There was a heavy knock on the bedroom door, waking Marissa from her unintentional midday nap. She took a deep breath, rolling over to face the door. Her skin still felt warm and she could smell her own excitement hanging sparsely in the air. Quickly she sprayed a few puffs of perfume, wafting it around chaotically. Clearing her throat, she finally spoke.

"Come in." She didn't mean it but it wasn't exactly as if she had a choice.

A dirty blonde mop of hair peeked around the doorframe, offering only a meek smile, knowing he had interrupted something. Although exactly what that was couldn't be determined.

"Hey." It was hesitant. She looked flushed.

"Hey," she responded, awkwardly rearranging her blankets and pillows as she lay in bed. Simple reorganization could not erase the lingering feeling that her dream had brought on. Biting her bottom lip, she motioned for him to come over. He sat on the edge of her bed, staring around the room as if he hadn't been here everyday for the last month.

"What are you up to?" he asked, partly curious and partly to relieve the persistent awkwardness.
She shrugged, her eyes darting back and forth from his face to random pieces of furniture. "Just thinking. I fell asleep."

"Whatcha thinking about?"

She narrowed her eyes for a brief moment, trying to gauge whether he suspected what she was guilty of. He didn't appear to but she remained suspicious anyway. She covered it up with a grin and a playful shove.

"Nothing," she cooed. "Maybe you."

He smiled too. "Really? Must have been awful."

"Nah, you know me."

The truth was he didn't. He didn't know. He only knew what she had let him see: the helpless victim in need of a white knight, the girl with the drinking problem and the horrible family who despite all her glorious riches just couldn't find an ounce of happiness. To most people, that would be considered "knowing someone". But not Marissa Cooper. He didn't know who she had just been dreaming about. He didn't know what her life had been like for those 3 months in the middle of wintertime when her face may as well have been plastered on milk cartons for the amount of time she spent with the rich, socialite side of her life. He didn't know when she was happy and when she wasn't because he was too eager to believe he was special. He didn't know she didn't think he was.

"Yeah." He let the thought roll around in his mind, not settling on a conclusion about its validity but taking comfort in the fact he thought it could be true. "So, what's the plan for today?"

Apathy had always come easily. Shrugging again, she gave him a mischievous smirk. "I dunno. What were you thinking?"

"Well, we could start with a stop at the diner, maybe a walk on the pier. Then go back to my place and watch a movie."

"Watch a movie, huh? Are you sure you're... up for that?" Arching a brow, she licked her lips. Her insinuations were only a ploy to cover up her utter lack of interest. If she said nothing, it would be obvious. If she teased, she could pretend that she meant the words and he may fall for it again. And again.

"Um, yeah," he said with a smirk of his own. "I'm pretty damn sure." Leaning over he placed kisses under along her neck. She gasped in order to hide the other reactions of her body, namely the uncomfortable constriction in her chest.

But before they had a chance to progress further, the shrill ring of her phone echoed around the room. He let out a frustrated groan and she tried to repress a relieved sigh. Snatching the receiver quickly, she sat up straighter.

"Hello?"

Ryan watched for clues. The only thing he could see was that Marissa's face lit up, just a shade more than normal. A tinge of jealously nagged at the back of his mind. She tried to ignore his stare.

"I'm surprised you called this early. Are you working tonight?"

Ryan moved closer, complete curiosity etched over every feature. Marissa merely smiled and pushed him back, making a shooing motion with her hand. Vaguely insulted by the dismissal and frustrated that he had no idea who she was talking to, he stood up. Gazing down at her sternly, he waited for her to acknowledge him.

She knew he was standing there, waiting. So she occupied herself with fluffing the duvet some more as she listening to the voice on the other end of the line. He moved away and frowned at her. This was not the first time. Her indifference was not as well disguised as she may have believed. But he had always given her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she was not feeling well, maybe she was still bothered by the events of the last few months with Trey, maybe she was wrestling with her own demons. However, watching her now, sparkling with eagerness, he knew there was something off. None of the friends he knew of hers had jobs, let alone called her house line in the middle of the day. He turned and strode quickly from the room, banging the door loudly behind him.
All he heard was a hasty remark from her as he left. "Oh, it's just Ryan getting worked up over nothing."

