By: MaroonAgain

The Alternate Universe

Chapter One: The Beginning

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to The OC or the characters.

"Come on man, did you bring the goods or not?" demanded Johnny Harper in an agitated voice as he took a seat next to a tall thin boy with jet black hair.

Seth Schnaittacher rolled his eyes as the newcomer took a seat next to him on the bench.

It was a busy afternoon in the Moreno Valley Mall. As usual the mall was flooded with shoppers hurrying from one place to another. Seth usually did not operate out in the open like this, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Seth glanced around the crowd of passing people and spotted two surly looking mall cops eyeing him suspiciously.

Seth gulped.

"Dude, bro, did you bring it or not?" asked Johnny again, raising his voice a little higher.

"You wanna be any louder, man? I'm sure there are a few people down at the other end of the mall that didn't quite catch what you were saying." retorted Seth, sarcastically.

Johnny narrowed his eyes.

"I just don't see what you're all freaked out about. We've been in much tighter spots before. Remember when we were chased by the cops after stealing that ladies Porsche? She about had a heart attack. And, after we ditched the car we got away scot free!" said Johnny with a laugh as he gazed off into space.

"Um, correct me if I am wrong here but, I am pretty sure that lady did have a heart attack." said Seth.

"Yeah, well you were being a little bitch and wouldn't get into the car." said Johnny, as though this settled the matter.

"Dude, you put a gun in her face. What did you expect?" said Seth.

"Look man, you're the best supplier I know. Do you have the weed or not?" said Johnny, his eyes back on Seth and his tone business like once more.

Seth paused for a moment before tapping his jacket pocket.

"Of course I do." he said with a grin.

"Sir, I am going to have to ask you to turn out your pockets." came a loud assertive voice directly behind them.

Seth and Johnny both jumped to their feet as though the bench had been electrified.

"I'm sorry, can you repeat that for me?" asked Seth, nervously.

"Look kid, don't play dumb with me. I know exactly what the two of you are up to. Turn out your pockets or I am calling the cops." said the mall officer in an aggressive tone of voice.

It was in that instant, when both boys looked at each other, that they reacted.

"Hey, get back here!" yelled the security guard as both boys got to their feet and tore off in opposite directions.

Seth, not bothering to look over his shoulder, began to run as fast as his legs would carry him into the crowd of people. There were shouts and yells as he bumped into passers by. Ahead of him was the escalator. If he could just get to it he knew he would be in the clear—

The next thing he knew he was laying flat on his back. The world has suddenly turned upside down and then with a loud crash he hit the floor. It was all over. Seth looked around to see police officers intermingled with security officers as he was surrounded on all sides. He could feel cuffs being placed on him, and someone speaking to him loudly and clearly. He could only hope that Johnny had fared better than he had. That he had managed to get away.

Sandy Cohen walked into the visiting area of the Moreno Valley Police Department, waiting for his client to emerge. He hated this part of his job. Everyone in the public defenders office always looked to him to take these cases. Sandy had to admit to himself that he did not mind in the slightest. He would rather help some hopeless kid navigate his or her way through the justice system than deal with cases involving some rich entitled lunatic throwing a tantrum because their neighbor wanted to grow their hedges over their backyard fence. He had to admit though, it was depressing when he saw what the justice system wanted to do to some of these kids.

Sandy took a seat at one of the available tables and picked up the case file for today eager to do another run through before his client arrived. The kid was from Corona, arrested for possession with intent to distribute. Sandy noticed in the report that another boy was mentioned. It appeared that this other boy had managed to slip away. They wanted to charge him with a felony possession. Sandy was about to go through the kids report further when the buzzer sounded, indicating that his client was coming in.

"Sandy Cohen, I'll be your—"

Sandy was struck dumb. It was as though he had looked in a mirror that depicted himself as a teenager. It was quite shocking but Sandy quickly recovered, sticking his hand out to shake the boy's.

