Title: In Every Sunflower

Author: Erica

Disclaimer: It all belongs to FOX. The bastards…

Rating: PG-13

A/N: First off, thanks so much for all of the reviews. I seriously appreciate them. Second, I'm just going to say right now that I already have this whole story mapped out. So, while I will consider your suggestions/requests, I can't say that they'll all be incorporated into the story. Small scenes would be easier to work in since I already have the grand scheme of things set. Also, just to be clear, this story is categorized as angst. And, trust me, it's going to be very angsty. Like, serious soap opera angst. It may be unrealistic/lame/stupid in some of your eyes but whatever. Don't read it. Don't flame me. If you don't like it, I don't want to hear about it. Everything (including what, exactly, happened with their child, cause it's not what you all think) will be explained over time.

Anyway, in my fic Jimbo and Juju got back together and then divorced again during the kids' freshman year of college just for the sake of Marissa's suffering.

I don't like this chapter but that doesn't really matter.

Oh, and, Leah, yes. It is that fic.

"I know I would apologize if I could see your eyes."- Joseph Arthur

An electronic shriek resonated throughout the Cohen kitchen and Marissa glanced down at her cell phone. She looked confused for a minute before she picked up her phone.

"Hello?" she said into the cell before getting up and walking into the next room. Ryan and Kirsten exchanged a glance.

It was a few minutes before Marissa came back in the kitchen, this time with an even stranger look on her face. It seemed to be a mixture of happiness and puzzlement and maybe even a little bit of panic.

"Who was that?" Ryan asked, taking a bite out of his bagel.

"She's coming home," was all she said.

"What?" Kirsten asked, looking up from her coffee.

"Summer. She's coming home." Marissa placed her phone on the counter in front of her. "She just called and she's coming home."

"Well, that's great," Kirsten said. "Right?"

"I think so."

"I wouldn't be too sure," Ryan said, speaking up.

Before he could continue, the front door opened and closed and a little girl with golden brown hair came speeding into the kitchen. "Mom! Mommy!" she screamed before colliding with Marissa's legs. "Mama, Grandpa and me went to the beach and I know I've been to the beach, like, a bazillion times before but it was really cool 'cause we built a sandcastle and it was really big with lots of towers and even a mote!"

Sandy entered the kitchen a few paces behind her with a smile on his face.

"Wow," Marissa said, squatting down and picking the girl up to rest on her hip. She marveled at the speed of the girl's speech and knew she must have picked that little habit up from Seth. "Thanks so much for taking her out this morning, Sandy," Marissa said.

"It was no problem," he said, waving it off. "We had fun, didn't we?"

"Yep," she said, squirming in her mother's arms. Marissa set her down and she walked over to Ryan who leaned down so she could place a kiss on his cheek. "Morning, daddy," she said.

"Morning, baby doll," he replied.

Emily was the product of a crazy night way back during Ryan and Marissa's freshman year in college. Marissa was dealing with the second divorce of Jimmy and Julie and when she went to Ryan for comfort, things happened. She found out she was pregnant and nine months later…out came Emily. They were never married and they didn't plan to be. They had learned a long time ago that they weren't exactly the perfect couple, so they stopped trying to "make this work" when, obviously, it wasn't.

"I can sense the tension in the room," Sandy said, pouring himself a glass of juice. "What's going on?"

"Marissa just talked to S-U-M-M-E-R," Kirsten said. "She said she's coming H-O-M-E."

They had learned long ago the best ways to keep private information private. Emily had a very big mouth. She knew how to spell now though, so Marissa only used the spelling trick when Emily wasn't paying attention. Like now.

"Wow," Sandy said. "When?"

"Her flight gets in tomorrow," Marissa explained.

"Are we at all worried about Seth?" Sandy asked.

Ryan spoke up. "That's what I was going to say."

"When was the last time he talked to her?"

"Well," Marissa said, "she's been gone for…seven months?"

"Nana." They were interrupted by Emily, who was tugging on Kirsten's skirt. "Can I have a glass of juice?"

"Sure thing, sweetie," Kirsten said, pulling a sippy cup for the five-year-old from the back of the cupboard. Kirsten poured the cup full and replaced the lid. Then, leaning down, she spoke to the child. "Why don't you run up to your Uncle Seth's old room and see if you can find his comic books?"

Emily smiled and took the cup from Kirsten, racing up the steps with it. Her love for comic books was yet another thing that Marissa fully and completely blamed Seth for.

Once Emily was out of earshot, the adults picked up their conversation from where they had left off. "Summer left for Seattle in August," Marissa said. "And Emily is turning six this February, so, yeah, it's been seven months."

"She called a lot," Ryan said. "It's not like they weren't keeping in touch."

"He's coming over for breakfast any minute," Kirsten informed them. "Who's going to break the news to him?"

Weekend breakfasts at the Cohen house were tradition, allowing everyone a chance to catch up. And, while usually a chatty time for everyone, right now, the room fell silent as everyone looked around at each other.

"We should ease him into it," Ryan said.

"Yeah," Marissa said. "Agreed."

"We still need to come up with a game plan, though." Sandy knew that none of them would take charge, so he had to. But, before he could come up with any sort of plan, the front door opened and shut.

"Oh, god," someone breathed.

"Hey, guys," Seth said, appearing in the doorway.

