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missmara13Again, no spiel. Click the tag to see the back chapters and warnings.
Chapter Twelve
"Come on," Summer said as she unlocked her front door and stepped inside, pulling Ryan with her.
"Come where?" Ryan asked.
"My room. I'm just gonna shower real quick, then I want to go hang out somewhere else. We'll get food and try to forget how both our love lives have gotten royally screwed the the last week."
Ryan followed behind her, hesitating as they reached her room. "I can wait downstairs..." he started.
"No!" Summer insisted. "Come on, just sit down and relax. I'll be ready in no time flat."
"Somehow I doubt that," Ryan said dryly, earning himself a glare from Summer. "Sorry," he said.
Summer sighed in exasperation and grabbed some clothes from her closet before heading into her bathroom and leaving Ryan alone. "Check out what's on tv or whatever," she called through the door.
Ryan wandered around her room, looking at the trophies that lined a bookshelf, as well as pictures of Summer at various ages activities. One picture in particular caught his attention. It was Summer, at maybe age 12 or so, with a woman who looked remarkably like her, most likely her mother, both of them in designer clothing. But underneath the expensive clothes and perfect makeup, Ryan saw something very familiar. Summer's mother had the same look in her eye, the same blank indifference and also cruelness, that Ryan had often seen in his mother's eyes. It served as a reminder, yet again, that even in Newport families weren't all perfect.
"That was right before she left."
Ryan turned, startled, and looked at Summer, who was wearing a pair of black jeans and a red t-shirt, her hair hanging damply around her face. "Sorry," he whispered.
"It was almost 4 years ago," Summer said, shrugging. "I'm over it."
"Doesn't mean you can't still miss her," Ryan replied, looking back at the picture.
"She didn't love me, I was just her little doll. And then I got too old for her to play dress up with and she didn't care anyore," Summer said, shifting from side to side uneasily.
"Doesn't mean you don't still love here," Ryan said softly. "You know, her eyes... except for the lack of wrinkles and bags, they look like my mom's. Just so..."
"Cold?" Summer supplied. "She was."
"Do you ever talk to her?"
"She calls like once a year," Summer said.
"My mom hasn't called since she left me at the Cohens," Ryan replied. "She didn't even say goodbye then, she just... waved. And left."
"My mother told me she was going to a party. Except she took a suitcase," Summer said, putting one hand on Ryan's shoulder and leaning against him. "I guess we've both had lousy luck with mom's. But... hey, you've got Mrs. Cohen now. She's cool."
Ryan smiled. "Yeah, she is."
"Come on, Chino, let's get out of here," Summer said, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the door. "Breakfast awaits."
~~~~
"Where did you learn to cook?" Summer asked a little while later as she and Ryan leaned against the counter in her kitchen, eating omelettes.
"Taught myself. My mom was almost always either drunk or high, so I couldn't let her try to cook. So..."
"No one in my family would dream of cooking our own food," Summer said. "The cook does that."
"You have a cook?"
"Yeah, but I let her have tons of time off whenever dad and the stepmonster are out of town. I eat out a lot then. And when they get back, I call her and ask how the shopping's going, and that's her cue to get into uniform and get back with groceries."
Ryan laughed. "I cook breakfast a lot at home... I mean the Cohens..."
"Come on, the Cohen house is your home, Chino. Even I can see that."
Ryan shrugged. "Yeah, it is," he admitted. "Anyway, I wake up earlier than them most of the time, except when I'm doped up like lately, and I make breakfast. You should have seen the look on Kirsten's face the first time she came downstairs and found me cooking."
Summer laughed. "I'll bet it was priceless," she said.
"Completely," Ryan agreed.
Summer giggled and put another forkful of omelette in her mouth just as the phone rang, she swallowed them hurriedly and answered it. "Hello?" she said. "Oh, hi Mr. Cooper," she added a moment later, locking eyes with Ryan. "She is? Yeah, okay. Do you want us to...okay, we'll be there. Thanks for calling." She hung up and leaned back against the wall.