"Hey, Seth Schnaittacher. I take it you have been appointed as my public defender. Nice eyebrows man, are all lawyers as killer as you?" said the boy with a laugh as he took a seat opposite Sandy.

"You gonna take care of these charges?" Seth asked hopefully.

"Well, since this is your first offense it appears, I am sure we can plead this down to a misdemeanor. You're gonna be looking at a petty fine and probation but little to no jail time." replied Sandy.

"Look at you go man! Right out of the gate!" said Seth.

"So what's with the weed kid? It says here in your file that you scored off the chart on your P-SAT's and your grades are quite exceptional too. It seems you just have a small problem with tardiness and an apparent disregard for authority figures, but you could easily turn those grades and test scores into a college scholarship. Have you given any thought to what you want to do after high school?" said Sandy.

At this Seth actually smirked.

"Come on man, be realistic here. Have you seen where I come from? You think kids like me grow up to be doctors, teachers, lawyers?" asked Seth pointing at Sandy.

Sandy paused for a moment before replying.

"I did." he said in a hard voice.

"Yeah, well all the better for you I guess." said Seth sounded deflated.

"Look, selling dope because you think it's cool, or the only way to make a living is stupid, and it's low, and those are two things you can't afford to be—" said Sandy, his tone more aggressive.

"Yeah, well add them to the list then." said Seth as he ran his fingers through his unkempt hair.

"You can change that kid! Start attending class and get over the fact that life dealt you a bad hand. Look, you and I, we're cut from the same deck. I grew up no money, bad part of the Bronx. I was pissed at the world, but I didn't let it stop me." said Sandy.

"Look at you now." said Seth raising his eyebrows at Sandy.

There was silence for a few moments before Seth speaks again.

"So can you get me out of here?" he asks politely.

Sandy smiles.

"Yeah, I've already posted your bail. You'll be out as soon as they finish your paperwork."

Ten minutes later found both Seth and Sandy outside in the blazing California heat. Seth, back in his normal clothes, squinted around for a sign of his mother.

"The police department notified her last night that you had bee arrested and my office confirmed this morning that she would be here to pick you up once you were released from custody. Give me a second and I'll try and give her another.

Sandy pulled his cellphone out of his breast coat pocket and dialed the number that his office had provided him.

"All I am getting is a busy signal." said Sandy.

"What a wonderful way to start the weekend." says Seth in a defeated tone as he slumped to the curb.

"Where do you live?" asked Sandy, looking down at Seth.

Seth looked up at Sandy.

"Not too far, about thirty minutes up the road." he said with a groan.

"Want a lift?" asked Sandy with a smile.

"No, it's alright. You've done so much for me already. I can take it from here."said Seth.

"Well, here have this anyway." said Sandy, pulling out one of his business cards.

Seth looked down at the card, as he got back to his feet, then looked up at Sandy.

"It's got the number to my office on there as well as my cellphone. You know, just in case things get to be too much. Give me a call." said Sandy.

"Why are you doing all this for me? You've already done so much as it is just by getting me out of there." asked Seth as he hitched his backpack a little further up on his back and picked up his skateboard.

"Like I said before, I've been where you are now. If I did not get the guidance I had received along the way, I wouldn't be where I am now." said Sandy.

Seth nodded.

"I'll be in touch with you soon, Seth." said Sandy with a wave of his hand.

Slightly curious as to just how soon that might be, Seth put skateboard wheels to pavement and began his trek back home.

Thirty minutes later found Seth walking up the street mere minutes from his house.

It was then that he spotted a familiar black BMW parked just a few houses down. He noticed it was parked outside his house.

"What are you like, the California night stalker now? What are you doing out while the sun is still high in the sky?" asked Seth as he approached Sandy.

Sandy's chuckle was short lived.

"I got a grin out of you. I'll take what I can get. So what brings you to my neck of the woods? I figured I would not see you this soon." asked Seth with a quizzical look on his face.

