Hey guys! thank you for being so patient. I know for awhile that updates got rather regular again then I lagged a bit. Anyhow, I am back now hopefully I will update in a reasonable amount of time, but trust me it should never take more than a week. On top of a new job I have a raging course load. Anyhow thats all with my rambling. Please read and review as usual!

xoxo Jules

Chapter 32: "Body's aching all the time"

Summer's POV : No matter how hard he tried

Life is a funny thing. I mean, one day you can go from being tossed around in the foster system to sleeping in a queen sized bed in a mansion in Newport Beach California. See, funny. School's been going alright. I actually like going to class. It's also cool being there with Seth and Ryan, Alex and Luke. It's almost like we have our own little group or something. Harbor has definitely given me my share of bottled blondes, especially since I spend most of my time in design classes. The girls just sit there text messaging or twirling their dried out ends. I really don't get why they are there in the first place. They're just going to grow up and marry old men with greasy hair and spend their days at cardio bar.

There was a light knock on the outside of the door.

"Come in!" I said turning away from my homework and turning in my desk chair

"Hey." A soft voice greeted me. It was Seth of course.

"Hey, what's up?" I smiled

I was getting used to his random visits. He would come into my room late at night with one obscene joke or another, or some new theory on life as a whole that he wanted my thoughts on.

"Well, you've been working uber hard on your homework, harder than anyone should actually." The words rambled off his tongue. I raised my eyebrow at him "My point, right."

He leaned out of the door and picked up a tray off the floor.

"Milk and cookies!" He smiled at me.

Something about Seth made me love him to pieces, especially the fact that he admittedly acts like a five year old and is totally cool with it.

"Yum." I said patting the spot on the bed next to me. He smiled as he bounded onto the bed beside me.

"So." He said leaning back on the bed crossing his legs. "How's life?"

I smiled again. I couldn't help it. Everything became so good when he was around.

"Great actually. I love this place."

"Yeah." He agreed.

"I think it's like the sun, and the ocean air." I continued.

"Nah, I thought it was the botox and the money." He joked with me. I, in return, elbowed him in the ribs. "OW!" He whined.

"Baby." I said stuffing an entire cookie into my mouth swallowing in one big gulp.

"Oh I'm the baby!" Seth said easing his way towards me

I screamed as he pounced ontop of me and began to tickle my sides furiously.

"Ah!" I screamed as he continued his torment. I laughed so hard that my sides hurt.

"You've got to beg for mercy!" He said as I twisted under him

"Mercy, mercy, mercy!"

He threw his hands up in the air.

"Fine. Oh yeah, and this day forever will be remember as the day that you Summer Roberts surrendered to me, Seth Ezekiel Cohen." He grinned a toothy grin down at me as I pouted… and then there it was, the silence.

Our faces we just inches from one anothers. I don't think that it is possible to count how many times we have been in this exact same position, but this time it was different. I don't know what came over me but I lunged toward Seth capturing his lips with my own. Luckily he more than reciprocated as he grabbed my waist and pulled me toward him. Kissing furiously I pulled his shirt from over his head, … he did the same to me leaving me in only my bra when the door swung open.

"WOW!" The person said

I looked up to see a wide eyed Alex in front of a wide eyed Luke.

"Way to go Cohen!" Luke said laughing

I could feel my whole body blush.

"I, ugh…" Alex stuttered "we'll give you a minute."

She and Luke hustled away down the hall.

"Oh my god!" I said as I covered my face with my shirt and fell backward on the bed.

"Hey you." Seth said lying beside me taking the shirt from my first.

"Yeah?" I said like a little girl turning over to him with a pouty face.

"I love you."

Nobody had ever said that to me before. Nobody ever uttered the words love. I mean they could love the things I do, but even in that sense it was only really used in bed…

"You wha-?" I asked quite not believing my ears.

"Summer Roberts," He said again. My heart skipped a beat. "I love you."

My mind was reeling. What am I supposed to make of that? Seth Cohen loves ME! Is that even possible. Do I love him back? Holy crap. This cant be happening!

"No, no!" I said shooting up from the bed pulling my shirt roughly back over my head.

"Summer!" He stood up, his eyes pleaded.

"You cant love me Seth!"

"WHY NOT!" He yelled

"I don't know why!" It was then that I began sobbing. I sunk down into the corner, Seth sank down right along with me. He pulled me close as I cried.

"I love you Summer." He said. I sobbed even harder. "You're just going to have to deal with that."

