On Mondays, Marissa and Ryan shared the same lunch period. He ordered himself a hamburger and fries while she grabbed a tuna salad sandwich. They took their trays outside and found an empty table. This was the first time they'd seen or talked to each other since Saturday night. Marissa was curious about what had happened after she'd left with Summer.

"So, what did you do after Summer and I left the party?" she asked, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"I drove Seth home. He was pretty wasted."

"Can you believe they broke up? It still doesn't seem real."

"Yeah." Ryan pushed the small plate of fries to the far corner of his tray, a silent indication that she should help herself.

She grabbed one and munched thoughtfully. "So how is he doing? Does he remember everything that happened?"

"He had a helluva hangover the next morning but yeah, he remembers everything. He feels bad about what happened. With that Tanya girl, I mean."

"Well, good. He should feel bad," Marissa stated firmly. "That was pretty low."

"He was drunk."

"Like that's supposed to be an excuse?"

As Ryan finished swallowing, he fixed her with a level gaze. "I think we've all done things we've regretted after having too much to drink. Including you. I know I have."

Grudgingly, Marissa conceded his point. In fact, it was partially why she'd decided to drastically cut down on her drinking. She was no stranger to acting like a fool when she was drunk. And while it eased her troubles temporarily, that was the problem. It was only ever temporary. All the problems still remained once she'd sobered up. So perhaps she shouldn't be one to judge Seth so harshly.

"That may be true. But it doesn't make Summer feel any better," she added.

"Did you know Summer's been keeping their relationship a secret from her father?"

"Yeah, she told me."

She understood her friend's reasoning. In fact, things would be a whole lot easier for Marissa if her mother didn't know about Ryan. She still liked to pretend that her daughter's boyfriend didn't exist or that Marissa would miraculously fall in love with one of Newport's own. But no matter how difficult the circumstances, Marissa continued to defend Ryan, ever hopeful that one day her mother would understand. And now, she felt obligated to defend her best friend. "Summer is really close to her dad. Like the way I am with mine. Luckily, my dad likes you. But her dad's never liked Seth. That just makes it hard for her."

Ryan didn't speak right away, as if he was carefully gauging what to say next. But at last, he said, "Put yourself in Seth's place. He basically thinks Summer is embarrassed to be with him. That he's not good enough for her."

Marissa frowned. "But that's not true."

"Maybe not. But I'm just telling you how Seth feels. And he'd probably kill me for telling you this, so don't spread it around, okay?"

She spoke rather indignantly. "Of course not. But Summer should know. It might make a difference."

"But you didn't hear it from me."

"Fine," she said, sounding exasperated. But in truth, she admired his loyalty to Seth. It was an endearing character trait. "Can I have some more fries?"

With a chuckle, he moved the plate of french fries to her tray.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Usually, Seth enjoyed History class. He liked learning about the past and found it interesting to trace the events that led up to today. Sometimes, he imagined that he'd taken the place of one of the global leaders they were discussing. What decisions would he have made? The same or something different? How would that have changed things?

Sometimes, he tended to over analyse things. History couldn't be re-written. Just like he couldn't change what had happened Saturday night.

Thankfully, he'd managed to have a dose of luck when Ryan had driven him home. His parents had already gone to bed and he'd stumbled into his room unseen. He'd spent the better part of the next day recovering in the pool house. Ryan had covered for him, saying they were working on an assignment together.

Seth had come to the conclusion that there were definitely some advantages in having a brother.

Today, he found his mind wandering. He sat near the back of the room, three rows over from the window. There wasn't much to see besides blue sky but nonetheless, it held his gaze. A blonde head turned around and the movement caught his eye. It was Tanya, looking back at him. She smiled and Seth looked away, returning his attention to Mr. Jenkins' monologue.

Twenty minutes later, the bell sounded and everyone sprang out of their seats. As Seth collected his things, he felt Tanya's presence before he saw her.

"Hi Seth."

"Hi."

"I want to apologize for what happened the other night. I didn't know about you and Summer."

Zipping his bag shut, he said, "Forget about it." He took one step forward but she didn't move. "I have another class," he told her.

She nodded, hugging her binder to her chest. "Me too. I just wanted to let you know, I'm planning to have a party at my place next weekend. Saturday. I would love it if you could come. Just thought I'd extend the invite."

