The Sharp Hint of New Tears
Disclaimer: Still don't own The O.C.
A/N: So yes, I am aware that I haven't updated this in well...forever. But I was reading it the other day, and I just felt like I was committing a crime by not updating it. I'm not quite sure what direction I want to take this in from here on out, since I've really gone off track with this story. If you have any ideas, I'd be glad to hear them!
Lena waited for Parker to drive off, before opening up the door to her house. It wasn't too late, and she figured her mom wouldn't even know the difference. As soon as she walked in the door she heard the sound of Dev and Livvy fighting, and her mom trying to sort it out. Slipping past the argument, she went up the stairs and into her room. For one reason or another she was surprised that it was empty, as if moving all her things out wouldn't have changed it at all. It had been the room she'd lived in for almost 6 years of her life, so it was odd to see 4 plain violet walls.
"Lee?" There was a knock at the door, and Lena instantly turned to see her mother.
"Oh, hey," She smiled, realizing this was one of the first times they'd talked since she'd moved out.
"How was dance?" Anna asked, feeling like an outsider to her daughter's life. It was one of the worst feelings in the world.
"It was good," Lena replied, plastering on a fake smile as she sat on the floor. Even though she wasn't on good terms with her mom, it didn't seem right to lie. "I need to work on it a lot though, I'm not as good as I used to be."
"There's something I need to talk to you about it," Anna hadn't meant to blurt it out like that, but it was too late.
"Yeah?" Lena asked, a worried look crossing over her face. "What is it?" Anna walked over and sat on the floor, in front of Lena.
"Now, I haven't known about this for very long, and I wasn't really ready to tell you until now," Anna rambled on, not really able to get to the point.
"Mom?" Lena questioned, trying to get her to focus on the news at hand.
"Lena," Anna stated, taking her daughter's hands in hers, "I'm sick."
"Sick like how?" Lena furrowed her eyebrows, "Like the flu? Or…"
"I have cancer," Anna told her, not wanting it to be a guessing game. Lena's mouth dropped open, and her eyes clouded over with tears. It was obvious that this news had come as more than a surprise to her, which was expected. She felt as if someone had kicked her in the stomach and left her gasping for air.
"What?" Lena finally breathed, her face becoming pale, "Your lying…this is a joke, right?"
"No, sweetie," Anna shook her head, trying not to cry herself. Obviously Lena hadn't been able to hold back her tears, because they were falling freely down her face. Anna pulled Lena to her, stroking the back of her hair as she tried to calm her down. By now Lena was sobbing uncontrollably, her face pressed to her mother's shoulder as she tried to understand what she'd just been told.
Sunlight shone through the white curtains, coaxing Summer to open her eyes. She could hear Seth's steady breathing next to her, and for once, there was no sound of children fighting, or Lena's music blaring. Rolling over, she rested her head on Seth's chest, not wanting to go back to sleep, but not wanting to get out of bed either. Then she remembered her plans for the day, including getting the invitations ready to be sent, and meeting with the caterer.
"Morning," She whispered into her fiancé's ear, before kissing his cheek, "Time to get up."
"Need…sleep," Seth groaned, swatting her away.
"Nope," Summer laughed, poking him in the arm, "If we're going to get married in a month, there's no time to sleep. As soon as we tie the knot, we've got an eternity together to sleep, or…" She stopped and kissed his lips, hoping it'd give him an incentive to wake up. He kissed her back, wrapping his arms around her as he did so.
"I'm still not getting up," He replied, his eyes still squeezed shut.
"Well I am," Summer shot back, escaping from his arms, "So you can just lay here all by yourself."
"Okay, fine," Seth rolled over, "I can deal with that."
"Hey!" Summer whined, getting up and moving towards the other side of the bed. She grabbed Seth by the arm, and attempted to yank him out of bed. "C'mon, we can't be late." Finally he resentfully got up trying his hardest not to crawl back into bed.
"There, happy?" Seth asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Very," She smiled, planting a warm kiss on his lips, "But, I'd be even happier if we made it to the meeting on time."
"Daddy?" Grayson looked up at his father, a melting ice cream cone clutched in his hand.
"Yeah?" Ryan asked, turning to see two blue eyes exactly like his staring back. Reaching out, he swiped at the dripping ice cream with a napkin, getting it before it could stain Grayson's jean jacket.
"I miss Mommy," Grayson sighed, looking down at his Nike's. His ice cream wasn't quite holding his attention anymore, and instead he'd become fascinated with a weed growing out of a crack in the sidewalk.
"What do you mean?" Ryan raised an eyebrow, as he bounced Emily on his knee. She was gnawing on the hood string of her pink jacket, while looking at her older brother out of the corner of her eye. "You saw Mommy this morning."
"She used to play with me lots," Grayson explained, looking back up, "We used to watch cartoons, and run errands, and do lots of stuff. But now she's always workin'." Ryan frowned, knowing what Grayson meant. Marissa had been a lot busier with work since her clothing line had taken off, and she wasn't around as much as she used to be.
"I know kiddo," Ryan ruffled his son's sandy blonde hair, feeling sorry for him. "But it's almost wintertime, she'll be home more." Things usually slowed down after the winter line was out, which was what Marissa was working on launching at the moment.
"Like before?" Grayson asked, his eyes lighting up.
"Just like before," Ryan promised, but felt bad about doing so. He was pretty sure his wife would be around more, but he wasn't positive. There was nothing worse then breaking a promise to your kid.
