A/N: I've been reading all your reviews and some of you are right on the
money, and some have been fooled! This chapter will be a good one, and read
it carefully, as not to be fooled! LOL. Just read.thanks.
Chapter 8: Seeing Her
"She's beautiful, Summer." Marissa chimed, hardly able to keep her eyes off of Charlotte, who had resumed playing with her dolls on the couch after stuffing her face with pasta.
"I know." Summer squealed.
"She looks so much like you." Marissa said, finally focusing her gaze on Summer, who was sitting at the opposite end of the kitchen counter, polishing off the last of her pasta. "Sum. . ." Marissa's voice trailed off.
"Coop?" Summer looked up, wiping her face gently with a napkin.
"It's been two years." Marissa said, more to herself, and Summer's eyes became hazy and lucid from the thought.
"I'm so sorry, Coop." Summer said, standing up and placing their plates in the sink.
"I'm not the one you need to say sorry to." Marissa smiled, getting up to help dry off the plates.
"Coop," Summer whined, handing her a plate to dry off.
Marissa took it, drying it with the towel she had spotted on the counter, "We don't have to talk about it."
"Good." Summer smiled, returning to the dishes.
"You've grown up so much, Summer. It's scary!" Marissa laughed, putting the dry plates on the counter.
"I know. It took awhile to learn how to take care of myself." Summer laughed, shyly, almost embarrassed of how spoiled she had been. "I mean, not only with diapers and stuff, but do you know how many sweaters I shrunk before I realized there were handling directions on the shirt tags?"
Marissa let out a relieved laugh, happy to see her friend joking. They finished the dishes and sat back down at the counter.
"What are you doing to make money?" Marissa asked, supportively.
Summer rolled her eyes and grunted, "I have Ryan's old job."
Marissa and Summer both laughed, savoring the moment.
"I can't believe you have a job." Marissa laughed. "Seth would be so shocked if he --," She stopped herself, internally scowling at mentioning his name.
Summer pretended as if she didn't hear, "I can't believe you are still with Ryan!"
"Yeah." Marissa frowned, surprising herself as well as Summer. "He's been acting strange all day."
"Ryan acting strange, that's new to you?" Summer joked.
"I guess not!" Marissa laughed. "I don't think he trusts me."
"How can he not trust you?" Summer stated. "You are the most trustworthy person I know!"
Marissa felt the sting of Summer's words, recalling how she had spilt Summer's whereabouts to Ryan, knowing he would blab to Seth. She forced a smile and leaned her head against her arm.
"Mommy!" Charlotte squealed from the couch, causing Summer to lose all thoughts and jump to her.
"Charlie?" Summer asked.
"Is Mah-wissa friends with Cohen?" Charlotte asked, casting her dolls aside. Marissa and Summer stared at each other, dumbfounded, at how such a tiny girl could be so perceptive of the people around her. It definitely wasn't from her mother, thought Marissa.
"Yes, Charlotte, I am." Marissa said calmly, her eyes still on Summer, who patted her daughter's head and returned to Marissa in the kitchen.
"She's so smart." Summer said, sliding into her chair.
"How does she know that name?" Marissa asked, intrigued.
"Cohen?" Summer laughed and Marissa nodded in response, spreading a smile. "Well, I showed Charlie some old photo albums, including Prom pictures and he was there. She asked me who he was, and I said that's Seth Cohen. She couldn't say Seth, so she just called him Cohen. Plus, she's adorable and mimics everything I say. Today, she actually said "ew" to Seth!" Summer laughed, then frowned quickly, realizing she never told Marissa about her run in with Seth. The truth was, she didn't want to hear another soul reminding her that she should come clean with him. She knew she should, but she couldn't. It wasn't easier when other people accused of her hurting him.
Marissa just looked at Summer sadly, and Summer continued.
"He came into the Crab Shack. I hid, and made a coworker act as Charlie's mother. The weird thing is, he knew her." Summer said, as it dawned on her. How did Seth know Charlotte? It was almost as if Charlotte could read her mind when she started crying, forcing Summer and Marissa to jump and run to her.
