Dark Night, Hold Tight, part 23
A/N: If you're impressed that I wrote a scene involving Marissa, you should be, considering that every time I see Mischa Barton I pray that someone will run over her emaciated ass with a Mack truck. Enjoy.
Summer was awake at seven the following morning. Lauren must have come to get the girls during the night, because she was alone, and the pillows and throw blankets were stacked neatly on the end of the couch. She padded down the hall towards her bedroom and heard Seth's quiet snores through the door. She curled up on her own bed to sleep off the tired ache that was crowding the muscles of her neck and back.
When she woke up for the second time that morning, it was after noon, and music was softly playing from across the hall. Summer grimaced. She didn't want to confront Seth, but she had to make it clear that they could not repeat what had happened the night before.
Maybe the easiest thing to do would be to ask him to leave...
But the question was, would he? Summer sincerely doubted it. Sighing heavily, she ran a quick hand over her hip to make sure she wasn't accidentally revealing too much skin. She crossed the hall and knocked on the door to the guest room, then pushed it open before he could answer.
"Seth, I want you to go," she stood in the doorway to his room, fidgeting as he looked up at her.
"Yeah?" Seth put down the book he'd been engrossed in, "You need something?"
"I need you to leave," Summer clarified. "I know Anna paid you to stay with me, but I'll write you a check for all of it. I just want you to go."
Seth frowned. "Summer…Anna didn't pay me anything."
"What!"
"I thought she told you. She tried," Seth went on, "but I wouldn't take it. I just wanted to be close to you, Summer, again. It's always been you," he finished quietly, swinging his legs off the bed, and approaching her.
"See, Cohen…" Summer's face flushed hotly. "You do this, and it makes me crazy. You say all of these sweet things, and you gave me the best orgasm of my life, but in the end, you're just going to leave, so you might as well just do it now."
Though she couldn't see him, Summer felt Seth tense. He remained silent for several long seconds, counting to ten. When he spoke again, he sounded almost defeated, which only reaffirmed Summer's doubt.
"Summer, I know this is hard for you," his voice broke, and he swallowed, "...but I can't just leave you here by yourself. If...if it would make you feel safer, we can, uh, call a truce. No more kissing…or touching. Just—we'll just keep our hands to ourselves."
"That's what we did the last time, and look what happened!"
Now that she'd thrown down the gauntlet, he was quick to pick it up. "Hey, that last time was all you, babe," Seth threw up his hands to relinquish culpability.
"Me?" Summer asked defensively. "Who started kissing my neck? Who took off my shirt?"
"Uh, because you asked me to," Seth retorted. Summer glared. "Not that I didn't want to," he backpedaled. "Because I did. Very much. I'm just pointing out that you started it."
"It doesn't matter who started it!" Summer snapped irritably. Seth grinned triumphantly.
"You're right," he murmured, reaching out to place a hand on her hip and pulling her close. "I'm just glad it happened."
"Now, Cohen, stop that!" Summer smiled despite herself. Typically, his moratorium on touching had lasted all of thirty seconds. He knew he could get away with anything when he wanted to be charming, and he used it to his full advantage. "Hands to yourself!"
"Okay," he agreed, nuzzling her ear. "I'll keep my hands to myself. You, however," nip, "can put your hands where ever you'd like."
Summer snorted. "Don't start with me." She could feel him smiling against the tender skin of her neck. He was like a little boy, always testing the limits, pushing people's buttons. It was so like him to promise not to kiss her, and then turn around in the very next breath and try to get a little action. She would have been irritated if it didn't make her feel so deliciously warm and dizzy. She come into his room determined to put her foot down and less than five minutes later she had melted like a marshmallow over his flame.
From the foyer, the house phone trilled loudly. Summer worried her bottom lip with her teeth. "I better go get that," she said wistfully, pulling away. "Could be Anna."
Seth watched her go, her saucy bottom swaying back and forth as she walked away. He brought a fist up to his mouth and sank his teeth into the bare skin.
"Hello?"
"Sum, it's me," Marissa said cheerfully.
"Hey Coop," Summer said loudly, turning back towards the hall, as if she were glancing at Seth. "What's going on?"
She could practically hear Marissa rolling her eyes. "Well, my mom and Caitlyn came up to spend the weekend here, so it's getting kind of crowded."
"Oh yeah...did the new husband come?"
"Bob? No, he mysteriously had some business to take care of in San Fransisco. He and I don't really make a secret of the lack of love between us."
"Right there with you, sister," Summer smirked. "I'd be surprised if my stepmonster even knew my name." Summer moved silently towards the patio, and closed the door shut behind her.
"So how's it going with Seth?" Ahh, the inevitable.
"Okay."