He meant it. I could tell. It took all the strength of every fiber of my being to utter those words…

"… I love you too."

And that was it.

Ryans POV: Often thought of suicide

It's been a week since Marissa returned home from rehab. The nurse is now only at her house for like four hours a day and is gone for good by six pm. I knocked on the Cooper's front door. I could hear the ruckus before it was even open. It made me smile.

"Coming!" I heard a voice say. Moments later the door swung open to reveal Rhett with Sophie under one arms. He had lipstick smeared on the sides of his lips and he was wearing a tiara.

"Hi!" Sophie said from under her older brothers arm. "Wanna play princess too?"

"I'm alright, thanks Soph." I smiled at the little girl. I could have imagined her being Marissa as a little girl, I mean had she had a happy childhood and all.

"Come on in man." Rhett back up from the door.

I laughed at the scene in front of me. Marissa and Caitlin were sitting on the couch with Chinese food spread on the coffee table watching the style channel. Jimmy was pacing back and forth on the phone with one client or another, and it appeared that Sophie had set up a magical palace in the corner.

"But do you see that? You totally cant wear green, read, and brown like that. I mean sure if there were black in it I guess that would be acceptable, but I mean, then I guess you would have to change the shoes. And don't even get me started on the hair, right Riss?"

Marissa looked at the girl wide eyed as Rhett grinned from behind them.

"Sure…" Marissa said turning back to the TV.

"Marissa, you've got a guest." Rhett said as we entered the living room.

She turned around on the couch.

"Hey!" She said her eyes dancing as she looked at me. She grinned a girlish smile.

"Hey."

"What's up?" She asked as Sophie bounded onto her lap and stuffed a piece of sesame chicken into her older sisters mouth. Marissa laughed as she chewed

"Move Soph, you're blocking my view!" Caitlin said pushing her sister off of the bed.

I chuckled to myself again. It is only appropriate that after all of this Marissa would find out that this, the Coopers, in all of their dysfunctional glory is her family.

"I was thinking that we go down to the pier, grab some dessert or something."

Marissa looks over at Jimmy for permission. He smiled and waved her off. Minutes later Marissa and I were climbing into Alex's jeep which she had so graciously allowed me to borrow.

We got to the pier minutes later just as the sun was setting. Marissa smiled as I opened the door for her. I love when she smiles, like really smiles. We walked around for about 15 minutes until Marissa began to slow down.

"Need to sit?" I asked her

She just nodded silently. Luckily for us there was a bench feet away.

"How are you feeling?" I asked once we finally got situated.

She shrugged.

"Alright I guess. Still a little tired but Jimmy said that I can go to school the week after next so that could be cool right?" She gave me a small smile

"Yeah. I wouldn't have to play fifth wheel then." I winked at her

She grinned childishly at me. A grin that I could really get used to seeing.

"What if you become the 7th wheel?" She teased

"How could that happen?" I asked her

Truthfully the idea of Marissa with another man makes me sick.

"I donno, what if there is some really hot water polo player with a sexy shaved chest and chiseled body and rock hard abs who is totally dreamy!" She joked with me

"Well first off it seems like god would have invested more time in making his body so he would have a brain the size of a pea." I first pointed out. "Besides, I don't think that there's anyone there good enough for you."

I know I'm cheesy or whatever. But this time it is actually true.

"Right." She said rolling her eyes. That was when I heard a voice coming from behind us.

"Babe!" The voice said.

Marissa and I turned at the same time to see a guy in a grunge shirt and zip-up hoodie. He had a short buzz cut and a stern but amused expression on his face. He took a drag of a cigarette as he stared down at us.

I wrapped my arm protectively around Marissa as I looked back at her.

"You know this guy?" I asked her

"Kevin." She said in a voice that I couldn't read, still not turning away from the supposed figure from her past. There was definitely some surprise, a little worry, maybe a little anger too?

"Who is he?" I asked her again but she was silent.

"What babe, cat got your tongue?" He said smirking down at her. It was then that he walked around to the other side of the bench and extend his hand to me. "Kevin Volchok, Marissa's boyfriend."

Marissa stared at him, her body stiffening in my arms. Something about this situation just isn't right. Things have been going well for so long. We've gone to far to let some tattooed sleaze ball screw it over.

Like they say. Your past always comes to bite you in the ass.

What'd ya think? Lemme kno. This is all that I have of this story at this point so if you have an idea or request now is your time to voice it.

xoxo Jules