I've decided to kind of incorporate a storyline from the show, post-Marissa's death. I thought it could fit in pretty good with the direction my story is going. Hope you like. I can't say that I'm shocked by the news that this is the last year for the show. However, I can't believe FOX canceled it mid-season instead of letting it finish out the year. You suck Fox!! Anyways, tangent aside, thanks for all the GREAT reviews! Feedback is so important to me, so please speak up and review! For those of you curious about the return of Ryan's possible relative Frances, yes, she will be back. But, not for a while. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter VIII: In Desperate Need of the Sandy Cohen Schmear

Seth couldn't sleep. For the life of him, he couldn't understand how he got himself into messes like this. He poured himself another cup of coffee and then plopped his Incredible Hulk pajama-clad self back onto the living room sofa. No matter how many different video games he tried to use as a distraction, he couldn't get her voice out of his head.

Flashback

"Cohen…what's going on? Listen, I know something's up. I saw Chino yesterday all bloody and beat up. What happened?" she inquired, knowing that if she was going to find out anything, her best bet was to pry it out of Seth. Folding her arms in frustration as her boyfriend tried to nonchalantly pretend that he hadn't heard her, Summer refused to let him leave until she got some answers. Seth looked around the Roberts' kitchen for some help, hoping that one of the pans would mysteriously crash so that his girlfriend's attention would be diverted from this line of questioning. Glimpsing sideways at her to see if she was still staring him down, and when he saw that there was no way he was going to get out of this one, he conceded.

"Okay…look," he ushered her into the hallway and up the stairs, not wanting anyone to overhear this. Once they had reached Summer's room, Seth double-checked the door into the bathroom she shared with Marissa, even though he knew she was halfway across the world. "So….the other day, Ryan saw something. Something that got him kinda riled up. I can't really go into specifics right now, but let's just say he jumped into the situation without really thinking, and it ended up backfiring."

Summer's brow wrinkled with confusion, wondering if he could possibly be any more vague. It didn't sound good. She speculated on why he was being so methodical in checking the house. It wasn't as if Marissa was there. Who else could he be so paranoid about keeping this information from? Her patience was wearing thin; she needed more details and she was not going to get it from Seth. There must be a Plan B. While she was internally creating her alternate route to the truth, Seth was still rambling, every once in a while glancing at her, hoping she had been appeased with what he had divulged. Then, it hit her….she was going to have to go to the source. Eyes lighting up with a mixture of self-gratification and nervousness, Summer was shaken out of her head by her curious boyfriend.

"Summer? Are you okay? You look a little pale. Here, let me get you a glass of water," Seth said, springing into action, secretly hoping to reroute her attention upon the only thing he knew could distract her….herself.

Summer grinned at his cuteness when he was worried about her. She hoped that after he found out she had gone around his back for more information about this that he wouldn't be too upset with her.

As Seth returned with the water, Summer had decided that they had done enough talking and set the water down haphazardly on her nightstand, suddenly only interested in the carnal pleasures that she enjoyed so much with her man.

Present Day

A slight grin that had appeared on Seth's face at the revisiting of that memory was swiftly replaced with the realization that he had screwed everything up. He didn't know if he was going to be able to fix this one. As he fiddled for the remote, he noticed the clock. 6:14 A.M. Boy, he was glad it was Saturday. That gave him all weekend to sulk and try to figure out some grand scheme to both save his relationship and still stick to the plan of enrolling at U.C. with Ryan. There was no way he was going to let Ryan go by himself. With everything that had happened, he wasn't sure if he could trust his brother not to go looking for trouble.

Summer had sounded so hurt when he had told her, as he had anticipated she would. After all they had weathered together, she was finding it hard to believe that Seth couldn't tell her why he had decided to forego the east coast school he had so long dreamed of in favor for four more years in California. But, honestly, he couldn't really divulge all the details because he knew that it could potentially ruin everything.

That fateful night one week ago, when he had rolled into the house after spending the afternoon at the comic book store, he could immediately sense that all was not well in the Cohen house. Heading out to the pool house, he was not at all prepared for the sight in front of him.