"Maybe," he answered noncommittally. Rather than having to brush past her, he cut across the row down the next empty aisle and walked out.

He headed for the stairwell and followed the flow of students down the steps. His heart jumped into his throat when he spotted Summer coming up. He started raising his hand out of pure habit before realizing what he was doing. The arm came back down, fingers sliding along the handrail. Keeping his eyes focused on the top of her head, he hoped he wouldn't trip. It wasn't the smartest thing to do but he wanted to know if she'd see him. Just as she was about to pass him, her eyes found his. They locked stares for a second and then her gaze flickered away. The moment was gone and he continued on to class.

Well, what did he expect? What did he even want? It's not like she was going to flash him a smile and everything would be okay. They'd broken up. They didn't work together. He was a jerk and she didn't have faith in him. She was too good for him. Too popular. Too beautiful. He had to forget they'd ever been together and get on with his life.

Standing just off to the side of the doorway to the classroom, he watched the others rushing in. It would be so easy to skip this class. If he did rebel, what would he do with his time? Sailing wasn't an option, since his boat had apparently been smashed and unsalvageable, hauled to some waste site in Seattle. He wasn't even sure if he'd ever want to go sailing again anyway. There was always skateboarding. But that seemed kind of lame. If he skipped, his parents would be called and there would be a whole interrogation. Would it be worth it?

With a sigh, he dutifully entered the classroom like a good little boy.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Summer stared into her locker, as if it held all the secrets to sweeping away her woes. She couldn't seem to remember why she'd opened it.

"A dollar for your thoughts," stated a familiar voice.

She knew whom it was before turning around. His presence galvanized her into action again and she crouched down to burrow through the bottom of her locker. "What happened to a penny?" she asked.

"Everything's more expensive in Newport," Justin replied jokingly.

Although she'd quickly found what she'd needed, she pretended to keep searching. But he didn't seem to be going away. Standing upright again, she shut her locker and spoke in a rush. "Can I help you with something? I don't like people hovering."

"I just feel bad about what happened on Saturday. I mean, I don't exactly know what happened but I saw you crying. Then you left pretty quickly with Marissa. Just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"As you can see, I'm perfectly fine," she stated, keeping her tone cool. Although he looked sincere enough, she knew he was a smooth talker. She couldn't yet gauge if he was simply trying to be nice or wanted something more.

He tilted his head slightly. "I'm not sure if I believe you, but okay. Did you and Seth break up?"

She thought about lying. She thought about not answering at all. But there was no valid reason to evade the question, so she answered with a short, "Yeah."

"Sorry. I know how that feels. Look, I like you Summer, and I guess I haven't made that a secret. That night we kissed...I thought we might have something. I liked talking to you that night. If you ever want to talk again...about anything, you know where to find me."

And with that, he went on his way. Left alone once more, she hoisted her bag and headed out too.

At least Justin hadn't been pushy about things. Maybe he really was trying to be a friend. She didn't have many of those. Sure, she never lacked for company at school or social events. Everyone wanted to be Summer Roberts' friend. But Summer's definition of a true friend meant one thing – trust. She knew she could trust Marissa. She had thought she could trust Cohen. Looked like she was down to only one friend now.

No one was perfect, least of all her. She understood that. But honestly, Cohen hadn't sounded very sorry about his wandering lips. And then he'd confessed that maybe he wasn't really in love with her. That maybe he was in love with the "idea" of her. What the hell did that even mean? It gave her a headache just attempting to analyse that one. She'd long ago accepted that Cohen was smarter than her. He liked abstract thinking. She liked to deal with cold, hard facts. And the number one fact was that he had screwed up big time.

Outside in the sun, she found herself standing in front of the lounge entrance. For a moment, she was bewildered. Then she realized what she'd done. She'd switched to automatic pilot mode and come here, just as she had every Monday during her spare period. To wait for Cohen.

Annoyed with herself, she spun on her heel and headed for her car.

Earlier, she'd only seen him on the stairs for a second. Maybe two. But in that drawn out space of time, he'd had an almost hopeful expression on his face. As if he'd expected her to acknowledge him somehow. At least, that's the thought that had sped through her brain before she'd forced herself to look away.

