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"The Way We Were" is the second episode in the second season of the Fox drama series The O.C.. The episode aired on the eleventh of November, in 2004.

Synopsis[]

As Junior Year begins, Ryan and Seth try to rebuild their relationships with Marissa and Summer, but both of them seem to have moved on or tried to. Caleb is charged for his crimes with the Newport Group and tries to get Sandy's help. Sandy reaches a breaking point in his anger with Kirsten and Jimmy is left by Hailey.

Plot[]

It's the first day of Junior Year and Seth is trying to talk Ryan out of going back to school. Seth is worried about running into Summer who hasn't spoke to him in a long time. Ryan tells Seth to talk to her and apologize who asks him if that is what he said to Marissa. Ryan becomes worried about seeing Marissa who he also hasn't spoken to. Ryan and Seth walk into the kitchen while the remodeling is still taking place in the Cohen household. Kirsten tells the boys that they are registered for school they just have to fill out some paperwork. Their remodeler, Archie, drops the boys off at school and they see Summer and Marissa almost immediately. Marissa hugs Ryan and Summer runs in the opposite direction with Seth going after her. Ryan tells Marissa that he is back for good and they plan to catch up together after school. Seth tries talking to Summer but she doesn't want to hear it and tells Seth she is done waiting for him. Summer reveals to him that she has a new boyfriend and leaves to meet with him.

Summer and Marissa - The Way We Were

Summer and Marissa spot Ryan and Seth back at Harbor High.


At the pier, Hailey is taking a phone call on Jimmy's boat. It sounds like a new job is being offered to her with good money when he shows up. They share mimosas together and reflect on their summer. Jimmy asks Hailey to go traveling with him but she hesitates. Ryan is given his new schedule and his counselor compliments his GPA from last year. She encourages him to start thinking about colleges due to his test scores and grades. She asks what he wants to do with his life and what his interests are. Ryan isn't sure so she gives him a task to complete, writing down everything he likes or doesn't like about his classes.

Seth finds Ryan at lunch and tells him about how Summer has a new boyfriend. Seth assures Ryan he will be okay since he will invest his time into his clubs like his comic book one and shows Ryan the flyer. Seth put a comic version of himself on the flyer which Ryan thinks will make Seth more of an outcast. Seth argues his case and asks Ryan to be apart of it and to pass out the flyers to more people. Ryan sneaks away as Seth yells at him to hand them out.

Ryan - The Way We Were

Ryan is intrigued to find out that Seth is on the flyer of his own comic book club.


Summer is driving Marissa back to her house to get her car. Summer asks if her and Ryan are going to the carnival for round two as a repeat of last year at the carnival in The Heights. Marissa says they are planning to talk after school and asks if it is a bad thing that they might get back together. Summer argues that the boys can't just walk in and out of their lives whenever they want to. They pull up to Marissa's house but she won't be able to leave since the yard guy, DJ, is blocking the driveway. Summer tells Marissa not to yell at DJ and says how hot he is. Marissa gets out and walks inside passing DJ on the way in. She's putting on lipstick when DJ walks into her room. He walks up to Marissa and she kisses him. They start making out and he asks to see her again after school. They appear to have been having a secret relationship since he started working there.

Marissa and DJ - The Way We Were

Marissa has a new relationship with DJ after he started working as a yard guy in the summer.


Back at Harbor, Marissa is drinking to what appears to be coffee when Summer grabs it and takes a sip. It's actually a cup of alcohol and this concerns Summer since they are at school. Summer throws it out and asks what is wrong. Marissa isn't sure what to say to Ryan and tells Summer about her relationship with DJ that had been going on all summer. Marissa hasn't been enjoying her relationship with DJ much and says that now that Ryan is back, she doesn't know what to do. Summer tells her to explain herself since Ryan left.

Sandy meets up with an anxious Caleb who has already started drinking for the day. Caleb reveals to Sandy that the DA decided to indict him with bribery of city officials to obtain building permits. Caleb claims it isn't true but admits in doing things he shouldn't have done. Sandy says they won't have a case if Caleb is sure it isn't true. Caleb tells them that the DA does have bank statements that show money from the Newport Group being sent to the city counsel's office. Sandy asks how that is even possible to which Caleb says he isn't sure and asks for his help, but Sandy isn't sure how.