Flashback

"Hey, man…you're not going to believe it! The new Cavalier and Clay came out two weeks early! Dude, don't sweat it, I got you a copy. Here you…" Seth stopped as the as-yet unseen figure of his brother came into full view. Ryan gingerly turned over in his bed, his wife beater doing little to hide the evidence of what Seth could only describe as an absolute ass beating.

"Holy shit, dude! What happened?" Seth screeched, his panicky voice echoing loudly through pool house. He rushed towards the bed, completely unsure of what to do. "Are you okay? Well, obviously you're not okay…or else you wouldn't like you had tangled with some demon water polo player. Who did this? Someone you know…or just a random ass whooping? Was this over some girl? I thought you had learned your lesson with Marissa…"

As Seth rambled on and on, just as interested in the possible scenarios playing out in his head as he was in the truth, Ryan silently begged for the pounding in his head to go away. He had to get Seth to be quiet; he was only making a bad situation worse.

"SETH!!!" Ryan yelled, hoping to convey with his tone his need for some much-needed peace and quiet. Seth abruptly stopped his tangent and focused solely on Ryan. He knew that what was about to come out of his brother's mouth could potentially change things. But, this was a time when Ryan needed him the most, so, no matter how inwardly scared he may be, he had to push that aside no matter what the circumstances may be.

"Sorry, man..You know me," he replied, lowering his intensity level, "but seriously, what happened? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

At this question, Ryan perked up with interest. The last thing he wanted to do right now was to sit in a cold, white room while doctors and police poked and prodded at him.

"No…no…it's fine. Look, it was just an accident, alright? I'll be fine. No big deal," Ryan said, hoping this would appease Seth, at least until he could formulate his story. If he was going to get his revenge, there was no way anyone could know about this, especially not Seth. But, how was he going to cover this one up? He could wear long sleeved shirts and pants to cover the bruises and scratches on his body, but there was no way he could cover up his big, black eye.

"Yeah…sure, man. That heinous purple mark looks totally like an accident, right? Let me guess," he continued sarcastically, "you…tripped, fell, and landed on someone's fist? But, the juicier question is….whose fist? Cause let's face it, pretty much every fight you've been in since you got here, you've won. But, in this instance," he moves closer to examine just how much damage had been done, "it looks like you might have been out-matched. Come on, man…we're not in high school anymore. You can trust me. I won't tell anyone."

The look on Seth's face hoped to convey that he was serious about this.

"Alright," Ryan sighed, secretly relieved that there was someone else who would know what was going on. Seth was right; he had been outmatched. Actually, outnumbered would probably be the more accurate word. "So, last night, while you were out with Summer….I was getting off from my shift at the restaurant…."

Ryan had started working part-time at the Mexican restaurant Dos Hombre's down in the mall near Seth's favorite comic book store. As he cautiously continued with his explanation, not wanting to worry Seth to the point of telling Sandy and Kirsten, his recollections of that night came back very vividly to him. The unnerving looks the three older guys had given him when they followed him to his car in the alleyway behind the mall, the cynical smirk the tallest one hadn't tried to suppress when he smashed the front windshield of the car Ryan's mom had saved so long to buy for him, how his body fell so easily back into the tactic of shutting down and preserving energy until the worst part was over. After they had gotten their fill, they sat smoking, betting on how long it would take before Ryan got up. Once he finally stirred and sought to bring himself to his feet, the dark-haired one felt it necessary to get in one final kick to the stomach while the others put their cigarettes out.

'Your friend Volchek sent us to give you this,' he choked out, still somewhat winded from the activity he had just endured. As he walked away, he dropped a piece of paper on the ground at Ryan's side. He saw this, and, although it felt like he might explode with any sudden movement, Ryan strained to catch this note before it landed in the puddle next to him. As he opened the note to read what his enemy had wrote, the adrenaline that had been masking the pain started to wear off, and Ryan was left with the full weight of just how bad they had really hurt him.

'Don't worry…I haven't forgotten you. The time is coming. We'll settle this once and for all. You game?'

Ryan shook himself out of the memory, refocusing on Seth, who looked like he was about to combust with curiosity.

"Look, if I tell you, you have to swear that you won't tell your parents."

