A/N – Yay! Thank you "O.C. writers", for Seth and Summer back together again! And don't EVER do that 'Zach and Alex' crap to me again!

A/N – Yes. "Snuck" IS a word. 

Lies 40

"You ok, kiddo?" Sandy quickly put his arm around Summer as she stumbled on the stairs beside him. They'd gone to the police station to see if there was any more information on the new murder charges, and because Summer had insisted on seeing her father. Sandy hadn't thought it was such a great idea, but soon learned the strength of her will. Seth hadn't been kidding about the girl being as stubborn as a spoiled mule.

At the last minute she'd decided she wasn't ready to face him, but still wanted to see him somehow, if that was possible. Sandy had hoped to talk to Paul but he was already out on a call, and he'd watched in amused silence as Summer took control and worked her wiles on the young detective helping them. The damage to her face was still visible after skillfully applied makeup, and she used it to her advantage. A shaky half-smile and a hand on the young man's arm as she explained her sad situation had hooked him, and he'd ushered her to a seat in his office and offered to get her coffee, soda, donut, danish. Dinner? She'd favored him with a brilliant high-beam smile for his efforts, which Sandy acknowledged as the equivalent of reeling him in. Flustered, he'd headed out of the office, then reappeared asking if she liked it with cream or sugar. Her response of "However you like it" had sent him off grinning like a fool. Sandy had called after him, "Thanks for asking! Make mine black!" and they'd shared a smile before the detective had quickly reappeared, apologizing. Sandy was positive that the young man would hand her the key to the evidence room if she asked.

Summer had soon become increasingly tense while they waited for Mr. Roberts to be moved to an interrogation room. While observing him through the one-way glass, she'd stood straight and proud, the only evidence of her inner turmoil seen in her trembling hands.

"Fine. I'm fine." Sandy's touch as he put his arm around her caused her to shudder and she grabbed the railing for support. Concentrating hard, she pushed away the creeped-out feeling. She suddenly felt faint and dizzy, sagging against the railing, and he supported her from the other side.

"You don't look fine. I don't think seeing your father did you any good." Sandy wondered if she'd slept much last night. She'd made breakfast and coffee and was dressed and ready to go when he and Kirsten had first sleepwalked into the kitchen this morning. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"I slept. And can we please not call him 'my father'?" She didn't want to tell him that she'd fallen asleep only to have another nightmare and had awakened panicked and in a cold sweat. It had so unnerved her that she'd spent the rest of the night unpacking and watching the DVD Seth had bought her. Sleep was becoming her enemy. "And I think seeing that man in handcuffs and an orange jump suit, locked away where he can't get to me will help me feel a little less paranoid. I hope. " Maybe it would end her awful life-like dreams, too. "I just didn't expect … all the emotions to hit me again like that." She stood up straight and took a deep breath. "I'm ok, now."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'm good." They walked to his car and got in. "You know, if you need to get to work, you could drop me by my house and I'll pick up my little car. I've been dying to drive it, anyway."

"I don't feel very good about you driving right now. You almost fainted a minute ago and you're on pain medication. Besides, you're my top priority; work can wait. My assistant is handling everything and he can call if he has any questions." He looked over at her, catching her making a face. "I'm sorry, I just don't think it's a good idea."

"I didn't take my medication this morning. I'm trying to get by with regular Tylenol. That other stuff makes me feel so … well, fabulous, actually. But it's like I'm missing real life when I'm on it." There were too many things she needed to be aware of and working on, and they wouldn't get done if she was stoned out of her mind.

Sandy started the car and turned to her. "How about this? Let me go with you to make the funeral arrangements. I'm afraid it might be pretty tough for you, and I'd like to be there in case it is. After that, we'll go get your car and I'll go to work."

Summer considered it for a moment.

Sandy spoke softly. "I know you want to take care of things yourself, Summer, and I respect that. I won't say a word; I'll just hang out in the background in case you faint. Do an old man a favor, ok? Seth and Kirsten and Ryan will ban me from the house if you end up in the emergency room again on my watch. Please don't make me sleep in my car."

She smiled and gave in. "Well, we can't have that. But I'm really not trying to be difficult, you know."

"It never crossed my mind. I just think this might be harder than you're imagining."

Summer sighed. "You're probably right." She gave him a shy smile. "Thanks for watching out for me."

