AN: Chappy eleven, here it is. This one is going to be slightly more light-hearted than the others I've been writing…lol which I guess isn't saying much. However, you will notice that Marissa and Summer will finally make an appearance. Contrary to what many people are going to believe, this was my intention all along. I'm pacing myself…join me, won't you? Anyway, thanks to everyone who reviewed as always. And Beachtree for continuing to be my best buddy, Swenglish for making me blush severely, and Nikki Greenleaf for sharing my love of Ryan torture. We're cut from the same cloth.

FADING – Chapter Eleven

Wednesday

Summer, God bless her heart, had shown up early the next morning when Ryan was still in bed. She came bearing cookies and a huge grin that had to be contagious, because Seth felt the gray cloud of misery that had been hanging over his head for the last couple days finally disperse.

"Hey, Cohen." She beamed, handing over a Tupperware container as she shrugged off her jean jacket. "You can just call me Betty Crocker. I've mastered the art of…"

Before she could finish her sentence Seth wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her petite frame against his chest. Resting his head on top of hers, he sighed gratefully for her presence, already feeling his mood and outlook change completely. After several long moments of holding her he pulled back just enough to kiss her, a long, passionate kiss that left them both breathless.

Finally, he released her and Summer looked up at her boyfriend, surprised. "Whoa…" She murmured, kissing his cheek. "I should make cookies more often."

Seth smirked. "Hell yeah." He said, taking her by the hand and leading her up the stairs to his room. "You're a smart girl, Summer Roberts. You know that the way to every man's heart is through his stomach…I just have to pray that this won't be like the Oatmeal-Raisin Incident of '04." He closed the door behind them and flopped down onto his unmade bed, hands folded underneath his head.

"I resent that." Summer shot back from the end of the bed, hands on her hips. "Those were from scratch, give a girl a break. Besides…they weren't that bad." Dropping her purse on the floor and kicking off her shoes, Summer climbed onto the bed, her hands on either side of Seth's head as she glared down at him with a look that dared him to say otherwise.

With a snort, Seth gave a half-shrug. "The word 'mealy' comes to mind…" With a laugh, he caught the pillow that came flying at his head and grabbed Summer instead, pulling her down to his chest. "It's the thought that counts, though." He kissed the top of her head.

Propping herself up on an elbow, Summer looked at Seth and all amusement had left her eyes. "How's Ryan?" She asked softly.

Seth sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Come on, one of us had to bring it up." Summer rubbed his arm gently.

"He's not good." Seth said quickly, staring up at the ceiling. "But you know, 'I feel like hell' apparently means 'I'm fine" in whatever Chino language he speaks." Seth shook his head, picking at an invisible thread on the blanket beneath him.

Summer nodded in understanding. "Not very talkative, huh?"

A small smile quirked up the corners of Seth's mouth. "We are still talking about Ryan, right?" He said with a hint of amusement in his voice. But then it fled quickly and he swallowed, sighing again. "I don't know…he's mad at…well, everything, I guess. Me for getting on his case, my parents for hovering, himself for God knows what."

"Cohen…" Summer reached for his hand. "He's not mad at you. Or your folks. It's just…it's Ryan, right? Take-on-three-water-polo-players-at-once Ryan. He's never had to deal with anything like this before, and he's scared…"

Seth shook his head with a sarcastic laugh. "Ryan isn't scared of anything." He corrected her immediately.

Summer looked at him seriously. "Yeah?" She asked softly. "Well I sure as hell would be. I don't know how he is handling this, I mean, everyone in their right mind would be freaking out or giving up. Ryan isn't scared of much, Seth…but don't you think that this time he might just be? And maybe that's ok?"

The question hit him out of the blue. Pulling his eyes away from the endless depths of Summer's dark brown eyes, he stared up at the ceiling again. Ryan Atwood, scared? No way. But then…if their roles were reversed, Seth couldn't imagine what he would do if he were in his brother's place. Cancer scared the hell out of him. Being that sick scared the hell out of him. It was entirely possible that Ryan felt the same way…and maybe anger wasn't the right way to go about it, but it had to be better than giving up. Seth didn't want to think about what would happen if Ryan gave up.

Before he had a chance to answer her, a gentle knock at the door made both their heads turn as Kirsten walked in. "Seth, I…oh, hi, Summer." She said, smiling at the girl beside her son.

"Hey Mrs. Cohen." Summer said, blushing as she sat up from the bed.