In truth, that's what it all seemed like now: a big deal about nothing.

She sat in the poolhouse idly twisting her scarf around her fingers as she watched Ryan look around for clean socks. The routine bothered her. Not because she was disgusted at the thought of dirty socks, but rather, the idea that he expected her to sit around, bored out her skull, while he did tasks that she could care less about. It seemed too familiar, too domestic, and too dull. She grabbed her bag and yanked out her flask.

"Hey, do you have any juice in here?" she asked, trying to sound at least pleasant but by the look on his face she had only succeeding in sounding snotty.

"No. It's in the Cohens' fridge."

She growled under her breath. "What's the point in having a bar fridge if you don't keep anything in it?" she snarked again.

Pulling on his socks slowly, he glared at her. "I don't drink often."

"What? You don't drink any liquids whatsoever? I asked for some juice, Ryan. Not alcohol." Her thinly veiled contempt was dangerously close to the brink of sparking an all out war.

"I'm not deaf. I heard you the first time. And I also know why you want it." He was getting frustrated with her attitude. He glanced around for a shirt. She watched him impatiently, eager to get out of the small poolhouse.

After a moment's pause, she stared at him squarely. "Well, do you have any cigarettes then?"

The look of complete shock and disgust on the boy's face was almost too much. She had to quickly convince herself not to go storming out of the room. She watched him indifferently as he shook his head slowly.

She huffed out another annoyed breath. "When did you turn into fucking Mother Theresa? I just want a goddamn drink or a smoke and you look at me like I'm the most repulsive thing on the planet."

He bit his tongue in response, only able to glare at her and her obnoxious attitude. She decided to forget the juice and took a shot of vodka straight. Making a sour face she screwed the cap back on. A small smile graced her lips for a brief moment as the burning trailed down her throat, masking any other pain she was feeling. She sent him a defiant glare.

"So, do you treat all your boyfriends like shit, or am I just the special one?"

"Oh god. I'm leaving now. I don't need this."

Picking up her purse and keys, she walked towards the door. He stepped in quickly to block her exit. She rolled her eyes and let out a long sigh borne purely of irritation.

"What happened to you, Marissa?" he asked her.

"What happened to you?" she spat back. "All of a sudden you're like Mr. Goody Two Shoes and you look at me like I'm some crackwhore on the street, begging for change or a quick fuck."

He really tried to figure out where she was coming from. Since he had left her the other day, she had been in a petulant and sour mood. Gone was the previous Marissa, the girl who was drinking far less and actually seemed to vaguely enjoy his company. Now she had developed a mouth like a sailor and a vodka dependency to boot. All within the span of three days. Her attitude that morning had been reluctantly annoyed, now she was all out bitchy. Sex was supposed to make people feel good, not pull out the drink and chug it back. He knew from experience that there really was no point in arguing with her. She was just going to become angrier.

"There's some orange juice in my fridge," he mumbled reluctantly.

For a moment, she narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Finally she let it go, and a small smile once again returned to her face.

"Great!" She scampered over to the mini-fridge and plucked the carton from the door. He wondered briefly if that's why Julie Cooper continued to ignore Marissa's drinking habit. She seemed to be even more of a bitch when she wasn't drinking.

When she returned from the kitchenette, she was smiling even brighter. Apparently the cure for her bad mood was a fruity chaser. He took her hand warily and they made their way out of the poolhouse.

But he'd need help for that plan.

Marissa lay on her bed, flipping idly through a magazine. She didn't really find it all that interesting to sit inside and read 101 Great Sex Tips to Satisfy Your Man all afternoon but it sure beat the alternative: hanging out with Ryan. She just wanted it to be easy again. It was too charged, too tense, and too full of unspoken resentment. She vaguely thought she heard a sound downstairs but realized that her mother was probably coming home any minute.

She turned the volume up on her stereo, her head bopping in time to the beat. She was so immersed in her reading that she didn't hear her bedroom door creak open. The visitor watched her in amusement for a few minutes. She seemed completely lost in the world of hairstyles and overpriced cosmetics.

"Hey!"