"What is it?" Ryan asked.
"Coop's leaving today, for a rehab hospital back in like Boston or something. And she wants to see us before she goes," Summer said. "But we have to hurry if we want to get there before she leaves."
"Where?" Ryan asked, already heading for the door with Summer behind him.
"Airport. Can you..."
"I'll drive," Ryan said, anticipating her question.
~~~~
As they walked into the airport just a little later, the frantically searched the crowd for a moment before spotting Jimmy and Julie arguing. They exchanged glances and weaved their way through the crowd to the pair. "Where is she?" Summer asked.
"Summer?"
Summer turned and saw her best friend sitting in the chairs, looking horrible and scared. "Oh Coop," Summer whispered, going over and dropping into the seat next to Marissa to give her friend a hug.
Marissa returned the hug, then looked up at Ryan, who was shifting from foot to foot, unsure of what to do. Marissa solved his problem by getting up and wrapping her arms around him. "I'm sorry, Ryan," she whispered.
"It's okay," Ryan replied.
"No, it's not. I was horrible to you, and I deserved to get dumped..."
"It's okay," Ryan repeated. "What's going on here, Marissa?"
"Caleb made some calls, and got me into a program in Boston. To help me kick the alchohol thing and try more conselling, less drugs."
"Good," Ryan said.
"Ryan?"
"Yeah?"
"You were right."
"About what?"
"I don't... I'm not in love with you. At least I don't think so. But... can we still... can we be friends? When I'm better?"
Ryan smiled reassuringly and nodded. "Yeah, we can."
"Don't worry Coop, you can do this," Summer said. "If you can, write me, okay?"
Marissa nodded. "And you'll write me?"
"Constantly! Who am I gonna gossip with if I'm not writing you?" Summer said.
Marissa hugged Summer again. "Thanks," she said as she stepped back from them. "You guys... you saved me last night."
"Anytime," Ryan promised.
"It's time to go, sweetie," Jimmy said, putting an arm around Marissa. "I'm flying with out her, get her settled," he told Summer and Ryan.
"We'll see you later, Coop," Summer said.
"Bye," Marissa said as she let Jimmy lead her to the plane.
Summer held it in until Marissa was out of sight, then she started to cry. It was only a matter of seconds before Ryan had wrapped his arms around her and she was crying against his shoulder. The next thing she knew, they were outside again and Ryan was opening the door of the jeep for her. "Thanks," she said.
Ryan shrugged. "It's okay."
"I'm sorry."
"About what?" Ryan asked as he got behind the wheel, confused.
"God, you broke up with Coop because you needed to take care of yourself, not her, and now you're taking care of me. I'm never this weak and lame," Summer said.
"Hey, I'm returning the favor," Ryan said, keeping one hand on the wheel and reaching over with the other to grasp her hand. "Besides, I know you're going to be back to your usual self in no time. You bounce back."
To Be Continued...
I have to put in a little author's note here... originally? Ryan and Summer were eating pancakes in the kitchen... that just has such different conotations for me now that I HAD to change it because the second I read 'pancakes', I pictured the rabbit... lol... which lead to me thinking of poor Flapjacks... and that is just horrible...
and
Chapter Thirteen
A few weeks later, Ryan had almost completely healed. He was still occasionally needing painkillers to help him sleep, but other than that he was meds free and enjoying his summer, despite a tense vibe between he and Seth. But he was spending most days with Summer, hanging out on the beach, or the pier, or watching a movie at her almost always empty house.
But tonight he had to sit through a dinner with Caleb and Julie. It was not something he was looking forward to. So, when Ryan's phone rang, he was in a bad mood and groaned as he reached for it. "Hello?"
"Grouchy much, Chino?"
"Hey, Summer. What's up?" Ryan replied, his mood automatically lifting at the sound of her voice.
"Nothing, I'm bored. You?"
"Getting ready for dinner tonight," Ryan said through gritted teeth.