As Kirsten trained her eyes back on her son, Seth couldn't help but notice the look of guilt behind the blue orbs; she was dressed for work, her hair and makeup done impeccably, as usual, for the first time in days. She clutched her briefcase like it was a lifeline. "Seth, I'm going to head into the office for a few hours…Your dad is going to be here until noon, but then he has to meet with a client. But he shouldn't be gone long. And I'll be back before supper." She absently looked down the hall at the guest room door before briefly lowering her gaze. Finally, she looked back at Seth. "I've got my cell phone on, so just call if you need me for absolutely anything…and your dad will be in the den…"

"Mom," Seth interrupted her. He waved his hand. "We can hold down the fort. Don't worry. Go to work." He said, offering a smile.

Swallowing hard, Kirsten nodded. "Right." Seth noticed the white-knuckled grip she had on the handle of her bag as she turned to leave. "Well, I was just in to check on Ryan and he was still sound asleep. So try not to wake him up, he needs his rest. But when he is awake see if he wants anything to eat. There's soup in the fridge, and you could make some tea…or even just crackers would be better than nothing. And you know where his medicine is..." She noticeably stopped herself. "I better get going. Nice to see you, Summer." Kirsten waved, and left the room.

"You too, Mrs. Cohen." Summer called after her. When they were met with silence, she turned to her boyfriend and sighed. "Wow. She really seemed upset."

Seth's eyes were still glued to the doorway. "Yeah." He said distractedly. "She really feels bad about having to go to work…like if she doesn't stay home 24/7 she's a bad parent, or something. But they also know that if they don't go, Ryan will be on the biggest guilt trip of the century, so…"

Draping a slender arm around his shoulders, Summer kissed his cheek. "Things are kinda crazy in the Cohen house, huh?" She asked warmly.

Leaning into her embrace, Seth nodded. "You have no idea." He cupped her cheek, bringing her face closer to his. As he placed his lips on hers, Summer wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back.

An audible thump and the sound of quick-moving footsteps from the guestroom next door made Seth pull away as he listened carefully. Moments later a door slammed shut and the sound of someone getting sick followed through the walls. In an instant he was on his feet. "Crap." He muttered under his breath as he walked quickly out of the room and the few steps down the hall to the guestroom.

Inside the room was dark; the blinds were drawn and no lights were on, but Seth could make out the rumpled, empty bed, and light peeking out from under the closed bathroom door. Gently, Seth knocked. "Ryan?" He called worriedly. "You okay in there, buddy?"

For a moment there was silence. "Yeah…I'm fine." Came Ryan's weary, strained voice from inside. Then Seth heard him cough again, undoubtedly trying to mask the sound as he heaved. "I'll be out in a minute, Seth." He barely finished his sentence before he got sick again.

"Ok, I'm coming in, man." Seth told him as he turned the knob and stepped inside. Ryan was curled up on the floor, holding onto the porcelain bowl for dear life. He was ghostly pale and shaking furiously. "God, Ryan." Seth said under his breath as he knelt beside his best friend, a comforting hand on his back.

Ryan shrugged him off. "I said I was fine." He growled, spitting into the toilet and resting his head on his arms. He didn't look at Seth.

"No you're not." Seth retorted, picking up a blanket haphazardly strewn on the floor and placing it over his brother's shuddering frame.

Swallowing hard, Ryan closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "It's normal, Seth." He rasped, his voice almost at a whisper. "Been like this all night…just need to make it stop spinning, n' I'll be okay." As he spoke his body slowly relaxed, slumping down further and leaning against the wall.

Seth's stomach sunk. "All night?" He asked in disbelief. "Ryan…why didn't you wake us up, bud?"

Ryan shook his head. "Nothing you guys can do."

Seth stood and filled a cup with cool water from the sink. "Yeah, but you don't have to be alone, man." He said softly, holding the glass out to his brother. "Here. Drink some of this." He instructed.

"No." Ryan grimaced. "Not unless you want to see it again in a couple of minutes." He shuddered, reaching out a shaky hand to flush the toilet as he weakly pulled himself away with his arms and sat with his back against the wall.

"Even water?" Seth asked, his concern deepening.

Ryan just nodded.

Opening his mouth to reply, Seth didn't get the chance to before he heard the click of his mother's high heels on the tiled floor. He looked up to find Kirsten striding purposely towards them, Summer perched in the doorway."Oh, honey." Kirsten said softly as she knelt down beside them.

Ryan held up a hand. "'M okay." He murmured.

"He's had a rough night, mom." Seth interjected, ignoring the look of betrayal his foster brother shot him from beneath thick eyelashes.