"I got your back, girl." Sandy grinned at her and put the car in 'drive'. "I said that right, right?"

As soon as she was out of Sandy's sight, Summer ran for the ladies room. Supporting herself with both hands on the sink, she took several deep breaths. Her stomach lurched and she felt her way around the metal partition into a stall, barely making it to the toilet in time. When she finished, she sat back on her heels. There were a million decisions to be made regarding the funeral service, and she'd only thought about two or three of them beforehand. The man with the appropriately hushed voice had begun asking questions, and she'd quickly become confused and lost her composure. The sad fact was that she didn't know a thing about her own mother - her likes and dislikes, her friends, or even what she looked like. She'd spent her life thinking the woman had hated and abandoned her, and her fa – that man – had removed every piece of evidence that showed she'd lived in the same house Summer had grown up in. After standing and excusing herself, she'd walked calmly out of the office while visions of her insane father and guilt at not knowing her mom swirled in her head, overwhelming her. Once in the hallway, she'd run.

"Damn it. Now I have to fix my eye make-up." She pulled herself up on her feet and went back to the sink, rinsing her mouth and dabbing at her watery eyes with a tissue. Obviously Sandy had been right. This was just a little too much to deal with right now, as much as she hated to admit it. She went back to the office and apologized, telling the funeral director that she needed to get some more information and would come back at a later time. As they walked back to the car she glanced over at Sandy. "I just realized I don't know anything about her. It was like she'd never lived in our house … and I never wanted to know anything, anyway."

"No pictures, even?"

She shook her head. "Did you and Kirsten know her? Maybe see her at social functions?"

"No, I'm sorry. We moved here right around the time they're saying she died."

"It was just a thought." They reached the car and left, driving in silence for a while. "I guess I should just make it a private service."

"You don't have to make any decisions today, Summer. The CSI's won't release her for a while, anyway. Are you sure you feel well enough to drive?"

"I'm fine. I'll probably just go back to your house anyway. It's not very far." She glanced over and found him looking skeptical. "Really. I'm ok. Look." She held up a non-shaking hand. "I promise I won't road trip to party in Mexico, or head to Portland to see Luke. Just your house or maybe some therapeutic shopping at the most. Need anything?"

He laughed. "I got more than I'll ever need, thanks to Kirsten's shopping addiction." He pulled into her driveway and whistled. "Wow. Now that's a car. No wonder you wanted to drive it."

"I know! Isn't it amazing! Seth –" The thought of Seth made her sad. "Seth said it 'defined' me, so that's what I said I wanted. I didn't even know what it would look like." She smiled at the memory. "As soon as I saw it I fell in love. It's perfect."

"Well, I'd have to agree with Seth. It suits you." He watched as she fished for her keys in her bag.

She finally found them and looked over to him. "Thank you so much for taking me today."

"The pleasure was mine, hon. You call if you need anything, ok?"

She held up her phone. "You're on speed-dial. #2."

"Well, I'm honored to be so high on the list!"

Summer smiled and got out of the car. "See you tonight."

She parked her car and got out, looking back at the driveway entrance. No other vehicles were here, and it seemed strange to be walking into the Cohen house by herself. She picked up the paper off the porch on her way in, closing the door behind her and dropped exhausted onto the couch in the living room.

She unrolled the paper and sat up in shock. That man was staring at her from the front page, looking nothing at all like a child molester, rapist, or murderer with his 3000 dollar suit and smug businessman's expression. There was another picture beside his and she quickly scanned the caption underneath, enraged that the press would stoop so low as to put her own 17-year-old image in the paper. As it turned out, they hadn't. She ran a finger lightly over the woman's face in the photo. "Mom?" The resemblance was uncanny, and Summer was suddenly warm with happiness that she looked so much like her mother. Sadness and guilt swiftly followed. She whispered, staring at the picture. "I'm so sorry he did that to you. And that I thought all those terrible things about you."

Her cell phone rang, making her jump in fright. She grabbed it from her bag. "Hello?"

"Miss Roberts? Summer?"

"Yes?" The voice was familiar.

"This is Dr. Mead. I'm sorry to call out of the blue like this."

"Oh, hey, Doc! It's no problem. Is everything all right?"

"Yes, this is a personal call, actually. I wasn't sure if I should bother you with everything going on, but I thought this might be important for you. First, let me say how sorry I am to hear about your mother."