"And you say that like it's a bad thing." said Sandy as he followed Seth's gaze up to the house.

Seth looked from the house, with it's overgrown front yard and peeling paint, then back to Sandy and let out a long drawn out sigh.

"Sh — she isn't there, is she?" he asked in a hollow voice.

"I'm sorry, kiddo." said Sandy.

"Well, this wouldn't be the first time that this has happened." said Seth dejectedly as he started to make his way up to the house. He knew he would find his things in his bedroom.

"Don't bother." said Sandy.

Seth stopped and turned to him.

"Sorry, the door was unlocked when I knocked. Come on, let's go." said Sandy, patting Seth on the shoulder and walking around the front of his car to climb into the driver seat.

Seth put his backpack and skateboard in the backseat of Sandy's car, then climbed into the passenger seat.

"This is a really nice car. I didn't know you lawyer's make this kind of money." said Seth with a surprised look on his face.

"We don't. My wife does though." said Sandy with a smirk.

Within ten minutes they had made their way onto the interstate.

"Look, I know I was kind of a smart ass earlier, but just so you know, thanks, for everything." said Seth, seriously.

"I am gonna make sure everything works out for you, Seth." replied Sandy.

After a lengthily drive up into the coastal hills the houses began to grow larger and larger. Seth's eyes grew round as dinner plates as they pulled into a gated community where people in golf carts milled around and ever so often a passer by waved and gave a cheerful greeting to Sandy.

As the car pulled up into the drive way of what appeared to be the largest and grandest house Seth had yet seen, Sandy spoke.

"So, I think it best that you stay here for the moment. I haven't really let the wife know that I was bringing company for the weekend." said Sandy.

Seth raised his eyebrows.

"Well best of luck?" said Seth, not all very convincingly.

Seth watched as Sandy walked up the drive and into the house.

"Kirsten?" Sandy called as he closed the front door behind him.

"In the kitchen, Sandy." came the voice of his wife.

Sandy quickened his strides and found his beautiful, blonde wife rummaging around in one of the kitchen drawers.

"What are you doing?" asked Sandy.

"Going through take out menus. How does Thai sound?"she asked pulling out a large stack of to-go menus and spreading them out on the kitchen counter.

"That sounds great—" began Sandy.

He knew it was best to just say what needed to be said.

His wife reminded silent for the few minutes that he explained why he did what he had done.

Then —

"You brought him home?" yelled Kirsten.

Sandy bit his lip.

"This is not some stray kitten, Sandy. Did you even think about Ryan?" she demanded.

"Look it's just for the weekend. Just till Child Services opens on Monday." explained Sandy walking around the kitchen island to stand in front of his wife.

Kirsten looked up from the menus and stared at her husband.

"I knew it was only a matter of time before you started bringing your work home with you. Now we get to have a felon live under our roof—"

"Come on, Kirsten. Seth is not some felon."

"Did you not meet him in jail?" asked Kirsten, raising one of her eyebrows.

"Yes, technically, but it wasn't for a felony—"

"Okay, it was, but it won't be when I work my magic!" said Sandy as Kirsten just looked at him before walking around him and making her way out of the kitchen.

"Where are you going?" asked Sandy.

"Where do you think I am going, Sandy? That kid is going to need fresh sheets, a towel and a tooth brush. Oh, and he is sleeping in the pool house!" finished Kirsten as she left the kitchen and vanished around the corner.

Sandy grinned to himself.

Back outside Seth sat, drumming his fingers on his knees. He wasn't very fond if being in confined spaces for extended periods of time. He unlocked the passenger door and stepped out into the cool California evening air. He grabbed his skateboard, and strolled down the drive way. It appeared that the Cohen's lived in a cul-da-sac. Seth smiled to himself. Minimal traffic in and out. In other words, a perfect spot to skate without fear of being hit by oncoming traffic.

As he began to circle the cul-da-sac, Seth had to admit to himself that, in another life, obviously, he could see himself growing up here. Sure, he had not yet met anyone else in Newport, but if they were anything like Sandy, he could tolerate them.

