Sorry its taken so long, hope you're all still reading. Circus


The L.A.

My cell phone number had been left as a contact number. The guy's broken English telling me that something had been left in Theresa's room, a watch, he'd said. I'd reeled off Theresa's address to him before he'd explained that it was a man's watch. I left it to him as a tip before hanging up and trying to go back to sleep.

Three weeks. Theresa had been in Newport for just three weeks. Having both fixed my relationship and put it all into doubt she left. Like always, she left. It was crazy, Theresa and I were awful together. I cheated on her, she cheated on me; Jodie loving every minute of it. And yet I missed her as if she was a first love. And yet when I left Chino she didn't cross my mind.

As the my bedroom door opened I quickly stuffed the photo of Jodie, Theresa and I into the centre of my book, hoping who ever it was wouldn't notice that it was absent from my map of California. When I looked up and found it was Seth in my doorway I knew my secret was safe.

"I have to tell you something and I don't know how to do it." He said quietly, avoiding catching my eyesight.

"If its that you're Jacob, I'm really not in the mood." I told him, pretending to read my book.

"I'm not. I mean that would be crazy. I'm not. I mean I like her, but I don't like her, like her. I mean what would you do if I was?"

"Relax man, it was a joke." I frowned at him. "You're not her type. She prefers them tall, dark and goatee."

"She likes tall, dark goats?"

"Goatee – the facial hair." I shook my head. "What do you want to talk to me about?" I asked him, tired of the talk of Theresa.

"I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to come out with this." He said, hand to his head, pacing up and down in front of my open door.

"Stop." I told him quickly, thoughts returned to Theresa.

"Luke's sleeping with Julie Cooper."

"L Word drama." I nodded. "Must be Sunday."


"Maybe," Seth pointed to me as we walked down the corridor to our prospective homerooms, "they're not having sex; maybe they just go to a motel to spoon and watch Charlie Rose."

"Don't care." I said simply, "Its got to end before Marissa finds out. Because her and the bad news do not work well together. I either get dumped or she goes to hospital."

"Always fun times." He nodded, before pointing down the hall to Summer, Anna and Marissa heading towards us. "Got a plan?"

"Act like normal." I said simply, before hitting him on the chest gently with the back of my hand indicating for him to follow me down the hall towards the girls. "Hey you." I kissed Marissa on the cheek as I took a cup of coffee from Anna.

"Oh my god you guys we have the craziest news ever, I mean nothing you could tell us could top this." My eyes instantly met Seth's as Summer squealed excitedly besides us. "We met Grady Bridges!"

"Star of The Valley, which is apparently the best show ever." Anna explained, unenthusiastically when Seth and I turned to her for help.

"And he invited us to his birthday party tomorrow night." Summer squealed once more.

"The start of a hit TV show invited you to his cool Hollywood birthday party?" Seth frowned at her.

"There's no need for jealousy, Cohen."

"Oh that wasn't jealousy." He told her quickly.

"I got us a couple an plus ones, so we can all go." Summer smiled at us all, her excitement only increasing with each breath.

"It's a Tuesday night, Sandy will never let us go." I shrugged at her.

"It is a sad, sad day." Seth nodded, trying to look despondent.

"But you guys have to come, its been ages since we've done anything like this."

"There's a reason for that," Marissa smiled at her gently, "whenever we do something always goes wrong. Tijuana, Rooney…" she trailed off before looking to me for more examples.

"Parties." I pointed at her. "They never go well, I normally get hit."

"Or lovers get exposed." Seth added, pointing at Summer and Anna.

"Or my dad does." Marissa nodded at me.

"All fine examples. But come on," Summer pleaded at us all, "this is Grady Bridges birthday party." One by one we all agreed, none of us enthusiastically though. "Now I have to go show everybody the pictures of me and Grady. Thank God I had my camera phone; they are the autograph of the twenty-first century." She smiled at us once more before walking off to the group of cheerleaders at the end of the hallway.

"She even know those girls?" Anna frowned at them.

"Who knows." Seth shrugged, "But we have to work on our article for The Plank."

"Oh yeah, I actually had some ideas about that." She nodded, taking his arm and leading him towards the library.

"They know that homeroom's in like five minutes right?" I asked Marissa as the other two headed into the library.

"So how's Theresa?" Marissa asked me just as I'd sipped from my coffee cup, causing me to swallow it instantly.

"Uh she's…good she's back with Eddie." I tried to tell her as I attempted to mask my choking on the hot liquid.

"Have you talked to her since she left?"

