~ Lies-8 ~
Somebody ought to take you in, Try to make you love again. Try to make you like the way they feel When they're under your skin.
From what I've seen You're just one more hand me down Cause no one's tried to give you what you need. So lay all your troubles down I am with you now.
~ matchbox twenty ~
Seth's head was about to explode he was so confused. Ryan knew how to pull his chaotic thoughts together into something resembling a logical outlook on things. He was used to having him to talk to, and they'd barely spoken at all today. And what a weird day it had been. Summer had called him out of the blue and somehow he'd ended up going to sleep happily in her arms. He'd gone to her house and made her cry, left, and she'd called him back again. There had been no mention of "them", even after his "announcement" on the stairs in the middle of a screaming match. He rolled over and took up his usual position, staring at the ceiling. But she'd been pretty nice and they even had a few "moments" tonight. What did that mean? Anything? Nothing? This was all about Marissa, right? Or was Summer softening towards him?
And how was he going to tell Ryan that Marissa was doing someone else? Well, for starters, NOT in those words. The guy was just getting his feet underneath him after a horrible summer, starting to open up and think about a life beyond what he'd been limited to by his own family. How was this going to affect him? Seth was sure telling him was the right thing to do, he just didn't know how to do it. Maybe it would be best to simply tell him what he'd seen at the party. And then run, in case Ryan wanted to kill the messenger.
He sat up and took off his t-shirt, knocking Captain Oats off the nightstand. Reaching over the edge of the bed, he picked him up, apologized, and turned on his side. To make up for the horse abuse, the Captain got to share the pillow. This was the same position he'd fallen asleep in on the couch today. Maybe it would work now, too. He lay there a moment and it became clear that the plastic horse looking indifferently at him from the pillow was absolutely not going to work as a replacement for a warm, soft, curvy, clinging armful of sweet, sassy, gorgeous girl. Not even close.
****
Seth woke up and looked around, disoriented. He'd slept so hard he wasn't sure where he was for a minute. When he got his bearings back, he glanced over at the clock, shocked to find it was noon already. He got up and padded down the stairs in his robe and was almost to the kitchen when a voice stopped him in his tracks.
"Nice hair, Cohen. I like the robe, too."
"Hey. M - Marissa! Sitting on my couch. Huh. How about that? Marissa's here." While looking around quickly for Ryan, he pulled his robe closed and tied it, since he was only wearing boxers. She was smiling impishly at him, obviously in good spirits. He probably would be too, though, if he'd gotten as much play as she had this weekend. "Begging your pardon, because it's always lovely to see you, but aren't you - like, grounded?"
"Oh, my dad sent me on some errands, so I thought I'd come by and surprise Ryan."
"Indeed. How thoughtful of you. Where is the boy wonder, anyway?" Ryan was nowhere to be found.
"He's out in the pool house, taking a shower. I came in to watch TV. He should be here in a minute."
"I see. Well. A shower is next on my list also. Can I get you anything before I go? Soda? Orange juice?" A scarlet M to wear on your chest?
"No thanks, Seth. I'm fine." She turned back to the TV and he fled up the stairs.
Grabbing some clothes from the bedroom, he went to get cleaned up. While in the shower, he wondered what to do now. He'd planned on calling Summer, and as soon as she showed up, having the dreaded conversation with Ryan. He wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible. Marissa showing up put a serious crimp in his plans. He let out a sigh. He'd just have to wait until she left. He finished in the shower and put on his jeans, then started with his shirt as he went back to his room. With his shirt half on and half off, he felt for the doorknob, closing the door as he went through. He pulled his shirt down as he crossed his room, stopping in his tracks once again. Summer was sitting on his bed. Smirking.
"Don't tell me the problem with your clothing was all mine, Cohen."
He went to the window and looked out. "Is there a blinking neon sign in the front yard that invites all passing by to wander in and make themselves comfortable? Did I miss that?"
"Ryan let me in. Now quit whining and at least say hi." She had her impatient face on.
Seth shook his head. "You magically appeared in my room. You say hi first." He waited for her to snap at him. Instead she looked pleased. He backed away from her a little.