Suddenly the brimming darkness was filled with bright, white light. Seth, caught off guard lost control of himself and his board slid out from under his feet. He hit the ground on all fours as something loud, roared past his field of vision.

"Watch it, jackass!" came a male voice from the large black truck that had so nearly hit Seth.

Seth got to his feet and looked over to see the truck parking in the driveway of the house adjacent to the Cohen's. As he walked over to retrieve his skateboard Seth noticed two slender, attractive girls climbing out of the truck. The first was a little shorter than the other with long dark hair and tan skin. The second girl was about a head taller than the first, with brown hair and fair skin. The second one seemed to be talking to whoever else was in the truck.

The first girl was walking up to Seth with a mixed look on her face of concern and anger.

"You really shouldn't be doing that, you know!" she demanded.

"It's, like, dark out. What if he had hit you?" said the girl.

Seth watched the truck back out of the driveway for a brief moment and got a good look at the driver. Tall, short hair, and muscly. Even at a distance Seth could tell that this was not someone he could see himself being friends with.

"Hello?"

Seth's attention turned back to the dark haired girl.

"Well, it wouldn't be the worst thing to happen to me this week." said Seth.

The girl chuckled, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Who are you, anyway?" she asked as the second girl walked up behind her.

"Me? Oh, I'm nobody." said Seth, taken aback at both girl's beauty.

He gulped.

"Nobody, huh?" asked the second girl.

"Seriously though." asked the first girl, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Seriously—" said Seth, pausing for a brief moment to ponder his response. He decided with the truth.

"I was selling drugs at the mall to a friend of mine and got caught by the man. Went to jail. Then got out of jail and found out that my mother had up and moved out of our old house. Probably drunk, or on drugs, or something along those lines. I had nowhere to go, so Mr. Cohen took me in." said Seth.

Nobody spoke for a few seconds, then the second girl asked, "You're their cousin from Austin, aren't you?"

"Sure, lets go with that. I can see myself hanging with the hipsters in coffee shops and I kill for live music!" said Seth.

The first girl laughed again.

"Hello, ladies!" came a voice from behind Seth.

Sandy had made his way down the driveway and had walked up behind Seth, smiling at both girls.

"Hello, Mr. Cohen. We were just saying hello to your nephew." said the second girl.

Sandy looked confused for the briefest of moments before he replied.

"Well, Marissa, this is my favorite nephew, Seth. All the way from Boston!" said Sandy.

"Boston, huh." asked the first girl, raising her eyebrows.

"Mom, lives there! Dad lives in Austin. Ugly break up, you do not want to hear the details, trust me!" said Seth in a hurried voice.

The first girl laughed yet again.

"Well, Summer, we're all really excited for your fashion show fund-raiser tomorrow night." said Sandy.

"Oh, you are?" asked Summer turning her attention away from Seth for the first time.

Sandy bit his lip.

"No." he said as everyone laughs.

"You should come by, you know, if you're not doing anything tomorrow." said Summer as she turns her gaze back towards Seth.

"I will have to check my calendar and get back to you but I am pretty sure I can make that happen!" he said with a shifty grin.

Summer smiled then turned to Marissa.

"Come on, Coop." she said as she waved to both Seth and Sandy before making the trek back up the driveway.

"See ya!" said Marissa before turning around to jog and catch up with Summer.

"Look at you go, making friends already!" said Sandy as both man and boy walked back up the driveway and into the large house.

Seth was in awe of the inside of the house. Sandy led him through the living room and kitchen and out the backdoor, past the sparingly clean pool and into the pool house.

"Well, this is the queen of the castle herself, my wife Kirsten." said Sandy as Seth reached out to shake her hand.

"Welcome to our home, Seth if you need anything, do not hesitate to ask." she said extending a warm smile in his direction.