She didn't just miss her boyfriend. She missed her friend.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A lot could change in seven days. Here it was, Saturday again. He had another invitation to a party, just as had last week. Unlike a week ago, however, he was minus one girlfriend.

Seth debated whether to go to this party or not. On the one hand, it might take his mind off things if he could let go and just have a good time. On the other, he might be reminded of the fact that he was there alone, minus said girlfriend, and he'd just spend the night feeling sorry for himself. The second option wasn't particularly enticing.

He then had a brilliant thought. Maybe Ryan would go with him.

Seth went downstairs to search him out. Not in the kitchen. But he could faintly hear the beeps and whistles of a video game in progress.

"Hey," he greeted, sitting himself down on the couch.

Ryan looked over at him. "Hey. Want to play?"

In answer, Seth picked up the other controller. They played for a while. In fact, Ryan beat him four games out of five. In earlier days, Seth would have found that unforgivably humiliating. He really was out of practice. These days, however, he had more pressing issues to deal with.

"Have any plans tonight?" Seth asked.

"Yeah. I'm seeing a movie with Marissa."

"Oh."

"Why?"

"Tanya invited me to her party. I thought we could both go. You know, a guy's night out."

Ryan lifted an eyebrow at him. "Tanya. The girl you kissed?"

Seth felt himself flushing. "Yeah, so? The place will probably be packed. I probably won't even see her. She's not the reason I want to go, okay?"

Holding out a placating hand, Ryan quickly said, "Okay. Down, Seth. I'll talk to Marissa but I make no promises. We uh, haven't had much alone time lately."

All hopes deflated with that last statement, as Seth nodded. "Right. Three's a crowd. Gotcha."

"Come on, I didn't mean it like that."

"Sorry. That came out wrong. It's fine, Ryan. You and Marissa deserve your alone time." He tried a wan smile. "At least one of us should be having some fun, right?"

Although Ryan asked him to play a couple more games, Seth declined and went back to his room. He tried to go back to working on his essay but he pushed it aside. It was mostly complete anyway. He'd wanted to try to improve it, put a little more thought into it, but that was as good as it was going to get. At least today.

In the evening, he sat down for dinner with everyone. Everything was peachy until his father started asking about their plans for the night.

"Movie with Marissa," Ryan answered.

"Oh yeah? What are you seeing?" Sandy asked.

"Don't know. It's her choice tonight."

Ryan shared a look with Seth and they announced, "Chick flick," in unison.

Kirsten looked up from her plate to regard them both. "Speaking as the lone chick at this table, I tend to find that remark derogatory."

Seth jumped to their defense. "It's not derogatory. It's a well-known phrase these days. It means a sappy romance that mostly chicks appreciate."

"I know what it means, Seth." She paused to consider. "Maybe I just don't like women being referred to as 'chicks'."

"Would you prefer 'hot stuff'?" Sandy asked innocently. He chuckled when Kirsten shot him a mock scowl. "So how about you, Seth? Hot date with that chick otherwise known as Summer?"

Placing his fork down, Seth slowly said, "Yeah, about that. Guess I didn't mention it to you guys? We kind of broke up."

"Oh honey," Kirsten said immediately.

Sandy looked surprised. "No, you didn't mention it. When did this happen?"

"Last week."

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. I know...how much she meant to you."

For the next thirty seconds or so, nothing could be heard except for the scrape of cutlery against china. No one seemed to know what to say. At last, Sandy was the one to break the void. "So are you just taking it easy tonight, Seth?"

"Actually, I was thinking about going to a party."

"By yourself?"

Seth's radar started picking up some parental control signals. "Yeah," he replied, aware of his father studying him carefully.

"Whose party?"

"Just a girl from school. Dad, what's with the twenty questions? You didn't ask whose party it was last weekend."

"Last weekend, you were all going as a group. If you're going by yourself, I'm a little more concerned."

"I don't have to be chaperoned," Seth complained. "I'm perfectly capable of going by myself." He watched with bated breath as his parents looked at one another, not speaking but conversing in a silent mind meld.

When Sandy spoke, it was to lay down some ground rules. "Curfew is still midnight."

Seth nodded, emitting a slight sigh of relief. "Check."