"I suppose I do owe you an explanation. Oh yeah. Hi Seth!" She was smiling and bubbly. He waved two fingers at her and wondered if stress had turned her brain a little bit jell-o-ish.
She patted the bed next to her. "Come sit down and I'll tell you the deal."
He walked over and sat, watching her warily. "Did you get any sleep? Are you feeling ok?"
"Yes I did. I slept till ten. I feel so much better today. How about you?" She smiled at him again.
"I just got up actually. I tripped over Marissa downstairs, came up and took a shower, and here we are." Since when did she care how he slept?
"Ok. Here's the deal. I got up and kept waiting for you to call, and when you didn't, I was worried that you were going to talk to him by yourself, or that whatever he was upset about last night was really bad. So I decided to just come over and see what was going on. I wanted - uh, yeah." She suddenly seemed a little unsure.
"I was going to call you, I just slept in. Then Marissa was downstairs." He watched her thoughtfully. "It's really nice of you to be so concerned about Ryan."
She dropped her eyes to the floor. "Yeah. It's going to be tough on - um, him." She continued without looking at him. "Oh hey, by the way, when I saw Coop's car, I wasn't going to stop, but Ryan was out by your truck and saw me. And I had to make something up to explain me being here so Itoldhimwe'rebacktogether."
Seth turned his head in an attempt to get his ear closer and hear better. "I'm sorry. What did you just say?"
"I told Ryan we werebacktogether." The painting of a boat on the wall was suddenly fascinating to her.
"Oh-kay. And Marissa?" Seth wouldn't let the smile tugging at his lips appear. "What did you tell her?"
Summer looked down and out of the corner of her eye at him. "I didn't want to be stuck down there with them, so I sorta growled on the way through saying you were supposed to call me earlier and didn't and now you were up to your ass in trouble."
He nodded, pressing his lips together to keep from cracking a smile. "My ass, huh? That's interesting."
"Shut it, Cohen. You seem to be enjoying this a little too much." She frowned at him.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her up off the bed. "Summer, Summer, Summer. I haven't begun to enjoy it yet." They got out into the hall, and she dug her heels into the carpet.
"What the hell are you doing? I thought we could just stay in your room till she left!"
He put his hand over her mouth quickly. "Shhhhhh. You don't want them to hear, do you?" She glared at him. "Summer darling, I am so thirsty. We need to get a drink from the kitchen, don't you think?" He whispered in her ear. "Now play nice when we get downstairs."
He tugged her down to the living room, where she plastered on a smile and followed him willingly into the kitchen. Ryan and Coop looked up from their conversation and she waved halfheartedly at them. Seth led her to the refrigerator and opened it. "What would you like, Summer?"
She jerked her hand out of his. "My HAND back!" she hissed at him.
He pulled her into a hug and talked quietly in her ear. "I don't know why you're so mad. YOU told them we were back together."
She whispered back. "Just to get in the house, you idiot. I planned on not coming out of your room till Coop left." His smirk infuriated her and she stomped on his foot.
He closed his eyes and let out a strangled "ouch", but didn't let go of her. When he opened his eyes again, she was returning his smirk.
"I told them you're in trouble. We're supposed to be fighting, remember?" She whispered, trying to pull away from him.
"Yes, actually I did, but I was hoping you wouldn't." His eyes flicked from her face up over her shoulder and suddenly he was kissing her, holding her closer. Her first instinct was to pull away, but then she heard someone coming into the kitchen behind her and one of Seth's hands was in her hair and she was dizzy and confused. She instinctively leaned into him and her arms went up around his neck. She relaxed into it, kissing him back, and she didn't care if anyone else was in the room, she didn't care if they were on stage in front 10,000 people; she'd forgotten how his lips felt on hers, and how the muscles in his back felt under her hands, and how his fingers tracing across her back sent shivers streaking through her. How could she ever have forgotten? Their tongues met and explored and someone moaned very softly, probably only loud enough for them to hear.
There was a cough behind them, and Seth pulled away, glaring at Ryan over her shoulder. She dropped her forehead against his chest, dazed, just like those girls she always made fun of in those books.
