There's a hidden story to all he does.
With his perfect smile and confident stance,
Different girls every night. . .
There's a hidden motive,
To get even with the people
Who made him so unreachable.
Chapter 3 Beyond Comprehension
The limo stopped in front of a somewhat smaller mansion. Newport terms. The chauffeur honked the horn.
The large green front door opened, and out stepped Marissa in a green Badgley Mischka dress. Summer gasped, Marissa looked breath-taking. She turned to Ryan to see his reaction, but his face was stone-cold.
"Doesn't Coop -- I mean Marissa -- look so pretty?" Summer urged on Ryan.
Ryan picked at a string that was hanging from the sleeve off his suit jacket. "Yea."
Summer scoffed at his lack of enthusiasm.
As Marissa walked gracefully to the limo, a flustered Seth walked out of the door.
Summer was shrouded in confusion.
"Seth lives next door to Marissa." Ryan offered, seeing Summer's face covered in puzzlement. "He's my cousin."
Summer was surprised. He couldn't see how Ryan and Seth could be related. They were total polar-opposites. One of them strove to not conform while the other was the one enforcing the conformity. "Seriously?" Summer asked trying to hide her amazement, but failing.
Ryan shrugged. "Yea, My dad is his dad's brother."
At that moment, the door opened and Marissa climbed in the car. She gathered her dress and sat down next to Ryan. There was something hidden in the air between them, but Summer couldn't place it.
Seth climbed in and sat next to Summer.
Summer had to admit that Seth looked pretty hot. Wearing a black suit and a dark red open color shirt, Seth looked perfect.
With a lurch, the limo sped down the driveway of the neighborhood and Summer fell on Seth.
Summer blushed. She was so embarrassed. "I'm so sorry. . ."
Seth just grinned.
I bet he saw under my skirt. Summer thought. He's just another one of those guys who is a player. Summer reminded herself.
But she couldn't help sneaking a lustful glance at Seth.
Summer walked in the reception hall. Everyone had fancy clothing on with drinks in their hand. As she walked past the middle-aged mothers who looked like they could be greatly poisoned by the amount of Botox they had received, she heard them whisper among themselves about her.
She tried to hold her head up high and ignore the false accusations about her life.
The people in Newport had a very large imagination.
Summer sat at the table and watched the rest of the people at her table talk animatedly. She wished her dad was here, but he had a late-night at the hospital, so he wouldn't make it.
Supposedly, Seth's grandfather, Caleb Nickel, or something like that was the most important person in Newport. He made a mind-numbing speech.
Luke yawned.
Marissa looked at him in irritation, as the yawn was quite loud and it wasn't very "respectful" of Caleb. Supposedly, Caleb was telling a very touching speech about Leukemia.
Ryan placed his hand on Marissa's bare arm.
She softened at his touch.
Ryan hated these events. He always felt like he didn't fit in. It was all a big game, pretending to be the big king of the school when he felt just as insecure as the people he was taunting. Luke fit in, but not him. Earlier that night, he had seen Summer's amazement at the fact that he and Seth were cousins. Everyone thought they were totally different, but Ryan knew that wasn't true.
Because they both just felt out of place.
No one really knew that Ryan grew up in a rough neighborhood in Chino. That Seth's dad, Sandy, was the one who gave them money and a house to live him. No one knew that his older brother, Trey, and his father were incarcerated. They just assumed that is was just Dawn and him, living in a perfect world where maybe the father had split or died and his brother was at college. Ryan always told people that Trey was "away". He still remembered the harsh conditions of Chino. So looking at Newport, his self-doubts kicked in. He wasn't like them; he wasn't even in the same class as them. It was so hard for Marissa to understand. He often got frustrated with her. She didn't understand the hardships. Hell, she didn't even know the hardships. She didn't know that his father physically abused him and his mother. She didn't know that his mother was addicted to drugs and alcohol, only the Cohen's' realized that.
