A/N: This is right after the last chapter, if you haven't noticed. And I'm sort of writing this as I go, so I'm not really sure what pairings might pop up. Beware. Might have slash might not. :D R&R Don't be afraid to be mean in the reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own The OC or any of the people in it. Don't sue me, etc. etc. etc.

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Summer stood up, straightening her shirt and skirt. She looked a little flustered.

"Hey. Sorry. I was with Seth, in here, and he went to go get something…" Noticing the look on Ryan's face, she added, "What's wrong?" Ryan shrugged, and started backing up.

"Nothing. I'm just going to go back into the house. Leave you and Seth here…" He stammered, reaching for the doorknob.

Summer stopped him quickly. "Marissa? What did she do?" She asked quietly, peeling Ryan's fingers off the doorknob. "Tell me."

"Its just… I… kissed her and she yelled at me. Ran off. I thought that she might… Never mind. Its nothing." Ryan said, afraid to look Summer in the eye. It was, after all, her best friend that she was talking about.

Summer sighed. Ryan deserved better than Marissa. "I'm sorry."

Ryan shrugged. "It's not your fault. Its mine. I shouldn't have assumed. I mean, she's still with Alex. Which apparently means more to her than what we ever had. Which apparently was nothing, in Marissa's eyes. You know, I loved her. I really did. I had to leave, you know? And I come back and I see her with D.J. and I find Lindsay and then, today when her relationship is falling apart I thought I might give us another chance, but Marissa didn't want to."

"Wow, Chino.

"What?"

"I've never heard you talk so much. That was Seth worthy." Ryan laughed at the look of amazement on Summer's face. It was a pretty painful laugh, like all of his misery was in it and it scratched at his throat when it came out. Summer touched Ryan's arm lightly, in a consoling way, feeling the defined muscles underneath his shirt.

"Marissa, she's gone a little crazy. I've seen her house, you have too. It's a mess. She obviously can't take care of herself. I mean, Marissa is my best friend and I love her, but you should just forget about her. You'll be able to find someone else soon. I mean, you are really hot." She said, grinning. Ryan smiled in return, sheepishly, and suddenly aware of how close he was to Summer, to her shiny brown hair and big chocolate eyes and her full red lips, and her dainty little hand on his arm.

Suddenly, those same red lips were against his for what seemed an eternity, until they heard Seth's light footsteps heading for the pool house. Summer pulled away sadly, and returned to her seat on the bed. Ryan was frozen, the memory of the kiss playing over and over. Seth swung open the door; beginning to say something when he realized Ryan was there.

"Hey man. Sorry about stealing your pool house. We can just leave if you want…" He said awkwardly. Messing around in your best friends bed? Kind of creepy. Creepier when you got caught, he thought, especially by the friend.

Summer stood up hurriedly. "I have got to go anyways. I'll see you in school. Both of you. Probably Seth more because… Anyways. I'll call you. Seth, I mean. I mean, why would I call Ryan?" She sensed she was beginning to ramble like Seth, and quickly walked out the door.

Seth shrugged, gave Ryan a long, questioning look, and followed her out the door. Ryan sat down on his bed, clutching his head. He couldn't believe what just happened. Had Summer kissed him? Really? The Summer Roberts? He couldn't let it happen again of course. Before, if he ever thought about how pretty Summer was, he thought of Marissa and Seth, who would both kill him if they found out how he thought of her. But now, Marissa didn't really matter to him. He burned her in his mind, how she had said she loved him and then broke his heart. Of course, he wouldn't really admit that she broke his heart, he was too masculine for that, but he knew that she had.

Ryan skipped dinner, staying in the pool house and studying. That night, he dreamed of Summer.

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Early the next morning, Ryan woke up to find Seth sitting in the chair he always occupied, reading the Arts and Leisure section, sipping his coffee. Ryan was more than a little disturbed.

"Have you been just sitting here while I slept?" Ryan asked in amazement as he stood up, heading for the bathroom. Seth shrugged.

"We have to talk. Summer told me what happened."

Ryan froze. Fear coursed through his veins. Not of Seth hurting him, but simply dropping him (though the geek probably wouldn't have much experience in that arena). Ryan loved having Seth as a friend, no matter how he acted. "Wh- what?"

"About how you kissed Marissa? Its okay man. And I have an idea how to get over her." Seth said, neatly folding his newspaper and placing it on the table next to him. The knot in Ryan's stomach loosened, and he turned to face the gangly kid.