"Thank you. It's – it's a shock, to put it mildly."

"I'm sure, and I hope you're ok. From what I read in the paper, I understand that you were told she'd left the family?"

"OhMyGod. Is all that in the article?"

"Yes. I'm sorry."

"Well, not much I can do about it, huh? But yeah. I'd always been told she – uh – wasn't into kids, and she left."

"How horrible for you. I'm so sorry that all this is happening to you. Listen, Summer, my mother just called me. She read the paper too and was quite upset, because it seems she knew your mom. I asked if she'd talk to you, only if you wanted, of course, and she'd really like to."

Summer was stunned. "Are you serious? That is like the freakiest thing – I was just – never mind. That would be SO awesome. I don't know anything about my mom; I'd love to talk to someone who knew her."

"Well, I wasn't sure, but I thought I should at least ask you. I'm so glad I could help. This must be incredibly hard for you."

"I'm getting by. I'm staying with the Cohen's. They're such good people."

"I'm happy to hear that. I know Seth loves you very much."

"He does." She sighed, not wanting to think about that. "Thank you so much, Dr. Mead. I can't wait to talk to your mom."

"You're welcome. Oh, Summer, I almost forgot. The nurses found something belonging to you in your room after you left. They're keeping it for you at the nurse's station by the room you were in. Here's my Mom's number………"

Summer was laying the wrong way across the bed, staring at the ceiling after the phone call to Dr. Mead's mother. Mrs. Wesley had been about 10 years older than Summer's mom, but they had planned many events together and become good friends. She'd been heartbroken when she read the paper today, as she, like Summer, had always hoped Autumn would come back home someday. It had never made sense to her that she would just leave her little family like that. She'd known there were problems in the marriage, but Autumn had absolutely adored Summer, and Mrs. Wesley never believed Summer's father's story that she left on her own. She'd always suspected that Mr. Roberts forced Autumn to leave somehow, but had never guessed he was capable of killing her. They'd arranged to meet tomorrow, and the older lady had promised to go through her photo albums today and bring Summer all the pictures she had of her mother.

'Absolutely adored'. The words kept ringing in her head, and she unconsciously smiled. Her mother had 'absolutely adored' her. It felt like her heart would burst, she was so moved by solid verification of her mom's love for her. Now there were three people in the world that had loved her. Coop, her mother, and Seth.

Seth. He'd been in the back of her mind since her nightmare last night. It had taken all of her strength not to call out for him or run to his room when she woke up frightened and panicked. She'd gotten through seeing that man at the jail without giving in, but the entire time she'd been at the funeral home, she couldn't help wishing he was there with her. And as soon as she'd hung up the phone after talking with Mrs. Wesley she'd wanted so badly to push #1 on her speed dial and tell him all about it. The only time they'd been apart since Coop's meltdown was the night of her attack when she'd been in the hospital, and that didn't really count because she'd been asleep most of the time. Today had felt completely wrong without him. She was surprised at how quickly she'd lost her independence and how much she'd come to rely on him. Just like Coop had relied on Ryan? Sighing, she rolled over onto her stomach and felt around beside the bed for her bag. The main thing was – she had managed by herself today. And to prove she was controlling her future, she'd call Julie. Maybe go to one of those meetings everyone had been yapping at her about. She found the paper Julie had given her and dialed.

After locking the front door, Summer turned to walk to her car just as the H2 pulled in. She'd been dreading this moment all day; sure that Seth would be resentful or hurt that she'd left him home this morning. The last thing she needed today was another fight with him. He hopped out of the truck and greeted her with her a happy smile.

"Hey. You got your car! How's it drive?"

She looked at him skeptically, not sure if it was a joke. "It corners like it's on rails. Drives like a dream," she deadpanned.

He rolled his eyes. "You stole that from 'Pretty Woman'. Is it fast?"

She nodded. "I buried the speedometer on the freeway, outrunning the O.C.'s finest, so I guess that's fast enough."

"You did not."

She just stared.

"I almost believe you. But MY vehicle is made for rough road and is all attitude, whereas YOURS is all high performance and beauty. So it doesn't matter if yours is faster. They have different applications and strengths."

"Whatever. But you know, Cohen, you really DID look like a bad-ass driving up in that big ol' thing."

It was his turn to look skeptical. "I'll need that in writing, please."

