"The Most Eligible Bachelor"

Summary: Summer and Seth are leading separate lives now, but what happens when Summer's story for a leading magazine forces them together?

Disclaimer: I'd like to stake a claim on Adam Brody's dimples, but really, I don't own any of the O.C. characters or story lines.

Chapter Eight: Rewrites

Seth woke up to the loud shrill ringing of his cellphone. Judging by the position of the sun, he figured it was probably someone calling from work to tell him he was late. He quickly detached himself from Summer, trying to prevent the phone from waking her up.

"Seth Cohen," he answered, trying to maintain a relatively quiet tone of voice.

"Cohen! What are you doing? We have a meeting today at 10 to go over our proofs with the publishers. It's 9 am and you are still not in the office!"

"Oh geez, Anna, I am so sorry. I must have missed my alarm this morning. Ok, well, I trust that you can get everything prepared for the meeting. If I don't get there in time, just go ahead without me. I'll be there when I can," Seth replied, trying his best to calm down Anna, while covering up his error.

"Ok, just hurry!" She snapped hanging up the phone. Seth quickly descended the stairs to the bottom of the boat where he kept an extra change of work clothes. He washed his hair in the sink and put on his work shirt and slacks. He climbed back up the stairs and started the boat back towards the dock. After about 15 minutes, he had the boat back and docked, with Summer still sound asleep.

Realizing that she might freak out if she realized he was gone, he quickly ran down the pier to a small market. With his supplies in tow, he hustled back to the boat. He scribbled down a note and left it in his place on their makeshift bed with a purple lily underneath it. He set the boats small table with fresh strawberries, bagels and cream cheese, and a bottled Mocha frappucino. Behind his breakfast set up, he quickly placed a dozen white lilies and one pink rose in the center in a vase that he bought at the market.

When everything looked perfect, Seth walked over to where Summer lay. He looked down on her and smiled, and she bore a sweet grin on her face in her sleep. He softly rubbed his hand over her cheek and then kissed the same spot, before finally tearing himself away to go to work.

Seth stood in his office, catching his breath. He had just made it to the office, and he had ten minutes to spare before the arrival of the publisher's reps. He stood, waiting for them to arrive, with Anna sitting on his couch.

"So, how was your big date last night?" she questioned flatly.

"It was everything that I hoped it would be," Seth said, crossing to stare out the window.

"So I take it you and Summer knocked the hooker boots?" Anna said, clearly trying to slip in an insult on Summer.

"Excuse me?" Seth said, beginning to be pissed off at Anna's attitude towards Summer.

"Joke, Cohen," she said, as though it were obvious. "I'm glad you had a good time," she said, unconvincingly.

"Anna, can I just ask what the hell your problem is?" Seth asked, distaste evident in his voice. "You're supposed to be my 'best friend,' 'the one that's always there,' but Summer has been here for one day, and we shared a great night together, and you're being all uber bitchy towards her. Can you please NOT?"

"Whoa, Cohen. I'm sorry. I'm just trying to protect you from Little Miss Vixen, the girl that destroyed you. I'm sorry that you don't appreciate my efforts," Anna said bitterly.

"I don't need you to protect me, Anna, and I definitely don't need your rude comments towards Summer, so either support me or don't, but quit doing what you're doing." Seth paused. "And please, don't call me Cohen." Anna sat agape at Seth's little rant, but rolled her eyes and snorted when he got to the last comment. Before their little tiff could continue, the publishing reps entered the office, and after the usual handshakes and greetings, Seth invited them to sit down.

"Ok, to start I would just like to thank you for joining us as always," Seth opened the meeting, while Anna shuffled around in the background setting up boards. "Unfortunately, I have some bad news. If you could ignore what Ms. Stern is doing for the time being, I would like to say that we are not going to have any proofs to give you today. In light of some new developments with the comic, I would like to ask for a 24 hour extension to do some page rewrites." Anna and the reps stared in shock at Seth.

"Seth, what are you doing?" Anna whispered, throwing a smile in the direction of the reps.

"Well, Atomic County has always and will always be autobiographical for me. As you'll recall, Little Miss Vixen has not appeared in the comic for several months as the Ironists love interest, and this issue was supposed to be the issue where the Ironist completely ended any connection or feelings that he had for her," Seth said, making eye contact with each rep as he spoke, "But the real Little Miss Vixen is back in my life, and I think it would be wise to write her back in to the story."