"Oh yeah, dinner with the gruesome twosome," Summer said, trying not to snicker. "If it helps, I know of a movie you've gotta see with me tomorrow night at the theater. I've already got tickets for us."
"What movie?"
"It's a surprise."
"I don't like surprises, Summer."
"You'll love this one," Summer promised. "Come on, please? Pretty please?"
"Okay, Okay," Ryan agreed. "Just stop begging."
"Deal."
"Have you heard from..."
"I got a letter today. Coop sounds good. Better than before at least."
"Yeah, I got one today, too. She seemed a lot more... I don't know. Like she was when I met her."
"She seems like the real Coop, not the weird one she became," Summer agreed. "Did she tell you she'll probably be back mid-summer? Another couple of weeks."
"Yeah, she told me. That's.... great. As long as she's really well enough to be back then."
"I think just being home will help."
"Unless she's back with Julie," Ryan pointed out.
"Yeah, she's one of the big problems. Hopefully she can move back in with Mr. Cooper."
"Listen," Ryan said as the door opened and Sandy stuck his head in. "I gotta go. I'll call you tomorrow..."
"Tonight, I wanna know how bad dinner was," Summer said. "Talk to you later, Chino."
"Later, Summer," Ryan said before hanging up. He turned and met Sandy's curious look with a shrug. "What?"
"You and Summer?"
"We're friends," Ryan said, a little more defensive than he intended. "I'm not exactly happy with Seth, and Marissa is gone... so we both pretty much have no one to hang out with."
"I know you're upset on Summer's behalf that Seth cheated on her..."
"It's not just that," Ryan said. "The morning after Summer got drunk and the two of us crashed in the poolhouse, Seth accused me of sleeping with her. He actually thought I'd do that, so..."
Sandy nodded. "I just don't like you two fighting. Come on, you bonded with him the minute you two met."
Ryan smiled slightly, remembering how he'd walked into the house and met Seth on his first morning in Newport.
Sandy caught the smile and reached out to pat Ryan's shoulder. "Come on, the Gruesome Twosome pulled up a minute ago and I need someone who's not blinded by blood relation to help me put up with Caleb."
Ryan chuckled and followed him downstairs, steeling himself for a night from hell.
~~~~
"So, Ryan," Caleb said as dinner was finished.
"Yes?" Ryan asked warily.
"Kiki says you have an interest in architecture."
Ryan narrowed his eyes for a moment, trying to figure out where the conversation was going. "Yeah. I used to want to be an architect."
"And now?"
"I don't know," Ryan said, shooting a look at Kirsten but only seeing a pleased smile on her face.
"Well, if you're interested, Newport Group has a few openings for summer internships. In Kiki's department and others," Caleb said. "Running errands, learning the business. And the pay isn't bad."
"Ryan should probably rest over the summer," Julie said through pursed lips. "Not work, Cal."
"Actually, if Ryan's interested, I think it's a great idea," Kirsten said. "The work isn't that hard, at least not in my department."
"He can learn about building a model home as opposed to burning it down," Caleb said dryly.
Sandy almost choked on his drink as he heard the comment. "Caleb..."
"It was a joke, Sanford," Caleb said, smiling as he saw out of the corner of his eye that Ryan was trying not to laugh.
To Be Continued...
Enjoy! Just like I'll be enjoying Book 7 in like 2 hours!
Chapter Twelve
"Come on," Summer said as she unlocked her front door and stepped inside, pulling Ryan with her.
"Come where?" Ryan asked.
"My room. I'm just gonna shower real quick, then I want to go hang out somewhere else. We'll get food and try to forget how both our love lives have gotten royally screwed the the last week."
Ryan followed behind her, hesitating as they reached her room. "I can wait downstairs..." he started.
"No!" Summer insisted. "Come on, just sit down and relax. I'll be ready in no time flat."
"Somehow I doubt that," Ryan said dryly, earning himself a glare from Summer. "Sorry," he said.
