A/N: Takes place sometime after "The Best Chrismakkuh Ever," completely ignoring Seth ever choosing between Anna and Summer.

Disclaimers: I don't own The OC or any of the characters, nor do I own Growing Pains or The Shins.

Rating: PG

Family Bonding

By: Molly4

"Hey Mom, where are you off to?" Seth slid into a kitchen chair and grabbed an apple from the bowl. He nodded at Ryan, who was quietly reading the Sports page.

"Your father and I are going to a concert tonight," Kirsten replied absently, flipping through the mail.

"Yeah?" Seth replaced the apple, snatching a banana instead. "You're a little under-dressed for the Asian cellist lady..." Seth looked Kirsten up and down, "or to be my mother. Seriously, Mom. You might want to look into a thing called fabric."

Kirsten frowned, looking down at her outfit, a tight-fitting pair of jeans and a tighter black top.

"What's so bad about it?" she asked, tossing the mail onto the counter and placing her hands on her hips.

"Don't even get me started," Seth said through a mouthful of banana. Swallowing, he added, "so what're you seeing tonight? Opera? Greogorian chants? Spice Girls reunion tour?"

"So, ready for The Shins?" Sandy bounded into the kitchen, a wild grin on his face.

Seth choked and spit out the piece of a banana he'd been chewing. Ryan pounded his back as he coughed over the table.

"Are you all right, sweetie?" Kirsten rushed to his side with a glass of water.

Holding up a hand, Seth looked up, his eyes wide. He pushed away the water glass. "I'm fine," he choked, his eyes watery. He glanced rapidly between his mother and father. "You're going to see The Shins?" His hands waved through the air with vigor. "You know The Shins?"

Sandy's grin widened even more. "Seth Cohen Starter Pack," he told him, brushing some fuzz off of the sleeve of his Berkeley t-shirt. "Chrismakkuh was very good to us this year."

"I listen to it at work," Kirsten said, crossing the kitchen and entering Sandy's arms.

"And it helps soothe my road rage," Sandy added, eyebrows going up. He kissed Kirsten's temple.

"I'm sorry but this is creepy." Seth rubbed his forehead. "You guys cannot like The Shins." He glanced at Ryan. "Am I right?"

"Yeah, uh," Ryan cleared his throat. "He's kind of right."

"Oh, so we're not allowed to like your bands." Sandy smacked his forehead. "Guess I didn't get that memo." He snickered and reached into his back jeans pocket. "Anyway, we just happened to have bought these two extra tickets for tonight." He arched an enormous eyebrow and placed the tickets on the counter. "You guys up for it?"

Seth's mouth opened and closed several times. "Uh, it's a school night," he fumbled.

"Forget school," Sandy countered. "A day off never killed everyone."

Seth turned to Ryan. "Who the hell are they?" he asked. "Because, you know they look like the Sandy and Kirsten we all know and love, but who knows what's under those masks?"

"Let's get our coats," Kirsten suggested, her fingers tracing Sandy's collarbone. "I love that t-shirt," she whispered as they made their way to the coat closet.

"You're going to love it even more when it's lying on our bedroom floor," Sandy replied, his voice rumbling into her ears.

Kirsten's loud giggle could be heard clearly in the kitchen.

"I don't even want to know what that's about," Seth mumbled, throwing his hands into the air. He puffed out his cheeks and spun circles with his pointer fingers.

Ryan arched an eyebrow. "So..."

Seth let go of his breath. "Yeah..."

"We like The Shins," Ryan reminded Seth, peering at him through his thick bangs.

"We do like The Shins," Seth agreed, his fingers tapping his lips gently. "But we couldn't go to a concert with my parents. What if they like-" he leaned in closer to Ryan and whispered, "stand up or yell or something?"

Ryan contemplated this. "Good point."

"I mean, this could totally ruin our reputations at school."

Ryan stared.

"Right, what reputations?" Seth furrowed his brow. "This is totally Bizarro World right here." He tapped his fingers on the table.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Ryan asked, standing up and walking to the counter. He picked up the tickets and bit his lip.