Summer laughed slightly when she saw that one of Charlotte's dolls head had popped off and fixed it for her daughter, who smiled. Marissa just looked on, with slight pride, at how well adjusted Summer was for everything she had been through.
"Didn't you say that Kirsten watches Charlotte for you once in awhile?" Marissa asked, fitting the puzzle pieces together slowly, scratching her head.
Summer nodded and she was clearly doing the same as Marissa.
"Seth ran into Charlotte at Kirsten's." Summer said, Marissa nodding along.
"And, Ryan saw Charlotte and you, together, right?" Marissa smacked her lips. "I am such a moron."
"Why?" Summer asked, placing her hand on the presently distraught Marissa.
"I lied to Ryan. Well, sort of. I wouldn't tell him why you left, not exactly. I said it was family issues. But, I didn't know he had seen Charlotte already. He knew that I knew, and he was waiting for the truth. And I didn't tell the truth." Marissa clapped her hands, finally figuring out why Ryan was so angry with her.
"Boys." Summer said, rolling her eyes.
"For a second there," Marissa laughed. "You reminded me of the Summer Roberts I used to know."
"Let's hope that doesn't happen again." Summer smiled, bitterly, rolling her eyes once more.
Before Marissa could reply, someone knocked on the door.
"Who could that be?" Summer asked, laughing, leaving Marissa with Charlotte.
He had never been this nervous in his life. Ok, that was lie. The first few times he had been with Summer, he was just as Summer. Especially, the first time they had sex. God, what a nightmare. But it got better. This thought caused him to smile, which he wiped away just in time as the door opened. He wasn't expecting to see her, which is strange, since he was knocking on her door. She had been laughing, he saw the familiar tears of joy in the creases of her chocolate brown eyes, but when she laid them on his, she had stopped, her face slowly drooping down into a stare of disbelief. He cleared his throat, but was unable to say anything. He stared at her, she stared at him and to break the silence, Marissa came to the door, holding Charlotte in her arms and in unison, Charlotte and Marissa screamed, "Cohen!".
Except Marissa's 'Cohen' was more shocked, and Charlotte's was happy and she kicked herself free from Marissa's arms and ran to Seth, wrapping her arms around his leg. Her stared down at her, unable to react, and back at Marissa, who now had Summer's dumbfound expression plastered on her face.
"Come Cohen!" Charlotte pleaded, pulling down on his arm. A look of confusion poured over her face and Seth's, who now wondered why Charlotte was in Summer's apartment. "Mommy, invite Cohen in!" Charlotte screamed and Seth was sure his heart stopped beating.
"Charlotte," Marissa cooed, "Why don't we go for a walk?" Marissa held her hand out, pushing past Seth.
"Okay!" Charlotte squealed, her attention span was very short.
Marissa picked up Charlotte, looking back at Summer with a dazed expression and Summer sighed. Marissa wandered down the hallway with Charlotte in her arms, who babbled on about Barbie dolls, Marissa nodding, hoping Seth and Summer would be able to actually speak.
Seth watched Marissa turn the corner and then landed his eyes back on hers. He cleared his throat again, trying to speak, trying to remember what it was like to form words.
"I'm so sorry." Summer sighed, tears of joy flowing into tears of sadness. "I'm so sorry." She stared at him. She had been waiting for two years for this. She had pictured this in her mind, a thousand times. She prayed that he wasn't mad, that just like in her picture perfect world, he wouldn't be mad.
"So am I." Seth said, turning himself around quickly and back down the hallway, leaving Summer speechless and upset. He just couldn't do this right now. He knew that when he saw Summer, he wouldn't be mad anymore, that all his defenses would melt. But seeing her so different; Ryan was right, she had changed. She wore no make up and was wearing plain jeans and a plain shirt, her hair tied back, product free. But she was still breathtakingly beautiful when she had opened that door, and it killed Seth to know that after two years, after her ditching him, after this revelation that Summer had a child, that she could still make him weak in the knees. The only thing he could do was run away, weak kneed and all. He just wasn't ready to forgive Summer, but for a second there, he was seriously considering it.