Ryan spoke softly. "I'm REALLY sorry, man, but - " He gestured at the refrigerator, and Seth looked around at it. The door was still open, and they were standing directly in front of it, blocking all access.
"Oh. Sorry dude." He led Summer through the kitchen to the family room on the far side of the house.
He turned back to her, bending to kiss her and twining the fingers of both hands into hers as their palms met. He broke the kiss and backed up, their eyes locked on each other, bringing her with him to the couch. He sat and pulled her down next to him. His arms went around her and he kissed her again, gently lowering her back onto the cushions. He slid on top of her and buried his face in her shoulder.
Summer couldn't think. She didn't want to. She was lost in his eyes and his hands and his mouth, and the feelings of sweet tension and utter peace swirling through her. He slid on top of her and she held his head to her shoulder, running her hand across his dark curls and tracing patterns on his back with the other.
His voice was low. "God, I've missed you."
His words snapped her out of her dream world and back to reality. She tensed up. "What are we doing? You don't have to pretend, they can't see us now!"
He raised himself on one elbow and looked down at her, confused. "Summer, calm down. I'm not pretending. I told you I wanted you back, and that's as real as it gets. I thought - when you kissed me back - I thought you wanted that too."
This time she let herself fall into his warm, sweet eyes. She relaxed under him and took a deep breath. "I do, but -" The words wouldn't come.
His eyes flooded with relief. "You do? Really?"
She nodded. "But I -"
His eyes went flat. "But you can't?"
There was shouting and a scream, then they heard a door slam loudly in the house. They looked at each other, equally freaked, and ran for the living room.
No one was there and Seth quickly spotted Ryan in the hall, leaning against the door to the bathroom, his eyes closed. Summer saw him then, and they both hurried toward him.
"What's goin' on, man?"
Instead of answering, Ryan turned and knocked on the door. "Come on, Marissa! Open the door and we'll talk! We have to talk about it!"
She didn't answer, and Summer stepped up to the door. "Hey, Coop! Why don't you let me in and we'll talk. You can tell me what's going on and we'll figure it out." She shot a questioning look at Ryan and mouthed "What happened?"
Seth whispered to her to keep talking to Marissa. She did, and he pulled Ryan away from the door and down the hall. "What happened? C'mon Ryan. Is she all right?" For just a second, he could see the stricken expression in Ryan's eyes before he looked down.
"I don't know. She flipped. I didn't want this to happen. I thought she was better. I didn't think she'd lose it like that." He raised his eyes to Seth. "I didn't know."
"Ok, buddy. I believe you. We all thought she was better. Now why did she flip? What happened?"
Guilt filled Ryan's face. "We broke up. I - I broke up with her. She started saying all these things and now I wish I hadn't. I never dreamed she'd -" he raised a hand toward the bathroom "- act like this."
"What things? What was she saying?" Seth grabbed his arm to get his attention again.
"That I never loved her, and it was all just a competition with Luke, and I just used her. She said now that I'm used to being here, I don't need her anymore. That I just used her to pave my way into Newport society. I didn't do that, did I, Seth?"
Seth had never seen Ryan so torn up. When his mom had left, everyone knew he was falling apart, but you rarely if ever saw it. Over time he'd opened up, and he showed his feelings sometimes. But never like this.
Seth was doing a slow burn, and it was quickly becoming too hot to handle. The bitch had a lot of nerve laying a guilt trip on Ryan after what she'd been doing. He took a deep breath and reminded himself she was ill. It didn't help much.
"Here's a news flash for you, Ry. I know you love her, it wasn't a competition, you never used her. And neither one of us are "into Newport Society". They don't accept us, just sometimes tolerate us." He grabbed Ryan by both arms. "Listen to me, dude. You haven't done anything wrong. She's trying to make you feel guilty, and it's working. Don't let it happen. Anyone would have dumped her after what she did." Seth started down the hall. Summer was still trying to talk Marissa into opening the door.
Ryan nodded, staring absently at the wall. He suddenly focused, and he grabbed Seth's arm. "What do you mean, what she did?"
His eyes got wide. "W-What she did? Why, exactly did you break up with her again, Ryan? Why?" Oh God. What just happened? Seth was horrified.