Marissa's head swung around quickly, the jolt from the sudden noise not as shocking as the person standing in the middle of her bedroom. Her face froze for a moment in an undistinguishable expression of disbelief before the joy took over.

"Oh my god!" Marissa yelled, almost too excited to contain herself. She moved to sit up on her bed but there was a blur of blonde and blue as the visitor ran over to her. "I can't believe you actually came!" Marissa continued, letting out a squeal as the guest jumped onto her bed, pinning her to the mattress in a hug.

"I know!" The hug tightened as Marissa's arms clasped on more snugly.

"God, Alex, this is fucking crazy," Marissa couldn't force the smile off her face as Alex pulled back from the hug, still hovering over her friend.

"I know," Alex breathed out a little more calmly than before.

For a moment, Marissa forgot that she hadn't seen Alex since their last night together, after the bonfire. It felt comfortable, as if they were still together. Alex looked down at her ex-girlfriend and felt a similar sensation passing through her body. It was an odd feeling because she was actually far more aware that they weren't together, this wasn't a dream and Marissa was very much with Ryan. Despite that knowledge, Alex still had the desire to lean down and kiss the girl underneath her.

But they were friends now. Nothing more. It had been so easy to be friends over the phone, when she didn't actually have to see her face and feel her body. Alex suddenly doubted herself: maybe this visit was a bad idea after all. Marissa apparently wasn't thinking the same thing. In fact, Alex doubted if she was thinking at all. Caught off guard, she suddenly found herself mouth to mouth with the younger girl.

She couldn't stop her eyes from slipping shut and savouring the feeling of soft lips sensually sliding against her own as Marissa's hands gripped her closer. She did however manage to suppress what would have been a very obvious moan of appreciation. That might have been giving just a little too much away. Marissa, on the other hand, did let a small groan slip and the sound sent sparks right down to Alex's toes.

There was an insistent thought nagging at the back of Marissa's brain. This was not a good idea. This ruins everything. There's a boy named Ryan who would be very, very angry if he knew what was going on. The thought of Ryan was enough to force Marissa to pull back reluctantly. Both girls regarded each other curiously. Finally Alex let a small smile slip.

"Well, that was a different welcome than what I was expecting."

"Yeah." Marissa couldn't really think of any viable excuses for her actions. Alex bit her bottom lip gingerly, putting a little more space between their bodies.

"I think," she said slowly, "We should maybe not do that anymore." Marissa looked relieved as if Alex read her mind.

"Good. Good idea. We're friends now, right?" Her nervousness was coming in short waves now, and Alex's understanding attitude was helping them subside.

"Right." Alex smiled widely. "Friends."

"What the fuck is going on?"

The booming voice of an angry boy from Chino broke both girls out of their bubble. Neither girl moved even slightly, both their bodies frozen in a guilty tableau. It certainly would look suspicious to anyone who randomly barged in without warning. Both girls knew that nothing they could say would make it look anything less than "caught red handed", so to speak. Alex finally looked down at Marissa in curiosity. It wasn't her boyfriend that was looking for a really good explanation.

"Uh." It seemed damn near impossible for Marissa to formulate anything more than monosyllabic nonsense. She stuttered briefly but only succeeded in another strangled sound. Ryan's glare was growing more clouded with anger the longer her stared at them. Alex had to turn away so he wouldn't see the amused smile that was threatening to turn itself into full-fledged laughter if the tension didn't break soon. She struggled to hold in a giggle, but her body convulsed slightly with the effort. Marissa glared at her quickly for a moment, finally able to react properly. She pushed Alex off her with a hard shove, the blonde landing beside her on the large bed. Alex looked at Ryan and had to bite hard on the inside of her cheek in order not to laugh.

"Nothing," Marissa finally blurted out in response to Ryan's demanding question. "Just saying hello."

The boy raised a sceptical eyebrow. "On top of each other?"

"My bad," Alex stated. "I tackled her. I just couldn't restrain my overwhelming jubilation any longer." The sarcasm of her last sentence was not completely lost on Ryan and he gave Alex a distrustful once-over, again. Alex merely smirked.

"Yeah," Marissa chimed in, "It's her fault."

