"What?" Summer asked shocked, "how?"
"I don't really know, my dad didn't fill me in on the details."
Summer got up off the bed and immediately went to wrap her arms around Seth. "I'm so sorry baby," she whispered softly into his chest trying to comfort him. Since they had been on the east coast, Summer suggested that they visit the nana at least once. Unable to stay away from her east coast home, the Nana had moved from Miami to Boston. Since it was only 50 miles from Brown, it made sense for Seth and Summer to visit her because at least they were in the same time zone. Once Seth called the Nana, who was more than thrilled to hear from him, sheinvited them over for dinner. After that, they agreed to meet once a month. Summer looked forward to this more than anything. Becausefamily members had been so absentin her life, it felt good to have someone else to become close with. Sophie even insisted on Summer calling her Nana. Summer couldn't believe she was dead now. They had just seen her last week and she looked fine.
After embracing Seth for some time, Summer pulled away. She couldn't read his blank face, but she though she saw diminutive wet spots form in the corners of his eyes. She hadn't seen Seth really cry when Caleb died, but she knew that he had a deeper emotional connection with the Nana. Summer reached her thumbs up to the edges of Seth's eyes as he blinked away the tears. She hated to see him hurt.
"I know she had to go sometime, but we were like just becoming close."
"I know sweetie, but at least you got to spend some time with her, especially since coming to school out here," Summer stated, trying to reassure him.
He just sighed, "yeah. I think I just wanna lay down for a little bit."
"Oh. Yeah, of course, do you want me to—"
"No. Yeah, stay with me. I mean, if you want to," he said softly.
"Of course I want to."
They both walked over to the bed, and lay down quietly. Seth turned to face Summer and buried his face in her shoulder. Summer held Seth's limp and unresponsive body in her arms as she stroked his back up and down. He was so glad she was here. She was his home, his safe place. Summer could feel his steady breathing into her neck and squeezed him tighter, trying to hug out all of his pain, even though she knew she that wasn't possible. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the sun fade into the clouds through Seth's crystal clear window. Just as it went down, her eyes began to shut as they both drifted off…
When he woke, he felt two familiar arms around his back. The tight squeeze that once surrounded him gone and he pulled back to look at her face. Her eyes were shut and her mouth was slightly open. As he stirred quietly, she began to open his eyes.
"Hey," she said groggily.
"Hi," he said smiling. Even with devastating news, he couldn't help but smile. Every time he woke up to her, it was like his dream that had come true.
"How long have we been out?"
"I don't know, but I should probably call my dad and figure out what's going on with everything."
"Yeah. Are you hungry, do you want me to go get something to eat?"
"Nah, I'm not really that hungry, just thirsty."
"Okay, you call your dad; I'm gonna go get us something. Okay?" She asked softly. He nodded kindly and kissed her lips quickly.
Twenty minutes later, Summer returned with a bag full of snacks and drinks. While Seth was still on the phone, she laidthe out on his bed. She knew he probably wouldn't touch anything, but she didn't know what else to do to help.
"Okay dad, see you soon. Bye." He shut his phone.
Summer looked up at him questioningly.
"So, the funeral's on Friday and my parents are flying out tomorrow."
"How's your dad, he must be pretty sad."
"Ah, he sounded actually fine, but that could be him just putting on a tough mask to hold everything together."
"So, are you going to tomorrow too? Because I have this test on Thursday, and I'm sure I can change it so I can be there…" Summer started to go off.
Seth had forgotten about classes and tests. Great, more to worry about.
"Summer, I don't want to drag you down with me. I'm gonna talk to my professor tomorrow and work something out. But you should take it."
"Seth, you're not dragging me down. I want to be there. It's fine. Don't worry about me, you have enough to think about," she said as she walked over to him and placed her arms around his neck.
Seth reached for her hands, removing from his neck. "No, Summer. Seriously. I don't need you to freak out. Take your test," he said firmly.
Summer was taken back. She reached for his face again, but he turned away. "Cohen…" she began.
"I need to think right now. Alone," he said coldly.
She was hurt, and it clearly showed on her face. "Okay," she said softly. No more words were spoken as she grabbed her books off the floor and left Seth.