Summer sighed in exasperation and grabbed some clothes from her closet before heading into her bathroom and leaving Ryan alone. "Check out what's on tv or whatever," she called through the door.
Ryan wandered around her room, looking at the trophies that lined a bookshelf, as well as pictures of Summer at various ages activities. One picture in particular caught his attention. It was Summer, at maybe age 12 or so, with a woman who looked remarkably like her, most likely her mother, both of them in designer clothing. But underneath the expensive clothes and perfect makeup, Ryan saw something very familiar. Summer's mother had the same look in her eye, the same blank indifference and also cruelness, that Ryan had often seen in his mother's eyes. It served as a reminder, yet again, that even in Newport families weren't all perfect.
"That was right before she left."
Ryan turned, startled, and looked at Summer, who was wearing a pair of black jeans and a red t-shirt, her hair hanging damply around her face. "Sorry," he whispered.
"It was almost 4 years ago," Summer said, shrugging. "I'm over it."
"Doesn't mean you can't still miss her," Ryan replied, looking back at the picture.
"She didn't love me, I was just her little doll. And then I got too old for her to play dress up with and she didn't care anyore," Summer said, shifting from side to side uneasily.
"Doesn't mean you don't still love here," Ryan said softly. "You know, her eyes... except for the lack of wrinkles and bags, they look like my mom's. Just so..."
"Cold?" Summer supplied. "She was."
"Do you ever talk to her?"
"She calls like once a year," Summer said.
"My mom hasn't called since she left me at the Cohens," Ryan replied. "She didn't even say goodbye then, she just... waved. And left."
"My mother told me she was going to a party. Except she took a suitcase," Summer said, putting one hand on Ryan's shoulder and leaning against him. "I guess we've both had lousy luck with mom's. But... hey, you've got Mrs. Cohen now. She's cool."
Ryan smiled. "Yeah, she is."
"Come on, Chino, let's get out of here," Summer said, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the door. "Breakfast awaits."
~~~~
"Where did you learn to cook?" Summer asked a little while later as she and Ryan leaned against the counter in her kitchen, eating omelettes.
"Taught myself. My mom was almost always either drunk or high, so I couldn't let her try to cook. So..."
"No one in my family would dream of cooking our own food," Summer said. "The cook does that."
"You have a cook?"
"Yeah, but I let her have tons of time off whenever dad and the stepmonster are out of town. I eat out a lot then. And when they get back, I call her and ask how the shopping's going, and that's her cue to get into uniform and get back with groceries."
Ryan laughed. "I cook breakfast a lot at home... I mean the Cohens..."
"Come on, the Cohen house is your home, Chino. Even I can see that."
Ryan shrugged. "Yeah, it is," he admitted. "Anyway, I wake up earlier than them most of the time, except when I'm doped up like lately, and I make breakfast. You should have seen the look on Kirsten's face the first time she came downstairs and found me cooking."
Summer laughed. "I'll bet it was priceless," she said.
"Completely," Ryan agreed.
Summer giggled and put another forkful of omelette in her mouth just as the phone rang, she swallowed them hurriedly and answered it. "Hello?" she said. "Oh, hi Mr. Cooper," she added a moment later, locking eyes with Ryan. "She is? Yeah, okay. Do you want us to...okay, we'll be there. Thanks for calling." She hung up and leaned back against the wall.
"What is it?" Ryan asked.
"Coop's leaving today, for a rehab hospital back in like Boston or something. And she wants to see us before she goes," Summer said. "But we have to hurry if we want to get there before she leaves."
"Where?" Ryan asked, already heading for the door with Summer behind him.
"Airport. Can you..."
"I'll drive," Ryan said, anticipating her question.
~~~~
As they walked into the airport just a little later, the frantically searched the crowd for a moment before spotting Jimmy and Julie arguing. They exchanged glances and weaved their way through the crowd to the pair. "Where is she?" Summer asked.
"Summer?"