Alex swiftly reached out and with a strong hit, pushed the younger girl off the bed roughly. There was an ungraceful flailing of limbs and a heavy thud against the carpet as Marissa hit the ground below. With a grunt, the thin girl pulled herself back onto the bed.

"Fuck you," she growled, unamused.

Alex pushed her again, but Marissa caught on before falling, using Alex's belt as a safety rope. Ryan watched the exchange with a mix of worry and disbelief. He guessed they would be acting a little less playful and little more guilty had he actually interrupted anything. And remembering back a few years, it might be a good idea to give his girlfriend the benefit of the doubt unlike she had given him when she caught him with Caleb's girlfriend. Except there was one troubling difference:

Caleb's hot girlfriend was never his ex. The state of their relationship lately had been rocky and the arrival of Alex back into Marissa's life set his nerves on edge. He waiting until Alex and Marissa were done bitching at each other before stepping further into the room to regain their attention.

"We still going out today?"

Marissa looked confused. "We had plans?"

"Uh, yeah, Marissa. We had plans."

The brunette pursed her lips thoughtfully and looked back and forth between her boyfriend and her friend. She squinted for a moment at Ryan. "Can Alex come too?"

It was obvious that Ryan was displeased with the idea but he reasoned that it would probably be safer than the alternative: Him saying no, then Marissa cancelling all plans with him to hang out drinking her face off with her lesbian ex-girlfriend. At least he could keep an eye on her, on both of them. And truthfully, he'd never really had a chance to hang out with Alex. The extent of their relationship had been one painfully awkward date and her throwing beer at his head and trying to beat the shit out of him. He figured that if Alex was going to be around for a little while, around his girlfriend, he should make some kind of effort. Isn't that what love is about? Sacrifice?
"Yeah. Sure." He tried to sound at least comfortable with the idea, if nothing else.

At first the walk had been insanely awkward. Marissa was forced to split her attention between her visitor and her boyfriend. It was further complicated by the fact that Alex wanted nothing to do with Ryan. He was merely a presence interfering with her conversations. Marissa saw the tension between her friends but decided just to go along with it for now. Alex would probably loosen up once she was around Ryan longer.

By the time they had walked to the pier, things had not become easier, at least not for Ryan. It seemed as if Marissa was solely involved with Alex and ignored him altogether. She and Alex chatted almost constantly about things that weren't not interesting to him in the least. It was somehow more important to talk about clothes and food and shoes and music than anything of any consequence. He wouldn't deny that he was curious what Alex was up to back at her home in L.A. but he would never ask her himself. So far so had offered nothing about that. And why would she? She and Marissa probably talked about all that stuff all the time. Clenching his jaw, he continued to stay silent.

Finally, the girls skidded to a stop in front of a small gourmet ice-cream parlour. They both stared at the large window in awe and desire. Ryan rolled his eyes.

"You want something?" he asked Marissa, trying to mask his annoyance. She nodded silently. He looked at Alex.

"You too?"

"Yeah," she nodded, not offering a flavour or anything helpful. He let out a groan and stood quietly beside them. Eventually, Marissa realized what was going on. She slapped him lightly on the arm.

"Vanilla."

He looked at her, a brow raised in questioning. "Are you serious? This is a specialty shop and all you want is vanilla?"

She glared at him. "Yes. I always get vanilla. It tastes better here."

"Fine," he sighed and gazed at Alex. "And you?"

"Chocolate."

He bit his tongue to hold back a less-than-friendly response at her choice of plain chocolate. "Okay." Boring flavours, he thought to himself grudgingly. Alex's assumption that he would be buying hers as well was slightly off-putting but as with most of his thoughts lately, he tried to push it aside. He heard a giggle as he walked away.

The bell twinkled lightly as he entered the small ice cream parlour. It smelled faintly of a dairy, like Dairy Queen, except not quite so chemical. There was a wispy aroma of chocolate sauce and gingerbread. He couldn't quite figure out where the latter came from. The list of flavours seemed unnecessarily long and complex. He had no idea what half the flavours were. Moose Tracks? Blue Moon? On top of his ignorance of gourmet ice cream, he also had no clue what specific vanilla or chocolate the girls wanted. French Vanilla, Tahitian Vanilla, Vanilla Cream, Beyond Vanilla? Chocolate Explosion, Really Dark Chocolate, Brownie Chocolate Affair?