"What? How?" He refused to say that he was already practically over Marissa, and that he now liked his best friend's girlfriend.

"You need to find someone new. Not a relationship. Just, you know. Embrace the Chino pimp inside of you, Ry. You know you want to." Seth said, placing his blue coffee mug on top of the newspaper.

Ryan sighed. "I don't really want to. There's no one that I'm really interested. They are all preppy little bitches."

Seth rolled his eyes. "Well then I will have to find you someone. It won't be easy, that's for sure, but I will! Your Chino pimp will be let out, because you know, I might find more than one, that would fit your tastes. Nice, huh? Now whose the pimp? Huh? Huh?" Ryan rolled his eyes at Seth and stepped into the bathroom, closing the door loudly.

Seth scoffed, and murmured to himself, "Bet he's taking a nice cold shower."

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It was around five o'clock that Seth entered the pool house, the yearbook and a list of names in hand. Ryan looked up from his bio textbook, only to look back down. Not Pimp Seth again, he thought wearily.

The Jewish kid sat down in his chair, and looked at Ryan until he looked up. "Ryan, I know you aren't the biggest fan of this whole meaningless hook-up to get over Marissa idea, but just hear me out. I have a list of girls that might interest you, as well as pictures, and the fact that they are interested. It seems you have collected quite a harem, Mr. Atwood."

Ryan rolled his eyes, but closed his textbook at sat up as Seth joined him on the bed, opening his yearbook to the first person on his list.

"Marie Weisman?"

"No."

"Allie Alfanto?"

"No."

"Lauri Anania?"

"No…"

"Leah Blekhar?"

"No…"

"Kelli O'Donald?"

"No."

"Okay here's someone really hot… Alexandra Sheller?"

"Mmm… No."

"Okay, obviously you don't want any girls in our school. I have one more option though." Seth said, looking Ryan in the eye seriously.

Expecting another underfed, spoiled preppy girl from Orange County, Ryan asked, "Who?" exasperatedly.

"Me."

Ryan laughed, thinking Seth was joking, but the laugh died quickly when he saw Seth wasn't laughing. This was an interesting turn of events.

Before Ryan could say anything Seth was kissing him, a long, sweet kiss. Ryan's arms, which were supporting him this whole time, gave out due to pure shock and Seth rolled on top of him. Seth kissed him for what seemed eternity, until they heard footsteps outside. Seth leapt up like a leaping leaper, going back to the yearbook with feigned interest. Ryan sat up, and shakily opened his bio textbook, just before Summer jumped through the door.

Summer, right. The girl he liked. Girl. Girl, he liked.

"Ryan, Sandy said Seth went in here…" Summer saw Seth, whose face was still bright red, and skipped over to him, collapsing next to him and pulling him into a deep kiss, as if to show Ryan that what they had wasn't as important as what her and Seth had. Seth seemed freaked out that he had been making out with two people within the span of three seconds, barely kissing back.

Finally what was torturous for everyone ended, and Summer looked at the list. "Still trying to whore Ryan out? Hmmm… Marie has bad breath, Allie's stupid, Lauri is a slut, Leah is cheating on her water polo playing boyfriend, Kelli has fake boobs, and Alexandra wears FAKE Jimmy Choos."

Ryan laughed, momentarily forgetting what had just happened. "Quite a harem I have, huh, Seth? Good job, really." Seth just turned a brighter shade of red and continued looking at the yearbook.

Over his bowed back, Summer mouthed something. "Did you tell him?"

"No!" Ryan mouthed back.

"Mistake!" Summer replied.

Ryan nodded. Summer smiled. "Our little secret," She said out loud, but Seth didn't seem to notice. Ryan smiled at Summer, afraid for anyone to find out what he had been doing today and the day before.

I'll just forget about both, Ryan thought. Seth and Summer are happy with each other. I mean, I don't even have to forget about Seth because he wasn't even in my mind. I like girls. I like Summer, in fact. Seth was just trying to be nice. And that's it. Who cares if Alexandra wears fake Jimmy… whatever it is… She's hot; I'll go out with her. Marissa will be jealous. No, more importantly, Summer will be jealous. Which will be good. Because I like girls. Girls like Summer and Alexandra and used to be Marissa. But now Marissa likes girls too...

After a while Seth and Summer stopped fighting over girls in the yearbook and retired to Seth's room, probably. Ryan was left alone, with the yearbook. He flipped to Alexandra's picture again. Yeah, it would work.