Chapter 14
Marissa and Trey had been going steady for about a month. They were happy with each other. Even though deep down, Marissa still loved Ryan, she was with Trey now…the closest thing she would ever get to Ryan. Marissa had been going regularly to Trey's house after school, sometimes she would even ditch it. It's not like her mother found out either…she was too busy with her new boyfriend, Brad, Ryan's supposedly uncle. That night there was going to be a party for a charity event. Marissa had given up her regular afternoon at Trey's for shopping with Summer. The two of them hadn't been spending a lot of time together recently, basically because Marissa had been with Trey and Summer had been trying to spend all her time with Seth, although he still had to tackle the comic book. While they were in an expensive boutique where they got all their party clothes, Summer thought she should tell Marissa the truth about Ryan and Jess.
"Coop, I know you probably don't care anymore, but I have something to tell you about Ryan and Jess," Summer began.
"Um, okay…shoot," Marissa demanded.
"They aren't together Coop," Summer stated. There was silence. Marissa hoped it was true.
"He's been tutoring her in calculus. Trust me. I asked him," Summer said. Marissa pretended not to hear.
"Coop, answer me please," Summer begged.
"There's nothing to say," Marissa said. She held up a loose slip dress and held it against herself. "How does this look on me?"
"Coop, talk to me. You have to be happy about it at least a little," Summer said.
"Sum, I'm with Trey," Marissa said, almost regretfully.
"But do you still love Ryan?" Summer asked. Marissa was silent.
"I will always love Ryan. But now, I love Trey, so that's that," Marissa said sternly.
That night, Marissa had picked Trey up so they could go to the party together. Marissa had decided to buy the loose slip dress with matching flats. Her hair was up in a clip. All during the party, Marissa tried to stay as far away from Ryan as possible.
"Do you want to dance?" Marissa asked. Trey looked at her.
"Only if you do," he replied. Marissa held out her hand and led Trey out onto the dance floor.
Meanwhile, Ryan was standing with Jess by the bar. Jess was wearing a low cut black dress with stiletto sandals. She looked…well slutty…as always.
"Ryan, I'm fed up," Jess complained all of a sudden.
"Why are you fed up?" Ryan asked. He was the one who was fed up. He wanted to be with Marissa. He still loved her, despite the fact she was with Trey.
"Because, we've been hanging out, for what, like a month now and still you haven't made a move on me. I think it's time…" Jess started. She moved closer and slipped her arms around his neck. "That I made the move on you." She leaned in and kissed him. This wasn't like Marissa kissed at all. Jess was kissing him like she was eating him. Suddenly, he stopped her.
"Jess. Stop. We can't be together," Ryan stated firmly.
"Why? Princess Marissa is with your brother. It's not like I'm not good either," Jess said seductively. She tried to kiss Ryan again, but he held her back.
"Jess, I can't do this. I love Marissa. I don't love you. I'm just tutoring you to be nice. We can be friends. That's all," Ryan said.
"Fine. I would be wasting my time anyway. You don't know what your missing," Jess said and walked away. Ryan watched her go. Suddenly, he saw Julie Cooper enter with a man that looked vaguely like his dad. Julie's hand was intertwined with his. As they approached, Ryan realized it was his dad!
"Dad?" Ryan asked. Brad looked around, stopping Julie in her tracks. She looked confused.
"Dad, is that you?" Ryan asked again. Julie turned to Brad.
"I thought you said that you were his uncle?" Julie screamed. Everyone went silent and looked over at Julie, Brad and Ryan.
"I didn't want to tell you," Brad said quietly.
"So you just thought you'd lie to me?" Julie cried. "I gave you everything! I'm in the middle of a divorce you know!"
"I know. Jules, I didn't want to tell you. I thought you wouldn't give me a chance," Brad said. He sounded hurt.
"Damn right I wouldn't give you a chance," Julie spat. And with that, she turned on her heel and walked out of the party. Brad turned to Ryan.
"You and Julie Cooper?" Ryan asked, smirking.
"Yeah…she's not what you think," Brad said. He then saw Trey, waved and walked out after Julie.
When Marissa dropped Trey off at his apartment, he offered if she wanted to come in for a while. She nodded, following him. She had no idea what had really happened with her mom and Ryan's dad.
"So…you're mom and my dad, huh?" Trey said, trying to start up conversation. Marissa just nodded. She wasn't really listening. She couldn't help but see Ryan and Jess together the whole night. She was hurt and she just wanted to stop this. She walked over to Trey and kissed him fiercely on the lips. He responded and kissed her back. Marissa didn't mind it even when they fell upon the couch and started undressing each other…