"I'm alright." Ryan struggled to say clearly, putting up a persistent fight. He looked at Kirsten, who kneeled in front of him studying his face and stroking back his stubborn bangs. "You're supposed to be at work." He reminded her quietly.

Face drawn with concern, Kirsten shook her head. "Honey, maybe I should stay home." She said very softly. "You're still too sick to be alone, and…"

"He won't be alone, mom." Seth said suddenly, barely registering the look of surprise Ryan gave him from his seat on the floor. "Dad's around for a while. I'm here for him, mom. And don't forget Summer." He jerked a thumb back towards the doorway.

Noticing her for the first time, Ryan gave a weak wave. "Hey Summer."

Summer smiled gently. "Hi Chino…looking good."

His mother still looked more than hesitant, so Seth thought quickly. "Plus…you know, the cavalry of Newport awaits to visit this afternoon, the place will be bursting with people just dying to wait on him hand and foot…we'll be okay." When she still looked concerned, Seth looked at her calmly and said very softly, "really, Mom. I'll take care of him."
Kirsten's sighed deeply. "Alright. But if he still isn't well this afternoon your father won't leave. And you have to promise to call me on my cell phone and tell me how he's doing. And if he's still not well no visitors, Seth. I mean it." Her eyes flashed in warning. "You understand?" She asked seriously.

"Yeah, I got it." Seth assured her. "The situation is under control, mom. We've got it covered."

With a reluctant nod, Kirsten glanced at Summer before looking back at her son. "Why don't you two go downstairs and see what there is for breakfast?" She stood to usher them both out of the room, casting a glance back at Ryan on the floor as she did so. "And put on a pot of tea, would you?" She requested as she moved to shut the door.

Seth nodded and turned to leave with his girlfriend standing close by.


Summer followed Seth as he walked into the kitchen to find Sandy reading a paper at the table, sipping at a partially full cup of coffee. "Morning." He greeted, smiling at the two of them. "You know if your mother has left yet? She's going to be late if she doesn't get a move on." He chided, taking a sip from his cup.

"Ryan's pretty sick." Seth said as he walked to the cupboard on autopilot, pulling out a kettle and filling it with water from the sink. "Mom's upstairs with him still." He milled around the kitchen purposely, needing to keep himself busy.

Sandy frowned and put down the paper with a sigh. "Oh no." He said softly, pushing away from the table and standing up. "I'd better go see how he's doing."

With a shake of his head, Seth started his search for teabags. "It's a pretty full house in there as it is." He explained, voice tinged with remorse. "Mom's pretty good at reading Ryan's moods…I took the hint that right now the less people watching him hurl, the better, you know?" he shrugged, ignoring the looks Summer and Sandy were giving him. Summer could sense his tension; it was obvious that he was still distraught from what had happened upstairs.

"Chino's not handling the whole 'caring' thing too well, huh?" She asked softly, her eyes on her boyfriend's slightly manic movements.

Sandy sighed. "When you grow up in a family like his, it can't be easy." He said, draining the last drops of coffee from his mug. "I guess he's not used to having people care this much about him…he doesn't know how to deal with the hovering...and that's something we Cohens do a lot of." He relented.

"Yeah, well, he better get used to it." Seth muttered, leaning against the counter.

Sandy gave his son a reassuring smile as he walked by and a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Well said, son." He waved at Summer as he left the kitchen. "I'll go check on Ryan."

When they were alone the silence that came between them was heavy. Summer stood across from him, unsure of what to say, but watching him in a way that told him she was nearby if he needed her. Seth stood there, wondering what to do next.

Her cell phone rang shrilly from her pocket, startling her out of her thoughts. Shooting Seth an apologetic look, she flipped it open. "Hello?"

"Hey, Sum." Marissa's familiar voice greeted on the other end. "It's me. Are you at the Cohens?" She asked, sounding awfully chipper. Summer was a little surprised, but glad to hear that her best friend was in a better mood. The last time she had talked to her the other girl had been sobbing her heart out.

"Oh, hey, Coop. Yeah, I've been here awhile." She pulled the phone away from her mouth to whisper "it's Marissa" at Seth, who rolled his eyes in response. "You coming over?"

Marissa hesitated for a heartbeat. "Um, yeah. I'm at my mom's. I'm just getting into my car now." Her words were punctuated by the slamming of a door. "Hey…how's Ryan?" She asked, her voice thoughtful.

Summer swallowed, her lips pressed into a thin line. "He's…he's not having a great morning, Coop." She answered honestly. But then she brightened. "But I'm sure he'll feel a hundred times better once you get here. I bet he's missed you. The poor guy's been, like, separated from society for far too long." She scoffed.