Ryan's face was stone. "She lied to me today. Again. And because I've been thinking about a future. Mine. She's better, but she still reminds me of my mom. She'll lean on me as long as I let her, and she'll never get completely well. I want to concentrate on my future, not take care of her. Not until she learns how to do it herself. I DO love her, but, I can't do this." His voice broke, and he looked away.
"And what did she lie about?"
"I thought about breaking up all last night. I still wasn't sure, and then she showed up here today, saying her dad had sent her to run errands. That was the end for me."
"Huh?"
"Jimmy's out of town until tomorrow. Sandy told me. He's been gone all weekend and she never said a word. I didn't think too much about it. I just figured she was doing her time, still grounded whether he was home or not. Now. What were you talking about?"
"She - she didn't tell you about the party?" Ryan stared at him. "Right. She didn't tell you." Seth put a hand on his arm. "Maybe we should go sit down. I think that's a good idea."
"Damn it, Seth, I don't want to sit down! Just tell me!"
Ryan was about to explode. Seth thought fast. How was he going to do this? He'd had it all worked out. "Ok, buddy. Remember when I wanted to talk to you last night? And you didn't want to talk? Well, this was going to be the topic. You know I went to that party to look for Summer. To beg for another chance like you told me to?"
"Get to the point, Seth."
Seth thought he might throw up. He closed his eyes. "I saw her there. With another guy." He opened his eyes to see how Ryan was taking it. Nothing had changed. Still stone.
Ryan shook his head. "It could have been someone that looks like her."
Seth's voice was soft. "I'm sorry, man. I made sure. It was Marissa." Still no change on Ryan's face.
He looked down, then back up at Seth. "Doing what? With who?"
Seth shook his head. "Dude, it doesn't matter."
"It does to me. You're my brother. Please." Very softly.
Things got blurry as his eyes filled. He blinked until they cleared, holding Ryan's gaze with his own. He felt someone take his hand. Summer. "Ryan." He swallowed hard. "She was in bed with Jake."
"You saw this?"
Seth nodded slowly. "I saw it. I'm so sorry."
****
Somebody ought to take you in, Try to make you love again. Try to make you like the way they feel When they're under your skin.
From what I've seen You're just one more hand me down Cause no one's tried to give you what you need. So lay all your troubles down I am with you now.
~ matchbox twenty ~
Seth's head was about to explode he was so confused. Ryan knew how to pull his chaotic thoughts together into something resembling a logical outlook on things. He was used to having him to talk to, and they'd barely spoken at all today. And what a weird day it had been. Summer had called him out of the blue and somehow he'd ended up going to sleep happily in her arms. He'd gone to her house and made her cry, left, and she'd called him back again. There had been no mention of "them", even after his "announcement" on the stairs in the middle of a screaming match. He rolled over and took up his usual position, staring at the ceiling. But she'd been pretty nice and they even had a few "moments" tonight. What did that mean? Anything? Nothing? This was all about Marissa, right? Or was Summer softening towards him?
And how was he going to tell Ryan that Marissa was doing someone else? Well, for starters, NOT in those words. The guy was just getting his feet underneath him after a horrible summer, starting to open up and think about a life beyond what he'd been limited to by his own family. How was this going to affect him? Seth was sure telling him was the right thing to do, he just didn't know how to do it. Maybe it would be best to simply tell him what he'd seen at the party. And then run, in case Ryan wanted to kill the messenger.
He sat up and took off his t-shirt, knocking Captain Oats off the nightstand. Reaching over the edge of the bed, he picked him up, apologized, and turned on his side. To make up for the horse abuse, the Captain got to share the pillow. This was the same position he'd fallen asleep in on the couch today. Maybe it would work now, too. He lay there a moment and it became clear that the plastic horse looking indifferently at him from the pillow was absolutely not going to work as a replacement for a warm, soft, curvy, clinging armful of sweet, sassy, gorgeous girl. Not even close.
****
Seth woke up and looked around, disoriented. He'd slept so hard he wasn't sure where he was for a minute. When he got his bearings back, he glanced over at the clock, shocked to find it was noon already. He got up and padded down the stairs in his robe and was almost to the kitchen when a voice stopped him in his tracks.