She finally smiled. "Later. I've got a thing to go to right now."

"Cool. Cool … …" He looked at the ground, then sideways up at her. "A meeting?"

She could tell he was fishing, but she didn't mind. "Yep. I'm going with Julie."

"Hooker Nails Julie?"

"Hey! I apologized to her for that. And yes, Hooker Nails Julie."

Seth laughed. "That's awesome, Summer. I'm glad – I really got a lot out of the one I went to."

She nodded, feeling a little awkward. "So … how was your day?" Here was his chance to be mad at her. She prepared herself for his fit.

"Great! I went sailing, and then, uh, I had a thing to go to. You?"

He didn't appear to be hurt or upset at all, which made her both relieved and a little mad at the same time. "Well, it wasn't great, but I didn't get beat up or hit by a car, so I'll go with 'better that usual' for 500, Alex."

"Wow. Joking, even. Funny, in a morbid kind of way." He looked at her closely. "Was it that bad?"

She finally felt normal, at ease again, with him staring at her like that. Obvious concern on his face. Then she felt dumb, wondering what? Just because she spent one day away from him, he wouldn't love her anymore? What was she? Twelve? "There was one highlight that I'd love to tell you about, but I really have to go or I'll be late. Are you gonna be home later?"

"Yes. I will be getting reacquainted with my Playstation, if you'd care to have your ass kicked when you come home. Huh? A little 'Halo II', maybe? New Gran Turismo 4? Huh? Huh?"

"You're on."

"Really? Sweet. I didn't know you played." He started to walk away and she called out to him. "Seth?"

He stopped and turned back to her. "Summer?"

"I'm really glad you had a good day." She smiled fondly at him.

It clearly wasn't what he'd expected her to say. "Uh - thanks. I'm glad you had … um … a highlight. See you in a bit."

Summer slid into her car, thrilled to sit down again. The regular pain-killers had stopped working long ago, and all she wanted to do was get back to the Cohen's, put on some Juicy sweats, and relax. If only she HAD her sweats in the suitcase. She looked at the manila envelope in her lap, debating whether to open it now or wait until she got home. Glancing up at the hospital entrance, curiosity got the best of her and she decided there was no time like the present. She didn't remember much about leaving this last time, surely due to a 'happy' shot, so she had no idea what might have been left behind. After sliding a finger under the flap, she reached in and pulled out a greeting card. The front said "Get Well Soon" with cartoon people on both ends of a rope, playing tug of war, and while opening it, something fell out. She immediately recognized the card that Seth had put in her flowers when she was first hospitalized - the same little card that had accompanied Captain Oats and Princess Sparkle when they'd snuck into her room this last time. "OhMyGod! I put it under my pillow!" With everything else going on - new room in a new house, newly dead mom, among other life changing events, she hadn't realized it was missing, but she was instantly so grateful to have it again tears came to her eyes. It would always mean the world to her, pinpointing the moment in time when she'd begun to understand how much he might truly care. His sweet hopes and deep feelings captured in his own handwriting, words that crossed the line from thoughts too personal to share with someone whose feelings you're not sure of – to an offer of an honest friendship that scared the hell out of him, but he'd been brave enough to make anyway. Trust, honesty, love and commitment -The pact that they'd made.

She glanced up again at the card in her hand and found something else lying inside it. A photo - the passenger side of the H2 with the front door wide open, a side view of a lanky Seth while he bent to hold her, her arms around his neck as she sat up on the floorboard in the truck. She was leaning into him, as if to stop him from standing up and letting go, and her head was nestled into his shoulder and arm, looking toward the camera. Through the swelling and bruising, her face glowed with an unmistakable look of peace, contentment - happiness. The little background that showed was obviously the same parking lot she was sitting in. Not sure what to think, she let the picture slide into her lap and looked over the rest of the card. "We're pulling for you" was the original caption, and the words "both of" had been written in between 'for' and 'you'. The card had been signed; names were all over it - one section of ER staff, another of floor nurses and orderlies. "Dave & Dr. Mead" was prominently placed in the middle. Not sure whether to laugh or cry, Summer sat back in the seat, leaning her head against the plush headrest. She held the photo up again, struck by the expression on her own face, and the complete trust she obviously had in Seth at that moment. From the time she'd awakened in the ambulance after her attack, every EMT, doctor, and nurse, no matter how gentle they'd been while examining her, had made her feel drastically ill at ease, even terrifying her at times, and she'd always tried to get away from those hands. Sandy's touch, someone she was already thinking of as a sort of father figure, had made her cringe today still. But there she was in the picture, a flash of frozen time that showed her blissfully relaxed and happy in Seth's arms, clutching him around the neck and snuggling into his shoulder.