"We will see you in the morning, kiddo!" said Sandy as they both left, leaving Seth alone in a very unfamiliar environment.

Bright sunlight pierced the windows of the pool house, as Seth awoke the following day. Groggy eyed, and tousle haired Seth made his way into the kitchen where a blonde haired boy about his age was sitting at the table, eating cereal straight from the box.

The boy paused as Seth entered.

"Hey." he said.

"Hey." said Seth with a wave.

"Coffee?" asked the boy, who then pointed at the coffee pot next to the stove.

Seth walked over and poured himself a measurable amount before turning back to the boy.

"I'm Seth, nice to meet you." he said.

"Ryan." said the boy.

They shook hands.

The boy seemed good natured, thought Seth, even if he didn't seem to talk much.

Seth walked back over the the kitchen island and Ryan spoke again, "Beagles are in the pantry if you want one. Cream cheese is in the fridge, too."

"Damn, you're good." said Seth as he pulled a fresh beagle out of the pantry.

"Well, I see that you two have met." said Sandy.

"Ah, a beagle man, huh?" he added looking over at Seth.

"Best way to start the day in my opinion! And speaking of the day, it's beautiful outside. Ryan, why don't you show Seth around?" asked Sandy, who was spreading liberal amounts of cream cheese on his beagle.

"What do you want to do?" asked Ryan looking around at Seth.

"i don't know. What do you guys usually do around here?" asked Seth.

The afternoon passed in a haze of fun. Both Seth and Ryan spent most of their time riding around Newport. Seth on his skateboard and Ryan on his bicycle. Ryan showed Seth the local diner down by the pier and they also spend an enjoyable couple of hours watching the waves roll in.

"I have to say, this place is something else!" said Seth, smiling as they walked back into the Cohen household.

Ryan nodded.

"I can't believe your dad surfs. That is so cool, man!" said Seth as they walked into the kitchen; Ryan grabbing a water from the fridge and tossing it to Seth before grabbing his own.

"Alright, you two. I figured we would all head over to the fashion show at about seven." came Kirsten as she walked into the kitchen, closely followed by her husband.

"Yeah, no thanks." said Ryan.

"Come on, it's a new school year, Ryan." said Sandy.

"Yeah, and it's still the same group of kids, dad. I don't really want another year, like last year." said Ryan.

Sandy paused for a moment. Seth assumed they were both sharing a tense family moment.

"Look, I understand, but you can't just hide out here at home. Plus, Seth has to go. Summer invited him." explained Sandy as though this would settle the matter.

Both Ryan and Kirsten paused looking perplexed as they both turned in unison to look at Seth who was leaning against the stove.

"Hey, don't you pin this on me man." he replied, raising his hands in front of him.

"Summer invited you?" asked Ryan, sounding amazed.

"What can I say man, she must dig the jew hair." said Seth.

Ryan's lip twitched.

"Almost a smile. Don't worry we will get there!" said Seth.

The sun had started to sink low over the Pacific as Seth stood in front of the full length mirror, admiring himself. Sandy had managed to find an old suit for Seth to try on. It was a tad roomy in the shoulders but other than that, it fit quite nicely.

"Looking sharp. And the tie, too? I didn't learn how to tie a tie still I was twenty-five." said Sandy as both boys followed Kirsten out the front door.

The drive out to the fashion show is a short one, though Seth noticed that Ryan seemed a little subdue.

"So, what happened last year?" asked Seth in a quiet voice so that Sandy and Kirsten could not hear them.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it." said Ryan.

Seth didn't pursue the subject.

A few minutes later they arrive and Kirsten handed her car keys over to the valley. She and Sandy waved to the boys and then walked off to meet up with a few of the other adults while Seth and Ryan ventured off into the crowd.

"So are we meeting up with anyone else here? I see some people that are around our age. Who knows maybe Summer and Marissa are around here." said Seth looking around as though there might be a sign post that explained where the two girls were.