When Summer got to her room, she didn't know what to do, so she resorted staring at to ceiling while laying on her bed. She knew she couldn't be with Seth every second, but she really wanted to be with him now. Although it took a while, their relationshipwas finally been based on truth and trust. Of course they didn't tell each other everything, but Summer liked to think that they were close enough to share the most important aspects of their lives. She had to think for a second that if she were in this situation, she would probably want to be left alone also. Wait, would she? As she continued to stare at the ceiling, she thought of their last dinner with the Nana…
Flashback
"Cohen, your getting sauce on my white shirt," Summer squealed.
"Oh yeah, then maybe you shouldn't be wearing white. Maybe you shouldn't be wearing anything at all," he said as he began to chase her around the house with the wooden spoon dipped in spaghetti sauce."
"Ahh! Cohen!" Summer shouted as she ran out of the kitchen and around the house. She headed for the couch and quickly kneeled down on it, backing up, trying to get away from him. Seth got very close to her and looked her dead in the eyes. She smiled and he smiled back. It was a quick moment, but was interrupted when Summer realized that the Nana was watching them from the table. She didn't say anything, but Summer could see that she was thinking.
"Come on Cohen. I'm starving," she said grabbing his spoon-free hand and leading him back to the kitchen. Somehow, they finished cooking and set everything on the table. Summer insisted on making something for the three of them. She didn't want to end up clueless in the kitchen, like Kirsten once was.
"It looks great Summer," Nana said sweetly.
"Thanks," she said smiling. She sat next to Seth, across from the Nana.
"So tell me about your classes," the Nana said sparking the conversation.
"They're good. I can't believe how fast the semester is going by. I feel like I spend 99 percentof my time studying."
"Yes, I'm sure it is. But I want you to remember Summer, have some fun too.Lookoutside what is in your textbook. Once you graduate, you can't go back."
"Hear that Summer, the Nana says we shouldn't study all of the time," Seth said smartly.
"Cohen," Summer said annoyed, "I don't study all the time."
"I know you want to do well Summer," the Nana said softly, while taking Summer's hand across the table, "but I think you should stop and smell the roses along the way."
End flashback
Summer smiled to herself as she felt a tear fall on her cheek. She was definitely going to miss her. She had received enough lectures from adults in her life about how to behave and what to do, but the Nana transferred a sense of comfort in her advice and Summer would always appreciate that. Her thoughts were interrupted by a phone call from Seth.
'Wow, he broke pretty quickly,' she thought. "Cohen?"
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I know you just left, but can you come over?"
After a long conversation and many negotiations, they decided that Seth would come pick her up after her test on Thursday. They wouldn't really be doing anything tomorrow anyways, and Seth did not want to create more problems with Summer missing her classes and test.
Summer slept in Seth's room, trying to comfort him as best as she could. In the morning, Seth got up and mundanely packed his clothes while Summer watched him. She was still in his bed because she didn't have class for a few hours. When he was ready, he zipped up his backpack and nodded towards the door. Summer climbed out of bed and wrapped her arms around him tightly, inhaling her favorite scent along with the hug.
"I'll see you tomorrow," he said shortly.
"Okay. Tell your parents I said hello and tell your dad I'm so sorry."
"I will," he said before kissing her on the lips once and then going to her nose.
Later that night, Summer decided to go to the library to get some sources for her paper. It was a cold night, like usual so she threw on some black stretch yoga pants and one of Seth's sweatshirts. She hadn't talked to Seth since he left that morning, but she figured he had his hands full.
After she finished copying some articles, she grabbed her books and keys and left the library. Walking quickly, due to the chilly temperatures, she realized it was really quiet. Because she had gotten so used to Seth's babbling, quiet almost scared her now. She picked up her pace a little more until she heard footsteps behind her. Not thinking anything of it, she kept walking as the steps behind grew closer. She could see the large shadow that formed from the footsteps and turned around to see a very tall person in all black. A little bit alarmed, Summer turned back around and looked at the ground, very determined to make it back to her room. But, she was only able to take two more steps before she felt a leather glove reach around her face from behind.