A/N: I still have no idea what grade they're supposed to be in right now on The OC. Last year I was pretty sure they were supposed to be juniors, but now I heard that they wanted to keep them in high school as long as possible, so this is actually they're junior year. So the timeline of this story corresponds with the second- that they are juniors this year. If I'm wrong, I'm really sorry. Also, hey all you fellow Wisconsinites! Be proud of your cheese state roots!
Early September, 2006, New York City
"There's something I've been meaning to tell you," Anna told him, her voice shaky as well as her hands. Millions of thoughts ran through her head, and she just couldn't bring herself to tell him. Things would never be normal for this child; things would never be normal for them. In fact, it had only been 3 days since they started college. "I'm pregnant."
"That's great Anna," Seth smiled, without looking up from the new issue of Legion. Then his head whipped up as the information set in, "Hold on a second...what did you say?"
"I'm pregnant," She repeated, shifting from leg to leg and trying to quell the nausea that never did go away.
"Wow," He sighed simply, standing up. She could only imagine what was going through his mind, "What are we going to do?"
"I don't know," She shrugged, as hot tears began to build up in her eyes. Brushing them away, she tried to regain her composure, but when you're pregnant, and emotional, it's not so easy.
"It'll be okay, everything will be okay," She heard him whispering, as he wrapped his arms around her. She sobbed into his chest, both terrified andstrangelycontent at the same time. Maybe he was right, maybe this would work out.
December 2006
"Aunt Marissa...has a nice ring, don't you think?" Marissa laughed, as she pulled everything and anything pink off the rack and set it in the shopping cart.
"You know, I don't even know if it's a girl, Riss," Anna told her, looking at the contents of the nearly full cart. Nothing but a sea of pink and flowers. Unexpectedly, Anna and Marissa had become close over the months following graduation. Anna figured it was mostly because Summer had spent the summer in Europe and was planning to go to USC rather then NYU like everyone else. Time and space slowly separated the two girls, leaving Marissa to find a new gal pal.
"We both know it has to be a girl," Marissa threw another pink sleeper in the cart.
"Or a flamboyant boy...because I guess he's going to be wearing nothing but pink," Anna said glaring at the pink, "Poor thing."
"Oh don't worry," Marissa responded, now heading towards the baby furniture, "So, about your baby shower..."
"Please, don't throw me one," Anna pleaded, "We've got everything we're going to need, so just don't."
"Come on Anna," She sighed, "I'm throwing one whether you want it or not."
"Alright," She gave up, while playing with a stroller, "But please, keep the guest list short."
"Girl scout's honor," Marissa flashed a wide grin, holding up two fingers in the signature "girl scout" form.
March 2nd, 2007
"Catalina Kirsten Cohen," Anna smiled down at the newborn baby wrapped in a pink blanket, "Welcome to the world." Catalina merely wrinkled her face, and let out a heavy yawn.
"She's perfect," Seth mused, his arm placed protectively around Anna's shoulder, "Seriously, have you seen a cuter baby?"
"Nope," She replied honestly, "She's got your eyes and your smile." He was right, she had to be the cutest baby anyone had ever seen.
"Poor kid," He laughed as Lena closed her fist around his finger with a death grip, "Well at least she has your hair. Could you imagine this kid running around with a Jew fro?"
"I like your Jew fro," Anna smiled, but then suddenly felt a pang of uncertainty, "What's next?" She hadn't wanted to think about it, but the thought wouldn't go away.
"I don't know," Seth shrugged, "But right about now I feel like the luckiest guy in the world, and I'd like to hold on to that for as long as possible." Just then Marissa burst in, Ryan in tow.
"Oh my god, she's beautiful," Marissa went straight to the baby, "May I?"
"Of course," She reluctantly handed the baby to Marissa as her maternal instincts began to kick in, "Be careful, and don't forget to support her head." Marissa nodded, anxiously taking the baby.
"Hey honey," She cooed, cradling the baby, "I'm your Aunt Marissa, and I'm going to let you do all the fun stuff your parents won't let you get away with."
"Wonderful, you're corrupting her already!" Seth laughed.
"If anyone corrupts her, I'm guessing it will be me," Ryan smiled, receiving questioning looks, "What? I was just kidding!"
August 2007
"That just seems so mean," Anna couldn't help but laugh.
"No, she likes it!" Seth defended, "See, she's laughing." Seth picked Lena up and sat her on his knee, and sure enough she was laughing and waving her hands. Lena's hair was sticking up and she had two different socks on, so it was obvious Seth had dressed her.