"Um, my dad could attack me with affection in front of a live news camera?"

Ryan stared again, puzzled.

"Growing Pains. Jason and Mike went to a Springsteen concert and Jason totally slobbered all over Mike in front of Action Team 8 or whatever. Mue embarrassment." Seth caught Ryan's rolled eyes. "It could happen. Sandy Cohen is an affectionate man."

"Fifth row," Ryan offered, fanning out the tickets and holding them up for Seth to see.

"Singing along with the songs, screaming the wrong lyrics, worse, screaming the right ones. Being all teenager-like and flirting. Looking like a kid who's at a concert with my parents." Seth leaned his forehead against the table. "Why do my parents have to be...almost kind of cool? Oh, the humanity!"

Ryan tapped the tickets against the counter. My family's idea of family bonding was theft," he mused aloud.

"Plus, there's the no school thing, which is great, because I have this Physics test that I can't bring myself to study for." Seth, fully upright, stroked his chin. "But still...parents..."

"I think our reputations might just come out intact." Ryan gave him just the tiniest of smiles. "Plus, no one really has to know."

"Ah, wise. However, Mike Seaver thought the same thing."

"We can duck any news crews," Ryan suggested, a full-fledged grin catching his lips.

"So this is just between the four of us? Summer, Anna, they never hear a word of this? Anyone asks, we went alone and picked up a few frisky biker chicks?" Seth's eyes sparkled, as the wheels of his mind began spinning.

"Hey, if you don't tell Marissa, I won't tell Summer or Anna." Ryan raised his eyebrows. "So..."

"So, we're doing this." Seth paused. "We're going to a concert with my mom and dad." He shuddered. "Gives me the creeps just thinking about it."

"You boys coming?" Kirsten asked, peeking her head into the kitchen. "Rover leaves in two minutes."

"Ryan?"

"We're going," Ryan said, offering a ticket to Seth.

"Let's go, honey. I don't wanna miss the opening act," Sandy whined from the doorway.

"One second. The boys need to get ready." Kirsten grinned.

Ryan looked down at his open blue buttoned down shirt, wife beater, and jeans. He shrugged. "I'm good," he said.

Seth took a tentative sniff at his green Hair Lab t-shirt, and flashed a thumbs-up at his mother. "Passes the smell check. Let's roll." He shook his head. "God, this is creepy."

Sandy threw his arm around Seth's shoulders. "It's not creepy. I'm told I look like I could be your brother."

"Somehow that's not comforting," Seth replied. "Not a word to anyone." He glanced at Kirsten. "Right?"

"Are we cramping your style, Seth?" Kirsten asked, bemused.

"Are we not rad enough for your guys?" Sandy turned his attention on Ryan, poking him in the stomach as they exited the house.

"Oh, you're rad enough for me." Ryan threw his head back and laughed. "It's Seth that you should be worried about." He suddenly became aware of the fact that all three Cohens were smiling at him. Smiling in a vaguely unsettling manner. "What?"

"Oh, nothing. We just never knew you were capable of laughter of the toss your head back, carefree, forget all your inhibitions manner." Seth smacked his shoulder. "We may make a Cohen out of you yet."

Ryan smiled shyly, getting wrapped up in the excitement as the family headed for the Range Rover.

"Dibs on shotgun," Seth hollered, breaking into a sprint for the passenger door. "I control the tunes on this trip."

"I left Death Cab for Cutie in the player," Kirsten told him, resigning herself to the backseat.

"Wow...never going to get used to this whole liking my music bit." Seth rubbed at his face. "Craziness."

"Well, get used to it," Sandy grunted as he hopped into the driver's seat. "I have four tickets to see Ben Folds next month."

"Ben Folds was not in the Seth Cohen Starter Pack."

"Poster in your room tipped me off. I did a little investigating."

"Remind me to lock the door."

"They really have the beat."

"Why can't you just like Perry Como or something?"

Kirsten smiled at Ryan and squeezed his shoulder lightly.

"They'll be like this all night," she said.

"Yeah," Ryan agreed, listening to Sandy and Seth banter.

He threw his head back and laughed.

fin