Summer turned and saw her best friend sitting in the chairs, looking horrible and scared. "Oh Coop," Summer whispered, going over and dropping into the seat next to Marissa to give her friend a hug.
Marissa returned the hug, then looked up at Ryan, who was shifting from foot to foot, unsure of what to do. Marissa solved his problem by getting up and wrapping her arms around him. "I'm sorry, Ryan," she whispered.
"It's okay," Ryan replied.
"No, it's not. I was horrible to you, and I deserved to get dumped..."
"It's okay," Ryan repeated. "What's going on here, Marissa?"
"Caleb made some calls, and got me into a program in Boston. To help me kick the alchohol thing and try more conselling, less drugs."
"Good," Ryan said.
"Ryan?"
"Yeah?"
"You were right."
"About what?"
"I don't... I'm not in love with you. At least I don't think so. But... can we still... can we be friends? When I'm better?"
Ryan smiled reassuringly and nodded. "Yeah, we can."
"Don't worry Coop, you can do this," Summer said. "If you can, write me, okay?"
Marissa nodded. "And you'll write me?"
"Constantly! Who am I gonna gossip with if I'm not writing you?" Summer said.
Marissa hugged Summer again. "Thanks," she said as she stepped back from them. "You guys... you saved me last night."
"Anytime," Ryan promised.
"It's time to go, sweetie," Jimmy said, putting an arm around Marissa. "I'm flying with out her, get her settled," he told Summer and Ryan.
"We'll see you later, Coop," Summer said.
"Bye," Marissa said as she let Jimmy lead her to the plane.
Summer held it in until Marissa was out of sight, then she started to cry. It was only a matter of seconds before Ryan had wrapped his arms around her and she was crying against his shoulder. The next thing she knew, they were outside again and Ryan was opening the door of the jeep for her. "Thanks," she said.
Ryan shrugged. "It's okay."
"I'm sorry."
"About what?" Ryan asked as he got behind the wheel, confused.
"God, you broke up with Coop because you needed to take care of yourself, not her, and now you're taking care of me. I'm never this weak and lame," Summer said.
"Hey, I'm returning the favor," Ryan said, keeping one hand on the wheel and reaching over with the other to grasp her hand. "Besides, I know you're going to be back to your usual self in no time. You bounce back."
To Be Continued...
I have to put in a little author's note here... originally? Ryan and Summer were eating pancakes in the kitchen... that just has such different conotations for me now that I HAD to change it because the second I read 'pancakes', I pictured the rabbit... lol... which lead to me thinking of poor Flapjacks... and that is just horrible...
and
Chapter Thirteen
A few weeks later, Ryan had almost completely healed. He was still occasionally needing painkillers to help him sleep, but other than that he was meds free and enjoying his summer, despite a tense vibe between he and Seth. But he was spending most days with Summer, hanging out on the beach, or the pier, or watching a movie at her almost always empty house.
But tonight he had to sit through a dinner with Caleb and Julie. It was not something he was looking forward to. So, when Ryan's phone rang, he was in a bad mood and groaned as he reached for it. "Hello?"
"Grouchy much, Chino?"
"Hey, Summer. What's up?" Ryan replied, his mood automatically lifting at the sound of her voice.
"Nothing, I'm bored. You?"
"Getting ready for dinner tonight," Ryan said through gritted teeth.
"Oh yeah, dinner with the gruesome twosome," Summer said, trying not to snicker. "If it helps, I know of a movie you've gotta see with me tomorrow night at the theater. I've already got tickets for us."
"What movie?"
"It's a surprise."
"I don't like surprises, Summer."
"You'll love this one," Summer promised. "Come on, please? Pretty please?"
"Okay, Okay," Ryan agreed. "Just stop begging."
"Deal."
"Have you heard from..."
"I got a letter today. Coop sounds good. Better than before at least."
"Yeah, I got one today, too. She seemed a lot more... I don't know. Like she was when I met her."