Her thoughts went back to the meeting she'd just been to with Julie. It had been both frightening and exhilarating to be in the company of people just like herself who knew exactly how her life had been transformed into something unrecognizable. Some still showed their bruises, all had deep scars that were invisible to any eye. Julie had turned out to be really cool and not at all a man burglar, just a person that liked to touch when they talk to someone. She'd told the group that when she met someone new, for her, touching that person first was one way to gain control of her own fear of being touched. Several people had spoken, some telling their entire stories, some just talking about a new situation that they'd handled well, and how they'd done it, and some hoping to find help for things they were having trouble dealing with.

Summer was sure that everyone knew who she was and what her father had done, thanks to the newspaper, but no one had mentioned it, or even been caught whispering to the person seated next to them. Julie had introduced her, and everyone had been warm, friendly, and welcoming. Period. It was a very comfortable place to be, once she realized no one was there to point fingers or gossip. She and Julie had talked for a while afterward, finding that they had a lot more in common besides the obvious. She'd given the blonde her number and they'd planned to get together in a few days. Summer had left the meeting room feeling much less like an alien inside her own body. Being with these people had made her realize that the weird things happening to her physically and mentally were to be expected, could be survived, could be conquered, and that she wasn't insane and the only one trying to survive and conquer. The new friendship with Julie was nice, too.

Realizing she'd been sitting for about 10 minutes now, she carefully put the photo in the envelope and started the car. She was so tired – it would be good to get back to the Cohen's. Checking her watch, she saw that she still had enough time to throw something together for dinner before Sandy and Kirsten got home.

"Hey."

Looking back over his shoulder, Seth smiled. "Summer! You're a braver woman than I thought. Small armies have fled in terror at the thought of doing battle with 'The Playstation Master'. Yet there you stand, not even quivering in fright."

"I'm quivering on the inside, Cohen," she deadpanned. "Feel like helping me with dinner?"

"Dinner? There was real food for breakfast! I'm fairly certain that civilization as we know it would end if two meals were prepared in this house all in the span of a mere 24 hours."

"I'll take my chances. Chinese take-out sounds nauseating today." She turned and headed to the kitchen.

"I'm warning you! Take heed! The sun's nurturing rays of light will be blocked and, and the sky will fall, and volcanic ash will cover the – the everything!" He eagerly followed her into the kitchen.

"And which movie did you borrow those scenarios from?" She spoke with her head in the refrigerator.

"Ah. Not all movies. That would be an episode of 'Angel', the movie 'Volcano' or 'Dante's Peak' which is decided by whether you prefer Anne Heche pre-born again straight woman or Pierce Brosnan as SO not 'Bond, James Bond', and um, the Chicken Little saga. Not respectively, of course. Because Chicken Little has never to my knowledge made an appearance in any disaster films regarding volcanoes or volcanic ash."

"That would probably be kinda rough on his little feathers, huh?" Summer began throwing ingredients out of the refrigerator onto the counter. "Can you make salad?"

"As in chopping tomatoes and shredding lettuce and such kind of salad?"

"Yes."

"I am capable."

She tossed him a head of lettuce that he barely caught. He grabbed a large bowl and a knife, then went back to the fridge for tomatoes and some eggs to boil. "So. How'd it go? Or would you rather not talk about it. With me. Cuz that's totally cool."

"It was good. I'm really glad I went, because I learned some things." She stood still, hands motionless over the ground beef as she debated whether to show him the card from their friends at the hospital.

"You ok? Or is that some kind of magical thing you're doing with your hands over the hamburger?"

"Seth, I went to see that man this morning. I don't want to call him by his title because he's dead to me." She turned to look at him.

He'd stopped washing the lettuce was staring at her, wide eyed. " 'That man'. Got it. So how – how did uh, how did that go? Did you talk to him?"

She shook her head. "I was going to, but then I decided that would probably be what he wants. I just saw him through one-way glass."

"Was he in handcuffs?"