"So what did you do today?" Anna asked, as she went about straightening up the apartment a little. Ryan and Marissa were planning on coming over for dinner, so she didn't want the place to look totally unpresentable, "I mean besides for rolling the baby back and forth across the bed."
"Well, we went to the record store, picked up a few CDs and some coffee, decaf for Lena," Seth explained jokingly, "Then we came back here, and watched The Goonies, followed by 15 minutes of Lena trying to chew off her foot."
"Sounds like fun," Anna grinned, glancing around the apartment. It was small yet cozy, and pretty nice considering it was cheap and in an okay neighborhood in Brooklyn, which was a pretty good find. It had two bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen, and aliving room, all of which were decorated quite eclectically.
"Guess who!" Marissa yelled, letting herself in without a knock. Ryan followed closely behind her.
"What happened to knocking?" Seth asked, giving Marissa a stern look.
"Oh just give me the baby," Marissa glared, holding her arms out.
"I don't think so," Seth grinned, holding Lena close to him so Marissa couldn't grab her, "I worry about the safety of my child." Lena just smiled around her hand, which she was trying to shove all the way in her mouth.
"If you don't hand over my niece this instant, I'm going to go Julie Cooper all over your ass," Marissa told him, slipping over her coat and handing it to Ryan.
"Okay, you win," Seth replied, gently handing her Lena.
"How's my favorite little niece?" She asked, holding her up before resorting to incoherent baby language.
"Do you think they actually have any idea what any of that means?" Ryan spoke up, raising an eyebrow to Marissa's babble.
"No, probably not," Seth shook his head, "Lena's probably just thinking, "What in the heck is this nutbag saying? Better yet, what has she been smoking?""
"I highly doubt that, Seth," Anna said appearing in the living room, "I'm at least hoping she doesn't already get the concept of drugs."
"You never know," Ryan shrugged, while making goofy faces at the baby. She just giggled while trying to eat Marissa's hair.
"Poor kid probably thinks we're all lunatics," Anna laughed as Seth put his arm around her.
"The sad thing is, we are," Seth chuckled.
November 2007
"Look at you!" Kirsten laughed, snapping yet another picture of her only grandchild, "Sandy, look at what she's doing now!" Sandy entered the living room, only to see Lena tip over on her side, a confused look on her face.
"Kirsten, I think she's had enough snapshots for one day," Sandy tried to explain, but Kirsten didn't listen. Sandy walked over and pulled the Santa hat off the baby and picked her up, "Your tired of grandma dressing you up, aren't you?"
"She likes it," Kirsten replied, "She knows that Grandma just wants a cute picture for the Christmas card. Don't you angel?" Lena just gave her a tired look and blinked her eyes.
"What have you done to her?" Seth asked, pretending to be shocked, "Why is she dressed up like an elf?"
"Christmas card picture," Kirsten explained, "Isn't she adorable? This reminds me of your first Christmas card picture. We dressed you up like a penguin."
"And that caused me emotional and psychological scarring!" Seth pointed out. Kirsten shot him a look, and then collected her grandchild from Sandy.
"It did not," Kirsten rolled her eyes, and then went over to Seth, "You loved your little penguin costume." Seth swatted at her as she playfully pinched his cheek.
April 2011
The sun, the sand, and the surf- the top three things Summer Roberts adored about Newport Beach. The drama, the pain, and the broken heart- those we're the top three things Summer Roberts wanted to forget. Today, she decided, was a new beginning. From this point on, she'd be a new person. Someone with direction, independence, strength, and faith.
"Here's to the new beginning," Summer sighed to herself, drinking down the last of her Diet Pepsi before chucking the can into the trash. Giving the ocean one last glance, she turned and walked away from the pier. As she made her way towards her car, she realized that this really might be the last time she'd see Newport for a while. Instead of getting into the car, she perched herself on the hood, and studied the town around her. It felt so weird to be leaving Orange County, but on the inside, she knew she wasn't really "there" as it was. Summer took a deep breath and expelled any negative thoughts from her mind, and concentrated on positive things. The Crab Shack caught her eye and brought a smile to her face. So many of her High School days had involved that old place, and it was one of the only hangouts that had survived. On a sudden whim she grabbed her purse and headed in the direction of the establishment. Moving as fast as her heels could carry her, she ran towards the restaurant with a wide grin.