"Yeah we have but its, uh, awkward." I shrugged at her. "I mean its weird. This is my ex who's now with someone I never thought she'd get with-"

"Maybe it really was just a phase." Marissa shrugged at me as the bell went. "You better go." She smiled at me, kissing me on the cheek before pushing me and my coffee cup in the direction of homeroom.


Sometime after homeroom, but before the end of the day Seth and I spotted Luke playing pool by himself in the common room. After brief and hushed fight over who should confront him, Seth pushed me towards Luke and his solitary game of pool.

"Hey!" He frowned up at me, from where he was lining up his shot to watching me throw the cue ball back and forth.

"I don't care what you and Julie Cooper are doing together but, for the love of my relationship, its got to stop." I told him, walking round the table. "Eight ball, corner pocket." I told him as I picked up the black from the table and dropped it into the pocket. "Its got to end."

"I know – I know – I know what it – what that must of looked like or seemed like but it's not like that," I simply looked at him, an eyebrow raised as I juggled a couple of his balls. "We've got a connection."

"And did I not tell you that I don't care?" I sighed as I threw him back his balls, which he struggled to catch. "Tomorrow night we're all going to L.A. You are going to Julie's and ending it." I told him as I walked round the table so I besides him. "Or I'll be juggling a very different set of your balls." I whispered in his ear before walking away.


"What are you watching?" I asked Seth as I dropped myself onto the couch besides him.

"Watching The Valley, I picked up the first season on DVD."

"Yeah so I talked to Luke-"

"Would you just give me till like the end of the episode please?"

"Are you serious?" I had to bite my lip to stop from laughing at him. "You're not actually into this are you?"

"Well what else have I got?" He asked me pausing the DVD, "I mean lets look at this objectively shall we?"

"Hey kids." Sandy smiled at us as he walked into the kitchen. I jumped up and found him holding a bag of groceries. "There's more in the car if you want to give Kirsten a hand."

"With pleasure." I smiled back at him. "You just saved me from objectively looking at Seth's life."

"MTV2?"

"The Valley." Sandy simply looked back at me. "Its good times." I nodded before going out to help Kirsten bring in the rest of the shopping.

"Is says something about my parenting when of my children, it's the child I didn't raise that helps out around the house." Kirsten smiled at me as she passed me a bag.

"I don't suppose you want to reward such behaviour by letting Seth and I go to L.A. with the others, would you?"

She looked me up and down before answering, "Run it past Sandy." was the conclusion she reached as we walked into the kitchen.

"Run what by me?" Sandy frowned at her as I started to unload the shopping.

"The kids want to go to L.A."

"Hell no." He said simply as I passed him sodas for the fridge.

"Why?" I frowned back at him, keeping hold of the drinks.

"I don't have to tell you why, I'm just telling you no." Sandy said, with one of those annoying 'parent smiles' as he took the drinks firmly and placed them in the fridge.

"But, but, but I told the truth." I pouted at him, before spinning round and trying it out on Kirsten. "I could have lied like Seth and said that we were going to a Comic-Con or an IMAX movie."

"It is quite worrying that you are our better child." Kirsten nodded. "Why you want to go?"

"Summer and Marissa got invited to this guys-"

"Grady Bridges." Seth called out from the next room.

"Birthday party." I finished, with a customary glance into the living room where Seth was still watching The Valley.

"Oh the guy from The Valley?" Kirsten smiled.

"Apparently." I shrugged going back to passing Sandy things to put in the fridge.

"I love him, he's so cute."

"Really?" I frowned at her. "I mean he's all geeky and sarcastic. I don't know how he ever gets laid."

"Thanks man." Seth called out again.

"Can you get me an autograph? Oh, your cell phone takes pictures right?" Kirsten asked me ignoring Seth.

"Is that a yes?" I smiled at her, she nodded before looking to Sandy.

"You call when you get there," he told me, one hand pointed at me the other in the fridge still holding onto the yoghurts I'd just passed him, "and you're home by 11:30. And don't spend an extra minute in L.A., that town will steal your soul."


"Why would they let that heavy-set girl in?" I asked Marissa after we'd got into the club.

"That was a guy." She laughed at me.

"Seth would have thought it was a girl." I grumbled as we walked further inside, my hands deep in my pocket.

"I can't believe he's missing all this." Summer said, looking around the club – clearly taking in all the stripers, drunks and drugs.

"'Cause Seth would clearly have loved this." Anna deadpanned besides her.

"Naked ladies." Summer shrugged.

"Yeah," I nodded, "plus he would have driven too."

"It was not that bad." Marissa said, rubbing my arm.

"Russia has invaded nations in the time we were in that car, and most of that we weren't even moving."

