Disclaimer- I do now own any of these characters
Note- Thanks again for everyone who has read and reviewed this story- kursk, mystripedskirt, raindrops falling, BrSoccerChic89, who-am-I-91, juzadream, NicS311, simcecilia, gqfan4life11, Melissa1987, Sum-41Luva, and Emily-It's awesome to see what you guys think of my story!
Summer sat in Marissa's chair, applying a coat of black mascara, while Marissa lay on her bed thinking. She couldn't figure out what Ryan's intentions were. He had been looking at her differently lately. The same way he used to. She didn't want to be a fool for him. The feelings were there, they always had been. But she was afraid if she gave into them she would get hurt.
"Coop, this place is so amazing," Summer commented, looking around the large classically designed room. "Seriously, as bad as it is that your mom married Caleb Nichol, you have to admit that this place is awesome." Marissa briefly considered this. It was beautiful, she thought. The whole house was stunning, although she spent most of her time in her room. "Yeah, it is," she said, trying to make some kind of acknowledgement.
Summer had been taking notice of Marissa's melancholy tone throughout the day, and decided to bring it up. She knew what Marissa was like when she was upset, and she couldn't stand to see her when she became that depressed.
"Okay Coop. Slide over," Summer said, sitting next to Marissa on the bed. "What's wrong?"
Marissa wasn't sure she wanted to talk about it. "What? Oh nothing." She looked at Summer, who wasn't buying it. Marissa considered it, and decided it would be good to tell someone about what had been going on in her mind for the past few days. "I don't know Sum. I'm just so, confused."
"About?"
"Ryan."
"Coop! No! You are not going there again. He broke your heart this summer when he left. And things are just starting to go back to normal and he's with Lindsay and-"
"Sum, I know." And she did. Ryan had broken her heart. She became devastated over him and finally the sores were beginning to heal. They were friends. It was awkward, but still, there wasn't any drama between them. And Ryan was with Lindsay, she remembered. Right. She felt like hitting herself for being so stupid. Ryan was with Lindsay, and he seemed to adore her. But still-
"But, you're in love with him, aren't you?"
"Yeah, I am."
Suddenly, Marissa felt like a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders. She knew there was no questioning why she was so confused or upset. It was because she was in love. She always had been, and now she was finally letting herself admit it.
The words were resting on her tongue, and they tasted so good. She hadn't felt so happy in a long time. Everything was okay now, because she was in love with Ryan, and she let herself know it. A smile spread across her face.
"Coop, I'm so happy for you! Love. I vaguely remember what that's like…"
"Wait," Marissa started. "What about Zach? He's awesome."
"I know, I know. He's on the water polo team and he's sensitive! Guys like that usually only exist in my dreams. But it's not…" Summer wasn't sure if she could say it. "It's not the same…"
"As it was with Seth?"
"I guess that's the problem." Summer commented, knowing it was true.
"When you fall in love, you're stuck there. And Coop, we're stuck." Marissa laughed and closed her eyes. She felt like, for the first time in so long, it was last year again.
Ryan woke up the next morning to the sound of a knock on his door. It was Lindsay. She came in and brushed Ryan's tousled bed hair with her hand. "Hey sweetie," she said, and sat down on the bed next to him. Ryan felt like he was being intruded upon. He hadn't even had time to process his thoughts, to think about his dreams. But he quickly realized that he didn't remember what he had dreamt about, and felt a little disheartened. It was only in his dreams where he felt it was safe to have Marissa on his mind…
"Sweetie, you're like, half awake," Lindsay said, oblivious to the fact that she was disturbing him.
"What?" Ryan took a second to process what she had said. "Oh yeah. Sorry, I was up late." Lindsay laughed. "Doing what? Playing video games with Seth?" Ryan didn't smile. He was concentrated on a fixed point in front of him, and he shook his head. "No. I was, I was thinking." Lindsay was starting to become highly amused by Ryan's confused looks. She thought he was tired and didn't know what he was saying. But he did.
"And, what were you thinking about?" She teased. Ryan snapped out of it. He couldn't have very well said he was thinking about Marissa. He wasn't that out of it. "Oh, I don't remember." He smiled. Lindsay patted the blanket on top of his leg. "Okay, then. Well, you go get dressed and I'll meet you in the kitchen." Lindsay was walking towards the door, shaking her head and laughing.
"Wait," Ryan said. Lindsay stopped and turned around.
"What are you doing here again?"
Lindsay was a little taken aback by this. "Last night, you said we'd go shopping today. For a dress. For the party? You said you would help me pick one?"
"Oh yeah," Ryan smiled. "Sorry, I'm tired. I just woke up."
"Um, yeah I can tell. Wake up. Take your time." Lindsay walked out of the pool house, and Ryan plopped his head back on his pillow. "Right." He said to himself. "Wake up."
Marissa open her eyes, and saw Summer curled up on her side. She still felt her happiness from the night before, and seeing Summer there made her feel even happier. It reminded her of when they were little girls and used to have sleepovers and talk about boys and stay up all night sharing secrets. "Sum. Sum!"
"Mmmmm"…Summer moaned, pulling the covers over her head. A muffled "five more minutes" came out from under the blanket. "I was thinking," Marissa said. "How about we go to South Coast Plaza today. Go shopping? Maybe we can even by new dresses for tomorrow night." Summer snapped up. "Shopping?" She asked enthusiastically. "I love shopping!" Marissa laughed. "I know Sum. So what do you say?"
"I love shopping!"
"I'll take that as a yes, I guess."
"Shoppimg! What a brilliant concept!" She began raiding through Marissa's closet. "Now…what shall I wear?" And with that, she spun around with a cute white blouse with a flowery ribbon draped across the neckline. She held it up against her. "Very cute," Marissa assessed.
"So," Summer started, checking the blouse in the life sized mirror. "How do you think this party's gonna be?"
"Just another Newport Party, I guess."
"Right." Said Summer. "But, the does not mean that we can't look hot."
The girls laughed, and Marissa felt the rush of happiness come over her. It was just like last year. She was about to go shopping with her best friend for this big party the next day. And, she reminded herself, she was in love.