"'Scuse me," A tiny voice shouted from behind her, accompanied by a light tug on her long skirt. Summer looked down to see a 4-year-old girl with a curly dark blonde ponytail and a powder blue sundress. "Have you seen Mickey Mouse?"
"Mickey Mouse?" Summer questioned, squatting down so she was level with the girl, "No, I haven't."
"Cuz my Mommy and Daddy told me that I would see him here," She explained, squinting her brown eyes in the hot son. "They said he lives in Ca-la-forn-ya." The girl said the state's name extra carefully, as if she had practiced pronouncing it before.
"Well you are in California," Summer nodded, "But Mickey lives in Anaheim. That's a little less than an hour northeast of here."
"Oh," She sighed, a disappointed look crossed over her face. Summer was just about to ask where her parents where, or if she was lost, when the girl interrupted her. "Daddy! She says Mickey Mouse lives in Ann-heim." She ran past Summer and into the arms of her father. Slowly, Summer turned around to see whom the inquisitive child belonged to.
"Sorry about that," He started to apologize, but then the two saw each other. "Summer?"
"Seth?" Summer questioned, suddenly forgetting how to speak. It had been nearly 5 years since she'd talked to him, much less encountered him in person. "What are you doing here?" Summer said after finally regaining control over her mouth.
"Visiting," Seth answered, a confused, yet intrigued look on his face, "You know, spring vacation. Lena's been dieing to go to Disneyland forever, so we finally made it down here."
"Lena?" Summer inquired, absent-mindedly.
"Me, silly!" Lena spoke up, resting her head on Seth's shoulder. Summer's eyes snapped back to Lena, as she suddenly remembered how she had run into Seth in the first place.
"She's yours? I didn't know you had kids," Summer responded, a little taken aback. She gave Lena a second glance over, and wondered how she had missed it. The girl had Seth's eyes and smile, and was both audacious and effusive, but charming nonetheless. She began to wonder who the mother was, but Lena's blonde hair and delicate features gave it away quickly. This had to be Anna's daughter.
"Yeah," Seth laughed, "Parenting isn't as bad as it sounds, actually. You get your own little person to boss around and torment. I highly recommend having kids."
"Wow," Summer sighed, still trying to take in the fact that Seth and Anna had had a baby, and she had never known. Why hadn't Marissa mentioned it? Well, she knew why Marissa didn't mention it. "I can't believe you're a dad, I mean it was just yesterday that you spent all your free time talking to Captain Oats and playing Magic the Gathering."
"Oh no, I still spend all my time on that," Seth assured her, "What about you? What's happening in the whirlwind life of Summer Roberts?"
"I wouldn't say it's whirlwind," Summer insisted shyly, "Things are going okay. I got my degree in the winter semester this year, and I've been working on my portfolio for the past few months. I'm actually catching a flight to Chicago first thing in the morning."
"Really?" Seth questioned, as Lena slowly nodded off on his shoulder, her eyes finally blinking shut. Maybe "grown up" conversation just wasn't interesting enough for her.
"Yep, I'm moving there for a while," Summer explained, "Probably for a few months or until I can get a job. How's New York? Got a lot of jobs up there?"
"If you want to get into the service industry, yeah," Seth answered truthfully, "I can't complain though. I'm working as a paid intern for a record label until I graduate. But if you're ever there, look me up."
"Definitely," Summer nodded, trying her best not to launch herself on him.
"Well, it was awesome seeing you," Seth replied, "But I better get going."
"Yeah it was nice to see you to," Summer responded. Though it was a bit awkward, Seth enveloped her in a one-arm hug, careful not to wake Lena. Once the two separated, Summer suddenly couldn't bare to see him go. "Take care."
"You too," Seth flashed her one last smile, before turning and walking away. Once the butterflies had finally cleared out of her stomach, Summer began to think. Maybe moving to Chicago wasn't the best idea. Hell, she'd always loved New York City anyways.
May 2011
"Pudding, Pudding, Pudding!" Lena ran around the house yelling at the top of her small lungs. It was Uncle Ryan's turn to baby-sit, and so far he wasn't doing a good job. But really, who knew that it was bad to give a 4-year-old chocolate?
"Lena?" He called, having lost site of the toddler, "This is not good. Lena?" Ryan looked around the room, not sure which way she went. A light rustling sound led him to the kitchen. The window was open, but there was no sign of Lena anywhere. Ryan said a silent prayer, hoping she hadn't climbed out the window, or something equally as terrible.