Screw it.

He stepped up to the counter.

"Can I help you?" a young girl asked, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. He briefly wondered how someone could love their job so much.

"Yeah, uh, can I have two cones, a vanilla and a chocolate?"

"Which kind?"

"Um, like, the best ones."

She looked at him with amusement. "The best ones?"

"Yeah, the ones that you think taste the best," he offered, trusting her judgement. She smiled at him again and shrugged, grabbing two cones from the rack. As she begun carefully scooping the ice-cream, Ryan glanced out the large window. He saw the two girls standing closely on the pier, resting against the railing. Too close. Alex said something, prompted a laugh from his girlfriend and they turned to each other. Marissa ran her hand down Alex's arm slowly. The action caused an immediate red flag to shoot up in Ryan's brain. He quickly calmed himself, assuring himself that he was being paranoid.

Then Alex said something, looking more seriously at her ex-girlfriend. By now the girls faces were barely an inch from each other. He sucked in a deep breath, not liking what he thought he was going to see.

Suddenly Alex snapped her teeth, pretending to bite at Marissa and the girls laughed together, Marissa throwing her arms around Alex's neck and hugging her close. The blonde reciprocated the hug with vigour and they gently wrestled back and forth. It was an airport hug as Ryan liked to say. One of those hugs that you see in an airport, welcoming someone home. So jubilant and relieved. He almost expected to see them starting jumping up and down and squealing. It made him irrationally angry. The jealousy the Alex experienced in regards to him and Marissa earlier that year was now flipped around.

"Sir?"

He whipped around to glare at the girl for interrupting his brooding but quickly retreated seeing her confused gaze. He offered a tight smile and reached for the cones, tossing a 10 on the counter. He left the shop hastily to interrupt his girlfriend and her ex-girlfriend. He really wished he could have heard their conversation because as soon as they saw him emerge from the shop, they pulled apart. He suddenly longed for things to go back to normal, and moreover, regretting allowing Alex to come along with them. He just wanted he and Marissa to be like they once were.

It had been almost an hour. Ice cream cones had long been ingested, complete with the ritual of swapping cones every minute. Ryan didn't understand this. All he could gather was that it was something they "used to do, like, all the time". It figured really. Marissa always liked the best of both worlds. Chocolate and vanilla. Cake, and eating it too. Girls and boys. He quickly shook that last thought from his head. Now they were yapping about senseless things that only succeeded in making his head hurt with their inconsequence. At least when he and Seth discussed comics or movies or something equally mundane, it somehow related to real life issues, if it didn't directly segue into a serious discussion. This chatter was just... Pointless. Because of this, he had barely said two sentences since they had stopped eating the ice cream.

He was about to push one of them into the ocean. It was debatable at this point which girl was annoying him more.

There was the added annoyance of their constant touching. It wasn't like an occasional smack here and there. They were incessantly poking and flicking and stroking each other. It was all in play but Ryan felt there was something else going on under the surface. Especially with the softer touches. There was no doubt that they were flirting and trying their damnedest to make it look like nothing. Not to mention the fact that they both had constant smiles. It was unnerving and Ryan kept wishing that Seth was around to keep him company.
Then they could make fun of the girls together. Hell, even having Summer around would suffice. He doubted Marissa would act quite the same if her best friend were around. Obviously he wasn't enough to keep her attention divided but maybe Summer could accomplish that.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ryan caught the movement of Marissa's fingers poking Alex's waist.

"Enough!"

Ryan's yell stopped them both in a tableau of guilt. Only their confused expressions betrayed a hint of animation.

"Enough," he said more softly and the girls relaxed but continued to stare at him, bewilderment obvious.

"What?" Marissa asked sounding genuinely confused. She exchanged glances with Alex who shrugged.

"You two. Just stop it," he almost pleaded.

"What?" Alex echoed Marissa's question.

He sighed in exasperation and kept glancing nervously between the two girls. "That-that touching thing."

"Touching thing?" the girls asked in unison.

"The flirting, the constantly touching each other. Just stop it." Ryan was reaching the end of his patience. Alex looked as if she was going to laugh.