Ryan meets with Seth for his comic book club meeting. No one else showed up but Seth proceeds the meeting as if that isn't the case. A guy from the water polo team shows up and asks to join. Seth is utterly confused and so he quizzes him. The guy gets all of Seth's questions right and they both really get along with each other. Seth is very impressed with him and welcomes him, named Zach Stevens, into the comic book club. Zach and Seth walk together talking about meeting up for the comic book club and then picking out comics after. Seth tells Ryan how much he loves Zach and as they walk further they spot Zach and Summer kissing. Seth cannot believe they are dating and claims that Zach is a version of Seth.

Zach, Summer, and Seth - The Way We Were

Seth spots his supposed favorite new person, who just joined his comic book club, Zach, kissing Summer.

Ryan and Marissa look at her huge new home together and catch up on the summer they spent away from each other. Ryan explains how him and Theresa weren't exactly a couple in Chino. Ryan asks Marissa if she is dating anyone and she says she isn't. Ryan asks her to go to the carnival with him and she asks to go on the ferris wheel. They laugh and he goes in to kiss Marissa. They kiss while Marissa looks up and spots DJ. She stops it and moves him away from her to show him the rest of the house.

Ryan and Marissa - The Way We Were 2

Ryan kisses Marissa who is looking at DJ and pulls away.

Hailey tells Kirsten about her job offer in fashion and sales that is in Japan. Hailey tells her that Jimmy doesn't know about it and is having a hard time trying to tell him. Jimmy appears to be making a lot of money from the market and Hailey thinks he is stuck as she really wants to go make a life for herself. Caleb stumbles home drunk with Sandy guiding him as they run into Julie. Sandy tells Julie about Caleb's indictment and how he has been under investigation for months. Julie thinks that Sandy spites him and threatens the fact that if Caleb is going down, Kirsten is going with him and pushes Sandy to do something about it.

Kirsten walks in with groceries and asks Ryan how his first day of school was. Ryan says it was good and she knew about Ryan's assignment. Kirsten is talking about how the counselor wants to set up a meeting to talk about Ryan's future in college when Sandy and Archie come into the kitchen arguing over the fact that Archie misread the blueprints, the culprit in why the renovation is taking so long. Ryan pulls up the blueprints and offers Archie an easy solution. Archie asks Ryan if he is an architect to which he says he just spent a lot of time in construction. Archie yells at Ryan and says he can't tell him how to do his job which makes Sandy fire back, yelling at him to not speak to Ryan that way. Archie quits and Kirsten asks Sandy to apologize. Sandy tells Kirsten he is done apologizing and done putting his life on the line for the family and getting nothing in return, storming out.

Kirsten goes to Sandy and tells him that he was right about Archie and that she will call a new contractor. Kirsten apologizes to Sandy about the way she behaved that summer and how she was upset about the boys being gone. Sandy says that what he said earlier wasn't about her and she says he only goes off like that when it is about her dad. Kirsten figures out that Caleb did something. Ryan goes to Seth who is sitting in the dark in his room. Seth asks him how it went with Marissa who tells Seth that she is going to the carnival with him. Ryan invites Seth to come but it doesn't sound great for him. Seth knows that Summer won't want to be friends with him anymore and Ryan encourages him to try and call. Seth says it is too late.

Hailey finally tells Jimmy about her job offer in Japan. Jimmy is shocked that Hailey is wanting to leave and offers her a chance to have a life with him in Newport and asks her to marry him. Hailey is stunned but there is no answer. Summer is meditating in her room, listening to a voice memo from her therapist when she gets a knock at the door. She answers to find Ryan at her door who awkwardly asks to come in. Ryan tells her he came on his own and that he owes her an apology that Seth left because Ryan left. Summer assures Ryan it was not his fault and that Seth did it all on his own. Ryan says that he knows Summer has a boyfriend now to which Summer says that she is just hanging out with Zach. Summer says she doesn't want another boyfriend and Ryan tries to make a case for Seth. Summer says that they moved away for months and things can't go back to what they used to be. She says how she moved on and so did Marissa and encourages Ryan to talk to her.