"Nice hair, Cohen. I like the robe, too."
"Hey. M - Marissa! Sitting on my couch. Huh. How about that? Marissa's here." While looking around quickly for Ryan, he pulled his robe closed and tied it, since he was only wearing boxers. She was smiling impishly at him, obviously in good spirits. He probably would be too, though, if he'd gotten as much play as she had this weekend. "Begging your pardon, because it's always lovely to see you, but aren't you - like, grounded?"
"Oh, my dad sent me on some errands, so I thought I'd come by and surprise Ryan."
"Indeed. How thoughtful of you. Where is the boy wonder, anyway?" Ryan was nowhere to be found.
"He's out in the pool house, taking a shower. I came in to watch TV. He should be here in a minute."
"I see. Well. A shower is next on my list also. Can I get you anything before I go? Soda? Orange juice?" A scarlet M to wear on your chest?
"No thanks, Seth. I'm fine." She turned back to the TV and he fled up the stairs.
Grabbing some clothes from the bedroom, he went to get cleaned up. While in the shower, he wondered what to do now. He'd planned on calling Summer, and as soon as she showed up, having the dreaded conversation with Ryan. He wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible. Marissa showing up put a serious crimp in his plans. He let out a sigh. He'd just have to wait until she left. He finished in the shower and put on his jeans, then started with his shirt as he went back to his room. With his shirt half on and half off, he felt for the doorknob, closing the door as he went through. He pulled his shirt down as he crossed his room, stopping in his tracks once again. Summer was sitting on his bed. Smirking.
"Don't tell me the problem with your clothing was all mine, Cohen."
He went to the window and looked out. "Is there a blinking neon sign in the front yard that invites all passing by to wander in and make themselves comfortable? Did I miss that?"
"Ryan let me in. Now quit whining and at least say hi." She had her impatient face on.
Seth shook his head. "You magically appeared in my room. You say hi first." He waited for her to snap at him. Instead she looked pleased. He backed away from her a little.
"I suppose I do owe you an explanation. Oh yeah. Hi Seth!" She was smiling and bubbly. He waved two fingers at her and wondered if stress had turned her brain a little bit jell-o-ish.
She patted the bed next to her. "Come sit down and I'll tell you the deal."
He walked over and sat, watching her warily. "Did you get any sleep? Are you feeling ok?"
"Yes I did. I slept till ten. I feel so much better today. How about you?" She smiled at him again.
"I just got up actually. I tripped over Marissa downstairs, came up and took a shower, and here we are." Since when did she care how he slept?
"Ok. Here's the deal. I got up and kept waiting for you to call, and when you didn't, I was worried that you were going to talk to him by yourself, or that whatever he was upset about last night was really bad. So I decided to just come over and see what was going on. I wanted - uh, yeah." She suddenly seemed a little unsure.
"I was going to call you, I just slept in. Then Marissa was downstairs." He watched her thoughtfully. "It's really nice of you to be so concerned about Ryan."
She dropped her eyes to the floor. "Yeah. It's going to be tough on - um, him." She continued without looking at him. "Oh hey, by the way, when I saw Coop's car, I wasn't going to stop, but Ryan was out by your truck and saw me. And I had to make something up to explain me being here so Itoldhimwe'rebacktogether."
Seth turned his head in an attempt to get his ear closer and hear better. "I'm sorry. What did you just say?"
"I told Ryan we werebacktogether." The painting of a boat on the wall was suddenly fascinating to her.
"Oh-kay. And Marissa?" Seth wouldn't let the smile tugging at his lips appear. "What did you tell her?"
Summer looked down and out of the corner of her eye at him. "I didn't want to be stuck down there with them, so I sorta growled on the way through saying you were supposed to call me earlier and didn't and now you were up to your ass in trouble."
He nodded, pressing his lips together to keep from cracking a smile. "My ass, huh? That's interesting."
"Shut it, Cohen. You seem to be enjoying this a little too much." She frowned at him.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her up off the bed. "Summer, Summer, Summer. I haven't begun to enjoy it yet." They got out into the hall, and she dug her heels into the carpet.