"And a lovely orange jumpsuit, with – what are they called? – feetcuffs?"

Seth refused to laugh. "Uuuuh, no. Those would be 'shackles'. Do you feel, like, safer, somehow now?"

"I do."

"Then I'm glad you went. And I think you're incredibly brave, by the way."

She made a wry face. "Not really. I couldn't handle the funeral home. Mainly because I didn't know anything about my mother."

"You – you went to the FUNERAL home by yourself? Good Lord, Summer, you must be made of steel! Walking through that door is no easy task for anyone, let alone someone who's seen as much pain as you have lately." He shook his head admiringly. "I'm really proud of you."

She smiled shyly, unsure. "Really? I had to leave – it was just too much. Plus I couldn't answer any questions about her!"

"That doesn't matter. You'll find out some things somehow, I'm sure."

"Well, that brings me to the highlight of my day. You are NEVER gonna believe this, Cohen. Dr. Mead called me today? And her mom called her after she saw the paper today? –"

"Wait. What about the paper?" Seth had a bad feeling.

"Oh. That man is front page news."

"Oh geez. I'm sorry, that's - harsh." Just what she needed.

"Yeah, but kind of not. Because Dr. Mead's mom? Was friends with my mom! Isn't that the craziest! I talked to her today and we're gonna meet tomorrow and she's going to bring pictures and stuff that she has. And you know what she said?" Summer broke into a smile.

Seth smiled too, just happy to see her so happy. "Tell me."

"Mrs. Wesley said that my mom adored me. That she absolutely adored me. Isn't that amazing?"

Seth walked over and hugged her gently. "That is so cool, Summer. Didn't I tell you? Anyway, how could she not adore you?"

Summer hugged him back, waiting for the bad feelings to hit, but they didn't. She just felt … good, with his hands on her back and her forehead against his chest.

The phone rang and he reluctantly let go of her to pick it up off the counter. "Hello?… Hey, Mom …… Why not?…………… I see. Well, that's just more meatloaf for me, I guess …… Yes, she did …… Oh, all right. I'll save you guys some ………… I'll tell her. See ya later on, then." He disconnected and set the phone down, turning back to her. "You, Miss Roberts, have been ordered to get off your feet and rest, because you had a rough day. Mom says also that you are not required to cook at every meal, however much Dad and Ryan and I may wheedle, cajole, bribe, or browbeat you about it."

"Nobody's asked me to cook. I like to. It's the least I can do - "

"Stop right there. You're not to do anything around here except relax and feel better. And trust me, it won't be long be long before the begging and bribing begins." He pointed at a stool at the island. "Park it."

She narrowed her eyes at him.

He put a hand on one hip and perfectly imitated one of her threatening poses. "Do it, Roberts. Don't MAKE me put you there myself."

"If you think imitating me is going to help your case – " She let out a shriek as he picked her up and quickly sat her on the stool.

"Never let it be said that Seth Cohen is full of empty threats." He got a soda out the fridge, grabbed a glass and set it in front of her, pouring the soda into it. "How are you feeling? You weren't getting around very well – do you need some meds?"

She'd had her mouth open to yell at him, but his thoughtfulness stopped her. "Dammit, Cohen. I can't stay mad at you! This could develop into a serious problem, if I'm not careful."

"Ah ha! You can't deny your feelings! I am making progress. Now, what do I do with this unappealing mass of … cow?" He stared curiously at the stuff in the bowl.

Realizing he might be right, she decided to ignore his statement. "Rip up the bread into crumbs and throw it in there. And I'd like some Advil, please. I'm trying to stay away from the hard stuff."

"Be right back." He left the room and was back in a minute with the bottle. "Does this stuff work for you?"

"A little. But I can't think straight on the other stuff. Now wash your hands and mush the breadcrumbs into the meat. I already put everything else it needs in there."

"You want me to … MUSH it together? With my fingers?" He looked at it doubtfully while washing his hands.

"Yep. Then just smoosh in the meatloaf dish and stick it in the oven."

"Huh. Mushing and smooshing. Sounds like I shouldbe kissingsled dogs, not makingmeatloaf." He finished it and slid it in the oven. "Now what?"

"Well, if I'm allowed to walk, we can go in the living room and do the Playstation thing."

"Awesome!" He picked her up again and carried her into the living room. "You're not allowed to walk."

He nodded. "Ok.