Lessons Learned-
Five- Translation
Disclaimer: No O.C.
A/N: I'm reeeeeally sorry for the delay, it's just I wrote it, then re-wrote it, then went back to this, and had tons of work to do, plus a vacation, but now I'm back and I'll try to update more often. Funny, this fic was supposed to be fluffy, but not so much. I'll be wrapping this up soon, seeing as I've put these two through as much "Will they or won't they?" as the show probably will. Big thanks to BlueStarGirl for pre-feedbacking this chapter. Enjoy, and drop a review please!
My house phone's ringing like there's no tomorrow. Can't I do my English paper in silence?
"Hello," I answer, half-expecting it to be Cohen.
Ever since our little library showdown, I can't stop thinking about him. Maybe it's 'cause I lost. I never lose, especially with Cohen.
"Summer, this is Jimmy Cooper, I'm Marissa's dad,"
"I know," I reply.
Why is Coop's dad calling me? Surprise party? That'd be so awesome!
"Marissa got in an accident," he says quietly.
"What?" I sputter. An accident? No…
"She was," he stops. I can hear him breathing, "drunk. Ryan was in the car and they're pretty hurt. You should get down here. The doctors said—"
I drop the phone and fall back on the floor.
I rush to the hospital, not bothering to put on any make-up or anything. Coop's dad brings me to the room where she's all hooked-up. She hasn't woken up.
She looks so perfect. I know its so cliché, but even with all those tubes and her eyes closed, she looks like an angel.
Coop's always an angel. She's always perfect. She just can't fuck up. And even when she fucks up, like today, nobody looks at it like a fuck-up.
It's an angel fallen. She's scarred. She's damaged.
She fucked up, and bad.
That doesn't matter, what matters is that she wakes up and gets out of that bed so we can go shopping at the Plaza and chill by the pool and go back to our bullshit lives.
I run into the hospital waiting room to get away, only to find Seth talking quietly to a distraught Caitlin.
Oh, God, I forgot all about her.
"Summer…" Cohen quietly says.
"I'm gonna go find my dad," Caitlin whispers before scurrying off, like always.
"What?" I yell.
"It's gonna be okay. It'll be okay," he says calmly, helping me sit down.
"It's not gonna be okay! Coop, she's…God, she'd always be the sane one in the situation but she can't be. I need her…" I shout, slowly turning into whimpering.
Cohen wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me close to him. I just start bawling. I can't stop. I know Coop will be fine…and Chino…I haven't even thought about Chino.
He's Seth's brother. I haven't even been thinking about what he's going through…
"How's Chino?" I ask.
"A little bumped up, stable," he answers back sufficiently.
I look up at him. He's got tears in his eyes, he knows how it is. He's gonna make sure I'm okay.
Cohen's my white knight. He might wear dorky t-shirts and listen to shit music, but he's my white knight.
So, I kiss him. Every princess kisses her white night.
Cohen pulls away.
Every white knight kisses back.
"Cohen?" I ask, sort of confused.
"We need to focus on Marissa and Ryan right now..." he states.
I nod. He's right. We'll figure this out when everything goes back to normal. It has to.
I close my eyes and lean on his shoulder and try to go to sleep. We're gonna be here a while.
I wake up and look in the mirror. My face is totally drained of color, and I have blackheads popping up everywhere. I've totally forgotten to wash my face.
The one time I've gone to school all week has been hell. I can't focus on anything, I just keep wondering if Coop's okay. Chino got out of the hospital after three days, but she's…gone.
She was fine after a week, but her mom sent her away to rehab. I know she needs it, but, damn, I need her.
It's so weird. Coop's been my best friend since the third grade, and now she's just gone. I have to stop isolating myself. Daddy even threatened me with a psychiatrist.
Right, because I'm the one with the mental issues in the family.
Whatevs.
I get to school and, I'm not even sure where this is coming from, but I just walk up to Cohen.
"You said we'd figure this out when Marissa and Ryan were okay," I state.
He nods. "Now?" he asks skeptically.
"No, in ten years. Yes, now, why the hell would I be coming up to you now?" I ask. Sometimes he's a real dumbass.
"Summer, I don't even understand you. It's like you speak a different language. One second, I'm sleeping in your bed, then next, you're pushing me away in the halls, then you're kissing me, and then you don't speak to me. I…I don't get you," he says.
"I've been in a really bad place, Cohen," I reply. That's all I can think of, everything else is just…there.
"I don't wanna be the guy you come to when you're sick or in a bad place. I don't want a part of you; I need all of you, Summer. Okay? So just translate whatever language you've been speaking," Cohen spits out.
I don't even know what to say.
I don't even know how to understand myself. How am I supposed to tell him?
"I don't know," I mumble.
"I guess it's for the better. You're Summer Roberts, I'm…I'm Seth Cohen, so us, whatever 'us' is, just wasn't meant to happen," he announces.
"So, that's it?" I ask.
"Is it?" he responds.
Why don't they teach this in Algebra I?
