I do not own The O.C.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Shouldbeblonde, how was it confusing? You've got to tell me these things so that I can improve. I apologize for the anvils and typos. Everything is always fine when I upload my stories, but I always add a few wonderful typos at the last minute when I feel I must edit just one more time...

A/N2: I am aware that this site is scheduled to die and go to read-only mode shortly after I post this but this seems to happen every single time I update this story so I figure there's no point in breaking with tradition.

A/N3(damn, I'm talkative today): This story has been in my head for far too long so there'll be much quicker updates so that I can finish it ASAP.

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Ryan POV

"Where have you been all day?" Summer called, shortly after I stepped into the kitchen. I poured myself a glass of water then backtracked and walked into the living room.

"Why?" I asked, pouring the cold liquid down my throat.

She shrugged. "No reason, I was just wondering."

I looked away from her and placed my glass on the coffee table. I'd spent that afternoon at brunch with a record executive who'd been trying his hardest to recruit me. My plate was pretty full so I didn't think it was the right time for me to jump ship, besides, I was happy where I was. I only hoped that the fact I mentioned Carly's name every other sentence wasn't too subtle for him to realize who he should be hiring instead.

"So when's your flight?" Seth asked me.

I looked at my watch. "In a little over five hours," I said, yawning. There had been a very good turn out at the party so I spent the entire evening trying to thank each and everyone who'd taken time out of their busy lives to spend time with me. And when the party was over and I was just about to slip into deep sleep, my alarm went off reminding me that I had a brunch date to attend. I figured that I could get in an hour of sleep before I headed to the airport and then could catch up on the rest on the plane.

I was picking my glass off the table when I noticed Summer nudging Seth. He was trying to ignore it but she just kept jabbing into his side so fiercely that I was sure he was going to have a nasty bruise in the morning.

"Is everything okay?" I asked them.

Summer pursed her lips and hit him with her elbow again.

Seth nodded. "Yes, everything is fine... Summer, stop it!"

"No, I won't! I can't believe you're not going to tell him!" she retorted.

"Tell me what?" They were both acting a little nuts.

She sat back in the couch, folded her arms and huffed. "Do you know that Anna came?"

"To?"

"To your party! What else would I be talking about?"

"What?" Huh?

"Anna was at the party. We all saw her. I was wondering if you did too," she said offhandedly.

"She was there? How come I didn't see her? Did you speak to her?"

Summer nodded.

"I see. Well, she didn't tell me she was coming." And she obviously didn't want to see me. How she could attend my party and say hello to everyone but me was beyond me. What was her problem? Why did she make such a big deal about not showing up, change her mind and not even tell me about it? I wished I didn't care about how inconsiderate she was being, that I wouldn't be upset because it was something I'd come to expect of her, but I did and it hurt. It really was something to be in love with someone you weren't sure deserved it.

"Maybe she was trying to surprise you," Summer suggested.

I raised my brow. She had to be kidding me. "But how would I have been surprised if I didn't even know she was around?"

"You're surprised now, aren't you? Anyway, I think she was hoping to speak with you till she saw you all over that girl."

"Which girl?" I looked over at Seth who, apparently, had decided that he wanted no part in the conversation and was concentrating on the National Geographic show so hard that I could almost swear he was going to get tested on it.

"The one you work with – Carly. She was at the party, wasn't she?"

"She was, so what?"

"Your hands were all over her. Don't even try to deny it – I saw you."

What the hell? "Summer, I don't know what you are talking about but there's nothing going on with me and Carly. What's wrong with you people?" I'd had enough. I was too tired to get into any silly conversations about things that made no sense. With my glass in hand, I got off the couch.

"Ryan, wait! Seth has something to tell you."

"What now?" I asked, looking down at him.

He shrugged. "I don't know what she's talking about."

Summer looked furious. "Seth, tell him what you told me this morning! Don't piss me off, just tell him what you told me."

"About what?" I wondered why they chose to play their little game at a time I really needed to get some sleep.

"About Anna."

Lord, not that again. "It's okay, Seth. Anna and I have broken up so I'm sure it's not that important. And if it is, it can wait."

"No, it can't!"

