let's go find Peyton and Summer and hit the mall. You need some lingerie."
"I do?"
"Oh totally. You need something that'll knock Atwood's socks off."
Taylor giggled as she let Brooke pull her off the bed and towards the door.
-x-x-x-x-x-
"Hey man," Seth came into the pool house to see Ryan reading. "What's up?"
"Not much," the blonde put his book aside. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be with Summer."
"Brooke absconded with her, Peyton, and Taylor for the afternoon," Seth said as he made himself comfortable. "She took them to the mall. Something about finding the right thing for Taylor to wear. You two have some kind of hot date coming up?"
"Something like that," Ryan avoided eye contact.
"Well, it's good to know you're making good use of the time you two have together this summer. Time that you owe to me," Seth smiled.
"You want something."
"I need a distraction because I'm not getting any time alone with my girlfriend."
Ryan laughed.
"It's not funny. I might as well go sailing for the rest of the summer or something because until Brooke and Peyton go back to Tree Hill, I am not going to be getting any alone time with Summer."
"Sorry man," Ryan said.
"I'm sure you are," Seth frowned.
"C'mon, let's go play GTA."
"Seriously?"
"I'm feeling magnanimous," Ryan gave him a smile as they walked towards the house.