Chapter 8: Seeing Her
"She's beautiful, Summer." Marissa chimed, hardly able to keep her eyes off of Charlotte, who had resumed playing with her dolls on the couch after stuffing her face with pasta.
"I know." Summer squealed.
"She looks so much like you." Marissa said, finally focusing her gaze on Summer, who was sitting at the opposite end of the kitchen counter, polishing off the last of her pasta. "Sum. . ." Marissa's voice trailed off.
"Coop?" Summer looked up, wiping her face gently with a napkin.
"It's been two years." Marissa said, more to herself, and Summer's eyes became hazy and lucid from the thought.
"I'm so sorry, Coop." Summer said, standing up and placing their plates in the sink.
"I'm not the one you need to say sorry to." Marissa smiled, getting up to help dry off the plates.
"Coop," Summer whined, handing her a plate to dry off.
Marissa took it, drying it with the towel she had spotted on the counter, "We don't have to talk about it."
"Good." Summer smiled, returning to the dishes.
"You've grown up so much, Summer. It's scary!" Marissa laughed, putting the dry plates on the counter.
"I know. It took awhile to learn how to take care of myself." Summer laughed, shyly, almost embarrassed of how spoiled she had been. "I mean, not only with diapers and stuff, but do you know how many sweaters I shrunk before I realized there were handling directions on the shirt tags?"
Marissa let out a relieved laugh, happy to see her friend joking. They finished the dishes and sat back down at the counter.
"What are you doing to make money?" Marissa asked, supportively.
Summer rolled her eyes and grunted, "I have Ryan's old job."
Marissa and Summer both laughed, savoring the moment.
"I can't believe you have a job." Marissa laughed. "Seth would be so shocked if he --," She stopped herself, internally scowling at mentioning his name.
Summer pretended as if she didn't hear, "I can't believe you are still with Ryan!"
"Yeah." Marissa frowned, surprising herself as well as Summer. "He's been acting strange all day."
"Ryan acting strange, that's new to you?" Summer joked.
"I guess not!" Marissa laughed. "I don't think he trusts me."
"How can he not trust you?" Summer stated. "You are the most trustworthy person I know!"
Marissa felt the sting of Summer's words, recalling how she had spilt Summer's whereabouts to Ryan, knowing he would blab to Seth. She forced a smile and leaned her head against her arm.
"Mommy!" Charlotte squealed from the couch, causing Summer to lose all thoughts and jump to her.
"Charlie?" Summer asked.
"Is Mah-wissa friends with Cohen?" Charlotte asked, casting her dolls aside. Marissa and Summer stared at each other, dumbfounded, at how such a tiny girl could be so perceptive of the people around her. It definitely wasn't from her mother, thought Marissa.
"Yes, Charlotte, I am." Marissa said calmly, her eyes still on Summer, who patted her daughter's head and returned to Marissa in the kitchen.
"She's so smart." Summer said, sliding into her chair.
"How does she know that name?" Marissa asked, intrigued.
"Cohen?" Summer laughed and Marissa nodded in response, spreading a smile. "Well, I showed Charlie some old photo albums, including Prom pictures and he was there. She asked me who he was, and I said that's Seth Cohen. She couldn't say Seth, so she just called him Cohen. Plus, she's adorable and mimics everything I say. Today, she actually said "ew" to Seth!" Summer laughed, then frowned quickly, realizing she never told Marissa about her run in with Seth. The truth was, she didn't want to hear another soul reminding her that she should come clean with him. She knew she should, but she couldn't. It wasn't easier when other people accused of her hurting him.
Marissa just looked at Summer sadly, and Summer continued.
"He came into the Crab Shack. I hid, and made a coworker act as Charlie's mother. The weird thing is, he knew her." Summer said, as it dawned on her. How did Seth know Charlotte? It was almost as if Charlotte could read her mind when she started crying, forcing Summer and Marissa to jump and run to her.