"What the hell are you doing? I thought we could just stay in your room till she left!"
He put his hand over her mouth quickly. "Shhhhhh. You don't want them to hear, do you?" She glared at him. "Summer darling, I am so thirsty. We need to get a drink from the kitchen, don't you think?" He whispered in her ear. "Now play nice when we get downstairs."
He tugged her down to the living room, where she plastered on a smile and followed him willingly into the kitchen. Ryan and Coop looked up from their conversation and she waved halfheartedly at them. Seth led her to the refrigerator and opened it. "What would you like, Summer?"
She jerked her hand out of his. "My HAND back!" she hissed at him.
He pulled her into a hug and talked quietly in her ear. "I don't know why you're so mad. YOU told them we were back together."
She whispered back. "Just to get in the house, you idiot. I planned on not coming out of your room till Coop left." His smirk infuriated her and she stomped on his foot.
He closed his eyes and let out a strangled "ouch", but didn't let go of her. When he opened his eyes again, she was returning his smirk.
"I told them you're in trouble. We're supposed to be fighting, remember?" She whispered, trying to pull away from him.
"Yes, actually I did, but I was hoping you wouldn't." His eyes flicked from her face up over her shoulder and suddenly he was kissing her, holding her closer. Her first instinct was to pull away, but then she heard someone coming into the kitchen behind her and one of Seth's hands was in her hair and she was dizzy and confused. She instinctively leaned into him and her arms went up around his neck. She relaxed into it, kissing him back, and she didn't care if anyone else was in the room, she didn't care if they were on stage in front 10,000 people; she'd forgotten how his lips felt on hers, and how the muscles in his back felt under her hands, and how his fingers tracing across her back sent shivers streaking through her. How could she ever have forgotten? Their tongues met and explored and someone moaned very softly, probably only loud enough for them to hear.
There was a cough behind them, and Seth pulled away, glaring at Ryan over her shoulder. She dropped her forehead against his chest, dazed, just like those girls she always made fun of in those books.
Ryan spoke softly. "I'm REALLY sorry, man, but - " He gestured at the refrigerator, and Seth looked around at it. The door was still open, and they were standing directly in front of it, blocking all access.
"Oh. Sorry dude." He led Summer through the kitchen to the family room on the far side of the house.
He turned back to her, bending to kiss her and twining the fingers of both hands into hers as their palms met. He broke the kiss and backed up, their eyes locked on each other, bringing her with him to the couch. He sat and pulled her down next to him. His arms went around her and he kissed her again, gently lowering her back onto the cushions. He slid on top of her and buried his face in her shoulder.
Summer couldn't think. She didn't want to. She was lost in his eyes and his hands and his mouth, and the feelings of sweet tension and utter peace swirling through her. He slid on top of her and she held his head to her shoulder, running her hand across his dark curls and tracing patterns on his back with the other.
His voice was low. "God, I've missed you."
His words snapped her out of her dream world and back to reality. She tensed up. "What are we doing? You don't have to pretend, they can't see us now!"
He raised himself on one elbow and looked down at her, confused. "Summer, calm down. I'm not pretending. I told you I wanted you back, and that's as real as it gets. I thought - when you kissed me back - I thought you wanted that too."
This time she let herself fall into his warm, sweet eyes. She relaxed under him and took a deep breath. "I do, but -" The words wouldn't come.
His eyes flooded with relief. "You do? Really?"
She nodded. "But I -"
His eyes went flat. "But you can't?"
There was shouting and a scream, then they heard a door slam loudly in the house. They looked at each other, equally freaked, and ran for the living room.
No one was there and Seth quickly spotted Ryan in the hall, leaning against the door to the bathroom, his eyes closed. Summer saw him then, and they both hurried toward him.
"What's goin' on, man?"
Instead of answering, Ryan turned and knocked on the door. "Come on, Marissa! Open the door and we'll talk! We have to talk about it!"
She didn't answer, and Summer stepped up to the door. "Hey, Coop! Why don't you let me in and we'll talk. You can tell me what's going on and we'll figure it out." She shot a questioning look at Ryan and mouthed "What happened?"