"Well we're here now, you can stop complaining." She smiled at me.

"Hey girls," Grady leered as us all as he pushed his way through the people towards us, "hey what's up? I'm glad you made it."

"Eventually." I mumbled across the others all saying 'Hi' and 'Happy birthday' to him.

"C'mon I wanna introduce you to some people." He told Summer, instantly taking her hand and dragging her over to his table, leaving Anna powerless but to follow.

"How does that guy play high school?"

"Hollywood." Marissa said simply, by way of an answer. "You ever wanted to be an actress?"

"I am the product of two alcoholic parents and the lack of a condom. Brother and father behind bars, my mother abandoning me to drink and smoke more than she can afford and sleep with men of questionable character. My family is a trailer park away from white-trash and yet I live in Orange County, surrounded by the rich and beautiful. Everyday I act for my life is not my own."

She stared open mouthed at me for a moment before eventually hinting that getting drinks might be the way to go in this situation.

"Is that Paris Hilton?" I frowned pointing across the people amassed around the small bar.

"I'm impressed you even know who Paris Hilton is." Marissa smiled at me, as I folded my arms waiting for a space so I could squeeze in and order.

"Hey there," I turned as someone patted my shoulder, "having fun yet?"

I opened my mouth but was quickly forced to close it again. My arms were suddenly loose, with hands searching for activity. One to the back of my neck, hairs suddenly on edge, the other to my temple. Both moving quickly to distract from the fact that Marissa, the stripper and I were all locked in silence.

"Hailey." I managed to croak out eventually. "How you been?"

"Alex," she said, barely audibly as she looked around the packed bar, "what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. Its not as the postcard described certainly."

She fumbled for a response but before she could say anything her arm had been grabbed and she was forced back up onto one of the empty podiums.

"Hailey keep moving," the guy spat at her, before turning to Marissa and I, "Couples pay extra."

Both of us watched as Hailey started to work the pole, watched keenly by a group of guys in suits beneath her.

"Who'd have thought that out of the two of us – it would be you that's dated a stripper." I mussed, unable to take my eyes from Hailey as she spun round. "Just as well Seth isn't here to witness this, he'd go ape shit." I shook my head and looked back to the bar, now with an opening to reach the staff behind it. "You want a drink?"

"What about Hailey?" Marissa said, turning from her looking at me, her mouth agape.

"I don't think I'm allowed to buy drinks for the staff, besides she's probably on drugs."

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"Well what do you expect?" I shrugged. "She's a grown woman, she knows what she's doing."

"You think Kirsten's going to see it that way?"

"Fine," I told her with a roll of my eyes as I pulled out my cell from my pocket and dragged Marissa to a quieter area of the bar, "All I wanted was a nice quiet couple of days and all I get is drama."

"Drama?" Marissa frowned at me. "Why what else is going on?"

"Shh," I said quickly, "I'm on the phone." I held down the 'One' key to get Seth on the other end of the line as I prayed he would be able to cover my back.

"Hello?" He shouted at me through the phone.

"Seth, where the hell are you?" I shouted back at him. "Sounds like you're at a rager."

"Oh no, not really. At a bar."

"At a bar? Who with? Where?"

"Instead of answering those questions how bout you tell me why you're calling." He sighed, as the noise and music his end quietened, clearly he'd gone outside.

"Well," I said turning back to find Hailey now giving a Japanese business man a lap dance – to really push the cliché. "It turns out that your aunt Hailey has found herself a job."

"Yeah I know, mum read out the post card this morning. She's in the Caribbean or something."

"I swear to god, I just heard you shrug." Marissa at that point hit me to keep me on track. "Hailey's here and half naked, now make that topless." I told him as Marissa covered my eyes.

"My aunts a stripper?" He spat at me through the phone, whilst I removed Marissa's hand from my face.

"Yeah can you go home and tell Sandy. I don't know what to do."

"Can't you just call him, man?"

"Isn't it easier for you just to go over there? Seth?" The line had gone quiet. "Seth?!" I repeated down the line. "Nothing." I pulled my cell away from my ear and looked down at the screen, it simply told me the call time.

"What's going on?"

"I don't know. But the line just cut out. I think he was at a party." I told Marissa, still frowning at my phone, as if expecting it to explain Seth's odd behaviour.

"Who's party? The only people Seth knows are here."

"Hence my confusion." I sighed, dropping my cell into my back pocket. "So, that drink?"

"That's it?" Marissa looked at me doubtfully. "No master rescue plan, no drive across the county, no bid at a fist fight?"