"Look, I kinda just keep to myself. And I would rather not see Marissa if I can avoid it. Last thing I need right now is to run into her or Luke again." said Ryan as they sat down at a table next to the runway.

"Alright, I'm sensing something happened between the three of you. Don't worry we can just leave it at that." Seth said quickly at a look from Ryan.

"Besides, I can honestly say that I do not like the kid much, either." said Seth, who then explained all about the incident the night before in which he had nearly become road kill.

By the time Seth had finished his story, the show had started and girls in different beautiful gowns and dresses began to make their way out onto the runway. Seth watched as Marissa walked out into the runway to loud cheers from Luke who was sitting right across from Ryan and himself on the other side of the runway. Marissa spotted Seth and Ryan and gave them a small wave which did not go unnoticed by Luke. Seth watched as Luke leaned in to communicate with three other boys, all of which seem to be built along the same line as Luke was.

Next out onto the runway was Summer who strutted her way down the runway only to pause to shoot a smile at Seth. One of the dark haired boys next to Luke shot a look at Seth that clearly meant he wished him great pain and suffering.

"Um, who are the other three guys over there with Luke?" asked Seth nervously to Ryan.

Ryan glanced across the runway at the boys then looked back at Seth.

"Well, the one on Luke's left is Zach. He and Summer use to be a thing but as far as I know they are just what you would call friends now. The guy on Luke's right is Chip, and I believe the other guy is Norland. I don't really know too much about them other than the fact that they are all on the water polo team and are always with Luke." said Ryan.

"Lovely. Hey, I'm gonna go take a leak real fast. I'll be right back." said Seth in a hollow sort of voice, getting to his feet and making his way towards the restroom.

Upon entering the bathroom he heard what sounded like a man crying in one of the bathroom stalls. Seth walked over to one of the urinals and after finishing his business gave the handle a turn. A loud flushing noise filled the bathroom and the crying that was coming from the end stall came to an abrupt end. As Seth busied himself with washing his hands as a tall man with grey hair emerged, and, taking one look at Seth, hurried out of the bathroom without a backward glance.

"Awkward." said Seth to himself as he dried his hands.

Seth made his way back to where Ryan was sitting and quickly filled him in on what he saw in the bathroom.

"A guy with grey hair in a black suit? That could be anyone, Seth." Ryan replied, rolling his eyes.

Seth looked hastily around the room.

"There, it was that guy! said Seth excitedly pointing a long finger across the runway.

"Will you put that down!" hissed Ryan, knocking Seth's hand away so that nobody would see.

"Right, we don't want to compromise our cover." said Seth.

"That's Summer's dad." explained Ryan in a somber sort of voice.

"Family trouble? Maybe she needs a shoulder to cry on. I can supply said shoulder you know." said Seth, more to himself than to Ryan who was looking at him like he was crazy.

"Do you hear yourself sometime?" asked Ryan.

"Sorry, what?" asked Seth. Clearly he was not paying attention.

"Come on, lets get out of here. It looks like its wrapping up." said Ryan who was getting to his feet.

As both boys made their way to the exit, a hand reached out and pulled Seth back.

"Hey, where are you going?"

It was Summer. She was still in one of the dresses she had been wearing out on the runway and seemed out of breath. Had she ran to meet Seth before he left?

"Um, well the show seems to be coming to an end so we were just going to head back home." said Seth.

Behind him, Ryan nodded, though he did not make eye contact with Summer.

"Well, Holly — um, one of my friends, she's is having a party at her parent's beach house. You know, for all the hard work we've been putting in and stuff. You — both of you, should come out." said Summer awkwardly.

"Yes — yeah, that sounds like fun." said Seth at once before Ryan could add his two cents.

"Cool." said Summer, who turned slightly pink, smiled then turned and ran back towards the changing room.

"Seth, are you serious?" asked Ryan once Summer was gone.

"Look man, we go for a little bit and if it sucks we can always bail!" said Seth with a pleading look on his face.