"Hey, sweetie," Kirsten said, as everyone tried to act normal.

"Mom, please, I'm, like, twenty-six years old. Can you lay off the sweeties and the honeys?"

"I'm your mother, Seth. Let me have that."

Seth made a big production of groaning before mumbling an okay as he walked over to the refrigerator. He grabbed the milk and set it on the counter before reaching into the cabinet above the fridge for the Cap'n Crunch.

"So, Seth," Ryan said, searching for something to say. "Have you closed the deal with Neutrogena?"

"Yes," Seth said, looking at him oddly. "I thought I told you already. And even if I hadn't, I figured Marissa would."

"Right," Ryan said, mentally kicking himself. "Forgot."

"Where's my favorite niece?" Seth asked, pouring his cereal into a bowl.

"She's your only niece," Marissa said. "And she's upstairs, searching for your comic books."

"I see."

"Seth," Sandy said, "are we going surfing tomorrow morning?"

"Can't," Seth said. "Summer's coming home." Everyone in the room took a second to process the words but Seth continued to talk as if he hadn't noticed anything. "She called me yesterday; said her flight was getting in tomorrow. I've got to go pick her up. I talked to her right before I left my apartment and she said she called you, Marissa."

"Um, yeah," Marissa said, finding her voice. "She called a little while ago." Marissa paused for a beat. "Seth, are you sure you're okay with this?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" he asked, taking a sip of his juice.

"You haven't seen each other since you separated last August. She moved out to Seattle." Ryan reminded him. "Neither of you has made a move either way. You're both just sitting in your corners waiting for the other person to do something. Now, she is."

Seth paused, his glass halfway between his mouth and the counter. "I didn't think of it that way," he said finally.

"Why don't you guys talk about that later?" Kirsten suggested. "It's too early to talk about that."

What Kirsten said didn't really make any sense but everyone nodded and agreed anyway because they knew Seth hadn't, up till now, looked at the situation from that perspective. They didn't want to throw everything at him at once. Instead, they would stick to the game plan they had yet to come up with.

-----

Sandy and Kirsten had cleared the table and promptly disappeared after Kirsten mumbled something about a broken bathroom sink, which everyone knew was a lie and simply an excuse to get out of the kitchen and leave the three of them to talk this over.

Seth was getting nervous and Ryan knew it wouldn't be long before he was really freaking out. When he and Summer separated, she had made plans to visit with a cousin in Seattle. It was only supposed to be for a month or so but it quickly turned into seven months and now Seth and Summer hadn't taken a step in any direction.

"What does this mean?" Seth asked, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, what am I supposed to do here?"

"We can't tell you what to do," Marissa said. "That's something you're going to have to decide on your own."

Seth groaned and rested his head in his hands. "I thought it was going to be simple. She was coming home. That was all that mattered. I didn't bother to think about what was going to happen when she was actually here."

"You guys have been at a standstill since she left," Marissa explained rationally, as if he didn't know. "Now she's coming back and the ball's in your court. You just have to figure out what to do next."

"Why does this have to be so complicated?" Seth said, throwing his hands up in defeat. "If everything could just go back to the way it was before…" He trailed off and Ryan and Marissa knew why. No one talked about it anymore. Not since Summer left.

They sat for a while longer, letting the comfortable silence envelope them as each mulled over the situation. Ryan and Marissa knew that they couldn't tell Seth or Summer what to do. They were two of the most stubborn people either had ever met and that was probably why they fought so often. But they loved each other more than anything. That much was obvious.

Finally, Seth pushed angrily away from the table and got up. He walked towards the door, like he might be leaving, but then he stopped and put his hands in his hair. Ryan and Marissa stared at his back, wondering if he was about to rip out all of his precious curls.

"Uncle Seth!" Emily said as she came bounding into the room, a comic book in hand. "I was reading your comic books," she informed him proudly, holding up the magazine as evidence.

"That's great, kid," he said, barely glancing down at her.

Emily's face fell and she walked slowly towards Marissa. "Is he mad at me?" she asked. "Because Nana told me to read his comic books. And I'm sposed to do what Nana tells me—"

"No, no, sweetheart," Marissa reassured. "Your Uncle Seth isn't mad at you. He's just not in a good mood right now."

Emily nodded but in a way that showed she didn't really understand. Seth turned around and dropped his hands to sides as Marissa gave him a look, glancing at Emily and then back to him.

"Hey, Em," he said, squatting down. He motioned for her to come here.

She walked over to him cautiously, dragging the comic book in her hands, a long-perfected pout formed on her face.

"Do you know what I keep in the bottom drawer of my desk?" he asked.

Emily shook her head, her face changing from pouty to curious.

He leaned in and whispered something in her ear and suddenly, her face lit up.

"Can I?" she asked excitedly.

"Go ahead," he said.

She started to rush out of the kitchen but Seth grabbed the tiny girl around her waist and held her back.

"Can I have a hug first?" he asked. Emily wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and hugged him. "Kiss?"

"That's gonna cost extra," she told him smartly.

"Fine," Seth said. "You can have two."

"Two whole packs?" Emily asked, amazed.

"Yep," he said.

Emily planted a kiss on one cheek, and then the other. Then, she raced out of the room.

"What did you give her?" Ryan asked, curious.

"I gave the kid Smarties. What did you think?"

TBC…