I still own nothing.

Thanks for the reviews. I apologize for the delay.

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Marissa slid into the booth, placed her bag on the table, sat back and folded her arms. "What's up?" she asked. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and although her eyes were hidden behind the dark sunglasses, he could bet her face was completely devoid of make-up because she wasn't even wearing her usual coat of lip gloss. Her nose looked slightly pink and puffy and Seth wondered what kind of week she'd had.

"Seth, I know you didn't ask me here to just stare at me. What's going on?" It was around 11am on a Saturday morning so he knew that he was cutting into her sleep time. She was wearing a sweat suit and if he didn't know better, he would have guessed that she'd spent the better part of an hour on a jogging trail.

"This and that," he said not quite sure he still had the guts to speak those words that needed to be said. She looked so fragile and not quite put together that he decided he'd save the news for a time she could take it. Even the favor he needed from her would have to wait. Right then, he just wanted to be a friend and be there for her.

She noticed him watching her so she turned her face away. She wasn't stupid. She knew why he'd called and just wished he'd get it over and done with. It's not like she didn't know that the day would come. But could it have come at a worse time? She reached across the table and picked up his glass of orange juice. "I hope you don't mind," she said, not letting him respond before she took a gulp. It had pulp, just like he liked it and she played around with the tiny pieces before she swallowed them.

"Marissa, is everything okay?"

She was never really one to open up but right then, he could tell there was something bubbling underneath the surface that she wanted, no, needed, to get out. He wanted her to know that no matter what, she could always rely on him, but he didn't know how to say it, not when he knew what he'd have to tell her afterwards. Instead, he reached across the table and slipped a reassuring hand over hers.

She pushed it away then placed her hand on her lap. She wasn't in the mood for any stupid intimate gestures that were supposed to make her feel better. Where had he been when she needed him?

"I called you yesterday," she accused.

Guilt ridden, he averted his eyes. "I'm sorry, I couldn't get to the phone."

"I left you a message." She wasn't going to let him off so easy. Who did he think he was and why did he think he could just dismiss her so easily? After all they'd been through together?

"I know. I returned your call. That's why I wanted us to meet."

"Yeah? I also called you on Thursday. How come you waited till today?"

"I've been really busy."

"I bet you have." Marissa noticed that he'd begun to play with his hands -he was obviously uncomfortable but she wasn't ready to let him off the hook - the little weasel didn't deserve it. "I guess you've finally figured out that I'm a fool. Huh?"

"Whoa! Where did that come from?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Don't be silly," he continued. "Of course you aren't – why would you even say something like that?"

"Because I shouldn't have come. You don't answer my calls but when you call me, I come running. Just like a fool. It's so stupid."

She was even more depressed that he'd ever imagined, so, he got off his seat, sat next to her then put his arm around her. How odd was it that when she finally needed him, he didn't have much to offer? But he was going to give her the most he could. He sighed. "O.K Marissa, what's going on? Is it something at home?"

"Like you care," she sulked. Her voice had begun to shake and Seth knew that if she wasn't wearing those shades, he have been able to see the tears brimming in her eyes.

"Would you like to order?" the waitress interrupted. Marissa picked up the menu, skimmed it, but before she could say anything, the waitress volunteered, "Black coffee and a blueberry muffin?"

Marissa smiled and nodded. It was a little amusing – she'd never figured herself for so predictable. But there she was, such a freaking enigma that even the waitress she could see right through her.

A few minutes later, as she stirred in two packets of Sweet and Low into her cup, she murmured, "8 pounds and 4 ounces."

Seth nodded. "Yeah, my parents told me. Christina – that's a nice name." Was that what had gotten her so upset? He'd expected that she'd already come to terms with it, but he could see that the birth of the child had caused some additional pain.

"Yeah."

"At least, he didn't call her Clarissa."

"Sorry?"

She looked up at him, seeming a million miles away and Seth realized the inappropriateness of his comment. "I apologize, lame joke."

"Whatever, Seth. So Ryan's a Dad."

"Is he?"

Marissa raised a questioning eyebrow.

"No, I mean really? Is he her dad? It looks like he's conveniently forgotten that it could be Eddie's."

Not saying a word, she smirked as she sipped her steaming coffee.

"What?" Seth asked curiously.

"Nothing."

"Come on, spit it out. What?"

She smacked her lips then reached into her bag for her tube of Chapstick and smeared it liberally on them. When she saw that Seth was still waiting for a response, she said, "Am I allowed to say anything? After all, it's all my fault."