Summer's tone caused me to pay attention. Now, I really wanted to know what he was trying not to say.

Grudgingly, he said, "Before I say anything, can I ask you a question? We don't really know what the fight you obviously had was about, but Summer has a very stupid theory that it has something to do with the three of us."

How sad was it that 'the three of us' needed no further explanations? "No, it's nothing about the 'three of us,' it was just us – Anna and I. And there's no more 'us' anyway. It's over and I really don't want to have a post-mortem. I've got to take a nap. Could you guys wake me if I'm not up in about an hour?"

Summer's little hand quickly grabbed my arm. "No, Ryan, it won't take a minute, just listen," she begged.

"Listen to what? He said it's nothing to do with this," Seth argued, frowning at her.

"Seth, stop being a jackass and just tell him!"

I sat on the couch's arm and watched him.

Seth looked very uncomfortable when he said, "As I said, I'm sure this isn't important but Anna called me about a month ago."

"And?"

"And, she apologized again but I pretty much told her to fuck off." He turned to Summer. "There. Are you happy now?"

I swallowed hard. "When was this? Before or after you called me?"

"Before. Didn't she tell you?" Seth asked.

Eyes shut, I slowly shook my bent head. "No, she didn't." What was wrong with her? Why didn't she tell me? God, I was so sick of all the fucking secrets. Did she ever tell me anything? Why didn't she think she could share details of her life with me? What the fuck was her deal? I looked up at him. "Did you call her after we talked to tell her that everything's cool?"

"Who says everything is cool?"

"Seth –" What was he telling me? I thought we were dealing with it.

"I don't know -it's different. I've lived with you for ten years - it's just different with us. And I didn't call her because I don't really have anything to say to her. If she wanted to read anything more into 'fuck off,' that's her problem."

Summer eyed him. "Seth, have I ever told you that you're an ass?"

He ignored her. "So that's about it."

Not calling her because he had no desire to be her friend didn't explain why he didn't tell me. So I asked.

"Dude, how many times have we spoken about Anna?" I couldn't think of one. "It just never came up. Besides, it's not my responsibility to tell you things about your girlfriend," he finished.

His last statement annoyed me but I decided to save any comments about it for a later date - there were more important things for me to think about. I still didn't think that Seth's lack of forgiveness was enough reason for Anna to refuse to attend the party. I mean, was it so stupid for me to believe that my love should trump Seth's hate? But in the end, she did attend the party. Why? I was confused and needed answers. As I walked out of the room, I heard Summer tell me that Anna was at her brother's place.

I went up to my room and tried to fall asleep but I just couldn't. I was still very mad at her. How dare she think that I would cheat on her with Carly? I was mad that she constantly put Seth's feelings ahead of mine. I was mad that she didn't tell me about Seth's call. I was mad that she was bent on keeping things from me. But I still loved her. If it was a switch I could turn off, I would have done so while she was still with Seth. But it had begun to look like she was it for me. It amazed me that with all the bullshit we'd gone through, the feelings that mattered most hadn't changed. Funny how a little thing like finally showing up at a party, even if she left without speaking to me, could paint things so differently.

Adrenaline chased the sleep away and I found myself driving to her brother's house. I pressed the doorbell and waited for someone to open the door. I'd planned that I wasn't leaving her house till she answered my questions. I was convinced that her flying down to California, even after I broke up with her, meant something. And if I'd have to return to New York a day late to find out what that was, then so be it.

The tall man with dark hair and Anna's nose I'd met at her graduation opened the door.

"Ryan! Hey, how's it going?"

"Hey, Dan." I stretched my hand out to shake his but he pulled me in and gave me a half-hug. "Is Anna home?" I asked.

He shook his head regrettably. "I'm sorry, she's left." He looked at me curiously. "Is everything okay with you two? I tried to talk to her but she just wouldn't say anything."

Typical. "What flight was she on?"

He looked at his watch. "2:15. She should be in the air by now."

"Cool," I said, nodding. I really should have skipped that brunch.

After exchanging a few pleasantries and making small-talk, he said, "You'll sort it out, right? I'm sure you guys will be fine," he declared with semi-confidence.

I sent him a weak smile -it really was up to her.