"Flirting? You've got to be kidding me!"

Ryan looked solemnly at her for a moment. Then he started poking and touching her as he had witnessed a few minutes earlier. He complimented his actions with exaggerated giggles. Alex squirmed away from his fingers, frowning. When she backed away, he glared back at her, no hint of delight on his face.

"You're telling me that wasn't flirting."

"Not when you did it," Alex snapped back, amused. Marissa laughed lightly. "Look, me and Marissa are friends, okay? So you can either join in or shut up."

Ryan clenched his jaw. Alex's attitude was not something he wanted to deal with. If she kept it up much longer, he was worried he might lose his cool. As much as she had egged him on before, he seriously doubted that she wanted to be on the receiving end of a Ryan Atwood punch. He just wished he could enjoy her company as much as Marissa did. If he wasn't so convinced that she wasn't trying to be "just friends" with his girlfriend, that might be possible. Alex's glare dared him to react. She knew as well as he did that if he lay a fist on her, Marissa would snap their relationship immediately.

The tension weighed the threesome down. Marissa only watched the anger and distrust blaze back and forth between her friends. She figured they just needed to split up for a while. It would allow both Ryan and Alex to cool down. She knew Alex too well. She wouldn't forget this and she hadn't forgotten anything Ryan had done to her in the past. She was willing to refuel the fire if only to get back at him. Even if she didn't want a relationship anymore, she still had a score to settle. Alex hated losing.

Marissa thought back to card games and board games that they would play. She'd brush it off if Marissa won, but she was too competitive to let it go. The consolation prize usually involved some pouting and prodding. Still Marissa knew how easily it was for her to get Alex to relax.

It wasn't quite so easily with Ryan. He often exploded more violently and nothing she could say would really make all that much of a difference. Where as with Alex she could curl up next to her, whisper kisses along her jaw and laugh and the disappointment would be forgotten, Ryan needed to brood. And now, Ryan could do that but there was no way to start that with Alex now. They were just friends, regardless of what Ryan thought. She put a hand on both of their arms.

"How about we all go home? Get something to eat. Alone."

The three teenagers considered the idea. Finally Ryan looked at his girlfriend. "Sounds good." Alex nodded and pulled out her cell phone. Marissa looked at her curiously.

"Calling Jake. I'll call you after dinner," she stated, not offering Marissa any other options. Ryan look relieved. Marissa looked confused by the sudden dismissal, especially as Alex began walking away, talking to Jake on her phone. She was still irritated. Ryan put an arm around his girlfriend, and they walked back to the parking lot.

VII. GIRLS AND BOYS

The club was fairly full when the threesome finally arrived. Luckily, Marissa had enough forethought to get them on the guest list prior to coming to the front door. She recited her name for the bouncer and he let them in with a smile. All ages nights were a god-send. In a short amount of time, Marissa had managed to get herself quite buzzed on the gift drinks that of-age male patrons had given her. Ryan, although not new to this method, was not particularly fond of it. More than once he had to step in and keep them off her. She had no qualms about shameless flirting to get alcohol. The lax in house security at this specific club seemed to work in her favor. In the process, she had gathered quite a few shots for Alex as well, the absence of neon wristbands be damned.

The music pumped out a steady beat, reverberating along the floor. Different than the Bait Shop for sure, this place had energy, spunk, and never-ending dance beats. People moved fast and drank hard. However, the current song could be debatable. Blur? At a Newport dance club? It almost seemed bizarre.

Marissa enjoyed the surrealism, especially with the added bonus of being able to ignore the tension between her boyfriend and ex-girlfriend.

"C'mon!" Marissa urged, grabbing onto Alex's hand. The blonde girl gave her a sceptical look and took a long swallow of her drink, resisting the insistent tugging on her arm. Marissa pouted dramatically and pulled harder.

"Alex," she whined. "Let's go dance!"

Alex shook her head, trying not to let Marissa convince her. She yanked her hand away, almost hitting Ryan in the face in the process.

"No, Marissa! I don't want to."