"What shit are you spewing now?" He sighed. It looked like Marissa had really begun to lose it.

"Puh-lease, it's my fault – you said it last year," she replied matter-of-factly. "What did you say again? Something about if not for all my bullshit, Ryan would never have slept with Theresa. If he hadn't slept with her, he'd never have been a candidate to play Daddy. Duh."

"Marissa, you know I didn't mean it. I was just very angry when I said that."

"So what? That doesn't mean what you said wasn't true. Besides, we are most honest when we are mad."

"Marissa…."

"No… it's okay. Let's talk about something else." She cleared her throat. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

It would have been the perfect time to say it if he'd been a little bit more heartless. "I just wanted to talk to you. It's been a while. I missed hearing your voice."

"We spoke on Monday. Besides, you're lying, Seth." She knew him well enough to tell. It wasn't really a particular telltale sign like a twitching eye or a quivering lip; it was just the fake demeanor he adopted. Plus it wasn't like she wasn't already privy to the information he'd apparently decided against disclosing to her.

"I'm not."

"Whatever. So… how are your parents doing? Have they seen the baby yet?"

"They are going to see her this evening. I was supposed to go but I don't think I can," he replied solemnly.

She understood. "I feel your pain. I think seeing her perfect little fingers and toes will make it more real or something."

"Yeah. But the weirdest thing is my parents are pretty excited. Excited about a teenage boy having a kid." He shrugged. "I know, it makes no sense, but when last did they ever do anything that seemed normal?"

She laughed. "Your parents are cool. Do you know what my parents are doing?"

"What?"

"Fucking. Each other"

"Sorry?"

"You heard me." She was inspecting her muffin again, trying to pretend that her revelation had meant nothing.

"How do you know?"

"I don't want to get into any details but I saw them. It's just plain bizarro. My mom's a slut, so we know there's nothing she won't do. But my Dad, my dumb, fucking dad, oh God, how could he be so stupid? She's married for chrissakes! And she's Julie -the woman who stabbed him in the back. It's not like they had some great sweeping romance or anything. She got her ass pregnant to trap him. But look what she's doing now." She made a face. "Can you believe it? Ugh. It's just plain retarded."

He shook his head slowly. "I'm sorry, I wish I knew what to say."

"Whatever." She looked him up and down and as if only just noticing, said, "Why are you still sitting here? The waitress is already bringing your eggs. Get back to your seat."

As Seth sat down, he looked at her and saw that the veil was being put back on -they were getting back to business as usual.

"So Summer called you," she stated just after he put a forkful of food in his mouth.

"I --" was all he could manage. His eggs tasted funny.

"I… I, what? I know that's why you didn't return my calls."

"No…" he started to deny it then thought better of it. "How do you know?"

"She's my best friend, remember? She tells me everything." She pinched off a piece of her muffin and placing it on her tongue.

"Oh," he whispered. He felt himself getting warmer. "Did you tell her about us?" he asked. His voice had already gone up a pitch or two.

"Of course."

Shit. That was the one thing he wanted to prevent. If he and Summer had any chance, any chance at all, there was no way she could find out about them. Sleeping with your girlfriend's best friend wasn't the easiest way to win back her heart. He suddenly felt very depressed. Once again, Seth Cohen had fucked up. "I see."

"There's nothing much to see."

"What do you mean?"

He looked like he'd just had the wind kicked out of him that she couldn't stop herself from putting him out of his misery. She was surprised that she even cared enough about him to no want to see him hurt. "She knows we hang out. That's about it."

He perked up a little - maybe there was a little hope after all. "You didn't tell her about us?"

"What's there to tell? We're just friends, right?"

"Right. But…"

"But, nothing. Besides what would be the point in telling her anything else? How will that help anything? You'll always be in love with her. Right?"

"Right." He tried to look at her but he couldn't. He was scared of what he'd see in those eyes. He hadn't realized that he'd been that transparent, that she'd known it all along.

"So you're meeting her tonight?" She asked cheerfully. Seth knew that was supposed to signal to him that she was okay with everything but he wasn't sure that he could believe her. She had insisted that their relationship was merely physical but that hadn't stopped him from connecting with her on an emotional level. And he wished he could be reassured that he hadn't hurt her.

"Yeah, she wants to go to the new French restaurant on 2nd street," he mumbled, looking for a reaction.

"Cool," she said approvingly. " Sounds like fun."