"Do I even have to mention drinking or drugs?"

"I know. Just say no."

"There's one more thing," Kirsten added.

"Yeah Mom?"

She smiled, managing to look both worried and encouraging. "Have fun."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ryan checked his watch. They had gone to the seven o'clock show so it was still relatively early. As they walked back to Marissa's car, he said, "Seth mentioned a party tonight. Do you want to check it out?"

"Not really." She gave him a flirtatious smile. "I wanted to check out your pool house. Like we planned."

He gnawed at his lower lip, wondering how best to phrase this. "Could we maybe just stop over real quick? Seth went by himself and I just, uh, want to make sure he's okay."

"Why wouldn't he be?"

Instead of addressing the question, he resorted to saying, "Please?"

They had reached her car and got in. Turning the ignition key, she agreed, "Okay. Just a quick look. So where are we going?"

"I was hoping you'd know. Tanya Bradshaw's house."

Marissa's expression turned to one of disbelief. "He went to her house?"

Ryan couldn't help trying to defend Seth. "It's just a party. I don't think he cares whose house it is."

"But still..."

"Yeah, I know. So do you know where she lives?"

Marissa pulled out of the parking lot and turned right. "Luckily, I do. I've been there before. She always throws a good one."

Once they arrived, just as it had last weekend, it took a little while to find a parking spot. They let themselves in through the front door and concentrated on the task of finding Seth. The crush of bodies made it difficult but they slowly made their way through the bottom floor. Then they went out back to the patio. No sign of him.

"Maybe he's upstairs," Marissa suggested.

"Maybe."

As Ryan was about to turn around, something made him look past the patio to the stretch of beach just beyond. A lone figure sat on the sand, facing the water and the darkened sky. It was only a hunch, but he was sure it was Seth. "Wait here a minute."

Ryan approached the hunched silhouette cautiously. "Seth?" he called out. But there was no answer. Perhaps he was wrong. Still, he moved closer. "Seth, is that you?"

At last, the figure began speaking. "You know, tonight could've gone one of two ways. Either I let loose and have a good time. Or alienate myself and wallow in self-pity. Which way do you think it went?"

Relieved to have found him, Ryan replied, "I'll take door number two."

"Give the man a prize."

Seth looked up at him. "What are you doing here?"

Several possible answers flitted through Ryan's mind but he decided to go for honesty. "Checking up on you."

"Ahhh. And what have you found?"

"I'm not sure yet. Do any drugs?"

"Right. I wouldn't know coke from baking powder. I've always wanted to try pot, though. But don't worry, no inhaling, snorting or shooting up tonight. Next question."

"Drinking?"

Seth bobbed his head up and down. "Caught me there. Two beers. Gonna arrest me now?"

"No. But your parents are gonna flip. Seriously, Seth, didn't you hear Sandy tonight?"

"I'm not drunk."

"Maybe not fall on your ass drunk, but you won't be able to hide it. I can smell your breath from here. He's going to wait up for you this time. It won't be like last week when we just got lucky."

"You're really annoying when you're smart, you know that?"

Ryan opened his mouth to respond but was startled by a feminine voice. He hadn't noticed Marissa coming towards them.

"Everything okay?" she asked tentatively.

"Hey Marissa." Seth waved a hand. "Sorry you got dragged into this."

"That's okay. Are you ready to go home?"

"I don't know. I kind of like it here."

Ryan glanced around at the surrounding blackness of night. "It's dark," he pointed out.

"Yeah," Seth acknowledged.

"It's cold," Marissa added.

"Yup."

"So let's go," Ryan finished firmly.

Seth said nothing and Ryan thought he was going to put up an argument. But eventually, he got to his feet and followed his friends towards the house.

Ryan grimaced when he saw Tanya on the patio, moving quickly to intercept them.

"Hi guys," she said brightly, taking in Marissa and Ryan. "Glad you could make it."

"Actually, we were just leaving," Marissa informed her, her tone frosty.

"What? But it's not even nine thirty." She gazed at Seth. "You're not going too, are you? I thought maybe we could talk some more."

"Nah, I'm all talked out," Seth responded, indeed sounding tired. "Thanks for the ear, though."

"Sure." Tanya didn't disguise her disappointment. "Well, see you at school then."