Summer and Ryan - The Way We Were

Summer and Ryan have a heart-to-heart conversation about the way things evolved over the summer.

Marissa finds DJ in her backyard and tells him to stop calling her. DJ asks who Marissa was kissing earlier and tells him she might be getting back together with her old boyfriend. She tries apologizing to him but they end up arguing about their relationship over the summer. DJ threatens to quit which causes Marissa to have a breakdown. As Marissa is crying DJ goes to kiss her and this is just as Ryan pulls up and sees them. Ryan tells Seth the next day and how he just left when he saw them. Ryan is confused since Marissa said she wasn't dating anyone. Seth thanks Ryan to talking to Summer for him. Seth wants to try again with Summer but Ryan encourages him not to since she wants to try as friends. Seth says he is going to make another grand gesture.

Marissa and DJ - The Way We Were 3

Ryan catches Marissa and DJ making out.

Caleb joins the Cohens for breakfast and claims he isn't dragging Sandy into anything. He apologizes to Kirsten saying that he did all he could for his family. Caleb leaves to interview with lawyers but Sandy asks him to stay. Caleb agrees and heads off. Ryan is meeting with his counselor and tells her that he didn't write anything but he did draw out the plan for the Cohen's new family room. She takes his schedule and adds advanced math and science classes saying he needs them if he wants to become an architect.

Ryan - The Way We Were 2

Ryan's future seems to be heading down the path of becoming an architect.

As Kirsten is leaving work, Jimmy visits her and tells her that Hailey left for Japan. Jimmy tells her how he asked Hailey to marry him but she left. Jimmy now feels lost since he wanted to spend his life with her but Kirsten points out that it wasn't realistic. Kirsten encourages Jimmy to make some changes in his own life as well. Seth and Ryan wait at the entrance, scared and hesitant in going into the carnival. They reluctantly walk in and reminisce on last year's carnival. Ryan spots Marissa near the ferris wheel and wishes Ryan luck. Marissa tells Ryan how she was going to tell him but Ryan claims she wasn't and lied to him. Marissa yells at Ryan saying that he wasn't coming back and tells Ryan about her relationship with DJ over the summer and how they aren't together anymore. Ryan changes his mind and tells her they should just be friends. Marissa claims how they have never just been friends and Ryan leaves.

Marissa - The Way We Were

Marissa stands up to Ryan saying that he left her and she moved on.

Zach and Summer are bonding at the carnival when she spots Seth. He's getting up onto a hot dog stand and she walks over to him. He stands up and starts to make a grand gesture and says to Summer that he loves her when Zach walks up and hears everything. Zach and Summer turn to leave but Seth tries to get her to listen. Seth won't back off so Zach steps in and tells Seth to back off. Summer and Zach leave and Seth watches when Ryan asks if he is okay. Seth goes after them and stands in front of their car, hoping they will stop. Summer gets out and hits him. She asks what he wants from her and he says he wants her. Summer claims he doesn't want her and only makes it about himself. She gets back in the car and leaves with Zach. Ryan finds him and they both head home to find Sandy, Kirsten, and Caleb having takeout.

Summer - The Way We Were 3

Summer stands up to Seth saying that he only wants her when he can't have her.

Ryan and Seth tell Kirsten, Sandy, and Caleb about their first few days back at school and how they are no longer with Marissa and Summer. The doorbell rings when officers come to the door to arrest Caleb. Caleb says goodbye to his family as he is taken into custody. Sandy tells him not to say anything and takes on being Caleb's lawyer.

Cast[]

Starring[]

Guest Starring[]

Co-Starring[]

Quotes[]

  • Summer Roberts: What do you want from me, Cohen?
  • Seth Cohen: I just want you.
  • Summer Roberts: No, you don't. You had me. You had me at Chrismukkah in a freaking Wonder Woman costume and you chose Anna. You had me three months ago and you left.
  • Seth Cohen: And I wanna make that up to you.
  • Summer Roberts: It has nothing to do with me, it is about you and it is always about you. What you need and what you want. You know, it seems that you only want me when you can't have me. You like the chase and that's all. So, you know what? You can have it.

Music[]

Trivia[]

Gallery[]

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