Some times he thought it was actually harder for Seth.
Seth had been here for his old life and only because of him had he started to fit in. It seemed like everyone just conveniently forgot that they used to torture Seth. Until Ryan had arrived, Seth had been the loser. The major loser of the school, he was friendless. Some of the weirdest people had friends, but Seth had nobody.
Ryan still remembered the day that he met Seth.
Hey man, do you wanna play Grand Theft Auto? You steal cars and stuff. It's cool. Or not that cool.
Maybe Seth was desperate, but whatever it was, he accepted Ryan right away.
So after awhile, Seth's awkward puberty stage grew out and in the result Seth was tall and good-looking.
Ryan was pretty amazed at Seth's new behavior.
It first started out with one girl, Anna. Seth and her were alike, good friends. They dated for awhile and Seth was happy. After many years of being ignored by girls, he had a girlfriend.
Then the roller coaster started.
Ryan had started dating Marissa and Marissa was going to go to her best friend's, Holly, party. Ryan had convinced Seth to come and he reluctantly came. Anna had stayed at home; she'd rather relax at home with a comic book or two than watch people getting their freak on.
Seth was starting to get sick of Anna. They were too alike as Holly had so nicely put it, "They're like brother and sister."
And Ryan knew for a fact that Seth was starting to get the hots for Holly. She was pretty and full of energy. She was popular with girls surrounding her. Unreachable and unattainable, making Seth wish he could be with her, trying to swallow himself in the energy and brightness Holly radiated.
About ten minutes into the party, Ryan knew that it was a bad idea to bring Seth to the party. Seth, not accustomed to alcohol, got drunk pretty quickly. Holly was always drunk at parties. The two of them drunk didn't exactly mesh well together.
Marissa had always said that Holly had a crush on Seth but was too afraid to tell Seth.
And twenty minutes into the party, Seth had lost his virginity to Holly.
It would've been fine if the drama stopped right there.
But then Seth had sex with Anna, the day after. Seth had confided in Ryan about every little detail of his life and Ryan had wanted to smack Seth about all the quick decisions he had been making.
"Man if Anna finds about you and Holly, you are so going down. What if the rest of the school finds out?" Ryan asked.
Seth rolled his eyes. "You worry too much. Anna won't find out. Holly's going to be too embarrassed."
Ryan wished he had bet some money against that because the following Monday at school was a living hell for Seth.
Apparently, while Seth and Holly were drunk and "in the act" they took some very revealing Polaroids in some very "compromising positions."
The jock who was dating Holly pummeled him. While all the guys in the school laughed at him.
Seth changed that day.
For all his life, he was tormented by everyone. So to beat the jocks started to become a game.
The jocks wanted to sleep with every hot girl. It was notorious that the jocks did that. That was the only thing they were famous for.
So that night, Seth slept with Holly again just to prove a point. And the following school day, they were making out in a janitor's closet and it just so "happened" that Dr. Kim opened the door. And it just so "happened" that it was during the busiest time of the hallways.
Seth got reputation for being a bad boy. Because Holly gushed that Seth was the king of sex.
So then, Seth slept with a hot girl every night at a party and left, not knowing the girl's name.
Eventually, Seth started to become popular. The jocks started to fade away. Ryan was Seth's best friend. They were a package and plus, if Ryan had to say so himself, he was pretty hot. And Luke, who used to be one of the jocks, started to be popular because gay guys were cool and Carson Ward, Luke's dad, was the first open gay man in Newport.
Seth still slept with every girl of one night stands. He was afraid to have relationships because he broke Anna's heart. And Seth was a nice guy.
Ryan looked across the table to where Seth was trying to entertain Summer.
Summer looked entirely bored.
Summer was Seth's next prey. She was the new object of desire for the jocks and Seth was determined to not let the jocks touch her.
Summer was determined not to have Seth touch her.
Let the games begin . . .