As they left the house, Ryan was trying to come up with a plan. They went to the Range Rover first and without even being told, Seth climbed into the passenger seat.

"I'll drive Seth home," Ryan told Marissa, as they stood beside the vehicle. "Why don't you follow us?"

"Why? Won't you have your hands full?" Her tone wasn't petulant but more matter-of-fact.

"Maybe Seth can sleep it off in my room. I'll just make sure he's okay, then we can still do something."

She sighed. "Fine. I'll follow you."

During the drive home, Seth remained locked in silence. It was as if he'd regressed to how he'd acted when he'd first come home from the hospital. As one who often resisted people's insistence on engaging in conversation, however, Ryan didn't try to pry open the clam.

Marissa managed to tail him all the way home and they arrived at the same time. Into the pool house they went and Seth immediately crashed onto the bed.

"You want some coffee?" Ryan asked, thinking it might help to sober him up.

Seth closed his eyes, one hand resting on his stomach. "No thanks. Not feeling so hot right now. Alcohol and car rides aren't a good combo for me."

A knock on the door startled all of them. Sandy first poked his head around the door, then stepped in.

"Sorry to interrupt. Hi Marissa. I just happened to see you pull up. Kind of early for a Saturday night, isn't it?"

Marissa spoke first. "We just came back from a movie."

"Oh. All of you?" Sandy looked directly at Seth, who had moved into a sitting position.

"Yeah. I changed my mind about the party," his son lied through his teeth.

"And then we came back here to hang out," Marissa said.

The tale was apparently believable enough for Sandy. "Okay, I'll let you get back to hanging, then. Goodnight."

Seth flopped back onto the bed. "Thanks, Marissa. I owe you one," he mumbled.

"Good cover up," Ryan conceded. "But now we're stuck here."

She sat down on the bed. "I know. But now Seth can talk to us."

"Talk?" Seth repeated.

"Yeah. Drinking's not going to solve anything. I know I sound like some commercial but it almost killed me, Seth. It was an accident but it happened."

Ryan was surprised to hear her bring up the subject. It was something she never wanted to talk about.

"I'm not trying to kill myself," Seth protested.

"I know. But you're starting to get in deeper. Trust me, it'll be easier to stop now than waiting until you've gone over the edge."

"I almost remembered something tonight," Seth confessed.

Marissa's eyes widened. "That's great!"

"I said almost. It wasn't a memory. More like...feelings. I was going through some CDs at Tanya's house and got some really strong feelings. Basically, I hated most of them. Pop crap. But then I found a couple that I loved. They seemed special somehow, like maybe I had liked them when I was a kid. I don't know, I can't explain it."

"Maybe it's a sign that you'll start getting real memories back soon," Ryan put in hopefully.

"Maybe." Seth screwed his eyes shut and rubbed at his temples. "I've really blown it with Summer, haven't I. She hates me."

"She doesn't hate you," Marissa said softly. "She's just hurt."

"She's too good for me."

"That's not true," Marissa said emphatically. "Don't talk like that. You two are great together. You just need to work things out."

Once again, Ryan found himself surprised by what he was hearing. Surprised and pleased.

Seth yawned and rolled over onto his side. "You don't mind if I nap here, do you Ryan?"

"Knock yourself out," Ryan said dryly.

It didn't take long before Seth's deep, even breathing signalled that he was sound asleep. Ryan pulled Marissa by the hand to a far corner of the room and kissed her gently. "Thanks for being so nice to Seth. I've been worried about him. And I wasn't sure how much longer I should cover for him. Maybe you really got through to him."

"I hope so. He needs a friend. I know what he's going through. Well, not the amnesia. But the drinking and...screwing something up so badly, you were afraid the person you loved would never forgive you again."

He cupped her cheek with one hand, stroking the fine skin. "I forgave you a long time ago. And God knows I'm not perfect."

"Does this count as alone time?" she whispered.

In answer, he kissed her again, then hugged her close.

A/N: Thanks again for those reviews. I'm always interested in what you think, good or bad. I'm pleasantly surprised that most of the reviews were positive for the last chapter. And to Silverweaver: you must be psychic with your comment on parental interaction being due. Just a little dose in this chapter.

There's still more to come so stay tuned.