"Ryan, how many times do we have to tell you, they're YOUR parents, too? And, it's fine. I know, I haven't always been the best with my stealthicity…Whoa! Is that even a word? I'm going with it…makes me sound all brainy and stuff…"

Ryan raised his eyebrow at him.

"I know, I know…serious moment once again totally ruined by my Coheny Cohenisms, as Summer would say, but, I swear man, I won't tell the rents," he offered, the worry again returning to his face as he sat down on his brother's bed, getting a more clear view of exactly how of shape Ryan was in.

Taking a deep breath in before what he was hoping would be a short conversation, Ryan began his account of that night's events.

"Okay…so, like I said, I was walking to my car after work, when these three guys started following me. I noticed them, but I wasn't sure if they were just getting off of work too, or what. But, as I got closer to my car, they kinda swarmed around me…and, I didn't know what was going on, but then they were jumping me. I tried to fight back for a while, but finally, one of them pulled out a club and hit me, and then I blacked out. I woke up a little later, and they were all sitting around, smoking cigarettes, talking about me like I wasn't even there. Then, one of them," he said, his voice getting angrier as the image came back into his mind, "kicked me in the stomach and threw this note down at me."

As Ryan leaned over to show the note to Seth, a sudden, sharp pain burst through his ribs. He winced uncontrollably, but then quickly regained his composure. He couldn't let Seth see just how bad this was. He could destroy everything if he went to the cops.

"Volchek?" Seth asked, although he already knew the response. Ryan nodded his head in accord. Seth now understood why Ryan hadn't wanted Sandy or Kirsten to know about this; it wasn't over yet. He knew they would try and stop Ryan from getting involved in this, and, although they would probably be right, Ryan couldn't let this one go. There had already been major dissention between the two guys for a while, but now, it was serious. Someone had to win this feud once and for all, or who knows how long it could go on. "So, what are you going to do?"

Carefully thinking about his answer, Ryan finally admitted, "I don't know….but, I need to go see him. Get to him on my terms…without his…friends."

Seth looked him right in the eyes. That moment, with no words being spoken, he and Ryan finally understood each other. Wanting to help, he got up from the bed and went into the pool house bathroom in search of some aspirin for his brother's pain.

Present Day

"Seth? What are doing down here? Did you fall asleep playing video games again? Remember what I told you? You'll never get a good night's sleep in front of a blue screen."

Groggily, Seth opened his eyes to see his mother standing in front of him with a cup of coffee.

"Thanks," he murmured while grabbing for the steaming hot cup. Quickly, he looked over to see the still half-full one sitting on the coffee table. Kirsten followed his eyes, and softly shook her head when she realized both of her sons were prone to pulling all-night brooding sessions over their women problems.

"Well, at least I can be good for something," she lightly jabbed, reaching for the old cup, and walking it into the kitchen. Then, she walked back into the living room. She knew her son must be really upset about what had happened with Summer, and, although she still wasn't sure what prompted his decision, she knew how much Summer meant to him, so she wanted to be there for him. But, then again, she didn't want to give him the impression that he could keep tugging with her heart this way without any kind of explanation.

Something felt fishy. Why would Ryan need Seth with him at Berkeley? In the past, it had always been the other way around. They had both been acting very strange for the last week or so; Ryan had barely come up for air out of the pool house, even choosing to eat his meals in solitude, and Seth's usual comedy routines had ceased, being replaced by worried, somber glances towards the pool house.

"You know, whatever is going on with you, you can talk to me…I won't push you, but just know that I'm here if you need me."

It was moments like this when it was the hardest for Seth not to crack. He wanted to tell his mom about how Ryan had gone over to Volchek's apartment, only to have the door answered by a half-naked Caitlyn Cooper, how she had proudly told Ryan that Volchek had gotten his G.E.D and had gotten some friend of his to pull some strings to get him into U.C Berkeley, how Ryan had almost passed out with disbelief. But, he couldn't. The only thing he could do was to try and convince his mother that his motives towards transferring to Berkeley were not tainted with fear for his brother's life.

"Thanks, mom…I know…it's just, right now, it's complicated. I'll you know though."

Seth got up off the couch, taking another much-needed sip of his coffee. He hurriedly hugged Kirsten as he made his way for his early morning sustenance. Today he was definantly in need of a bagel with the famous Sandy Cohen smear.