The reps all spoke at the same time, trying to explain to Seth why it was impossible. "I know what you're saying I do believe me, and I am willing to pay any extra fees for this issue to have it printed and ready to go by next Wednesday, but believe me when I say, it is worth your while."

Seth paused, letting what he said settle in. "If you'll remember, the Little Miss Vixen action figure was the best-selling action figure out of the whole bunch of AC action figures. Her cosmetic line was called, and I quote, 'the biggest teenage cosmetic line since Bonne Belle' by Teen People. I know that those reasons might be convincing enough, so I'm going to appeal to your personal side. The story of Atomic County has always been about my life, from the beginning to now, where it reigns as the number one selling graphic novel in the country. I can't write Little Miss Vixen out for good, because she is part of my life, the love of my life. I've never failed to pay you guys, and I've never put out a poor comic book. Ok, well there was the one, when I had to rehash me and Summer's break up on the 5th year anniversary of the date that it happened, but other than that, never. And you know it. So please, take what I've said into consideration."

The room stood silent and the four reps looked back and forth between one another, unsure of what to say. Finally, the head representative, John Sampson, looked up to meet Seth's worried gaze. "Ok, Cohen, we'll give it to-"

"Before you say anything, John, let me say, that O.S. is the fasting growing comic book company in the nation, with Atomic County as the number one comic and Emo Kid as number two. We do have the power to switch publishing companies if it becomes necessary," Seth said, thinking that the threat would be just the ticket.

"Mr. Cohen, what I was going to say before I was interrupted was, 'Ok, we'll give it to you.' The extension, that is."

Before he finished Seth was already up shaking his hand and thanking him profusely. "You won't regret your decision, John."

"I know I won't. But you better not make a habit of this, or you'll have to talk to the big man, and he does not like missed deadlines." With that, the reps stood, said their goodbyes and left Seth and Anna standing in his office.

"Oh my gosh, Anna! This is GREAT! Can you believe that they said yes!" Seth said, excited at the prospect of writing Summer back in and the idea of her being in his REAL life, too. "I mean, I know it's a lot of work, but I think we can do it."

"You know what I can't believe? That you made that dumbass move in the meeting without even consulting me about it! And don't think for one second that there's a 'we' in this equation. As of now, I'm taking a sick day. Good luck finishing for tomorrow morning," Anna said, storming towards the door.

"Anna, if you leave, your job is as good as gone. I hate to say this, but look at my door, I'm the President. I hired you. I reserve the right to pull pages or plan rewrites, when and wherever I want to. This comic is about my life. Hell, it IS my life. You're my best friend and an avid comic booker, so I gave you the job so you could have a nice job and a nice life and so you could be part of this with me. Not for a second did I say anything about having to inform you of all of my decisions," Seth's voice boomed across the office.

Anna looked at Seth smugly and raised her middle finger. "You know what, COHEN, I won't make you fire me: I quit," Anna said and stalked out of the office.

Seth walked out and looked at his secretary who stood staring in disbelief at what she had just heard. After a moment, she smiled up at Seth. "Good job, Mr. Cohen. She was never as nice to me as you were." Seth laughed slightly at that, still shocked at the fact that he now had no VP. "Don't worry, I've already paged some members from the compilation team up to your office for a meeting. You'll have plenty of time and help to get everything ready."

Seth smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks a lot, Bev. You're the best," he said, turning back to walk into his office.

"Oh, and Mr. Cohen?"

"Yes?" He asked, turning around.

"I'm glad Little Miss Vixen's back," she said, reaching into her top desk drawer and pulling out Summer's action figure to place on her desk.

"Me too," he said dreamily, walking back into his office to prepare for his meeting

Meanwhile, away from the chaotic morning at O.S., a groggy Summer woke at around 11 a.m., immediately reaching her hand across the 'bed.' When she noticed that there was not anyone on the other side, her eyes shot open, only to see a folded piece of paper over a purple lily. She took the lily into her hand, and with a sleepy smile, unfolded the note.

"Summer,

Sorry to take off without warning, but I was running late for a meeting and couldn't stand the thought of waking you up. I had almost forgotten how beautiful you look when you sleep. Well, almost. I have a meeting today at 10 a.m., but I am going to try to get the rest off to spend with you. If I can't, I should be back around 5.

Love,

Seth

P.S.

Stay as long as you like. I bought some breakfast foods and placed them on the table."

As she read the letter, particular the closing, she felt butterflies in her stomach. After laying down and thinking of how sweet and considerate Seth was for leaving her to sleep and then buying her breakfast, she finally rose to find something to eat. When she crossed the boat and saw the bouquet of flowers, her heart melted for about the tenth time that morning.