"Yeah. Luke doesn't exactly count as 'society', but I talked to him last night. He's planning on stopping by later, too. He said everyone is talking about…Ryan." She finished her sentence quietly, and for the first time in the conversation Summer heard the sadness in her voice. But once again, her cheerful tone returned. "Well, I'll be there soon. Tell him I'm on my way. See ya." The call ended.

Flipping the phone shut, Summer looked up to find Seth looking somewhat irritated as he poured the now boiling water into a mug. "Great. Just what Ryan needs; the Wilting Violet, part two." He wiggled two fingers in her face, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Summer punched him in the shoulder. "Lose the attitude, Cohen." She warned, glaring him down. "We both know that Marissa has been through a lot the last couple months. So yes, maybe she was a tad unstable a couple days ago…but her boyfriend was in the hospital. Give her a break. She's coming over, isn't she?" She reasoned, and Seth sighed, relenting somewhat.

"Fine." He grumbled. "But if she dissolves into tears in front of him again that might be the last straw." He warned with a wag of his finger.

With a dramatic roll of her eyes, Summer looked at Seth dubiously. "Oh, what are you gonna do, Cohen? Beat her up?" She drawled sarcastically, smiling lopsidedly. "Besides, she sounded very…happy on the phone." Summer realized, nodding in satisfaction,

Seth's eyes widened. "Marissa Cooper, happy?" He gasped in fake surprise. Absently he swirled a tea bag in the steaming cup of water, watching as the liquid turned from clear to amber. "Something really must be wrong."


Twenty minutes later Seth and Summer were curled up on the sofa in the living room eating pancakes and watching TV. Seth had joined in a combined effort with his dad to get Kirsten to finally leave for work, and the plan had been successful.

Not easy, but successful.

"You put too much syrup on mine." Summer whined, looking down at her plate in dismay, her fork swirling absently in a pool of maple sweetness. "My pancakes need life jackets, Cohen. Why didn't you just let me do it myself?" She put her plate on her lap, glaring at it in disgust.

Seth rolled his eyes. "Because, Summer. You don't understand the art that is the pancake." He turned to face her, struggling to explain as if she were a child. "You see, the correct ratio of pancake to syrup, butter to whipped cream…it's complicated, Summer, to say the least. Now…"

Soft footsteps creaked the bottom stairs and caused their heads to turn. Ryan stood unsteadily on the landing, a hand gripping the railing as if to keep himself upright. His hair was a disaster, sticking up every which way as he reached up with a trembling hand to scrub sleep from his bloodshot eyes and pale face. But he had taken the effort to get dressed. "Hey." He waved weakly.

Seth got to his feet. "Hey, man." He said, taking a couple steps towards his brother. "Decided to join the land of the living, I see. Can I take that as I sign that you're feeling a tad better?" He asked hopefully, inching forward a bit more. Seth didn't want to crowd him, but he had to feel at least the slightest bit useful. Just sitting there wasn't an option, and rushing over to offer a piggyback ride to the couch would be just as disastrous. He had to find middle earth.

Ryan gave a barely perceptible shrug of his shoulders. "I'm fine."

The two now familiar words made Seth's skin crawl and his temper want to boil over. But he took a couple deep breaths and forced his anger back. Ryan could choose to play the "fine" card to his heart's desire. That didn't mean that Seth had to believe it.

Glancing between Seth and Summer, Ryan's gaze flickered away, uncomfortable with their silence and watchful gazes. "Yeah, well…I needed a change of scenery." He said with a half-smile. "The guest room ceiling is highly overrated."

"Ah! A joke from Mr. Atwood. He is definitely feeling better, Summer." Seth announced to his girlfriend with a grin.

Summer smiled. "Good to hear, Chino." She said, waving him over to the couch. "Come join us in the land of Early Summer Break, a time of sitting around and…well, basically doing nothing." She raised her hands in defeat.

Ryan shuffled across the floor in socked feet. Seth walked close behind him, ready to be at hand incase his brother became unsteady. He was so intent one watching Ryan's slow-moving feet that he didn't realized the other boy had stopped until he walked directly into his back.

Glancing over his shoulder, his glare slightly annoyed, Ryan stared at his foster brother. "You trying to put my shadow out of work or something?" He growled, his voice a little irritated.