It was after midnight…later than that; it was quarter after one in the morning. Which would make it a good 2 hours and 15…now 16 minutes after her curfew. This, in turn, meant Lena was in beyond deep trouble. Sulking down the sidewalk in front of their building, tens of thousands of thoughts entered her head. What was going to happen to their family? Learning that her mother had a life threatening illness, well that wasn't something she could fathom, it was really a hit below the belt. First the divorce, and now this? Her life was falling apart…their family didn't even exist anymore.
Coping used to be Lena's strong point, but she was beyond hope, beyond faith. Finishing off the hotel sized bottle of Grey Goose in her hand, she dropped it to the ground, watching it smash into thousands of pieces. The taste stung her lips, and though the burning sensation in her throat didn't take the pain away, it at least numbed things a bit. At least it clouded things, made the intensity of her feelings that much easier to handle. Her cell phone buzzed in her pants pocket, and just like the past thirteen calls, she ignored it, knowing it was one of her parents. She knew she was in for it, as soon as she got home it'd be the end of her social life. There'd be a lecture and a punishment but at this point, getting yelled at seemed like a silly thing to worry about.
Nodding to the doorman, Lena finally reached the building, heading straight towards the elevator. She contemplated taking the stairs, just to put some more time between her and her fate, but she figured she might as well bite the bullet. Riding the elevator upwards, she passed each floor, her eyes barely open. Part of her just wanted to sink to the floor and go to sleep, worry about the conflicts in the morning. But before she could, the familiar sound of the elevator doors opening hit her ears, forcing her to collect herself and continue home. Dragging her Converse clad feet the entire way, she slid her key into the lock, twisting the handle slowly before entering the brightly lit apartment. Two sets of eyes were on her as soon as she entered, but she avoided looking back at them. Closing the door nonchalantly, she slipped off her coat and set her keys on the counter, before heading for the fridge.
"So do you have an explanation?" Her dad was the first to speak, a stern look playing on his face. Summer sat beside him at the kitchen table, hiding her face behind a coffee cup.
"An explanation for what?" Lena asked, raising an eyebrow. She knew she was playing with fire, but at this point she couldn't care less.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Lena!" Seth's voice became louder, as he stood up, "It's two in the morning, where have you been? We've been calling you all night."
"I was out," She shrugged back before taking a long drink of the water she had retrieved from the fridge. Her eyes were cold and blank, nothing like they usually were. "Big deal."
"What's gotten into you? Since when do you act this way?" He questioned, moving towards her. Even from a few steps away, he could scent the alcohol on her, which truly frightened him. She had always been a good kid, straightedge, on the right path, but lately…lately she had changed. And this wasn't something he was prepared to deal with. "Have you been drinking?"
"No father, I was at the library, doing research," Lena replied, in a mock perky tone, "And then I went to confession, you know, just my usual activities." Rolling her eyes she pushed passed him, walking towards her room.
"Catalina Kirsten Cohen, you take one more step and you're grounded until you're 30," Seth told her, folding his arms against his chest. Punishing wasn't his best suit, since usually the kids didn't really do anything to deserve it. Usually Anna was the "enforcer", the one who cracked down on Lena especially.
"Ohhh no! You've got me shaking dad," Lena spat, turning around. "Go ahead, ground me, it won't change anything. It won't change the fact that you don't give a damn about anyone but Summer!" As soon as the words left her lips, Summer tensed up, knowing that she didn't want to be involved in this conversation, if you could even call it that. She didn't have a choice though, soon enough this would be her family too, and she'd have to get used to parenting.
"You know that's not true," Seth sighed, taking a deep breath, "What is this about anyways? C'mon Lena, we used to talk, you used to tell me everything."
"Yeah, well this isn't even about me," Lena cried, getting more worked up by the minute. Right now all she wanted to do was leave, take herself out of this vulnerable situation. She was hurt, confused, angry, and a million other things, and right now, dealing was the last thing she wanted to do. "Do you even realize what's going on? Have you taken a second to pay attention to anyone else?" Tears were beginning to well up in her eyes, obstructing her vision. It felt like she was crying almost daily lately, and frankly, she was sick and tired of it. "Mom has cancer! She could fucking die at any moment, and do you care? No!"
Both Seth and Summer's eyes fell to the floor, neither of them able to grasp what Lena had just said. Lena wasn't done though, she was beyond angry, and it was about time she got these things out of her system.
"Now do you get it?" She sighed, tears falling openly now, as she choked on her breath. "Because I don't. I just…I don't understand." Back to the wall, Lena sunk to the floor, her palms wiping at the tears on her face.
"I'm sorry," Seth finally spoke, his voice soft and sincere as he knelt down next to his eldest daughter, pulling her close. "I'm so sorry Lena." There wasn't much else he could say; he barely could understand the situation himself. Even though he and Anna hadn't been on the best terms the past couple years, he couldn't imagine her not being there. Across the room, Summer sat motionless, her mouth ajar as she watched the scene before her. All she wanted to do was get up and comfort the two, but she knew right now they needed each other, and she didn't quite fit into the equation. It seemed silly that she and Anna had been competing since High School, but now that there was chance that Anna may not be around…well the thought really threw Sum for a loop. But what she did know was that things were going to change from here on out, more than likely for the worse.
A/N: So there, a lengthy, dramatic, emotional chapter for all of you awesome readers! Hopefully I'll get some feedback, and ya'll can help me decide where to go from here! Thanks a ton.
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