"She seems like the real Coop, not the weird one she became," Summer agreed. "Did she tell you she'll probably be back mid-summer? Another couple of weeks."
"Yeah, she told me. That's.... great. As long as she's really well enough to be back then."
"I think just being home will help."
"Unless she's back with Julie," Ryan pointed out.
"Yeah, she's one of the big problems. Hopefully she can move back in with Mr. Cooper."
"Listen," Ryan said as the door opened and Sandy stuck his head in. "I gotta go. I'll call you tomorrow..."
"Tonight, I wanna know how bad dinner was," Summer said. "Talk to you later, Chino."
"Later, Summer," Ryan said before hanging up. He turned and met Sandy's curious look with a shrug. "What?"
"You and Summer?"
"We're friends," Ryan said, a little more defensive than he intended. "I'm not exactly happy with Seth, and Marissa is gone... so we both pretty much have no one to hang out with."
"I know you're upset on Summer's behalf that Seth cheated on her..."
"It's not just that," Ryan said. "The morning after Summer got drunk and the two of us crashed in the poolhouse, Seth accused me of sleeping with her. He actually thought I'd do that, so..."
Sandy nodded. "I just don't like you two fighting. Come on, you bonded with him the minute you two met."
Ryan smiled slightly, remembering how he'd walked into the house and met Seth on his first morning in Newport.
Sandy caught the smile and reached out to pat Ryan's shoulder. "Come on, the Gruesome Twosome pulled up a minute ago and I need someone who's not blinded by blood relation to help me put up with Caleb."
Ryan chuckled and followed him downstairs, steeling himself for a night from hell.
~~~~
"So, Ryan," Caleb said as dinner was finished.
"Yes?" Ryan asked warily.
"Kiki says you have an interest in architecture."
Ryan narrowed his eyes for a moment, trying to figure out where the conversation was going. "Yeah. I used to want to be an architect."
"And now?"
"I don't know," Ryan said, shooting a look at Kirsten but only seeing a pleased smile on her face.
"Well, if you're interested, Newport Group has a few openings for summer internships. In Kiki's department and others," Caleb said. "Running errands, learning the business. And the pay isn't bad."
"Ryan should probably rest over the summer," Julie said through pursed lips. "Not work, Cal."
"Actually, if Ryan's interested, I think it's a great idea," Kirsten said. "The work isn't that hard, at least not in my department."
"He can learn about building a model home as opposed to burning it down," Caleb said dryly.
Sandy almost choked on his drink as he heard the comment. "Caleb..."
"It was a joke, Sanford," Caleb said, smiling as he saw out of the corner of his eye that Ryan was trying not to laugh.
To Be Continued...
Enjoy! Just like I'll be enjoying Book 7 in like 2 hours!
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Those were great posts !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Date: 2007-07-21 04:43 am (UTC)I don't know if you have this fic planned out or not, but I thought of an idea. Ryan could take the intership at the newport group and end up finding Julie cheating on Caleb and ends up telling Caleb, bringing them closer and having Julie more pissed off at him !
no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 04:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 05:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 05:44 am (UTC)Hehe, me too.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 05:43 am (UTC)The way you write them here seems very real.
And I like this Caleb. I always thought, that if Caleb would get over his prejudices and got to know the real Ryan, it could be interesting. I mean, Ryan is loyal and protective of his family and friends, he is smart as hell and is not only interested in architecture, but also has a real talent for it. At least that should give them common ground.
Don't get me wrong. I also love the version of Caleb who is his biggest enemy. Caleb vs. Ryan is something they could have done a lot more for my liking in canon.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 07:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 10:05 am (UTC)Where the hell is Seth (not that I miss him in this story, he's a jackass).
I can see Ryan & Summer getting together, at least, soon. They seem so right as a couple, helping each other....
(and damn, you're such a fast updater)!
no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 01:01 pm (UTC)Enjoy the HP7!
no subject
Date: 2007-07-21 11:05 pm (UTC)