I rolled my eyes at her before grabbing her hand and dragging her across the dingy strip joint. I found Hailey, now with her top on and alone standing by one of the plinths.

"Do you like being a stripper?" I asked her.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She questioned, looking me up and down. "I make good money doing what I do and I'm on my own."

"Do you want to be rescued?"

"From you?" She practically laughed back at me.

"What about Kirsten?" Marissa tried.

"Don't tell her, not that she'd care."

"Right from the strippers mouth." I sighed. "Now can we get a drink?"

"You are not meant to drink-"

"Why not?" Hailey cut across Marissa. "Free country."

"She drinks to get drunk."

"Is there any other reason?"

"Thank you." I pointed towards Hailey. "Thank you. Do you want a drink?"

"Get up there," one of the managers told her, trying to force her up onto the podium. "What're you tired today, you didn't do enough coke?"

"Do you have to be so rough with her?" Marissa tried to protest.

"She likes it rough." The man simply spat back at her, as my brain was filled with a thousand images I wasn't sure would ever leave me. "Just get back to work."

"Don't tell her what to do." I sighed at the man, reluctantly joining in the crusade to save the stripper.

"Excuse me? You got a problem?" He asked me, squaring himself up over me, indicating that it wasn't going to be much of a fight.

"No," I swallowed, adamant that I didn't have a chance in hell of taking him. "I don't have a problem. I'm sorry, we're just gonna grab my aunt, of sorts, uh-uh more gently than say you and we're leaving."

"Oh you're leaving right now. Get outta my club." Marissa found ourselves being almost carried out of the back of the club by two of the bouncers. "Get 'em outta my club, out out out." He encouraged as we were literally thrown into the back alley. "I don't wanna see these guys in my club again!" And then the door slammed and we were officially cast out.

"And that is why we don't save strippers." I told her sitting down on the curb.

"You didn't even put up a fight against him." She complained, pacing around me.

"That's because it wouldn't have been a fight, it would have been me bleeding internally. And I haven't done that in a while and I'd rather not spoil that. Hey," I looked up to find her not listening to me and rather trying to get reception on her phone, "who are you calling?"

"My dad, Sandy, Kirsten…" she shrugged, waving her cell in the air.

I rearranged myself so that I could pull my cell out of my pocket, I threw it at her and watched as she stumbled to catch it. "Just don't call Kirsten." I sighed, watching her scroll through my phonebook.

"Hey Dad," she said after a while of listening to the familiar sounds of downtown L.A. as I simply stared down at my shoes, until Marissa pulled me up from the sidewalk. "Sandy snatched the phone away from Dad and demands your imminent return home."

"Wicked, text Anna and tell her we'll meet them at the car."

"One last try."

"No! I am done. I am done trying not to get my arse kicked saving your ex girlfriend."

"But its fine to get your arse kicked saving yours?" She frowned at me.

"Eddie never hit me, just shoved a couple of times." Her hands were on her hips though, indicating that her mind was clearly made up.

"How will we even get back into the club?"

"Met me at the VIP entrance in around five minutes."

"Fine." I agreed as I pulled out a rather crumpled pack of cigarettes from my back pocket.

"Where did you get those?"

"I may have asked Rosa to pick me up a pack the other day." I told her, trying to act apathetic about it whilst I lit one of the broken sticks.

"Five minutes." She sighed, leaving me to smoke in peace.

I gave her the time it took me to smoke two cigarettes, during which I text Seth trying to find out where he was (to which I expected no reply). I threw the battered and now empty cartoon to the ground as I walked round the block to a smaller entrance to the club where I found Marissa to be amongst the screaming girls all trying to get the attention of the angry, black guy with a clipboard.

"Oh my god, oh my god! Olivia Wilde!" Marissa ran round the barrier and grabbed my arm as she came to rest besides me in front of the bouncer. "I love you so much. You are my favourite character." She told me before turning to him. "Okay, do you watch Skins?"

"I have a job."

"It's only like the best show ever!" She retorted simply before turning back to me. "So whats DJ like to work with?"

"I like his music…" I shrugged, unsure of what my response was meant to be.

"You here for the party?" The bouncer asked me, ignoring Marissa still clinging onto my arm as if for her life.

"Yeah."

"Oh my god! Wait, can I come with you?" I looked at the bouncer before back at Marissa. "Seriously it would mean so much to me."

"You know there's a dyke bar, just round the corner that's very discreet." He told me.

"Yeah, but the party's here, right?" I smiled at him as he unclipped the rope to let us in. Once we were under the cover of the noise that the club provided, Marissa finally let go of my arm and I asked her: "Olivia Wilde's married isn't she?"

