The Aesthetic of the Mistake by Lalejandra (PG-13)

[thepouncer.livejournal.com]

Fandom: THE O.C.
Pairing: Summer/Various, mention of Seth/Ryan
Author on LJ: lalejandra
Author Website: None that I know of
Why this must be read: I began the month with a trio of Anna-focused stories by Lalejandra, and once she wrote this Summer piece, I knew I had to close out the month with it. Summer wasn’t featured in the closing montage of The Ties That Bind, but one has to imagine that Seth’s sail into the sunset would have affected her profoundly. In this story, Summer flees to a refuge of her very own – Anna’s home in Pittsburgh. Summer goes on a journey where the steps aren't large, but the effect on her is huge.

An excerpt:

All this means that while it comes as kind of a surprise when Anna says, “Seth is gone, Ryan’s gone, and Marissa is being a bitch, right? So come here,” it’s not totally out of left field. You’d think Summer had joined the Communist party and given away all her worldly possessions (did they still do that?) the way Coop reacted. And Summer’s parents. And—well, that was it, wasn’t it? Summer could have taken the car and gone to see Ryan in Chino to tell him and see how he reacted, but that would require going to Chino, and Summer just wasn’t willing to sacrifice.

I’m off to the Outer Banks tomorrow for the Memorial Day weekend, so this is my last recommended story for the month. I have hopes that I’ll witness cute high school boys fighting on the beach, and one of them will utter, “Welcome to the O.B., bitch!”

I hope you’ve enjoyed some of my favorites among the many talented fanfiction writers for The O.C..

The Aesthetic of the Mistake