"Alright, alright, grumpy." Seth muttered under his breath, holding up his hands in surrender as he allowed Ryan to walk the rest of the way to an armchair across the coffee table from Summer. After he had sat down, Seth followed and took a seat beside his girlfriend. He noticed the way Ryan stared at the plate on Summer's lap, his blue eyes glued to remnants of their breakfast. "Want some pancakes, dude?"

Seth watched Ryan turn green. Closing his eyes and taking a couple of deep breaths, he shook his head firmly. "No." He replied, opening his eyes and directing his gaze elsewhere. "Just the smell is making me sick." He explained tiredly.

Summer removed Seth's arm from around her shoulders and stood up. "I'll take this plate to the kitchen, then." She offered helpfully, shooting Ryan a friendly smile. "Seeing my pancakes drowning in sugar is kinda turning my stomach as well, Cohen," She grouched, hitting his shoulder playfully.

When they were alone, Seth clasped in hands in his lap awkwardly, glancing over at his brother every once in a while. "Sooo…need anything, dude? Something to drink perhaps? You would not believe the vast variety of juice and pop my mother has overstocked our fridge with…No? Okay." Seth bobbed his head agreeably. "Maybe um…something to eat? And not pancakes. Mom left a list of things that might be easy on your stomach. Crackers maybe? I could pretend to know how to make rice. Or maybe you want to take another stab at soup…"

"Seth. Stop." Ryan begged, a hand running shakily across his face. "Just…just shut up for a little while, okay?" He asked, his voice bordering on anger.

Seth sat back in his seat, defeated. With a sigh, he shook his head. "Second time you've said that to me in the past twenty-four hours, Ryan." He said softly.

Ryan's face gave way to a look of regret as he pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes briefly before opening them again and looking at his brother seriously. "I'm sorry…I don't mean it." He assured him, dropping his eyes to stare at his feet. "Just…don't hover, Seth. If I need something, I'll get it. I'm capable."

"Fair enough." Seth sighed again, raising his hands in defeat. But as he watched his brother wincing and shift in his seat, obviously struggling with discomfort that had to be related to the ever-present pain in his back, Seth couldn't help but ask. "Do you want your meds, bud?" He asked helpfully.

Ryan shot him a dangerous glare.

Seth couldn't help the chuckled that slipped from his lips at the murderous look as he raised his arms in surrender. "Okay, okay. I get the picture. Just making sure." He smirked.

The doorbell rang, and before either of them could react, Summer called from the kitchen, "I'll get it!"

Raising a curious eyebrow at his best friend, Seth did his best to look normal. "Must be Marissa." He guessed. "She called Summer a while ago and said she was coming over. That's okay, right?" He asked hopefully. At the first sign of unhappiness on his brother's face, Seth was prepared to take whatever measures required to keep the two apart. If he had it his way, Marissa wouldn't have a place here right now. Not while Ryan was so sick.

Ryan's face brightened a bit and he smiled. A genuine smile. "Really?" He asked in surprise. Obviously Seth hadn't been the only one surprised that Marissa was actually facing up to a problem this big. Ryan pushed himself out of his chair. "Yeah, of course it's okay. That's great."

Seth smiled a bit. Maybe anything was worth that reaction.

"Ryan." Marissa's voice came from the entry to the living room. Their heads turned to find her standing unsurely by the hall, her expression a mixture of nervousness and anxiety as her wide blue eyes fixed on Ryan's face. She took him in an inch at a time, swallowing hard at his haggard appearance. Seth's spirits dropped. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all.

After a beat a cheerful smile was plastered onto her face and Marissa bounded over to Ryan, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing his cheek. "I missed you." She whispered into his ear.

Ryan smiled back. "I missed you, too."

Seth realized he had risen to his feet the moment Marissa had made herself known. The tension in his stomach unwound a bit and he sat back down, breathing a sigh of relief. Maybe this would be so bad, after all.

"Chino, you look like shit, man!" A familiar voice came from behind them.

Seth groaned inwardly. He had spoken too soon.

Along with Marissa and Ryan, Seth turned around to find Luke walking into the room, the usual cocky and dumbfounded look on his face as he came in and made himself comfortable.

Summer stood behind the water-polo-playing-villain-turned-friend guiltily. Seth looked at his girlfriend, exasperated.

She twirled a strand of dark hair around her finger nervously. "Did I forget to mention that he was coming over?" She asked him lamely.

Seth nodded. "Yup. That's a minor detail you left out."


AN: Holy crap, wrote more than I meant to. True, I could have cut it in half or something just as crazy…but where would the fun be in that? Now you people just have plenty to keep you occupied with until my next update…and plenty to add to your reviews, lol. Cheers!

Vancouverite