Seth whispered to her to keep talking to Marissa. She did, and he pulled Ryan away from the door and down the hall. "What happened? C'mon Ryan. Is she all right?" For just a second, he could see the stricken expression in Ryan's eyes before he looked down.
"I don't know. She flipped. I didn't want this to happen. I thought she was better. I didn't think she'd lose it like that." He raised his eyes to Seth. "I didn't know."
"Ok, buddy. I believe you. We all thought she was better. Now why did she flip? What happened?"
Guilt filled Ryan's face. "We broke up. I - I broke up with her. She started saying all these things and now I wish I hadn't. I never dreamed she'd -" he raised a hand toward the bathroom "- act like this."
"What things? What was she saying?" Seth grabbed his arm to get his attention again.
"That I never loved her, and it was all just a competition with Luke, and I just used her. She said now that I'm used to being here, I don't need her anymore. That I just used her to pave my way into Newport society. I didn't do that, did I, Seth?"
Seth had never seen Ryan so torn up. When his mom had left, everyone knew he was falling apart, but you rarely if ever saw it. Over time he'd opened up, and he showed his feelings sometimes. But never like this.
Seth was doing a slow burn, and it was quickly becoming too hot to handle. The bitch had a lot of nerve laying a guilt trip on Ryan after what she'd been doing. He took a deep breath and reminded himself she was ill. It didn't help much.
"Here's a news flash for you, Ry. I know you love her, it wasn't a competition, you never used her. And neither one of us are "into Newport Society". They don't accept us, just sometimes tolerate us." He grabbed Ryan by both arms. "Listen to me, dude. You haven't done anything wrong. She's trying to make you feel guilty, and it's working. Don't let it happen. Anyone would have dumped her after what she did." Seth started down the hall. Summer was still trying to talk Marissa into opening the door.
Ryan nodded, staring absently at the wall. He suddenly focused, and he grabbed Seth's arm. "What do you mean, what she did?"
His eyes got wide. "W-What she did? Why, exactly did you break up with her again, Ryan? Why?" Oh God. What just happened? Seth was horrified.
Ryan's face was stone. "She lied to me today. Again. And because I've been thinking about a future. Mine. She's better, but she still reminds me of my mom. She'll lean on me as long as I let her, and she'll never get completely well. I want to concentrate on my future, not take care of her. Not until she learns how to do it herself. I DO love her, but, I can't do this." His voice broke, and he looked away.
"And what did she lie about?"
"I thought about breaking up all last night. I still wasn't sure, and then she showed up here today, saying her dad had sent her to run errands. That was the end for me."
"Huh?"
"Jimmy's out of town until tomorrow. Sandy told me. He's been gone all weekend and she never said a word. I didn't think too much about it. I just figured she was doing her time, still grounded whether he was home or not. Now. What were you talking about?"
"She - she didn't tell you about the party?" Ryan stared at him. "Right. She didn't tell you." Seth put a hand on his arm. "Maybe we should go sit down. I think that's a good idea."
"Damn it, Seth, I don't want to sit down! Just tell me!"
Ryan was about to explode. Seth thought fast. How was he going to do this? He'd had it all worked out. "Ok, buddy. Remember when I wanted to talk to you last night? And you didn't want to talk? Well, this was going to be the topic. You know I went to that party to look for Summer. To beg for another chance like you told me to?"
"Get to the point, Seth."
Seth thought he might throw up. He closed his eyes. "I saw her there. With another guy." He opened his eyes to see how Ryan was taking it. Nothing had changed. Still stone.
Ryan shook his head. "It could have been someone that looks like her."
Seth's voice was soft. "I'm sorry, man. I made sure. It was Marissa." Still no change on Ryan's face.
He looked down, then back up at Seth. "Doing what? With who?"
Seth shook his head. "Dude, it doesn't matter."
"It does to me. You're my brother. Please." Very softly.
Things got blurry as his eyes filled. He blinked until they cleared, holding Ryan's gaze with his own. He felt someone take his hand. Summer. "Ryan." He swallowed hard. "She was in bed with Jake."
"You saw this?"
Seth nodded slowly. "I saw it. I'm so sorry."
****