Discalimer; Sadly, I own absolutely nothing to do with The OC

A/N; Thanks for reviewing everybody! Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

"So he wants to go on a big date, what's wrong with that? It's not like you've never been on one before!" Marissa was sat on her bed in her gorgeously lavish bedroom, looking absent mindedly through the new clothes she'd bought that morning. It wasn't that she really needed them but she took some small pleasure in spending Caleb's money on unnecessary stuff since she'd been forced to live with him and her evil mother. "Wait did you and Seth ever actually go on any dates? Or was it all just…"

"Awkward and short-lived sex?" interrupted Summer "Yeah pretty much. But Coop that is sooo not the point here. The point is…" She broke off and looked briefly upwards avoiding Marissa's eye. Even though they'd been best friends for years she still found it difficult to open up about these kinds of things.

"The point is…" she took a deep breath and picked up Marissa's care bear to distract herself "dates mean me being his girlfriend and me being his girlfriend means commitment of some kind and we both know that commitment can only lead to one thing…pain" She'd said all this really quickly in one breath then laid back onto the bed to recover and also so she still didn't have to look at Marissa; she hated anybody seeing this vulnerable side to her.

"Woah Sum, I don't think he was proposing marriage...Just a date" Marissa sat down on the bed next to her friend and softly stroked her hair, anything to try and calm her down. It was odd but Marissa actually enjoyed being the one who was offering support for a change, it was usually her that was screwed up and laid out on a bed trying to avoid somebody's eye.

She knew that Summer thought Marissa saw her as really tough, and that she'd been hiding her hurt about Seth. But the truth was…she could read her like a book. All the hastily dried tear-stained faces and ripped up shards of photos of Seth sticking out of the bin had not escaped Marissa's notice, but she knew that Summer wasn't the kind to want to sit and talk about it so she'd decided that the best she could do was just to be there for her when she needed it.

"You know Sum, you can't avoid dating forever just because Seth…"

"La la la la la" Marissa was cut short as Summer shoved her fingers in her ears and was 'La-ing' loudly.

"What in the hell are you doing?"

"It's my new coping mechanism" She shouted trying to hear herself over her fingers that were wedged firmly in her ears. "If I don't hear his name then I won't have to think about his scrawny ass or any other part of his weirdly shaped but infuriatingly adorable body anymore!"

Marissa looked up and prised Summer's fingers gently out of her ears. "Uh huh, and how's that going for you Sum?"

"Not so good actually" she said rubbing her ears with a slightly pained look on her face "I've already broken three nails because of over vigorous finger thrusting"

Marissa laughed lightly then turned to face her friend "Do you think it may be more productive…and safer…if you just talked to him?"

Summer jumped off the bed in alarm "Oh No, No No No Coop! You know that Cohen has all the verbal prowess of a 6 year old on speed…oh no that would definitely not go well! She sat gingerly back down on the bed "Besides…" she said quietly "I have nothing to say to him".

Marissa had to stop herself from laughing out loud. The thought of Summer having nothing to say to a total stranger was weird enough, but having nothing to say to a guy who she spent several hours a day obsessing over and who she was probably still in love with…well that was just impossible.

"No No No You can't make me go! I won't do it Ryan!"

"Seth, let go of the chair leg and stop being such a baby"

"Damnit but I do it so well!"

It was the first day back at school after an eventful Summer break and Seth had chosen this morning to launch Plan C of his strategy to win Summer back; Acting like a five year old. Ryan, who had been trying to coax him out of his chair for the past half hour and had only succeeded in getting him to lie on the floor and cling desperately to a chair, was no longer amused.

"Seth, you're going to have to face her again soon, and it might as well be today"

"But why?..." Seth whined "Last time there was just so much yelling and crying and rage black-out-ing…oh dear Lord the rage blackouts…" Seth winced at the painful memories. "Seriously man I think it would just be better if I stayed home, nobody needs to see bloodshed on the first day back"

Ryan sat down in a chair facing where Seth was still sprawled on the kitchen tiles. "you know what; I really don't think there'll be any trouble- apparently she'd really happy with Zach"

Seth groaned from the floor "Oh Wow I feel soo much better now, thanks Bro"

"Sorry, I didn't think"

"No well that's the problem with you insensitive males…you never do" Seth stuck his bottom lip out at Ryan like a moody teenage girl.

"Insensitive Males? Seth it is really way too early in the day to start talking about your Grandfather" Sandy Cohen grinned as he waltzed into the room and selected himself a sesame seed bagel from the basket.

"Dad will you please tell Ryan that I have rights and he can't make me do what I really don't want to"

Ryan slammed his hand down on the top and glared at Seth who now cowered slightly into the chair "Seth you do not have a right to sit at home and wallow all day"

"Wallowing Ryan? God you're such a Neanderthal male. The term now used for modern men is 'Melancholic Contemplation" Seth glanced smugly around the room until he noticed the puzzled look being sent his way from Ryan and the amused one from his dad "What! I read it in Cosmo. And I do have a right to it, whenever I so choose…which is now. Tell him Dad"

"Well Son, you do have certain rights but…"

"You're going to school" Kirsten Cohen strode determinedly into the kitchen dumping her executive briefcase down on the worktop on the way.

"Morning Mother" Seth scrambled up from the floor and hurried over to his mum planting a hasty kiss on her cheek "You're looking radiant tod…"

"Save it Seth. You put Summer through Hell when you went to Portland and you are not going to avoid facing up to the consequences now" Kirsten glared at her Son who, briefly, looked a little sheepish.

"Mom, I hear what you're saying, I do. But could it be...that maybe…you're simply reflecting the anguish I caused you this Vacation onto Summer because you just don't want to admit it's about you?" Seth looked smugly at his mother who simply looked back at him stony faced.

"Seth, I'm holding a knife" Kirsten spat.

Behind her, Sandy laughed "Well, he certainly has the Cohen sense of timing!"

The glare from his wife cut short his laughter "Work...Now!"

Sandy picked up his jacket and dashed out of the door kissing his wife on the way.

"I don't know what you two are looking so smug about!" Kirsten said, turning on Ryan and Seth "School…now!"