After finishing a bagel, some strawberries and the frappucino that Seth left her, Summer decided that she was going to go back to her hotel to fetch some clean clothes and her beachwear, so she could at least enjoy some of the California sun.

When she returned, she donned a brown Banana Republic string bikini, accented on the ties and between the triangles with wooden beads. She lathered herself up with SPF 15 tanning oil, and laid her mat down where Seth and her 'bed' was the night before. She laid for what seemed like forever, getting up only to reapply her oil and to eat some of the strawberries that Seth had left her that morning.

When Seth returned that evening to the sight of a sleeping Summer, wearing only a bikini, his jaw hit the floor. Seeing her in her serious lack of clothing caused a warm blush to creep up his neck and onto his cheeks, as his eyes scanned over her perfectly tanned body. He set down his briefcase and knelt down beside her, slowly trying to coax her from her sleep.

"It seems like whether I'm coming or going, you're always asleep these days," Seth joked as Summer slowly turned over and looked up to meet his eyes.

"Hey Cohen," she said, a lazy grin crossing her face. "Ya know, I used to be a pro at laying out, but my lack of practice has made me weak in the face of the California sun." Seth laughed as Summer pulled herself up off of her mat.

They stood, and Summer tilted her head to the side in the way that always made Seth weak in the knees. "Come here, Cohen," she said, stretching out her arms to take him into an embrace. Surprised but nonetheless welcoming, Seth wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"What was that for?"

"Just for you being you. The way you were such a gentleman last night, the way you remembered my favorite flowers, the way that you bought me flowers and breakfast this morning. Just everything," She said sweetly, gazing into his eyes. "Thanks, Cohen."

"Summer, if it was anyone else I'd say you're welcome, but you know that you don't have to thank me. I love doing things like that for you. I love see this," he said, poking his finger into her smile. "Seeing you smile is the only thanks I need." Unable to resist, Summer stood on her tiptoes and kissed him in the dimple. "So, what's going on tonight?"

"Well, I was thinking, I have a lot of work to do. Today I decided that I want to rewrite some pages and change the ending of this coming issue, which my publishing company needs no later than 10 a.m. tomorrow. So, if it wouldn't be boring, I thought you could come over to my place, chill out, keep me company when I need a break. I could even possibly guarantee some time to watch cheesy movies?" Seth pleaded for Summer to say yes with his eyes, even throwing in a small pout with his lower lip.

Summer grabbed his cheeks and pushed them together. "How could I say no to a face like that! Of course I'll come. I just need to stop by the hotel and put on something more comfortable. It sounds like we're going to have a long night," Summer said, quickly thinking it came out as more of an innuendo. "I mean, you sound like you have a long night of work ahead of you, and I'll want to stay up to go on coffee runs and stuff," she explained.

Seth nodded quickly, trying to not seem awkward or overly excited at the prospect of a 'long night' with Summer. "Right then! So do you want to meet me there, or should I just swing you by on the way home?"

"Um, why don't I meet you? That way I have some time to shower and check in with my editor," Summer said, suddenly remembering the REAL reason she was in LA.

"Sure, sounds good, just one second," Seth said, as he got a piece of paper and scribbled down his address for her. "Ok, here's my address. It's about a ten minute drive from the hotel. Oh, and don't forget to take your Allegra," Summer looked up at him with a puzzled look. "I have a cat, Rooney, and I know that you love to cuddle up with cats, but when you forget to take your allergy medicine, they give you a little trouble," he explained.

Summer looked into his eyes in amazement. "I can't believe you remembered that," she said softly.

Seth caught her hand and pressed the piece of paper with his address into it. "There's not much about you that I've forgotten, only more that I want to learn," he said softly, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand.

Feeling the heat rise to her face, Summer broke her gaze and took her hand back. "Ok, Cohen, well, I guess I'll see you in a little while," she said, clearly flustered.

Seth bent down and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before she gathered her things and walked towards where the limo waited. "Later, Summer."

"Bye, Seth," she said, throwing one last smile back in his direction.

A/N The spacing in this chapter is a little off for some reason, so I apologize. Sorry for any Anna lovers, but the bitch had to go. LoL. Anyway, I hope this chapter didn't suck too bad. I wanted to some how show how A.C. connects with Seth's real life. That little fact might cause some drama in the next chapter, but you'll just have to wait and see. Keep on keepin' on. Peace.