"Okay? You haven't seen him in four years, Sum...surely you have more to say than 'okay.'"
"First, you know how much I detest that nickname. Second..." she had to tell someone, it might as well be Marissa, "...we had sex."
"Shut up!"
"Well, we sort of had sex."
Marissa scoffed.
"He went down on me," Summer grudgingly elaborated.
Marissa hmmmmed. "Was it good?"
"It was incredible," she gushed. "The man knows how to use his tongue."
"Ewww, Summer. He's like my, nephew."
"Fine," Summer huffed, then lowered her voice. "But now I don't know what to do."
"Um, have fun?" Marissa suggested.
"It's not that easy," Summer rolled her eyes in annoyance.
"Sure it is," Marissa replied easily. "He's going to be there...what? Another week? Make the most of it."
"Wow, should I save the lap dance and the floor show for the end of the week, or should I go for the gold right from the start?"
"Seriously, Sum, enjoy yourself. He's going to be there anyway...and you know he doesn't have herpes or anything. You might as well."
"You're a totally slutty influence on me," Summer reclined on the chaise and lolled her head back.
"Someone needs to be," Marissa grumbled. "I think Anna wants to put you in a convent until you shrivel up and die."
Summer laughed. "She's all about the looking, you're all about the leaping."
"Speaking of looking, have you seen Ryan lately?"
The remainder of the conversation revolved around Ryan and his washboard abs, and finally dwindled down to both girls struggling to find something to talk about. With a hasty excuse about having some laundry to do, Summer hung up.
Seth must have been watching from the living room window, because seconds later, he joined her on the patio.
"Marissa?" he prodded needlessly.
"Yeah."
"How many brain cells do you think you lost?"
"Shut up, Cohen, she's not that dumb."
"And hell is just a sauna," he quipped, quoting one of her favorite movies.
Summer laughed, and then shivered when Seth pressed a cool glass into her palm.
"Iced tea," he said, then flopped down on the lounge chair next to her.
"When you talked to Anna did she tell you when she was coming home?"
Seth shook his head, then said, "no." He smiled widely. "Why? Are you bored with me already?"
Summer remained silent, her face pinched. Seth squinted in the afternoon sunlight. After a moment, he found the courage to goad her.
"What are you so afraid of, anyway?"
"You wouldn't understand."
"Summer, give me a little credit."
She sighed, dramatically. "Anna's getting married in like, three months."
Seth frowned for a moment, and then realization dawned. "And you don't know what you're going to do," he stated.
"I can't impose on her any more than I already have."
"You're not imposing on her," Seth protested. "Anna loves living with you."
"Yeah, but not when she gets married. Like, ew. And when she has a baby…" Summer trailed off.
Seth laughed, "I don't think Anna's going to rush right out and get pregnant any time soon."
"You know what I mean," Summer retorted. "She won't have time for a family and to babysit me, too."
Seth rolled his eyes. "No one babysits you, Summer."
"What do you think you're doing here?" she countered sharply. Seth didn't answer her. Instead he crawled from his lounger to hers.
"I'm here to pleasure you," he said, his voice husky.
Summer burst out laughing. "You've got balls, I'll give you that."
Seth carefully lowered himself on top of her body, grinding their crotches together lewdly. Summer felt her tensed muscles go weak and her head pressed against the pillowed head rest. Seth was kissing her throat.
"What happened to 'hands to ourselves'?" she asked coyly.
"They got bored by themselves. They want yours to come out and play," he murmured, finding her fingers with his own and lacing them together.
After a few minutes of serious necking, Summer pulled back.
"I want to go see Nana this afternoon," she told him seriously.
"You're thinking about my Nana right now?"
"Seth," she warned.
"We'll go whenever you want," he relented. He shifted his arm to check his watch. "It is now one pm. We can go at three and relieve Esther. My dad is flying tomorrow morning."
"Where will he stay?"
"Probably at the apartment with Ryan. Max and Sarah are staying at Nana's."
"Are Sarai and Nana going to reconcile?"
"I sure hope so," Seth kissed Summer's forehead. "She always gave the best presents are Hannukah."
"Leave it to you to be thinking about presents in all of this," Summer sighed, but Seth knew she wasn't really annoyed. He began kissing her fingertips.
"Let's go inside, I'm cold," he whispered. Summer didn't answer. "Aren't you?" he asked.
Summer rubbed his bicep thoughtfully. "Not anymore."
"Would you get the hell out of here?" Summer heard the Nana's cranky voice from all the way down the hall. A frightened nurse exited the room, pressing a hand to her forehead. Her green scrubs looked entirely too big on her waifish frame.
"Ahhh, the Nana's in a bad mood. What a shocker," Seth said drolly.