The taller girl's eyes narrowed in suspicion as she looked back and forth at Ryan and Alex. She grabbed Ryan's drink and took a long swig, spilling a small trickle down her chin. Drunk and disorderly Marissa wasn't a strange sight to either of her ex-lovers but that didn't make it anymore enjoyable to watch. She wiped an arm over her mouth and glared at Ryan accusingly, as if it was his fault Alex didn't want to dance. In part, it was. Alex didn't want to start anything that could spark any kind of argument. In addition, it had slipped Marissa's mind that Alex had never, even at the beginning, liked to dance… unless, of course, she was wasted.

Ryan glared back at his girlfriend with equal displeasure. "Maybe you should stop drinking now."

"Shut up. I'm fine," she snapped, growing tired of people telling her to stop doing things. The fact was that she had greatly reduced many of her vices, especially after Trey was shot. But tonight was an exception, and a needed one at that.

"Ryan."

She didn't sound like she was asking a question, or asking permission to ask him a question. She merely stated his name. It almost seemed as if she had to remind herself of who he was. He had a teacher like that once in English. Every time he got a paper back, it would read, "Ryan, this is moderately good work. You could look into developing your argument a little more, Ryan." Every other sentence seemed to contain his name as if she would somehow forget whose paper she was marking. Now Marissa was the animation of that English paper.

"Marissa," he responded in kind, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Ryan." For some reason now she seemed scolding.

He really wanted to keep playing this game but he knew what the outcome would be.

"What?"

"We need to talk."

There was a silence as Ryan debated his response. She stared out the passenger window as she awaited his next move. It wasn't that she wanted to talk, so much as she had to talk to him. She really wanted to avoid it as long as possible but the issue had been hanging around for about a month now. With Alex back in town, temporarily at least, it was even more complicated. She had been around for the last 4 days, always hanging around. And Marissa certainly didn't have a problem with it but Ryan seemed to be fuming constantly. He was getting better, slightly. He even made a few jokes with Alex lately. But that wasn't enough.

Ever since their talk on the pier, Marissa and her ex-girlfriend has been determined to stick to their mutual plan. No kissing. No teasing, at least not in a sexual way. Nothing that could be construed as flirting. When Alex had first arrived back, their kiss on Marissa's bed had been a mistake. That much was agreed. The talk on the pier while waiting for ice cream had only set the boundaries more clearly. But for some reason, the stronger the boundaries, there was a stronger desire to push the limits, tempt meaning. Even last night, when they had all met up again to get a bite to eat, the tension was still present. Although waning in its intensity, it was getting on Marissa's nerves.

"So talk." He had resisted any smartass remarks that Seth had trained him so well for.
Marissa groaned and glared at him. "Don't be an ass, Ryan."

There was the name again. He quickly swerved off the road and put the Land Rover into park. They sat in silence for a few long minutes. Finally, she let out a drawn-out sigh.

"I think we need to take a break."

He said nothing, content to stare blankly out the windshield.

"Did you hear me?"

There was still no acknowledgement.

"Okay," she said, suddenly feeling nervous and uncomfortable. "I just think that things are really weird right now and a break would let us both get out heads on straight."

He let out a derisive chuckled. "A break would let you get it on with Alex, you mean."
"This has nothing to do with Alex," she affirmed for what felt like the hundredth time since she had come to visit. It was tiring.

"Yeah. Right. So, Alex just shows up out of nowhere, pushes herself back into your life, right between the two of us and you two constantly flirt and gush over each other like idiots. Then you randomly decide to break up with me and I'm supposed to think it's not to get back with her? That sounds really plausible, Marissa." He was seething just below the surface.

"It's not! Why don't you ever trust me? Ever?!"

"It's all just a little too convenient."

"You know, whatever. I tried to be good about this. For your information, I'm not with Alex. I'm not going to be. We're friends! But no, you can't accept that. You don't trust me after all we've been through. Good to know." She crossed her arms stiffly across her chest and glared at the dash.

"I don't trust her. It's not about you."

"Like hell it's not about me."

"Not everything is."

"Bullshit. This is."

Ryan turned the key in the ignition roughly. "Okay, Marissa. I'm glad we had this talk." He jerked out of parked and revved the engine back into traffic. "So you want to be dropped at Alex's lesbian drug hole, or what?"

She clenched her jaw. "Take me home. Now."