Summer laughed slightly when she saw that one of Charlotte's dolls head had popped off and fixed it for her daughter, who smiled. Marissa just looked on, with slight pride, at how well adjusted Summer was for everything she had been through.
"Didn't you say that Kirsten watches Charlotte for you once in awhile?" Marissa asked, fitting the puzzle pieces together slowly, scratching her head.
Summer nodded and she was clearly doing the same as Marissa.
"Seth ran into Charlotte at Kirsten's." Summer said, Marissa nodding along.
"And, Ryan saw Charlotte and you, together, right?" Marissa smacked her lips. "I am such a moron."
"Why?" Summer asked, placing her hand on the presently distraught Marissa.
"I lied to Ryan. Well, sort of. I wouldn't tell him why you left, not exactly. I said it was family issues. But, I didn't know he had seen Charlotte already. He knew that I knew, and he was waiting for the truth. And I didn't tell the truth." Marissa clapped her hands, finally figuring out why Ryan was so angry with her.
"Boys." Summer said, rolling her eyes.
"For a second there," Marissa laughed. "You reminded me of the Summer Roberts I used to know."
"Let's hope that doesn't happen again." Summer smiled, bitterly, rolling her eyes once more.
Before Marissa could reply, someone knocked on the door.
"Who could that be?" Summer asked, laughing, leaving Marissa with Charlotte.
He had never been this nervous in his life. Ok, that was lie. The first few times he had been with Summer, he was just as Summer. Especially, the first time they had sex. God, what a nightmare. But it got better. This thought caused him to smile, which he wiped away just in time as the door opened. He wasn't expecting to see her, which is strange, since he was knocking on her door. She had been laughing, he saw the familiar tears of joy in the creases of her chocolate brown eyes, but when she laid them on his, she had stopped, her face slowly drooping down into a stare of disbelief. He cleared his throat, but was unable to say anything. He stared at her, she stared at him and to break the silence, Marissa came to the door, holding Charlotte in her arms and in unison, Charlotte and Marissa screamed, "Cohen!".
Except Marissa's 'Cohen' was more shocked, and Charlotte's was happy and she kicked herself free from Marissa's arms and ran to Seth, wrapping her arms around his leg. Her stared down at her, unable to react, and back at Marissa, who now had Summer's dumbfound expression plastered on her face.
"Come Cohen!" Charlotte pleaded, pulling down on his arm. A look of confusion poured over her face and Seth's, who now wondered why Charlotte was in Summer's apartment. "Mommy, invite Cohen in!" Charlotte screamed and Seth was sure his heart stopped beating.
"Charlotte," Marissa cooed, "Why don't we go for a walk?" Marissa held her hand out, pushing past Seth.
"Okay!" Charlotte squealed, her attention span was very short.
Marissa picked up Charlotte, looking back at Summer with a dazed expression and Summer sighed. Marissa wandered down the hallway with Charlotte in her arms, who babbled on about Barbie dolls, Marissa nodding, hoping Seth and Summer would be able to actually speak.
Seth watched Marissa turn the corner and then landed his eyes back on hers. He cleared his throat again, trying to speak, trying to remember what it was like to form words.
"I'm so sorry." Summer sighed, tears of joy flowing into tears of sadness. "I'm so sorry." She stared at him. She had been waiting for two years for this. She had pictured this in her mind, a thousand times. She prayed that he wasn't mad, that just like in her picture perfect world, he wouldn't be mad.
"So am I." Seth said, turning himself around quickly and back down the hallway, leaving Summer speechless and upset. He just couldn't do this right now. He knew that when he saw Summer, he wouldn't be mad anymore, that all his defenses would melt. But seeing her so different; Ryan was right, she had changed. She wore no make up and was wearing plain jeans and a plain shirt, her hair tied back, product free. But she was still breathtakingly beautiful when she had opened that door, and it killed Seth to know that after two years, after her ditching him, after this revelation that Summer had a child, that she could still make him weak in the knees. The only thing he could do was run away, weak kneed and all. He just wasn't ready to forgive Summer, but for a second there, he was seriously considering it.