"Yeah, but I doubt he knows that."

"Next, Skins? Why not House?"

"Because no way in hell do you look old enough to play a doctor – who are you Doogie?" She laughed before pulling me further into the club. "I can't see her out here, we should check in the back rooms."

"How do you suppose we get into the back rooms unnoticed?"

"I got us back into the club didn't I?" She smiled at me, pulling me through the people as I silently cursed Hailey for not being in the Caribbean.

Predictably after walking into the second or third room, ironically called 'changing room' we found Hailey dressed, without makeup and looking considerably older than when she'd been in Newport.

"What are you doing here?" She hissed at as, pulling us into a corner – clearly trying to hide us.

"I've been ordered home and Marissa won't leave without you too." I sighed, hands in my pockets, head pushed back to centre whenever Marissa caught me looking around.

"You know what, you're really sweet with this whole 'Save the Stripper' campaign but I'm fine."

"Great." I smiled at her, before turning to Marissa. "Now can we go home?"

"Not without you," she told Hailey, "Look we came-"

"What're you doing back in my club?" The owner asked, pulling Hailey away from us.

"Of course we'd get caught." I sighed as I tried to pull my arm free of him. "Do you mind?"

"You too Hailey!" He said as he forced us down the corridor and out the fire excape and back onto the curb I'd been sitting on just twenty minutes earlier. "Goodbye Hailey."

"You know what," I sighed spinning round and trying to make myself as big as possible, "I am fed up with putting up with all this shit. I came here because my girlfriend's friend has a crush on an actor. I didn't want to 'Save the Stripper' I was quite happy to leave the stripper well alone given that she used to sleep with my girlfriend. I just wanted to have a quiet night and a couple of beers and as usual I get forced into 'saving the day' and consequently all I get is shoved around and man handled and right now, I'm sick of it."

"I don't think he'll mention how badly you phrased all that because of the amount of times you mentioned lesbianism in that." Hailey pretended to whisper in my ear as her former employer left the safety of his door way and joined us in the dark, dank little back street.

"Oh oh oh what're you gonna do, huh?" He practically laughed at me, bouncers either side of him. "What're you gonna do now big shot? What're you gonna do now, huh?"

"What're you gonna do?" I spun back around and found Jimmy marching up to stand besides me. "Hit a kid?"

"Dad!"

"What're you dad?" The club's owner continued laughing.

"What're you the guy who's my age and still thinks he's twenty-five?" Jimmy frowned back at him.

"You keep your kids outta my club." The man told him before waving his flunkies back inside.

"You alright?" Jimmy asked Marissa as once again I heard the heavy fire escape door slam.

"Yeah." She nodded, her arms around him.

"Sandy wanted to make sure you got back okay." He told me.

"Glad he did." I smiled at him.

"Why don't you guys head back, I'm gonna… give Hailey a lift."

"Okay yeah, we'll just go find Summer and Anna."

"Later Mr C."


"I can't believe they've gone home to watch The Valley after all that." Marissa laughed, kicking off her pumps as we walked into my room.

"Its quite addictive you know." Seth told us, as he emerged from my en suit.

"I don't even want to know what you were doing in there." I waved him off, slumping myself down in my chair.

"I'm hiding from Dad because I stole Granddad's sports car."

"I said I didn't want to know." I smiled at him, too tired to put up more of a defence than that.

"Well clearly you got caught." Marissa laughed, sitting cross legged besides me.

"Yes," he pointed at her, "but he said he'd punish me once all that's going on in there is done with." He waved absently towards the house. "He can't punish me if he doesn't know where I am."

"The house isn't that big. He'll find you eventually."

"You know what," Marissa smiled at me as she used my knee to help her stand once more, "I'm going to let you two hash this out whilst I'm peeing."

"How come she gets to say 'pee'?" Seth questioned, sitting himself down on the bed opposite me as Marissa crossed the room.

"Because I have prettier hair." She informed him, sticking out her tongue to seal the argument, before shutting the door of the en suit behind her.

"Luke." Suddenly Seth was standing, as was I.

"Its over." He told us, running a hand through his messy hair.

"Okay-"

"I'm done having sex with Julie Cooper."

"Okay-"

"Marissa." His face paled as we all turned to see her standing in the doorway. The damage had been down and the three of us stumbled to find words to undo it. All of us searching for something to say and could come up with nothing greater than: "Marissa."

She ran past us all, barely stopping to pick up her shoes.

"I've got to go." She told us, pushing Luke out of the way and slamming my door behind her.


As usual, please read and review - I read, and love every single one - helps boost my ego!