Ryan did not say anything.

"Look, we avoid Luke and his group of beefed up buddies and just have a drink. Come on man, I never get the chance to go to cool parties, and the ones I go to tank pretty early. Plus, how in the hell was I suppose to tell Summer no?" complained Seth.

"Alright, we will go for one hour." said Ryan firmly.

"Wow, now this is what I would call a party!" said Seth as he and Ryan crossed the threshold.

The music was blaring loudly from speakers on the ceiling and the house was crammed full of people. Drinks littered the coffee table and in a far corner off the hallway Seth could see two or three other people smoking what he could only assume to be pot.

"Remember, one hour!" yelled Ryan over all of the hubbub.

"You got it, dad. Now come on, lets have a drink!" said Seth making his way outside and dragging Ryan with him.

"What the hell is he doing here?" demanded Luke, as both Ryan and Seth exited out the backdoor.

"Well, I'm not too sure why Cohen is here, but I believe Summer invited that other kid out." said Chip, who was sitting on the counter drinking a beer.

"She what?" demanded Zach Stephens in an angry tone.

"Yeah, I overheard her telling Holly she had invited that new kid out and since he is staying with the Cohen's, Ryan came too." explained Chip.

Both Luke and Zach looked outraged.

"Well, their time here is going to be short lived!" said Luke as both he and Zach marched out of the kitchen and out the backdoor onto the patio.

"Where are they off to?" asked Marissa emerging from the bathroom with Summer.

Summer took a look around the crowed house, a frown on her face.

"They just went outside to grab another drink!" said Chip, inventing wildly and hopping down off the counter and running after both Luke and Zach.

"Come on. Let's go see what they are up to." said Marissa, following Chip.

Both Seth and Ryan were a few yards out from the back of the house keeping warm by the large bonfire that was blazing merely down by the water.

"I gotta tell you Ryan, you're a really cool guy. This was probably the best weekend I could have ever asked for." said Seth, raising his drink to toast Ryan's.

"Yeah man, maybe when my dad is done working his magic you can come visit sometime. I know for a fact the pool house will always be available." said Ryan taking a sip of his beer.

"Yeah, that would be pretty cool!" said Seth with a smile.

"Well, well, well, look at you go, Cohen. You got yourself a boyfriend." came a malicious voice from behind them.

Both Ryan and Seth turned around to see Luke and Zach walking up to them. Their arrogant features flashing in the bright light cast by the fire.

"I had no idea you were a queer." laughed Zach.

Ryan's face hardened.

"Look, we aren't here to cause any trouble you two." piped up Seth nervously.

"Shut the hell up!" yelled Zach.

"I don't know who the hell you are, or what you're doing here in Newport but you best be leaving. Take your boyfriend with you, freak." said Luke in a menacing voice.

"Shut the hell up." said Ryan on a soft, but dangerous voice that still carried over the whisper of the flames.

"What did you say?" asked Luke, even though he had heard exactly what Ryan had said.

"I said, shut the hell up." said Ryan again, louder.

Luke's eyes narrowed, then he struck, leaping around he bonfire he tackled Ryan into the sand.

"Get off of him!" yelled Seth, leaping into action.

He tried to pull Luke off of Ryan, but to no avail.

With a roar of fury Zach launched himself at Seth, knocking him over.

With a strong right swing Zach's fist connected with the side of Seth's face. Meanwhile Luke was hitting every square inch of Ryan he could reach.

"Stop it! What in the hell are you two doing?!" came a female voice. It sounded both angry, and terrified.

All of a sudden Seth felt Zach's weight lift from his body, though it still felt as though he had been struck by a freight train, Seth looked around to see a crowd of people standing over them. In the distance he could make out both Summer and Marissa standing with Luke and Zach, both of whom were breathing heavily. Had it been one of them who had screamed out? Seth rolled over and slowly staggered to his feet. Ryan, a few feet away was also getting to his feet.