Summer elbowed him in the ribs. "You shut up. I love your Nana."
"I love my Nana too, but you can't deny...she's a bitch," he lowered his voice as they approached her door. Seth held it open for Summer, then guided her through with a hand at the small of her back.
"There he is, my favorite grandson," Nana crowed when she saw the pair. Seth poked Summer back, as if to say 'I told you so.'
"Nana, can we get you anything?" He asked politely. "Coffee? Water? Valium salt lick?" Summer sighed as if she were disappointed in his utter lack of decorum.
"I could use a doctor who knows what in the hell they're talking about!" the Nana snorted.
"Have you talked with Dad? He's coming tomorrow. He wants you to see a specialist."
"I have specialists. I have specialists for everything that could possibly be wrong with me, and none of them can tell me anything."
"Nana," Summer said softly, moving gracefully to the chair that was beside her bed. She felt around for it discretely, then sank into it and pulled the Nana's hand into her lap. "What did they say about your stroke?"
The Nana waved her concerns away with her free hand. "Nothing, nothing. It was minor. They said I might have some problems with my facial muscles drooping, but as you can see, I'm fit as a fiddle."
"Good," Summer brought Nana's clammy hand to her face and rubbed her cheek against the paper-thin skin on the back of the older woman's hand.
"What about you? What have you two been doing?"
"Ahhh," Seth blushed bright red and stammered.
"Well, we went for coffee after dinner last night," Summer cut in smoothly. "And Seth had his phone turned off so Ryan had to come and get us when they brought you to the hospital. I watched Katie and Emma so Lauren and Esther and Seth could be here with you."
"You're such an angel," the Nana beamed.
Seth dropped into the chair against the far wall and watched his Nana and Summer talk easily. Summer had been wrong, when she'd said that Nana was 'crazy for her Sethela.' Like Seth, Nana was crazy for Summer, though admittedly, crazy for her in a very different way. Summer had the Nana wrapped around her little finger, and she knew how to play the old lady like a Stradivarius. Much like Seth had when he'd been younger, more impish.
At some point, he dozed off, for when he woke up, the room was quiet and dusk was falling.
"Summer?" he whispered.
"Hmmm?" her dark eyes snapped open and flashed towards him.
"Is Nana asleep?"
"Yes, I think so," Summer gently disengaged her hand from where it was still clasped with Nana's.
"We should go," he nodded his head towards the door. Striding over to his grandmother, he kissed her gently on the forehead, and then reached for Summer's hand. They left her room, meeting Lauren on her way in.
Seth hailed a cab and Summer curled up under his arm for the ride home.
"Seth?" she asked quietly, once they were safely encapsulated in the back seat, warm. She rubbed her cheek against the worn green cotton of his polo tee and the rougher fabric of his corduroy coat.
"Yes?" he murmured against the silky strands of her hair.
"Nana's going to be okay, right?"
"Of course she is," he rubbed a comforting hand down her back. "It was just a minor stroke. A stroklet. A strokette. She's going home tomorrow."
"I'm scared."
"Why? She's going to be fine."
"Not just about the Nana," Summer confessed. "About everything."
"Summer, I'll never let anything happen to you," Seth whispered fiercely, pulling her closer to his chest.
She wanted to believe him, so badly.
As she sat there, cuddled under his arm, she abruptly decided to stop fighting him. She wanted to simplify things down as much as possible. So what if he left? Would she be any more heartbroken if they didn't fool around while he was there? Probably not.
She would take Marissa's advice. She and Seth would kiss, and touch, and even make love, and she would enjoy it while she could. And unlike the last time, she would be able to appreciate for what it was: the last time.
Her heart felt lighter almost immediately—lighter than it had been in months—years, even.
When they got back to the apartment, she led him back to her bedroom, and pushed his coat back off his shoulders. He got the hint, and helped her remove their clothing in record time. He almost tripped over his own feet in an attempt to get them over to the bed.
She had wondered about this for so long... Would he be the same as she had remembered? Had he had many other lovers since her? Would going to bed with him be the same as she remembered it? In all the good ways, she was delighted to find, it was. He still took his time, kissing and touching her exactly where she needed it the most. He was careful not to crush him underneath her, the muscles of his chest were stronger, more toned. As he approached climax, he still whispered her name over and over like a mantra, like a prayer.
Pleasure blossomed in Summer's body like a glass being over-filled with water, spilling over the rim and bleeding into the tablecloth below. The sheets beneath them soaked up their sweat and Summer's tears as they brought each other to new heights. They continued on far into the night, each unable to release the other, to put finality to the events that had been started so long before.
Seth was finally asleep beside her when Summer pressed her lips against the skin of his back and very softly told him that she loved him.
To be Continued...