"This is such a pretty campus." Sadie was very impressed as Anna and Taylor walked them through green, sunlit, campus. The young woman, as she squeezed Ryan's hand, looked at the old brink buildings with wide eye. She had found Berkeley very pretty, but to her, Brown University was magnificent, something out of a BBC program. "How old is Brown?"

"About two hundred years or so—give or take." Neither Taylor nor Anna could remember the exact year the college was founded. "But you like it?"

"I love it." As they walked, Taylor and Anna talked, happy to share their love for this place. Certainly Taylor loved this campus, and as she told a story about one of the science buildings, she could feel Ryan's admiring glance upon her. His eyes were warm with affection and friendship and it pleased her to know that they had made strides so far towards friendship.

"This is Summer's favorite place." Taylor motioned to a small green space where two oak trees provided their shade and obscurity. "She always comes here to study." Taylor let her hand set on the trees' ancient bark and smiled wistfully. "I somehow get dragged out under this tree a lot—usually to talk." The girl tried to smile at Ryan, but a cloud of anger had passed over his face.

"There are some nicer trees near the Philosophy department." The air had felt poisonous and Anna was anxious not to spoil this fine morning. "Why don't we check them out?" The moment had passed, for now, but Taylor felt a cold sweet on her neck as she thought of the frost that had passed over Ryan's eyes when she had spoken of Summer. It was well that Summer had class and meetings all morning; a meeting between her and Ryan would have not been pretty.

She only half listened to Anna's words and she walked beside her. Summer had been pleased to hear Ryan was visiting Seth and had told Taylor to say hello for her, but she knew that her friend's message would not be well regarded. It was now awkward being caught in the middle of all this; Summer and Seth had made it easy on her at least by being completely fine with Taylor's friendship with the other. Seth did not resent Taylor's close ties to Summer—in fact he regarded Taylor as kind of a spy—and Summer did not want to lose her last remaining link to her Newport past. Besides, Taylor had always been there for her in the past—she could not imagine making her friend choose sides.

Ryan's eyes were on her and she wondered if he at least resented Taylor for not picking Seth over Summer. It was true that Summer had behaved poorly; Taylor herself had tried to argue on Seth's behalf the entire summer, but to no avail. Would he or did he consider Taylor an enemy or a poor friend to Seth? So far Ryan had been sweet enough—and it had certainly seemed earlier in the morning that there could be a solid friendship there—maybe it was her imagination, maybe not.

"Hello Townsend." Anna beamed with delight at her friend's confusion. "You totally zoned out there." Taylor smiled in apology and then listened as Anna told her she and Sadie were running off to the bathroom and would be back shortly.

"You okay?" Ryan's look of concern made her previous fears fade slightly.

"I'm fine." An awkwardness descended on them both; Ryan cleared his throat and looked down at his shoes. Taylor too felt like she wanted to say something but could not think of anything funny to say. It was the first time they had been alone since they had broken up and Taylor thought that maybe friendship was really a long way off. They both started to say something at the same time and as she laughed, she told him to go first.

"How's Seth, really?"

"He has his days—happy sometimes, pretty miserable the next; doesn't he talk to you?"

"Sometimes—sometimes he doesn't call me back for a couple of days. I don't know; I figure since you see him so much that you'd have a better perceptive."

"It's been tough—for him and Sum…"

"I don't want to hear about Summer." That was closed to him and she saw a sudden anger in his face. "She completely crushed him without cause."

"I know—I told her."

"Thank you."

"For what?" She was confused for a moment but then he told her how good she had been to Seth, for Seth. It meant the world to him that she was being so sweet and good to his friend. "You know I love Seth." The word love seemed to cause him a moment's pain and it confused her. "What—I didn't mean I love Seth like"

"We loved each other." The words stopped her cold. "Sorry—that was a pretty bad example."

"Not the best one, no."

"Are we okay?" He watched intently her hazel eyes ponder the question.

"Are you happy?"

"Very happy."

"Happier with her than you were with me?"

"Taylor." She shook her head and apologized, that was not a fair question and she knew it. "I loved you."

"You told me that on New Year's Day." She sighed deeply and looked down the pathway that Anna and Sadie had gone down a few minutes ago; no one was in sight. "Yet by March first you were with Sadie and I was crying into my pillow—how does that work?"

"The long distance thing—it was tough on us; remember? You weren't crazy about it." He took her hand and made her make eye contact with him. "We weren't together—remember? Ever since you went off to Paris we decided to see what would happen. Sadie happened."

"Do you love her?"

"Yes." She had been expecting it but it was a hard blow all the same. She had thought she was over Ryan Atwood, but that simple one word had made her heart fall apart instantly. "Taylor?" There were tears forming in her eyes, eyes that had moved Ryan to romance and love; now they only moved him to pity.

"I have to go." He grabbed her by the arm and stopped her. "What do you want to hear from me Ryan?"

"I'm so sorry Taylor—I wanted this weekend to be fun for us, to be friends."

"We will." She smiled through her tears. "I'm happy for her and for you—she's sweet." Out of the corner of her eye she could see Sadie and Anna finally coming back; they must have gone and gotten coffees because Anna was walking up the path with a carrier with four cups with Starbucks written on them. "Tell Anna I'll call her later." Before Ryan could protest Taylor took off, her head down and her hand wiping away a tear.