"Lena?" Ryan called again, "Come out now sweetie. Uncle Ryan has a surprise for you. It's a pony!" Still nothing. Taking a deep breath, he continued towards the hall, stopping at her bedroom door. "Lena, you in here?" There was no response, but he did hear the sound of something rubbing against the wall. Kneeling down, Ryan looked under the bed, but the only things he found were stuffed animals and dust bunnies. Suddenly, the sound of a door slamming broke his train of thought. Standing up he realized Lena must have went outside. Hastily, he made his way out the door, looking around the front yard. Just then he heard giggling and the sound of the door shutting behind him. Reaching out, he grabbed the door handle, but Lena locked it from the inside.
"Okay kiddo, enough playing around, you need to let me in," Ryan pleaded, but Lena didn't say anything, or unlock the door. Instead she turned up the TV, and eventually, fell asleep to the sound of cartoons. Nearly an hour later, Ryan saw Anna's car pull up.
"Hey Anna," He smiled weakly and waved, watching as she got out of the car. Anna gave him an awkward look, not sure what to think.
"Hi Ryan," She nodded, "What are you doing out here?"
"Oh…just admiring the houses," Ryan answered, "You know, being a contractor and all, it gives me inspiration."
"That's…great," Anna replied confused, "Where's Lena? Aren't you supposed to be watching her?"
"She's inside…sleeping," Ryan explained, "You wouldn't happen to have your keys on you, would you?"
"Yeah," Anna responded, opening up the front door, "Hey Ryan, why's the door locked?
"Oh I must have accidentally locked it on my way out," Ryan told her nonchalantly, "So how was work?"
"Lena locked you out, didn't she?" Anna laughed as Ryan blushed, "What a smart little girl."
"She didn't lock me out," Ryan stuttered, but Anna already knew the truth, "And even if she did, she shouldn't get complimented for it."
"Save it Ryan, I won't tell," Anna smiled as she walked into the kitchen, but suddenly her expression changed, "Ryan! You gave her chocolate too!?!"
"What was I supposed to do?" Ryan questioned, "She gave me that pouty lip, and then her eyes got all big. I couldn't help it! She used my weakness to her advantage."
July 15th, 2014
"Why does he look so pink?" Lena asked, looking into the little blue bassinet, "Are babies supposed to be that pink?"
"You we're just as pink," Seth responded without answering her question, "Maybe even more pink than him."
"Really? I don't believe it," Lena frowned as she put on her "serious" face, "Was I that small too? Because I don't think I could ever has been that small.
"Yes, you we're that small," Anna explained, "Your we're just a tiny burst of pink, and you cried nonstop."
"Did I stink then too? Because he smells weird," Lena announced, and then turned to her aunt and uncle, "Don't you guys think he stinks?"
"No, not at all," Marissa cooed, carefully taking the baby from Anna, "He's got that fresh baby smell."
"Fresh? You're kidding, right?" Lena laughed, sounding much older then 7, "Did I also have such a crinkled up face?"
"You did, Lee-Lee," Ryan nodded, calling her by her nickname, "And you know when your face got the most crinkly? Whenever your dad made a dumb joke."
"So your saying I was crinkly all the time?" Lena smiled, glancing at Seth, "How awful!"
"Don't listen to your uncle, sweetie," Seth instructed, scooping her up in his arms, "Because he's just trying to corrupt you."
"Like she's not already corrupted," Anna rolled her eyes, as she watched Seth hold her upside down, her hair flowing straight down.
"But back to this new brother of mine," She artfully changed the subject, "When will he be able to play with me? Because I was planning on having a protégé, and I think he'd do if he wasn't so pink and wrinkly and weird smelling. So does anyone know when that's going to wear off?"
"What have you guys been teaching her?" Marissa raised an eyebrow as she rocked the blue bundle in her arms. "Hopefully you'll end up normal, Devon."
"Hey! Who says normal is good?" Lena yelled, "Unique is so the new normal!"
"Here we go again," Anna sighed shaking her head at her small daughter.
A/N: Hey everybody! Thanks for the wonderful reviews as always! I'm so proud of you! It makes me sooo happy when you take the time to just hit that little button and leave me an uplifting message- it does wonders for my inspiration. I hope you enjoyed this chapter of flashbacks. If theirs a specific flashback you'd like to see, that I didn't include, let me know! I love to write flashbacks, so I'd gladly do anything.
Well, keep on sendin those reviews!
Hope your January is kicking ass!
Stephanie