"So what do you think of Newport?" asked Ryan, sarcastically, as they pushed their way through the sea of watching eyes.

"To be honest, I think I can get in less trouble where I'm from." said Seth with a laugh that turned into a groan of pain.

"Please don't make me laugh." winced Ryan.

Back at the pool house Seth took off his suit jacket and cast it to the floor before collapsing onto the bed. Ryan busied himself with building a makeshift bed against the wall.

"You're not sleeping in your room?" asked Seth.

"And get caught by my mother?" asked Ryan as he laid his head down on a pillow.

"Look man, about earlier. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have tried to get you to go out to that party when you clearly didn't want to. Thank, though, you know. You totally had my back." said Seth as his head hit the pillow.

"See you in the morning—"

Ryan grunted form across the room.

In what seemed like no time at all, to Seth anyway, bright brilliant sunlight had filled the pool house and with a loud slam of the door, he was jolted awake.

"Thank God! Where in the hell have you been?" came the angry voice of Kirsten Cohen.

Ryan awoke with a start and rolled over to look up at his mother, a bruise blossoming above his eye.

"Have you been fighting?" she yelled.

Ryan did not answer.

"Up. Now!" demanded Kirsten as Ryan got wearily to his feet and was marched out of the pool house. Kirsten turned to glare at Seth as the door to the pool house slammed.

"What happened to you?" asked Sandy as the rest of the Cohen family entered the kitchen.

"Ryan got into another fight!" said Kirsten with her arms crossed.

Sandy looked from her to his son.

"Look it wasn't our fault. We were standing around out on the beach when a few of the guys from school started bullying Seth. What was I suppose to do?" asked Ryan turning to look at his mother.

Kirsten opened her mouth, paused then closed it.

"Look, be that as it may, we've talked about this before. No fights! Remember what almost happened last tim—" began Kirsten

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry but I couldn't just stand there and do nothing while they picked on Seth." said Ryan, cutting his mother off.

"Standing up for the little guy, huh. Spoken like a true Cohen." said Sandy, taking sip of his morning coffee.

The backdoor opened and Seth walked in.

"Hey, I just wanted to say that what happened last night was not Ryan's fault. I was the one that dragged him out to that party in the first place. He didn't even wanna go. If you're going to yell at anyone it should be me. Ryan didn't start the fight." said Seth, his head downcast.

Sandy's starting to put two and two together.

"I think we can push this mess under the rug though I have to say, maybe you two should just hangout inside for the rest of the weekend. We can keep an eye on you both and your less likely to get in any trouble." said Sandy, looking over at his wife.

Kirsten said nothing.

"We'll have a quiet Sunday and then on Monday we can go down to Child Protective Services." said Sandy.

From his tone of voice Seth could tell that Sandy was probably looking forward to that trip almost as much as he was.

Seth's face seemed to deflate at the thought of leaving.

"You got it. Stay inside, and stay out of trouble. Monday I get to be part of the system." said Seth biting his lip and nodding.

"Hey, don't you worry. We'll get you through this kiddo. This weekend won't be the last you will see of us." said Sandy.

"Thanks. that means a lot, seriously it does." said Seth turning his attention to Kirsten.

"And thank you for allowing me to stay the weekend." he said.

Kirsten smiled as she sipped her coffee.

"If it's alright with you guys, I'm gonna go back to sleep." said Seth.

With a nod from both Sandy and Kirsten he waved at Ryan, and made his was slowly back towards the pool house.

:END:

Author's Notes:

Well, that is the end of chapter one. I've always wanted to write fan fiction for The OC and I though what better way to start than by putting Seth in Ryan's shoes. I got the idea from a fan fiction I had read back in 2008 and used bits and pieces to help sculpt my story. This Alternate Universe will follow the main story line of seasons one and two a little bit, although I will be adding my own spin on certain events. Expect to see many other characters from the show cast in a different light. I hope you enjoyed the start of my story and I would love it if you could leave a review!